I never missed the Lone Ranger television show when I was growing up. I suppose the portrayal of Tonto would not be politically correct today but what a young boy in Ohio saw was not stereotypes or politically incorrect images.  What I saw were men who cared about each other and had each other’s backs. I saw men who valued law and justice above personal vengeance. I saw two loyal friends. I was remembering those “thrilling days of yesteryear” recently as my bride was going through another round of chemotherapy. I began to consider my role as Joni’s sidekick in this brutal journey. I was thinking how I could be her Tonto to ride alongside her. Remember Tonto’s greeting to the Lone Ranger? Tonto always greeted the Lone Ranger with the expression “kemosabe”. Wikipedia reports that the origin of this expression is somewhat unclear, but James Jewell, an early director of the radio series, said the name comes from a boy’s
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Welcome to a  bonus Holiday edition of “Ask a Bad Christian”. The question came from a long time friend in the television business who asked “Bad Christian” the following question. Hello Dave,  I was wondering if you could do a story on grace and what it means to you. Thanks, Pat I decided this was a good time to write about grace. Why? Because I needed it desperately this weekend. I wrote a lovely little piece last week about the happiest day of the year. I wrote that I thought picking a day based on circumstances and formulas is silly. I noted smugly that we should choose to focus on the Lord and our joy should come from Him. I wrote that I was going to choose joy that day. What was I thinking? Those who are honest about this journey know that when we determine to be more obedient we are often given pop quizzes. I hate the spiritual pop quizzes as much as I did
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I was rummaging through various news sites and I found that I missed the happiest day of the year. Totally missed it! Last Friday was the happy day and I was clueless. Here is the too late (for me) story from USA Today. According to a scholar in seasonal disorders at a British university you should have felt happier than you have all year last friday. Cliff Arnall has analysed such factors as outdoor activities, nature, social interaction, childhood memories, temperature and holidays — data gathered over a period of 15 years in interviews with 3,000 people around the world. His conclusion: June 23 is the happiest day of the year.  “People across borders experience happiness when they meet with friends and family and establish close social relationships,” the University of Cardiff academic reported. “We need some close emotional ties.” He used what he considers a “simple equation” to reach his conclusion — O + (N x S) + Cpm/T + He.
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I know that when you signed up for these humble ramblings I told you there would be no homework. Well, you do have an assignment before you read today’s efforts. America’s Funniest Home Videos featured a hilarious clip of a toddler throwing a tantrum. Dear friend Sue sent me the link this week and I realized it fit perfectly into my Grumpy Old Man series. Click here to watch the Toddler Tantrum. If you didn’t detour to watch the video I will give you a brief description of the clip. If you have finished your homework skip to the next paragraph. The clip is called “The Crying Game” and it features a toddler who is intent on getting attention. He throws himself dramatically on the ground and wails loudly. When the Mom walks calmly by and ignores him, the child picks himself up and goes looking for Mom. As soon as he rounds the corner and spots her he throws himself
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I am embracing my new found role of grumpy old man. I suspect others have viewed me as a grumpy old man for some time but I am just getting around to embracing it. I am on the record as a huge fan of the Muppets. Two very underrated characters were Statler and Waldorf, the two grumpy old guys who sat in the balcony and criticized the show every week. I loved those guys. Here is a sampling of the sarcastic stylings of Statler and Waldorf. Statler:  What would you do if you were a rich man?Waldorf:  I’d buy the network and cancel this show!Statler: Wake up you old fool. You slept through the show.Waldorf: Who’s a fool? You watched it. Statler: I wonder if there really is life on another planet?Waldorf: Why do you care? You don’t have a life on this one! Okay, I will concede that the Muppet faces and voices made the lines funnier. I am thinking
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  Warning: This blog contains no obscenity. There are no references to sex or violence. No ethnic groups will be demeaned. However, according to a recent decision by the Motion Picture Association of America I feel I must post this warning. Parental Guidance suggested. Some material may not be suited for children. Why do I feel compelled to warn you? This article may mention…(cue dramatic music)…Jesus.    I have done a couple of recent articles in my “Grumpy Old Man” series. I wrote about civility being on life support in two recent blogs. I have written about how lawsuits have caused product manufacturers to desperately try to protect us from ourselves. For example…a real warning label that said… Warning: Do not use lawnmower to trim shrubbery Now I read that the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is slapping a PG rating on a movie because it “it heavily laden with messages from one religion and this might offend people from other religions.” Sounds like a job for Grumpy Old Man! But
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This week I confessed my depression over the decline of civility in our culture. I had just posted that grumpy old man rant and hopped in the car to run some errands. The radio tuner was on the Mavericks radio station (ESPN 103.3 FM) because I had listened to game 6 on my home the previous evening. I started to change the channel but I realized that they were discussing the Mark Cuban blog controversy. I decided to see if they agreed with me that Cuban’s blog comments were over the top given that it is linked from the Mav’s site. Co-host Steve Dennis seemed to feel that Cuban’s language and demeanor were a bit of an embarrassment. Co-host Jennifer Floyd Engel plunged me back into depression. I will paraphrase her comments. She informed Dennis (and me by agreement with him) that such sensitivity was a “generational” thing. A caller noted that the “f-bomb” was merely a synonym for love making. He did
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