Longevity and Aging - My thoughts ending 2010

It's the end of another year, and a new beginning of a fresh year. My imagination this year was captivated by the amazing progress that is being made in the biological and medical sciences, particularly that possibility of greatly extending your functional years of life. Everyday, I get scientific research emails on stem cell treatments, telemerase therapies, genetic findings etc, all taking place around the world. Each new development and treatments that are available adds to the probability of postponing our deaths albeit significantly for centuries. I read an amazing book by Michael Fossel, MD Ph D, that has been involved with telemerase treatments - The Immortality Edge. I knew a great deal about the science behind telemerase, the state of the science, and what is available for you now, but what caught my attention was a few paragraphs relating to the issue of over population; he advises, that although there is a lot of cutting edge science available now that would greatly prolong your life and youthfulness, but most, nearly the entire population of the U.S. and the world accepts, and believes death as inevitable, and there is nothing you can do about it, though the science now available clearly points to significant life span enhancement, the paradigm and mindset of most people, would be not to utilize those therapies. So, only a rare few - the believers will benefit. It made me wonder about the sciences and treatment of the past century that lead to medical break throughs everyone gets now - polio vaccines, blood transfusions, heart surgeries, organ replacements, or even something now medical, like flight & the development of planes. Were there not people who said, if G-D wanted you to fly he would had given you wings. Well, population growth isn't going to be a significant issue no time soon, because those people with diabetes will continue to treat with conventional therapies and won't seek cures now available overseas untilizing stem cell injections.

Christmas Weekend 2010

I spent from Thursday the 23rd to the 27th in Portland Oregon visiting and enjoying my relatives. I ended up staying at my Shelton Harrison's residence vice my sister Joyce's, since it was more convenient to get around and visit with other members of my family. My elder brother Tony was here from Texas with his wife - and we reconnected with my father's younger son, my brother, Brian Perry, is 30 years old, and had married just 8 months. It had been 15 years since I last saw Tony, and maybe 10 years since I last saw Brian. The 3 of us, spent a lot of time visiting with other relatives who not seen either of them in over of decade. It was a great christmas. I didn't hear anything from any of my daughters, which was a disappointment, but they are both in their 20's, enough said.

I was in the Philippines when I took this photo, sometime in 1988.

The Portland Perry Family in about 1976, William Perry, my younger brother has the big fro, his left hand rests on my sister's Joyce's shoulder. Next to Joyce, is Wanda, and then in silouhette is Tony. Joyce's left hand rests on my shoulder.

I must have been in 6th or 7th grade when this was taken at woodlawn grade school in Portland, OR. I can remember how the black shirt I'm wearing was one of the first shirts I personally chose to buy with earnings from working after school at Ray's Custom Body Shop, where I swept the shop and sanded the bottoms of fiberglass boats.

The Fro

Man, I hadn't seen a picture of myself with a big ball of hair on my head in 20 years or more. When I met my younger Brian this past weekend, he had a set of pictures that he had possessed for years, including my below highschool photos. It reminds me of how much our lives change over decades. I can recall never thinking about losing my year, or finding a creeping area of baldness visabily thinning out that mass of hair folicles. Those were the days of independence, freedom, and thinking outside the box.

My senior highschool photo from Adams Highschool in Portland Oregon

Weekend of December 18th

Spent the weekend in Portland. On Saturday, I met up with my little brother Brian Perry, whom I found out has been married for 8 months. He's living and working in Vancouver, WA. I took him around to relatives in Portland who haven't seen him in 10 years or so. It was great seeing him again. On Sunday, I met up with my older Brother Tony, who had driven up from Beaumont, Texas. Man, it's been nearly 15 years since I saw him. We hugged each other for a good minute, took off from our cousin Mary's house, to talk for 15 to 20 minutes, then I escorted over to other relatives to visit. He had to leave to go and take pizza's to his grandson's who live with their mother in Vancouver. Plus, he was tired from 3 days of driving. I ended up the night, riding with my sister Joyce, and her family, to Adam's graduation from Firefighter's Academy in Woodland WA, where he works as a volunteer fireman.

My Older Brother Tony Perry and I

2010 A Tough Year

There is so many things that went wrong this year - a pit pull dog attack in March, failing to reach out and communicate with my daughter Nia who somehow did not feel loved, falling and shattering both my ulna and radius in my left wrist on July 22nd, the passing of my dad (Dec 15th, 2010 RIP) , finding our my mom has 2 nodules in her lungs (unknown yet whether they're cancerous), being estranged by my daughter Nia, then to make positive changes and steer a more moral course in my life, I made a radicular leap of faith and moved out when I had no where to go. But I'm been blessed, have many siblings to talk with, a good job, and truly have many more positives in my life than negatives.

R.I.P Robert A. Perry (Dad)

My dad past away yesterday morning. I got the call at around 9:30 a.m. Hearing my sister voice, quiet, low - I could hear her sobs...she didn't need to say it, but did. My eyes watered, the tears flowed. My Dad had passed away in his sleep and she had gotten the call at 5:30 a.m. I called my other siblings and weeped with them. I paused, reflected and then opted to head down to Portland to conjol my sister and family who was close enough for me to see. The entire 2 1/2 hour trips, I cried. I found soloce when I greeted her with hugs and tears at her front door. After about 15 minutes, I cleared past the sorrow. Truth was, his body had already been moved to the crematorium, and I would be able to see him. He would be cremated on 12-15-2010, today. The services would be delayed due to the holiday. Either toward the end of January, or even after the new year. I will love and miss him dearly.