Being Bi-Polar Sucks

Chess is as elaborate a waste of human intelligence as you can find outside an advertising agency. ~ Raymond Chandler

Andy went "home" today. Yes, that home away from home, also known as college.

It was very traumatic, which is odd considering it's his second semester and all. Alas, there was lots of drama, maybe even a few tears.

Not by Andy.

Nor by any of his siblings.

Momma didn't even shed a tear. As an aside, she did want to kick my posterior, in a big way. Can't say that I blame her, I was being a bad boy.

Yes, you guessed it, I became an emotional wreck.

Not because of Andy going back to school, no we're kind of enjoying the extra space. I kid, because I care.

No, because my Christmas present, the one that I had so thoughtfully worked into getting, was going back to school with Andy. Sure, I don't use it that much, actually, I can't remember using it at all while Andy was away on his 'J' term. It just sat there, minding it's own business.

Oh, it also killed my DVR, but I digress.

So maybe I should be thanking Andy for giving it a better home, after all, he did use it the most. I finally did relax and realize the truth of the matter, but I probably could have handled it a little better, especially since Andy was also borrowing a few things that I wasn't expecting.

They would have been useless now anyway, so I should have realized that as well.

I'm thinking that maybe I might have missed taking a pill today, but hate blaming my moods on that, no matter how factual the evidence is on the matter.

I guess I will just have to live without it's company, which is good for me to realize, especially since it's 150 miles away and all, however, I will try to remember the good times that we shared in the month that we had together.

I will miss you, but you are in good hands.

Live well and free, dear PS3.

What?

Did you expect it to be something really important?

Ship Sinking Standards Set Soon

Critics search for ages for the wrong word, which, to give them credit, they eventually find. ~ Peter Ustinov

You know that you are having a bad week when you have a great idea of something to write down, one that came to your mind when you saw the quote above, and one that disappeared just as quickly.

So now what?

I could apologize for boring the snot out of you, but that would just not be my style.

Well, maybe.

I could talk about the beloved Blackhawks of Chicago, but they didn't have a very good night tonight. Actually Cam Ward had a GREAT night in goal for the Hurricanes of Carolina.

Are there actually a lot of hurricanes that hit South Carolina? Just curious, but I don't think that they get nailed nearly as much as say, Florida, or Texas. Those states seem to attract them for some reason.

There is the news of the day that I can report on, except for the fact that I really don't pay any attention to the news when it's a weekend. That's right, if you want to catch me completely unawares, then do something over a weekend, because I won't read about it until Monday. And that's only if it's a big story.

I can reiterate the fact that I really did enjoy the movie Inglorious Basterds last night, although it wasn't nearly as gory/bloody as one would think a Quentin Tarantino movie would be. Probably why there are some snarky comments about it. Oh well, what are you gonna do.

Everyone's a critic.

* By the way, the title doesn't make any sense to me either.

Killing Nazis

Finally saw this tonight, very good movie. A bit on the gory side, but what Tarantino movie isn't?

Actually, it's still on, so I'll see y'all later.

Thursday Turkeys

Two confirmed bachelors sat talking, their conversation drifted from politics to cooking.

“I got a cookbook once,” said one, “but I could never do anything with it.”

“Too much fancy work in it, eh?” asked the other.

“You said it. Every one of the recipes began the same way – Take a clean dish.”

*****

Mr. Johnson was overweight, so his doctor put him on a diet.

He said; “I want you to eat regularly for two days, then skip a day, and repeat this procedure for two weeks. The next time I see you, you should have lost at least five pounds.”

When Mr. Johnson returned, he shocked the doctor by having dropped almost twenty pounds.

“Why, that’s amazing!” the doctor told him. “You did this just by following my instructions?”

The slimmed down Mr. Johnson nodded. “I’ll tell you, though, I though I was going to drop dead that third day.”

“From hunger, you mean.”

“No,” replied Mr. Johnson, “from skipping.”

*****

An Englishman took a business trip to New York.

When he arrived, the hotel clerk asked him a riddle. "My mom and dad had a baby. It wasn't my brother. It wasn't my sister. Who was it?"

The Englishman thought long and hard, but eventually gave up. "I don't know who was it?"

The hotel clerk responded, "It was me!"

The Englishman thought that was hilarious. He couldn't wait to get home and tell this funny joke to his family and friends in England.

When he arrived home they met him at the airport and he asked them: "My mom and dad had a baby. It wasn't my brother. It wasn't my sister. Who was it?"

His friends thought and thought about it until they gave up.

So he told them, "It was a hotel clerk I met in New York."

*****

Hope you enjoyed this little break in the insanity, regularly scheduled blogging will commence once again tomorrow.

Three Months Until...

They return!

Ten Again

I look to the future because that's where I'm going to spend the rest of my life. ~ George Burns

While growing up, I always wanted to go to space and live in a simply awesome spaceship, of my own design.

It was awesome, let me tell you. I even built a model of it in my back yard and had hours of fun imagining places to visit and species to see. It had everything one could ever need while in space, an agriculture deck, several in fact. I had at least two levels dedicated to growing crops, of all kinds - even the stuff I didn't like. Then there were the two decks of animals, mostly sheep, cows, chickens, you know all the ones you could get food from, and clothing.

No horses though, I mean that would be silly.

Speaking of silly, why did I have so many decks dedicated to food, I mean I could have saved space by creating pills that gave you all your nutrients, etc. Of course, as a ten-year old, who wants to live on pills alone, especially when you can have a steak instead?

Maybe my ten-year old self was onto something.

Don't talk to me about the whole slaughter/rendering aspect, I don't like thinking of that now, so I 'm pretty sure that I wouldn't have thought about it back then.

I had an exercise deck, gotta stay in shape ya know? We're talking Olympic-sized swimming pools, that's right I had more than one, and every piece of exercise equipment known to man, heck even some that were unknown I bet.

Should have thought of a pill for that as well.

The theater was an IMAX-type, with 100 foot screens, tall and wide, actually it was probably more like 150 feet wide. There were personal quarters for everyone on board, along with science stations and other things that I though was important that I can't recall. Pretty sure I had a wicked weapons system, for self-defense, of course.

Those were the days.

Now all I do is read about them, and wonder what happened to that ten-year old's dream. Worse than that though, in my opinion, is that I don't think that many ten-year olds have those same dreams nowadays because of Nintendo, Playstation, and Xbox. Not to mention the hundreds of television channels with nothing on, or worse, shows that tell kids what to think instead of allowing them to come up with their own ideas. Kind of sad now that I think of it.

I kinda miss that ten-year old.

Memorable Monday, Not Really

The secret of a good memory is attention, and attention to a subject depends upon our interest in it. We rarely forget that which has made a deep impression on our minds. ~ Tryon Edwards

Have you ever had one of those days where you don't even recall doing one thing?

That was today for me.

I need to start taking that Ginkgo stuff.

The only thing that I am recalling at the moment is the movie Pirates of the Caribbean, and that's only because it is on at the moment. What a fun movie that is, it has all the good stuff, sword fights, damsels in distress, and ghosts.

What's not to like?

Of course, with that being the only thing I can remember from today, well... this might prove to be rather dull.

Unless I talk about the movie that is.

When I'm Wrong

Sorry, no pictures this week. I'm sure we took some, but they are still in the camera and I'm too lazy to get them. So...


Guess what?


I was wrong tonight. Yep, me, wrong.


Worst part, I was wrong about my beloved Denver Broncos .


Gasp!


Yep, I was thinking that David Treadwell was the barefoot kicker for the Broncos, it turns out that it was actually Rich Karlis .


Crap.


Oh, and there were witnesses as well, so now my Broncos card might have to be revoked. So please don't tell anyone, okay?


*****
We have the Indianapolis Colts against the New Orleans Saints playing in the Super Bowl this year.

Who are you picking to win?

Will you even be watching it?

I'm an AFC guy, so I think I might pull for the Colts, but the Saints going to their first Super Bowl would make a pretty nice story, if they were to win. So check back later, and I might have my mind made up by then.

Go Broncos!! (just thought I would throw that in)

*****

Arizona really was a gas...




Night all!

Original Six!

My town is getting more and more fascinated with these guys. All I have to say is; "What took you so long?"

How can you not get excited after that? They play it before every home game, and believe me it's awesome in person.

This guy is awesome, and we have him signed up for the next several years...

And of course, every Blackhawks fan knows these two words...

Enjoy the game, I know I will.

A Whole Lot Of Friday Going On

By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong. ~ Charles Wadsworth

I don't really have anything to say tonight, so we'll go with an anything goes kind of approach, if you don't mind.

*****

Andy's home for a week, so that means my television has been taken over by violent movies and lots of bloodshed. Ah to be young and innocent again. Although I do enjoy watching some of his movies, I suspect that I will be going to bed sooner than later.

*****

Let's play a game, shall we? How many times does the "F-bomb" get spoken aloud in the movie 'The Departed' - any guesses? Can you count that high?

*****

Enjoy some soccer

*****

Friday's Phobia...

Eleutherophobia - Fear of freedom. (That would be a socialists biggest fear, I imagine)

*****

Tootles!

If You Don't Like It, Move To Canada Or Something

More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly. ~Woody Allen

So with Scott Brown winning the election in Massachusetts, there seems to be a lot of despair in the world. I wonder why that is?

On one hand you have a society that is, obviously, unhappy with the way the country is going. So, they vote for a change, that change would be for the Congress (that would be both the House and the Senate) to go back to the drawing board and come up with a plan that will not only benefit the citizens of the United States, but also not bankrupt the country.

On the other hand, you have people complaining about how their children will never get medical insurance because of some pre-existing condition, or because of some fallacy that says there are anywhere from 12 million to 45 million people uninsured in this country that will die without medical insurance. Oh, and of that number there is anywhere from 8 to 30 million people that would benefit and not actually have to be citizens of this country.

That's a bunch of hooey!

First off, if we did have government provided health care guess which people are hurt the most, first. Yep, those special cases where there isn't a cure, so why should the government waste anymore tax dollars trying to cure an incurable disease. As opposed to the current system where there are thousands of doctors and scientists that are working on cures for everything from a common cold to pancreatic cancer.

Which would you rather have, a government run health care system that will exclude people that have, let's say pancreatic cancer, which is incurable. Or a free-market system that would allow scientists to work freely trying to find that cure?

Second, which country has better health care? Canada or the United States? England maybe? How about Australia? Here's a better question for you; which country has the best health care in the world? Which country do citizens from other countries come to for the best health care in the world?

The answer is easy, and it is the same. That would be the United States of America. And contrary to what President Obama says, we do have the absolute, hands-down, best health care in the world. Period. If you think I am wrong, please give me examples, so that I can be more educated on the system that you say is better than that of the United States.

Of course, you don't have to believe me, after all I am just a simple man with a simple blog. There is something that you can do though, if you don't like the system, you can move to a country whose system you do like.

Don't be surprised though, when come back to the good old U.S. of A.

Wacky Wednesday

A collection...

I'm Going To Be More Annoying Than Ever!!

so says this...



Final Season Of 'Lost' Promises To Make Fans More Annoying Than Ever

February 2 is only 13 days away....

Blackhawks and Senators

But in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes. ~Benjamin Franklin

They used to say a Republican couldn't win a Senate seat in Massachusetts, either.

That is no longer the case, and now 2010 will turn into a very interesting year in politics, stay tuned.

*****

Let's talk about hockey, as in the National Hockey League, as in I live in a town that has the BEST team in the National Hockey League. That's right, I'm talking about the Chicago Blackhawks, who not only have the best record in the NHL, but also the best uniforms. Lately, they cannot be beat either. Awesome!

What's that?

Uh, you said they lost tonight?

To a team from Ottawa?

What state is that in?

Canada?! That's not a state!

Oh, Ottawa is in Canada, okay I get you now. My mistake.

Apparently, they can be beat on occasion, carry on now.

*****

I bet you didn't know this, but I almost wrote "My bad," instead of "My mistake," up there. My conscience at work likes to point out that "My bad" is just poor English, and I tend to agree, so I will try not use that anymore. Now if I can get my boss to quit saying irregardless.

*****

Did I mention that Scott Brown won in Massachusetts? That's about as crazy as the Blackhawks losing to the Senators.

Maybe.

Monday Madness!

Money can't buy happiness, but neither can poverty. ~ Leo Rosten

Money, the root of all evil. I think I read that somewhere once, or maybe it was pizza. Oh well. I tried, so now we will have to try something different...

About the time we think we can make ends meet, somebody moves the ends. ~Herbert Hoover

Back to evil here. What the heck, I don't want to talk about money, yet the quotes very clearly denote money, or something like that.

How about this, there is this song and keeps going on in my head, so I will post the video for it here with the hopes that it will leave. Your ear worm for the day is...

You're welcome!

*****

Did I mention that I finished my second book of the year already? Pretty awesome. It was Michael Crichton's last, well I am assuming it was his last because he was already dead when they found the completed manuscript in his computer. So, unless he has an external hard drive that they haven't found yet with more of his books, I will have to stick with it being his last.

*****

Saw this, at A Wink and a Smile, and thought that I would share it. Good advice for the young girls in our lives as a reminder that they are all beautiful and to wait for someone to come along that will take the time to get to know you. It's good stuff, so go check it out.

*****

By the way, I love this...(up there). That image is going to be on 1000 NYC subways, as a way of encouraging people to seek God.

*****

That's it for tonight, good night!

Sunday Shots #10

Make a family edition ...

Take a scrappy young lad...

Add a beautiful young woman ...

Get all fancy-dressed ...

Add lots of cute kids, numbers 6 and 7...

Cat is extra, especially if you want him to do something. :)

Hope your Sunday was great!

The Last Colony - a review

Well let me get a few things straight; I am not a professional reviewer, however, I would like to play one on this blog. My reviews will not give away any key points, I hope, just read them with caution. This is my first, so please be gentle with me, as I am a simple man that just writes what he thinks, and in this case it is books that I have read (starting in 2010). So, are we ready? Then let's get on with it.

The Last Colony by John Scalzi is the third book in his Old Man's War trilogy (Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades) and satisfies the readers of the series, with an ending, yet you can always go back as well. He has a fourth book from that series called Zoe's Tale, which gives you a version of The Last Colony from a different perspective. I haven't read it yet, but I am sure that I will by year's end.

Even with seven children and a full-time job, I was able to read this novel in about a week's time. The pages just kept turning and kept me entertained all the way through. This goes for the first two books in the series as well. I have encouraged two additional people, at work, to read them and they too have thoroughly enjoyed them.

What more do you need, right?

Okay, a little more. These books are science fiction, and have decent science in them. I love when that happens! The whole series is an interesting concept, and actually made me want to have this happen when I turned seventy-five. Oops, I started delving into the first book of the series there.

John Perry and Jane Sagan have retired with their adopted daughter Zoe to the planet of Huckleberry, where John is the ombudsman and Jane is the law. Before you know it, their lives are turned upside down when they are chosen to lead a new colony of colonists to a new world. Problem is, no one wants them to do it and they don't find this out until it's too late.

What follows is a great story of how people can come together to defeat a common enemy. Lots of action, and best of all, humor through the entire book. Heck, the whole series is great and I would give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Basically, in this reader's opinion, I recommend that you go out and purchase it today, especially if you like to laugh and read science fiction. You will not be disappointed. In fact, click on the links and buy them now, you won't regret it.

Happy reading!

Good Night for a Lock-In

It is not bigotry to be certain we are right; but it is bigotry to be unable to imagine how we might possibly have gone wrong. ~G.K. Chesterton

So what happens when you get 20 girls, 11 moms and 1 dad together for an overnighter at church?

You get one very tired blogger.

Thank goodness, I have good old Chesterton up there to add some intelligence to whatever this post turns out to be.

We had a lock-in at the church for the AHG (American Heritage Girls) troop last night and it turned out to be a great time. Both Katie and Maggie went - Jessie had her own little overnight retreat at a different church. We saw a couple of movies, of which, I can only remember the title of one; "The First of May" a lovely family movie that I would highly recommend. I love the tag line for the movie...

An unwanted boy and a forgotten old lady find running away to join the circus is really coming home.

Like I said, I would highly recommend it.

I think the other movie was called "The Impossible Elephant" or something like that. Another sweet family movie that I would also recommend.

During the movies, I made popcorn and the girls made a mess. After the movies, it was bedtime and the girls all went to sleep - well all the girls that weren't sleeping together in a big room without adult supervision did at least. What are you gonna do? All I know is that when the air horn that sounded like a fire alarm went off at six in the AM, I didn't appreciate the humor of it.

Today, after everyone got up, we had breakfast cooked by the girls that didn't sleep.

It was just like you imagine it would be.

The girls went sledding, played games and had a great time playing together and even took in a little class time learning about how to do a "vet check" for your pet. They used their stuffed animals - too cute. We wrapped up the day with mass.

Overall, it was a great time and I even read 120 pages, or so, of the latest Michael Crichton novel. I will definitely have two books read in January - which reminds me, I should work on reviewing them. (excuse my mental note there.)

To top off the evening, we went to dinner with some old friends and Timmy. It was a lot of fun, and has been too long since our last get together. Hopefully, we can start meeting up more regularly once again. Time will tell.

Okay, that's it for me, I have to pick up Benjy and then sleep in my own bed - Ahhhh.

KC or Bust!

Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth, but supreme beauty - a beauty cold and austere, like that of sculpture. - Bertrand Russell

I have a confession to make.

I have not always been the model of safe driving.

Shocked you are, no doubt. Let me share ...

(cue way back machine music)

Back in the summer of 1984, my buddies Ken and Brian and I thought it would be a good time to drive to Kansas City and spend a week out there with Brian's Uncle. We would drive interstate 70 west from Denver to Kansas City, Kansas or maybe it was Missouri. Either way, we decided that this would be one of those great bonding times for us best friends and didn't even think about the fact that we were three teens (17, 17 and 16) driving across two complete states; without parental supervision.

Yeah, we were cool like that.

The plan was for us to take Brian's baby, his 1969 black fastback Mustang - with a 351 Windsor under the hood. (That is about all I know about that car, and maybe the fact that it's not very comfortable to drive across two states, but I digress). The three of us would each take turns driving, and just having a grand old time.

First problem, Ken didn't know how to drive a manual transmission.

Okay, so Brian and I will drive across two states, no biggie. We were young and we knew that we could handle it.

Second problem, Colorado east of the Rockies is nothing but flat, boring prairie, and the entire state of Kansas is the same way. Driving across boring plains is well, boring, and can easily cause one to "doze off" while driving. So, we planned on switching every two to three hours, or whenever we stopped for gas. Makes sense, sounds logical right?

Fate can be a fickle little friend, or maybe that's fiend.

Now what it was that came over us to do the following is still up for debate, and who knows, maybe someday we will find the answer. Although it has been 26 years since, so I'm not expecting any new revelations to come across my conscious any time soon.

We were cruising along the highway, minding our own business, when some (expletive deleted) decided to play games, by riding our tail, passing us, and then slowing down. You have all experienced that kind of friendly driver, no doubt. I, of course, was driving and whining about the jerk, so Brian finally tells me to just go ahead an gun it. I mean we had a 351 Windsor in a muscle car that was made for these kinds of things, right.

Sure.

Problem was, I had never really driven anything that fast, and it wasn't my car, so I got nervous. However, we did have a deadline to meet and didn't feel like pulling over to switch drivers, so Brian could be responsible for his car, and our lives (like I said, we didn't think as clearly as we do now, back then). So we decided that the best course of action would be for us to switch places.

Yes, I said switch places.

While driving.

At 95MPH.

The plan was simple, Ken would hold the steering wheel, from the back seat, while Brian and I would switch seats. Oh, and we simply had to maintain our speed - didn't want the long forgotten four cylinder car that we smoked to get the satisfaction of catching up to us.

No, we didn't even consider the fact that we could have easily pulled over and switched seats and still been ahead of the other car, that would be just plain silly.

Back to the plan, I would maintain my foot on the gas pedal (to the metal) and crawl under Brian to the passenger seat. First up, switch to having my left foot on the gas pedal, while swinging my right foot/leg over to the passenger seat. I think I might have still had a little hold on the steering wheel at this point, but shortly our lives would be in Ken's capable hands. I will have you know, that the plan was working, perfectly, with the only flaw being when either Brian or I hit Ken's arm (the one steering), which made us all see our lives flash before our eyes, along with the cars on the right, and the shrubs, grass, I think there was a cow...

Obviously, we survived, but that was the absolute dumbest thing that I have ever done, in my entire life and I would not recommend anyone trying it.ever.

Funny thing, after having our lives flash before our eyes, we no longer cared about the dude in the car that we were trying to shake, and pulled over at the next exit to take a well-needed break from all the "action."

Again, the tortoise beat the hare by being slow and steady.



I have no idea why the quote mentioned above brought this story to my mind, but it did. Now you should try the same thing, go and find a quotation to use and see what comes from it. You will probably be amazed at what it inspires.

Or confused.

I should try and find the picture that we took before our trip with the sign that I got the title from. Remind me sometime to share our experience, from the same trip, while in Wichita. An incident, by the way, that we consider to be way more scary than the one mentioned above.

Also, I cannot imagine letting my kids do the same thing today (not the driver switching, the traveling with friends alone), it's a crazier world today, even with the invention of cell phones. Too many crazy people out there.

If You Read This...

Then you must comment.

 

No seriously, it's national delurker day, which means that even if you just want to say "HI!"

 

There is even some fancy artwork associated with it all. But you will have to go here, or here to see it, because I'm lame like that and can't get the picture to load on this email. D'oh!

 

Have a Happy De-lurking day and go visit some blogs, won't ya!

 

Roger

Wayback Wordless Wednesday!

I don't think anyone should write their autobiography

until after they're dead. ~ Samuel Goldwyn

*That's me, at 8 months

American Idol - Live Blog

Sort of.

Opens with the news that Paula will not be on the show this year...

First girl practiced in front of the video game, and since the game liked her she figured that the real judges would like her as well.

Um, no.

Next up, is a 16 year old girl with an adopted brother that has Downs Syndrome. I'm liking her voice and so far the judges are liking her. Simon says "Unlike most 16 year olds that come in here, you are not annoying." Too funny, yet so true.

Off to Hollywood for her! Yay!

Now we are seeing a montage of some really annoying and bad singers, oh and they can't dance either. Ugh! I'm missing NCIS for this?

Whoa! Randy just told the kid to "Stop singing forever." Is this the newer, harsher Randy?

By noon, only the girls had made it through... Commercial time!

Oh, I forgot to mention that we are in Boston. Oh and "Posh Spice" is the guest judge tonight.

Now comes a 28 year old dude, that has a large family, that enjoys eating. He has a really strong voice and the judges like him, so it's hooray for Hollywood! Simon even said he was the best that he had heard "today."

Now we have Mr. Long Hair that said he "gradutated" to music. Seriously, he said that. He looks like a blond Jesus, if you can excuse the blasphemy I just spoke/wrote. The judges are laughing - never a good sign.

He's gone!

Montage of "no's" now. So sad. Lots of tears.

Ooh, nice tease. Looks like we have ourselves a psycho coming up.

Before that we have someone that thinks she can sing Janis Joplin. Dude, not a chance. Maybe if I stepped on my cat I could emulate the sound coming out of her. It was brutal, and if she paid 14 years for that performance - she should ask for her money back.

Now the guys are singing much better.

Oh my goodness, this guy just doesn't get it. He's very arrogant and is getting annoyed by the constant questioning, blah, blah, blah. Oh, he can't sing very well either. I take it back, his voice is okay, but he has no rhythm. He's very impatient, and he seems to be shocked that people are calling him out on his "anger" and "aggressiveness." He says that he was trying to look confident. Everyone says no, except Paula Simon!

Kara just said that he should be spanked.

Here come the commercials ... and the "inspiring" stories.

Bedtime for Danny ... be back soon.

Just caught the end of an act, that Simon says is "it" - isn't that the curse of American Idol, we'll see in five months, I guess.

Next up, the drummer that fell out of a tree and broke both of his arms. Bad news for the drumming career. Good thing he can sing, not sure how Simon and Randy liked him, but the girls really liked him. I mean embarrassingly so. He's off to Hollywood!

Just thought I would mention that having a DVR during this show is awesome! We can skip through the commercials, which are full of a lot of political ads. What fun, watching the politicians lie.

Missed a bunch due to parental duties, and maybe a game or twenty of poker on Facebook.

Actually, I didn't really miss much, since I can just rewind the DVR, but I shall not do that because there wasn't really anything to say other than Kara was swooning over a couple of dudes and Simon was mean to a Michael Jackson wannabe.

Bye bye Boston, tomorrow is Atlanta - I pray that I have something else to do. Unless, of course this is widely viewed and I become a super popular snarky voice on the Internet.

Whatever!

Pierce Brosnan Did What?

I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be
left to the politicians. ~ Charles De Gaulle

I started writing about the senate majority leader, but then figured that it wasn't worth it.

That and TMZ is on the TV and the remote is waaaaaay over there, so I have to listen to it. Apparently life on the east and west coast is all whacked out. I mean, why do I care that Zac Efron's Audi A5 peeled into Vanessa Hudgens' garage?

Seriously.

What is wrong with us that we are obsessed by these stars that if they didn't have a script, wouldn't have a clue? What is wrong with the fact that I can't move my lazy butt over to either turn the television off, or change the channel?

Oh, that's right, so I could see Pierce Brosnan walk through an airport.

Okay, my snark is over and I must go to bed.

But first, if Trent Lott is a racist, then so is Harry Reid.

There, I said it.

Let's fire them ALL!

Sunday Shots #9

A little bit of this, a little bit of that edition.

Nana and her two youngest grandchildren.

Maggie showing off her new purse, from her birthday (Nov 2)

Maybe this should be the finding old pictures to post edition.

If all my children go to Loras, by the time Timmy is there, he should be able to go for free, right?

"I just know that my ball is up here"

"Ages three and up, it says it clearly on the box three and up!"

Jessie and her aunt Jenni (and a counter of booze. )

Our attempt at a picture of all the grandchildren, minus Alli who couldn't make the trip this year. At least this one has everyone looking at the camera.

(from the left; Anna, Jessie, Maggie, Andy, Danny, Benjy, Katie, Timmy and Jacob)

That's it for this edition. Hope your day is swell!

That's One Creepy Doll

The scientists of today think deeply instead of clearly. One must be sane to think clearly, but one can think deeply and be quite insane. ~ Nikola Tesla

So the Christmas season has come to an end here and we have a strange new echo in the house. I also am at the beginning of the worst time of the year for me, personally, and for many others. You know what I mean, Christmas decorations put away, snow on the ground, cold temperatures and grey skies.

Yep, it must mean that my beloved Denver Broncos are done playing for the year.

What? Did you think I was going to go on and on about my mental condition? Shoot, I have plenty of time for that - stay tuned. I actually was looking forward to tomorrow, about five weeks ago. That was because the Broncos were in charge of their destiny, playoff-wise, but no, they had to throw a huge monkey wrench into my plans and lose to the Raiders (expletives deleted Raiders!) and Chiefs, at home.

Ridiculous.

So, instead of me talking smack about the Patriots and how we OWNED them earlier in the season, I have to talk about how the Broncos, once again, decided to break millions of hearts across the country - not to mention in Denver.

You know what? Life is too short for whining about some silly game that grown men play, right?

Instead, I shall show you something that, literally, just caught mine and Jenni's eye.

Too funny.

Who knew that the post office could be so creepy funny?

Randomness is Good, Right?

The road to hell is paved with adverbs. ~ Stephen King

Ah, Friday.

That's it. Good day.

What? You want more?

Okay, how about a video, that seems to be a lot of fun, so let me pick one at random here and at it...

What's that? You want a little more you say... How about a picture? You know what, I'm gonna pass on the picture right now because Blogger makes it hard, for me at least, to post photos after you have already typed something. Of course, I could post a photo, or two, and you would have already seen them, up there, and just caption them down here. Something like this ...

Timmy is surprised that his dad is writing this description here, when the picture, up there, really doesn't need one, go ahead, go back and look at it. Okay?

Back to real time and a Friday Phobia (y'all missed this didn't you? It's okay, you can tell me, it's just you and me).

Cremnophobia - Fear of Precipices

Okay, what exactly is there to fear from a precipice? Seriously, I have absolutely no idea. Let's go check out the definition of precipice, shall we?

precipice [ˈprɛsɪpɪs]

n

1. (Earth Sciences / Physical Geography)

a. the steep sheer face of a cliff or crag

b. the cliff or crag itself

2. a precarious situation

[from Latin praecipitium steep place, from praeceps headlong]

Okay, I can see it now, except maybe this should be the fear of falling from a precipice, no?

Hey, something happened. There is most definitely something strange going on here, so it must be time for something completely different,

Have a great weekend everyone, we'll see you tomorrow.

I Wonder What I Should Title This?

There are two ways to pass a hurdle: leaping over or plowing through... There needs to be a monster truck option. - Jeph Jacgues

So have you heard? My company got sold.

Well, actually, acquired, whatever that means.

It means that we will now have to deal with six months to a year of aggravation, segregation, alienation, procrastination, and any other 'nation' you can think of.

Will we still have our jobs?

Will we be relocating to another site?

Will I still be able to spend that month in Malta?

Okay, that last one isn't real, just checking to see if you are paying attention. Anyway, my $55 million company got "acquired" by a $39 million company that we were told, fairly recently, was going bankrupt and out of business because of the way they are being run. To top that off, the president of the acquiring company will be in charge of the us acquiree's. (I know that isn't a word, thankyouverymuch Mr. spell check).

Makes sense so far, right? Now get this...

The current president of our company, who just two months ago told us about the "evils and bad company management" of the acquiring company, now tells me to put all that information into a file, and shred it.

What the (expletive deleted)?

Seriously, does he think that we are all that STUPID?

Apparently, some of us are, because they all had Kool-Aid stains all over their shirts.

Don't get me wrong, I am all for the merger, because we are actually being bought by a much larger ($12 Billion) company, with lots of opportunities. What I don't like is how it appears that we are being "sold down the river" by these rich people getting richer at the expense of us non-rich people.

Oh yeah, I may be conservative, but it doesn't mean I am all for everything corporate. Nor, for that matter (notice my tangent...) am I a racist because I don't like how the president is selling our country down the river, by saying "(expletive deleted) Constitution, who needs this (expletive deleted) old piece of paper anyway?" Um, it's what made you president moron.

Back to my original rant...

Where was I? Oh yeah, the merger. So, we have a question and answer session, where I did bring up the issue above - the look on the CEO's face was priceless since he knew that I knew it was him bad mouthing the new guys. Benefits of a small company. I should point out that our company president and CEO are one and the same, in case I confused anyone. He was brought in to make the company "sell-able" and did his job, it's what he is good at.

The questions that were asked got answered, sort of, because you know they can't tell us "everything." What fun would that be.

By the way, on a completely different subject... ROLL TIDE! (currently they are winning 24-6 with 5:34 left in the third).

Six Months

Psalm 37

Just felt like sharing this beautiful Psalm today, enjoy...

Of David. Do not be provoked by evildoers; do not envy those who do wrong.

Like grass they wither quickly; like green plants they wilt away.

Trust in the LORD and do good that you may dwell in the land and live secure.

Find your delight in the LORD who will give you your heart's desire.

Commit your way to the LORD; trust that God will act

And make your integrity shine like the dawn, your vindication like noonday.

Be still before the LORD; wait for God. Do not be provoked by the prosperous,

nor by malicious schemers.

Give up your anger, abandon your wrath; do not be provoked; it brings only harm.

Those who do evil will be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD will possess the land.

Wait a little, and the wicked will be no more; look for them and they will not be there.

But the poor will possess the land, will delight in great prosperity.

The wicked plot against the just and grind their teeth at them;

But the LORD laughs at them, knowing their day is coming.

The wicked draw their swords; they string their bows To fell the poor and oppressed,

to slaughter those whose way is honest.

Their swords will pierce their own hearts; their bows will be broken.

Better the poverty of the just than the great wealth of the wicked.

The arms of the wicked will be broken; the LORD will sustain the just.

The LORD watches over the days of the blameless; their heritage lasts forever.

They will not be disgraced when times are hard; in days of famine they will have plenty.

The wicked perish, the enemies of the LORD; Like the beauty of meadows they vanish;

like smoke they disappear.

The wicked borrow but do not repay; the just are generous in giving.

For those blessed by the Lord will possess the land, but those accursed will be cut off.

Those whose steps are guided by the LORD; whose way God approves,

May stumble, but they will never fall, for the LORD holds their hand.

Neither in my youth, nor now in old age have I ever seen the just abandoned

or their children begging bread.

The just always lend generously, and their children become a blessing.

Turn from evil and do good, that you may inhabit the land forever.

For the LORD loves justice and does not abandon the faithful. When the unjust are destroyed, and the children of the wicked cut off.

The just will possess the land and live in it forever.

The mouths of the just utter wisdom; their tongues speak what is right.

God's teaching is in their hearts; their steps do not falter.

The wicked spy on the just and seek to kill them.

But the LORD does not leave the just in their power, nor let them be condemned when tried.

Wait eagerly for the LORD, and keep to the way; God will raise you to possess the land; you will gloat when the wicked are cut off.

I have seen ruthless scoundrels, strong as flourishing cedars.

When I passed by again, they were gone; though I searched, they could not be found.

Observe the honest, mark the upright; those at peace with God have a future.

But all sinners will be destroyed; the future of the wicked will be cut off.

The salvation of the just is from the LORD, their refuge in time of distress.

The LORD helps and rescues them, rescues and saves them from the wicked, because in God they take refuge.

Doctor Who-ville

Not only is the universe stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine. ~ Sir Arthur Eddington

I don't believe that Artie up there ever saw episodes of Doctor Who then.

Don't get me wrong, I loves me some Doctor Who, and thanks to the 'world's greatest invention' the DVR, I am catching up on the end of David Tennant's reign as "The Doctor."

Here's a bit of the history, for those of you not in the know...

and finally, here's the "new" guy...

Jury is still out on him though.

Sunday Shots #8

New Year's Eve version.

Angels we have heard on high...

Strike a pose!

Someone is sucking up to Mom.

March of the Penguins

Reaching for the New Year!

Hope everyone had a great New Year's Eve, and I wish you all the best in 2010!

*All creative looking goodies were brought to you by Jenni.