The Duffer of all Duffers

 It looks as though the warm weather we've been having for the past several days is going to come to a thundery crash this afternoon as storms roll through the Central PA, though to be perfectly honest, I don't believe storms roll at all.  Anyway, the temps are supposed to drop into the mid 60s (F), which still isn't bad.

I'd like to say that yesterday, being the 4th day off this week was filled with exciting adventure... well, it wasn't.  More yardwork was accomplished.  I mowed the lawn.  More English ivy was pulled up by the roots.  I did get out that week killer and sprayed the ivy in the front hedge (that isn't mine) because it's constantly trying to spread over into my lawn.  I have a Burning Bush at the front of my porch that's going to be cut out.  They are a predatory plant, just like the wisteria I've been getting rid of for what seems to be years.  

I did watch the last few episodes of Picard.  I had heard that Jeri Ryan might be getting a spin-off show and the series finale sort of enforced those rumors.  In fact, that whole segment with her and Jack Crusher was a set up for a new show more than anything else.  Let's be honest, if Paramount believes they can make money on a new series there will be a new series.  Seven of Nine was so popular they made her a regular, and she was just as popular in Picard.  And, of course, many fans would like to see a lot more of Jack (Ed Speleers) Crusher.

It turns out that when Elon shot off his pocket rocket, he damaged his launching pad, now, tell me, doesn't that sound painful?  Some damage is always done whenever a rocket gets launched, but this was no ordinary rocket (Elon needed to go big).  As Kris pointed out in yesterday's blog, there are videos with pieces of the pad hitting vehicles that were parked a "safe" distance away.  There are also videos of of large chunks hitting the Gulf of Mexico, and those had to be very large chunks to be seen making a splash from so great a distance.  How bad was the destruction?  One thing that is being reported is that the road up to the pad is closed.  Reporters who had remote cameras have not been allowed to go their equipment.  Supposedly they will be allowed in today.  I don't think any of this should surprise you.  We are dealing with the duffer of all duffers, Elon Musk.

Indictment

 For some of you Friday defines the end of the week and the beginning of the weekend, however for me today is the last of what you might call a mini-vacation, that is if I were a full time associate.  Keep in mind that for the next 3 days I'll be working at the flooring desk.  Sounds like fun, eh?

Yesterday was kind of busy, kind of not.  I got some painting done.  It seems as though I have so much painting: trim, doors, walls, and a final coat on the kitchen ceiling.  Wrote a little. Edited a little.

I'm watching what is purported to be the last season of Picard.  Let's hope so.  I don't if it's because I've watched a lot of Star Trek or not, but so much of this season, which will unite the cast of Star Trek, The Next Generation, seems to be plucking so much of it's storyline from the past several decades.  Last night's episode had the evil Changeling standing on the bridge of the USS Titan and taking command; flashback  to the Wrath of Khan with Khan standing on the bridge of the USS Enterprise taking command.  In this series Picard finds out that he has a son he never knew about, in The Wrath of Khan, Kirk finds out that he has a son he was never told about.  Been there.  Done that.

Otherwise, yesterday was fairly unexciting.  Well.... maybe not.

For all of you naysayers and disbelievers out there... told you so.  And it's only the first.

I'm fairly certain the decision to indict him was made some a while back, Bragg and the Grand Jury just needed to get the timing right.  Having them go on a month's vacation gets them away from the courthouse because the MAGA movement has been brainwashed to react badly to this news.  Overnight there were no MAGA protests, but we must not allow ourselves to get complacent.  There are going to be some very angry people out there.  

Of course, Conservatives are upset.  Lyndsey Graham went so far to call the indictment "bullshit."  Personally, I think many of them are scared shitless.  They've seen the polls. Most Americans think Trump should be held accountable and the Republicans and their MAGA base are in the minority.  Trump was destined to take they down.  They are terrible losers, for that means their deepest dreams are being rejected by the masses.  They do not understand how wrong they are.

The Seriously Red Sky

 Well, it's Friday, the end of the work for those who don't work in retail, or law enforcement, or unless you're a bartender, or a waitress, or a sous chef.  At this point in time, I would not be surprised if a decent majority of Americans work at least one day of the weekend.  So much so, I do believe they should rewrite that old song, you know the song I'm talking about:

Everybody's working on the weekend

Everybody needs to pay the bills

I talked to HR yesterday.  I like to work 20 hours a week and I was scheduled for 16 hours, two weeks in a row.  We added 4 hours to each week.  I'll be covering evening meals.  That's fine.  I'm a morning person.  Everything around the house gets done before noon, so I don't mind heading into the store at 3 PM for a few hours.

There's a new trailer out for Picard, season 3.  I honestly don't know if I'll watch it.  Season 2 was horrifically terribly.  The show took all of the lore that the franchise has spent decades building upon and crapped all over it.  Season 3 looks to be nothing more than a Star Trek, The Next Generation redux.  Damn!

We had a seriously red sky this morning.  Bad weather must be coming.

The view from my computer chair

And what about Andy Tate?  I had no idea who he was until Twitter erupted with Greta Thunberg clapped him back over some sort of crack he'd made about his cars and pollution.  Now he and his brother Tristian are sitting in a Romanian prison charged with sex trafficking.  Andy had been one of Tucker Carlson's special guests who complained about being persecuted because Tucker loves his misogynist underdogs. 

George Santos is set to be sworn in on Tuesday proving without a doubt Republicans have no integrity.  I find it fascinating that here lately a day doesn't pass without one of them saying the quiet part out loud as they either try and defend him, or simply remain silent.  I look out my window and see a fiery dawn, for them, the seriously red skies are soon going to be eternal.

Acountability

 Well, it's Thursday, the sun is shining, and the temps are supposed to reach up into the lower 70s (F).  I'm supposed to work today, that schedule is not fixed in stone, however.   I have to call the repair shop this morning and see how they are doing with my car.  When I picked up my rental Jeep, I was told I was supposed to return it today. If this is not the case, I'll need to contact Erie Insurance and let them know there's been a delay.

I received 2 notifications within the past week of utilities that have applied to increase their rates.  Son of a bitch!  Both water and electric have asked to charge more.  Per PP&L (my electric provider), the average family could see their cost go up by as much as $34 per month.  If mine goes up that much, it would be a 33% increase.  I will have to wait until June to see how much my rate will go up.  I feel sorry for single parent households when the costs go up and the paycheck stays the same, but then that's American Capitalism for you.

While I don't watch too much TV, there are certain shows I like.  I tolerate (barely) Picard.  My biggest problem is that it seems like every single cast member has a story arc.  I wonder if they have it written into their contracts that they each get a personalized, four-minute storyline in each episode.

One show I really am liking is Halo, on Paramount, and not because it stars 6-foot, 5-inch Pablo Schreiber as the MasterChef.  Scientists took him as a child and made him into the perfect fighting machine... well, not quite.  Whereas Picard is cartoony, this show is quite intense.  If you're looking for warm, fuzzy, feelgood endings stick with Picard.  If you want to sit in your chair and say, "Holy shit!," give Halo a watch.

For those who don't know, there has been a surge in hepatitis among children under 6 years of age.  One of the things they know about his illness is that all of these children had Covid, and were too young to be given a vaccine.  These cases are not isolated, but are happening all over the world, and every day more children are diagnosed.  

And I understand justice Alito has cancelled an appearance at a Circuit Court meeting scheduled for today. That's just one tidbit.  Barriers are being put up around the Supreme Court building, that's another.  Sounds like they're expecting an outpouring of American rage.  Not that the Republicans care.  They are the party of the selfish.  They need to be taught the lesson that they are not special, that they too have accountability.

Sad

 Friday, and I slept in because I stayed up late watching TV.  Both Halo and Picard are on Paramount, which I believe owns CBS.  I like Halo, good science fiction action.  Picard?  The series is becoming less about Picard and more about the rest of the cast, perhaps because Patrick Steward is 81and is beginning to sound elderly.  I also watched Moon Knight... meh.  I might end up passing on it.  I know there are those who will watch the show just see see little Oscar Issacs running around in his super hero suit, I am not one of those.

What a shame about Bruce Willis.  While never being a stellar actor, quite a number of his performances moved people.  I can remember sitting in a very crowded theater watching Armageddon  only to have my attention turn to the large, muscular gentleman sitting in front of me sobbing when Willis chooses to stay on the asteroid and die.

And the Ukrainians blew up some oil tanks... in Russia.  I'll bet that made Vlad sad.  I understand Vlad's government is also attempting to accommodate Loser #45's plea for dirt on Biden.  Of course, the Kremlin knows the truth in that saying 'repeat a lie often enough and every Republican will believe it.'  The 74% of Americans who realize this is pure horse shit understand the GOP chose to compromise themselves years ago.  Conservatives will sacrifice everything in their attempt to get the power they crave.

The View from McCreary's Creagh

 And so my weekend begins:  a bit of a sleep in, though not much.  Too many things to do.

I started watching Picard last evening on Netflix.  Unless it's a stand-alone movie, everything on Netflix has a story arc, so what we really get are episodes with continuity.  This means that it's not until the 3rd episode the real storyline is revealed.  This is done to create the need to binge, which is something I do not do.  After 3 episodes, about an hour and a half, I turned off the TV.

Yesterday was very slow at work.  They brought in an ice cream truck so associates could get a free sundae.  That was nice.  About 10 minutes before I was scheduled to leave for the day, some of my customers came in.  I had already told them I only work until 7 and after working for 6 days in a row, I was not about to stay late, so I handed them off to a fellow associate.  He did not seem to pleased, as one of the first things they told him was that they were going to change their selection of hard wood. These changes usually take around 30 minutes.  I was not sorry. 

I also ordered a new phone last evening.  Normally I buy a phone and hold onto it for around 5 years.  The Google Pixel I have is just a little over a year old and has been plagued by problems.  Already replaced because it started turning itself off, it had recently developed the annoying habit of running apps at random.  So, I'm going back to Samsung.  I've never had a problem with one of their phones.

This morning I was reading that the Senator Manchin from West Virginia was quite dismayed that Republicans did not seem interested in compromise.  Hello, Joe, where have you been?  They is the party of 'no.' There is not one decent bone in their political body.  Now, I know you're thinking about your career, about how you can work across the aisles, but keep in mind, all the while you are proving how flexible you can be, they are plotting your demise.  They see their strength as not working with you, because you are a Democrat, and as such will always paint you as the villain.  

And finally, I understand the Scottish countryside is beautiful this time of year.  June weddings are always fun, aren't they?  Sunny days.  The temps are fine.  In fact, I understand the wedding between Lord Doyle Adair and Canada Howard will be happening over in Adairton very shortly.  Beautiful country there.  People say the view from McCreary's Creagh is a... well, I'll let these gents sing about the view.