Guns: One area where the U.S. is different

A note about mass shootings. My son noticed one thing different between the U.S. and other countries with strict gun laws: In the U.S., when there is a shooting, there is an immediate, overwhelming response by trained and armed police officers. In Cincinnati, the September 6 mass shooting on Fountain Square is a perfect example.

By the way, until there’s an official determination, my opinion is that the Fountain Square shooting was a suicide-by-cop situation. It’s sad that innocent bystanders also died.

Click here for stories about the Fountain Square shooting.

Don't stress out during the holidays

If you're feeling stressed out and maybe even depressed about the upcoming holidays (Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa), I can relate. (I'd include Ramadan but it was in June and July this year.)

If you realize that not a single person is coming to visit you from out of town for the holidays, I can relate.

If much of your family has moved to Florida, leaving you with four or fewer family members for the holidays, I can relate.

If you see those commercials and shows on television where 40 people show up for Thanksgiving and you just want to cry because there's no way your family could get 40 people in one place, I can relate. (Suggestion: Skip the Hallmark channel.)

If you get tired of all the car commercials this time of year because spending $40,000 or more on a car is just not you, I can relate.

If you've just realized you've gained eight pounds in the last month and it isn't even Thanksgiving yet, I can relate. (Start working on your fitness in December; don't wait for January.)

If your work situation seems to be even more hectic and pressure-packed than ever and your boss says, "Holidays? What holidays?", I can relate.

If you feel that the holidays are all about spending money on electronics to replace devices that are still working well, I can relate. (There's little 4K content yet. Just wait.)

If you see a Facebook friend's pictures where her house is all decorated up like Martha Stewart's for the holidays and your house isn't even going to have a Charlie Brown Christmas tree, I can relate. (Remember, she's retired and has time for that.)

If the shorter and shorter days make you pine for those long June days, I can relate.

If your friends are bitching because they just got four inches of snow and you wish that you could have just a bit of snow to cover up your neighbors unraked leaves, I can relate.

If you hate turning on the news because of all the bad stuff going on in the world, including this country, I can relate.

If you wish a real, intelligent, practical, middle-of-the-road businessperson, like Mark Cuban, would run for President, I can relate.

If you're worried that a recession is coming and you might lose 30% in your 401(k) funds in the next few months, I can relate.

If the holidays make you sad because you it reminds you of the grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles who have died and you miss them, I can relate.

If you've lost a spouse, close friend, brothers or sisters or children to death, I can't relate but I do sympathize. I also sympathize if you have a loved one or friend in the hospital or therapy and you really want them to come home before the end of the year.

If one of your pets died this year, I sympathize, even if it was just a goldfish.

There are a lot of things that can make you sad during the holidays. Don't let them. With a blink of an eye, it seems, the holidays will be past and we'll be celebrating New Year's Day with the promise (perhaps naïve) of a brand new year.

If you're really lonely, reach out to a friend. They may not invite you to a family celebration, but maybe you can invite them to lunch and just talk. Go to a movie, sports event or an event where there are other small groups of people where you can pick up some of their energy.

For those who live close to Cincinnati, go to the Vocal Arts Ensemble's Christmas concert. Go to church; if you don't have a church, go to one of the Crossroads Churches. If you're not Christian, look around for a church that fits your beliefs. You can also try my church, First Unitarian Church, which welcomes all faiths. Also in Cincinnati, you can always go to Fountain Square, watch the skaters and pick up good vibes there.

But be proactive. Don't let the holiday season get you down. Try to take the negatives in your life and turn them into positives. That's what I plan on doing.

(Also published on my Facebook page.)

"I'm special and I don't have to obey the law"

Eight "protestors" were arrested in Downtown Cincinnati last night. Yes, you can peacefully protest but when you try to use the cover of the protest to break the law, you may get arrested. And if you mess with the police trying to arrest someone, you will definitely get arrested. You will get no sympathy from me.

What I'm seeing today is a segment of the population, African American and White American but not Hispanic (as far as I can recall), who think they're special and that laws don't apply to them. Throw their fast-food bag out the car window? Sure, why should they care? Run a stop sign? No accident, no foul! Drive around with a broken tail pipe dragging on the ground? Man, where's the problem in that? None until it breaks off and ends up in someone else's radiator!

And then they get all indignant when a cop pulls them over. They're like, go get that drug dealer instead of me 'cause I'm special. Well, where I live here in Norwood, Ohio, the cops go for the drug dealers, too. As long as some people believe they can ignore the laws of society, we're going to have problems.

Background: Earlier this week, University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing was indicted by a grand jury for murder following a traffic stop where he shot an unarmed driver and killed him. This protest, which started peacefully but appeared to be turning violent when the arrests occurred, was in response to the shooting. The family of the victim expressed their displeasure that the event was turning violent and disassociated themselves with the march after the vigil. 

Computer camps for third graders

Recently, I got a call from a mother whose son wants to learn about computer programming. His school offers classes but they don't start until the fifth grade and they won't make an exception for her son who will be a third grader in the fall (seven years old). I found two summer day camps in the Cincinnati, Ohio area that have camps for third graders. (Note: The summer camp folks look at the grade your child will be in in the fall.)

I don't know much about these camps and this is not a specific recommendation. The main reason I'm posting this is to reassure parents that seven years old is not too early to begin learning about computers, whether it's developing games or writing programs.

One set of camps are offered by Classroom Antics. The camps range from Junior Video Game Design (ages 7 to 9) to Stop Motion Animation (ages 9 to 13).

Another place for a variety of scientific camps, including programming camps, is CINSAM at Northern Kentucky University.

Drake Planetarium also has camps that involve concepts related to programming. Once you display the page, click on "2015 Summer Camps" for more information.

There may be more camps that I'm not aware of. If you are connected with a summer computer camp, drop me a line and I will update this post.

Please provide feedback in the comments. You may comment anonymously if you wish.

Updated May 17: Added Drake Planetarium.

"Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!®" was taped in Cincinnati

My wife and I attended the taping of this week's "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!®" and now we've listened to the broadcast. The whole risque sequence on morning missiles is gone! So is Mo Rocca's claim that Cincinnati's Music Hall is the largest concert hall in North America (false, the DAR Constitution Hall is larger although it doesn't have a resident orchestra). Skyline Chili (two references) also got dropped; I guess if you're not a sponsor, you don't get mentioned. (Keep in mind that Skyline Chili is only one of several chains and restaurants serving Cincinnati-style chili.)

It took almost two hours to tape the show but only about 40 minutes was broadcast, when you take out the unnecessary news from the broadcast and the additional "promotions" (not commercials; public radio doesn't have commercials) beyond the sponsors of the show itself. I'm glad we went to the taping and will do it again when it comes back to Cincinnati; too much gets lost in the broadcast.

Two distinctive houses for sale in Cincinnati

I did something today I rarely do: I stopped at an open house. I've been driving past this house several times a week, watching the remodeling in progress, since my mother moved to Cincinnati in February. This house is distinctive because it has five front doors. I asked the Realtor®, Doug Spitz, about this and he said that it's a decorative touch and it's not like the house had five small apartments originally. The house is located at 1615 Spring Lawn Ave., Cincinnati (Northside) 45223, which is at the corner of Spring Lawn and Hamilton Ave. At the open house, there was a lot of interest in this house; there were at least 10 groups of people at the open house in the 10 minutes that I was there. Price: $280,000.

(Note: The U.S. Postal Service, which I consider authoritative, says the street is "Spring Lawn" but Dusty Rhodes, the Hamilton County (Ohio) Auditor, says it's "Springlawn" (see screen shots). Somebody should get these two on the same page.)

While I'm on the subject of houses, I'd like to mention the church-house for sale at 4117 34th Ave., Cincinnati (Oakley) 45209. Since it's converted from a church to a house, it has a nice performance space that would be ideal for a musician or other types of artists (art gallery, theater?). My connection: one of my friends is a friend of the owner. This house has a Facebook page. Price: $284,000.

(Once again, we have a difference in street names. The USPS says it's "34th Ave." while Dusty says it's "Thirty-Fourth St." [34th St. is in Covington, Ky.])

These two houses are interesting opposites yet similar in price. The former is for someone who wants luxury living in a small space and the latter is quite a bit larger but could be a lot of fun. Both are in the City of Cincinnati and close to downtown.

Financial Disclosure: I do not have a financial interest in either of these houses and I will not receive or accept any compensation when either house is sold. It is not likely that I will purchase either house. It's my blog and I can feature houses that catch my eye if I want!

Eight people in Norwood, Ohio talk about politics

The Wall Street Journal wanted to talk to a diverse group of voters about the election, the economy and other topics. They started with Ohio, a swing state, then picked Hamilton County, a swing county, then drilled down to the City of Norwood, the second largest city in the county (after Cincinnati) and ended up picking my block in Norwood. Neil King, Jr. interviewed eight of us from four families and wrote a story for today's edition of the WSJ, "Fearful Ohio Voters Careen Between Competing Camps" (subscription required; pictures by Andrew Spear).

In 1968 Andy Warhol said, "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." I'm going to enjoy my 15 minutes and then get back to work.