Michael Wojciechowski

The publisher has sent me some possible book covers.  A decision should be finalized in a few days.  I will post it as soon as I know for sure what has been decided.  The publisher has done a great job coming up with different photos and designs for the cover.  It's an interesting process.  It looks like the title will remain, "Cameron's Road."  More information will be coming soon.  Thanks for the support.    

My brother kept telling me I needed to check out the TV show "Lost."  He told me I would love it because there are a lot of science vs. religion themes and several literary references.  I finally took him up on it and put them in my netflix queue.  I'll admit it: I'm hooked.  I've spent the last two weeks sitting on my sofa watching.  When I'm not watching, I'm waiting for another disc to come in the mail.  This is what my life has become.  I'm in the middle of season four now, and after each episode, I'm more confused than when the episode started.  Some people claim that's the cause of bad writing, whiile others argue it's a sign of good writing.  All I know is that the writing keeps me wanting to watch and know what's going to happen next.  I don't know, however, how anyone could watch "Lost" on TV.  The commercials have to drive a person crazy, not to mention waiting an entire week before the next episode.     

Just saw the movie "District 9."  Great film.  If you're looking for a smart alien movie that illustrates the inhumanity of humans, check it out.  Oh, and there are some pretty cool guns too. 

Marty Alvey, a great-grandfather, had been legally blind for 3 years.  A few days ago he miraculously regained his sight.  He can’t explain it.  His doctors can’t explain it.  "When I got out of bed this morning, I looked into the mirror, and I said, 'Hello there, Marty, nice to see you.'"  I love it.  It’s nice to know that there are still some things that science can’t explain.  Now that Marty has his sight back he says he wants to possibly meet a “nice young gal, about 80 years old.”


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2009/08/12/2009-08-12_gramps_gets_vision_back_outta_sight.html#ixzz0O09icrE0

The publisher has assigned an ISBN number to my book.  I'm not sure what ISBN even stands for, but I do know it's the barcode that is scanned when something is purchased.  The number is 978-1-935361-41-1.  Editing is still going.  I haven't seen any cover work yet, but I expect to soon.  We're still expecting an October release.  It's all coming together.   

It appears my last post really hit home with some of you.  Someone asked the question if I even knew anyone on welfare.  Yes, I know several.  In fact, it was because of the conversations I had with these people that I got the idea to write the post on welfare.  Let’s not forget, that alcohol is a drug—it’s actually the most abused drug in America.  Also, let’s not forget that nicotine can be just as addictive as heroin or cocaine.  It is no surprise that poverty-stricken people drink and smoke.  Dad, the people you seem to be sticking up for, do they drink or smoke?  If we’re thinking of the same people, then, yes, they do.  Kirsten is a pilot in Alaska.  Every month her company randomly administers drug tests to the pilots (which they should).  And every check she receives, a large portion goes to government and state funded assistance programs for the natives.  These natives will steal mouthwash and hairspray and drink them because their need for alcohol is so great.  I’m not sure why you’re sticking up for the dregs of society.  What’s next?  Not doing background checks on teachers in case a sex offender wants to pursue a career in education?  And yes, I want my firemen, police officers, and teachers tested.  I want to know that the cop that is walking around with a loaded gun has a lucid mind.
 
I’m not suggesting a ban on alcohol or tobacco.  To each his own.  I have no problem with people receiving welfare who are trying to get back on their feet.  I do, however, think that if people are receiving money that I and other taxpaying citizens worked hard to earn, they should live by certain standards.  Perfect examples are all the bailouts.  When the government gives companies like AIG and Bank of America taxpayer money, don’t the taxpayers want to know that their money is going to a noble cause and not funding spa retreats or CEO office remodeling projects?        

We’ve all taken urine tests.  Anyone working for the government can be tested randomly.  I don’t have a problem with this.  I think any employer should have the right—and most do—to ask an employee to submit a urine test to ensure that the employee is not taking drugs.  Now here is where things get complicated.  Let’s pretend that I take a drug test.  I pass.  I keep my job.  I get paid.  Now, every paycheck the government takes approximately 33% of my income.  Some of that money goes toward government-funded programs—or should I say tax-payer funded programs—like welfare.  Now here’s the problem: shouldn’t someone receiving government assistance (like welfare) be required to pass a urine test since I had to pass one in order to earn it for them? I mean, let’s face it, a large percentage of people on welfare are also on drugs.  In many instances, it's because of a person's drug habit that they can't get a job and therefore they continue receiving welfare checks.  Wouldn’t it make more sense if these programs helped people kick their drug habits and get back on their feet instead of enabling them to continue using illegal substances?  In short, welfare, as it is set up today, enables and funds peoples drug habits.  Surely, there has to be a better way, right?

Thanks for the idea, Kirsten.          

I spent the weekend at Island Park.  One day my friends and I went into Yellowstone.  I had never been, but everyone I had talked with said it is definitely worth my time.  It was.  Obviously we had to head towards Old Faithful and watch the historic geyser erupt.  When we arrived, a park ranger informed us that we still had about an hour before the next scheduled eruption.  There are benches about 50 feet away from the geyser that line a walkway so people can witness the eruption comfortably (I mean, come on, an eruption can last almost 4 minutes and that is way too long for a person to stand).  So my friends and I find a bench, we sit, and we talk.  As the eruption draws near, more people begin finding places to sit to observe the geyser.  A couple of kids—about 12 years old—sit next to me, and a few adults sit on the other side of my friend.  Our new visitors sat quietly for almost an entire minute until they began complaining of the wait.  “When is it going to go off?”  “I’m sick of waiting.”  “What’s taking so long?”  “Is Old Faithful being unfaithful?”  (That one was my favorite.  It was said by a guy wearing sandals with socks, sporting a fanny pack, with a dab of sunscreen on the end of his nose.)  It was at this time my friend turned to me and asked, “We’ve been here for over forty minutes.  Has it felt like waiting?”  I told him it hadn’t, that I was enjoying myself.  It was then my friend informed me that waiting is a choice, usually decided upon by people that don’t like their present company or their current environment.  Old Faithful finally did erupt, and once it was finished, the people on either side of my friend and me were the first to get up and leave.  They left in a hurry in an attempt to beat the traffic.  They had somewhere important to be, I’m sure.  My friends and I remained on the bench letting the other tourists exit first.  I didn’t see any need to fight a crowed, nor to sit in my car waiting in traffic, frustrated that I couldn’t exit the parking lot because there were too many people.  I was fine right where I was.