I just celebrated my fiftieth  Harper High school reunion, and it was great to see so many of my old high school buddies. There were the cheerleaders who are now grand mothers, football players who were knee replacement candidates and many who were having their own reunion from heaven. It was hard to believe that time flew so fast, and how technology has changed, in 1965 we had no cell phones, computer,internet, film-less cameras(I was a photographer for our newspaper-Harper Highway), however there was one thing that really struck me, who the hell was William Rainey Harper?

Since we did not have tablets, or iPhones in the 1960’s, it was not that easy to obtain information like we can today. Four years of high school and we never had one day to honor our Harper High School founder, William Rainey(why not Sunny) Harper. So lets go to Wikipedia and find out why I was so excited to wear my Red heavy high school sweater, with a big H on it for excelling in the Sport of Checkers, yes, we were Chicago City champs, was born on July 24, 1856 and died at the young age of 49, January 10, 1906, he was an American academic leader and helped established both the University of Chicago and Bradley University, were he served as their first presidents, he also instituted today’s concepts of our community junior colleges, however he opposed the employment of women as teachers, I can kind remember some women teachers who might have proved his point. Thank you Mister Harper and all of our other people, cities, wars and other reasons why we name our schools as we do, but we can do better.

For years our early sports teams, like the Chicago Cubs, played in Wrigley Field, only right to be named after  the owner’s chewing gum company, Boston Red Socks played in their home field, Fenway park named after the owners Fenway Reality, in the 1950’s we ended up with Busch Stadium not the Budweiser as originally planned. This set the advertising tone to have our today’s American corporations to have the bragging rights of having Miami Heat basketball fans playing their games in their home, American Airlines Arena, the San Antonio Spurs play in their arena, AT&T Center, and the Denver Nuggets play in the Pepsi center. From Wrigley Field, the naming rights have latched on to our National Football League, AT&T Stadium-Dallas Cowboys, Bank of America Stadium, home of theCarolina Panthers, and the Edward Jones Dome-St. Louis Rams. Even my Chicago White Sox Comiskey Park had it’s name change to US Cellular Field, and I no longer can even get US Cellular phone coverage any more.  Corporations have known to pay up to $20 million dollars a year, Citi Field and the Barclay Center, both located in New York City, and even The New York Giants and The New York Jets in 2010, were able to have Met Life cough up a cool $400 million dollars for 25 years of naming rights.

With all of the billion of dollars that corporate america pays for the naming rights so they can get the attention of american sports fans, do they ever consider of buy the naming rights of our much needed high schools so you can mentor our students, institute apprentice and job training and of course have students wear your corporate tee shirts to school?

Just think if we did not have two alumni from Homestead High School in Cupertino California, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak there probably never of been san Apple ComputerCompany that is now known as the Apple Computer Corporation.

Sorry Mister Harper, as much as I appreciated all of the educational innovations you made to our American school system, it’s now the time that I order my new McDonalds High School sweater, with instead of a red cardinal mascot, but with a nice juicy Big Mac!

Yeah Big Mac!

I am going to be Seventy years old on October 22nd of this year. It just occurred to me that this Donald John Trump could be my last United States President while I am alive on this planet.  Look at all the presidents I was able to be alive with, Harry S. Truman. Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy. Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald W. Regan, George H. W. Bush, Bill J. Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, and finally Donald J Trump. I don’t want to give my reasons why I think he will be our next president, but what I want from him

Like many of older citizens, I want to be able to afford the proper medical care for me and my wife, she is disabled like me, and there is no reason why she has to stop working and wait five months to get her social security, and wait two years to get Medicare. With the proper medical clearance she should only have to  wait thirty days. Like most of us who are disabled, we spent most of our working lives earning less that $15.00 an hour so we can have affordable health insurance. President Trump if you want to save money on health care, help us seniors who need medical care, Now. The longer we wait, the more money it’s going to cost us later. Another thing is to get rid of the partial declaration of income when we reach seventy and a half. The taxes we pay on our savings and investments will make it harder for us Social Security incomers to be able to Survive! Maybe a fewer less bricks and mortar will make up the difference.

As of Sunday May Ist, there are approximately some 323,727,195 people living in the United States, heck thats only 4.38% of the world’s population, let’s double it, China has 1,409,028,690, and India is a close second at 1,295,967,424. President Trump, forget about immigration, the more people, the more goods and services we are going to need. More jobs, competition, educators, doctors, lawyers, soldiers, judges, farmers, scientists, garbage collectors, car mechanics, cops, a bigger military and of course a larger printing press, but this time the paper we print has to be back by our gold and silver reserves. President Trump just think of all the skyscrapers that will need to keep your country going. You have inspired all of us to live in HARMoney. We can only get better, education and medical for all. We are going to love everyone, Muslims, Mexicans, and most of all our enimies, who once were born from their enemas!

I can’t wait to see our new United States, everyone helping each other, no more hatred, education for all, free medical care, and no more poverty. There will be jobs for every one, fair taxes and most of all a national pride that we live in the greatest country on Planet Earth. This will all happen because of you President Trump.

I would like to ask my fellow Americans what else would they like to have president Trump to do. Sorry Hillary, Bernie, Ted and John, you just don’t got what Donald Trump has, charisma, confidence, imagination, loyalty and the love of his country.

Wow, did I take the wrong dosage of my medicine tonight?

Last April 1st, as we know as April Fools,  however it was also the fortieth anniversary of the Apple Computer Company, the company we know as The Apple Computer Corporation, originally consisted of three founders, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne started the ignition on what led to the computer world as we know it today.

For me it led me to only a three year Apple journey, a discovery certainly that the Apple Founders might never been aware of. This legacy was that of Ronald G Wayne. Besides as the one of the three original Apple Computer Founders who unfortunately relinquished  his ten- per cent of ownership after just twelve days for a poorly profit of $1500.00, he justified a lesson in my human development that money and fame cannot just be my reason for living.

I remember how nervous I was when I made my first phone call to Mister Wayne. I could not even believe that I was able to get through to him. It started our first of many conversations, he thus has become my inspiration, and I no longer had to beat myself up for not sometimes making the right decisions. He chuckled and told me that continuing with the Apple Computer Company was not  the direction he wanted to be part of . A self made engineer, and a perfectionist, Mr. Wayne was able to write the original Apple Computer Company contract, it’s first logo, and the schematic of the Apple1.

However it’s the insight I gained from this genius of a Man, who during his two years working at Atari with Steve Jobs, that I learned that Mister Wayne offered two pieces of advice that might of made the difference of Steve Jobs dying at the much too young of the age of fifty-six. Mister Wayne who was twenty-two years older than Steve Jobs, I believe was more like a surrogate father. Steve always wanted to know who his father was? Mister Wayne, who’s own father left the family, warned  him that he might be surprised and maybe disappointed. The second revelation was that he should think twice before going to India, first of all you don’t speak the language, and you most likely will probably get sick, I am  not a Doctor, but I wonder, If Steve Jobs did not go to India, and if he  found out who was mother and father were, would their medical history been of some help in the well being ?

Getting back to the Legacy of Ronald G. Wayne, even though he hasn’t been to retire with Apple Millions, he shown me that I might be able to live to be eighty two years old and maybe even longer if I stop worrying what I “Couldah” , “Shouldah”,  and “Wouldah” in my life. I am going to be seventy this year, and I am envious of Mister Wayne, who has authored, two books, “Insolence of Office” and “The Adventure of An Apple Founder”.  I can now access not only what I have done in my life, but to realize that I have many more tomorrows to do  things I never thought I could possibly do.

I want to give a big thank-you to Mister Wayne, he has been an inspiration onto my next journey. With his guidance and wisdom, he has agree to help me with the development of an Apple Founders Museum concept,  a museum that will showcase many of the Apple contributors, like many of the students of Homestead High School in Cupertino, California(Steve Jobs, and Steve Wozniak-alumni),  Chris Espinosa, Bill Fernandez, and Randy Wigginton, and the many that influence the original three Apple Computer Founders, from Daniel Kottke, Steve Jobs roommate and companion to India,  John Draper, the catalyst behind the notorious Blue Box that helped Steve Jobs and Woz raise the money to start their Apple Dream,  Arthur Rock, the investor that kept the two Steves together, and one of Mister Wayne’s favorite, Nolan Bushnell, the former CEO of Atari . hopefully we can get many more on board. Both Mister Wayne would welcome your ideas how we can cam make our Apple Founders Museum a realty

I wonder if Apple’s CEO Tim Cook would like to be part of our Apple Museum?

No matter what I would like to thank Mister Wayne, for letting me be part of his Wayne’s World, where fame and fortune don’t really mean Anything if you cannot enjoy your life.

Mister Wayne is also available for lectures, and signing autographs. He can be reached at RG Wayne, 4201 Savoy Blvd. Pahrump, NV, 89061,  775-727-5750—www.ronaldgwayne.com

After having the pleasure of listening to a fantastic audio book “Elon Musk” on www.scribd.com by Ashlee Vance.  I realize that I found my new Steve Jobs, Elon Musk. Unlike Steve Jobs, Elon Musk had a modern day The Nelson’s family-(The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet).  This tv series ran from 1952-1965(black and white), and 1965-66(color), always watching this I never knew what Ozzie Nelson did for a living, on the other hand Steve Jobs father Paul was a machinist who never graduated from high school, Elon Musk’s father Errol was a pilot, sailor and engineer.  Educationally, Elon graduated with distinction in physical science and computer science, Steve sort of drifted through college, it did not really mattered,both Steve Jobs and Elon Musk have been my two visionaries of my century.

I am really tired of all of the books and movies about the opinionated  cruelties that went on in the life of Steve Jobs. The fact of the matter that Steve Jobs was one of our greatest contributors of modern day’s technology.  There maybe some people who might say that he knew nothing about technology, and just wanted to feel important, he made Apple Computer a reality, just like Thomas Edison and the light bulb. This fact cannot be denied. Unfortunately Steve Jobs died much too early, however we are very fortunate to have Tim Cook to carry on with Apple Computer, but we have Elon Musk who has taken on the mission like Steve Jobs,  make  our planet Earth a better place to live,  make us  aware that we are just a small dot in many galaxies, the UNIVERSE, and hopefully our planet can exist infinitely.

When you think of Elon Musk, you associate him with the Electric automobile company Tesla, and a co founder of Zip2, PayPal, but I think is biggest contribution to our Universe is being the founder of SpaceX.

SpaceX is an Aerospace Orbital Rocket Launch Corporation. As of July 15, 2015 it has over 4000 employees. Headquartered in Hawthorne , California (2002), Elon Musk challenge is to create an affordable space transportation for our Humanity, and thus lead to the eventual colonization to the planet Mars. Just in 1492, Columbus set a foot in America, Musk is tying to reach out to other existences in our galaxy, like Steve Jobs we always need to improve technology, who would ever think that the cell phone would be our in-pocket computer, stop watch, and telephone, an so much more, but there is one distinction that Elon Musk has made that very few have realize, when he fires a missile into the sky and unfortunately it disintegrate. this  might be his greatest accomplishment. Who knows if there is a form of life in the Universe that is able to see or hear his failing rocket. I sure hope so, both Steve Jobs, Elon Musk have gave us the true meaning and understanding of the Beatles song, Help!

“Help, I need somebody, Help, not just anybody, Help, you know I need somebody, Help! When I was younger, so much younger, than today I never needed anybody’s help in any way. But now these days are gone I’m not so self assure, Now I found I’ve changed my mind and opened up the doors. Help me if you can, I’m feeling down, and I do appreciate you being ’round. Help me get my feet back on the ground, Won’t you pleas help me? And now my life has changed in oh so anyways, My independence seems to vanish in the haze, But every now and then I feel so insecure I know that I just need you like I never done before. Help me if you can, I’m feeling down, And I do appreciate you being ’round, Help me get my feet back on the ground, Won’t you please help me?” I want to thank Steve Jobs and Elon Musk for helping appreciate that I live on a wonderful planet called Earth, and the many days I have left RE turning my Haze into beads of sunshine.

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me machete big choices in life. Because almost everything-all external expectations, all pride, all fear, of embarrassment or failure-these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is important..” Steve Jobs

Yesterday I attended the annual McDonald’s Share Holders meeting help at their corporate headquarters in Oak Brook,Illinois. This was my third and hopefully not my last attendance. As usual the consisted of addressing the same old issues, obesity in children, higher wages, GMO-genetically modified organism,  and among , others that made want to “SHOUT”, and not the song by the Isley Brothers, but “Why won’t McDonald’s stop marketing to kids with Ronald McDonald?

In the article on entrepreneur.com , “5 Uncomfortable Questions Asked at McDonald’s Company Shareholders’ Meeting” by Kate Taylor, “Progressive don’t use schools ads, “health blogger Casey Hinds said in a roundabout question full of barbs aimed at McDonald’s. Moms and millennials are are leaving the brand behind.”  In essence, Ronald is trying to have our school kids to buy junk food at McDonald’s. It was with great satisfaction that Steve Easterbrook the Ronald McDonald’s newly elected CEO electrified the shareholders by saying “that the chain exceeds the minimum regulations of nutrition and that is has added healthy options in Happy Meals. He also said that Ronald is here to stay.”

It was appalling that someone had to pick on poor (Ronald McDonald), a clown that was created by Willard Scott, yes the weatherman for “The Today Show” from 1980-2010. It’s amazing that the man in side our picked-on Ronald, began his practice on TV of wishing centenarians an happy birthday on-air in 1983. I wonder if any of these senior-senior citizens ever ate McDonald’s, and if so, perhaps we better send out many more Ronald McDonald’s clones around the world, that if you ever expect to live to at lest to be a hundred years old, you better eat your Junk food, and a good place to start is at McDonald’s.

To be Continued. I am getting hungry, guess where I am going?

In my last post, I wrote how I found my modern day Moses, Steve  Jobs. I wonder if Mr. Jobs was still alive with us, what would he think would be the best direction for  his baby, The Apple Corporation should venture into?

There has been so much talk today about Apple entering the electric automobile market(The Guardian), “Apple is reportedly hiring automotive engineers to work at a top-secret lab in Silicon Valley, fueling  rumors that the company maybe designing car. Dozen of Apple employees led by its iPhone unit are researching automotive products, according to the Financial Times. It reports that the company has poached  the head of of Mercedes-Benz’s Silicon Valley research and development unit, while Sir Jonathan Ive, senior vice-president of design at Apple, has had regular meetings with regular meetings with automotive executives and engineers.”  Certainly Mr. Jobs would welcome a iCar, in fact according to the business insider, “that an Apple employee said the company was working something would “give Tesla a run for it’s money.”  “Steve Jobs had a car on Apple’s radar.” Much talk has been going on that Apple should purchase Tesla, it was beautifully designed on inside, and was more than just a vehicle—they build an entire platform. ” However there are so many platforms that Steve Jobs took to make Apple which I think will be largest financial money making platform the world could ever imagine.

In 2006,(Wikipedia), The Walt Disney Company bought Pixar in 2006 at a valuation 0f $7.4 billion, a transaction which resulted in Steve Jobs becoming Disney’s largest single share holder at the time. Who would think that this once computer graphics division of Lucas films  that he purchased in 1986 for $5 million dollars, would produce the first feature-length computer animated film Toy Story , in a distribution deal with Disney.  The financial rewards were extraordinary  for this 1995 eighty-one computer animated film classic, with a budget of just $30 million, it later on went to collect a whopping $362.4 militant the box office.

Toy Story(1995) led to so many other Pixar Classics: A Bugs Life, Toy Story 2( 1998), Monsters Inc.(2001), Finding Nemo(2003), The Incredibles(2004), Cars(2006), Ratatouille(2007), Wall E(2008), UP(2009), Toy Story 3(2010), Cars 2 (2011), Brave(2012), Monsters University(2013),Disney Planes(2013, Inside Ou(2015), Finding Dory(2015), and The Good Dinosaur(2015). From 1995 with  the Start of Toy Story and to 2013 with Disney Plaines, the spread sheet for these fifteen Pixar Films would certainly give Disney share holders many reasons to not to worry. With a total budget of $1,876,000,000 these Disney -Pixar Movies have generated an impressive $8,820,219,390 at the Worldwide Box Office.

(www.the-numbers.com/movies/…)

In 1997 was the year that Steve Jobs replaced Gil Amelio as the “interim CEO” of Apple. From his return he has taken Apple with a 3 billion dollar evaluation to a today 725 billion bonanza.  I wonder if Steve Jobs was alive today, what he would say about being the CEO of the most valuable company in the United States that was started on April Fool’s Day on 1976? I believe he  might be one happy Apple Master with the following merit badges; MacBook, MacBook Air, Apple Mini, iPad, iPad min, iTunes store, Apple TV, iBooks, Mac App Store, iCloud, Apple Store(on-line), iOS, iWatch and probably many more, the one product I see Apple BECOMING , are you ready, here is my crazy vision, a bigger Disneyland.

Yes, Apple, a continuation of Steve Job’s Pixar’s dream, an unbelievable Apple In Wonderland, a theme park with ten-story iPads, restaurants that know what you like to eat, play your favorite iTunes, and connect to people who you might think are your new lost relatives. The hospital of the future. The Future mixes with the past.

I wonder if Steve Jobs would of approved of acquiring The Walt Disney Corporation? Maybe he could say hello to Annette for me.

***************************MICKEY MOUSE**************************

This year I will be celebrating my fifty year high school anniversary from Harper High School in Chicago, Illinois. It’s unbelievable that a half decade has gone by so fast. To me, my teen age years were certainly some of the best times of my life. Growing up in the 1960’s had so many adventures and challenges. Worrying about the occasional pimple attacks, falling in love almost every other day, and of course what the hell am I am going to do when I get OLD. Well fifty years later, I see I finally don’t need to worry about when I get old, I made it, I did it, and at times I think I have failed! I am OLD.

As I found with the discovery of Ronald G. Wayne(Sold his 10% of his Apple Computer stock for some $1500.00) that money is not everything. At eighty years old, he has authored three books and has great health. Hey I made it to the age of sixty-eight and even though I am not in the best of health, I have so much to be happy about. I have a  wonderful wife(Teresita Silvers-22 years), a house with a park as my back yard, Social Security, some savings, and a loving cat name Kazzi. However because I am not on Wikipedia, my 1965(The Shield) Harper High School year book probably wouldn’t even get a $25.00 bid on Ebay, unlike the three (Ebay) listings that I see are now     seeking some hefty prices, “1972 Homestead High School Year Book, Steve Jobs”, $4970.00, $4975.0, and $6499.00. I would love to  have one of these diamonds for my Apple Founders Collection. It would make great company for my four Steve Wozniak high school year books, his remote control, a Captain Crunch Whistle, and don’t tell anyone, a 1968 Steve Jobs Homestead Jr. High School Year book, and my 1962,1963, 1964, & 1965 Harper Shield Year books. So I guest measuring success, IS What Your High School Year Book Is Worth?

Any Bidders$$$$$

Just like I found may modern day Dorothea Lange(Photographer) in Vivian Maier, I see in my journey, that history can definitely repeat itself. Yes, of course, just look in the Book of Exodus(second book of the Torah), the Hebrew Bible.  My first Moses was born in times of when the Israelites were multiplying, and the the Egyptian Pharoah was worried that his neighbors might be come a threat. Perhaps like we seen in today’s  killings(ISIS), ordered all the newborn Hebrews to be Murdered. Like many (Jewish Mothers), Jochebed, sent her baby Moses sailing down the Nile river, and by the grace of God was discovered by the Pharaoh’s sister Queen Bithiah.

Can you imagine how history was affected by the mother of Moses, she wanted her son to survive, and survived he did. Would there be a Chosen People, an Israel, and certainly there would not been one of the greatest films of all time, The Ten Commandments, starring some of our greatest actors and actrersses of all time, Charlton Heston(Moses), Yul Brynner(Rameses), Edward G. Robinson(Dathan), John Derek(Joshua),  Cedrick Hardwicke(Sethi), Vincent Price(Baka), John Carradine(Aaron), Douglas Dumbrile(Jannes), Anne Baxter(Nefretiri), Yvonne De Carlo , the beautiful (Sephora), Nina Foch(Bithiah), Martha Scott(Yochabel), Judith Anderson(Memmet), and Olive Deering(Miriam). This 220 minute Classic film directed by the legendary director, Cecil B. DeMille, was nominated for seven Academy Awards in 1957. Even though it just won one Oscar(The Best Visual Effects), it was Moses that showed us that we could eventually go Around the World in 80 Days, winner of the Oscar for the Best Picture that year.

I wonder what the world would be like if we did not have a Moses, certainly there were be no Chosen People, Ten Commandments, and  the Promised Land. Many miracles would not happened, the crossing of the Red Sea, and the Burning Bush, God’s sacred light. What would a Moses-less world be like? How  many of us who would never been born. Maybe in some way, this could of been a good thing, at least for the Palestinians, who the hell could they go to war with, the Chinese? So for all those who were adopted or abandoned by their parents, just think of all the possibilities that history has changed “ManKind or in Moses case it was his Mother’s sacrifice of her son to give him another life.

In 1954, another Mose’s mother, Joanne Schieble, and a Syrian Muslim father, Abdulfattah Jandali, were under tremendous pressure from Ms. Schieble parents, to not to get married, and very influential to put pressure of putting their little Moses up for  adoption.  The recipient of this child of “wonderment” , was a childless couple, Paul and Clara Jobs(divorced in 1962). Paul worked for a company that made lasers in Northern California(Later became known as Silicon Valley). Paul Jobs gave his son the tools and foundation,  and later his adopted son learned “that anyone has the capabilities to change the world,and not spend most of your life selling “sugared water”,  a philosophy Steve Jobs emphasized throughout his life.

As God gave Moses The Ten Commandments upon Mount Sinai, it was thus the beginning  how we should live our lives with harmony and purpose. Steve Jobs saw his new vision from the Silicon Valley, and gave us his technological Ten Commandments.

(The Daily Beast): 1. “Go For Perfect”, the first iPod,

2. “Tap the Experts”, recruited the Gap’s Mickey Drexler to Apple’s board before launching the Apple Stores

3. *Be Ruthless”, be proud of your failures, as of your successes(Killed the Palm Rio, after realizing that the cell phone would “eclipse” PDAs, this gave his engineers to focus one the development on The iPod.

4. “Shun Focus Groups”, Steve Jobs believed “People don’t know what they want until you show it to them.”,  So he acts as a one-man focus group, taking prototype products home and testing them for months.”

5. ” Never Stop Studying”, When designing early brochures for Apple, he pored over Sony’s use of fonts, layout and the weight of the paper. Working on the case for the first Mac, he  wondered around Apple’s parking lot, studying the body work of German and Italian cars”

6. “Simplify”, My modern day Moses, design philosophy is of one  of constant implication. He ordered the iPod’s designers to lose all the buttons on early prototypes, including the on/off button. The designers complained, then developed  the iconic scroll wheel instead.”,

7. “Keep Your Secrets”, Nobody at Apple talks. Everything is on a need to-know basis, with the company into discrete cells. The secrecy allows Jobs to generate frenzied interest for his surprise product demonstrations and the resulting headlines ensure lines around the block.”

8. “Keep Teams Small’, The original Macintosh team was a 100 people; no more , no less, If a 101 person was hired, someone was ditched to make room. Jobs was convinced he could remember the first names of only 100 people.”

9. “Use More Carrot than Stick”, Jobs is scary, but his charisma is his most powerful motivator. His enthusiasm was the the primary reason the original Mac team worked 90 hour weeks for three years making the machine “insanely great.”,

10. “Prototype to the Extreme”, Everything Jobs does is exhaustively prototyped: the hardware, the software, even Apple retail stores. Architects and designers spent over a year building a prototype store in a secret warehouse near Apple’s headquarters, only to have Jobs scrap the project and start over.”

I reached out to the eldest founder of the Apple Corporation, Ronald G. Wayne and asked him what it was like to work at Atari with Steve Jobs, he probably was like Moses, always asking what his father might be like? Mr. Wayne told me that he warned him that he might be disappointed. Steve Jobs constant disappointment wondering who was his father be came one of the our modern day rewards.

I feel that our lives can be influence by just one event. If Moses was not sent down the Nile, and Steve Jobs was not put up for adoption, what would our world be like, with no laws to be govern by, Thou shall not kill, and honor thy Mother and Father would be have the computers, cell phones, and the scientific break throughs as we have today. Unfortunately we do put our hero worshiping idols before our true beliefs, we definitely kill, and we don’t honor our mother and father. I am very grateful for the There Wisemen of the Apple Corporation, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald G. Wayne for giving us the modern day technology, computers, internet, and cell phones.  How the world has been changed by them them?

As I acknowledge that my first Moses(1393-1273 BCE) died some 1400 years ago, my modern day Moses, Steven Paul Jobs(February 24,1955} was taken away  from us on October, 05, 2011, I feel that in my lifetime I have been very fortunate to have to Moses in my life.

To the parents of Moses, and Steve Jobs, Thank you for your D.N.A.

*******to be continued*********

I was very fortunate in my four decades voyage as a camera salesman in Chicago to have met some very incredible photojournalists that unfortunately have now left us, and hopefully are now making trillions of photographs in heaven, I am speaking about  Declan Haun, Archie Lieberman, Lee Balterman and Arnold Crane, (who I recently found out about). However, the one photographer I never had the privilege to meet was Miss Maier, Miss Vivian Maier, and certainly not by what she despised, Viv.  However during my beginning photography learnings at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois from 1965-1970, I had only one spiritual photographic advisor who influenced me the most , Miss Dorothea Lange. Like many of my fellow photography majors, we were all searching on what kind of photographers we  would become, I never once thought about what kind of future income I would make, or what really was instore for me, all I knew was that I loved taking photographs. At first I was thrown for a loop during my first week, one strange photo instructor, praised my first photo assignment, told me that one of my pictures, a red fire hydrant had a real artistic flair, and incredible resemblance of a flamboyant penis.

I left the class in tears, and had to speak to one of the photography instructors, a true friend, and not only had a P.H.D. in Education, but certainly a legendary photojournalist of Souther Illinois, Doctor (Doc) William C. Horell(“Coal Mining In Southern Illinois).He immediately handed me a handkerchief, and when I babbled my story that I did not come to Carbondale Illinois from Chicago to learn how to be a “pee-pee” photographer, he almost got a heart attack from laughing so hard. He looked at my photograph and assured me that it looked like a fire hydrant, and it might be difficult to take it to bed.

My tears started to dry up, and finally I found some one I could ask about my photography destiny. He asked me about my background and seeing that I had cerebral palsy, he wanted to know if I really needed to major  in photography at SIU, he felt that even for himself having a P.H.D in education, it never stood in the way of  him being a photographer. Never the less I felt his concern, and I figured out that even if I could not make money in something I loved to do, I could always make a living as a camera salesman. Yep, I spent some four decades working in some of Chicago’s finest camera stores, Altman Camera, Central Camera, Pallas Photo Supply, Standard Photo, Colonial Camera of La Grange, Illinois, and my last camera store employment, Calumet Photographic. I think “Doc” Horrell knew I would be a camera salesman  for the rest of my life, and a probably a good one. He liked my photos, insisted  that I get a Nikon F, and read everything I could about my new mentor Dorothea Lange.

I started to read every thing I could find about Dorothea Lange, and her husband, Dr. Paul Taylor,   they wrote and captured  photographs from 1935-1939, for what was later called the Farm Security Administration, the plight of our country’s poor and (certainly the unforgotten), displaced farm families and what were known as “sharecroppers”, our migrant workers.  who I refer as the Taylors did,  made the government get of their asses and focus in helping help all our  stricken families in America, ” The Dust Bowl Years.”

As Dr. Taylor wrote and carried her cameras, it was Dorothea Lange’s camera philosophy and her missions in shooting, that has influenced me so much, and have no intention in it to my grave, but unlike Vivian  Maier, should be shared. Dorothea Lange always realize that the human face is really the universal language in her  photos, a Japanese little boy smiling  pretty much has the same meaning of that given from an American little girl also making a smile, next she believed in the hands off approach-no manipulation of the subject(she would not be a fan of Adobe Photoshop if she was with us today, just photograph as you see it, and lastly what I think Vivian Maier instored in her subjects, photograph the things you love and of course the part of life you mostly  hate.

What I see in Vivian’s photographs is her attempt to stop time, freeze the moment, and question her existence, why am I part of a world that has so many diversities, and why am I here, and mostly how do I accept my finality. Strangely at times I have felt this as I point my camera at someone or some place I know nothing about, and unlike Ms, Maier are my photographs going to make a difference in other people’s lives. It is quite obvious that Miss Maier had no intention of being a professional photographer, or what she was taking pictures had to matter to others, however what I feel that it was affecting her, unfortunately she did not want to share her intentions with the world.

Most of us are probably thinking that Vivian Meier could of been recognized as the world’s new Dorothea Lange, her photographs definitely command thousands of dollars as they are doing know, certainly she could of been a prominent photography instructor giving lectures around the world, museums screaming to have their walls covered with her work(which is happening now), and of course not being that mystery woman who 100,000’s of negatives, and cameras and worthy possessions were discovered in a storage locker. I feel the greatest photographic impact that Vivian Maier has made in my life that I do not want my cameras, photographs and negatives found in a soon to be auctioned storage locker, or that my wife will have no choice to throw out my photo junk after having an uneventful garage sale. I just recently discovered some of my wonderful photos, (what I refer as my photo storage locker)that I had on FLICKR, from some ten years ago. Sadly I cannot tell you were are all of my negatives are, or what I have on photo cd’s, or the 100 of flash cards that are scattered around the house, but I know that the clock is ticking and I am starting my new photographic journey. I am making an attempt make my own photographic storage on the world, wide , web. Please visit my new website .

********www.photographers.digital*********

I want to thank Vivian Maier, John Maloof and Charlie Siskel, on their recently nominated Academy Award winning documentary “Finding Vivian Maier”, their efforts are not only  mentoring me,but hopefully the millions of other photographers that we have an obligation to ourselves as well to the rest of the world is first to recognize our Gift to be photographers and secondly most of all, not to have our eye-seeing, heart-feeling, and used breaths expire in vain.

NEVER TO BE AUCTIONED OFF TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER.

I remembered my wanting to be a member of a fraternity at Southern Illinois University. During rush week I hobbled my cerebral palsy legs through a lot of the frat houses. Even though it was 1968 I found myself just piping a dream of smoke, many of the fraternities were sympathetic to me wanting to be “Greek”, I had to settle on what I was meant to be, a up and coming photography major. I guess there was room in the world for one more Jimmy Olson on the ‘Daily Planet”.

As the week went by, a lot of my dormies were asking me if any of the Greekers asked me for a revisit. Nah I said I guest it was not to be, or maybe not. Walking to my photo class, and of course with always one or two Nikons around my neck, I suddenly heard my name shouted out, “Howie, Howie”, hey man where you really wanted to be a Kappa? I guess we got a couple whites bros in our fraternity, and you are from the south side of Chicago, and we can help your boat driving(1964 Pontiac Bonneville). We can use a photog in the house, you know we sure got some cuties to look at.

Was I ready to make Jewish history, one more adjective, to be added to my bein, Howard Michael Silvers, Jewish, only child, divorce parents, handicap, photographer, and now wanting to be a member of Kappa Alpha Psi, founded in Indiana University Bloomington on January 04, 1911. (Achievement In Every Field of HumanEndeavor), 721 chapters, over 150,000 plus members, notable members Elbert Frank Cox, First African American to earn a P.H.D. in mathematics, Bob Boozer, former NBA forward, 1960 Summer Olympics gold medalist, as with Bill and Cazzie Russell, Ivory Crockett, in 1974 broke the world record for the 100 yard dash and held the distinction of being the world’s fastest man at his distance, Los Angles mayor Tom Bradley, Bernard A Harris, first African American Astronault to walk in space, and many historic Americans.

I ponder this, and thought how could this going to happen and how would this change my life, and even yet, what can I contribute to so many African Americans. My new brothers told me that Doctor Martin Luther King had a dream, “that now is the time to make justice a reality,for all of God’s children, and has his speech goes on, we must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. again and again , we must rise to the majestic heights meeting physical force with soul force, we can not walk alone.  Doctor King’s dream will soon be my dream, I will show  the country the inequality, hatred, and misunderstanding that caucasians and negroes have been experiencing for over two hundred years, I knew now what Josh White(a folk singer  met when I was in the hospital for one of my many surgeries, “Every man is the same when he got his skin off”. I needed to know more about my new black brothers, and hopefully they will get to know me, heck we sure ain’t going to make the Klu Klux Klan membership list,

In the next two weeks I had to talk to each of my new to be brothers and they all wanted to know why I wanted to be a Kappa, I guest I to photographjust had one answer, I was tired of being an only child, I needed to feel that I had a purpose in life, I just wanted to take  pictures of people with their skin OFF. Well I did get an unexpected calling,  if this was group of brothers broke into my dorm room, tied me up, put tape over my eyes and kidnapped me. I did not know they wanted be to make just one photograph, a photograph that resulted in Southern Illinois University’s first Afro American coming queen, a most beautiful young lady, Miss. Hazel Scott of Carbondale, Illinois.

I was now getting hugs and kisses from my fraternity kisses after Miss Hazel made an entrance on her throne. I was ready for Hell Week, but I still had to be voted in. UNFORTUNATELY it was not meant to be, I was BLACKBALLED, SNUBBED, disappointed but I completely understood. I would of done the same thing to me. I cried, my brothers and sisters cried. The World was crying. for on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, another Kappa Alpha Psi brother was assassinated.

As I look back on this, I have learned that some films are meant to be shown and not to be snubbed. So Boyhood will win more Oscars than Selma, and Boyhood shows the twelve years of development, and it could the picture of the year as it’s African Brother, 12 years a Slave, it will never stand up to the greatness of the  film Selma.

Some things are meant to be snubbed, but for me I will always cherished my Boyhood, and never forget Dr. Martin Luther King’s ending words.

“And this will be the day – this will be the day when all God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning.

“My country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty of thee I sing.  Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim’s pride. From every mountainside, let freedom!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that;

Let freedom ring from the Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let freedom ring Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, and when we let it ring from every village, and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children , black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hand sand sing in he words of the old Negro spiritual.

“Free at Last”

“Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”