Here I go again ...neglecting my Blog. It is almost Christmas Eve, and my last entry was Thanksgiving Eve. Even after all of these years, i still have not conquered the problem I have with self discipline. It's amazing that I could handle several business matters and school often at the same time and never miss a deadline. That's not to say, however, I met demands in advance. I am always the one crossing the finish line at the midnight hour.
I woke up this morning thinking about how nice it was to see my husband feeling so good yesterday. I was reminded of days past when he would supervise his "men," the seemingly never ending construction workers who passed through our lives almost on a daily basis at one of our properties and all too often in our personal home. Jerry met the outdoor crew that arrives here every Saturday, and he spent time with them pointing out some assignments first with the landscaping and then he offered to pay them a bonus in cash before they left if they would reload his big trailer with items that were situated in a couple of places on the property, so he can take it to the dump. They were happy, he was happy, and I was delighted. Saying I was delighted might be an understatement. He was always able to get so much out of his workers when he was available to them. I can remember a few times the carpenters would walk through my house and ask me "Where are the plans?" They were referring to Jerry. It meant they had come upon an issue that needed his consultation. I also recall two screw ups when he wasn't present, and he should have offered an opinion. I found one to be comical, since I knew that the next year the cabinet would be removed anyway, but they actually shortened (sawed) a cabinet in the wrong place to accommodate a temporary brace. The other one I have lived with for many years, and it still bugs me if I give it any of my attention. They installed a sliding glass door with a big beautiful view window above it. Instead of leaving some wall between the window and the sliding glass door, they placed the window at the immediate top of the sliding glass door. That caused the height of the top of the window to be slightly shorter (ceiling to window top) than the other huge windows in the room. I use drapery rods to correct the mistake, but if I were younger and had lots of years left, I would have it moved today. I saw it right away and pointed it out to the carpenters, but they told me it would be too difficult to change it. I know now that it would have been fairly easy to change it at that point, because drywalling had not been done or any finish work, but you know, you pick you battles in life and I always try to use my energies fighting off the ones that can't be avoided.
Thinking about Jerry and how well he always knew the people working for him cause my mind to wander to the reason the President of the United States knows the needs of the common man in spite of the fact he is a billionaire. Donald Trump has worked in construction most of his life. He grew up in the industry. When you read of his history, you find he always seemed to feel most comfortable with the average people ...the man on the street if you will. He was a leader in the property development and building industry. When you work side by side with the men digging the tranches, driving the heavy equipment, pouring the cement, hammering the nails, installing the drywall and painting the buildings, you get to know the reality of living the simple life. A good construction boss often will hang out while his workers are sharing their homemade lunches in the shade of a tree. My husband would usually have a couple of six packs with him on Friday evenings after work when he handed out the pay. Time to relax, discuss what had been done, talk about what would happen next week and laugh about the humorous experiences that inevitable happen on a job site during the week. That boss knows the hardships his workers face when a child is sick and someone needs an advance on his pay.
When you compare that experience to the average politician who grows up with an advantage in life, goes off to college to party and grab a bachelor's degree in political science or psychology while knowing when that is finished, he will spend three years in law school with a plan to go to work for a politician or in a law office for a few years before running for office, there doesn't seem to be much opportunity for that man (or woman) to really know or understand the common man who will never go to college, but will make the greatest contribution to keeping America safe and moving forward.
While some may wonder why the people would vote for a billionaire when on its face, it would look like they have nothing in common, I believe it is because the billionaire relates to them. While most of our politicians have spent the past several years guessing at which decisions to make, Donald Trump was out there working directly with the people ...in the trenches. He knows what they want and what they need to make this country great again. The answer lies ...not in creating a path for the people. The answer lies in government getting out of the way, so the people can create their own path to success. ~DrJ
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