Monday, Monday...

Can't touch that day. Amazing, isn't it, what a few recreational drugs could make possible...

Funny Stuff on Friday!

Many thanks to Margo's Maid for the link that still has me giggling!

In the sidebar is What Not To Crochet for some yarn-based amusement.

Don't miss the snark at Food Network Humor. Got me laughing, but I can't read the comments because some of 'em just make me wanna HURT PEOPLE. I think I owe Margo's Maid a thank you for that one, too. She has GREAT funny links on a regular basis...when I have time to waste.

The Pixie and I are off to the commissary for some essentials like apple juice and milk. Busy day, of course, as usual. Y'all have a fine morning, and thanks so much for stopping by!

What NOT to wear...er...so to speak

Via Paco and Something and Half of Something: A life of crime might be more difficult if you have obvious distinguishing marks. Lotta criminals seem to be lacking in the area of common sense, don't they? "Floridiot" is a GREAT word, but I don't believe the condition is exclusive to the Sunshine State.

Among other oddities in the land of non-compliance - postings from News of the Weird:

In May, police in Winder, Ga. (pop. 10,200), arrested a marijuana seller with a quite-low-tech delivery system. A wireless doorbell was hidden on a tree in woods alongside a house, and when the buzzer sounded, a bucket was lowered from a second-story window. The buyer put money in, the bucket was raised, and the dope would be sent back down. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution-AP, 5-29-09]

The St. Paul Pioneer-Press, located in America's ground zero for "New Age," reported the growing discontent of establishment New-Agers for fringe New-Agers. Who belongs? Pagans? Chiropractors? Channelers? Organic farmers? Pet psychics? One NA spiritual center owner: "I have customers who completely believe in fairies [but] will laugh at you if you believe in Bigfoot." (But we're told that "fairies" is not politically correct; it's "nature divas.") [NOTE: I'm told that the reporter probably heard "Nature Deva" and not "nature diva."] On the other hand, at least New-Agers don't have the baggage of believing in virgin birth, turning water into wine, and rising from the dead (much less celebrating it with bunny rabbits). Pioneer Press

[In America, you're presumed innocent . . . until the mug shot is released]
Don't know who this is, or what he's charged with, but he might possibly need to be locked up somewhere. TheSmokingGun.com

Found this in the Billings Gazette online edition:

They are NOT pets! They are not "gentle giants." Even if they're wandering through YOUR camping area! What part of "wild animal" do you not understand?
California man gored by bull bison.

And, from my home town, some pictures of the high point of the summer: Rodeo!

Great Northern Fair has something for everyone.

Busy rest of the day, late night tonight, thanks for stopping by!

Hey, Kae! Anything we can do to help?

I love Best of the Web Today from OpinionJournal.com. It was the people - the community of commenters, many of whom started blogging on their own and which I refer to fondly as Blair Nation - at Tim Blair's blog years ago that eventually set me on the path to blogging for myself.

When I saw this at BotWT, I got a bit anxious, not knowing the geographical details Down Under...so, Kae, what's the good word?

Massive quake moves New Zealand closer to Australia!

So why wouldn't they let this sleeping dog lie? Perhaps because Mr. Reyes is a dimwit.

I would not pass up this phrase as a headline. It's an overwhelming urge I refuse to resist. It's just too beautiful. Read the column, too - Jack Kelly, again at JewishWorldReview.com.

Here's another taste:

There were two problems with Ms. Feinstein's story.

The first is that the assassination plan never got off the drawing board, so there was no program on which to brief members of Congress. The second is that former CIA Director Hayden flatly denied Mr. Cheney had ordered him not to tell Congress about the plan which never got off the ground, and Mr. Panetta's boss, Admiral Dennis Blair, the Director of National Intelligence, wouldn't back up what Mr. Panetta is alleged to have said. Mr. Panetta himself has kept a discreet silence since the flap went public.

The leakers initially got the headlines they wanted, but as the facts come out, the story cannot end well for Democrats. Few Americans are outraged the CIA contemplated killing our enemies during a time of war. We're doing precisely that right now with drone missile attacks on al Qaida and Taliban leaders in Pakistan.

Swing voters are already uncomfortable about the attacks on the CIA, and -- should there be another terrorist attack on the U.S. -- the downside risk for Democrats is enormous. So why wouldn't they let this sleeping dog lie?

Perhaps because Mr. Reyes is a dimwit. Ms. Pelosi chose him for chairman over the far better qualified Rep. Jane Harman (D-Ca), who'd been the ranking Democrat when the GOP controlled Congress, because of her personal animosity to Ms. Harman. At the time of his elevation, Mr. Reyes didn't know the difference between Sunnis and Shia, an appalling failing in a member of the Intelligence Committee.

Your tax dollars, hard at work, paying the morons we elect. Sad, isn't it.

More on GMC, from John Stossel and Tony Blankley

No, not my brother...as BIG BROTHER and Uncle Sam's Bureaucracy continue to grow, as more and more of your individual rights and liberties are voted away, Government Medical Care will soon join Government Motors Crap as your ONLY choice for health care.

John Stossel at JewishWorldReview.com:
It's crazy for a group of mere mortals to try to design 15 percent of the U.S. economy. It's even crazier to do it by August.

Yet that is what some members of Congress presume to do. They intend, as the New York Times puts it, "to reinvent the nation's health care system."

Let that sink in. A handful of people who probably never even ran a small business actually think they can reinvent the health care system.

These are our Elected Officials, most of whom can't buy stamps without breaking rules, don't drive, shop for groceries, or earn a living for a family, who have never run a business - even unsuccessfully! They are the LEAST competent among us, yet have the gall to believe they can make this work? No, to tell you the truth, they don't need it to work - they just need it to pass, to give them more power and control over your lives and the lives of your children and grandchildren.

Is the term "comprehensive" health care misleading? Read Tony Blankley's column, and you will be properly educated on the MEANINGS AND MISLEADINGS of what you hear about GMC:

Comprehensive, as the dictionary defines it, means "including all or everything." It is very similar in meaning to the definition of total, which the dictionary defines as "complete, thorough." If something includes everything, it is complete.

Of course, it is not surprising that NPR uses the White House talking-point word "comprehensive" rather than its synonym "total," because total health care coverage easily might sound like totalitarian health care coverage. And by the way, the dictionary defines totalitarian as "having and exercising complete political power and control." Note that pesky word complete — a synonym for comprehensive — in the definition of totalitarian.

"an ideological reorientation of American government"

Rich Lowry at JewishWorldReview.com:

ObamaCare might not work as advertised, but it will tip more people into government care and create the predicate for rationing and price controls.

There's another GMC coming...and it ain't a car company.

Be VERY afraid.

No more picture

I had a picture posted here that I received in my email - had to do with our upcoming descent into GMC (Government Medical Care). It was FUNNY. Posted quite nice, excellent likeness. But when I came back, picture was replaced by the numerical designation. When checked Google, the only reference was this blog, so I've taken it down till I can get a better copy or till something as funny comes along...though that ain't gonna be easy!

Changing and washing sheets, cleaning the bathroom, and cleaning up wet spots left by a cute lil blond Pixie has been my day so far. My Chief's taking his CDL test today, no idea when he'll be home, so I may have a Coke and something to eat while the Pixie naps, instead of doing up the dishes like I should. Sinus headache is hanging on, it's near 2 weeks now. Bleh.

Thanks for stopping by, y'all have a fine day from here on out, eh?

PS - the Pixie's Great Uncle's initials are GMC, but we don't hold that against him.

Tuesday with Thomas Sowell

Hmm...intelligent talk about 'reforming' medical care in the United States. How refreshing! Well, unless you're an all-government, all the time type guy.

Thomas Sowell's column:

None of the people who are trying to rush government-run medical care through Congress before we have time to think about it are pointing to Medicare, Medicaid or veterans' hospitals as shining examples of how wonderful we can expect government medical care to be when it becomes "universal."

As for those uninsured Americans we keep hearing about, there is remarkably little interest in why they don't have insurance. It cannot be poverty, for the poor can automatically get Medicaid.

In fact, we already know that there are people with substantial incomes who choose to spend those incomes on other things, especially if they are young and in good health. If necessary, they can always go to a hospital emergency room and receive treatment there, whether or not they have insurance.

Here, the advocates of government-run medical care say that we all end up paying, one way or another, for the free medical care that hospitals are forced by law to provide in their emergency rooms. But unless you think that any situation you don't like is a reason to give politicians a blank check for "change," the relevant question becomes whether the alternative is either less expensive or of better quality. Nothing is cheaper just because part of the price is paid in higher taxes.

Afterthought: Let's inject a bit of reality here. NO CongressWeasel that supports this legislation is doing it for the good of the Country. They're doing it because they get some kind of PERSONAL benefit from taking YOUR choices and rights away from you, under the guise of "helping."

I know about VA hospitals. I know about Medicaid. I'm going to learn about Medicare one of these days, a prospect I don't look forward to. NONE of these entities is efficient or cost-effective, not to mention SANE.

CongressWeasel's got a different reason for this legislation than the words coming out of their mouths. More of your rights and choices will go right down the terlet, as Archie used to say. To "help" your great Nation? A man who really helped a lot of people in the world once said, "This perverse wish to hide a bad motive underneath a good one permeates human affairs from top to bottom."

Weasels. Top to bottom.

The REAL Moon Walk

We lived in southern Alberta, Canada, 20 miles from the closest grocery store, 18 miles of which was dirt road. The television was on a shelf in the corner of the living/dining room. It was black and white, and there were knobs on it, no remote control in those days.

I am still in awe.

Pixie's Great Uncle used to wake me to watch every launch with him. Those of you here close to the Space Coast may not understand, but they were DAMN early for kids living in the Mountain Time Zone. Thankfully, the Walk itself was a bit later in the day.

Do YOU remember?

Mitch Albom: We yawned as we took our places around the dining tables. Someone handed out Popsicles. Then, as we licked the icy treats, our tongues turning purple or raspberry, we watched a big black-and-white TV set. The reception wasn't great in the woods of summer camp. And since the picture was coming from the moon, it was particularly fuzzy.

Still, we heard a tinny voice say "…one giant leap for mankind" and when the shadowy spaceman seemed settled on ground, we all clapped, because it felt like that's what we should do, clap for something great.

Walter Cronkite Has Blood on His Hands

AMERICAN blood. He died with American and Vietnamese blood - not to mention the other countries the U.N. sent to Southeast Asia - still dripping from his fingers. If you don't believe me, read this blog post at American Thinker, written by Matt Peterson. From "reporter" to activist "journalist," Uncle Walter took a fall from which real journalism may never recover.

Thanks, Matt.

Walter Cronkite Has Blood on His Hands


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"Oldest man," Brit Henry Allingham dies

From the Great Falls Tribune. The Oldest Man in the World may now be Walter Breuning, a Montana man. The story is mostly about the man Allingham was. There are so few left now...the era is not 'passing' - it HAS passed.

Personal finance is 80 percent behavior and 20 percent head knowledge.

I love Dave Ramsey. Listen to him almost every day. I don't work his plan all the time, but I have enough variant on it that I pay cash for everything, and we don't carry any debt as a family, either, except for the mortgage. I've got to reconfigure and renew working it again, though - been backsliding and not paying attention, and it's cost me bit of my savings to be as undisciplined as I've been this month. Actually, more like six weeks. And my lil truck needs tires, so my wastefulness is a bit painful right now.

I like having one (or several) less thing to worry about. Lord knows I can find SO MUCH to fret about, without adding car payments or credit card balances into the mix!

Thanks, Dave, I'm back on the path.

I got nuthin'

It's Thursday after the book study I attend and I'm pretty tired, but I have a request. If you read one of my posts, would you please attempt a comment? I got word it was impossible for some people to add a comment, and though I do write mostly for me, I'd LOVE some feedback. I reconfigured the comment thingy, it's now a pop-up instead of embedded, so I need you to add a little note to see if it's working. If the durn thing still won't work, shoot me an email so I know, ok? Thanks for your consideration and your continued reading!

One other thing - if you post anonymously because you can't or don't want to sign in to whatever your choices may be, please sign your comment so I can tell who you are. Not as quick at deciphering as I used to be, y'know.

Pressing business?

I'd like a new ironing board. A GOOD (read: expensive) one, with a preference for the old wooden one my mum has. I like the fact that the one I own now hangs on the back of the office door, as it dispenses with the annoying chore of getting it out and setting it up, not to mention a PLACE to store the damn thing. But it needs a new cover and pad VERY badly. So, I'm doing a bit of shopping and waffling...

THIS, however, is NOT what I'm planning to do with it, so even a cheap one would do!

(Thanks to Margo's Maid at The Shadowlands for the link to a fun site!)

UPDATE! In the black small spot in my heart where Revenge lives, I enjoy THIS ONE!

"Free, cheap abortion is a policy of social defense."

Do you think Planned Parenthood is a program to help educate and inform women and girls about making babies, not making babies, the functions of their bodies, and other realities girls should learn from their doctors and parents but just can't for some reason?

Do you think Roe v Wade was about "women's rights" about what happens to their own bodies?

For many years, I thought exactly that way. My 'thoughts,' such as they were, were based on a complete lack of honest information about these topics. I believed what I heard in The Media, mostly without question. As I matured, as I learned more, the truth became clear to me. I have moved from being an uninformed 'women's rights' advocate, to being a fairly well-informed Constitution-centered pro-life advocate.

Jonah Goldberg gives us the REAL deal, as he writes about one of the Supremes, a WOMAN who gets to make these decisions for all the rest of us...

Non-government changes

I began this "stage" of my life at the young age of 45. The symptoms began to manifest the summer before we transferred to Hawai'i, but didn't arrive full-blown till September - I remember the FIRST DAY of extreme discomfort...and put it off to moving stress and "climate change" from SoCal hot and dry to tropical balmy and damp. After about 7 weeks of mood swings and lack of sleep, I went to see a doc at Kaneohe. She did the blood test, but gave me Prempro anyway...and within 20 minutes of taking the first dose, I could tell the difference. What would have been a severe hot flash became a THREAT of a hot flash (I was having flashes every 41 minutes, like clockwork - day AND night), and 12 hours later, I wasn't having even those. So I slept for the first time in weeks. I didn't spend hours crying about nothing.

They will pry my HRT from my fingers if they want it back. I ain't givin' it up.

But Celia Rivenbark has a much funnier take than mine!

Thomas Tuesday is here!

Oh, c'mon, you surely knew this was coming, didn't you? Thomas Sowell is a Hero of mine, not because of his accomplishments, but because of his humility and his quiet dignity. His writing makes me think he's quite "comfortable in his own skin," as I've heard it stated. He thinks his basketball skills left much to be desired, but he should've seen 4'2" me play in a tournament in high school (because there were only 5 regulars that showed up...and my 'best friend' fouled out). Don't believe I ever played again, unless forced to in P.E.

From Mr. Sowell's column at JewishWorldReview.com:

When I was in school, I was so awful in basketball that the class coach wouldn't even let me try out for softball, at which I was actually pretty good.
...
Most discussions of "disparities" and "inequities" are a prelude to coming up with some "solution" that the government can impose, winning politicians some votes in the process. How could the disparity between Michael Jordan and me be solved?

We could change the rules of basketball, in order to try to equalize the outcomes.
...
But, conceivably at least, we might change the rules some more to make the results come out less lopsided, in order to create "social justice."

The problem with trying to equalize is that you can usually only equalize downward.

...

If you are going to have these lower physical requirements be the same for both women and men, that means that you are not only going to have women who are not capable of carrying someone out of a burning building, you are also going to have men who are likewise incapable of carrying someone to safety.

Most activities do not exist for the sake of equality. They exist to serve their own purposes — and those purposes are undermined, sometimes fatally, when equality becomes the goal.

Just pics

Not inspired, not creative. So check out my Pixie a few days back,
when it was VERY hot outside...

Mark Martin is still nifty at FIFTY!

My Favorite Old Guy does it AGAIN! Hot damn and congratulations, Mark, thanks for cheering up my Saturday!

From Fanhouse.com -

"I'm going to feel like hell tomorrow because I ain't going to sleep much tonight,'' Martin said on Saturday night. "When I'm pumped up driving fast race cars, I certainly don't feel 50.''

He's far from the sunset of his career and proved it under the lights on the 1.5-mile track.

From Chicago Tribune online -

The close-cropped stubble on his head contains as much salt as pepper, and the wrinkles run across Mark Martin's face like long-ago dried-up riverbeds. And for a while, twilight racing had a far less poetic meaning, semi-retirement leaving him with a loose grip on the track.

So it was with unmistakable giddiness that a man a half-century old took to the radio early in the LifeLock.com 400 on Saturday, his Chevrolet efficiently chopping through traffic and turning the Chicagoland Speedway's 1.5-mile tri-oval into a veritable senior circuit.

"This is easy, bud," Martin told crew chief Alan Gustafson.

He spoke far, far too soon, as double-file restart dueling extinguished his well-earned lead and then returned it to him, all in the final 50 laps.

"Rick Hendrick, he wouldn't quit," Martin said of the team owner who coaxed him back to full-time driving this year. "I was persuaded to do it. And I can't believe what an idiot I would have been. I had no idea it could be this much fun. The whole thing has been beyond my dreams."

• "He's been in his prime for 30 years now."
- Tony Stewart on Mark Martin