2016, the year of the Risk!

The most enjoyable thing I’ve ever done in my life as far as earning a living is concerned has been substitute teaching. I substitute taught in the Iowa City/Coralville/North Liberty area in 2010 and 2011.  The reason I left is because it was not lucrative enough for me at the time. I vowed that if I were ever in a position to substitute teach again, I was going to do it. With some loans out of the way, my best friend Joel Straube as my roommate helping me pay bills and being able to UBER at night and on the weekends, I’m in that position now.

March 3rd, 2016 will be my last day at Iowa One Call. It is extremely ironic, circumstantial and surreal that, that is the day that my boss asked me to stay till.  March 3rd, 1998 was the day my sister Sydney died and for nearly 18 years that date has represented negative/pessimistic feelings. I am hoping that this is a sign, a premonition of change. A change for the positive, that says March 3rd, now represents a positive/optimistic time in my life.

WHY AM I DOING THIS?

Many reasons. I love substitute teaching. I want to put more time into reading and writing. I want to put time and energy into learning and perfecting my writing so that I can finally become a professionally published novelist. This will allow to me do that. I want to go to the gym more often. This will allow me to do that.  I want to be more involved in things, theatre, comedy, story telling events, ect. There may be some opportunities to get back into professional wrestling.  This will allow me to do that.

I have made decisions and sacrifices in my life, so that I could one day live the type of life I wanted to live. I have a college degree, and I’m currently not using it. This would allow me to use it. This would be me putting my college degree to use, in a way that benefits me most.  I walked out of college $48,000 in debt.  I’ve paid off $32,250 already and I have $15,750 to go.  I don’t want to look at that number in vain anymore. I want it to have meaning and purpose. Substitute teaching, gives it meaning and purpose.

I also made up my mind to never get married and to never have kids, which lead to a very heartbreaking and depressing breakup between myself and my last girlfriend Melissa. I didn’t go through that for nothing. I didn’t lose my cats for nothing. That will also not be in vain.  I decided I didn’t want to have kids because I wanted a life where I could put my time and energy into being who I wanted to be. I want to as I said before put my time, energy and focus into improving as a writer, to one day be professionally published. This will allow to do that.  I also want to put more time and energy into takedownwrestle.com and be more readily available to attend and cover events.  This will allow me to do that. I also want to have more time for Ashley. This will allow me to do that.

HOW DO I KNOW I”LL GET WORK EVERYDAY?

Between Des Moines, Martensdale St Marys, Ankeny, Urbandale, Norwalk, West Des Moines, Southeast Polk, Johnston, Dallas Center Grimes, Earlham, ADM, PCM and Colfax Mingo community school districts, there are 166 schools within a 40 minute or less drive of my house. According to a study done in May of 2015, in the Des Moines community school district alone, they were short between 30-35 substitutes a day in both 2013-2014 and 2014-2015.  I’m not too worried about it.  If school is in session, I’ll have the ability to substitute.

THIS WILL BE A PAYCUT RIGHT?

Yeah, maybe, but not nearly as significant of one as you might imagine. Licensed Substitutes (Which is what I am) in this area make $130 a day, which I imagine will equal out to be about $110 a day. (I say that because it was $100 in Iowa City, and after taxes/IPERS/ect I made about $85 a day.)  If I Sub everyday I’ll make $2,200 in a month from subbing.  Plus, I’ll be able to UBER a lot more.  Only working 15 hours a weekend right now, I’m averaging about $200-$250 a weekend.  I plan on putting in more time, like 20-25 hours a weekend and hoping for an extra $100-$150. If I can make $300 a weekend, that’s an extra $1,800 a month. I can potentially make $4,000 a month.  I make $2,544 a month right now from Iowa One Call.

YEAH BUT THAT’S NOT STEADY INCOME…..WHAT ABOUT THE PERIOD OF TIME WHEN SCHOOL IS NOT IN SESSION?

Schools in this area operate from August 25th to June 2nd.   Sept, Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, March, April and May I’ll be ok.  I’ve also been informed that schools do anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks of Summer School, and they are often looking for people to help teach.  I hope to be able to get on as a summer school teacher. According to many people I’ve talked to, teachers don’t like dealing with Summer School and they are always looking for help.  Theoretically, if the summer school deal does not work out, I’ll have a period of 13 weeks where I will not be able to sub. That is scary and that is what makes doing this a risk. It makes me wish that schools in Iowa operated year round.   They don’t.

As I said before my hope is that I can get on teaching summer school and turn that 13 weeks into 9 or 7 weeks.

If not, this is where the risk comes in. I plan on being a bit more frugal and saving up and I will also be relying on UBER being good for me.  Between the middle of June and the middle of August I may have to UBER my ass off.  In order to make ends meet I’ll need to make  the equivalent $75 a day or $525 a week.  I don’t think that’ll be a problem. I really don’t.  Unlike Iowa City, which relied heavily upon college kids for business, I think UBER will continue to be good on the weekends throughout the summer. I have faith and I have confidence that it will.

I still may be employed by Iowa One Call in January and February.  I told Craig that I loved doing the ESAP meetings and if they needed someone to help out with them, I’d be more than glad to.  He told me that he would seriously consider that as a possibility.  So, there is a chance next year in Jan and Feb of 2017, I would work for Iowa One Call a couple of times a week.

WHAT ABOUT HEALTH INSURANCE?

Actually, Iowa One Call doesn’t offer me health insurance. It never has.  If I substitute in the Des Moines Community school district (which has 75 schools) at least 3/5 days a week (which I think is very doable) I am eligible for their health insurance program.


Yes, I am well aware that there are no guarantees here.  I’m well aware that this could blow up in my face and not work out. It is why they call it a risk!  Yes, I’m scared and yes I second guess myself, BUT I know what I want out of life. I know who and what I want to be. I know the type of life I want to live.  This is it.  I want to be a substitute teacher, UBER driver, writer/radio co-host for takedownwrestle.com and hopefully one day a professionally published novelist.

As far as I’m concerned this is the only life I have, so I might as well do everything I can to get as much out of it as I can, and to achieve as much as I can.

2015 The Year in Review

Wow, where do I start?  In some ways, this year went by fast.  In other ways, it went by slow.  I didn't do a good job of recording events like I have in year's past. I'm sure I'll forget somethings.

Let's start with the positives.

Ashley Bunting - After I broke up with Melissa on February 21st, 2014 my intentions were to never date again. I was in love with Melissa, everything was perfect between the two of us, and I was hurt, pissed, scarred, you name it... that things had to end between us. To be honest, I still  have nightmares and guilt trips about it sometimes. I didn't want to go through that ever again. Matter of fact, I never wanted to go through it at all. The explanations I give to others never seem to satisfy, so I won't try anymore to explain why I do not want t have children. I know that not having kids is the right thing for my life and that having kids is the right thing for Melissa's life. Therefore the best thing for both of us, was to say goodbye and go our separate ways. I went about it the wrong way, and I still beat myself up about it. I still tell myself that if I would have handled it in a better way that I'd still have my cats, nothing bad would have ever happened to Chester, Charlie or Reverend Black and Melissa and I would have ended on a happier note. I miss my cats a lot, feel personal responsibility for what happened to them and a lot of anger towards those who hurt them.

I don't let go of pain easily and forgiving myself has been a challenge. That's where Ashley comes in. I went out with her a few times, and before I even knew it, she had decided she liked me and she wanted me to be her boyfriend. I wasn't ready for it and I wasn't prepared, but that's the way it needed to be. If I were to have waited until I was ready and prepared, then I never would have had a girlfriend again, because that time never would have came.

She challenges me to let go and to open up again. She makes me face my fears. I worry about being hurt again. I worry about climbing to the mountain, only to get shoved off and splat straight on the bottom like I did with Melissa. The fear has made it difficult for me to trust. When we first started dating back in May of 2015, I found myself still occasionally flirting with other girls. Not because I wanted to cheat or because I wanted to leave her, but because I had a hard time believing that it was all real. I had a hard time believing that it was going to last and that she really did like me for who I am and was in love with not who she wanted me to be, but who I already am.

It's still a journey. It's still a work and progress.  Our relationship is perfect for me though.  She is cool with me not wanting to get married, as long as I am monogamous and loyal to her.  She is cool with me never wanting to have kids. Her parents sometimes give her a hard time about it, but I don't think she'll give in to their demands. I hope that she is deciding that she doesn't want to have kids because that is what she wants. I hope she isn't changing her mind, and her goals for me. I've talked with her many times about this and she assures me for a multitude of reasons that have nothing to do with me, that she does not want to have kids either. I believe her and I trust her.  She also realizes that she is a part of my life.  A big part of my life, but that I also have my writing goals, my job, the gym, my friends and other parts of my life as well.

Some people give me a lot of shit because I don't talk about Ashley much and I don't mention her a lot on facebook.  I do that purposefully because I'm not in a relationship to impress other people and I sure as Hell am not in a relationship so other people can give me their opinions on it. I think a lot of the reason Melissa and I weren't able to communicate as well as we should have was because of the influence of other people. My mom doesn't like to admit this, but I think she got it into Melissa's head that eventually I'd change my mind and give in to having kids. I spend a lot of time with Ashley, I'm good to her in many ways. Whether the rest of the world knows it or not, I don't care. She does.


Meeting new people has been a blessing in my life. Mike Houston, Scott Casber, Tony Hager and Brad Johnson in particularly stick out.  Meeting Mike Houston, led to meeting Scott Casber, which led to meeting Tony Hager and Brad Johnson. Becoming a part of Takedownwrestle.com as a writer and radio co-host has been very rewarding. I've got to share my love, passion and knowledge with wrestling fans and I've been given a medium to share my writing talent as well. I love being a member of team takedown and I'm excited and enthusiastic about our future. I think we're going to continue to grow and prosper in 2016.

Trent Reedy has been the kick in the ass that I've needed a few times. We but heads on a lot of issues and we get on one another's nerves from time to time, but a lot of the reason I haven't given up on myself is because of his insistence that I can't. I fight depression. One of the reasons I fight depression is because I feel like a failure. I've written four, damn near five novels in the past 6 years and none of them are professionally published. Sometimes I feel like giving up. Telling myself that obviously I'm not good enough to be professionally published and I ought to throw in the towel and accept the fact that I'll write 90-120 novels in my life that no one will ever read. Trent reminds me of the excruciating and extraordinary work that it takes to become professionally published. He reminds me of how many times some of my favorite authors failed before they finally succeeded. He reminds me of how much time and effort I've already put into this, and how I can't quit now. I was meant to be a writer. It's what I'm meant to do. It may take forever before I get to that point, but I will get there. Trent has been a great role model in that regard to look up to. He thinks that I have what it takes, I simply need to learn and develop more and I'll get there. It may sound trivial to say this, but I say it in all sincerity. Having someone believe in you, does make a difference.

Joel Straube and Nicole Smith have taught me that sometimes friendships do last forever. I've lost some friends over the years and other friends, we're still friends, but our lives have drifted us apart. To know that Joel is still my friend long after 20 years, is a good feeling. We've been there for one another. He's someone I can turn to and have been able to turn to for a long time. We were once two kids, whose biggest concerns in life were whether to cheer for Shawn Michaels or Bret Hart at Wrestlemania. Now we're two adults, and our concerns are more serious, but we're still here for one another, the way two friends should be. I have no idea what the future holds.  I hope I still know Joel when I'm old and senile and he's fighting the nurses for the candy bar they won't let him have due to his diabetes.

Nicole and I have been friends for a long time now too. Since sophomore year of high school I think.  I hope we are many years from now too.

Now for the negatives....

Losing Allen Brown was tough. I never met Allen in person.  Matter of fact, I have no idea what he looks like. He's simply someone I met online back in 2001, and someone I've exchanged emails, personal messages and phone calls with for the past 15 years. As a wanna be writer, you experience many disappointments and failures. You doubt yourself and your abilities. You sometimes find yourself looking in the mirror seeing nothing more than a talent-less piece of shit starring back at you. You can try and battle the demons of doubt all alone, but sometimes you need a friend to come and help you in the fight. That's where Allen came in. He asked me to write a story about a wrestling team for him, and that's where I came up with the idea for The 0 and All Harris Bulldogs. He was very influential and motivational in inspiring me to work hard and finish the novel. I'm glad to know that he was still alive to have read and critiqued the first rough draft of the novel. I hope I'm able to honor his memory in the future by having it be one of the books I professionally publish.

When I wrote my first article for takedownwrestle.com, Allen was the first person I sent a copy of it too. He was very happy for me and told me that he thought one day I'd be remembered as a passionate, knowledgeable, talented writer who had a great love for the sport of wrestling. I will miss Allen a lot. He was someone I often went to when I wanted to talk wrestling or writing. He was a good friend.

Megan Vance was a difficult loss too. I wish I knew Megan better than what I did. It would seem over the past few years that I should have, considering in a way, she became part of my family. My Dad started dating her mom, Luann, a few years back and Megan and her husband have attended Christmas and 4th of July events with my family. My Dad got close with them, and I know it has been very difficult on him and especially Luann. Megan was such a nice person, such a good person. My mom often asked me what I thought of Luann's kids and I would often respond that I didn't know any of them that well, but Megan was the one that I knew and liked the best. She was always nice to me and I'll remember her as the great person she was.


And overall....
My goal is to continuously learn and improve myself. I want to be a better person than I was yesterday. I want to be smarter and wiser. I've achieved this goal in a rather strange way this year. Throughout the years I've always tried to do what I can so that people would like me and think that overall I was a good person with admirable qualities and traits. I still want to be that way in many ways. I am honest, I am sincere, I'm very raw and I'm very real.

However, in the eyes of some, I'm not a good guy. They don't like me. Some even hate me and I think for once in my life, I"m ok with that. In some ways I think I even embrace and celebrate that. I am who I am and if you love me for it, I'm glad. I probably love you too. If you hate me for it, ok. I'm cool with it.

A part of the reason I've been able to come to peace with this is because of my good friend Jaret Morlan. For the last 3 years or so, Jaret has been a great friend and quite influential to my life. On the journey we call life, we sometimes have the privilege of running into people, who because of their presence, makes our life better. Jaret is one of those people for me. He reminds me a lot of Mr. Gilliland, my high school psychology/sociology/government/economics teacher. He's a great educator, fascinating and intriguing. One of the best guys I know. I have a hard time understanding how anyone could dislike Jaret, but you know what? People do. There are people who don't like him. It makes no sense to me, but it makes sense to them.

And you know what? That's liberating to know that, because if there are people in the world that don't like Jaret Morlan, one of the most likable human beings on the planet, then I guess its ok if they don't like me.  It hasn't been easy being disliked simply because I'm an agnostic, or simply because of another reason I define unjustifiable, but if that's why people dislike me, then that's why they dislike me. I don't care anymore. As far as I'm concerned the people I want to like me do and that's what matters.

I'm still not who I want to be. I'm still not what I want to be.  I'm not doing what I want to do.  I don't look the way I want to look.  BUT, I am getting there.  I'm closer now to bench pressing 400 lbs than I have ever been. My chest and gut look like Hell, but my arms are looking good. My biceps and triceps look bigger in videos and pictures than they ever have.  According to Trent and a few other friends, my writing has improved.  Because of UBER, I'm closer to being done with student loans than I have ever been.

My goals for 2016, are to put myself economically into a position to where I can substitute teach and UBER next year.  I want to get back into performing, whether it be through the medium of professional wrestling or community theatre. I want to spend more time at the comedy club and hopefully finding more opportunities to share stories.  I love story telling.  I hope to get out more and make more friends and build stronger friendships with the people I've met in Des Moines.  I've let my anxiety, fear and depression get the best of me a lot of times and other times, I simply have been too busy.

I hope 2016 sees me write another novel or two. I hope to be able to attend workshops and maybe even take a few classes to improve my writing. My goal is to read at least 25 books and I hope to surprise myself and to double that number.

The fight is never easy.  Life is a challenge and at times even an enemy to conquer.  At other times, it  is a reward and a friend to embrace.

Thank you 2015, a year in my life.

Here's to 2016, may you be a great year an educational year and a rewarding year!

Operation UBER-HELP-ME-SUB

NOTE: I don't have all of my information, as I wasn't sure when I first started how to obtain all of it.  So I'm not 100% certain all of the hours I've put it.  I know my first week was the week of Sept 21st, 2015.  As of 12-22-2015 I've made $634.25.




WEEK (SEPT 14-21)
TOTAL: $67.46
Hours: 7.5
Trips: 12
Average Per Hour: $9
Percentage of Total I made: 76%


WEEK (SEPT 22-28)
TOTAL: $72.56


WEEK (????) 

TOTAL: $112.03 


WEEK (OCT 5 - OCT 12) 

TOTAL: $102.30
Hours: 12.9
Trips: 18
Average per Hour: $7.86
Percentage of Total I made: ?


WEEK (OCT 26 - NOV 2) 

TOTAL: $155.53
Hours: 11.5
Trips: 23
Average per hour: $13.52
Percentage of total I made: ?

WEEK (DEC 14-DEC 21) 

TOTAL: $157.80
Hours: 13.24
Trips: 22
Average Per hour: $11.85
Percentage of Total I made: 80%

WEEK (DEC 21-28)

TOTAL = $238.27
Hours: 18.35
Trips: 27
Average Per hour: $12.98
Percentage of Total I made: 86%


WEEK (DEC 28 - JAN 4)

TOTAL = $75.63

Hours = 10.59
Trips = 13
Average per hour: $7.14
Percentage of total I made: 72%

Closer to the Goal

Officially I've been an adult for the last 12 years, at least according to some laws. According to some other laws, I've been an adult for 9 years. To be fair to my parents, I've been an adult for the last 7 years.

And for the last 7 years I've had a series of different jobs. Some that I've disliked, some that I've HATED, some that I've liked, some that I've liked a lot and a few that I've LOVED.  If I count professional wrestling as one of those jobs, I loved that. If I count being a writer/radio co-host for takedownwrestle.com, I love that too.

The job that I did that I loved the most though, was when I substitute taught in Iowa City. I loved every minute of it. I taught pre-school, elementary, junior high, high school, alternative school and specialized school. One day I'd be reading stories to a group of kindergartners, the next day I'd be playing dodge-ball all day at a junior high. I loved helping kids with their assignments, having class discussions and the excitement of something new everyday.

I also loved the freedom involved with it. You went in, taught for a full day or sometimes a half a day and then you went home. Nothing extra about it. I went home, and I had plenty of time for the gym, plenty of time to read, plenty of time to write. If something came up, a funeral, a friend was back in town that I hadn't seen in years or if I felt like an extra day off, I took it.  It was a stress free, worry free, enjoyable and rewarding career.

Why did I stop doing it? It wasn't enough money. There were no benefits. I had nearly a 3 month period of time where I wouldn't have any work.

I hated leaving it and I've hoped for an opportunity to get back into it ever since.

It's been nearly 5 years since I've substitute taught and I think I may be in a position to where I can substitute again.

UBER has been a tremendous help. Driving nights and weekends has allowed me to save up some extra money and put more money towards my student loans. My goal is to UBER as much as I can on Friday nights, all day/night Saturday and Sundays. I want to use this extra money for two purposes. Saving up for the future and putting extra money in my student loan payments.  If I can put an extra $100 or $200 per month towards student loans that can mean an extra $900 to $1,800 towards getting them paid off. My goal is to have between $3,500 and $4,500 saved up by August 1st, 2016.  

It may mean putting in an extra 30-35 hours a week on top of the 40+ hours I work for Iowa One Call, but as the old motto goes, sometime you have to work hard for the things you want in life.

I called about getting a substitute license yesterday and it was a much easier process than I thought it would be. Since I have a 4 year bachelor's degree in education, I have student taught and I have substitute teaching experience in Iowa City, all I have to do is pay $85 and pass a criminal background check. On Thursday I have a meeting with an education representative. I hand him my application fee, I pay him $85, I wait a couple of weeks for my background check to come back and then I am eligible to sub-teach at any public institution pre-school through 12th grade in the state of Iowa for 5 years.

Since I have all of the credentials, I will make $130 per day.  I'm imagining that'll be around $105 to $110 after taxes.  In Iowa City I made $100 per day, which ended up being about $85 a day and in Cedar Rapids, when I taught up there the $120 they paid per day ended up being about $100.  So, based on that, I believe I'll make between $105 and $110 per day after taxes.

A study came out in May of this year that said that the Des Moines area was seriously struggling for substitute teachers. On average 30 classes per day, went unfilled and other staff members including secretaries, principals, music, art and P.E. teachers had to fill in. There is a serious shortage of substitute teachers in the area. Based on conversations I've had with other individuals, teachers, substitute teachers and people involved, if they have school that day, if I want a job, I'll have one.

There are 74 schools in the Des Moines community school district alone. Add in 13 for West Des Moines, 10 for Urbandale, 13 for Southeast Polk, 5 for Norwalk, 6 for Indianola, 2 for Martensdale St. Marys and that makes 123 schools within a 20 minute or less drive of my home for me to be eligible to substitute teach at.

I am not worried about their not being enough work during the school year. Between substituting and driving UBER on the weekends, I'll be able to make as much or even more than I'm making right now.

The concern comes up for how to handle the period of time between June 3rd and August 25th when school is not in session. That's a 3 month period of time, when I'll have to rely solely on UBER to get by. That is why I am trying to save up between $3,500 and $4,500 or more.

A pleasant surprise I found out about, is that as a substitute teacher, if you work 120 hours or more per month, you are eligible for health benefits.

I like many things about my job at Iowa One Call. I especially like it January, February, March, April and August.  Anymore, I've been able to make September and October decent months as well.  May, June and especially July are horrible. I love the 3rd and 4th of July,but it seems to me that no matter what I end up doing, July is always a struggling month for me. November and December aren't the greatest either.  

The truth is, the job is going to come to an end anyway. I've known this since my interview for the the job in early April of 2013. I was told, "I want to let you know that this job isn't going to last you the rest of your life." and I was told why that was. My boss was very upfront and honest with me about the situation.

Although I've never been outright told, there has been enough evidence to strongly suggestion that the end date is June of 2018. Maybe I ought to wait until then to try this out, but I'm restless and I'm excited. I want to make this a reality. I have an education that cost me $48,000 and cost my Mom/Barry and my Dad $24,000, and substitute teaching would be me using it. I've made a lot of sacrifices in my life, to try and obtain the life and lifestyle that I want to live.  I want to substitute teach, UBER and have the freedom to read, write and workout more often.

This is a goal of mine and something I have been and will continue to work hard for and sacrifice for.  I'm closer to the goal than I've ever been. Anxious to see if I can make it a reality.

Time will tell.

"All these available jobs" Is that so?

I have many goals. In the way of some of these goals are loans. In particularly student loans. If I pay the minimum of $350 per month, my last payment is scheduled for August of 2019. I hate paying student loans. I've hated it since I first started doing it. I used to complain about. I don't anymore, unless you count simply talking about it as complaining. Instead I've decided to do what I can to try and pay off these loans faster.

As a result, I've dived into a few different ways to earn extra money. Extra money that can be used to pay off my student loans quicker. Some of these ideas, such as UBER have been wise decisions. UBER, when I have had the time to do it, has allowed me an extra $150-$300 a week to help towards my loans and other unexpected expenses.

Not all journeys for extra cash have been pleasant. Some of them have been the exact opposite.

When I was living in Iowa City, I did a multitude of different jobs to earn money. The dumbest one I ever ventured into was when I took a job delivering papers for the Cedar Rapids Gazette. It was $60, to deliver papers on Wednesday morning. When I asked the guy how long it'd take me, he said it'd take me about 4 hours. The equivalent of $15 an hour.  It sounded great to me.

I went in at 4:30 a.m. that morning, a half hour early, to pick up the papers. They were put in bundles. I was told that I would have to cut the bundles, roll up the newspapers and place them into baggies.  That alone took me 3 hours. There were too many papers for my pickup, so I called my friend Chief and asked to borrow his Cherokee to deliver the papers.

It took me till 10:00 p.m. to deliver all of the papers. It took me 15 and a half hours in all. I averaged $3.87 an hour. If you count that I had to fill up Chief's tank for $25, then I only averaged $2.25 an hour. I talked to other people who had delivered papers, and asked them if I was doing something wrong. They informed me that I wasn't. It took them between 12 and 17 hours to do deliver all the papers too.

"Why do you think there is an advertisement in the paper for the job all the time?" One of them said to me making a good point.

Here it is nearly 5 years later, and the Iowa City Press Citizen still has weekly advertisements for the job.


I ended up calling my boss at 11:00 p.m. and letting him know that I would not be back the next Wednesday.  I went back to driving Cab on Wednesday nights, and searching for other opportunities.  Yet, I asked myself then and I continue to ask myself today a few questions.

Is $2.25 an hour better than nothing?  Yes, it is.

Yet, is $2.25 better than what someone would earn on welfare?  No, it isn't.

Is $2.25 an hour better than what one would collect through unemployment?  No, it isn't.

And I wonder sometimes if that's the answer to a question hat I hear asked a lot.  People say all the time, "I don't get why there are so many people on welfare or collecting unemployment checks when there are so many jobs available?"

The conclusion many people want to have us all believe, is that it is because people are lazy and they don't want to work.  In some cases, I don't doubt that is the answer.

Yet, how many of these so called available "jobs" are like the paper delivery job that I did for the Cedar Rapids Gazette?  Who's the dummy when you can collect a welfare check that equals the equivalent of $10 an hour or you can work for 15 1/2 hours per day for less money?

It's not the only time, I've experienced situations to ask me such questions.

About two months ago, I was approached by a gentleman who had heard from an acquaintance of mine that I enjoyed driving. He asked me if I would be interested in working for him, for a company called Professional Transportation Incorporated.

At first I told him that I wasn't interested because I had many other commitments. Iowa One Call gets really busy January, February and March. I have commitments as a writer to takedownwrestle.com and UBER-ing has been very good to me on the weekends.

"I could really use you on Sundays." He said to me.

I told him that I liked to UBER on Sunday mornings and afternoons and then I took care of laundry, bill paying and a few other chores on Sunday nights.

"Ah don't worry." He said to me, "Come on at 4:45 a.m., take a few morning rides for me and you'll be home by 2:00 p.m."

He told me that I'd average between $75 and $125 every Sunday.  I figured an average of $10.71 to $17.85 an hour wasn't too bad.  In UBER I usually average between $4.25 and $11.75 an hour driving for about 6 to 8 hours on Sundays.

I figured it was worth the chance.

Boy was I WRONG.

The first Sunday, I got my first ride at 11:00 a.m.   I was told that all I would be doing was taking a crew from the Des Moines rail yard to the Nevada rail yard.  I ended up going from Des Moines to Nevada, to Boone, back to Nevada, back to Boone, and then to Avon Lake.  I didn't get back to the Des Moines yard until 11:00 p.m.

Do you know what I made in 12 hours of working? $56.  Yes, $56.  I averaged $4.60 an hour.

Don't ask me what possessed me to go back and do it again.

I called my boss and told him that I wasn't happy about being told I'd be done by 2:00 p.m. and then not being let go till 11:00 p.m.

He told me that nothing like that would happen again and to please stay on, because without me, they would be short someone on Sunday.

I came back.  This time my job started at 9:00 a.m.   I was told to go to Beech, Iowa and pick up a crew and take them to Kansas City.  We were supposed to leave at 9:00, and arrive at 12:00.  We didn't leave until 12:30.  We got to Kansas City at 3:30.  I got home at 6:30.

I haven't been paid for the job yet, but I'm anxious to see what I averaged for 9 1/2 hours worth of work.  If I only made $56 for 12 hours worth of work, I'm going to imagine that this could be as bad as $40.  We'll see.

I can make $56 in UBER working 5 hours on a good day, and if it isn't a good day, I end my day sooner. That's the beauty of UBER.  If it's a good day, I'll drive and drive and drive.  If it's a bad day, I drive around for an hour. If I haven't had a ride in an hour, I go home. I don't need to waste 9 to 12 hours of my life, when I could be doing more productive things.

It leads me to continue to wonder if all these "available jobs" are like C.R. Gazette delivery and P.T.I.

Jobs that are more hassle than they are worth. Jobs that you'd be better off collecting unemployment or welfare checks.

Is that a fair question to ask?

I think so.

 

Stonebraker on the Issues

I could never be a politician. For a variety of different reasons, it'd never work. For one I am way too honest, and way too straight laced for a career that often calls for crooked dishonesty. Secondly, my politics are all over the place. On a good number of issues, I lean left, which gives me the illusion of being liberal. Yet, there are enough issues which I lean right, or at least not left enough, to where I might even appear conservative. You are bound to agree with me on some of my thoughts and feelings and I'm bound to royally piss you off with others. Have fun. I know I will.

THE PATRIOT ACT

I mainly oppose the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools To Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act (PATRIOT ACT). I do not feel it right for authorities to be able to search a home or a business without the owner's consent or knowledge. I also believe that a court order/warrant be necessary for authorities to be able to search telephone, email, and financial records. I want our country to be safe from and free of terrorism but not at the cost of Americans right to privacy. I believe there are other, better methods.

NSA

Much like the PATRIOT ACT, I am in opposition to the National Security Agency (NSA), much for the same reasons. Being spied on, without viable reason, I feel is a violation of liberty.

THE LEGALIZATION OF DRUGS

I support the legalization of marijuana. Never smoked marijuana and imagine I never will, but the decriminalization of marijuana makes perfect sense to me. As for other drugs, I am a firm believer in total body sovereignty and believe that a person has a right to put into their own body what they choose. Arguments about effects and affects fall flat, when in comparison to alcohol and cigarettes. Both alcohol and cigarettes cause a variety of health problems and deaths in this country every year. Alcohol, when abused, causes a series of other problems as well. I find it humorous and hypocritical that when Phillip Seymour Hoffman overdosed on a mixture of cocaine, amphetamines, and heroine it was a huge deal. It was covered all over the news for weeks on end. Yet, had he have binge drank himself to death, we would have seen a quick blurb about it on the 10:00 news and that'd have been that. I don't understand how people can drink themselves to death, beat their spouses in a drunken outrage, kill people drunk behind the wheel of a car and essentially our society doesn't give a damn. Smoke a little pot, an act that hurts no one, get put in the penitentiary for 15 years. Get caught drinking and driving, an act that could potentially harm someone severely or even kill someone, and you get a $1,200 fine and your license suspended for a year. It is asinine. Millions of people die each year because of alcohol related issues. Drink yourself to death, that's fine and dandy. Die from a heroine overdose, now we have an issue. It makes no sense to me. Marijuana as well as other drugs should be treated accordingly, as are alcohol and cigarettes. Have an age limit. Have rules and regulations (Can't drive drunk? Can't drive high.  Can't drink at work? Can't get high at work.) and use common sense. Someone kills someone under the influence of drugs, would the victim be anymore alive had the person killed them under the influence of alcohol?

Secondly, as shown in Colorado and Washington, the legalization of marijuana has been financially beneficial to the states. It makes sense.

CORPORATIONS FINANCING POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS

Corporations are not people and they should not influence elections.

GERRYMANDERING

I don't see how the act of manipulation could ever be conceived as anything other than dirty and underhanded. Both political parties gerrymander and it is indisputably wrong.

CORPORATE INCOME TAX
Corporations should be taxed.

WALL STREET ILLEGAL ACTIVITY
Wall Street should be held accountable for any and all illegal activity.

GUN CONTROL
I believe strongly in the 2nd Amendment and an individual's right to own and bear arms. I am not a gun owner, nor do I plan to be one, but I do believe strongly in gun owner's rights. I do think that mass shootings are a major problem in this country and that we need to address the issue. I don't think that pointing the finger at guns themselves is the answer. I don't know for sure what the answer is. I do believe that we need to be taking a stronger look at those who obtain guns, and making sure that individuals who want to own a gun are responsible enough to do so.

My personal opinion for why we have so many mass shootings is because of the attention that we pay the shooter. When someone goes on a killing spree, we know everything about them. Magazines, newspapers, news stations, internet articles you cannot escape their pictures. You know what they look like now, what they looked like when they were born, what they looked like when they graduated high school, what they looked like at their first job, what they looked like sitting on the can taking a dump. We read, watch or listen to their life stories, and often hear nothing more than the names of their victims. Does the name Suzie Jackson mean anything to you? How about Daniel Simmons? No? I bet you recognize the name Dylann Roof though. The piece of shit bastard that shot and killed them.

Mass shootings DID happen 20, 30 even 40 years ago but they didn't happen at the massive rate of succession that they happen today. They also weren't overexposed and covered for months and months like they are today. Victims had more press than their assailants. Newspaper's showed pictures of the victims and told stories of the good men, women or children that were lost. Only a small excerpt about the shooter was included.  Perhaps that has nothing to do with it and perhaps it does.

SOCIAL SECURITY/PENSION PLANS

Our elders worked hard and put into the system, they deserve to benefit from it. I also think that my generation and especially younger generations are going to need social security as well. Life is expensive. It is difficult and in some cases nearly impossible to save for retirement. Social security is a good thing and it should remain strong and intact. I feel the same for pension plans.

ILLEGAL ALIENS/BORDER CONTROL/ENGLISH

This is a very tough, touchy, and controversial issue. Illegal immigrants are human beings and should be treated as such. I believe first and foremost that obtaining citizenship, should be an easier process than what it currently is. Kids born in the United States, were born here, regardless of their parents origin, and therefore like all other individuals born in the United States should be considered American citizens. As for healthcare, my feelings are necessary and emergency healthcare should be granted to illegal aliens. Illegal aliens who are detrimental to society because of serious illegal activity (murder, rape, extortion,treason, ect) should be deported. If they are good individuals, who contribute to society, again, obtaining citizenship should be an easier process.

I do believe that everyone in this country should learn to communicate (read, write and speak) English. I also believe that free or relatively inexpensive programs should be available to help individuals learn English. The reason I believe this, is because I believe strongly that a lack of communication or a failure to communicate at all, is a leading cause for a large sum of problems. How can you effectively communicate with someone if they speak a different language than you? The argument may be why not have everyone learn Spanish or French or German?  I do believe that it is good and it is healthy  to study and learn foreign languages. I simply do not want to live in a country where everyone is speaking a different language and we are unable to communicate with one another. Perhaps one day technology will be so advanced that we will be able to carry around devices to where we can speak English into them and have it come out in Spanish or vice versa. Communication unites us, which is why I support citizens learning to communicate in English.

SUBSIDIZING FARMERS

I am for subsidizing and helping out the American farmer. I would like to see more help given to the small farmer. Farmers feed us and it goes without saying that that food is essential to our well being. The farmer succeeds, we succeed. The farmer fails, we fail.

WELFARE

I believe individuals who are in need of help and assistance should receive it. On the same hand, I believe that the system has become corrupted and perverted since its implementation in 1964. I never want to see anyone who is in need, go without help or assistance. However, I also don't want to see the system continuously abused either.

LABOR UNIONS

I support Labor Unions and feel that they are a benefit to the American worker. Labor unions fought hard and fought long for worker's rights. Some argue that they did not implement such things as weekends, 40 hour work weeks, the end of child slave labor and benefits but I argue that they did. Furthermore I argue that not only are they the origin, they are the foundation for maintaining these worker's rights. I do not believe that unions are perfect and I do see their flaws, but I believe that the pros outweigh the cons. From what I have seen and studied, President Ronald Reagan's demonizing of unions in the mid 1980's was one of the most harmful acts to the American people and their finances in modern times.

TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP

I believe under serious reform, that the TPP could potentially be a good thing but I do not believe that is currently is. Today it is being used to boost profits for large corporations, undercut worker's rights and dismantle labor. It has also been a large contributor to the increased cost of medicine. It is a system that hurts the American family and helps the corporations and I oppose it.

SICK LEAVE AND BIRTH OF CHILD LEAVE
I believe that paid sick leave and birth of child leave should be granted to American workers.

RIGHT DO DEATH
If a individual has a terminal illness and no hope of recovery, I believe that they should have a right to end their life without consequence. Nursing homes, hospices and other care facilities make a killing providing services to individuals as they slowly die within a few weeks to six months. It's a sick and demented profiteering scheme and it should be exposed for what it is. Making someone continue to live in pain and suffering, to milk their finances or because of antiquated, ludicrous beliefs, is wrong. Terminally ill patients should have a right to end their lives in peace. They do not deserve to suffer.

ABORTION

I address myself as neither pro-life or pro-choice for a variety of reasons. First and foremost because I cannot stand the assumptions and connotations that go along with labeling one's self one way or the other. I oppose abortion. I do not like abortion. I do not agree with abortion. What I respect, is that a law was put into place in 1973, that granted a woman a right to an abortion. I respect that and I respect that the law has been in place for 42 years and for a number of reasons, it will remain in place. I do not agree with the statement, "A right to do what she wants with her body" because I do not look at the entity growing inside of her as her body. I cannot. Morally I cannot. Genetically I cannot. Biologically I cannot. If it were her body, there is no way that it could have a different blood type. There is no way that it could have a different genetic makeup. If put into a position to where I had to choose one way or the other whether I am pro-life or pro-choice, I would reluctantly have to label myself as pro-choice. I loathe the automatic assumptions and connotations that are associated with doing so.

In my opinion, we do not address the issue of abortion in a productive manner. Pro-life individuals look at it strictly from a perspective of preventing pregnant women from having abortions. That is not how or where the issue can be won. Instead, I believe that the way to dramatically reduce the number of abortions that take place in the United States, is to help women who do not want to become pregnant, not become pregnant. Ask the question, who is having an abortion? The answer is always, women who are pregnant, who do not want to be pregnant. If we were to help these women, through sex education in schools, making contraceptives more affordable and accessible and being more open and honest about sex, then less of them would become pregnant. Women who don't want to be pregnant, don't get pregnant and therefore they don't end up having an abortion.

SEX EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS
I am an advocate and I strongly support sex education in schools. It helps to prevent unwanted pregnancies and STD's among young people. Abstinence only is an outdated idea, that never worked. It is fine to be included in the overall education, and more power to you for the 0.0001% of kids in this country that you can name that it worked on.

HOMOSEXUAL  RIGHTS
I am a firm believer in homosexual rights. Homosexuals should be granted and given the same rights, liberties and justices as all other Americans. I find it disheartening and Un-American for anyone to support legislation that violates ones liberties or rights. For anyone to support legislation that makes one set of people inferior to another is unpatriotic and a slap in the face to our constitution. I am ashamed to live in a country where homosexuals are treated poorly and still have to continually fight to be treated fairly.

DEATH PENALTY
I oppose the death penalty, but probably for reasons that others in opposition would not agree with me upon. I oppose the death penalty not because I think that lethal injection is too severe a punishment or inhumane, but because I believe that life imprisonment sentences are harsher punishments for those that have committed senseless murders. For those of you that think it would cost more money to imprison than to kill, think again. Do a quick study. You'll come to discover quickly that putting someone to death is more costly than keeping them alive. Let's make these criminals, these true, honest criminals more productive and put them to work. Let's get drug offenders who shouldn't even be in prison to begin with out of prison and these murderers into prison. Make life uncomfortable and non-enjoyable for those who receive the sentence of life imprisonment without parole.

GOD IN THE PUBLIC SPECTRUM
Our country is built on the foundation of liberty and justice for all, and all means every American citizen which includes both Christians and non-Christians. Nothing government affiliated should give one group of citizens more or less rights, liberties or justices than another. No group should be seen as inferior because of their beliefs and no group should be seen as superior because of their beliefs. An individual who wants to be able to practice and live as a Christian should have every right to do so. An individual who does not want to live as a Christian or be subjected to Christian ideas, rules or ways should not have to be. Our government should be one that shows no bias for or against any particular belief. Our government should operate impartiality and enforce the separation of Church and State.

ANIMAL RIGHTS
I believe in animal rights. Animals used for consumption should be treated humanely and killed in the most humane, non-painful way possible. Pets, should be treated with dignity and respect and anyone caught abusing a pet should face the same ramifications as if they were abusing a human.

NATIONAL PARKS
Our national parks should be protected.

WIND POWER/ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF ENERGY
We should support the use of healthier alternative sources of energy.

GLOBAL WARMING
Regardless of whether global warming is real or not (Which I believe it is, although I question exaggeration at times) we should care more about our planet and take better care of it. Global warming or no global warming, we should recycle. We should reduce the number of harmful gases and chemicals that we put into the air. Even if global warming is a hoax, I would hope one wouldn't be stupid enough to go out and burn a tire while spraying CFC's into the air. The earth is our home, lets treat it well.

LABELING OF FOOD
People have a right to know what is in their food.

UNITED NATIONS
The United States should continue to be a part of the United Nations. Preventative measures are why World War III hasn't happened yet and hopefully never will happen.

FOREIGN TERRORIST
Foreign terrorist should have the right to a fair and speedy trial and then be dealt with accordingly. Upon further discussion I could be persuaded to allow them to be an exception for the death penalty.

MILITARY SPENDING
We spend a lot of unnecessary money on the military. This money could be put to better use. For one, our soldiers should be treated better and receive more benefits. Instead of cutting V.A. programs and making soldiers get by on laughable pay, perhaps money on jets that cost $8,000,000,000 should be cut instead. Our veterans deserve much better treatment than what they receive. If 51% or more of our overall budget is going to be spent on our military, then those currently in the military and our veterans should be better taken care of. People profiteering off the lives of young men and women isn't right. If someone has to give up their life, in partial or in full, they should be better thanked for it.

REFUGEES
I have thought hard and I have thought long on this issue. I do not want to turn down good men, women and children who need our help and our assistance. I do not want the burden of a child being murdered on my mind. On the same hand, I don't want the burden of allowing a terrorist with intentions to harm American men, women and children into the country either. I wrestle with what the right decision is. My proposal would be for the United Nations to set up safe camps in remote locations for the refugees to go to. It is not a perfect solution. I do not have a perfect solution.

VACCINES
This is probably the most difficult topic to discuss. I believe that if a child is going to be in surroundings where they interact with other kids on a daily basis, such as a public or private school that they should be required to be vaccinated. I hate telling other people what to do, but I hate that someone else's child might get sick and die because of your refusal to vaccinate. I also hate how lies and manipulation were used to try and convince people that there was a direct link between autism and vaccines. It has been completely debunked and yet people still hold fast to the idea. Louis Pasteur and other men and women, before and after him have proven that vaccines save lives and keep us healthy.

EDUCATION
 Education is the most useful and powerful tool we have as a nation and we should invest more time, energy and money into it. I also believe that all education should be valued. Mathematics and sciences should be highly valued, but so should the humanities of English, history, art and literature. I believe we should continuously look for ways and methods of teaching our youth in ways that they can learn and benefit from education best. I believe in providing options for kids, and teaching to their potentials.

SPACE TRAVEL
I support the United States continuing space exploration

CONGRESS
I support term limits for members of congress


Well that's all the issues I can think of.  If there are any that I didn't address and you would like my opinion on them, let me know and I'll give you my opinion.