This is my first Steemit post, and I have waited far too long to contribute to this community. I have spent months upon months reading and skimming through the thoughts and information of a wide variety of Steemit contributors, and now I think I am ready to share my outlooks on the world.

Perhaps my input will be entertaining or informative to others. As a profession I have been an Auctioneer and the owner of an Auction house for the past 15 years. I have been in the antique business since I was a very small child growing up on Long Island NY. As and auctioneer and antique dealer I have had opportunities to see the world as well as changes in the times and society through the estates of people that have lived amazing interesting lives as well as simpler modest lives. The artifacts and loved ones that they leave behind have windows into times and the worlds of these individuals lives. As an auctioneer and a person in general I have a fascination in people and how they operate. The content and character of people are reflected in the objects, tools, furniture, books, art, and a numerous other things they store in their homes. Being that I am a life long self employed person , I have a built in survival mechanism that is constantly crunching the data I collect for an edge on life and trends.

Over the past few decades I have witnessed vast quantities of change in the living habits of people from many walks of life. It is with a heavy heart that I only see downward standards of living and break downs in the family structure and local communities. I visit small towns and cities all through upstate New York and New England, and I see despair . Little to no opportunity for the younger generations that have been pushed into a paradigm that is broken. And these young folks see that it is broken, and they are unclear of future direction that does not involve risk of what little resources they have. The last vestiges of thriving opportunities all feed upon a once great industrious generation that is now being laid to rest. Over the past several years I have seen the recycling and dismantling of American mills, factories, and industry morph into the last of the opportunities for those still trying to be productive. I sigh thinking that this sort of thing is looked upon as productive at all. I see young men and women train themselves to be the caretakers of the wealthy dying off older generations as a source of income. Billions spent on the assisted living industry. Is that productive? or, Is it more like squeezing every last drop of blood from each stone. Men and women in their prime productive years forced to take work that was previously offered to school aged children and college kids during summer break, in order to provide for growing families.

My profession has bared witness to mansions being liquidated to become apartment buildings for section 8 housing, and tax generating commercial properties being bought up by non-for profit organizations. Single family homes have 3 generations sharing space and financial resources. Older modest income earners living on the brink with their only socialization being the TV and the mailman. Where was the shift, what happened? Crumbling churches, mammoth dinosaur mills, and factories all have become the painters pallet for bored distracted youth. I live in a small upstate city now, and the pride of ownership has been round up by a few wealthier individuals and they speculate on dirt cheap housing prices. Speculation rots all around me .... cheap housing left like rotting apples on the branches of a floundering orchard. Is this a mirror image of a healthy thriving culture/ society?

As Christmas approaches I think of my past and all the time I had spent with family and friends and all the laughter and cheer that surrounded those moments. And as the New Year 2018 approaches I wonder, will simpler more modest times be ahead for this great nation/, will there be a return to sound money and a world without banker wars? Will life and God given liberty be returned to the individual? As it stands I am as lost as all others living out their days. I live with hope and preparedness. I live with kindness and compassion. BE KIND.

Thank You for taking the time to read my thoughts Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all !!