It's time to start doing!

It was almost two weeks since I last mowed my lawn. My wife’s feet disappeared in the grass as she walked around the house yesterday cleaning up the evidence our dog is healthy. She surprised me by having that task completed when I got home from my senior fitness program. Shortly after I did get home, we were outside mowing. And mowing. And mowing.

As I suspected it would primarily because of the length of the grass but also because it was so tall the deepest part hadn’t dried, the bagging attachment clogged. Off it came and emptied out. The chute was carefully placed so that the damp part would be directly in the path of the sun’s rays. And I rode off to get the grass cut. I cut in a path from the outside edges of the lawn toward the center. That way the bulk of the clippings kept being blown toward the center.

Meanwhile, my wife was cutting a hill she doesn’t like me to take the tractor on. The tractor will work on that hill and I’ve told her so, but she’s seen me lean somewhat at times and since my events years of 2000 and 2001 she has requested I not ride the tractor on the hill. She cuts the grass there with our walk-behind self-propelled mower. She also doesn’t like me to ride the machine when she’s not home. Almost a half century of being together and trusting each other tells me her requests are fair and I do honor them.

We took a break after the first cutting, a slower than usual one because of the length of the grass. After lunch, I put the bagger back on and vacuumed up the clippings. Because I had blown them all toward the center, I only had three or four lengths to do to get the yard really pretty clean. It sure does look a whole lot better when it’s been mowed.

Here’s another commercial comment. I just watched an ad in which two competing auto sales companies are holding a mock baseball game in an attempt to draw customers. I gather “runs” are scored by the number of vehicles sold. I chuckled this morning when I saw the commercial. The owner of one of the companies “hit” a fly ball that obviously would go deep. The next scene showed the other owner sliding into home plate looking like he was driven home by that long drive. Nothing spectacular here and the ads these two companies run every year would never be the drawing in power for me, but I just thought the idea of one owner driving in the other was a little humorous.

On another topic, I believe its long past time for our Congress Critters to stop talking, holding hearings, getting reports, and doing nothing positive about our energy crisis. Our representatives in Congress, both parties, both houses, are part of the problem. In their doing absolutely nothing they are working hard to convince us they are working to resolve the problem. After all, they have “good intentions” and in this day and age that’s about all that matters.

How many years has it been, the Carter years in the 1970s comes to mind, since Congress began working on energy problems in the U.S.? What has happened as a result of all the reports, hearings, speeches? Simple answer: Nothing! It was just about at that time when we stopped building refineries, started tearing down dams, eliminating nuclear power and putting so many rules and regulations into place that virtually all sources of energy in this country began to become too expensive to use.

Right here in Maine we have resources that could lower our energy costs dramatically. We have great rivers where hydro power could once again be developed. At one time we had nuclear power. We have powerful winds that could run turbines. We have more trees than any other state in the Union which could be utilized as an energy source. And, of course, there’s the sun. All of these are renewable resources.

There are folk out there that are saying, “Sure, Gator, as long as you don’t have to have it in your back yard.” If I could afford it and if my town (which has already denied one company from getting wind power) would allow it, I’d put a wind tower in my backyard in a heartbeat.

It’s time for both our Congress people and our State Legislators to stop talking, stop planning, stop hearings, and simply remove the roadblocks that have stopped the development of energy resources. It’s time for them to start thinking of the people they serve. And, increasing taxes is not the answer. We can’t afford any more taxes. If Congress taxes those oil companies it wants to tax, the only accomplishment will be increased prices for us to pay the companies’ taxes.

We have enough oil and gas in American ground to support us well into the future. It’s time we started drilling and getting it. Until Congress and the Legislature gets out of the pockets of lobbyists and starts performing, we are facing an economic crisis of proportions never before seen. If you would like to tell your Congress person (Maine and New Hampshire) that you'd like to see drilling for oil on American soil, here's a place to do it: Drill for Oil on American Soil.

GiM