The land of the free and the home of the brave

And people wonder why I didn't want to settle down in NC. And that's the point of this Happy 4th of July post, because guess what, I can decide when and where I settle down, period. All thanks to those crazy Europeans that got on a boat and floated off into the unknown abyss to start a colony. And then thanks to my relatives that decided to float over to that colony for a chance. And here, in this great Nation, it's chances we get. Lots of them. North Carolina may be backwards and a bit, actually more than a bit dated, but since they are a part of this great Nation people can speak up, or not, make changes, or not, move, or not. This freedom is lovingly referred to as the "Golden Ticket" by my Dominican friend.

Can you get yourself dug down into a deep trench of crap? Yes, you can, but you can also build yourself a ladder to get out. It may not be a fancy ladder and you may need help, but you have the option. How many people get themselves in a desperate situation and then just sit at the bottom, wallowing? I've lived in places where there isn't options for many people. Clean water is not an option. Shelter is not an option. Food is not an option. Here, those things are options. Schools are decent - well, if you aren't in the sad state of North Carolina where teachers are ranked as 48th for teacher pay. Remember that you have the greatest power over change. Where you decide to live, work, spend your money is the power. I know you may feel trapped, thinking that you can't move, work is hard to find, but you are wrong. If you want out, get out.  If you are a white or mixed American you probably share genes with those brave souls that left everything they knew, packed up all their possessions and sailed into the dark waters. Not everyone was the mastermind behind the move, but even the followers had a tinge of that adventure gene.

Black Americans and Mexicans, now that's a bit different and it just dawned on me that this Nation's demographics are changing fast and many of the African's that are here didn't want to come here and although they survived the horror they probably don't have the adventure gene and are stuck following the "rules" or at least what other people tell them they should do. Mexicans, well some had to be a bit adventurous, I mean, they did risk something to try and cross the boarder, but that boarder is very different than the vast Atlantic. You could practically throw a rock and hit Cuba, so that's not much of an adventure.

This country may be fucked up in many ways, but the fact that I can write that down is part of what makes it great.