Found SOTI

 

Could be my favorite meme ever. I don’t know where I found it.  If I stole it from you I wish I could give credit. 

I was defeated, you won the war

On this date in 1815 the Battle of Waterloo was fought. It was a close thing, the Coalition (You might as well say British) Army was hanging on by their fingernails through the massive French assaults. Luckily the Prussians finally arrived ( because Marshal Grouchy did nothing to slow them down) and the day ended with Napoleon in retreat and the Old Guard surrendering. 

Napoleon was pretty invested in the whole No Kings movement back in his day, right up until he made himself one. Leftists always seem to follow that path.

The hit ABBA song has nothing to do with the battle, but it is catchy, even if the lyrics are a bit insipid.

Just sayin’

 It may be legit, but the optics stink. Trump has raised tariffs on imported phones, hitting Apple particularly hard. Now his company is going into the phone business. 

If Biden did this the MAGA crowd would howl. 

Flashdance Flashback

The grandgirls had their big dance recital Saturday. They did great. That’s not what’s I want to write about.

Each spring the dance company recognizes the graduating seniors and each does a solo dance. Usually it is some kind of artistic modern affair with dramatic poses and rolling on the ground. Just once I would love to see one of the fine young ladies pop off a Flashdance finale. 

We all know it would be a show-stopper in a good way. 

Just in case you are not old and have no clue what I am talking about. 

Sunday Wishes

 Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there.

I miss you Dad.

It was back in the seventies

 

If there was a soundtrack to my youth, this song would be part of it. 

Dedicated to her

 

I don’t think we’ve listened to ELO here at the old blog. Until today.

More, more

 Keep on rioting. What little sympathy we had for the plight of so-called immigrants will dissipate like the smoke from burning cars fanned by the waving of Mexican flags. 

And those who support and encourage these riots, well you convinced me even more that you do not have American’s  best interests in your heart. 

For goodness sake 148 Congressional Democrats voted that they see no issue with non-citizens voting in Washington DC elections.

I don’t even have words. I cannot conceive of the logic behind this. 

Another legend is gone

 I just heard Brian Wilson has died. He was a true musical genius.

Deep Analysis

Time to lighten up  a bit. 

Here’s something I bet you didn’t know. When I was young I hated facial hair. 

Then it grew on me.

Semantics

Can we get something straight? If you entered the country without permission you are not a migrant, you are an illegal alien. You have absolutely no right to be here. And frankly, as far as I am concerned, you have no Constitutional protections beyond innocent until proven guilty. If you are not an American citizen and have no green card your only right is a humane and safe deportation. 

As for the splitting families argument, well criminals are split from their families every day. Does the court worry about the family of a convicted drunk driver? Nope, and you don’t either. 

If you are here illegally and now are rioting, all I can say is  so long, farewell.

Interference with an officer is a crime, resisting arrest is a crime, even if you use non-violent means. Assaulting a police officer is a felony. Harboring an illegal is a crime. I have no sympathy. And I hope the feds use every means possible to track you down and send you to prison just like they did the J6 rioters. 

BTW, you do know Trump has deported a fraction of the illegals sent packing by Obama, right? Is your anger over deportations or who is doing it? A little soul searching may be in order. 

Anarchy or the rule of law

 What he said

I read another blog this morning that wondered why ICE keeps going back to LA to “poke the bear”? Because the riots are anarchy. Because they are criminals. Because if you let it go then there is no rule of law. 

This same blogger remains outraged over January 6th. I could ask the same question— why not let them riot? 

Every single Democrat that sides with the protesters in LA shows they love votes and power more than their country. They hate Trump more than the rule of law. 

The fact the protesters are shouting in Spanish and waving foreign flags tells you all you need to know. If Mexico is so great head on back. 

Sunday Music on Monday

 

Irony, Hyperbole, or Ignorance?

 A rabid antisemite tries to burn a bunch of Jews alive and then his lawyer calls the US government Nazis. 

What a piece of shit who makes lawyers look worse, if possible. You cannot hate some lawyers enough. I would spit on that attorney if I ever met him.

Yeah, you will quote me

 I wanted to be a baker, but I didn’t think I could make enough dough.

I wish I had duck feet

 

 So I have a little fountain beside my patio. It is a pleasant water feature. 

Last evening after work I went to plop on the couch to watch me some Emergency! and I noticed a blur of yellow out the window. I suspected a gold finch was getting a drink from the upper barrel. 

I looked out the window and noticed the fountain wasn’t flowing. “Damn cottonwoods,” I muttered and slipped on some shoes to go clean out the pump. I reached in the water and noticed a dead bird floating against the pump. A stupid robin had somehow drowned itself. I grabbed some rubber gloves from the garage and pulled out the body and tossed it in the trash. 

I came back to start taking apart the fountain to clean it and there was a second bird floating under the first. Was this some kind of avian suicide cult? I pulled the gloves back on and fished out the second robin. As I took it from the water he feebly shook his wings. This one was alive. Barely. 

I sat him nearby on the mulch and he sat shivering taking little breaths but not moving. I cleaned and put the fountain back together. He sat there watching me, unmoving. 

I went in and scrubbed my hands and arms. 

About an hour later I glanced out the r window he still sat there. I went out and he turned his soggy head to look at me, but made no other move. I got my gloves and moved him over under a sugar maple tree to give him a little protection and comfort. 

After supper I went to roll the garbage bins to the curb. I checked and the stupid robin had moved a few feet . I looked at him and he hopped away. 

He may live, if his wings aren’t damaged. It started in raining in the overnight. I bet that bird is as sick of water as a non-duck can be. 

Drifting’ back to the eighties agsin

 

Now it’s stuck in your head too.

But man she was hot.

Morning ritual

I love my digital devices and screens. At a touch I can access the information of the world. But a little bit of me misses the morning newspaper. I would sip my coffee at the table and read from the spread out pages the news of the day - especially the local news. 

In the early 2010s the local paper became a shell of itself, filled with old news, typos and poorly written articles. At the same time my vision was slowly going to hell from undiagnosed Fuchs Dystrophy and we cancelled the paper since I couldn’t see the newsprint and no one else read it. Not long after we moved to Mudsock and a local paper was not an option and I didn’t care. 

What is the point? There is none. My mother encouraged me to read the morning paper starting when I was seven or eight and I continued for the next forty or fifty years. Some days I miss it. But my screen doesn’t leave ink stains on my fingers. 

Wait, What?

 If you were to hang with me, yesterday’s post is exactly my sense of humor.  Our conversation would be peppered with similar comments. 

I still remember my mom’s admonition when I was a teen and entering the world of dating. “Remember Joe,” she said, “Not e everyone gets your sense of humor.” She did, I got it from her. 

I had one boss in particular who did not get me at all, and would just give me a quizzical look as if he knew something was in jest but feared the joke was on him when he didn’t get it. 

Oh well, my wife still finds me funny and my family is used to my puns, dad jokes, sarcastic comments, and dry observations. Those who don’t? Well it sucks to be you. 

Helpful Advice

 I told my wife she should embrace her mistakes.

She did not get mad. 

She hugged me.

Let's play Twister, let's play Risk

 

This is stuck in my head this morning 

Mundane Musings

We had a great day with the granddaughters yesterday. The wife took them to a movie in the forenoon. In the afternoon we went to play mini golf. Where I, ahem, beat everyone. I managed to get around in one less stroke than the wife. 

For dinner I lit the fire pit and we roasted weenies and made s’mores. The girls had a blast. After washing sticky faces and hands we played a board game before bedtime. 

We have one more day before their parents pick them up in the morning. 

It’s been a great week.

Mea Culpa

Send me to a time out. Banish me to bed without dinner.

 I forgot to post something yesterday. You cannot imagine my chagrin. I have no doubt several dozen of you were curled up with your blankie seeking solace through intense bouts of crying and thumb sucking. 

Or not. It’s likely you didn’t notice.

I took the day off work today because I wanted to. I have the vacation days, so why not. Should the rain hold off we may take the grandkids to play miniature golf this afternoon. 

Fore!

The eighties are calling

 

Stee-rike Three

Monday Tuesday, bleh. Back to work. I could go for a three day weekend every week. Our week of activities and adventures continues. We took the grand girls to see the local Triple A baseball team last night. The game was followed by a fireworks show. I think everybody had a good time, but the girls were bored by the end of the game. Not everyone enjoys baseball as much as I do. But they were great and I enjoy every minute I get to hang with them. 

Remember

 

I ain’t no Earl Anthony

 We took the girls bowling last night. A great time was had by all. Boy I suck. I was never a great bowler, even back in the day when I went at least monthly. You see, in my youth I lived in a small town and your choices for entertainment were pretty much bowling, the movies, or driving your car around. 

Anyway, I managed to break the into the low 100’s- 124, I think. Multiple spares were ruined by subsequent bad first rolls in the next frame. Since we rented the lane for an hour, we only got about 4-5 frames into the second game before time was up. I was on much the same scoring pace when the game ended. 

As with golf, I have no hook, no slice, just a perfectly straight throw and an innate inability to aim. 

The wife maintains that is true with the toilet bowl too. 

Saturday Cartoon

Let the summer begin

 Not only am I looking forward to a long holiday weekend, the grandgirls are coming stay with us for the week. It will be a blast. I don’t get to see them every day now that they are in school. The weather won’t be ideal, but I have no control over that. The girls are comfortable here, this is their home away from home, so I think it will be a good week.

So sorry

 Huh. I’m getting old and Biden senile. My earlier post was pretty much the same post I wrote about a week ago. I hate to repeat myself. I really hate repeating myself. 

Jim Irsay, owner of the Colts, passed away yesterday. He had his acknowledged demons. He also made Indianapolis and Indiana a better place. We will never know the depths of his generosity. 

Doubling down on double standards

 Let me understand, now it is perfectly okay to stage a small riot and push past and assault federal officers to gain access to a federal installation?

Seems like that earned you years in prison in the past — way back in 2020…

Got it. 

Democrats are promising even more unlawful activities of this sort since there is ABSOLUTELY nothing the Democrats won’t do to support those who are here illegally, even criminals and gang members. 

Beware the Sandman

 It was a rainy and chilly Tuesday with more to come. The brief spurt of warm air has passed and we are back to early April-like weather. I’m not in charge, so don’t blame me. The Climate Change people will likely insist that if only we paid more taxes then all of this would go away and we would all live in perfect San Diego-type weather all of the time. Undoubtedly Soylent Green is the ultimate answer. Or maybe I’m thinking of Logan’s Run. 

You can correct me. 

When windmills and electric cars fail then the answer will be there are just far too many people. 

The sexist  jerk in me says I could go for it if all the girls dressed and looked like the Jessica character in that movie. 

Other stuff on the calendar

 

One of my favorites. 

I insist you enjoy it too.

You get what you pay for

 I bought a box of Walmart brand Raisin Bran cereal. It cost a lot less than the name brand stuff. I poured out a bowl yesterday and there was not a single raisin in the bowl - zip, zero, nada. I couldn’t see any in the box. 

My first thought was I should have ponied up the extra cents for the box labeled “twice the raisins”, but my brain quickly calculated that 2X0 is still zero raisins. 

I suppose I cannot complain, the box said “raisin” bran, not “raisins “ brand. There is probably one tiny dried up raisin in the box somewhere. 

When I was a kid cereal boxes had a toy or prize in the box. As an adult I would settle for a handful of raisins. 

Easy Like Sunday Morning

Look I could throw up a hundred words about nonsense. We could discuss the weather. I could tell you about my Saturday. I could even rant about politics. But we all know why you read this blog. 

We don’t? 

Yeah, I don’t know why either. 

Have a good Sunday.

Call the wind Mariah

Some bumpy weather rolled through last evening. We got a lot of wind and a little rain. South of me got pounded. 

I was sitting on the porch watching the storm approach…

I don’t know, it’s what I like to do.

…when the tree top beyond the neighbor’s roof line changed abruptly from swaying in the wind to bent over out of sight. A heartbeat later the wind increased to a howl and you could physically feel it roar past the house. Luckily, I was protected on the porch by the wall of the garage. I decided it was time to retreat inside. 

A bit later the wind had reduced a bit. The talking weather heads on the TV were still droning on. I glanced out the front door and saw a bunny hop nonchalantly around the corner of the house, pause, eat a bite of weed, and hop off to the south. 

Mother Nature knows when it’s safe, no matter what the radar says. 

By way of Omaha

 

If it weren’t for hypocrisy, they have no position

 Am I the only one who finds it laughable that the very people who were oh so outraged about Jan 6 are completely quiet about the Democrats storming the ICE detention center in New Jersey? 

Yes, I’m looking at you…

It’s raining again

 

Rain and rain. The normal spring temperatures have finally arrived. Shorts and T-shirts are the wardrobe of the day. Rain seems to have followed behind the seasonable temps. Oh well, I’m not in charge of the weather, so I’ll just have to live with it. 

to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,

Can we admit the United Nations is a failure? I’m aware that’s not an original position. The UN is a massive bureaucracy that sucks up money and funnels it through corruption and waste to no end result. Name one war or conflict it stopped  since 1947. 

Let’s look at the world in recent years. Where is the UN in the Middle East? Have they stopped conflicts in Yemen, Syria, or an Israel? Has the UN mitigated the violence in various African nations? Where is the United Nations in the Ukraine conflict?

The organization is a joke, an America -hating joke, and it is past time we kept our money and sent those fools packing. 

So we grabbed an alligator and we fought another round

 It’s Monday, lighten up and have some musical fun. 

So what if it’s a Hallmark Holiday?

 Happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there.

I miss you mom.

Me and Mary we met in high school

 

I like songs that tell a story and while I run hot and cold on Springsteen, I number this among his best tunes. 

I will say without hesitation that Springsteen is the best concert I ever attended. I saw him back on the Born in the USA tour sometime in the 1980s.

Bleepety bleep bleep

I deleted a rather snarky post about another blog site. Have I matured in my old age? I doubt it. The thing is, it wasn’t necessary. Who am I to criticize anyone? If I don’t like what I read over there, I can click elsewhere. 

I should have adopted that attitude two decades ago. 

Anyway, I have plumbing issues to deal with. The dishwasher is leaking. Not when it runs, all of the time. The shutoff valve under the sink is frozen and I cannot get it loose to shut off the water. I have resorted to PB Blaster and channel locks, but it won’t budge. I don’t want to bust the valve, that would be catastrophic. I have a shallow pan under the dishwasher, so hopefully no more water is going under the laminate. 

In the meantime I will try again this morning. Then I suppose I’ll have to call a plumber. 

It is always something.

Those are the memories that make me a wealthy soul

Here is a random picture followed by a random (not really) music selection. Why? I’m feeling lazy on this Thursday morning.

 Crab apple mutants in my backyard. Ignore the weeds and unruly flower beds.

Here is some music to distract you (for YOU):

Fighting the Man

I got a letter from the HOA listing complaints about my property. I have garbage bins in view of the street. Technically this is true. I live on a cul-de-sac. If one drives to the end and looks from the view of two houses (only 2), you can see the trash can. Whatever. I’ll move them to the back of the side yard for a while. Come winter I’ll move it back to the front where it is easier to get to. I could make a spot and put it in the garage but I don’t want to. 

They also complained about a stack of landscape blocks beside the house. There are about 15 of the kind you stack to make a small wall or circle a tree. They are stacked neatly beside the trash bins. I’m  tempted to leave them, there is nothing in the covenants forbidding it, but it’s not worth arguing about. 

See? I’m getting mellow in my old age. 

Besides, if I’m an ass they might insist I paint my fence. 

I know how it works, the company that manages the HOA collects a fee for every violation letter they send. If I fight they will find more stuff to cite me about. 

Explain it all with a sigh

I was going to toss up a whole post yesterday about the Battle of Puebla but I decided it just was not of interest to anyone, even me. Does it have significance? If you celebrated with tequila and tacos last night it might. 

It seems actual spring-like weather may come late in the week and next week. I’m ready. I have a load of work to be done outside and more importantly, a humidor full of cigars. 

I usually go to sleep with music playing softly. I last about one and a half songs before I fall asleep. A timer shuts off the Amazon spy device after I doze off. Here, by chance, was the first and last song I heard as I hit the pillow:

From the guy who had his signature ties made in Asia

Okay many people tell me the purpose of tariffs is to force other countries to open their markets to US made goods. If true, then why the proposed tariff on movies made in other countries? Outside of the Canadian-made movies shown on the Hallmark Chanel just which foreign made films are taking over from Hollywood? Are we going to punish independent film makers for searching out cheaper locations or more realistic sets for their film? Even in the heyday of Hollywood, film was shot “on location.” 

US made films dominate international film sales. And yes, I know Bollywood and China have robust movie industries, but how does a tariff on those films that do not have a big market in the US help sales of the latest comic book movie shown in Shanghai?

Going to the cinema is already outrageously expensive. Why add to that cost with little or no benefit?

May the 4th

 

They say it's your birthday, We're gonna have a good time;

 Happy Star Wars Day! More importantly, it is my youngest granddaughter’s sixth birthday. She is excited beyond words. She has a softball game this afternoon, providing it is not rained out, then we are going to her favorite restaurant for dinner. She will have a party with her friends next weekend. 

Why should you care about this? You don’t.

Of course The Beatles did not play “Birthday” at the Rooftop Concert. But this is a clever dubbing in any case.

Guinevere had green eyes

It is still dark,  but I suspect there is a tinge of purple and orange in the east should I look out the window on the other side of the house. Birds are singing matins in the trees while Crosby Stills and Nash play softly in the background. Hot coffee steams in a Yeti mug perched on a short filing cabinet beside my recliner. 

My head hurts with a dull ache due to typical spring allergies. So it goes. The grandgirls have a dance competition today. I will enjoy watching them compete, but the pounding music will not help ease my headache. 

The music playing brings on a bit of nostalgia. My old college roommate was a big fan of CSN. B passed away a few years ago. I miss his subtle humor. 

This exercise in futility is tending a little maudlin. I will leave it there.

I hope you have a good, no, great Saturday.

At Last

Friday is finally here. It has been a long week. The weekend will be busy as well. You might, based on the title of this post, think I’m going to offer up some music from Etta James this morning. You would be wrong. 

Let’s get silly instead.

She only has eyes for me

Sometimes life cracks me up. 

I went the optometrist a few weeks ago. I had my checkup and ordered new glasses. My old ones were brown, square, and had thick plastic frames. The new ones are black, more rounded, and have thin frames. I picked them up LAST THURSDAY. 

YESTERDAY (7 days later…) the wife and I went to Chick-fil-A for lunch. She looked at me and exclaimed “You got your new glasses!” She told me they looked nice. 

I told her I got them a week ago, thanks for noticing. 

It’s not often I embarrass my wife. Okay, I do it all the time, but this time it was her embarrassment, not my actions, speech, or behavior. This one was on her. 

I guess it’s safe to say after 46 years together she doesn’t stare at me with love and admiration anymore.  I guess she looks at me about once a week. 

12 Angry Men. Or Women.

I got one of those letters in the mail. You know the one - Jury Duty. So far it is only the questionnaire, not a summons. 

Look, I don’t mind, but I’ve done my share. I did a Federal grand jury back in the 1980s.  That was a year of jury duty, every other week. I was on two separate criminal jury trials in the early 2000s. I ve been summoned at least three additional times, only to be canceled at the last minute. 

I guess tbe jury duty computer likes my name. I wish the one that picks lottery numbers would get in on the act…

I never swore, even once

 Deleted thousand word rant on Democrat judges, illegals, and TDS. 

I had to go to the retina doc yesterday for a follow up. Everything thing was great! I knew my eyes were going to be dilated until early afternoon so I took the day as a vacation day. Did I relax the day away? Not exactly. I took a nap after my doctor visit. Then I power washed the porch and got out the chairs for the front porch. I took a break with a fine stogie. Then I goofed off. I’m not sorry. 

When I went to hook up the hose to the power washer I discovered the hose reel was busted and leaking. When I tried to disconnect the hose from the reel, the connection was frozen. Even PB Blaster would not loosen it. I chucked the hose in the trash and went and bought a new hose. I also picked up a set of DeWalt driver bits for my new drill, because they were on sale and I wanted them. I rarely make those kind of purchases and I’ll be tempted to take them back all week. Anyway, a thirty minute job ended up taking two hours. That’s my life story. 

Blah,blah. 

That judge in Wisconsin needs disbarred and jailed. 

Boring recap. ( I know how to sell it, right?)

 I fired up the grill and cooked a couple of burgers for dinner. Mine sported a slice of cheese, the wife’ was plain seasoned burger. I made a bowl of potato salad and heated a can of baked beans in the microwave. We washed it down with iced tea. This time mine was plain and the wife’s enhanced with sugar. Lots of sugar. Sunday Supper was nothing special yet a feast nonetheless.

The afternoon was busy. The youngest granddaughter had a softball game. After, I came home and mowed the lawn. 

In all a good day. 

Easy listening

 In a lazy mood. How about some music?

A whole novel in one song

 

I am a sucker for dark curly hair…

Filthy Hippies

 On this date in 1976 Chicago Cubs outfielder Rick Monday foiled the plans of a couple of hippies to burn the flag. The two jerks are probably America-hating Democrats today. 

Home

I rolled into the driveway about 1:15AM. I woke just in time to make a cup of Joe and log on to the computer by 8 AM this morning. I started in on filing my expenses. A task I loathe. I’m far more diligent than I used to be. This company expects me to finance my travel and then reimburses me. In the old days I travelled on a company credit card. Now I want my money back. ASAP.

The trip was uneventful. I have no amusing tales from the road, no interactions with the GenPop or other drivers of any entertainment value. So it goes sometimes. 

Urgent update

 Busy

Canned at the peak of flavor

 I’m sitting in the recliner listening to classic country music writing this post yesterday. The coffee is hot. I’ve not packed the suitcase that is in the back of the car as you read this. Either 1/3 or 2/3 of my kids came for Easter dinner. It depends on if the youngest could get someone to trade his shift at work. 

I’m off on a mostly all-day jaunt to the east coast. Tomorrow (real tomorrow, not yesterday when I wrote this tomorrow) I am going down to Antietam. I was last there when I was 17 or 18. I have been to many battlegrounds, slept on a few during my reenactment days, and none have left me with the creeps, a feeling of dread like the site of the bloodiest day in American history. It will be interesting to see if I get the heebie jeebies this time. 

Yeah, yeah, I’m doing work stuff this trip too. That’s boring. 

He Has Risen

 

It isn’t about the painted eggs or bunnies

Shot heard ‘round the world

 250 years ago today our great nation was birthed in a paroxysm of bullets and gunpowder on the greens of Lexington and at Concord Bridge. 

Going Somewhere

 I’m sitting here in my office recliner pondering what letters to hit in order to make coherent words appear in the blank white space on my screen. The flashing cursor mocks me. I see something from the corner of my eye. A squirrel moves across the porch roof outside my window. He accelerates and rounds the roofline to the perpendicular garage roof like a driver at Daytona. He runs along the shingles, bounces off the gutter, and leaps three feet onto a branch no thicker than a twig. Up the maple tree he goes. The squirrel heads down the trunk and scurries under the neighbor’s red Cadillac and out of sight.

There is no lesson here. There are no conclusions. Only speculation.

Anticipation

 One more day in the work week. I am ready for a few days off. Unfortunately this afternoon is the monthly sales meeting so my afternoon will be a clinker. I have Good Friday off and then the weekend. Monday is a vacation day. 

I have a meeting in the Baltimore area on Wednesday. Monday I’m driving to Maryland. I’ll spend Tuesday at Antietam, a battlefield I last visited when I was in high school. 

I have to get through today first. 

See it my way

Humpity hump day. 

As an aside, nowhere in the Mother Goose rhyme does it say Humpty Dumpty was a giant egg with arms and legs. 

Anyway….I’m off to get new glasses today. Mine broke a few weeks back and I’ve been wearing an old pair from 5-6 years ago. The distance vision part is fine on them but I can see “up close” better with no glasses than using the bifocal part of those old frames. Fingers crossed, knock on wood, hope to heaven, my eye troubles are behind me and no more surgeries are in my future and I’ll be able to see out of these new ones for a year or two. 

Here’s something I never thought I would say. I don’t care who runs, I am voting for the challenger in the primary and the Democrat in the general election against my current incumbent state representatives. I don’t care. The Republicans in this state have become tax and spend democrats-light and why get an imitation when you can vote for the real thing? I last voted for a Democrat in 1994 when my neighbor ran for coroner, so I don’t write that lightly. The current regime must be punished.

Only a politician would brag that giving me up to $300 tax credit on my property taxes while letting my local government increase my taxes by $1200 would be a good deal. I spit on them all. 

Tax day

 

Random Monday

Another work week stretches before me. The good news is Friday is a holiday so it will be a short one, in days anyway. I will once again spend my time dealing with tariffs and their effects on business. So it goes. I’m thankful I have a job. Two months from now, unless things change, well, we shall see, and pray for the best. 

The birds are singing in the new day. It is dark still outside my northwest facing window. The parade of neighbors heading to work will start in 30-40 minutes. 

I’m off early next week for now-rare work travel. It will be good to get some windshield time. I love being home for dinner with my wife every day, but I miss the road a little. 

I think I have solved a great conundrum that has stymied my next great American novel and caused months of writer’s block. Maybe. Now I have to find the time and motivation to put it to paper and see how it flows. Maybe I’ll get it published this year after all. We shall see. I thought it would get done last year. I should not be surprised, the last one took more than 10 years to write. 

Have a great Monday. 

Sorry not sorry

We could have spent the day doing yard work. The backyard is a mess with fallen branches, old leaves, the detritus of winter. The lawn needs mowed after last week’s rains. The porch and patio need power washed and the patio furniture cleaned. The chairs for the front porch need to come out of the garage. The gate to the fence needs repair . 

Of course we decided on a road trip! 

It wasn’t far, just to the outlet mall south of Indy. On the way we stopped at a diner. I had breakfast even though it was lunch. The “meal” I chose was far too much food — Biscuits (4) and gravy, eggs over easy (3), home fries (fresh made, not frozen), and bacon. I refrained from breaking open my eggs over the gravy for my wife’s sake who is grossed out by runny eggs anyway. I couldn’t finish all of the biscuits, but I did eat most of the gravy. It beat the heck out of anything Cracker Barrel puts on a plate. The wife had chicken salad on a croissant. Good for her. I win, I had bacon and sausage. 

I made a lap around the mall, ducking into just two stores, purchasing nothing. She made a day of it. I sat in the car listening to an audio book and watching and smirking at people wandering the lot trying to remember where they parked. 

We grabbed a late burger to bookend our late lunch and motored home. I plopped on the couch next to the wife and we binged the last three episodes of 1923. 

I could spend today doing yard work…

That’s all I’ve got

 The Keurig spit out coffee as I sat on the end of the couch in the light of the sun streaming through the patio doors. The melting frost glittered on the blades of grass outside. I reflected, not for the first time, that a little sun makes the day so much better, even if it is cold outside. 

I’m in a good mood so I’m not going to delve into politics or economics or the state of modern movies. I woke up breathing and I am blessed beyond anything I deserve. That’s enough. 

Have a great Saturday.

In my head this morning

 

I saw Fleetwood Mac on the Tusk tour at the old Market Square Arena in Indy.  It was a fantastic show but probably the loudest concert I ever attended.  My ears rang for two days after. 

John McVee is an underrated bass player.

And for Sluggy — lots of cowbell

Help me Rhonda

Can someone, anyone, explain why de-extinction of Dire Wolves is a good thing? 

Did none of the investors read “Jurassic Park?”

My sad life

My life is pathetic. I woke up this morning because I was thinking about spreadsheets. Instead of dreams about Esther Williams in that one white swimsuit or going to Tiffany’s with Audrey Hepburn, I am dreaming about how to combine parts of three different convoluted spreadsheets easily. 

I know. 

In other news, a significant amount of stuff you buy at Walmart or Target is going to double in price in the next three months or so. Do you suppose you can get a factory built in the next ninety days to mitigate the massive tariff you will have to pay? 

On the bright side, the price of oil is down. Thats a good thing. 

I apologize in advance

It is freezing outside. I mean that literally. And when I say literally, I mean it in its true (literal) definition; as in as written, true, exact. It’s cold for April. 

I was going to search the archives for a story I published here about the Battle of Shiloh which concluded on this date in 1862, but that seemed like a lot of work for a not too good piece of fiction. You can look for it yourself. 

Here is a lousy Monday joke instead:

Why was the Chinese meal so expensive?

The cookies were a fortune. 

Go forth and make it a mediocre Monday. 

Still the rain kept pourin'

The rain continues, but it should taper off later today. Rivers are out of their banks, fields are flooded. For a bit yesterday I had a river running through the backyard. 

Apparently rain makes me sleepy. I dozed off watching the baseball game in the afternoon. I fell asleep on be couch around 10:30 before wandering off to bed a bit after 11. Somehow I slept until after 7:00. I probably could lean back in the recliner and take a nap after I type this. 

No reason at all

I have moved Friday music to Saturday this week. Don’t question it. It just is. I thought some early Beatles would do nicely this morning. If you don’t agree you can start your own blog and post Friday Music on a Saturday morning. 

Intermittent rain continues here at the old homestead. If it keeps up the town will have to resume its old sobriquet of Mudsock, so named because of the muddy swampy conditions of the town. To be safe I’ve started drawing up plans for an ark. 

It remains cool. I’ve yet to don a pair of shorts. In fact I had to pull out a long sleeve shirt yesterday. What the heck Mother Nature? I suppose this is the Global Warming I’ve been hearing about? 

I thought not. 

Unbelievable

The leaders of the Democratic Party just sued the President to allow illegals to vote in Federal elections. *

I wish I was joking.

If you support this,  please don’t come back here. I’m serious. Begone.

If you continue to consider yourself a Democrat, why?

*they are suing to stop you from having to prove you have the right to vote as a citizen, but isn’t the result the same?

Heck, I got. “c” in economics

Here’s a thought, it would be great if the stuff we now source from low cost countries returned to be manufactured in the USofA. I’m for it. How much are you willing to pay to make that happen?

A T-Shirt made in Indonesia costs about $20. The worker makes about $15 a day. 

What will that shirt cost when produced in a union mill where the worker will make in excess of $15 per hour plus benefits? And yes, we all know that $15 is not even close to what the worker will make. It will be much higher.

There is a reason so many cheap consumer manufactured goods moved out of the US. We don’t like it, but often the truth is painful. 

We want US made goods, we don’t want to pay for them. 

Many of us are barely scraping by now. How is raising prices going to help?

I might be wrong. I was one other time. 

Ridin’ the storm out

It was a bumpy evening weather-wise. I’m pretty sure that was true if you lived anywhere from Dallas to Toronto. Multiple tornadoes were in the immediate area and one was sighted about 1/2 mile from the homestead. High winds and sideways rain painted a scary picture.  The wife and I even ducked into the closet under the stairs for a few minutes. Somehow, in all of the excitement we kept both power and cable, a true weather miracle. 

After sunrise I’ll check the roof and house for damage. As always,  it could have been worse. God once again looks after fools like me. 

Here is a view of the sky as the storms receded:

Truth

 

Are you kidding me?

I’m not one for April Fool’s jokes or pranks. Apparently Mother Nature is not above such hi jinx. There is frost on my neighbor’s roof and the outside temperature is only 30F. Hello April. 

You get what you pay for

I will readily admit to getting older. My once thick wavy hair is not what it used to be, the receding hairline and bald thin spot at the crown attest. I went for a haircut Saturday. I routinely go to the chain Great Clips and no matter which store I go to, they have instructions for my hair on the computer. It’s always the same: number four clippers on the side, finger length on the top. I’m usually out of there in 10-15 minutes. 

I don’t know if I scored a guy right out of barber school or what. He kept clipping and scissoring and when I was done I looked like I was sheared by a barber at basic training. My hair is maybe 3/16 of inch long all over. You can see my scalp. 

On the he bright side, I won’t need a hair cut until Memorial Day. 

Self reflection

 Blatantly stolen from Midwest Chick

Rain in the forecast

It is a dark and cloudy Saturday. I glance out my window and see my neighbors’ car is running in his driveway. “So what?” you say. It has probably been running several hours. He manages a bar/club of some sort. He comes home wasted and either forgets to turn off the car or passes out in the drivers seat. This used to happen about once a year. This is the third time this month. 

I hear you. 

No. Not my business. 

I took a couple of 8mm videotapes to get transposed to a DVD. They are from the early ‘90s — one from before my youngest was born and one right after. It should be a hoot to watch them. 

I have some old, and I mean old, 8mm film my mom and dad took when I was a kid (and before).  I may take one of the reels to get it done. I’m not sure if these film is even any good. Who knows? We are talking celluloid from the 1960s.

I think I’ll have it put on a thumb drive. Who knows, if I can figure out how, I might post video of me as a tyke. 

This blog has been boring for a long time. I can lower the bar further by showing home movies. There is nothing more boring than someone else’s home movies.

Friday Music

 Taking a break.  Work and life and a desire to finish the Great American Novel take precedence.

Besides I’m bored by the blog

I do appreciate all of your kind words.  I have the BEST readers.

Twenty

 Today marks twenty years I have been doing this stupid hobby. I thought I’d be at it a few months and be done. Instead I have formed many friends and had a lot of great conversations. Some of you have been here since almost the beginning: Jean, Freddie. Cappy, Ed, Fuzzy, Ralph, B. I’m sure I forgot many of you and I apologize. I bet there are even more that read and don’t comment. I read a lot of blogs who never know I lurk. Even those of you who might not agree with me brought me a great joy. I love a good argument. In recent years some of you have been great readers and friends too — Sluggy, Glasslass, MC, Linda -far too many to mention and I am very sorry. 

I have been here for 8,387 posts. More than 20,000 comments and over three million visitors. I remember when I had six hits in a day and three were me checking to see if anyone read my garbage. And yes, a lot of my commentary here has been garbage. Occasionally I have put up something worth reading — the herd of monkeys in a room of typewriters theory. 

    You see kids, a typewriter is this old mechanical device…

Twenty years is a long time.

Thank you all for great fun and great memories.

One

 It is yet another chilly Saturday here in Mudsock. We are off today to watch the grandgirls do their thing in a dance competition. After we are all going out to celebrate my XX birthday this past Thursday. 

Last evening the wife had some shopping to do so I wandered around the mall, earbuds in listening to music. Old in body, I was digging the tunes like I was still 25. After a bit I found some chairs and grooved to classic rock and watched the people go by. 

One of the songs that played was an old favorite of mine by the Doors:

2

 Friday at last. It will be chock full of…well “ fun” isn’t the right word to use here. The opposite of that is what I’m searching for. I have my monthly industrial sales meeting which will suck up 2-3 hours. Then another firm meeting this afternoon and another conference call squeezed in the schedule somewhere. 

On the bright side, a box of cigars showed up in the mail yesterday. They have already been safely stored in my humidor. Of course the shipment wasn’t random. No matter how awesome it would be, you don’t need to run out to the mailbox every day hoping against hope a box of La Auroras is going to be waiting for you. No I ordered them last week at the direction of my lovely wife in honor of my birthday. 

She hates cigars but knows I enjoy them, so she indulges me as long as I smoke them outside. Or, she secretly hopes they will kill me, ridding her of my general unpleasantness in her life. Either is probably true depending on my behavior on any given day. 

Because I can

 My favorite song, hands down.

4

 Let’s see, you would think that after…2025 minus…mumble mumble…carry the one….all of these years I would be ready for spring — the weather changes, the emerging plants, the damn headaches. Spring remains my least favorite of all the seasons because it brings on the allergy migraines. They used to be far worse: keep me in the dark I think I’m gonna puke severe. Now they are a mere pounding in my skull. I want to sleep in the day and can’t sleep at night headaches. 

So it goes, there are a lot of really sick people out there and I ain’t one of them. My ailments are small and simply one thing more for me to complain about. 

5

Not taken this morning 

No time for blogging. It’s opening day for the Cubs and they are on early this morning since they are playing in Tokyo. I can “talk” to you or listen to baseball before work. 

You lose, or win, depending on your particular point of view.

6

It was spitting snow as I unloaded groceries yesterday afternoon. I glanced over and noticed the daffodils along the side of my neighbor’s house were up and a hint of yellow was peeping through the buds. I looked over and saw the tulips at the base of the maple in my front yard had poked up green shoots over the weekend. Despite the crummy weather, spring is upon us both via the calendar and nature. 

Like every human living outside of the equatorial zone for generations dating back to the last ice age, spring brings a sense of hope, of renewal. 

Oh, and it is that silly pseudo holiday. No, I won’t wear green. And by the way, St. Patrick was British and he didn’t chase away the snakes from Ireland- there never were any.

You didn’t think I was going to be upbeat and positive for an entire post did you? Is it your first time visiting?

7

 

One of the most beautiful love songs ever written

8

So far no twister has roared through the neighborhood to scoop up the house and hurl me into a world of color and little people. We have watches and warnings and thunder rumbles, lightning flashes, and the wind howls. Rain patters on my office window as I hunt and peck on the keyboard. I suspect if you live east of the Mississippi you can offer a similar tale - already over night or later today. 

Spring has arrived. 

On a completely unrelated note, skip over to Pondering and wish Jean a belated birthday. I never ask anything of you, and this is a simple request. Besides, you should read her blog anyway.

9

It was my intention to get up and watch the blood moon eclipse last night. Given my sleeping issues of late I decided it wasn’t worth it. I asked the wife, who stays up late, to take a photo if she could remember. I’ve seen dozens of lunar eclipses.

In any case the bright full moon is shining right out my office window,  I can imagine it is red and all is good. 

10

 It is supposed to be a great spring day in Mudsock today. Looking out my office window I see the maple in the front yard is starting to break out in leaves. I ran the car through the car wash yesterday. Inside it is clean and still smells new. I think it was the first time I drove it in more than a week. We’ve been using the wife’s car. 

I hope I can stave off crises this afternoon and sneak out to the patio for a quick cigar in the springtime sun. 

In the meantime listen to this:

Yet another rant on tariffs

Can someone, anyone, explain to the president that tariffs are paid by the IMPORTER. China does not pay the tax nor does any other nation.

So if, as the president claims, America will get rich on tariffs, then the Federal Government will get wealthy off the backs of you and I because that increased cost will be passed right to the end consumer.

And let me add something we all know, the cost of everything will skyrocket if it is manufactured in the US. Do you think Americans will produce wiring harness or a plastic toy for $30 a day? 

Yeah, me neither. 

Edit: this on, off, on again tariff whiplash is a drain on the economy. I get this is real estate-type negotiations, but it makes it impossible to plan and run a business. 

As fake as a pair vs of 48DDD boobs

Periodically the stat counter on the old blog spins like a flywheel and my daily visits skyrocket. I get the same handful of readers on a given post, but the daily visits are in the thousands. If I dive into the stats, the vast hordes do not land on any specific post and usually come from Asia. I suppose my blog is really a secret entryway into the dark web or something. Frankly it is beyond my understanding of how all things internet work, and I am not curious enough to research the phenomenon beyond this quick mention in passing. 

If you have a solution to this mystery I would be pleased for a quick answer. Otherwise, my ego appreciates the boost in readers, even if it is fake. 

Rambling Wreck

Monday. Blech. And I woke up way early. Not that I ever care what my neighbors think, but they must wonder when they see my office lights on at four aye em. “Does that old man ever sleep?” “Is he in the dog house again?” “I bet old Joe forgot to shut off the light.” More likely they don’t notice and don’t care. I sure don’t know nor care what they are about. 

The wife and I passed in the hall, she was going to bed as I headed to the kitchen to make coffee. I suppose we are not-at-all strangers passing in the night. 

It is supposed to get into the sixties this week. I should go out after work and rake the leaves in the backyard. The row of Bradford pears never drop their leaves until December and the yard is a mess of decaying soggy leaves. Or I could ignore them, mow them up in a few weeks and instead sit on the patio and have a cigar. Most likely I’ll take a Power Nap before dinner. 

We shall see what the workday brings. Last week sucked and Friday was especially busy, so who knows? I suspect Monday will be likewise hectic. I do know I will have to spend a couple of hours creating a ridiculous spreadsheet for one of my customers because the have no idea how to use their SAP system. I haven’t had to manually create a MRP report since about 1990 when I was a master scheduler. 

Yes, I know most of you have no idea what any of that means. MRP (material requirements planning) is how you manage your raw material and components to make something in a factory. Calculating how everything purchased and manufactured comes together in a timely basis to build the final product. 

Boy these weeds are deep. Let’s get out of them and just call it a post at this point. Happy Monday. 

I’ll Tell My Man to Clean Your Kit

 The Defence of Rorke’s Drift

We went to dinner with my daughter and her family Friday night. I made a passing comment about the Zulu Wars and my SIL said he had never heard of such an event. 

I constrained myself and gave a twenty second summation and told him he could borrow my DVD copies of Zulu Dawn and Zulu. And while each takes liberties with the historical events of the battles at Isandhlwana and Rorke’ Drift, both are great movies and give a flavor for the history. I have no hope he will take me up on my offer. History is not his thing and that’s okay. He’s a great guy.

Discussing the Zulu Wars briefly revived my interest and I realized I hadn’t watched either movie in years. Guess how I spent my Saturday?

I think I still have my copy of The Washing of the Spears around here somewhere. It might be time to drag it out too. I know it’s been twenty years since I lasted waded through all 600+ pages of South African history. 

Edit. No, I was not in Washington DC yesterday 

Buds are emerging on the maple tree in the front yard

 It is another Saturday and I sit in the office staring at the angry mocking cursor and the empty white space where blog words are supposed to magically appear straight from my brain to fingertips. Yet once again each letter, word, and sentence is painfully typed for your reading pleasure experience. 

Hey, it is not you, it is me. My second crappy novel has stalled at 45,000 words for months. I know the rest of the story, it is the effort of crafting the narrative that bogs me down. 

On the be bright side, merely complaining has generated a post — two if we count yesterday’s lackluster effort.

We're drinkin', my friend, to the end of a brief episode

It’s been a couple of days. Did you miss me? 

I missed you, but not blogging. It’s not really a hobby when it becomes a burden. I get this burned out feeling from time to time. My creativity (as little as it might be), my joie de vive, my sense of humor, often plummet in the depths of winter. And winter seems to linger this year. I could go for some of that global warming I keep hearing about. 

Enough crying. Here is some Friday music.

A rerun of one of my all time favorites. 

Okay, made me laugh

 

Stacy is Right

@PoliticalStacy

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Democrats have their paddles out like they’re buying slaves again.

9:31 PM · Mar 4, 2025

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