Grodence Paquado

Grodence here. When I was traveling to visit my relatives on Thanksgiving, I stopped at a rest area and saw the memorial as shown in the picture above.  I was touched, not just because it was honoring people who died on the job, but because of who specifically was being recognized. Most plaques, memorials, and…

Grodence here with my first original post in almost 6 months! It is no secret that smartphones in the present day are quite remarkable.  Because of the various apps that you can download, you can do a lot of the same functions on your smartphone that you can do on a computer or T.V.  You…

Grodence Here: Hello my loyal subscribers, and anyone else who reads this blog. I know that it has been a few months since I have created a post, so I apologize to all for starving you of content. I have been going through a stressful time, the details of which I will keep private, which…

Grodence Here: My latest blog post is a feel-good story about an underdog duo achieving something far more than they could imagine.  This is the story about me, my friend Ken, and our bowling season this year. Ken and I have bowled in a league called Dave’s Doubles for several years now.  Dave’s Doubles consists…

Grodence Here, In Connecticut over the past several days, it has rained a lot, which has resulted in our rivers flooding. I decided to take photos of the two rivers that are closest to me, the Farmington River and the Connecticut River. While the flooding may not have reached Noah’s Ark level’s or even the…

Grodence Here. It is particularly compelling and memorable in sports when a team or an athlete faces a long period of choking, collapsing under pressure, or falling just short time and time again only to one day overcome those demons and win that desired championship.  Such is the tale of the Boston Red Sox, Chicago…

Grodence Here: I have been watching Anime over the past year and a half.  The shows are fun and enjoyable, which is something I would have never imagined saying in middle or high school.  One of the reasons that I watch it currently is because it is a great distraction from what is going on…

As 2024 comes to a close, one can say with certainty that this was an eventful year.  In my last post of the year, I want to share a couple of thoughts that have been on my mind.  First, I think that we should reduce how often we use the word “normal”.  For example, normal…

I mentioned a few blog posts ago that after 5 and a half years living in Hartford, I have moved to an upgraded living space in Windsor Connecticut.  The apartment complex is called Windsor Station Apartments, and it’s a very lovely place that is well worth the increased rent.  It has a community room where you can…

Three to four days before the 2024 Elections, I was thinking about what I would write in response to the results.  I was pondering in my head what I would say if Kamala Harris won, and if Donald Trump were victorious.  I was really hoping to write about my thoughts on Vice President Harris becoming…

Note from the Author: I have moved! After 5 and a half years of living in Hartford, I currently live in Windsor CT, in a lovely apartment complex called Windsor Station Apartments. It is in the center of town, and many things are within walking distance. It is a step up from my previous living…

As I attended Yom Kippur services this past Friday night and Saturday morning, I was reflecting on my Jewish faith and my view of Isreal, especially since we it is the first anniversary of the October 7th Hamas attack on Isreal. Most of the attention around Israel today focuses on the war between Hamas and…

There has been an important and positive development regarding the fight for quality mental health care for Killingly students.  Last month, the Killingly Board of Education, the State Board of Education, and the parents and students who filed the 10-4B complaint reached a settlement ending this protracted fight.  Per the settlement, the nonprofit organization Community…

For most of my adult life, I was a supporter of the Democratic Party because I favored their positions on the issues.  Today though, I am proud to be a Democrat because we hold our own leaders accountable.  Many Democratic politicians and commentators are heaping praise on President Biden for “putting the country first” by…

Here at “Brandon’s Two Cents”, it is rare that I give my “two cents” in my posts. If you are a long-time reader of my blog, you will notice that as most of my posts are describing something, whether I am writing about local governance, or whether I am profiling someone in my “When Politicians…

I am sure most people have heard the phrase “Not In My Back Yard“(NIMBY).  It signifies the attitude that many homeowners have in response to any proposal for multi-family housing to be built in their area.  People may be sympathetic to the needs of increased housing, but no one wants it where they live. It…

Since my last post on this topic, the new Democratic controlled Killingly Board of Education has taken office, being sworn in this past December.  SInce then, they have taken steps to resolve the issues which had been simmering in Killingly over the past year.  In February, they made Athletic Director James Lackner’s position a full…

The latest post in my series “When Politicians do Good Things” compliments the state legislature and Governor of Kansas.  This past week, Governor Laura Kelly of Kansas signed into law a bill which phases out the use of 14c certificates by Kansas employers.  14c certificates are certificates that businesses apply for so that they can…

It is no secret that much of the news coverage is a morass of negativity. This is especially true when it comes to one topic: Climate Change.  Read any story about climate change, and the headline usually screams: “Earth’s temperature shatters records!” or “Nation’s leaders must act fast within the next few years to avoid…

2023 is coming to a close, and many people use this time to reflect on the past year.  December 2023 marks slightly more than one year since I started publishing this blog, so I will be reflecting the growth and development of my blog.  When I did my year end post last year, I wrote…

It has been 2 months since I last provided an update on the fight to provide good quality mental health services to Killingly students.  Since then though, two major developments have happened.  In the local elections on November 7th, the Democrats running on a “Pro Mental Health” slate won 4 out of 6 seats being…

Last Saturday, the Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon occurred in my hometown.  Seeing that part of the route was a 3 minute walk from my apartment, I decided to walk down and cheer on the runners. The part of the marathon route I saw was where the runners turned left onto Farmington Avenue after running…

As you may or may not know, there were three national elections which occured in Slovakia, Poland, and New Zealand (which I didn’t even knew was taking place).  Normally, I would have created an “Elections in other Countries” post for at least one of them, but I didn’t.  This is a good opportunity to announce…

As we enter the beginning of October, the Republican Presidential Primary is heating up, well not really.  There is the obvious frontrunner, Donald Trump, who is consistently ahead by more than 30 points on his competitors, and didn’t bother to attend the two debates.  Then there are his challengers whose “surges” involve them going from…

When I wrote my previous post on the Killingly saga that highlighted the contract the Killingly Board of Education voted on with Community Health Resources (CHR) to provide student mental health services, I predicted that it wouldn’t be the end of the story.  I was right.   At the end of the school year, the Superintendent’s…

A couple of weeks ago, a marijuana dispensary called Budr Cannabis, not far from where I live had it’s Grand Opening.  Connecticut legalized marijuana last year, and the first dispensaries are opening up around now.  As I drove back from getting groceries, I decided to check it out. There was a festival like atmosphere at…

My next country in the series Elections in other countries is Spain. Spain is a beautiful country known for its good weather, its pretty beaches, and its picturesque towns.  It is the native country of world famous individuals such as golf star John Rahm, tennis star Rafael Nadal, and Pablo Picasso.  Historical events that are…

This is a post that is similar to what I write for my series “When Politicians Do Good Things”.  What is different in this case is that instead of highlighting the positive contribution of an individual politician, I am showcasing something that a public institution, in this case, the Federal Government is doing to improve…

At Brandon’s Two Cents, I try not to write too many posts about Donald Trump.  It’s not that I don’t have any opinions of him, its just that His Likeness is written, talked, and blogged about all over every news site imaginable, so I feel that there are many other topics that I can write…

On Monday May 22, I attended an early meeting of a West Hartford, CT task force which was recently convened.  In December of 2022, there were 5 pedestrians struck and killed in a matter of a week.  In response, the West Hartford Mayor designated a task force that would address the issue. The members of…

Hello Everyone, This is my second post in the series Elections in Other Countries.  The election featured here is in Greece. On May 21, Greeks will go to the polls to elect 300 members of the Hellenic Parliament.  It takes 151 members of a particular party to get a majority, but it is unlikely that…

This past Wednesday, there was a big breakthrough in the fight to provide quality mental health care for Killingly, Connecticut students.  The Killingly Board of Education voted to approve a contract with Community Health Resources to provide such services. Community Health Resources is based out of Windsor, Connecticut, and contracts with 36 school systems to…

Hello there. This is my first post in a series that I will call Elections in Other Countries.  I always love elections, and Election Day in the United States always fills me with excitement along with a touch of anxiety.  When it comes to primaries, I follow those closely as well, and will even pay attention to…

My latest edition of When Politicians Do Good Things is about Rep. Jay Olbernolte. He is a California Republican, and he is considered an expert when it comes to Artificial Intelligence (AI). This post does not highlight any specific accomplishment he achieved, but is showing (and commending) his focus on an issue that will affect…

As most of you may, or may not know, this week marks the 20th anniversary of the start of the War in Iraq. We salute, celebrate, and venerate our veterans in all sort of manners, but we rarely hear, or want to know, the real aspects of what these veterans did, and went through as…

A few weeks ago, newly elected Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania checked himself into Walter Reed Medical Center because of depression. He had struggled with depression on and off most of his adult life, but his depression flared up recently (Full disclosure, I went to the hospital when I was a teenager for anxiety). Fetterman…

I was watching the State of the Union address and observed President Biden parrying with G.O.P representatives as they were heckling and booing him over Biden’s claim that some in the G.O.P were advocated cuts to Social Security and Medicare. I watched that exchange with wry amusement and it made me think of the rowdy…

Last week, the Arkansas State Senate passed a bill that would ban Drag Shows near places where there were children.  The authors of the bill said that they were getting death threats.  My first reaction was “Good”.  A minute later, I reconsidered and concluded that while many people (and myself) have the opinion that the…

This post will be about Capitol Hill.  No, not the Speaker Drama, there has been plenty of coverage about that.  I am going to write about congressional staffers. In late 2021, an Instagram page called Dear White Staffers started to go viral amongst people who worked on Capitol Hill.  Created by an anonymous Capitol Hill Staffer, people…

Hello and welcome to 2023! My first post of the new year is stating my controversial opinion on a controversial topic. The Topic: The Death Penalty. The Opinion: The best option for Executions is the Firing Squad. Although I am a Death Penalty Abolitionist, I think the Firing Squad is the best option if the…

2022 is coming to a close, and I would like to reflect on what I have done with this blog and what I have planned for next year.  First though, I want to talk on an issue that has been on my mind for the past 2 years: the state of American Democracy. After the…