News about TL...

As you all know from my profile and my post about "Who is TL?", I'm currently been working on getting a job and to stop living out of my car. The reason for the day and half absence that occurred was mainly because I had some appointments that I had to attend too. So, this is what happened the last few days.

Tuesday - 1/20/2009 - After 11:30 am

After my first post about the Inauguration, I was hoping I would be able to catch the speech live but I couldn't mainly because I had an appointment with Kay, who is the Housing Coordinator for Catholic Charities at 1:00 pm. I tried to see if I was able to catch President Obama's speech but I couldn't by the time I had to start heading over to Catholic Charities. About the time I got to Catholic Charites, the speech was over. Which was a bummer, but good thing for the internet though. Anywho, my appointment with Kay was very insightful as I learn of new resources that might help me like the Welcome House, Recovery Network, and the Vocational Rehab. I meet with Kay for a little over an hour as we worked on some goals for me to get me into some kind of housing. Goals like getting certain documents together that I will need to track down from my personal stuff, applying for food stamps, applying for section 8 housing, and etc. Armed with these new resources, I formed a plan of attack for myself for the next day.

After I was done with Kay at Catholic Charities, I decided to go and see some old friends in Delhi, OH that I haven't seen in a very long time. Cathy and Richard helped me out several years ago and I thought I would just drop in and see how their were doing and catch up with them. This last week, I have been taking a stroll down memory lane as I started connected with some of my very old friends from when I started college in 1995. Just wanted to see how they are doing and everything. So, it was nice to catch up with Cathy and Richard. I got to their place around 3:00 pm and stayed until around 6:30 pm.

Anyway, after I left, my intention was to come out to the library here and do a few posts regarding the Inauguration and my visit but as I was drving, I noticed that I was falling asleep and couldn't stay awake. So, I made it to Turfway and parked in a parking lot to take a few hours of sleep. This was around 7 pm. The next thing I know it was midnight, then it was 5 am, and then 9 am. 14 hours of sleep was the best I got in a while.

Wednesday - 1/21/2009

So, after my 14 hours of sleep, I had to run some errands in the morning before I head down to Recovery Network in Covington. These errands took me about two hours before I finally started heading to Recovery Network.

At Recovery Network I met Andrea, which she gave me a lot of resources that will help me out big times. One of my recent problems I have been having is when I go and apply somewhere, I couldn't use my PO Box because it wasn't a street address. So, Recovery Network gave me a homeless verification letter which allows me to use their address. This is huge because this was one of the things that Kay from Catholic Charities said I would need to get. This will allow me to sign up for things. While there, I got a referral for the Welcome House where I have to go in on Monday to see what they also can do for me. The Welcome House has a Job Club that if I qualify for would benefit me hugely because they will help with computer certifications and etc. Also, they will help me with Vocational Rehab. So, this will be great for me.

After I left Recovery Network armed with my homeless verification letter, I went to apply for food stamps down in Covington. When I got there around 3:30 pm, there was 30 people there still waiting. Then as I went to one of the waiting windows, I ran into Charles. Charles was also another one of my friends from when I started college as well. Seeing him brought back some more memories from that time as we talked about the old days. He also recommended that it's pretty much guarnteed I wouldn't been seen that day that it would probably be best to sign up for an appointment and have it mailed to me. So, that's what I decided to do. I filled out all the paperwork that is required and then in five to seven days they will send me my appointment time. So, that's all I'm waiting on for now for me to get food stamps. Getting food stamps would be a huge deal for me as I don't have to use money money on food. So, I can continue eating out of my car rather than spending money on fast food resturants. Can't wait!

After leaving the food stamps office, I went over to my best friend's place to visit him and his family. I got there around 4 pm and ended up staying there watching "Lie to me" on Fox and the 2nd half of the UK Basketball game. Then I left around midnight. As I was living though, I got a scare because my "check engine" light came on and I decided to rather than come back to Burlington, I would stay over in that area to go to AutoZone to get my car tested. So, I stayed at the Kroger's parking lot sleeping. But when I woke up to head to AutoZone, the check engine light didn't come on.

So, I came to the library and now you all are caught up!

- TL

Inauguration Day - Part II...

For the people that didn't get to see the speech or want to re-read the speech, here it is in its entire. I must say that the best thing I like about President Obama is that he is a great speaker. I will give him that. I wish him the best of luck for the next eight years as he is in this position and I hope he gets the things he promised done. What do you all think about the speech? What was your best part of the speech? For me, I like it when he warned the other countries that they need to look within their own country to blame than to blame us for their problems. For years, we have been the "World Police" and when we come and help, they are grateful but the minutes we take care of it, they turn around and basically kick us out blaming us for some of their problems. So, it's a welcome sign to see a President to actually give a warning.

THE SPEECH:

Inaugural Address
By President Barack Hussein Obama

My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you've bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors.

I thank President Bush for his service to our nation -- (applause) -- as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often, the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we, the people, have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears and true to our founding documents.

So it has been; so it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered.

Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many -- and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met. (Applause.)

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics. We remain a young nation. But in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things.

The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness. (Applause.)

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted, for those that prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor -- who have carried us up the long rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life. For us, they toiled in sweatshops, and settled the West, endured the lash of the whip, and plowed the hard earth. For us, they fought and died in places like Concord and Gettysburg, Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions, greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week, or last month, or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions -- that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America. (Applause.)

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of our economy calls for action, bold and swift. And we will act, not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We'll restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has already done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage. What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them, that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply.

The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched. But this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control. The nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity, on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart -- not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good. (Applause.)

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers -- (applause) -- our Founding Fathers, faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man -- a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience sake. (Applause.)

And so, to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born, know that America is a friend of each nation, and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity. And we are ready to lead once more. (Applause.)

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort, even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we'll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet.

We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense. And for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken -- you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you. (Applause.)

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. (Applause.)

To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist. (Applause.)

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders, nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the role that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who at this very hour patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages.

We honor them not only because they are the guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service -- a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves.

And yet at this moment, a moment that will define a generation, it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all. For as much as government can do, and must do, it is
ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends -- honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old.

These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded, then, is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition on the part of every American that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept, but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship. This is the source of our confidence -- the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny. This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed, why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall; and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served in a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath. (Applause.)

So let us mark this day with remembrance of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At the moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words to be read to the people: "Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America: In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America. (Applause.)

- TL