The Way of the Magoski

Planks Law

"The key to inter planetary travel", says my Dad, "is in understanding Plank's law well enough to move beyond it."

When that happens a new age will dawn upon Man much in the way the Industrial Revolution occured.

Planks Law

MORNING MEETING

Today's morning meeting was held in Dad's office because Murray was installing a new router on Dad's computer.  Installing new routers on any computer is really not a fun way to start the day; and if it's something you don't do every day, then it's really no fun at all.

We talked about Lee Atwater and the P-51 Mustang.
"The airfoil", Dad said, "was truly unique.  That plane was built in 90 days."
"Some amazing machining", said Bob.
"That and we scoured everywhere for parts we could use.  There's never been a plane quite like the P-51.  Never."
I was listening, but only halfway.  I grew up with this.  I know the instrument panel of the Mustang.  It was mandatory reading before bedtime as a child.  Most parents read Dr. Seuss to their kids.  My dad read Aviation Week to Murray and before we went to bed. 
So i listened to the story while I took pictures until Murray said, without looking at me, "If I hear that sound (the camera's shutter) one more time ..."
Was he wrongly assuming I was taking pictures of him?
Yes.

But, I didn't take any more pictures.
Unlike Murray, I don't take pleasure in pushing people's buttons!
But I do take pleasure in writing about it.
And posting a few images.

I had hoped to get some valuable insight into the global economy from the meeting this morning.
But it was just not going to happen.  Still, I was happy we had the meeting in the office today.  I should have taken more pictures of Dad's space.  It's a work of art itself.  I silently smiled to myself.
Yesterday, when I was painting Kacie's apartment, I was thinking to myself how much we were alike. I didn't tell her that when I was her age I too had to paint my first place in more colors than I care to admit; in fact, much to my Dad's chagrin, I had actually painted the ceiling of my bedroom black and the walls a very deep dark red.

Looking at everything around me, I realized it's just the DNA.
And that was comforting, I suppose; but, I thought,  is there really chromosones that in certain combination cause one to not ever throw anything away and then attempt to put everything on display in some practical utilitarian sort of way?
That's crazy!

That's the Magoski Way

A RED WHITE AND BLUE SUNRISE

I didn't mind Satine waking me up this morning for a walk at all; in fact, I was hoping she'd wake me up before the Sun rose.  I wanted to see the newspapers in the morning!  I wanted to see if the sky was any different.  I wanted to watch the Sun Rise because, yes, today was to be a New Dawn,  the begning of something special.
Last night, we elected an African American President of the United States.
Not necesarily by a landslide, and quite possibly with help from the Electoral College, but unlike George Bush's victory over Al Gore, there was no question who the winner was.


1972 - Nixon vs McGovern - 47m vs 29m (+18m) - 60.7% vs 37.5% (+23.2%)
1976 - Carter vs Ford    - 41m vs 39m (+ 2m) - 50.1% vs 48.0% (+ 2.1%)
1980 - Reagan vs Carter  - 44m vs 35m (+ 9m) - 50.7% vs 41.0% (+ 9.7%)
1984 - Reagan vs Mondale - 54m vs 38m (+16m) - 58.8% vs 40.6% (+18.2%)
1988 - Bush vs Dukakis   - 49m vs 42m (+ 7m) - 53.4% vs 45.6% (+ 7.8%)
1992 - Clinton/Bush/Perot- 45m vs 39m (+ 6m) - 43.0% vs 37.7% (+ 5.3%)
1996 - Clinton vs Dole   - 47m vs 39m (+ 8m) - 49.2% vs 40.7% (+ 8.5%)
2000 - Bush vs Gore      - 50.5m vs 51m!!!!! - 47.9% vs 48.4%!!!!!
2004 - Bush vs Kerry     - 62m vs 59m (+ 3m) - 50.7% vs 48.3% (+ 2.4%)
2008 - Obama vs McCain   - 63m vs 56m (+ 7m) - 52.0% vs 47.0% (+ 5.0%)

There have been closer elections in the past and there have been greater landslides as well.  But, in this election a black man won, a young man one, an intellectual one, a dreamer one.
What does all of this mean for America? 

It means that those of us who are clinging on to a way of life that no longer is possible, nor desired, are going to finally have to accept the reality of this world.




Yes Dad, Obama in Number One!
Change is upon us and while there are those who will suggest that change is impossible, that there is nothing we can do to work out the greed of the politicians and the corporations, I would simply offer this. 

CHANGE WHAT YOU CAN WHERE YOU CAN
If this means that you can only affect change within the radius of you living room, then so be it.  Change and the creation of Community Can only Occur One Step at a Time and Real Change is a Collective Process.  Barak Obama can do nothing if we sit back and do nothing.  We must all participate in this Dream.

So when I returned from my walk, I had been able to take a few pictures of the sunrise, but I didn't get anything really special, at least not like what I had been hoping for.  Candace asked me when I got back from the walk what the sunrise looked like.  She then told me that it was a RED WHITE AND BLUE SUNRISE and I told her I didn't see that, and she told me she saw it on TV.  So later that morning, after the MORNING MEETING with  Dad and Murray and Welder Bob and Engineer Vic, I took a look at those pictures I shot as the sun was rising in Photoshop. I had over exposed the shot and thought it was worth nothing.  But, with the thought of what Candace had told me in my head, I changed the CURVE in Photoshop and to my surprise, look what appeared.   A RED WHITE AND BLUE SUNRISE.  I had not ever seen that before.



"What do you think of Obama's victory?", I ask Magin.  She smiles, "that's great" she says, "but right now I have a Biology test in 3 hours and I am going to fail,  She proceeds to read me one of the practice questions.  It's about DNA and chromosones and there's an A and a B and X and Z and quite frankly I have absolutely no idea what she's talking about.  Consequently, when she looks at me after reading the question and she says, "I don't want to be a biologist.  Why do I have to know this?"
"It's not the material that is important right now", I tell her, "it's the process of learning how to learn.  Does that make any sense?"
She looks at me and says, "No."



Magin's friend, and classmate, Issa, walks in.  Magin looks at heer as she enters.  "I am so going to fail this test", she says.  "Do you know this stuff?"
Issa just smiles. "what do you think?", she says.
"Daddy", she says, "I'm going to fail this class and that means I am going to have to take it over again in order to graduate.  And I hate Math and Science."
"Perhaps that is why you have to take it.  You'll probably never know more about chromosones and DNA in your life than you will right now.  Don't you see that this isn't abut math and science."
"Then what is this about?"
"If you really want to pass this class, then you'll need to embrace it.  Find something about it that you can appreciate.  You are a story teller.  You and Issa are film makers.  You are documentarians.  Find the story in here.  There's an angle to everything.  There's something good about everything.  Your Grandma Ann used to say ... 'if you can't say anything nice about someone don't say anything at all'."
"I don't need a lecture now Daddy.  What I need is to pass this test."

Ah, I think, exhaling, to be young again.
How I would do it all over!  Now, my parenting goals seem to be centered around trying to keep my kids from walking down my path and becoming too much like me  ... a life questioning, philisophically minded, socially conscious, economic failure.
Hey!  I am an American afterall!

I look over at Issa.
"Hold this paper up.  let me get a picture of you and Obama."
She smiles.  "The system has spoken", she says.