The Expendables

 Well the  forecasters were sort of right yesterday, we did have rain in the late afternoon, drizzles and showers throughout the evening.  We have the same forecast for today, and tomorrow, and into the middle of next week.  Will we get rain every day?  I don't doubt it.  Summers are not the same as they were.  We did have a bit of a heat wave in early June, those used to occur in late July and August.  Of course, we're still early into summer so things may change.

Yesterday was one of those, "well, I'm not going to get a lot done today," days, mostly because of my appointment at the VA clinic in Lebanon.  I did have plans for when I left, however there were delays.  My consultation started 20 minutes late and then we spent 15 minutes talking about my bloodwork.  Then it was decided that I should have an EKG since it's been 8 years since I had the last one.  Tomorrow, I'll go in and check out that report.  I also had to sit through a detailed instruction on colonoscopy prep.  Crap, two days before the procedure I need to stop eating everything I normally eat. 

Anyway, I didn't get home until after 3:30 PM, so as far as I was concerned the day was pretty much a waste.  Wait, that's not quite right, I did finish Intermezzo 2 in The Body in 4/4 Time.  That's right, this book will have both chapters and intermezzos.  There's even an Overture.

I did start growing another carrot.  I planted the other one I'd started outside.  Evidently that's what you're supposed to do when it starts growing roots.

And you have to admit that Orangie's failure to deal with Epstein is... remarkable.  That moral degenerate is so desperate he's raised the tariffs on Brazilian exports to 50% in the hopes of getting people to talk about something else.  Lucky for us tariffs and Tacos are synonymous. Previously such an announcement would have sent the Dow plummeting, but not anymore.  Orangie is a now a broken record when it comes to tariffs.  

Remember when Orangie said he was going to get rid FEMA?  That money could best be served in giving himself and other billionaires a tax break.  Well, it seems that Puppy Killer Kristi Noem waited 2 days to activate FEMA's Search and Rescue Team after the horrific flood in Texas.  This is her way of telling those victims "you're on your own, baby!"  Whether they understand it or not, this is what those Texans voted for, of course no one ever told those parents whose children were washed away that their lives had now become expendable.  Surprise! in the eyes of billionaires, everyone who isn't one is expendable.

Packed... almost...

 Well, it's 69 (F) outside and the skies are overcast.  Purportedly, they're supposed to clear up and it's supposed to be partially sunny for my flight to Philly.  However, (isn't there always an however?) there is the threat of thunderstorms.  

Yesterday I got some stuff accomplished, like cleaning the aquarium in the living room, and packing, mostly what it seems I did was eat.  Nervousness, perhaps?  Possibly.  I tried the online check-in and that didn't work.  After I filled in all of the pertinent information and hit "enter," it took me back to the main screen where, other than print off a boarding pass, there were other things that I could do... like pay an additional $132  for a seat.  For those of you who don't know, I have little legs.  My inseam is 29 inches (buying pants is a nightmare).  I'm all torso.  So, upgrading for an additional 6 inches of legroom is not an essential.

I talked to my movie buddy Patty last evening, she's going to be feeding the fish.  I was going to let my neighbor from across the street handle that chore, but... well, I've known Patty for 15 years and I feel more comfortable with her in my house.  I'm sure a lot of you know what I mean.

And for those curious few out there who need to know... I am packed... almost.  That means everything that needs to be in the suitcase is in the suitcase.  So tell me, can you guess what one of my favorite colors is?

I find it fascinating that so many pundits are upset that when Dana Bash asked Kamala Harris about Trump's comment about her turning black Harris simply said "same old shit" (my version).  Instead of creating drama they could attempt to articulate about, she simply moved on.  And evidently the MSM is frustrated that soooo many people are turning to independent news sources to get their information because these people, like Harris, have simply moved on.  No one wants to hear once reputable journalists opining in a way that satisfies the billionaire owners of the NYT, the Washington Post, CNN, and NPR.  Both the Guardian and Reuters also provide fairly decent reporting, but then they're European and have no problem being critical in regard to American politics, no matter which party is involved.

And Elon got shut down in Brazil.  I'm betting the fact that someone told him to shut-up has him stamping his feet ferociously.  We all need more balls when dealing with billionaires, otherwise they will run rampant and ruin everything.

Republican Deja Vu

 Sometime last night a dusting of snow fell.  The morning sun is going to melt it away pretty damn fast.  That's fine.  Except for that Cyclone Bomb that froze our tidily winks off back around Christmas, this winter's been more temperate than usual, at least here in Central PA.  Everyone who pays a heating bill appreciates that.

Biggie has evidently decided he's no longer going to be sleeping on the bed.  He's also decided that the new bed I bought him makes a decent pillow.  Go figure.  My biggest challenge is sleeping on more than an eighteen-inch wide strip at the edge of the bed.  I'm making progress.

I baked a peach pie yesterday using some of the peaches I froze.  It's... okay.  I don't remember baking one before, and instead of looking at a recipe I sort of, well, winged it.  It's tasty, but it doesn't really have a peachy flavor.  I did mix in some walnuts because I like nuts.  I think I'll use my remaining peaches to make cobblers, they're easier.

I saw where Maggie Green has suddenly disavowed her Qanon roots in favor of a new hairstyle that no longer has that trailer-trash look.  Worry not, her new appearance belies the fact that she's still the hateful Margaret so many people detest.

And, in case you missed it, the fascists down in Brazil attempted their on January 6 event.  The major differences between Trump's fete du jour and theirs?  they chose coordinating colors, yellow and green, and whereas Trump sent his coup participants home with a blessing, over 400 were arrested down in Brazil.  And where was wannabe dictator Jair Bolsonaro while this was happening?  Why in Florida.  In fact, I do believe he's visiting that other wannabe dictator Donald, the Orange Anus, Trump.  How cozy.

The dysfunctional House of Representatives is set to vote on their rules and regulations today.  They need 218 votes to get them passed.  This is going to be interesting.  They can only lose 7 votes, I believe.  This is how you spell Deja Vu.

Finally, the State of Union is schedule for March 1.  I'm of the opinion the first (notice I say first, here) indictment will fall well before that date.  And the Moral Degenerate, Donald Trump, is not the only one who's going to be charged.  This is why Jimmy Jordan, and the rest of that group who wanted pardons, is desperate to set up a subcommittee to find out where all of the investigations stand, especially those regarding their own traitorous asses.

Republican Recession

 Holy Crap!  It's Tuesday, and I slept in, and not because I stayed up late killing vampires in Evil West, or because I was watching TV.  I hit the sack around 11.  I only got up once to let Biggie out.  He did decide to sleep upstairs last night, just couldn't make up his mind if he wanted to sleep on the bed, or on the floor.  The floor won.

Outside, it's foggy as hell and rainy heavily.  This afternoon the forecast is for breezy conditions.  Hopefully, things will dry up.  Temps are supposed to peak in the mid 60s (F) sometime tonight, and the start to fall into a more winter like patter.

And yesterday at the store?  I was busy, busy, busy: over $7000 in sales; I cut blinds for several customers, and cut carpet as well.  My shift was pretty much non-stop customers.  That's fine.  Busy makes time fly.  I have no problem with that.  Of course, yesterday was a holiday for most people.

Before work, yesterday, I took a ride around Lake Annecy, which I do believe is in Treader's neck of the woods.  Actually, I had to ride 4 miles on a bike route next to a highway before I finally reached the Lake.  

And, of course, today the Republicans take control of the House of Representatives by a very slim majority.  I laughed yesterday when I saw pictures of McCarthy's minions moving his desk into the Speaker's office.  And again, I chuckled this morning after I saw that it make take several days of voting before the Republicans manage to elect a Speaker.  During this time, the Democrats will wait, filing their nails, playing Wordle, and watching YouTube videos, as well as Unifying.  That's the important fact.  The Republican majority is so slim they will need Democrats to pass any sort of agenda.  The Republican party is in such disarray, they have no idea who deep a political recession they are in.

And, of course, there is the George Santos humiliation.  Brasil has reactivated the criminal complaint against him.  He is alleged to have written checks from a checkbook he stole, which is a crime in both Brazil and the United States, which means, should the Brazilian government ask him to be extradited, our government would comply.  Of course, this whole thing makes Republicans look terrible because they stayed silent; without his vote, their slim majority is even slimmer.  

Oh, and indictments are coming.

Culture Destroyers

Blogger seems to be moving very slowly this morning, so I'm wondering if I'm sufferings through some flawed update.

Holy Crap! it's Monday morning and I woke up to a freeze warning for early Wednesday warning.  You all know what that means, don't you?  Time to set the mousetraps.  We've already had some cool evenings, so I'm sure some have already started moving into their warm and comfy, and very dangerous winter lodgings.

The cooler air is also going to see a return of my oatmeal breakfasts, which might cause me to slow down my breadmaking a bit.

Yesterday was spent lollygagging around... so to speak, with a chore thrown in every now and then just to say I hadn't wasted the day entirely.

The pot rack is now installed in the kitchen and a new LED light bar is attached.  My kitchen is now very bright.  Next up will the the chore of tiling the wall beneath.  Tiling is not that difficult if you use mosaics, I wouldn't want to tile with 4 x 4's as I'm positive everyone entering my kitchen would see the angle of the slant.  For some reason, keeping things in a straight line is difficult for me.

A smoky leek and potato stew is planned for today.  We shall see if it turns out looking like this.

Here's an interesting bit from the Washington Post.  Indigenous tribes in Brazil are fighting back against an onslaught of Evangelical Missionaries.  Good for them, since one of the largest monotheistic religion's main goal is not to convert, as they claim, but rather to dictate and control.  This is especially true of the Evangelical branch which has become politicalized and polarizing in this country.  These indigenous people have had enough.  They are sending these culture destroyers packing.  Good for them.

Little Roses

Okay, so the Memorial Day Weekend is officially over, that means "you go back to work. And you go back to work.  And you go back to..." Oops, sorry, for a moment there I started channeling Oprah.  I know you can't all go back to work, there's a killer virus out there.
Well, yesterday I didn't mow the lawn, as I had intended.  Nope.  I sat around, both inside and out. I rode 8.8 miles in Gascony through fields of sunflowers.  There were lots of hills.  I got my wattage up to 340 at one point.  I roasted a ham and today I'm going to use some of it to make baked beans.  I have the time because today I don't go back to work, that happens tomorrow.  Five days in a row.  Forty hours.
I took my BP this morning and it was a bit edgy.  Genetics, you know?  Everyone in my family has edgy BP... well, not all of us.  Some of them have high BP.  It's all part of the aging process.  Nothing's going to keep the flexibility in your blood vessels forever.
The Idiot Jerk in the White House shut down arrivals from Brazil.  Originally the ban was supposed to go into effect tomorrow however some smart cracker must have made it into his administration and realized this was deja vu:  been there, done that, waited too long on the travel restrictions with China.  Odds are they waited too long... again and a lot of new infections have arrived in our southern states.
And I got a big chuckle from the Idiot Jerk threatening to pull the RNC convention from Charlotte.  Remember, he's a numbers guy.  He loves his crows of worshipers.  He wants to pack them into the convention center!  A full house all around.  Charlotte, however, is saying "not so fast, social distancing is important."  Of course, that's grating his ego, it needs to feed on the adoration of an enormous audience.  What makes this even funnier is that Charlotte was the only city to really put in a bid to hold the convention.  A spokesperson for the RNC said there were actually 7 cities, however the reality is they asked several other cities... not takers.  Not even Las Vegas.  They're not a very popular crowd.
And finally, not all of my roses are big and showy.  I have this little wild rose which took root at the front corner of my house a few years ago.  Rather than rip it out, I decided to let it grow.  Both the flowers and the perfume are quite delicate.

I really like the tiny heart shaped petals.

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Breaking America

Yesterday work was... odd, seeming more like a Sunday morning rather than a Monday.  Financially we did really well last week, one of only 2 stores to hit their forecast.  Some missed largely because of... well, probably online sales.  The main focus for us now until Christmas is to condense.  That's a word which will ring constantly.  Condense.  All the crap that didn't sell gets moved into smaller and smaller areas.  Oh... and prices start to drop on it because it's... crap.  If you thought you were getting a deal on it on Black Friday, wait 2 weeks.
Here in Central Pennsylvania we were all waiting for snow yesterday and... some received a dusting.  I got nothing.  Most of the white stuff fell on the mountain tops surrounding the Susquehanna Valley.

Now, I know there are some who will say "that's isn't a mountain."  You're wrong.  It's part of the Appalachian Mountain range, a very old and distinguished mountain range.  Back when Europe was still anchored to our Eastern Seaboard, the Appalachians were higher than either the Rockies or the Alps.  Now in their senior years, they deserve our respect.  Besides, you ought to try riding a bicycle up one... then you'll know it's a mountain.
I saw where the Idiot Jerk in the White House is slapping new tariffs on Brazil and Argentina because... they're selling boatloads of soybeans to China.  All of those boatloads our American framers used to sell?  Well, the Chinese have found another source.  This is what's called a Free Market Economy.  Our American farmers are having an 'oh Shit!' moment.  They believed they were the only ones in the world selling soybeans.  And the fact that these tariffs might tighten the bonds between Brazil, Argentina and China totally eludes the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  This is how you break America.
And new tariffs are threatened against France and the European Union.  That's right.  They passed new laws which will financially hurt American Tech Companies - the result, tariffs against them.  The problem is that France and the EU are saying "bring it on, Asswipe."  Ooops.  This is the wrong reaction.  They're supposed to cower and bow down at American Greed.  Wrong.  They're going to give us the finger.  This is just one more example of how the Idiot Jerk in the White House is going to break America.
Oh, and this just in:  The Idiot Jerk says it might be better to wait until after the 2020 to try and get a deal from China.  Oh, Shit!  And how many Americans went deeply into debt over Black Friday?  This is how you break America.