Borderline

 Friday.  Yesterday was somewhat eventful in that my eyes were dilated for my eye exam.  My eyes are fine.  They're still blue.  A long time ago an ophthalmologist diagnosed me with Glaucoma., the same doctor that Maddie's mother went to.  Laser surgery was done on both of my eyes and eyedrops were prescribed.  Getting refills was an aggravation because the prescription was always for a very expensive brand not covered by my insurance. I began going to the VA when the Doc retired and... what the hey!  I don't have Glaucoma.  The pressure in my eyes has changed in 4 years.  I am borderline.  Honestly, I don't think that should come as a surprise to anybody.

My Veterinarian's assistant finally called me back yesterday as I was on my way to be dilated.  Biggie's going to stay on the carprofen.  Instead of 2 pills in the morning, we're going to try one in the morning or one in the evening.  Hopefully this will work.  The only other option right now is to add in Gabapentin.  Crap!  My mom used to take Gabapentin.

Two minor characters have been added to The Body Under Ice:  Lois and Clark, two barflies who hang out at Hennepin's, one of the few bars / restaurants that stays open year round.  Tourists flock there in the summer, locals hang out there in the winter.  Some may find it difficult to believe, but Lois and Clark drink more than Eli and Max.

  

Of course, Billy Barr's coming out with an explosive book on Loser #45.  I know this because Billy has started making the PR rounds, spitting out tasty little morsels of gossip whose sole purpose is to entice you into buying his book.  I won't.  That little bit about Trump becoming enraged when he was told there was absolutely no voter fraud?  Sorry, Billy's not taking us across the border into unfamiliar territory.  Now, if Billy had said Trump took the truth well, that there was no voter fraud, and had smiled and said "well, I guess we've got to come up with a big lie?"  That would have been fertile territory.  

And, of course, Putin is still pushing more troops across the border into the Ukraine.  I did like this bit in Al Jazeera regarding his Imperialistic beliefs.  The part about how Russia will pay for this invasion for years to come is so on point.  The only way this could have been in any ways successful from him would have been for the war to be over in 3 or 4 days, before the world had a chance to understand what was going on.  Now he's going to be sacrificing young Russians to guerilla warfare for years to come.  And it will spread across the borders.

Pre-emptive Pardons All Around

 Oh my gosh!  I slept late today, perhaps because I had a busy day yesterday, that included a bike ride in Flanders.  There was laundry, too, and a walk with the dogs, and some time with the aquarium.  The later entailed a quick trip to my local PetSmart.  While changing the filter, I discovered my inline heater had stopped working.  After adjusting the temperature a few times, and uttering a few salty son-of-bitches, I realized I needed a replacement.  Rather then purchase another inline heater as that involved water issues, I chose a standard in-tank model.  Now the fish are warm and happy.

We had snow last night.  

A big Congrats to Elliot Page.  Over time he has become more and more politically involved, so I would not be surprised if his future isn't destined to be in public service.  I can see him as a very vocal senator.

And there are a lot of headlines swirling around the possibility of the Idiot Jerk in the White House handing out a boatload of pre-emptive pardons.  Evidently there is some precedent in that Ford pardoned Nixon before charges could be filed.  Blanket pre-emptive pardons don't work.  He can't just hand them out to his three oldest children, and squirmy faced Jared, like Christmas presents.  And Sean Hannity has recommended he pre-emptively pardon himself... from what?  You'd think the Republicans had put some crime family into the White House. (Can you hear me laughing?)

And Billy Barr says "no fraud!  no fraud!" (I'm still laughing.)  The fact that Billy through his boss under the bus has more to do with saving his own skin then anything.  In case Billy hasn't realized it, he just shit away his pre-emptive pardon.

The Friendly Pollinator

 Ah, my Sunday has arrived.  A day for relaxation... kind of... I guess.  Right now we have spotty drizzle and fog.  The temps today in Central PA are supposed to hit 79 (F) which his hot for October.  In fact, for the next 5 days we're supposed to be sitting on the warm side.  It makes me wonder how this winter's going to be... global warming, you know?  Last year we had no snow.  

I'm getting a new HRM chest strap today.  I've been using one that is old... maybe 7 or 8 years old and there are some connectivity issues.  Nothing lasts forever.  It was used heavily and was well worth the price I paid.

Yesterday I went to the gym as well as rode San Remo's 14 mile ride.  Of course, I then went and ate about a pound and a half of pasta and half a loaf of bread... and enjoyed every calorie.

And, as I was going to my neighborhood Giant supermarket yesterday, there was a bee rubbing pollen from one of my dahlias.  Well hello friendly pollinator!

In case you were wondering, there were also bees on my zinnias.

Of course, the Idiot Jerk is clamoring for Billy Barr to indict Hunter Biden.  Can you smell the stink of burning desperation?  Funny thing I read:  if Barr does as the Idiot Jerk wants, he will prove himself to be the biggest political hack in this country's history.  Gee, I thought he'd already proven that point.

There's also another failed stimulus package in the works.  The Idiot Jerk wants congress to go big... he needs the points.  McConnell is saying "no way, not before election day."  Everybody except the Republican Party realizes this is necessary.  The economy is slipping into darkness because their president didn't handle the virus correctly.  China did a full lockdown, their economy is reviving.  The Idiot Jerk played golf instead.  There had been talk of a 2nd wave... and we're heading into our 3rd because of the Republican Party.  This is going to crush the Midwest, and our recession is going to be far deeper.  

Haunted

 Yesterday was... fine.  Work was fine, but slow.  I mean it's not that I sit around doing nothing all day, customers do show up... they're just not jumping on the installation band wagon.  They've finally posted the specialist's position for my department.  The hours are 10 - 7.  I worked those hours and thinking back that schedule worked well for me.  Getting up at 0445 is growing tiresome so I might change my shift.

I'm going to have to get a bluetooth dongle for the new / old laptop.  The one of the Touch Screen never really worked that well.  Another sign that I made a bad choice when purchasing it.  These things do come back to haunt you.

I saw this morning where Billy Barr is pissed at the Department of Justice.  He wants them to cower before him as he leads the charge against Democracy... and they're not having any of his shit.  

And the Idiot Jerk is shrieking at the CDC Director because the man was honest with the American People.  His bubble has cracks shooting in great jagged lines like lightening bolts as his protective dome begins to shatter in so many places.  For the Idiot Jerk in the White House, the sky is falling.  The truth is attacking him from all sides.  Another law suit has been filed by a model who says he rammed his tongue down her throat back in 1997.  I can even imagine living with that horror for so long.  I do not doubt she's wished she'd had a knife back then to cut the sucker off.  We'd all be a lot saner now, if she had.

A while back SixPence noted his fondness for NIN (Nine Inch Nails).  Rock and Roll.  No wispy vocals from Trent.  He (they) are on several of my cycling playlists.  Adrenalizers, you know?  Not only is the music great, his (their) words can be used in so many variations.  Take this song: Came Back Haunted.  I would love to use a line or two of this in The Body in the Loch.  I love this video.  It almost brought a tear to my eye the first time I saw it.  

And in case you're wondering, there are no ghosts in The Body in the Loch.

Tit for Tattying

Tuesday, Vacation Day Number 2

Yesterday I didn't do much of anything, besides buy stuff on Amazon: new case for the new phone (red), a wireless charging station, a pre-order of Cyber Punk 2077 (video game).  I drove to Target because I wanted a pair of sandals / flip flops... the smallest size they had was 13.  I have tiny feet, men's size 8 1/2.  A size 13 would fall off when I walked.

UPS dropped off the wrong package.  I had ordered a Lenovo tablet.  The box I opened contained large plastic syringes and plastic tubing.  About 2 minutes after I opened it, there was a loud pounding at the door.  It was the UPS Driver with the correct package.  Ooops.

I want to swing by the store this morning and get another jalapeno pepper plant.  Something, most likely the curious nose of a dog, snapped the one I had in two.   That sucker's a gonner.  And I do want to grow peppers.  My one tomato plant has flowers already.

I also want to mow the lawn this morning... before it gets too hot.  The temp is supposed to soar into the 90's (F) today.  Tomorrow we have the same forecast.  From then on it's kind of iffy because of Cristobal.  That storm front is supposed to join up with another, larger front moving east creating a much larger storm.  We're going to get wet.

Strava sent my my May stats yesterday.  I rode 284 miles last month.  I'm happy with that.  

For those of you with a hankering to play the Stock Market right now... hold off.  It's going to drop.  Let the super rich take the hit when it comes, because it is going to come.  The vast majority of Mom and Pop investors don't have the necessary financial cushion to survive the serious drops when they come.

And again, yesterday seemed a rather quiet one for the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  That does not mean it was politically quiet.  Billy Barr said that it was the Secret Service who told Bunker Boy he needed to go into hiding.  Ouch.  He and the Idiot Jerk seem to be in some sort of little blame game, tit for tattying each other.  Of course, they're both gutless Republicans so this is normal.  Someone else is always to blame.

Finally, I snapped a picture of one of my red roses yesterday. This has color and perfume.

The Rejection of Ivanka Danka

Okay, so it's Sunday.  After today I have 5 (count 'em) 5 days off in a row.  I'd like to say I'm really excited, but mostly... I'm just really pleased.

Yesterday the other specialist scheduled to work with me called off.  This associate did the same thing last Saturday.  I offered to stay past my scheduled time and the Assistant Manager say, "no, it is what it is."

A friend of mine and his wife stopped in at the store yesterday.  He and I worked together back when I worked for Marriott.  I left, he stayed, and is now a manager with a large Hospitality group.  The funds for their  Covid - 19 stimulus package ran out on Friday.  He told me not to believe the unemployment figures the Idiot Jerk was dancing about.  The group he works for sent termination letters to all of those people they had furloughed. He said, "it'll take a long time for the Hospitality Industry to come back."

And for those who haven't heard, Ivanka Danka had to deal with a little rejection.  Her 'virtual' commencement address was canceled. And she was pissed.  And she's pissed.  Not only is she the spawn of the Idiot Jerk in the White House, she's also married to that sleazy weasel Jared.  She was so insulted she decided to post her speech on line.  That's her way of proving she's special.

If you didn't find that disappointing, I'm sure the following bit might make you feel a bit jovial.  The Idiot Jerk has chosen to cancel his round of golf today because of... bad optics.  Yeah.  Bad Optics.  Translation:  In the past 2 weeks his campaign has had to pump over $650 million into Ohio, a state they considered a sure thing.  His team is concerned people in that state might want him to demonstrate at least of smidgen of interest in the racist issues plaguing this country rather than T-ing off.

Then there's the bit about LG (Lady Graham not Lindsey Graham) and his use of male escorts and male porn stars.  Ouch!  I suspect his career will be ending... shortly.  Good.

And Billy Barr is desperately trying to put more than a little distance between his walk of shame and himself.  Now he's blaming... Park Rangers?  The once who patrol the grounds around the White House on horsies?  His new favorite saying is "The Buck Stop with You."  He knows how big and bright he's going to look in orange.

Finally, here's a pic of my nectarines.

The tree is loaded with them.  Yum!

A cup of cold water

Once again your Friday is my Hump Day.  Of course, I only have a 5 hour shift so things aren't that bad.

We did have a lot of rain last evening... and thunder... and lightening, but very little wind.  During the height of the storm I came upstairs to find both dogs sleeping on the bed.  Some dogs hate storms, mine sleep through them.  Unless they're banging away right over head, I'm pretty much the same way.

Yesterday afternoon I rode 14.5 miles down the Milan to San Remo route.  The entire route is over 58 miles.  I'd like to complete the entire ride... someday.

In case you didn't see, Billy Barr tried to throw himself on his sword yesterday and take responsibility of the gassing of the peaceful protesters.  This had more to do, I suspect, with 90 year old Cracker Jack Christian Pat Robertson releasing a statement that 'the walk and and Idiot Jerk's use of the Bible' was not Christian.  That Evangelical base?  They're fracturing, splitting  apart, cracks and fissures are appearing all over the place.  Son of a bitch!

Senator Lisa Murkowski threw a cup of cold water on the Idiot Jerk.  She agrees with Mattis and might not vote for the Idiot Jerk this fall.  He spit out his usual response.  What she needs to right now is tell him to stick it up his ass.  The more people who tell him that, the more likely we are to see his tiny little, orange head explode before the November election.

And, if that wasn't bad enough news for the Idiot Jerk, it's gets worser!  Senator Chuck Grassley (R) from Iowa has put on hold the nominations of all those Conservatives the Idiot Jerk wants installed.  That's right.  He wants investigations into the firings of those 2 Inspector Generals.  You know?  The ones who are there to keep tabs on the Idiot Jerk, the ones who are supposed to keep his dirty, little schemes of corruption from reaching fruition.  Oh... dear me.  I think this is much more a demonstration of Chuck's self-preservation skills than anything else.  He knows... they're going to lose the White House in November... and probably the Senate.  And then there are going to be investigations.

When I was talking to Lily about this she gave me one of her 'oh shit' looks.

And finally, because there is so much Chaos swirling around the Idiot Jerk, Silly Lindsey Graham has put on hold some sort of wack job legislation meant to further Obamagate...  which is really nothing more than a brain fart by the Idiot Jerk in an attempt to turn attention away from his total incompetence. 

  

Viruses don't have Brains.

So, I slept in this morning.  It's the first of my 4 days off in a row, 2 of which are vacation days.  I have a lot of chores planned.  There are black tulips down the side of the house which have stopped blooming.  They are going to be replaced by gladiolas, what's called the pastel collection (purples, whites and pinks).   Of course, I have rosebuds galore.  I'm now using a mixture of water and very fine sulfur in a pump sprayer to keep the dreaded 'black spot' at bay.  The same mixture will be used on the peach and nectarine trees.  I also want to get in a bike ride.  Today's will be inside, but I'm planning on taking the X6 off the wall, pumping up the tires, and taking it out on the road now while traffic is still thin.

Me holding the X6 about 14 years ago

I saw where tribes in South Dakota are standing up the their Republican governor.  She wants them to stop the checkpoints they've set up leading into their reservations.  She doesn't give a shit if they live or die, but then she's a Republican, so what else is new?  We need to vote her out of office and maybe put her in jail for 'Crimes against Humanity.'
Billy Barr's dismissal of the charges against Mike Flynn has a lot of voices up in arms, Democrat and Republican.  Remember, he's going to do everything the Idiot Jerk in the White House wants, no matter how bad it looks.  That's why he got the job.  At this point, a major majority of Americans realize his ethics were superficial at best.  The bitter truth for him will be when he finds out he's been worshiping a minority president who will throw him to the wolves the minute things turn bad... which is going to be any minute now.
And I saw where the Idiot Jerk in the White House again cut short a briefing yesterday because he didn't like the questions.  I do not doubt that as time goes on, he will rely more and more on the Cracker Jack Conservative media outlets to get his message to his base.  The body counts keeps rising, they're talking about a 2nd wave much sooner than later, and his message is that 'we prevailed.'  His radicalized base believes him.  They have no clue that the first wave took out the most vulnerable, the 2nd wave is aiming for those who don't wear masks, who don't practices Social Distancing, who think brandishing a gun is going to scare Covid - 19.  They don't understand this virus is smarter than they are... and viruses don't have brains.

This Made Me Laugh

So, I've been sitting here reading snippets of news while I eat my breakfast.  It's always the same thing... my breakfast: oatmeal spiced ups with walnuts, dried cherries, slivered almonds, sunflower seeds and peanut butter... oh, and 2 teaspoons of brown sugar.  And I don't eat the Instant stuff that comes in a packet, mine is cooked in the microwave: 3 minutes 40 seconds at 70% power.
I have my car loan through Bank of America.  They are very persistent in wanting me to go paperless.  Now, when I bought my car I was told my interest was going to be 'front loaded.'  Their going to gouge me for as much interest as possible, even if I pay the loan off early. Right now it's looking to be paid off over 3.5 years early.  Going paperless saves them money, it doesn't do a damn thing to drop the amount of interest I'm paying.  If Bank of America wants me to paperless, they will need to do something about that interest rate.  We all know that's not going to happen.  They want to gouge me for as much interest as possible, and still save money on postage and paper.  Give me a break.
I saw where the Idiot Jerk's henchie, Billy Barr has been complaining about the Idiot Jerk's Tweets.  Maybe Billy realizes how bad they make our Faux Attorney General look.  Those Tweets show just far up the Idiot Jerk's ass Billy Barr has shoved his tongue.  Gee, you'd think Billy would have realized by now we all know he's a mindless puppet.
And I saw that on the other side of the Atlantic, BoJo is shaking up his cabinet, installing 'yes men' rather than individuals with solid qualifications.  Now we know BoJo is nothing more than a gas bag with some serious leakage.  To all you Brexiteers, congrats, this is what you voted for.
And finally, for those who didn't know, the Idiot Jerk in the White House loves his Twitter because it allows him to give derogatory names to those he doesn't like, and to those who scare him.  Twitter is his cowardly way of stabbing them in the back.  His fanboy base love his Tweets because they show that both he, and they, are at the same level of maturity.  That changed yesterday.  The Idiot Jerk received a full frontal smack-back... from Bloomberg.  Thinkg about what was written.  This is a wonderfully personal assault on the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  This made me laugh!!

Mike Bloomberg

✔@MikeBloomberg

.@realDonaldTrump - we know many of the same people in NY. Behind your back they laugh at you & call you a carnival barking clown. They know you inherited a fortune & squandered it with stupid deals and incompetence.

I have the record & the resources to defeat you. And I will. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1227946304057364481 …

Donald J. Trump

✔@realDonaldTrump

Mini Mike is a 5’4” mass of dead energy who does not want to be on the debate stage with these professional politicians. No boxes please. He hates Crazy Bernie and will, with enough money, possibly stop him. Bernie’s people will go nuts!

136K

8:43 AM - Feb 13, 2020

Twitter Ads info and privacy

54.4K people are talking about this

And, of course, today's Valentines Day.  Here's a nice big smooch to all my readers in the world!

Forever House

Yesterday you saw the new location for my Cyclocross bike.  Included was a bit of my ceiling, which I decoupaged a number of years ago with the help of a friend.  Anne Marie thought that was impressive.  That was nothing... and I say this with all modesty.  I see a number of people who are interested in putting flooring into a home they have just purchased.  Many of them say "this is not my forever house."  Forever House.  That's a catchy little phrase HGTV came up with.  These people don't understand, you buy a home and over time make it into your forever house.  You do this buy personalizing it with paint, and paper, and decor.  You take the space and make it intimate and comfortable.  That bit of decoupage ceiling you saw yesterday was just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak.  Here's a couple shots of the International Male version of the Sistine Chapel:

This is a Forever House.

Anyway, I guess they're going to vote on the articles of impeachment tomorrow.  Merry Christmas Idiot Jerk!  America is sending you a Christmas Card.  Of course, his henchies and sycophants are flipping out.  They're beginning to realize how bad it is to shake his hand without wearing the mandatory rubber gloves.  He's been rubbing off on them, and now they, too, are contaminated.  Just look at Billy Barr who at one point was considered Conservative but not deranged.  Now even the Idiot Jerk's base realize the only reason Billy is in that position is to defend and protect the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  To do so, he will use every means within the grasp of his stubby fingers to destroy Democracy.  All he cares about is receiving unction from his Tinfoil dictator.  Foolishly, he wants to believe he is in a forever house.  His reckoning day is approaching... fast.

Lacking credibility

Well, I get to go back to work today... for another 5 days.  Ho-hum.
I did a 17+ mile ride in Greece yesterday, rather than the 6 mile climb challenge I need to complete.

This was the first route I've ridden in which the wildlife I saw was something other than birds or dogs (there are lots of dogs being walked).  About halfway through the ride a deer ran across the road in front of me.  I will admit there was a moment of surrealism.  Surprisingly, I missed the snake 4 miles farther down the road.  This was a fun ride.
I saw where the Watchdog group came out yesterday and said the FBI had not been spying on the Idiot Jerk's campaign... and Billy Barr was having none of it.  That was to be expected.  I'm sure the Idiot Jerk tossed him a fish since Billy's proving he's better then the trained seal he desperately wants to be.
One of the biggest belly laughs I got was from reading an article in Bloomberg Business Week, where author said that even while the Idiot Jerk is facing impeachment, this is the best of times for him... and he cited the November jobs report as proof.  He claimed the Idiot Jerk was solidifying his re-election because of... the November jobs report.  This nitwit has to be a superficial conservative.  Evidently the fact that the GM strike was over and thousands of people went back to work eluded him.  As did the fact that at this time of year there are massive amounts of seasonal hiring.  You know?  Christmas is coming?  UPS is hiring like it's going out of style... for temp jobs.  The same with the United States Postal Service.  And Amazon.  An associate of mine interview with UPS and was told flat out that in 3 weeks the job was going to disappear.  Anyone making a prediction from the November jobs report lacks total credibility... unless of course he's an Idiot Jerk henchie.
Last evening when I went up to bed I found Biggie already there.  Lilly was there, as well, but she didn't give me the look Biggie gave me, that 'you don't really expect me to move' look.  For some reason or other, he doesn't seem to understand that bed is mine... I'm just kindly letting them sleep on it.

He moved.

Desperation

Good news!  The dog's colds seem to have passed.  Lily is no longer coming up and sneezing in my face.  In fact, right now she's running around the house with her purple Wubba in her mouth.
I rode another 11. 17 miles on the bike last evening.  The next challenge I have with Rouvy is to ride to 16 mile rides in 'race mode.'  One of them is a 16 mile climb... yep, the whole ride is up hill... for 16 miles.  Damn!
My friend Patty fell and broke her ankle last night.  I told her it just looked sprained, an x-ray said there was a hairline fracture.  She's in a boot.  You'd think by know they'd have come up with stylish colors... nope, still the same formal black.
Of course, everybody now knows Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide yesterday morning.  It didn't take long, only a couple of hours before the Idiot Jerk in the White House re-Tweeted some sort of bongo bongo conspiracy theory.  This was to be expected since he's a gutless sack of shit and he, himself, had some serious connections with Epstein.  There is that video out there of he and Epstein ogling cheerleaders.  The truth is that the Idiot Jerk is swinging into desperation mode.  This suicide happened under his watch.  Epstein was in a Federal prison.  Some official decided to take him off suicide watch.  Many people are questioning that, especially since he had already made one attempt and failed.  Billy Barr is throwing a suicide investigation party because this makes him look bad.  And the two-bit president who wants to be a dictator?  He's starting to throw shit against the wall hoping something will stick, no matter how unrealistic  As I said before, he's growing desperate.
Yesterday was my Hump Day.  That means my next two days are supposed to be easier, right? 

Pink Peonies... and other stuff

Well, I'm starting this a bit late this AM, I had the alarm set for 0430 but the dogs decided they needed to go 'potty outside' at around 0300, so I turned off the alarm and got up around 0530.  I'm thinking I may have to rethink my schedule again.
Yesterday we had storm warnings all day, and only one thunderstorm went through around mid-afternoon.  I was worried we'd have constant storms all night.
The pink peonies are in bloom.

And, of course, the wall of roses in my front yard is prepping for their first display of the season.

This is the top of one of 3 bushes

And, on the political scene - things are not just too peachy for the Idiot Jerk.  He's shrieking, and moaning, and Tweeting.  North Korea's blaming the administration for the failed summit.  The Pentagon is asking to send 5000 - 10,000 troops to the mid-east.  We just gave another $16 billion to America's farmers - tariffs, you know.  Oh, and he just signed an Executive Order instructing "all" intelligence agencies to give his henchie, Billy Barr, all info, classified and non-classified, on Russian interference in the 2016 election.  And all that happened in about 20 minutes, yesterday.  

For those who didn't know, Merrick Garland is the judge of the hour... the week... the month... and the year.  The Idiot Jerk's taxes... you know?  This is what you call Karma, or, if you're religious, Justice.  I'm sure that when Mitchy McTurtle heard this knews he turned his head slightly to the side and mutter and quiet "Oh, shit."

Finally... Theresa May is resigning.  Is this the end of Brexit?  Nope.  It just means the divorce is just going to get messier.  And all those bobble-headed voters who thought this was going to be an easy process are rethinking their votes.  Maybe I should try sending them all a picture of my pink peonies... that might brighten their day.

In Colorado

I am almost halfway through my work week and am anticipating punching out on Saturday.  Sometime this evening I will again smash through my hump moment.  Yippee!
For those interested, I have started collating my notes for the next project.  As in most written works, the first sentence is very, very important.  The first sentence sets the tone by opening the door through which the reader walks.  With that being said, here is the first sentence of the next project:

"And there were gunslingers camped out on the ridge above the Uncompahgre."

The Uncompahgre River in Colorado

So, the Idiot Jerk in the White House is trying to save his fat ass from frying by using his 'executive privilege' to keep anybody from know just what was in the Mueller Report.  The House is handing Billy Barr a dinner menu  with contempt charges as the appetizer.  New York State is passing legislation to release the Idiot Jerk's state taxes.  North Korea stuck a finger in his eye by shooting off another missile (oops).  Stevie Mnuchin's being blamed for the turd he dropped in the trade negotiations with China.  The past few days have been bad for the Idiot Jerk.  This was to be expected.  Oh, and things are going to get worse.  Donnie Jr has been subpoenaed to testify before the Senate.  Now you know the Senate Republicans are going to be throwing him candy fart kisses, but the Democrats?  Donnie Jr likes to think of himself as a 'big game' hunter.  Well those Democrats know Donnie Jr has a big red target painted all over his ass.  He's not used to being grilled so the whole thing should be quite... entertaining.  He's also not very good when it comes to lying because he's dumber than his old man.

I have some customers at work who may become an issue.  They want to put new laminate in their 4th bedroom.  They claim we already put the same laminate in the other t 3 bedrooms.  I looked at their plans yesterday and we only put flooring in 2 bedrooms.  Shit.

Truth instead of Lies

Thursday morning.  I get to go back to work tomorrow.  I am not excited at all.  Work is... work.  It's not that I don't like to work.  I enjoy working out.  Poring over an unpublished manuscript and doing subtle changes is fun (believe it or not).  Explaining to a customer that cheap ass laminate flooring should not go in a bathroom because it's not waterproof isn't fun.  Seeing stunned looks of disbelief when you describe what happens to laminate flooring when it gets wet is... ... well, if you saw any of Billy Barr's Q & A yesterday you know the looks I'm talking about.  I do believe Billy that that with all the Republicans in the room he was going to be safe.  Holy Shit.  Watch just five minutes of it and count the number of times he touches his face.  You see, liars begin to finger their chin, rub their cheek, and scratch their ear because deceit pushes their brains into overload.  They have to remember every lie they tell... otherwise they'll be caught.  They use their fingers in an attempt to create a web of lies... and fail.  At one point he actually like he might start to cry.  Does he think everybody is as gullible as the MAGA heads?  Bill was all handsy yesterday, but then that's normal for liars.  Except for the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  He rarely touches his face because almost every word out of his mouth is a lie.  I suspect that for him it's the truth which is most unsettling.
Billy will not be having a Q & A with the House.  He'd have to wear his 'big boy' Depends for that and he knows he'd fill those suckers up in no time flat.
I made some more pasta yesterday.  This time I dried it on a pasta tree.

And poor Seig didn't get any of it.  I had some for dinner last night.  It is delicious.  From start to finish it took... oh, about 40 minutes.  And I made it.  It wasn't mass produced in a factory. Hhhhmmm, so goooooood. 

Bernie's Favorite

Went to see the Avengers last night, got home after 10 PM, and so I slept in - I'm off today.  I thought it was very good... but it wasn't great.  Every Avenger gets to have a shining, dramatic moment - that's not a spoiler by the way.  If you are a fan of every one of them, this is great.  If you're not... well...  I'm not a big Jeremy Renner fan, so his shining moment was not too glittery for me, nor am I a big Robert Downey Jr fan, but his scenes with Richard Slattery were a nice surprise.  One of the things I disliked the most was that anyone who was ever in any Marvel Studio superhero movie shows up for a few onscreen minutes.  This is why the film is 3 hours and 2 minutes long.  Now, I will admit that except for the not too shiny dramatic moments, it did not seem like 3 hours.  After the climatic battle scene, and there's always a climatic battle scene, they could have wrapped things up quicker since a few of those not too shimmering dramatic moments happened then.  If you're interested in going to see it, do so on the 'big screen' since it is spectacular... most of the time.
I guess Billy Barr is supposed to testify before some House committee today.  Mueller was evidently not too pleased with Billy's summary of the two year investigation into the Idiot Jerks treasonous activities.  Gee, didn't he know Billy was put into place to squelch the truth?  The funny thing is that Billy is skating along on thin ice... and I suspect he knows this.  When the Idiot Jerk goes down, people are going to be examining Billy's unethical decisions and asking 'yo, was Billy colluding with the treasonous Idiot Jerk?'
And more polls are coming out about the presidential race that's starting a year and a half early and Biden has a double digit lead over... Bernie.  And Bernie must think someone's running a Cuisipro grater up and down his ass just for the zest of it. 

Bernie's favorite

Full speed ahead

Well, it's Saturday and for those of you who don't know... today's my Friday.
In the political world, so much has been happening.  The Idiot Jerk in the White has seen is approval rating drop by 3 points in just a day in a half.  Oops...  Melanoma, in her coyly Russian accent advised him to "shtop taulking to press," (no articles in Russian... too defining perhaps?).  Yesterday there was some sort of bitter angry Tweet Storm because people now know that instead of just being a lying sack of shit, he's incompetent as hell when it comes to managing his people.  North Korea is not only calling Pompeo an ass, their describing Bolton as a fool.  Oops.  Remember all of those denuclearization lies?  Guess what?  They were lies.
Elizabeth Warren has begun calling for his impeachment.  Personally, I think we should apply the breaks just a tad bit.  We can do more damage to the Republican Party if he stays in office.  The Idiot Jerk is walking around with little targets all over his body, so let's start shooting our little arrows.  The focus needs to be on whittling down his base.  That's not going to happen if you got for the Big Kahuna.  They will unify around him.  No, we need to make Idiot Jerk look useless.  We need to feed his anger.  When he's angry he does does and says stupid shit.  The longer we needle and pick, the sooner he's going to take that shit and start rubbing it all over his body.  This is what needs to happen.  Not impeachment.  The Republicans tried that with Clinton and it ended up making him more popular.  Our goal must be to truly decimate his ego.  His base needs to feel so disgruntled they will stay home from the polls.  Going after the Idiot Jerk with a sledgehammer will not achieve that goal.
As for the Mueller Report?  We need to wait for Congress to get the unredacted copy.  You can bet the Idiot Jerk has already seen it, thanks to his buddy boy Billy Barr.  He knows who has betrayed him.  He will start lashing out.  Heads will roll.  He and his lemmings see the cliff... and it's full speed ahead.

Out

Finally... it is Friday.  Sometime last evening I hit my hump minute.  It's all downhill from now until tomorrow when I leave work.
And for those who don't know... it's OUT.  The Mueller Report.  I'm talking about the Mueller Report, not Mikey Pence sashaying into the Oval Office in his Carmen Miranda drag.
In spite of being heavily redacted, so many sentences jump out and grab you by the hair on your chiny-chin-chin.  It's like Christmas at Easter.  Presents and candy eggs for everybody... well, not for the Idiot Jerk.  Billy Barr spent what? An hour defending his boss, and then Mitchy McTurtle spent some time defending Billy Barr because...  well, it seems Billy had been doing his damnedest to misrepresent the truth.
But the truth has come out.  Sarah Sanders is the Idiot Jerk's most prominent liar.  When one of her lies was specifically pointed out, she claimed it was a 'slip of the tongue.'  This is a woman who's father blames the LGBT community for the evils of society.  Maybe he should start looking at his daughter's mouth... and maybe grab a bar of soap.
My favorite sentence:  The Idiot Jerk saying "There goes my presidency!  I'm fucked!"  Now, is anybody really surprised something like that popped out of his mouth?  I started laughing out loud.  This fool has been fucked most of his life... and he is only finding out the truth now?  Shit, he's been listening to Sarah Sanders too much.
There are evidently 10 times when he actually, purposefully tried to obstruct justice... and failed, because his henchies either just dropped the ball... or ignored his orders.  The Idiot Jerk has surrounded himself with out and out incompetent sycophants.  Isn't this always the case?  Believe me, this is only going to get juicier and juicier because you know those redacted parts are going to start getting leaked.  The end of the Idiot Jerk's presidency is going to be outstandingly bad.
And finally, as I promised yesterday, here's a bit of the cover art for my next book.

Now, I know some are going to say "but it's only the title..." ah, but you should see the rest.  Those who have seen it have called it 'spectacular,' and 'stunning.'  The artist, herself, as said "this one is so much better than the first one."  I, of course, paid her.  When I asked if it was enough she said..." all I want is copy of the book!"   With the first one, the music I listened to most while in the creative process was Fallout Boy.  With this one it was definitely Imagine Dragons.  Little ditties like this pretty much sum up "The Body in the Tower."

Full Frontal

I got up this morning thinking it was Friday.  Today and tomorrow, I thought, and then I'm off for 2 days.  "Friday, Friday," I sang,... and then I looked at Accuweather.  Shit.  It's only Thursday.  I have to work 3 more days...
Today I get the cover art for "The Body in the Tower."  Excitement is building.  Of course, I'll give a tease.  There's nothing wrong with being a tease... you know?  A little peek-a-boo here, a little peek-a-boo there.  Nothing too revealing.  Full frontal is out until much closer to publication.
This is my kinder, gentler version then the reveal Billy Barr is going to give the Mueller Report.  Heavily redacted, with a twist to the lying side of the truth.  This is why Billy Barr has his job, not to do the right thing, rather his goal is to cover up corruption.  He will distort the truth in order to make the Moral Degenerate in the White House look... more palatable to hungry conservatives.  His idea of teasing is hiding honesty as far away from the public as possible.  He doesn't understand that everything will be revealed.  It's only a matter of time before the Idiot Jerk is forced to go Full Frontal....  Stop screaming!  Just cover you eyes until he crawls back under his rock.
Anyway, I think I need a vacation, a couple of days to work polishing the manuscript.  I got so much accomplished yesterday.  Just two chapters to go before I.... read through it again.  Yes, writing is very repetitious.  No one simply writes a book.  There are always changes.  This is why when I'm finished it goes to readers.  The guy who's going to be doing what I call editing will leave me notes like:  "Boring, " "What the hell is this?"  "Illogical!"  He actually went back and fact checked the ending of "The Body on the Lawn" to make sure I hadn't fudged the denouement.  That's actually a French word which originally meant to 'unknot,'  In other words, that's the point where all the time and effort I've put in to writing the book goes Full Frontal... you see everything.  This is why my Full Frontal is so much better than the Full Frontal of the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  Mine make you smile and say"ah ha!"  His sends you screaming.

Let there be blood

This! Is! My! Friday!  Well... actually it's a Thursday, but I am off for the next 2 days and that counts for something.  And the weather is not supposed to be that bad... a bit cool, but no steady rain... at least that's what they're forecasting for now.  We'll have to wait and see.
If the weather cooperates, I see more lawn work in the offing.  I bought dahlias to put in next to the Itoh peonies.  My squash and melon seeds are already in the ground... hopefully germinating as I type.  There's also blood red poppies and spearmint and cilantro... the mint's for tea.
Julian Assange as been arrested. in London.  How's that for happy news.  I suspected he's really concerned... poor thing (cheeky sarcasm).  Aren't there rape charges against him in Denmark?  He's a loudmouth who thrives off of spilling other people's secrets, now all the dirt he's been trying to sweep under his own rug is going to be revealed.  He is going to learn all about Karma...
And what about Billie Barr claiming the Federal Government was spying on the Idiot Jerk during the 2016 election.  This love song is directed at one specific block of voters, the blood red, MAGA hatted buffoons and brain dead Republicans who hate everything they can't control.  His goal?  To enrage them, to keep them charged up, to insure they show up at the polls in 2020.  Why?  Because the Idiot Jerk in the White House has an approval rating of 43% - that's a death knell if you're trying to get your ass re-elected.  They understand this.  The only way he can keep his tax returns secret, the only way he can keep from being indicted, is to get himself re-elected.  The only way Stevie M., and Betsy D., and Mikey M. and Billy B. from being indicted, is to keep the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  Oh, that's right, there are 2 Stevie M's, Mnuchin and Miller, well hell, they're both crooks, so let's get both of them behind bars.
So, I got a text yesterday from Cori, the woman working on my book cover, that included several pictures of background color.  She asked one question:  do you prefer pastels or blood.  I looked at all the pics she had sent me, different pastels, and they were all nice.  Then I looked at the one in which she'd let her creativity run wild and couldn't stop myself from smiling.  My reply was a no-brainer:  Let there be blood.