And, the earth shook!

The text message read ... 'Did you get the earthquake?'  And, I was like ... 'what in the world are you talking about?' because standing in a dress shop in Atlantic City there was nothing shaking other than my knees as I watched my daughter drape dress after dress after shirt after sweater across her arm in this 'dad buys clothes for the coming semester' day.

But, the earth shook and there on CNN were there every trustworthy reporters trying to find out who shook the most (Of course over at FOX they were blaming the earthquake on the President and the leadership of the Senate while extolling the virtues of the wonder woman from Minnesota.).  In fact, my fellow University of Buffalo alum Wolf Blitzer vocal tone in talking about Richmond almost salivated for destruction that he could then talk about on HIS SHOW at 5 Eastern Time.

And, then there was the image of the President with a phone in his hand out on the golf course ... the in-studio talking heads stated that they didn't want to yet speculate who he was talking to ... I was sitting there thinking if he was me ... I'd be ordering pizza to be delivered into the Secret Service agents' hands (Do they have to food test the meals delivered to him on the road?).

We survived folks ... this time we made it without any apparent major damage but in thinking about a natural disaster like an earthquake, we are once again all one people.  Republicans and Democrats even the Tea Party folks don't start brewing something disturbing during times when what matters is whether we are all ok.

And, here in the year of our Lord 2011 shouldn't that be our every day process ... caring about each other and making sure we are all ok.   Forget the self enriching policies that push the poor deeper into the hole and reward those with the most ... ceasing the shouting and innuendo laced political dialogue where we now have candidates for President suggesting those with policies opposite their own are treasonous ... beginning to say yes to compromise rather than stomping our feet like little children and saying NO NO NO ...

An earthquake ... is a time to pause, after the shaking is done, to reassess what's around us.

This is my beginning ... my views at times counter the views of my very best friends but we remain friends because we respect what we each have to say.  Like all of us I can be opinionated but I have surprised some people when they hear my opinions on the issues of the day because they would have thought I was on "the other side."

So I am heading off to the beach to look for tsunami's ... and to play some beach volleyball.  It is my desire that SHORETALK WAVES creates some back and forth over the net dialogue so please join in!