Scary and True

Happy Halloween! I had a picture I was going to add here... but everything seems to be moving slower this morning.  Not enough sugar in the system perhaps.
Today is All Hallows Eve, a day in which the House will vote on the Impeachment Inquiry.  The GOP is shaking in their boots.  I guess Laura Ingraham has warned the racist right-wingers that if the impeachment proceeds there will be no GOP in 2020.  Or, to be more precise, it was more like "without the Idiot Jerk in the White House there will be no GOP in 2020."  That stupid bottled blond phony Christian wants Republicans to chain themselves to the anchor now known as the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  How's that for blind loyalty.
Here, in Central PA rain is in the forecast.  A soggy Trick or Treat night is planned for this evening.  Some communities chose to hold it last evening, others didn't.  I don't participate.  I don't have a cooking pot big enough for kiddies... ooohh, I didn't say that, did I?  I would never do that.  They never get close enough to the house.  My baying doggies keep them far enough away.
I'd like to thank Treaders for letting me know that some of the media in Europe is reporting facial recognition software was used to identify 20,000 of the booing fans in Nationals Park.  I know a little bit about facial recognition software.  Research, you know?  In "The Body in the Tower" facial recognition software is used in an attempt to discern the identity of the killer during the shooting at the Eiffel Tower.  Facial recognition relies on 5 - 7 points on a still photo to identify you.  You can unlock certain phones by looking directly into the camera, and those 5 - 7 points need to be in the same place. If you're laughing, those points move and it doesn't work.  If you're chanting "lock him up" some of those points are moving and facial recognition software doesn't work.  And, of course, those 5 - 7 points of your face need to be saved in a database which the software can access which is not too plausible at this time.  For the time being, identifying individuals in a crowd of moving faces is impossible.  It didn't work in "The Body in the Tower," and it's not going to work on those crowd videos from Nationals Park.
And since I can't give you a picture, I'll give you this:  the sound of every Republican heart in a America thinking about today's vote in the House.

Core issues

Well, it's Wednesday and I get to go back to work... meh.  For 3 whole days.  How will I endure?
I've been getting some twinges in my lower back, so yesterday I began putting together a 'core enhancer' for those days when I'm not on the bike.  With my arthritis, inflammation in my lumbar region can be frequent.  Most don't realize stronger core muscles help eliminate this problem.  I learned that in Physical Therapy.  Personally, I'd rather do a couple exercises than chow down on Advil several times a day.
I went to see Maleficent last evening.  The film is doing okay at the box office, but not as great as they thought.  This is because it's 2 films in one.  A very family friendly G rated prologue and epilogue bookcase a core film about racism.  That's right, there are humans who hate faeries, and pixies, and wood nymphs, and want to kill them.  Humans really, truly hate the Fey, a tall, winged species whom humans have exiled.

Ed Skrein is one of the Fey

Because of this there is a war which is not too kiddie friendly.  I enjoyed the quietly evil Ingrith (played by Michelle Pfeiffer).  The hour and 10 or 15 minutes center section, the heart of the film, isn't bad but the producers definitely felt they needed to suck in the under 10 crowd.  They should have just had the cast say "shit" a couple of times and aimed for a strong PG 13 rating.  I think the box office would have been stronger.

Also, I did spend yesterday smelling like a squatch and will do so again today.  I will let you know what I think of the Dr. Squatch in a couple of days.

And, of course, there was more damning closed door testimony yesterday.  Tomorrow the House will hold some sort of vote and all will be revealed.  The Idiot Jerk in the White House will have a shit festival on Twitter.  Good.  Like the core of a bad apple, his machinations will be revealed.  As the revelations ricochet through the media, I have no doubt people will begin to understand the issues with the Ukraine are not an isolated incident.  With this moron everything is a deal.  Everything is Quid Pro Quo.  If his chats with his blow bro Vlad are ever released people will realize that he really is a scumbag from hell.  Is it any wonder there are serious rumors being whispered by conservatives that in 2020 they might lose... everything.

Wash This

Yesterday was beautiful.  The sun was shining overhead.  The temps were in the high 60's.  I planted 60+ bulbs.  Oh, and the GOP had a really rude awakening to the real world.
Thanks to my Rouvy, I had a long ride in John Gray country, north of Sheffield (he talks about it now and then).

There were a lot of hills, including a Category 4 climb which is 1220 meters long and constant 4% - 5% grade.  It took me a little over an hour.  My legs had a bit of an ache.  Son of a bitch.

My soaps came yesterday.

The Dr. Squatch has a nice smell, however is lacking a bit in the size department.  There's nothing on the packaging to tell you it's cruelty free, unlike the Marlowe.

The Dr. Squatch does tell you to do something, however:

Being perfectly honest, I have little interest in getting anywhere close to a squatch, let alone having any desire to smell one.

The House announced that on Thursday they're going to vote on inquiries of impeachment.  The Republicans are in a bit of a quandary because those confidential sessions are going to go public in a very loud way.  Oh, Shit!  They could shriek and moan about the testimony behind closed doors, but once those details are on the nightly news... well, they're screwed.  They've always had a problem understanding their place in the world.  Now, that is going to be made very clear.  This is going to be far worse than the booing and chanting at National Park.  And no one is going to feel sorry for either them or the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  This is a lesson they have never learned.  

The Boos have it

I did take off work yesterday.  We had torrential rains throughout the morning.  Translation:  I got a lot accomplished.  My dahlias are ensconced in a bed of perlite and peat moss where they will sleep through the winter.  My enclosed back porch smells rather loamy.
So, wasn't yesterday one of those days when surrealism took the stage in a farce of words directed entirely at the base of the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  Reading from a teleprompter that seemed to have been scripted by Kim Dumb Dong, he wasted 15 minutes of time bragging basically about his decisiveness.  That was one of the words our Madam Vice President used... decisive.  I'm not saying that the elimination of the 'baddie' wasn't important, just that the timing seems a bit... coordinated.  I mean, in a little over a week and a half there are a number of regional elections.  They need to activate their base.  Keep them loyal since polls show the number of supporters is slowly trending downward.  Remember, this is how the Idiot Jerk thinks, how he plays to deplorable intelligence.  He grandstands in order to get them to ooooh and aaaaaahhh.  Except that didn't happen when he went to see the Washington Nationals in game 5 of the World Series last evening.  After announcing the death of al-Bagdhadi, the Idiot Jerk thought he was going to surrounded by adulation.  Wrong.  The crowd booed when they heard he was in the stadium.  They chanted "lock him up!"  The look on his face is priceless.  This is what America thinks of him.  Holy Shit!  This is not what happens at his rallies!  This is why he will lose the election.
Anyway... the test bars of my new soap come today.  I also ordered a small fan which is due to arrive tomorrow.  something I can used beside the ceiling fan when I ride my bike.  I also rearranged my cycling space yesterday.  The little Dell laptop I use for the Rouvy app moved from my right side to my left, and a nice black, rubber mat went down on the floor.  I sweat a lot.
And here... for your viewing pleasure, is one the many clips showing the Idiot Jerk getting booed.  I almost feel sorry for Melanoma... she looks like she's going to start crying.

This is what's streaming across social media this morning.  Ooops.

Cleaning Up

Well, it's Sunday and I'm thinking of calling off from work today.  I have a very good reason - it's raining.  That may seem like a paltry reason, but footsteps are always down in "big box" stores on Sundays.  And rain?  That's just one more reason to stay home and watch organized sports on TV.  Believe me, if a local team is being televised people stay home to watch.  And, living in Central PA, I am in the Shangrila of localized sports zones.  Don't believe me?  Hahahaha (evil laugh).  Phillie is 2 hours away:  Eagles, Phillies, and Flyers, and 76'ers.  Baltimore is 55 minutes away:  Ravens and Orioles.  Pittsuburgh is 3.5 hours away:  Steelers, Pirates, and Flyers, and Penguins.  New Jersey has the Nets.  Washington DC has the Nationals... I think they're playing in the World Series, and they're a little over an hour away.  I'm not including New York because it's a 4.25 hour drive from where I live.  However, we don't have a professional cycling team... and that really sucks!
Anne Marie recommended Dr. Squatch as a replacement for my body wash... soap.  They make great commercials.  Here's the one they put out for their shampoo and conditioner.

They're a bit pricey:  $10 for a 3 oz bar (which is supposed to last for 2 weeks).  I ordered a test bar.  I also ordered a test bar of Marlowe, a bit less pricey at $8 for 7 oz.... Both are cruelty free, however, I'm getting some real conservative vibes from the Marlowe website.  Even if it's advertised as being exfoliating, you know there's no way it can remove much of the dirt from a Conservative's skin.  We'll see.

I understand the Idiot Jerk in the White House is planning on making some sort of big announcement this morning.  No, it's not the one you're hoping for.  It seems that some of our troops, with the help of the SFD Kurds (you know, the Kurds who are not our allies?) killed one of the leaders for ISIS.  I suspect he's going to try and pull a Zelda Rubenstein on the American people on the subject of ISIS.

Damn, the Idiot Jerk in the White House could swim in Dr. Squatch or Marlowe and never, ever be clean.

On being the butt of jokes

My zinnia seeds arrive today, as does a refresher for my strawberry flavored whey.  I have a subscription for the strawberry flavored whey.   That's going to change.  I'm not that impressed with the taste; not quite as strawberryish as I had hoped.   For now I'm going to stick with the chocolate / peanut butter.
Another one of my subscription deliveries is also going to be stopped.  I'm supposed to be having my Every Man Jack delivered on a regular basis.  The last to shipments were cancelled - not in stock. If I want I can pick it up at my neighborhood Giant supermarket.  Perhaps the company has grown large enough they don't need to rely on Amazon for their sales.  Don't know.  I might begin a new search for another small company to help out.
They're forecasting rain for this afternoon and evening.  Yippee.  I'm off Monday and Tuesday, the weather is supposed to be fine.  I hope so.  It's time to sow my bulbs.
In case you haven't heard, there's the possibility Brexit is going to be delayed... again, or at least there's an agreement in the works for a delay to some unknown day in the future, possibly after a snap election.  Big mouthed Boris is failing miserably at getting this divorce hammered out.  In fact, most of the Brexiteers appear to be nothing more than hot air balloons without the pretty colors.
Here, in the US, more people are going to be able to see the unredacted Mueller report.  For those interested, this is what most of us get to read.

You can bet the Idiot Jerk in the White House burped up burning mouthful of rancid Big Mac when he heard this.  In fact, a Federal judge legitimized the impeachment inquiry.   I wonder if Lindsey Graham's thin, little lips began quivering when he heard that.  Not only is his future life as an ass-kisser at stake, he's up for re-election and the Democrat planning on unseating him is raising big bucks.  He might get fired by the voters!  Oh... dear me... poor Lindsey.

Oh, and Rudy the G has been butt dialing reporters and leaving long, incriminating messages.  He can't even get a break from his ass.

The Power of Cake!

Yesterday was some sort of appreciation day at work, one of those things in which cake and donuts are brought in to thank us for working well with the team which does our price increases.  Let me make this perfectly clear, I am a walking carb catastrophe.  When there is a spread of cakes and donuts spread out before me I graze.  Of course, this morning when I stepped onto the scale I saw I had gained half a pound.  Damn those maple glazed donuts!  Not that I'm really worried.  Those pounds will be gone soon enough.
I saw a picture of fat Gaetz from Florida yesterday, smiling from ear to ear, and thought 'this guy's a freaking moron.'  You can tell by his jowls he's taken cake grazing to a whole new level.Then I had to laugh.  He believes himself to be one of the best his party has to offer.  He is so out of touch with the real world.
There was an article in Reuters this morning on how the US continues to fail in what they describe as 'soft power.'  What they're talking about is the scale of respect the rest of the world has for us, and it's sinking fast.  We are no longer seen as a world leader but rather a world greeder (I just made up that word, I know because spell check tells me it doesn't exist).  I guess I should say the world's greediest.  This is all because of the Moral Degenerate in the White House.  Selfishly self-interested, that's what people are beginning to think when the United States comes up in conversation.  Where as before we used to freely offer our cake, now we hoard it, sometimes going so far as to steal it from the mouths of immigrant babes.
And just think, in a little over a year we'll be heading for the polls.  When I told my brother that when the Idiot Jerk loses he will relocate to Moscow.  Of  course my brother made a face.  In his mind, that could never happen.  You see, he likes the cake the Idiot Jerk promises.  He craves that cake, moistly delicious so much so, he overlooks the problems, the lies, and makes excuses.  He can't come to terms with the fact that the Idiot Jerk loves only himself, that he will promise anything to his base in order to be re-elected.  When he loses, they will learn how stale and moldy the cakes he was sell really are... and it will be late, because they've already eaten most of them.

Feathers

So, I've been playing "Ghost Recon: Breakpoint" and have been wondering where my teammates are at... there are usually 3 or 4 and you can maneuver them into different positions.  They provide some assistance combat.  However, with 14 hours into the game and there are no teammates.  I checked with Ubisoft, the game's publisher and... sorry, teammates are supposed to be added supposed to be added sometime during the the 1st year of release.  Son of a bitch.  They want you to play cosplay.  Cosplay is when you play with your "friends," or "friends" the match you with.  Playing cosplay is an incentive to purchase, with real money, cosmetic items: uniforms, hats, weapon colors, so you can show off to your "friends."  I play solo.  I don't need to buy a hat with a feather on on it.  So, I sent Ubisoft a protest note, not that they'll pay attention.  Their goal is to have as many games as possible generate a billion $$ in revenue... any way they can.

Anyway, my copy of the "The Outer Worlds" should be arriving Monday.

For those who didn't know, about 20 GOP members of the House stormed a secure meeting room in order in an attempt to derail a deposition... sort of... kind of....  They were led by Gaetz from Florida, the one who's had some serious white supremacist issues, among other moments of striking stupidity.  Even though no one is reporting it, I'm betting they all had feathers in their hands.  Not the kind you wear in your hats, but rather those used to... well... tickle... like this:

You can bet they weren't planning on using them on the Democrats.  No way.  They shrieked and moaned in their squeaky, right wing voices that these depositions are unfair to the Moral Degenerate in the White House.  After delaying the proceedings for about an hour, these mini-degenerates headed to the Oval Office so they could tickle the Idiot Jerk's ass.  He likes this sort of demonstration.  This is how they prove their loyalty to him.  Prepare for more of these desperate antics.

And, speaking feathers, his attorney's actually argued yesterday that he could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue and get away with it as long as he's a sitting president.  Have you ever heard of anything so fucking stupid?  That the president of the United States can commit a murder and not have to worry about it.  Their feathers were teasing and toying like hell yesterday... the 3 judges listening to their argument found them anything but erotic.  Nope.  They saw how shit-stained those feathers were, just like everything else associated with this Administration.

Ring the bells

Showers were forecast for yesterday afternoon... well, the showers arrived early and by the time the afternoon rolled around we were having some serious rain.  More is forecast for this weekend.  My lawn is looking bright and green so I might end up having to pull out my lawn mower for a mid-fall mow.
There's no dog walk this morning because everything is still wet.
I got my free Flu shot yesterday from the VA.  The Out Patient Clinic was very crowded.  I parked in the lot across the street.  Oh, and I was the only one to show up wearing shorts.  Everyone else was in jeans or slacks... some were even wearing jackets.
So, the 2nd snaky part of "The Body in the Well," is finished, at least the rough draft, and I'm heading into the finale.  And, of course, I'm already thinking about the next one.  It's probably going to be set in Beverly, Mass, near Dorchester Bay.  I have a great opening sentence:

I am an unknown, unimportant individual hanging onto the fringeworks of your life.

Nifty, huh?  Of course, that is just the first tintinnabulation of some serious bell ringing to come.
And, speaking of ringing  bells, I bought a couple strings of small ones recently to drape across a mirror I have hanging in the hall.  Here's what they look like?

Oh, and yes, my upstairs hallway is painted a snappy, bright, wake me up yellow!  It's do for a refresh.  Knowing my penchant for color, it might turn into some sort of exploding orgasmic green.
Oh, and speaking of bells, the Idiot Jerk in the White House appears to be having his rung daily.  Yesterday there was more damning testimony by Bill Taylor, a man who takes detailed notes.  I looked over the transcripts that were released.  I chuckled a bit when Taylor said he was told by Sondland not to worry, "this is business as usual."  Ding Dong!
And the Idiot Jerk compared the impeachment inquiries to a lynching.... oooohhh, yes he did.  That gets a big DING DONG (in caps, of course).
Evidently his inner circle is advising him he needs to bring on board an "impeachment adviser" and he's refusing because he believes it will make him look guilty.  Ding dong, Ding dong. (That's a double just for the fun of it).
There was a surge of Independent voters now approving the impeachment investigation.  DING DONG!  So far they've been sitting on the sidelines.  Now that they're realizing this shit is deeper than they thought, they're nodding their heads and saying "go for it."
Oh, and evidently there's been a large influx of cash into the Democratic races throughout the country.  So much so, seats once considered locked and loaded and ready for red are now considered competitive.  Ding dong, ding dong, ding dong.  If the Reds thought the Blue wave in the last election was bad, they need to begin preparations now,  In 2020 they're going to be enemized!

Socks... not sucks

Yesterday was beautiful!  Sunny, with the temps hitting 68 (F) mean a walk with the dogs.  I got some interesting vids that will be coming down the pike soon.
I dug out my dahlias yesterday.  I washed the dirt off and have them on a drying rack where they will sit for a few days.  After that, they get sprayed with an anti-fungal and put to sleep for the winter in a bed of peat and vermiculite. 
Sparrow posted a pic a while back of zinnias.  Yesterday I ordered seeds for the spring planting.  And I'm not the only one on my street thinking of flowers.  The woman catercorner from me is putting in a nice bed, though hers is at the front of her front yard and mine is towards the back.
Also, yesterday the mail man dropped off some new cycling socks I had ordered.  The ones I have now are made with a lot of spandex (Lycra) and are more like support hose.  These are more like... well, socks.  Brightly colored socks. I like it when my feet stand out!

For those of you who have trouble reading, it says "Sock Guy."

And, as usual, the Idiot Jerk is blubbering out his stupidity.  Evidently the emollients clause in the Constitution is fake because... he doesn't like it.  he doesn't understand why a president can use his office to enrich himself and his family... I mean, his Blow Bro Vlad does it, and so does Kim Dumb Bum.  To make things even worse, he whined "the Democrats are united!"  The Republicans are not.  Many of them are beginning to realize he's a moral degenerate.  They're thinking about their careers, or what's left of them.  They're beginning to criticize him.  The Idiot Jerk doesn't like that at all. He want them to ignore the stench of corruption  that wafts around himself and his spawn.  He desperately wants to be a dictator and that's not happening.  Right now, he's pretty much aware how badly his life sucks.

Drizzly Morning

Yesterday Nestor came through... at least I think that's the name given to the storm by the Weather Channel.  Some got tropical rain, we had a soaking rain for most of the day.  They had forecast showers... they were wrong.

Here's a little GoPro vid of the last time I took the dogs for a walk in the drizzle.  This was a couple of days ago.

Today begins my weekend.  Most of my laundry was done during the week so today and tomorrow will be mostly occupied with yard work, writing, riding my bike, and game play.  Oh, and walking the dogs.  On my weekends we usually take our walks later in the day.  I'll have to video one of those for your entertainment.  

I may go to the movies either this evening or tomorrow evening.  Don't know yet.  There are movies I'd really like to see, however, if I miss them... well, I can always watch them when they begin streaming.  Priorities change as we get older.  Not only do species evolve, thought patterns do as well.  How boring life would be if they didn't.  You will never be the 20 year old you once were, either mentally of physically.  This is why I could never be a Conservative.  They don't like change.  They want the reliability of sameness over, and over, and over again.  They don't like challenges, either physical or mental.  They will never pick up a book, or listen to an artist, or watch a movie that in some way dares to make them question.  Conservatives prefer reinforcement of their already restrictive beliefs.  This is why they are dangerous.  They want to stop the world, and the future.

Anyway, I saw Mickey M was trying to do some sort of weird two-step dance around his little "get over it speech."  "No, there was never any quid pro quo," he said, and they played him the tape.  "No," he said, "that was something else."  So they played a section where he repeated his words.  And this was Chris Wallace of Fox News.  Finally, he did admit that you could have, possibly, maybe... well, might have believed he meant the administration purposely held up aid for the Ukraine, but really he was saying something totally different.  And the Idiot Jerk's loyal base said "see, it's not what you think it is... he was talking about something totally different."  Is it any wonder the Idiot Jerk in the White House is really beginning to hate Fox News and Chris Wallace, who used clip after clip to show Mickey his lies.  The propaganda machine is beginning to show cracks.

Cranky Bellies Abound

Okay, so it's Sunday.  Depending upon which one of the apps I use for my cycling and fitness it's either the end of the work week, or the beginning of a new week.  My schedule for work says today is  the last day of the week.  Celebrating now religious fervor, Sunday, for me is the conclusion of the past week.  Tomorrow, everything begins anew.  Monday is a brand new day to start tracking my mileage.  Over the past 7 days I rode 43 miles.  That's only 4 days of riding.  I had a bit of a cranky belly one day.
My money's saying Boris Johnson has a bit of a cranky belly today.  I sold a carpet measure to an Irish woman yesterday.  I asked her what she thought of this Brexit fiasco.  She told me she thought it was terrible, but her sister who lives in Ireland was ready to grab Boris by his ears and rip off his head.  Evidently he sent an unsigned letter to the EU yesterday asking for an extension...  He's not feeling the love this morning. After years of mocking those he deemed failures, they're serving him up a shit pie breakfast.  As the days roll on, Boris' belly is only going to get crankier.
Do you know who else has a cranky belly?  The Idiot Jerk in the White House.

There's no way he's going to be able to take his frown and turn it upside down.  Nope.  He's no longer going to be hosting the 2020 G7 at his golf resort... club... or whatever the hell he calls it.  He changed his mind because of the "media and crazy, hostile Democrats..."  This morning he's no doubt chugging the Pepto-Bismol.  The idea of foreign governments paying him money to sleep in one of his hotels, and eat in his restaurants, and using his room service is ducky dandy for him.  Do you really think he cares about laws, about rules and regulations?  He's a Conservative.  His favorite pronoun is 'my,' as in 'my money,' and 'my bank account.'  I wouldn't be surprised if everyone in his spawn clan were chugging the Pepto this morning.  Son of a bitch!

Hey, Get over it

Well, we're one month into Fall (give or take a day) and the temps are gradually cooling off.  Outside the temp is around 38 (F).  We're under a frost warning.  So often they warn and nothing happens.  Tomorrow we're aim for a high of 58 (F), but then they're forecasting rain as well.  Monday's supposed to be sunny and dry.  That's nice.
Yesterday when I got home from work I saw I still have rosebuds.  Here's one:

It'll be gone soon.  Autumn temps are not kind to flowers.
When I went in to the kitchen a few moments ago to refresh my coffee, Biggie was standing there with his head on the table staring at the leashes.  He loves his morning walks.  Both dogs do.  While Lilly is go, go, go, Biggie just plods along beside me.  He looks up at me a lot, as if to say "this is almost like a slice of heaven."  Since the temp is cooler, I will put on my work boots (yes, I actually have two pair), a jacket, and my little knit cap so the dogs and I can venture out into the chill.
I saw where the dumb ass Republicans are selling T-shirts at the Idiot Jerk's rallies with the phrase "Get Over It" emblazoned upon the chest.  They are so damn stupid.  They're a minority group who managed, with the help of the Electoral College, to get a morale degenerate into the White House.  The fact that they're a minority group doesn't even register in the pea brains.  This is just a variation of their normal hiss, "we're in charge, so shut up."  This is also how they say "screw you," and "I count, you don't."  They are such dumb shits.  The only way to teach them a lesson is to vote them out of office.  That is the only way to control their hatred.  Vote Blue.
Oh, and just as important as voting Blue, is how you vote.  Don't just vote Straight Ticket.  I don't know about your state, but in Pennsylvania candidates can cross register into both parties.  We have several candidates up for Judge.  In their dank, little hearts their Republican, but they're also on the ballot as Democrats.  That's right, they cross registered.  Here, in Central PA, there are no Democrats running for judge.  A Straight Party vote will give one of those Republicans a vote they shouldn't get.  Here, the Democratic party is recommending Democrats vote for Susan Pickford.  She's the only non-Republican on the ballot.  Read that ballot.  See who you're voting for.  When we vote them out of government we can tell them to wear their shitty little shirts and say "Hey, get over it.

Blinded

Friday has arrived.  This is Wednesday for me which means while some of you will be celebrating the end of your work week, I'll be enjoying my Hump Day.
From now on they're forecasting chilly days and nights.  An appearance by Jack Frost is even said to be expected.  This is good.  Once he tickles us with his fingers I'll be able to dig up my Dahlias.  They're being dug up Monday, whether or not he makes his first appearance of the fall.  That's also the day my bulbs go into the new dug bed, all 65 of them.  Next spring my yard is going to be bulbalicious with color.
I sold blinds to 2 customers yesterday.  I really have a dislike for selling blinds.  They chose their color from a small swatch without actually understanding how the blind is going to look.  And their expensive.  One aluminum mini-blind was $123.... for a mini-blind!  Son of a bitch!  That's one of the many reasons I don't have blinds on my windows.  I don't like them.  Big dogs don't like them either.  The first time a UPS or FedEx truck pulled up out front those blinds would be shredded.  A bunny rabbit or squirrel in the yard?  It's the same thing as chanting "blind be down now!"
Oh, and I saw where the 2020 G7 conference is going to be held at a property owned by the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  Of course a lot of people cried foul.  Emollients, you know?  Everyday the Republicans reveal themselves to be more hypocritical then one could possibly believe.  Had Obama made that announcement, there would be dead bodies lying all over Capital Hill.  But you now how they' love their tinfoil dictator, the one who's going to ignore the majority to give that tiny majority of tiny minded individuals the dictatorship they so dearly covet... like the tinfoil dictatorship of his Blow Bro Vlad.
And I saw where retired General Mattis was at a white tie event.  He had a few choice words for the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  The truth is, he turned the Moral Degenerate into a joke.  Of course, we know that's always been the case.  I laughed out loud at some of his comments.

Getting ready for the walk

It's Thursday morning.  I have a bit of a cranky belly.  That's fine.  We all have our aches and pains.  I don't blow mine out of proportion.  There are some who have serious issues... and then there are some who mentally think they have serious issues.  I work with an associate who has Crohn's Disease... and everything else.  In fact, that's one of the first things this associate tells people when he meets them for the first time.  Nice, huh?  No matter what might be ailing you, he has the same thing... only Worse.  I once asked him why this is?  He had a bit of a meltdown.  He claimed I was insinuating he was using his health problems for getting attention.  I'll be honest, I was, and it's true.  Someone tells him they have a headache and he says "I have migraines, 2 to 3 times a week, and they're real killers."

I saw where the Idiot Jerk in the White House had a bit of a meltdown yesterday as well.  The Syria thing, you know?  Every time he opens his mouth about his foreign policy debacle he splatters shit.  He thought he was a tin foil dictator, but this action is proving how much of a puppet he is to his Blow Bro Vlad.  Oh, and his impeachment firewall is beginning to crumble.  Yippee!

And can we get a moment of silence for Elijah Cummings, who passed early this morning.  

Finally, here's another snippet from the GoPro.  I take the dogs for a walk Just about every morning.  Biggie gets excited.  Lily (also known as Lillian) is always ecstatic.  I was wearing the camera on my head so the ceiling looks a lower then its actual 10 foot height, and the rooms look smaller.  Oh, and Lily isn't like this all the time.  Mostly she's a petite,little flower.  However, mention walk and the Adrenalin explodes. 

Red Sunrise

Well, it's Wednesday... and I get to go back to work.  Can you sense the excitement in my words?  Can we talk about raw titillation? 

I ordered some bells, decorative that jingle jangle.  I was going to drape them around a tapestry I picked up in Singapore about... oh, 40 years ago (give or take a year).  When I ordered them I changed the quantity to 2 (2 strings, each 40 inches long).  For some odd reason they shipped them separately:  one came UPS and the USPS, both arrived yesterday.  Well, they jangle a little bit but they don't have a lot of jingle.  They're only for decoration so they'll do.

I downloaded some software to let me edit my little GoPro films.  Now I don't have to use their crappy little canned soundtracks.  This is the first, something I believe I've already shown.  

There was a debate last night.  I didn't watch.  I see where some of our freshmen representatives, the progressive ones, are signing on to Sander's team.  Sorry, but his ticker's already missed a couple of beats.  At his age it's heard to repair the damage from that little dramatic moment.  He's not healthy as a horse.  This old man needs to take a seat.  His time in the sun is waning fast.

Only rode 5 miles yesterday.  To be truthful, I wasn't suppose to ride at all.  My recovery period for that 16 miles the day before was 48 hours.  I could tell it in my legs.  Tonight, instead of a ride I'm going get down and do some ab work.  

I went to see "Joker" last evening.  The movie is making a bundle at the Box Office.  It's not for everyone.  Set in the 70's, I found it rather self-absorbed, doing its best to make an interesting villain unlikable.  More of a study on mental illness than anything else, you never feel more than a smidgen of sympathy for Joaquin Phoenix.  After a while, his laugh became annoying as hell.  For a sad comparison, "Joker" is like "A Beautiful Mind" on a very, very bad hangover, in fact they try and pull some of the same tricks as that much better film.  Last night was cheapo ticket night and there were only about 20 people in the theater.  Oh, and in case you're wondering, they do bring in bits of the Batman story line, but to be perfectly honest they seemed more like filler.

I think they're in the Ceiling

I finished quite a few of the chores on my list yesterday, and still managed to get a nap in as well.  More importantly, I got a really good ride in.  16.1 miles, with lots of hills, one of which has a 17% grade.  I was pedal pushing!  Here's my route:

And here's the link if you want to see my stats.

I've finally finished the chapter where Bobby dances at the Long Branch.  Originally I had planned to use lyrics from an Owen Pallet song as background.  Well, that changed.  Things always do.  I chose something more appropriate, a song by the group The Score.

And I'm moving into Chapter 25 tentatively called... I think they're in the Ceiling, but, like everything else, that may change.
I guess Fiona Hill testified yesterday at the impeachment hearing.  More bad news for Rudy the G.  Even John Bolton was... alarmed.  Of course, I saw this and had to laugh.

Can we be honest here?  I mean, don't they all look like Russians?  

And, speaking of the Idiot Jerk, I guess he said something like "well, let the Russians, or the Syrians, or the Chinese protect the Kurds," and that ain't going over too well with his base.  You see, they still don't understand who he's answering to... I mean, look at the picture above.  

Farming with the Jellyheads

The first day of my weekend starts today!  Oh, and it's a minor holiday.  Columbus day has been in existence since 1971.  I have no idea why.  I mean, he never set foot on the continental United States.  An Italian by the name of Giovanni Caboto landed in Newfoundland a bit later, which might be a bit north, but is still part of the Continent.  The Brits call Caboto, John Cabot, but he was anything but British.  Ponce de Leon set up the first colony... in Florida... a bit before the Pilgrims set sail.  Surprise, these guys weren't really white.  What Columbus did which is far more important than his discovering Central America is... prove the world was not flat.  You do know that if the Idiot Jerk had been living 500 years ago, he'd have called that 'fake news.'
I have chores galore planned for today.  The weather is supposed to be nice both today and tomorrow.  Wednesday... the day I go back to work, they are forecasting rain.  I have no problem with that.  We've had a very dry summer here in Central Pa.  Not like the the farmers out in Iowa, they've had rain issues.  Of course, like true Republicans and supporters of the Idiot Jerk in the White House, they are blaming the Army Corp of Engineers... not climate change.  No light bulb is going off in their heads regarding that topic.  Nope, instead of scratching their temples and asking "what's with all of the rain,"  they're putting the blame on human beings... because the climate can't change.  The fact that this is beginning to happen in their lifetimes is boggling their little gray cells to the point where the pectin is beginning to break down.  In a few short years they will have mutated into jellyheads.  Oh, wait, that can't happen, that would be evolution.
And yesterday, while I was cleaning up the dog doo in the yard, I saw I had a bloom on my white rose bush.

There's a touch of brown around the edge, but that happens.

Rudy the G

Tomorrow's a holiday... I think.  Columbus Day.  I have off work because I'm scheduled to have off, so it isn't really a special day.  The weather is supposed to be nice.  Yard work is planned, as well as couple other chores.
I had a customer yesterday who relocated to the area from Long Island.  She and I had a nice conversation.  I said, "big culture shock, eh?"  And she nodded, "really big."  She grew up 7 blocks from Queens.  When I asked her what her biggest challenge had been she paused for a few seconds and then said, "I was surprised.  Everything was so.... white."  I told her "we're changing rapidly."  Someone who grew up in a very racially diverse city was surprised by how vanilla Central Pennsylvania is... or was.  Eleven years ago, when I started working at the store, seeing a person of color shopping our aisles was rare.  Not so today.  Not only are we diversifying rapidly in regard to color, we are doing so with nationalities as well.  Some speak English well, others don't.  Patience is a wonderful thing.  I helped 2 gentlemen yesterday who were looking for what turned out to be a water heater.  We turned it into a bit of a game, which was fun.  This is what terrifies the Republican Party and the White Evangelicals:  humanity as a whole.
I put over 45 minutes on the bike yesterday.  Rouvy said I was riding in Warm Springs, Oregon.  Since that route isn't recognized by Tacx, I was listed as doing a Power Ride.  They also listed me as riding 13.14 miles.  That's nice, not very accurate, but then Power Rides are never going to match mile for mile those attached to a route.
Yesterday the Idiot Jerk in the White House had lunch with his Henchie, Rudy the G.  Can you imagine what that conversation was like:

Idiot Jerk:  Shut up!
Rudy the G:  Yes sir, yes sir.
Idiot Jerk:  I said shut your fucking mouth!
Rudy the G:  Yes sir, yes sir.
Idiot Jerk:  There's a pardon in it if you shut up!
Rudy the G:  Yes sir, yes sir.
Idiot Jerk:  Well then just shut up!

And they used to be sooooo close.

Hhhmmm.  In case you're wondering, that pardon already has a price tag on it.

Broken Tools

Saturday.  Yesterday was my humpday.  It was actually no different then any other Friday.  My new schedule is out and again my weekend is going to fall on a Monday and Tuesday.  I also have Saturday off that week - Kid's Workshop.  The following week I'm taking some vacation time.  I will enjoy it, and no, I'm not going anywhere.  There's too much to do around the house.
I saw where Jane Fonda got arrested.  Gimme a break.  She's older than Bernie.  I guess she's still trying to prove she has that fire.  Quite a few Vietnam Vets don't like her - she went to North Vietnam as a way of protesting the war.  Without understanding why, she became a tool for the North Vietnamese, which was not what she intended to do.  Personally, I think that was just rather stupid on her part... like getting herself arrested yesterday.
Shepard Smith is leaving Faux News.  I'm sure Laura Ingraham is spinning on her hate dildo with glee.  My feelings are that they wanted to use him to rope Centrists and Independents into their hate festival, hopefully to indoctrinate the unsuspecting into racists and white Supremacist beliefs.  He finally had enough, choosing to no longer be their tool.  Of course, they think he's broken, but as in everything else, they're wrong.
And the Ex-ambassador to the Ukraine testified yesterday.  The Idiot Jerk in the White House thinks she's broken, too, mostly because she didn't cave into his demands.  The State Department had told her not to testify and she gave them the finger. 
And what about the Idiot Jerk in the White House?  You know that at first his Blow Bro Vlad was delighted.  He now had his own personal, tool in America.  That tool was going to reshape the country.  Sentiment was going to go pro-Vlad.  They were going to be Buddies in Arms.  The Idiot Jerk, however was not the right tool.  He's too inept.  He couldn't grow his base.  His ego kept getting in the way.  And, his corruption kept bobbing to the surface like a dead fish.  Vlad had hoped the Idiot Jerk would help him regain control of the Ukraine.  Oh... Hell!  Piss poor planning by the Idiot Jerk and his Henchies started flushing that down the toilet fast.  I mean, Vlad should have known right off the bat.  Losing the popular vote and only getting into the presidency through the Electoral College is not a good thing.  And then the Idiot Jerk began his Mini-Me dictatorship, issuing Executive Order after Executive Order to please his base... all the while alienating more and more Independent voters.  In business there needs to be growth in order to succeed and the Idiot Jerk was failing in that department.  All he's proven himself to be is a badly broken tool

Kissing Ass

So, I looked at the calendar this morning and saw that today's Friday.  My doesn't time fly when we're having fun? 
"The Body in the Well" is moving along nicely.  Over 54,000 words.  I'm prepping to write the next snakey part.  I know a lot of people reading the title don't exactly know what a well looks like, at least not the one I'm talking about.  They think of either a pipe sticking out of the ground or a round, stone well in which you might toss a coin to get a wish.  Nah.  One hundred and twenty odd years ago, when they dug a hole in the ground and ran a pipe down.  People used a hand pump to get water.  Sometimes when they abandoned these wells they covered them up.  Sometimes they didn't.  The well I'm talking about looks a lot like this:

I guess the Idiot Jerk in the White House held a rally in Minneapolis last evening.  His crazies showed up.  He shrieked something about 'Biden knowing how to kiss Obama's ass.'  Yeah, he did, to an audience that's almost entirely white.  Let me tell you, they are all quite angry.  Their little tinfoil dictator is teetering on the edge.  Everyday seems to bring new, and culpable evidence of his corruption.  Yesterday they arrested 2 of Rudy's henchies.  They had one way tickets out of the country.  You know, the two who bragged openly about their connections with the Idiot Jerk in the White House?  And... oh... dear me... Rudy also seems to have been involved with Turkey... and a gold trader.  You know?  Turkey, the country that just invaded northern Syria to kill our allies...   Yeah, you know who I'm talking about.  The country that just took delivery of a missile defense system from their ally Russia (bet Vlad made some big buckos there).  As more evidence is revealed, we  now know Rex Tillerson was not fired so much for his ineptness, rather he seems to have been let go because he refused to kiss the Idiot Jerk's ass.  Rudy does that well.  Rudy's in big, big trouble.  And you can bet the Idiot Jerk is nervously wondering if Rudy might flip to save his skinny ass.

Size matters

Thursday.  My new schedule was posted yesterday.  Three weeks out I get to work a 32 week.  Yippee!  That takes us into the 1st week of November.  The 2nd week is special to me.  I celebrate my birthday.  In honor of that great event I'm taking short respite from work.  For 4 days I will be able to do what I want.  Some of that time is going to be yard work.  Bulbs need to be planted.  Dahlias need to be dug up and stored.  Leaves need to be mowed.  Yep, that's right.  I prefer mowing and mulching my leaves.  Sure, it doesn't make my yard look pretty, pretty, pretty, but all those nutrients in the leaves will go back into the soil.  No one seems to think about that.  Nope, almost everybody wants a clean and leafless yard.
I saw where the Benghazi Bo Bo has joined the Idiot Jerk's legal team.  That's right, Trey Gowdy is now going to try and help the moral degenerate survive.  I have no doubt every morning Trey prays for guidance and... strength.  Don't you find that amusing?  I do.  That a god capable of creating the entire universe, stars, planets, blackholes, quasars, neutron stars, molecules, and muscles is going to give him strength in his fight against goodness.  You see, Trey has a problem with size.  His beliefs make him think he's much bigger than he actually is, more important, more special.  In truth, he is very, very small.  In truth, he will always be small.  In the scheme of things, Trey Gowdy isn't even the briefest of sparks.  This is something he will never learn.  While here on earth he may splutter around a while, in the universe he is smaller than an atom on the tip of his thumb.  He will never understand how size matters.
And, as I said earlier, Christmas arrived at the store on Monday.

In big brown boxes wrapped in cellophane.  And you thought Santa brought it...

NOW

My work week begins today.  Can you tell how excited I am?
Anyway, I have a number of small videos I'm working on - thanks to my GoPro.  There's just one little thing.  For some reason or other their editing software keeps attaching a soundtrack, canned music which has nothing to do with the clip.  I want people to hear what I'm saying - the soundtrack overrides that.  And their help?  It's online, and I keep getting an error message saying "Oops, connection failed."  This is not good.
There's also a bit of an issue with my Tacx software.  During yesterday's ride I got an error message which said "connection lost."  Everything works with Bluetooth.  And I have a Dongle...  a very nice dongle I might add.  I use a Rouvy cycling app rather than the Tacx app, though I do have the Tacx app on my phone, laptop, and PC (I'm a little anal about electronics).  I don't have a dongle for my PC (all I really need is one nice dongle), so that never connects, however I run the app on my phone when I ride.  That's where the disconnect happened.  Instead of registering a 42 minute ride, the app on my phone listed it as 21.09 minutes.  At some point I will send them an email.
Oh, and I ordered the 2020 Warwick Rower's calendar yesterday.  They sell a number of things on their website including an online subscription magazine for only 169 Euros.  Can you hear me laughing?

And, of course, the Idiot Jerk in the White House has chosen to... well, get his attorney's involved in this little impeachment party.  This was to be expected.  He's going to refuse to cooperate.  Couldn't his team think of an alternative action rather than one which makes him look inherently guilty?  Gallup did give him some good news yesterday.  Evidently American give him a higher job approval rating than they do a personal approval rating.  Oh, my... his job approval rating is a crazy 40%.  Only 34% of Americans, however, approve of his personal behavior.  Who gives him good ratings?  Republicans and.... Evangelical Christians.  They don't care how bad he makes them look as long as he gives them the power they so desperately crave.  All the while the numbers for those wanting an impeachment inquiry continue to rise.  A majority of Americans want answers... NOW.

Wowee

The forecast is for rain today - spotty, on and off, a shower here and a shower there, with a high of around 69 (F).  Good thing I wasn't planing any yard work.  There was a short break and Biggie went out for his morning pee.  He doesn't like the rain.  Lily has no problem.  She also likes to be toweled dry.
Breakfast with my brother was interesting.  We talked about a wide range of subjects.  His favorite is: who'll be the Democratic candidate for president.  I told him "it doesn't make a difference, whomever gets nominated is going to beat the Idiot Jerk."  I suspect he was expecting me to cite the impeachment.  Not me.  I pulled two other ingredients from the Idiot Jerks shit salad.  He promised to make coal mining rosy again - that ain't happening.  And those subsidies he's handing out to farmers financially hurt by his tariffs?  Well, they're going to the large, corporate farms, not the Mom and Pop farms, yet it was all those Mom and Pops who voted for him and now they're pissed.  Don't believe they're going to vote for a Democrat, they're not.  In fact, voting is not what they're going to do... at all.  They're going to sit this one out.
I completed the "ride to Blue Lagoon" yesterday, all 15.07 miles... in 56 minutes.  Interestingly enough, there's no Blue Lagoon anywhere on the ride.  You do see a lot of lava fields and steam vents but no beach, no lagoon.  In fact, the ride ends in a parking lot. 
And I went to see "Judy" last evening.  It was very, very good.  Zellweger is outstanding.  I had some trepidation on going in because biographies on a whole can be rather manipulative.  Take "Bohemian Rhapsody," in which Freddie Mercury's gayness was seriously chintzed out in order to appeal to straight audiences.  Not so with "Judy."  The warts are there for all to see.  More important, you see why the warts are there.  I don't believe your average film-goer can understand how brutal the studio system was with young stars, and how easily they were tossed side when their box office appeal died.
As for today, the second day of my weekend, I have some really excitement planned:  I'm getting my car inspected at 0800, and then I'm going to get my hair cut!  Wowee!  How can I contain myself?

Bongo Brains

So it's Monday morning and today's my Saturday. 
I'm having breakfast with my brother.  For those who don't know, he's a white (what can I say?  It runs in the family), Evangelical Republican who loves the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  This will be interesting.
I rode 13.7 miles yesterday on the new trainer.  The only thing you hear is the chain catching onto the teeth of the cassette.  This is so different from the humming buzz of the old trainer.  And where the old trainer was securely locked into place, the Tacx has a little left / right wobble as you pedal, very much like riding on the open road.  The only thing I'm not wild about is the Tacx cycling app.  You need to schedule your ride as an 'activity' before you ride.  I like to just get on the back, pick a route and start pedaling.  My main subscription is for Rouvy and I'm not planning on letting it lapse.
And isn't it funny watching the Republicans twist... and scream... and shout?  The impeachment, you know?  Their flabbergasted little asses are working non-stop in an attempt to pile bullshit.  Many of them feel this will backfire to the Idiot Jerk's advantage.  They like to point to the Clinton impeachment, where he was elected to a 2nd term.  The main difference between the two is they kept kicking Clinton when he was down.  They didn't know when to stop.  They still don't.  Look at the Benghazi hearings?  There's no intent on growing their base, just keeping them incensed.  The fact that Republicans and Conservatives, as well as Evangelical Christians, are minority groups doesn't even come into the picture.  Nor does the fact that those 3 groups are composed of the same individuals.  If you're an Evangelical Christian your also going to be a Conservative and a Republican.  These bongo brains will never learn.

The temp is actually around 70 (F) outside and they're forecasting rain on and off all day.  Looking at Accuweather, I see massive amounts of green heading my way.  We need it.  This has actually been a very dry summer.  Tomorrow is supposed to be overcast, cool, and a little dryer.  That means I can get some yardwork done.

The Heat is On!

I took yesterday off.  I went into full relax mode.  Only one load of laundry.  I didn't write a single word.  However, I did put the Red Synapse on the new Tacx trainer.  Interestingly enough, I don't need  to plug this trainer in, simply pedaling generates all the power needed.  Now, isn't that Green of Tacx?

I'm sending out wishes for a speedy recovery to AM's spouse - hip replacement.  May all of his physical therapists be attractive and wise.  That way he'll appreciate those hot therapy sessions.
And, of course, yesterday I did spend some time playing Ghost Recon: Breakpoint.  Character creation is one of the most important things you do.  You want to make yourself look good... right?  Well, what I can I say besides "oh... my God... I'm a Blonde!"  With a little blonde mustache.

Just call me "one hot blonde"

And Mitt Romney slammed the Idiot Jerk in the White House, his asking foreign governments... like the Chinese, for dirt in order to get himself re-elected.  And the Idiot Jerk flipped out.  He and his henchies know it's just a matter of time until there are enough Republican Senators lined up to vote for impeachment.  The idea that America is going to point it's steely finger at him and say "you're fired" is driving him over the edge.  This president is really nothing more than one hot mess.

Oh, and I just saw where talks between North Korea and the United States have just collapsed.  Yeah, I think that's the word they used.  Well, what were you expecting?  We have a blowhard, lying sack of shit in the White House.  My money says he and his spawn are already setting up safe house outside the country.

Finally, I did switch my thermostat from Central Air to Heat.  No, I don't use one of those fancy Nest thermostats, or something similar.  I set the temperature at 71 (F) and leave it alone.  I'm on the UGI budget plan.  I pay $57 a month.  For this past year, UGI owed my $5.27.  In the summer I'm cool and in the winter I'm warm. 

Lying for Years

It's Friday!  I'm off tomorrow!  Kid's Workshop!  I work Sunday and then... I begin my weekend.  I have the same schedule for the next three weeks.  Now, ain't that nice?  I sold fairly expensive blinds yesterday to 2 customers.  I really don't like selling blinds.  They have a lot of problems.  I dealt with one yesterday.  A customer bought 2 blinds for her 90 year old mother.  She wanted wands to open and close them... long wands - 48 inches and 60 inches.  When they arrived, the shorter one was made of wood and the longer one plastic.  They don't make 60 inch wooden wands.  I told her this when she ordered.  This is also printed on her order.  A shit storm ensued.  She wanted a 60 inch wooden wand and felt that for the money she was paying she should get... a 60 inch wand.  Management ended up giving her a nice discount.  For them it is more important to keep her as a future customer.
So, my new Shimano cassette arrives today, as does the tool I need to complete setting up my new trainer.  Will I ride this evening?  Probably not... well, I don't really know.  We'll have to wait and see.
Oh, and the Idiot Jerk in the White House openly asked China to investigate the Bidens.   Ho Ho Ho.  Republicans said "look, this is how he does business, this is normal for him."  Except, they forgot one little thing.  He didn't threaten to withhold aid to China, didn't threaten them.  He made an open request, didn't underhandedly try and extort.  Of course, dumb Republicans aren't going to know the difference.
And, horror of horrors, new tariffs have been enacted.  Irish whiskey and French wines are some of those where pricing is going to go up.  Son of a bitch.
Oh, and the jobs report comes out today.  It's expected to be soft.  Some are claiming the possibility we may see 'ugly' numbers.  How do we know the administration isn't somehow managing to inflate these numbers to make everything look rosie dosie?  I mean, Republicans have not been know for their honesty.  Like the Idiot Jerk, they've been lying for years.

On Shifting Gears

We have drizzle.  The forecast is for rain on and off throughout the morning and early afternoon.  We need the rain.  Interestingly enough, from now on the temps are rarely forecasted to rise above the high 60's.  This means fall is finally here.  I turned off my Central Air.  Haven't pulled the woolly blankets from the cedar chest yet... but that's head this way fast.
At 11:10 yesterday morning my new trainer arrived.

Holy crap.  This thing ways 70 lbs.  The Neo works with my Rouvy.  The Tacx app is downloaded into my phone.  The new cassette is arriving tomorrow, as well as the tool to tighten the cassette to the trainer.  Translating 'Bikeese' into the vernacular - this is a cassette:

These are the gears for your bike.  Your chain will moved from larger gear to lower gear as you shift.  This is what it looks like when assembled:

The cassette fits on the hub of the trainer and your bike is attached.  Biggie was not impressed.

And, instead of shifting gears, the Idiot Jerk in the White House let loose with a salvo of anger yesterday.  There was some sort of press conference with the Finnish Ambassador and all the reporters wanted to do was ask the Idiot Jerk about the impeachment.  Can we talk about Karma here?  I cannot even begin to imagine the turmoil roiling around inside the Idiot Jerk's head as he tries to trade off one insanity for another.  Nothing is working for him anymore.  All his shitty tricks are being exposed.  And his delusional base keeps sending his campaign money - $135 million was the last figure which I believe gets credence.  They don't understand he and his spawn are already siphoning that money away.  As time passes, his desperation will increase, and his behavior become more erratic.  He has absolutely no clue on how to shift gears. 

Slowing them down... in his words

Well, it looks as though I won't be going in to work today.  My new Tracx Trainer arrives, courtesy of FedEx.  A signature is required so I will be home.  I already told them yesterday at work, but will call again in about an hour to remind them.  In case anybody is wondering, I won't be lollygagging around the house today.  There are things to do.  My red Synapse needs to be taken off the old Cycleops Magnus trainer.  I have to order a tool to put the Shimano cassette on the new Tacx.  And I'm thinking of getting a mat to put underneath the bike.
There's also the new software to download.  For those who don't know, Tacx is a Dutch company (yep, this trainer was manufactured in the Netherlands), that is owned by Garmin.  I have a Rouvy app right now.  Tacx has it's own application.  I will need to check both out and see which one best fits my needs.
As for the Cycleops Trainer?  An associate at work said she'd take it....  I don't see her using it.  Believe me, that's important to me.  This year alone, I've put over a thousand miles on the Cycleops.  Figuratively speaking, this trainer has been all over the world.  I want to make sure whoever gets it puts a bike on it and rides.  Riding On... you know?
There was some bad news yesterday in regard to the economy.  Manufacturing is slowing down.  Oops.  Almost everybody knows this is because of the Idiot Jerk's tariffs.  Get ready, he's going to blame it on the impeachment inquiry.  Like a true Conservative, every inch of bad news is the result of Democrats' investigation into his corruption.  If Lorenzo happens to hit the US mainland, it will be because of those damn Democrats.  I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to enjoy this.  I'm also betting there haven't been this many 'F' bombs exploding in the White House since Tricky Dick Nixon realized he was in the same leaky boat.  I do have one suggestion.  If he, and Ivanka Danka, and Donnie Jr, and the rest of his spawn try to run when the realize their end is near, we should probably shoot them in the legs to slow them down.   🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️
In other chirpy news:
The temps are forecast to reach 90 (F) today - and it's October and my Central Air is still running.
The North Koreans fired off another missile... from a submarine.
And I still have roses.

Word of the Day

Yesterday was one of.... "those days."  I went in to Holmes Cyclery to pick up my T-shirt, the one Trek bikes gave me for riding more than 100 miles in July.  The store has undergone a large renovation - it's very modern now.  My description of EZM Cyclery is based on the way it looked for years, and old store from the 1920's.  I didn't say the word of the day because... well, I was happy to pick up my gift.

I went to the store, did 4 loads of laundry, a little cleaning.  Got everything ready to make a quiche for dinner (mushrooms, asparagus, and Swiss cheese), and then went upstairs for a ride.  Squeezing my rear tire, I though it might be able to use a couple of pounds.  Bicycle tires have tubes so you don't really need to worry about them once they're pumped up.  Occasionally, though, you do need to add a pound or two.  I unscrewed my clutch knob to release tension on the back tire and grabbed my pump.  It didn't take much.  As a went to tighten my clutch knob, it clicked once and then spun freely.  Word of the day.  That's right, the damn thing broke.  I've had this trainer for 21 months....  I've only put air into that tire, oh, maybe 8 times.  Word of the day.  So, I went to the Cycleops website to see if I can order a new knob and... this model is "no longer available."  Word of the day.  I called Cycleops and they're send me a new clutch knob because it's still under warranty.   This surprised me.  The clutch knob is one of the things the warranty doesn't cover.

My clutch knob

I was more irritated rather than angry.  If I start to take this bike out on the road rather than the X6, that new knob is going to get turned quite a bit, which is why they're not covered in the warranty.  Word of the day.  The end result was I started looking at other trainers, ones that don't require a clutch knob.  And I began to rationalize the expense of a new trainer.  Sometimes that's an easy thing to do.  Of course, that also meant pondering about upgrading as well.  Till all was said and done, I ended up ordering one of these:

It's supposed to arrive tomorrow.  Since it was rather expensive, I will go to work for a little bit and then come home.  I don't want this little baby sitting on my front porch.

As for my Word of the day, I'm fairly certain it's not nearly as bad as Rudy Giuliani's Word of the Day.  And the Idiot Jerk's Word of the day?  Holy Shit!  And with 45% of the American people now saying the Idiot Jerk should be impeached, his base is beginning to shriek their own Word of the day.  And those Republican Senators up for re-election?  If they have to chose between their career and the Idiot Jerk, you know which way their vote is going to go.

As for my Word of the day?  Well, it's not just one word.  It's a phrase.  I'll give you a hint.  The first word is 'son.'