Resident Evil 5 Extended Trailer

Currently the game has a U.S. release date of 2009. Bummer. Oh wait, I don't even have a PS3 yet. I guess that's a good thing. Or maybe Santa will know that I've been good all year. Regardless, in a couple of hours I'm done with work until next year. Woo hoo!

Nickels and Dimes

I was checking my NTTA tolltag account online yesterday in preparation for a visit to Dallas. I wanted to make sure I had the correct vehicle information in the system because I revise that info whenever I use a rental vehicle. They fined me a couple of years ago because I was using a rental on the tollways and did not inform them so the plates didn't match to my tolltag. My mistake so I didn't argue. I checked the vehicle information and everything was correct so I was about to log off but thought it would be interesting (for lack of a word) to see some past transactions. Lo and behold I saw a transaction during July for my vehicle. That's unsusual because I was nowhere near Addison Texas in July.

I called the customer service number and explained the situation and the friendly representative asked me some questions. When she realized that I had used a rental vehicle in June she put me on hold. When she came back she explained to me what had happened. In a nutshell, when I entered the vehicle information for the rental vehicle I used in June, the system remembers that. So when someone else rented the same vehicle in July and used the tollway and didn't pay, the system charged my account. She told me her supervisor said to fax a copy of the rental agreement showing the dates of rental and the vehicle's plate number to them in order to credit my account. I said that seemed like a lot of work for seventy cents and she agreed but that was what her supervisor wanted.

I remembered the fine the NTTA assessed me a while back and decided they weren't going to bilk me out of my hard-earned money so I asked for their fax number. After some searching I found my rental agreement from earlier in the year. It's a good thing I don't throw anything away. I made a copy of it and faxed it to the customer service department. I got my seventy cents back and feel good about it.

"Don't Tase Me, Bro" and Other Quotes

That was the top quote of 2007 as compiled by the editor of the Yale Book of Quotations. The second was the rambling from a Miss Teen USA contestant which I thought would be much better to view...and become confused. Really confused.

Yes, I'm Ready For A Vacation

How do I get out of this madhouse?

Beating A Dead Horse

How coincidental. Sometimes I just want to scream here at work.

Isn't She/He Lovely?

I Think I Can, I Think I Can...Not!

I had a vivid dream last night or perhaps it was a nightmare. I had promised Peter Griffin that I would give him a ride to the dentist. It turns out that my mode of transportation was not a motorized vehicle but my bicycle. So there I was pedaling through an underground parking garage or something similar and then finally down a street out of a scene from Duke Nukem towards a tall building where I was to pick Peter up. As I approached the front of the building I saw a figure standing there which I mistook for a Pig Cop from the game but then realized it was only Peter. He got on the handlebars of my bike and I proceeded to pedal again with great difficulty. We barely made it up a small hill and as we crested the top I saw a huge hill looming before us. I was having great difficulty going up this hill and Peter was literally crying that he was going to be late for his dentist's appointment. Waa, waa, waa. It was at this point that I awoke disoriented and out of breath. Very strange.

You're A Pig!

Did Chef Ramsay lose it because Chef Michel was stubborn or because he was French? I felt like punching Michel and I wasn't even there. I just don't understand when these owners don't want to take Ramsay's suggestions or are not open to change. They're the ones who invited him to come and help anyway. Well, at least it seems the restaurant's web page is busy due to the show.

How Many Cats Does It Take To Change A Light Bulb?

Cats do not change light bulbs. People change light bulbs. So, the real question is: 'How long will it be before I can expect some light, some dinner, and a massage?'

Go Spirit Go

It's a race against time for the Mars rover Spirit to get to a safe spot to wait out the long Martian winter. Read the story here.

From My Inbox

Christmas Carols for the Disturbed

1. Schizophrenia --- Do You Hear What I Hear?
2. Multiple Personality Disorder --- We Three Kings Disoriented Are
3. Dementia --- I Think I'll be Home for Christmas
4. Narcissistic --- Hark the Herald Angels Sing About Me
5. Manic --- Deck the Halls and Walls and House Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streets and Stores and Office and Town and Cars and Buses and Trucks and Trees and.....
6. Paranoid --- Santa Claus is Coming to Town to Get Me
7. Borderline Personality Disorder --- Thoughts of Roasting on an Open Fire
8. Personality Disorder --- You Better Watch Out, I'm Gonna Cry, I'm Gonna Pout, Maybe I'll Tell You Why
9. Attention Deficit Disorder --- Silent night, Holy oooooh look at the froggy - can I have a chocolate, why is France so far away?
10. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder --Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle,Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle, Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells...

Odie Loves Candy Canes

A Little Faster Please

I think I've griped about this before but I'm going to again. How can a store call a check-out line with a 20 item limit a "speedy" check-out? It's more like "a little faster than our other lines" check-out. And why don't they assign someone to check the quantity of goods a person has when they get in line at a "speedy" check-out? They could be called "Quantity Compliance" associates, sort of like the "Receipt Accuracy" checkers at the exits. I can't stand it when jerks have a full cart and the cashier doesn't say a thing. That really irks me to no end. And it gets so much worse when a person wants a competitor's price matched on all of their items. They have sales circulars from 10 different stores and they take so long trying to find the right one for the item being scanned. AAAGHHHH!!!

Who Are Those Crazy People?

I've been in a Bah Humbug mood ever since I saw my first Christmas commercial a while back but got into the season when I was at the mall over the weekend. I'm just about done with shopping and not a moment too soon. I can't stand the crowds at the stores and the parking lots and the streets around the malls. Also you can see some crazy elves here that helped it seem like it was December and almost Christmas.

Little Hand On Elmo

It's A Money Shirt!

Void Void Void

This story reminds me of an episode of The Simpsons where Homer goes to the bank and tries to cash a $1,000,000 check he received in the mail. Doh!

If I Were On The Grand Jury

I heard a longer account of the 911 call last week and even then it seemed to me that the shooter was over-anxious to get out there and use his shotgun. His life was never in danger or threatened as long as he stayed on the phone and didn't go outside to confront the burglars. Better to be a good witness especially over some property that didn't even belong to him. What if it had been a couple of kids stealing the neighbors bike? Someone's life isn't worth it. I'm thinking indictment.

Monday Morning

It snowed all day on Saturday. Too bad the weather hadn't been colder a couple of days earlier to get the ground freezing. None of the snow stuck to the streets but grassy areas and roof tops got about 4 inches of snow. Mountain elevations a bit more.

Still Bored At Work (With An Open Mind)

You Are 52% Open Minded

You are a very open minded person, but you're also well grounded. Tolerant and flexible, you appreciate most lifestyles and viewpoints. But you also know where you stand firm, and you can draw that line. You're open to considering every possibility - but in the end, you stand true to yourself.

How Open Minded Are You?

Kind Of Like Winter

The latest from the National Weather Service:

/O.NEW.KEPZ.WS.A.0003.071124T1000Z-071125T0000Z/
523 AM MST FRI NOV 23 2007

...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY AFTERNOON...

SHOWER ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP AND INCREASE ACROSS THE REGION LATE TONIGHT AND CONTINUE INTO SATURDAY EVENING. INITIAL PRECIPITATION WILL BE RAIN ACROSS THE LOW ELEVATIONS. TOWARDS SATURDAY MORNING SOME LOCATIONS MAY SEE A MIX OF SNOW AND RAIN...BUT LITTLE TO NO ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED. SATURDAY A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE REGION. THIS WILL COOL TEMPERATURES AND ALLOW AREA PRECIPITATION TO TURN OVER TO SNOW. POSSIBLE ACCUMULATIONS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANT SNOW...SLEET...OR ICE ACCUMULATIONS THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL. CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS.

I'm betting that there won't be any snow. Humbug.

Contemplating Humor While At Work

Your Score: the Wit

(52% dark, 38% spontaneous, 26% vulgar)

your humor style:
CLEAN COMPLEX DARK

You like things edgy, subtle, and smart. I guess that means you're probably an intellectual, but don't take that to mean pretentious. You realize 'dumb' can be witty--after all isn't that the Simpsons' philosophy?--but rudeness for its own sake, 'gross-out' humor and most other things found in a fraternity leave you totally flat.

I guess you just have a more cerebral approach than most. You have the perfect mindset for a joke writer or staff writer.

Your sense of humor takes the most thought to appreciate, but it's also the best, in my opinion.

You probably loved the Office. If you don't know what I'm talking about, check it out here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/.

PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Jon Stewart - Woody Allen - Ricky Gervais




The 3-Variable Funny Test!
- it rules -

If you're interested, try my best friend's best test: The Genghis Khan Genetic Fitness Masterpiece

Link: The 3 Variable Funny Test written by jason_bateman on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Winter? I'd Be Happy With Fall.

The temperature has been in the mid 70's this week. Tomorrow there will be a drop of about 20 degrees. We even have a watch/warning from the National Weather Service.

645 AM MST WED NOV 21 2007...STRONG COLD FRONT EXPECTED TONIGHT......WINTRY WEATHER AND THE COLDEST TEMPERATURES OF THE SEASON THIS WEEKEND...A COLD FRONT WILL PUSH INTO THE AREA THIS EVENING WITH STRONG EAST WINDS EXPECTED...ESPECIALLY ON THE WEST SLOPES OF AREA MOUNTAINS WHERE GUSTS TO 40 MPH ARE NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION. A COOL AIRMASS BEHIND THE FRONT WILL ALSO MEAN MUCH COOLER TEMPERATURES ACCOMPANIED BY A CHANCE FOR MOUNTAIN SNOW AND LOWER-ELEVATION SPRINKLES OVERNIGHT AND INTO THURSDAY. INCREASING CHANCES FOR MOUNTAIN SNOW SHOWERS AND LOWLAND RAIN SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED OVERNIGHT FRIDAY NIGHT ON THE TOES OF A STRENGTHENING UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM PUSHING INTO THE SOUTHWESTERN STATES. YET ANOTHER COLD BLAST IS EXPECTED DURING THE DAY ON SATURDAY AS THE UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM PUSHES OVER THE BORDERLAND. THE RESULT WILL BE CONTINUED CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THE COLDEST TEMPERATURES THUS FAR IN THE SEASON...STRUGGLING TO MAKE IT INTO THE LOWER 40S IN THE LOWLANDS. AS TEMPERATURES FALL LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON...LOWLAND RAINSHOWERS WILL BEGIN TO MIX WITH SNOW BEFORE TURNING OVER TO ALL SNOW SATURDAY EVENING.
OVERALL...SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS AREA MOUNTAINS...ESPECIALLY IN THE SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS WHERE ISOLATED 12 INCH TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS MAY BE SEEN THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. LESS THAN AN INCH OF SNOW IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE LOWLANDS AT THIS TIME.

Cool. Literally. I like cold weather. But snow? I'm not holding my breath.

Time Stands Still

Spent an hour and a half at my local Social Security office. I cannot find my card so I went to file for a replacement and to get a new one for my stepdaughter. We took a number and waited for 65 minutes and then the rest of the time was with the woman who went over our paperwork. It would have take about 10 minutes less if the woman had not taken a personal call. That just irked me to no end but I was polite and didn't say anything. I just don't understand the mindset of government employees.

If I Had $80 Million

I would buy my own luxury submarine like this one. That would be so cool.

Work Is Wonderful

If You've Got The Time

After yesterdays post I suddenly had the urge to watch George Romero's Night of the Living Dead. You can watch it here if you've got nothing better to do in the next 95 minutes.

Addendum

I was contemplating all day of how to file a complaint about the parking that goes on along the street I was talking about earlier. The cars cause congestion and traffic hazards because they block the view of traffic. Well, this evening I noticed that there were new "No Parking Anytime" signs put up. Woo Hoo.

Night of the Living Idiots

I was on my way home last night and was waiting to make a left hand turn from a parking lot onto a street. There was one car coming down the road in the direction I wanted to go so I let him pass and pulled out behind him. There is a stop sign approximately 12 feet from where I pulled out from and this is where the guy in front of me stopped (actually just short of the stop sign.) I could see that he put the car into reverse so I honked my horn. This led to the man raising his arms up and I figured he wanted to park there. I started to back up and the car that pulled out right after me honked for coming into his lane. I pulled forward a little as close as I could to the guy who stopped in front of me. He got even more upset because I was too close to him and he couldn't maneuver to park his car straight on the street. I moved forward a little and being the hot-head that I am rolled my window down to discuss the issue. I was actually being polite and calm until the guy called me a "Pendejo" so I said that he was a fucking dumb ass for trying to park so close to a stop sign. The argument escalated into us questioning each others' manhood and mothers' honors. All this took place in less than a minute but it felt good being able to use all the bad words I know in Spanish.

Later, I came to a stop light controlling a busy intersection. On the street that I was on the left hand turn lane is actually a double left turn lane. I had my signal going and I was in the second turn lane (counting from the middle median) so I could take the turn wide and make a right on the next street. Can you picture that? The van to my left decided to take the turn wide and was about to hit me until I used my horn. He swerved out of the way and I could see the woman in the passenger seat was upset with the driver. After the last incident I decided to open all my windows because the evening was cooling off nicely. So when I pulled up even with the van the woman apologized to me and I said that it wasn't a problem. The driver took his hat off and was showing me the printing on it. It was the designation for a Naval warship. He kept saying it was Veteran's Day so please excuse him. I also told him it was alright and made my right turn. Then I got to thinking. Was the guy trying to tell me that he was toasted after a Veteran's Day party or that he wasn't in the wrong because he was a veteran?

Colors and Commercials

I went to the store to buy The Little One a new box of crayons over the weekend. I was going to buy the box with 64 colors and the sharpener in the back but saw that they had a 96 color box. It even had the sharpener built into the back of the box. Wow. The things I could have done back in the younger years with 96 colors. And I love the smell of crayons. Brings back memories. I also saw my first Christmas commercial on the television. How depressing.

Live Long and Prosper

Yes, I could picture Winona Ryder as a Vulcan. And a hot one to boot. But being cast as Spock's mother? I have a problem with that because we all know Spock's mother was Human. This must be some cruel and unusual trickery by the Hollywood studio. Someone needs to get to the bottom of this and fast. Warp ten!

Get A Quote

Gordon vs. Sebastian

Tonight's episode of Kitchen Nightmares was interesting. Sebastian definitely was opposed to the changes Gordon wanted to make and it was a wonder that the two of them didn't end up in a brawl. I looked up the restaurant on the net and it seems Sebastian has added on to the menu to add his personal touch. At least it's not as confusing as before Gordon got there. Alas, I still haven't found his pizzas at my local grocery.

New BFF and Just Not Paying Attention

Hey, are you looking for a best friend or buddy? Then you've got to check out Dogs In Danger. And I hate it when I get home, open a newly purchased DVD, pop it into the player and discover I bought the full screen version. Dang it. Why even make full screen versions of theatrical releases?

Child Stars and Goat Suckers

Old news but good photos of 15 child stars and their trials and tribulations that came with their fame can be viewed here after disabling pop-ups. Someone should sign the Olsen twins to star in a horror flick. Ugh! And the dead Chupacabras found near San Antonio have been proven not to be the blood-sucking monsters but in fact only coyotes with hair problems. You can read the story here. But I still believe.

Sagas, Monsters, and Dirty Money

I left work this morning because I just needed to get out for a while and went browsing at Best Buy. My $20 reward certificate was expiring today and I didn't want it to go to waste. I finally got around to buying the Star Wars Trilogy (episodes IV, V, and VI) with the bonus disc and I also ended up buying 28 Weeks Later because I didn't see it yet and am hoping it is at least as good as 28 Days Later. Perhaps I should have waited on Star Wars for the definitive boxed set which includes the original releases along with the newer edited versions but I was in one of those damned moods. But while I was looking around I found some Gojira discs that are finally made the way I've been wishing for. That would be the original unedited Japanese versions remastered from Toho originals. As a bonus the dubbed U.S. version is also included along with some bonus material. I will be returning for those. It's just too bad that this particular company only has licenses for 7 of the films.

After paying for my items I received some dollar bills back. They were filthy! The paper was almost the consistency of rice paper and they were covered with dirt or mud or who knows what. I refused to put them in my wallet or pocket so I put them on the floor of my car and I will be using those at my first opportunity. I also quickly used some liquid hand sanitizer I keep on my key chain. I think as I get older I'm more conscientious about germs and bacteria and all the ill effects of them. Am I crazy or what?

Flew The Croup

Croup. I've heard of it but never actually heard it. The Little One was doing well yesterday but early this morning my wife and I were awakened by her crying. That's when we thought we heard a seal barking. Like at a zoo seal display at feeding time. When we realized it was coming from our daughter we both kind of freaked. It lasted about 5 minutes and then the coughing turned normal. After she fell asleep again I was on the Internet looking up the symptoms. This morning from work I called the pediatrician to explain what had happened and to find out if the doctor wanted to see her or change her medication. She said there was nothing to worry about as long as her breathing doesn't become distressed. If The Little One doesn't improve by tomorrow then call and schedule an appointment. I feel better now that I know what it is and I can help her stay calm if it happens again.

Am I Awake Yet?

I am starting to crash. I am so tired. We ended up in the emergency room yesterday evening because we couldn't control The Little One's fever. When she got up to 104 my wife and I skedaddled to the ER with her. We got there a little before 7 PM and her temp was 103. We got to see the nurse who took vitals around 8 PM. Temp at that time was down to 102 and she went and got some medication to help reduce the fever and sent us back out into the waiting room.

At about 9:30 PM we were put in an observation/treatment room and waited for the doctor. It turned out that there were only two doctors on duty and they were pretty busy. About every hour and a half a nurse would come in and check vitals and The Little One's temperature was slowly going down. She fell asleep around 10:30 PM but woke up about every 45 minutes and would ask if we could go home.

At about 1 AM I was getting really frustrated and tired of this whole waiting routine and asked a nurse how much longer it would be. She apologized and said hopefully the doctor would be in soon. At 2:45 AM The Little One woke up and proceeded to scream and cry because she wanted to go. My wife and I couldn't console her to stop crying. I finally picked her up and walked around the room and into the hallway with her screaming about wanting to go home. It took about 10 minutes before a nurse came by and I said if a doctor doesn't see us soon we were going to leave.

At 3 AM the doctor came and examined The Little One. I showed him the prescriptions the pediatrician had given us the day before and he decided that a couple of injections of antibiotics were needed because he thought one of her ears was becoming infected. A couple of nurses came in and gave the injections and The Little One was a real trooper. We finally left at 3:30 AM.

There's got to be a better way to run an ER.

The Night Before Halloween

Illness Feeds Upon Illness

Everyone is sick in the family with colds. It all started with sniffles when the weather turned cooler a week ago. Now the sniffles have turned into congestion, coughs, and fever in the case of The Little One. She was running a fever of 101 degrees yesterday and last night and complaining of a headache. I called the pediatrician this morning and got an appointment for 1:45 PM. The lady warned me that there were a lot of patients today and that the wait could be an hour or more. Not important when it comes to the health of my child. What else has been going on? Hmmmm...

Saw a real commercial for The Sarah Connor Chronicles over the weekend. Looks interesting but will it last? Went browsing for houses over the weekend also. Funny how a brand new home with the latest amenities and larger square footage is less expensive than comparable existing homes a decade older. Call me weird but I was craving kimchi and actually found some in WalMart of all places. A steaming bowl of rice and some fresh kimchi...mmmmm. After discussion with my wife we decided to stay in town over the Thanksgiving holiday and plan to go to the Dallas area for a few days after Christmas. Also, low sodium V8 is not palatable to me. This blog entry truly is rambling today.

They Ran Away With It

The Boston Red Sox, that is. Game one of the 2007 World Series ends at 13-1 with Boston over Colorado. Colorado? I didn't even know they had a baseball team. Just kidding. Wasn't much to see except for the balk. I can't remember the last time I saw one of those. I just hope the series isn't a runaway for Boston.

Breaking News

Did anyone know that space shuttle Discovery was launching this morning? I certainly did not. It's funny how some things lose their news worthiness when there's nothing exciting to report about. For only the second time in the history of shuttle missions STS-120 will be commanded by a woman. I think that would be news worthy but who am I to judge? Oh yeah, and Discovery will be carrying Luke Skywalker's lightsabre to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Star Wars. Now that's especially news worthy seeing that George Lucas will be on hand to witness the launch this morning. Shouldn't he be working or something? Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope.

When Pigs Fly

Yeah, so I was hoping The Tribe would win the ALCS but I guess it just wasn't to be. But I digress. While watching different shows on FOX over the past few weeks, every now and then I noticed two red dots usually at the bottom of the television. The first time it happened I didn't give it much thought. The second time it happened my daughter was with me and she thought they looked like eyes. That's when I started to get the creeps. After that it would appear occasionally but at a different location at the bottom of the screen. And it didn't connect that it was only happening on FOX. I was really disturbed about it until I happened to see a commercial with those same eyes last night during the game. Looked like a Terminator to me and then there was an Internet address...www.takebackthefuture.com. Boy, was I relieved. I was giving myself and my daughter the creeps the past couple of weeks thinking we were being haunted by that pig (Jody?) from the Amityville house. Whew.

Also, while watching the ALCS series, I had a thought. A revolving stadium. Kind of like those restaurants at the top of high buildings which offer dazzling views of the city below. Everyone buying a ticket for the lower deck would pay the same price say $100, the mezzanine would be the same price $75, and the upper deck would be the same price $50. But since the stadium rotates slowly, everyone gets to be behind the plate or down the first base line or right field at some point. Well, it sounded good in my head. Hey, how about the players not using caps during night games? Or not spitting every other inning?

Rock and Roll Will Never Die

I've seen so many teasers for Fox's new show The Next Great American Band that I'm really intrigued and looking forward to tonight's premier. I'm especially curious about the band that looked like a bunch of original Star Trek extraterrestrials. As long as I hear some good music and see good performances I'll be happy. Of course there has to be some really bad group auditions on tonight which I'm looking forward to also. Bang your head or gong or whatever.

Hemispheres To Cygnus X-1

For all the sci-fi fans the top 10 strangest things in space courtesy of MSNBC can be see here. Galactic cannibalism sounds kind of interesting.

Are We Live?

I was doing some searching on Google for Scott Chesner this evening. He used to be a meteorologist on the NBC affiliate in Dallas for many years. He worked with the legendary Harold Taft, who I think had spot-on weather forecasts, and also David Finfrock. I still prefer NBC over the other networks for news and weather in the Dallas area and was looking at their website and saw new faces in their weather department. I found out that his contract wasn't renewed so he moved to a station north of Dallas and eventually landed a chief meteorologist position in East Texas. I also found this video...



And this is an example of almost perfect audio fidelity. There's no denying the incident here. I've never experienced something controversial during live television that I can remember. Oh wait, there was the wardrobe malfunction during Super Bowl XXXVIII. Other than that I really don't remember anything. I guess it's just not in the forecast.

Soon The World Will Be Mine!

What's All the Pus About?

So another week passes without a blog post. It was because I was off all last week with a medical problem and I just didn't have enough time during the days to do any posting while at home. On the other hand here at work I have all sorts of time to do things like that. That's not really true, the part about time I mean, here at work I try to find the time to post during small breaks during the day. Gosh I hope my employer doesn't see this.

I had never experienced an abscess until a couple of weeks ago. It was on my leg and it just got bigger and bigger and painful until it exploded. Before that I had thought it was a bug bite or a zit on steroids and hoped it would go away. By the time it was the size of a half-dollar, very painful to the touch and to walk, and with an angry red tint to it did I start to get worried. Searching on the Internet only made matters worse as I imagined it would open up and little white spiders would scurry out of the wound before I passed out. Of course it was during the weekend at around 3 A.M. when it decided to erupt with a flow of blood and pus. It scared the crap out of me.

So I go to the doctor on Monday morning and he prescribed antibiotics and instructed me to soak in a warm bath with Epsom salt 3 to 4 times a day. Something I couldn't do while at work so I took the week off. Today I had a follow-up visit with the doctor and he and I are both pleased with the results. Too bad I couldn't take this week off too but I really wanted to go back to work. That should pass in a few hours, though.

Boogey Man and Dog Lovers

After reading a few news stories this morning I've decided to make a comment and gripe. The first story I read was about a mother who claims her children had nightmares after shopping at WalMart. I had to chuckle while reading the story because I know what she went through. The Little One was with me on a day of shopping which included stops at Sam's Club and WalMart. This had to be in early September because I was griping to my wife that it was too early to be displaying Halloween items. Well, both stores had Halloween decorations and props set up which included life-sized moving creatures and giant inflatable Halloween scenes. The Little One was not a happy camper. She proceeded to scream and cry until we were out of sight of the displays. She was not the only child in the store who reacted in that manner. There were other toddlers who did not enjoy the displays either. Now when we go into those stores, we have to bypass the Halloween area or ask her to close her eyes when we are within sight of the displays. BTW, she slept soundly that night and didn't complain at all about being afraid after we got home.

The other story I read was about how a city's animal control department found an abandoned dog with a note attached to its collar which said something like "Help me, please find me a good home." The dog was in good health but if no one claimed or adopted him he would be euthanized in a few days. The local paper ran a front page article and photo of the pooch explaining its dilemma. That day animal control received over a thousand calls regarding that particular dog. My gripe is if there are a thousand people interested in adopting an unwanted dog, why did they wait until reading about this particular one before calling. Don't they realize that there are hundreds of other dogs and cats that are waiting for good homes, too? Don't they know that those same animals will be put to death in a weeks time also? I wonder if any of those folks thought about going down and adopting a different animal?

Alright, I'm finished.

Not On My Shoulder

I've been getting into Kitchen Nightmares on FOX and it has opened my eyes to how difficult it must really be to run a restaurant. Especially when you have some dumb people working for you. Typical Gordon Ramsay but it seemed the past two episodes had a lot of crying being done by the managers of the restaurants. Boo hoo.

Better Late Than Never

Look, Up In The Sky

Took the family to an airshow on Saturday. All of us had a great time. We did forget to take our hats and sunscreen with us so I ended up forking over bucks for a large umbrella to offer some shade to the kiddos. My wife and I were the ones who got the brunt of the U.V. radiation. The next day we both looked like we had been tanning on a beach somewhere. Regardless, the shows were cool and the Thunderbirds were awesome. Some pictures to come later.

Shamu In Action

O.J. vs Kramer

After reading more of what allegedly happened in Vegas with The Juice, the more it reminded me of the ending to this Seinfeld episode. Simpson must have seen it also.

Catching Up

Wow. How time flies. It has been a little over two weeks since my last post and I apologize but I wasn't allowed the use of a PC or the Internet during my (involuntary) commitment in the asylum. I wasn't allowed the use of a fork either but that really wasn't an issue because I was in a straight jacket the entire time. Ha, just kidding about the straight jacket. Now, let's see, actually I'm kidding about the asylum also. Okay then, you're probably wondering where I've been the last fifteen days.

Those of you who know me are aware that I spend a lot of time out of the country and married a foreign national. For the last two and a half years we've been waiting to get a Permanent Resident card for my wife and stepdaughter so that they could live in the U.S. So, since my last post, I was preparing documents and all sorts of other evidence in preparation for the final interview at a U.S. Consulate. I was also stressing out a bit because I absolutely can't stand governmental bureaucracy and the "hurry up and wait" attitude.

Monday the 10th was the medical exam, Tuesday the 11th was a review of documents and receipt of medical exam results, and Wednesday the 12th was the interview with an official of the consulate. They were approved and we went to the port of entry specified and had their passports endorsed. I will save for a series of later posts the details of our quest for Immigrant Visas or Green Cards.

We then took some time off from work and school and went to see Shamu. More details on this to follow later. So there you go.

Double Take

Plane bound for El Paso hit by truck in Chicago
Times wire report

I like headlines like this. The vagueness or ambiguity can sometimes be hilarious or embarrassing.

Get Out!

Do you know what the house in the middle of the picture (courtesy of Google Maps) is known for?

Bigger In Texas

Lake Tawakoni State Park in Texas has an attraction right now that some think is fascinating and others won't go near. It's a spider web that covers trees and shrubs on a trail for 200 yards. Is it the work of one giant mutant spider or the work of a group of social spiders? No one knows yet for sure but many have speculated. The park has invited entomologists to visit and study the web but so far no one has accepted. I'm guessing they're too busy studying the recently discovered South American Gigantic Hairy Blue Jumping Hunter Squeaking Spider. Very dangerous indeed. Read the whole story (about the web) here.

Be Very Still

I had to go to a clinic earlier this afternoon to get a finger x-rayed. To make a long story short, I was out on the manufacturing floor and put my hand somewhere at the wrong time and wham, possible fracture in my left digitus minimus. It has been many years since I had to have an x-ray, and I've had them taken before when I was younger, but it seems that every time I had one the room was always dimly lit. Probably has something to do with radiation and the affect of intermingling types of radiation? Who knows? I'm not a radiologist, but I could have been. But wait, when I get an x-ray at the dentist's office the lights aren't dim there. So what gives?

Bad Neighbor

I went to the Best Buy near me this evening to browse and maybe buy something. There has been a large empty lot next to their building since it had been built. About two months ago construction equipment arrived and started to prep the lot for another building. I had been speculating ever since about what store may be housed in the new building. I had hoped it would be a Barnes & Nobles since the one up the street seems too small to me and does not have enough parking spaces. But when I saw the lot tonight, the foundation had already been poured and ready to take the walls, there was a sign announcing that Circuit City would be coming soon.

Ugh, I can't stand that store. There's already one a block away and I avoid it like the plague. I guess the strategy here is that consumers will go into Best Buy and check the price of an item and then go into Circuit City to comparison shop. I know Best Buy will match competitor prices but I'm not sure about Circuit City although I'm betting they do. But I guess this is their next plan to try to increase earnings per share and to try to come out ahead of Best Buy. Well time will tell. Perhaps once Circuit City closes this new store later, Barnes and Noble or maybe a Borders will move in. That would be a happy day indeed.

Something Moved In The Corner

I started reading a book last night called Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill (aka Joseph H. King) which has begun to give me the creeps. I usually don't get uncomfortable reading horror or seeing movies of this genre either. I take that back. The last time I read something that gave me constant goose bumps, bad dreams, and made me uncomfortable in the dark was King's Bag of Bones. The last movie that did that to me was a film called Event Horizon.

I'm not exactly sure why I'm feeling spooked while reading this novel. Whether it's the prose or just the idea of a vengeful ghost, I have no clue. I do know that when I'm reading, everyone in the house is sleeping, and the shadows cast by my Itty Bitty book light seem darker and longer than usual. And there's the silence...except for the dog barking outside for no reason.

From Volcanoes to Dwarves

Over 1900 years ago today Mount Vesuvius erupted and buried the city of Pompeii. One year ago today Pluto was demoted to a dwarf planet. I wonder what happened to Goofy?

What else happened on this day in history can be seen here.

What the...?

You are The Devil

Materiality. Material Force. Material temptation; sometimes obsession

The Devil is often a great card for business success; hard work and ambition.

Perhaps the most misunderstood of all the major arcana, the Devil is not really "Satan" at all, but Pan the half-goat nature god and/or Dionysius. These are gods of pleasure and abandon, of wild behavior and unbridled desires. This is a card about ambitions; it is also synonymous with temptation and addiction. On the flip side, however, the card can be a warning to someone who is too restrained, someone who never allows themselves to get passionate or messy or wild - or ambitious. This, too, is a form of enslavement. As a person, the Devil can stand for a man of money or erotic power, aggressive, controlling, or just persuasive. This is not to say a bad man, but certainly a powerful man who is hard to resist. The important thing is to remember that any chain is freely worn. In most cases, you are enslaved only because you allow it.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Just Another Little Thing

Taking into account that I'm just an Average Joe with no previous criminal record, how would the following be answered?

• Convicted of DUI and violating probation from a prior DUI would I get jail time and how much? What if I was rich and famous?


• Caught speeding on interstate and Trooper discovers a couple bags of pot and a bag of meth in the car. Jail time or a fine and slap on the wrist? What if I was a famous musician?


• I'm being drunk and disorderly and resist arrest and shove (assault) an officer while slapping his hands away from me. Would I be charged with misdemeanors or felonies? What if I was a star football player?

• What if tried to enter the secure area of an airport with a pistol in my bag and claim that I forgot it was there? Fine or jail time? What if I was an ex-mayor of the city or football coach of a legendary team?

• What if I broke the law in a foreign country, jumped bail and fled back to the States? Would I be extradited to face charges or have the whole matter dismissed? What if I was a famous T.V. personality?

Pssst, It's A Secret

Come On Home

So the Space Shuttle will land on Earth a day earlier on the presumption that hurricane Dean may cause problems at Houston's Mission Control. It turns out now that Dean will probably make landfall far from Houston but what I'm worried about is the hole on Endeavour's belly caused by falling debris from the external fuel tank. The hole goes completely through the thermal tile to the felt fabric that covers the shuttle's aluminum frame. NASA engineers and managers say the shuttle is fine to land without making any repairs in space.




I don't understand why NASA would develop procedures and tools to repair damage like this after the Columbia disaster and then choose not to do it. Unless the procedures don't really work that is. Is this decision to cover up government ineptitude or bad management at NASA? This whole deal stinks like stinky cheese. I guess we'll find out if it was the right decision around 12:32 p.m. ET tomorrow.

Arm Yourselves

I've been in the mood to do some dungeon exploration, preferably during a quest of some kind. I would like to equip a party with individuals of my preference. I would want to be able to pick each character's class and race and perhaps even their alignment. I wouldn't want to just hack and slash the entire time while exploring a dungeon. I would like a nice combat system and an in-depth storyline with lots of towns and characters to interact with. It should also be for the PS2 since I still can't afford the PS3. Or maybe I ask for too much?

See You Later Alligator

Yesterday I lovingly packed up two Elmo toys that I had to return due to the Fisher-Price recall. I was a little saddened at the thought that Elmo was probably going to meet his fate in an incinerator somewhere. The Little One has no idea (yet) that I took those two toys away and I'm glad they disappeared while she was sleeping. I'm not going to say anything about them unless she asks and then I'll probably have to make something up. I had received a postage paid label that I had to attach to the box and when I was at the post office the calculated price for shipping was $8. Wow, let's say the average consumer only has one item to return so make that an average shipping price of $4, with nine million affected toys but let's assume only eight million get returned, that comes out to $32 million for shipping alone.

My two items will require a voucher for $33 to be issued to me for replacement toys. On average most of the recalled toys were running around $13 in value, so that comes out to $104 million in vouchers if most consumers return one item. Total price for these recalls is around $136 million. I wonder if that's pocket change for Mattel or is this going to seriously hurt their bottom line? Unbelievable. Ok, sure this wasn't as exciting as figuring out the many possible combinations of Arby's 5 for $5.95 deal but it is an eye opener. I wonder where they get their Fancy Catsup from?

Combinations

Eisley rocks.

Sorry, Not Available

I went into my favorite electronics super store this evening to buy the just-released new CD Combinations by Eisley. They didn't have it. I asked one of the associates for help because there have been instances when a new CD I wanted was still sitting in their backroom on the release date but this wasn't the case tonight. They did tell me that the store on the other side of town had it but I wasn't in the mood to drive out there. I went over to another store and they didn't have it either. Bummer. I guess I'll have to drive across town later this week to get it.

Rock On

Another season of Fox's Hell's Kitchen has come and gone. I had a feeling Rock would come out the winner and even though I thought he was a jerk I think he deserved it. I always thought Bonnie was a spoiled, wishy-washy, brat but she surprised me towards the end with her total change in attitude. I was also surprised at how Julia acted in the finale and it kind of made me change my opinion of her. Let's see if she can finish her schooling and make it back on the show in the future.

One Way To Excel In Business

This is from yesterday but I think it's funny enough to post a day late.

To Buy or Not To Buy

I'm debating whether or not to buy the Harry Potter Box Set Books 1-7 (Hardcover) to be released on September 18. I haven't read any of these books nor have I seen any of the movies but I've been told that I would enjoy them. I just don't know if that's enough to justify spending $116.99 at Amazon. What am I to do?

Creepy

This video creeped me out and sent chills up and down my back and arms!

I Don't Buy It

It turns out that we have two toys of the many being recalled by Fisher Price because the paint may contain lead. I've received the information on how to send them back and receive credit for other toys and it seems straight forward and easy. It will just take some time out of my already busy day to get the stuff packed up and taken to the post office. By no means will I boycott the company but it concerns me that all of a sudden everything is being looked at under a microscope and so many problems are being discovered.

Recalls have been occurring since companies started manufacturing goods for sale but lately it seems like the media is scaring the public into not buying dozens of items. Am I going to stop buying fish because it may be laced with poison? That probably has the same chance that I will stop driving my car because it might catch on fire due to a malfunctioning cruise control. I'm not even sure what my point is but I think it has something to do with not living in fear. I mean you have to take each day and use your best judgement. I guess that suggestion could go with buying just about anything or even life in general. A philosopher I am not and it's time to go to bed.

The Next Step

Ugh. In bad taste, exploitation, insensitive...the list goes on. Read the whole story here.

It Keeps On Going

I've been seeing a commercial for a new gum which claims that the flavor lasts and lasts. Apparently the folks that make Stride gum are in dire straights because customers who bought the gum won't spit out the first piece because of the long lasting flavor. I decided to put this claim to the test although not by scientific means.

I bought a pack of Forever Fruit flavor, which reminded me of Fruit Stripe gum, and popped a piece into my mouth. I observed the time and chewed until there was no flavor at all. The gum had some semblance of flavor for eighteen minutes. I don't think I chewed the entire time so I tried another piece and it lasted fifteen minutes. I then tried a different brand of gum and it lasted for only eight minutes.

So there you go. Stride doesn't last ridiculously long but it lasted longer than one of their competitors. Tune in next week when I try to determine if the Naga Jolokia chili pepper is in fact the world's hottest pepper

What?

News Bits

I was watching the evening news which was chock full of depressing and sad reports. Flooding, displaced families, war, murders, accidents, and disasters just to name a few. What I found interesting was what I saw in a couple of the video clips. There was one where the news was doing a follow-up report of an accident or near-accident at a nuclear power plant. There always seems to be a video of the control room of the plant whenever any news channel does a report on power plants and there's always a guy sitting at a massive control panel wearing a hard hat. I was mulling over this and thought why do you need a hard hat in the control room? Is there a danger of the ceiling falling or collapsing? Maybe you need one outside the control room in a narrow, dark, and dank tunnel full of low hanging pipes but in the control room? I don't think so.

Then there was a video of a crime scene and I noticed that every time you see one of these there is always a shot of a cop talking on a cell phone or a group of them talking amongst themselves. I always imagine what these people could be talking about. Is the cop on the phone talking to his girlfriend and the group discussing where to go eat afterwards? It just bothers me that these people don't have anything better to do at a crime scene *and* let themselves be captured on video. Oh well, who am I to be complaining?

The End Of It All

Vacations are so overrated. You end up going somewhere and spending a lot of money and enduring the same amount of stress, if not more. Then you need another vacation to recover from the vacation. It's a vicious circle that thankfully I only need to endure once or twice a year. Of course all this is sarcasm and I really do enjoy vacations and the time off from work. I guess the only bad thing about vacations is trying to motivate myself to get back to work and into the swing of things. I've got to win the Lotto.

OMG! I look in my email inbox and there's a notification that I've won £1,000,000 from the British Lottery! Funny, I don't remember entering but their mistake is my gain. Finders keepers, losers weepers. That's my motto. All I have to do is send the Lottery Agent some of my personal information and I can claim my prize. I'm going to go tell The Man that I'm quitting tomorrow. Hell, I'm just not going to show up AND not call in sick. I wonder how much this is in dollars?

Alright, Now What?

You are 100% Hank-Fan! Why it's not 100% is beyond me.

You, sir or madam, are a credit to your gender and/or age group. To you, Hank is more of a demi-god than man... and who could blame you? Just don't forget to tithe, and make the checks out to his real name, not "Scott".

How Much Of A Hank Fan Are You
Quizzes for MySpace

Vacation All I Ever Wanted

Well, it's officially quitting time and I am on VACATION!! Woo hoo! Just have a few things to take care of and I am out the door and it won't be hitting me in the rear as I exit. I might post something next week if something interesting happens or if I'm in the mood to complain. But just in case...what ever happened to Baby Jane?

Some Are More Equal Than Others

I was reading this article about a Los Angeles to London flight that was diverted to New York because a flight attendant was suspicious of a passenger. The flight attendant noticed that the passenger in question rode in an employee shuttle bus and bypassed security. Apparently he also was of "Middle Eastern descent."

My big question is why aren't airline and airport employees subject to the same kind of scrutiny as your average Joe? Sure they've passed a background check but things can change rapidly in a person's life or political outlook. You may be considered safe today but tomorrow is another day. Plus I've seen enough movies where the bad guy takes advantage of this type of loophole and kidnaps some employee's family member and threatens physical harm lest the person smuggles a weapon on board..

I think all airline and airport employees should have to be checked by security personnel and screened just as everyone else has to be to enter the "secured" area of an airport. They should have to walk through a metal detector and have their bags x-rayed. Every time. No exceptions. If that's not being done then I think the area really isn't secured and they might as well do away with all the security checkpoints. So the next time you fly, be wary of the flight attendant (especially of Middle Eastern descent) because you know that he/she did not have to go through the same kind of security check that you did before boarding the aircraft. Now sit back, relax, enjoy your flight and sleep with one eye open.

Note: Only one more day before a week of vacation. Hooray! And no, I'm not flying.

And The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth

So sick yesterday. Chills, muscle aches, and fever. Didn't want to do anything nor did I actually do anything productive. When I got home from work, I went straight to bed and slept. I did wake a few times because I was thirsty or from the fever and aches. Today, it's like night and day, as far as how I'm feeling. Still not 100% but I'd say I'm feeling about 89.2112% good. I'm just glad this didn't happen during my vacation next week. Counting down...only two more days of work. Yay!

It's Alive!

From noodling to twitching fish. Can it get any stranger?

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- A chef in Taiwan is in trouble with animal lovers after reportedly serving a not-quite-dead fish as a gourmet delicacy.

A Taiwanese newspaper said the fish dish includes a carp covered with sweet-and-sour sauce, its body deep-fried but its head still twitching. Animal lovers criticize the practice, saying deep-frying will cause a fish extreme pain.

The chef said the dish -- known as "yin yang fish" -- is popular in China. Chefs use it to show customers how very fresh their food is. The newspaper said Taiwanese officials will try to persuade the chef to cook something else.

Ups and Downs

Gas prices around here have been dropping slightly over the last few days. I filled my tank on Wednesday for $2.90 a gallon and I noticed it went up last night to $2.95. Go figure. Hopefully it will go back down and stay down when I pack the family up for a road trip in about a week. With my luck though I'm not holding my breath.

Need...More...Power

If my cellular telephone's battery malfunctions, this is what I would do. Go down to my carrier's store (or an electronic superstore) and buy a replacement. Go home and pop the back off of my phone and replace the battery. Finally, I would probably have to charge the phone. Pretty much zero down-time and no hassles. But if your a proud owner of an Apple iPhone, then this is what you would do since the battery is soldered onto the electronics.

What is the iPhone Battery Replacement Program?
If your iPhone requires service only because the battery’s ability to hold an electrical charge has diminished, Apple will repair your iPhone for a service fee of $79, plus $6.95 shipping. Be sure to follow these instructions for optimizing battery life and troubleshooting battery charging issues before submitting your iPhone for battery replacement.

How much does it cost to participate in the program?
The program costs $79, plus $6.95 shipping. The program cost is $85.95 per unit. All fees are in US dollars and are subject to local tax. Service may not be available if your iPhone has been damaged due to accident or abuse. Please review Apple’s Repair Terms and Conditions for further details.

How do I send in my iPhone for battery replacement
service?
Easy. Just complete our iPod service request form. Please review the service terms and conditions. Then, follow the on-screen instructions to participate in the program.

Will the data on my iPhone be preserved?
No, the repair process will clear all data from your iPhone. It is important to sync your iPhone with iTunes to back up your contacts, photos, email account settings, text messages, and more. Apple is not responsible for the loss of information while servicing your iPhone and does not offer any data transfer service. Please do not send any accessories with your iPhone.

How long will service take?
The repair process normally takes three business days. See the iPhone Service FAQ for information about getting an AppleCare Service Phone for you to use with all of your data while your iPhone is being repaired.

Hah! And people thought I was crazy for not wanting one. Seems to me like Apple pulled a fast one.

Just Stick It Into A Hole

I watched a rerun on my local PBS station this evening about noodling. Basically it's fishing with your hands but a little bit more complicated. These guys were after catfish, which are basically bottom-feeding scavengers that live in holes along the banks of rivers and lakes, and can grow to enormous sizes. I've heard rumors of catfish the size of toddlers near a spillway at a lake in Texas. Yikes.

So anyway, these guys get in the water and submerge themselves near a hole that they think may house a catfish and stick their hands and arms in there to grab what they can. Catfish bite...and so do lots of other things in the water. Ouch. This manner of fishing can also be dangerous because of where catfish like to congregate. One noodler explained how another noodler stuck his arms under a partially submerged asphalt road, which then collapsed a bit, pinning the man's arms and preventing him from getting his head out of the water. He drowned just inches below the water. But when everything goes right noodlers catch some amazing (scary) fish.

As for me, you will never find me noodling because there is something inherently wrong with sticking your hands and arms into holes that you have no idea what could be lurking in there. I also have a low tolerance for pain so I wouldn't find getting bitten by a large fish or turtle appealing. Besides, I don't care much for catfish anyway.

Countdown to 2009

Watch it live here.

Go Dog Go

After seeing a bit of the clip on the iPhone commercial, I just had to see the rest. Woof. And when the phone has built-in GPS tied into Google Maps and becomes more like a "smart phone" then maybe I'll be interested.

Meteor My Eye

In late June of 1908, a fireball exploded above the remote Russian forests of Tunguska, Siberia, flattening more than 800 square miles of trees. Researchers think a meteor was responsible for the devastation, but neither its fragments nor any impact craters have been discovered. Astronomers have been left to guess whether the object was an asteroid or a comet, and figuring out what it was would allow better modeling of potential future calamities.

Italian researchers now think they've found a smoking gun: The 164-foot-deep Lake Cheko, located just 5 miles northwest of the epicenter of destruction.

"When we looked at the bottom of the lake, we measured seismic waves reflecting off of something," said Giuseppe Longo, a physicist at the University of Bologna in Italy and co-author of the study. "Nobody has found this before. We can only explain that and the shape of the lake as a low-velocity impact crater."

Heh, I know, along with every other X-Phile out there, what really happened in Tunguska. ;-) Read the entire article here.

Endangered or Threatened No More

The American bald eagle will be removed from the list of protected species tomorrow. Thanks in part to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and good-hearted Americans and conservationists. We can make a difference over time if we have the foresight and commitment to do what's right. Read the whole story here.

Hot Stuff

It's so freaking hot. Nine in the evening and it's still in the 90's and no breeze. Official high for today was 106. Tomorrow the high temperature is forecasted for 101 with a slight chance of isolated thunderstorms. Please rain.

Purple Kid Eater

As the Little One and I watched a Barney video yesterday, I found myself being lulled or hypnotized into sleep by the purple dinosaur's voice. As I fought off the slumber I thought to myself how can an adult keep from dozing off during these shows? That's when I came up with my own ideas of making the show more adult friendly.

Barney is supposed to be a T-Rex so lets make his teeth more realistic. Lets make them big and sharp and also give him some claws. Then to make things more interesting, lets make a kid disappear during the show. Maybe when the audience and the kids on the show are distracted by some song and dance, Barney will move off screen just for a moment and there will be a munching and crunching sound just before he reappears on screen. After that, one of the kids won't be seen again for the rest of the show. I'm betting most won't even notice someone is missing and if they do, it's got to be a continuity error, right? But you and I would be the wiser. Later Barney can burp and explain to the kids that that isn't polite. Even after a big meal.

We Don't Repair Glasses

I bought my current glasses at one of those "ready in about an hour" places back in February of this year. After the cost of the lenses, frames, and "extras" (like scratch resistance) I ended up paying just under $300. What a bargain.

Well, my daughter loves grabbing my glasses and playing keep away. That's when she's playing nice. When she's upset, she likes to grab my glasses and throw them across the room. The last time she threw my glasses, a scratch appeared on one of the lenses. So I went back to LensCrafters this evening to see if they could buff out the scratch or do something since I had the scratch resistant coating on the lenses.

After waiting twenty minutes to be helped because they were obviously understaffed, I explained the problem to the lady and she in turn tells me "we don't repair glasses." I told her I had just gotten these glasses here less than four months ago and wanted her to at least look at the scratch. She pulls up my information on the computer and said that the lens could be replaced because the glasses were under warranty but there would be a deductible. She also stated that no lens is 100% scratch resistant. I think the sale of those types of "extras" are misrepresented and takes advantage of the customers. I mean how do I really know that my glasses are blocking harmful UV rays? I don't so that's my point. How do I know if my lenses really have a scratch resistant coating? The deductible came out to be $145 and I told her for that amount I'll live with the scratch. To myself I was thinking they can go @*&# themselves. Live and learn. That'll do donkey.

Turning Green

Please Remain Seated At All Times

It took me twenty minutes in line at Sam's Club before I paid and left because there were only five registers open and a gazillion people shopping in the store. For a second there I thought I was at Walmart. Anyway, while waiting patiently I pretty much finished reading all the nutrition facts for the stuff in my cart. There was nothing else to do and that's when I started to read the instructions printed on the child seat of the cart. You know, it's that plastic flappy deal that covers the openings for the child's legs or prevents things from falling out through the openings if you aren't using the seat. All depends on which way it's positioned.

The instructions (in English and Spanish) for use and things not to do were pretty straight forward and included diagrams. Truthfully, I don't think I've ever read those instructions even though I use the seat a lot when shopping with my kids. What caught my eye was this warning: "Your child can fall out of cart and suffer a serious head injury." Well, yeah, that's a possibility. But how about a broken arm? Or even a broken neck. It's scary thinking of all the various results that can occur if one falls out of the cart but I'm puzzled why the warning didn't just say "serious injuries?" The door is open for a personal injury attorney to make some quick cash.

Multimedia message

What about broken bones?

Don't Follow Me 'Cause I'm Lost Too

To me things like this belittles the Catholic church but that's just me. Maybe I used the wrong word. It just seems that there are more important issues to be dealt with than moral conduct during the use of a motor vehicle.

1. You shall not kill.
2. The road shall be for you a means of communion between people and not of mortal harm.
3. Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with unforeseen events.
4. Be charitable and help your neighbor in need, especially victims of accidents.
5. Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.
6. Charitably convince the young and not so young not to drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.
7. Support the families of accident victims.
8. Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating experience of forgiveness.
9. On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.
10. Feel responsible toward others.

Oh, please. But I guess if every driver followed these rules driving would be more pleasant and less stressful. Read the whole story here.

Oh The Horror

I had a really bad dream last night. I was yelling in my sleep during the dream and thank goodness my wife woke me. I dreamed that I lived in the house from the Ju-On series and Kayako was coming after me. It scared the hell out of me. After I awoke I just had to laugh for a while relieved that it was all just a dream.

I Am NOT Insane!

This is for everyone who said I was crazy because they had never heard of Grins & Smiles & Giggles & Laughs cereal. RASPBERRY! I seem to remember that it tasted a bit like Cap'n Crunch cereal. And I think I still have some of the free magnets that were included in specially marked boxes.

Try Converting This

According to an article in today's paper, thieves are crawling under cars and trucks to steal the catalytic converter, a device to reduce pollutants in the exhaust. They use a small electric cutting device and can remove the converter in 30 seconds. But why would they want to steal that? It turns out that inside the catalytic converter are small amounts of platinum or rhodium which are metals that can be sold on the black market for a high price. The police say that these thefts occur during all times of the day and mostly in large commercial parking lots. What will they think of next?

And I'm saddened by the passing of Mr. Wizard. Even though I watched him in the 80's I found his program entertaining and educational.

Isn't That The Truth?

Old Wive's Tale

After surfing the Internet with the Little One's symptoms yesterday I came to the conclusion that it was a rare form of a degenerative bone disease that inflicts about 1.25 in 1,000,000,000 persons living in tropical environments. Once we got to the pediatrician's office and described the symptoms to the doctor, she examined the Little One's feet and legs and said not to worry. She said it probably was growing pains and explained that only about 20% of children experience this and it usually occurs at night after a day of physical activities. Just give some children's Motrin before bedtime and everything should be fine. Whew, what a relief. Oh, and it turns out that when I was a little tyke myself, I used to wake up in the middle of the night with pains in my lower legs. I had no recollection of that.

Growing Pains

The Little One woke up twice last night crying and saying that her feet hurt. Each time it took about thirty minutes of rubbing and massaging her feet and ankles before she would stop crying and fall back to sleep. I don't know what's wrong or if this is something to take seriously. I looked on the web for help and all that has done is make me more paranoid about what could be wrong. And the instruction manual is no help at all, either.