|
|
|
Lets Paint The Kettle Black,Do You Have A Bitch On Whats Going On Around The Site Or Any Thing Negative To Report
|
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 11:12 |
Link to this message
|
|
@All ... I think, too, that while we speak the same language (more or less LOL), we the U.S. and the UK are different cultures, certainly similar in ways, but not in others. I befriended a British policeman once; he was part of some professional exchange program (what an accent he had too! It was what creaky once referred to as "cringeworthy" LOL!) I'll never forget something he said about Philadelphia reminding him of a Charles Dickens novel ... virtually no middle class but just the upper crust and the riff-raff you kick to the curb. It's not only true of the cities, the middle class in the US has been on a rapid decline toward a two class system. Strangely, employment has been on the rise yet the middle class slipping into poverty has increased by a far greater percentage. Operant conditioning can be a good thing as well as a bad; if you tell a whole class of people that they're worthless often enough, rest assured that they'll become that way and consider it their destiny in life. England had a huge problem with this before the second world war and their outlook on life as a whole seriously reflected it as did the class system which went to the point of extremes. Where England has slowly been getting away from this, the U.S. is slowly slipping into it.
|
|
Advertisement
|
 |
|
|
|
Shardel
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 11:27 |
Link to this message
|
|
billybob
Sorry if you felt I offended you. That certainly was not my intention.
People in the younger generation have more opportunities and a more
universal perspective than when I was in school. I have much respect for many of the younger generation. I just feel sad that some are
missing the opportunity to be all they can be because they haven't
developed the capacity to challenge themselves.
The younger generation today is exposed to a much wider spectrum of
things than we were, but their perspectives on what they are exposed
to come from personal principles. Most of the younger people I have
seen contributing to Afterdawn are outstanding. I wish the best for
you in every way.
By the way I'm a lady not a guy.
|
Senior Member
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:06 |
Link to this message
|
Quote:
Sorry if you felt I offended you.
Jesus. Not at all! Wipe that thought, definately not. I was merely commenting :D Seriously, you could not have got it more wrong, im far from offended, i actually agreed with alot of you said if you read my comment :D
Hell, say what you want, i hate the younger generation, even though im part of it. So many idiots who have the opportunity that their parents didnt, and they are letting it go to waste, leaving the "make something of life" to their children etc.
Im trying to make the most of it.
p.s Speaking of opportunities, if anyone can give me career advice id appreciate it.
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:14 |
Link to this message
|
Here in the US, a lot of the causes for the poor education levels now, was when government took away ultimate authority from the teachers. Parents backed up the teachers and there was disciple. Then the lawyers started with the "poor johnny who was punished" and lo the school board had INSURANCE, and it provideth a tidy sum and soon the government stepped in. So now dwelleth the good students in private schools and the poor in the public schools. The segregation is still there but it's not black-white, it's poor-rich. And all these wonderful new jobs are service rated and provide no benefits and minimal wage. That's what the education from high school is: minimal wage. The truly sad stories are those poor, intelligent students stuck in the public schools. JM2C
And gerry's right- we didn't have a lot of gadgets but we never had any free time on our hands and 3 channels were enough. Most of us were not Fat, we had real PE.
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:17 |
Link to this message
|
|
A Serious Bitch this afternoon! As some of you know, I got into and accident which resulted in multiple spinal cord injuries and a lot of surgery all of which left me with certain disabilities and a chronic pain patient. Because of both pain and slowly increasing tolerance, I take some rather serious dosages of narcotics several times a day and have for many years. For the first time ever, a woman at the office asked if she could buy some from me like I'm a street corner pusher! It seriously pissed me off and came a hair from complaining to my superiors but decided against it. My doctor warned me that I should never let anyone have a single one of the oxycontin tablets I take (not that I would anyway) because, due to tolerance and my physical consition, I take either 80 or 100mg tablets when the average is 10mg; in short, just one tablet of what I take can overdose and kill someone unaccoustomed to it for a long period of time. I explained this to her telling I couldn't give her any and when I said it, her eyes lit up and she became even more persistant. Damn was I pi$$ed off!
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:21 |
Link to this message
|
@Garmoon:
Quote:
and 3 channels were enough.
LMAO! We didn't even have a TV LOL! (Yes, it had already been invented for you young whippersnappers out there!) But signals were entirely broadcasted in those days and certain rural and lower elevations didn't have any reception at all. We'd go to my uncles to watch TV but we couldn't receive the signals where I grew up. Lord, how did we survive such things LOL!
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. July 2007 @ 12:22
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:24 |
Link to this message
|
|
Very pleasantly even with no AC here.
|
Senior Member
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:36 |
Link to this message
|
Quote:
just one tablet of what I take can overdose and kill someone unaccoustomed to it for a long period of time.
Well yes, when things kill people...its generally a long term thing :P
p.s^^^
I hope u see the funny side to that mate. I know u were pissed off.
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:52 |
Link to this message
|
|
gerry1 sorry that you suffer such drudgeries every day. :)
On the pain meds, my step-dad takes "large" doses of medication as well. He has morphine pills when it gets to bad for him. I don't know much about pain meds but I do know morphine is bad stuff. I don't take pills unless they are prescribed by a physician or if my pain goes beyond the normal threshold. I'm a large man as you know and played football, wrestled, and baseball as a younger man and IT's really affecting me now. :P I know you take some strong stuff but it takes 4- 200 mg Advil before I even think about "relief" from pain when I take them. NOW take into consideration that I take these maybe 1-4 times a month CAUSE I hate pills.
complaint of the day:: I play golf as most of you know. BUT it causes pain in my lower back and spine generally. I played yesterday for the first time in over 2 weeks and I'm dying right now. gerry1 can you send me one of those "pills" you were talking about. hehehe. :P NO really it stinks when you can't do something you love cause it means SERIOUS pain later. Guess I'll have to take up more fishing or computer time. THat'll make my wife happy. hahaha!!!!
....gm
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:55 |
Link to this message
|
Originally posted by gerry1:
just one tablet of what I take can overdose and kill someone unaccoustomed to it for a long period of time.
Originally posted by billyboy:
Well yes, when things kill people...its generally a long term thing :P
p.s^^^
I hope u see the funny side to that mate. I know u were pissed off.
I don't care if he finds that funny or not!! That's FUNNY right there. hehehe. :P @ gerry1!!!
...gm
|
Senior Member
|
19. July 2007 @ 12:59 |
Link to this message
|
|
Ahaha. Thanks mate :D
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 13:07 |
Link to this message
|
|
LMAO!! (Me slaps Billyboy with the old trout!)
|
|
Shardel
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 14:05 |
Link to this message
|
|
Gerry
It sounds like life has handed you a real tough load. I'm impressed
that you are still such a contributing member of society when I lot
of people would have withdrawn. You still have your sense of humor.
That's really great.
|
Senior Member
|
19. July 2007 @ 14:30 |
Link to this message
|
|
I know shardel Im really sorry about that. We try to get rid of him...just no luck yet. And about the sense of humour, we;ve sent him to therapy about that too, but you know. Just...a shambles. Again, im sorry. We tried. Just keeps comin back. When he gets too much we just put brandy in his milk.
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 14:40 |
Link to this message
|
@Shardel ... first, let me say the its great to have a woman aboard! Sometimes, this becomes quite the "boy's club" complete with the occasional distasteful (albeit funny to the boys) locker room humor which we do try to keep under control as there are some kiddies here. (Double entendre makes it funnier anyway LOL!)
Regarding my injuries: I had a nasty accident twenty five years ago which fractured vertabrae (sp?) in the neck and damage also to the lower back. It took me three years to learn to use my left side again but the very fact that I can, despite admitted difficulties, is quite the miracle in itself. I had just gotten out of the marine corps and I was in very good physical condition which literally saved me from a life like Christopher Reeves! The thing is, it was a long time ago and, to some degree, a certain level of pain is the status quo and you do get use to it (or jump off a brigde LOL!) Like anyone would do for lack of alternative, you learn to cope and adapt though I do get a bit schitzo after a couple of weeks of the really nasty stuff when it acts up.
I did have a depression problem for a while after the injury but you know how it is with us males, you're a wuss if you speak of such things. Eventually, I did talk about it with my dad (a pragmatic old farmer who just turned 101 LOL!) I told him I was having a depression problem and the old coot simply said "Of course you are, look at yourself! If you didn't have a depression problem, you'd really be nuts" LOL!
Simply put, you grieve and feel sorry for yourself for a while but you come to terms with it. Such is life and while I wish it hadn't happened, most people who suffered my injury end up controling their wheelchair with their teeth! So, I sometimes bear that in mind and, however strange it must sound, I'm very grateful to be that rare one in a million that fate was kind to in the aftermath.
Edit: I thought I'd add there are quite a number of people here who've adjusted well to rather serious conditions. While it would be indiscreet of me to name people, suffice it to say that we have a kid who had a heart transplant, another who is wheelchair bound, another who has cerebral palsy, another I know with a back condition who is now fighting for disability and the list goes on. Great people, all of them, who learnt how to make the most of the cards fate dealt them.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. July 2007 @ 14:56
|
|
Shardel
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 15:42 |
Link to this message
|
|
Gerry
I was so impressed because I know where you have been. 11 years
ago a freak accident broke both my leg bones, shattered the ankle,
broke most of the bones in the foot. Improperly applied cast caused
a blood clot from knee to waist. I was quite literally dying.
Survived 16 straight days in surgery, only to be told I would never
walk again because there were only shadows on the xrays where there
used to be bone from the knee down.
Miracle-I am walking. I hope someday to dance again.
The other miracle is my mind is extremely strong. There has been
pain every day for 11 years. I am able to put the pain aside in my
mind and not have to rely on pain killers. The doctors sometimes
get frustrated with me because I won't take them.
Depression must be hard to deal with. I guess I was fighting so hard
to survive and walk again that I didn't lose my concentration enough
to get depressed.
|
Senior Member
|
19. July 2007 @ 16:09 |
Link to this message
|
Here...i feel like a jerk. You two are having a serious conversation about something that is definately not a laughing matter, yet i see gerry write things like:
Quote:
most people who suffered my injury end up controling their wheelchair with their teeth!
And i cant help ending up in stitches. Theres something about you gerry, your hilarious.
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 16:17 |
Link to this message
|
|
qui.....it's the Frenchman coming out in heeeemm... lol.
gerry1 you are a fun loving little man. lol. Sorry on the little just assumed you was smaller than me. :P
...gm
|
|
Shardel
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 16:23 |
Link to this message
|
|
Gotta love the humor on this site. By the way-haven't seen any of
Ireland's stories lately.
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 16:56 |
Link to this message
|
Originally posted by Shardel:
Gotta love the humor on this site. By the way-haven't seen any of
Ireland's stories lately.
Glad you like it Shardel!! We'll try to keep it as clean as possible but with gerry1 and billyboy you never know. :P
.....gm
btw I think that ireland has taken and extended vacation. I don't want to speak for him but maybe Gerry can elaborate more on the subject. :) Gerry any thoughts? Other than drug induced haziness....LOL
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
19. July 2007 @ 18:10 |
Link to this message
|
@All ... well, yes I do have something to add but in order not to step on anyone's toes, I'll explain in the manner of a parallel simile (for lack of a better term):
In the world of mammals, some are solitary but most of them have similar social structures ... tigers, dogs and wolves, deer, monkeys etc. In the hierarchy of these structures, there are constant attempts by the younger and hyperactively hormonal adolescent males to challenge the older and more mature males in a fight for the position of the "alpha male"; for all to see,they challenge the older and more mature males in a public display so that all can see and comply with said alpha male... they go and butt heads or similarly fight until one relents...always in the presence of this social structure to establish and solidify their claim to the group leadership. I suppose it's just the plain, dumb instinct of these creatures of the of the animal world to do what their adolecent hormonal surges would have them do. Since all of these adolescent males do this and there can be only one alpha male, 99% of them make fools of themselves in the public venue common to their breed and often to the scorn of the others rather than the establishing of the leadership and authority their dumb and hormonal adolescent natures would have them seek. Fortunately, us humans, not having the small brains and even smaller intellect of God's more diminutive species, don't demonstrate the same behavior as the dumb beasts. End of this new addition to Aesop's fables.
Shardel, just a word about this depression; it's called the pain-depression link and there is a web site with forums of the same name. As it happened with me, the onset of it is usually AFTER the struggle is over, not during the fight in which one's determination is in the forefront. It is treated the same was as clinical depression but technically, it isn't the same. Its rather like working with great determination to win a race but collapsing in total fatigue immediately after the finish line. My doctor explained it in this admittedly simplistic manner: when someone is ill, or in pain, the body deliberately reduces dopamine in the brain so that the body can just lose its energy to lay back and heal itself...everyone has experienced it in one way or another ... "The hell with the dishes, I'll do them tomorrow" "the hell with these files, they're not going anywhere so I'll do it later" and this can get rather severe. We don't perceive it as depression because you're not "down in the dumps", but the body reacts the same way as clinical depression. If you get in the state of "chronic pain" from an injury that will never heal and always cause some degree of pain, the dopamine levels of the brain stay low in direct proportion making the body tired, devoid of energy and enthusiasm a permanent thing. Unlike clinical depression though, it much easier to treat because there is less "psychological" baggage even though they use the same medications to raise the dopamine levels. I'm sure you can find a lot of articles in google if you look up "pain-depression link". It happens to 90% of those who suffer chronic pain. If you start getting more lethargic, sleepy, unable to concentrate etc., you don't recognize it as "depression" but it physically affects you the same way. Like I said, it usually happens after the fight is over. If this didn't happen to you, you're lucky but just bear in mind that it can slowly and insideously affect you without realizing it until the symptoms get more severe...gets in the way of your job, no interest in things you use to enjoy etc. I mention it simply because it happens to the majority of people in our situation.
Well, good night all; beddy-bye time for your's truly!
|
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 18:35 |
Link to this message
|
|
NItey-nite gerry1. Thanks for the "insight". :)
...gm
|
|
PacMan777
AfterDawn Addict
|
19. July 2007 @ 19:07 |
Link to this message
|
Originally posted by gerry1:
... A friend of mine was a professor at Temple University. He use to teach literature, creative writing and journal. For the last fifteen of the thirty years he taught, he complained that he did nothing more than teach 5th grade grammar...in one of our major universities...
I might believe that of some of the 2 year colleges with open admissions, but not of one of the major universities. Students from foreign countries still value an education from major US colleges. The main reason I find it difficult to believe is because of admission standards at the major schools. ACT, SAT, PSAT or whatever, there is a heavy English reading and writing component as well as the other basic core studies. Unless the schools are making exceptions, the big schools usually choose from the best students applying. The kids with lower academic credentials make trade school or one of the 2 year schools. None of the classes I took (at one of our major universities) suffered from catering to the illiterate. Most of the professories could care less if you showed or were able to read. They assumed everyone in the class could read and write at the college level, and if the students couldn't hack it, they either dropped or flunked.
I agree on the problem in public schools. Teachers pass students because they don't want to deal with them another year. One teacher passes the buck and a lot of kids get passed over all the way down the line by teachers in higher grades. If "No Kid Left Behind" eventually works, it will be some of the best educational legislation. I'll believe it when I see it though.
Children wanting a good education can still get one. It's a shame though that so much responsibility lies on the back of a child. Interested parents help a lot, but the child still has to make an effort. Today, there's so many parents who don't care.
I heard a suggestion that teachers should be tested on the material they teach. The teacher's associations were outraged. I suspect a lot of teachers were in fear. I tutored some of the students in the ed programs. One of my professors said it best, his greatest fear was that some of these ed students were going to get teaching credentials with nothing to teach. I think it would be a great idea to test teachers to make sure they're capable. I suspect there would be some job openings. Between bad teachers, poor students, and poor school systems (not all), it's no wonder we have so many young people in high school reading at a grade school level, if that.
|
|
gerry1
Suspended permanently
|
20. July 2007 @ 04:21 |
Link to this message
|
@ Pac ... not much time to write this morning but education has been my job for the last fifteen years. The words "I find it hard to believe is a huge part of the problem.
Quote:
I might believe that of some of the 2 year colleges with open admissions, but not of one of the major universities. Students from foreign countries still value an education from major US colleges. The main reason I find it difficult to believe is because of admission standards at the major schools. ACT, SAT, PSAT or whatever, there is a heavy English reading and writing component as well as the other basic core studies. Unless the schools are making exceptions, the big schools usually choose from the best students applying. The kids with lower academic credentials make trade school or one of the 2 year schools. None of the classes I took (at one of our major universities) suffered from catering to the illiterate. Most of the professories could care less if you showed or were able to read. They assumed everyone in the class could read and write at the college level, and if the students couldn't hack it, they either dropped or flunked.
There are many foreign students in Philly but virtually all those students are not matriculated in the state run colleges and Temple University has 30,000 matriculating students. With the sole exception of its specialized colleges within Temple (like their pre-med, dentistry etc.),they accept all high school graduates that apply; there is NO competion. Even students who obtained a GED and never took SATs are automatically accepted. We have a running joke at the office:
Quote:
What is the most common phrase spoken by the typical Philly college graduate:
answer: Would you like fries with that?
If you think what I said is hard to believe, I can tell you with certainty that its merely the tip of the iceberg; I can tell you thing far worse! I wish I had the time to tell you some of my experiences! Since I have a meeting shortly, let me close with the same usage I recently read on a Temple grad's (correction: a Temple sophomor's) application for additional school funds:
Where this meeting at? Reply: I da no egg zackly. I kid you not, my friend!
Edits: poor typing LOL!
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. July 2007 @ 04:43
|
|
Advertisement
|
|
|
Senior Member
|
20. July 2007 @ 08:23 |
Link to this message
|
Originally posted by some geek :P:
Glad you like it Shardel!! We'll try to keep it as clean as possible but with gerry1 and billyboy you never know. :P
Ahahahaha!
Thanks ireland!![afterdawn legend]
|
|
