A Review - Dakota Blues- A Novel by Lynne M. Spreen

Dakota Blues. I want to say this title over and over again.  I want to think about what this book means to me, and remember this title.  As I look at this picture on the face of the book, with the big bold title, I wonder what it meant to this author, Lynne Morgan Spreen, to write words that encompass a lifetime for a character, by the name of Karen Grace.  I want to ask, who lives in this lonely looking house, sitting on the prairie of North Dakota?  In just a few short weeks, Karen Grace’s life is turned upside down and inside out....but through her strength, this character survives to greet the sunrise of her future.  

Questions about the “Blues”:   Do I feel blue, and saddened by this word?  Will I feel sad when I read this story? The word, “Blues”, reminds me of jazz sequences – simple and melodically following through metaphor - a riff of Karen Grace’s life, and then morphs her stagnant existence into a living and breathing whole presence on the page.  Lessons complete with a story to hold onto.

We can dance to and fro, swing back and forth, as we listen to the lessons; and then Lynne Spreen makes us stand still in the middle of the dance floor, to look at our selves staring back; The mirror, that partner we carry around with us, leading us through life, for which we rarely do stand still for, and to silently listen and learn from these life experiences.

Like always, as you can tell, I won’t give you the story, you have to read it for yourself - but what I can do is quote the first paragraph, in Chapter Two.  I love metaphor, and Lynne Spreen not only gives it to me, but shows it in this life of Karen Grace.  I recommend this book, for the young, and for the old – and all the in-betweens.

The thirty-seater bucked and lurched toward Teddy Roosevelt Regional, but Karen continued to study her computer screen, assessing the pluses and minuses of Wes’ latest cost-cutting scheme.  Only once did she pause, grasping the laptop to keep it from sailing to the floor, but she never stopped, even when the attendant warned the passengers to return to their seats and buckle up.  Like most CEO’s, Wes had been using the Great Recession as his excuse to slash staff to the bone, thereby showing positive growth on the company’s balance sheets.  Anybody who managed to creep up the salary ladder was fair game.  Age was a target, too.  The older employees were tossed onto the ice floes and shoved off into the dark waters of the frigid economy.

At fifty years old and the top of the pay scale, Karen would not let that happen to her.

THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!

This message was passed on to me by someone who wants to change/fix the laws as much as I do.  Please read and take action if you want change!

THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!

Look what he has accomplished in his life and what he is about to gift this world with.

Warren Buffett, in a recent interview with CNBC, offers one of the best quotes about the debt ceiling:

"I could end the deficit in 5 minutes," he told CNBC. "You just pass a law that says that anytime there is a deficit of more than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible for re-election. The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971 - before computers, e-mail, cell phones, etc. Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took one (1) year or less to become the law of the land - all because of public pressure. Warren Buffet is asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise. In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around.

Congressional Reform Act of 2012

 No Tenure / No Pension.  A Congressman/woman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they're out of office.

2.  Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security.  

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

4.  Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

5.  Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

6.  Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

7.  All contracts with past and present Congressmen/women are void effective 12/1/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen/women.

Congress made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the message. Don't you think it's time?

I want my children and grandchildren to live in a better world.  
Pass this on to your congress person.