Think About It

Good morning, World!  Today is the last day of August.  Fall is heading our way and in roughly 22 days it will arrive on our doorstep.  I suspect there are quite a few people in this country who will be ready for the cooler weather.  I know I will be, just so my electric bill gets a break.  Kilowatt charges went up in June because... well, even utilities need to keep their stockholders happy.

Biggie's visit to the Vet was less expensive than I had been anticipating:  $162.  I was expecting the charges to be much higher because besides the exam he was also getting 2 inoculations:  distemper and rabies.  His weight hasn't changed, he's still 114.  Like most humans, he was a bit cringey about getting on the scale; it took 3 of us.  She suggested increasing the frequency and dosage of his gabapentin, besides the 2 he gets in the morning and evening, a 5th capsule in the middle of the day might help him with his stiffness.  They gave him doggie cookies, though, and that made everything hunky dory. 

Here's a sticker of Dark Brandon that Meidis Touch is selling.  If you're interested, you can pick it up at their website.

I went to see 3000 Years of Longing last evening.  I liked it.  Idris was good.  Tilda was great!  For those who don't know, it's the story of a djinn trying to convince a scholar who field of study is narratology to make her 3 wishes.  It's a character study of 2 individuals and their road to happiness told with lavish sets and special effects.  I enjoyed the spectacle but found the ending a little too anticlimactic, at least at first, until I realized that for many of us, our own lives are rather anticlimactic.  

And, of course, at 1159 PM last evening, the DOJ provided their response to Judge Cannon regarding the Special Master which Trump had requested.  By now, I'm sure many of you have seen the picture they provided.  You do not need a Special Master to decide if something Top Secret.  I found some the added details they provided quite telling, such as 3 of the classified documents were found not in the storage compartment, but rather were discovered in desks.  As someone who has worked in both HR and Accounting, I can tell you that the only things usually kept in desks are reference materials, and projects you are currently working on, everything else gets filed away.  So, were these documents being used as reference materials, or were they part of a large project?  Think about it.  One thing I did see is that the DOJ has a policy of not charging a political candidate within 60 days of an election, though it was pointed out that Trump is not a candidate.  The word is that an indictment should be coming in possibly late November or early December.

 

Something Big

 Yesterday was interesting.  I was the only specialist at the Flooring Desk; they still haven't replaced the specialist who resigned.  Having been in HR, I know this is saving them money, and sales in the department are not hurting.  I doubt very much if there's any sort of rush to fill the position.  They have hired a full-time evening aisle associate.  He will be trained to handle many of the duties of a specialist which solves a large part of the problem.  

Biggie goes to the Vet today.  As you might expect, his cough is completely gone.  The last time he'd been there, they'd asked that he 'fast' before his next visit.  They're going to be disappointed since the only way he takes his meds is with food.  

I've been slowly going through the process of filling out the paperwork with Barnes & Noble to begin publishing with them.  When publishing through Kindle Direct, you agree to not publish through any other outlet for a year.  This means I have 4 books in the Eli and Max series that can now be sold through Barnes & Noble.  I'm running each of them through the Word Editor for a finetuning.

Been hearing this song on the radio a lot.  We Are Who We Are.  Can anything be more truthful?

As the midterms approach, everything seems in flux.  The Pundits are in disarray.  That which was expected is becoming a faltering wish that has fallen far from the conservative star.  Scrambling to save themselves, Republicans are floundering and offering their mistakes up for America to pick apart.

Take Brian Kemp down in Georgia, hoping to be re-elected as governor.   He was subpoenaed by the Grand Jury to be questioned on his role in Trump's attempt a voter fraud.  Of course, he didn't want to do this because incriminations might ensue.  So, he appealed, and a judge has ruled that he must comply, however, since it is an election year, he will not have to testify until after November 8.  Now, I don't know about you, but I'm hearing Stacey Abrams saying, "thank you judge are going to be wondering what can be so damning in Mr. Kemp's testimony that it has to wait until after the election."

Of course, the judge who's considering Trump's request for a Special Master has allowed the DOJ to increase to 40 pages, the reasons legitimizing the FBIs confiscating all those boxes of confidential documents from Mar a Lago.  Prepare for another shoe to drop.

I have never signed up for Trump's Truth Social, but others have.  He's shrieking like a rat in a trap.  I find that almost fulfilling.

Finally, Biden's giving a Prime-Time speech from Philadelphia on Thursday evening.  There are whispers that something is is coming.  Something big.

Republican Blackmail

 Well, I get to go to work today.  That fact is sweetened by the fact that I will also have the next 2 days off.  For those who don't know, life is about balance.  The more we keep things on an even plain, the happier we are.  

Even though the forecast claims we have 0% chance of rain, the sky outside is heavily overcast.  A little rain would be nice.

I got a lot done yesterday, including a 2.5 mile walk through Herculaneum.  It is not nearly as tourist friendly as Pompeii.  

Twitter gave me headaches yesterday.  First of all, I got a message I was being locked out for sending threatening or harassing Tweets.  There was no example, but not knowing what else to do, I clicked 'next.'  A few minutes later telling me that there was suspicious activity on my account, and I was being locked out for them to verify.  Shortly after that I got a warning telling me there was no email attached to my account.  Well, shit.  How could that be when I'd been verified?  So, I tried signing into my account and got a warning:  wrong password.  Suddenly, there's no email attached to the account and the password I've used since day one is wrong.  Son of a bitch!  What did I do?  I set up a new account.  Easy Peasy.  No problem.  What happened to my old account?  I have no idea.

Looking out my front window this morning, I saw that my elephant ear plant had been devastated.  As you can see in the picture, the culprit was still nearby.  This is what happens when you live in Bunny Hell.

And, of course, people are talking about Lindsey Graham's visit to the Trey Gowdy show on Fox News last evening.  You remember Trey, don't you?  Benghazi, Benghazi, Benghazi?  Those failed hearing which cost the American taxpayer over $160 million in the Republican attempt to blame Hillary for the incident at Benghazi?  Well, last evening Lindsey told Trey that if Trump were indicted there would be riots.  Now, I don't know about you, but that sounds I think that sounds a lot like Republican Blackmail; the sort of warning a crime boss might make.  Trump, himself, while not make the threat himself, is using the same rhetoric he used going into January 6.  Personally, I'm at the point where I'm saying, "bring it on."  This MAGA cult Trump controls?  They are a cancer.  If they get away with this shit now, they will only grow worse.  The time for niceties is over.  We do not cave into threats of violence.  A large majority of Americans has had it up to their ears with both Trump and the Republican party.  Trump needs to be indicted and jailed along with Lindsey Graham and the rest of these losers.

The Age of Empires is Past

 Holy Crap!  Did I sleep in late this morning!  That was not my intention.  I even went to bed early 10 PM, however, this morning when my alarm went off, I went back to bed.  Damn!  Not exactly what I wanted to happen.  Good thing I didn't have any early morning plans.

While the coffee was brewing, I check the mouse traps - nothing. so, the one I caught may have been going it solo.

And yesterday, since the little laptop was once again working, I added another 45 minutes to my walk through Pompeii.  Interesting point, for the first half of the 5-hour walk, the guide was popping in lots of subtitles regarding points of interest, now, however, as I approach the end of the walk, all he does is identify the houses by name which is disappointing.

I made strawberry French toast for breakfast.  It was rather tasty.

Evidently Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee in Florida is considering possibly appointing a Master to review the documents seized by the FBI.  While this Master may get to review certain documents that might have attorney / client privilege, it will have no bearing on those documents posing a national security risk.  As a delaying tactic by Trump, this is failing since it only covers his personal notes, papers, and letters, like his order from McDonalds, or the perfume drenched notes from Kim Dumb Shit from North Korea.

Ain't it great Mastriano can't seem to get a break?  A picture surfaced of him wearing a confederate uniform for a group shot of teachers at the Gettysburg War College.  As Adam Kinzinger pointed out, he's wearing the wrong uniform.  Pennsylvania was part of the Union Army, from the North.  So far Mastriano's team has not responded as to why he was wearing the uniform of traitors.

And finally, a bit about the 2 large authoritarian governments on this planet.  To put it mildly, Trouble is brewing for them.  Russian troops in Kazakhstan are refusing to return home - the don't want to be sent to the Ukraine.  And Chechnya? That country is arming itself because they don't Putin invading them next.  His 3-day work, which has been going on for over 6 months now, is going poorly, and the Russian people are starting to realize he fed them a lie.

And Xi, in China?  His zero tolerance for Covid is devastating that country's economy.  People can't build cars, or make phones, or cuckoo clocks when they're forced to stay home.  Someone needs to tell these losers that the age of empires is past.  Their only choice for survival is democracy. 

Recovery

 I hope everyone is having a good weekend, those that aren't working, and for those that are, may the hours pass fast.

Here in Central PA, yesterday started off great, much was being accomplished and I was feeling quite satisfied until mid-afternoon.  And then?  Son of a bitch.  I was preparing to continue my walk through Pompeii, had my cute jogging sneakers on, the Senso earbuds hanging from my shoulder, however, when I went to turn on the little laptop connected to the TV the old familiar screen didn't pop up.  Nope.  I got a blue screen and an error message:  

Well, damn.  The culprit?  An update that went... awry might be an acceptable word to use.  The recovery process was not arduous; however, it did entail resetting the little laptop which took too much time.  Almost an hour.  Now that doesn't sound like much, but my momentum was thrown completely off.  By the time the reset was complete, it was time to make dinner and feed the dogs, and for about an hour and a half I was cranky.

I must say, though, reading the bits and pieces of the affidavit that had not been redacted buoyed my spirits.   I found it interesting that the process to get the documents Trump stole stared in May of 2021, much earlier than I had thought.  The fact that there were handwritten notes on some of the documents is important.  In fact, so much damning information was released in the redacted version, one can't even begin to imagine what was blacked out.

Karl Rove saying the best thing Trump could do right now was to shut up and let his attorneys handle this was worth a hardy har har har.  Trump shut up?  

And almost right on cue, Hunter Biden's laptop reared its ugly head in MAGA LAND. The too, too pale Mark Zuckerburg told Joe Rogan that the FBI had asked that they limit the amount of importance that little turd was getting on Facebook because they were certain it was part of a Russian disinformation program.  Of course, MAGAs only heard the part they wanted to hear, the bit of Russian plot to skew the election was totally lost on them.  Think about it.  They're more upset by was Zuckerburg said than the fact that a very treasonous Trump was probably peddling intelligence secrets the Russkies and the Saudis think he was important.

Let's be honest, this will take the Republican party a longer to recover from than my little laptops Bitlocker issue.

Fiery Brandon

 I don't know about you, but I'm grew up thinking the week actually ended on Sunday.  You know?  Having to work for 6 days before reaching that 7th day of rest.  Think about that for a second.  We were never supposed to have 2 days off in a row.  Never.  Only 1.  And even then, Sunday was never supposed to be anything like Funday.  

Anyway, Lily had to go potty outside around 0100 because she doesn't go before climbing the stairs and jumping on the bed.  As she was outside doing her late-night business, I checked the traps.  Success.  One mouse down.

Yesterday, work was meh.  I had a young couple who'd had a measure done for laminate flooring.  The estimate came back much higher than they were expecting, mostly because they didn't have proper dimensions, so the estimate was off.  They will some of the last customers to get an estimate.  We are using a new procedure called SAM that no longer gives an estimate.  Believe me.  Estimates are almost always off.  Sometimes big time.  

One of the main reasons I'm on Facebook is the USS Constellation page.  Pictures get posted which help people understand what life was like on an aircraft carrier.  Here's a berthing compartment similar to the one for Division 90, CIC (Radar), the only difference being we had a green floor and green curtains.  This was taken when we were in port.  At sea, the overhead lighting was red.

And here's the hanger bay.  It was very large.  It's the 01 level.  CIC was on the 03 level.  To get there, you went up a staircase below the AIMD sign, turned right and down the hallway past Communications, and up another staircase to the 03 level.  We were located directly below the flight deck.  Click to embiggen.

With less than 3 months until the midterms, things are really starting to pop across the country.  Biden gave a speech yesterday in which he said pretty much heading into fascism.  Some want to call this version of him Dark Brandon, I, however like Fiery Brandon.  

I was quite pleased to see the White House starting to call out those Republicans shrieking about the student debt relief.  Mike Kelly from PA, almost a million $ in PPP written off.  Republicans weren't expecting this.  They thought there was no way the Democrats were going to kick them in the nuts.  Wow!  Guess who's regretting now wearing a cup?  Dumb asses.

And, of course, there is the Roe v Wade issue.  In their attempt to lock in the Cracker Jack Crazy Christian vote, legislators in the very red states passed extreme laws against abortion, and now their 'oh shit,' moment is happening.  Who do these stringent hurt the most?  The working classes.  Paraphrasing Ruth Bader Ginsberg, "any woman with means, will always find a way to get an abortion."  Now tell me, why would the very male Republican party think about women at all.

Penises Everywhere

 Say hello to Thursday in the mid-state.  That's what we call Central PA around here, of course every state has a mid-state as well as a north and a south.  I'm curious as to what happens in one of the north or south states when something happens in the north, or south.  Do they say north, North Carolina or south, South Dakota?

Yesterday was a good day.  Much was accomplished.  It was also the anniversary of the Vesuvius eruption which destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum.  One of the media outlets, perhaps it was ABC had a headline about the eruption saying 20,000 people had perished.  That number is not correct.  As soon as the ash started falling people began to leave.  They were not stupid.  They didn't huddle in their houses in fear.  They left.  Most people today don't know that there was a Plinian eruption prior to the pyroclastic flows (6 altogether) which lasted almost 20 hours and buried the city in almost 9 feet of ash.  There were only around 2000 people left by the time the actual eruption happened.  Being buried in ash is why the city is so well preserved.  

On my treadmill, I'm over halfway through a 5 hour walk of Pompeii.  Funny thing:  At first the tour guide mentioned phallic symbols as being prevalent, then he called them members, now he just zooms the camera in so you can see them... all of them.  There are Penises everywhere.  This is a picture of a bakery; I did not take a picture of a penis.  Many of the ovens had a penis in the brickwork above them.  Scholars believe the Pompeiians thought the penis was good luck. 

Of course, Biden signed an Executive Order yesterday on student loan debt.  Republicans went through the roof.  The smart ones know this move was pure politics.  Mitch McConnell may have been the only one to point this out.  He's a selfish, lying sack of shit, but he isn't stupid.  75 days from the midterm elections?  How could you not think otherwise.  As for the debt forgiveness part of the order?  It may come to pass, if it ever overcomes all of the legal challenges that are going to be thrown up against it.

And, not too surprising, Trump's amateur hour attorneys had their second attempt to file their silly lawsuit thrown out again because they don't know what they're doing.  The judge actually told them where to find an example they can follow in order to try and get it right.

Finally, from Newsweek, the documentarian who testified before the January 6 committee had a little Q & A on reddit.  Things we learned:  he can barely stomach Trump.  Eric's terrified of Donnie Jr.  Donnie Jr and Ivanka are just like their old man.  Trump is obsessed with his appearance and always wears a lot of makeup.

Good Gosh, it's Wednesday

Good Gosh!  It's Wednesday.  If you're in a 5-day work week that began on Monday, this is your Hump Day.  However, if you're semi-retired like me, or are fully retired, or just don't have to work, then tomorrow, Thursday, is your Hump Day.  Because of the schedule I've set up for myself, I will always work on my Hump Day.  

Yesterday morning, as I went to start the coffee brewing, I saw mouse droppings behind the coffee maker.  That's means it's time to set the traps again.  

I called a made an appointment for Biggie at the $$$ Vet yesterday.  He still has his cough, but it's not nearly as bad as it was, still, he needs to get a shot or two so I figured he might as well get checked out.  Because he's a dog, and he has a cough, they're treating this as if it were Kennel Cough.  This means I need to call them when I arrive, and they'll let me know when an examination room is ready.  You can bet there's going to be $$$ in that wait.

As I was preparing to suck the dust bunnies from under my futon, I snapped this picture of Lilly with her own bunny.

And being that today is a Wednesday during primary season, it goes to figure that there were elections on Tuesday.  As every person with a sound mind should have expected, the Cracker Jack Crazies failed.  From New York down to Florida, there was failure, except for Matty Gaetz.  Of course, Republicans are always going to go with pervy with the weird hair who likes sleeping with very, very young girls women.  Loony Laura Loomer lost by a decent % and she's wailing about voter fraud.  Expect this. These people will never concede since that would make them look like losers in the eyes of their savior Donald J.

What is considered a bellwether special election, Democrat Pat Ryan won in a district that leans Republican.  He ran on abortion rights.  Fellow Democrats take note, the Republicans shit in their pants on this one.  The time has come to hold their noses to the grindstone and make them pay.

Oh, and prepare yourselves, there will be some interesting news coming from the Trump camp today.  You see, his desperate ploy to sue the United States was kicked back by a judge he put in place because there were sooooo many mistakes.  And that judge?  She's a little pissed at him for filing in her district because he thought she'd be a pushover.  Anyway, his team of inexperienced attorneys has until today to refile correctly.

And finally, I saw this bit in the Washington Post about Herschel saying his campaign was genius.  I found it worth a chortle, or two, or three.

 

Don't we have enough trees?

Well, my mid-week weekend has begun.  For some reason, I seem to get more accomplished on a Tuesday and Wednesday then I did when my weekends were the standard Saturday and Sunday.  Perhaps the idea of not working has become so ingrained with those 2 days I usually end up frittering away the hours rather than get anything done.

One the things getting done today is a trip to the bank.  I closed out an old 401K I'd had with the orange retailer I work for, and the check arrived Saturday.  The taxes have already been taken out, so it will be deposited into the regular savings account.  Since taxes are always going to be deducted, I figured the Federal Government might as well get their money now.

Another thing I need to do is call the Vet and make an appointment for Biggie.  He needs his wellness checkup.  I was going to put that off until November because they want him to fast (like that's really going to happen) so they can check his sugar.  But yesterday morning he developed a dry cough and since he is approaching his senior years, I want to get him check out.

I found a better picture of Max Sullivan, the namesake of the smartass in my books.  It's old and grainy, but it's easy to see the smartass in him.  

And, of course, we had a bumper crop of Trump horseshit yesterday.  He wants a 'master' to review the documents he stole for espionage's sake.  This is what he's done his entire life, sue to stop or delay the proceedings, or to simply just attack.  Media outlets seem to have finally understand they need to call his lies... well, lies.  Calling them unsubstantiated falsehoods is one of the definitions of failure.  One thing that is fascinating about his lawsuit, is that it's Per Se, which means he is going to argue the case himself rather than have his attorneys in front of a judge.  Either they didn't want to touch it, or he believes himself to be a more convincing liar.  Also keep in mind, this will also endear him even more to his MAGA base.

Also, McConnell sort of, well, kind of went on the attack saying there was no election fraud, or rather he said the was very little election fraud.  This was after Florida taxpayers spent $3.9 million so Ronnie De Santis could give them 20 instances.  Keep in mind, those incidents did not include the Republican fraud that happened in The Villages.

And, finally, this bit of political hilarity.  From the Washington Post: Which Republican candidate is the worst?   Who do you think?  While many believe Oz is the most incompetent?  "His across-the-board incoherence remains unmatched," says a lot.  And I do believe this was before Walker, talking about Climate Change, said "don't we have enough trees?"

Just Leave It

Well, a new workweek begins, and since it is Monday, I have to work.  I'll be racking in 8 hours at the Flooring Desk.  Yesterday business was steady for the 3 hours when the 'after church' crowd showed up, but from 2 in the afternoon things slowed down.  That's fine.  The associate who fell off the roof returns to work today, that will help.

One of the things I've begun to dislike about working till 7 PM is that when I get home, I don't really feel like doing anything.  It's almost as if I'm entering a veggie zone.  So, I'm thinking of doing a change to my availability, maybe only work till 5 PM on the days they can schedule me to work.

As I've told you, while on the treadmill I watch YouTube videos.  One is of the Acropolis.  During the walk it's mentioned that back in the early 1800s, the Brits chopped some marble horses from their pedestals and took them home.  This has evidently created a big controversy because the agreement they made appears to be somewhat surreptitious, and the Greeks want them back.  Personally, I think the Brits are in the wrong here.

I've always been a big fan of the group Yes, having seen them multiple times in concert.  Back in 1984 they came out with a smash album titled 90125, which had two of their big hits: Owner of a Lonely Heart and Leave It.  What is truly interesting about Leave It is that the band made 18 individual videos to go with the song, 15 of which aired on MTV.  While they have notes and very short clips of some of the videos, on Version 11 is complete and is considered the official version.  If anybody out there has any of the other videos, let someone of importance know, they're trying to locate them.  Here is Version 11.

 I saw an interesting piece in the New York Times titled Mike Pence is Spineless.   I wondered how many Americans came to this conclusion a long time ago.  Any aspirations he has in running for the presidency are simply delusional.  No MAGA worth his weight in shit will ever vote for him and the line of Democrats queuing up to vote for him is still empty.

And, of course, the big news yesterday is that Democracy in now the number one concern among Americans as we prepare to head towards the midterms.  Republicans gambled that it would be inflation, but then Republicans have never really had their finger on the pulse of what Americans want.  Rather than ask, they have always preferred to simply say "shut up, we're in charge."  As for the investigation into Trump?  40% of Americans wish the DOJ would Leave It alone.  I suspect this is because the more scabs that get pulled off, the more people realize how badly Republicans have wounded Democracy.  Of course, we're going to keep pulling off the scabs, and while the video is interesting, the GOP is just going to be left hanging upside down, which surprisingly enough is Version 1, the one version MTV viewers turned off the most.

Follow the Money

 Another lazy Sunday has arrived.  Since I'm scheduled to work, however, I can't just laze around.  For about 7 hours I will be at the Flooring desk.   Sunday afternoons are usually slow.  Luckily, I'm not scheduled to work alone so conversation will help pass the time.  Most of the college kids who work the summer have gone back to school, meaning staffing is bad.  Payroll accounting dictates you don't begin to hire any replacements until they are gone.  Paying a seasoned associate and a trainee to do the same job is bad business.  Supposedly, they have hired an PM associate for flooring, but until I actually see someone, I'm going to bridle my anticipation.  Oh, and if anyone is wondering, the Haitian has moved on.  An interesting thing about him:  his last name was Jules, and one of the recurring characters in my books is a Frenchman named Jules Laurent, so when I was talking to him, I was having a conversation with Jules.

My high school graduating class had a mini reunion on Friday evening.  I didn't go.  I say mini because my class was 286 strong and only about 17 showed up.  Whomever is in charge is either not communicating well enough, or there's simply not enough interest.  I'm betting it's the interest.  While I wouldn't mind meeting up with some of my class members again, my life has moved on so much from high school.  There are not a lot of cherished memories, perhaps because I never truly fit in.  Not that I wasn't involved in a lot of extracurricular activities.  I was.  The Drama Club, the Spanish Club, the Bowling Club, the Astronomy Club, a member of the Yearbook Staff, I was one of those who wrote the cute, little captions that went with the pictures, and the blurbs that went besides every Senior's picture.  The activities were fun, but none were gamechangers for my life.

Today's picture comes from when I was in Paris.  Notre Dame, pre burn, of course.  What you can't see are the small group of young men who were standing to my right.  They were taking pictures, too, holding each other upside down.  You know, that's what you do when you're young and in Paris, hold your friend upside down so his feet are pointing up in the air and have your picture taken in front of Notre Dame.

And finally, can we talk about Republican financing?  Everyone was stunned when the RRSC began pulling funds from Senate candidates.  Now we know they burned through... oh, let's just say $140 million to be kind.  They're accounting looks sketchy.  Some of them are eyeing Rick Scott, whose Health Care group was found guilty of Medicare fraud and fined millions.  Now, heading into the midterms, the Republicans are finding themselves desperate for cash and the only ones they can turn to are their MAGA base.  That's right, the same ones they've been bleeding dry for almost 6 years.  Unfortunately for the GOP, they're in competition for those $$$ with Trump.  Every other day he seems to be starting a new "Save My Ass" fund, and that's who the MAGA $$ are flowing to.  He's helping to kill their party.

Oh, and he's evidently going to be in Wilkes-Barre on September 3 to help Mastriano and Oz.  Wouldn't it be nice if he was indicted by then?

The Jolly Holiday

Here in Central PA, temps climbed into the low 90s (F) yesterday.  The forecast is the same for today.  And, whereas Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday had been very productive, yesterday turned out to be not so much.  I laid around, sometimes passing the hours by watching obscure YouTube videos.  What a waste of time.

Lily had her cake and ice cream.  Loved it.  Boxers are considered big dogs, not large dogs, except for Biggie whose weight puts him in the large category.  Being a nine-year-old big dog, Lily is now officially a senior citizen.  I've just started her on 150 mg of Carprofen to help whatever minor discomfort she might have.  Jumping off the bed can be an issue for her, depending on how she lands.  The stairs, not so much of one, yet.  And as she gets older, I will probably spoil her more than she already is.  Here's a pic of her bowl of cake and ice cream.

As I was leaving my local Giant supermarket yesterday, my sister called to ask if I had any skeletons in my closet.  Well, not that I know of, so I told her so, and she began to laugh.  It seems as though the police arrest a local man for buying body parts.  Now, when I mean local, I don't mean Harrisburg, I mean Enola, my town.  Son of a bitch!.  Local means 4 blocks away.  Damn!  He bought them from a woman who'd stolen them from the University of Alabama in order to sell them locally.  Holy Shit!  Local police are working in conjunction with the FBI.  

I saw where Lindsey Graham lost another appeal.  All of his appeals make him look just as guilty as if he'd simply gone and used the 5th amendment several hundred times.  Might now be a good time for us to start reaching for our canes and parasols? 

And, what about that Billy Barr memo?  Evidently both he and Mueller came to the conclusion that a sitting president couldn't be indicted and so what they released was heavily redacted.  It was sort of like "hey, we can't arrest him because he's president, so let's not tell America how much he relied on Russia to get elected, and how much he, and the Russians, obstructed this investigation."  I suspect that when the unredacted version is released, it will almost be like a jolly holiday with Mary.

Damage Control

 Today is Lily's Birthday!  Nine years old!  Like Biggie, who has arthritis in his hips, she too has started taking her time sitting down, so one of her presents this morning was 1/4 dose of his doggie nsaid.  Later this afternoon, the real celebrating will begin with cake and ice cream.  Vanilla all around.

And yesterday was another day of accomplishments!  Productivity.  Chores that need to be completed are getting done.  One that desperately needed to be started and finished was the trimming of my holly shrub out front.  I've been putting it off for so long mostly because I didn't want to stand on a ladder using the trimmer.  But... now it's fully trimmed, and there are 5 bags of trimmings sitting on my front porch.  Once a month the township does lawn waste pick-up, they will disappear then.

The shrub

Bet you'll never guess where I bought these bags!

I'm almost half-way through my five-hour walk of Pompeii. One of the many things I've learned: the town wasn't completely covered by the eruption, so after it was over survivors and looters went back and broke through the roofs.  They were evidently very polite, because after they'd gotten what they could, they'd paint "house dug" on the building so no one would waste their time looking for things that had already been taken.

And things have been quiet on the political scene.  Sort of.  That ass wipe Mitch McConnell did fart out something on how it looked as though the Republicans were not going to retake the Senate.  He's blaming it on unqualified candidates, you know, the ones Trump endorsed.  As for retiring, it seems as though that comment he'd made about not wanting to be Minority Leader was (no surprise here) a lie.  

Oh, and there is the possibility of a redacted section of the affidavit used for the search of Mar a Lago might be released.  Republicans want this.  They believe it will strengthen their hand.  Of course, they never thought the DOJ would release a list of the contents recovered.  I'm betting something will dribble out possibly by the end of next week, or the beginning of the following week and once again they will be running around doing damage control.

Pleas and Testimonies

 So, I slept in this morning.  Well, that's if you call starting to rise and shine at 0630.  

Lily was restless last night; I had to let her out twice.  Now she's sleeping on the sofa in the writing room, and when I go downstairs for coffee, she gives me one of those looks that try to guilt me into thinking I'm disturbing her. She should know by now that doesn't work.  Tomorrow's her birthday.  She'll be 9 years old.  That means cake and ice cream.  I know that even if I tell her today, tomorrow it will still be a surprise.

A few years back I bought a Lenovo tablet that came with a charging dock, rather than a plug.  It looked great, and sounded great, and could definitely handle the tasks it was intended to do; however, it was a terrible purchase.  It needed to be perfectly vertical in the dock for it to charge.  Since the dock was made to let the tablet sit at 2 different angles, charging didn't always take place and the battery life was about 4 hours.  The table was cheap, but it was also a piece of shit, and I ended up using it as a clock.  Yesterday, it died.  The bezel separated from the back cover by almost 1/4 inch.  Piece of shit.  Now it's trash.

I've put The Elden Ring onto the back burner, while I liked playing it, I prefer games in which your experience levels you up.  So, I bought a copy of Cyberpunk 2077, it's an RPG / shooter.  The game was released too soon, there were so many glitches, CD Project Red was forced to give refunds.  That was over a year ago.  Quite a number of patches have fixed the game.  For those of you on the naive side, this is the game which starred Keanu Reeves.  Sadly, one of the patches fixed the glitch where you could have sex with Keanu.  Disappointment was felt by all.  Oh, and this is what video games look like now.  Warning to you sensitive types, this clip has language and violence.

Rudy Giuliani testified yesterday for 6 hours and all we get is silence.  Nobody's talking.  They say it's because it's a Grand Jury, so there no count of how many times he used the 5th amendment, or how many times he cited attorney / client privilege.  Silence says a lot.  I wouldn't be surprised if Rudy struck up a deal similar to the one Weissleburg worked out with the AG in New York.  Weissleburg's going to admit the Trump organization is guilty of 15 years of tax evasion, through the use of lies and deceit.  He's not blaming Trump or the kids, however, everyone else in the organization is taking the blame.  Those others who are now going to be indicted?  They're the ones who will nail the Trump family mafia.

And Brian Kemp, the governor of Georgia, is trying to quash the investigation down there.  Must be because there's an election coming up and the Republican party has that 'pinch your nose stench.'

And duffer Eric Trump has said that there is no longer a Republican part, it is now the party of Trump.  While that might assuage his old man's rabid ego for a bit, a growing number of Republicans are stepping back and saying WTF.

We Call this a Veggie Tray

 Hello Wednesday, August 17.   We now have little over a month left of summer.  As Maddie noted on an earlier entry, the season has not been bad for us.  No scorching temps in the low 100s, (F) just a few days where they climbed into the upper 90s (F).  There were also a few days when the humidity was so sponge thick my T-shirts felt like clammy saran wrap draped over my shoulders every time I went outside.  But, other than that, the weather's been quite reasonable.  And lucky us, daily temps climbing into the low 100s (F) our not foreseen in our future, at least not for the 30 years.  However, a number of Republican held states do not appear to be so lucky.  

From the Washington Post

Yesterday was a day of accomplishments.  Grouting on the new tile surface in the kitchen was done, though not completed.  I need more grout.  Laundry was done.  Some yardwork was done.  I started a 5 hour walk through Pompeii; I had no idea the town was that large.  

And I resolved my issue with Rosetta Stone... somewhat.  Even though I have the discs I purchased some years ago, and even though Windows 11 has no problem running them, Rosetta Stone shut down the server my software.  Since my course is no longer functional, they gave me 3 free months.

I was sorry to see Liz Cheney lost her bid for reelection.  This was to be expected, however, since she's from a Cracker Jack Crazy Conservative state infatuated with authoritarianism. 

In PA, Oz is the brunt of oh so many jokes because he released a commercial in which he's shopping for veggies for a crudité tray.  The supermarket he is in is actually named Redners, yet he mispronounced it Regners, and his campaign aired the commercial.  Of course, Fetterman knows how to troll.

crudité?  We call this a veggie tray

So, you shouldn't be surprised to find out that the NRSC (National Republican Senate Committe) has pulled its funding for ads in PA.  Yepper, they're not going to buy ads for Oz.

Sydney and the stolen election data

 I'm heading into a work free week beginning today.  The store will not see my happy, smiling face again until Saturday, and then only for 6 hours.  The department has been rather understaffed lately.  I've helped by giving up some of my free time, something I'm not fond of doing.  They still have to hire a specialist to replace the one who gave his notice, and then showed up for a few hours on his last day.  Another associate, as I mentioned before, fell off a roof.  He's scheduled to be back at the desk on Thursday, with his shoulder in a big cast; that's going to put a damper on his texting.  The Haitian we hired to be an evening aisle associate has also stopped showing up for work.  He told us he followed his own schedule rather than the one written for him.  I do hope his personal schedule lets him know he's being terminated as a 'no call, no show.'

They were predicting rain for yesterday, and what we got was the occasional shower.  So, last evening I was out with the hose watering my plants.

When I got home from work yesterday, my neighbor's brother was at the house.  Since they're going to be throwing everything out, I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't picking through things.  As I'd said, Dirty Dawg had been there on Saturday to give them a quote and evidently it was more than they were wanting to pay, otherwise that house would be empty.  It will be interesting to see how the family proceeds.

And Rudy Giuliani is going to be indicted, at least that seems to be how things are playing out.  He's before a Georgia Grand Jury today.  I wonder if he's going to be sweating hair dye.

Oh, and evidently the FBI also confiscated 3 of Trumps passports, though he admitted one of them had expired.  Let that sink in.  3 passports.  He doesn't have dual citizenship with any other country.  I have one because, as a US citizen I only need one.  But he had 2 passports he could use.  Something smells a bit fishy.  The fact that they took them implies they see him as a flight risk.

And I do believe that Lindsey Belle is supposed to be testifying today as well.  He is probably not sweating hair dye, bullets?  yes, hair dye, no.  I wonder if any of those NDAs he had his escorts sign become null and void if his ass gets indicted.

You do have to admit that bombshells seem to be dropping daily now.  The Washington Post dropped this one yesterday.   Treasonous Sydney Powell and her group of traitors hired a computer group to breach sensitive voting machines in 3 states:  Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada.  That's a criminal felony.  These charges will no doubt make Sydney a flight risk.  Ouch.

Republican Death Knell

According to the weather map, a slight drizzle is falling in Central Pa.  Slight might be too intense of a word.  I just let the dogs back in and the paving stones of the veranda are still dry, though when I paused to listen, I could hear the occasional drop hitting the leaves of the maple tree.

The young guy across the street has an interest in buying Mike and Karen's house.  His mom is a realtor, of sorts, and yesterday Mike's brother took them on a tour.  I had mentioned the idea of purchasing it to my brother, but on 2nd thought decided that was a bad idea.  The expense of fixing it up is definitely going to be much more costly than the purchase price.  I am at mine constantly, and Mike and Karen did nothing.  They are selling it 'as is,' which means there doesn't need to be a Home Inspection, so it'll go cheap.

I've been watching Pro-Walk Tours while I'm on the treadmill.  Some of them are very nice.  Yesterday I was in Greece, walking around the Acropolis.  There are subtitles providing information.  The walk on Santorini was not that good, as the guide was constantly moving between tourists because he filmed it in the afternoon to avoid shadows.

It's quite possible, a line or two, or three, or more, from this song will make it into The Body Under Ice.  Play it loudly.

Yesterday armed Trump supporters were demonstrating outside the FBI Headquarters in Phoenix (?), Arizona.  While I'm sure their actions tickled the erogenous zones of many of the members of the MAGA cult, the rest of America watched their stupidity.  We've all known how the party has been splintering, shooting itself in the foot, and in the face, ever since the Electoral College said Trump was the winner in 2016, but the search of Mar a Lago has ripped a big chunk of that scabby tissue off.  The NYT called the fissures, that may be an understatement.  In Pennsylvania you have Republicans telling other Republicans they need to vote for Shapiro, the Democratic candidate for governor.  Yesterday, Asa Hutchinson, Governor of Arkansas, was on TV telling Republicans they need to tone their rhetoric down at the same time Trump was posting inflammatory messages to his Truth Social network.  Someone asked, how long it will be before the GOP realizes that the Moral Degenerate is ringing the death knell for the party?  Well, he's already rang that sucker, now it's just a matter of time until the party dies.

 

The Truth

 Can we get a nice 'hello' for Sunday morning?  Unlike many of you, I did not sleep in, though the dogs are still lazing away.  When I walked into the bedroom to pull open the drapes, I got one of their 'it's 6 AM on Sunday morning, why are you up so early' looks.  

My neighbor's 2 children and their families were here yesterday to help her pack up and clear things out, at least that's what I thought they were going to be doing.  I stayed out of their way.  I avoid intruding into the personal issues of others.  Dirty Dawg showed up to give her an estimate for emptying the house.  She's going to throw everything she doesn't want away.  Dirty Dawg is expensive, I used them to clean out my mom's things from the senior living facility.  In the end, they packed up the belongings she wants to keep and drove off.  Her plan is to sell the house as soon as possible, which means dirt cheap, and move into an assisted living facility near her daughter.  However, there are problems with the house.  Nothing was done in the form of upkeep.  Whereas I have a full basement, she has a partial basement, with half of it being no more than a crawl space, and both basements get water.  The future will be interesting.

My neighbor across the street did give me some good news yesterday regarding my elephant ear plant.  She grows them, too, though she keeps her in pots on the side of her patio.  She told me to just chop off the top in the fall.  They winter well in Central PA.  That's what she does, and her pots stay outside year-round. 

And I see that Rand Paul wants to repeal the Espionage Act now that his false god has been busted... or is in the process of being busted.  Does a day go by when he doesn't prove himself to be an asshole?  But then he so desperately wants the MAGA voters to like him and vote for him, so he'll do and say whatever it takes to earn their votes.

Yesterday, the Orange Anus brought doubled back on his claim that the documents found at Mar a Lago are part of a political witch hunt.  Oh, and they're also a hoax.  Witch hunts and hoaxes.  This was to be expected.  They are his 'go to' complaints.  His MAGA base eats those 2 words up with a spoon.  He also jibbereshed something about how they should always count on him to tell the Truth.  Yep, he said that.  Keep in mind, many members of his cult believe him to be 'brash.' They will tell you that he doesn't lie.  Every word popping out of his mouth is verifiable.  The Truth.  Of course, their definition of truth has nothing to do with honesty.

Trump is now a Flight Risk

 The temps outside were a crips 57 (F) when I woke up this morning.  Nice.  The central air is off.  Windows are open.  This is nice.  This afternoon's high is predicted to be around 83 (F).  Tomorrow, we're in for a treat.  Temps are supposed to be in the mid 70s (F).  Of course, I understand this is but a brief respite.  We're not even halfway through summer.  Temperatures will climb.

Last evening, I tried going into the old Rosetta Stone French course I purchased a long time (11 years) ago and got an error.  Server could not be reached, try later.  The German works, but not the French.  So, I sent them an email.  They responded in German.  Interesting.  The French was just for review, if you don't use it, you lose it, though I may well continue working on my German.

A character is disappearing from The Body Under Ice.  Cal Glenn, who originally had a much larger part to play not gets a mention.  This happens.  The side-plot he was involved in is no longer necessary, in fact, it has become a drag.  Cal is still going to get a mention.  But rather then have Eli and Max talk to him, they will now read the St. Ignace police report.

Oh, and wasn't yesterday a jolly good day?  John Fetterman had his first campaign rally since having his stroke and it was packed.

And, of course, the search warrant was released to the public yesterday.  Not a ho-hum moment at all, was it?  America now knows Trump is at the center of a criminal investigation.  The one charge which seems to be garnering the most interest is US Code 793 which has to do with the gathering and transmitting of Defense information.  An important fact to note is that this charge has nothing to do with whether the material was classified or not, it's solely focused Defense information.  Providing such information to... oh let's say the Saudis, is treasonous.  Espionage.  Every page of those documents is now being fingerprinted, and it's not like the old days when you actually had to dust the page.  Nope.  Now they use equipment similar to a scanner, and they have more than one.  In fact, they may almost be finished.  Oh, and don't forget the FBI now has in their possession the security video for who knows how many years.  This may have been going on for quite some time.

This is very bad for 'the Donald.'  Fox is shrieking the evidence was planted, however Trump, and his attorneys, have been pushing the fact that he declassified everything.  You can declassify planted evidence.  Duh.  Tristan Snell, he used to be an Assistant Attorney General for New York and help prosecute Trump for his Trump University shit show, was the first to echo what I've been saying for some time.  Trump has now become a flight risk.  You see, the penalty for breaking US Code 793 is calculated by the page.  The more pages people, like maybe the Saudis, touched, the longer the jail sentence.  Most definitely, Trump is now a flight risk.

The Stuff of Dreams (and nightmares)

 Finally, Friday.  Because I'm kindhearted, I voluntarily worked 6 consecutive days this past week.  Rousing myself from bed this morning, the likelihood of that happening again is rare.  Perhaps if 2 of the shifts hadn't been from mid-morning to midafternoon I might feel differently.  Those 2 days played havoc with my schedule.  Now it feels like I'm going to be playing catchup for the rest of the weekend.  That's catchup... not ketchup.

Weatherwise, the temps are predicted to be in the comfortably low 80s (F).  The outside temperature was 67 (F) when I got up.  That's nice.  Windows are open to let in the cool morning air.  We're almost halfway to autumn, and the changing of the leaves.

I watched the last episode of Moonhaven last evening on AMC +.  The show is a quirky, science fiction / mystery though I don't know if it's going to get renewed.  I also watched the first couple of episodes of The Sandman.  That I liked.  Lots of language.  Some violence.  And Tom Sturridge in the pivotal role.  I can only wonder if he's really this thin.

Of course, Merrick Garland told the world yesterday that he wanted the search warrant for Mar a Lago to be made public.  Rumors swirl that some of the documents Trump took involve our nuclear capabilities.  Laura Ingraham poopooed that suggestion, to show any indignation would show disloyalty to the icon of evil to whom she has sworn fealty. 

Then, after midnight, Trump ((or one of his minions) released a statement saying he wanted to search warrant to be released.  Keep in mind, there is a big difference between saying he wants something to be done and actually doing it.  He has until 3PM this afternoon to actually sign the papers.  Purportedly, his legal team is in discussion with the DOJ about...  something.

And then there's the 'mole.'  Supposedly the idea that one member of his inner circle (6 - 8 individuals) told the FBI not only what to look for, but where to look is something he can barely grasp.  Disloyalty.  If he dreams at all, this is the stuff of his nightmares, that someone might not have allegiance to his every command.  

That's not how this works

 So, today is my 6th consecutive day of working.  Since I have a lot to say about my scheduling, this will the last time I work so many days in a row.  This week has been so out of sync.  My laundry schedule is off.  So is my cleaning schedule.  After today, I will have 3 days off.  I'll work Monday and then have another 4 days off.  That's a schedule I can live with.

While I've gotten well over 10,000 steps in each day, I haven't been on either the treadmill or the bike in over a week.  Another casualty of my schedule.  Damn.  

If the forecasters are correct, our temps are supposed to drop, with highs in the mid to upper 70s (F).  I can live with that, too.  Even though this has not been a hot summer, I will admit to looking forward to the crisp cool days of autumn.  The only bad thing is that days get shorter.  I do like long, sunny days.

My elephant ear plant is getting bigger.  What a disappointment that it took so long to start growing.  They bulbs do not winter, so I will have to check and see what'll happen if I dig it up in the fall.

Word is going around that there's a mole in Mar a Lago, that someone told the FBI exactly what they needed to look for, and where they needed to look.  Personally, if I was going to steal classified documents from the Federal Government, I wouldn't hide them in a storage unit in my basement.  Of course, this might not occur to a man who's so used to having his ego do the thinking.

After yesterday's deposition, by his own definition Trump can now officially be called a Mob Boss.  Yep, that video clip of him saying that only Mob Bosses use the 5th amendment has been playing in sooooo many places.  And that duffer didn't just use it once.  Nope.  Over 400 times he said, "same as before."  For 4 hours, those are the only three words he said, "same as before."  This will never change.

Oh, and not surprisingly, Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor in Pennsylvania had his deposition with the January 6 committee, and a rather short deposition it was, indeed.  Fifteen minutes.  You see, the first thing out of Doug's legal team's mouths was, "we have some questions."  They were told, "that's not how this works."  To which Doug's lawyers replied, "but we have some questions."  The January 6 committee responded by saying, "that's not how this works, we ask the questions, you provide the answers."  At this point, Doug and his lawyers walked out of the deposition rather rapidly.  Do you think Doug has learned how things work?  No way.  He's a spineless MAGA.

The Price of Loyalty

 Wednesday, and it's the last day that I volunteered to cover for the associate who fell off a roof.   Only 5 hours.  Yesterday's shift was slow.  I cut some carpet.  The rehab, refit, redo of the flooring department has been delayed until November.  However, we do have customers coming and checking out the rolled carpet since most of it is now on clearance.  Once it's gone, it's gone.  That is something we are all looking forward to.  

Last evening, being cheap night at the local AMC, I went to the movies.  Bullet Train.  Probably the best way to describe Bullet Train is to call it an over the top, action, thriller, comedy which deserves its R rating (violence and language).  There is no high drama here.  I liked it.  Not just because two of the characters were brothers, one named Tangerine and the other Lemon, or because one was black and the other white, or because one of them was played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson.  Brad Pitt is in the movie, too.  He plays a hired thief who replaces another hired thief who called off sick.  Every bit of dialogue is important, so you need to pay attention.  Oh, and there too many cameos to name.  

And, of course, Trump gets deposed today.  Make sure you read that correctly, I said deposed, not disposed.  There are so many lawsuits spinning around that moral degenerate I'm sure he must pay someone just to keep track of them all.  And, of course, for those who didn't know, the FBI didn't break into his safe (as he inferred) but rather cut the lock off of a storage unit in the basement of Mar a Lago.  'Breaking into my safe,' however, is so much more inflammatory.  Without his cultist's anger, he is nothing.  For Trump, the measure of a man is not what they can accomplish, but in how many people they can incite.  Angry people prove their loyalty.  However, if they die proving that loyalty, they become losers.

Bold

 Well, can we get a cheery hello to Tuesday?  Storms are predicted for this afternoon.  After they pass through our temps are supposed to drop, not that they've been super high - 2 or 3 days in the upper 90s (F).  I did have to water my little garden this morning; everything is baking.

Work was slow yesterday.  The associate who fell off the roof wasn't injured as terribly bad as I was led to believe.  I saw pictures of him yesterday.  I'd been told his nose had almost been ripped off, wrong.  He has four stiches on his left nostril.  Had I not been told he'd fallen; I'd have thought he'd been involved in a rockum sockum bar fight.  His shoulder is broken badly enough for them to put in a lot of pins, which means he'll be sitting at the flooring desk when he's not in physical therapy for the next few months.

An acquaintance emailed me a picture of a room he'd decorated all in white. While I didn't gag, a wave of somber disappointment washed over me.  White has no personality. It's a blank canvas anxiously waiting to be painted.  So, I sent back this picture saying bold is the way to go.  And dogs help.

Of course, everybody is chattering about the 'Raid on Mar a Lago."  Be honest, doesn't that sound like the title of a bad B movie?  Something that might star an aging, overweight actor who managed to get a starring role in a moving all the critics panned?  The search warrant was obtained because in all likelihood a crime has been committed.  His fan club is fuming.  These people, who had no problem dragging a wagon carrying a jailcell with Hillary Clinton inside around an arena at one of his rallies, all the while shouting, "lock her up!" are upset.  Boo Hoo.  Of course, those not wringing their brokenhearted hands are wondering what documents the moral degenerate stole.  Classified information.  Something he thought he could sell, no doubt, either to the Saudis or his blow bro Vlad Putin.  And people are seriously wondering if Trump will be indicted before the midterms.  That would be a rather bold move.

And, finally, there are primaries today in several states, one of them being Wisconsin. Ronnie Johnson?  One of the senators from Wisconsin?  He's in a bit of a snit.  You see Ronnie made some statements about Social Security, about changing it in order to slowly get rid of it.  For those who don't know, Republicans hate Social Security.  To them it represents Socialism.  Anyway, Ronnie thought he was being bold when in reality he was being brash, but then Ronnie's never been a smart guy.

Yesterday

 I woke up this morning to the scent of skunk.  What a way to begin Monday, a work week in which I'll be spending over 32 hours at the store. 

Update on the associate whose hours I'm covering (slightly).  He didn't fall through a roof; he fell off the roof of a ranch house (his son said 9 feet).  His nose was cut (left side) and stitched, and he broke his shoulder.  He'll most likely be back at work next week, but he won't be hoisting any cases of tile for the next few months.

Update on my neighbor's wife:  she came home yesterday afternoon.  I didn't run over and talk to her.  We were never that close.  She wants to sell the house, but I've been seen how fully the dining room is packed with... stuff.  Unless she pays someone to come in and haul it away, it's not something that's going to happen in the next week or so.

I worked 8 hours yesterday, and believe me, they were a very long hour.  I talked to a couple about blinds.  I did get 2 measurements and a lead on a curtain installation.  No, we don't install curtains or drapes.  We sign people up for a consultation with Kirsch, a company that handles 'window dressings.'  

My late summer roses are beginning to bloom.

And yesterday was a good day for Democracy.  Major legislation was passed.  The Republicans hate it.  This bristles them down to the core of their gill slits, not that Republicans actually have gill slits... but then they just might.  Isn't this what happens when a species gives up mouth breathing for bottom feeding?  

Of course, the Republicans voted down a cap on insulin.  They blamed it on a technicality.  The cap couldn't be included with the regular package and so, rather than do something good for diabetic Americans, they offered them as a sacrifice to big Pharma.  They prefer to have people suffer than give the Democrats anything that might be considered a win.

And finally... A Cracker Jack Crazy church in Dallas is in some serious legal trouble by not only performing an unauthorized performance of Hamilton, but they're also under fire making other changes in the script.  For example, Hamilton is 'saved' and becomes a Christian before his death.  They also did a number of other changes to the script making the show anti-LGBTQ.  They also added a sermon at the end.  Oh, and not surprisingly, most of the cast is white.

Falling Down

 So, I went to bed early last evening.  As a result, I got up earlier than my usual 0600.  I have no problem with that.  More time to get things accomplished before I head off to work.

And, speaking of work, I volunteered to put in some extra time this week.  Rather than have Tuesday and Wednesday off, I will be working 5 hours each day.  As I'd said, one of our associates gave his notice - well, he's gone.  Yesterday, when I got to work, I discovered that another associate had a bit of an accident.  He fell off a roof... and lived.  He sent pictures.  I didn't ask to see them.  From what I've been told, his face is all stitched together, and he now has numerous pins in his shoulder.  He told management that he would be back to work on 8/18.  I doubt if that date is any good.  Maybe September 18, and even then, he'll still probably have his arm in a cast.

Otherwise, yesterday was slow, not a day of accomplishments.  John Fetterman did Tweet out this pic of one woman's opinion of Dr. Oz.  Notice the finger.  He's sort of falling down in the polls.

Of course, the Senate voted yesterday on the Inflation Reduction Act.  Filibuster proof.  Republicans are pissed because the Democrats are doing something that doesn't include tax breaks to corporations and to the wealthy.  They're terrified.  The Roe v Wade decision put them on a very slippery slope.  They're losing traction everywhere. Can't maintain their balance and keep falling down.  A little over a week after Kansans voted against a constitutional amendment outlawing abortion, the Indiana legislator approved an extremely stringent anti-abortion bill because...  These men are running down a hardwood staircase in their stocking feet.

And I saw that the alumni of Rhodes College in Tennessee have have sent a signed petition to college leadership asking that Amy Cony Boney's name be stricken from the Honor Roll.  This is because Amy's "adherence to an originalist interpretive methodology of constitutional textual analysis appears to be at odds with the statements she made" during her Senate confirmation.  In other words, she lied.  She is one of the reasons the reputation of the Supreme Court has fallen so low in the court of public opinion,