Out and About – Week of October 15th

I can’t help it, but here I go again venting about television ads. It seems we just can’t get away from them unless you follow the Turner Classic Movies (TCM) channel. I don’t think there are any ads on HBO or any of the other premium cable channels. Anyway, there are some ads that are clever, but the majority of them only serve one purpose: To give one the opportunity to visit the kitchen or bathroom.

Probably the ads that really bother me are the car or truck ads. I can’t think of any location in St. Joe County where you can drive at speeds exceeding eighty miles per hour and then perform a series of donuts while braking. I also can’t imagine weaving in and out of traffic at speeds of fifty miles per hour in downtown Kalamazoo. Most of these car ads should include a caption “Please don’t try this at home.” I also can’t imagine spending between $20,000 and $40,000 on a car that will climb a mountain of rocks. I think most of these ads are aimed at viewers younger than forty years old.

A final word on this topic must include those commercials produced by family members. There was a father who sold mattresses, and he featured three of his daughters. There’s only one working with him now. Perhaps the other two finally realized that there is never a time when mattresses aren’t on sale.

Domestic violence is a growing problem all over the United States, and it doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. One of the ways we can do something about it is to make more people aware of the problem by holding some kind of rally. If done properly, it could draw some terrific media coverage.

A Candlelight Vigil will be held this Thursday, October 18 at 7 PM. If you’d like to be a part of a possible solution, everyone is invited to meet outside the St. Joseph County Courthouse, 125 West Main Street, in Centreville. It will be a time to remember those lost to this violence and help those survivors heal.

As I put this week’s column together, I’m feeling pretty good physically. My mental condition is questionable. I didn’t feel well for about two days this last week. I experienced severe back pains around 11:30 PM one evening after going to bed around 8 PM. Normally I go to bed around ten or eleven o’clock, but I was feeling exceptionally sleepy that evening. The pain I experienced was so severe that I made the decision to go to the emergency room. Altogether, I spent three hours at the hospital. The doctor thought I might have kidney stones, but a CT-Scan proved him wrong. The best they could come up with was that I had somehow pulled a muscle. They gave me some medication via an IV and that took care of the pain. My point here is that we don’t usually appreciate feeling good until we are sick or in some sort of pain. I think we get sick sometimes so that we’ll appreciate the times we feel on top of it.

I would like to thank the staff at TR Health for all they do to makes us feel better when we’re not. Kudos go out to those on duty while the rest of us are sleeping.

This Saturday, October 20, is Sweetest Day. Gentlemen, make sure you do something special for that special lady in your life. Ladies, be appreciative of that guy that presents you with a special token of love and appreciation. So as not to be accused of being sexist, exchanging gifts sounds like a pretty fair idea.

Hugging is the most beautiful form of communication that allows the other person to know beyond a doubt that they matter.

Closing with a few words of wisdom:

The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.
People who matter are aware that everyone else does too.
No sense in being pessimistic; it wouldn’t work anyway.
See you Out and About!

Submitted by Norm Stutesman

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