The year 1933

This is the house my Mother built in Efpalion:



The new year was the beginning of semi awareness for JM; he remembers having an excruciating pain radiating from his buttock, he could feel the area of the pain but he could not see it, he could feel it with his hand and wanted to scratch it but he was told it might fester causing infection. That scar has left its mark an his buttock and JM can still feel it.


This picture tells the story of the nickname that JM lived with for many a year; his short pants, altho in fashion today, reminded the children in Efpalion of a "Chinaman" or Kinezos, so the nickname "Kinezos" was synonymous  with JM.( Maybe Thalia will love to see this photo..)

The first trouble that JM remembers getting into was when a package from his father to his mother arrived from America. Mother, sister and brother gathered to see what was in the box and when it was finally opened  a shining silver Bulova watch for Mother appeared, everybody was in awe to see such a stunning  timepiece, a beautiful work of art. his mother put the watch on her wrist and  tears started rolling  down her face. JM was very exited to see such an awesome object. He wanted to hold it in his hand, his mother gently remove it from her wrist and carefully placed it on JM’s hand. Unfortunately JM dropped it on the floor. As of this day he does not remember if the Bulova was damaged or not, even now he does not know.   His mother's expression was transformed  from a happy  joyous one to bewilderment, a cloud of guilt came over JM. Needless to say all but his  mother berated him and he was left alone in his own  misery.

Long ago 1930-1932

                                                    Mother Sotiria, sister Athena and JBM

1930 1932. It was the time when JM was sailing to old Europe, when two cosmic events appeared on the horizon: the constellation of Gemini and the constellation of Sagittarius, and all the stars were blinking with joy at each other.

In 1932 Gemini was escorting  JM, Sagittarius was 

escorting Mimi to find each other. It was the Yearof the Monkey.  Many years later the Horse and the Dragon  saw each other again.

June 17th 1932. JM  stepped on Greek soil,confused and frightened and crying. He was dropped in Patras, Dervenakiou 10, just inside the door looking up at an endless stairway and seeing no one. To his left there was a closed door and there

 was no one around. He must have felt abandoned. For the first time a new sibling appeared. It was his older brother Xristos. He was ten years older than JM.

                                                                                      Efpalion in 1980

Even now, 76 years later, JM still hurts. He was told but didn’t understand that Efpalion was his next stop and might become the permanent settlement  for his family. It was the town of his grandparents’ house,  and where his mother built the house which still stands in the village.

JM's grand fathers home in Efpalion

The Economy. Where did the money go?

Sometime ago Bill and I were talking about my fears of the present economy and I made a point that back in the 30s we had a depression and people were committing suicide because they could not handle seeing their children/wife and parents without money or means of basic survival. Unemployment was high, the banks had closed and accounts were forfeited. Long lines of people were surviving in soup kitchens. My point was that we should save money for emergencies and retirement, assuring him that it will not be as severe as the 30's because of the labor unions. Since that time the Unions have been practically dismembered which bring us to TODAY.
I do hope that your CDs were FDIC insured, along with the 401 or any other retirement plans that you might have. I do know that you all have some stocks and I know you all lost 20 or 30% of their value. Do not panic, you are still young and in a few years may well recover the losses.
The Big Question Remains:
All the loses in billions of $ ---- where did they GO?
( in the thin air? )
We all know when the banks, financial institutions and corporations were making obscene profits, the money went in their pockets. We have heard of the Golden parachutes for the CEOs and the lavish parties with their airplanes, limos, yachts , ski resorts, mansions in Europe and houses in every state, casinos and mistresses. That is where the money went, in my humble opinion.

Do you remember " let free enterprise alone and the economy will flourish, Do not let the government interfere in our business, we know better than the government."

Now they are telling us " Please Government rescue us ". Who is the government? YOU & ME, All of us who pay our taxes every year and every time we buy food, clothing, books, cars and gas.

Well here is the question you have to answer to yourselves. Where did the $ go?

We are in an opportune time to vote out the congressmen and senators and bring in a new breed for a new generation.

1949 to 2008 to be free is to exercise your vote

1949   An Election Year

Back in time. Minneapolis Minnesota. A church publication headlines "John M making good in USA" reprinted in St Louis MO in a brochure put out by the company by whom I was employed.

" History is replete with evidence of man's search for a free, perfect union. It is an unfortunate truth that we do not learn the full value of something until we have lost it, that we take things for granted. We can see all around us today that uppermost in the minds of subjected peoples is the problem of how to secure freedom. Should not the uppermost thought in our minds be to retain the liberties and independence that we have?

 Freedom is not a permanent gift. The Constitution guarantees our liberties, not as a free gift but as one constitutionally earned. It requires  something from us in return. It is, for example, not only our right and privilege but our duty to exercise the power to vote. We must continually earn this freedom; it can be taken away more easily than we think.

As Socrates said " The difference between man and animals is man's capacity to develop political conscience. Individual political consciences make for free individuals. A state is only as free as its people" " 

2008 An Election year.

We still, unfortunatally, have not accomplished much political savvy since 1948; less than 40% of all Americans go to the voting booths, and the rest complain of bad goverment, or keep voting for the same representatives over and over again, and keep complaining over and over again.

 Wake up people before is too late.

From the Beginning

long long ago....