Back to lifting

Went to see my Orthopedic specialist on Tuesday for my 3 month check in and received, as I expected, good news.  Well, actually it was good and bad.  My back is a good as it's going to get, that's the good part.  I can once again lift 5 gallon buckets of paint that's the bad.  Why is it bad?  Because now I can open the store since that's when most of our 5 gallon buckets are sold.  That means getting up at 3:30 in the morning, something the dogs never get used to doing.
And there is always the possibility that the remaining discs between L1 and L2 will once again squirt out their jelly.
This is what my back now looks like.

If you blow up the picture you can see that the disc between L4 and L5 no longer exists, and that those vertebrae have fused together.  The same thing is happening between L3 and L4, in fact the fusion between those vertebrae is almost complete.  These fusions limit my ability to twist and turn and bend, to some extent - solid bone does none of those things.  At some point all that bone growth will need to be removed if I want to be able to walk.  Hopefully it will be years from now.

WT1190F... man made or alien?

For those of you who don't know, a piece of what astronomers are classifying as space junk is set to crash into the Indian Ocean.  They're calling it space junk because they don't exactly know what it is, but because they seem to think that it's hollow they're assuming the planet of origin is Earth.  They've given it the name WT1190F, indicating that when this unknown object was discovered, astronomers across the planet wondered WTF is that?
So, what if it isn't man made?  What if it happens to be alien?  That would be pretty freaking awesome.  And I have to admit, I'm kind of leaning towards the alien origin because, with the computers astronomers have at their fingertips, they could just back track WT1190F's orbit and determine who and when it was shot into space.

They done the backtracking bit rather efficiently on other things, why not this?  I mean, they've taken the moon's orbit and the earth's orbit and gone back billions of years to determine it was formed when another, smaller planet collided with the earth.  If they can do that, surely they should be able to tell us who's responsible for this bit of junk.  

What if WT1190F isn't actually completely hollow?  WE don't know.  It might be carrying something, an alien cargo, perhaps.  For all we know this might be the prelude to an invasion.  Who's to say it isn't?  It might contain a zombie virus.  Or maybe something worse, a plague that turns the whole world into Republicans.  

Regarding Jeb... and his cone of silence

Evidently the news is not good for Jeb.  He's spending lots of add money for nothing.  Someone should have told him a long time ago that there are many more fun-filled ways to waste your money instead of flushing it down the toilet.  Of course, maybe he likes to see how fast the green bills will spin before they disappear into the sewer.  Of course, someone should also have told him that his last name "Bush" is more acidic then the blood of an alien, thanks to his brother.  But then W is a brother, as well as Republican, and they do like to re-write history, and surprisingly, it works on their base.
I work with a gentleman named Fred who's a devout Republican.  A few weeks back, while sitting in the lunchroom, I overheard a conversation between Fred and another associate.  Because of something Trump had said, their main topic of discussion was George W. Bush.  Neither seemed to have a problem with the former president.  In fact, at one point, I nearly fell out of my chair when Fred said "now there was a president who stood for something."  To be honest, I was worried I might bleed to death from biting my tongue so hard because I really wanted to say "yeah, he stood for, and still stands for failure."  There is a toxicity around George W. Bush which will last for generations, similar to that dead space that surrounds Chernobyl.

Bush advisers hard at work

Of course, Jeb doesn't understand this, and neither does the Republican base, perhaps because they've surrounded themselves with their own little cone of silence, they hear only what they want to hear, and everything else is silent.  In fact, I suspect, that quite often they can't even hear themselves.

The GOP wakes up and kicks a dead horse.

Yesterday morning the GOP got up and kicked a dead horse... again.  You know what I'm talking about, Benghazi.  They're terrified the election of 2016 is going to put another Democrat in the White House.  Instead of doing anything substantial to actually try and win the election, they kick a dead horse.  Why should we expect anything more out of them?  In fact, it seems as though the GOP has cornered the market on two things:  kicking dead horses and shitting in their pants, they do both exceedingly well.  While they will try and salvage a festering scrap of red meat from Clinton's testimony yesterday for the party base, for all intents and purposes they failed.  This is what was to be expected.  They've been failing for years.
And they've been shitting in their pants ever since they managed to get George W. Bush into the White House.  They totally ignored the fact that he got the job thanks to hanging chads and a conservative Supreme Court (amazing how much they liked the Court back then), and with a resounding splat, shit in their pants.  He is considered the 2nd worst president in American history, though I suspect as time goes he'll reach the pinnacle of incompetents.  The GOP will never admit to this, to do so is to admit that they, themselves, are good at only two things, kicking dead horses and shitting in their pants.

Don't believe me?  Look at those jokers who are vying for the Republican nomination.  Crazies, every single one of them.  The fact that the Republican base likes both Trump and Carson, that those two individuals are leading in the polls, is frightening.  And the rest of the clown parade is just as bad.  So, instead of presenting ideas that actually might be workable, they attack.  And they kick dead horses.  And they continue to shit in their pants.  I suspect it might be 2024 before are even able to name a viable candidate for the presidency.

Senior Living

On Tuesday morning, my sister and I are taking our Mom to Senior Living facility.  They used to call these places 'assisted living' but I suppose that wasn't politically correct enough for some seniors, God forbid they might need assistance.  Anyway, we're hoping she likes it enough to agree to the move, and we're hoping that if she does move it doesn't turn out to be a big mistake.  You see, my Mom loves to tell people what to do.  She loves to be catered to.  She tells her neighbors she's having a bad day to garner their sympathy.  Here's an example:  12 years ago she had a very minor stroke on the right side of her brain.  She was in the hospital one day and out the next.  She had some weakness in her left hand which disappeared shortly.  Yet she tells everybody she meets about her stroke.  That and her Maccular Degeneration.  She tells everybody she's going blind.  She isn't.  I've been with her to Optometrist, her eyes are fine.  But it gets her sympathy.  People say, "oh, that's so terrible, she's had a stroke and she's going blind."

Mom & Big Seig

This isn't to say she doesn't have some health issues, she does.  Her circulation isn't that good so she needs to sit on the edge of the bed in the morning, and she needs to walk a little slower, but then that's a fairly common problem in an 82 year old.

My sister, brother, and I are all hoping this meeting on Tuesday goes well, and that she decides to sell her house and downsize.   

Comedy Hour, Hosted by Kim and Reince

This past week, besides being a bit hectic at work, was also one of much hilarity on the Internet, know what I'm talking about, the ironic funny stuff.  Like Kim Davis' pimp Mat now saying that those marriage licenses issued by her office, without her name, are legal documents, which is different then what he and that cow he's pimping out were saying a few weeks back.  Probably because that scammy bullshit they tried to pull with the Pope backfired.  Wouldn't you think that if their Deity were on their side the whole world would have been flummoxed?

Then there was Trump's second attack on George W. Bush, which was really a ha ha ha.  The problem with the Republicans is that they are living in an alternative universe, one in which everything they do is wonderful. They love changing history, you know? And of course Jeb, who wants to prove there is a least one Bush in the family who can be a adequate president, objected.  There is no way they are ever going to admit that W was one of the worst presidents in American history.
And another funny thing was Reince Priebus' comment about the 2016 election.

I suspect he said that because he now realizes that everything is getting flushed down the toilet.  Not one person in the Clown Parade is electable.  Only an idiot can see either Trump or Carson in the White House.  Priebus knows this.  He is, no doubt, trying to get the wagons into a circle in order to survive the Indian attack without understanding it's not the Indians who are attacking, which is more of their alternative universe.  A closer analogy would be a horde of Republican lemmings racing towards the edge of a cliff.  At this point, I don't think anything is going to stop them.

Divorce Tax

There are a lot of people out there who think marriage is greater than sliced bread, or it's better than apple pie, or even that it's the greatest thing that can happen to two people.  I don't eat sliced bread and apple pie is just okay with me, I'd rather have blueberry... or peach.  As for the greatest thing that can happen to two people?  I guess that would be just fine, if divorce didn't get in the way.  Now I'll admit that the romantic allure of marriage can sometimes be overwhelming.  So much so that some people tend to do it over, and over, and over again.  If you're a Christian, marriage is supposed to be a Holy Sacrament, a vow before God, yet in the state of Pennsylvania at least 63% of all marriages end up in divorce.  So much for the sanctity of the vow.
There are several reasons why marriages fail:  people get married because they don't know the difference between love and lust;  familial pressures, you just need to get married, society expects people to get married, it's what everybody does, isn't it?  And let's face it, divorce is cheap.  What's a couple hundred bucks, especially if you're blaming someone else?  And let's face it, blame is important.  Everyone wants to point the finger at someone else, and even, on those rare occasions when someone does admit to being at fault, there are always qualifications.

Besides, divorces aren't that expensive.  In fact, ending a marriage can be a lot cheaper then actually staying together.  Marriage is a business contract, after all, in spite of all the romantic trappings used for decoration.  If it were far more expensive to get a divorce, I suspect a lot of people would take a lot more time thinking about just what they're planning.  Having said such, I think all states should enact a Divorce Tax.  If you want to get married, well, that's fine, however, if you want to get a divorce you have to pay a tax.  I think 10% of the cumulative gross wages  earned during their time of marriage would be a nice round figure.  This means that if a couple gets married, and stays married for 5 years, and the total gross wages both of them earned during that 5 years totals $300,000, they they would owe a Divorce Tax of $30,000.

Now I know there are people who are going to say "Holy Crap, that's too much money, I can't afford that."  Well, then maybe you shouldn't be getting married in the first place.  Commitments should be cheap and in today's world marriage is a cheap commodity just about anybody can afford.  

Bill Cosby - failed seducer

A long time ago, back when I was in college, a friend of mine named Dave H. tried to teach me about the art of seduction.  The lessons were fairly simple.  You were supposed to ply your intended with a cocktail or two, possible a joint, make them feel special as you maneuvered yourself close enough and then slowly let nature run its course.  I tried it once and my intended and I both ended up getting drunk and so nothing happened.  Celebrities, on the other hand, have long had a reputation for being seducers.  They seem to have this extra pheromone called 'Celebrity Status,' which seems to drive both men and women wild.  Back in his day, Errol Flynn was a notorious seducer of women... and sometimes men,

Errol wearing his 'hit me' smile

And it isn't just actors (and actresses) who have been seducers.  It's musicians (some rock stars are real sluts) and poets, and playwrights, and rocket scientists, and televangelists, and politicians, though the Republicans seem to get caught out more than the Democrats, most likely because they tend to have a wider stance.

So, why all the hub-bub about Bill Cosby?  None of his accusers seem to have been physically forced.  He didn't threaten them and throw them down on the bed and ravish them within an inch of their lives.  There was alcohol involved in some cases, but none of them claim to have been slobbering drunk before he took advantage of them. 

I think Bill's real problem is that he's made a career out of playing clean-cut characters.  He wore a lot of sweaters.  How many seducers do you know (if you know any) own that many sweaters?  His total reputation is being "Mr. Nice Guy," not your average Joe who sometimes gets a little too horny for his own good.  Back when his celebrity pheromones were pumping out in over time mode, he didn't realize his own career was setting him up as a failed seducer.  In their own minds, those who were nailed by Errol Flynn had bragging rights, but let's be honest, who would really want to brag about getting nailed by Mr. Huxtable?

Speaker of the House = Dead End Job

And that's the truth.  You're not going to use the position to balance power, nor are you not going to be able to use it as a springboard into a more powerful position.  Being Speaker of the House is worse then being a snake wrangler dealing with a burlap bag full of cottonmouths... not that there's any cotton in their mouths.  You see the Tea Party branch of the GOP, for some reason only the stupid know, decided to remove the word 'compromise' from their vocabulary.  In fact things have gotten so bad they can't have a decent conversation among themselves.  All they want to do is demand and blame.  Kevin McCarthy (not the actor), the presumptive Speaker stepped in a pile of shit when he admitted Benghazi was nothing more then a ruse to attack Clinton.  OOPS!

Dolt on the run

Now he's practically on the running to save his political career.  And any smart politician would think twice before applying for the position since no one is going to be able to rein in the crazies on the far right.  In fact, I have no doubt, that the party has, indeed, achieved escape velocity and is no spiraling out towards Jupiter... or maybe Saturn.  This is how a political party dies.  Messy, ain't it?

Big Seig and the water filter

While South Carolina experienced at truly devastating flood, I was dealing with my own, little, invisible one.  My 110 year old house has hardwood floors throughout that are, for the most part, in very good shape.... except for the kitchen floor.  Because there was damage, and because I have dogs, I put down vinyl planks.  This was a 3 step process, first 3/4 inch plywood, then 1/4 inch Masonite, and then the planks.
I also own a side by side Whirlpool refrigerator, that's about 9 years old and still works like a charm.  For some reason only the designers know, Whirlpool put the water filter down at floor level.  In order to change it you need to get down on your hands and knees.  Two months ago this filter needed to be changed, so I got a new one out of the cupboard and set it on the kitchen counter, got down on my hands and knees, pushed the release on the old filter, and removed it.  However, during this process Big Seig, my then 6 month old, and very large, Boxer pup got the the new filter from the counter thinking it was a brand new, fancy dancy chew toy.  When I got it from him the label looked a bit chewed up, but other wise the filter looked fine, and so I installed it.

Unbeknownst to me, however, he had managed to damage a teeny, weeny, black rubber gasket, and as a result, once the filter was installed, it began a steady drip... and drip... and drip.  There is a small drip pan under the filter which filled up to the brim, and then for every drop that went into the pan, a drop went over the side.  And, of course, one of the seams for the vinyl planks runs directly under the drip pan.

So, for some time water has been soaking in to the Masonite, which began to swell.  Four days ago I looked at the floor around my refrigerator and said to myself, "that looks odd."  So, getting down on my hands a knees, investigated and discovered the problem.  The damaged filter has been removed and a new one ordered.  The dripping has stopped.  Now I'm just waiting to see how much damaged has been done.  This is how it goes some times. 

NRA & Crowd Control

A couple thoughts on the shootings out in Oregon:

When these things happens the NRA goes into Crowd Control Mode on a vast scale, because ammunition manufactures tell them this is what they need to do, and Lord knows we do need more bullets.  One of their most popular sayings is " guns don't kill people, people kill people."  Whenever I hear this I say, "which means not everybody should have access to guns."  They don't like that.

The media provides us with a shit load of info about the shooters, but are they card carrying members of the NRA?  You never find that out.

Adam Lanza, the wacko kid responsible for Sandy Hook, was he a member?  Was his mother a member?  I think the public needs to know.  Did a card carrying member of the NRA give her wacko son access to automatic weapons?

Was this crazy out in Oregon a member?  He owned a number of guns, all purchased legally, so I think the public has a right to know.  Did he pay his dues to the NRA?

And James Holmes out in Colorado?  He tried to practice shooting at a gun club?  Was he a member?  Had he applied?

Every time something terrible like this happens the public has a right to know as much as possible.

It seems to me that the NRA thinks everyone should be able to own a gun.  But they don't seem to police their members, do they?  If they did, the bullet makers might not sell as many bullets.  Wouldn't that be a shame?

Kim and her pimp dine on Cow Pate

So it seems her meeting with the Pope was not as private as Kim Davis, and her pimp Mat Staver, would have the world believe.  While she, and her pimp, would have liked everybody to believe the Holy Father was in full support of her position, this is not the case.  And these press releases are everywhere.  The Vatican is putting as much distance between the Pope and Kim Davis, and her pimp, as possible.  The other day when I'd read that her pimp had said "the how and why" of the meeting were not important, it was the meeting itself which counted, I started wondering.  Lo and behold, the nuncio (the Vatican's ambassador) knows her pimp, and he is the one who arranged the meeting.  One suspects this whole thing was engineered to pin the Pope into a corner, forcing him to take a stance against marriage equality.  People who hate will stoop to any low measure.  And, of course, her pimp is flipping out.  I like the bit about how "she changed her hair style" so she wouldn't be recognized.  This is really funny because what her pimp was going to be their 'coup de gras' has turned into a stinky pile of shit.

Anyway, one can only wonder about the power of their deity since He seems to have the Pope's back, and as a result they're now eating shit.  Oh, wait, that sounds vulgar... let's say their dining on Cow Pate.

And a Great Silence fell upon the Vatican

as they realized the Kentucky cracker wasn't.. even.. a Saltine.

 I just thought of that as I was mopping up after the dogs... it's raining here and that means lots of big, muddy, dog prints.

Anyway, I read that Matt Staver (Kim's pimp) was on a show called "The Talk" yesterday and seemed to grow a little flustered about the questioning.  Remember those pics that were taken of Kim and the Pope?  Well, evidently the Vatican is still sitting on them.  And instead of everybody saying "oh, wow!  Kim, that's so neat!" they're asking questions as to how... and why, and Staver's not answering, which makes one wonder if those mutterings about a 'set-up' might be true.  Could be.  Has anybody heard if Carlo Vigano is looking for a new job?