I spent the weekend at the beach in my Motorhome with my kids , grandkids and the dogs...it was a searing 103 degrees back at my house and I was glad we picked the beach which was still warmer than usual at temps topping 90 degrees.

Monday is Labor Day in the United States. The US Department of Labor provides the following fascinating facts from 2006 about women in the workforce: Of the 118 million women age 16 years and over in the U.S., 70 million (almost 60%) were labor force participants—working or looking for work. Women comprised 46% of the total U.S. labor force and are projected to account for 47% of the labor force in 2014.

Labor Day is one of the BIG SIX holidays - the ones that unless you work in retail, restaurants, hotels, hospitals, transportation,the media and public safety - you probably have the day off. It is a confusing holiday. With just 9% of the American workforce aligned with the labor movement, the holiday has taken on a personality that has more to do with marking the end of summer than honoring those people who fought to improve working conditions. Unprotected workers have been on my mind this weekend having just finished reading Water for Elephants. However, it wasn't until I looked at the questions for the book club reading guide that I connected the dots that this wonderful story was also a story about the quintessential American worker. Here is the question that caused me to pause. In what ways and to what degree do Uncle Al's maneuvers and practices regarding the defunct Fox Brothers circus reflect traditional American business practices? How would you compare his behavior with that of major businessmen and financiers of today? What alternative actions would you prefer?

I browse the news feeds daily for material for blogging. Using the keyword "car" most of the articles are about car accidents. I skip over these articles most days as it would be too morbid to blog about every car accident I come across in the news.