Thwarted at Every Turn

"Thwarted at every turn", could have been the theme for what was going to be a quick run downtown to Bottoms Up Pizza to pick up pizza for lunch. The trip down was uneventful and took no time, but the trip back was another story all together.

We hopped on the Downtown Expressway heading out of the city to only be blocked as we headed for the Powhite by road repairs (rolling pothole repairs). The maintenance was so much the problem, but the State Trooper blocking the only other available lane was. Man crawling along at 10 mph isn't very productive when the speed limit is 55 mph.

Finally making through the toll plaza we got off onto Jahnke Road to avoid Midlothian and ran into another round of construction this time it was Dominion Power blocking the road.

After successfully navigating past the Dominion Power blockage we finally made it to Forest Hill & Huguenot all ready to make the turn for the office. When in the distance there are flashing lights. And what we thought was an accident turned out to be a funeral procession heading our way. We had our fingers crossed but the light was not in our favor. The turn lane stayed red with the changing of the light and then we were stuck for another cycle of the light.

Then to top it all off when I finally started off for home this evening this is what greeted me! So much for my usual quick trip back home.

Wishing Faith a Happy 5th Birthday!!

Love You Sweetie!

A Thought for the Day

Have you ever contemplated the parade of people that pass through your life? Who they are and what impact that they have made upon your life?

If you really start to think about the list of grows on a daily basis, whether it is a new co-worker, the person in a checkout line with you, or someone you just happened to speak with on the phone. How many of them are you leaving better off for having come in contact with you? Is their day any better or worse from their encounter with you? It is possible that you are the only person that has spoken nicely to them today, or even this week? Who's life have you touched in a positive way today?

In hindsight, thinking back over those that have influenced our lives - just how many did so in just some small way that turned out to have been huge? How many even know that they ever made a difference to you? If someone makes your day, let them know and be sure to pass it on.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Full Moon Fever?

It has been one heck of a day. I felt like I was starting off the day behind the 8 ball. I had a handful of items that were holdovers from yesterday to get me started.

Verizon gave me one heck of a time this afternoon - just trying to get that resolved took over 2 hours of time on either hold or talking to tech support. I thought for sure for a while there that they had totally forgotten me, and even when I did talk with them they couldn't or wouldn't resolve the issue.  Grrr....not good for the blood pressure.

This evening when I got home we had a fiasco next door - we still don't know what was up.  But there was a police car in the driveway as we were heading out.  When we got back there was a second one.  While we were eating dinner an ambulance showed up followed shortly by a fire truck.  I was beginning to feel really crowded.  It has made for an interesting evening.

Speeding Through the Week in Slow Motion

Man is it only Tuesday! I could have sworn we were up to Thursday at least. Been busy trying to find myself on my list of stuff that needs to get done.

Still working on my homework assignments - down to the last 2 for my print production class. I've got one almost complete and ready to turn in. Looks like I may actually get it finished this weekend.

I was thrilled to be able to come in from work this evening and build a fire! It's been almost a month since we've had one. I'm on restriction though for the next few days, I can only build small fires (2-3 pieces of wood) every night and then I have to let them go out. It's going to allow the new piece to cure - otherwise it will end up with hairline fractures all over. Come Saturday though I can go hog wild!

Email & Newsletter Gleanings:

America's Hunters

I don't spend my fall weekends tramping around the woods in pursuit of a buck, but a lot of my friends and neighbors do.

This blogger adds up all the hunters in just a handful of states, and comes to a striking conclusion:

The state of Wisconsin has gone an entire deer hunting season without someone getting killed.  That's great. There were over 600,000 hunters. Allow me to restate that number. Over the last two months, the eighth largest army in the world:

• more men under arms than Iran ;
• more than France and Germany combined
• deployed to the woods of a single American state to help keep the deer menace at bay.

But that pales in comparison to the 750,000 who are in the woods of Pennsylvania this week. Michigan's 700,000 hunters have now returned home.

Toss in a quarter million hunters in West Virginia , and it is literally the case that the hunters of those four states alone would comprise the largest army in the world.

His point? America will forever be safe from foreign invasion with that kind of home-grown firepower.

Hunting -- it's not just a way to fill the freezer. It's a matter of national security.

*************************************************

My own two cents on this, "That's why all enemies foreign and domestic want to see us disarmed." Most of all, Our Government

Happy Birthday Wayne!

Have a Wonderful Birthday Wayne!

Happy Birthday Josh!!

Have a spectacular birthday Josh!

Gardens and Nature

From my email:

GOD:
Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on the planet? What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.

St. FRANCIS:

It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD:

Grass? But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS:

Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD:

The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes twice a week.

GOD:

They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS:

Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD:

They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS:

No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD:

Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS:
Yes, Sir..

GOD:
These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work..

ST. FRANCIS:

You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD:
What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.

ST. FRANCIS:

You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD:

No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS:

After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch.. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD:

And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS:

They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD:

Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?

ST. CATHERINE:

'Dumb and Dumber', Lord. It's a story about....

GOD:

Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

Annual Masquerade

Roz's Annual Masquerade Party got off to a big start this evening. Partiers descended upon her house and things were going full steam in no time at all. It was great seeing all the different and exotic masks this year. What a great way to celebrate Courtney's 21st Birthday!

More Masquerade Photos

Lee-Jackson Day 2011

Winding Down The Week

It has been a truly interesting week. I've been chatting with some folk online for the past several weeks in the evenings and have finally gotten to know a few of them. They are spread out all over the globe, Australia, Canada, and all across the US.

For such a small group they have been having such a wide array of issues just since Christmas: floods in Australia; snow and cold in the North East; death of a father; death of two friends; family members with cancer; a pregnancy and an attempted suicide. Such drama for such a short time.

I have found it amazing how much that they all pull together to support one another in all that they are going through and they are supporting one another in prayer as well.

In other news, we got a call at the house this week from the chimney people, the part that the FedEx guy broke has been delivered all in one piece and they are coming on Monday to repair the fireplace. Yippee!!! I won't be soon enough. It'll be great to get the fireplace back in action.

Got a couple of birthday party's to get to this weekend. They promise to be on totally opposite ends of the spectrum. One a late night Masquerade and the other an afternoon dinner. Both will be a blast.

Email & Newsletter Gleanings:

Thought for the Day:   Brain cells come and brain cells go, but fat cells live forever.

If You're Over 35

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning.... Uphill... Barefoot... BOTH ways. yadda, yadda, yadda
And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!

But now that I'm over the ripe old age of forty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a Utopia!

And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!

1. I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!
2. There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!
3. Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!
4. There were no MP3's or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!
5. Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?
6. We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!
7. There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH !!! Think of the horror... not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.
8. And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!
9. We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen... Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!
10. You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your behind and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!
11. There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rats!
12. And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!
13. And our parents told us to stay outside and play... all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... you were doing chores!
14. And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!

See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in the 1970's or any time before!

Regards,
The Over 30 Crowd

Little Fire Fighter

A firefighter was working on the engine outside the Station, when he noticed a little girl nearby in a little red wagon with little ladders hung off the sides and a garden hose tightly coiled in the middle.

The girl was wearing a firefighter’s helmet.

The wagon was being pulled by her dog and her cat.

The firefighter walked over to take a closer look. 'That sure is a nice fire truck,' the firefighter said with admiration.

'Thanks,' the girl replied.

The firefighter looked a little closer. The girl had tied the wagon to her dog's collar and to the cat's testicles.

'Little partner,' the firefighter said, 'I don't want to tell you how to run your rig, but if you were to tie that rope around the cat's collar, I think you could go faster. '

The little girl replied thoughtfully, 'You're probably right, but then I wouldn't have a siren.'

Jasper and the Unbaked Yeast Rolls

We have a fox terrier by the name of Jasper. He came to us in the summer of 2001 from the fox terrier rescue program. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this type of adoption, imagine taking in a 10-year-old child you know nothing about and committing to doing your best to be a good parent.

Five weeks ago we began remodeling our house. Although the cost of the project was downright obnoxious, it was 20 years overdue AND it got me out of cooking Thanksgiving dinner for family, extended family, and a lot of friends that I like more than family most of the time.

I was assigned the task of preparing 124 of my famous yeast dinner rolls for the two Thanksgiving feasts we did attend.

I am still mad at the electrician for getting the new oven hooked up so quickly. It was the only appliance in the whole house that worked, thus the assignment.

I made the decision to cook the rolls on Wednesday evening and to reheat Thursday morning. Since the kitchen was freshly painted, you can imagine the odor. Not wanting the rolls to smell like Sherwin Williams latex paint #586, I put the rolls on baking sheets and set them in the living room to rise for five hours.

After three hours, Perry and I decided to go out to eat, returning about an hour later. An hour after that, the rolls were ready to go into the oven.

It was 8:30 p.m. When I went to the living room to retrieve the pans, much to my shock, one whole pan of 12 rolls was empty. I called out to Jasper, and my worst nightmare became a reality. He literally wobbled over to me. He looked like a combination of the Pillsbury dough boy and the Michelin Tire man wrapped up in fur. He groaned when he walked. Even his cheeks were bloated.

I ran to the phone and called our vet. After a few seconds of uproarious laughter, he told me the dog would probably be OK; however, I needed to give him Pepto Bismol every two hours for the rest of the night.

Who knows why I thought a dog would like Pepto Bismol any more than my kids did when they were sick. Suffice it to say that by the time we went to bed, the dog was black, white, and pink. He was so bloated we had to lift him onto the bed for the night.

Naively thinking the dog would be all better by morning was very stupid on my part.

We arose at 7:30 and as we always do first thing, we put the dog out to take care of his business. Well, the dog was as drunk as a sailor on his first leave. He was running into walls, falling flat on his rear. Most of the time when he was walking, his front half was going one direction and the other half was either dragging the grass or headed 90 degrees in another direction. When he ran down the small incline in our back yard, he couldn't stop himself and nearly ended up running into the fence.

His pupils were dilated and he was as dizzy as a loon. I endured another few seconds of laughter from the vet (second call within 12 hours) before he explained that the yeast had fermented in his belly and that he was indeed drunk.

He assured me that, not unlike most binges we humans go through, it would wear off after about four or five hours. He then told me to keep giving the dog Pepto Bismol.

Afraid to leave Jasper by himself in the house, Perry and I loaded him up and took him with us to my sister's house for the first Thanksgiving meal of the day.

My sister lives outside of Muskogee on a ranch (a 10- to 15-minute drive). Rolls firmly secured in the trunk (124 less 12) and drunk dog leaning from the back seat onto the console of the car between Perry and me, we took off.

Now I know you probably don't believe that dogs burp, but believe me when I say that after eating a tray of risen unbaked yeast rolls, DOGS WILL BURP. These burps were pure Old Charter. They would have matched or beat any smell in a drunk tank at the police station. But that's not the worst of it.

Now he was beginning to pass gas and it smelled like baked rolls. We endured this for the entire trip to Karen's. We were thankful she didn't live any farther away than she did.

Once Jasper was firmly placed in my sister's garage with the door locked, we finally sat down to enjoy our first Thanksgiving meal of the day. The dog was the topic of conversation all morning long and everyone made trips to the garage to witness my drunken dog, each returning with a tale of Jasper's latest endeavor to walk without running into something. Of course, as the old adage goes, "What goes in must come out," and Jasper was no exception.

Granted if it had been me that had eaten 12 risen, unbaked yeast rolls, you might as well have put a concrete block up my behind, but alas a dog's digestive system is quite different from yours or mine. I discovered this was a mixed blessing when we prepared to leave Karen's house.

Having discovered his "packages" on the garage floor, we loaded him up in the car so we could hose down the floor.

This was another naive decision on our part. The blast of water from the hose hit the poop on the floor, and the poop on the floor withstood the blast from the hose. It was like Portland cement beginning to set up and cure.

We finally tried to remove it with a shovel. I (obviously no one else was going to offer their services) had to get on my hands and knees with a coarse brush to get the remnants off of the floor. And as if this wasn't degrading enough, the dog in his drunken state had walked through the poop and left paw prints all over the garage floor that had to be brushed too.

Well, by this time the dog was sobering up nicely, so we took him home and dropped him off before we left for our second Thanksgiving dinner at Perry's sister's house.

I am happy to report that as of today (Monday) the dog is back to normal, both in size and temperament. He has had a bath and is no longer tricolor. None the worse for wear, I presume. I am also happy to report that just this evening I found two risen unbaked yeast rolls hidden inside my closet door.

It appears he must have come to his senses after eating ten of them but decided hiding two of them for later would not be a bad idea. Now, I'm doing research on the computer: "How to clean unbaked dough from the carpet."

And how was your day?

Housecleaning Philosophy

I don't do windows because...
I love birds and don't want one to run into a clean window and get hurt.

I don't wax floors because...
I am terrified a guest will slip and get hurt then I'll feel terrible ( plus they may sue me.)

I don't mind the dust bunnies because...
They are very good company, I have named most of them, and they agree with everything I say.

I don't disturb cobwebs because...
I want every creature to have a home of their own.

I don't Spring Clean because...
I love all the seasons and don't want the others to get jealous.

I don't put things away because...
My husband will never be able to find them again.

I don't do gourmet meals when I entertain because...
I don't want my guests to stress out over what to make when they invite me over for dinner.

I don't iron because...
I choose to believe them when they say "Permanent Press."

I don't stress much on anything because...
"A Type" personalities die young and I want to stick around and become a wrinkled up crusty ol' woman!!!

Postal Irritation

I got an ugly surprise from the postal service this afternoon, they brought back about 40 packages that I mailed out yesterday telling me that I hadn't put enough postage on them. I had weighed them on the postage meter and made sure that they fit through the postal services own template. Photographic proof that they fit!!!

So how does that work!? It's just extremely irritating to do the job (supposedly according to their specs) and have it come back.

Grr....there are days that I think that they just aren't interested in either sorting the mail or processing it so they send it back.

Sort of an Icy Morning

What an interesting start to what may be an icy day. Decisions, decisions, decisions... should we open, go in late or not at all. Here we are in the office and waiting for patients to show up for their appointments. I'm busy in my office working on a magazine and a newspaper ad.

Watching the traffic from my window things look like they are moving just fine out there right now. Only time will tell if it is actually going to come down and bring Richmond to a standstill or not.

It's beginning to feel like Richmond is slowly grinding to a halt - even though the from my office window it doesn't look like there is a real need to do so.

Thought for the Day: "Watch your relations with other people carefully be reserved" - fortune cookie wisdom

Finally Get Back in the Swing of Things

Saturday started off the weekend snowy, boy did I want to stay home. But duty called and I was off to a morning at the office. We did get a whole lot accomplished (more than I thought we would). Although going out turned out to be a really good thing. I got some great pictures of the snow before it melted off.

January 8, 2011 Snow Pictures

I'm finally getting myself back into the swing of things. I'm getting myself back into my class assignments and getting set to finish up my classes. They've been hanging out too long. Time to really get it done. I only have eight classes to go and just really need to do them. Procrastination has not been my friend.

The sis has been going through a whole lot with her youngest since the first of the year, the poor little guy has a case of pneumonia. Got so bad this weekend he had to be admitted to the hospital. So far the pneumonia is confined to one lung and he seems not to be bothered by it except when he goes to sleep at night. We're waiting now to hear back from his doctors about an update on his newest x-rays.

Email & Newsletter Gleanings:

#2 Pencil

The value of a Catholic education and a #2 pencil.

Little Susie was not the best student in Catholic School. Usually she slept through the class.

One day her teacher, a Nun, called on her while she was sleeping.

'Tell me Susie, who created the universe?'

When Susie didn't stir, little Johnny who was her friend sitting behind her, took his pencil and jabbed her in the rear.

'God Almighty!' shouted Susie.

The Nun said, 'Very good' and continued teaching her class..

A little later the Nun asked Susie, 'Who is our Lord and Savior?'

But Susie didn't stir from her slumber. Once again, Johnny came to her rescue and stuck her in the butt.

'Jesus Christ!!!' shouted Susie.

And the Nun once again said, 'Very good,' and Susie fell back asleep.

The Nun asked her a third question...'What did Eve say to Adam after she had her twenty-third child?'

Again, Johnny came to the rescue. This time Susie jumped up and shouted, 'If you stick that damn thing in me one more time, I'll break it in half!'

The nun fainted.

Baptist Dinner For Eight

A group of country friends from the Cottonwood Baptist Church wanted to get together on a regular basis to socialize, and play games. The lady of the house was to prepare the meal.

When it came time for Al and Janet to be the hosts, Janet wanted to outdo all the others. Janet decided to have mushroom-smothered steak, but, mushrooms are expensive. She then told her husband, No mushrooms, they are too high.

He said, 'Why don't you go down in the pasture and pick some of those mushrooms?
There are plenty in the creek bed.'

She said, 'No, some wild mushrooms are poison.'

He said, 'Well, I see varmints eating them and they're OK.'

So, Janet decided to give it a try She picked a bunch, washed, sliced, and diced them for her smothered steak. Then she went out on the back porch and gave Ole' Spot (the yard dog) a double handful.

Ole' Spot ate every bite. All morning long, Janet watched Ole' Spot and the wild mushrooms didn't seem to affect him, so she decided to use them.

The meal was a great success, and Janet even hired a helper lady from town to help her serve. She had on a white apron and a fancy little cap on her head.

After everyone had finished, they relaxed, socialized, and played Phase
10 and Mexican train dominoes. About then, the helper lady from town, came in and whispered in Janet's ear, 'Mrs Williams, Ole' Spot just died'

Janet went into hysterics. After she finally calmed down, she called the doctor and told him what had happened. The doctor said, 'That's bad, but I think we can take care of it. I will call for an ambulance and I will be there as quick as possible.

We' ll give everyone enemas and we will pump out everyone's stomach. Everything will be fine.. Just keep them calm.'

Soon they could hear the siren as the ambulance was coming down the road. The EMT's and the doctor had suitcases, syringes, and a stomach pump.

One by one, they took each person into the bathroom, gave them an enema, and pumped out their stomach. After the last one was finished, the doctor came out and said,

'I think everything will be fine now.' Then he left.

They were all looking pretty weak sitting around the living room, and about this time, the helper lady came in and said, 'You know, that fellow that ran over Ole' Spot never even stopped.

Doody Solution

Just posting this one as it came in on my email today!

A little three-year-old boy is sitting on the toilet. His mother thinks he has been in there too long, so she goes in to see what's up.

The little boy is sitting on the toilet reading a book. But about every 10 seconds or so he puts the book down, grips onto the toilet seat with his left hand and hits himself on top of the head with his right hand.

His mother says, "Billy, are you all right? You've been in there for a while."

Billy says, "I'm fine, Mommy. I just haven't gone doody yet."

Mother says, "Okay, you can stay in there a few more minutes, but Billy, why are you hitting yourself on the head?"

Billy says, "Works for ketchup!"

Dumb Dog Moment

Just caught the dog munching on steel wool, so glad that I heard him making odd noises in the other room. He is definitely not the brightest bulb in box. I have got to figure out just what we can do to keep him from munching on things that he shouldn't.

The list is getting pretty long: pillows, sheets, pot holder, blankets, shoe(s) lots of those, paper, stuffing, plastics, stuffed animals, a throw rug, the window sill, his crate, Christmas ornaments (balls), and now steel wool! He even has his own chew toys, but doesn't stick to those. Haven't been able to come up with a solution as to why the thinks he must chew on everything but what he is suppose to. Thought that he'd be more settled down by this point.

Looks like he's going to be spending some quality time in his crate. Gotta keep him safe from himself.

Walter's Predictions for the New Year

Walter in his infinite wisdom has arrived at two different scenarios for what could occur during 2011:

1) We will begin to see unemployment numbers improving which will be the hallmark of us beginning out climb out of the recession.  These numbers will not be back to their pre-recession rate but there will be an improvement.

OR

2)  Due to the Federal Reserve Printing money, we will see a large climb in the inflation rate, without a rise in personal incomes - this will lead us into a Carter era inflation and which will further damage the economy and lead us back into another recessional dip with further layoffs.

Email & Newsletter Gleanings:

Thought for the Day: "Kindness is the oil that reduces the friction of life."

"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots - so far, the universe is winning."

Bakery Robbery

My cousin was behind the bakery's cash register one morning when a gunman burst in and demanded all the cash.

As she nervously handed over the money, she noticed the rolls of coins in the back of the register.

"Do you want the rolls too?" she asked.

"No," said the robber, waving his gun. "Just the money."

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, before e-mail, before cell phones, etc.

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure.

Pass this on to your friends and let your Congressmen know that you support such an Amendment.

In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one proposal that really should be passed around. You do not have to be a conservative or liberal and you don't have to be a Republican of Democrat to understand the importance of this.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution:

"Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States."