Blog Posts for Charles A. Ray

Forgiveness is the best revenge

Charles A. Ray — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:16:22 -0700

Learn to forgive and forget. That’s what my grandmother always told me when I was a child. It all seemed so easy then. When you’re young, nothing is so important that it can’t be pushed aside, and besides, your attention span is so short, things are usually forgotten in the space of a day any way.When you get older, it gets harder. The nasty things that adults do to each other make ...

Let your voice be heard on health reform!

Charles A. Ray — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:45:12 -0700

Let your voice be heard. We need health care reform in the United States, and we need it now. Go to the following website if you support the public option, and register your opinion.http://www.WeWantThePublicOption.com/

Falls the Shadows - a genre bending novel

Charles A. Ray — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 19:37:06 -0700

Note: I don't do a lot of book reviews any more, but I recently read a novel by first-time author Stephen O'Reilly, a New Englander with a twisted view of the world as reflected in the way he writes. This book will set your head spinning and really make you think. If you like your fiction neatly pigeonholed into a genre, you probably won’t like Stephen O’Reilly’s Falls the Shadow. ...

What I obsess about

Charles A. Ray — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:34:18 -0700

What do I obsess about? What are the thoughts that rumble around my brain incessantly, intruding on the mundane affairs of daily life? If these questions don’t themselves cause obsessions, I’m probably without any. As a government employee by day (I have to eat and pay the bills) and a free lance writer and photographer the rest of the time, I have enough junk clattering around in my ...

My first book - and the missteps that almost destroyed the magic of the moment

Charles A. Ray — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 17:27:27 -0700

When I’d finally prepared the final version of the manuscript for my first book, Things I Learned from My Grandmother About Leadership and Life, I breathed a big sigh of relief and hit send to fire it off to the publisher. A couple of months later when I received the galley proofs, I read over them – carefully, I thought – made a few changes and quickly returned them. Assuming that ...

Is excessive partisan politics a threat to American democracy?

Charles A. Ray — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:04:55 -0700

Partisan bickering has always been a part of the American political landscape. In their efforts to sway the American electorate, political parties have always relied on core political themes. The polarized atmosphere has, however, seemed to have reached new heights in recent decades – with highly charged partisan positions and semi-literate ranting taking the place of the kind of debate ...

People don't seem to be getting any smarter

Charles A. Ray — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:02:56 -0700

I continue to ride Washington's Metrorail system to and from work because it beats having to sit in traffic for hours each and breath in the exhaust of millions of cars. Having said that, as I observe my fellow commuters each day, I have to wonder if we are getting dumber in this country, or what.I watched a guy the other day, wait until the subway car doors were almost closed before thrusting ...

Fellow writer features my work on her blogsite.

Charles A. Ray — Tue, 26 May 2009 10:06:44 -0700

Fellow Helium writer M.J. Joachim featured my article on the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans' Day on her blog recently. To check it out, go to http://mjjoachimmeetsheliummembers.blogspot.com/ Her blog, which provides advice and tips to writers, can be found at http://mjjoachim.blogspot.com/ . Check it out.

Are we becoming a nation of whiners?

Charles A. Ray — Fri, 08 May 2009 05:37:12 -0700

Reading the paper today, I was dismayed to note an AP article indicating that many people are viewing recent government actions regarding the mercifully mild first wave of the H1N1 epidemic as “overblown,” and accusing the media of engaging in fear mongering. People are apparently upset that their comfortable daily routines were upset; they had to take care of their kids instead of ...

Swine flue and piggy attitudes

Charles A. Ray — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:41:24 -0700

Recently, vice President Joe Biden stated publicly that he was advising his family to avoid crowed modes of transportation such as subways and airplanes during the current flu epidemic. Predictably, a travel industry representative took Biden to task for this statement. Now, there were some really high sounding reasons for the criticism, but the bottom line is the travel industry is worried ...