Happy October and rapidly approaching Día de Muertos or Day of The Dead.
You would think with a daunting name like Day of The Dead you would think the
Dia De Los Muertos would be a day of horror or fright But No.
The spooky celebration originated in Aztec tradition deep in central and southern Mexico.
Celebrated on November 1 and now combined in many places with Halloween. A tradition that honors the dead with festivals and lively celebrations these days typically in most of Mexico and Latin American.
According to National Geographic, “Assured that the dead would be insulted by mourning or sadness, Dia de los Muertos celebrates the lives of the deceased with food, drink, parties, and activities the dead enjoyed in life. Dia de los Muertos recognizes death as a natural part of the human experience, a continuum with birth, childhood, and growing up to become a contributing member of the community. On Dia de los Muertos, the dead are also a part of the community, awakened from their eternal sleep to share celebrations with their loved ones.”
Belief is that at midnight on October 31, the souls of all deceased children come down from heaven and reunite with their families on November 1, and the souls of deceased adults come visit on November 2.
Believers make colorful altars in their homes in honor of their deceased and the altars are decorated with flowers, candles, their loved one’s favorite food and Pan de Muerto, a Pan Dulce, a slightly sweet bread specifically made for this occasion.
Dia de Los Muertos is a time honored tradition that has been celebrated for 3000 years now.
Not even the arrival of the Spaniards in the 16th Century who thought the tradition was sacrilegious was able to extinguish it.
So this year think about inviting people to your house for Pan de Muerto, Go to the cemetery where you can eat rich food, drink Tequila or Mezcal, and have a celebration. Don’t forget to leave your door open because a stranger may just bring a spirit of one of your loved ones along.
Feliz Dia de Los Muertos Amigos.

Is the solution to the mass shootings going on these days as easy as “Open Carry”?
After carrying a sidearm, as a law enforcement officer myself for quite a few years, I often wonder if the solution is really that simple?
If we give everyone the opportunity to “Open Carry” a Side Arm (with special training and certification of course), several things will happen. First, It Will Be So much easier to SEE who has a gun. Second, as crass as it may sound, the BAD and Stupid Ones Will Kill Themselves Off right away.
I totally agree that No One needs an assault weapon. I also believe that “The Right To Bear Arms” as written into the constitution came at a time that our government still thought there was a real threat of being overthrown by another governments militia and therefore provided the average citizen like you and me the right to arm ourselves and our households to prevent such a take over. Those days, however, are long gone.
The need to amend and clarify that part of the constitution has been needed for a long time now because NOW it is being used by gun fanatics way beyond it’s intended purpose.
I was born and raised in Texas. Texas the land where cowboys roam on horses and everyone carried a shotgun or deer rifle in the gun rack in their truck for years without any issue at all.
For all my youth and into my adult life I NEVER saw anyone take one of those shotguns or deer rifles and start shooting people at random until recent years. We need to Pin Point the root cause of that and go from there.
The problem in America today is that there is little or No Respect for the Law and others and their property. These days everyone believes they can get away with anything they want until they get caught and then they believe they can just argue their way out of it.
When confronted by The Law they have No Respect for their Authority and start talking back to the officers and disputing their command from the get go.
Yes, your right, there are way too many Police Officers that take their authority way to far these days and that is part of the problem. Some many officers these days believe that They Are Martial Law and In Total Control No Matter Where They Arrive. Nothing Could be Further From the Truth. State constitutions clearly define the law and authority of a police officer BUT many of them purposely go beyond what the law allows and abuse their authority.
Both of the last two paragraphs define what has led to us to the situation that we are in today. Politicians believe that Gun Control will cure the entire problem. WRONG.
Several things need to happen to correct all this. Police need to Stop Abusing Their Authority and Citizens need to to start Respecting The Law, Others and Others Property. PERIOD.
Yes, OUTLAW AND STOP the sale of assault weapons. Strictly control their ownership and possession and Immediately start seizing assault weapons not in compliance.
Yes, even allow Open Carry so that the average citizen can protect themselves.
Just Another Point of View.

So many people gone just all of the sudden. It’s not like we should be surprised , after all we know from the start that there will be an end at some point.
Still it seems like we’re just never prepared for someone passing no matter how evident it’s meant to be. Dog, The Bounty Hunter just lost his wife Beth Chapman not long ago and to anyone that watched any of their shows she was an icon.
Luis Alvarez was a former New York City detective who was a first responder on September 11, 2001 at the terrorist attacks.
Nipsey Hussle was only 33 when he was killed in shooting outside his Los Angeles store several months ago.
Luke Perry died March 4th at the age of 52 after suffering a massive stroke and sadly the list goes on and on as it will until the end of time for all of us.
But do we ever stop to think that those who died yesterday had plans for this morning. Those who died this morning had plans for tonight. In fact everyone that has passed had future plans the certainly did not involve dying.
The point being is that we can Never Take Life For Granted. In the blink of an eye everything can change. So we must Forgive as often as we can. We must Love with All Our Heart. Every single day like it was the last day of our life.
Reason being is our time here is a gift. One which we may may never get a chance to live again. So no matter what yesterday or the days before that were for you make every day from here on out count.
As someone one so much smarter than I once said, “None of us are getting out of here alive so stop treating yourself like an after thought. Eat delicious food, walk in the sunshine, jump in the ocean. Say the truth your carrying in your heart like hidden treasure. Be silly, Be Kind, Be Weird as if there was no time for anything else.” and Live Like You Were Dying.
Just Another Point of View and GOD Speed.

As the years keep rolling by I can’t help to think from time to time, “Have I turned into my Grandfather” ?
Aside from my girth, all our family have always been a bit on the heavy side, the answer to that question is very simple. NO. Not anywhere close.
When my next birthday rolls around, if GOD willing I’m blessed enough to make it that long, I’ll be turning the BIG 6-5. At or near this age my Grand Dad sat in his rocker most of the day and ventured out every now and again to buzzed at the neighborhood which by the way was owned by a close friend of his.
When I stop to think about it, back in those days, there wasn’t much more for him to do. He was retired. My Mom took care of all the bills so my Gramps’ just hung around an chilled. He had a great Native American wife who cooked all his meals and washed all his clothes so, really, what else was there for him to do. Sadly and eventually, I think it was what killed him as it does so many others.
Not the case with me at all. My how times have changed. As I round that BIG 6-5, Yes I am retired but I try to find plenty of things to keep me busy. I am heavy into Social Media and have been so for the past 15 or 20 years. What can I say, it keeps me both In touch and busy.
My latest relationship has been going on for 5 years now and my better half is turning 32 next birthday. Holly age difference Batman, that’s HALF my age but, what can I say it keeps me young. We happened to stumble across one an other while neither of us were looking for a new relationship and we hit it off. So we have been together, happily, ever since.
I spend a certain time of my day at my computer since being a social media influencer requires it. Other than that we’re either out eating or jutting around scouting places to the next episode of a video show I direct and produce on a weekly basis.
I read somewhere once that unless your having a new adventure your not living. Teetering on that BIG 6-5 or anything after that we can’t help but wonder how many more there will be after that. That being the case I’m trying to decide what to do with the rest of my years. I can start to sit around like my Gran Dad did or I can choose to live the rest of my days, how ever many more GOD Blesses me with, experiencing a new adventure every week.
So you see, at this age, I am not my Grandfather and it’s easier for me since I have no close family to tie me down anywhere and I am not committed to being buried any one place in particular, sounds like a life of adventure it will be.
Now to try to figure out the logistics of that and put it all together by September when our lease expires. Stay tuned I’ll keep you posted right here and please follow me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hollywoods411

Another Major election will be upon us soon and so many candidates have thrown their hat in the ring BUT are we really focusing about the right things that keep our United States of America from truly becoming a better country?
We don’t don’t have to look very far to realize that Our Word and along with it Our Country has some huge issues at play. In the United States of America there are so many things that are somewhat of an easy fix that sometimes, I wonder if politicians just keep us fighting among each other so that we don’t demand a change on things that could really make a difference?
What are a few of those things you ask? Well, to start with, let’s do away with the antiquated Electoral College which now a days has become outdated and does not serve it’s original purpose. Whom ever wins the popular vote should win the election. Period.
Then we can set terms limits both in Congress and the Senate so we can Stop Creating Career Criminals ah I mean Politicians. The salaries that we pay Politicians may not seem like a lot BUT what they pocket from side deals is outrageous. Was I the only one that saw that movie where Eddie Murphy becomes a congressman. I think it was called “ The Distinguished Gentleman”. Check it out you’ll see what I mean.
Then, let’s put a Cap on how much money raised by Candidates Can Be Used For Their Actual Campaign. What ever they raise above and beyond that should be put in a Special Fund to use for Free Healthcare, Education and a Basic Housing Voucher for Ever Citizen that has a true financial need.
Let’s get rid of the outdated IRS and go to a Sales Tax on Everything Across the board. This way Everybody Pays Tax no matter what financial bracket you may fall in.
I could go on and on so don’t get me started BUT Isn’t It Time We Started Changing The Things That Matter Most and Do It Now.
Just Another Point of View.

Ever have one of those days when things were just not going well and you started feeling down and like it just may all be your fault? STOP.
Not one single one of us is perfect. If we were perfect we would be GOD and that’s probably not going to be the case.
Ever day we make mistakes. We go about our day and from time to time we say something stupid too or do something that’s may be kind of crazy. After all that is the human way.
It’s the way the Great Spirit designed us. We were meant to fall. Over and over again. Some of us many more times that others because falling leads us to learn to get up and try again. In continuing to keep falling and getting up and trying again we are supposed to learn how to succeed.
The process allows us to grow in life and as we grow we learn to live a better life.
It’s designed so that at some point we become teachers as well. Teachers of others and especially our children who are the future of this world we call earth.
You see if you look hard enough you’ll learn that our children are the future of mankind. It’s us, them and their children that hold the existence of mankind in their hands.
When our children are no longer influenced buy hate and greed there potential will be limitless. They will play together, discover, learn, progress and achieve. Together they will know No boundaries.
Stop teaching your children to hate and be greedy. Give them the opportunity to be as excellent as GOD intended.
Have a great day and hope you continue to open your mind and learn from just Another Point of View.

We have to keep asking ourselves, In this day and age of such modern technology and medical advances why are so many people, people of all ages, old and young alike, taking their own lives.
Some of these folks are even wealthy people who in some cases are famous and have everything that you and me could ever want and still they somehow believe that their lives are so screwed up, so worthless that they fell compelled to End Them. Why.
Then, one of my biggest pet peeves is that our society, and our medical professionals either don’t care enough or seem to do enough for people that have mental issues not matter how large or small they may be.
In my life I’ve know several people who have had mental issues. Some were minor and some a bit more complex. In knowing them I found out how difficult it is for them to cope with their own demons and harder still for them to find professional who are truly interested in helping them.
Back in the day, some 29 or 3o years ago they would just throw these folks in jail or a state hospital and fill them full of Quaalude on a daily basis so they would sleep or walk around like zombies all day.
Glad to report that since then both the drugs and treatment have gotten a little better but Not Much. For many of those cases where medication doesn’t sen to be working and the status quo just doesn’t want to spend the time or money on specialty treatment it would seem the industry reverts back to days of old. They stick these folks in “behavioral treatment centers” where the end result is heavy drugs and a whole new generation of zombies.
Our society needs to mount a serious investigation of the Mental Health Industry and how it treats people in our society who don’t have enough money for specialized treatment. As a society we need to banned together to make sure these people and their rights are protected as well.
Just Another Point of View.

Strange as it may sound, since the beginning of time, Man has been manipulating Man in an effort to keep him from becoming Too successful. Oddly enough the same has happened in Greek mythology and even in the case of our beloved Bible.
Countless numbers in time in history, many things have been edited by the powers that be, even the church in many instances to alter the original writing in an effort to control the masses. Don’t take my word for it but it is proven fact.
Take for instance the story of Icarus.
“Icarus’s father Daedalus, a very talented and remarkable Athenian craftsman, built the Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete near his palace at Knossos to imprison the Minotaur, a half-man, half-bull monster born of his wife and the Cretan bull. Minos imprisoned Daedalus himself in the labyrinth because he gave Minos’s daughter, Ariadne, a clew(or ball of string) in order to help Theseus, the enemy of Minos, to survive the Labyrinth and defeat the Minotaur.
Daedalus fashioned two pairs of wings out of wax and feathers for himself and his son. Daedalus tried his wings first, but before trying to escape the island, he warned his son not to fly too close to the sun, nor too close to the sea, but to follow his path of flight. Overcome by the giddiness that flying lent him, Icarus soared into the sky, but in the process he came too close to the sun, which due to the heat melted the wax. Icarus kept flapping his wings but soon realized that he had no feathers left and that he was only flapping his bare arms, and so Icarus fell into the sea and drowned in the area which today bears his name, the Icarian Sea near Icaria, an island southwest of Samos.
This tragic theme of failure at the hands of hubris contains similarities to that of Paethon.”
Even this original writing was changed over the course of history to the point that someone deleted the part about flying to low and just left in the part about flying too high. Trying to make people believe that it didn’t matter how low in life you got but never try to fly too high or you’ll destroy yourself.
As we’ve learned over the span of many years sometimes it is those with the greatest hubris that change the status quo.
Just another Point of View.

The most important thing we should all realize about life is that we are Not in control.
Our life is designed that way. Even though we may have limited control over some things many things we will never be able to control.
With that in mind, we should learn to forgive, forget (to some degree) and most of all Move On. In fact, our greatest power in life is, how we rebound from those things in life that do not end up well.
Most of us expect way too much of ourselves and because of that, we live a life of depression thinking that we are not worthy. We must learn to set goals that are in sink with what our life path is currently and improve on that.
Learn to fully appreciate what we have and what we’ve accomplished no matter how great or small that may be, and move forward.
With the exception of GOD, the rest of us, not one of us are perfect. With that in mind, we must learn to share whatever talents and blessings GOD has given us with others on a daily basis.
We must always be conscious of the fact that hating and worrying are just a waste of our time and energy. We learn early in our lives that hating on something or worrying about something NEVER changes the outcome. So why Do It.
Know and understand that from all failures or setbacks in life we are supposed to learn a lesson.
Never forget that the things we pay the most attention to will grow or in some cases fester.
So make certain you are always focused on things that are important and positive in your life.
What we fail to realize is that We Don’t Need More To Be Happy.
Too much, managed incorrectly, will bring us nothing but sorrow.
So learn to give from the abundance of our blessings to others who need the help.
Remember those material things may serve to distract us more than they help to make us a better person.
Truth, Love, Peace, and Helping are the things that should guide our life path.
Be Well, Be Blessed, GOD Speed.
Just Another Point of View.

​It amazes me at times how so many of us have so much and yet feel like we have little or nothing at all. I have trouble putting that together. Trying to figure out why so many of us have so many voids in our lives at times.
We sit in our nice apartments or houses, with our nice late model cars or trucks in our driveways, watching something on Cable or Satellite on our nice, Big, Flat Screen Tv’s and while looking something up on the internet on our Tablet or Smartphone though our high speed WiFi and still we seem to think we’re in sad shape? Where has all the family gone?
Some of us have just spent a recent holiday with close family and even with a few extended family members that we may only just get to see every now and then but, when you stop and think about it, we are the lucky ones. There are all to many others of us who grew up with family around us even next door or just down the street and those family members don’t even make an effort to reach out to us at all anymore.
Sadder still, it’s not that some of our relatives don’t know where we are because they know we’re on Facebook and know what city we live in but what a horrible upbringing we must have had that they instead decide to shun us. You guys know exactly who you are or who these people are. The same people that sat on the porch with us while we played with little plastic soldiers or ran around the house with us playing Indians and cowboys. The same people that walked to school with us down the railroad tracks every day or came over on the weekend to play with our dog and us.
Sometimes we are so caught up with our every day stuff and our own close family that we just tend to put distance between us and all that family we once were part of early on in our lives. Somewhere along the way, some of us realize this and, we try to reach out. Sadly some of us don’t go far enough in trying to reach out and before we know it those brothers, sisters, cousins, etc, have big families of there own. Family members that may never know of us until someone mentions their going to our funeral? After that it’s just too late.
Wouldn’t it be nice if all those extended cousins, nieces and nephews even knew who we were and what we’ve done in our lives even if only for reference. What a much nicer family it could be. Unfortunately many of us will never know unless someone makes an effort to reach at some point and often. Happy New Year and GOD Speed.
Just Another Point Of View.