A momentary bonus

Well, it's Friday and I'm off today.
I ordered the new laptop, a Dell Inspiron 5000, 2018 model.  I read a number of reviews, checked out a number of different websites, and debated with myself over the price point.  Some of the things I wanted were a touch screen and an SSD (solid state drive) rather than your standard Hard Drive, and wanted a screen size that was over 15 inches (since I'm getting older and don't want to squint).  Since most computers are approaching obsolescence after 6 years I decided to keep the cost to something less than $1000.  This one is quite a bit less than what I was willing to pay and fits my requirements.
They announced at work yesterday that because of this great "tax cut" everybody's getting a bonus.  Not everybody is getting the same amount, it all depends upon how long you've been an employee;

Less than 2 years: $200 bonus
2 to 4 years: $250 bonus
5 to 9 years: $300 bonus
10 to 14 years: $400 bonus
15 to 19 years: $750 bonus
20+ years: $1,000 bonus

Of course the press release only mentions the $1000 category and not the lower ones.  I've been with company 9.5 years so you can see where I sit.  Keep in mind that retail has a high turnover rate so the actual number of associates with 10 plus years is not that high.  Keep in mind that we had over $94.6 billion in sales last year so this total payout will have very little, if any, effect on their balance sheet, and while I'm glad to get a little extra money, I do wish they hadn't politicized it by linking it to the tax overhaul.  As we've all been told, this is a once and done payout; that tax cut is permanent.

In other hoo haa news:  Patrick Meehan, the socially conservative, Republican congressman who used office funds as hush money to keep an aide he had the hots for from talking, has announced "after much prayer and reflection" that he's not going to seek re-election.  In this bozos case "prayer and reflection" are synonymous with "Holy Shit... am I screwed."

Also, George Soros sees the Idiot Jerk as a threat to the world.  In fact, he had this to say:

“I consider the Trump administration a danger to the world,” the billionaire investor said in a speech from Davos, Switzerland. “But I regard it as a purely temporary phenomenon that will disappear in 2020, or even sooner.” He expects a Democratic “landslide” in the 2018 elections.

Well, now ain't that just a ducky thing to say? Don't you like the bit about 'even sooner.'  One wonders if George might know something.

And remember when I said there were 2 strikes against the Social Conservatives (Joel Osteen, failed Christian, and Roy Moore, sexual predator)?  Well the 3rd might have actually been Tony Perkins from the 'hate' group AFC giving the Idiot Jerk a pass on the porn star.  Talk about selling your soul to the devil.  But then all of this was to be expected.  Bad karma, you know?  And they thought getting the Idiot jerk elected was going to be a big bonus for them.

Voters First

Well, here it is Tuesday and I'm off work.  Nope, no cold, no sniffles, this is, however, the last week of the fiscal year and they're cutting hours.  When they asked... I accepted.  Tomorrow I'll put in for 8 hours vacation pay since I budgeted for 40 hours this week.
Now I know there are Liberals out there who think that Schumer blinked in order to keep the government open for another 14 days... he didn't.  What he did do was get a "promise" from old Mitch McTurtle regarding immigration.  This means that in what?... 2 weeks?  the government is going to shut down again.  This also means that when it does the word 'liar' is going to start falling from Democratic lips.  You see, Mitchie also lied to Susan Collins, that Centrist Senator from Maine about immigration.  No one lies as much as a Republican.
And for those of you who don't know, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court hand the state Republicans a healthy plate of truth yesterday when the Court ruled that their gerrymandering was unconstitutional.  What makes this so sweet is that in Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justices are elected by the people, not appointed, and the Democrats have a majority: 5 - 2.  Of course the Republicans are running around like their hair is on fire, shrieking about how they're going to take this to the US Supreme Court.  They have a problem, however.  You see the ruling cites the State constitution, not the Federal Constitution and the US Supreme Court doesn't usually hear cases regarding State Constitutionality.  Oops.  To give you an idea how badly the Republicans have shit on the American Right to Fair Representation, take a look at this district.

What makes this even more pathetic is that this district is represented by Patrick Meehan.  You know who that is, the Senator who was just kicked off the Ethics Committee for hitting on a younger aide and then using office funds to pay her off. 
Now the districts have to be redrawn before the March 18 primaries.  Republicans all over the state have been rolling around in apoplexy.  They are freaking furious that someone might actually want to put the Voters First in Pennsylvania.  As John Gray says "hey ho."
Anyway, it's time for me to hit the free weights.  If you listen carefully, you can hear the 25 lb dumbbells calling out my name.