Disclosure Day

For those of you living in Central PA, we're going to have a beautiful day.  Temps are going to be in the low 80s (F).  Humidity is going to be down.  Tomorrow?  Probably not so nice.  We've got a 59% chance of rain, possibly in the form of a later afternoon thunderstorm.  So, if you're not working, go outside and have a blast.

Yesterday was interesting.  I had breakfast with my brother.  That was interesting.  Despite being polar opposites when it comes to politics, we get along well.  When I got home, I finished and the posted my blog.  And then, I began the publication process.  This is usually an easy process.  Everything was going along ducky until I got to the cover art.  The scanned copy needed to have 300 DPI (dots per inch) and mine only had 195.  Well, hell.  I've never had this problem before.  So I made several attempts at increasing the DPI, including downloading Photoshop.  That only raise the DPI to 212.  I decided to rescan the artwork and lo and behold that's where my problem was.  The Xerox printer/scanner I own allows you to select the level of DPI, either 200, 300, 400, or 500, and I had originally scanned it in at 200.  I rescanned it at 400 and voila!  No problem.  

I went to see Disclosure Day last evening.  I liked it.  A lot.  Some people are having a problem with the last 30 minutes.  Quite probably this is because they were expecting something akin to the ending of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, neither does it have an ET ending.  Perhaps the film is too cerebral for some. The ending is, instead, provocative.  Emily Blunt is outstanding, so is Josh O'Connor.   I will watch it again when it streams.

For those of you who are paying attention to the incompetence surrounding the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, things have gotten worse.  Not only has a fence been erected around the pool, but overnight blue tarps were hung from the fence keeping the public from looking at and possibly taking pictures of the algae growth.

The primaries in New York have rattled a lot of old school Democrats, and well they should be.  Their 1960s playbook has not worked in a long time.  Fresh faces with new, aggressive ideas are needed.

And, of course, we all know that desperate times call for desperate measures, but honestly, I didn't think the GOP would be this desperate.  Last evening, when I got home from the movies, I checked my texts and was surprised to find this in my inbox.  Let's be honest, they must be truly desperate to send this to me.

Groveling for Trump

 According to the weather forecasters, the rain is supposed to slack off slightly today.  We only have a 40% chance that the drizzles will continue.  At present, it's just cool.  When I look at Accuweather there's a half cloudy icon, but there is also a drizzle with that percentage posted beneath it.  So it appears that whether I like not, rain is still in the forecast for today.

I did work yesterday.  It was okay.  My pesky supervisor who seems to have time management issues called off, as did our aisle associate.  In fact there were a number of call-offs.  Flooring has been crushing it and the store would have made plan if it hadn't been for a big return in Millwork, and I mean big.  Windows are expensive and one of our customers decided to cancel an install.

The big tank is going to get a bit of a cleaning today.  I've discovered that the best way to control my algae problem is to not keep the aquarium lights on all day.  Instead of getting of having it on for 15 hours, it's only on for about 5.  That is evidently enough to keep the live plants growing.

There is much to do today, even a dumbbell workout, possible.  Shortly, I'm preparing to bake a loaf of bread in the machine.  I haven't baked bread for a while.

And, speaking of baking, look what New York did in a special election.

Amy Coney Barret recused herself from a case involving the separation of Church and State, and her decision led to a deadlock causing the challenge to fail.  I was impressed that she recused herself, that shows she has character.  Neither Alito nor Thomas, the billionaires lackey, would do such a thing.  They have an agenda to fulfill.  This means that Christian Nationalists are going to be hating on Amy.

And the Orange Anus has evidently amassed an extremely large war chest, over $600 million.  This is one of the reason the Republican party is so bent on kissing ass; they want him to use some of that cash to help them win the midterms.  Hah.  My first thought that his greed will make it super difficult for him to part with that cash.  I honestly don't see that happening.  His dementia may trickle out a little but not much.  Besides, he enjoys making them grovel, it makes him feel more like a dictator.

Nature

 The weather forecasters have planned a day of filled with a solid cloud cover.  Not a wink of sunshine shall peep through.  Temps are predicted to be in the low 60s (F).  Not my kind of day, still I do want to get a bike ride in and possibly a bit more.

Yesterday turned out to be busy and tedious.  Meh!

My neighbor and I had our updated signatures validated by a notary public for the will which was changed.  That took about an hour of the morning.  She drove. All backroads.  She doesn't like driving on the highway.  And she talked constantly.  Her favorite phrase is "you know what I mean?" except she never pauses to let you answer.  She's also a smoker and said, "I hope you don't mind," as she lit one up.  Those clothing are waiting to be washed later today.  Don't get me wrong, she's a very nice person, she'll be taking care of my fish when I'm in Greece.  She just has some idiosyncrasies.  

I had lunch with my cousin and her husband and she texted me the wrong time, so I sat around and waited... and waited, for them to pick me up.  And then I ate pasta, and all I wanted to do was sleep the rest of the day.  Those damn carbs!

Here's a picture of the nature trail at Adams - Ricci that I walked the other day.

And because yesterday was such mish - mash of time consumption, I didn't really get the chance to pay attention to what was going on with Trump's Election Interference trial.  More and more people are beginning to call it that, rather the Hush Money trial, since his payment to Stormy Daniels was made to keep her from going public.  Honestly, though, I don't think the cult would have minded that much.  They swallowed so much of his guff without batting an eye.  For all I know, they might have actually found it amusing.  They're weird like that.

Oh, and evidently Fox called MTG and Idiot, not that she cares.  That, in itself, defines her as being an Idiot.  Oh, and her dipshit boyfriend was up in New York City and made the comment that he was surprised.  He'd been expecting the streets to be over run by homeless individuals and violent crime to be rampant.  This was not the case.  Of course, he listens to Marjorie which makes him an Idiot, too. 

The Quickie

 Outside it's sunny, temps are still in the mid 30s (F) but they'll be climbing up into the low to mid 50s (F) by this afternoon.  Looking at the long range forecast, it looks as though we are past our final freeze of the season.  While overnight temps drop into the mid 30s (F), there no indication that they'll drop cold cold enough to trigger a killing frost.

Yesterday, the store was so... boring.  The only bright spot was the food.  We're celebrating our Success Sharing.  The bonus checks were small, but they spent a lot on food.  So much so, that today I'll get dessert several times, and not just the traditional ice cream.  There were pies, and cakes, and cheesecakes, and all sorts of scrumptious morsels that kill cholesterol and add pounds.  Of course, an offshoot of my recent stress has been binge eating, snacky things; the sort of foods I usually tend to avoid.  And I have gained weight, about 5 pounds.  Since there are going to be leftover goodies this morning and afternoon, the exercise and diet plan begins tomorrow.  I want to be sleek for the Greeks.

I also bought a new suitcase and a new backpack (one big enough to carry one of my laptops).  They should be arriving today.  I went with red.  My most favorite color in the world, for those who didn't know.

And the Orange Anus goes to court today... again.  He's going to find out if he can wiggle out of his Stormy trial, because of the additional documents  the DOJ forget to give his team.  I'm hoping the judge nixes that idea, I really do think America needs to see the Orange Anus in Explosive Diarrhea Mode.

The fallout NBC has gotten from their hiring of Rhona McDaniel Romney.. ( of wait, she dropped the Romney, does that mean she got a divorce?) has been... interesting.  Suddenly the network is blurting out snippets and blurbs saying she's not going to be an on-air personality.  People are wondering just what they were thinking.  Perhaps they desperately wanted a $300,000 tax write-off.  

Today is also the day when New York begins the takeover of Trump properties.  I have to admit that I'm with that group who wants to see them take his private jet, the Flying Trump Dump, or whatever he calls it.

Whiners and Losers

 Well, a happy Saturday to all you weekend readers!  The temps outside are a near balmy 42 (F) and they're predicted to hit 60 (F) by this afternoon.  Yeah, keep in mind that this is still Autumn, or Fall, depending upon which noun you prefer.  Accuweather has issued a Fog Watch until 1130, though when I look out the window there's not much for me to watch.

Yesterday was productive.  Only 2 cabinet doors remain to be hung, not because I didn't want to hang them, but because I'm waiting for new hinges.  The previous hinges were brown metal, which would stand out terribly against the white cabinets so white hinges were ordered.  They should be hear Monday.  Some of the cabinets got their 3rd coat of paint, and some of the trim was finished as well.  This coming week there will be more painting, in fact, that's all that's left to do... oh, and of course, the floor.  That's going to be a real pain in the knees and hips.

Here's a bit of a funny from the UK:  Jimmy Dyson, you know?  Dyson vacuums?  He filed a libel suit against the Daily Mirror claiming they said terrible things about him that weren't true.  Hhhmmm, what sort of terrible things?  That he was a great supporter of Brexit, and that it if the voters of the UK passed it, it would be boon to the economy... except, once Brexit passed Jimmy decided it would be better financially if he moved his business headquarters and everything associated with that headquarters somewhere else... other than Britain, someplace like Singapore.  Jimmy didn't like it when the Daily Mail called him out on it, saying he was a phony, so he tried to punish them by suing them.  And...  the courts decided that the Daily Mail hadn't libeled Jimmy by reporting the truth, basically telling Jimmy that his whining really sucks.

This is what 23 (F) did to my roses.

Of course, yesterday was George Santos' last day as a Congressman.  The vote to get him out is considered a landslide:  311 voted to oust the phony, that includes both Republicans and Democrats.  Some whiners complained that it sets a bad precedent because he was convicted of any crimes, 20 of those whiners were Democrats, the rest were Republicans.  That's amusing.  Now the Republican majority is one seat short.  There's going to be a special election in February to replace Georgie.  Some are thinking it might be a highly contested race.  Not me.  Santos flipped the seat, it wasn't always Republican.  Now, thanks to all of the slimy shenanigans taking place on the GOP side of the House of Representatives, it's going to flip back.  

Crush This

 So, this is hump day for some of you.  Wednesday is always one of my days off, meaning this will never, ever again be a hump day for me.  I'm okay with that.

Tomorrow is my aunt's funeral.  There's a viewing at 1000 I had planned on attending but...  There is Omicron.  One of our associates died from Covid last week and quite a number are out sick.  Should I or shouldn't I?  I don't mind going into work because the store is huge.  Tomorrow, however, will be in a funeral parlor where the ceilings are not high, and there will be a long line of people waiting to give my four cousins condolences.  And since my aunt was elderly, mostly there will be a lot of old people there, old Republicans, to be precise.  As I type, I'm rapidly talking myself out of attending.

And yesterday Microsoft dropped some big news!  They're buying Activision / Blizzard for $67.8 billion and paying in Cash.  Now, I know some will shrug this off with a "I have no interesting in gaming," however this is bigger than gaming.  This involves the Metaverse: AI, Cloud Services, Virtual Services, as well as gaming.  This company owns one of the most popular mobile games in the world.  People waste their lunch time at the store playing this game, and I'm sure everybody out there knows its name:  Candy Crush.  By the way, I hate this mindless, little game.

Finally, yesterday court papers were filed by the New York AG claiming there was 'significant' evidence that Ivanka Danka and Donny Jr lied about their property, inflating and then deflating values to either get a better loan or to pay less taxes, thereby defrauding banks, and investors, and the Federal Government.  Why doesn't this surprise me?  This is what we should expect from a crime family.  

Evangelicals are demanding their sacrifice

Okay, so it's Saturday and I'm sure a lot of you out there are planning fun filled weekends!  I know there are a lot of people going to be hitting our 'life sustaining' garden center in order to purchase their 'essential' mulch.  For many, Covid - 19 is a serious issue... somewhere else.  Up in New York, for example, it's really bad.  Here?  We are on the cusp of going bad.  And, of course, people don't stay home.
My friend Betsy, from York, was called yesterday and told her position was being eliminated.  She worked one on one with handicapped individuals and new guidelines have been issued.  Those who are handicapped tend to have many more health issues than your average person.   From what she was telling me, it seems as though they are going to create 'safe houses' for them until this thing passes which makes her employer seriously over-staffed.  This is another casualty because of the incompetency in the White House.
And I'm beginning to see push back on the Idiot Jerk's decision to send everybody back to work around April 7, just in time for his Evangelical Base to celebrate Easter.  That's almost word for word what I read in Bloomberg, and that source is not alone.  There are 2 reasons he wants people back to work:  if the economy sinks, so does he, and his Evangelical base.  He needs his base.  He made a deal with them:  he would make this country as Cracker Jack Crazy Christian as they wanted if the supported him, and protected him.  And his Crazy Christian base?  They don't care how many Americans get sacrificed as long as they get what they want.  They are the selfish face of Christianity.  They are also Republicans... and their favorite pronoun is 'my.'  Covid - 19 is going to piss the hell out of them before it ravages them.
The weather yesterday was wonderful.  Temps were in the mid 60's (F).  I had the back door open and the dogs were running in and out... and in and out.  And then around 7 PM they crashed.  Tired puppies they were.
I did manage to take this picture of my nectarine blossoms.  Nifty, huh?

The Putin Upstage

Wednesday!  And another day off.  Sadly, the forecast is for drizzly weather for most of the day, with temps only in the mid 40's (F).  Not a good day for lawn work.  Yesterday was sunny and mild.  My peonies are zoom zooming all over the place.  Of course, this is to be expected because it is "spring."  Both my peach and nectarine trees are filled with burgeoning blossoms.  Here's a pic of the peach tree looking towards the front yard.

And, for those who are really worried about Covid - 19, don't worry.  Evidently everything is going to go back to normal by April 7.  This is what the Idiot Jerk in the White House says.  He says this is to help the economy.  At least, that's what he's saying publicly.  Personally, I think it has more to do with his resorts... you know, the ones that are closed down?  I don't doubt he is more concerned about losing money than he is the safety of the American People.  He has no problem putting people in danger just to make a buck.
Of course, one of the most preposterous things this dimwit has done is set a timeline for when this is going to end.  For those of you who are really devout, rest assured, you'll be able to go to church on Easter Sunday.  Didn't anybody think to tell this duffer that the worst thing you can do in a pandemic is set and end date?  Just a few hours after he carved that date in stone an urgent warning was made to all those people leaving New York:  self-quarantine for 14 days.  Son of a bitch!  Still, he has to satisfy his base.  The Cracker Jack Christians desperately need to be sitting in a pew on their most holiest of days.
Raise your hands if you think Liberty University is going to turn into a Covid - 19 hot spot.  Those young people are just coming back from spring break, and they're still under the belief they're almost immune, and so they didn't self-quarantine, and....  Oh... Shit.
Legislation has been passed to help those most destitute during this crisis:  the corporations.  Oh, sure, the small guys are going to get some help, but mostly it's the big guys who are getting bailouts. As someone who work in retail home improvement, it's the little guys, the Mom and Pop contractors that are going to be hurting more.  Conservatives have never really cared for them.  Nope.  Their fascination with greed has always drawn them to the flame of corporations.  The same thing happened when they did the bailout for farmers because of the Idiot Jerk's trade wars.  Most of the buckos went to the corporate farms rather than the Mom and Pop farms.  It's a size thing, you know?  For Republicans, bigger has always been better.
I'm sure everybody saw where Putin, donning a hazmat suit and venturing into a hospital, upstaged the Idiot Jerk in the White House.  The Russians also admitted that Covid - 19 is far worse in Russia then they had led the world to believe.  Like many other European countries, they are on the verge of going into a complete lock down which will most likely last past Easter.  Our Idiot Jerk is not going to do anything as risky as that... the hazmat suit, you know?  He might dress Melanoma up in some frilly, designer suit and maybe have her stand outside a hospital, followed by a 2 month isolation period in that building he owns in New York (aka Ground Zero).
Finally, I'm considering yoga if we end up having a 3 or 4 weeks shut down.  You know, something to include in my cycling adventure.  Yesterday I had a nice ride in Gascony.  The other day I took a ride through Burgundy and got behind a grape (harvester, or picker, or what ever it's called).  Damn those things are big.

Today's the day

It was supposed to have been repaved yesterday, but it seems as though, for some odd reason, they couldn't get it done so it's happening today.  I realized this around 0710, by which time they had already prepped by spraying liquid tar up and down Cumberland Road.  I sent a text to the store telling them I'd be late, and also one to the scheduler so she could find lunch coverage for my one associate... and she gave me a ration of shit and said I should have planned for this.  I replied by saying it was planned for yesterday and that she just needs to "deal with it."  No response, but then I didn't expect one.  She doesn't like to be told what to do.  She thinks she's special.  She isn't.  Anyway, I should be able to drive on it in about 2 - 3 hours and will head over to the store then.

That's Big Seig in the lower left hand corner

Today's the day New York also holds its primary election and both Clinton and Trump are expected to win.  And, of course, the GOP doesn't understand that as a party it's going to need to pull its head out of its ass and deal with reality for once.  Trump has pretty much predicted riots in Cleveland if he doesn't get the nomination and the Republicans just don't understand how bad that's going to make them look as a party.  They never learned the important lesson of the Gore / Bush election.  They went strictly by the rules back then, overriding the popular vote in favor of the Electoral College in order to get one of their own in the White House.  And, of course, they gave us the 2nd worst president in the history of the United States.  But then they never will learn, will they?