Happy New Year 2017....We Can Only Hope.

For the New Year, my husband and I have one resolution to keep; to maintain hope.

2016 has been one of the most horrendous years that either of us has ever experienced. 

With not being able to get decent health insurance through an employer, we were forced into "Obamacare".  Necessary prescriptions for our diabetes care were kept out of reach due to high, high prices healthcare refused to cover.  Even the pharmaceutical companies gave us difficulty in getting a cheaper price on prescriptions; or said "NO!" because Obamacare should cover it all, but it didn't.

Tax time, we were slammed with outrageous fines for not staying within the poverty level.  Even though we made monthly payments; we were told "Not Enough, we want more!!!"  We were punished for getting healthcare through the government, when we should have had private insurance from the beginning.  Can't pay...too bad, now we'll take the money anyway!

We both had to dip into our existing IRAs to make ends meet; thereby being fined even more.  By the time either of us finally reaches an age we can get into the IRAs without being fined; we might be dead by then.  The age requirement keeps getting raised higher and higher; as we walk forward, the long hallway gets longer and longer.

It simply was, no matter how we attempted to get out of a hole, we were punished for even trying.

Finding full time employment has been one rejection after another; primarily due to the main facts of #1 - not being born and raised in the area; #2 - not following the "correct" religion;  #3 - not being descendants of a particular group.  It is a well known fact that this occurs again and again to others as well; it is a sick cycle that needs to be completely repaired.  We still have hope for changes in where we live; we still have hope that finally someone will stand up and say "Enough is enough; we welcome everyone completely, and not with restrictions to life here!"

There are a few people who care for us just because.  They don't care about those three reasons above; they care because we are good, kind, caring, loving people.  It's so wonderful to know that some do have their eyes, ears, hearts open to us.

While we have been struggling hard not to file for bankruptcy; unless there are serious financial changes for us in 2017; there will finally be no choice.

I am 58 years old now; I have worked since I was 16 years old; 42 years and within one year, I have lost almost all my savings.  Roy is 44 years old, he has worked since 16 years old also; 28 years of employment and wondering where has it all gone.  Retirement?  Not for me, not anytime soon at all; perhaps never at the rate we're going.

Many will read this and say, "We're in the same boat; we understand and feel your pain."  Others will say, "We wish we could help you, but not right now".  Many others will say, "We have ours, you can't get yours; we certainly wouldn't help you for any reason."  It is what it is.

So, Happy New Year from the Cokenours.  May the coming of a new President bring prosperity back to all the American people, not the chosen few.  May Karma punish those who revel in the pain and suffering happening to others.  May Karma punish those who have caused the pain and suffering.  May Karma bless those who have helped us, whether we know them, or they were anonymous; they cared and that was all that mattered...the caring.

Roy and I will rise up again; it may take some time and doing, but we will prevail!!!  Currently I'm filled with despair and anger tied together like the double helix of DNA.  I would love to see that change to happiness and relaxation.

Mary Cokenour

Goodbye 2013 and Hello to 2014; Wonder What's in Store for the New Year?

Wish List for the 2014 New Year

Every New Year, it's a tradition to make a list of "resolutions" that most people end up not keeping. It's a good concept, but unfortunately we tend to make goals for ourselves that are more wishful thinking than practical. Then there is the "wish list"; concepts or ideals that we hope will get resolved for the New Year, but is dependent on others, not just ourselves; for instance, "World Peace". Back to being practical, this will more than likely not happen in our current lifetime, perhaps not at all in the lifetime of mankind itself. War is profitable, oh not to those fighting, losing their lives and leaving loved ones without them; but for those who are either greedy or need to prove that they are right. Politics and Religion do not go hand in hand, they are Siamese Twins joined in such a manner that any type of "surgery" guarantees death. The leaders of these groups have been raised up to the status of "omnipotent gods" instead of being recognized as simple human beings with flaws and capable of being wrong. Until the populace develops "common sense" and refuses to hold these humans in higher regard than their own lives, the business of war will always be more profitable than life itself. The popular quote from Rodney King is, "Why can't we all just get along?", but we cannot so long as the majority of human beings meekly follow along as "sheeple" those that they consider "right". If each political and/or religious leader is right, than how can anyone be wrong, and what is all the fighting truly about?

So for the New Year of 2014, I'm not going to waste my time making resolutions that I probably will not keep, perhaps not even begin. I am going to make a wish list that is dependent on others. Why? I want to see if anyone is listening, not just hearing; I want to see if anyone cares about a stranger and wants to help her obtain her "wish list" for a very simple reason...just because.

Wish #1: All loans and credit card debts are paid off in full. Start the New Year off free of all old debts; begin at zero and build upwards instead of being held down.














An old fashioned "comfort food" diner; yeah, that's my dream.

Wish #2: My food blog, Food Adventures of a Comfort Cook, becomes so popular that an entrepreneur actually wants to invest money into the restaurant idea I dream about.



Wish #3: My travel blog, The Southwest Through Wide Brown Eyes becomes so popular that a company actually gives me a brand new Jeep or SUV (with their advertising printed on the vehicle) for my use in furthering my excursions.








 



Wish #4: For my husband, Roy, that his Artwork becomes so high in demand, he can finally afford to build his own art studio and do what he went to school to study for, and loves. Or he gets that high paying job with a studio, either way he would be doing what he loves. The picture I've posted is one he did by taking one of my photos of Agathla Peak and doing "photo manipulation" to it; Roy's passion is graphic arts and digital artwork.

"El Diablo Towers" - a photo manipulation of Agathla Peak

Wish #5: This wish is for the town I live in, Monticello, Utah and has several parts.

A: That common sense finally prevails, more businesses are allowed into the town limits, allowed to flourish and, thereby, providing more funds for the town itself.






B: That the housing market has an upsurge; all properties are finally purchased, homeowners have, or receive, the finances to upgrade their homes; that Monticello, Utah makes it into the "Top 100 Places to Live in the USA" list.














C: That the town becomes a tourist mecca; employment will be non-existent due to the need; businesses of all types will, again, flourish.




Wish #6: That the medical professions and pharmaceutical companies stop jerking everyone around and finally release the cures for cancer, diabetes, AIDS and other diseases/illnesses that are so very profitable for them. I have Type 2 Diabetes and am so sick and tired of pills and insulin shots; I'm sick of pharmaceutical companies putting out commercials saying that as soon as you're diagnosed, you must use their products or suffer the consequences, including death. I'm sick of organizations asking for research donations, and they're the same organizations I've been seeing begging for money for over 50 years. What are they doing with all that money, over all those years, that they haven't developed a cure yet!!??!!

Six wishes, I'm not going to be greedy; then again, I'm not a politician or religious leader. Not all the wishes are about me either, they're about my husband, the town I live in, and for those suffering medically. I have lots of wishes inside my head, but I'm sticking to these six, since they're the most important of all to me.

Have fun at your end of the old year parties; don't drink till you end the year looking like a total ass; the next day is a whole new year and people will be remembering. Most especially do not drink and drive; don't end the year by ending your own life and/or the lives of others.

A Happy and Healthy New Year to everyone, everywhere; and for my wish list...bring it on!!!

Mary Cokenour