Pappy and Puppy - A Curmudgeon's travel through life.

Test

2010-07-29T06:43:00.001-05:00

I've been thinking about occasionally posting again, so this post is a test to see if my Blogger account has been shut off.

I'm OLD!!

2010-02-06T16:34:00.002-06:00

Today I went grocery shopping.

One of the reasons I shop at this particular grocery store is the number of friendly attractive young ladies that work there. No, I don't hit on them, but I do joke with them and tease them. I do enjoy looking at them. Hey, I'm a guy!!

While waiting in line to check out, I came to a realization. All of the young ladies running the registers are the age of, or younger than my daughter!

Damn it! I'm getting old!!

Obligatory New Year's Post

2010-01-01T11:39:00.003-06:00

Actually it's not obligatory, but I'm in a facetious mood. Here is wishing anybody that wanders by here a happy and prosperous new year.

No partying was endured last night (I leave that up to younger more resilient types), and after getting up a little too early this morning to talk to my daughter, I made a decision to do something I haven't done in about 14 or 15 years. I'm going to make 3 New Year's resolutions.

1) Get to work on building my camping trailer . I know, I know. I said I was gonna do this a long time ago, but I just didn't do it. I need to get serious about this and get it done.

To do this, I need to do a few other things first. I need to clean out the garage, I need to clean out the shed so I'll have room to store the stuff from the garage. To have room to put the stuff from the garage, I'll have to move tools and parts from the shed to the garage, where eventually I'll need them anyway. While I'm doing this, I'll be going through stuff and throwing junk away. After all that is done, but before I start the trailer, I'll need to buy a bunch of plywood in 1/4 inch, 1/2 inch and 3/4 inch while I still have the trailer to haul it on. If I'm gonna do that, I will need to build storage racks to store the plywood in to keep it from warping. I also need to build a portable station (a stand with extension wings) for my tablesaw, a router table, and various jigs. All this is basically why I haven't started on the trailer. However, I got to thinking about it and figure if I'll just work on it a little bit every day, I might be able to sneak up on it and get it done. I've just gotta do it.

2)Change my sleep habits. Over the past 6 months or so I have gotten into a habit of staying up until 1:00 or 2:00 AM, and then sleeping or at least laying in bed until 9:00 or 10:00. Why I do this I don't know, but I want to get back in the habit of going to bed no later than 11:00 PM and getting up around 7:00 or 7:30 AM. I really need to get my schedule adjusted.

3)Start harassing Ravon and JB to get either better jobs, or maybe part time jobs to go along with what they have. They are stuck in the mindset that what they have is good enough, and with that mindset, they'll never get ahead. I know it's not my place to decide their station in life, but I'm the one that hears what they need and and want, and with a little more income, they can cover those needs and wants.

We'll see if I can do all this or if I'm just too lazy to save.

PS. I received an email asking about my travels as it is mentioned in the blog header. They still happen occasionally, but not to the degree I would like. It seems like the reality of life has gotten in the way. Since I now live at Mom's house, trying to do for her, and try to help the kids out when possible, my time and money are tight. However, one day the travels will become a major part of my life.

Republican Survey

2009-12-19T12:08:00.002-06:00

I received a letter from the Republican National Committee (RNC) begging for contributions. It was disguised as the "2010 Obama Agenda Survey". I am registered as a Republican because when I registered they were the most conservative party available in Oklahoma. IF Oklahoma allowed anyone to vote in each parties runnoff, I would probably register as an independent. It would only make sense to allow each registered voter (of any political party) to vote in each parties runoff, because it is a public election and because it is partly my tax dollars helping to fund these runoff elections. If they don't want to allow truly public elections, then each party should have to pay the TOTAL cost for each of their runoff elections.

While the survey is slanted to force you to reply according to the RNC party line (of course), I thought it would be revealing to answer each question in full, rather than yes, no or no opinion. While I would like to make you believe these are the only common sense answers to these questions, please remember these are only the rantings of a self serving, twisted mind. OK, on to the survey.

Q1. Do you agree with Barack Obama and the Democrats that taxes should be raised for the sake of "fairness," regardless of the negative impact it is likely to have on the economy?

A1. First it should be known that I don't agree with hardly anything that President has said or done, but you gotta give him points for trying. I don't believe in our current tax code at all. A flat tax with no deductions allowed applied to all salaries, wages, investment income, business and corporate income would be much more fair. Even the fair tax concept (www.fairtax.org) would be better. Either of these concepts would be better, but I prefer the flat tax, because it would be more cost effective by (1) allowing us to drastically reduce the size of the IRS which would allow us to (2) reduce the amount of monies needed by the federal goverment because of less personel needed, and (3) the cost to individuals to prepare their taxes would be virtually nil. All that would be needed is a statement of earnings that says you earned $xxxx.xx. Send us xx percent of it.
Now to answer the question. Any increase in will have a negative impact on our economy, especially while we are in the economic mess we are in. You can't tax or spend your way out of debt.

Q2. Do you believe the federal government has gone too far in bailing out failing banks, insurance companies and the auto industry?

A2. The US Constitution, Amendment 10 states, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
Nowhere in the US Constitution have I been able to find where the federal government is empowered to loan my tax money to any publicly or privately held companies, especially ones I wouldn't buy stock in because they hemorraging cash and failing. Some people in the federal government have made a whole lot of money off the kickbacks on this.

If you don't have a copy of the Constitution of the United States, please go to www.usconstitution.net/const.pdf, download a copy and study it. If you will think about what you are reading, you will be truly pissed off, and will probably become a curmudgeon, too.

Q3. Do you support amnesty for illegal immigrants?

A3. Illegal aliens (I refuse to use the politically correct term "illegal immigrant"), all 10 to 20 million of them, depending on whose numbers you're using, are already in violation of 8 US Code Section 1325:

(a) Improper time or place; avoidance of examination or inspection;
misrepresentation and concealment of facts
Any alien who
(1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or
(2) eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers, or
(3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.
(b) Improper time or place; civil penalties
Any alien who is apprehended while entering (or attempting to enter) the United States at a time or place other than as designated by immigration officers shall be subject to a civil penalty of -
(1) at least $50 and not more than $250 for each such entry (or attempted entry); or
(2) twice the amount specified in paragraph (1) in the case of an alien who has been previously subject to a civil penalty under this subsection.
Civil penalties under this subsection are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any criminal or other civil penalties that may be imposed.
(c) Marriage fraud
Any individual who knowingly enters into a marriage for the purpose of evading any provision of the immigration laws shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or fined not more than $250,000, or both.
(d) Immigration-related entrepreneurship fraud
Any individual who knowingly establishes a commercial enterprise for the purpose of evading any provision of the immigration laws shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, fined in accordance with title 18, or both.

What this boils down to is, if you have illegally entered the US, you are liable for a fine of $50 to $250 or, incarceration (being locked up) of 6 months to 2 years, or both for the first offense. For the second offense, the penalties double. In addition, there may be other civil or criminal charges.

So they want to offer amnesty? I say catch the illegal aliens, fine them the maximum amount and then deport them. Using a number of 15 million illegals multiplied by $250 each, would be $3,750,000,000.00 (three billion seven hundred fifty million dollars) to help reimburse the damages done by the ones on welfare or public assistance programs that they haven't contributed to, and by the criminal element which is increasing daily.

I know this makes me sound xenophobic but I'm really not. We have immigration laws and regulations for a reason. If you're here legally I'll help you out however I can, but if you're here illegally I'll be the first one to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement on you.

Q4. Should English be the official language of the United States?

A4. This is a tricky question. I believe the official language of the GOVERNMENT of the United States should be English. I believe this should be true for all forms of government in the US, federal, state, county and city. I don't believe the various government entities should be expected to translate and print a document just for little old you just because you decided to illegally enter the US and don't want to learn the local language and customs. Try to assimilate a little, OK?

Q5. Are you in favor of granting retroactive Social Security eligibility to illegal immigrants who gain U.S. citizenship through an amnesty program?

A5. If they were here illegally, any gains incurred through that illegal entry, including but not limited to property, income and SS benefits should be forfeit. Why should they be allowed to profit from illegal activity in a law abiding society?

Q6. Are you in favor of the expanded welfare benefits and unlimited eligibility (no time, education or work requirements) that Democrats in Congress are pushing to pass?

A6. I'm in no way in favor of any welfare benefits. I believe in "A hand up, not a hand out." To be eligible, you should be required to work, whether it be 40 hours a week at a job, or the equivlant in school, and should be limited to a certain length of time over an individuals working life, except in cases of the truly infirm or elderly. If an individual is working and is at least attempting to be a productive member of society but just isn't making it due to low wages, illness, or any other legitimate reason, then let's help, BUT if they're just a lazy, layabout bum then not one thin dime . If jobs are just not available in their area, we could help locate them to an area where work is available if they have a guaranteed job, or we could set up a program similar to the Works Progress Administration of the 1930's. The idea is to guarantee a living wage to individuals willing to work or to train for a job and then work, not to just throw a never ending stream of money and benefits to people that won't work and continue a culture of entitlement.

Q7. Do you believe that Barack Obama's nominee's for federal courts should be immediately and unquestionably approved for their lifetime appointments by the U.S. Senate?

A7. I believe ANY appointee should be thoroughly investigated and vetted before appointment, and I also believe any federal court appointee should be a strict Constitutionalist. If a law, conviction or legal finding isn't constitutional it should be struck down. Remember, a federal judge is supposed to interpret laws not make them. I also believe federal court appointments should be for a limited time, not for a lifetime. When their term expires, they could be reappointed and go through the process all over again.

Q8. Do you believe that the best way to increase the quality and effectiveness of public education in the U.S. is to rapidly expand federal funding while eliminating performance standards and accountability.

A8. I believe the 2 things most detrimental to the US education system has been federally controlled funding and the various educational labor unions. I have not been able to find anywhere in the Constitution authorizing federal control and support of our educational systems. This is properly a role reserved to the state and local governments. If you want daycare, sure, throw away performance standards and accountability. However, if you want education, students must be held to performance standards and teachers must be held accountable to ensure these performance standards are met. The accountability is going out the window due to the increasing power of the various educational unions.
Also, remember, no matter what you have been told, not everybody needs to go to college. We will always need tradesmen, who, to learn the basics of their various trades, need to go to trade schools. In my estimation, one good mechanic, carpenter, plumber, or electrician is worth 3 lawyers or 10 politicians (or 30 lawyers turned politician).

Q9. Do you support the creation of a national health insurance plan that would be administered by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.?

A9. 10th amendment to the constitution (see answer 2). Do you really, really want more affordable, quality health care? Not health care administered by the people that brought you prohibition, affirmitave action, the Vietnam war, the war on drugs, the Patriot Act, the TSA, and continually erode your personal freedoms? There are better ways. An Op-Ed article written by Charles Krauthammer for the August 7, 2009 edition of the Washington post says;

Health-Care Reform: A Better Plan

By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, August 7, 2009

In 1986, Ronald Reagan and Bill Bradley created a legislative miracle. They fashioned a tax reform that stripped loopholes, political favors, payoffs, patronage and other corruptions out of the tax system. With the resulting savings, they lowered tax rates across the board. Those reductions, combined with the elimination of the enormous inefficiencies and perverse incentives that go into tax sheltering, helped propel a 20-year economic boom.

In overhauling any segment of our economy, the 1986 tax reform should be the model. Yet today's ruling Democrats propose to fix our extremely high-quality (but inefficient and therefore expensive) health-care system with 1,000 pages of additional curlicued complexity -- employer mandates, individual mandates, insurance company mandates, allocation formulas, political payoffs and myriad other conjured regulations and interventions -- with the promise that this massive concoction will lower costs.

This is all quite mad. It creates a Rube Goldberg system that simply multiplies the current inefficiencies and arbitrariness, thus producing staggering deficits with less choice and lower-quality care. That's why the administration can't sell Obamacare.

The administration's defense is to accuse critics of being for the status quo. Nonsense. Candidate John McCain and a host of other Republicans since have offered alternatives. Let me offer mine: Strip away current inefficiencies before remaking one-sixth of the U.S. economy. The plan is so simple it doesn't even have the requisite three parts. Just two: radical tort reform and radically severing the link between health insurance and employment.

(1) Tort reform: As I wrote recently, our crazy system of casino malpractice suits results in massive and random settlements that raise everyone's insurance premiums and creates an epidemic of defensive medicine that does no medical good, yet costs a fortune.

An authoritative Massachusetts Medical Society study found that five out of six doctors admitted they order tests, procedures and referrals -- amounting to about 25 percent of the total -- solely as protection from lawsuits. Defensive medicine, estimates the libertarian/conservative Pacific Research Institute, wastes more than $200 billion a year. Just half that sum could provide a $5,000 health insurance grant -- $20,000 for a family of four -- to the uninsured poor (U.S. citizens ineligible for other government health assistance).

What to do? Abolish the entire medical-malpractice system. Create a new social pool from which people injured in medical errors or accidents can draw. The adjudication would be done by medical experts, not lay juries giving away lottery prizes at the behest of the liquid-tongued John Edwardses who pocket a third of the proceeds.

The pool would be funded by a relatively small tax on all health-insurance premiums. Socialize the risk; cut out the trial lawyers. Would that immunize doctors from carelessness or negligence? No. The penalty would be losing your medical license. There is no more serious deterrent than forfeiting a decade of intensive medical training and the livelihood that comes with it.

(2) Real health-insurance reform: Tax employer-provided health-care benefits and return the money to the employee with a government check to buy his own medical insurance, just as he buys his own car or home insurance.

There is no logical reason to get health insurance through your employer. This entire system is an accident of World War II wage and price controls. It's economically senseless. It makes people stay in jobs they hate, decreasing labor mobility and therefore overall productivity. And it needlessly increases the anxiety of losing your job by raising the additional specter of going bankrupt through illness.

The health-care benefit exemption is the largest tax break in the entire U.S. budget, costing the government a quarter-trillion dollars annually. It hinders health-insurance security and portability as well as personal independence. If we additionally eliminated the prohibition on buying personal health insurance across state lines, that would inject new and powerful competition that would lower costs for everyone.

Repealing the exemption has one fatal flaw, however. It was advocated by candidate John McCain. Obama so demagogued it last year that he cannot bring it up now without being accused of the most extreme hypocrisy and without being mercilessly attacked with his own 2008 ads.

But that's a political problem of Obama's making. As is the Democratic Party's indebtedness to the trial lawyers, which has taken malpractice reform totally off the table. But that doesn't change the logic of my proposal. Go the Reagan-Bradley route. Offer sensible, simple, yet radical reform that strips away inefficiencies from the existing system before adding Obamacare's new ones -- arbitrary, politically driven, structural inventions whose consequence is certain financial ruin.

Q10.Do you believe that the quality and availability of health care will increase if the federal government dictates pricing to doctors and hospitals?

A10. Let's look at this logically. Any time the government gets involved in any private business transaction (and whether you wish to believe it or not, doctors are businessmen) things go downhill in a hurry. Let's look at Medicare. Medicare pays 80% of "reasonable and customary charges". What they are willing to pay may have been reasonable and customary in 1968 or 1970, but are way under the true reasonable and customary charges today. If the feds get more involved you will see many more doctors leaving practice and many more marginally profitable health care facilities closing their doors. The ones that keep their doors open will be swamped and will be trading quality of care for quantity of care. You know, sort of like the McDonalds concept of fine dining.

Q11. Are you confident that new medicines and medical treatments will continue to be developed if the federal government controls prescription drug prices and sets profit margins for research and pharmaceutical companies?

A11. OK, let's look at this logically again. business' operate to gain the MAXIMUM amount of profit possible. Some of these profits are then reinvested in the development of new research and pharmaceuticals. If price controls are instituted and profits are capped then development of new products will slow to a crawl.

Q12. Are you in favor of creating a government-funded "Citizen Volunteer Corps" that would pay young people to do work now done by churches and charities, earning Corps members the same pay and benefits given to military veterans?

A12. When this idea was first brokered it had the "Volunteers" being conscripted to do this work for free before they could receive Pell Grants or other government funding for higher education. I guess someone explained to the President that forcing someone to do something against their will for free is called slavery. The new idea of replacing charities with paid "Volunteers" that earn the same pay and benefits as military veterans is an insult to the veterans that have served. Are the "Volunteers" going to earn hazardous duty pay for serving in Detroit, MI, Memphis, TN, or Miami, FL (three of the most dangerous cities in the USA in 2008)? Wiill they receive lifetime medical care if they suffer an excessive number of paper cuts? How soon will the "Vol" bill, basically equally to the G.I. bill be pushed through Congress? Will these new age bureaucrats evolve into another layer of federal goverment control over the general populace? I guess you could say I'm sort of suspicious of any form of goverment do-goodery. No, I'm not in favor.

Q13. Are you in favor of reinstituting the military draft, as Democrats in Congress have proposed?

A13. As MattG. over at maypeacebewithyou.blogspot.com said, "I think that we should not have a draft—if we can’t drum up enough support for a war, perhaps we shouldn’t have the war in the first place."
I don't believe there has ever been a time of national emergency that the population of the U.S. hasn't overwhelmingly responded. As an example, I'm 50 years old, crippled up with arthritis and pretty opinionated. However, I, and a bunch more like me would volunteer in a minute to free up younger, more able-bodied clerks, warehousemen and the like for front line duties. The only problem would be our lack of of willingness to put up with the petty military bullshit that is supposed to teach you about honor, loyalty and instill a sense of duty. However, if by this time in our lives we don't have these attributes, then we would pretty well be useless in any society.

Q14. Do you believe that the federal government should allow the unionization of Department of Homeland Security employees who serve in positions critical to the safety and security of our nation?

A14. First, I don't believe any goverment employees should be unionized. Not dogcatchers, secretaries, clerks, meter readers, firefighters or law enforcement of any kind.
Second, I know I don't see the whole picture, but how are we more secure today than we were before the DHS was created? The most visible of the DHS agencies, the Transportation Security Agency, seems to be staffed by a bunch of 8th grade dropouts that couldn't get or keep a job at the local animal shelter. How are we safer since the TSA took over airport security from private security companies? In most instances private companies can do almost any job more efficiently and at a lower cost than government agencies. Please explain this to me.

Q15. Do you support Democrats' drive to eliminate workers' right to a private ballot when considering unionization of their place of employment?

A15. First of all, I don't like unions. They had their place in the period from the mid 1920's through about the 1950's or early 1960's, but since then they have offered virtually no reform or true benefit to anyone other than to mid to upper level union management. They are inflexible to the point that they helped bring two large U.S. auto manufacturers to the brink of bankruptcy.
However, I like government interference of any kind even less. What gives any branch of the federal government the authority to interfere in any legal enterprise of any kind?

While I understand that this "survey" is just a barely disguised attempt to raise funds, it still gave me a chance to vent a little.

New doctor

2009-12-18T11:37:00.006-06:00

About 3 weeks ago, we confirmed that our doctor was leaving this area to move to the big city, and therefore we needed to find a new local doctor. Today was the first appointment with the new doctor.

He's a young guy, pretty sharp and seems to be principled without being, for lack of a better term (that I can think of), a fanatic. He seems to be willing to talk with you, explaining what and why. This is a very good thing as I have visited other doctors that wanted to talk at you and not explain a thing. My relationships with them usually lasted only one or two visits.

So far, I like him.

Yes, I'm still alive.

2009-12-09T14:28:00.002-06:00

I haven't been posting due in part to laziness, being down in the dumps and pain.

Let's look at these in reverse order.

Pain-On 08-27-09 Mom and I jumped in the QE-II (Mom's Lincoln) and went to Indy to see the kids. Ravon had just delivered my first grandson and we wanted to see it. We stopped in Joplin, MO to get gas and snacks, and I slipped on a wet spot. When I slipped I hyper extended my right knee. I have slowly been getting over it, but have reinjured it 3 or 4 times. When I'm in major pain I get to where I don't care about much of anything and don't bitch as much about anything except how bad I hurt or how I didn't get enough sleep, and ya'll don't want to hear about that.

Being down in the dumps-When I hurt I don't get enough sleep. When I don't get enough sleep I get a down in the dumps attitude, and I just don't care enough about most things to blog about them.

Laziness- When I hurt and am down in the dumps I get lazy. I keep telling myself I'm staying off my feet to let the knee heal, but I'm truthful enough to admit to both of my readers that I'm just lazy.

I hope to make a few more entries this Christmas season. We'll see.

Thoughts on today's youth

2009-11-01T10:12:00.006-06:00

All my life, while I was growing up, in my 20's, 30's, 40's and now my 50's, I have heard from my elders how the "new" generation was going to hell in a handbasket. I have been told society is failing because of the actions of the kids. I'm here to tell you this is just plain WRONG!

I have a friend, about 17 or 18 years old who is stubborn. He is going to do what he wants, when he wants to. Does he sometimes make bad choices? Yes he does, but at his age he doesn't have a lot of experience to guide him. Experience come from making choices and some of them will be bad but I have never seen or heard of this young man do anything bad to anyone, intentionally. His parents despair at his actions, but they don't realize that they raised him to be exactly the person he is turning out to be. In my estimation, he is someone I would trust with anything I have.

However, I know a young lady, who's behavior is very self destructive. Drugs, alcohol, promiscuity, shoplifting,etc. This young lady is looking for acceptance and love, which she didn't receive while being shuttled back and forth between relatives while the parents were in and out of jail. She's showing self destructive behavior because thats what she was taught.

My daughter is a third type. 19 years old, with 2 children and a husband she is trying to raise the best she knows how. She calls and asks for advice from both her parents, and we both contribute what we can to help, financially or otherwise. While growing up, her mother and I divorced, so now she is searching for a stable relationship. She has unconditional love from both parents but wasn't taught how to have stability in a relationship but she is doing her best.

All three of these examples bring me to the point of my story. Last night we had 15 kids knock on our door at various times while they were out trick or treating on Halloween night. These kids ranged from ages 18 months to about 13 years old and were all escorted by parents, some of who came to the door with them and some who waited for them in the driveway. All of the parents, aged about 18 to about age 35, demanded politeness from their children, as in "please" and thank you". Only one little boy, about age 8, didn't thank me for his candy as I put it in his bag but he was so excited about free candy that I thought he was going to wet himself.

So, don't tell me how horrible today's kids are or how bad today's parents are. The parents I saw last night were spending time with their polite kids. We get out of the next generation exactly what we put into them.

Toshiba Netbook update

2009-10-07T11:24:00.002-05:00

Well, I've had my netbook about 3 weeks now, and I'm completely satisfied with my purchase. Having read all the specs and multiple reviews before purchasing, it completely fulfills my expectations. I have set power settings a little higher toward the power end and less toward battery and while checking email and light web surfing (30 min to 1 hr) via a network cable, playing mp3's, watching videos stored on my hdd, reading ebooks, and doing light word processing I have plenty of power and between 5 - 7 hours battery life. I'm happy.

I only have 2 problems with this netbook, one minor and one semi major.
Minor-the buttons for the touchpad need a small trim piece between their edge and the edge of the wrist rest to keep me from activating them when my belly hits it. I know, I know. Just set it on a table and it won't happen, right? Wrong! This is a form factor called a laptop, capable of being used while sitting down by placing it in your lap.

Semi Major-What the hell took Toshiba so long to bring this thing out? A few years back I had a Toshiba Libretto 100 and it was great, just a little smaller but not near as capable so I know they
know how to build this form factor right, and this time they built it better than the Libretto.

life update

2009-09-24T18:29:00.002-05:00

Well, lots of things, some good and some not so good have happened since my last post.

On the not so good side, I lost the hard drive in my laptop. I scrounged around and found a spare hard drive, installed it, and NADA! Apparently a hard drive controller of some type on the motherboard took a dump, so I've been without a computer for about the last 8 weeks. Yeah, I know, you're thinking, "Pappy, why didn't you just get up off your wallet and go buy another computer?" Well, three reasons come to mind.
1. I try to help out the kids if and when they need it, if I can. Family counts for more than toys.
2. I'm needing to do some work on the JEEP (Just Empty Every Pocket). I needs my transportation.
3. I know, I know. Use the credit cards. BUT I only owe about $600 on the last of them, and then I get to tell the credit card companies where to stick them. I'm looking forward to that. I will then be trying to live on a cash only basis.

On the not so good side, 2 months ago I was on a DSL connection. Last month, our household went cellular only for telephones. Being the brilliant individual I am, I didn't even think about losing my DSL when we cancelled the home phone. Now it costs me an extra $10 per month for a DSL line, which was activated yesterday.

On the not so good side, Rocky the Wonder Dog (picture at the top of the page) the puppy of PappyandPuppy fame is going blind. He hasn't been acting like himself, bumping into stuff, being startled by people reaching out to him, not seeing treats offered to him, trouble finding his ball when it's quit rolling after being thrown for him, ad nauseum. I took him to the vet yesterday and was told he is developing cataracts. It won't be long and he'll be completely blind.

On the good side, I finally scraped up enough to go buy a Toshiba NB205 netbook. 1.66 ghz processor, 800 mhz front side bus, 1 gb DDR2 RAM, 160 gb SATA2 hard drive, 802.11G wifi, bluetooth 2.0, and between 7 and 9 hours battery life all in a 2.6 pound package with a 10.1 inch tft screen wrapped in a royal blue textured case. I also got a HP 550 Lightscribe DVD burner. I sincerely love it.

Yeah, you back in the back with Alienware laptop on the handtruck and the goofy ass smirk on your face? Why did I buy a low end netbook? I'm glad you asked, pimpleface.

To my way of thinking, a laptop or notebook is supposed to be portable. The less it weighs and the longer the battery life, the more portable it is. I don't need a gaming rig or anything like that, just a small portable laptop for emails, web surfing, blogging, downloading pictures to, playng mp3's, and reading ebooks. Stuff like that. I'll have a mid range desktop unit in the near future for anything more than that.

The work that needs to be done on the JEEP? Charging system failure. Grounds need to be cleaned and checked. Replace battery cables. Probably need to replace battery. I just need to get off my butt and do it.

On the good side, Rocky is just going blind, he's not terminally ill. He's a dog. He probably doesn't realize anything is going on as he's going blind gradually and has been for a little while. I'll still be here to care for him and try to provide him with a quality life. He's MY dog. I'll do for him to the best of my ability.

On the good side, on August 27, Mom, Rocky and I loaded up in Mom's Lincoln Town Car, aka the Queen Elizabeth 2, and took a trip to Indy to see my new grandson Bubba (Jonah Hill Bruce) born August 27, 2009 about 1:15 pm. He weighed 8 lbs 14 oz and was 20.5 inches long. We were lucky enough to be able to spend 5 days with them, playing with the Poot and Bubba, enjoying spending time with all of them , and cooking for them as I enjoy doing.

When we got back on August 4, Mom was on such a high it took 3 or 4 days for her to start winding down, and she still isn't rested up. Being the superior traveller I am, I'm almost rested up enough to do it again.

Palin's Gift

2009-07-04T20:53:00.002-05:00

Sarah Palin has given us all a very large gift when she announced her resignation. No, not the possibility that she supposedly killed any possible future political ambitions she might have had, but the very real fact that her announcement took at least half the air time that would have been devoted to that grotesque pedophilic caricature of a man, Michael Jackson.

Second Guessing Palin

2009-07-04T10:44:00.002-05:00

It seems every major news outlet is 2nd guessing Sarah Palin's decision to resign as governor of Alaska. They have all decided she did it to facilitate a presidential run in 2012 and that she comitted political suicide by tendering her resignation.

Did Palin say she is running for president in 2012? If so I must have missed it.

If not, you people need to back off. Your job is to report the news, not analyze it. The MSM is completely out of control with their thought that they are the only ones smart enough to know what is going on and that we need everything explained to us with their twist on it.

Trying something new

2009-06-18T11:04:00.003-05:00

I want to try a new OS. My reasoning behind this is that Microsoft products have simply become too intrusive. While the products usually do what I need to do sometimes they won't allow me to do what I want to do without jumping through hoops, somewhat like the government. Couple this with the fact that my favorite Microsoft OS, XP Pro, is going away and I have no interest in trying Vista or Seven. Add in the cost of upgrading a Microsoft OS and you see why I want to try something new and preferably open source.

I'm not saying that I'm not willing to pay for an OS. I am saying I would prefer to try an OS that is less expensive that can be customized to my preferences and needs.

I have three reservations with trying a GNU/Linux derivative although I've been reading up on them and they have piqued my interest. Maybe one of my two readers can answer my thoughts.

1) I will need to aquire another computer to run this OS on, as I'm not going to replace the OS on my main computer nor am I going to try to set it up as a dual boot system. The main computer is a Compaq N410c, and, while it is old by most standards, I've had it quite a while and it does everything I want so therefore it's not obsolete.

I will probably build a medium power desktop computer but how do I know what hardware is supported and what drivers are available? This is probably my number one reservation.

2) Later this year I want to purchase a netbook, preferably with a SSD instead of a traditional HDD, bluetooth and built in 802.11n wifi capability. Whatever OS I decide to use must be compatible with the hardware of this netbook.

3) The OS must have a good GUI to use while I am learning to use the command line again, as I have only used the command line rarely in the last 13 years since I gave up Windows 3.11/DOS 6.1 and went to Windows 95, 98, 2000, and XP Pro.

I also wonder about the fact that various drives (CD/DVD, flash drives, floppy drives and external hard drives) must be "mounted" and "unmounted or dismounted". Is this a major hassle? Can these procedures be automated or at least can you set up a shortcut on the desktop to provide these functions?

Can someone that has a working knowledge of various GNU/Linux distributions help a brotha out? :)

Why keep this up?

2009-06-13T14:13:00.002-05:00

In this post, I stated this blog wasn't something I really wanted to do. While reading back through my back posts I see a large majority of those posts contain no original content and I have rarely written anything worth reading. From now on, if I post, it will what's on my mind at that time. The post's may contain a link to other info or may even contain a quote from other sources, but from now on this blog might be a little disjointed and scary because it will be a mirror of what I'm thinking. There's a very good chance I will very rarely post but if I do, it will be my thoughts.

Herpes of the eye

2009-03-16T17:54:00.003-06:00

I just saw a disturbing ad on tv. They were advertising a solution to treat infections of the eye. They did say however that the solution had not been tested to treat herpes infections of the eye. How does one get a herpes infection of the eye? Looking for love in all the wrong places?

Help!

2009-02-12T14:29:00.002-06:00

I need some help. A couple of days ago I was reading a blog, no I don't remember which one, and in the comments someone was talking about a cooling system sealer that his father had recommended. I went to the web page for the product and forgot to bookmark it.

Now, Ravon and JB's car has blown a head gasket and they don't have the money to fix it, and good ole Dad is also tapped out. I need to find out this cooling system sealant to give it a try.

If you read this, please try to remember where and either email me or leave a comment.

Sent to me in an email

2009-02-06T07:29:00.002-06:00

"This year, taxpayers will receive an Economic Stimulus Payment. This is a
very exciting new program that I will explain using the Q and A format:

Q. What is an Economic Stimulus Payment?
A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers.

Q. Where will the government get this money?
A. From taxpayers.

Q. So the government is giving me back my own money?
A. Only a smidgen.

Q. What is the purpose of this payment?
A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV
set, thus stimulating the economy.

Q. But isn't that stimulating the economy of China ?
A. Shut up.

Below is some helpful advice on how to best help the US economy by spending
your stimulus check wisely:

If you spend that money at Wal-Mart, all the money will go to China.
If you spend it on gasoline it will go to the Arabs.
If you purchase a computer it will go to India.
If you purchase fruit and vegetables it will go to Mexico, Honduras, and
Guatemala (unless you buy organic).
If you buy a car it will go to Japan.
If you purchase useless crap it will go to Taiwan.

And none of it will help the American economy.

We need to keep that money here in America. You can keep the money in
America by spending it at yard sales, going to a baseball game, or spend it
on prostitutes, beer and wine (domestic ONLY), or tattoos, since those are
the only businesses still in the US.

Obama's Inauguration

2009-01-21T15:27:00.002-06:00

I didn't write an inauguration post because frankly, I couldn't get the words I wanted to write to congeal on the text editor screen. However, imagine my surprise when I read a post by Farmgirl saying almost exactly what I was trying to say.

Tractor Tracks: What? Where?

However, I do need to add a few words (yeah you knew I couldn't keep my mouth shut).

I don't like Obama. It's not a race thing. It's almost evenly split between a difference in ideology and my thought that he is a "do nothing the polls don't want me to do" type of politician. You know, the type that votes present at Senate votes because he hasn't been told explicitly by his handlers what vote to cast.

So while I don't like him, I hope he is a good enough manager and negotiator to fulfill his presidental oath. You know the one, "to preserve and protect the Constitution". I just hope someone slips him a copy of the Constitution so he can familiarize himself with what he is supposed to preserve and protect.

Home Depot Scam BEWARE

2009-01-18T23:23:00.002-06:00

Over the last month I became a victim of a clever scam while out shopping. Simply going out to get supplies has turned out to be quite traumatic. Don't be naive enough to think it couldn't happen to you or your friends. Here's how the scam works:

Two very hot 20 something year-old girls come over to your car as you are packing your shopping into the trunk. They both start wiping your windshield with a rag and window cleaner, with their breasts almost falling out out of their skimpy T-shirts. It is impossible not to look.

When you thank them and offer them a tip, they say 'No' and instead ask you for a ride to another Home Depot or Lowes. You agree and they get in the backseat. On the way, they start undressing.

Then one of them climbs over into the front seat and starts crawling all over you, while the other one steals your wallet.

I had my wallet stolen December 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, 17th, 20th, 24th & 29th. Also January 2nd, 4th, twice on the 8th, three times last Saturday and very likely again this weekend. So tell your friends to be careful.

Wal-Mart has wallets on sale $2.99 each. You'll need more than one.

An Embarrament to the Obamessiah

2009-01-15T08:24:00.004-06:00

I'm an embarrassment to Barack!

I only scored 14 on the Obama Test

Looking Back

2008-12-25T14:01:00.004-06:00

Last year (actually on Dec 31, 2007) I posted about my to do list for 2008. Let's see how well I've done.

1. Clean out the house. I no longer have about 60% of the things I had. I threw away some, gave away some, and the last 40% I have stored at Mom's house since I moved over here.

2. Build a camping trailer. I now have most of the parts, but due to life (moving, moving Ravon and JB back to Oklahoma, taking care of Mom, and taking care of the Poot) I haven't had time to start on it yet. Hopefully I'll get around to it this spring. It's still at the top of my to do list.

3. Lose weight. I started out about 240 lbs, and am now down to about 205 lbs. Now I'm thinking about trying to get down to about 190.

All in all, I don't feel too bad about my progress. I just need to get off my lazy ass and get started on the trailer. Other than that, I've done a fair job keeping my to do list whittled down.

From Me to You

2008-12-25T09:31:00.002-06:00

"And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Just like almost every other blogger on the web, I want to wish everyone out there a
"Merry Christmas" and my personal wish to each and everyone of you is a wish of peace and prosperity.

Scorecard

2008-12-23T23:32:00.003-06:00

Well, not much out of ordinary has been going on. Ravon and JB have both been putting in 40 hour weeks, so I have been taking care of the Poot. Got all the candy and cakes made for the big family shindig tomorrow, and the last of the presents bought tonight. I guess I will finish wrapping and will get all my "have to do's" done by noon tomorrow so I can start getting in my festive mood, and then enjoy a four day weekend.

100 things to do before you die

2008-11-26T17:16:00.004-06:00

While surfing the web this afternoon, I ran across this list from Mostly Cajun. My answers are in bold.

1. Started your own blog Well, your reading it.
2. Slept under the stars Many, many times. Some planned, a couple of times unplanned.
3. Played in a band. 2nd drummer jr high marching band.
4. Visited Hawaii 1998 with my mother, father, brother and his wife, and my daughter.
5. Watched a meteor shower. Once in the Arizona desert outside of Tucson.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland Twice in the 1960's when I was a kid.
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis Yep
10. Sang a solo At church.
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. Welding
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning. A couple of times, truckstop and convenience store food.
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables. Yep, we had a garden when I was a kid.
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight. Duh, I had brothers and a sister.
22. Hitch hiked When the truck I was driving broke down.
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill. Hasn't everybody?
24. Built a snow fort. Not much snow in western OK, but we tried.
25. Held a lamb. I held pieces of lamb on my fork. Does that count?
26. Gone skinny dipping. 10-12 years old
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset. Many a sunset, and too many sunrises.
31. Hit a home run One time. Little league.
32. Been on a cruise. Gambling cruise out of Savannah, Ga.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors. Recent ancestors, yes. Ancestors from Europe, not yet.
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language. I speak and understand a little border Tex-Mex, a smaller amount of French, some Yankee, some jive, and a truly small amount of Korean. I'm fluent in redneck, and am trying to learn to speak English properly.
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied. For me it doesn't take much. If my bills are paid, I have enough to buy food and other consumables as needed, and I have a little extra for pocket money, I'm content.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing. In a Jeep.
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke. I was slightly inebriated (all right I was drunker than a waltzing pissant) but I did it and didn't embarrass myself excessively.
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt. Yep in 1974.
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant. A couple of times when I was driving truck.
44. Visited Africa. Does Watts count?
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight. One of my most precious memories was walking on Waikiki beach about 22:00 with my daughter in October 1998.
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted. I had a caricature done at 6 Flags once. Does that count?
48. Gone deep sea fishing. Once out of Monterrey, Ca with my father and brother and once out of Port Aransas, Tx with my daughter.
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling. Snorkeling in Hanoma Bay, Hi.
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud. For fun AND also for profit.
54. Gone to a drive-in theater. Got my face slapped there, too.
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business. Uh Huh. I started a trucking company and kept at it until I went broke.
58. Taken a martial arts class. 3 years.
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason. Once. I wonder where she is now?
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma. Many times.
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check. Unintentionally
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy. I still have my first 410 shotgun.
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar. There was a time in my life when I just had to try caviar and champagne. Now I'm happy with beer and peanuts.
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Tour the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job. Outright fired for being a smartass once and "laid off" once.
76. See the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone. 3 or 4 and still haven't been to the doctor to have one set. The healed cracks do show up on x-rays though.
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle. 110 mph on a Harley, about 145 on a Katana.
79. See the Grand Canyon in person
80. Publish a book
81. Visit the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car. One. A 1979 turbo Mustang. I wish I still had that car.
83. Walk in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper. 2 or 3 times when I was younger.
85. Read the entire Bible. A couple of times. I need to do it again.
86. Visit the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating. Deer, rabbit, squirrel, pheasant, quail, duck, frogs and fish.
88. Had chickenpox. When I was a kid.
89. Saved someone’s life. Did cpr on an older gentleman that I thought was having a heart attack once.
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous. Reba McIntire, Willy Nelson and Dan Haggerty.
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one. Too many.
94. Had a baby. My ex had one I fathered. Does that count?
95. Seen the Alamo in person. 1968
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake. About 1967. I was sunburned and still remember the pain.
97. Been involved in a law suit. On both sides at different times.
98. Owned a cell phone. Since 1995.
99. Been stung by a bee. Damn that hurt, but yellow jackets hurt worse.
100. Read an entire book in one day. Many times. I love to read.

Civics test

2008-11-25T12:13:00.003-06:00

OK, this test has been all over the news, and commented on by a couple of bloggers I read. I am sorta ashamed to say I only scored 84.85% on the test. My only excuse is I'm getting old and am apparently forgetting what I learned o so many years ago in my Civics class. Truth be known that score is probably higher than what I scored in class.

As Marko said, "In order to defend your rights, you first have to know what those rights are. If the current trend continues, nobody will have a freaking clue about the Constitution and our system of government in fifty years. (Anyone who gets less than a C on that test–that’s 70%–should think long and hard before publically ranting about “activist judges”, the Bill of Rights, or civil liberties in general.)"

Better than my Jeep

2008-11-24T23:32:00.004-06:00

26.5 miles per gallon

Created by The Car Connection

I really think this thing is screwed up. How could an old crippled guy be equal to a mid sized sedan? And, yes, I answered everything truthfully!

Nerd Test 2.0

2008-11-23T13:58:00.004-06:00

I took this test 'cause all the cool kids were taking it.

Does this mean I can continue harassing the geeks and spazs?

Why Men Can't Get Out of Bed

2008-11-14T17:25:00.003-06:00

BRAIN SYSTEM: Attention. Alert registered.

CENTRAL: Alert? Number One, report!

NUMBER ONE: Sir! We're picking up loud music.

CENTRAL: Music? We were just asleep!

NUMBER ONE: Yes sir. Ears report it's "The Last Train to Clarksville."

CENTRAL: Goodness, are we being tortured?

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Eyes are functional and request instruction.

CENTRAL: Tell them to open up and try to find out what is going on.

NUMBER ONE: Scope! Okay, I see darkness... darkness... Wait, there's a woman sleeping there.

CENTRAL: A woman?

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Libido Station wants to know if it is Anna Kournikova.

CENTRAL: Forget about Libido. What can you tell me?

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Memory reports a near perfect match to "wife," sir.

CENTRAL: Well of course. Keep looking.

NUMBER ONE: Sir, urgent report from Stomach on the horn, do you want to take it?

CENTRAL: Stomach, what's going on?

STOMACH: Sir, we've taken a hit, it...it looks bad, sir.

CENTRAL: Get hold of yourself, man!

STOMACH: Yes sir. It looks like a burrito, sir. It exploded at about 1900 hours and we've been out of action ever since. I don't...I don't know if she can take much more, Captain.

CENTRAL: Stomach! Now you listen to me, son. We're all counting on you up here. Don't give up now. Remember the chili of '94? We made it through that, we can make it through anything.

STOMACH: Yes sir. You can count on me, sir.

CENTRAL: Good man.

NUMBER ONE: Sir, I've got a visual on the clock!

CENTRAL: Tell me, Number One.

NUMBER ONE: Oh my God, sir. It's horrible.

CENTRAL: Dammit sailor, get a grip on yourself!

NUMBER ONE: It's... It's six thirty, sir. In the morning.

CENTRAL: In the morning? Not again. I thought...I thought that we'd had the worst of it yesterday.

SYSTEM: Sixty seconds to consciousness.

CENTRAL: This is madness. Do you know what's going to happen if we go conscious now, this early?

NUMBER ONE: Work, sir?

CENTRAL: That's right, Number One. It'll be work, all right. I don't...don't know if I can live through that hell again.

SYSTEM: Fifty seconds to consciousness.

NUMBER ONE: Sir? Do you have orders?

CENTRAL: Hmmm?

NUMBER ONE: Orders, sir. Do you have orders for us?

CENTRAL: Orders? Orders, Number One? Damn right there are orders! Let's get ourselves moving.

NUMBER ONE: Aye aye, sir!

SYSTEM: Forty seconds to consciousness.

CENTRAL: Shut that damn thing off, I'm trying to think. Get our remote stations on line. I want a Search and Acquire on anything that feels like a snooze button. Tell them to MOVE. Bladder!

BLADDER: Yes sir?

CENTRAL: How are you holding?

BLADDER: All systems are flush and ready, sir. We can go another three hours, easy.

CENTRAL: Very well, Bladder. Number One, get me Nose on the horn.

NOSE: Sir, Nose reporting, sir!

CENTRAL: Good to hear from you, Nose. How are you doing up there?

NOSE: We registered cat breath about twenty minutes ago, but it was pretty faint and I didn't think...

CENTRAL: Steady on, nose. You were right not to trigger an alert.

NOSE: Thank you, sir.

CENTRAL: Nose, I'm afraid I have bad news for you, son. We took a burrito last night.

NOSE: Oh no, sir, not again!

CENTRAL: I said steady! You're going to have to hold on, you hear me? Hold on, and it will pass. I don't want ANYTHING getting through to Consciousness.

NOSE: Yes sir. I'll try, sir.

CENTRAL: That's the spirit. Stomach!

STOMACH: Sir?

CENTRAL: How are you doing down there?

STOMACH: We've been breached, Captain. The whole alimentary is in flames. I'm trying to keep it contained, but I can't promise anything.

CENTRAL: Damn!

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Libido Station reports it is ready for battle!

CENTRAL: Tell Libido to calm down, I'll call him when I need him. Any report from our search party?

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Fingers report they located and toppled a glass of water, a pair of glasses, and a box of Kleenex. No luck on the snooze, sir.

CENTRAL: Number One, I don't mind telling you, if we don't get this under control we're going to lose her.

NUMBER ONE: Yes sir. Sir, Libido requests positive verification that the woman sleeping next to us is not Anna Kournikova.

CENTRAL: For crying out loud.

NUMBER ONE: Sir, Ears reports the song is over. It's going to commercial, sir.

CENTRAL: How much time on the system clock?

NUMBER ONE: Ten seconds to consciousness, sir. We've lost smile control in the lower facial and we're developing a frown.

CENTRAL: Brace yourself, Number One. I'm afraid we've had it.

NUMBER ONE: Sir! Fingers has located target. Repeat, Fingers is on target!

CENTRAL: Fire!

NUMBER ONE: Hit! Sir, direct hit!

CENTRAL: Ears!

NUMBER ONE: It's gone, Captain! Ears reports the music is gone!

CENTRAL: We've done it!

SYSTEM: Consciousness cancelled.

NUMBER ONE: Sir, all systems are ready for sleep mode. Repeat, sleep mode now ready.

CENTRAL: Trigger sleep mode NOW.

NUMBER ONE: Sleep mode triggered, aye aye, sir.

CENTRAL: Shut Eyes.

NUMBER ONE: Eyes off, sir. Frown relaxed, smile restored.

CENTRAL: By golly, that was a close one.

NUMBER ONE: Yes sir. Sir, Dream Team requests selection. Libido asking for something naked, sir.

CENTRAL: Request denied. Let's roll the one where we show up for church wearing only our underwear, I like that one.

NUMBER ONE: Roger that, sir. Dream selection completed and tape is rolling, sir.

CENTRAL: Good work, Number One. You take the helm.

NUMBER ONE: Aye aye, sir.

Disclaimer... I did not write this nor do I know who did, but if you know,drop me a line and I will add the credit for this..

An Uneasy Quiet

2008-11-07T19:51:00.003-06:00

Well, Ravon and JB have been married a week today. What's that you say? I didn't mention that they tied the knot? One week ago, October 31, 2009, at 1:30 pm, they both said "I do". It was a small wedding, just a few people from church, JB's mom, grandmother, and 2 aunts, Mom, me, the Poot, and a few kids they know. We had the ceremony, a small reception, cleaned up the hall and were out of there by 3:30. They have yet to take a trip for a honeymoon, but that runs in our family. When Ravon's mother and I got married, we didn't go anywhere until about 3-4 months later, when she accompanied me on a business trip. Yeah, I'm a tightwad. I let the company pay for my (working) honeymoon.

Anyway, things are quiet. Too quiet. This isn't normal.

Time to get to work

2008-11-05T09:20:00.003-06:00

OK, to my way of thinking, we have screwed up royally. No, not by electing a 6.25% black, 43.75% arabic, and 50% white presidential candidate, but by letting either party control by a large margin, the House, the Senate, and the Presidency. Now, more than ever, we need to monitor everything that is being done in Washington by our duly elected representatives, and be in constant contact with them letting them know just exactly what we want them to do on each piece of legislation. They need to be reminded that they are in Washington to represent us, not their political party. If they screw up and don't vote exactly the way you tell them, then that day you need to start campaigning in a high profile way for someone else. If you do this, please be sure and let them know exactly why you are doing this.
In this post I pointed to the 545 people in the US that set policy and make the laws. Now it is time for the 300 million people these 545 people represent to tell them what their job is and to replace them if they don't do that job exactly as they are told to do.

545 People

2008-10-19T14:32:00.005-05:00

Stolen from a post by KevinA on the T&TTT forum.

545 PEOPLE
By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.
Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?
Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?
You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.
You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.
You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.
You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.
You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.
I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? She is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million can not replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.
If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.
If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ, it's because they want them in IRAQ.
If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like 'the economy,' 'inflation,' or 'politics' that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.
They, and they alone, have the power.
They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.
We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

How much MORE change can we stand?

2008-10-09T12:47:00.003-05:00

Stolen from Oldandevil2 who stole it from someone else.

George Bush has been in office for a little over 7 1/2 years. The first six the economy was fine.

A little over one year ago:
Consumer confidence stood at a 2 1/2 year high.
Regular gasoline sold for $2.19 a gallon.
The unemployment rate was 4.5%.
The DOW JONES hit a record high–14,000.
American’s were buying new cars, taking cruises and vacations overseas, living large!

But American’s wanted ‘CHANGE’!

So, in 2006 they voted in a Democratic Congress and yes–we got ‘CHANGE’ all right.

In the PAST YEAR:
Consumer confidence has plummeted.
Gasoline is now over $4 a gallon & climbing.
Unemployment is up to 5.5% (a 10% increase).
Americans have seen their home equity drop by $12 TRILLION DOLLARS and prices still dropping.
1% of American homes are in foreclosure.
As this was written, THE DOW is probing another low - $2.5 TRILLION DOLLARS HAS EVAPORATED FROM THEIR STOCKS, BONDS & MUTUAL FUNDS INVESTMENT PORTFOLIOS.
YES, IN 2006 AMERICA VOTED FOR CHANGE…AND WE SURE GOT IT!
REMEMBER THE PRESIDENT HAS NO CONTROL OVER ANY OF THESE ISSUES, ONLY CONGRESS.
AND WHAT HAS CONGRESS DONE IN THE LAST TWO YEARS?

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

Stop and think about that for a moment.

NOW THE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT CLAIMS HE IS GOING TO REALLY GIVE US CHANGE ALONG WITH A DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS!!!! JUST HOW MUCH MORE ‘CHANGE’ DO YOU THINK YOU CAN STAND?

Virus Alert!!!

2008-09-25T17:02:00.004-05:00

If you receive an email with "Nude Photos of Sarah Palin" in the subject line, don't open it. It might contain a virus.

If you receive an email with "Nude Photos of Hillary Clinton", don't open it. It might contain nude photos of Hillary Clinton!

Cheerfully hijacked from Denny at Grouchy Old Cripple.

Leadership

2008-09-08T13:02:00.005-05:00

There is a blog I usually like to read, mainly for his foaming at the mouth rants. However, today he has posted a thoughtful piece worth reading. OldandEvil2

Why I Try Not To Drink To Excess

2008-09-07T18:18:00.002-05:00

Look Here

We're Baaccckkkk!!!!!

2008-09-04T14:33:00.005-05:00

It was a good quick trip. 56 hours. I left here Monday, about 0800, arrived Indy about 2300, slept 8 hours, rented a trailer, tried loading it two different ways, returned the original trailer and got a bigger trailer. We then loaded it up for the third time. Thank God, the kids had everything ready to load. Left Indy about noon eastern time and drove to Springfield, MO. We got there about 2000, and rented the last downstairs double Motel 6 had. We left Springfield about 0900 Tuesday and drove home, arriving about 1600.

Fuelwise, I averaged about 21.5 MPG, with a high of over 23 MPG on one tank, on the way east. Westbound with a heavily loaded 5x8 5 ft tall u-haul trailer behind the jeep, I averaged a little over 15 mpg, with a low of about 14.97 mpg between Effingham IL and Voss Truck Port, exit 208 in MO(no I can't remember the name of the town, and yes I feel stupid. I've stopped there many times before). (It's Cuba. Damn it's rough getting old). My theory of driving 65 was born out. However, I pulled the trailer back at 65 mph. I wanted to get home, and yes I know 60 mph would have only taken about an hour longer, but I was bringing the kids home. Ravon and her squeeze JB drove Ravon's car back and chased me all the way.

I hope the first half of your week went as well as mine did. Thank you for your prayers.

Road Trip!!!

2008-08-31T16:43:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow morning, as early as I wake up and get some coffee in me, I will be headed to Indy to pick up the kids and bring them back home. The good part of this is, I will be pulling a u-haul trailer back with all their belongings. They are moving back home!

I could use your prayers that this trip goes smoothly.

new post

2008-08-31T10:28:00.001-05:00

From Lee Martin’s http://single-actions.phpbb3now.com/index.php August 14th, 2008

I carry a gun. I don’t carry a gun to kill people. I carry a gun to keep from being killed. I don’t carry a gun to scare people. I carry a gun because sometimes this world can be a scary place. I don’t carry a gun because I’m paranoid. I carry a gun because there are real threats in the world. I don’t carry a gun because I’m evil. I carry a gun because I have lived long enough to see the evil in the world. I don’t carry a gun because I hate the government. I carry a gun because I understand the limitations of government. I don’t carry a gun because I’m angry. I carry a gun so that I don’t have to spend the rest of my life hating myself for failing to be prepared. I don’t carry a gun because I want to shoot someone. I carry a gun because I want to die at a ripe old age in my bed, and not on a sidewalk somewhere tomorrow afternoon. I don’t carry a gun to make me feel like a man. I carry a gun because men know how to take care of themselves and the ones they love. I don’t carry a gun because I feel inadequate. I carry a gun because unarmed and facing armed thugs, I AM inadequate. I don’t carry a gun because I love it. I carry a gun because I love life and the people who make it meaningful to me. “Police Protection” is an oxymoron. Free citizens must protect themselves. Police do not protect you from crime, they usually just investigate the crime after it happens and then call someone in to clean up the mess. I carry a gun because I’m too young to die and too old to take a beating. Anon.

Random Thoughts

2008-08-22T15:53:00.004-05:00

1. Don’t sweat the petty things and don’t pet the sweaty things.
2. The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live. .
3. What if there were no hypothetical questions?
4. If someone with multiple personalities threatens to kill himself, is it considered a hostage situation?
5. Is there another word for synonym?
6. Where do forest rangers go to “get away from it all?”
7. What do you do when you see an endangered animal eating an endangered plant?
8. If a parsley farmer is sued, can they garnish his wages?
9. Would a fly without wings be called a walk?
10. Why do they lock gas station bathrooms? Are they afraid someone will clean them?
11. If a turtle doesn’t have a shell, is he homeless or naked?
12. Can vegetarians eat animal crackers?
13. Why do they put Braille on the drive-through bank machines?
14. Do infants enjoy infancy as much as adults enjoy adultery?
15. How is it possible to have a civil war?
16. If one synchronized swimmer drowns, do the rest drown too?
17. If you ate both pasta and antipasto, would you still be hungry?
18. If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?
19. Whose cruel idea was it for the word “lisp” to have “s” in it?
20. Why are hemorrhoids called “hemorrhoids” instead of “assteroids”?
21. Why is it called tourist season if we can’t shoot at them?
22. Why is there an expiration date on sour cream or yogurt?
23. If you spin orientals in a circle three times do they become disorientated?
24. Can an atheist get insurance against acts of God?

Redneck Special Forces

2008-08-21T20:05:00.001-05:00

The Pentagon announced TODAY the formation of a new 500-man elite fighting unit called the United States Redneck Special Forces (USRSF)

These boys will be dropped off in Iraq and have been given only the following facts about terrorists:

1. The season opened today.
2. There is no limit.
3. A license is not required
4. All weapons are permitted
5. Hunting hours: sunrise to sunrise
6. Field dressing optional
7. Hunters are encouraged to use Live ones for bait!
8. They taste just like chicken.
9. They don't like beer, pickups, country music or Jesus.
10. They are directly responsible for the death of Dale Earnhardt.

The Pentagon expects the problem in Iraq to be over by Friday

The Miracle of Toilet Paper

2008-08-20T15:20:00.003-05:00

A woman, fresh from a shower, stands in front of a mirror, complaining to her husband that her breasts were too small.

Instead of telling her it’s not so, he comes up with a suggestion: “If you want your breasts to grow, then every day take a piece of toilet paper and rub it between your breasts for a few seconds.”

Willing to try anything, she fetched a piece of toilet paper and stood in front of the mirror, rubbing it between her breasts.

“How long will this take?” she asked.

“Oh it’ll take several years,” he replies.

“Do you really think rubbing a piece of toilet paper between my breasts every day will make them larger?”

Without missing a beat he says, “Well, it worked for your butt, didn’t it?”

With a great deal of therapy, he may one day walk again.

Stolen from Mostly Cajun.

King Arthur

2008-08-18T23:31:00.003-05:00

Young King Arthur was ambushed and imprisoned by the monarch of a neighboring kingdom. The monarch could have killed him but was moved by Arthur's youth and ideals. So, the monarch offered him his freedom, as long as he could answer a very difficult question. Arthur would have a year to figure out the answer and, if after a year, he still had no answer, he would be put to death

The question?....What do women really want? Such a question would perplex even the most knowledgeable man, and to young Arthur, it seemed an impossible query. But, since it was better than death, he accepted the monarch's proposition to have an answer by year's end.

He returned to his kingdom and began to poll everyone: the princess, the priests, the wise men and even the court jester. He spoke with everyone, but no one could give him a satisfactory answer.

Many people advised him to consult the old witch, for only she would have the answer.

But the price would be high; as the witch was famous throughout the kingdom for the exorbitant prices she charged.

The last day of the year arrived and Arthur had no choice but to talk to the witch. She agreed to answer the question, but he would have to agree to her price first.

The old witch wanted to marry Sir Lancelot, the most noble of the Knights of the Round Table and Arthur's closest friend!

Young Arthur was horrified. She was hunchbacked and hideous, had only one tooth, smelled like sewage, made obscene noises, etc. He had never encountered such a repugnant creature in all his life.

He refused to force his friend to marry her and endure such a terrible burden; but Lancelot, learning of the proposal, spoke with Arthur.

He said nothing was too big of a sacrifice compared to Arthur's life and the preservation of the Round Table.

Hence, a wedding was proclaimed and the witch answered Arthur's question thus:

What a woman really wants, she answered....is to be in charge of her own life.

Everyone in the kingdom instantly knew that the witch had uttered a great truth and that Arthur's life would be spared.

And so it was, the neighboring monarch granted Arthur his freedom and Lancelot and the witch had a wonderful wedding.

The honeymoon hour approached and Lancelot, steeling himself for a horrific experience, entered the bedroom. But, what a sight awaited him. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen lay before him on the bed.. The astounded Lancelot asked what had happened

The beauty replied that since he had been so kind to her when she appeared as a witch, she would henceforth, be her horrible deformed self only half the time and the beautiful maiden the other half.

Which would he prefer? Beautiful during the day....or night?

Lancelot pondered the predicament. During the day, a beautiful woman to show off to his friends, but at night, in the privacy of his castle, an old witch? Or, would he prefer having a hideous witch during the day, but by night, a beautiful woman for him to enjoy wondrous intimate moments?

What would YOU do?

What Lancelot chose is below. BUT....make YOUR choice before you scroll down below. OKAY?

Noble Lancelot said that he would allow HER to make the choice herself.

Upon hearing this, she announced that she would be beautiful all the time because he had respected her enough to let her be in charge of her own life.

Now ...what is the moral to this story?

If you don't let a woman have her own way....

.....Things are going to get ugly.

Cheerfully high graded from Ysabel Kid over at the Leverguns.com forum.

Thank GOD!!!!

2008-07-30T20:57:00.002-05:00

I am 14% Metrosexual.

I need some advice. I need to STOP BUYING MY CLOTHS AT WAL-MART!!!! I will never land a decent woman unless I shave this nasty facial hair, and spend more then $5 on a haircut.

Take the
Metrosexual Test
@ FualiDotCom

I guess all that time I spent harassing all the effeminate "girlie men" in those office jobs wasn't because of latent metrosexual tendancies after all. AND I usually cut my own hair. Why waste $5.00 on something I only see once a day when I step out of the shower and look in the mirror to shave?

Folks from the teardrop board

2008-07-20T15:57:00.003-05:00

Right after church I had the pleasure to meet Archer_1, Tom and his significant other, Barb. I was taking my mother out to Sunday dinner when we saw a teardrop on one of our local wreckers. When I pulled into the tire shop lot the wrecker was dropping their trailer in, we introduced ourselves and discussed their trailer problem. I offered to go get my tools and try to help patch or repair it and they accepted. I took Mom home (yes, she just now finished her lunch), grabbed the toolbox and a neighbor, and headed back to their location. By the time we got back they already had the problem fixed (the wrecker driver is a good ole boy who helped them find the problem). A clip that holds the magnet on the trailer brake had worked it's way out and got stuck in the hub locking the wheel some how. We helped pull the other wheel and did a preemptive repair on the other side. After talking a few minutes, they were on their way west. They are traveling Rt 66 from Chicago to the west coast.

It was nice getting to see their Camp Inn (#12) 550 Ultra. It's the first commercial built teardrop I've been able to look at, and gave me some ideas I hadn't thought of. It was very nice to get to meet Tom and Barb, and I hope the minor breakdown didn't annoy them too much.

Dr visit

2008-07-15T18:42:00.003-05:00

Had a doctor appointment today. Nothing special, just check in, take my vitals, get my prescriptions renewed, then pay the man and go home.

However, I did get some good news. Since January 1, 2008 I have lost 21 pounds AND have brought my blood pressure down from 135/85 to 119/76. I'm going to try losing about another 9 or 10 pounds, then evaluate what needs to be done.

Now I have a question for some of you that have previously lost weight. Even though I have lost 21 pounds, I have only lost about 1/2 - 1 inch around my midsection. How much do I need to lose before the spare tire starts to disappear?

55 mph speed limit

2008-07-11T13:31:00.005-05:00

Mostly Cajun has posted about Senator John Warner (R) VA suggesting we re-institute the national 55mph speed limit. It didn't work during the 70's and 80's and it won't work now.

However, note my personal experience. We returned last night from our trip to Indiana. On the trip up I pretty closely followed the speed limit (70-75 mph) in Mom's Lincoln, returning about 24 - 24.5 mpg. We fueled up in a suburb west of St. Louis, and without engaging the cruise control, I followed the speed limit through St. Louis and all through IL (50-65 mph). The Lincoln has an instant mpg reading on its trip computer, and as we were crossing into IN from IL we were reading 27.5 mpg. On the return trip I set the cruise at 65 mph and averaged over 25.5 mpg from IN to western OK. Just dropping my average speed about 5 mph netted about a 5% fuel savings. From now on longer distance trips in the Lincoln will be at 65 mph and in my Jeep (Just Empty Every Pocket) will be at 65 mph, unless I'm towing, then it will be 60 mph.

I believe driving slower will save fuel, but I don't want any government legislating a lower speed limit. If you can afford the gas cost drive the speed limit. If you're like me, leave a little earlier, slow down and enjoy the savings.

A Quick Restaurant Critique

2008-07-09T21:52:00.004-05:00

I've traveled I-44 Through Missouri probably 125 times in my life, mostly while I was driving truck. Usually I was running through there bitching and complaining about the lack of good food. Well, today I quit complaining.

If you get off I-44 at exit 127 (Lebanon) and go back east 2-3 blocks, you'll find Gary Doud's Catfish and BBQ. Seemed to be plenty of parking and most of the vehicles in the parking lot had local (Missouri) plates so we stopped. That's a clue to rating a restaurant while traveling.

We went inside and were seated immediately, drink orders were taken (unsweetened iced tea), menu's were passed out, drinks were delivered and we were left alone to peruse the menu's in just a minute or two longer than it took to read this paragraph.

To get down to the gist of this, I ordered a half rack of (pork) ribs and Mom ordered 2 whole fried catfish. The side list was extensive. I ordered fries and sliced tomatoes. Mom had fried mushrooms and cottage cheese.

When the food came out, I had literally, a half rack of ribs, still connected together. They were lightly smoked and then, I'm guessing baked. Mom's fish looked great, about 1 1/2 - 2 pounds live weight each, breaded and deep fried.

I would give the ribs a 6 rating on a scale of 1 - 10. They were better than a lot of ribs I have eaten, good but not great. I don't think they were cooked in a smoker, but rather smoked for a short time, then finished off in an oven too quickly at too high a heat. Usually, when ribs are slow smoked right, and completely cooked by this process, they will be so tender as to allow the rib to pull completely out of the meat. These ribs were a little tough, so were probably cooked a little too quickly at too high a heat.

Anywho, I'm going to try to rate this place thusly:

Ribs 6 a little tough, not smoked long enough
Servers 9 very friendly, good servers
sides 7 good selection, servings a little small
decor 6 roadside hillbilly kitsch
price 6 decent price for the size of the entree

rating 6.8 I'll probably stop in and eat there again.

Happenings

2008-07-07T22:57:00.003-05:00

I haven't posted much lately but I have an excuse.

A few weeks ago, Ravon was hit by a thrown bottle as she was driving down the street in Beech Grove IN. She was taken to the ER where they stitched her up and sent her home. When the swelling started going down she was in pain and had blurred vision. She then was sent to an optometrist who is also a plastic (reconstructive) surgeon. This surgeon found some of the bones that hold the eyeball in (the orbit) were shattered so he scheduled her for reconstructive surgery.

July 1 she went into surgery at 8:34 AM and was in recovery about 12:20. It took 3 members of the surgical team about 3.5 hours to remove the shattered bone, lay it out on the table, piece it together like a jigsaw puzzle, reinforce it with a titanium plate, re-attach the whole mess with 7 screws and sew her back up. Thanks to the surgical team, my daughter may not lose her sight. Thank you's all around to that team.

I was getting everything ready to leave home June 27 when my mother asked if I thought she could make the trip also. I told her to pack a bag and we would find out. We left June 28 and arrived Indy June 29. Yes, we took the Lincoln. I found that with careful driving and at 65 mph, that car will get 27.5 mpg. A 2003 Lincoln Towncar with minimal prep (I didn't even check the air in the tires) will get 27.5 mpg.

Anywho, back to our story. The reason we came to Indy was to take care of the Poot while her mom convalesced. So for the past week, my mother and I have spent about 10-12 hrs per day chasing a 14 month old toddler around. Also for the last week, we have been eating mostly fast food. I am dreaming of the time I get home to get back in the kitchen. I am beginning to seriously dislike fast food, again.

Today, Ravon went back to the surgeon to get checked on. They removed her stitches, then told her she could start helping with the baby and if everything was OK after a couple of days she could take over the care of the Poot, so it looks like we will be headed west about Wednesday.

I have a list of things to get done when we get home, and up near the top of the list is get the trailer built. I hope to never have to stay in a motel and eat fast food for an extended period (anything over 2 or 3 days) again in my life. I hope to make the trip back up here in late October and hope to be pulling the trailer when I do.

SCOTUS decision

2008-06-26T10:21:00.003-05:00

The Supreme Court issued a narrow opinion (5-4) striking down the Washington DC handgun ban, but still allowing firearm registration. To me, this sounds like they are saying that the 2nd Amendment is an individual right, in a sort of backhanded way. In other words, short of an outright ban, registration and regulation are allowed.

We still live in the netherworld between citizen and subject.

SCOTUS decision due today

2008-06-26T07:56:00.005-05:00

We'll all see whether we are citizens or subjects sometime today as the Supreme Court Of The United States (SCOTUS) is to release their decision on DC vs Heller.

This case is the first time a 2nd amendment case has been before the SCOTUS since, if I remember right, 1939 in the Miller case.

If SCOTUS rules in favor of the decision by the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit in Heller, it will affirm our right to keep functional (not disassembled or locked up) firearms in our homes, ready for use if needed by citizens.

If SCOTUS upholds the DC gun law, it will tell me we are subjects whose "rights" are held at the pleasure of the state.

Obama's Not Exactly's

2008-06-18T21:27:00.003-05:00

This post is a direct copy from MAD OGRE. Used by permission. Thanks Ogre

1.) Selma Got Me Born - NOT EXACTLY, your parents felt safe enough to have you in 1961 - Selma had no effect on your birth, as Selma was in 1965. (Google'Obama Selma' for his full March 4, 2007 speech and articles about its various untruths.)

2.) Father Was A Goat Herder - NOT EXACTLY, he was a privileged, well educated youth, who went on to work with the Kenyan Government.

3.) Father Was A Proud Freedom Fighter - NOT EXACTLY, he was part of one of the most corrupt and violent governments Kenya has ever had.

4.) My Family Has Strong Ties To African Freedom - NOT EXACTLY, your cousin Raila Odinga has created mass violence in attempting to overturn a legitimate election in 2007, in Kenya. It is the first widespread violence in decades. The current government is pro-American but Odinga wants to overthrow it and establish Muslim Sharia law. Your half-brother, Abongo Oba ma, is Odinga's follower. You interrupted your New Hampshire campaigning to speak to Odinga on the phone. Check out the following link for verification of that....and for more.

Obama's cousin Odinga in Kenya ran for president and tried to get Sharia muslim law in place there. When Odinga lost the elections, his followers have burned Christians' homes and then burned men, women and children alive in a Christian church where they took shelter.. Obama SUPPORTED his cousin before the election process here started. Google Obama and Odinga and see what you get. No one wants to know the truth.

5.) My Grandmother Has Always Been A Christian - NOT EXACTLY, she does her daily Salat prayers at 5am according to her own interviews. Not to mention, Christianity wouldn't allow her to have been one of 14 wives to 1 man.

6.) My Name is African Swahili - NOT EXACTLY, your name is Arabic and 'Baraka' (from which Barack came) means 'blessed' in that language. Hussein is also Arabic and so is Obama.

Barack Hussein Obama is not half black. If elected, he would be the first Arab-American President, not the first black President. Barack Hussein Obama is 50% Caucasian from his mother's side and 43.75% Arabic and 6.25% African Negro from his father's side. While Barack Hussein Obama's father was from Kenya, his father's family was mainly Arabs.. Barack Hussein Obama's father was only 12.5% African Negro and 87.5% Arab (his father's birth certificate even states he's Arab, not African Negro). From....and for more....go to.....

http://www.arcadeathome.com/newsboy.phtml?Barack_Hussein_Obama_-_Arab-American,_only_6.25%25_African

7.) I Never Practiced Islam - NOT EXACTLY, you practiced it daily at school, where you were registered as a Muslim and kept that faith for 31 years, until your wife made you change, so you could run for office.

4-3-08 Article 'Obama was 'quite religious in islam'' http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=60559

8.) My School In Indonesia Was Christian - NOT EXACTLY, you were registered as Muslim there and got in trouble in Koranic Studies for making faces (check your own book).

February 28, 2008. Kristoff from the New York Times a year ago: Mr. Obama recalled the opening lines of the Arabic call to prayer, reciting them with a first-rate accent. In a remark that seemed delightfully uncalculated (it'll give Alabama voters heart attacks), Mr. Obama described the call to prayer as 'one of the prettiest sounds on Earth at sunset.' This is just one example of what Pamela is talking about when she says 'Obama's narrative is being altered, enhanced and manipulated to whitewash troubling facts.'

9.) I Was Fluent In Indonesian - NOT EXACTLY, not one teacher says you could speak the language.

10.) Because I Lived In Indonesia, I Have More Foreign Experience - NOT EXACTLY, you were there from the ages of 6 to 10, and couldn't even speak the language. What did you learn, how to study the Koran ?

11.) I Am Stronger On Foreign Affairs - NOT EXACTLY, except for Africa (surprise) and the Middle East (bigger surprise), you have never been anywhere else on the planet and thus have NO experience with our closest allies.

12.) I Blame My Early Drug Use On Ethnic Confusion - NOT EXACTLY, you were quite content in high school to be Barry Obama, no mention of Kenya and no mention of struggle to identify - your classmates said you were just fine.

13.)An Ebony Article Moved Me To Run For Office - NOT EXACTLY, Ebony has yet to find the article you mention in your book. It doesn't, and never did, exist.

14.) A Life Magazine Article Changed My Outlook On Life - NOT EXACTLY, Life has yet to find the article you mention in your book. It doesn't, and never did, exist.

15.) I Won't Run On A National Ticket In '08 - NOT EXACTLY, here you are, despite saying, live on TV, that you would not have enough experience by then, and you are all about having experience first.

16.) Voting 'Present' is Common In Illinois Senate - NOT EXACTLY, they are common for YOU, but not many others have 130 NO VOTES.

17.) Oops, I Misvoted - NOT EXACTLY, only when caught by church groups and Democrats, did you beg to change your misvote.

18.) I Was A Professor Of Law - NOT EXACTLY, you were a senior lecturer ON LEAVE.

19.) I Was A Constitutional Lawyer - NOT EXACTLY, you were a senior lecturer ON LEAVE.

20.) Without Me, There Would Be No Ethics Bill - NOT EXACTLY, you didn't write it, introduce it, change it, or create it.

21.) The Ethics Bill Was Hard To Pass - NOT EXACTLY, it took just 14 days from start to finish.

22.) I Wrote A Tough Nuclear Bill - NOT EXACTLY, your bill was rejected by your own party for its pandering and lack of all regulation - mainly because of your Nuclear donor, Exelon, from which David Axelrod came.

23.) I Have Released My State Records - NOT EXACTLY, as of March, 2008, state bills you sponsored or voted for have yet to be released, exposing all the special interests pork hidden within.

24.) I Took On The Asbestos Altgeld Gardens Mess - NOT EXACTLY, you were part of a large group of people who remedied Altgeld Gardens. You failed to mention anyone else but yourself, in your books.

25.) My Economics Bill Will Help America - NOT EXACTLY, your 111 economic policies were just combined into a proposal which lost 99-0, and even YOU voted against your own bill.

26.) I Have Been A Bold Leader In Illinois - NOT EXACTLY, even your own supporters claim to have not seen BOLD action on your part.

27.) I Passed 26 Of My Own Bills In One Year - NOT EXACTLY, they were not YOUR bills, but rather handed to you, after their creation by a fellow Senator, to assist you in a future bid for higher office.

28.) No One on my campaign contacted Canada about NAFTA - NOT EXACTLY, the Canadian Government issued the names and a memo of the conversation your campaign had with them.

29.) I Am Tough On Terrorism - NOT EXACTLY, you missed the Iran Resolution vote on terrorism and your good friend Ali Abunimah supports the destruction off Israel.

30.) I Want All Votes To Count - NOT EXACTLY, you said let the delegates decide.

31.) I Want Americans To Decide - NOT EXACTLY, you prefer caucuses that limit the vote, confuse the voters, force a public vote, and only operate during small windows of time.

32.) I passed 900 Bills in the State Senate - NOT EXACTLY, you passed 26, most of which you didn't write yourself.

33.) I Believe In Fairness, Not Tactics - NOT EXACTLY, you used tactics to eliminate Alice Palmer from running against you.

34.) I Don't Take PAC Money - NOT EXACTLY, you take loads of it.

35.) I don't Have Lobbyists - NOT EXACTLY, you have over 47 lobbyists, and counting.

36.) My Campaign Had Nothing To Do With The 1984 Ad - NOT EXACTLY, your own campaign worker made the ad on his Apple in one afternoon.

37.) I Have Always Been Against Iraq - NOT EXACTLY, you weren't in office to vote against it AND you have voted to fund it every single time.

38.) I Have Always Supported Universal Health Care - NOT EXACTLY, your plan leaves us all to pay for the 15,000,000 who don't have to buy it

Obama will turn our Nation into an Abomination.

I'm Tired of This Crap!!!

2008-06-18T18:36:00.005-05:00

Today, on the evening news, I saw something I'm really getting tired of. The President was pushing Congress to allow offshore drilling in the 80% of the Continental Shelf which is under a drilling moratorium. He blamed it on the Democrats. The next bite was of a Democratic spokesman blaming the Republican administration because they have no energy policy.

I'm tired of the finger pointing. I'm tired of the bipartisan attitudes of all those, and there is no better way to put this, in power. How did they get to be "in power"? I thought those in government service were supposed to be servants of the people. Nothing is being done to solve our national problems, and really, nothing has been done in at least 20 years. One side gets control and takes from us one way, then a couple of years later the other side gets control and takes from us another way.

I was taught to believe the best way to solve a philosophical difference is through the art of compromise, but apparently I was taught wrong. According to what I see from our national leaders, grade school kids have it down pat. If accused of causing problems, deny, deny, deny, then make counter accusations.

A Little Early

2008-06-14T22:15:00.002-05:00

To all you fathers out there.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!

Spend some time with your kids today.

Internet access

2008-06-07T11:19:00.003-05:00

I finally got internet access back yesterday. Mom has satellite tv, so no cable internet. I tried DSL with our local phone company, but after waiting over a week and being given 3 different activation dates, none of which saw service being activated, I finally went cellular. I ordered it about 11:00 Thursday, received the pcmcia modem card Friday after being told it would probably arrive next Monday or Tuesday, installed the software, inserted the card, and it worked. It just worked.

Since out here in western Oklahoma we are a few years behind the big cities, technology-wise, I'm running on a 2 or 2.5 G network (GPRS and/or EDGE)but it's still faster than dialup and I have service anywhere I have cell phone service. Yes, it's a little more expensive than DSL, but it's the price I choose to pay for the freedom to access my email, blog and the internet whenever I want to. Around the big cities I should be able to reach speeds approaching that of DSL, and if my ISP ever gets their 3.5 G network setup, my modem is capable of 7.2 Mbps download speed. This is SWEET.

More Changes

2008-06-07T10:03:00.005-05:00

Well I got moved. BTW, thanks for all the help.

I had 2 friends come over and help. If not for the youngest of the 2, I would still be moving boxes. I don't know if you've noticed but I rarely use given names on this poor excuse for crappy writing. This young gentleman is almost like a son or much younger brother to me, and a very good friend to my daughter. I call him Young Legs. Young came to help me one day when he had nothing to do, and brought his pickup. This boy worked his butt off for 5 days, asking for nothing more than than a thank you. Again Young, thank you!!

Another friend came over Saturday, the day we moved the heavy stuff. Now as big as he is, he could have moved most of it by his self, but to keep the damage and scarring down, he graciously allowed us to help. Thanks Big'Un.

A lady I know is moving into the house and made a deal with the owner to do some painting. She also owns a carpet cleaner, so rather than pay a carpet cleaning service I traded her a couch and love seat to clean the carpet. I also gave her a futon for her son. Good deals for both of us. Thanks Krys.

Mom and I are now going through everything she owns to thin it out, AND I'm going through my stuff AGAIN. Eventually we plan to have the mother of all garage sales and use the proceeds to fund a trip to see Ravon and the Poot. Consolidating 2 3 bedroom houses into one is a pain in the ass, but we shall eventually get there.

News about the Poot

2008-05-27T11:02:00.003-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I got a phone call telling me the Poot is trying to dress herself. Today, I got a phone call telling me the Poot has learned to take her diaper off by herself. Ahh, payback!!!

When Ravon was about the same age, 12-15 months, if we were planning to go somewhere we would get her dressed first then go dress ourselves. After dressing ourselves, we would follow the trail of cute little baby clothes and diaper and usually find a naked baby at the end. We would then have to rewash and redress the baby. It caused us to be late a couple of times.

Ravon, a word of advice. Start getting ready early. Give yourself about 15-20 minutes extra time. If you have to redress the baby you will have time to. If not, you'll arrive early. Don't go back to leaving just in time to get there. The Poot might learn how to undress herself in her car seat.

Storms

2008-05-27T10:03:00.006-05:00

We had storms blow through here last night, the worst between midnight and 12:30. I saw hail the size of golf balls, experienced winds of about 30-40 miles per hour and then the storm spawned a tornado east of town. The storm and the tornado traveled due east at about 30 mph. 12-15 miles west of here 4-5 inch hail and 70 mph winds were reported. I hope everyone else is ok.

I stayed up until almost 3:00 watching the storms and my butt is dragging today.

update -noon- The trucking company my brother works for had a truck blown off the road this morning about 1:30 or 2:00 about 40 miles east of here. The wind picked a 65 - 70,000 pound tractor trailer up and threw it into the ditch. There were no tracks leading to where the rig ended up. It was PICKED UP OFF THE GROUND AND THROWN ONTO IT'S SIDE BY THE WIND. The driver is ok. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol investigated. No accident report. No tickets were issued. It was deemed an act of nature.

Memorial Day

2008-05-26T08:27:00.003-05:00

Some people treat Memorial Day as just another day off, or as a holiday that marks the start of summer. I was raised to view Memorial Day as a day set aside to remember the loss of those who "stood in the gap" as it were, ultimately sacrificing their lives so we may live the lives we live today. A poem by Kelly Strong illustrates my thoughts today.

Freedom Is Not Free
- Kelly Strong

I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
and then he stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud,
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn't free.

I heard the sound of TAPS one night,
When everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That TAPS had meant "Amen,"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No, freedom isn't free.

Sweeeet!!!

2008-05-25T15:29:00.004-05:00

Farmgirl over at Tractortracks just posted about my favorite food group, chocolate! Chocolate is one of the four food groups, right? Chocolate, coffee and iced tea, beer, and pork. I got them all, right???

Anyway, she is posting about some chocolate goodies she is going to make. If you have any stroke over there, I really, really would like to try the white chocolate tiramisu.

Life Changes...AGAIN

2008-05-19T20:23:00.002-05:00

A few days ago, my mother told me she wanted to hire a live in companion/nurse/housekeeper and said she needed me to find someone. Right now in western Oklahoma fast food joints are paying $8.00 + per hour for someone to ask "Do you want fries with that?" and the quality and/or work ethic of people available at the rate my mother could afford to pay would be questionable.

SO, I offered to move in. Now, I'm in the process of packing up when I can. You know I just went through all my stuff a few months ago but now I'm doing it again making three piles (trash, garage sale, keep) again.

I need to get this done in the next week and then grab some help to move the garage sale and keep over to my mothers house. I need to be out before June 1 so I don't have to pay another months rent.

So, about that help moving. Anyone?

Yeah, that's what I thought.

BBQ tips

2008-05-09T22:04:00.002-05:00

I stole this from TedH over at leverguns.com.

We are about to enter the summer and BBQ season. Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity.

When a man volunteers to do the BBQ, the following chain of events are put into motion:

Routine...

(1) The woman buys the food.

(2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.

(3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand.

Here comes the important part:

(4) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.

More routine...

(5) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.

(6) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he deals with the situation.

Important again

(7) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.

More routine....

(8 The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.

(9) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.

Most important of all:

(10) Everyone praises and thanks him for his cooking efforts. He then announces that we should do it again soon!

(11) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed 'her night off.' And, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women....

Read It and Understand

2008-04-24T23:21:00.003-05:00

I want all two of my liberal, anti-gun "friends" to read this post from Bayou Renaissance Man and try to wrap you poor little pea brains around it and understand. If you have a problem with it, please call me and I will explain it to you, or you could get you pre-teenage kids to explain it to you, whichever works.

Hypocrisy

2008-04-24T22:40:00.006-05:00

You know, I have an even dozen blogs I check regularly, some through a rss reader, and some by actually going to their site. Just now, I checked my reader and there were no new posts. My first thoughts were, "You lazy bastards". However, after checking the frequency of my posts, that is hypocrisy of the first order. I apologize to both of my readers.

P.S. 40 minutes later, 2 new posts. See what I mean?

BTW: Thunderstorms yesterday. 90*F for a high temperature today. 75-80* forcasted for tomorrow. Spring is here!!! Finally!!

Feeling Crappy

2008-04-20T10:19:00.004-05:00

Pappy's feeling crappy. Hey, that rhymes.

I'm a poet and didn't know it, but my feet show it.
They're long fellows.

Mom has a cold and I guess I've caught it from her. However, I caught it early and started treating it so hopefully it won't hurt me too bad.

Due to sickness, bills, weather, the need to use the utility trailer to haul junk with and generally life getting in the way I haven't been able to start on the camping trailer, but I hope to be able to start in the next month or so.

No I can't sleep

2008-04-17T01:27:00.004-05:00

What the hell is going on? (see article)

The feds think they can catalogue DNA samples from everyone they arrest, adjudged guilty or not? Why not just issue national ID? Oh, I'm sorry, they have already done that with Real ID.

Whatever happended to a right to privacy and freedom from illegal search and seizure?

How can Congress overide the Bill of Rights? Do we have any rights left anymore?

Sad Day

2008-04-16T17:23:00.005-05:00

I had to take Ravon and the Poot to the big city to catch their flight back to Indiana. When we got there, we went inside so they could check in for their flight. Soon, I was told the flight was delayed an hour and forty-five minutes for maintenance. This threw her late for her connecting flight out of Cleveland into Indianapolis, so they set her up with a different flight out Cleveland.

Before I left her at the airport in the big city, I asked if she needed some money and she said she was ok on cash, but when I was an hour down the road she called and said she didn't have but three dollars on her. I was ready to turn around and go back to give her the cash I should have made her take but she said she would be ok.

When she finally got to Cleveland, it turns out the newly rescheduled connecting flight had already left. I got a phone call where she was very upset, hungry and the baby was fussy. I finally got her to go to the service counter and firmly but politely ask for meal vouchers for her and Poot. Ravon said the lady was very nice, gave her vouchers, and even offered baby supplies (formula, diapers, bottle, etc) if they were needed. Last I heard, they have a flight out of Cleveland at 2100 arriving Indy 2207 and were looking for a place to eat.

What really bothers me is out of the four legs of this round trip (Indy-Houston, Houston-OKC, OKC-Cleveland, Cleveland-Indy) there were delays or rescheduling on three of them (she was held up in Houston for almost two hours because the crew was late). Granted, the airline provided about twenty dollars worth of meal vouchers, but shouldn't they have to reimburse the passenger for the time and inconvenience? I know they don't have to do this by law, but explain to me why they don't. I believe any time a flight is delayed by thirty minutes or more, said delay not being caused by something beyond the carrier's control (and the only thing I consider beyond carrier control is weather), then the carrier should be required to reimburse on the spot one half the total cost the customer spent for their ticket including taxes and airport fees. If they had to do this I believe we would see more flights running on time. I spent over four hundred dollars on their round trip tickets, and it wouldn't have hurt my feelings a bit to see Ravon put two hundred of that in her pocket.

If anything else happens, I'll update this post after I receive a phone call from her.

P.S. They arrived Indy 2215. Total travel time from my home was 14.5 hours.

Hell, I have driven from home to Indy in 13.5 hours and never ran more than 3 mph over the speed limit. I guess I need to get me a Daihatsu Charade (42 mpg at 75 mph. I know, I had an 84 model.) Then I could afford to just do the drive as needed.

Obama's "bitter" remarks

2008-04-15T08:54:00.002-05:00

There has been a large furor about Obama's remarks about the middle class being bitter due to government and politician failings and clinging to religion and guns. For the most common take on this, see Old and Evil.
For more and a completely different take on a part of the speech that pisses me off after it was pointed out to me, see PawPaws House.
Until this, I had believed that Obama was the lesser of two evils in the democratic party but now I see by his own words he is just an elitist jerk, and have learned that the lesser of two evils is still evil, and I don't want that evil trying to run this country.

Duck and Cover

2008-04-08T20:53:00.003-05:00

My daughter decided since she is ready to turn 18 and has had her learners permit almost 2 years that it was time to get her drivers license. I am proud to announce that she took my old beater Jeep and passed her drivers license test on her first try. She did make the license examiner a little nervous but she passed.

While she is a decent driver considering who attempted to teach her, she is still green as grass, so, watch yourselves out there. However, since passing her test, her confidence level has gone up a whole bunch, so she is driving better than ever.

Happy

2008-04-02T09:29:00.005-06:00

My daughter and granddaughter flew in from Indiana yesterday and are going to spend a week or so with me. Ravon is trying to split time between seeing her friends, seeing family and family friends, and spending time with my mother and me. Also, wonder of wonders, she is helping me keep the house picked up. She has matured some.

I'm going to keep the granddaughter for a couple or three days if possible so Ravon can spend the night at some friends houses, if she'll let me. Anyway, at least I'm getting to see all three of my favorite girls this week. WOO HOO!!!!

Pissed to the max

2008-03-20T21:59:00.009-06:00

I just received a phone call from my daughter and found out her boyfriend threw something at her, and then told her he missed on purpose, and if it happened again he wouldn't miss.

This pissed me off more than anything since my ex threatened to kill me when I forcibly took custody of my daughter 6 years ago. I should head east to kick his punk ass and the consequences be damned. However, my daughter said she had it handled, meaning, Daddy I don't want Jack hurt, and you going to jail.

I know a cripple beating this boy down would ruin his street creds, but how would you handle it?

Laughing so hard I almost wet myself

2008-03-11T23:06:00.003-06:00

This has to be one of the funniest songs I've ever heard AND it's safe for work. Turn your speakers up!

thoughts

2008-02-18T08:52:00.006-06:00

Approximately 50 days ago I started writing this blog, and now I have come to the realization that it's not exactly what I want to do. So, although I may still occasionally post don't be looking for anything regularly.

How did your day go?

2008-02-14T14:25:00.002-06:00

I've been having a fairly good day today, and I was just wondering if you were too. Post a comment and let me know.

The Female Demerit System

2008-02-09T06:01:00.001-06:00

With Valentine's Day coming up, I think most of you attached guys need to be made aware of what you are really dealing with. I first saw this posted by Ysabel Kid over on the Leverguns.com forum.

The Female Demerit System

In the world of romance, one single rule applies:

Make the woman happy!

Do something she likes and you get points.
Do something she dislikes and points are subtracted.
You don't get any points for doing something she expects.
Sorry, that's the way the game is played.

Here is a guide to the point system

Simple Duties:
You make the bed +1
You make the bed, but forget the decorative pillow 0
You throw the bedspread over rumpled sheets -1
You go out to buy her what she wants +5
in the rain +8
But return with Beer -5
You check out a suspicious noise at night +1
You check out a suspicious noise, and it is nothing 0
You check out a suspicious noise and it is something +5
You pummel it with iron rod +10
It's her pet -20

Social Engagements:
You stay by her side the entire party 0
You stay by her side for a while, then leave to chat with an old school
friend -2
Named Tina -10
Tina is a dancer -20
Tina has silicone implants -80

Her Birthday:
You take her out to dinner +2
You take her out to dinner and it's not a sports bar +3
Okay, it's a sports bar -2
And it's all-you-can-eat night -3
It's a sports bar, its all-you-can-eat night, and your face is painted
the colors of your favorite team -10

A Night Out:
You take her to a movie +1
You take her to a movie she likes +3
You take her to a movie you hate +6
You take her to a movie you like -2
It's called 'Death Cop' -3
You lied and said it was a foreign film about orphans -15

Your Physique:
You develop a noticeable potbelly -15
You develop a noticeable potbelly and exercise to get rid of it +10
You develop a noticeable potbelly and resort to baggy jeans and baggy
Hawaiian shirts -30
You say, "It doesn't matter, you have one too." -8,000

The Big Question:
She asks, "Do I look fat?" -5
(Yes, you lose points no matter what)
You hesitate in responding -10
You reply, "Where?" -35
Any other response -20

Communication:
When she wants to talk about a problem, you listen, displaying what looks
like a concerned expression 0
You listen, for over 30 minutes +50
You listen for more than 30 minutes without looking at the TV +500
She realizes this is because you have fallen asleep -4,000

A Cowboy Buys A Bra

2008-02-04T13:52:00.000-06:00

I just read a poem that had me laughing for the first time in about 3 days. I hope you enjoy it.

I ain’t much for shopping,
Or for goin’ into town.
Except at cattle-shipping time,
I ain’t too easily found.

But the day came when I had to go -
I left the kids with Ma.
But ‘fore I left, she asked me,
“Would you pick me up a bra?”

So without thinkin’ I said, “Sure,”
How tough could that job be?
An’ I bent down and kissed her
An’ said, “I’ll be back by three.”

Well, I done the things I needed,
But I started to regret
Ever offering to buy that thing -
I worked me up a sweat

I walked into the ladies shop
My hat pulled over my eyes,
I didn’t want to take a chance
On bein’ recognized.

I walked up to the sales clerk -
I didn’t hem or haw -
I told that lady right straight out,
“I’m here to buy a bra.”

From behind I heard some snickers,
So I turned around to see
Every woman in that store
Was a’gawkin’ right at me!

“What kind would you be looking for?”
Well, I just scratched my head.
I’d only seen one kind before,
“Thought bras was bras,” I said.

She gave me a disgusted look,
“Well sir, that’s where you’re wrong.
Follow me,” I heard her say,
Like a dog, I tagged along.

She took me down this aisle
Where bras was on display.
I thought my jaw would hit the floor
When I saw that lingerie.

They had all these different styles
That I’d never seen before
I thought I’d go plumb crazy
‘fore I left that women’s store.

They had bras you wear for eighteen hours
And bras that cross your heart.
There was bras that lift and separate,
And that was just the start.

They had bras that made you feel
Like you ain’t wearing one at all,
And bras that you can train in
When you start off when you’re small.

Well, I finally made my mind up -
Picked a black and lacy one -
I told the lady, “Bag it up,”
And figured I was done.

But when she asked me for the size
I didn’t hesitate.
I knew that measurement by heart,
“A six-and-seven-eighths.”

“Six and seven eighths you say?
That really isn’t right.”
“Oh, yes ma’am! I’m real positive -
I measured them last night!”

I thought that she’d go into shock,
Musta took her by surprise
When I told her that my wife’s bust
Was the same as my hat size.

“That’s what I used to measure with,
I figured it was fair,
But if I’m wrong, I’m sorry ma’am.”
This drew another stare.

By now a crowd had gathered
And they all was crackin’ up
When the lady asked to see my hat,
To measure for the cup.

When she finally had it figured,
I gave the gal her pay.
Then I turned to leave the store,
Tipped my hat and said, “Good day.”

My wife had heard the story
‘fore I ever made it home.
She’d talked to fifteen women
Who called her on the phone.

She was still a-laughin’
But by then I didn’t care.
Now she don’t ask and I don’t shop
For women’s underwear.

Author Unknown

I stole this one from Mostly Cajun.

I'mmmm Baaack

2008-02-02T10:41:00.000-06:00

Yeah, yeah, I know. It's been a while since I posted, but I've decided that if I didn't have something to say I wasn't going to post. There have been a couple of times since I posted last that I thought of things to post, but, by the time I returned home, I had forgotten what I was going to post so it must not have been very good. And like I say in my comments below the title this is supposed to be therapy for ME. Also, I'm gonna start posting en voice, basically writing like I think and speak, yunno, like a real Oklahoma redneck. You will see me using proper English if I am speaking technically, if I'm posting a very important idea, if I'm trying to post an idea I have trouble describing or if I believe one of my two audience members will have trouble grasping it. Otherwise I will write like the sorta literate redneck I am.

I think I'm pretty well over that viral infection, but according to my beautiful, intelligent, wonderful daughter, my granddaughter may be coming down with an intestinal viral infection of her own. If so, if she needs me to, I will make the trip to Indiana and help take care of the baby. If not, I will sit here and worry long distance.

Some good news in the personal rights world. PawPaw reports the Brady Campaign (to Prevent Personal Defense) (look it up yourself, I refuse to link to those socialist bastards) has released their latest scorecard of state laws that restrict the rights of the people to keep and bear arms. They rate the states on a scorecard with a possible 100 points and the state that is the most restrictive gets the highest score. The great state of Oklahoma is in a tie for 49th place. What this means is Oklahoma is one of the least restrictive states in terms of firearm ownership. Looks like we need to get to work and make it the very least.

Also, in local news, Oklahoma has its presidential primaries Tuesday. What really sucks is most of the better possible candidates have dropped out. Yes, I am a registered Republican, but only because, in Oklahoma, an independent or Libertarian basically can't vote in the primaries. I guess I will vote this time for Huckabee but only because Thompson dropped out, and Paul isn't truly electable in today's political climate and with the bunch in office in the Senate and House, he wouldn't be effective. I personally believe if you don't vote for whom you believe to be the best and potentially most effective candidate (not always the same, so you might have to vote for someone other than your favorite, see reference to Paul above) then you have failed in your duty as a citizen, and therefore have no right to bitch and I definitely am gonna do my duty and will bitch loud and hard as I believe is needed.

OK, enough for now. I need to load some ammo, do some honey-do's, then e-mail select members of our state government.

update on the creeping crud

2008-01-20T09:03:00.001-06:00

I know I haven't blogged in a while, but it is all due to how I've been feeling. I think I'm feeling a little better. at least I'm not as tired as I was a couple of days ago. I'm going to church services this morning and see how it goes. Maybe more later.

doctor report

2008-01-16T08:58:00.000-06:00

Mom had her monthly appointment to see her doctor yesterday and, like the good son I try to be, I chauffeured her to the doctor's office. However, before we left, I called the doctor's receptionist and arranged to be seen while we were there.

As I suspected, this is a viral based disease, probably a variant of the rinovirus family, (you know, the virus family that causes the common cold) and other than treating the symptoms to increase my comfort, nothing else can be done. However the doctor did give me a prescription for a broad spectrum antibiotic to use in case I come down with a respiratory bacterial infection superimposed on top of the viral infection.

Now, the bad news. Mom is showing symptoms of coming down with this same crud. I hope it treats her more gently than it has me. Before we back to her house, we went to the store and bought a whole slew of OTC cough and cold treatments for each of us, and filled all of our prescriptions that were running low. The good news is, Mom is probably tougher than I am, so she may not bothered by this stuff as bad as I am.

Now for some good news. I lost 4 pounds, and my blood pressure was down to normal range (117/77)!

Also, it looks like we have a little weather coming in this afternoon. Not a big storm, just a little winter mix starting about noon and then as it get colder, turning to snow. They are only forecasting about 1 inch of snow, but if the roads are wet when it gets colder, we will have a layer of ice under it.

Creeping Crud

2008-01-13T08:42:00.001-06:00

This crud is insidious. It is shape shifting. Yesterday I was feeling a little better, but tired quickly. Last night after I went to bed I started hurting, as in sore muscles. Back to my old sleep pattern, waking every little bit. This morning back comes the cough, the lethargy, and still the muscular pain. I thought I was getting better but now I'm not sure.
I'll tell you how bad it is. Coffee doesn't even taste good, and I love coffee. Now ain't that some crap?

I might live

2008-01-12T21:02:00.000-06:00

I think I might be feeling better. Yesterday,I did some laundry, made supper and then just crashed. It wore me out! I have very little energy but today I did start cleaning out the back bedroom/office/computer room/storage room/junk room and found something interesting. I found the world famous missing dentures. How they ended up out there mystifies me. However, I will not look a found set of dentures in the mou..... well, you know what I mean. Off to the dental lab for adjustments next week.
Back to the creeping crud I've been suffering through. This is the third time I've had this stuff in the past 5 months. I have a doctor's appointment in about ten or eleven days, and you can bet he is going to hear all of the symptoms and try to help me get it out of my system.
My butt is dragging after just a little time in the back room. Thank God I had a friend come over to help. If she hadn't, very little would have gotten done. I'm going to bed. Type to you later.

Try this!

2008-01-07T19:43:00.000-06:00

Here, hand me your beer and try this

Life Improvement

2008-01-07T16:52:00.000-06:00

Some time back, two or three years ago, I copy and pasted an essay from the web. I don't remember whom I copied it from, but if it was you, let me know and I will give credit where credit is due. This essay is about becoming a shooter. However, if you don't shoot, use the same thoughts for golfing, fishing, sewing or cooking 'shine.

my Grand Unified Theory of Shooting Competency and General Crankiness

Most of us are not shooters.

Most of us are not really shooters or gun men. We are collectors, traders, estheticians, and gun lovers. But….we are not shooters.

This is OK. Yes we are busy making a living etc. etc. Look at the world you have created around yourself. It reflects your true self. If you don’t like some aspect of it change it. If not, embrace it. But stop with the whining. There is never enough time in the day or money in the wallet for everything we want to do. If you really want to master that big bore revolver something else will have to be let go of. That is OK too. Nothing is permanent. SIU (suck it up) and move on. There will be pain. So what?

If you want to be a shooter you will have to stop collecting, or trading, or masturbating to gun mags filled with black clad Ninjas. You may have to stop eating out so much. You will have to train as an athlete does, with focus and determination.

If this isn’t you that is OK. Find out and BE who you are. Be happy with it. Excel at it. Then give what you are back to the folks and world around you.

Buckets of Bullets

Surplus is your friend. You want to be a shooter? You must shoot a lot. Thousands and thousands of rounds per year. Aimed rounds, not just hosing. You aren’t independently wealthy, have a wife who will wear rags, or you don’t work for Uncle? That is OK. Buy a gun in a caliber you can buy surplus ammo for. That gun and ammo will out shoot almost all of us. Snap in and hold hard. If you shoot it enough to get better than the gun and ammo combo. Then handload the special rounds you need for the hunt or match.

Let’s look at the numbers…. I will use .223 for this thought experiment. (Yes shooters can indulge in gedanken experimenten, not just Einstein.) Let’s say you are a typical middle aged, middle class gun nut. You buy say 3-4 revolvers or rifles you just can’t live without per year. Let’s say you drop a couple of grand on them, by hook or by crook and got by your wife with it. So you got these lust objects sitting all pretty in their boxes and maybe 20 rounds for each. You get on the net at night and extol their virtues to all and sundry and bitch about not being able to shoot as well as you’d like. SIU. Like I said, let’s look at the numbers….

Year one. Put the money in the bank or sell the lust objects and take your lumps (guns are commodities these days guys) and get your cash in hand. Go buy a good AR-15. An A2 or if your eyes are going a flat top. Why this rifle? You can get one for a grand. The barrel will last longer than most you have the patience to shoot it. They are more accurate than you can believe. The sights are good. Most importantly… They shoot good, accurate surplus ammo. OK, you got the rifle. Put a real shooting sling on it. Don’t buy all the tactical crap. How much money do you have left? $900 say? Good .223 ball runs $150 a thousand or so. That is 4,000 rounds guys. Go find your local 100 yd range. Even the big cities usually have one reasonably near by. SIU. Shoot that 4,000 rounds a year with focus and in position (don’t shoot from the bench) and you will be shooting under 2 inches at 100 yds from the prone, if not the sitting.

Year two. You got two grand again. Buy your wife a nice dinner, some pretty baubles, and another 4,000 rounds. You still got a grand in your pocket. Keep going to the range. Spend that other grand on a good shooting school. Keep going to the range.

You are now a shooter. Keep it up. If you don’t have a couple of grand a year for this, buy a mauser for $160. Ammo is under $100 per thousand. Hold hard. Remember what the Boers did to the Brits with these guns. Head shots any one? You are now a shooter.

When there is a will there is a way. Shoot if you want to be a shooter. Collect if you want to be a collector. Remember, buckets of bullets.

Dillons, not guns.

So you are not a rifle shooter. You want to be a handgun shooter. Don’t buy that next handgun. Buy a Dillon and some dies. The rest of the numbers work out the same. You graduated from grade school didn’t you? Do your own math. Go shoot a lot. Buckets of bullets.

Will

Shooters have to have will. When there is will there is a way. SIU. We are weak compared to our grandfathers. But… we don’t need to be. If you have the strength and will to stay married to your wife you have the strength and will to do anything you want in life. SIU and focus on what you really want. You can be a shooter if you have the will.

Fitness

You want to chase elephants across the savanna, climb high mountains or just be ornery at a professional level? Get fit. Just walking 30 minutes a day is more than most of us ever do and you will be amazed.

Tools not guns

We all have too many guns. Buy the tools you need to support your guns. That means proper cleaning gear, reloading tools, good screwdrivers, the right holster for your pistol. Skip a gun and buy tools. You will be happy.

Be a better shot, not a better gun buyer.

We all agonize over the next gun we want to buy. We read all the sales pitches in the gun mags. Yes sales pitches. That is all the articles are. Do we want the extra extra extra short magnum or the ultra ultra ultra magnum? After all no elk will fall to any of those old cartridges…. But why is it that the guys I know who *regularly* shoot an elk just happen to be good shooters who can place their bullet? Guys who seem quite content with their measly .270s or .308s or 7 mm Mausers? Fit guys who go to where the elk are…

Scopes

You don’t need a glass on every rifle, but if you need a glass get a really good one and move it from gun to gun. Pay for the good mounts. You will be better off with an Aimpoint than a 20 something x unless you really DO shoot at a thousand yards.

Scopes do not belong on hand guns (to quote some one dear to me…)

Synopsis of our story is, whatever you want to do in life, do it. Do whatever it takes, but do it. Suck it up and do it!

update

2008-01-07T11:25:00.000-06:00

Yep, it's almost certainly a cold. Using Alka Seltzer cold med and Robitussin I can function but I feel like crap. Yesterday I did nothing but lay around, surf the web, read, listen to tv and doze. I didn't even go to church. I didn't want to share my diseases.
Checked more on the Asus EEEpc. I believe I'll hold off on them until a 2nd gen version comes out. It seems to have a few problems I would like to see corrected before I buy one. However, if someone out there in the real world would like to just give me one, I would be willing to force myself to use it and attempt to correct the problems myself;).
Well I need to run to the grocery store before the meds start wearing off.

slow

2008-01-05T23:25:00.000-06:00

Not much happening today. I feel a cold coming on. I'm starting to feel like crap. I tried working on the kitchen, got some of it done. I'm going to bed.

New laptop

2008-01-04T14:58:00.001-06:00

I've been on the lookout for a small, inexpensive minimalist laptop for basically email, web surfing, office docs, mp3's, and maybe storing photos. I think I might have found it. It's called the Asus EEE pc. It's flash drive (no hdd), Linux OS (no windows, although you can install XP), and comes preloaded with a bunch of software, including everything I would need to accomplish the tasks I would want it for. It only comes with 2 - 8gb of flash storage (depending on the model), but it has a slot for SD cards and 3 USB ports so expanding storage shouldn't be a problem. An 8 gb SD card and my 20 gb external hdd should be more than enough.

Has anyone out there has experience with one of these? If so let me know what you thought of it.

Life is good

2008-01-03T19:34:00.000-06:00

I've been in a bad mood lately. Well not so much a bad mood as just sort of down. I haven't been sleeping much, and when I do sleep I don't sleep well. I've been hurting. Not enough to be debilitating, but enough to slow me down quite a bit. Also, I've been spending most of my time cleaning out the house which is NOT my favorite thing to do. I mean look at it this way. I've spent years collecting this junk and hauled it all over the US. It must be good for something.

However, I got tired of being in a funk. I began to think of some of the good things.

I woke up this morning. It's not much but it beats the alternative.
I was able to get out of bed by myself. I know a number of people who can't do that.
I have a roof over my head, food for my belly, clothes for my body and my momma loves me.
My momma is still alive. She is 83 years of age, and still lives alone.
I have a few good friends, from ages 15 - 90. Not many, but more than I deserve.
My daughter and grand daughter call me regularly. My daughter thinks I'm intelligent (an out of touch jerk but intelligent) and my grand daughter laughs at me (she's 8 months old). I even get to see them 2 or 3 times a year.
The church I worship with haven't kicked me out yet.
My jeep hasn't broken down lately.
My dog hasn't run away in a while.

Life is pretty good. I still hurt, probably won't get much sleep tonight and still need to throw away a bunch of junk, but life is good.

Today

2008-01-02T15:03:00.000-06:00

Not much going on today, just going through more stuff. I paid my bills earlier, and need to go cook supper for Mom in just a few, so just a quick post.

Also, a rant. I lost a new set of dentures. They were uncomfortable to wear so I went back to my old ones until I could get the new ones adjusted. I was going to take them to the dental lab this morning to get them adjusted, and now I can't find them. "I think someone broke in and stole them." Now isn't that thought stupid. Why steal dentures and leave TV, stereo, computer, tools and only God knows what else that could be sold for a much higher price. It IS stupid, but it was the first thought in my mind.

How many five year olds could you take in a fight?

2008-01-01T10:19:00.000-06:00

They say I could take out 24. Not bad for an old crippled guy.
24

Go to Ultrasound technician school

How did you do?

What's Your Recipe?

2007-12-31T17:57:00.000-06:00

The Recipe For Pappy

3 parts Originality
2 parts Talent
1 part Flair

Splash of Devilry

Serve over ice

What's the Recipe for Your Personality?

Starting early

2007-12-31T11:29:00.001-06:00

I don't make New Year's resolutions. However, I do put things on my To Do list, and work at getting them done.

Three new things on my to do list-

1. Clean out the house. Some would say this is spring cleaning, but when spring gets here, I hope to be fishing and camping. I am going through everything in the house and sorting it into 3 piles - keep and put up, garage sale, and trash. I've done this before but never to this extent. the criteria between keep and garage sale is have you used this in the last 6 months. If not, it hits the garage sale.

2. Build a camping trailer. I love to camp. However, due to my disabilities, I can no longer tent camp, so I am building a camping trailer. This is a trailer loosely based on the idea of the old teardrop trailers, with only a bed and a small amount of storage in the cabin, and an outdoor kitchen with the kitchen supplies in the rear under a hatch. The one I am building will have external body dimensions of 8 feet long by 4 feet 9 inches wide by 4 feet tall. All electrical power for interior lights and a vent fan will be supplied by an on board 12 volt battery. I am hoping to keep the total weight loaded and ready to roll to around 1000 pounds or less. With the size and weight of this trailer, hopefully it won't impact my fuel mileage more than about 20 %. If it doesn't, it will get used quite a bit.
I expect construction to start in about a week to a week and a half, and expect it to be useable in approximately 4-5 months. I don't expect it to ever be completely finished as I am an inveterate tinkerer, and will always be tweaking my design. Someone who is a better woodworker with no disabilities and a well equipped shop could probably build this basic design in 1-2 months, but then again, a better woodworker would probably fancy it up quite a bit but that's not my style. I prefer things as basic as possible when I build them, to lessen the chance of mistakes. If you would like more info on this type of trailer, start with Teardrops and Tiny Travel Trailers. Their forum is filled with a great group of people (and 2 or 3 cantankerous old bahstids) who can answer any questions you might possibly have after reading all the posts. They also have free plans (free is always good) for building this type of trailer.

3.Last but definitely not least, I need to try to get my weight back under control. Over the last 3 to 4 years I have picked up a few extra pounds here and there. In my prime, I stood 6 foot 6 inches tall and felt best at about 220 pounds. After the arthritis hit, due to my legs not straightening out all the way, I now stand about 6 foot 4 inches. Also, due to a lack of exercise, which is due to a lack of mobility, I now weigh about 240 pounds. I need to get back down to at least 220 pounds, and 210 would probably be even better, so I need to lose between 20 and 30 pounds. I don't believe in fad diets, or the need for diet pills (in my case). I think I can lose weight by eating 3 to 4 small meals a day, with each meal consisting of a small portion of protein and a portion of vegetables. The first meal of the day will also have a small carbohydrate component for quick energy. My thought are portion control, less carbs and staying away from junk food should allow me to lose about 1 pound a week. I guess we'll see. I'm also looking for some form of low impact exercise to do, to see if it helps.

To all of you that make New Year's resolutions, good luck.

Holiday Wishes

2007-12-31T11:18:00.000-06:00

For my liberal friends (both of you):

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. We also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the of the generally accepted calendar year 2007, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere. And without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishes. By accepting these greetings you are accepting these terms. This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for herself or himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.

And for my conservative, right wing, gun nut, meat eating friends (all the rest of you):

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Stolen from "Fat Hairy Bastard" 'cause his version is better than the version I stole from someone else.

Why women live longer than men

2007-12-30T21:13:00.000-06:00

Sorta sorry I missed this party.
Cheerfully stolen from the "Grouchy Old Cripple".

Christmas travel redeaux

2007-12-29T21:55:00.000-06:00

Well, we made it home ok. Traffic in big city wasn't bad because all the idjits were on I-40 with me. Man I hate drivers that don't pay attention to what they're doing. So, to all you jerks who were eating, talking on the phone, arguing, or even possibly, for all I know, getting stoned, while incidentally doing 70 - 80 mph while sharing the road with me, apply oral suction to my sphincter.

Christmas travel

2007-12-28T20:39:00.000-06:00

Well, I guess Christmas travel isn't over for me. I went over to my mother's house to do some "honeydo's" for her, and she reminded me we had one last family Christmas gathering to attend. My older brother is having his family Christmas get together tomorrow in the big city, and we are expected to attend.
Now, my mother rarely drives, so I proudly chauffeur her most places she needs to go. We usually take her Lincoln Town Car (a boat only slightly smaller than the Queen Elizabeth II ocean liner) because it is a little more comfortable for her than my Jeep. I don't usually mind driving that great white whale in rural or small town Oklahoma, but now I have to drive it in the big city again.
I drove truck for eight and one half years and over one million miles accident free all over the United States so I don't believe it to be a lack of skill or confidence on my part, but every time that car gets near big city, someone tries to run into it. I've successfully avoided them for over two years but I have a bad feeling about tomorrow. If anyone reads this, a little prayer said for some divine intervention would be nice.

snow

2007-12-28T11:06:00.000-06:00

Last night we had the fourth snow of the year here in Oklahoma, for a total of about 5 or 6 inches of snow and winter just started a few days ago. Will someone tell me what is going on? Historically, we have ~2 ice storms and ~2 snowfalls per season. Now I'm not complaining about the lack of ice, but small towns in Oklahoma aren't really equipped for snow removal, so if this is the beginning of a new weather pattern and I need to buy snow tires I wish someone would let me know.