As the old year rings out and the New Year rings in, the obvious result is a reflection of all the events in the past year, both a celebration of the good and a hand wringing of the bad.

Boring.  Been there done that.  The major events of 2006 are so numerous I could never pick out a list to do justice to it.  So many others have already, and done so well, I don't feel remiss.

Suffice to say, the year contained a few very personal things, such as my launching this blog on its own domain name, and the launch of NW Bloggers.  It contained joyous moments with family and friends.  It also contained some grim reminders of the frailty of life as well, for this is the price we all share for living.

And looking forward 2007 looks to be a huge year on personal levels as my son enters service in the Navy, and in professional levels as I take my blogging to the next level.  And that barely tips the iceberg.

So rather then indulge in a list of events, or predictions, I will close the with a list of a few things I am thankful for.

1. Family.  I am nothing without my family.  Period.  My close family who support me daily, my cousins, aunts and uncles who are among the finest people in the world and even those shadowy figures from the past who created were the architects of my family's founding, they all inspire me in more ways then many of them will know.
2. Friendship.  I am blessed with the best friends a man could have.  From old friends from my high school days, some of whom have been steadfast throughout the years while others I have recently reconnected with, they have all been the tie between my youth and my present.  My friends from more recent times continue to support and inspire me as well.
3. Freedom.  As I mentioned, my son is entering the Navy soon, and there is no prouder dad.  That he has chosen to do so in this day and age is even more gratifying, for he truly will be a part of the protection of freedom and liberty.  We have so much wonderous freedom and amazing liberty here.  To name just a few: 
1. This blog, which is a clear representation of the freedom of speech,  thought, idea and expression. 
2. Freedom of religion that lets me struggle with my finding my place between evangelicalism and catholicism.  without that freedom, I would be forced to make a choice, instead of having the ability to work it out for myself.  And regardless, I have the freedom to do so or not at my own choosing.
3. I have the freedom to pursue my career, or to bag it all someday and raise turnips should I choose.
4. I also have the freedom of creation that comes from my writing and my music.
4. Prosperity.  I have the freedom to over eat and be a fat slob, though frankly I might want to give that one up this year.  But my relative prosperity allows me to enjoy a modest comfort.    
5. Health.  Yes, I had ankle surgery this year, but it was relatively minor and compared to the more serious health ailments others in my family suffer, I am truly blessed.  My mom has lung cancer, my father has his ailments, my sister Fibromyalgia and even my wife with her Osteoarthritas.  Sure, I have to watch my Cholesteral.  Poor me.  I am relatively lucky and I should never forget it.

I could continue, but honestly those are the most important things.  We all should once again examine our lives and take stock of our relative blessings, and rejoice in what we have been given.

A small rant here.

Others in the world would trade their last meal to suffer our inconveniences such as power outages that render us unable to get our Starbucks nice and hot in the morning or to watch the latest Ben Stiller movie.  Inconveniences like having to wait a half hour to get a doctor appointment for the sniffly nose.  Like having to get the wrong brand of bread at a grocery store because our favorite organic whole grain bread was sold out.

America, face the ugly truth:  you are spoiled.  We all are. 

And we should fall to our knees and thank God for allowing us to have such ease when there are plenty of much nastier alternatives relatively close by.

Instead we bitch.  We moan.  We whine. We complain.  We want more.  We want it hotter, colder, faster, slower, larger, smaller, shinier and by God we want it cheaper.  Oh and we need two, not one.

We as a nation need to remember what we have, how we got it, and how easily we could someday lose it.

And to be fair, so many of us do.  We give to others selflessly when needs arise, I guess I must be fair and note that my rant is unfairly overgeneralized.

But not by much, and there are far too many who really deserve a reality check.

Sigh.  But i am no better sometimes.  I have 8 guitars, even though as of today i can only play one at a time.  Do I need the others?  No.  But I want them and I can afford them, so I bought them.  And truly I take great joy and delight in the music I play.  So I have to accept my own selfishness.

Enough.  I have made my point.  In a few hours the next year will be upon us.  2007 will be a pivotal year for our nation, for we will face enemies in the world, and we will continue to have our resolve tested and our freedom threatened.

I pray to God we are up to the challenge.

And now for some music to ring the New Year in.  Since I decided to rant about whiners, it seems only fair to close with The Eagles singing Get over it.