My life since I last blogged

     


     It has been along time since I have updated this blog, and in that time I have been going to
college at ITT Tech  for computer networking. I am over half way through with my degree, and      
I have a 3.66 gpa and it will increase once the grades from this last quarter are posted.    
   
      Lauren is doing great, except for the fact that she is growing up way too fast. It is scary  she is not even 12 yet and according to her doctor  she has the body of a teenager (UGH!!) she is over 5 feet tall  and almost 100 pounds of solid muscle and boundless energy. It makes it hard on us , her mother especially. In church she is almost uncontrollable. She is so strong and stubborn, I know that having two very strong willed parents  doesn't help either, but Lauren wants what she wants and is bound and determined to get it.


        Amy and I are great also, we are learning to listen, understand, and step into our roles as husband and wife, parents and friends and most of all we are learning the art of compromise. It has taken almost 18 years of struggle, tears, anguish, and prayers to finally begin this new chapter in our lives, but you cannot make a diamond without pressure, or get  pure gold without turning up the heat. I know there will be more struggles ahead for us, but with God's help we will get through it together.

      I love both Amy and Lauren with all my heart and there is nothing I would not do for them, I know that is easy to say, but I will spend the rest of the time I have here on Earth proving it.

      I am not one to give unsolicited advice, but I admonish you to learn how to compromise with your spouse or loved ones and never miss an opportunity to tell them you love them.

                                                          Thank you,
                                                                 Don Parnell                
                           

A catlyst for violence and an excuse to blame someone.

                                                                         
                 I had to write this for my comp class. It is supposed to be an opinion piece on the George Zimmerman/ Trayvon Martin  incident. Read ,follow and tell me what you think.
 
                                    Thanks for reading,
                                              Don
  
                  

  Regardless of what side you’re on we all have an opinion about the Trayvon Martin incident. We all have formed that opinion based on who we listen to and where we get our news from. Good or bad we all have something to say on the matter. I think the rush to judgment before the facts were fully in writing was driven by some strange shadowy agenda that has not fully manifested itself yet.  I am not a conspiracy theorist in the slightest, but you have to wonder why a local killing in a small Florida town outside of Orlando was elevated to such a status that it warranted national news coverage. Since Trayvon was killed there hasn’t been a day that has passed that something hasn’t been said about it on the news or in the newspaper, blogs or in some commentary in one form or the other. The race issue was brought into it right away with some saying just hours after it happened that it was racially motivated and that George Zimmerman stalked him down and killed Trayvon in cold blood. Now I don’t know about that, but what I do know is that even though all this was going on a 17 year old boy was still dead and no amount of pandering and supposition was going to bring him back.

    Now as the trial on George Zimmerman winds down and his fate is put into the hands of the jury, there are rumblings of riots and violence if he is acquitted. I’d like to think that level heads will prevail in this situation, but I’m not so sure about that. Whatever happens no amount of violence and destruction is going to bring back that 17 year old boy, it will just make the protesters look like they just wanted an excuse to riot, beat, kill and create all sorts of havoc to the public at large. I have nothing against either of these people at the center of this controversy. What I do have a problem with is using this incident as a catalyst for civil unrest or violence for violence’s sake. It will do no good for anybody to riot. Not only will private property be destroyed but also people will get hurt or most likely killed in the ensuing melee. If that happens then the rioters are no better than what they think George Zimmerman did.

  I conclude with this thought, that we are all here on earth for just a fleeting moment in the face of eternity. Why don’t we just try and love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves and our kids for that matter.

I felt like writing something today

                      Writing for writing's sake

          Have you ever just felt like doing something that you enjoy doing but haven't done in awhile?  
That is what I felt doing today. I don't in which  direction this entry will go, but I will write it any way. There were things I promised my self I would not write about when I started this blog among them are politics and celebrities. But I am changing my views on the subject. 
     
       Both politicians and most celebrities are over paid elitists who wouldn't know how to live outside of Washington D.C. or Hollywood without assistants, an expense account and/or lobbyists telling them what to do. It angers me when the president can tell us to tighten our belts and shut down tours of the white house because they can't afford to pay the people to conduct those tours but still go on a 100 million dollar vacation to Africa at the tax payers expense. The Man is nothing but a hypocrite  and an elitist of the highest order.

      Paula Deen admitted to using racial slurs thirty years ago and all of her sponsors and business partners drop her like a hot potato, but Alec Baldwin can send out a tweet threatening violence and calling someone a "Toxic Queen" and you hear nothing from the same people who called for Paula Deen's destruction. What a bunch of lousy, ignorant, hyper sensitive ,hypocritical, politically correct, Judgmental, mental midgets. What is worse admitting to something that happened thirty years ago or getting caught red handed threatening to F someone up and calling  him a derogatory name less than a week ago? I'll let you decide.

   I know my views will not line up with some of your, but what is going on here? Has political correctness replaced common sense? 

     I must be " Old School" because I still believe there are consequences for our actions, accountability  for our deeds , and punishments for our wrong doing. I know I will catch some backlash for this but I am tired of seeing good people destroyed simply for the sake of political correctness and political expediency. Christians are attacked because of their stance on Gay marriage and are called homophobic and hateful and all manner of vile and disgusting things by the people who expound tolerance and love. I see Christians and conservatives (there is a difference) attack the left with the same vitriol as the left attacks the them. Does it do any good?  Does the name calling  and the verbal punches  accomplish anything? Maybe I am preaching to the converted or maybe I'm spitting in the wind. But there has got to be an Aha moment where we say to ourselves" Lets stop this and find some common ground and see if we can compromise" if not then it will remain the status quo and this country will divide along the lines of political and religious lines even more so than it already is.
 
             I'm done venting and I will say thank you for all who read this blog entry. May you find some inspiration in may words or at least think about them.


                                              Don Parnell

Puzzled

                                  Puzzled

 

The Pieces don’t fit

It is something I just don’t get

She is healthy and happy

And has a smile that melts my heart

I wish I had known from the very start

That my life would change

My world would be rearranged

 She is mine that can’t be denied

 But God help my stubborn pride

Living with this is hard enough

Without putting up with life’s stuff

She may never walk down the aisle

But that is O.K. as long as I can see that smile

She may never change the world

But it is alright she has changed mine

She may always be a little behind

As long as she remains extraordinarily kind

I may not have all the answers

Maybe because I am not asking the right questions

The pieces may not always fit

But you know I will always be O.K. with it

 

                              Don Parnell

                             Proud Parent of an Autistic Child

 

         I had a moment of inspiration and wrote this. Please tell me what you think.
       


    

Twists and turns of this roller coaster of a week.

             To say this week was surprising is an understatement. It started out ok. School was good finished my homework in class on Monday. Went to work on Tuesday it was an  o k  day. School Tuesday night was good I found out I have the highest grade in my computer class, a  98.8% .Yay Me. Wednesday was a very bad day it was raining to begin with ,I can't stand working in the rain, I was running behind a little and not really feeling like working anyway. It was alright day until I took this one delivery and was returning to my truck when I slipped off one of the steps leading to the sidewalk and could not regain my balance. I went flailing trying stop myself and hit the sidewalk with my knee while the rest of me landed in the grass and mud. My work pants have a hole in them now and the skin on my knee looks like hamburger, but it actually looks worse than it feels. Thursday was a very good day. My first run of the day I got a $35 tip and I worked for ten hours and made a hundred dollars WOO HOO!! Friday was a manic day in so much as it was a mixture of both good and bad .I got a $25 tip and I got wrote up . It has not been a very consistent  week for me.

     The new  manager came in this week in order to set up the store the so she can work more efficiently and to see who is going to be helping her get acclimated . I did not say much to her at first ,but she is a very hard worker and she is firm but fair type of boss. I explained to her my side of the story about my write up. She listened and said she would take care of it and we are starting out on a clean slate. I am going to keep my nose clean and do my job just like I always do and let the chips fall where they may. I have given my blood ,sweat, and tears and lost sleep over this job. I am not going to let an attitude ,mine or anybody else's, ruin what I have worked so hard  to overcome in myself. I had to reevaluate my work ethic and change my concept of why I work.  It is not to make a paycheck it is to provide for my family.



                         Just thought I'd share my week with you guys. Thanks for reading .

                                                Don Parnell

                                                                    

     I am back.....

     It has been almost 2 years since I have posted an entry on this blog. I  realized that some things are just to much for me to do and this is just one of those things.So I  will restart and only do this weekly and see how it goes.
  
         I have been  going to Itt-tech  and I have finally found a school that works for me with all my issues . I am making friends, I am also finally understanding algebra and other mathematical concepts I have never understood before. It is funny how at 41 I am just now being able to just get out of my way when it comes to social interaction and allow things to happen naturally instead of trying to force anything.

    Lauren is doing really well and is talking so well ,sometimes she just wont be quiet. But I guess she is making up for lost time. she was non-verbal up until she was 6 .

   Amy is also well. She is studying  to get her G E D and go to college .I am proud of her for doing this.
  
   I am  doing well at work. My bosses like  and trust me and I am up for a raise soon so I have that to look forward too .

     I hope you all are well and if you are new to this blog welcome and thank you for reading the musings of a typical man, father, husband with Asperger's .





    Thank you    Don Parnell

Catching up

 

It has been awhile since my last post ,sorry about that. The last couple of weeks have been hectic  taking care of some last minute details before going back to school and going to my nephew’s graduation and spending time with the family along with my mother coming to visit us in Dayton this past week.I realized how much fun family and friends can be along with a trip to the Columbus  zoo made this past week very good.I am exhausted with all the running around and just doing more than normal.

Lauren is learning new words and phrases over the past week or so .I found out that a lot more people read this thing than I originally  thought would.So I will try to post more often .I am going to pick up  my books for school on Monday . I excited and a little apprehensive about going back to school with me being forty and all but it is a lot than going back in my fifties.So this is short and sweet ,next time I hope it will be longer and more exciting.

                                                                                                                                      Thank you,

                                                                                                                                                    Don Parnell