Chris has a penis

Well, here it is Friday... and I don't work this weekend.  The outside temp is 55 (F), the back door is open and the dogs are running in and out of the house, muddy, of course, because we've had rain.  Tomorrow they're calling for 3 - 6 inches of snow... well, it is February, isn't it?
I received a call from the VA yesterday asking how I was doing after the colonoscopy.  No pain?  no bloating?  Oh, and the biopsy will be back next week.  A funny thing about polyps:  when you tell someone one you've had one removed their face will grow narrow and serious, as though you've just received the worst diagnosis in the world.  One of my friends actually said, "well, it's a good think if they catch it now."  In their desire to get as many people as possible to undergo this procedure the medical community has demonized the little polyp.  Instead of being rare and the harbinger of doom, they are rather common, and the vast majority are harmlessly benign.  Unfortunately that message doesn't play well.
Anyway, I see the Idiot Jerk in the White House has once again said that the shooting in Florida is not a gun issue, but one of mental proportions.  The report that the shooter was a member of the Alt-Right is getting beaten back by his supporters on Facebook.  One dipshit actually said "how could he be a member of the Alt-Right?  Look at his last name."  Oh, yeah, how do we spell stupid?
There was an interesting article in the Chicago Tribune on how how the Idiot Jerk in the White House, and the Republican Party are desperately trying to keep America white.  They just don't want to believe in genetics, and in dominant genes; evolution is happening right in front of them.  We are getting browner by the day.  By 2044 there will be just as many minorities in the United States as there are White People.  Nothing is going to stop this... and they hate it.
And finally, I thought I post a picture of Chris Mazdzer, not because he's an attractive man in spandex... but rather because this photo hasn't been airbrushed.

Airbrushed, you ask?  Yes, airbrushed.  Puritanical minds object to some of Chris's details, finding them too revealing.  That's right, there are now a lot of photos out there in which Chris has been smoothly neutered.  The last thing these people what you to know is that a man named Chris, who is the first US medal winner in the luge, has a penis.

Pictures anybody?

Well, I had my colonoscopy yesterday - they also performed an endoscopy.  Things they discovered:  I have a tiny hiatal hernia, "nothing to be concerned about," I was told.  I have a few diverticular flaps, two to be precise, and they're just flaps, not even completely formed.  Some internal hemorrhoids - like we don't all have that little problem.  And one little, baby polyp.  When I questioned that I was told not to worry, 25% of all people aged 65 or older have polyps.  Not only was it very small, it's now gone, though I do have a picture if anyone would like to see it.  Contrary to what some people want to believe, a relatively small number of polyps actually go cancerous, a little of 7% if you're black, and a little over 5% if you're white.  Still, that's not going to stop some people from hitting the panic button.  Me?  Nothing is going to change.
There was a shooting at a Florida school yesterday, which means the GOP will do absolutely nothing - they will ignore anything to get those NRA votes.
The Idiot Jerk in the White House farted out something about "domestic abuse," but like most gas it dissipated rapidly.
Evidently there are quite a number of people in the Idiot Jerk's administration who have never had their clearances approved - Rob 'wife beater' Porter is not alone.  Some how this doesn't surprise me at all.
Oh, and Republicans here in Pennsylvania are shitting mad!  Governor Tom Wolf has shot down the new election map they sent to him... for a number of reasons, but mostly because even though they did change some of the districts, the map would still give a minority party the majority of seats in the House and Senate.  And they are furious!  They are losing control!  All their gerrymandering will have been for naught... and... they... hate... it.  Ah, well, it's time we flushed these suckers.
And about my pictures?  Let me know if anybody out there wants to see my cecum.

The Day of Liquids

So, my  prep work for tomorrows colonoscopy has begun.  To be truthful, it started last night when I took 3 Dulcolax.  As an individual who normally eats a high fiber diet, I can tell you they did their job.  And for the rest of today?  Clear fluids.  Later today comes the MoviPrep and if that doesn't give me the shits, well, all I'll need to do is look at the Idiot Jerk's budget: everything gets eliminated.
A large chunk goes to the military; a clear indicator of how backwards thinking Republicans are - if there is a next World War, it will be over in a few minutes, and will be done with computers.  Anyone who doesn't understand that needs to leave the 1960's behind and come into the present.  A prime example is... North Korea.  Everybody wrings their hands going "oh me, oh my," at their ability to launch a long range missile, totally forgetting their hackers.  Remember Sony Pictures?  People said, North Korea's hackers aren't that sophisticated... oh, yeah they are.
He also wants to shut down the National Endowment to the Arts & the National Endowment to Humanities... which makes sense when you realize Faux News represents neither.
And that great Infrastructure plan:  paid for by private funds and your state tax dollars.
On top of all of the funding the Idiot Jerk wants to cut, the federal government will still need to borrow beaucoup buckos to pay for what they want.  Now, if that isn't enough to give you the shits, nothing... which means the Idiot Jerk is prepping us all for a really big colonoscopy, or a least some sort of horrible procedure in which Republicans shove something up your butt because they'll never be happy until they rectumize us all.
Anyway, you may be wondering what I'm going to be doing today since the only nourishment I'll be getting is Gatorade.  Well, some free weights, there's nothing like hoisting around 25 lb dumbbells to help you forget that you're hungry.  And at least 10 miles on the bike.

Oh, and probably a nap or two with the dogs.

All will pass

Monday - the 2nd day of my vacation... and, of course, the dogs had me up at 0500.  The word vacation is not in their vocabulary, which might seem odd when you think that almost every day of their lives is a vacation.
Today is also the beginning of the terrible cleansing diet that's supposed to prepare my bowels for Wednesday's insertion of what I'm calling an alien anal probe.  Now, I'm not going to call myself the King of Fiber, but my diet normally consists of healthy, natural food.  Usually breakfast is oatmeal, almond slivers, walnuts, unsalted sunflower seeds, and chunky peanut butter, four of which I'm supposed to eliminate from my diet, so I can completely eliminate them from my bowels, until sometime Wednesday.  And that's just breakfast, I'm not going to list the fresh vegetables and fruits which are not out of bounds.  I find it interesting that in order to have this test performed I've got to switch to a diet I consider rather unhealthy.
Anyway, everything passes, figuratively and literally.  Starting sometime Wednesday afternoon things will return to normal.
The Idiot Jerk in the White House is going to be releasing some sort of infrastructure plan today which will conceptually rebuild roads and bridges and train tracks, and tunnels and... well, everything that needs to be rebuilt in the United States.  This was one of the Idiot Jerk's campaign promises... however, that his wall, this thing is going to be almost totally dependent upon someone else paying for it... not going to happen.  Remember when the Wall was supposed to be paid for by Mexico?  Well, if that monstrosity gets built American tax payers are going to be footing the bill.  And this infrastructure plan?  States will be footing most of the bill.  There's a big problem with that, states just don't have the money, which means he's just farting out lies again.

Some of the Samson cast ( yeah, that's Lindsey Wagner)

And for those with any interest, "Samson" starts playing in theaters this Friday.  "Samson?" you ask?  Yep, it's another Alt-Right Christian flick in which an 'all white' cast recreates the drama of the Bible story for an 'all white' Christian audience.  These things don't really make a lot of money, and quite a bit of the time ticket sales are to socially conservative church groups.  Your average movie goer has no desire to watch this sort of thing.  What makes "Samson" somewhat interesting is that it's being released on the same day as "Black Panther." and I can't help but wonder if this might be their version of alternative viewing.  Well, it doesn't make a lot of difference, ti's not going to do that well at the box office and in the end it will pass, just like the faux infrastructure plan.

Tape this

Well, here it Saturday and I get to go to work.  I'll be off for the next 3 days so I supposed I'll be able to endure.
Yesterday I went down to the Lebanon VA for a consultation.  I have been pressured for years to have a colonoscopy performed.  Well, now one is scheduled for... (are you ready for this?) Valentine's Day.  On that most romantic of days something alien is going to be inserted....  Let me tell you, my amazing ass is more sacred than any Indian Burial Grounds - nothing goes near it without my approval.  Now I know there are people who say this is a necessary evil, however if you start looking at the ratios of people who have the procedure performed vs the number of precancerous polyps discovered those numbers are staggeringly low, like 1.6%.  I'm not saying it isn't a worthwhile procedure for certain people, if you have a family history of colo-rectal cancer, or cancer in general, or there are some other health reasons, but for the vast majority it is unnecessary.  Someone, somewhere is making a lot of money.
Another thing I did yesterday was to work on cleaning out the attic.  I brought down a box of old VHS video tapes which are now waiting to go out into the trash.

I no longer have a VHS player.  As I looked through the titles I nodded to myself, remembering how much I had enjoyed certain films, and how many times I'd watched several.  I also realized there was no way I would want to watch these things again.  I would rather throw them out instead of someone else,  In fact, at some point, after the dogs are gone, I will sell the house and for that to happen the attic will need to be clear.
There was some amusing news regarding our economy yesterday.  We imported much more than we exported, in fact, the last time the country imported this much stuff was 2008.  Because American workers make much more than foreign workers, our American products are more expensive, and those who run around shrieking "buy American" don't want to spend the dollars.  They'd rather cheap it out and buy something similar made in China, or Thailand, or Mexico.