Back in the "old days" when you got two people together standing on the street, one would look at the sky and say, "Yup, looks like it's gonna snow", the other would shake his head in agreement and reply, "yup, looks like out of the northwest, gonna be a good one" and they would part their separate ways. The following morning fresh fallen snow was covering the ground. Years have past since these precise weather forecasts, today we enjoy modern technology that tells us everything that is going to happen with the weather by tuning in our television, radio, and especially our computer systems. At a touch of the button, we can look at the weather a week to ten days out. We can scan live pictures coming in from weather stations, Doppler radars and have an immediate live time weather report.

"My name is Stan, I am an addicted weather watcher". This morning, I clicked onto the National Weather Bureau site to check my morning weather, much to my surprise the Kenai Peninsula was "yellow" indicating a "heavy snow warning". This cannot be, the sun was shining brightly through my office window. Fearing the worse, I hit the "refresh" button, but the "heavy snow warning" remained in affect commencing at 5 a.m. Monday through Monday night. I switched to the Doppler Radar site, the scope was clear for the Cook Inlet Region. I switched to the Doppler Radar site for the Gulf of Alaska, it was also clear. If there is a snow storm out there, I cannot find it! Perhaps the prognosticators know something I do not, which is very likely, however, unless conditions change overnight, there will be no heavy snow storm on the Kenai Peninsula while we are on daylight savings time!

As a youngster, I can remember sitting around and listening to the "grown ups" talk, we were forbidden to utter a comment or render an opinion. I fear the "freedom of speech" was not always adhered to in the 40's, 50's and early 60's. Come to think of it, it was just not us "young ones" that felt this infringement on our constitutional rights, but for the most part, adult women also fell into this category. I can still recall those words that make us all cringe, "Back When I Was A Kid" or "Back In The Old Days". However,the years have passed, we have all gained our birth right in the execution of Freedom of Speech, but I still smile to myself , when I hear myself repeat those words when talking to friends of my age or to my grandchildren, "Back When I Was A Kid" or "Back In the Old Days". It seems to come up in my conversation on a regular basis as each year passes.

I remember when they tried to ban Elvis Presley from performing on T.V. because he rotated his hips while singing, or referred to him as Elvis the Pelvis. Shameful, back in our days they would not let him do that! Rock and Roll, girls in bobby socks, screaming at their singing idols, little harlots, no girl acted that way back in the old days. Boys walking around with Duck Ass hair styles, greased down and long sideburns, punks, never worked a day in their life and would amount to nothing, not like the old days. Girls wearing pants even without a girdle on, how slutty can you get, "I'll bet she will be with baby before she is 14"! Drive in Restaurants, "by god if you can't sit down at the table and eat, you do not deserve to eat!" Look at those "long haired hippies from that foreign country, that ain't singing and what is with that dumb name, "The Beatles" they should get haircuts, go home and get a job". I could write a book and famous quotes of the 50's and 60's.

Compared to the days of "old" we have become an enlightened society. Ladies can now appear in public wearing shorts and bra less without being branded a "loose woman", children have achieved the status of being able to speak and render a conclusion without being slapped silly.
We have even granted the women the right to vote and allowed other ethnic groups to share a bathroom with us. We do not have to repeat the silly "old' Pledge of Allegiance anymore because it infringes upon our freedom of speech. We can burn our National Flag, after all we are just expressing our freedom of speech. We do not have to refer to adults as Mr. or Mrs. or even Miss because we are all equal regardless of age. Neither the news media nor us have to refer to the person holding the highest office of our land as Mr. President or President Bush, we can just refer to him as George Bush and if we are in a hurry to make a point, "Bush" will do. I love my "new" freedoms, there are so many things that I can now do that I never had a chance to do back in the "old days". The only thing I would really like to see changed, back in the old days, anyone could wander in off the street into any store and purchase a package of cigarettes. With our new found freedoms, even I have to prove that I am "old" enough and then it takes twenty minutes and three padlocks later for the clerk to retrieve you the wrong brand of smokes. Was not like that back in the "old days" but I got freedom!