Thursday
We’re ba-a-a-a-ack.

It was a good trip. On the way down, we saw an elk, deer and… a fox. I don’t think that I have ever seen a fox on the hoof, outside of a zoo. This one was running through the desert along I-70. We also had an Italian lesson on the way. Yep, an Italian lesson. Rich and family are going to Europe this spring; everybody’s learning a language – Rich is tackling Italian. So, now, I know un po Italiano.

We did both an underground and above-ground installation. I didn’t get to use the Milwaukee saw this time, but I did get to use the Hilti nail gun. Oh. My. That is a “power tool.” It uses a load of 22-caliber blanks to drive nails. We punched 1″ nails into the concrete foundation; they went in very easily. And we weren’t even using the strongest load.

Rich said that I’m getting a little faster at finishing some of the work. I took this as a good thing. He also showed me a few things to help speed the process along. Naturally, these helped, too. Something that he said got me thinking: I tend to be a bit… cautious/meticulous when working on/with certain things. I think that is attributable to my training with an architectural firm as a high school and college student. This isn’t necessarily a “bad” thing, but it gave me food for thought. Introspection. It can be a good thing and a useful tool.

Random Access

February is Black History Month (1, 2).

As usual, I suggest that everyone take some time to learn a little something about a part of American history and culture of which you may not be familiar. I suggest your visiting your local libraries, bookstores and perusing the Internet. If possible, see if there is a Black History lecture series in your area. And, there is always the “low tech,” old-fashioned method: Talk with people in your community. Sometimes, the best way to learn about something is listening to someone else’s experience.

With that out of the way, let’s get straight on to tonight’s diatribe.

I’m not so concerned with the fact that Black History Month is relegated to the shortest month of the year. I think the fact that it gets recognition is good… even if it’s only 28/29 days’ recognition. My issue comes with the fact that it’s only celebrated for one month. Is it not considered “worthwhile enough” to be celebrated alongside the rest of American history during the other eight to ten months of the school year? Before someone comes in and asks, let me add that I feel the same way about any minority-American history. (For more information on other “Heritage Months,” see the Smithsonian Institution’s Heritage Month Home Page.)

Why should the contributions that they made only be recognized for one month?
Why should any group’s contribution be so denigrated?

The simple answer: They shouldn’t.

We are all Americans. Native-born or naturalized. We have a rich, diverse culture. We should celebrate it as a whole. Although we don’t always act like it, we are “…more than the sum of our parts.” Every culture in the American population has brought something unique to the table: African. Asian. European. Native American. We have all borrowed from each other yet we often fail to recognize our similarities, focusing instead on what it is that makes Group A different from Group B.

Isn’t it about time that we stopped treating each other with kid gloves or thinking of one another as “fill-in-the-ethnic-blank”-Americans and started acting like the “…one nation, indivisible” of which the Pledge of Allegiance1 speaks?

I think so.

But, until then, please take the opportunity to learn more about cultures and ethnicities other than your own. I am confident that you’ll learn something interesting. And you may even find that we all have more in common than you may have thought.

</diatribe>

Stray Toasters

That’s enough for now.

Namaste.

1 – In it’s original draft, the Pledge of Allegiance was worded: “I pledge allegiance to [the] flag [of the United States of America,] and [to] the Republic for which it stands; one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” The phrase “…under God…” was not added until 1954. (source: Pledge of Allegiance and its “under God” phrase)