Travel Day

I like to travel, really I do.

I don't think I like airports though, I mean I used to, but not anymore. I think.

Maybe it's because I have been coming back to the same airport over and again and again for the past two months, I don't know. It just seems like a broken record whenever I come here.

I leave for the airport in plenty of time - insuring that I have just enough fuel to get me back to the rental return. Yes, I pre-purchase the fuel, and if you ever come to the Dallas Fort Worth area, I recommend you do too, because I have found the price I pay for fuel is at least sixty-five cents less per gallon, which is a lot in my opinion. I get to the airport in plenty of time - I had always heard to be there at least two to three hours before your flight, so I make sure that I am at least that early. Dropping off the car is a breeze - thank you Enterprise.

Riding the bus to the airport from the rental car center is likewise a breeze, very efficient operation they have here, honest.Checking my bags is a piece of cake, in fact the past three trips I had just left my bag here since I was coming back anyway and I didn't want to pay for the honor of having the airline bring my luggage along for the ride. By the way, I love how the TSA gives me a placard stating that they are not responsible for anything being broken in my bag, or the bag itself, even if they are the ones responsible.

Now for my only complaint here at the airport - the security line, especially at Terminal E the one responsible for gates E31-E38. Dudes and dudettes, when the line is stretching all the way back to the ticket counters, believe me this is a long line, maybe you ought to open up all your scanners and have more than one person check people in. Every single time I have been here, I have had a minimum wait of 32 minutes.

Yeah, I was clock watching.

Oh and this is for all you travelers out there that think you can get to the airport fifteen minutes before your flight, please don't get mad at the ticket agents when they tell you that the doors are closed and that you will need to take an different flight. It's not their fault that you cannot plan accordingly and get yourself there on time.

Coming down from the soapbox now to continue with my tale.

So I get through security and guess what, I have a long wait for my plane. Now some of you may be saying, "But Roger, if you get to the airport later you won't have as long to wait." To that I say, did you read the previous paragraph? If I try to plan on that I will end up stuck in traffic, running into a inconsiderate rental return person, a bus driver that takes me to the wrong terminal, oh and the inevitable, a long line at security. I know that I will have a lot of time to kill, I wasn't complaining about that. In fact, the only complaint I have, and it's really minor when you consider that it is there to protect us travelers, is security.

What can I say, I have first world problems. :)

So now that I have a lot of time to kill, what to do.  Well first I stake out a chair to claim, then I start to read my book, although I get interruptions with all these darn phone games like "Words With Friends" and "Dice With Buddies" - the horror, I know. After a while, my gum starts to taste stale and I feel the need to get a drink - here comes another complaint - wow do they really know how to jack up some prices! Some airports are worse than others, I think you know who you are *cough* O'Hare *cough* and you know what? They can do it, because they have a captive audience, and limited drinking fountains (they either have very low or no water pressure and generally taste like rat vomit (No I don't know what rat vomit tastes like)).

So begins my quest. My quest for something to quench my thirst, preferably something under $1.50. I will walk up and down the terminal twice, sometimes three times, in search of this elusive beverage only to fins out that everyone sells the same drinks at the same price. There's a tip for you, no need to comparison shop when looking for a beverage. So if you are thirsty and don't want to walk for miles, just grab a drink from the first watering hole you find.

After completing my quest, which will almost always include getting something to snack on, because, well it keeps my mind from wandering.

Squirrel!

I head back to my staked out spot, only to find out that it has been taken over by a family of stinky lobsters and their cache of crustacean buddies. I really have no idea why I wrote that, but it will stay because who has time to edit the ramblings of a travelling man, right? Although, for the record, I did have to go back and spell crustacean correctly, so there is that.

All that means, I have to find a new spot. That is when I notice that either my Kindle Fire (love this by the way, please feel free to send me Amazon gift cards anytime) or my cell phone, or worse, both have low batteries. Now DFW does have this going for it, there seem to be plenty outlets of which to charge up all these electronic gizmos that we all love so much. Kudos to them. So I head over to an area that has an available outlet and plop myself down and wait.

And wait.

And wait.

In the meantime I listen and watch people, when I am not reading.

I think I might have a story or two from these observances.

Your time is valuable and I do appreciate you reading through my screed - ha! that's why the blog is called 'A Screed In Time' after all. Funny, I think this might be my first one, and I'm not so sure it even qualifies.

Such is life.

Have a great day and safe travels!

A Rant, of sorts

This is getting to be a bit nuts, I mean here I go and plan everything down to the minute, more or less, okay maybe it is closer to the hour, but still. Here I am with fifty nine minutes left to write my seven hundred and fifty words and I have nothing to say or write about... The Iiowa caucua weas today and wow, did I ever butcher those three words... Iowa caucus was today  - much better, and you know what we found out? That they cannot decide between the ultra social conservative Catholic Rick Santorum, who by the way supported a pro choice candidate over a pro life one which is a big no no in my book, so he will not be getting my vote in the primary (if he is even still around) and the somewhat wishy washy conservative wanna be who is more of a moderate than anything else and who has also flipped on the whole pro life dealy and brought Romney Care to Massachusetts which is just as bad, if not worse than Obama care, Mitt Romney.

*** just because spell check says that I have misspelled some words does not mean that they are misspelled okay? Just saying that some of the words I use are words that others just haven't thought of yet***

Where was I? Oh yeah, Iowa. So what have we learned? Let's see; Rick Perry spent a boatload of money to finish in fifth place out of six candidates that were running in Iowa. Technically there were seven on the ballot but John Huntsman decided to not even try and win the state and is sitting back enjoying some martini's in New Hampshire. Michelle Bachmann will probably start concentrating on her reelection campaign for her seat in the House from Minnesota (she came in sixth by the way). Newt Gingrich didn't do too bad considering that he never really started putting people in the state to help him until about a month ago when he became the candidate du jour. Ron Paul, that crazy Republican, er Libertarian from Texas came in third with about twenty percent of the vote, which is not bad for a crazy old man that claims he isn't a politician even though he has spent nearly thirty years in political office of some shape or form, including the past twenty four years as a congressman from the great state of Texas. I think I have that right, if this is posted and I am wrong and my son Benjy sees it, he will correct me no doubt. He is a huge rEVOLution guy and believes that Ron Paul is the bees knees so to speak. I like his stance on the Fed (a waste of government expenditure), the UN ( a waste in general), but do not agree with him in regards to national defense, in particular our current policy of trying to help keep the peace world wide and bombings those that disagree with us.... wait, I don't really like that either. Maybe that candidate predictor thing that I took was correct and I am a Ron Paul supporter. News to me, but I digress.

Which leads us to our two top dogs in the Iowa caucus, Mr. Santorum - a Catholic that apparently forgot what the Church teaches with regards to the sanctity of life, when it came to supporting a pro choice weasel (Arlen Spector, over a pro life candidate Pat (I think) Toomey - and Mitt Romney the multi millionaire former governor of the fine state of Massachusetts, who said he was pro choice to get elected in the pro choice state and then when it came to the national audience he is now pro life and says that he has always been - oh and he is also a Mormon which I really don't care about, but those crazy evangelicals will I am sure. And you know what? I got so long winded there that I completely forgot where I was going...

Or did I?

That is the point I think. Nothing, absolutely nothing, has been determined here today in the caucus of Iowa. I do believe this though, Mitt Romney will be rolling over every single candidate - including you and your martini's Mr Huntsman - in New Hampshire and will then probably roll to a couple more victories on the way to the ultimate prize on Super Tuesday and he will be the candidate for president of these here United States against the bozo that is there now. And I don't mean to besmirch Bozo the Clown with that comment, because I actually like that clown. Anyway, that's how I see it and that is how it has been written by me. I think I will post a briefer version of this on my blog for the world to get mad at me about. I love that sort of thing, don't you know.

Since this will be posted there, I should point out that this entire piece was written in about twenty minutes without any supporting documentation, so in other words it is an opinion piece and it is mine, so take it or leave it as I am not really caring. Oh, and any misspellings are more than likely intentional, as is the piss poor grammar. What can I say, it is late at night, my back hurts and I think I need to lie down and get some sleep.

Pax!

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.

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!

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).

Representative Wants the IRS to Look at the Catholic Church

Now this is interesting from California Representative Lynn Woolsey, via Politico:

 

I expect political hardball on any legislation as important as the health care bill. 

 

I just didn't expect it from the United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). 

 

Who elected them to Congress? 

 

The role the bishops played in the pushing the Stupak amendment, which unfairly restricts access for low-income women to insurance coverage for abortions, was more than mere advocacy. 

 

They seemed to dictate the finer points of the amendment, and managed to bully members of Congress to vote for added restrictions on a perfectly legal surgical procedure. 

 

And this political effort was subsidized by taxpayers, since the Council enjoys tax-exempt status.

 

When I visit churches in my district, we are very careful to keep everything "non-political" to protect their tax-exempt status. 

 

The IRS is less restrictive about church involvement in efforts to influence legislation than it is about involvement in campaigns and elections. 

 

Given the political behavior of USCCB in this case, maybe it shouldn't be.

 

Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) is co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

 

How exactly is a tax exemption a subsidy? Why wouldn't she expect negative feelings from the USCCB in regards to abortion? Does she realize how many hospitals will close if they are forced to perform abortions on patients?

 

Last time I checked Representative Woolsey, you are a member of the House of Representatives which is supposed to "represent" the PEOPLE, right? Last I checked, or noticed, there are A LOT of people that are against having the federal government pay for abortions, not to mention even allowing abortions to be had. However, you don't seem to have a problem with taxpayer money killing innocent children in the womb. Nope, you have a problem with the Catholic Church because they stand against it. Next thing you know, you will be calling the church racist for not towing the Obama line. How about you work on a bill that will actually reform health care and save money and lives and quit looking to blame someone or something else on your inability to force this stuff down the people's throats? Keep this kind of nonsense up, and you will become one of us sooner than you may like.

 

Feel free to contact Representative Woolsey and express your concern for her silly little bullying attacks against an organization that prides itself on cherishing life, all life, from beginning to natural end. She can be reached at: 202-225-5161.

 

God Bless!

The Natives Are Restless

Well Fnewgy is any way.

I think that's how I spell it. It's a name for our newest employee that has stuck. Imagine FNG, with no swearing.

Anyway, this guy has been a problem since day twelve. I guess he just had to work himself up into a lather, or something like that.

First he didn't like us calling him the new guy, because he has over twenty years of experience and I am NOT a NEW guy!!!!

Seriously. I was shocked, I mean did he not realize that he was the newest employee, hence the new guy? Sure we were joking (key word here, and he new we were joking) about him having to buy donuts every Friday for the first four weeks he worked there. Everyone else has done it, and had fun with it. Not Fnewgy, nope he writes a letter to HR to complain.

Next, he was offended that we even dared to ask him to help out in other areas of the shop. He'd reply that he wasn't trained in shipping and receiving. My goodness, it's opening and packing boxes, not rocket science.

Then he was mad that he was getting $6 an hour less than someone he felt had inferior skills. I would be too, but again, it was a joke, and in his little hissy fit, he pretty much told everyone that he was one of the higher paid employees.

Next, he said that he didn't know how to do repairs on the oscilloscopes. This from the same guy that said he had more experience and know-how than anyone else in the lab. We actually hired him to do repairs, and pointed that out to him. We had a private meeting where he came thisclose to admitting that he didn't get paid enough to do anything above and beyond what he was currently doing. I still assign him oscilloscope work, even repairs, and guess what? He does know how to do them. He probably thinks we will reward him for such a stellar job of doing his job. Can't wait to see his face when that doesn't pan out. He'll probably bring up the fact that his wife gets paid more than he does. (she's had the same job at the same company for over twenty years, she probably even deserves it).

There is plenty more to fill in some of the gaps along the way, but it might start sounding like gossip. Okay, too late for that, but I have to share his latest tirade from today.

We are all former military men in our lab. We are all pretty much conservative as well. He was in the Coast Guard and thinks that GWBush ruined his business. Yeah, because the President of the United States has time to do that. Anyway, chit chat happens, and apparently Fnewgy thinks that he is being personally attacked. He has even threatened to take it all the way to HR and make this one guy (a good ol boy from South Carolina, or is it Alabama?) pay with his job. He said our company wouldn't survive the "law suite" (his spelling, not mine) that he would bring upon the company, blah, blah, blah.

I have three words for him.

Just Shut Up!!

The good ol boy feels that he and Fnewgy should meet up in the parking lot - I talked him out of that, but I won't always be around, so Fnewgy better be careful. Although I am sure that he would have his 'team of lawyers' lying in wait.

And to think I thought I left the children at home.

Tuesday Night Blah

Okay, it's Tuesday which calls for an American Idol update, right? Uh, I kind of forgot to watch it. So no dice.

I have a new fluffy bunny story, but Jenni threatened me with bodily harm if I do that again. So that will have to wait until she's not going to be near a computer. Know what I mean? So, it may be a while.

FAFSA application is completed.

Taxes are completed.

Octuplets were born today, and Praise God, all are doing well. I find it amazing that in one felled swoop, they now have more kids than we do. Amazing.

Our new president is leading us down the slippery slope of socialism, and no one seems to be noticing. The USA is quickly becoming the USSA (United Socialist States of America).

Did I mention that I missed American Idol tonight? I'm not really caring, but more Americans do, and that is what is sad and so wrong lately with this country.

I'll put my soapbox away for a later date, when I spend more than eight minutes composing my thoughts. Or maybe I'll just keep venting until my first amendment rights disappear right before my eyes.

Seriously, I'm putting it away now.

This is Not Acceptable

I started blogging so that I would have an outlet for my writing (because I am always working on that great American novel, don't you know)

However, this month has had a rather lackluster performance, for me. I mean this is just my ninth post this month.

Ninth!

I mean I had a streak of over three months of daily posts going at one time, and now I have Nine! In a thirty-one day month.

Way bad.

Way not cool.

Way too many short sentences.

So, my solution is; to quit my job and post non-stop.

Okay that is the absolutely dumbest thing I have EVER written and/or said.

Seriously.

Okay, except maybe for that time I asked the lady when she was due and she told me... "I'm not pregnant!"

Oops.

I mean I can say that she looked pregnant, but I will get absolutely no sympathy from any female readers. All I can say is lesson learned. I don't even ask my wife when she is due, when I KNOW that she is pregnant.

Okay, she's not right now, so calm down there everyone. This is not an announcement post. That's for tomorrow...

I have so much to talk about like;

BIDEN!!! - You have to be kidding me? This dude plagiarizes speeches and talks out of his behind half the time, he thinks that he is almost as good as Obama thinks he is. But I digress...

I was seriously kidding about the whole pregnancy thing, now put the phone back on the hook - Mom - and read through the whole thing... Sheesh!

Yes, I am mean and arrogant and I DO KNOW IT ALL!!! Bwah ha ha ha!!!

Never mind that, it's just my evil twin muse.

Where was I? Oh yeah Biden - a Catholic that will try to over rule the Church's two-thousand year old history to fit his own needs. I hate those kind of people, like Kerry, Kennedy and any other politician that thinks they know better than the Pope.

I didn't forget about that braniac Pelosi. All I have to say is that I hope my fellow Catholics will join me in sending her a copy of the Catechism, highlighting the area where it says that abortion is evil, no matter when it occurs. Let us all take a quiet moment to pray for all those lost children, because of abortions....

Miss Sister 2008 - a bad idea that has come and gone. Praise God!

The Cubs are kicking some serious booty right now... watch out for the Rockies though, they are heating up (please don't wake me, just yet).

Soccer season is upon us. Yea!! I can hardly wait; there is nothing more enjoyable than making kids run around and work out, while I stuff another brownie in my face.

Not this year though - I need to lose about six hundred of those brownies.

Okay I'm done. Hope it was as good for you as it was for me.



P.S. - I know that there are lots of other stories out there, but I need to make it last for at least 20 more posts in five days.

P.P.S - I know I should have written out twenty up there, so quit sending those nasty emails. I have feelings to you know.

P.P.P.S - Only Seventy-Three more days until we start election 2012! Get your web domains early

Good Night and God Bless!!

You Stream, I Stream, we all Stream for Live Stream!

Except apparently here at work.

Yep, that means no more Yahoo radio's Launch cast, no more XM radio, no more Sirius. Heck, I can't even listen to this really awesome classical music station down in North Carolina WCPE.

I'm bummed.

It seems that my company is trying to get by on the cheap here by buying a limited amount of bandwidth. Never, I repeat NEVER, has been a problem before, but now it apparently is slowing everything down. Personally, I think they use up a lot of bandwidth with the firewall, but no one listens to me.

No more LIVE Euro 2008 soccer games - I guess the 2010 World Cup will be out of the question as well.

We have the technology, we have the desire to stream, it makes us happy. Now, I have to bring my iPod to work with me. Okay, I do that already, but... Okay, I DO have some external speakers for it, so I don't need to use the headphones. Oh, and I will be able to choose the music I like, as opposed to some programmer somewhere.

Okay, maybe it won't be so bad.

Maybe.

He Should Have Stayed In Sports...

I used to respect Keith Olbermann.

Now I just think that he is another whacked-out-liberal-that-hates-America-and-all-it-stands-for-looking-to-incite... something, I don't know what?

It doesn't really matter what you think of the sitting president of this country to me, you can love him or hate him. Some things he does I like, some things I don't.

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

One of, if not, the most important rights we have as American citizens. However it does not give a person the right on a nationally broadcast station (granted his audience is only around 400,000 people) to treat the president with such disrespect. Especially, when he is speaking out of his nether region.

What an A$$.

Okay, I'm better now.