The Grand Stupidity

 And we're starting off today with an outside temp of 23 (F) and, unfortunately, it's not supposed to get too much warmer, with a high barely climbing up into the mid 30s (F).  Drat!  Next week, however, if the forecast is correct, we should be in the mid 50s (F) for a day or two before we cool off.  Then, and again if the forecast is correct, our afternoon highs should be in the mid 40s (F).  Not warm, but getting there.

Yesterday was sort of a day of accomplishments.  I spent too much time rearranging the small appliances in the kitchen to make room for the dehydrator only to realize I was going to be using it periodically best.  There are certain foods I want to dry and store, but many I'll continue to buy, unless they go up in price too much.  So, after an initial period of use, it's going to be stored away.

I did have a cranky moment with Rosetta Stone.  Since I am anticipating going back to Greece, I've been learning the language slowly.  At one point, you could buy the full language course from Rosetta Stone, but that has changed and it's now a subscription service.  My 3 month subscription renewed a little over a month ago.  Well, yesterday when I went to sign in all I got was a spinning dial.  Their server was evidently down.  Irritated, I searched for "best online learning app for language," and found out that Rosetta had dropped from the number 1 service to number 3.  Ouch.  So I signed up with Pimsleur, it's less expensive, and when the Rosetta site becomes available, I will cancel my subscription.

Guess who's big enough to get up on the bed?  Shame he had to leave his pink octopus on the floor.

As the Orange Anus' second term approaches, holes are beginning to appear, as if we didn't know that was going to happen.  Even though those of us who are smart are preparing for the chaos to come, there are many who don't, and the sad laughs will be on them. Do not despair completely, there will be levity along the way, like Kash Patel being hacked by Iran.  This guy's a joke, and now Iran has all the dirty on him.  Blackmail him much?  Then there is the drunken wife and girlfriend beater Pete Hegseth.  You know it's bad when your own mother publicly calls you a scumbag, however, this is the sort of character reference the Orange Anus looks for in a candidate.  Gaetz and some other dude who's name is totally forgettable have already removed their names from consideration.  

There is this grand stupidity about the Republican party that will never change.  They will never overcome their inability to understand that they cannot bend reality to their will.  When I think of them, I quite often think of the Jeff Goldblum line from Jurassic Park:  "no  matter what mankind does, nature always finds a way."  No matter what the Orange Anus does, he will always lose.

The Long Blinks

 Well, we're under a flood warning here in Central Pa that's in effect until Saturday...  and it's only Wednesday.  Today the temps will climb into the low 50s (F), which is only a few degrees warmer than the high 40s (F) we had yesterday.  The rain is not steady, arriving in waves that can be drizzles, or soakers.

I'm going to have to go out into it today to him my local Giant supermarket.  I need dryer sheets.  And paper towels.  And, according to Accuweather, we are under a yellow zone of heavy rain right now.  Hopefully that will pass by the time I leave the house.

Yesterday, I signed up for 3 months of Greek on Rosetta Stone.  I'd take some courses about 2 years ago through Pimsleur, they were fine, but not great.  The idea is not to become proficient, that would only happen if I moved to Greece, rather it's to become knowledgeable.  I mentioned this to a friend who told me that "most of the Greeks speak English well," and I'm certain that's true, but I'm of the belief that knowing a little instead of none at all is a sign of respect for the culture.  But then for the longest time I've had this deep interest in the country, so for me this seems to come natural.  Would I learn Swedish if I were going to Sweden?  Probably not.  

I made ribs in the air fryer for dinner last evening and they were delicious.  I was going to take a picture of them, but didn't think you wanted to see a pile of bones.  However, I will tell you that this is what they looked like before they were eaten.

Keith Edwards had a clip of the Orange Anus on his Instagram account this morning that I sort of watched, sort of being the two most important words here.  The sound is always turned down, especially since I can't stand the sound of Trump's whiny voice.  Rather than listen to the lies, I watched his eyes as he spoke, and, as is the case with most liars he blinked frequently.  Something else I noticed, when he blinked his eyes were shut for at least one - two seconds.  That's a long time.  I Googled what Long Blinks mean, and discovered that if the person is listening they may indicate understanding.  However, if the person is speaking they can mean something entirely different.  Long Blinks can be a sign of nervousness, or anxiety, or over thinking.  Since we know he's a pathological liar, we also know his deceit is spontaneous, he doesn't think about the lie, he just says it.  Trump doesn't care if he's getting fact-checked more and more, so I suspect there's something else bothering him.  Possibly his upcoming Hush Money / Porno Trial is upsetting him, the fact that he might be publicly humiliated and lose in a court of law.

We Call this a Veggie Tray

 Hello Wednesday, August 17.   We now have little over a month left of summer.  As Maddie noted on an earlier entry, the season has not been bad for us.  No scorching temps in the low 100s, (F) just a few days where they climbed into the upper 90s (F).  There were also a few days when the humidity was so sponge thick my T-shirts felt like clammy saran wrap draped over my shoulders every time I went outside.  But, other than that, the weather's been quite reasonable.  And lucky us, daily temps climbing into the low 100s (F) our not foreseen in our future, at least not for the 30 years.  However, a number of Republican held states do not appear to be so lucky.  

From the Washington Post

Yesterday was a day of accomplishments.  Grouting on the new tile surface in the kitchen was done, though not completed.  I need more grout.  Laundry was done.  Some yardwork was done.  I started a 5 hour walk through Pompeii; I had no idea the town was that large.  

And I resolved my issue with Rosetta Stone... somewhat.  Even though I have the discs I purchased some years ago, and even though Windows 11 has no problem running them, Rosetta Stone shut down the server my software.  Since my course is no longer functional, they gave me 3 free months.

I was sorry to see Liz Cheney lost her bid for reelection.  This was to be expected, however, since she's from a Cracker Jack Crazy Conservative state infatuated with authoritarianism. 

In PA, Oz is the brunt of oh so many jokes because he released a commercial in which he's shopping for veggies for a crudité tray.  The supermarket he is in is actually named Redners, yet he mispronounced it Regners, and his campaign aired the commercial.  Of course, Fetterman knows how to troll.

crudité?  We call this a veggie tray

So, you shouldn't be surprised to find out that the NRSC (National Republican Senate Committe) has pulled its funding for ads in PA.  Yepper, they're not going to buy ads for Oz.

Trump is now a Flight Risk

 The temps outside were a crips 57 (F) when I woke up this morning.  Nice.  The central air is off.  Windows are open.  This is nice.  This afternoon's high is predicted to be around 83 (F).  Tomorrow, we're in for a treat.  Temps are supposed to be in the mid 70s (F).  Of course, I understand this is but a brief respite.  We're not even halfway through summer.  Temperatures will climb.

Last evening, I tried going into the old Rosetta Stone French course I purchased a long time (11 years) ago and got an error.  Server could not be reached, try later.  The German works, but not the French.  So, I sent them an email.  They responded in German.  Interesting.  The French was just for review, if you don't use it, you lose it, though I may well continue working on my German.

A character is disappearing from The Body Under Ice.  Cal Glenn, who originally had a much larger part to play not gets a mention.  This happens.  The side-plot he was involved in is no longer necessary, in fact, it has become a drag.  Cal is still going to get a mention.  But rather then have Eli and Max talk to him, they will now read the St. Ignace police report.

Oh, and wasn't yesterday a jolly good day?  John Fetterman had his first campaign rally since having his stroke and it was packed.

And, of course, the search warrant was released to the public yesterday.  Not a ho-hum moment at all, was it?  America now knows Trump is at the center of a criminal investigation.  The one charge which seems to be garnering the most interest is US Code 793 which has to do with the gathering and transmitting of Defense information.  An important fact to note is that this charge has nothing to do with whether the material was classified or not, it's solely focused Defense information.  Providing such information to... oh let's say the Saudis, is treasonous.  Espionage.  Every page of those documents is now being fingerprinted, and it's not like the old days when you actually had to dust the page.  Nope.  Now they use equipment similar to a scanner, and they have more than one.  In fact, they may almost be finished.  Oh, and don't forget the FBI now has in their possession the security video for who knows how many years.  This may have been going on for quite some time.

This is very bad for 'the Donald.'  Fox is shrieking the evidence was planted, however Trump, and his attorneys, have been pushing the fact that he declassified everything.  You can declassify planted evidence.  Duh.  Tristan Snell, he used to be an Assistant Attorney General for New York and help prosecute Trump for his Trump University shit show, was the first to echo what I've been saying for some time.  Trump has now become a flight risk.  You see, the penalty for breaking US Code 793 is calculated by the page.  The more pages people, like maybe the Saudis, touched, the longer the jail sentence.  Most definitely, Trump is now a flight risk.

The dark side of 'none of the above'

 Well, hello to a brand-new week, hopefully one filled with accomplishments.

If I have to tell the truth about yesterday, well, I was pretty much of a slug all day.  One of the bad things about living with dogs, who normally sleep 18 hours a day, is that they are ready to doze away an hour or so the minute you say the word nap.  I try to avoid taking naps on most days, not yesterday, though.

Loading the Rosetta Stone course for German into the new PC is the only thin worth mentioning.  I bought the course 11 years ago, back before Rosetta realized they could make more from subscribers than from selling a course with 5 discs.  Like most Rosetta language courses it's terribly weak because they give no rhyme or reason as to why things are done, however it is good for working your accent.

I did snap another picture of some of my tulips.

I saw in Le Monde this morning that, when it came to voting for either Macron or Le Penne, 3 million ballots were left blank, which is the same as saying "none of the above."  While indignant voters may believe this to be a good way to protest, it really says more about failure than anything else.  Had Le Penne won, she would have started making dramatic changes; a president can do horrific damage in just a few years.  Take NATO.  She hates NATO, as does Putin, as does China, as do most wannabe authoritarian governments.  This is not because NATO is bad.  Nope.  What most people don't realize that when problems arise, like the Ukraine, NATO joins forces and becomes the Largest Super Power in the World.  A united NATO has the largest GDP, they have the largest army, and... they do have nuclear capabilities.  This is why Sweden and Finland want to join NATO.  

Speaking of the Ukraine, I saw where  Russian ground forces are again running into problems.

And, finally, I saw that Kevin McCarthy is traveling south to the border today.  Why, you ask?  Because Kevin knows the MAGA base doesn't care if he is covered in shit as long as he feeds their hunger with tons of anti-immigration red meat.  With the rest of the country looking at him and saying WTF, he is desperately trying to hold onto the base.

Dirty Desperation

 Okay, so I forgot to turn my alarm clock on for this morning.  Sleeping in is fun.  The dogs love it!  So do I.  

Yesterday I got quite a lot accomplished.  My storm door is almost completely installed. There are just some minor bits and pieces needing to be screwed on.  I am pleased.  Since I found myself paying less and less attention to Greek, I loaded a Rosetta Stone German course into my writing laptop.  I've often felt I should learn the language since I am part Pennsylvania Dutch.

I decided to move my grandparents black, steel clock from my dresser down to my desk.  It doesn't always work, but it looks good there.

I also drove my ballot to the Post Office.  Early voting by mail is great.  

So, yesterday the Idiot Jerk said he was cutting off talks on a new stimulus package until after the election, saying "once I'm re-elected" a new package would be passed.  Susan Collins, who's going to be fired because she's a rat-bag Republican, went into panic mode, as did a number of other struggling, Republican senators.  In case you didn't know, this is the Idiot Jerk's version of Blackmail: vote for me and you get a package, vote for Biden and you'll have to wait.  Well, overnight he changed his mind and is now promising $1200 for every American.  Like that will ever happen while the Republicans hold the Senate.

Right now their focus is on getting their Cracker Jack Crazy Christian Handmaid into the Supreme Court.  They are so damn stupid.  America has told them to wait until the next president takes office.  Of course, there's very good possibility they will be a minority party by then, so their going to try and ram this nomination through.  They don't realize history is going to see their actions as nothing more than dirty desperation.

Oh, and Pennsylvania as veered seriously into Blue territory... and the Idiot Jerk is shrieking 'fake polls.'  Surprise, there are 800,000 more registered Democrats in this state then there are Republicans.  Damn!  Vote Blue so we can bring in the power washer and blow away their dirt.

Blue is Gone, Russian for all

That's right, the skulking taker of clandestine photographs was let go on the day I had my eye surgery.  And, evidently, it wasn't only the pics that got her into trouble.  Apparently she would "reprimand" associates and if they didn't correct their behavior she would make an anonymous call to corporate and file a complaint.  She did this so frequently they could easily verify her as the caller.  Now she's out of a job.  My, what a sunny day!

And then there's Trump and his Russian connections.  His problem is that he doesn't see his buddy Vlad as a dictator.  Nope.  He sees him as a  savvy businessman who's make oodles of money off of the backs of the Russian people.  Let's be honest here, Putin has a lot more money in the bank than Trump, and you can bet he doesn't pay any Income Tax.  In fact, he, no doubt, is getting refunds even though he isn't paying in to the Russian equivalent of the IRS.  That's what Trump looooves.  In fact, in Trump's mind that is a huuuuuge perk president's get.

Of course, realizing that Vlad was going to be Don's BFF, I got to worrying about all of Don's trumplodite supporters.  Poor things, they're not going to understand a word Vlad says.  Wait!  There is a way!  I posted this link on Facebook.  It takes them to Amazon where they can purchase, from Rosetta Stone, a Russian language course.  For only $248 they, too, can speak Russian.  No more secrets!!!

The Wasting of My Time

As I get older I do find myself thinking about time.  Not wishfully, mind you, or even wistfully, as other's seem to do.  There are those who lament about not having enough time, how they might been able to do more if only the hours hadn't started to run out.  This is not me.  Now, I'm not old, middle-aged to be sure, but neither frail nor feeble.  If continue taking care of myself and everything keeps ticking the way it's supposed to, I figure I'll probably squeeze another 35 years out of my life.  With medicine advancing the way it is, that number might actually be higher, which, as long as I have my facilities, wouldn't be bad.  Nary a day goes by without my seeing some octogenarian seeming to be much younger then their biological age.  That's how I want to be.  I've already told my friends if I end up turning into a professional invalid they have my blessing to put me, and the world, out of my misery.

What I do seem to be doing more and more is tracking the length of time it takes to accomplish a task.  For example, when I got Gert I worried that her puppy feet might have a problem with my staircase, so I put down a runner.  Now that she's 4.5 years old and Lilly is almost a year old, I decided the carpeting was no longer necessary.  It took between 15 and 20 minutes to do the job.  Once again you can see my staircase.  It's beautiful.  My house is 109 years old and the staircase is painted white with ivy stenciling on either side.  That 15 to 20 minutes was completely worthwhile.  However, what I'm disliking more and more is spending my time on things that have little or no worth.

These things tend to be those I am obliged to do, like losing 1 hour and 45 minutes of my time while I waited to have the Pa State Inspection performed on a new car.  Having to stand in line at Self Check-Out is another one.  In fact, here lately standing in line has become one of the biggest wastes of my time.  It happened at the movie theater when I went to see Maleficent because they only had one ticket register open.  It happened at K-Mart on Wednesday morning.  If you start adding up all of those minutes you waste waiting it's rather amazing.  I did something to my lower back a few weeks ago and decided to go to see my Dr. about it.  I waited for 12 minutes before they took me back to wait in an examination room for another 15 minutes.  In other words, I actually saw my personal care physician 27 minutes after my set appointment time.  In that half hour I could have taken the dogs for a walk.  I could have made some notes on a future blog, spent some time with Rosetta Stone working on my German, or even mowed my front yard.  Do you think they cared about wasting my time?  Hell no.