Time, Times, and half a Time

What an exciting time to be living. This blowing of the shofar is not for some Passover celebration. Soon it will apparent who the true anti-Semites are. In the end Israel will stand alone. It will be abandoned by all, even the U.S. The response of most Americans to the destruction of Israel will be "pass the potatoes".




When I look into the eyes of this IAF soldier I read one thing: Masada. They are not going to walk into the gas chambers again.

Father of the Bride

Babba is taking a pro-active role in planning the wedding!

What happened to my country?

This article by Mark Steyn sums up all my feelings on the economy. The American auto industry is moribund. This new bail-out is like an embalmer: he just makes the corpse smell better for awhile. George Bush did just enough to postpone the demise of GM and Chrysler til March. We do this in the hospital also. It's called "let's operate on grandma even though it's hopeless, just so she doesn't die on Christmas".

I don't remember anyone asking for a bailout when the furniture and textile industry of the south collapsed thirty years ago. It's like we have become a nation of panhandlers. The whole economy was built on the illusion of prosperity. I feel so stupid---I never realized that most companies have to borrow money to meet payroll. The lessons of the great depression, such as "save for a rainy day" have been replaced by a new philosophy: "We made it through today". I remember that TV commercial of the fella boasting about all his expensive toys and then remarking; "and I'm in debt up to my eyeballs". The country went on a buying spree sustained by easy credit and manufactured need. If you wanted a new luxury car and could only afford a used Corolla, you just financed that BMW for six years. You really couldn't afford that 20,000 square foot mini-mansion so you got an adjustable rate mortgage with a balloon payment and hoped you wouldn't get the flu and miss a day's work. We had the appearance of prosperity but underneath it everything was leveraged to the max. Our country is now in the denial phase and inching closer to the anger phase. The government is trying to suspend reality and halt the grieving process with a Prozac placebo called a stimulus package. They really think we are stupid. Like a cheating spouse, confidence can only be regained with virtue over time. Instead the government is handing out the "morning after pill" and hoping we all suffer from amnesia.

I will miss GM and Chrysler (I think there is still hope for Ford). My first car was a 1953 Chevrolet Bel-Air, like the Chevy in this classic commercial. It didn't come with a " nav-system" or heated seats. The steering wheel was as big as a bicycle wheel and with its kingpin suspension if you didn't slow down you just didn't make the curve. We were a Chevy family. I had three cousins who were mechanics for Soundview Chevrolet. (When it was time for a safety inspection we didn't have to bring the car in.) There were no child safety seats; my father just removed the rear inside door handles after the third time I fell out of the car. I remember sitting on my father's lap and shifting his 47 Nash when I was about five years old. My parents might not have been attuned to child safety, but they never had a car loan.

This Christmas, Surprise Her

I go through all these contortions to try to surprise CP for Christmas. Since I only shop on-line I have to order stuff on secret credit cards, have e-mail confirmations deleted, watch for order updates etc. My plan to secretly get CP a violin was thwarted when the kids tried to buy her one. The thought of the two of them spending more than $50 never occurred to me. So Carol is now playing her Christmas present since I wanted her to take advantage of the full 45 day trial period. Besides, the rental fiddle (you know, the one with the big number "2" on it' like a bowling shoe) needed to be returned.

I wanted her to have something to open up on Christmas morning, so I stealthily ordered her a music stand from Amazon. The music stand was delivered while I was at work and needless to say CP now knows she is getting a a music stand. I'm considering surprising her with four new tires for her Element. I'm concerned that I would come home and find the Goodyear Blimp hovering over the house.

Our non-caged, free-range, locally grown, 100% recycled, eco- friendly, Al Gore endorsed Christmas Tree

This year we gave in and bought an artificial tree. Mainly I got one because CP's Christmas Party is Weds. and I can't seem to keep a real tree moist for more than 8 days. I drill holes in the bottom, I add aspirin to the water, I turn off the heat I've even tried starting an I.V. in one. Whatever I do The tree seem to turn into a potential fire-ball after a week in the house.

This tree is so bright with it's 300 l.e.d. lights it can be seen from outer space. It's like the sun went nova in our living room. I may have to get a rheostat to make it dimmer. This mass of blinding light uses about 25 watts of electricity from our clean-coal burning power plant. Best of all thanks to the Obama recession CP got it for 50% off. It was either 50% off or they would throw in a General Motors SUV.

That 23 lbs. of organic waste in the foreground is Bo. He is taking a break from eating the tree.

Unholy Fire

At last, a preacher in whom there is no guile. At least when they present these dinosaurs as an offering they won't try to crawl off the altar; they probably won't start. Couldn't they at least find a gold model to worship? I can just hear the congregation say "we threw all this plastic in the fire and a lemon came out!" Let us all face east and pray to Washington--- from where our bailouts come.

Amber Alert

MISSING

SUSPECTS

Visiting American Professor last seen on the Champs-Elysees looking in the window of a shoe store. Suspects are known to frequent Hot Chocolate Kiosks and Janitorial Supply Stores. If seen contact parents immediately.

He's The Bomb!

Wednesday @ 1300 hours: I have to lay down my paint brush. If I don't CP will be prying it out of my "cold dead hand". I just continue to see more things that need a brightening up. The paint used in this condo was probably "Baptist Church Paint". That means it cost $10 for 5 gallons and then Jose and friends probably cut it with water. I'm getting pretty good with a brush and self-leveling quality paint. But I have to take a break now so the house doesn't smell like a chemical soup when the new in laws show up for Thanksgiving dinner.

I'm sorry I shamed the Kahuna into doing some home repairs. We were supposed to go to Savannah during this week but the Obama-Recession changed our plans. So you found one ant in a light fixture and your ready to throw the bomb. What kind of ant was it? My philosophy of old houses is the same as my philosophy of old cars, "don't fix anything until it starts to stink". Make sure your bomb isn't the flammable type. However, with real estate prices being what they are in the southern tier of New York, I would expect the flammable ones are all sold out. Do an Elmer Fudd, just go up in the attic and start shooting.

Speaking of odors, I realized what owning a Honda really means, and why they are so popular. When you're sitting at a stop light and you smell an odor you don't have a panic attack. Subconsciously you realize it's probably the car in front of you emitting the smell. Another change that Honda owners experience, is that when something doesn't work the problem is probably with me and not the car. I realize it's time to read the manual, because nothing ever breaks on a Honda. My trusty smeller did throw a code last week when I parked the Olds in the garage. I picked up on that telltale smell of antifreeze. Sure enough, the only hose I never changed (one that was a special metal pipe that snaked around the frame and firewall) had rusted out. I plan to keep my nasal code-reader at least until GM goes belly up.

Something To Believe In.

No, I'm not talking about Obama and his "three hundred prophets of Baal". I'm talking about paint that covers in one coat. This Kilz brand paint, sold at Wal-Mart may actually cover in one coat. You may have to buy an expensive roller-cover and be careful not to let the roller get dry and exert exactly five lbs. of constant pressure but it is possible.

I thought I managed to pull the "one coat" thing off but the next day I found holidays about halfway up the wall. I imagine this is the height where I swing the roller through its arc and I vary the pressure at this point. So, after much ridicule from CP, I gave a quick second coat. It's worth it to me not to look at the wall in three months and notice the old color peering through. The big roller is a breeze compared to the woodwork; which I assault with a cadre of brushes, sponges and mini-rollers. Kilz is still very good paint. It's much better than the Olympic brand from Lowe's, and it's cheaper.

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

I'm really basking in the glow of global warming; aka climate change, aka crapola. It was 16 degrees this morning. I was hoping to fence the patio in for Bo, but they can't pour the cement footers till it's 34 degrees.

On a lighter note, gasoline is $1.80/gal. This collapse in the oil market is ominous. The only business that's doing well is the Somali pirates. The reemergence of piracy was featured in Atlas Shrugged (circa 1957). The bail-out-mania that has swept Washington is just another collectivist tactic to reward failure. What Detroit needs to do is make a car that people want to buy at a competitive price. The U.S. auto industry is doing just fine in the south; it's only the Michigan/UAW auto industry that's failing. A trillion dollar bail out for Detroit would only sow the seeds for a second civil war. The first civil war wasn't only about slavery, it was about the north treating the south like a colony. All these fixes and bail outs and stimulus packages will only turn this recession into a full blown depression. The bright side is that we won't have to watch all these Christmas commercials for the Cadillac Escalade.

Ben's New Boss

Ben I'm moving your office to the basement!

Our Fast Learner

Actual number of practices about ten. This makes three tricks Bo can do. Not bad for a terrier with Asperger's Syndrome.

The Ultimate Degradation

Due to cut backs at work I have to carry this ridiculous thing into work everyday. A few months ago they took away our snacks (crackers and peanut butter). Then they took away our coffee and bottled water. Now they are taking away our break room and refrigerator. I used to bring my lunch in a bag every day. I would make one bag last about a month. I would bring the worn bag to CP who would inspect it to determine if it was no longer salvageable. In order to keep that yummy sandwich of mine cold I now have to use this insulated lunch box which I refer to as my "fag bag". I asked CP whether they were all sold out of the pink ones. Well, I'll start eating my lunch in my car like some migrant worker. When they take away the locker room I'll have to change my clothes in the woods. Just today they had a survey handed out to determine how the employees feel about Inatech; we had to pay 50 cents for the pencil to fill it out.

Terrorists' New Tactic

Terrorists' have a new tactic. They are going to start sexually harassing Israeli women. Judging by these Israeli women it seems doomed to fail. It looks like a whole country full of Sarah Palin's. How do I emigrate? Where do I apply for my Visa?

The Uncertainty of Uncertainty

The stock markets have reacted to the uncertainty of a "O" presidency with a dive. Like children diving under the bed when their drunk dad comes home, the whole investment community is scared. The pundits are already talking of "buyer's remorse". Like problem dogs in the Cesar Milan's pack they are full of negative energy; no one knows their position in the pack. No one knows the limits, the rules, or where their next meal is coming from. Onto this stage comes the "O" and his three hundred economic advisers (three hundred Prophets of Baal). Instead of letting the economy seek its own level and recover we have a parade of bail-outs. Don't they realize the problem is one of confidence? We no longer believe the state can fix anything. Our leaders are like men in a sinking boat poking holes in the bottom to let the water out.

I'm getting my "Who Is John Galt" bumper sticker. Anyone who voted for the "O" could not have read Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. The fact that the book is 1,400 pages puts it beyond the reach of 90% of those educated in the state schools and most of the voting public. John Galt's speech pretty well sums up the the futility and malignancy of socialism. However, our nation bought this "pig in a poke" and now we must sit back and watch our great nation sink into mediocrity. What's funny is that the British seem more aware that we have been scammed than we are ourselves; see Peter Hitchins' editorial.

In about a year, when those who drank the Kool-Aid realize that they have been deceived it will be important for the church to be there to help clean up the mess left behind. Perhaps this is the kick-off for the "great tribulation" and we have seven more years to endure. I take comfort knowing that God wasn't staying up late on Nov. 4th wondering which way Ohio would go, red or blue. This is an exciting time. It's a time like out of the Old Testament when Israel asked for a King and got Saul. It's like in the "Ten Commandments" when Charlton Heston said to Israel:

"STAND BACK AND SEE THE SALVATION OF YOUR GOD"

Babba's under a GAG order.

It seems that "Obama Derangement Disorder" is out of control on the job. We received a memo that we are not to talk about politics. After eight years of Bush bashing we must remain silent and just suck it in. It seems that a few of the employees have made the "Jefferson's TV Theme" their ring-tone and offended somebody. Babba's ring tone still remains "In A Godda Da Vitta". However, Babba did schedule one of his co-workers for ECT (Electro Convulsive Therapy) the day after the election. It seems no one is going to be able to criticize the "O" without having to be placed in a re-education camp. So I just have to walk around with my "O" face on giving sub-prime care.

We had a meeting on Thursday. It seems that the great "O", that friend of small business, will probably cause our fourteen person small business to cut back. The changes in the payroll tax that the "O" has proposed will cost our little group about $180,000. That's about equal to to one full time employee. I'm not sure how that will help me put gas in my car, food on my table, or pay my mortgage. I'll just have to cut back on vacations, eating out and movies. Sorry little guy, don't blame me. CP is not returning to the work force; if she makes anymore money this year we might become rich and the "O" will just redistribute what she makes. We will conserve, we will hunt, we will forage and grow our own food and fix our own vehicles. We will sit back on the porch and watch this disaster unfold; a country boy will survive!

Time To Blog

Do you think somehow this is CP's fault?



After two months we may finally be back in our bedroom. Tomorrow they come to shampoo the carpets and then all I have to do is paint the trim and we are done. I'm getting used to Ben's bed.

We had our first frost and a windy week that brought down most of the leaves. It's been freezing at night yet every afternoon is sunny and 68 degrees.

Gasoline is $2.35/gallon, if this is a recession bring it on. Early voting has been real heavy here. I don't think the Messiah is doing that hot out here in western N.C. There are many people voting for the first time. The fact that Nobama might win is scaring people to death.

Today, I stopped at the library at 6 am to drop off a book on my way to work. There were about 100 people lined up in the dark about an hour before the polls opened. I knew they were all McCain voters trying to vote before work. The Obama voters wake up about 3 pm when the mail comes. Well we got our guns and bibles ready, we are just waiting to see what Ohio does.

Let's Give It Up For Our Catholic Brothers!

Catholic Bishop Grasida has a no nonsense radio ad that tells it like it is. Now if the protestants would stop worrying about their tax exempt status maybe we could end the "slaughter of the innocents".

Does This Camper Make Me Look Fat?

I was looking for a pop-up to pull behind my Honda Element. Now the Element has a towing capacity of 1,000 lbs. This leaves me with a choice of a few HOT WHEELS size models. If only it could tow 300 lbs. more I'd have a choice of pop ups with full amenities. This Alite model seems pretty nice.






























A couple of years ago Dodge came out with a new van, the Sprinter. It has a 3 liter Mercedes diesel that gets 22 mpg. I thought that would make a great camper. A company in California beat me to it. The Sprinter van with the conversion costs about $58,000. I'm thinking if Obama wins this may become an option. No more pesky real estate taxes to support the failing school system. In a couple of years Fed-Ex and UPS will be selling off their used Sprinters; ooohh project!

Now I have to convince CP that all three of us would be happy living in a van.

Book Notes

My blog goes from the ridiculous to the sublime.

After being on the waiting list for six weeks and after starting out at number twenty three, I got my copy of The Shack. First let me say that my mild case of Aspergers Disease usually precludes me from enjoying novels. Unless the novel is very believable or historical, I much prefer non-fiction.

The Shack is a spiritual odyssey that loosely follows the format of a Christian caught up into heaven story. There the similarity ends. I think this book is another treatise on how Christianity is changing in the post -church era: the idea that relationship trumps rules, people trump programs and God can be packaged and and placed in one's pocket like a PDA.

The book did lag a bit in the middle. The symbolism, metaphors, and allegories began to overwhelm my Vulcan brain. Something told me to press on, though, and the book had a great conclusion. I can see why this book got mixed reviews. Ninety percent of the people loved it and ten percent of the people thought it was an abomination. I can imagine it won't be a hit with the KJV only crowd, or the Christians who preach grace and live works.

I give it 4 stars.

Colon Cleanse Those Extra Pounds Away

Am I the only one to notice an increase in infomercials for colon cleansers? Perhaps this is related to the decrease in the DOW. Even my beloved History Channel interrupts its Nazis at 4 am to put on a Colon Cleanser half hour commercial. After ten minutes of this crap the "blab-it and grab-it" preachers seem interesting. Lately the late night lords of the high colonic are pitching this stuff as a weight loss miracle. You can lose 10 lbs. overnight by taking a mega-dump! (the plumbers must love this stuff). Now just in case your idea of a good time on a Friday night is crapping out an Anaconda and you believe this stuff is what you need to pep you up, I'll list the reasons why these clowns are F.O.S.:

Plain old fiber is your colon's best friend and it costs pennies a day.
Need to get that clean as a whistle feeling? Just down yourself a 99 cent bottle of citrate of magnesia. One caution however, if you're expecting company you may want to use something gentler like Mira-Lax.
That secret recipe of eleven herbs and spices contained in these fad products are all homeopathic nonsense.
The people featured in the testimonials are the same people who visit Roswell every year and sit at home with aluminum foil on their heads.
Having a two foot long, three inch wide stool is no way to lose weight. I tried it and I actually gained 3 ounces, not to mention you will probably be calling for an epidural.

So to all the anal retentives out there I say short of an implanted colonic pacemaker the best way keep that colon happy is to cut out the fat and increase the fiber.

If you feel you absolutely must cleanse that colon of all the toxins, heavy metals, mold spores, yeast, bacterias, and the rest of the crap that belongs in there, I recommend watching the evening news.

Black Friday, "The Day The Music Died"

Friday Oct. 3rd. 2008, the day Congress passed the bail out and shredded our constitution. Not since the Weimar Republic, has a government manufactured such an enormous panic in order to seize individual freedom and property. The looters are close to seizing half the economy and ensuring that they have a majority of non-taxpaying voters. The next goal of the looters is to give us "Fannie Mae" health care and "Freddie Mac" energy.

BARNEY FRANK
"I'm only here to help you."

Mark Levin's
Anatomy of a bail out:
Homeowners want protection from their own bad judgment.
Investors want protection from market forces.
The old want free medicine.
The young want free schooling.
The unemployed want jobs and money.
The rich want money in their pockets .
The poor are never satisfied.

Is there anyone left in this country who isn't trying to get something for nothing?

In "Atlas Shrugged "the producers all fled to a secret island where they created a paradise of success and industry. The Looters were left behind in their collectivist hell and wondered why nothing functioned anymore.

I'm looking at Costa Rica. My Scots-Irish relatives didn't emigrate here to bow their knee to another Lord.

Open Season on Biden Begins Oct. 2nd.

"Oh yep he's a big one. I bet there are at least 500 plugs in his rack. Now if he would just step out of that group of fawning liberal media. Come on, Joe, turn sideways so I can land one right between your squinted botox eyes. Come on Joe, the light is getting flat and I have to go pick up the kids and take em to hockey. Yep I'm going nip right down and bag me a big lib and get home in time for the Ski-Doo races."

KAABOOM!

"Got em, right between his lying liberal Klingon eyes."

I'de trade my 401K for a gallon of gas.

I should have picked up 3 gallons of gas on my way home from the airport. There still isn't any gas in western N.C. The colleges have closed, businesses are empty, armed people are camped out in filling stations waiting for that police-escorted gas truck. Our sub-prime government officials are right on top of the crisis. The governor blames a lack of liquidity in the storage facilities caused by Hurricane Ike. That was three weeks ago. The voters are going to orchestrate a leveraged vote out in November.

Matching Luggage

Do you think the TSA will let me take these on the plane back to Asheville? Seeing that there isn't any gas in the region.

By the way: Has anybody seen my butt?

"I'm going to stop the engine of the world"

This was the cry of John Galt in Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. Anyone who hasn't read this book should do so ASAP. The looters in Washington are now taking over our 401 K's, health care and investment markets. We are being TOLD we have to bail out their sorry asses. I say no way. Let it all collapse and we can start over. This band-aid will just postpone the inevitable. America's chickens are coming home to roost.

By the way, it is now nine days that we in western N.C. haven't had any gasoline. There isn't anybody concerned about the ozone hole while they are waiting in gas lines. These same bureaucrats want us to buy their stinking bad paper to the tune of a trillion dollars. Somebody should be going to jail, better yet bring back the guillotine.

KEEP BAILING!

Seventy billion dollars to bail out Freddie and Fannie.



It looks like this poor working schmo has to bend over again.








Biden says paying taxes is patriotic










That's $100,000 per person, yikes!




Freddie, Fannie, are you feeling lucky
TODAY?

My idea to save General Motors.

I just drove Ben's 93 Olds Cutlass Supreme back from D.C. I can't believe what a great car it is. It has 160K miles on it. The first 86K miles were put on by a West Virginia teenager so it wasn't babied or well-maintained. The only repair (besides routine stuff) has been a blown intake manifold gasket, $500.

This sweet little V-6 gets 30 mpg, has plenty of grunt and turns at a leisurely 2,200 rpm's at 70 mph. The A/C is the best I've ever had. I replaced the standard cassette/radio with a Crutchfield Pioneer 180 watt am/fm stereo cd. Then there is that beautiful floaty ride; it's like going down the Interstate on a Shiatsu flying sofa.

Except for air-bags what else has GM been doing since 1993? They got rid of their most profitable division, Oldsmobile, and brought us such great cars as the Pontiac Aztec. I think if GM can retool and produce a million Olds Cutlass's and sell them each for $13,000 they could kick some butt against the rice-burners from the land of Nipon.

The Olds is now home in my stable where it can live out its remaining years with dignity. I have a selfish reason for wanting GM to pull out of its "graveyard spiral". I'm thinking that any day now I might become a co-owner of GM. Since GM is so big we can't let it fail. There will be another government bailout. A week ago who would have thought I'd be co-owner in the world's second largest insurance company, AIG? Who'd a thunk it?

Babba's Book Notes

A Walk In The Woods:

This is a great book. It's about an older guy who decides to hike the Appalachian Trail. MP read it in about four hours, but it took me a week. It's not a pot boiler but just a pleasant excursion into a world few of us will ever see. It became preachy in a few spots but aside from those few chapters it was quite funny. The people he finds along away are just so authentic it hearkens you back to a simpler time before we all started taking ourselves so serious. ***


The Unthinkable:

I saw the author Amanda Ripley on C-Span. I was so impressed with her interview I requested her new book The Unthinkable. I'm only about half way through it but I can't put it down. The book looks at natural and man made disasters and tries to analyze the human responses. It is a pleasant read and doesn't repeat the original thesis chapter after chapter. It also doesn't read like a graduate school thesis, yet isn't as inane as usual disaster manuals eg; " How to Survive Being Trapped In An Automat." I think Ben would like it since she uses some scenarios from the Foreign Service. ****

My Waiting List:

Well, after a month on the waiting list I've moved from #23 to #16. I do prefer non-fiction but this book is getting such a buzz I have to check it out. ?????

Running On Empty

No, that's not my coronary artery. It's Hurricane Ike tearing up the gulf. Which means the last truckload of gas was delivered to western N.C. on Thursday. The Hooterville Times-News announced this on their front page Friday morning causing a stampede of senior citizens in their Town Cars to the pumps. I'm lucky I filled up on Wed. for $ 3.57/gal before the price started going up 30 cents/hr. At least it has improved the traffic situation around Asheville. Tonight CP and I are going to stay home and play cards.


Monday the condo association has its quarterly meeting. They will vote on which bid to accept to fix our bedroom after the Hurricane Fay roof leak. I'm sure they will take the lowest bid. Thursday the contractors Chico and Fernando came by to take measurements. They assured CP that when they were done the room would look the same as it did before the leak.

I need to go, it's getting late. I have to go sit outside with my gun and make sure no one siphons my gas!

Last Rose Of Summer

It is the first week of September, yet things are still blooming. MP's garden is yielding a cornucopia of pointy tomatoes and miniature purple peppers. We are still sleeping in the living room while the insurance companies and condo association bicker over who's going to pay for the repairs.

CP had an audition in Asheville yesterday so I went along and we brought Bo. Bo did his best to imitate the nervous pumpkin toy. Bo isn't used to urban noise, of which Asheville has an abundance. On any Saturday in Asheville the streets are full of poets, musicians, biker gangs, big buses , dancing stoned-out hippies, twenty year old adolescents on BMX bikes, strollers etc. The audition lasted 2 hours so by the time we were done Bo was a wreck. Every time I went to put a quarter in the parking meter Bo tried to jump in the car window.

I think I overheated my i-Pod during one of my sun bathing sessions. It played but the screen was just a a bunch of shaky lines. I called BP and he told me it was toast, which is what I expected. I did my usual quick fix; slam it on the desk a few times and try to reformat it. Nothing seemed to work but today it worked just along enough for me to get my stuff back on it and I thought it was fixed, but now the screen is blank again. Basically without the screen it's a big i-Pod Shuffle like CP's. I can't stand her Shuffle because you have to hunt for the music you want. I'm pretty i-Pod dependant so I'll probably get a refurbished 3rd generation Nano. I can't stand this throw away society. Maybe I'll try soaking it in WD-40.

Hi-Pro Bo

Bo was happy eating Purina Beneful (healthy weight-lean cusine). Then I heard of a free trial offer for Purina One. The commercial raves about how your dog will have more energy, a glossier coat and stronger bones, etc. Now formerly our dogs thrived on Wal-Mart's Old Roy dog food. However, at obedience class I was embarrassed to admit that I fed this bargain basement swill to Bo.

So I got my free 4 lb. bag of Purina One. Yes, I took the Purina One challenge. Now I have a dog that acts like he's on crack. It's like Bo is 8 months old again. I can't wait till I use this up and get "Slow, Low-Pro, AARP" Bo back.

Big Education

I found this piece by Walter Williams that discusses a few of the problems of higher education. I have seen many people who are talked into college only to end up with a useless degree and fifty thousand dollars of education loans. Most of them work at "Old Navy".

The students think the schools care about them, when really all they want is government money. These poor saps go into programs like "construction management" and truly believe that when they finish Donald Trump is going to put them in charge of his next project. It reminds me of Rodney Dangerfield in "Back To School" telling the class what it really takes to start a business:

"First of all you're going to have to grease the local politicians for the sudden zoning problems that always come up. Then there's the kickbacks to the carpenters, and if you plan on using any cement in this building I'm sure the teamsters would like to have a little chat with ya, and that'll cost ya. Oh and don't forget a little something for the building inspectors. Then there's long term costs such as waste disposal. I don't know if you're familiar with who runs that business but I assure you it's not the boyscouts."

Students should realize if they are pursuing a liberal arts degree the result will be hopefully a broader education and not some mythical advantage in the general workforce. Fifty per cent of a college degree today is just giving you what you missed in public high school. In 1969 SUNY guaranteed every high school graduate a place in college. Back then I thought it was a joke; some of my high school friends couldn't even tie their shoes. If you were a member of the parish you got a desk in the Catholic high school. I think it was Rockefeller that decided that even though you couldn't write your name in the ground with a stick, you were college material.

Instead of investigating Big Oil Congress should investigate Big Education.

Marianne is going to France and all I get is this dumb hat!

I was feeling so good a few minutes ago; now I see that MP is leaving. This isn't a home, it's a Youth Hostel. Along with all this, I'm now sleeping in the living room because of a leaky roof.
It's all to much for me, I have to lie down. I just saw MP put the black bra in her suitcase.


This is Dreidal. She is a ten month old Welsh Terrier up for adoption. This means she probably has more psychological problems than me. I really don't think a new little sister will get me out of my funk; I just like the toy she's holding in her mouth.

The "Full Marianne"

POLICE I.D. # 4578989765


Today I went to my local library website to request a book. To my surprise I had an $8.00 fine. This is highly unusual for me, so I called to inquire about it. I got the weekend counter help on the phone so I knew I was in trouble. [This retired matron of Auschwitz is the same lady who tried to have me arrested because my cell phone went off there one Saturday morning. I was the only person in the library at 9 am (I was waiting for CP who was at "Foam and Fabric") so it's not like the brief ring distracted anyone who was working on their thesis.] She told me it was a fine on an inter-library loan and that the three books were returned. I asked what the names of the books were and she told me she didn't have that information. After a long harangue she handed the phone to the intelligent person assigned to the desk that day. I knew from her voice who it was and she told me to please hold while she tried to get more information. The intelligent lady told me it was three " French" books from another library that were returned two weeks late. The operative word here was "French". At that moment I understood that this had the familiar M.O. of Marianne all over it. I apologized to the intelligent library lady, and told her I understood the origin of the fine. As usual Marianne has managed to make one of her parents out to be a blithering idiot. Marianne almost got away with it; forty-eight hours later and she would have been on her way to France.

Now to manage this Marianne had to get on my computer, use my library card number and password to request these books. She didn't have my card, because I sleep with it under my pillow while she's home. So this was a clear case of identity theft.

Does anyone else have a similar story? Just ask CP about the time Marianne had her call up the credit card company and pretend to be her. Dick, did she ever pay you for the tires you got for her in Rochester?

The Latter Rain

Our four months of drought are over. We are getting the run off from Hurricane Faye. This morning I got out of bed to the squishy feel of a wet rug. I thought the drain in the back yard was clogged and the water came in over the slab. I was wrong. It seems like the roof was leaking. The swat team of water removal experts arrived and after tearing out the wall and ceiling they discovered the leak. Now the room is full of industrial strength blowers, dehumidifiers and air filters. The roofer came and after a few "yups" said he'd be back when it stops raining, in a few days. I'll guess we will be out of the bedroom for a couple of weeks, or until the "SHIRK BROTHERS" come by to patch the wall, paint and relay the carpets. I have to go empty the bucket that's catching the rain water. It fills up in about 30 minutes.