Pranked and Stroked

Saturday, and not the beginning of a 3 day weekend.  The 4th is next Wednesday and that's the day people will get off work, unless they take vacation or personal days.  I work, but then I'm off Thursday and Friday.  That's the last week I work my mid-shift schedule.
I am off tomorrow, and I will finally take My Syn out on the road - very early.  Around 0600.  Why so early?  Traffic.  I hate riding in traffic and, unfortunately, I live in a rapidly growing suburb.  When I moved to Enola 21 years ago we had a population of around 11,000.  That number has nearly tripled.  We have a lot more drivers on the road now.  While some drivers pay attention, too many others are dicking around with their phones while they drive, or singing along with some shitty pop song on Sirius XM.  Hence, I ride early.  Cumberland County does list a number of routes that are relatively traffic free, or are where old railway lines ran.  Rail trails can be great rides.
Oh, and I saw where the Idiot Jerk in the White House was pranked.  Evidently Kim Jon Dumb isn't going to denuclearize.  They have pictures.  It seems as though he's actually increasing his fuel capacity.  Ooops, there goes that Nobel Peace Prize.  Maybe I should start calling him the Chief Dupe in the White House.  Oh, and I also heard some DJ managed to get through phone security and talked to the Dupe on Air Force One.  So, how many ways can you spell the word stupid starting with the letter "T?"
Finally, Mother Nature has decided to gift us with a bit of heat over this holiday.  Today the temp is supposed to hit 96 F.  Tomorrow we might crack the century mark.  I mean, they're only forecasting 99 F, but let's be serious here, that's pretty damn toasty.  That's another reason while I'll get my ride in during the early morning hours - heat stroke is not pretty.  Of course, I suspect that every day the Idiot Dupe in the White House comes close to stroking out.

First Kim gives him the shitty handshake,  and in about 9 days Vlad's waggle a snarky finger at him as he laughs at this First Class Bonehead behind his back.

Damage Control

Well, today's timeline got screwed up somehow.  I'm running a tad behind... or, at least I was.  I cut my morning ride short, only 7 + miles in 24 minutes.  This is how it goes sometimes.
Bad thing in Annapolis yesterday.  This guy Ramos has been charged with 5 counts of First Degree murder.  He'll plead insanity.  He'll claim that after years of hating this tiny newspaper his anger got the best of him.  He's really just a sorry assed sore loser.  He filed a lawsuit against this paper and lost.  Now 5 people are dead.  He will pay for those deaths with the rest of his life, either in jail or in a padded cell.  Survivors will file lawsuits against Ramos and everyone connected with him.  He is an example of the ultimate failure.
Another example of failure is the Republican Party, a minority group who managed to get a majority of senators in the House and Senate.  Because of voter apathy, they also managed to get the worst possible candidate in America's history into the White House.  Now they are planning to shit on the majority without understanding the voters have the real power.
Keep in mind that the most important thing to a politician is his job.  His beliefs are totally dependent upon what the majority of voters in his district want.  He tries to fill as many of their little, dark desires as possible in order to get re-elected.  If those voters say "hate gays," he will hate gays.  He will become very good at channeling his hate, so good change becomes impossible.  Attitudes evolve around him and he ignores the evolution.  He will cling to the loud voices, even as their numbers decrease.  He doesn't understand how they could fail him, they've kept him employed for so long.  Fail they will.
The Idiot Jerk in the White House will try and replaced Chief Justice Kennedy with an individual who will also channel Conservative hate.  He will do this with votes of Conservative Senators who have no problem hating the beliefs of a majority of Americans.  The only way to combat this is to vote these haters out of office.  Put this minority group into their proper place.  The only way to muzzle the Idiot Jerk in the White House is to turn both the House and the Senate Blue.  We may not be able to prevent the damage they plan to do, but we damn well are going to show them we know how to control it.  Vote Blue.  Take Back America.

Disappointment Day

Well, yesterday was disappointing as hell, wasn't it?  Chief Justice Kennedy's announcement was quite the stunner.  Not that it came as a total surprise, there have been rumors for quite some time.  Still, the idea of the Supreme Court losing it's 'swing voter' is more than a little disheartening.  Of course, the Republicans are going to try to rush through a nominee before the Mid-Terms.  You can bet they're going to be pushing a man in his forties who has no problem shitting on women's rights. They want another Neil Gorsuch who will give Conservatives what ever they want.  This is how they say "fuck you" to the majority of people in this country.  For all you voters who sat home in 2016, those of you who thought your vote didn't matter, or who believed Hillary had it in the bag - this is your payday.  This is what your apathy is depositing into your account.  Same sex marriage?  You know they're going to go after that, chipping that right to bits and pieces.  If you didn't vote and are beginning to get worried - good, this is the price you pay for staying home.
And is if that wasn't disappointing enough, I went to see "Jurassic World, Fallen Kingdom" last evening.  I'd watched a video in which some guy said he thought the whole movie was sad.  He was wrong.  This latest installment isn't said, it's cynical as hell.  I'm suspecting this might be the middle part of a trilogy which will end on a brighter note.  But, even if that's the case, there were some serious problems, like predictability, and lack of originality.  There's a dumbwaiter scene lifted straight from the script of Jurassic Park.  Right from the beginning there are problems.  A volcanic eruption is threatening to destroy all life on the island.  Spoiler alert.  At the height of the eruption, an aerial shot proves the island is much, much bigger than the eruption, that you'd actually need some sort of Krakatoa event to destroy all life.  About 20 minutes in, you realize the writers decided to cobble most of the script from a discarded draft of Jurassic Park 2.  Chris Pratt was fine, but not as funny.  He evidently realized the best parts of this film, were the clips they used that were supposed to be from the first Jurassic World.

As I said, this movie wasn't as sad as much as it was cynical.  Of course, we're all going to become a lot more cynical when the new, conservative justice takes his seat at the Supreme Court.

Nose butter this

While yesterday I got more accomplished than I had planned, today probably not so much.  It's overcast, we've had drizzles, and the temp is supposed to top at 76 (F).  I want sun.  I want summer.  The plan had been to take My Syn out on the road.  That's being delayed until Sunday.  Basically because it's one of those days.
I saw where the Supreme Court upheld the Idiot Jerk's ban on Muslims coming from countries in which he doesn't own any property.  They also tossed a case back to the California courts regarding abortion because they didn't want to touch it.  The decisions were aligned by party with Conservatives setting the ruling.  We need to fix this.
Rumors are flying that Mueller is getting ready to start popping corks.  It's about time.  Get ready to start celebrating.
Wall Street had a slight rebound yesterday... not much, things aren't looking so rosy for today, though. There are articles in both Bloomberg and The WSJ talking about just how nervous investors are getting.  They talk about how the stars seem to be aligning in  regard to a crash, with similarities to both 2000 and 2008.  Expect the worst.  If you look at the Idiot Jerk's bankruptcies, you'll see that he, himself made out well, many others did not.  The bankruptcies effected the LLC's he'd set up to take out extensive loans.  He made sure he was on the payroll of these LLC's, so even while they were going under he was drawing a paycheck.  They took the hit when the Chapter 11's were filed, he did not.  Other's paid the price.  He did not.  And he's treating the country the same way.  We will take the hit and he will move to Moscow.
Biggie and Lily both got an application of 'nose butter' this morning.  Boxers can get dry skin... on their noses.  Nose Butter keeps their noses soft and supple, sort of like a babies ass, if you know what I mean.

Not the real Big Seig

The dogs love it.  The only problem being to keep them from licking it off.

Sucking through London

Well it's Tuesday, the first day of my weekend, and the weather is supposed to be nice... very, very nice.  Tomorrow is supposed to be more of the same.  I am going to enjoy.  I am going to enjoy these wonderful temps with... yard work, a bike ride, and then more yard work.  I need to get the weed wacker out and wack away on the outside of the fence on the far side of the yard.
And I'm playing this game Vampyr - what a hoot.  At first I was cautiously curious, playing the part of a vampire, a man named Dr. Reid.  The location is London during the Spanish Influenza epidemic and the city is broken down into districts, Whitechapel being one.  Each district has a 'Citizen Menu' (cute) listing a number of characters and the experience points you earn by sucking them dry.  Funny, huh?  If you're good at sucking you can become very powerful, if you're bad a sucking you will fail.  Also, you need to control yourself.  You don't want to suck everybody dry.  If you do that the story is going to falter.  Yes, there is a story.  There is a reason why you are sucking your way through 1912 London.

Citizen Menu for Pembroke Hospital

Anyway, Wall Street did a bit of a tumble yesterday.  That's been happening a lot here lately.
Harley-Davidson is moving jobs to Europe because of the tariffs - duh.  Steel is cheaper in Europe, so that's where jobs will go.  This announcement started the Idiot Jerk shrieking on Twitter.  You see, he wants Harley-Davidson to just suck it up and deal with the higher price of steel.  For him, this is a business decision.  He's using the same rationale that led his companies to file 4 bankruptcies... wait, I need to correct myself, his companies have actually filed for Chapter 11 protection 6 times.  Filing Chapter 11 wipes out your debt.  The Idiot Jerk has wiped out billions and billions of dollars in debt created by his bad deals and flawed decisions.  He has actually wiped out a lot more debt than he is actually worth.  This is, no doubt, why Harley-Davidson has chosen to point a finger at a certain part of their corporate body and say "suck this."  That pisses off the Idiot Jerk.  He would rather shit away jobs and livelihoods rather than learn a lesson.

Changes

A final note on the Sarah Huckabee Sanders bit:  discrimination is bad in any form, sadly, giving her a taste of her own medicine will do absolutely nothing to change her attitude.  In her mind she legitimatizes as well as epitomizes true American values.  She is white, she is Evangelical, and she is heterosexual.  Anyone not meeting this criteria is fairly worthless, a human without value.  She will grow old and bitter as the world around her changes.  She has focused too much on being a Believer and too little on being a Christian.
Yesterday was a busy day here.  I baked bread... again, this time using loaf pans.  It's delicious.
And I rearrange the cycling / weight room.  You see, I have 2 bicycles, the old X6 and My Syn (I do like that name), as well as 2 trainers, the Kinetic (nice color but relatively useless) and the Cycleops.  They took up a lot of space.  The X6?  I'm probably never going to ride it again.  So I bought some racking and hung it up down in the basement.  The Kinetic got stored up in the attic since it has electronics and the basement can get damp at times.  All of sudden the room got bigger.  The sport laptop was moved to the other side of the room and is now located below the TV.  My training videos will now be larger.  And there's more room for the weight bench.

I also ordered a climbing rose - something to put along the side of the porch as a replacement for the wisteria which got chopped out.  For years spring brought heavy purple blossoms to the wisteria.  No more.  This is how life goes sometimes.  Next spring I should have roses looking something like this:

Change does happen.  Some embrace the new, encourage growth, others, like Ms. Sanders, angrily fight against it.  Their fear has more to do with losing control than anything else, of not being able to judge.  For them, change is a cancer slowly eating away at their beliefs.  They don't understand how wrong they are. nor do they understand there is no stopping it.

Loud and Clear

Today is one of my days of rest - it just happens to be Sunday.  In retail, sometimes odd things happen.   Unfortunately, I didn't get the pedals on my bike changed.  This means no riding the roads today, rather free weights instead.  That's okay.  I'm also off Tuesday and Wednesday, I can go for a ride then since the weather is supposed to be nice.
My brother sent me a text inviting me to some sort of reunion today - my father's side of the family.  Notice was short, so I told him I already had plans... plans not to go.  Don't get me wrong, I like my cousins, but we are not close.  While my Dad (and Mom) moved to Lebanon, his brother and sister moved to Harrisburg.  They bought houses diagonally from each other, on the same street.  My cousins went to the same school, had the same neighborhood friends, and grew up together.  I lived in Lebanon and saw them usually once or twice a year.  When I moved to Harrisburg we made halfhearted attempts to get to know each other. They turned out to be rather futile.  This is how life is sometimes.
Oh, and the Idiot Jerk is going to the UK next month.  Remember when the plans were for him to get chauffeured around in a golden carriage, to meet the Queen?  Well, things have changed.  Now security is going to try their damnedest to keep him from seeing the massive protests planned.   The GOP is probably terrified he'll Tweet about how his meeting with Kim Jung Dumb was so much nicer.  It's the rapport thing, you know?  That affinity he feels towards dictators.  Oh, wait, he doesn't call them dictators.  The Idiot Jerk calls them Strong Leaders who were forced to do some 'bad things.'  Theresa May, in his book no doubt, is not a Strong Leader.  She struggles with the Brexit thing, trying to keep some sort of working relationship with the EU even as she tries to snub them.  As it is, he's only going to be in town for 'working day,' and then possibly a round of golf at his club in Scotland, (someone needs to play there).
Oh, and in case you didn't hear, Sarah Sanders Something or Other, was asked to leave a Virginia restaurant.  Conservatives are flipping out on social media.  They just got bitch slapped.  And they don't like it.  Of course, they opened this can of worms.  For some, political beliefs are just as strong as religion.  Discrimination is an equal opportunity street everybody walks down.  Not baking a cake for a gay couple because of religious beliefs is exactly the same as not serving Sarah Sanders Something or Other because because of deeply held political beliefs.  What that restaurant in Virginia did was say loud and clear, "no one is immune."  Whether they want to understand this or not is up to them, however this is exactly what the Supreme Court just told America.

My Syn

So, this morning I'm sleeping when the feel of a muzzle on my cheek slowly interrupted my slumbers.  This was a very big muzzle, breathing out slowly onto my face, and then just as slowly inhaling.  Rolling my eyes over to the clock, I saw the time was 0436.  This is Biggie's quiet way of telling me he has to go 'potty outside.'  If I try and ignore him, he will jump off of the bed and begin barking.  When a 118 pound dog barks that early in the morning the whole room seems to shake.  Of course, till I got downstairs to let him out, they were both waiting.
I got another 30 minute ride in with Tyler this AM.  Better than yesterday.  Higher wattage.  More calories burned.  I'm going to change the pedals later, before I go to work, so I can take the bike out on the road tomorrow.  I should give it a name.  The old bike is the X6, because it's an X6.  This bike's a Synapse, so I've been thinking of calling it My Syn.

My Syn

And, of course, the Idiot Jerk has pretty much shit away any legislation in regard to immigration reform.  He had some sort of phony event at the White House yesterday in another attempt to demonize illegal aliens...  illegal aliens who just happen to speak Spanish.  This is the same tactic a group in Germany used to emphasize what they considered to be a Jewish Problem.  While there is a small group in America who believe what he says, in reality the Idiot Jerk is nothing more than a dingle berry just waiting to be wiped out of the White House.
The only thing keeping the Idiot Jerk's approval ratings from being despicable, is the economy, at least that's what some people believe.  The shriek joyously about low unemployment without understanding pay rates are not increasing.  Prices are going up.  There's no stopping them.  The world is teetering on a massive trade war, everybody against us, and it that happens, it's going to be bad... for everybody... but mostly us.  Countries will target specific products in order to draw blood.  Trade among themselves will increase as trade with the US declines.  This is how the $$$ fall.  Be prepared.

Fashion Faux Pas

Friday morning.  Some of you are dancing around because this is the end of the work week - me?  Today is the 3rd of 4 in a row.  Then I get to work a day and have another 2 off.  We're heading into  slow season.  The middle of both summer and winter tend to be slow.  No wants to do much of anything during the cold of winter, and summer?  Well, people are too busy to do home improvements.  Also, I suspect savvy people are going to begin to take a moment and look at what's happening.  People buy less big ticket items when the prices of their everyday needs go up. 
And what about Melanoma and her jacket from hell?  This was a little bit more than a fashion faux pas.  I believe Reuters pointed out that the temps in Texas were very warm, and there really was no need to wear a jacket... at all.  I would have thought that her wardrobe assistant, or dresser, or whomever, would have told her what was considered appropriate attire.  Seeing that the retail cost of that jacket was $39 speaks volumes.  That's tip money for the Idiot Jerk at McDonalds. 
One of the funny things about this immigration problem is that hard line conservatives totally do not understand how ugly this makes them look.  Those hard line conservatives also happen to be... Republicans.  Dealing with this crisis has totally ripped off their mask and they are sinfully hideous. They care only for themselves, their money, their taxes, their religion, their control.  All other voices have no value.  Now, however, they are beginning to learn how expensive the price is for a pound of flesh.  Good people are scrutinizing their behavior, their lack of values, their inability to look beyond themselves and saying "tough shit."  Their Karma has been bad for a long, long time.  Oops.
I also got a 30 minute ride in with Tyler Stein, this AM.  Holy Crap, he sweats more than I do. 

Cycleops has a number of training videos.  Rouvy lets you import, so I will probably pick those I find most exhilarating.  This morning's ride was most fun.

Summer Solstice

Well, today is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, and so far the start has not been that auspicious.  Looks like we might end up with a long, drizzly day.  I thought I set my alarm last night and evidently didn't so I woke up later than I wanted.  Thought I'd get a ride in - oops, too many devices on Rouvy because updates have reactivated every device with the app.  That took time to fix.  And I renewed my subscription for a year.  The end result was no ride.  That will have to wait until tomorrow.
And, of course, the Idiot Jerk in the White House signed some sort of Executive Order ending the separation of immigrant children from their parents.  The only group who thought this was wrong were the 28% of Americans  who make up the Republican Party.  So?  What else is new?  I'd say that the bloom is now off the weed. 
India is evidently siding with China in regard to the Idiot Jerk's trade war.  The EU is going to come down against it.  Funny enough though, is that Conservative Economists say the economy is strong enough to with stand a trade war... but they've been wrong so many times before.  Their problem is they let their greed get in the way.
The Republican Party has some serious problems.  On that they really don't want to hear about is this:  white deaths out number white births in 26 states.  Even though they will vocally deny their racism, their party is defined by the white voter.  The Party is losing ground.... daily.  They are dying a slow, painful death.  Interestingly enough, White Evangelicals are suffering from the same problem.  For those who don't know, this is called evolution. 
And I started playing Vampyr last night.  This is a totally different from anything I've ever played.  You gain experience and health by sucking blood.  The more you suck, the stronger you become.  This is also a role playing game, which means your decisions can change the direction the game moves.  Most of those decisions revolve around just who it is you chose to suck.  So far it's been rather amusing.

Tom, the bartender, has really good blood

Changes

Well, it's Wednesday and I get to go back to work for 4 days.  I have 2 weeks of 32 hours, a week of 40 (over the 4th), and then 2 more weeks of 32.
There's going to be a lifestyle change around here.  They called me from the store yesterday and left a message, said there was something important they needed to talk to me about.  So I called back.  One of my fellow specialists, after repeated warnings, was fired, chose to seek employment elsewhere.  His earlier shift is now available and they asked if I wanted it.  I said "yes."  For the first time in 9 years I will once again be working an 8 - 5 shift (well 4:30 to be precise).  Of course this will mean changes to my workout schedule, to my riding schedule, to my movie going schedule.  I will have to write the blog at a different time since in 3 weeks I will have already been a work for a bit.  The dogs will have to adjust, but not much.  Like most dogs, they like to sleep a bit.
My glasses broke last evening while I was watching a video.  They're rimless.  There is, however, a fine string, like fishing line, holding the lens in place... and it broke, and the lens fell down on my chest.  I have 2 other pair, so I'm not concerned.
Evidently quite a few Evangelicals are having a "Dear Jesus" moment.  They are discovering in a very ugly way that the Idiot Jerk in the White House is... a scumbag.  And here they were telling themselves he was actually 'born again.'  You see his zero tolerance with immigrants and their children makes them look... BAAAADDDD.  This is the price they pay for giving him their support.  Didn't anybody tell them there's a price for everything.  I believe it was Robert Heinlein who said "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch."
And after about 3 weeks of playing God of War I bought a new game this AM  Vampyr.  You play as... a vampire.  I'm hoping this will be fun.  God of War was fun, at first.  Combat got tedious.  You have an ax.  Upgrading the ax means pressing a different set of buttons.  Every upgrade requires a different sequence.  The upgrades, themselves, become corny after a while.  So, I decided to give up the ax and start biting people in the neck.  Oh, and not only to I get to be a vampire, I get to be a doctor in 18th century London.

Won't Mum be proud!

We're having a trade war

Wasn't yesterday simply fantabulous!  (Herald in the cynicism).  The temp here in Central PA hit either 95 (F) or 97 (F) depending upon which weather app you were using.  My Central Air?  Never stopped.  When the mercury gets that high, Big Seig goes into instant lay down if he's outside.
The Idiot Jerk doubled down on his policy of separating children from their parents yesterday.  In case you didn't know, this guy really.... really hates Latinos.  Like most racist Republicans, he sees them as the greatest threat to white America.   He's a 72 year old scumbag who will never understand.   He, and the party he rules, are running head first down the path of extinction.  This is what happens when you fail to evolve.
Oh, and he's pissed about China.  You would think he'd  be happy after they gave he and Ivanka all of those trademarks.  No way.  This is what his art of the deal really looks like.  He is treating all of our trading partners as if they were contractors working on one of his failed projects, like the Trump Casino.  His organization filed for bankruptcy for that mistake.  He told his base he was just being smart.  Many suffered just so he could get out of his debt.  Asswipe.  I'm surprised he hasn't had Mnuchin dress up like Carmen Miranda and dance around singing "we're having a trade war, a dirty old trade war."

 And remember how he praised Brexit?  That's another shit storm preparing to blow up.
In case anybody is wondering, I did get a lot done yesterday.  No ride on the bike, that happens this afternoon, hopefully another hour.
My P90X dvds are now in the trash; part of my 'get rid of the junk' plan.  For the most part they were a well marketed, but useless extreme workout regime.  Exercises and a diet to make you look great.

The routine became very trendy.  My friend Brandon followed it to a 'T' and looked freaking awesome.  I tried it, but after about 2 weeks realized I was never going to be able to revolve my life around P90X, which is what everything boiled down to in the end.  There were more important things than P90X forever.  Oh, and my friend Brandon?  He boxed up the plan after about 6 months. 

Zero Tolerance Catastrophe

Monday, and the forecast is for the day to be a real stinker, hot and humid, which is why I'll do some outside chores, but mostly stay inside.  Tomorrow is supposed to be a bit cooler.
I rode 46 miles on the bike last week, plus got a workout in, which was pretty good.  Yesterday I rode for an hour - total 15.8 miles.  I was going to take the Synapse out on the road, but changed my mind.  I'm going to switch the pedals for the first time.  Yes, I have 2 sets of pedals.  One set is for the shoes, the other is for mountain biking.  Mountain bike pedals let you wear either specialized shoes or regular shoes.  The first time I take this expensive bike out, I'll be wearing my running sneakers.  Just a precaution.  I"m too old to go around crashing bikes.

mountain bike pedals

And what about that immigration shit storm hitting the fans in Washington?  How many ways can you spell failure?  We know the Idiot Jerk spells it:  Zero Tolerance.  Someone should have told him separating children from their parents is a dead end bargaining chip.  While his base loves this tactic, but then his base is filled with racists.  A majority of Americans find the program itself as intolerable.  They sent Jeffy Sessions out to mollify the Evangelicals with a Bible verse... and a majority of Americans said "What in hell are you talking about?  These are children!"  Yesterday some turd without a brain released a statement from Melanoma which essentially said, "it's bad, but we need to follow the law."  Like this cheap deal from The Bride Store is going to have zero impact.  Her idea of parenting is defined by nannies and tutors.  Every passing second makes the Idiot Jerk, and his base, look more and more inhumane.  But then he's never really been a people person, has he?

Should we have expected anything else from this failed sack of shit?  Will he cave?  Eventually, but not before he does a hell of a lot more damage.  As I've said before, we are watching the Republican Party die.  The sooner they are dead and buried, the better this country will be.

Silly moments

Father's Day 2018.  Everybody's talking about their Fathers.  Mine was a really nice guy.  He died 14 years ago from lung cancer.  He was diagnosed on my sister's birthday - how's that for a present?  The next 8 months were completely surreal. 
He had worked at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon, Pa, starting off as an X-Ray Tech, working his way up the ladder until he eventually managed the department.  He got me my first job, as a dark room attendant, back when they used actual film for X-Rays.  I was not the athletic son he'd hoped for though I did like watching baseball.  We were both big Philly Phans for a number of years, making the 2.5 hour drive 3 or 4 times a season to watch them play.
One thing my Dad like was going to the movies.  He and I went quite often.  Every 5 or 6 weeks we'd go and always to action movies.  These were good times.  There's a jolting moment in "The Bourne Identity" when a villain crashes through a frosted windows.  We both jumped.  I said something like "Holy Fucking Shit," and he laughed.  Silly little moment, I know, but life is filled with silly little moments.
He and my Mom chose to go with Home Hospice.  On December 12, 5 days after their anniversary she called me at work.  He chose to be cremated.  I can clearly remember sitting in the living room with my sister, my brother, and what seemed to be 500 other relatives, friends and neighbors when my Mom called out to me.  "David, is it okay if we put Daddy in this?"  Walking into the kitchen, she had moved a cookie jar onto the table, a present I'd given them a long time ago.  I shrugged, "sure."  So my Dad's ashes are nestled in a yellow, kitty cat cookie jar.  There's a blue butterfly on the kitty cat's nose. 

something like this

Real silly moment.

People are sitting up

Well, it's Saturday.  As an interruption to my vacation, I'm scheduled to work.  While I had considered taking the day as a personal day, I'm going to go work.  Not so much because I love working, but rather I don't want to lose a personal day.  Some don't understand that.  Personal days are a nice cushion just in case some important crops up and you really do need to take a couple of days off.  We can do that, you see.  We don't have sick days, we have personal days.  You don't need to be sick to call in and take the day off.
About 44 odd years ago, I picked up two wooden wall carvings in the Philippines.  For years they hung in the alcove where the window seat used to be.  When I repainted the dining room, they were replaced; moved to another wall.  However they were dated, as they say.  So yesterday I gave them a new finish, copper, which actually works better with the new wall color.

That's an eggshell sheen on the walls, by the way.  Eggshell is considered a warming sheen in that color and light will fan out rather than shine back.
And wasn't there a shit show at the White House yesterday.  In fact, the past 2 days have not been too good for the Idiot Jerk and his minions, what with Sessions citing the same Bible verse the Southern Baptists used for justifying slavery, and the immigration issue growing like some unstoppable turd.  And what about Kim Jon Dumb being a "strong leader" who had to make some "tough decisions."  The Idiot Jerk said the same thing about Saddam Hussein.  And Muammar Gaddafi.  These were strong leaders who had to make some difficult choices... and lots of people died.  Now the White House is saying the Idiot Jerk's commenting on how "people sit up" when Kim speaks was a joke.  Actually the real joke was when the Idiot Jerk talked about Americans ans though he owned them.  You know?  "I want my people to do the same?"  Well, people are sitting up alright, but not in the way the Idiot Jerk wanted.  Someone needs to tell this fool that the only people he owns are the ones who have sold him their souls.  The sooner this guy gets removed from office, the better things will be for all Americans.
On a lighter note, I've ridden 30.8 miles so far this week.  My legs were a bit cranky last night.  I want to take the bike out on the road early tomorrow morning.     

My Special Nut

Well, it's Friday and the 5th day of my vacation and I... slept in... until 0630.  Yesterday was busy.  Lots of accomplishments:  weight training in the AM, 11 + mile ride in the afternoon, lawn got mowed, grass around shrubs was trimmed, and one of my wisteria vines was cut down almost to the ground.  The one in front of the house was spared because of.... a bird's nest, with 3 little blue eggs.  Hopefully today will be just as fulfilling.
One of the things done yesterday that I'd been planning to do for some time was to put a coat of Helmsman on my special nut.  Now, I don't know about you, but I have a nut which is really dear to my heart. You see, a long, long time ago, in a state far, far away, I was born.  Florida.  My dad's parents were delighted.  I was their first male grandchild.  I would carry their genes forward... oops.  Anyway, because they could afford to do so, and because they wanted to see their true heir, they took vacation and drove all the way down to the land of Florida to meet me.  I don't remember any of this, now, so am forced to go on physical evidence alone.  But one day my grandmother picked up a coconut on the beach, sometime in mid-December, 1952.  She packed it into their car and brought that nut back to Pennsylvania.  And I still have it.  My Special Nut is going to be 66 years old this fall.  Amazing, the things we pick up in life.

And wasn't yesterday a shit storm for the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  New York is suing to close the family Foundation - turns out the most favored charity on it's books is DDI (Donald, Donny Jr, and Ivanka).  Of course he freaked out.

There was also the video of the Idiot Jerk saluting a North Korean Major General (or whatever he's called).  The video I saw included a North Korean announcer shrieking his excitement in a brittle falsetto.

Oh, and the Idiot Jerk said that Kim had to do all of those brutal executions because he needed to be a strong leader and.... what the fuck?  That's right.  The Idiot Jerk said 'Kim's a tough guy, but he needed to be tough."  Translation:  if the Idiot Jerk ever gets the chance, he will start executing.  

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to find a special place to put my special nut, a place where anybody and everybody can see it.

Gullibility

Thursday, the 4th day of my vacation, and I've finally managed to settle into some sort of routine.  The weather helps.  Yesterday AM was drizzly and cool.  The sun did break through until much later in the afternoon.
I went to my neighborhood Giant yesterday.  When I got home I discovered that someone who was Biggie enough had pulled the butter dish from the counter and licked that sucker clean.  Now, I wonder who that was?
And I only rode for a little over 8 miles yesterday - I stopped when the music stopped.  My ear buds weren't charged and lost the Bluetooth connection.  When riding on the road, you need to keep focused.  Music is essential, however, when riding on a trainer.
Today is nice and sunny.  This means I'm going to get so much more accomplished.  Already my writing table downstairs has been re-organized. At present I'm working through an upper body free weight routine.  My ear buds are charged so this afternoon I'll get another ride in.
And then there are the foolish Americans.  I'm a member for a group called the Tonkin Gulf  Yacht Club on Facebook which is for Navy Personnel who were in Vietnam.  Some foolish old Sailor actually wrote "now that the [Idiot Jerk] has negotiated peace with North Korea, we can bring our troops home."  There is no fool like an old fool... and the Idiot Jerk has a lot of supporters who happen to be fools.  Has gullibility ever been so strong in this country?  They see the stock market and say, "my isn't the economy doing great."  They look at their 401k's and shout "isn't this great!" without understanding both the stock market, and their 401k, can drop in a matter of hours.  Unemployment has dropped, but hire rates have stayed the same.  Pay increases are still piddly.  The gullible don't see this.  They are too blinded by the Idiot Jerk and his propaganda fireworks.
Economically speaking, this country will soon be in the place we were 12 years ago.  Dodd-Frank will be obliterated by greedy Republicans who never learn.  They always find it easier to point the finger at someone else.  And, of course, the Idiot Jerk is cheering them on.  And gullible Americans will believe the illusion.
Anyway, since it's nice and sunny, and warm, I'm going to push my lawn mower back and forth across my lawn.  I have some wisteria which will be cut back as far as I can cut it.  If tomorrow is as nice as today, I'll take the dogs up to the park in the early morning.  They love that!

This is from a walk last year

Ho Ho Ho and beyond

Well, here it is Wednesday which is sort of my hump day since I work on Saturday.  Of course, I'm off then until next Wednesday.  The temptation is there to all off on Saturday.  I'm hoping I'll be strong.... hoping.
I've been pondering the idea of stepping down from my Specialist position.  Right now sales goals are set.  I need to sell so many $'s to meet my goal.  Some weeks I surpass my goal, others I don't.  There's very little praise when I do but always a 'friendly' conversation when that goal isn't reached.
E3 is over.  Bethesda announced some really good games, but their Fallout 76, an online MMO failed to excite me.  There's no offline, single player mode.  This means every 'human' character you see will be another person playing the game.  Sometimes these players can be fun, but then they can also be 12 year old asswipes.
Ubisoft has a new Assassin's Creed coming out.  Odyssey, like in Homer's Odyssey.  And it takes place in the Greek Peloponnese during Greece's Golden Age.  You get to play as a Spartan, either male or female.  This is now a full blown RPG which includes crafting... and romance... with either gender.  One commentator said this is similar to the Role Playing Games Bioware put out before they were bought by Electronic Arts.  As you might guess, I've already pre-ordered.

And speaking politically, I got a real chuckle this AM while perusing Bloomberg.  There was a lengthy article about how the real winner from the meeting of the Idiot Jerk and Kim Sum Dumb was... China.  Didn't I already say that?  Oh, and there was another article about the North Korean propaganda machine and the version they are putting out.  Evidently, the Idiot Jerk sat down with Kim Sum Dumb because North Korea is now equal in its nuclear capabilities to the United States.   So tell me, do you really thing they're going to give up their nuclear weapons?  Make themselves weaker than the US?  This whole thing is going beyond Ho Ho Ho, and not in a good way.
As for me, now I'm looking forward to running around Greece looking like Alexios.

Now, how's that for a Ho Ho Ho?

Defining Moments

Yesterday, on my first vacation day, I baked bread.  Wheat Bread.  It is delicious.  I used molasses instead of honey, but threw in a little extra sugar.  Simply scrumptious.
And there was another Supreme Court ruling yesterday that Conservatives are applauding regarding Ohio, and how they purge their voter rolls.  The initial case was brought by some guy named Harmon.  He evidently went 7 years without voting - his excuse was that he was unimpressed by the candidates.  He chose not to vote in the 2012 presidential election because neither Obama nor Romney jingled his bell.  What did finally send him to the voting booth?  A ballot measure intent on legalizing marijuana.  That's right, he didn't want pot legalized in Ohio.  In fact, he was so upset he couldn't vote against legalization, he took his fight to the Supreme Court.  I have a sneaking suspicion this dude wears are red hat that says "Make America Great."  The message is very clear.  Get your ass out and vote.  Your civic responsibility is the only way to control who governs, and how we are governed.  Think about why this moron wanted to vote.  Think about who we have in the White House.  Being unimpressed by the candidates is not a valid excuse.  Had Mr. Harmon gotten his lazy bones out of his Lazy-Boy and voted, he would have had no problem trying to keep marijuana illegal in Ohio.  We have an Idiot Jerk in the White House because so many, many voters stayed home because they thought Hilary had it tied up, or they didn't like either candidate.  My, didn't we all get a big fucking surprise.
Oh, and in case you missed it, the Idiot Jerk and Kim Sun Dumb met yesterday.  They shook hands.  They also signed some sort of pact.  A Russian political analyst told the BBC that "the devil is in the details."  The Chinese are saying pretty much the same thing.  They ought to know since I suspect they are the silent force guiding Kim.  Of course the Idiot Jerk will take credit.  And his supporters will trumpet his foolishness.  Every one has their opinions.  The Idiot Jerk and his supporters will see this as a most excellent propaganda tool.  Foolish Americans will be suckered in.  I'm reminded a lot of the moment when the Idiot Bush stood on the smoldering remains of the World Trade Center.  That photo op got him re-elected because so many thought those few seconds, when the setting was perfect, defined him as both a human being and a president.  How wrong everybody was.  Unless we take charge the country will head down an even darker path.  Make sure your defining moments are done in the voting booth, and not on your ass in your Lazy-Boy.  Vote Blue.

Farting around the truth

Well, it's Monday and the weather outside is drizzly.  The temp dropped down to the mid- 50's (F) so I turned on the heat... in June.
I stayed up last night till nearly 11 PM watching the Bethesda E3 Showcase.  Meh.  Much of what they showed featured co-play, where you play with friends.  However their use of the word 'friends' is rather figurative.  There are times when your human friends may not be playing, so you will be matched up with 'friends' you don't know, and who have different playing styles and skills.  Fallout 76 turns out to be an online PVP (Payer versus Player) survival game set in West Virginia.  There are some really nifty locations, such as the Greenbrier Hotel / Bunker.  And while there will be some interesting mutations to fight, mostly you, and your 'friends,' will be gunning for other players.  Some will love this MMO / PVP Survival game, many of Bethesda's fan base will end up waiting for their next real RPG.
Oh, and I see where the Idiot Jerk's cluster fuck of an administration is beginning to tamper down expectations in regard to his summit with Kim Jon Dumb.  You know things are looking bad when a teacher says the way to win over Kim is to tell jokes.  What the hell is this?  A Mel Brooks movie?  Is he telling the Idiot Jerk he needs to lift up his leg and fart?  Sure, that was funny in "Blazing Saddles," but will it go over in Singapore?  I doubt it.

Of course, the way the Idiot Jerk in the White House farts out lies, I suspect this is about as good as it's going to get.

Evil Canadians

Sunday, my last day of work for a while. 
Tonight is Bethesda's E3 showcase, starting at 9:30 PM EST.  I'll be watching.  I'm also a bit leery.  There are a lot of so called leaks out there saying their next AAA game, Fallout 76, is going to be an MMO, (that's Massive Multiplayer Online).  I don't play MMO's, single player only.  None of my friends play MMO's.  Sadly, mulitplayer games make a lot of money and, unfortunately, game publishes tend to go where the money is.  So far Bethesda Game Works has bucked this trend - let's hope they continue.
Oh.... and all that G6 bullshit?  I looked at that picture Merkel tweeted of the Idiot Jerk sitting there like an obstinate prick and thought... 'this is exactly what he wants.'  He is the star of the show.  He is creating the disruption Putin wants so much, the Idiot Fool who will burn so many bridges out of stupidity.  He is the Idiot Jerk who has failed to learn a single thing from his four bankruptcies.  As for our Allies?  They are learning what it feels like to be a contractor on one of the Idiot Jerk's projects.  He will stab them in the back when ever he gets the chance.  Sad to say, his supporters actually believe he's standing up to the evil Canadians.  Shit!  I can't believe I just wrote that.  It made me laugh.  I mean, those Evil Canadians!   How long will we have to wait until he starts talking about building a wall between the United States and Canada to keep out those Evil Canadian illegal aliens?  And, of course, he has John Bolton on side which means every Allie is an enemy.
How more absurd can this get?  Well, in 2 days he's going to be meeting with Kim Jon Dumb for a repartee of Big Macs and Diet Cokes.  Sadly, for the Idiot Jerk, Kim Jon Dumb isn't that dumb, in fact, he will probably play the Idiot Jerk as the Fool of the Century (and the century is not that old).  Who is going to come out of that meeting smelling like roses?  Kim, because he wrangled the Idiot Jerk into meeting with him in the first place.  And if things go well between the two?  Well, jumping Jehoshaphat, isn't he the kind of Allie we want on our side.  He'd be so much better than those Evil Canadians.

No doubt the Idiot Jerk found a live mouse in his Diet Coke.

Portraits and plastic

So, what can I say?  I'm a sweaty eddy after this morning's ride.  That's right, it was dripping off my elbows and chin and splattering on the floor.  I've ridden 28.4 miles so far this week.  That's nice.  Good cardio.  Great for my legs.  Remember, you legs are the engines of your body.
Of course, after tomorrow I'm going to be on vacation, or a staycation as some call it.  A few days ago they were forecasting nice and sunny weather... well, that's changed.  Now I'm looking at days that are cloudy... with possible showers.
I'm thinking of planting tomatoes out side of the fence, and peppers.  I can't plant them inside because the dogs will eat them. 
And I see where the Idiot Jerk was saying stupid things at the G6 + 1 asswipe.  He does this because he craves the attention.  He doesn't care whether he's lying or not, as long as people talk about him.  If he were Dorian Gray, I can't even begin to imagine what his portrait must look like.  At this point in his life, I can't believe there would be anything even remotely human on that canvas.  Can this be horror that is Dorian Trump?

Enough frivolity at the expense of our dumb shit president.
Oh, and I saw where Mitt R said the Idiot Jerk will be easily re-elected.  When you hear something like this from a failed presidential candidate, from a party that totally fails to understand America, it gives you reason to smile.  This is the guy needing to go through a primary election in Utah because he failed to get enough votes the first time around.  People aren't as dumb as he thinks.  I wonder what Mitt's portrait would look like.  He's already been realized in plastic.

One can only wonder what he'll look like rendered in oil.

Solo

Well, I went to see "Solo" last evening.  Overall, I would have to say the movie was better than I was expecting... by just a  hair.  Alden Ehrenreich playing Han Solo was not the problem.  His performance is actually one of the bright spots.  What hurt was the story.  The most obvious flaw?  The girlfriend.  Walking out of the theater, I pointed this out to my friends and... everybody agreed.  Instead of taking a minor piece of Star Wars lore, the Kessel Run, the girlfriend stole all of the focus.  If they'd cut her out, or made her a co-conspirator, and cut out the romance, this film would have been fifteen minutes shorter and much better.  Interestingly enough, the scenes between Solo and a flirting Lando Calrissian work better than the scenes between Solo and his girlfriend.  Oh, and for those interested, (tiny spoiler) there is a brief shower scene with Solo and Chewbacca, what a shame it isn't longer.

And I do believe that today the G6 + 1 are meeting, the +1 being the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  Whereas Solo would have been much better had he been flying solo, the United States parting ways with the rest of the free world and going it alone is not.  Solo is cute and cocky while the Idiot Jerk is?  Arrogant, selfish and self-centered.  We have a president who wants to be the Ugly American.  Who would want to emulate him?  Crazy conservatives.  They're going to raise their children to be arrogant, selfish and self-centered.  When those children grow up, they're going to look at their aging parents and say "go away.  You're costing me too much money."  Of course, crazy conservatives don't know this.  It is beyond their ken.
Anyway, I did do 11.2 miles on the bike yesterday.  Fun.  And no leg cramps.  Tomorrow I'll do another ride.  After this weekend, my schedule has me off for 3 Sundays in a row.  That's when I'll take the bike out on the road.  Sunday mornings are great.  No traffic to worry about.

Fresh

So it's Thursday.  For those keeping track, today is my Sunday... in other words, the last day of my weekend.  Tomorrow I'll start a 3 day stint, but then I'm off for 5 days.  Then I'll work a day and have another 3 days off.  Retails schedules suck.
Yesterday saw me accomplishing almost everything I had planned... except for the yard work because the weather was drizzly, and rainy and cold.  Today is supposed to be warmer.
I went to Dick's to get sweatpants and bought... none.  I like my legs wrapped in warm fleece, not tacky polyester.  I ended up buying another pair of cycling shorts and some gloves. 
Pier 1 saw me purchase candles.  I like candles as long as they're not in jars.  Candles in jars  are a waste glass.
While a number of Americans feel the Idiot Jerk might be somewhat responsible for the economy, a vast majority want him to be controlled by Congress.  Right now that isn't happening.  The prospects of a Democratic House and Senate keep improving, much to the Idiot Jerk's dismay.  Actually, to say dismay might be a little too soft.  The idea Congress might tell him to shut his pie hole infuriates him.  Prepare for hostile attacks.  And investigations.  Republicans are terrified.  They've gone so far as to cancel their August recess to hopefully force as much of their agenda down America's throat.  They know their failure is in the offing.  Now, won't that be fresh.
The trailer for the new iteration of "A Star is Born" dropped yesterday.  Good Fucking Grief.  Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga.  For those who don't know, Janet Gaynor was the first ingenue with talent.  She was followed by Judy Garland in a 3 hour epic which was edited down to something you could sit through (sorry all you Judy lovers).  Then it was Streisand's turn.  She won an Oscar for co-writing 'Evergreen.'  Now we're getting Gaga.  If they felt they needed to do a remake, why couldn't they try and freshen up this old chestnut, say an older woman and a younger woman?  Or an older woman and a younger man (stud muffin, you know?)  Or an older man and a younger man (interesting, right?).  Nope, they're churning out the same stale formula.
Finally, we are now 3 days away from the Bethesda E3 event.  They are not part of the actual E3.  Their showcase will be a day early, on June 10, at the Figueroa Hotel in LA.  They've already started decorating.

That is some really big signage.  My big wonder is why the one on the left is mostly blank.  Be prepared for some really fresh surprises.

Doing the Right Thing

And so... my weekend... begins.  Big Seig and I have already popped one load of laundry into the wash.  The upstairs hallway is stacked with the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th loads.  This is so much fun.
I wanted to leave work early last evening since my weekend was starting and, of course, I ended up getting overtime.  That was not what I wanted.  On the way home I stopped and picked up taquitos and some frozen chicken breasts - the latter for making chicken sandwiches.  I ate too much and then went to bed.  That's a bad behavior pattern.
One of the associates I work with was laughing at the Idiot Jerk in the White House yesterday.  He's a big Eagles fan.  They were invited to a presidential shindig because they won the Super Bowl.  However, some of the players are not supporters.  In fact they see the Idiot Jerk as a fat, white, racist pig, and chose not to go.  Well, this pisssed off the Idiot Jerk and he sort of uninvited the team and cancelled the shindig.  And of course the Idiot Jerk's propaganda outlet, Faux News, said this faux party was cancelled because some of the Eagles were un-American because they kneeled during the National Anthem.  The Idiot Jerk said this, too.  Faux news even showed footage... except... they were wrong.  They lied.  None of the Eagles kneeled during the National Anthem.  The footage they had shown was of players kneeling to pray.  Evidently the Eagles forced Faux News to issue a public apology for lying.  They needed to be embarrassed to hell before they did the right thing.  The Idiot Jerk did not apologize for his lies.  He will never, ever do the right thing. 
Judge Aaron Perksy, the friend of drunken, sexual predator Brock Turner, is being recalled.  He no doubt does not understand how his 'good ol' boys' network has failed him.  The lesson here for all judges is that when sentencing an individual with a history of alcohol and substance abuse, and socially unacceptable behavior patterns, don't be lax in your judgement.  Turner needed not only a stronger punishment, and some serious help, and got nothing more than a slap on the wrist.  Persky has given no indication that he has learned to do the right thing.
My agenda for today is:  yard work, buying some new sweatpants, more yard work, and, hopefully another cycling workout this afternoon.  Also, there's this little side project I've been working on which I'd like to get finished by September.  I'm being a little mysterious about this, but I will give a bit of a clue.

That decision

This is my Friday!!!
Still waiting for Blogger to fix their email issue.  As it is, I no longer get a notification when someone leaves a comment.  The only way I see comments is to actually go into the blog, which means my response time might be a little slow.
And... of course, everybody is shrieking about the Supreme Court decision yesterday siding with the Colorado baker who refused to back a cake for a gay couple.  This was a terrible decision, however if you look at what was said, especially by those challenging the baker, you can understand why this decision was reached.  The attorneys representing the gay couple, and their rights, did not specifically go after the baker and his cherry picked beliefs, they went after religion.  Even though they used personal pronouns, their specific attacks were not about his bias, or his discrimination, but rather the religion he used to justify his refusal.  This baker has a history of not baking wedding cakes for gay couples.  This was not the first time he has done this.  That should have been their focal point, not religion.  They failed to prove that he, himself was the problem.  Seven justices voted against them.  That's a lot.  Gay rights took a step backwards because they chose to go after his 'freedom of religion' rather than his prejudice.  The baker alone was the problem and they needed to prove this... and didn't.  Fools.
Anyway, the weather outside is very nice.  I'm almost tempted to take a personal day, but I work instead.
I did a Cyclops 30 minute workout this AM - Holy Shit.  My legs are all gummy.  I rode 8.32 miles.  I had to laugh.  I was riding along with Tyler Stein, listening to music in my earbuds, when I realized he was actually talking to you about the ride.  Of course I couldn't hear what he was saying.

Here's a fun fact.  From what I saw, Tyler and I sweat about the same amount during a ride.

And then there's Honeysuckle

Here it is Monday and I'm on my 4th day of work  I work tomorrow, have 2 days off, work 3 and then there's vacation.  I can not wait.
The weather here was cold and shitty.  Our temp topped off at around 66 F - mostly rainy,  misty and overcast.  Not the type of weather you would normally expect in June.
I saw where the Idiot Jerk's toy lawyer Rudi Gazuti farted out some nonsense about how the President can pretty much do what ever he wants - sort of like a dictator.  He can end any investigation he wants, pardon anybody, even himself, should he feel the need... oh, except pardoning himself just might lead to impeachment.  However, once he's impeached he becomes fair game.  So, why would Rudi float this?  Most likely because he sees it as a test balloon.  If he feels enough people agree with him, well then the Idiot Jerk is going to fire and pardon at his own shit stained discretion.  You know?  If he feels he's getting a positive result then actual impeachment might not happen.  This selfish president, and selfish party, could care less about the country.  Tearing it to shreds means nothing as long as they are in charge.
Anyway, besides having tons of roses, I have honeysuckle spreading over the back fence as well.  Two complete different fragrances:  roses and honeysuckle.  One is full and rich, the other light and airy, the sweet and sour of the perfume world.  Here's a pic of mine.

I can't wait for the whole fence to be covered. 

...Action...

Sunday, and some of you are sleeping in.  Not me.  I got a 6.25 mile ride in.  I'm happy with that since my last ride was 13 days ago.  One thing I'm going to start is Training Sessions rather than ride.  Even though you may want to think that has something to do with our pixie from Hell Attorney General, it has more to do with building leg strength.  Tomorrow will be my first shot.  I've chosen a 30 minutes workout.  We shall see how it goes.
Outside we have overcast skies - showers and possible thunderstorms are on the way.  The high temp is supposed to top off at around 66 F.  Now ain't that ducky?
My vacation is now 8 days away.  I can not wait.
Oh, and we are now in hurricane season.  True most of the whopper storms don't get here until the fall, but we've already had Albert... or was it Alberto?  Don't quite remember.  Evidently everything that has sustained winds of over 39 mph is being named.  I suspect the weather pattern we are in now might be an bi-product of Albert... or Alberto.  We're supposed to be getting stronger storms this year... global warming, you know?  That thing Conservatives desperately want to deny.  I mean, portions of the coastline becoming uninhabitable?  Preposterous.
Sad to see that "Solo" is slowly failing tat the box office.  This is a painful lesson for Disney.  There is not an unquenchable appetite for all things Star Wars.  From what I've read, however, this film had problems from the start.  Two directors that weren't meeting expectations were fired and Ron Howard was brought in..... Ron Howard.  Now, I like some of his films.  "A Beautiful Mind" was very, very good.  However, when I think of possible directors for high paced, science fiction, adventure films his name does not dance gracefully to the tip of my tongue.  And Alden Ehrenreich, who was good in "Hail Caesar," was apparently miscast.  Not every actor is an action / adventure hero.  That's a shame.

 Still, I'm fairly certain I'll go see it either Wednesday or Thursday evening. 

Drowning in a Sea of Roses

Well, it's Saturday and the sun is out... for the time being.  Showers and thunderstorms are forecast for this afternoon and this evening.  Tomorrow things are supposed to be cooler.  Actually yesterday wasn't that hot, 88 F.  Hot happens when the temps soar into the upper 90's.
Walking out my backdoor this morning, I had no problem in smelling my roses.  There are lots of them.  This will pass though, only to be repeated in a month or sow.  I usually get 3 bloomings per summer.  Right now, you could say, I'm drowning in a sea of Roses.

The red antique roses were an accident... the bush just started growing

And I must say, the perfume of blooming roses is much more preferable than the stench oozing up from Washington.  Of course the Idiot Jerk in the White House tweeted out jobs info early because... well, he needed to feed his ego.  And, perhaps, rather illegally let investors know yesterday was going to be a good day to buy... sort of honor among scumbags.

I know there are conservatives out there who are upset that Mueller's investigation has cost over $16 million so far.  Funny, they had no problem spending $8 million to investigate Benghazi.  Interesting how easily they justify money spent for their political benefit.  Interesting, also, is how Trey Gowdy, the leader of the Benghazi witch hunt is telling them to shut up, to leave Mueller alone.  Mr. Gowdy knows full well the difference between a witch hunt and a serious investigation.  He no doubt understands the corruption brought to the White House by the Idiot Jerk is on the verge of boiling over, splattering democracy with an unhealthy spray of shit.

My vacation begins on 6/11, and I've already started planning things to be done.  One of those is to take out the wisteria pushes around my front porch.  This is the 2nd year where they failed to bloom.  There was a time when the front of the house was awash with purple flowers.  Those days started disappearing a couple of years ago.  That will be a chore.  I will probably put in more roses... maybe a red climber to weave among the wrought iron railings.

Bluebirds, Kratos, and Trade Wars... oh my

Well, it's Friday and I get to go back to work.  Six days from today begins a 5 day vacation, not that I'm going anywhere - too much to do here.
Yesterday was shitty rainy - in fact the next couple of days we're going to have the same weather pattern.
I went to see my Mom yesterday.  I took pound cake, I usually take a snack.  We weren't really talking about anything in particular when she said "I have to tell you something.  I had a visitor.  A man.  I met him when I was back in jail.  He was a nice guy who wanted to be an attorney, and that's what he did when he got out of jail."  Of course, my Mom has never been in jail, never even been close to one.  I just sat there and said "really."  I say that a lot.  She's not going to improve... at all.  This is how it goes with some people.
There was a bluebird in my yard yesterday.  Evidently this is a very good sign for me.  I took a picture of him that does him very little justice, though he might actually be a her and not a he.

He walked around and pecked things off the ground.  I have no idea how long he was there.  Eventually I had to let the dogs out and he flew away.
I also downloaded the first game on my new PS4 Pro, the very popular God of War.  An action / adventure game, you play as Kratos.  This will explain who he is a lot better than I can.  It also means I get to look like this.

Not bad for an old CGI guy

Oh, and in case nobody has told you, we're having a Trade War.  The Conservatives are doing their 'yippee, skippy' dance without so much as a glimmer of a clue as to what this will do to the economy.  But then they've always been stupid as hell when it comes to the economy.  As  the Idiot Jerk in the White House starts down another path towards bankruptcy, he totally doesn't get that this time he's going to take the country with him.  Gas is already up to $3 a gallon here.  Now everything else is going to go up in price, too.  His supporters are going to start shitting bricks when they realize the rising cost of aluminum will make their 6 packs of Schlitz go up in price.  Woe is me.