Common Sense

I remember growing up thinking my dad must be the smartest person alive. It never ceased to amaze me that he seemed to be able to fix or build anything. He was not an electrician, mechanic or plumber but no matter what the challenge he could fix it. The day I am recalling was a little different though. The shower head was giving him a fit and he was frustrated. He had walked out of the bathroom to compose himself and make a call to a friend for some advise. When he walked out I decided to see if I could figure out the problem as to why the shower head would not come off. I grabbed the wrench and went to work. With in 30 seconds I had the shower head off and handed it to my dad. To say the least he was amazed and asked me to show him what I did. The truth was all I did was turned the shower head the opposite way he had. For whatever reason the plumber had put in reverse thread fittings. All that it took was turning the shower head in the right direction.
 I learned two very important lessons that day, and it is because of those lessons that I started this blog. I will never forget my dad laughing and saying, "Life is not that hard son if you use a little common sense. Unfortunately common sense is not that common anymore." I am sure you have all heard something similar to that statement.
 The first lesson was that common sense is hard to find in some of the most important aspects of our society. As a country we have started to rely on "intelligent people" in politics, media, the justice system, education, economics, military and even religion when in reality their "intelligence" has made a mess of almost everything they touch. It has been a little over a year since I started using Facebook and I have enjoyed it. One of the things I like the most is good healthy, respectful debate on issues that some people bring up. Sometimes the debates are heated and emotional but more times then not they resolve into common sense solutions. I am hoping that I will get feed back on the issues I write about and I don't care if you agree with me or not. It took me a long time but I am learning to appreciate challenges to my way of thinking and that leads me to the second lesson I learned that day.
 The more frustrated my father got at the shower head the more he viewed the issue through tunnel vision. He was right the shower head should have come off the way he was turning, but it didn't. We all view things a certain way and usually the more emotional or stronger we feel about the issue the more likely we are to miss the views of others that may hold the answers. Two sets of eyes are better then one and two opinions are better then one. You will either find strength in the support of someone with a like mind on the issue or you will be challenged to broaden your views to see if there is a better approach you may have missed.
 I don't know how often I will write and what the topics will be. Although I can say the first topic will be about the tragic shooting in Tucson, AZ. I will write about politics and all the issues that comprise that difficult topic; sports and maybe even religion. Again I would love to hear feedback both for and against what I write. I am one of those people that likes to find answers and solutions to problems. I am hoping as I write and receive feedback that answers can be found.
 Thanks for reading,
Steve