PLEASE VISIT AGINGRELUCTANTLY.COM
I no longer will maintain this site.
Please visit me at
Thank you and I look forward to your input on my new site.
Harold Shaw
MY NEW BLOG AND DOMAIN
As I discussed the other day I have setup a new blog the name remains the same as my WordPress.com blog…Aging Reluctantly, because I am aging reluctantly and it just seemed fit what I have been writing about for the past 6 months that I have not been a teacher.
I hope that you will take a look at my new blog site:
I believe that I have found a theme that reflects my “good” taste, but as I explore WordPress plugins and widgets, I expect some minor tweeking of the appearance.
Is this blog going to be a money making endeavor – no. This is a personal blog and a hobby, but it will provide me with stability. As I have paid money, I won’t go bouncing around between blog sites and different blogs – at least for the next year 
I hope you enjoy this new adventure of mine. Please let me know what you think of the site and improvement that I can make to it.
Thanks
Harold Shaw
This work by Harold L. Shaw, Jr. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
I FINALLY DID IT
Okay, so I am not happy with the themes at WordPress.com, so what am I going to do about it? Well this afternoon I bought a domain “agingreluctantly.com and signed up for a 1 year subscription to HostIcan.
We will see how this goes? I am having a heck of a time trying to figure out how to start things to get my WordPress going etc. Guess I am going to have to do some reading, man I hate this part of it, that is why I have stayed with the “free” ones for so long, they are easier and you don’t have to know the management side of things. Just have to pick a theme and start writing, no money, no real learning curve.
So I put down money on this blogging thing, does that mean I am getting serious – no not really, it is still a hobby, but if I am not happy and can do something about it, why not try. If this turns out to be too much of a pain in the butt, I will simply come back to WordPress.com, shut up and use the “stock” themes and live within their limitations.
If you have any words of wisdom for me at this point, please give them to me. I am a complete newbie at this web hosting stuff.
JUST IN CASE YOU MISSED IT!
I have embedded President Obama’s inauguration speech here.
I did so more for myself, than you the reader, I believe this is one of those speeches that I want to keep for posterity.
Do good things President Obama.
YES – WE HAVE A NEW PRESIDENT
President Barak Hussein Obama – it does have a nice ring to it!
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES – BARAK HUSSEIN OBAMA
It is no longer President-elect, there are no more fears of an artificial crisis being created by the previous administration, so they could remain in power, all those conspiracy theories can now be put to bed completely.
Main Street Hartland, Maine – Hartland Public Library
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23799756@N07/2272143922/
I truly and honestly believe that he will be Main Street’s President, that his administration’s goals are to revive the “people’s” trust in Government. I just listened to his speech, it was a good speech, not a great speech, but a good speech. I don’t need great speeches at this point and time, I need great action. Without great action, all the great speeches in the world are not worth a damn!
There are no excuses now President Obama. There is only one President at a time and you are now that President. Choose your words and actions carefully, because the Country and the World are all watching what you will do and say.
Are you up to the task you have ahead of you? I certainly hope so. IF you are not the “people” will hold you AND your administration accountable.
Thank you President Obama for giving many people, including myself, in this Country, new hope and optimism for the future of our Nation. It will be a long struggle and there will be much gnawing and gnashing of teeth from your opponents. But battle them resolutely and seriously, the American people deserve simply your best.
Do good work and keep the American dream alive for our future generations, I have two Grandsons, that deserve the opportunities we have had.
By the way did I tell you — The United States of America has a new President!
If you like this entry, have amplifying information or have a different perspective than what I have stated in this post, please comment below – after the tagline in the Comments section.
Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my blog.
This work by Harold L. Shaw, Jr. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
THREE MORE HOURS
In little more than 3 hours our nation will have a new leader.
Why didn’t I put a picture of our soon to be President here? While today is his day in the sun…it is not about him, the map above is what this peaceful change of power is all about. Today is about the future of the United States of America, nothing more, nothing less. It is about the direction that this Country will be taken and will take in the future.
I for one am hopeful that President-to-be Obama and his apparently very skilled team will attempt to bring for CHANGE to the way the Washington bureaucracy does business with Main Street. It has to change, the top down approach has not worked, being part of an administration, does not make one royalty. I believe that the Bush administration forgot that America is supposed to be government by people and for the people – all the people, not just a select few.
I honestly hope that Mr. Obama and his administration (because this is so much larger than just one person – but he is the face of the change that is coming) do bring the change that they promised. They have the opportunity to Change the face of the bureaucracy, Change the opinion of Main Street towards our leaders in Washington, Change the direction of this Country and finally regain our reputation internationally as a leader – not a rogue state that does what it wants because we are big and bad enough to do it.
Unfortunately, I can’t watch the inauguration live 
. I took today off work just to do that, but the wife changed my plans, instead we are going out for lunch at Slates in Hallowell (great place to eat). But I will watch he who will be President Obama (it sounds so refreshing) speech after I get back.
I do wish our new President not luck, but to do well and to effectively use the skills that we elected him on and to lead this Country not just manage it.
That is why I voted for him.
If you like this entry, have amplifying information or have a different perspective than what I have in this post, please comment below – after the tagline in the Comments section.
Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my blog.
This work by Harold L. Shaw, Jr. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
OKAY I KNOW – TOO MANY THEMES
I know, I know…I have been changing themes around way too much the last two days and I am not really very happy with the one I have now. But of the themes available to me on WordPress.com, it is the best one of what I have found there. I can’t complain too much, the price is free.
Maybe i need to look at a hosted site for WordPress, because I really like WordPress better than Blogger or LiveSpaces.
I was relatively happy until someone on Twitter let me know they couldn’t find the where to Comment block. When I checked the theme it was difficult to find, so I attempted to find another with the comments block readily available, but none of the themes were/are exactly what I am looking for.
What am I looking for:
- Easy for a reader to find my Comment block (Digg theme almost had it)
- Pages as tabs in the header
- My tagline is in the header
- Built in Feeds ? I can add these as a widget
- I would prefer a 3 column, but two is okay
- A bluish silver with dark red links
- The ability to use other WordPress plugins.
So I guess if I want all this that I will have to use a hosted site, I am new to the hosted site aspect, does anyone have any ideas????
If you like this entry, have amplifying information or have a different perspective than what I have in this post, please comment below – after the tagline in the Comments section.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.
This work by Harold L. Shaw, Jr. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
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SOCIAL NETWORKING – HOW SHOULD I USE IT?
I have been “doing” this web2.0 for over a year now. I like and understand most of it, but I still have some difficulty figuring out the “does” and “don’ts” when it commes to LinkedIn and Facebook.
I really get how Twitter works for me — you don’t have to follow anyone you don’t want, even if they follow you – it is completely your choice, no one else’s. So I don’t feel funny when I request to follow someone in Twitter, because I know that they don’t have to follow me or give me any reason why they don’t – no feelings of guilt – only Karma. Other Twitter-like applications like Friend Feed, Indentica, etc. all use basically the same idea and I am just very comfortable with this form of social media useage.
When using LinkedIn it is fairly easy to ask to have a “connection” with others because it is for professional networking, but it does require a certain amount of “brassiness” to put yourself out there to connect with others, that you haven’t had a real connection with. I have used it to re-connect with several people that I haven’t seen in years, but still have a little more trouble asking someone to connect with me in LinkedIn.
Then there is Facebook/MySpace type of applications — do you want to have online friends? If I know the person more than casually, I am willing to befriend them on Facebook, (I don’t have a MySpace account – it was a warning from my teaching days and I have maintained that “boundary”), but I don’t see the benefit of allowing lots and lots of people to know my online life. Not that it matters, because if someone really wants to get the information they can easily.
So I guess this is my question of the day…how should a 50 ish guy, who is happily married, gainfully employed, not really looking to monetize his blog (if someone wants to give me lots money – cool, but not realistic), use social networking sites like LinkedIn or Facebook?
Is it okay to initiate an electronic invitation to those we have tenuous or even close work relationships with – in LinkedIn or Facebook or should we ask when we see or talk to them in person? There are not too many company/government employee rules on these issues yet.
My own personal philosophy would be if you are interested in “Connecting” to me in LinkedIn, I have no problem with that – professional networking thing is fine. However, if I don’t really know you or haven’t met you face-to-face, I don’t know if I would be comfortable “friending” you in Facebook. I have for some that I have talked extensively with online or through blogs, but in general, I take a more conservative approach to “friending” people than I do connecting or following them.
I guess I am not that big and brassy person who is just out there. I am a bit more reserved until i get to know other people just a bit.
If you like this entry, have amplifying information or have a different perspective than what I have in this post, please comment below – after the tagline in the Comments section.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.
This work by Harold L. Shaw, Jr. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
THE INAUGURATION WHAT IT MEANS TO ME
On 12:00 P.M. January 20, 2009 history is going to be made. Barak Hussein Obama will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. There is no way around it, history will be made that day. Guess what, many of us will have played a small part of making that history. We have elected our first non-white male as President.
As I listened to his speeches, read what he planned to do and learned his story, I began to respect what he had accomplished, and the direction that he had planned for America if he was elected.
I voted for his message of change, bipartisanship, the intelligence he obviously possesses and his story, his rise to the Presidency from very “humble” beginnings. Many of us are pinning great hopes on this man, to provide us with the leadership to bring our Country back from the “brink” it appears to be teetering on at this point in its history.
However, to a White Anglo Saxon male, who has been a piece of the dominant culture in this Country for more than 200 years, this event in history signals what could be considered a change to this dominance. To many white males this is extremely scary, it means that them and theirs will have to compete with other races on an ever-leveling field (if Obama can do it, why can’t I?) and this is what I thinks scare whites the most. That they will no longer have the Ace up their sleeve to shove others back down based simply on race or what I read in another blog recently “white privilege”. After a black President has taken office more and more things will depend upon the qualifications of the individual than their race. In the bigger picture this will be a good thing for my Country, but not for all individuals who loose their status due to less importance being placed upon being the “right” race. Competition is a good thing – isn’t it?
To me personally, does it matter if the leader of our country is black, white, yellow, red or any other color – no not really. What concerns me is the direction this person will attempt to bring us as a Nation to. I am much more concerned about how we are governed, how policies are implemented, the transparency of how we got there and if things are working the way they were envisioned originally, then what is the new plan — than what color his skin is.
We as Americans and a Nation are at a fulcrum’s point between regaining our international and national reputation/leadership or marching down the path that many other “empires” have gone – loose our Republic to those who’s greed and lust for power overshadow the greater good and will eventually destroy the democratic process that we have today.
I watched parts of one of my favorite movies of all time. INDEPENDENCE DAY with Will Smith. Please listen to speech that that President gives before they go out to fight the aliens
Much of what is said in this clip is what we are fighting for today, only instead of “aliens” we are fighting ideology and dogma, but they are no less dangerous than aliens. We are fighting for our continued INDEPENDENCE. Main Street’s independence from the influence of the rich and special interest groups and to put the needs of our Country first.
How our 44th President handles these pressures will determine greatly which direction our Country will go. It will be good to stop saying President-elect and simply say President Obama. I wish you the best and promise to support you as best as I can, let you know through social media when I disagree and continue to push others to see you as what you will be the President of the United States of America.
So Mr. Obama in less than 48 hours you will be my President, once the reins of power are in your hands, where and how will you lead me?
That is the question.
TRUST IN GOVERNMENT – WHERE IS IT?
Something that has been bothering me a lot lately is “trust” in government. It seems from my perspective at least that the American people have lost faith that our government (at whatever level) has the interests of the American people as the first priority. From my conversations with others, reading the variety of blogs/news and watching various broadcast news casts that there is a lack of both trust or respect for the leadership we have elected to lead us.
The view from the underside (where I am) is that the politicians are paying more attention to the needs of special interest groups (you mean it hasn’t always been that way?) than to the needs of the majority of Americans. Them that have the money and power are loath to improve the plight of Main Street, unless it is affecting their bottom line.
The conservatives are lined up on one side of the aisle and the liberals on the other, moderates are in short supply and leaders that are willing to compromise appear to be in even shorter supply. Ideology is reigning supreme instead of our leaders listening to what actually needs to be done in this country that will benefit the largest number of Americans, not simply the special interest groups. The Ivory Tower effect has been the operating status for far too long in America.
President-elect Obama is using the social media and internet to reach out to the “masses” and allowed them to at least provide a comment on what we perceive is happening out here on Main Street, but he has not taken the oath yet, and his ideas are unproven in today’s “new” political climate. But many progressives and liberals are saying that he is not prepared to “pushback” the Bush years hard enough or fast enough. He isn’t liberal enough.
The conservatives are still in a power hangover, they have had a long time of doing what they wanted and are now worried that their power will wane considerably if Obama and the progressive/liberal agenda does “too” well. Therefore, from all accounts they appear to be on their way to being obstructionist to anything the new administration tries.
This might be a “great” political strategy to regain their power base after all the popular election was only 51% to 49% – not what you could call an overwhelming majority (even though the previous administration didn’t even have that the first time). But how does this affect Main Street? I don’t believe that the conservatives actually care as long as they retain their power and control. They want to continue dribble down economic theory, use secretly signed executive orders and other non-public measures to “control” the masses.
I called for bi-partisanship in a previous post and I really would like to see it work, but for it to work both parties have to be willing to talk, compromise and put the public good ahead of the special interest groups. I really don’t see that happening in the present political climate. Although I hope that I am wrong.
The liberal/progressive agenda is not what everyone want and I vehemently disagree with more than some of it. I believe in the Second Amendment very strongly, that people should work for what they get and many other things that do not make me a true liberal. I am in the moderate camp with conservative leanings.
For this Country to get back on its feet, the first thing that MUST happen is that we make the Federal governmnent more transparent. Publish schedules, agendas, meetings, tell who was there, what was discussed,what options were presented, how decisions were reached, we as Americans deserve an open government. I understand that it can’t be completely transparent, I am not that naive, there are things that cannot be discussed for public consumption, but they also do not need to be hidden after the events are over.
Politicians of any age do not like to have their decisions questioned or publized especially when they have made mistakes. The days of secretly running this country must end, we must open it up.
So Mr. Obama, I hope that you keep to your pledge of making my government more transparent to all Americans, not just a few special interest groups and wealthy patrons. That will restore trust in government more quickly than anything else. We understand that you will make mistakes, but hiding behind classifying those mistakes would be an even bigger mistake.
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