SORRY, IT'S ALL ABOUT THEM (August 18/179)

 

I've come to a decision. After all the episodes of ripping up the constitution from bribery to destroying the economy to alienating every ally to weaponizing government, I will only refer to marmie as "that guy who lives in the White House". He has certainly abdicated his oath of office as President and should no longer carry that title. Secondly, dems need to grow a pair (or several) after witnessing again how "that guy wlitwh" folds like a paper towel holding dog poop after meeting put put in Alaska. "I'm going to insist, bla bla bla"-no deal, or excuse me, whatever put put wants. Good thing he was wearing dark pants as I am sure at age 79, he was having problems holding it in after meeting with his hero. 

Along with accepting pudding put's take on Ukraine war, he also talked that wlitwh into coming out against mail-in ballots and, humorously, voting machines by saying no country but US uses mail-in ballots. Guess put in pudding in pie forgot to mention Russia uses them. Enough said. 

And no Kristi, we're not obsessed with your looks. It's just mind-boggling that you travel with a hair and makeup person so you can look glamorous in front of a prison full of mis-treated and tortured souls deported (illegally) from the US among other photo ops. That is disgusting.

And it is rather ironic that marmie calls up the national guard for a "non-existent" crime issue (because doge kid "big balls" got beat up by 2 15-year-old boys and 1 girl) but sat and watched in "apparent" glee and called no one when the capital itself was under vicious attack. The biggest crime spree is the white house. Yep, he cares about this country. Oddly enough he's focusing the soldiers by monuments rather than identified crime areas? 

And finally, hiding Obama's and the Bush's presidential pictures-wow. "Small men shrink from history's giants (Newsome)" LOL. What's he going to do next exhume Kennedy and put out the perpetual flame? His pettiness and insecurity know no bounds. Or as the Chicago mayor puts it after being insulted several times by yours' truly "he really is afraid of intelligent black men". 

On the humorous side, truth social (marmie's mouthpiece) filled up AI with conservative ideas and then asked it questions. To which, like Sleeping Beauty's stepmom and her infamous mirror, it claimed "I cannot lie". When asked, it stated "marmie did not win the 2020 election"; "tariffs are a tax on Americans"; "January 6 was an insurrection" though it often cites Fox as its source - OMG! Which also addresses the complaint of why news media seem so left-biased... because they are reporting the story as it happened, duh 😂

No major dramas on the home front last week. The boy turned down a quick overnight to the lake. As predicted, the fish aint' big enough to give up his social calendar at our little lake. We have created a fishing monster. I am up to refilling the finch and hummer feeders more than once a week. 'tis the season, I guess. Hysterical to see the little boy hummer constantly driving off the larger female hummer, as if there was not enough for two or ten long beaks. Sunday's are getting busier so often moving my "pearls of wisdom" to Monday. If I don't post on Monday, I'm probably dead so there's that. 

Dictators fail as they surround themselves with incompetent fools who never tell you the truth. Eventually it all crashes down-just not before damage is done.  At any rate, when all the leaders of Europe have to sit in on a meeting with marmie and Zelensky it screams "we don't trust you in big neon letters." Sigh.  Peace out/Stay Strong....💚  💙💛

     Show the Epstein files.......

        

BLOWING IN THE WIND (August 11/180)

WISHY WASHY Is there such a thing as a dishwasher culture? I must have been behind the road sign when the frenzy began. A dishwasher in my youth was my siblings' and myself. I still struggle with finding enough reasons to use my fancy BOSCH which I only have to fill the hole in the under-sink cabinets so its necessary. I am sorely lacking in the Tetra skills needed to place and stack. My stuff crashes down on the slightest touch so what are all those little dish holder thingees for if not to grasp bowls to their little metal hearts?

 As I always have way too much plastic, wood, sharp knives and pans I wouldn't put in the dishwasher,  handwashing is still a part of the scenario with my bottom rack kind of running free making me rethink the whole hassle of running the dishwasher in the first place. And what's with the "drip a few drops" of goop into the rinse pocket (which immediately runs down the door of the washer) and the so-called drying cycle. The dishes still have to be wiped dry even if they sit all night. Again, I don't get it but love when folks on HGTV (usually Americans) lament the lack of a dishwasher in their European apartment even if there is only one person!

AHOY MATEY Well, who found out she doesn't get seasick anymore. Well at least after my friendly little white pill -no not cocaine, Dramamine. We finally got the grandson out on the Great Lakes fishing. It was iffy all week with the wind expectations, but what the hell, what's 3-foot swells among friends. Though the Captain was adamant about wind direction if anyone was feeling "pukey". My calm stomach was severely tested when I chose to climb up to the flying bridge-oh baby does that rock and roll. The first mate said the boat's (Nauti Dog) keel was as deep as a sailboat so tipping over was not in the cards-like I had even thought about that until she mentioned it😕 (I said it was windy). I just assumed seeing the water inches away from my position was normal. Then for the "nervous nellies" they had "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" on their playlist-JP was not amused.

More fun. As these folks compete in fishing tournaments, the boats have BIG engines. As time is of the essence, they hammer going out and coming in. Anyone standing would have been on their butt immediately. I cannot believe beer is involved in these expeditions as not being thrown in the drink was a definite possibility with the constant waves banging against us. Up to 4-5 feet by then. We staggered around like we were 3 sheets to the wind. I pity the fool who went out on Lake Michigan that day without at least a 26-30 foot boat. Well guess they found out once they got past the break wall. With all that rocking and rolling I never fell.... until climbing out and tripping on the dock-Sigh.

The grandson, on the other hand, did not stomach things quite as well. He was pretty much rolled up in a ball except when a fish struck. Then it was all about the fishing where he landed three decent sized salmon during the adventure. As he put it, "my family goes into a panic when they yell fish on" as we were trying to get the pole to him. He battled each for five or ten minutes, so we were pretty proud he stuck with it getting all three.   

 

                                                           

                                              

  RANDOM RIGHTIES As they anxiously pluck their pearls about the missing tax-ass dems, did we forget the repugs ran away rather than vote on releasing the Epstein files? Or the Oregon-i repugs who walked out multiple times on agendas they didn't like? Our priorities are screwed up for sure. 

Recently saw a sign that said being left is a sign of mental illness/ quit watching so much TV. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but most liberals do not spend that much time watching basic television-they are more intelligent, read and no doubt streaming multiple sources. Only magots inhale fax newsie 24/7 as the background for their lives. I for one have never watched CNN or CNBC actually, though I do enjoy watching Anderson Cooper on New's Years Eve as he gets hammered with Andy Cohen. I watch local and research multiple sources.  Oh yeah research, that woke intellectual-type stuff. May have to add CBS to that list at some point. 

Pirate walks into a bar with a paper towel on his head. Bartender says, "what's with the paper towel?" "Rrrr" pirate says "I's got a bounty on me head."  Ta ta boom! Peace out/Stay strong...💚  💙💛

WET, WILD & SOFT SERVE (August 4/181)

CAPTAIN MY CAPTAIN  "Mayday Mayday" life jackets hastily donned, bilge pump engaged and buckets at the ready. Water sloshing over the back as the boat slowly sinks into the mucky bottom of the lake.

Well, it could have dramatically read that way if they hadn't brought her up on plane racing across the lake on the journey back to our dock from the launch site. Instead, it was our neighbor banging on the patio door saying, "your boat looks kind of low in the water". No shitske from the crown prince of understatement. Mayday mayday before we have nothing left but the ropes holding her to the dock. Thank goodness for the bilge pump as our bucket brigade was not keeping the lake at bay. Then miraculous discovery. The dang, stupid, naughty little plug was out. So, the OH had to wade through the mud blood, etc. up to his chest to reinsert the wayward plug. Mr. Bilge did the rest.

Disaster averted and fishing postponed for the day. Then of course, it rained all the next day so the two fisherpeople were a bit peeved at their reduced time on the lake. Not to mention having to dry out all their equipment, of which there is a lot, really, really a lot.. Funny  how all the sinking boat pics show one end going down before the other-very artistic. Nope, this one was going straight down all at once lacking poetic grace. Would have needed a crane to lift her out. Have to say it's a first after 40-50 years of owning boats. 

Funny phone conversation. I checked with ACE Hardware to determine if they had a pump if we needed one explaining about the boat mishap. One of the questions was "are you in the middle of the lake?" I just can't imagine what he was envisioning, obviously not an emergency where they would whip out there in their ACE boat and start pumping? Goes right in my book titled "Silly Questions, Volume 23".                                                                                                              

RANDOM OUTRAGES The plane is free! The billion for upgrading and renovation will come out of a bloated, unnecessary military budget item set aside to update our ancient BOMB SILOS! As our own jolly old St Prick moves a couple nuclear subs closer to pudding's territory. Priorities and all that.

The EPA has decided no connection between pollution and health, so they are going to deregulate all those bothersome rules about coal plants and other greenhouse gas producers. I suppose we can look forward to lead-based gasoline next. Be fun to see cities wreathed in gray sooty clouds like they used to be in the 50's. Ahh the good old days. Also, like the McCarthy nuts, fire anyone who does not meet your version of the "truth" (BLS labor numbers)

After a 10 million dollar tax-payer trip to promote his Scotland golf courses (ostensibly working on trade deals) the darn media will not stop asking about the Epstein debacle. And these were Scottish news media. You can just see the silly-assed look "how do they know about that?" In usual fashion the peda-in-chief puts a golf shoe in his mouthpiece to talk about E's "stealing" of his under-age spa employees and not having the "honor" of visiting the island. But he also took time out to insult the Dutch head of the European Union to state how ugly and inefficient windmills are. As windmills literally keep the sea out of their backyards, I have to give her credit for no eyerolls or a deserved backhand across that narcissistic smug face. Are we all sufficiently distracted yet?

RITES OF SUMMER As we languish in the dog days of August, where are the ice cream trucks of yesteryear? Was it that long ago when Mr. Softee and the Good Humor person plied our streets and our senses with their chocolaty frozen treats? Tri-colored popsicle bombs, sloppy soft serve with a twist melting down our shirts covering our hands with lickable goodness! Another passage of summer abandoned. Job didn't pay much, but the fringe benefits were both fattening and satisfying. That infuriating jingle of a long-forgotten song driving children insane and parents irritated as they scramble for quarters under the seat cushions. Now I'm hungry. Maybe we should advocate for a driveway cocktail truck for the after 6 pm crowd. That would sell.  Peace out.....💚  💙💛

COLOR ME.... (July 28/182)

 

ITS A GREEN GREEN WORLD I have declared war on weeds. Well mostly I am past the point of pulling the evil green monsters who thrive on apparently no water at all. Why aren't they prettier then? If I'm forced to cultivate them, they should at least do their part by acquiring some fancier clothes and getting rid of the spikey things that make pulling them out such a nasty task. As I pull, they stubbornly cling to their underground plumbing (you can actually hear them grunting) leaving their root system entirely intact as I hopelessly cling to the superfluous top (the spikey part). 

My lawn care people like lawns but not so much landscaping. My landscaper did the bare minimum and left me holding the bag with a couple of iffy bushes and way too little mulch. Looked good for about an hour and a half.  Tried to recruit the grandson, but that was a no go. I just can't bend and stretch and reach for the stars like I use to. 

A gardener for the weed debacle and agriculturist for the decorative part? What a racket. Reviews mean nothing. Always surprising that these folks don't hustle after the middle-class folks. We are usually easier to please and pay as required. Instead, they haplessly pursue the rich thinking bigger payouts. Except, they are much pickier and are genius at finding ways to stiff you on parts or all of the bill. Maybe I should interview prospective employees in a ball gown and tiara. My ability to pay as contracted will be a nice surprise. No one ever comes to your door touting landscaping like the construction and window people. "I'm working down the street, and I noticed your landscaping looks like it was attacked by both a volcanic eruption and a plethora of beavers. That spiel I would listen to. 

ORANGE LAND Gotta love marmie touting the Japanese tariff deal. We buy a hell of a lot more from them than they buy from us so yay for Japan. The little bitty problem though is that makes Japanese made cars 10% less than those made in Canada and Mexico due to their sweetheart deal. Yep, that'll get GM to build more factories in the US. Oops, they already lost 1.1 billion last quarter due to those silly little add-ons. 

And yes Virginia, I totally believe a convicted felon facing a long sentence will absolutely tell the truth with a possible pardon on the table if I tell the "right" truth. Hopefully she faces a better fate than her partner in crime who was murd, committed sui, ok died in prison. Just odd that the only one serving time is one woman. Can't have a crime ring without the ring so to speak. 

THE COLOR OF CHOCOLATE Does anyone but me have laundry cookies? Ok, one of my secret obsessions is GS cookies. I wait anxiously starting at the first of the year for the magic time when "Cookies Ahoy" is proclaimed. I will stake out likely retail spots to finally get my fix. As the young ladies are practicing their entrepreneur skills, the transactions are sometimes protracted and painful.  Yelling give me cookies and throwing 20-dollar bills at them just freaks them out. Anyway, all varieties freeze so I keep my hoard in the downstairs freezer. SOOO, while I'm waiting for my magic laundry pack to dissolve; they say just toss in the pack and then the clothes but I'm leery of mixing mediums until the packet totally disappears before throwing in the clothes. DIGRESS:  where does the plastic on the pack go? The same place as the mismatched socks no doubt, clogging my plumbing. So anyway, a frozen thin mint or two seems the perfect timing for the laundry pack to dissolve.  In many cases, the cookies never make it to the kitchen. They just slowly disappear. The OH never asks their fate. I bring up his favorite kind now and then to show I'm playing aboveboard. 

BLACK IS BLACK Considering all the famous deaths this past week and much conjecture/dreaming by so many on whose obit they really would like to see next (talks of a 3-day party were tossed about) I feel compelled to riff off one of Mark Twain's quotes. "Live so people won't take great pleasure in seeing your obituary."  Prayers for TC and all fallen music icons, peace out.......💚   💙💛

                                                                              

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC (July 21/183)

IN THE NEWS Again, we are in soap opera territory which may be where little stevie m gets all his plot lines. He should go into movie scripting for the outlandish scenarios he creates which also emphasize cruelty as the main feature. Kind of like Victor Newman on the Young and Useless. The fact that S&M can't keep his cool in interviews is just demented which again reminds me of the 3rd Reich fanatics. After making a spectacle of himself with the Chelsea FIFA winners and taking their trophy,  marmie is threatening the Washington Commanders he won't agree to their new stadium if they don't change their name back to the Redskins. WTF? Aren't there more pressing matters to stick your stubby little fingers into? But one must show their hatred of all diversity and sensitivity in a very public way. 

Every week another scandal or distraction as they frantically try to cover up their oopsie on the epstein debacle. They (whoever they are) talk about government waste as multiple sources and former employees reveal that over 1000 people from enforcement agencies are working through the "epstein files" to flag any mention of our glorious leader. But since you can't muzzle him, herr marmie calls his stalwart supporters stupid and weak. Guess he doesn't need them anymore since he's thrown in with the rich and powerful - surprise! 

The dems are pussy cats against this mob. marmie is now openly ordering texicoland to redraw their districts to assure at least five more congressional seats turn red. Please blue boys, could you lob a few shots their way? I know it's hard to pick from all that low-hanging fruit. Since they keep calling you evil prove them right and scream, post, bribe news outlets with the truth. Kind of like when Adam Schiff looked right into the camera on the Late Show and said "Don - Piss off and show us the Epstein files". It was a glorious moment. 

Here's a thought. Since CBS/Parmount shot themselves in the foot with the Colbert thing I think Stephen should run for Miss Lindsey's seat in SC. It is up for grabs.... intelligence and humor would be a welcome addition to the moribund Senate.

LIFE AT THE LAKE Anticipating a demand from our family party, the pontoon-a-lette made it to the lake last week. Our neighbor was so happy to help us launch; his first such foray since his heart surgery. I draw the line at dropping the boat with visions of crashing the dock or sinking the truck so thrilled our neighbor was up to the task. Then, of course, the weather kept threatening all day though actually it didn't rain, boom or hail until everybody left so we never took the cover off. 

The boy had a few days of fishing and actually carried on through the rain. After catching two respectable blue gills he almost landed the bass of his dreams. Just as it got to the dock it snapped the line. Undeterred, JP spent the next FOUR hours casting for that rascal. Fish 1, JP -0. He vows the battle is not over. 

With the S-I-L as DJ, we held family karaoke afternoon belting out such classics as Sweet Caroline, Living on a Prayer and for the truly old souls Flower Girl. Then it was a contest of who could think of the most obscure artist or song. I famously mixed-up Jim Croce and Joe Cocker. With a little help from our booze (get the reference? heh heh) not surprising. I chose to polish off some left-over wine, switched to beer and then tried a cider-based concoction that was truly gag worthy. Though to be fair, I never rinsed my glass in between. 

We can never figure out why we are always so exhausted when we get back home from relaxing at the lake.

PODTIME Supposed to be recording this week with an update on lithium-ion batteries, but my interviewee has been promising the discussion points since the first of June. I either cancel the darn thing or fake it through an interview, but my expertise on this topic is not current or extensive. One question I thought of "with the de-emphasis and cancellation of renewable energy project how does that impact further development in the ion battery world?" I am mildly panicking. At least I have another program in the books for August, so we have time.  At any rate I have to put some kind of script together in case we can pull this off. Peace out or my new mantra "piss off Don"........💚   💙💛

               

QUACKERS (July 14/184)

What looks like a duck, walks like a duck, talks like a duck, etc. A Jeffrey Epstein client list! I know nothing makes any sense these days. Just kind of confused that everyone says he did what he did, with others, but no one is in jail except one lady.

ROAD KILLS The ever-increasing amount of traffic; the level of driver expertise and hurry-up society has created much accident potential. However, when one is tooling down an empty country two-laner at a comfortable 50 mph and noting the walker up ahead in plenty of time when whammo! At least it might have been. As we were passing a dirt side street feeding said two-laner this van pulls out right into us which fortunately the OH's reflexes were on point, and we were able to zig out of her way and zag back the other way to miss the walker. A perfect T-bone situation averted. Though how the hell would one be that blind/distracted turning left onto a road with someone right in front of her. Her fender and headlight were visible in our lane. A guy mowing his lawn up ahead looked a bit flabbergasted when we passed him as he was looking intently down the road towards the walker and near miss lady. 

 The near-miss then led me to grip the door handle throughout the rest of the trip every time another bonehead misjudged our speed and pulled out.  It is a well-known fact that a passenger gripping a door handle will mitigate crash potential. Screaming has been debunked. My father taught me that when he lost traction one snowy night and started sliding. He yelled something as I frantically gripped the door handle, of course. I later asked what last words he was trying to convey. It was "Shut up Sheila" apparently. Like I'm really not one to judge. 

FOOD FOR THOUGHT Only now is marmie realizing puttykin has been playing him for a dodo for 10 years. Even the slowest of us got that one right years ago, like right after WWII. 

Like many states, Florida exempts taxes for school clothing in September up to $100. Very nice but cheap. However, in a move for fairness they have also decided to forego all taxes September to December for any and all weapons and accessories-no limit. Guns over kids....again. Hopefully they teach the now armed kids how to shoot straight. 

Why do the righties (even the ones that went to Harvard) actually fear the educated? Because the more education you have, the more empathetic you become as you are exposed to other perspectives, other people and the rest of the world. Of course, college makes you more liberal/accepting duh. Though I suppose it is easier to stay in your own little world niche and hate/fear whatever is different or who your masters tell you to hate. 

Also am I the only one who is exhausted hearing multiple media reports every time marmie farts? The best part of the Biden regime was I could forget about him for days....

HEALTHY WORKERS As I was in the midst of a coughing attack (allergy) I was reminded of the health tests I had to administer for certain employees exposed to nasty stuff. Hearing and respiratory were a given in our very noisy dusty environment but the real kicker was the spit test (sputum) tests for asbestos workers. They had to hack (technical term) a chunk from deep in their lungs. Not an easy task unless you're a smoker as that's just part of their everyday life. Which is ironic when you realize a smoker working in asbestos has just upped their lung cancer chances about 10-fold. I used to bundle the boys up in Tyvek suits, respirators and fiber counting monitors to track their exposure. On break they would immediately strip down (partially) and light up. Yeah, I know. 

The po-po on the other hand were concerned about lead exposure in the outdoor gun range 😐. Then once AIDS/HIV raised its ugly head it was blood tests for all the public safety workers all the time. Paramedics were partial to TB testing while Parks folks were concerned about the silica carcinogen warning labels on the sandbox sand they were pouring on the playground. It was a tightrope dance for me between practical safety and actual danger. 

BOAT TIME After going back and forth and navigating multiple doctor appts, company is starting to come and our neighbor is able to help so we are finally putting the pontoon in the water! Our last couple of visits have been a "battening down the hatches" type with Consumers threatening to curtail power to our multiple freezers/frigs. They finally came through so to speak with a planned power outage last Saturday. Fortunately, the weather cooperated, and I had cooled down the house sufficiently to get through the night as our generator runs everything but the AC. Enough of that shat. Family party Saturday so officially open for the summer. 

FINAL STANCE My political beliefs boil down to "I care about people and the planet" and boy does that piss folks off! Mission accomplished. Peace out....💚   💙💛

                                                  

TG FOR AC! (July 7/185)

                                                                                                       

SPARKLES! More fun with flags. We made quite a colorful caravan in the 4th of July parade through beautiful downtown Kentwood. Our gang was fired up (even in 90% humidity) and decorating anything that moved. The opposition had their decorated truck which did not match well with their glum little faces. Even a friendly wave was not returned. Wonder how they interacted with the crowd. Disdain for the little people is not usually a winning election strategy. Except for Congress apparently.  

Seemed appropriate that one of our candidate's handouts were gay little sparklers paying homage not only to her name but also serving as a reflection on her positive and enthusiastic personality. The kids have this down. They sported all manner of containers to accept any flying trinkets or candy that came their way. I was intrigued by the number of push-up pops appearing throughout the parade route. Later identified as being doled out by the Knights of Columbus dudes. Dressed in suits, top hats and ribbons. they must have been wearing cooling vests under their clothes as the rest of us were basically puddles within minutes.  As the pops were primarily green, I am imagining a tense conversation on what would be the appropriate color from the Romans (I am one). Blue would stain; orange is flashy and red would have a possibly unacceptable context to the body and blood so to speak. Green appears non-partisan. The kids didn't give a rip and neither did the older fans who slurped right along with them.

I'm thinking music would be a cool addition, and possibly super soakers (I mean it was hot) but I suppose we would be subject to retaliation from the crowd which the walkers probably would have appreciated. I especially enjoyed two of our young ladies who actually roller-skated throughout the parade route.  Maybe a few years ago....Hah. Who am I kidding? 

BUSINESS AS USUAL Welcome to America's second Regency period. Power to the rich as we fight over the last piece of pie they left behind. If cutting medical care and food is so good and popular, why are they waiting until after the mid-terms to put these rules in place? Shouldn't we start saving all that cash now?  The pittance we get on our taxes (the poorest folks) will not pay for the extra costs of everything else. Ah well. Rural hospitals are already closing in anticipation. You can't increase the population while eliminating health care and vaccinations. Oddly enough measles is back after declaring it eradicated in 2000 so welcome to the 1800's.

Horrible tragedy in Texas over the 4th though to be fair, no one could have predicted that much rain that quickly, though they are lacking specialized weather disaster folks there. Unfortunately, just as weather is becoming more chaotic and unpredictable, the administration is shutting down all weather research labs and university-based predictive science and weather technology projects. Some areas of the country are eliminating 24-hour weather service due to low staffing levels as so many federal weather folks had no option but "forced" buyouts. In other news, what is the opposite of education, research and science? A fool running for Congress in Georgia tweets that the Texas tragedy is a fake but people causing weather manipulation should be charged with a felony/murder. Drought stricken and hurricane prone areas would love to find that particular wizard.  

Cutting it short this week as my thoughts keeps getting overwhelmed by the stupid and/or cruel things done in the name of the king this week. Who knew you could build a concentration camp in eight days? Also, the house cleaner's coming early tomorrow, and I have to straighten up. Peace out...💚 💙💛

FUN WITH FLAGS (June 30/186)

OPENING LINE: if you drink a lot of water, you won't have time to put up with other people's nonsense. You'll be too busy looking for a bathroom. 

One way to beat the heat, which may explain why I had such a hard time finding my seasonal parks emps who were either scarfing water or looking for a place to relieve. Much like my days with the men's golf league (long previous story). They/I would be scarfing water, beer etc. in the heat. As they sashayed into the woods to take care of business, I would be dancing until the last hole and running for the ladies' room. Not all things can be equal. 

WASHINGTON WATCH: We sit back and wait as we hope and pray that the dodos in Congress (who don't seem to mind giving up all their power as well) don't pass the bbb. Not only due to its draconian treatment of the poor and uninsured to benefit the 1%, or it's adding a bunch to the national debt, but also for all the horrible "add-ons" which basically suspend any control on he who would be king. Not bright enough to be a dictator, more of a common tater. Many kings were pretty much clueless and incompetent including George III who helped us create the US back in the day to today's wannabe who was always hurt by his non-acceptance by the elite in NY society. Lipstick on a pig comes to mind...

Then to borrow Jon Stewart's observation the other day. One death by an illegal is one too many leading to the destruction of anybody with an accent or funny last name and billions for border security and ICE (Krissy is a billion over her budget with 3 months to go-oh dear). Contrasted with the hundreds of mass shootings and school children slaughtered where we hear nothing but crickets afterwards. I DIDN'T VOTE FOR THIS loud for people in the back.

THE CAR'S THE THING: More fun with my little Pontiac. As it was at the homestead for the week, JP wanted us to use it whenever, including when rain was threatened. Do you know how long it takes to get the convertible top back up in a sudden cloudburst? Well, longer than I would have thought. Of course, laughing hysterically at my fumble fingers and JP's shrieking did not help. His only concern was whether his bowling ball case would be harmed. 

We then practiced dressing up SHESTOY (vanity plate) in patriotic paraphernalia. A feat I will need to complete on my own when we get to our parade rallying spot on the 4th. The OH is the artistic one. When I have said the easy way doesn't work let's abort, he's still contemplating the intricate process of decoration. Which is why Christmas decor takes three days, and no one touches a sparkly item but him. I never should have bought the extra banners, and stuck with the simple pieces, as he became determined to drape the front and back of the car like a giant American flag. Does look cool though.  

Pardon the GIF.....                                                         

Also, we were at the lake over the weekend because based on a text message from that monolithic company Consumers Energy, we were informed about a planned overnight power outage. That was it! Just a little text for a life-altering event. I felt bad for those planning a wedding, reception, Grandma's 100th birthday, family reunion, gangbanger, etc., over the weekend as these are not spur-of-the-moment events. Then one news station in the area said the outage was planned for a different date. Frantic, readers of Next-Door Digest (local facebook) had multiple posts stating the June 28 date and some claiming the later date supposedly after talking to Consumers.  Consequently, many of us set up our generators, took our last comfort break, flashlights and candles at the ready, drinks in the cooler waiting for 9 pm. Bars closed early, boats beat it back to shore, parties were wrapped up and unicorns huddled in silver hordes. 9:00, 9:05, 9:15, 10:00 nada. Thank you, CE, may we never listen to you again.

ON MY MIND Due to recent purchases and needing to dispose, declutter and dump stuff, we were ruminating on how difficult dumps make it to dump, particularly Granger a veritable giant among dumpsites. I recalled I had visited the place, posing on garbage mountain to shoot a segment of my City training video "It's Not Just Garbage Anymore" for trash truck drivers. Yes, definitely Oscar worthy except for the narration. Though I wrote the entire script and worked with the media person on shooting and editing, the waste material supervisor insisted on reading my brilliant technical sections. Consequently, you have my raucous intro for each chapter followed by a monotone sounding like the narrator was bent over holding his hand over his mouth while he read the script. Which actually is how he did it. Another great creative work destroyed by mediocre acting. Sigh. Wrap up my "should 'a been" trophy; I'll take it with me.

FINAL LINE: It's a crying shame that so many are showing up unarmed to a battle of wits.           Peace out 💚   💙💛

EASTERN EXPOSURE (June 16/187)

I didn't want to dwell on it, but hard to ignore...

BOOM Well, the weekend experienced a big boom heard around the world. No, not the fireworks at Yankee Doodle days downtown, but "big, beautiful bunker busting" bombs on a country that has been technically fighting with one country Israel. Guess we can make that two. Time will tell how this shakes out, but I much prefer when we talk softly and carry the big stick rather than personally sticking the stick in the eye first. Or working through and arming our proxies rather than sending planes marked with ye old stars and stripes-same objective, but not "technically" attacking a country without provocation. Yes, Iran with the a-bomb has been a threat, but military secrets and weapons are fleeting and other countries (read Russia, China, etc) will be happy to replace what has been lost. With the added advantage of saying we started it. Who knows-stay tuned. Or was it just a way for two unpopular leaders to hogtie us to whatever atrocity they wish to pursue to stay in power?

Have to hand it to marmie for keeping the secret as this had to have been organized over several weeks. Considering how much military expertise, experience and talent has been eliminated under the Administration and who his closest advisors are, I am impressed they pulled it off. I pray for our soldiers in the field who will take the first casualties. I am sure our top-drawer homeland security folks will keep us safe here in the States, however. While legitimate outcry is mostly shushed by congress we are reminded Obama took much heat for the Libya bombing and the boys passed a resolution (War Powers) I believe, that no you can't start a war without our okie doke. But of course, rules only apply to dems. I am not optimistic that this will end well when the best scenario is boots on the ground. Because when you punch someone in the nose and then say now make peace, you might get some pushback. 

Wondering how the magats are going to respond to "no war charlie and I am the candidate of peace". By eliminating DEI meaning women and African Americans, transgender and deporting other cannon fodder the straight white boys better be ready to hit the desert for this new conflict. Are bone spurs inherited?

Speaking of family if the trump boys new phone sales go well, I guess once again it proves the red hats support anything no matter what. Phones, btw, that have to be made in China as we don't have the ability to make them here lol. Also, AFTER you send your credit card info, you get a message that the service is not yet available, but you get the nifty T1 golden paperweight to carry around and impress your friends. I swear he could sell gold painted turds and they would line up to buy. 

Just a thought -- you don't have to accept or agree with anyone you don't want to; what you can't do is make their life miserable or terrorize them. But the proud boys with their masks and guns probably don't agree. How much you want to bet these masked dudes grabbing citizens off the streets were the ones refusing to wear covid masks. "I can't breathe" works on so many levels. Witnessing the open racism  during these "street grabs" if you are of the brown persuasion, I would suggest you start carrying your passport around with you. 

BEFORE THE WAR In other news, we got the old convertible up and running last week. She asked for and got a new battery installed Yay. But the AC wasn't working, not Yay. Decided to try driving it back to be worked on in Lansing. The drive was fine and hot until oh yeah, I suddenly remember you have to push in the little snowflake symbol under the controls to turn the AC on 😣duhh. Good news as I want to drive her in a parade on the 4th. I am a veteran at parade driving so have mastered the tap, tap, tap on the brake so you don't run over the candidate or kids darting into the street. Kind of kills the mood. Speaking of driving, on a trip to Howell last week I didn't realize how bad things have gotten since I used to drive for work all the time. All trucks and distracted drivers, but everyone's exceeding the speed limit just fine. More skill would be appreciated, however. Praying for, Peace out....💓💨💙

KINGS/FELONS/JELLYFISH? (June 16/188)

"NO KING'S" day went beautifully and was well-attended around the country. Birthday bash for marmie, not so much depending on who's reporting it of course. Although I have to admit an 80-year old tank squeaking down the road to a crowd in silence watching overheated soldiers hanging their heads out the gun ports to get some air might have been worth the price of admission. Course the birthday boy has had a rough week, with his public break-up with muskie (who came crawling back) the ramp-up of the Iran-Israel hostilities, further losses in Court, millions of Americans protesting against him on his birthday, etc etc. You know the usual. 

IDLE THOUGHTS Jewish laser conspiracy monger mgt says "waving a confederate flag doesn't make me a racist". Yet only a racist would wave a confederate flag. She was one of the few repugs who accepted an invite to the glorify marmie parade. Most went home for the weekend, but I don't think it was to hold town halls. When your aid and abet partners don't want to be seen at your "party" what does that say about you?

Don't ever remember hearing daily reports on the number of measles cases since the '50's due to the fact that we DID NOT have measles outbreaks to report as we had pretty much eradicated the disease. Until the vacc fanatics started using opinion over science and put a drug addict worm brain non-doctor/scientist in charge. Problem, of course, is insurance will not cover the shots if the government does not support it. Hence the outbreak. Well, we're all gonna die of something right so let's whip up old diseases and take them for a spin. See how well stupidity works? 

Multi-million-dollar parade occurs ostensibly to celebrate the armed forces with a backdrop of 1000s of federal and civil servants fired (including the Pentagon and Veteran's Administration) and slashing of Medicaid and food allowances for the poor. Yay America.  The same Soldiers that the orange guy calls suckers while refusing to pose with any overweight or disabled ones at a recent "rally". 

Odd that ICE is arresting immigrants at their JOBS or in COURT. I doubt that the "criminals" we are targeting would be dumb enough to have jobs and pay taxes and go to court per immigration rules. But thanks, stevie mitler who told ICE to pursue them at legitimate venues like that to "get the numbers up". Who abused him as a baby 'cause the dude has some real personality issues no doubt related to inadequate potty training as he gets his knickers in a bind at every interview. Love is fragile but hate grows exponentially. If you think the idle white boys are going to pick up on the farm, hospitality industry and retail jobs that are being covered by these folks, I have a bridge in Brooklyn as they say. Unless the measles kills them all first of course. Natural selection is a thing. 

Trying to link Governor Waltz with the Minnestoa assassin is the latest fake outrage from the magats in charge. It was DEMs who were targeted you wretched brain farts. I believe this was your agenda.

LIFE WITH JP Spent a couple of days at the lake with the boy as he wanted to spend his first week off school fishing. He had to help Grandpa change the oil on the boat first, but they did do a little night fishing the first night hooking a large walleye. If you're a serious fish-person, early morning and late night is the game plan. It takes a few tries, but he does get up in a relatively good mood. Also had time to hit the State park to swim. He parked himself half in the water half on the beach after I sprayed him down with sunscreen. I, of course, stay back in the trees as pure sun is poison to me (like all the Sweet girls actually). As he kept his "cool" sunglasses on, I thought he was discretely eyeballing the young lady with the orange bathing suit, but he claims he was napping. He's a good grandson though. As he blends in as one of the bodiless heads in the water, he will see me looking and waves his hands to let me know he's not resting on the bottom.

He's full of questions so we try not to lie too much, lol. At one point I mentioned that I was a teacher in my job. He said you were a teacher? Not at school with kids but creating programs and training and teaching adult workers. "Trying to get them to do things they don't want to do". That's just like school he countered. The kids never want to do what the teacher asks them to do. It starts young I guess.

His general M.O. is to combine his wrap-around sunglasses, gelled hair and a teen-age swagger as he says it looks cool. Unfortunately, the ultimate cold water was thrown as he got asked twice at restaurants if he needed a children's menu. I keep telling him he'll appreciate looking younger...some day. He makes up for the insult by telling semi-adult jokes to the waitstaff.  

 The 2007 Pontiac G6 convertible is the lake car. I told JP he could have it when he's 16, but not sure it's going to make it. It kept going dead overnight. Especially aggravating as I need to drive it when we are getting the boat in and out of the water. Commandeered the neighbor to drive the trailer over to the launch site where he was eager to back it into the water, as he hadn't done it in years. That's an opt-out comment for me, but after four tries he made it. I think it's a guy thing.  I have massive fear of brakes failing or taking the dock out. Mostly don't want to look dumb as you will hear it from onlookers especially as a woman.  Peace out.....💚   💛💙

CAT FIGHTS (June 9/189)

WEEKLY RANT As I pull all the stops to pay off the Anderson bill (one year same as cash) I will admit the windows do keep out the street noise-including those pesky little sirens that warn of impending disaster. The creditor that Anderson uses charges an exorbitant amount of interest to the unwary, hence the mandate to pay it off before its time. At what point is it called usury? They also start charging interest a month before the first bill is due-also tricky tactics.  Anyone who knows me well, knows I have the assets, I just don't like to pay before it's time. And I never do interest. Financial discipline has its perks.

Speaking of hidden talents. Due to my Mother's influence, I also know "what" constitutes cleaning a room, I just don't want to do it. Hence the housekeeping crew once a month for bigger jobs who are due tomorrow which prompts my straightening up of general areas to keep them focused on the big stuff. But with my new eagle eyes, the things they don't do drive me crazy. Who doesn't dust the top of things, clean under the soap dish, clean behind the toilet (and the bottom of the toilet seat btw) but my shelf of knick-knacks gets a personalized dusting every time. Why not dust the ceiling fan blades as meticulously?  And I won't even go into the nicks on my sensitive stove and dining room breakfront finishes. I believe their motto is everything as fast as possible, damage be damned. But my shower stalls and floors get washed so that's the trade-off. Though my criticisms would prompt the question of "I'd rather do it myself" one of the realities of progressive arthritis is the limited amount of physical energy you have in a day which goes downhill as the day goes on and activity increases. That's why I'm a morning person LOL. 

DONE GONE ROGUE Two middle-school girls are having a hissy fit and though we hate to be juvenile, we're loving it. Now marmie's threatening consequences if muscilage does anything for democrats. Who's winning? Up for debate. Who's losing? Republicans backing the wrong horse....again. Interesting to attack the richest man in the world who has to be a shred brighter than his foe. Stay tuned. 

Meanwhile the orange man has brought the army to town-national guard and marines on alert. Right out of the 2025 project playbook. Incite a riot (since the LAPD said they were handling it fine) then escalate it. Don't take the bait California. And his weird ass command that protesters do not wear masks; when ironically it seems like we need to strip the combat gear and masks off the J-6 felons filling out the icy rank. And party boy of the DOD threatening to send in the army on OUR OWN PEOPLE! mr hypocrisy sends in troops that were not asked for but allowed people to be injured and die when under his watch, as he called no troops on January 6. He doesn't "care" about the people if anyone had any doubts.

Peaceful protest people. That is how we won in the war for civil rights-lock arms-chant -no fires, no looting.  Marmie had a bad week (muskie, China, courts) and he wants an excuse so go ahead, make him crazy with non-violent protest. 

Right up there with defunding Sesame Street, attacking prestigious universities with their ground-breaking research and development projects, deporting scientists. The idea is to dumb down America as a dictator's greatest fear is an educated public. Democracy is messy, uncomfortable and totally worth it.

DOCTOR DOCTOR To say it's getting confusing as the OH and I juggle different doctors, specialties, appointments is an understatement. And every single one of them, even in the same system, have their own, as they amusingly call it, customer portal for messages, questions, information--pretty much anything for one to make intelligent decisions from. And every stinking one does not work as soon as I leave the office where I set it up! Spent an entire day and a half trying to get answers from the OH's arthritis doctor on the latest med only to find out I was calling the wrong damn place! Which if their "friendly" patient portal had worked I would have found out hours earlier. It also appears everyone is working on "summer hours" so that much more fun tracking anybody down. 

When you're up to your ass in alligators, wave your hands/paws in the air like you just don't care...

Peace out....💚  💙💛

COMMERCIALLY SPEAKING (June 1/190)

MEMORY DAYS Took the holiday off last week. Busy weekend and time with the grandson so Nana went dark on the blogging. Took him to a band concert and though skeptical, he perked up when they did a Billy Joel medley. When JP he isn't talking, he's singing, so hopefully he gets into Choir next school year. After much stealthy stalking, he nailed a 14-inch bass 8 feet from the dock with a 7-foot pole. Ecstasy and chest thumping ensues.  Funny watching the changes. One minute he is all up in a man-type response and then he morphs into the funny kid again. Those moments of change are lightning fast. I think when we are parents, we may not always notice the changes quite as sharply. 

Those folks who enjoy the "Simpsons" know Bart's third grade teacher as Miss Cropopple but I think it's just a subtle joke spelling of Crabapple and it gets pronounced differently. We live near a street called Crabapple and it always makes me chuckle. I'm just weird like that.

YESTERDAY'S NEWS   Rather than allowing the distraction about the plane (which we now find he asked for, it wasn't spontaneously gifted), we should be focusing on the 2 billion in bitcoin to the frumpie family he managed to finagle on his Mideast trip. On top of the "dinner at the white house" for people who contributed to the cause at home. Guardrails are off, no pretenses as the white house has now become the whore house as one wag put it. 

Following the rules set by the felon in charge, tulsi washboard just had employees change the report to make deportees criminals when staff found no wrong-doing or connections with gangs. I think the employee also earned a kick out the door of the department as well for being honest. Do you think there are people still trying to do the right thing? Surely the boss will see the truth and back down... LOL.

Got to love Bondi-belle declaring it's illegal to call yourself boss unless you're in charge of the country. OMG-this crap would not play on a soap opera. At any rate a hell of lot of us are up for charges on this one

Ok. Let's talk big, beautiful bill. Who writes these titles - third graders? ASIDE: I refuse to be governed by intellectual inferiors. Though the scariest is stripping judges of enforcement power, said bill will cost at least $1000 more a year for the really poor and $700 for the middle class with a big savings of $690,000 for the rich. Plus adding trillions to the national debt. Explain things to me like I'm five years old why don't you? My personal math deficient rep to congress says the BBB will put money back in the taxpayer's pocket. You mean the kickback (they call them campaign contributions) you folks got for selling us down the proverbial river?

Shame on that damn Biden for covering up his health issues while delivering a booming economy, infrastructure repairs and amazing off-the-chart stock market numbers. Bite me. Speaking of health. Cutting Medicaid and demanding proof of work for life basically, 64% of Medicaid recipients work but HAVE NO BENEFITS. Most of the rest are either caregivers or disabled. Which studies indicate leaves approximately 7% of Medicaid recipients who are non-working adults. But let's gut it by 800 billion-what's the harm. One red congress person was informed at a town meeting that "people are going to die". Their heartfelt response "we're all going to die". And the band played on....

COMMERCIALS Anybody else sick of these all-body spray commercials? Though I imagine most of us are probably sweating a bit more than usual with the antics in Washington. I am less than enthralled with seeing people gaily spraying their pits, privates and feet and claiming 72 hours of happy smells. Yuck. Apparently, they have never heard of a shower.

And the shingles commercial. Shingles doesn't care and neither do I. Just walk around the rock pile doofus! Or if you can't be sure to hand those front row tickets to the people smart enough to walk around the rock pile. Though I kind of enjoy the Jardiance song/dance routines or as my b-i-l calls them "Diabetes: The Musical".  The blue/yellow color scheme; the perfect timing on stunts; depicting normal sized people who just may need the medication. What's not to love? On the other hand, the Ozempic marching citizens routine is very boring. We seem to have a recurring health issue in this country, hmmm. Supposedly these silly methods of pitching meds are more popular in a TikTok mode than some dr/scientist extolling their virtues. We must be entertained (while Rome burns...).

Although in the old days, we had our moments. "It's shake n bake and I hepped". "Please Mother, I'd rather do it myself!" My Mother would have me recreate that one for guests as my portrayal was stunning apparently. "That's a spicey meatball" "He likes it. Hey Mikey!"  "Where's the beef?" How many remember the Xerox commercial where a monk takes the hand-written sheets and makes copies rather than pains-takingly writing each page over and over. And who can forget Doctors advertising cigarettes and Crown Royal though I might have made the booze reference up. They did ban those two on Television, however. 

Interviewed an interesting lady on generational differences in communication in the workplace. Quite a lively discussion. She asked me what stuck out to me as I was growing up. I said "Motown" "Viet Nam" "Civil Rights" "Women's Rights" For her (millennial) it was 9/11 and covid. She said youth needs to listen to experience and "experience" needs to be open to new ideas and change. Change is inevitable boomers "here you are in your 70's doing video podcasts". Got me there I guess LOL. I said I believed it was every generation's duty to "shake up" the establishment (which is why we got to get these old war horses out of Congress!)

If all else fails, celebrate summer this week with 80+ degree weather. The OH's beloved tomato plants are planted so some normality and optimism return.  Peace out......💚  💙💛

                                                                                      

DARK TIMES (MAY 19/192)

DARK HUMOR When there is a power outage everyone becomes an instant expert at candlelight dinners. Ok, what's in the fridge? Everything that needs to be eaten right away. Who needs a knife? In the dark-nobody. Let's just pop some popcorn, oh shoot no microwave and no jiffy pop for the gas stove...in the dark, umm no. Guess I'll just grab a shower, oh yeah, no pump no potty. What is this strange phenomenon I just discovered called outside and natural light. Let me just charge up my phone, oh yeah. We gave up and just went out to dinner. Obviously, we got hit with a blackout at the lake.  

No problems in Grand Ledge except a branch down, but Hastings was another issue. Total blackout. First we went to set up our neighbor's generator as he just had surgery. So, these two wounded warriors were hauling a generator over the grass, moving refrigerators, etc. (he wasn't allowed to do much). Then the OH had to work out our friend's massive cord circus. Surprised the house hasn't gone up in smoke long ago. 

We didn't mind helping out as we just plug ours into the house connection, push the button (no pull cord yah) and turn on the generator at the panel. Merrily plugging the power cord into the generator posed the first problem. We've used it before, and this is a brand-new generator. Looking closely, we realized it's little tab on the plug was facing the wrong direction. WTF - aren't these things universal? Off to Ace (where the helpful hardware dude says "hey, it's backwards" tell me something I don't know)
 to find a new plug which meant another 45 minutes removing old plug and rewiring new plug and starting Ms Gennie up. As it chugged along, I realized "ruh roh" we had no power going to the house. Where was it all going? Amps and watts running hither and yon though firing up an 8000 rpm Generac to charge my phone seemed a bit of overkill. Went over every inch of the machine; perused the handbook and troubleshooting online, contemplated finding an electrician (yeah right); talked to service at Generac and I knew more than she did. Asked if there was some switch we were missing, she kept insisting it was the plug. So, we tore the plug apart to check the wiring. As I considered diving into the melting ice cream with wine and beer chasers (about all I have in the frig) the OH found a switch marked "30 amp". You don't suppose....SUCCESS! Thank God, I can use the bathroom. I was almost ready to pay an electrician 100 bucks to push a switch LOL. 

Since old faithful was chugging along and using little gas, we closed up for the night. Leaving the gennie at the door to the outside we shut the overhead garage door. A short time later, gennie kicked off. Shitake mushrooms-now what? Apparently, a wee bit of CO2 was making its presence known and as a good little safety feature, she shut 'er down. As we were manipulating the generator further outside, actually building a ramp, and trying to avoid the monsoon winds that were blowing the exhaust back into the garage, the frickin' power came back on! Not complaining. Just seemed a fitting end to a rather frustrating day. 

                                                                                       

IT'S A BIRD IT'S A PLANE IT'S IDIOTIC Wow when I worked in Government you couldn't accept diddly squat from anyone unless you could consume it on the spot I think was the caveat. But a whole effing $400 million plane would make me, or possibly any normal person, to think twice maybe? It is embarrassing that the prez of the United States is going around accepting/soliciting "gifts" from terrorist-supporting countries who actually hate us for our interferences. We used to be a leader. I heard he even bitched when UAE only gave him a vial containing a drop of the most expensive oil in the world because it was so small. Again, what a low-class buffoon representing what used to be one of the greatest countries in the world. Camel salutes and lying to his face make marmalade think "people like me", "people respect what a big shot I am". Pathetic. When he whines just give him a golden binkie. The new mantra "Make America Grovel Apparently."

HUH? Now my own low-class humor. Received a begging letter from the Alzheimer's Association. On the envelope it read OPEN IMMEDIATELY! I immediately mentally added "before you forget". I know, I know mean. Cutting it short, still sore from Friday and Saturday.  Peace out.....💚  💙💛

CUE THE FLOWERS (May 12/193)

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all my favorite mothers and those who have passed on. Memories of my Mother with our marathon monopoly games and Euchre weekends with whoever we brought home. It was always more fun when Mom quit being Mom instead turning into "no prisoners, winner take all" mentality. She was competitive and damn good at anything she played. No home-baked bread and cookies, more political debate and stimulating conversation. I suppose that's why we are all so mouthy, AND opiniated. Not having to hide intellect or actually being able to debate is so refreshing. I imagine Mom and Aunt Kathleen are sipping martinis and spilling the tea wherever their energies landed them in the afterlife.                                                                                              

PERSONAL RANT OF THE WEEK Landscaper "where art thou?" Why, why, why do small independent businesses fail to communicate? One third down for a deposit and no show on promised day until I check. Next date no show until I check. Then 3rd time's the charm and they come as promised and do a bang-up job with profuse apologies for not communicating a little better. The down-payment was expensive enough that I did not want to take a stand and cancel. At any rate, perhaps I have educated a hard-working entrepreneur on a good customer service practice. 

DISH SECTION Ok - busy week for marmalade and his cultists. Evil seems to be able to work much faster than doing the right thing, I guess. First the same people that were sooo offended by the Paris Last Supper parody (or was it) last summer think mocking the catholic church with marmie as pope should just be laughed off. Hypocrisy, thy name is maggot.

Second Ok - our new stance on no immigration and deporting everyone will, aha, affect economic growth! Remember the birth rate is down and our young people ain't interested in the jobs that so many newcomers were willing to do to be part of this country. Oops. 

Third Ok - Did it ever occur that defunding all scientific research and tossing the scientists will halt America's reign as the world leader in innovations and new discoveries? Oops. We already see the fallout of firing all the air traffic controllers due to the scaredy cat white men thinking every woman or person of color is incompetent. Double Oops. 

Fourth OK (strictly for laughs) With two non-medical people heading up our health departments we will get advice attributed to RFK like "menthol cigarettes are ok to smoke and will cure polio" compliments of comedian Don Novello, i.e., Father Guido Sarducci. He also claimed a Conclave in the 1700's  couldn't decide on a new pope and they finally voted one in as they were tired of the food. As one cardinal had a fly fall into his soup, they took it as a sign of the Holy Spirit and elected him. Next time around, a cardinal brought his own fly.  (for those who don't watch Stephen Colbert). And sadly funny RFK says autism is not genetic, it's environmental and he will prove it by September. My point-lies are truth these days. 

OUT ON THE STREETS Borrowing from one of my favorite columnists (Celia Rivenbark) the charge that all the protesters in all 50 states are being paid is "a whole extra slathering of crazy on an imbecile sandwich". Like for twenty bucks an hour we will stand in the sun/wind/rain, get harassed, hosed and arrested. Though I wouldn't say no if I was already there anyway. Magots think it's weak to protest for a principle for free rather than to get paid or screw somebody to achieve success - it's just not in their playbook. Meanwhile their hero is charging big bucks for wealthy folks to attend white house dinners so they can buy trumpie bitcoin. He's also accepting an uber expensive jet from Qatar (which is not a bribe 😄) to be Air Force One and his sons are trading off the Presidency for new ventures in other countries.  For the 12th time today, "if a democrat tried any of this shit, they would have been run out on the proverbial rail with slaps to the head in mock horror".

Let them eat cake or, modern translation, have less dolls and pencils. Funny how the rich are always telling us to sacrifice and endure being broke a bit longer while they eat more cake than they can manage. Last time that happened I believe people lost their heads over it...just saying.

In more good news for the red states (read magots) the temporary head of FEMA was immediately discharged when he said to Congress FEMA's work is vital to America. Dumped him quicker than a dam giving way in North Carolina. Still have any doubts about who is benefitting from the Administration? Even fax news is calling foul, gently, of course. And also, a prize for the poorer states, the administration can cancel Head Start but spend ninety million for a military/birthday parade. "It will be so worth it" he crows. To whom?

I'm heading out to my deck chair with a mindless romance novel and a couple of pretzel sticks and taking in Spring.  Peace out.....💚   💙💛

DAYS OF WINE (& CHEESE & CHOCOLATE) (May 5/194)

HABITUAL We are creatures of habit.

 Church. I normally sit in a particular spot in church: on the aisle (claustrophobic); single chair with arms (in case I need help rising); middle of the church (incognito). I missed my row by one and didn't realize it until midway through the service when I found I was not lounging on my comfy arm rest. However, when I looked around the lady that always sits at the end of my row was right there and the usual two people that sit behind me were right behind me -Major LOL! What do they do when I am not there? (I'm not a fanatic about attending) Do they wander aimlessly and lost with a vague feeling that something is not quite right. That is more responsibility than I really need or want. 

Habits and rituals like laundry. Always three loads in a specific order. Why? It makes no difference to the machine. Or ironing. Collar, back, front, collar again. Dishwashing. Sharp knives, delicate items, plates, containers, silverware, pots and pans. If I have sufficient hot water, soap and pre-rinse it should make no difference. I also feel like I have to do X number of chores before I can start playing on the laptop or chilling with a book. Again why? Walking. Always the same route and same guilt if I don't knock a couple 1000 steps every couple of hours. Oh hell, a glass of wine fixes everything.

ECON 101 Marmalade thinks we should be ok with being poor as he mentioned it at least five times last week. It's the economy stupid-what happened to that? But never fear, those dirty, hard, non-union low paying factory jobs are on the horizon. Along with the $5,000 baby prize to offset the 300 grand it takes to raise a child. Just tighten your belts though many are running out of belt holes. Just buy two dolls instead of thirty he says and pay a few bucks more for Christmas (which if it's Chinese means a couple hundred bucks more). Wonder what Christmas was like at his house? Me, me, me-all the presents are for me. So, I guess I understand why he thinks less is more. Meanwhile he is ordering a 400-million-dollar jet with a winding staircase and bedroom suites: promoting a 90-million-dollar military parade in honor of his birthday, etc etc. Typical king/dictator behavior. Glad we can be supportive by just enduring a little economic pain like good little serfs. 

With all the Doge savings:  three trillion, well maybe 2 trillion, well maybe 200 billion or was it basically a couple of bucks after we factor in the amount it cost us to "find" these savings. Another savings! Cut all funds to NPR and PBS the only source of emergency information and entertainment to media deserts out there which again impacts his base in the red states.  I guess giving people helpful info after a natural disaster is too "woke". Let them find out FEMA is gone on their own.  Meanwhile after firing DEI traffic controllers the rest walked out and hey, anybody want to take a plane trip?  Yep, just can't stand all the winning especially when contrasted with January 19 when we had healthy 401's, no signs of a recession, low inflation and no extra costs for punishing tarrifs. Win-win to lose-lose in a heartbeat. Great first 100 days bozo. 

NOT SO CASUAL FRIDAY PT appointment at 7 am. I know, I be crazy so only got 5000 steps before leaving. That we sign up and agree, when we are already in pain, to a vigorous routine of elliptical, stretches and giant ball exercises in the name of health improvement seems rather bizarre. Plus, all the therapists are buff and flat stomached which is another assault to our fragile, rickety egos. I followed up the day with a podcast recording but fortunately my hair-do held up (thank you hairspray) to keep me camera ready. The exercises just imparted that healthy glow. 

GRAPE TIMES Tried to recreate our luscious wine and cheese experience from Traverse at home with a few friends. As usual, we pay attention to the first description and then it dissolves into our usual chaotic, everyone talking at once funfest with wine. Auxerrois (white), Pinot Noir and a fancy Reisling paired with two pungent aged dutch cheeses yummm. And we still had room for german chocolate cake and brownies because you know chocolate goes with everything. I may have to do it again with the rest of the gang because we over bought the main ingredients as usual.  Funny how several wine samples encourage an open wallet, but all good. We are blessed to have a great group of friends who are fun, literate and interesting. Sure, we talk about ailments and grandkids, but mostly we laugh at the constantly changing lunacy of life. 

We also finally settled one of those great mysteries of wine. Why are some bottles corked, and some screw capped? Cost? Nope we were told if the bottle is corked you can store it for a time while screw-on cap libations are meant to be devoured quickly. Usually not a problem when we have guests. I may have to start having wine with dinner every night to make a dent, however on our latest collection.

                                                     

Oh yes. For the right-wingers who think we should lighten up and smile about marmie's mocking photo dressed as the pope, try making fun of the orange one and wait for ICE to break down your door in the night. Funny how that works. Lighten up all you magot culters, as there is so much to mock with your glorious leader.   Peace out....💚    💙💛

YES, WE'RE CRABBY (April 28/194)

What's all blue and sleeps in the front row? Our intrepid clown prince who eschews funeral black at a most solemn occasion showing the "best" of Amer-i-cer. Even his wife knew better.

 Apparently, much whining ensued to be seated where he could be seen so it is fitting that he was seen....sleeping. Stuck between Estonia and Finland must have been a real let-down. Meanwhile "Sleepy Joe" was doing just fine and managed to stay awake for the whole service. Again, marmalade's wife had to snarl (my word) at him to just shake Macron's hand during the peace sharing-what a tool. The idol of the evangelical-jellies, and creator of the bible (according to orange aid) it's amazingly obvious the dude's never been in church or at a funeral.

Not to cast aspersions (all biblical today with eschew and casting) but who was one of the last peeps to see the Pope? Why our own junior clown-in-waiting. Maybe looking into those soulless eyes was the proverbial last straw. I'm glad though that the venerable Francisco got to see those thousands of well -wishers and had a last ride through the crowd blessing babies. A much more fitting last day. Part of me wonders if we have seen the last of the good guys for a while... I am so over a bastard administration that deports babies.

MOVING ON Though still not firing on all cylinders this week I was able to get some work done with the podcasts. I'm hoping to get the whole summer's worth done in May. But lordie, I do hate nudging docs and attorneys on meeting deadlines. This is an all-volunteer operation, and this volunteer is getting tired.

Got to enjoy the last week of our non-teenage grandson. His transition into beast commences Friday as he turns 13. I understand it is instantaneous and inevitable, and we will now enjoy a vocabulary of grunts, sighs, surprising defiance and sudden deafness.  I will no doubt hear that plaintive "Nana" as I crash headlong over whatever embarrassing faux pas I have made on his behalf. It's going to be fun! But on the other hand, we are talking about JP who has never been at a loss for words since he enunciated his first "mama". Even before he could talk, we have video of him speaking klingon, blarney, space jam or something and waving his arms around as he follows something, someone we can't see engaged in an obviously heated discussion. 

PURPLE POISON The most anticipated purple ball made its appearance Thursday. He called early in the week to ascertain my activities on B-day. As if. But I made him work for it. So evil to watch your beloved boy twist in the wind as you feign ignorance about what has him all stoked. First shot, surprisingly, was a strike showing the versatility of a finger-tip ball curving a perfect arc into the sweet spot. He was beside himself. He proceeded to bowl four games and then another six on Saturday. He was itching for the trifecta Sunday, but his folks wanted him home for at least part of the weekend. The teenage face emerged, but he held his tongue. 

JUST CALL ME ARTHRITICA As I haven't had any medical drama for a while I thought I would try to address the issues I have with walking, sitting, stairs and bending over to put on my shoes. I have a recalcitrant (oh how I love big words that absolutely describe the situation) hip. I did not know how bad it was until I went to my first PT appointment. The therapist said "you don't bend that way, do you?" Apparently not. Takes an outsider I guess though I have been told I walk funny for a while. Why am I not laughing. I also found out that, like a crab, I walk kind of sideways bent over. The knee bone is connected to the backbone connected to the hip bone as my arthritis continues its inevitable course. My theory is my body only torments me one issue at a time before it coyly and playfully reveals the next surprise. At any rate I now have a series of tortuous stretching exercises to do twice a day for the next month and probably forever. Beats surgery. As I need to get up and walk now, Peace Out.....💚  💙💛

                                                                                        

WINING/WHINING (April 21/195)

What's your earliest memory? "I remember when I was born. I was so surprised I didn't talk for a year and a half!" (compliments of Steve Martin)

"Grape and Cherry working together" sang JP. No, he was not creating a farmer joke. He was lauding the new bowling ball he is receiving for his birthday. Ok that takes some explanation. He has been fascinated that "Storm" creates bowling balls with different scents. Yeah, I don't get it either. However, for three years he has begged to go into the pro shop whenever we bowl to "sniff the balls". It has led to some odd looks from other patrons, but it's a Storm thing and he's cute. 

So, the big moment had arrived. He finally got his lesson from the resident pro who said he was ready for a heavier, fingertip ball. JP's dreams are about to come true! Rushing to the pro shop leaving his ailing Nana to pick up his abandoned ball and bag, the snif-a-thon now commences in earnest. Green ball is vanilla; purple is grape; red is cherry. Plus, a couple of other choices in the order book. Who will pass the sniff test and emerge triumphant. I'm not kidding this was an event that can only be described as the MOST IMPORTANT DECISION OF HIS LIFE! (there will be others) He savored the moment and sweated over making the wrong choice. Cherry is cool but the grape one is purple! Grandpa likes the green one..but purple! Should I mention that he was wearing a neon yellow shirt and lime green pants-the kid is not shy about standing out. Ok finally down to cherry-grape. Upon realizing his mom has a cherry ball, he can double his smell options if he goes with grape. PLUS-it's PURPLE! Hence, cherry and grape working together floats out from the backseat. ROFL from the front seat ensues. 

Thought I was feeling my age last week at the Safety Conference. On Tuesday I was practically laying my head down for a nap at the 7:30 pm mark of the banquet. Hiding yawns and trying to look attentive after only one small wine. Wednesday, I was just as exhausted. I was planning two interviews which meant listening to their programs, taking notes and then turning it into an interview on the fly. First day went fine. Second day consisted of many discussions, taking notes at the program, moderating another program and flying back downstairs for the 2nd interview which I really had to wing. I was so proud that I managed it until I reached over the turn the recording off at the end and got the death statement "Recording On". F---K to the 10th ever-loving degree! I never started recording! Oh well, it was a couple attorneys, and they probably would have wanted to "vette" it anyway plus I never mentioned their upcoming seminar they wanted mentioned so maybe it was for the best. Attorneys hate being rushed or handed surprise questions. We'll just do it over ZOOM with their questions laid out like civilized people. Damn.

McDonalds. When is a sundae not a sundae? When it's a bowl of ice cream in a sundae dish. When one asks for a sundae, one assumes more dressing up than plain vanilla ice cream. Odd they never asked me what flavor. End of a long weekend in Traverse City. Lots of family time with Sisters and B-I-L's and a baby shower with the OH's half. One event, a wine and cheese pairing was quite informative and alcoholic. It ended with a visit to the lower-level wine aging area which was accessed down a wooden staircase with each of us clutching a glass of wine - after sampling four with cheese. We all made it unscathed. We sampled several barrels in varying stages of "aging". They definitely needed a spit bucket down there. I of course cornered the host and pointed out some safety issues, cause that's my groove especially when I am imbibing. The OH knew the drill so he escaped the drill by going upstairs to order wayyy too much wine, and cheese of course. I am just relieved we only ended up with two cases from the four-day trip.

Not being sick for a long time, I didn't recognize the signs. The exhaustion was a harbinger of a kicking one's butt common cold. I have been hugging the couch and trying to slow the mucous trail. No sore throat, a little fever-with an Alice in Wonderland head three sizes too big and a hacky cough. JP kept checking my eyes and telling me how bad, or good, I looked. He worries when his significant others are under the weather. Though he did abandon me when the siren call of a new ball had him scurrying for the pro shop. Otherwise, he's such a sweetie.

Since I have been upright too long trying to avoid medicating too much, I'm going to go back to my couch cocoon and build a tent of kleenex.  Peace out......💚   💙💛

                                              

NEEDING TO GO, WITH STYLE (April 7/197)

OLDEN TIMES Now that we are in our 70's we're not sure whether we need to go into assisted living or politics. I can appreciate the younger woman running to be the next Senator from Michigan replacing Gary Peters. The ancient mariners fluffer-buffering their way around Congress need to move on down the road. Time to get in tune with the 21st century already a quarter century old.

Considering the age and degree of dementia in the presidency, we really need to make a change. Of course, one octogenarian had better advisors, so the economy was booming, employment was at a record high, wages were up, prices and inflation were steady or coming down and we had more power in the workplace than ever before. Then three THREE months later that is all in the toilet. Because a lot of people just couldn't stand the idea that "others" (black, brown, immigrants, women) were enjoying the economy as well.  They weren't duped-they voted for exactly what they wanted-a racist, misogynist felon who promised they could reign supreme again. Surprise- he didn't care about you folks either. How much aid is getting to the devastated south right now?  The dems need to stop making excuses or hoping maggats will come to their senses. They will stay loyal because even if they suffer all the "others" will suffer more. 

TARIFF LAND Meanwhile all the penguins and seals on Heard and McDonald Islands are fretting over their 10% tariff burden. Their economy of fish and ice will no doubt take a hit.  Though I bet they look pretty cute in their little fishing boats and caps as they are now expected to export something. Don't get me started on the folks living on British Indian Ocean Territory which consists entirely of US and UK military personnel. Are they exporting security and importing everything else? Who knew? Clown cabinet again fails to educate the chief buffoon on reality.  

LATEST JP The grandson leads a busy interesting life, so we can no longer just show up and expect him to drop all and hang out. Though he is still young enough to go along with it for now. Surprised him the other day after school with a bowling adventure. He asked for a moment and walked off to talk in his phone. Apparently, he had arranged with the "guys" to play some Minecraft that afternoon and the old folks showed up. Though I told him it was cool as we didn't check ahead of time, he said no problem. I also appreciate that he walked away to make his excuses to spare me.

Later, we got him a sub sandwich for dinner. I just handed him a twenty to handle the transaction himself reminding him we had drink and chips at home so just the sandwich. About five minutes later he comes back weighted down with sandwich, pop, chips and my change. Without my saying a word he goes "Wait, wait. I can explain". Apparently, the extra items were free, and he brought me fourteen dollars back on an eleven-dollar sandwich. Color me confused. He mentioned something about engaging in some small talk. I stand amazed at his abilities to make friends and influence as the saying goes. Better not to push for details. Did I mention it's usually a couple of high school girls on duty at the sub shop at that time.

Taking a small vacay to Traverse City this week followed by the Michigan Safety Conference next week so may not be posting on Sunday. If I get time, however, I may scribble about my fascination with TC vineyard bathrooms. They are each unique and I have threatened to write a pamphlet about their variety-usually themed-accompanied by pictures. I have scheduled two wine/cheese events in addition to our idle ramblings and possibly a quick wallet emptying sojourn at the local casino. Typical sedentary activities for seniors. Big Sis and B-I-L coming for a couple days, so looking forward to some down time. Two live interviews scheduled during the conference so back to "work". Hold tight and don't look at your 401 anytime soon. This too shall pass.  Peace out....💚   💙💛

                                         

                                                                                          

PS Thank you Cory Booker for a masterful performance and the amazing truth that you are standing there - a black senator- despite the 2nd longest speech by a man determined to destroy your ability to be a black senator. A beautiful spark of light in a mostly dark week showing the good guys win sometimes too.