Do you only listen to people who think like you?

That's what many people do. They unfriend or unfollow anyone who disagrees with them and sometimes even block so their posts can't be seen by the enemy. (Like a child with fingers in ears and yelling so as not to hear anything disagreeable.)

I actually like exercising my brain with opposing thoughts. Now, Facebook is my "friends and family meeting room" but Twitter is my debate hall. I follow many people who do things I'm interested in, have similar political views, etc. but I also follow some who I fervently disagree with because I want to know what I'm disagreeing with and occasionally I find I agree with "the other side" on an issue.

For instance, along with many conservative and libertarian voices I also follow Obama, Hillary, Chelsea, Ellen, and other political interests. I love the freedom to listen to all, disagree or ignore freely, and generally soak up information.

Try it, you just might learn something.

Why I will be a repeat customer of CPR (Cell Phone Repair)

My phone had stopped charging and went dead even while plugged in. I took it to CPR mainly because they quoted the quickest turnaround time for the problem I described. I was prepared to pay for a new battery or charger port but after diagnosing it, they cleaned the charger port, straightened one of the contacts, AND CHARGED ME NOTHING! In return I bought the high quality charger cord they recommended and left happy. While I was there I also heard conversations with other customers and decided that this is a well run, honest company with employees who know how to treat people.

Driving during a tornado warning...

There has been a lot of discussion over the last few years about the hazards of trying to drive out of the path of a tornado, especially in a large city. We know early in the morning what our tornado risk will be for that day. If you don't feel your home is safe, make plans ahead of time and leave BEFORE warnings are issued. If you are still home when the sirens sound it's too late. Take cover immediately and use blankets, pillows, helmets, etc to protect yourself from debris. The innermost room should survive all but the strongest tornadoes but YOU WILL DIE in your car if hit by even a weak one.

I repeat,

YOU WILL DIE

if a tornado hits your car with you in it.

Don't use me as an example. Driving in severe weather is what I do. We have annual safety training which covers incidents from last season. Even with training we lost three professional chasers and two amateurs on May 31, 2013. Several others were injured. I keep my distance from danger and I have communication with trusted experts to keep me out of harm's way. You can't rely on the street by street radar analysis given on TV or radio. Those can be inaccurate because radar is seeing thousands of feet up in the air, not on the ground. Relying on a radar app on your phone isn't a good idea either for the same reason, plus it is probably several minutes old. Besides, thousands of extra cars on the road jeopardizes the lives of those who NEED to be out there.

If you are already in your car when a tornado warning comes out find a solid building to take shelter in. A hospital might be able to take you in or most big chain stores have emergency plans and a safe place to take cover. If you have nowhere else to go, the freezer in a convenience store is somewhat reinforced. Don't go to a school and cause security issues.

I will be repeating this message throughout the spring and am not apologizing for the duplication. This is lifesaving information that I want my friends and their friends and THEIR friends to see and think about.

What Would Jesus Do? I think that's the wrong question...

What DID Jesus Do? Well, he hung around sinners and TALKED with them. He didn't just preach from the pulpit about how evil they were. He didn't stone the woman caught in adultery. He didn't threaten the woman at the well and I'm pretty sure he wasn't lobbying Caesar to make certain sins or religions illegal. Can we claim a higher moral authority than Jesus? I don't think so.