Yesterday was James Madison's birthday. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Madison) He was born on 16 March, 1751. Little Jimmy is one of my favorite Founding Fathers. Put my Commonwealth flag out front for him. Taught at Woodberry Forest in Orange County a number of summers and really enjoyed all of the history there. Civil War (Wilderness is right near there) and the Revolution and the Constitution. Montpelier is just down the lane a piece. Saw it in the early stages of its renovation..

When you look at a list of accomplishments, Madison is a giant. Someone said “Never has so much mind been in so little matter” (Madison was only 5'4” and sickly.).

“Father of the Constitution”. Wrote most of it. Virginia's Constitution also.

“Father of the Bill of rights”. The first ten Amendments.

“Federalist Papers”. Major portion of them.

“Alien and Sedition Act”. Main opponent of this. This act was the most dangerous attack on the Constitution.

“Louisiana Purchase”. Accomplished Jefferson's idea.

“War of 1812”. A serious threat. Madison stuck it out and we are not now a British territory.

“Fourth President of The United States.”

“First Lady”. Husband of Dolley, the first called First Lady.

“Madison was the most successful and possibly the most influential of all the Founding Fathers.” (http://millercenter.org/academic/americanpresident/madison/essays/biography/9)

PBS is having its fund raising drive this week. And the other night they did Roy Orbison's “Black and White Night”. What a joy. "Black and White Night" is the best of all. Roy with Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, k.d. lang, Bonnie Aritt, Jackson Browne, Stephen Soles.

Lived in West-by-Gawd Texas for five delightful years. In Midland, down the road a piece from where Roy is from. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Orbison) It is a little town called Wink. It is pronounced wank, not wink. Things are not pronounced quite the same. Like Dumas is not dew-moss, more like dumb-ass. Notrees is right near Wink.

Roy is the greatest at those songs where he is shunned by love, Crying, Pretty Woman, Only the Lonely, Love Hurts.

Anyway, here is Roy.

Need to add this one, thanks to ET (http://ethunter1.blogspot.com/). Completely forgot the Traveling Wilbury's! Heavens.

OK. It is time to “discuss” the economy. Is Bush to blame? Am just a plain old citizen, not an economist. Have not researched the experts. But can still vent.

The National Debt can not help but be a major factor. The government gives us a few hundred dollars, which we will have to pay back anyway. But we are paying thousands per year per individual to pay the interest on the National Debt! Money which goes away from the U.S. of A. The biggest financial present our government can give us is to get out from under the crushing debt. And one of the major reasons is the cost of the Iraq War. It may be the government's debt but we pay.

And we all know about the effect of the cost of oil. Let's face it, the oil producing countries hate us. True, the same costs are paid by other oil consumers around the world. Whether they were part of The Colition or not. China is catching up on us but we are the biggest consumers. And OPEC is finally working together to hike up the cost, something they could not do before. And I can not help but think that we pissed them off. What could we have done to do that, I ask?

As a retiree on a fixed income, inflation is a huge unplanned expense. None of the retirement guidelines said it would hit so hard. And what are the causes of the inflation? It must be much more complicated than my meager abilities can comprehend. Can not balance my stupid checkbook. But how about the two above? They sure look like good causes to me. And add on the next one.

Support of the military industrial complex, the big donors to the Party – Republican and Democratic. Cheney's buddies get what they pay for. Ease environmental restrictions. Tax breaks. Etc. Etc. Ad infinitum. And it all costs us. The costs go up. The profits go up. The CEO's get bigger and bigger rewards. And the costs go up. We pay. And no one is acting as the cop on the beat.

* see the p.s. added below

Yes, damn it. Bush is to blame.

Will the next administration do better? My heart tells me they will but the old brain says to wait and see. These are politicians we are talking about here, after all.

ps. Need to mention the falling dollar. The lowest it has been in whtever they said in the news. Some benefits and some costs but most of all it shows the loss of respect that our country has suffered under this administration

Please note that the trauma of the economy is so severe that I am avoiding its existence much less ranting and raving about it.

Four SCD's. I am SCD IV. The gorgeous kid. My Dad is SCD Jr. seated on the left. My Grandfather is SCD Sr seated on the right. My cousin SCD III is standing behind. There is also an SCD V.

Anexplorer (http://anexplorer.blogstream.com/) is journeying through his family's roots in Scotland. Must read. In one of his chapters, he compares himself to his father. Oh dear, another one of those thought provoking things. Everyone ought to do this and put it into writing.

I found more similarities than differences. Nature or nuture? And what gets passed down to the next generation? And the differences and similarities are not really spectacular or a good story. Interesting nonetheless.

Differences? There is a big difference between the 1930's and 40's and now. That is a big reason.

Dad was athletic in school (all around sports) and as an adult (golf). I was not. Lack of depth perception is somewhat of an excuse (started wearing glasses at six) but should have pushed more. He told Mom that she could have us (I have one younger brother) until we got to eleven and then he would take us out to the golf course. But by then it was too late. My brother and I never did want to play golf. Read what you want into that.

The optometry office Dad started at first did OK. He went to pharmacy when optometry was not bringing in enough. Dad was a good pharmacist. My brother is a good pharmacist, as were/are my grandfather, great aunt, and son. I enjoyed science but if you put me into a pharmacy, there would be bodies all over the landscape. My first career in the Navy showed that it was not for me nor was I for them. But teaching in private schools worked out fine. And teaching chemistry is somewhat of a redemption.

Dad remembered every joke he ever heard. Really dry sense of humor. Kept us in stitches. Wish I could do that. My brother got this. I did not.

Did not divulge his feelings or his relationships with his brothers or parents. I obviously am.

Kept the financial business of the family to himself. A starving school teacher must involve the kids in the solution.

But lots of similarities.

Both of my parents were competitive in bridge and other games. Me, too. They were both very honest and straightforward. Strive for this. Good parents. Even with Dad spending so much time on the golf course. Understanding yet demanding. My wife and I really worked at this and have great kids to show we some things right. Dad was friendly and outgoing. As am I. Churchgoer but not religious. Liked discussing politics but not a zealot. Liked a good joke and story especially if a little bawdy. Enjoyed male type books and pastimes. Moi aussi. Dad enjoyed music. I can hear him singing “Mood Indigo” and “Smoke Gets In You Eyes”. Mom's family were the real musicians. I like the same kind of stuff they did. Not artists but liked it. Mom fussed with it a little and Dad did one landscape. I like the same kind they did. And enjoy art and music as they did.

I am certain that this list will become better and clearer as the little man in the back of my brain finds and refines the memories.

As I said at the top, everyone ought to do this and put it into writing.

The really difficult question. How about differences from and similarities to Mom?

Anexplorer (http://anexplorer.blogstream.com/) in today's post gave a very interesting account of tracing down genealogy. It prompted me to tell the story of our trip to Copenhagen.

My wife was born to an American mother and a Danish father, Knud. The photo above is of them. They met in Alabama, and then went to Copenhagen in the late 30's to live. In 1939, when my wife was one, her mother brought her back to Alabama for a visit. The Nazi's (look up the nazi occupation of Denmark for a fascinating story) and a variety of reasons kept them here and Knud in Denmark.

Along with visiting a daughter spending a semester in Florence a few years back, we went to Copenhagen for several days in the beginning of November. Tivoli was closed for the winter and the sun went down in the middle of the afternoon – and it was cold. One of the goals of going there was to see what we could find of Knud and of my wife's birth. We had an envelope with a return address, Strand Vej 4. We looked it up on a map but it was in the middle of an industrial section. It was late and cold and dark and we were tired and discouraged. And there in the middle of the warehouses was a bowling alley. A Danish bowling alley! It was at least a bright light and warm. The Danish people are by far the friendliest we ran across and they all seem to know English. A couple looked at the envelope and immediately knew where the address was, Strandvejen 4. Went to their car and found a map which we copied. They told us where the bus stop was and we returned with hope to the Copenhagen Crown Hotel where we were staying. The next day, we took the trolley out to Charlottenlund and found Strandvejen. Number 4 turned out to be an office building with an American car dealership, however. Another discouragement but it had been sixty years.

We then tried to find something about Knud. A trip to city hall led us to the folkesregesteret, an office building where all of the records are kept. Knud's name is a very common, like John Smith, but we know his middle name, Warburg, and they could trace down that he was born May 18th, 1899 and had died November 23rd, 1984. His address at that time was Niels Ebbesen’s Vej, named for a Danish 19th Century patriot. We had to go to another district called Fredericksburg to find details of his family. The building was centuries old but all of the offices were bright and colorful Danish modern. Turned out that Knud had a second wife, Carla, who was still alive! But no other children. We went back to the hotel, found Carla’s number and called her. She was suffering from cancer, however, and caught off guard by our call, reluctant to consider “the other wife”, and even after an hour long phone conversation would not consent to meet with us. We could have learned so much but it was not to be. We wrote a couple of times in the following years but never received a response even though my wife was his only child.

Birth records in Denmark are kept by the district churches. The church keeping the records for the Osterbrogade area was Lutheran, Sion’s Kirk, but they did not have records for Episcopal churches. Osterbrogade is a main street that runs out from Copenhagen to Charlottenlund and other suburbs. It changes its name to Strandvejen just a few blocks from where we had been looking the previous day. My wife knew her parents went to the Episcopalian Church and there is only one in Copenhagen, St. Alban’s in Churchill Park. It was all closed up but the helpful lady at Sion’s Kirk directed us to the apartment of a little old lady who kept their records. It was a few blocks up Osterbrogade. She looked up the names, made a copy, and my wife had her birth certificate! While we were chatting with the lady, she noticed the return address on the letter we had and commented that it was right next door! In 1950, street names and numbers were reorganized and this lady remembered the old way and it turns out that the apartment where my wife was born was just one door down. It was almost as if we were meant to find all of this. A splendid result after the disappointments. We found what we had been looking for and so much more. Some things are meant to be, anyway.

And, if you get the chance, go to Denmark. Even with Tivoli closed for the season and the short, cold days, it is a fascinating place.