August 21, 2008 at 12:12 am · Filed under Call Bullshit
Last Saturday’s presidential candidate forum at Rick Warren’s Saddleback Superchurch no doubt fueled the belief of Christian Americans that ours is truly a Christian nation.
Nary a week goes by without letters being printed in editorial sections nationwide declaring that the time has come to declare our legacy, that we must acknowledge the intent of the founding fathers and embrace the Christian heritage upon which our whole society is based.
I’ve always had some issues with these sort of the claims, ranging from the factual accuracy of many of them – such as the fact that most of the founding fathers were in fact Deists, not Christian; or that really only two of the ten commandments are actually laws – to the broader question of “who cares what the founders wanted?” After all, the founders also supported the atrocities of slavery as a vital economic interest; and believed that only rich, white men should be able to vote.
Let’s put all of that aside for the moment, though, and take a moment to examine what people really mean when they say they want the United States to be acknowledged as a Christian nation.
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August 17, 2008 at 4:38 pm · Filed under Musings
As a family, the past year has been a real roller coaster ride. In the year since returning to Muncie, we opened and closed an Irish pub, went bankrupt, totally obliterated all of our savings, lost our house and car, and moved into a rental owned by my mother-in-law (next door to my mother-in-law).
Things couldn’t be better.
Okay, they could be a little better. The point is, though, that all of this adversity has really been an enlightening experience. Before we moved back up here, we were living the “American Dream,” which is exactly that – a dream.
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August 17, 2008 at 1:24 pm · Filed under Musings
It’s been nearly a year since my last posting, and much has happened. Actually one big thing that came and went – Morton’s Pub & Grub.
Many factors contributed to our pub’s demise. Some, we had the power to change, and others, sadly not.
Of the things we should have done differently, one was to not rely on it for our sole source of income. It was great side money, but not enough for both of us to live off of.
Another was to have a non-family partner. While we were fortunate not to have any major family emergencies, we did have a number of minor crises – most of them associated with our 12-year old son, William, and his adjustment to living in Muncie.
Probably we should have had more money to start with, too.
But there were several factors maddeningly beyond our control. The dramatic cost increases for food, particularly fresh produce, were unforeseeable. Potatoes, for example nearly doubled, and being an Irish place…well, it’s easy to imagine the impact. Utility costs went up a full twenty percent. Beer prices increased, not only due to the product cost, but also due to shipping expenses. Everything was more expensive, much more and immediately so.
On the other side of the bar, customers were not only feeling the sting of gasoline prices and cost of living increases, but were trepidatious about the general economy. As such, they came in less often, spent less when they did, or simply stayed home altogether.
In July, when our lease came up for renewal, we decided to shut our doors. It was heartbreaking for me and my staff, as well as some of our regulars. Many people came in and apologized to us for not doing more, and as much as I appreciated the sentiment, I asked them to not feel that way. Everyone supports businesses like ours to the extent of their comfort level, and should never feel guilty for not going beyond that.
We had a great final two weeks, though. Going out of business turns out to be pretty good for business. Our final weekend was a blast, and we had a couple of closed door parties to clear out our beer inventory.
Now it’s back to work. And hopefully back to more frequent postings. Just in case, though, see you next year!
