Off and on rain and sun... no rainbow noticed.
I gave my "Crime Prevention" discussion group class this morning. I think it went ok. At least two people said they enjoyed it, and we got one person who will be coming to our TRIAD meetings. Bruce Lohr was a great resource to have there. I mentioned a couple of scams that he had not heard of yet: The Diabetic Sticks Scam and the Romance Scam. More about them in a future blog entry.
As usual, I'll be jumping around all over the place with my news pointers.
Religion
The Southern Baptist Convention was held recently, and they decided that they would not relax their position on gay marriage and transgender identity. Come on, guys, get with the 21st Century!
I still remember when I went to my Baptist Church's Halloween party as a magician. When one of the old lady chaperone saw playing cards in my hand, she went ballistic. Thou shalt have no other Gods (kings or queens?) before me. Huh?
There also was a Baptist restriction on smoking; however, after a Sunday service, all of the men hurriedly lit up as they exited the church. I can remember lots of other hypocritical activity very well. Yet, overall, they were nice folks and human. They just were not very tolerant of people who were different from themselves... like poor little Joe Vaughan and his buddy, poor little Bob Case.
Dickensonian Punishment?
Charles Dickens wrote about Debtors' Prisons and such, during the 1800's. Well, it looks like we have a similar situation todaty in Berks County, Pennsylvania, where they jail parents who are not able to pay fines owed because of their children's truancy from school. In fact, in one case, a mother had a 48-hour in jail penalty imposed, and half-way through it, she died.
Local Candidate loses my Support
Actually, who cares? But anyway.. local candidate, Susan Krebs, is trying to come out well in a newly gerrymandered district here in Maryland. She wrote a letter to the local newspaper emphasizing her continual activity to destroy Obamacare. I can see that this rant has been made to show voters (and party leaders) that she is a valiant Republican, eager to jump into the fray, for the good of the party. I had admired Susan's apparent concern for Senior Citizens, in fact, I was glad that she was allowed to become some kind of Board Member for the Continuing Care Community where I live. However, if she is against Obamacare, then I feel that she does not have a good feeling for us common folks and senior citizens.. or else, she is trying to fool us. Either way, that is my opinion, and I shall vote against her.
Georgia Horror
An 88 year old retiree was found in his garage with his head missing. His elderly wife's body was found 6 miles away, floating in a lake. They had been living in a nice gated high-class community. No one seems to know what happened, except that there is no sign of a struggle. The couple had sons, who have been talking to police and a reward will be offered for information. I'm sure this gruesome case will be fodder for lots of TV shows in the future.
More Gun Violence
A Las Vegas policeman was shot at a pizza shop by a couple of nutbags. His partner was killed before he could fire his gun in response and a shopper was killed as he drew his concealed weapon to confront the couple. This sounds a lot like an episode of Gunsmoke.
More on Identity Theft
Recently, I mentioned an ID theft victim who left his wallet containing his Social Security Card in his clothes within a non-secured locker, where it was stolen. Today, I read that the victim did not even notice his wallet was missing until he got home. (Give me a break!) People! You need to be aware of your surroundings at all times, and, even in safe Carroll County, you need to lock your valuables and always know where your wallet is.
And.. if you are going to Rio for the Soccer cup activity, remember, Rio is Pickpocket Heaven.
Names
One of the names of one of the early voters yesterday was Rambo. I hope he doesn't take his name too seriously.
Dastardly Crime
The Los Angeles County DA has decided not to charge Justin Bieber as a felon even though he reached into a woman's purse and pulled out her cell phone, to ensure that she was not taking a video of him as he worked out. Ho Hum!
Old El Presidente
George H.W. Bush did it again! He tandem jumped from a plane for his 90th birthday. He is no longer able to use his legs, so there was some tripping up on the landing, but he is reported to be fine. His next jump will be when he is 95. I hope I'm around to see it.
Enough!
.............................................
Friday, June 13, 2014
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Luka; Lily; Birthdays; Blog Pictures; Brain; Memory; Boston U; Howard Stern; Earthquake; Bodywatching; Cheek Screw; Stripes; Dreams; Prohibition Joke
Rainy Thursday. We treat Mat and Emily and Lily and Luka to supper at the Towson Diner. Lots and lots of food! Today is Luka's birthday. Elaine got some nice things for him, and also for Lily. We won't be able to go to their birthday party on Saturday because we can't get Elaine up the front steps at Emily's house.. also, the rest room is a tough squeeze for Elaine. Sad situation for Grandma.
I've been trying for some time to get some pictures posted to this blog.. unsuccessfully .. I'll keep trying. Meanwhile, here are some old blog entry items:
The Brain
Dr. Howard Eichenbaum, director of the Center for Memory and Brain at Boston University, "is studying the firing of neurons in the hippocampus, a structure near the center of the brain that plays a major role in memory. Decoding the machinations of the hippocampus could help us design drugs to treat memory disorders such as Alzheimer's."
BU is doing great research on Brain matters. Nice school.
Boston University
I found out last night that Howard Stern attended B.U. OMG! Perhaps he might like to donate his brain to Dr. Eichenbaum's lab. Just kidding. I am seeing a remarkable down-toning of Howard's scatological silliness since he's been a judge of America's Got Talent. That's good.
Anticipation?
Five to 10 seconds before an earthquake in August 2011, the orangutan, Kyle, and the gorilla, Kojo, at DC's National Zoo, climbed to the top of trees. The Zoo master suggested that the animals may have detected the "P waves" that struck Washingotn 15 seconds before the "surface waves."
Does this kind of thing happen with cats. Whenever there is a violent thunderstorm, SuZee disappears before the first rumblings.
Bodily Clues
Desmond Morris' book Bodywatching was published some time ago, but it is still a good read, as discussed by Jerry Ford.
Desmond reveals some little-known secrets about how to "read people."
Although we can fake a smile, our legs often give us away because we have much less control over our legs and feet.. so we tend to try to hide them when we are under stress.
The "cheek screw" reveals different things in different countries:
In Italy, screwing a finger in one's cheek means "good".
In Southern Spain, it indicates that a man is effeminate.
In Germany, it indicates that the object of the gesture is crazy.
(In my own experience, in Southern U.S., the gesture often indicates that the person in question is "black.")
Desmond also discusses circumcision, as an act equated with a snake's shedding of skin. By shedding foreskin, older cultures believed that they might become immortal.
He also discusses feet binding by the Chinese and butt binding by Victorians.
Stripes
Why stripes on zebras? Why, of course, to repel flies, you dummy! Researchers have discovered that when they set out black, white, and zebra-patterned horse statues in a field, the striped models attracted the fewest horseflies. Over long evolutionary periods, zebra striped animals suffered less bites from insects and were favored by evolution.
That reminds me of what is told to medical school students.. If you see hoofprints, think Horse instead of Zebra.
Dreams
My daughter, Elizabeth, called to tell me that she had a very realistic dream about her mother, my late wife, Elaine. Sometimes such dreams are very traumatic. Often, we try to find meaning in them.
For a long time after my wife died, I would dream of being on a trip with her, when she went on ahead of me and turned a corner, and I couldn't find her. I can still feel the sense of loss that entailed.
In 2011, I dreamed that I was talking to my boss at Social Security and I was told to be very precise because a famous technical consultant was listening in the next room. When I looked in to see the Tech..it was my late wife.
Around the same time, I woke up in a sweat as I tried to stomp some kind of white animal that was trying to eat one of our cats, SuZee or Lucky.
Psychologists could probably learn a lot about me from the telling of these dreams.
Prohibition Joke
At a revival meeting, the minister yelled: "If I had all the wine in the world, I'd throw it into the river!"
"And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd throw it into the river.!"
"And if I had all the beer in the world, I'd throw it into the river!"
"And now, let's sing the next hymn: 'Shall we gather at the river!"
.............................................
I've been trying for some time to get some pictures posted to this blog.. unsuccessfully .. I'll keep trying. Meanwhile, here are some old blog entry items:
The Brain
Dr. Howard Eichenbaum, director of the Center for Memory and Brain at Boston University, "is studying the firing of neurons in the hippocampus, a structure near the center of the brain that plays a major role in memory. Decoding the machinations of the hippocampus could help us design drugs to treat memory disorders such as Alzheimer's."
BU is doing great research on Brain matters. Nice school.
Boston University
I found out last night that Howard Stern attended B.U. OMG! Perhaps he might like to donate his brain to Dr. Eichenbaum's lab. Just kidding. I am seeing a remarkable down-toning of Howard's scatological silliness since he's been a judge of America's Got Talent. That's good.
Anticipation?
Five to 10 seconds before an earthquake in August 2011, the orangutan, Kyle, and the gorilla, Kojo, at DC's National Zoo, climbed to the top of trees. The Zoo master suggested that the animals may have detected the "P waves" that struck Washingotn 15 seconds before the "surface waves."
Does this kind of thing happen with cats. Whenever there is a violent thunderstorm, SuZee disappears before the first rumblings.
Bodily Clues
Desmond Morris' book Bodywatching was published some time ago, but it is still a good read, as discussed by Jerry Ford.
Desmond reveals some little-known secrets about how to "read people."
Although we can fake a smile, our legs often give us away because we have much less control over our legs and feet.. so we tend to try to hide them when we are under stress.
The "cheek screw" reveals different things in different countries:
In Italy, screwing a finger in one's cheek means "good".
In Southern Spain, it indicates that a man is effeminate.
In Germany, it indicates that the object of the gesture is crazy.
(In my own experience, in Southern U.S., the gesture often indicates that the person in question is "black.")
Desmond also discusses circumcision, as an act equated with a snake's shedding of skin. By shedding foreskin, older cultures believed that they might become immortal.
He also discusses feet binding by the Chinese and butt binding by Victorians.
Stripes
Why stripes on zebras? Why, of course, to repel flies, you dummy! Researchers have discovered that when they set out black, white, and zebra-patterned horse statues in a field, the striped models attracted the fewest horseflies. Over long evolutionary periods, zebra striped animals suffered less bites from insects and were favored by evolution.
That reminds me of what is told to medical school students.. If you see hoofprints, think Horse instead of Zebra.
Dreams
My daughter, Elizabeth, called to tell me that she had a very realistic dream about her mother, my late wife, Elaine. Sometimes such dreams are very traumatic. Often, we try to find meaning in them.
For a long time after my wife died, I would dream of being on a trip with her, when she went on ahead of me and turned a corner, and I couldn't find her. I can still feel the sense of loss that entailed.
In 2011, I dreamed that I was talking to my boss at Social Security and I was told to be very precise because a famous technical consultant was listening in the next room. When I looked in to see the Tech..it was my late wife.
Around the same time, I woke up in a sweat as I tried to stomp some kind of white animal that was trying to eat one of our cats, SuZee or Lucky.
Psychologists could probably learn a lot about me from the telling of these dreams.
Prohibition Joke
At a revival meeting, the minister yelled: "If I had all the wine in the world, I'd throw it into the river!"
"And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd throw it into the river.!"
"And if I had all the beer in the world, I'd throw it into the river!"
"And now, let's sing the next hymn: 'Shall we gather at the river!"
.............................................
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Virginia Primary Vote; Pet Expo; Teen Violence; Politicians; Robocalls; Crib Death; Guns; Ebola; Cartoons
Well.. we all knew it would happen.. its a rainy day. That's good for the flowers and vegetables.
The 3 or maybe 4 ( I can't tell) tomato plants that my daughter, Diane, gave us, are glowing very fast. Each has its own gigantic pot. I haven't set my Earth Boxes up yet. No pep. Maybe I need more caffeine.
Some news from here and there
GOP Lost/Dems Win?
In an "anybody can vote" primary in Virginia, Eric Cantor, GOP bigwig was defeated by a college professor endorsed by the Tea Party. This is bad news for the GOP because they lose an experienced politician who may have been "gang voted on" by Democrats, so that they would have a chance on taking back his seat in the final election. Listening to CSPAN radio this morning, I did not hear anyone say anything nice about Mister Cantor.
I wish that Maryland had an open primary. Right now, as an Independent, I can only vote for School Board candidates... who, by the way, are supposed to be above political party. However, three Tea Party guys have gotten together to try to win by loudly publicizing their "conservative" leaning.
Pet Expo
There is an ad in the Carroll County Times that says:
"Adults Under 17 Free"
Teen Adults?
A 17 year-old and an 18 year-old assaulted a former friend. While the 17 year-old held the victim down and tried to strangle him, his 18 year-old girl friend kept hitting the victim with a brick. Nice to know that at least they did not use a gun or a knife, the usual weapons of choice in Westminster, Maryland.
Bergdahl Swap Again
Local educator, Tom Zirpoli, writes in his column about the apparent hypocracy (sp?) by John McCain and other politicians, who were for the swap, before they were against the swap, while they said they did not know about the swap. But they did know about and approve the swap, as shown by publically available media.
Politicians.. damn them all!
One of Carroll County politicians wrote a "fact" and "fiction" piece, in which she talked about another member who I guess she doesn't like very much. Very interesting coming from a person who "stood up" a Carroll County delegation of voters who came to Annapolis to question their representatives. After the meeting, I cornered her in the hall and she said that she couldn't meet with us because she was "having her hair done."
Robocalls
They've started. Make it easy on yourself... get Caller ID and an answering machine.. also you could call NoMorobo.(sp?) (I'll put that info into a later blog entry.)
Baby Loss
The obituaries today listed a 1-year old who died "unexpectedly." My Grandson, Kyle, died of "crib death" while napping at a baby-sitter's house. The parents and I still haven't gotten over that.
"When will they learn?"
1. Another school shooting. An Oregon teen ager killed a 14 year-old and himself with a rifle.
2. The Seattle college shooter left a note: "I just want people to die, and then I'm gonna die with them."
3. Some of my grandkids were playing a violent video game on Sunday. I asked them, :Do you get points for killing someone?" They replied: "Yes."
Deadly Virus
In the face of the threat of an EBOLA outbreak, West Africans are fasting and praying. Unfortunately, this scourge has no cure and kills almost 90% of those infected. It is spread by a virus passed to humans by infected animals, or between humans in close contact with infected bodily fluids. Also, by needles in hospitals.
Better News
I've finally found a large number of my cartoon drawings. These were from earlier days, when I drew a cartoon every night before bed. Some are good; most are lousy. As soon as I learn how to scan them into a database, I will start adding some to these blog entries. A few may even make you chuckle.
...................................................................
The 3 or maybe 4 ( I can't tell) tomato plants that my daughter, Diane, gave us, are glowing very fast. Each has its own gigantic pot. I haven't set my Earth Boxes up yet. No pep. Maybe I need more caffeine.
Some news from here and there
GOP Lost/Dems Win?
In an "anybody can vote" primary in Virginia, Eric Cantor, GOP bigwig was defeated by a college professor endorsed by the Tea Party. This is bad news for the GOP because they lose an experienced politician who may have been "gang voted on" by Democrats, so that they would have a chance on taking back his seat in the final election. Listening to CSPAN radio this morning, I did not hear anyone say anything nice about Mister Cantor.
I wish that Maryland had an open primary. Right now, as an Independent, I can only vote for School Board candidates... who, by the way, are supposed to be above political party. However, three Tea Party guys have gotten together to try to win by loudly publicizing their "conservative" leaning.
Pet Expo
There is an ad in the Carroll County Times that says:
"Adults Under 17 Free"
Teen Adults?
A 17 year-old and an 18 year-old assaulted a former friend. While the 17 year-old held the victim down and tried to strangle him, his 18 year-old girl friend kept hitting the victim with a brick. Nice to know that at least they did not use a gun or a knife, the usual weapons of choice in Westminster, Maryland.
Bergdahl Swap Again
Local educator, Tom Zirpoli, writes in his column about the apparent hypocracy (sp?) by John McCain and other politicians, who were for the swap, before they were against the swap, while they said they did not know about the swap. But they did know about and approve the swap, as shown by publically available media.
Politicians.. damn them all!
One of Carroll County politicians wrote a "fact" and "fiction" piece, in which she talked about another member who I guess she doesn't like very much. Very interesting coming from a person who "stood up" a Carroll County delegation of voters who came to Annapolis to question their representatives. After the meeting, I cornered her in the hall and she said that she couldn't meet with us because she was "having her hair done."
Robocalls
They've started. Make it easy on yourself... get Caller ID and an answering machine.. also you could call NoMorobo.(sp?) (I'll put that info into a later blog entry.)
Baby Loss
The obituaries today listed a 1-year old who died "unexpectedly." My Grandson, Kyle, died of "crib death" while napping at a baby-sitter's house. The parents and I still haven't gotten over that.
"When will they learn?"
1. Another school shooting. An Oregon teen ager killed a 14 year-old and himself with a rifle.
2. The Seattle college shooter left a note: "I just want people to die, and then I'm gonna die with them."
3. Some of my grandkids were playing a violent video game on Sunday. I asked them, :Do you get points for killing someone?" They replied: "Yes."
Deadly Virus
In the face of the threat of an EBOLA outbreak, West Africans are fasting and praying. Unfortunately, this scourge has no cure and kills almost 90% of those infected. It is spread by a virus passed to humans by infected animals, or between humans in close contact with infected bodily fluids. Also, by needles in hospitals.
Better News
I've finally found a large number of my cartoon drawings. These were from earlier days, when I drew a cartoon every night before bed. Some are good; most are lousy. As soon as I learn how to scan them into a database, I will start adding some to these blog entries. A few may even make you chuckle.
...................................................................
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Reading; Flag; Voting; Politics; Guns; Violence; Belly Buttons; Marriage.
Now how long can this beautiful weather go on? I need to remember this when the winds of Winter whip across our patio.
Some nice local news
Reading
The Carroll Lutheran School is now rewarding students for reading books in their Black Eyed Susan Reading Program which ran from November 2013 through March 2014. Each reader got some pizza and a lot of ice cream.. Nice. One kid read 10 books during that time.. I guess the average was 6 or 7.
I think it is really good that children are reading and not texting or playing video games all the time. And I suppose book reading will never go back to what it was when I was 9 years old. At that time, I discovered books (as opposed to comics, which we called "funny books") and a whole new world opened up to me. I read every Hardy Boys book ever written and every book in Baum's Wizard of Oz series.. all while I was 9 years old. I probably read almost a whole book each day. Yet, I still had time to do the outside things I liked to do, including some that was illegal and stupid. But then again, I was, of course, the smartest kid that ever lived.. or at least, I thought I was.
You remember the lyrics to that song that Paul Lind sang:
"Kids! Why can't they be like we were, perfect in every way!
What's the matter with kids today?"
Nutbag Flag
The Las Vegas husband and wife screwballs who recently went on a deadly shooting rampage, draped their "Don't Tread on Me!" flag on the bodies of two policemen that they murdered. Some of my neighbors, members of the National Rifle Association (NRA) received copies of that flag from their association, and proudly displayed it for a while.. until their brains kicked in, I believe. I'll bet their wives made them take those flags down and exchange them for nice flowered ones.
Voting Boating
The village of Kasigluk is separated into 2 parts by a river without a bridge. On election day, people on one side have to hurry finish voting so that the ballot machine can be boated to the other side before the voting day is over.
Political Truth
I've said this many times before... if the women voters would all get out to vote, they could elect anyone they chose to. Remember the power of women in the play by Aristophanes: Lysistrata? The men would let them go vote alone, because then they could watch football without interruption.
Which is worse?
Which is worse, the mass killings in the US by guns, or the suicide bombings by Taliban members in Pakistan? How about assaults on women in Egypt? How about the kidnapping of girls in Nigeria?
Burning Questions
What is the use of a belly button after birth?
Is it true that Alfred Hitchcock was born without a belly button?
What is metallic arthritis?
Marriage Joke
A married couple were in a bar, watching a man dancing around wildly and happily.
The wife said to her husband: "Years ago, he asked me to marry him and I turned him down."
The husband replied: "It looks like he's still celebrating."
................................
Some nice local news
Reading
The Carroll Lutheran School is now rewarding students for reading books in their Black Eyed Susan Reading Program which ran from November 2013 through March 2014. Each reader got some pizza and a lot of ice cream.. Nice. One kid read 10 books during that time.. I guess the average was 6 or 7.
I think it is really good that children are reading and not texting or playing video games all the time. And I suppose book reading will never go back to what it was when I was 9 years old. At that time, I discovered books (as opposed to comics, which we called "funny books") and a whole new world opened up to me. I read every Hardy Boys book ever written and every book in Baum's Wizard of Oz series.. all while I was 9 years old. I probably read almost a whole book each day. Yet, I still had time to do the outside things I liked to do, including some that was illegal and stupid. But then again, I was, of course, the smartest kid that ever lived.. or at least, I thought I was.
You remember the lyrics to that song that Paul Lind sang:
"Kids! Why can't they be like we were, perfect in every way!
What's the matter with kids today?"
Nutbag Flag
The Las Vegas husband and wife screwballs who recently went on a deadly shooting rampage, draped their "Don't Tread on Me!" flag on the bodies of two policemen that they murdered. Some of my neighbors, members of the National Rifle Association (NRA) received copies of that flag from their association, and proudly displayed it for a while.. until their brains kicked in, I believe. I'll bet their wives made them take those flags down and exchange them for nice flowered ones.
Voting Boating
The village of Kasigluk is separated into 2 parts by a river without a bridge. On election day, people on one side have to hurry finish voting so that the ballot machine can be boated to the other side before the voting day is over.
Political Truth
I've said this many times before... if the women voters would all get out to vote, they could elect anyone they chose to. Remember the power of women in the play by Aristophanes: Lysistrata? The men would let them go vote alone, because then they could watch football without interruption.
Which is worse?
Which is worse, the mass killings in the US by guns, or the suicide bombings by Taliban members in Pakistan? How about assaults on women in Egypt? How about the kidnapping of girls in Nigeria?
Burning Questions
What is the use of a belly button after birth?
Is it true that Alfred Hitchcock was born without a belly button?
What is metallic arthritis?
Marriage Joke
A married couple were in a bar, watching a man dancing around wildly and happily.
The wife said to her husband: "Years ago, he asked me to marry him and I turned him down."
The husband replied: "It looks like he's still celebrating."
................................
Monday, June 09, 2014
Footbaths; Smart Fish; Death File; Ears; Pompeii; Love Languages; Guns; Weapons; Debris
Another sunny day with occasional quick showers designed to water our plants.
Today, I want to discuss some old Blog stuff that I have been saving up.
1. Moslim footbaths:
Bathrooms have been recently remodeled at Boston University, my old school. They were given a fresh coat of paint and the addition of footbaths. Muslims have been studying at BU for several years and to help them more easily prepare for prayer, the footbaths have now been provided, even though the students did not ask for them.
Muslims pray five times a day, and they are required to perform ablution.. the washing of hands, face and feet before prayer. The students had been using the regular high sinks, and the footbaths will be a big help to them.
2. Fish brains
Peter Buston of Boston University has been studying fish intelligence and finds that the finny creatures are smarter than we give them credit for. For instance: When striped bass have been snared on a fisherman's line, they sometimes wrap the line around a rock so that it breaks as the angler tries to reel the fish in. Also squid and octopi have been taught to open jars! Peter also says that fish have personalities. (We've always known that whales had personalities, but not fish.) What about crabs and lobsters?
3. Death File
The Social Security Admiistration, as the result of a law suit, is required to allow usage of its "Death File". This is a databank that contains information about a person who has died and there are no benefits remaining on that persons account. Many years ago, this information was kept in locked rooms at each of 7 Payment Centers.. I know, because I was given the task of getting this information on tape. One of my workers figured out how to glean information out of the hundreds of thousands of IBM cards with punches. Some of these cards had those infamous "hanging chads" that you may have heard of.
Anyway, once all of that information was on tape data files, it was tempting to genealogists. I've used it on many occasions, even though I fought to try to preserve its privacy. The Court's argument, I believe, was: These people are all dead, with no immediate relatives to complain.
Harper's Index from February 2012, indicated that 14,000 people are erroneously included on the file each year. I don't think so. What the figure may indicate is the number of people who had an application for Social Security Benefits filed after they learned their relative had died, and wanted to see if they were eligible. While the case was being adjudicated, the record would be removed from the database.. and reinstated if the applicant did not receive a good outcome.
4. Religious Joke (From James Hoskins, RD)
Joe attends a revival meeting, seeking help. "I need you to pray for my hearing," he tells the preacher.
The preacher puts his fingers on Joe's ears and prays and prays and prays.
When he's finished, he asks Joe: "How's your hearing now?"
"I don't know," says Joe. I don't go to court until next Friday."
5. Pompeii Trash
Science Daily reports that in ancient Pompeii, cemeteries were located on main roads and trash was piled high everywhere, even inside residences. Burial places looked like dumps.
6. Love Languages
Jill Murphy of Manchester, Maryland reviewed the book The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. Chapman says there are five love languages:
physical touch,
quality time,
acts of service,
gifts,
words of affirmation
When you are speaking the same love language as your partner, life is good. However, when your love language is not communicated with, life is not good.
For instance, when your quality time is to sit quietly and read, and your partner's is to bounce around to loud rock music, there are troubled times ahead.
7. Wise words
"Give a person a gun, and they can rob a bank. Give a person a bank and they can rob the world" Phil's Phunny Phacts
8. More Harper's Index Items to Think About
Five U. S. colleges give courses in unmanned-drone operation.
A total of 11,448 weapons were confiscated from visitors to the Statue of Liberty in 2011.
An estimated 5 million tons of debris from Japanese earthquakes reached the U.S. shore in 2013.
................................
Today, I want to discuss some old Blog stuff that I have been saving up.
1. Moslim footbaths:
Bathrooms have been recently remodeled at Boston University, my old school. They were given a fresh coat of paint and the addition of footbaths. Muslims have been studying at BU for several years and to help them more easily prepare for prayer, the footbaths have now been provided, even though the students did not ask for them.
Muslims pray five times a day, and they are required to perform ablution.. the washing of hands, face and feet before prayer. The students had been using the regular high sinks, and the footbaths will be a big help to them.
2. Fish brains
Peter Buston of Boston University has been studying fish intelligence and finds that the finny creatures are smarter than we give them credit for. For instance: When striped bass have been snared on a fisherman's line, they sometimes wrap the line around a rock so that it breaks as the angler tries to reel the fish in. Also squid and octopi have been taught to open jars! Peter also says that fish have personalities. (We've always known that whales had personalities, but not fish.) What about crabs and lobsters?
3. Death File
The Social Security Admiistration, as the result of a law suit, is required to allow usage of its "Death File". This is a databank that contains information about a person who has died and there are no benefits remaining on that persons account. Many years ago, this information was kept in locked rooms at each of 7 Payment Centers.. I know, because I was given the task of getting this information on tape. One of my workers figured out how to glean information out of the hundreds of thousands of IBM cards with punches. Some of these cards had those infamous "hanging chads" that you may have heard of.
Anyway, once all of that information was on tape data files, it was tempting to genealogists. I've used it on many occasions, even though I fought to try to preserve its privacy. The Court's argument, I believe, was: These people are all dead, with no immediate relatives to complain.
Harper's Index from February 2012, indicated that 14,000 people are erroneously included on the file each year. I don't think so. What the figure may indicate is the number of people who had an application for Social Security Benefits filed after they learned their relative had died, and wanted to see if they were eligible. While the case was being adjudicated, the record would be removed from the database.. and reinstated if the applicant did not receive a good outcome.
4. Religious Joke (From James Hoskins, RD)
Joe attends a revival meeting, seeking help. "I need you to pray for my hearing," he tells the preacher.
The preacher puts his fingers on Joe's ears and prays and prays and prays.
When he's finished, he asks Joe: "How's your hearing now?"
"I don't know," says Joe. I don't go to court until next Friday."
5. Pompeii Trash
Science Daily reports that in ancient Pompeii, cemeteries were located on main roads and trash was piled high everywhere, even inside residences. Burial places looked like dumps.
6. Love Languages
Jill Murphy of Manchester, Maryland reviewed the book The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. Chapman says there are five love languages:
physical touch,
quality time,
acts of service,
gifts,
words of affirmation
When you are speaking the same love language as your partner, life is good. However, when your love language is not communicated with, life is not good.
For instance, when your quality time is to sit quietly and read, and your partner's is to bounce around to loud rock music, there are troubled times ahead.
7. Wise words
"Give a person a gun, and they can rob a bank. Give a person a bank and they can rob the world" Phil's Phunny Phacts
8. More Harper's Index Items to Think About
Five U. S. colleges give courses in unmanned-drone operation.
A total of 11,448 weapons were confiscated from visitors to the Statue of Liberty in 2011.
An estimated 5 million tons of debris from Japanese earthquakes reached the U.S. shore in 2013.
................................
Sunday, June 08, 2014
Texas Tea; Common Core; Maya Speaks; Old-time Names; Fun; German Ancestor; Sad Chrome
Another nice Spring day. We are going to my son's house this afternoon to visit with my nephew in law from Massachusetts and enjoy a cookout.
A Little News from the Carroll County Times for today:
Reparative Therapy
The Texas GOP Tea Party guys managed to get the Texas Republican party to endorse Anti-Gay Reparative Therapy. That therapy is dedicated to convincing homosexuals that they really don't want to be like that and supposedly helps them change back to being a Texual or an ammosexual. Hey, you-all, this is probably just going to kill you some more at the polls.
Common Core
Jim Lee, CC Times Editor, singled out some of local Board of Education candidates for ridicule because they say that their goal in office will be to stop Common Core. These guys have yet to say how they are going to kill a program that has been approved by the Maryland State Legislature and heartily endorsed by the current Governor, as well as the guy who will be elected new Governor in a little while. The only way to stop Common Core is with legislation... legislation that will go nowhere. Hey, guys, why not concentrate on figuring out how to better educate our kids.. although, our school kids are already above average in State statistics on how well students are doing.
Maya Speaks
I think I've mentioned this before recently. I like the late Maya Angelou's words.... "People will forget what you did or said in your life, but they will never forget how you made them feel."
How true!
Forgotten Names
A couple of 90 year-old persons passed away this week, and the obits show the names of their fathers who were born in the 1800's: Hezekaiah and Celius. The word Hittite comes to my mind when I see the name Hezekaiah, and I can't help visualizing a thermometer when I see the name Celius.
How Fun Can it be?
In an Associated Press article about Coca Cola, the first sentence reads: "... an online video showing how fun it could be to burn off the 140 calories in a can of its soda." I have read that this usage of fun is valid in today's usage.. but it still seems to me that the sentence would be much better if it just had a "much" stuck in. I guess I'm just too old-fashioned.
German Heritage
Mary Ann Ashcraft (Mimi, I think) wrote a very nice article about Conrad Zile, a Hessian mercenary for the British, who was captured during the Revolutionary War, walked away from the loosely guarded prison, and settled in a German-speaking American town, where he prospered.
Disappointment
Elaine was very disappointed that California Chrome did not win the Belmont Stakes and through that, the Triple Crown. The 100,000 people at Belmont Park seemed to be very disappointed as well. Elaine and I like to watch horse races... so I guess this definition means us:
Definition of a Horse Race: A bunch of horses, showing their asses, to a bunch of horses' asses.
....................................................................
A Little News from the Carroll County Times for today:
Reparative Therapy
The Texas GOP Tea Party guys managed to get the Texas Republican party to endorse Anti-Gay Reparative Therapy. That therapy is dedicated to convincing homosexuals that they really don't want to be like that and supposedly helps them change back to being a Texual or an ammosexual. Hey, you-all, this is probably just going to kill you some more at the polls.
Common Core
Jim Lee, CC Times Editor, singled out some of local Board of Education candidates for ridicule because they say that their goal in office will be to stop Common Core. These guys have yet to say how they are going to kill a program that has been approved by the Maryland State Legislature and heartily endorsed by the current Governor, as well as the guy who will be elected new Governor in a little while. The only way to stop Common Core is with legislation... legislation that will go nowhere. Hey, guys, why not concentrate on figuring out how to better educate our kids.. although, our school kids are already above average in State statistics on how well students are doing.
Maya Speaks
I think I've mentioned this before recently. I like the late Maya Angelou's words.... "People will forget what you did or said in your life, but they will never forget how you made them feel."
How true!
Forgotten Names
A couple of 90 year-old persons passed away this week, and the obits show the names of their fathers who were born in the 1800's: Hezekaiah and Celius. The word Hittite comes to my mind when I see the name Hezekaiah, and I can't help visualizing a thermometer when I see the name Celius.
How Fun Can it be?
In an Associated Press article about Coca Cola, the first sentence reads: "... an online video showing how fun it could be to burn off the 140 calories in a can of its soda." I have read that this usage of fun is valid in today's usage.. but it still seems to me that the sentence would be much better if it just had a "much" stuck in. I guess I'm just too old-fashioned.
German Heritage
Mary Ann Ashcraft (Mimi, I think) wrote a very nice article about Conrad Zile, a Hessian mercenary for the British, who was captured during the Revolutionary War, walked away from the loosely guarded prison, and settled in a German-speaking American town, where he prospered.
Disappointment
Elaine was very disappointed that California Chrome did not win the Belmont Stakes and through that, the Triple Crown. The 100,000 people at Belmont Park seemed to be very disappointed as well. Elaine and I like to watch horse races... so I guess this definition means us:
Definition of a Horse Race: A bunch of horses, showing their asses, to a bunch of horses' asses.
....................................................................
Saturday, June 07, 2014
Birds; Dow-Jones; Pot; Strangelove; Rising Waterline; Book Lover; Shootings; and Sugar
Back again.. A little brown bird just peeked into both of the cottage-like bird houses that we have set up on our side porch. I hope he liked what he saw and takes up residence. My daughter, Diane, has a Christmas wreath on her porch that she can't take down because a fat robin has built a nest on top of it and has deposited several blue eggs therein. Mama robin sits on the eggs for hours each day.
News Bites that I think are interesting:
$$$
The Dow-Jones average is almost to the 17,000 level... up almost 1,000 since last December. What does that say about the economy?
Pot
Marijuana vending machines are popping up in Colorado.
Bombs away!
Today is the 50th anniversary of Dr. Strangelove, a marvelous "take" on a crazy world.
Global Warming Denial?
Jamestown Island, site of America's first permanent European settlement is getting smaller every year because of rising water.
Book Lover
The New Yorker magazine mentions the author of a book called "The Shelf", in which she outlines her experiences in reading all of the books on the library shelf: lea through lez, or a similar spread. More on this later.
Here We Go Again!
Headline: "Four shot on Seattle Campus by 26 year old"
Headline: "24 Year-Old killed Mounties"
(A Canadian shooting? Huh? Well.. the killing was in a town "east of Maine." Are our homicidal proclivities rubbing off on our Canadian neighbors?)
A Subtlety
A Subtlety is a massive sphinx-like figure sculpted entirely in white sugar by Kara Walker. Instead of an Egyptian head, it has an African head to indicate that the perennial gatherers of sugar cane were Africans. (Commissioned by Domino Sugar.) Its a beautiful work by a person who does amazing representations of African figures. A Google search will reveal a lot of images of Kara's work.
Bye for now... got to go listen to Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me
...............................................................
News Bites that I think are interesting:
$$$
The Dow-Jones average is almost to the 17,000 level... up almost 1,000 since last December. What does that say about the economy?
Pot
Marijuana vending machines are popping up in Colorado.
Bombs away!
Today is the 50th anniversary of Dr. Strangelove, a marvelous "take" on a crazy world.
Global Warming Denial?
Jamestown Island, site of America's first permanent European settlement is getting smaller every year because of rising water.
Book Lover
The New Yorker magazine mentions the author of a book called "The Shelf", in which she outlines her experiences in reading all of the books on the library shelf: lea through lez, or a similar spread. More on this later.
Here We Go Again!
Headline: "Four shot on Seattle Campus by 26 year old"
Headline: "24 Year-Old killed Mounties"
(A Canadian shooting? Huh? Well.. the killing was in a town "east of Maine." Are our homicidal proclivities rubbing off on our Canadian neighbors?)
A Subtlety
A Subtlety is a massive sphinx-like figure sculpted entirely in white sugar by Kara Walker. Instead of an Egyptian head, it has an African head to indicate that the perennial gatherers of sugar cane were Africans. (Commissioned by Domino Sugar.) Its a beautiful work by a person who does amazing representations of African figures. A Google search will reveal a lot of images of Kara's work.
Bye for now... got to go listen to Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me
...............................................................
D Day; Viola Musicians; Identity Theft
Another beautiful day in Westminster, Maryland, USA.
Lots of family stuff going on. Grandson, Jackson, graduates from High School today. Granddaughter, Adrienne, graduates from High School on Monday. Yesterday, Elaine and I bought luggage sets for both of them. Adrienne will be going to college in Salisbury, Maryland and should need luggage right away. Jackson may study in the Westminster area, but will need luggage if he travels to Switzerland later in the year, to visit his grandmother Cole.
Nephew, Michael, is here with his wife and stepson. They are staying with my daughter Diane's family. We hope to see them this afternoon. There is a rumor that they brought us some linguica from New Bedford. If you haven't tried this Portuguese food yet, you are in for a treat when you do. Its rather hard to get in this area, but plentiful in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Yesterday was the 70th anniversary of D-Day, and I remember it well, except, that I can't remember if I was a paper boy or not on that day. I don't think so. But I remember how happy we all were to hear the invasion news. It gave us hope that the war would be over soon.
Local News
Twin Musicians
My friend, Jim, has two granddaughters who are excellent viola players. Vertuosi (sp?) They are graduating from High School and each will be pursuing their musical careers, albeit, in different ways. One will be playing in some kind of National youth orchestra until college. The other will be going directly to college. We will be hearing a lot about these young ladies very soon.
Identity Theft
A patron of a local gym had his wallet stolen by an identity theft who has been caught after using (abusing) the victim's identity. Shame on him!
But also: Shame on the victim!
The victim made two big mistakes:
1. He left his clothes and his wallet in an unlocked gym locker.
2. He was carrying his Social Security Card in his wallet.
He's lucky that he got ripped off by a dumb crook. A professional would have been able to really steal his identity and would have known what to do in order not to be caught.
OOPS! Interruption.. I'll have to cut this entry off and start anew in a little while.
...........................................................
Lots of family stuff going on. Grandson, Jackson, graduates from High School today. Granddaughter, Adrienne, graduates from High School on Monday. Yesterday, Elaine and I bought luggage sets for both of them. Adrienne will be going to college in Salisbury, Maryland and should need luggage right away. Jackson may study in the Westminster area, but will need luggage if he travels to Switzerland later in the year, to visit his grandmother Cole.
Nephew, Michael, is here with his wife and stepson. They are staying with my daughter Diane's family. We hope to see them this afternoon. There is a rumor that they brought us some linguica from New Bedford. If you haven't tried this Portuguese food yet, you are in for a treat when you do. Its rather hard to get in this area, but plentiful in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Yesterday was the 70th anniversary of D-Day, and I remember it well, except, that I can't remember if I was a paper boy or not on that day. I don't think so. But I remember how happy we all were to hear the invasion news. It gave us hope that the war would be over soon.
Local News
Twin Musicians
My friend, Jim, has two granddaughters who are excellent viola players. Vertuosi (sp?) They are graduating from High School and each will be pursuing their musical careers, albeit, in different ways. One will be playing in some kind of National youth orchestra until college. The other will be going directly to college. We will be hearing a lot about these young ladies very soon.
Identity Theft
A patron of a local gym had his wallet stolen by an identity theft who has been caught after using (abusing) the victim's identity. Shame on him!
But also: Shame on the victim!
The victim made two big mistakes:
1. He left his clothes and his wallet in an unlocked gym locker.
2. He was carrying his Social Security Card in his wallet.
He's lucky that he got ripped off by a dumb crook. A professional would have been able to really steal his identity and would have known what to do in order not to be caught.
OOPS! Interruption.. I'll have to cut this entry off and start anew in a little while.
...........................................................
Thursday, June 05, 2014
Refrigerator Cards; Tilting Bridge; Stabbing Teens; Movie Star; More Prayer; Tianenmen Square and Shopping Carts
Another nice warm day in Maryland. The sun is playing "peek-a-boo", but is seen more often than not. I took a bundle of medication refrigerator cards to the Senior Aged and Disabled office, because one of the area's senior care organizations asked for them. If used properly, they can save lives. We've been giving them out from our TRIAD group for years.
Travel
A major Rte 495 bridge near Wilmington, Delaware, has been closed because its support pilings have begun to tilt. This has caused a major traffic jam throughout the east coast. My late wife's nephew wants to visit his relatives in Maryland, and will be driving a rented recreational vehicle the 400+ miles to where we live. However, I'm afraid he is going to encounter hours of backups and detours because of the bridge problem. But, its better to be safe than having a doggone bridge fall down, along with cars and trucks.
Ka-Boom!
Bomb making material was found in a Social Media expert's apartment in San Francisco. Part of this was ball-bearings, screws and other things designed to maim and kill people. I wonder why they were searching his apartment. A tip?
Impressionable
The two 12 year-old girls who stabbed another 12 year-old in the woods, did it to please a fictional character named Slender-Man. Information and purchasing items on Slender-Man can be found on the internet @creepypasta.com.
A Star
Movie actress, Rosalind Russell, was born today in 1907. She was the beautiful lady who appeared in 41 or more movies.. most memorable: Auntie Mame. A phrase of Auntie Mame's is framed and hanging on my den wall:
"Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death!"
Prayer Again
NARFE acquaintance and fellow Social Security employee, Ron Bowers, in a letter to the Baltimore Sun, has a lot to say about prayers at Government meetings, and at the end of his letter he quotes Jesus: "Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them...And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray (in public places) where they may be seen."
China Necessities
Today is the 25th anniversary of the Tianenmen Square protest (1987). Somebody said that the reason for the protest was that China had stopped price control and the cost of necessities went out of sight. They also said that protests go on all the time in China, but we seldom hear about them.
U.S. Necessities
Shopping carts were invented on this day in 1939. Just think about how it would be if they had not been invented. People would be starving to death.
...................................................
Travel
A major Rte 495 bridge near Wilmington, Delaware, has been closed because its support pilings have begun to tilt. This has caused a major traffic jam throughout the east coast. My late wife's nephew wants to visit his relatives in Maryland, and will be driving a rented recreational vehicle the 400+ miles to where we live. However, I'm afraid he is going to encounter hours of backups and detours because of the bridge problem. But, its better to be safe than having a doggone bridge fall down, along with cars and trucks.
Ka-Boom!
Bomb making material was found in a Social Media expert's apartment in San Francisco. Part of this was ball-bearings, screws and other things designed to maim and kill people. I wonder why they were searching his apartment. A tip?
Impressionable
The two 12 year-old girls who stabbed another 12 year-old in the woods, did it to please a fictional character named Slender-Man. Information and purchasing items on Slender-Man can be found on the internet @creepypasta.com.
A Star
Movie actress, Rosalind Russell, was born today in 1907. She was the beautiful lady who appeared in 41 or more movies.. most memorable: Auntie Mame. A phrase of Auntie Mame's is framed and hanging on my den wall:
"Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death!"
Prayer Again
NARFE acquaintance and fellow Social Security employee, Ron Bowers, in a letter to the Baltimore Sun, has a lot to say about prayers at Government meetings, and at the end of his letter he quotes Jesus: "Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them...And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray (in public places) where they may be seen."
China Necessities
Today is the 25th anniversary of the Tianenmen Square protest (1987). Somebody said that the reason for the protest was that China had stopped price control and the cost of necessities went out of sight. They also said that protests go on all the time in China, but we seldom hear about them.
U.S. Necessities
Shopping carts were invented on this day in 1939. Just think about how it would be if they had not been invented. People would be starving to death.
...................................................
Bizarre Genealogy; Ammosexuals; YMCA Dancers; Safe Streets; Salty Spital; Global Warming; Prisoner Swap; CHIEF!
A little rain in the AM, but nice and sunny around noon.
Genealogy
Went to the Genealogy Gang meeting this morning, where we talked about bizarre relatives. Bill did his Jack the Ripper story that everyone likes. I talked about my cousin Billy. What.. you haven't heard that story? Well, here is what I said:
My Aunt Laurana married a man in Boston. His name was William, and he liked to build store-front churches, or so I've been told. Apparently, some of his activity was not considered kosher and he may have spent some time in the slammer. He and Laurana had two children before she divorced him. One was Billy.. (Laurana went on to have at least three more husbands and died early, possibly connected with her having only one kidney.)
Billy was a wild kid. Every year, when our family had a clambake at Aunt Ella's house, Billy would show up with a brand new car, and a different wife. He said it was the same one, but even us kids weren't fooled. Aunt Ella, however, was a soft-touch, and would let them "shack up" at her house for the night, even though, as a good Christian lady, she didn't like it.
Anyway.. I lost touch with Billy for many years until Billy apparently learned that I was working for the Social Security Administration. He gave me a call and said that the people at the Social Security office were giving him a hard time about his application for disability benefits. He said that he was completely blind and also deaf. He asked me to straighten the situation out before he got more sick and died.
I promised him nothing..but I did mention the call to my supervisor. My boss reported the call to the Boston District Office manager, who sent a Claims Representative out to check and make sure that they were not doing anything to impede Billy's claim for benefits. The Claims Rep went to see Billy, and he sent me a copy of his Report of Contact:
"I went up the stairs of the brownstone building and pressed the doorbell. A loud voice said: 'Who the hell is that? Go away!' So, I rang the bell again. The loud voice cursed again and told me to go away. So, I knocked hard on the door, and it opened to an angry looking man, who looked me right straight in the eyes and yelled; 'Didn't I tell you to go away?'"
"I told him that I was from Social Security to talk to him about his disability claim because of deafness and blindness. He immediately closed his eyes, moved his head all around and said: 'What? Who's there? I can't see you."
.................................................
Jane Nupp is a descendant of Swiss immigrants, and took a trip back there to visit with relatives still living in a small village. When she walked into a family gathering, one of the men fainted. He thought that he had seen a ghost because Jane looked exactly like his deceased wife.. Jane said that everybody in that village seemed to look alike.
This sounds like the story I submitted to Creative Expressions about Edith Carr and the twin sister that showed up at her wake.
.........................................
One of the ladies told about her legendary outlaw relative who wound up in jail because of a "toe print". I mentioned the outlaw who changed his name to Joe Vaughan and started a family in Arkansas.
.........................................
Rifle Packin Papa
I watched the u-tube video on Facebook of guys in Texas toting assault weapons into fast food joints. They seemed to be surprised at the stores' negative reaction and by other patrons leaving quickly when they saw the weapons. I liked what one commenter called these guys: ammosexuals.
Baltimore Area News
Oriole Fans
The two men who beat a fan at Camden Yards because he was a New York Yankees fan, danced to YMCA, while the victim lay bleeding with a fractured skull. The victim is suing for $5 million.
Safe Streets
Baltimore Mayor, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake walked through downtown Baltimore to promote the safety of those streets... of course, she was accompanied by several police cars. I wonder if she would walk alone, after dark, in the same area, without a police escort?
Salty Saliva
An Ocean City man accused of assault has the last name of Spitzer.. that seems appropriate to his crime, which involved spitting in a woman's face.
National News
Global Warming?
Carson City, Nevada, has warmed up more than any other city in the US during the last 30 years. The temperature rise averaged 4.1 degrees.
Swap
Sargent Bowe Bergdahl's return after 5 years as a Taliban prisoner in Afghanistan is causing some criticism.. even from famous prisoner, John McCain.. and also lots of "hate" mail. What do these critics know about the situation?
Was Bergdahl a spy? Was he on a secret CIA mission? Did the 5 men released receive microscopic GPS implants? Or was he just a son, sent to a stupid war, who was united with his loving family by a caring President?
Chief!
It has now happened. The last of the WWII Navajo Code Talkers has died. One of these guys was my friend, "Chief".. who I've written about many times. He was a gentle man, who was hassled by stupid 2nd Lieutenants, whose teaspoon sized brains were unable to recognize a true hero. Rest in Peace, at the Happy Hunting Ground all of you heroes.
.....................................................................
Genealogy
Went to the Genealogy Gang meeting this morning, where we talked about bizarre relatives. Bill did his Jack the Ripper story that everyone likes. I talked about my cousin Billy. What.. you haven't heard that story? Well, here is what I said:
My Aunt Laurana married a man in Boston. His name was William, and he liked to build store-front churches, or so I've been told. Apparently, some of his activity was not considered kosher and he may have spent some time in the slammer. He and Laurana had two children before she divorced him. One was Billy.. (Laurana went on to have at least three more husbands and died early, possibly connected with her having only one kidney.)
Billy was a wild kid. Every year, when our family had a clambake at Aunt Ella's house, Billy would show up with a brand new car, and a different wife. He said it was the same one, but even us kids weren't fooled. Aunt Ella, however, was a soft-touch, and would let them "shack up" at her house for the night, even though, as a good Christian lady, she didn't like it.
Anyway.. I lost touch with Billy for many years until Billy apparently learned that I was working for the Social Security Administration. He gave me a call and said that the people at the Social Security office were giving him a hard time about his application for disability benefits. He said that he was completely blind and also deaf. He asked me to straighten the situation out before he got more sick and died.
I promised him nothing..but I did mention the call to my supervisor. My boss reported the call to the Boston District Office manager, who sent a Claims Representative out to check and make sure that they were not doing anything to impede Billy's claim for benefits. The Claims Rep went to see Billy, and he sent me a copy of his Report of Contact:
"I went up the stairs of the brownstone building and pressed the doorbell. A loud voice said: 'Who the hell is that? Go away!' So, I rang the bell again. The loud voice cursed again and told me to go away. So, I knocked hard on the door, and it opened to an angry looking man, who looked me right straight in the eyes and yelled; 'Didn't I tell you to go away?'"
"I told him that I was from Social Security to talk to him about his disability claim because of deafness and blindness. He immediately closed his eyes, moved his head all around and said: 'What? Who's there? I can't see you."
.................................................
Jane Nupp is a descendant of Swiss immigrants, and took a trip back there to visit with relatives still living in a small village. When she walked into a family gathering, one of the men fainted. He thought that he had seen a ghost because Jane looked exactly like his deceased wife.. Jane said that everybody in that village seemed to look alike.
This sounds like the story I submitted to Creative Expressions about Edith Carr and the twin sister that showed up at her wake.
.........................................
One of the ladies told about her legendary outlaw relative who wound up in jail because of a "toe print". I mentioned the outlaw who changed his name to Joe Vaughan and started a family in Arkansas.
.........................................
Rifle Packin Papa
I watched the u-tube video on Facebook of guys in Texas toting assault weapons into fast food joints. They seemed to be surprised at the stores' negative reaction and by other patrons leaving quickly when they saw the weapons. I liked what one commenter called these guys: ammosexuals.
Baltimore Area News
Oriole Fans
The two men who beat a fan at Camden Yards because he was a New York Yankees fan, danced to YMCA, while the victim lay bleeding with a fractured skull. The victim is suing for $5 million.
Safe Streets
Baltimore Mayor, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake walked through downtown Baltimore to promote the safety of those streets... of course, she was accompanied by several police cars. I wonder if she would walk alone, after dark, in the same area, without a police escort?
Salty Saliva
An Ocean City man accused of assault has the last name of Spitzer.. that seems appropriate to his crime, which involved spitting in a woman's face.
National News
Global Warming?
Carson City, Nevada, has warmed up more than any other city in the US during the last 30 years. The temperature rise averaged 4.1 degrees.
Swap
Sargent Bowe Bergdahl's return after 5 years as a Taliban prisoner in Afghanistan is causing some criticism.. even from famous prisoner, John McCain.. and also lots of "hate" mail. What do these critics know about the situation?
Was Bergdahl a spy? Was he on a secret CIA mission? Did the 5 men released receive microscopic GPS implants? Or was he just a son, sent to a stupid war, who was united with his loving family by a caring President?
Chief!
It has now happened. The last of the WWII Navajo Code Talkers has died. One of these guys was my friend, "Chief".. who I've written about many times. He was a gentle man, who was hassled by stupid 2nd Lieutenants, whose teaspoon sized brains were unable to recognize a true hero. Rest in Peace, at the Happy Hunting Ground all of you heroes.
.....................................................................
Tuesday, June 03, 2014
Ethics; Car Jumping; Obama; Eggs; Cute Pets; Ocean City; Analemma; and Crosswords
Another beautiful day. I have to decide whether to drive all the way to Hopkins today, or just to Owings Mills and take the subway in. If I drive, I get to hear more of my Teaching Company course on Hospital Rounds... incidentally, I think that Hopkins was the first teaching hospital to initiate the daily "rounds" that revolutionized medicine.
Carroll County Times News, etc
Politics and Ethics
Some Mississippi candidate for office had conspired with 3 other guys to take pictures of his opponent's wife, who has been in a nursing home for 13 years with dementia, in order to show him as a mean guy for cheating on his poor wife. At least, that is what I am reading into the newspaper article.
What does it mean if a husband spends time with another woman while his disabled wife probably doesn't even know who he is because of Alzheimers Disease, or other type of dementia? Ethical question that many men will have to face, now that their spouses with mental illnesses are living longer and being kept alive through medication. Is it possible to continue to love a person, when that person is completely "out of it?"
Sunday Entertainment.. Car Jumping
Members of the Gamber Firefighting Community were treated last Sunday to the spectacle of a guy chasing his girl friend around their parking lot with a knife. He was mad because she had opened the car door and walked away from him. He managed to cut her hands up pretty badly before police arrived to calm him down, and chain him up.
Confession.... Before we were married, my late wife sometimes got mad at me while we were in the car, and when I stopped for a red light, she would open the door and walk away. This went on once in a while, until we moved away from our New Bedford hometown. She couldn't do it any more then because she was afraid she would get lost. So, instead, she just started to forgive me for whatever dumb thing I would do to irritate her, and we had a nice peaceful life for 43 years.
Also, soon after we were married, Elaine agreed to babysit her 4 year-old sister, Janine a few days a week, even though Janine hated me because I had married her sister and she no longer had her constant attention. One day, Elaine was ill and I had to fill in as Janine's babysitter. After wrestling her into our car and driving off, Janine opened the car door and ran away. (No seat belts or car seats in those days, my friend.) I spent the next hour chasing her through rush hour traffic until I was able to pin her with a "cross over toe hold" and get her back into the car with threats that I can't repeat here, and copious amounts of penny candy. Luckily, she calmed down a little and I was able to control her a little bit until Elaine took over, sick as she was. In years to come, Janine learned that I was a lovable little brother-in-law, and grudgingly accepted me.
El Presidente
I am a little upset about recent political cartoons that the Carroll County Times has been publishing bashing the President and his policies. I could understand cartoons about W, because, in my humble opinion, his actions were not geared to good outcomes for the middle and poor classes. But Obama.. here is a guy who is abused by every nutcase in the Nation for trying to bring health benefits to millions of Americans, some of whom would die if they did not have it, while trying mightily to end the two wars that W got us into. Did all those thousands of Americans have to die in Iraq and Afghanistan? Really? Blessed are the peacemakers... and President Obama is one of them, in my opinion.
Spoiled Eggs
A company that mislabeled old, tainted eggs in order to make a buck, has been fined $6.8 million. In China, the owners would have been shot. Unfortunately, here, they will be able to hire a slick lawyer, go out on appeal for a few years, get their fine reduced and go free. (I hope not.)
Good Pet News
A "Cutest Pet" photo contest is underway in Carroll County, sponsored by Bowman's Feed and Pet Company and Banfield Pet Hospital. Our cat, SuZee, would definitely win this contest if we entered her picture... she's so cute! However, winning would probably go to her head and there would be no living with her after that.
Down the Ocean, Hon
Well, this is the weekend that high school graduates and college students invade Ocean City. After trashing the beach and stabbing each other, they will return home to their normally drab existence. Poor babies.
The Advocate Newspaper
Every Tuesday, the Carroll County Times includes a copy of the Advocate. I believe this is an ancestor of a paper called the Democratic Advocate. Since there are only a few Democrats left in Carroll County, they dropped that part of the name. Besides, it never reports political news.
Astronomical Information
Jon Kelvey of the Advocate, wrote a very informative piece about a mysterious pole recently installed in back of Hoffman's famous Ice Cream store in Westminster. He writes that the ancients somehow figured out that a mirror on a post would produce a figure 8 pattern over time. That pattern is called the analemma. An analemma is a tracing of the course of the sun throughout a year's time. This pattern was known to Aristarchus in the 3rd century BCE and it was also discovered on one of the stones of Stonehenge. Gazing at the annalemma, Johannes Kepler figured out that planets move in elliptical orbits rather than perfect circles. So, have a nice cone of peanut butter ripple and contemplate the erected rod that mimicks those that helped scientists learn about the Universe.
Crossword Puzzle
I look forward to reading the Advocate every Tuesday, but, I would like it better if they didn't print the solution to their crossword puzzle right under that puzzle. Yes, I could put something over it so I wouldn't see the solution; however, when I turn to the page in question, my eyes automatically scan the bottom half of the page and even if I don't see all of the solution, a few of the words imprint themselves on my retina.. that spoils the whole thing for me.
Strawberries
Don't forget.. this weekend lots of Carroll Count churches are having strawberry festivals. Yummy!
.....................................
.
Carroll County Times News, etc
Politics and Ethics
Some Mississippi candidate for office had conspired with 3 other guys to take pictures of his opponent's wife, who has been in a nursing home for 13 years with dementia, in order to show him as a mean guy for cheating on his poor wife. At least, that is what I am reading into the newspaper article.
What does it mean if a husband spends time with another woman while his disabled wife probably doesn't even know who he is because of Alzheimers Disease, or other type of dementia? Ethical question that many men will have to face, now that their spouses with mental illnesses are living longer and being kept alive through medication. Is it possible to continue to love a person, when that person is completely "out of it?"
Sunday Entertainment.. Car Jumping
Members of the Gamber Firefighting Community were treated last Sunday to the spectacle of a guy chasing his girl friend around their parking lot with a knife. He was mad because she had opened the car door and walked away from him. He managed to cut her hands up pretty badly before police arrived to calm him down, and chain him up.
Confession.... Before we were married, my late wife sometimes got mad at me while we were in the car, and when I stopped for a red light, she would open the door and walk away. This went on once in a while, until we moved away from our New Bedford hometown. She couldn't do it any more then because she was afraid she would get lost. So, instead, she just started to forgive me for whatever dumb thing I would do to irritate her, and we had a nice peaceful life for 43 years.
Also, soon after we were married, Elaine agreed to babysit her 4 year-old sister, Janine a few days a week, even though Janine hated me because I had married her sister and she no longer had her constant attention. One day, Elaine was ill and I had to fill in as Janine's babysitter. After wrestling her into our car and driving off, Janine opened the car door and ran away. (No seat belts or car seats in those days, my friend.) I spent the next hour chasing her through rush hour traffic until I was able to pin her with a "cross over toe hold" and get her back into the car with threats that I can't repeat here, and copious amounts of penny candy. Luckily, she calmed down a little and I was able to control her a little bit until Elaine took over, sick as she was. In years to come, Janine learned that I was a lovable little brother-in-law, and grudgingly accepted me.
El Presidente
I am a little upset about recent political cartoons that the Carroll County Times has been publishing bashing the President and his policies. I could understand cartoons about W, because, in my humble opinion, his actions were not geared to good outcomes for the middle and poor classes. But Obama.. here is a guy who is abused by every nutcase in the Nation for trying to bring health benefits to millions of Americans, some of whom would die if they did not have it, while trying mightily to end the two wars that W got us into. Did all those thousands of Americans have to die in Iraq and Afghanistan? Really? Blessed are the peacemakers... and President Obama is one of them, in my opinion.
Spoiled Eggs
A company that mislabeled old, tainted eggs in order to make a buck, has been fined $6.8 million. In China, the owners would have been shot. Unfortunately, here, they will be able to hire a slick lawyer, go out on appeal for a few years, get their fine reduced and go free. (I hope not.)
Good Pet News
A "Cutest Pet" photo contest is underway in Carroll County, sponsored by Bowman's Feed and Pet Company and Banfield Pet Hospital. Our cat, SuZee, would definitely win this contest if we entered her picture... she's so cute! However, winning would probably go to her head and there would be no living with her after that.
Down the Ocean, Hon
Well, this is the weekend that high school graduates and college students invade Ocean City. After trashing the beach and stabbing each other, they will return home to their normally drab existence. Poor babies.
The Advocate Newspaper
Every Tuesday, the Carroll County Times includes a copy of the Advocate. I believe this is an ancestor of a paper called the Democratic Advocate. Since there are only a few Democrats left in Carroll County, they dropped that part of the name. Besides, it never reports political news.
Astronomical Information
Jon Kelvey of the Advocate, wrote a very informative piece about a mysterious pole recently installed in back of Hoffman's famous Ice Cream store in Westminster. He writes that the ancients somehow figured out that a mirror on a post would produce a figure 8 pattern over time. That pattern is called the analemma. An analemma is a tracing of the course of the sun throughout a year's time. This pattern was known to Aristarchus in the 3rd century BCE and it was also discovered on one of the stones of Stonehenge. Gazing at the annalemma, Johannes Kepler figured out that planets move in elliptical orbits rather than perfect circles. So, have a nice cone of peanut butter ripple and contemplate the erected rod that mimicks those that helped scientists learn about the Universe.
Crossword Puzzle
I look forward to reading the Advocate every Tuesday, but, I would like it better if they didn't print the solution to their crossword puzzle right under that puzzle. Yes, I could put something over it so I wouldn't see the solution; however, when I turn to the page in question, my eyes automatically scan the bottom half of the page and even if I don't see all of the solution, a few of the words imprint themselves on my retina.. that spoils the whole thing for me.
Strawberries
Don't forget.. this weekend lots of Carroll Count churches are having strawberry festivals. Yummy!
.....................................
.
Monday, June 02, 2014
Beluga whale; Intelligence; Guns; Glitz; Brawls; and Youth
Another glorious sunny 75 degree day in Maryland. Who says we have lousy weather!
Intelligence
Have you listened to NOC (no C)? NOC is a 35 year old Beluga whale that can talk like a human.
That's what I said. Visit www.smithsonian.com/beluga and be amazed. For a while, a few years ago, NOC decided to mimic the humans that surrounded him every day. The humans never did figure out what NOC was trying to convey.. but I know. NOC had every necessity provided to him except one: female companionship. Anyway, when he realized that humans were not intelligent enough to understand his need in this regard, he gave up trying to communicate with them. At least, that is what I think.
Incidentally, some species of whales have brains that are bigger and more convoluted than those of humans. They probably are more intelligent than we are. Just look at Moby Dick!
I am glad that my New Bedford ancestors decided to discontinue hunting whales and concentrate on fish instead.
By the way, did the large spider I squashed today have a brain? Suppose it is not true that spiders' brains are just used for basic survival and not for the higher level functions of humans. Suppose that we are squashing sentient beings. Also.. crabs and lobsters and the like.. and of course, those New Bedford fish that "Fish Mary" lumps. Maybe I will become a Buddhist and honor and cherish all forms of life.
Thoughts on Guns
John Retsinas, sociologist from Rhode Island writes in the Nation Magazine: "Today forget the pawn shop. You can buy a gun online (Armslist). You can buy one at gun shows, at Walmart, on some city streets. If the restrictions seem onerous, find someone to purchase it for you.. a straw customer." It seems quite easy to get your gun and start legally "packing."
John says that "In the savage land that is America, we are all Paladins, or 'knights without armor.' Our motto: Have gun, shoot."
But you know.. when I was younger, my favorite radio show was Gunsmoke! And my favorite TV show was of course: Have Gun Will Travel.
(When I was active in giving Toastmasters speeches, my motto was: Have gavel, will travel!)
Carroll Magazine
A copy of the glitzy free magazine with that name showed up in today's mail. Its an easy, pleasant read, mostly advertisements and pictures of the "good life" here in glamorous Carroll County Maryland. Many flashy pictures of people I've never seen or heard of before. Perhaps its because the people depicted are a lot younger than I am.
Wait a minute.. the publisher's picture shows an older dude, and there is an article about a couple of older folks. But, overall, the magazine's photographer is good at taking pictures of younger looking people. These glamorous people obviously do not travel in my circles. Only a few look old enough to join AARP. The smiles on the faces of these beautiful people tell me that they enjoy being young and beautiful, and of course they scream out "We are never going to have wrinkles and grow old." My comment is the punchline of an old joke: Thatsa nize! which roughly translates to "Bullshit!"
Finally.. a Donnybrook!
The Carroll County Times printed a "regional item" from Philadelphia. There was a very large fight in a bar in South Philadelphia, in which several people were stabbed last weekend. Big news in Phillie.
Hey, guys.. fights like that occur every weekend in Baltimore, except that guns are used and young men are killed. Hermine Saunders had this title for her column yesterday:
Where have all the Flowers gone?
Well... the youthful human flowers of the Baltimore communities have been going away for some time now... cut down by stabbings, beatings, and drive-by shootings. It has to stop!
.......................................................
Intelligence
Have you listened to NOC (no C)? NOC is a 35 year old Beluga whale that can talk like a human.
That's what I said. Visit www.smithsonian.com/beluga and be amazed. For a while, a few years ago, NOC decided to mimic the humans that surrounded him every day. The humans never did figure out what NOC was trying to convey.. but I know. NOC had every necessity provided to him except one: female companionship. Anyway, when he realized that humans were not intelligent enough to understand his need in this regard, he gave up trying to communicate with them. At least, that is what I think.
Incidentally, some species of whales have brains that are bigger and more convoluted than those of humans. They probably are more intelligent than we are. Just look at Moby Dick!
I am glad that my New Bedford ancestors decided to discontinue hunting whales and concentrate on fish instead.
By the way, did the large spider I squashed today have a brain? Suppose it is not true that spiders' brains are just used for basic survival and not for the higher level functions of humans. Suppose that we are squashing sentient beings. Also.. crabs and lobsters and the like.. and of course, those New Bedford fish that "Fish Mary" lumps. Maybe I will become a Buddhist and honor and cherish all forms of life.
Thoughts on Guns
John Retsinas, sociologist from Rhode Island writes in the Nation Magazine: "Today forget the pawn shop. You can buy a gun online (Armslist). You can buy one at gun shows, at Walmart, on some city streets. If the restrictions seem onerous, find someone to purchase it for you.. a straw customer." It seems quite easy to get your gun and start legally "packing."
John says that "In the savage land that is America, we are all Paladins, or 'knights without armor.' Our motto: Have gun, shoot."
But you know.. when I was younger, my favorite radio show was Gunsmoke! And my favorite TV show was of course: Have Gun Will Travel.
(When I was active in giving Toastmasters speeches, my motto was: Have gavel, will travel!)
Carroll Magazine
A copy of the glitzy free magazine with that name showed up in today's mail. Its an easy, pleasant read, mostly advertisements and pictures of the "good life" here in glamorous Carroll County Maryland. Many flashy pictures of people I've never seen or heard of before. Perhaps its because the people depicted are a lot younger than I am.
Wait a minute.. the publisher's picture shows an older dude, and there is an article about a couple of older folks. But, overall, the magazine's photographer is good at taking pictures of younger looking people. These glamorous people obviously do not travel in my circles. Only a few look old enough to join AARP. The smiles on the faces of these beautiful people tell me that they enjoy being young and beautiful, and of course they scream out "We are never going to have wrinkles and grow old." My comment is the punchline of an old joke: Thatsa nize! which roughly translates to "Bullshit!"
Finally.. a Donnybrook!
The Carroll County Times printed a "regional item" from Philadelphia. There was a very large fight in a bar in South Philadelphia, in which several people were stabbed last weekend. Big news in Phillie.
Hey, guys.. fights like that occur every weekend in Baltimore, except that guns are used and young men are killed. Hermine Saunders had this title for her column yesterday:
Where have all the Flowers gone?
Well... the youthful human flowers of the Baltimore communities have been going away for some time now... cut down by stabbings, beatings, and drive-by shootings. It has to stop!
.......................................................
Sunday, June 01, 2014
Spaghetti; AARP; Flowers; Video Games; Doves; Barbershop; Farming; Religion; Tatoos; Curing Obesity and Crime
Another beautiful summer-like day in Maryland. Birds are chirping. Spiders are scurrying. Squirrels are being defiant. My eye is almost opened and its not yet 1 PM. Perhaps I will look decent enough (i.e., not scary) to be able to go out for those groceries we need so badly.
For two nights now, Elaine and I have cooked spaghetti. Why is it that when she cooks it, it tastes sweet and wonderful and Italian, and when I cook it, it is bland and kind of tasteless? Yes, I know.. its because women know how to cook better than men... Wait a minute... what about all of the famous chefs, especially Emeral, who comes from my area of the world in Massachusetts? Elaine would answer that all of the great chefs were taught by women. I'm sure she is right.
Local News
The Carroll County Times has a Carroll Seniors Page today next to its weekly Carroll Planner.
I was pleased to see that the Carroll Planner printed an advertisement for our upcoming AARP Chapter meeting. Each month, we strive to provide AARP members in Carroll County with a pleasant luncheon meeting, where we listen to an informative expert in health matters, followed by nice entertainment. Unfortunately, the minimum price we charge for attending is $14, and apparently many feel that this is too expensive. I wish we could lower it, but we have to pay what the Elks Club charges us. We make no money at all from this charge.
Our only source of income is received from trips that we sponsor. All of our trips cost less than similar trips in the Westminster area. One may check this out easily by comparing prices. The lady who runs the trips does not even use complimentary gifts by the trip companies. She turns that into the AARP treasury to cover Chapter expenses and gifts to charity, when we have enough on hand.
With that, we have a hard time getting new members. This is a problem with almost all non-profit organizations these days. People in younger generations do not seem to be interested in anything that does not involve high-tech activity.
Where are the Flowers?
Dr. Hermine Saunders is a lady who is involved in many organizations, boards, committees and counsels in the Carroll County area, one would not be aware that she is retired. However, she also manages to find time to walk her sweet little dog, Annie, and to write a column for the newspaper.
In addition, she is writing a book about a young lady who had spina bifida.
In today's well-written column, she bemoans our current violent society, both in school and on the street. I agree, and how can our society be anything but violent with the current media attention to it. I long for old-style TV like Leave it to Beaver, and I love Lucy, and I love to look at Fred and Ginger movies, and what do we have today: the return of Godzilla, and CSI TV shows that give serial rapists tips on how to terrorize young children and women.
(During the 1990's the son of one of our friends let me watch his video game, where GI Joe would use his machine gun to slaughter everybody lurking around every corner.. Nazis, gangsters, women, animals.. everything jumped out at Joe as he tried to work his way through an old Aztec ruin to get at an ancient treasure. The game player got points for the number of humans and creatures killed. These points would be displayed proudly on a chart at the end of that game session. I was appalled. I understand that the games are worse now, and much more realistic.)
When I first saw Hermine's headline: Where are the Flowers? I remembered that the Vermont Country Store says that it takes 10,000 jasmine flowers and 28 dozen May roses to make just a single ounce of Joy, perfume created by Jean Patou in 1930, to bring "joy" to women during the Great Depression. The Vermont Country Store will still sell you a spray ounce of Joy for $99.
We need more citizens like Hermine, who are willing to spend their retirement years helping others instead of sitting in their rocking chairs watching HBO all day.
Another author on the Senior Page of today's newspaper was Dolly Merritt of Westminster, who wrote a nice article about the "almost better than human" activity of dove parents. The doves she mentions may be those that come to my side porch each day to eat from our "leaning tower of bird seed."
My NARFE buddy, Chuck Forbes, and three other guys are also shown and mentioned on the Senior Page today. They form the Elderly Brothers, a barbershop quartet that is available for weddings and Bar Mitvahs. I've heard them sing a number of times, and they are good.
Farming
The Carroll County Times also reports on some farming statistics that I thought were interesting.
Average farm income in 2007 = $16,127.
Average farm income in 2012 = $23,881.
Total number of farms in 2007 = 1,149
Total number of farms in 2012 = 1,092
Total farm acreage in 2007 = 141,934
Total farm acreage in 2012 = 132,630
Average age of farmer in 2007 = 57.2
Average age of farmer in 2012 = 58.4
The article is very interesting and mentions that an entity that makes more than $1,000 in agricultural sales is considered a farm. So, I guess that lots of those folks at Farmers' Markets are considered farmers, even though they might have a smallish garden.
Religion
A new version of Jesus Christ, Superstar, was mysteriously canceled before its 54 city tour that was scheduled to start in New Orleans.
Baltimore and National News
Tatoos
To show you how popular tattoos are becoming, members of the Black Gorilla Family are starting to have their backs tattooed with the numbers 276 (BGF). You remember the BGF who virtually took over the Baltimore jail
Obesity
The Baltimore Sun reports that Rice University is trying to modify "good" E Coli bacteria to treat obesity. The goal is to create a microbe that can detect and treat intestinal disorders linked to obesity. They have found that putting "gut" bacteria from an obese human into a mouse, causes the mouse to become obese, regardless of the mouse's diet. This also works the opposite way, with lean transfer causing skinny mice.
So, just as I have always suspected, my beer drinking has not caused my fat belly.. I just had chubby bacteria!
Criminal Activity
A New Scam
Yellow signs are going up all over Baltimore: "Sell Diabetic Strips". Although it is legal to buy and sell strips outside of a pharmacy, it is not wise to do so. Some purchasing and selling companies are supposedly helping poor people obtain valid strips that were on hand when a diabetic person died, and that sounds good. However, the strips might be very old or spoiled from high heat. The purchaser would take a big risk that the strips might not give accurate readings, and that could be very bad for a diabetic person.
In addition, a scammer might give you "free" strips in return for your Social Security Number and other information, which the scammer could use to make some false Medicare or Medicaid claims.
Phoney Solicitation
Recently, a couple stood outside of a Glen Burnie grocery store, soliciting funds for a non-profit group. An observer got suspicious and asked the man for the telephone number of the group he was representing, so it could be checked out. The solicitor give the observer a number, and the observer immediately dialed. The solicitor apparently forgot that he had a phone in his pocket and was surprised when it started ringing there. Later, police determined that they were not legal representatives of the non-profit and will spend a little time soliciting funds from their fellow inmates.
....................................................
For two nights now, Elaine and I have cooked spaghetti. Why is it that when she cooks it, it tastes sweet and wonderful and Italian, and when I cook it, it is bland and kind of tasteless? Yes, I know.. its because women know how to cook better than men... Wait a minute... what about all of the famous chefs, especially Emeral, who comes from my area of the world in Massachusetts? Elaine would answer that all of the great chefs were taught by women. I'm sure she is right.
Local News
The Carroll County Times has a Carroll Seniors Page today next to its weekly Carroll Planner.
I was pleased to see that the Carroll Planner printed an advertisement for our upcoming AARP Chapter meeting. Each month, we strive to provide AARP members in Carroll County with a pleasant luncheon meeting, where we listen to an informative expert in health matters, followed by nice entertainment. Unfortunately, the minimum price we charge for attending is $14, and apparently many feel that this is too expensive. I wish we could lower it, but we have to pay what the Elks Club charges us. We make no money at all from this charge.
Our only source of income is received from trips that we sponsor. All of our trips cost less than similar trips in the Westminster area. One may check this out easily by comparing prices. The lady who runs the trips does not even use complimentary gifts by the trip companies. She turns that into the AARP treasury to cover Chapter expenses and gifts to charity, when we have enough on hand.
With that, we have a hard time getting new members. This is a problem with almost all non-profit organizations these days. People in younger generations do not seem to be interested in anything that does not involve high-tech activity.
Where are the Flowers?
Dr. Hermine Saunders is a lady who is involved in many organizations, boards, committees and counsels in the Carroll County area, one would not be aware that she is retired. However, she also manages to find time to walk her sweet little dog, Annie, and to write a column for the newspaper.
In addition, she is writing a book about a young lady who had spina bifida.
In today's well-written column, she bemoans our current violent society, both in school and on the street. I agree, and how can our society be anything but violent with the current media attention to it. I long for old-style TV like Leave it to Beaver, and I love Lucy, and I love to look at Fred and Ginger movies, and what do we have today: the return of Godzilla, and CSI TV shows that give serial rapists tips on how to terrorize young children and women.
(During the 1990's the son of one of our friends let me watch his video game, where GI Joe would use his machine gun to slaughter everybody lurking around every corner.. Nazis, gangsters, women, animals.. everything jumped out at Joe as he tried to work his way through an old Aztec ruin to get at an ancient treasure. The game player got points for the number of humans and creatures killed. These points would be displayed proudly on a chart at the end of that game session. I was appalled. I understand that the games are worse now, and much more realistic.)
When I first saw Hermine's headline: Where are the Flowers? I remembered that the Vermont Country Store says that it takes 10,000 jasmine flowers and 28 dozen May roses to make just a single ounce of Joy, perfume created by Jean Patou in 1930, to bring "joy" to women during the Great Depression. The Vermont Country Store will still sell you a spray ounce of Joy for $99.
We need more citizens like Hermine, who are willing to spend their retirement years helping others instead of sitting in their rocking chairs watching HBO all day.
Another author on the Senior Page of today's newspaper was Dolly Merritt of Westminster, who wrote a nice article about the "almost better than human" activity of dove parents. The doves she mentions may be those that come to my side porch each day to eat from our "leaning tower of bird seed."
My NARFE buddy, Chuck Forbes, and three other guys are also shown and mentioned on the Senior Page today. They form the Elderly Brothers, a barbershop quartet that is available for weddings and Bar Mitvahs. I've heard them sing a number of times, and they are good.
Farming
The Carroll County Times also reports on some farming statistics that I thought were interesting.
Average farm income in 2007 = $16,127.
Average farm income in 2012 = $23,881.
Total number of farms in 2007 = 1,149
Total number of farms in 2012 = 1,092
Total farm acreage in 2007 = 141,934
Total farm acreage in 2012 = 132,630
Average age of farmer in 2007 = 57.2
Average age of farmer in 2012 = 58.4
The article is very interesting and mentions that an entity that makes more than $1,000 in agricultural sales is considered a farm. So, I guess that lots of those folks at Farmers' Markets are considered farmers, even though they might have a smallish garden.
Religion
A new version of Jesus Christ, Superstar, was mysteriously canceled before its 54 city tour that was scheduled to start in New Orleans.
Baltimore and National News
Tatoos
To show you how popular tattoos are becoming, members of the Black Gorilla Family are starting to have their backs tattooed with the numbers 276 (BGF). You remember the BGF who virtually took over the Baltimore jail
Obesity
The Baltimore Sun reports that Rice University is trying to modify "good" E Coli bacteria to treat obesity. The goal is to create a microbe that can detect and treat intestinal disorders linked to obesity. They have found that putting "gut" bacteria from an obese human into a mouse, causes the mouse to become obese, regardless of the mouse's diet. This also works the opposite way, with lean transfer causing skinny mice.
So, just as I have always suspected, my beer drinking has not caused my fat belly.. I just had chubby bacteria!
Criminal Activity
A New Scam
Yellow signs are going up all over Baltimore: "Sell Diabetic Strips". Although it is legal to buy and sell strips outside of a pharmacy, it is not wise to do so. Some purchasing and selling companies are supposedly helping poor people obtain valid strips that were on hand when a diabetic person died, and that sounds good. However, the strips might be very old or spoiled from high heat. The purchaser would take a big risk that the strips might not give accurate readings, and that could be very bad for a diabetic person.
In addition, a scammer might give you "free" strips in return for your Social Security Number and other information, which the scammer could use to make some false Medicare or Medicaid claims.
Phoney Solicitation
Recently, a couple stood outside of a Glen Burnie grocery store, soliciting funds for a non-profit group. An observer got suspicious and asked the man for the telephone number of the group he was representing, so it could be checked out. The solicitor give the observer a number, and the observer immediately dialed. The solicitor apparently forgot that he had a phone in his pocket and was surprised when it started ringing there. Later, police determined that they were not legal representatives of the non-profit and will spend a little time soliciting funds from their fellow inmates.
....................................................
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Coffee; Snowden; Stupid Crook; Bicycle Thieves; Food Thief; Facebook; Dow Jones; Burgers; Bomber and Prayer
Another beautiful sunny 70 plus day! In less than one hour, I'm supposed to be at a Volunteer Appreciation ceremony. Even though I said I would attend, one look at my Phantom of the Opera face this morning convinced me that I would just scare people if I showed up. Maybe later, when my eye decides to unstick, I may try to place a big bandage or bandaid over my scarred face and venture out for groceries.
Wait Wait Don't Tell Me:
Snowden:
Somebody on the show said that Mr. Snowden insisted that he had been hired by NSA as a spy because they gave him a secret alias/code name. (When I was on top of a mountain in Germany, my code name was Barber Foxtrot. Well, I quickly found out that it was not a secret code name, but instead part of the nomenclature for the van in which I was located, so everybody who worked there would have that name.. BF in Air Force talk was Barber Foxtrot.)
The High Life:
Starbucks has now served its most expensive drink.. it has 30 shots of expresso and costs $54.75. (My own choice for coffee is Donut Decaf, brewed in my Keurig machine .. cost = 50 cents a cup. . Once in a while, I'll treat myself to a Dunkin' Donut decaf with lots of cream... cost = less than one dollar a cup. Coming from Massachusetts, Dunkin' Donuts played a big part in my early manhood.)
Click and Clack:
Today, my favorite PhD-carrying mechanics from Boston mentioned the experience of a famous stupid criminal in that area:
At 2 AM on a dark night in Boston, the criminal in question visited a lumber yard that had some quarter-inch plywood stacked in an accessible location. He made sure nobody saw him as he lifted 18 sheets, 1 by 1, and carried them surreptitiously to his car. Having a regular sedan, the only way that he could get away with his loot was to lay them on the roof of the car and steady them with his arm out of the window.
As he drove at about 5 miles an hour, he was happily advancing toward his brother's house a half a mile away, when all of a sudden, a speeding car swerved by him, causing him to slam on his breaks and stop. Now he could see the pile of plywood slide forward off of his roof, slicing through his hood, cutting into his engine, and lopping off his headlights.
Baltimore News:
Bicycle Thieves:
The Baltimore Sun has more information about the kids who stole a bunch of bicycles this week. May I quote: "About 50 youngsters poured into Druid Hill Park and stole four dozen bicycles Monday evening that city workers had put out for a popular bike-sharing program, authorities said."
These bikes are marked with big black and white stickers. Twelve of them have already been recovered.
The Ride Around Program began in 2006. I am really surprised that it has lasted this long. I wonder what the New York City version is experiencing.
Food Thief:
Baltimore's famous Dine and Dasher "criminal", who has been faking seizures for years to get out of paying in restaurants, has finally been sentenced to 5 years of jail food for his last excursions into beating providers out of cash.
In 2013, for example, at one eatery, he ordered Pork Chops, Macaroni and Cheese, Soup, and several drinks. After consumption, he appeared to pass out. 911 was called and medics put him into an ambulance. On the way, he confessed and was arrested. Usually, when this happened, thanks to Public Defenders, he stayed out of jail.. except for a few 18 months stints.. but this time, a judge lumped a bunch of his exploits together so he could give him that mandatory 5 year sentence.
News in the Carroll County Times;
Money Talks:
Billionaire Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chang report that they are donating $120 million to public schools in the San Francisco area. This is part of $1.1 billion in Facebook stock thay had pledged to the nonprofit Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
The Dow Jones average closed Friday at 16,717.17. I think that this is the highest it has ever been. Maybe I'm rich. I'd better check. (yeah.. sure.. ha)
Seltzer time?
Badass Burgers is now serving breakfast food from a truck along route 140 in Westminster, Maryland. Are burgers breakfast food? I wonder what their license cost them. At one time, I think it was in DC, a license to sell anything on the street cost $350,000 a year and there always was a line of people wanting to get one of the few licenses available. Now.. how many burgers would you have to sell to make one of those licenses profitable?
Bomber
What is different about a suicide bombing directed against Syrian Government troops by someone named Moner Mohammad Abu-Salha? .. He was an American from Florida.
Prayer
Fellow Carroll Lutheran Village resident, Reverend Lou Piel, wrote about prayer in his monthly religious column. I liked what he said.. that prayer should be directed to the goals of one's meetings.. just as Reverend Warren Wenger's prayers at the AARP Board Meetings are directed to helping the Board members make decisions for the good welfare of the organization.
I also liked Lou's sentence: "...sometimes we need to hear thoughts or opinions that are different to what we hold dear..."
....................................
Wait Wait Don't Tell Me:
Snowden:
Somebody on the show said that Mr. Snowden insisted that he had been hired by NSA as a spy because they gave him a secret alias/code name. (When I was on top of a mountain in Germany, my code name was Barber Foxtrot. Well, I quickly found out that it was not a secret code name, but instead part of the nomenclature for the van in which I was located, so everybody who worked there would have that name.. BF in Air Force talk was Barber Foxtrot.)
The High Life:
Starbucks has now served its most expensive drink.. it has 30 shots of expresso and costs $54.75. (My own choice for coffee is Donut Decaf, brewed in my Keurig machine .. cost = 50 cents a cup. . Once in a while, I'll treat myself to a Dunkin' Donut decaf with lots of cream... cost = less than one dollar a cup. Coming from Massachusetts, Dunkin' Donuts played a big part in my early manhood.)
Click and Clack:
Today, my favorite PhD-carrying mechanics from Boston mentioned the experience of a famous stupid criminal in that area:
At 2 AM on a dark night in Boston, the criminal in question visited a lumber yard that had some quarter-inch plywood stacked in an accessible location. He made sure nobody saw him as he lifted 18 sheets, 1 by 1, and carried them surreptitiously to his car. Having a regular sedan, the only way that he could get away with his loot was to lay them on the roof of the car and steady them with his arm out of the window.
As he drove at about 5 miles an hour, he was happily advancing toward his brother's house a half a mile away, when all of a sudden, a speeding car swerved by him, causing him to slam on his breaks and stop. Now he could see the pile of plywood slide forward off of his roof, slicing through his hood, cutting into his engine, and lopping off his headlights.
Baltimore News:
Bicycle Thieves:
The Baltimore Sun has more information about the kids who stole a bunch of bicycles this week. May I quote: "About 50 youngsters poured into Druid Hill Park and stole four dozen bicycles Monday evening that city workers had put out for a popular bike-sharing program, authorities said."
These bikes are marked with big black and white stickers. Twelve of them have already been recovered.
The Ride Around Program began in 2006. I am really surprised that it has lasted this long. I wonder what the New York City version is experiencing.
Food Thief:
Baltimore's famous Dine and Dasher "criminal", who has been faking seizures for years to get out of paying in restaurants, has finally been sentenced to 5 years of jail food for his last excursions into beating providers out of cash.
In 2013, for example, at one eatery, he ordered Pork Chops, Macaroni and Cheese, Soup, and several drinks. After consumption, he appeared to pass out. 911 was called and medics put him into an ambulance. On the way, he confessed and was arrested. Usually, when this happened, thanks to Public Defenders, he stayed out of jail.. except for a few 18 months stints.. but this time, a judge lumped a bunch of his exploits together so he could give him that mandatory 5 year sentence.
News in the Carroll County Times;
Money Talks:
Billionaire Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chang report that they are donating $120 million to public schools in the San Francisco area. This is part of $1.1 billion in Facebook stock thay had pledged to the nonprofit Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
The Dow Jones average closed Friday at 16,717.17. I think that this is the highest it has ever been. Maybe I'm rich. I'd better check. (yeah.. sure.. ha)
Seltzer time?
Badass Burgers is now serving breakfast food from a truck along route 140 in Westminster, Maryland. Are burgers breakfast food? I wonder what their license cost them. At one time, I think it was in DC, a license to sell anything on the street cost $350,000 a year and there always was a line of people wanting to get one of the few licenses available. Now.. how many burgers would you have to sell to make one of those licenses profitable?
Bomber
What is different about a suicide bombing directed against Syrian Government troops by someone named Moner Mohammad Abu-Salha? .. He was an American from Florida.
Prayer
Fellow Carroll Lutheran Village resident, Reverend Lou Piel, wrote about prayer in his monthly religious column. I liked what he said.. that prayer should be directed to the goals of one's meetings.. just as Reverend Warren Wenger's prayers at the AARP Board Meetings are directed to helping the Board members make decisions for the good welfare of the organization.
I also liked Lou's sentence: "...sometimes we need to hear thoughts or opinions that are different to what we hold dear..."
....................................
Friday, May 30, 2014
Bicycles; Curfew; Malpractice; Spelling Bee; Elk; Snowden; Texas politics; Westboro Baptist; Evil; Zeno; Absurdity
I'm excited like a little kid with all that I can put into today's blog entry. Isn't the world amazing!
Baltimore News:
Bicycles:
The Ride Around the Reservoir program has been suspended after 40 of the available bicycles disappeared from Druid Hill Park. This reminds me of something Emo Philips once said:
"When I was a kid, I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realized that the Lord, in his wisdom, didn't work that way. So, I stole one, and asked him to forgive me."
Curfew?
To curb this kind of illegal activity, the Baltimore City Counsel is about to pass a youth curfew bill. This will require youths, under 14, to be off the streets by 9 PM. Parents will be responsible for fines given out for violations. Groups like the ACLU are not happy with this bill, and they have other ideas that they want to have considered.
Malpractice?:
A "practicing" Baltimore area medical doctor has been charged by a 41 year old patient of rape. Apparently, the doctor must feel that the medical degree he obtained in Costa Rica, gives him a license to assault and rape women, sometimes at the point of a gun. I think the Board of Physicians dropped the ball when they gave this guy approval for practicing in this area, because his record supposedly showed that he had problems before and was even in jail for a while for assaulting women.
National News:
Spelling Bee:
Two young men have tied for victory in the National Spelling Bee, held in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Here are some more of the fantastic words that these guys and the other contestants had to spell:
duello = Rules to follow when fighting a duel with your neighbor.
parseval = a non-rigid airship. (huh?)
cachinnate = laugh loudly
epixylous = growing on wood like a fungus
commorients = people dying together at the same time
laulau = wrapped food
exsiccosis = form of dehydration
My spell checker doesn't recognize 5 of these words, but I am not going to look them up any further.. the definitions that I show are from my Android device. If I try my Oxford dictionary, I will be hooked on that book for the rest of the day.
The Elks?
Policeman Sam Carter shot and killed a friendly elk that had been roaming and sleeping in a Boulder Colorado sub-division. Residents loved the elk because it was so friendly; Sam loved it because its head would look great on his trophy wall. Sam says he shot it to protect the residents. A jury will decide if what Sam says is true. Meanwhile, residents are building a memorial to the friendly creature.
Spy?
Mr. Snowden had a TV interview last night that I missed. I'm told that he said that he was hired as a spy and is a patriot who is disillusioned with Russia and would like to come "home."
Texas Politics:
Some Tea Party candidates won in the Texas Primary.
Jim Hightower reports that Governor Rick Perry is going all over the U.S. giving speeches, saying that he is not running for President. Meanwhile at home, Rick is paying $450 an hour for a lawyer to squash a possible indictment for corruption based on financial investigations.
To stop the investigations by the Ethics Office, the Governor vetoed the entire funding of that office. However, that ploy didn't work when other money was made available. Now the investigation has expanded to cover the veto activity.
Heaven Bound?
Westboro Baptist Church bigot, Fred Phelps died recently, and herein I quote part of Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts, Jr's eulogistic comments:
"Phelps was given the gift, the incandescent miracle of being alive in this world for over 80 years.. and he wasted it utterly."
AMEN.
World News:
More Civilization?
India:
Two sisters in Lucknow were raped and then hung. Two police officers have been arrested.
Pakistan:
The husband of the woman who was stoned to death by her family revealed that he had killed his first wife. Also, I have now heard that the real reason for the stoning was that the husband did not pay them enough dowery. Money! Money!
.........................
Some brain wanderings for the end of this blog entry:
Alexandra Schwartz opens a column in the Nation Magazine by reminding us of Zeno's paradox about the millet. Drop a single grain of millet and it won't make a noise, but put a thousand of them in a bag and you'll hear them when the bag hits the ground. Something to think about.
Absurdity:
William James:
"First a new theory is attacked as absurd; then it is admitted to be true, but obvious and insignificant; finally, it is seen to be so important that its adversaries claim that they themselves discovered it."
Oscar Wilde:
"People who count their chickens before they are hatched act very wisely because chickens run about so absurdly that it is impossible to count them accurately."
...................................,,
Baltimore News:
Bicycles:
The Ride Around the Reservoir program has been suspended after 40 of the available bicycles disappeared from Druid Hill Park. This reminds me of something Emo Philips once said:
"When I was a kid, I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realized that the Lord, in his wisdom, didn't work that way. So, I stole one, and asked him to forgive me."
Curfew?
To curb this kind of illegal activity, the Baltimore City Counsel is about to pass a youth curfew bill. This will require youths, under 14, to be off the streets by 9 PM. Parents will be responsible for fines given out for violations. Groups like the ACLU are not happy with this bill, and they have other ideas that they want to have considered.
Malpractice?:
A "practicing" Baltimore area medical doctor has been charged by a 41 year old patient of rape. Apparently, the doctor must feel that the medical degree he obtained in Costa Rica, gives him a license to assault and rape women, sometimes at the point of a gun. I think the Board of Physicians dropped the ball when they gave this guy approval for practicing in this area, because his record supposedly showed that he had problems before and was even in jail for a while for assaulting women.
National News:
Spelling Bee:
Two young men have tied for victory in the National Spelling Bee, held in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Here are some more of the fantastic words that these guys and the other contestants had to spell:
duello = Rules to follow when fighting a duel with your neighbor.
parseval = a non-rigid airship. (huh?)
cachinnate = laugh loudly
epixylous = growing on wood like a fungus
commorients = people dying together at the same time
laulau = wrapped food
exsiccosis = form of dehydration
My spell checker doesn't recognize 5 of these words, but I am not going to look them up any further.. the definitions that I show are from my Android device. If I try my Oxford dictionary, I will be hooked on that book for the rest of the day.
The Elks?
Policeman Sam Carter shot and killed a friendly elk that had been roaming and sleeping in a Boulder Colorado sub-division. Residents loved the elk because it was so friendly; Sam loved it because its head would look great on his trophy wall. Sam says he shot it to protect the residents. A jury will decide if what Sam says is true. Meanwhile, residents are building a memorial to the friendly creature.
Spy?
Mr. Snowden had a TV interview last night that I missed. I'm told that he said that he was hired as a spy and is a patriot who is disillusioned with Russia and would like to come "home."
Texas Politics:
Some Tea Party candidates won in the Texas Primary.
Jim Hightower reports that Governor Rick Perry is going all over the U.S. giving speeches, saying that he is not running for President. Meanwhile at home, Rick is paying $450 an hour for a lawyer to squash a possible indictment for corruption based on financial investigations.
To stop the investigations by the Ethics Office, the Governor vetoed the entire funding of that office. However, that ploy didn't work when other money was made available. Now the investigation has expanded to cover the veto activity.
Heaven Bound?
Westboro Baptist Church bigot, Fred Phelps died recently, and herein I quote part of Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts, Jr's eulogistic comments:
"Phelps was given the gift, the incandescent miracle of being alive in this world for over 80 years.. and he wasted it utterly."
AMEN.
World News:
More Civilization?
India:
Two sisters in Lucknow were raped and then hung. Two police officers have been arrested.
Pakistan:
The husband of the woman who was stoned to death by her family revealed that he had killed his first wife. Also, I have now heard that the real reason for the stoning was that the husband did not pay them enough dowery. Money! Money!
.........................
Some brain wanderings for the end of this blog entry:
Alexandra Schwartz opens a column in the Nation Magazine by reminding us of Zeno's paradox about the millet. Drop a single grain of millet and it won't make a noise, but put a thousand of them in a bag and you'll hear them when the bag hits the ground. Something to think about.
Absurdity:
William James:
"First a new theory is attacked as absurd; then it is admitted to be true, but obvious and insignificant; finally, it is seen to be so important that its adversaries claim that they themselves discovered it."
Oscar Wilde:
"People who count their chickens before they are hatched act very wisely because chickens run about so absurdly that it is impossible to count them accurately."
...................................,,
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Spelling Bee; Quiz Kids; Guns; Fat People; Conservatives and Mugwump
I'm writing this today with an eye stuck closed some of the time and with a face that still looks as though I've been scraped along the highway head first after being thrown off of a motorcycle. Elaine wants to go shopping, and if we encounter any friends in the stores, I will tell them that Elaine beat me up.
Lots of local news today, but lets go to National News first:
The National Spelling Bee is being held at Oxon Hill. Comedians and comic writers have been hired to provide sentences for tough words and to make the proceedings interesting to TV viewers. Some of these kids are able to spell words that I would not believe they had even ever heard before.
Salaam, catalepsy, mastodon, odyssey, belligerent, coloratura, Jacuzzi, and even sporran!
Now, come on, you know what a sporran is...its that pouch that hangs down kind of obscenely in front of your kilt. It is usually made of skin and fur, and is designed to hold your money, ID cards, or left-over haggis.
These kids are very smart..and yesterday's Carroll County Times had an article about a smart young man (20) who has had a PhD for a couple of years already and who will be using his brain power productively.
And on this week's America's Got Talent, a 9 year old loquacious pianist told that panel that he had already "skipped" 5 grades in school and was in the 8th grade. He said that he would be skipping a couple of more grades this year. He played well, but a Mozart he wasn't. I'm afraid that if the panel had "buzzed" him, he would have broken down and had a tantrum right there on stage. I think that "skipping" grades is not good for all kids, because some kids need peer activity. My cousin, Charlie, was an exception. He skipped a couple of grades, but still retained a great personality.... he eventually became a well-known college professor and had a physics discovery named after him.
Do you remember the "Quiz Kids?" Maybe you are too young. These were smart kids, mainly from New York, who were on a weekly question and answer show. One of my co-workers at Social Security had been one of those kids. His name was Murray Freed.. and he definitely was one smart guy. His brother was also well known.. Bert Freed... you remember him I'm sure. He was in almost every detective mystery movie. He was a big tough-looking guy and usually played the gang leader. Murray said that his brother was really a "softie." I wonder if there is a book about the "Quiz Kids" show .. a "Where are they now" type?
But not all kids and young people that are smart have common sense. For instance, the 22 year old California student who killed six people and wounded 13 in a mad rampage. Oh.. and he had recently purchased three semi-automatic handguns.. legally.
And speaking of guns.. what about the three year old who shot his 1 1/2 year old brother with a neighbor's gun? And he was too young to take the NRA's gun safety course.
Guns were also used to assault and rob Pontius Pilate in Silver Spring. No.. you Bible reader you, this was an actor who was playing the part in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.
There is hope though. The Associated Press reports that 30% of the world is obese, and is getting fatter. That is good, because fat people do not like violence. How many fat people's faces do you see on Wanted Posters?
Local News:
The Carroll County Time published a scathing opinion piece about our current County Commissioners whose accomplishments in office include:
Staging an off-site summit for climate change deniers.
Declaring English as the official language.
Opposing new gun laws.
Hold closed-door meetings.
Upholding religious prayers at open meetings.
Screwing up the Carroll County budget.
Dean Minnich mentioned in his monthly column today that Commissioner Richard Rothschild is calling the three "Conservatives" running together for the School Board, as his "guys." (Will that kill their chances of being elected?)
Dean also gave some details about the Carroll County "game" of stealing opposing politicians' signs
or else putting their signs up so that the others are blocked. He mentioned that the husband of one of the candidates was "caught in the act" of playing this game a couple of years ago.
TRIVIA:
Carroll County, Maryland average Teacher's salary is $56,670, the 4th lowest in the State.
Maya Angelou spoke 6 languages.
Sebastian Agudelo, poet, has three poems in this issue of the Nation magazine. One of which has the title: Mugwump. His first line is ""If you got to look it up, don't use it."
Well, I had not heard the word used for many years, so I looked it up.. and I will not use it after today. It's a Wampanoag word from that tribe that populated my birth State of Massachusetts. For them, it meant war-lord, or similar. The colonists adopted the word and this is probably a time line of its usage:
1633: duke, officer
1800: boss, bigwig (of a minor sort)
1884: Republican turncoat, politician who would not commit
(Someone who sits on a fence, his mug on one side, his wump on the other)
Today: minor official.. self-important and obnoxious
...........................................
Lots of local news today, but lets go to National News first:
The National Spelling Bee is being held at Oxon Hill. Comedians and comic writers have been hired to provide sentences for tough words and to make the proceedings interesting to TV viewers. Some of these kids are able to spell words that I would not believe they had even ever heard before.
Salaam, catalepsy, mastodon, odyssey, belligerent, coloratura, Jacuzzi, and even sporran!
Now, come on, you know what a sporran is...its that pouch that hangs down kind of obscenely in front of your kilt. It is usually made of skin and fur, and is designed to hold your money, ID cards, or left-over haggis.
These kids are very smart..and yesterday's Carroll County Times had an article about a smart young man (20) who has had a PhD for a couple of years already and who will be using his brain power productively.
And on this week's America's Got Talent, a 9 year old loquacious pianist told that panel that he had already "skipped" 5 grades in school and was in the 8th grade. He said that he would be skipping a couple of more grades this year. He played well, but a Mozart he wasn't. I'm afraid that if the panel had "buzzed" him, he would have broken down and had a tantrum right there on stage. I think that "skipping" grades is not good for all kids, because some kids need peer activity. My cousin, Charlie, was an exception. He skipped a couple of grades, but still retained a great personality.... he eventually became a well-known college professor and had a physics discovery named after him.
Do you remember the "Quiz Kids?" Maybe you are too young. These were smart kids, mainly from New York, who were on a weekly question and answer show. One of my co-workers at Social Security had been one of those kids. His name was Murray Freed.. and he definitely was one smart guy. His brother was also well known.. Bert Freed... you remember him I'm sure. He was in almost every detective mystery movie. He was a big tough-looking guy and usually played the gang leader. Murray said that his brother was really a "softie." I wonder if there is a book about the "Quiz Kids" show .. a "Where are they now" type?
But not all kids and young people that are smart have common sense. For instance, the 22 year old California student who killed six people and wounded 13 in a mad rampage. Oh.. and he had recently purchased three semi-automatic handguns.. legally.
And speaking of guns.. what about the three year old who shot his 1 1/2 year old brother with a neighbor's gun? And he was too young to take the NRA's gun safety course.
Guns were also used to assault and rob Pontius Pilate in Silver Spring. No.. you Bible reader you, this was an actor who was playing the part in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.
There is hope though. The Associated Press reports that 30% of the world is obese, and is getting fatter. That is good, because fat people do not like violence. How many fat people's faces do you see on Wanted Posters?
Local News:
The Carroll County Time published a scathing opinion piece about our current County Commissioners whose accomplishments in office include:
Staging an off-site summit for climate change deniers.
Declaring English as the official language.
Opposing new gun laws.
Hold closed-door meetings.
Upholding religious prayers at open meetings.
Screwing up the Carroll County budget.
Dean Minnich mentioned in his monthly column today that Commissioner Richard Rothschild is calling the three "Conservatives" running together for the School Board, as his "guys." (Will that kill their chances of being elected?)
Dean also gave some details about the Carroll County "game" of stealing opposing politicians' signs
or else putting their signs up so that the others are blocked. He mentioned that the husband of one of the candidates was "caught in the act" of playing this game a couple of years ago.
TRIVIA:
Carroll County, Maryland average Teacher's salary is $56,670, the 4th lowest in the State.
Maya Angelou spoke 6 languages.
Sebastian Agudelo, poet, has three poems in this issue of the Nation magazine. One of which has the title: Mugwump. His first line is ""If you got to look it up, don't use it."
Well, I had not heard the word used for many years, so I looked it up.. and I will not use it after today. It's a Wampanoag word from that tribe that populated my birth State of Massachusetts. For them, it meant war-lord, or similar. The colonists adopted the word and this is probably a time line of its usage:
1633: duke, officer
1800: boss, bigwig (of a minor sort)
1884: Republican turncoat, politician who would not commit
(Someone who sits on a fence, his mug on one side, his wump on the other)
Today: minor official.. self-important and obnoxious
...........................................
Maya Angelou Wisdom
Dan Rodricks, Baltimore Sun columnist and celebrity, wrote a column today in which he put some quotes from Maya Angelou, who died a few days ago. In case you do not have access to his column, I will list the quotes here:
"You don't have to think about doing the right thing if you're for the right thing, then you'll do it without thinking."
"There is nothing so pitiful as a young cynic because he has gone from knowing nothing to believing nothing."
"I have found that, among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver."
"I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back."
And.. this is my favorite:
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Rest in peace, Ms. Angelou.
"You don't have to think about doing the right thing if you're for the right thing, then you'll do it without thinking."
"There is nothing so pitiful as a young cynic because he has gone from knowing nothing to believing nothing."
"I have found that, among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver."
"I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back."
And.. this is my favorite:
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Rest in peace, Ms. Angelou.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Monica, Michelle, Mrs. Priest, Stoning, W, Korea, Baltimore Water, Getting Taller, Weaponry, Prayer, Budget and Candidates
After my surgery yesterday, the doctors told me that I might experience pain, a black eye, and maybe even a closing up of my right eye. Well, they were right. Yesterday the elephant sat on my eyebrow and today my right eye is bruised and almost shut. I look like I just got out of a fight with Mohammed Ali. But I will live to fight another day. I just may have to hide out today and maybe tomorrow.
World and National News:
Monica Lewinsky Returns: You remember her, right? Monica wrote an essay in Vanity Fair bemoaning her fate since her notoriety. If you want to get a good insight on her story, you can read extended articles about it in The New Yorker, and in The Nation.
Helping Kids Become Un-Healthy: The Associated Press reports that House Republicans are attempting to allow schools to opt out of the program to follow healthier food guidelines for their cafeterias. This has made Mrs. Obama mad.
Mrs. Priest?: Pope Francis indicates that he might be amenable to a possible change in the 1,000 year rule that Roman Catholic priests should be celibate. "The door is always open to change..." says Il Papa.
W: George W. Bush (former President) just received a new (partial) knee. He celebrated by walking up and down a flight of stairs. (Now.. if he just could get a new brain.... no, no, I didn't mean that.. just fooling.)
Civilization?: In Lahore Pakistan, a pregnant woman was stoned to death by her family because she married someone she loved instead of the person who was arranged for by the family.
More Dangerous than Baltimore or Detroit?: It must be very hard to live in South Korea. The people are constantly bombarded by nuts from North Korea, recently 33 elderly patients and a nurse were asphyxiated in a nursing home fire, 300 or more people are dead or missing in a ferry overturning, and major accidents have occurred recently in two different subway systems. I wonder if there are muggings on the street there?
Baltimore, Maryland News:
Disappearing Street: The folks who had their street disappear during the April rains had good news this week. They will be able to return to their homes by June 15th. The cost to repair and invent a new street will be 18 1/2 million dollars... I think that is just the cost to the City. I assume the railroad company will pay a bit too.
Don't Drink the Water!: Baltimore harbor water earned a failing grade for water quality last year. The year before, it received a C minus. So please.. no longer "swim or splash around" in the trash and sewage-fouled upper reaches of the Patapsco River.
Even though the score went down, officials say that's just the result of how grades are developed and the water was as disappointingly polluted last year as the year before. But I'm sure everything will turn out better, at least before the harbor catches on fire.
Little People No More: The Baltimore Sun reports that a young lady from Arkansas has had limb-lengthening surgery at Sinai Hospital. She has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism in which limbs do not grow in proportion to the person's torso.
This lady is extremely happy now that she has grown from 3'10" to almost 5'. Now she can walk without pain, drive the family car, use "normal" sinks, and function in a "tall" world.
I'll have to check to see if Sinai can get me back the 4" in height I have lost just by becoming an old man!
Carroll County News:
Weaponry: Carroll County is an area where almost everybody is an NRA member and knows what to do with firearms; however, new weapons emerged suddenly this weekend:
1. A man threatened his neighbor with a butcher knife.
2. A woman sliced up her neighbor with broken glass.
3. A man chased and tried to hit his neighbor with a child's scooter.
Prayer: The Sykesville Town Counsel recently talked about opening future meetings with a prayer instead of the usual moment of silence, because of the recent Supreme Court ruling that such prayers are not unconstitutional. I thought that one of Counselors made a very interesting comment, when he said that to incorporate a Christian-themed prayer would open the door to all creeds and religions wanting to participate. .
I wonder if the feisty Carroll County Commissioners have thought of this point yet? I think not.
CC Budget: Speaking of the Carroll County Commissioners, the 1915 Budget was passed yesterday by a vote of 3 to 2. The 2 being the usual commissioners that, in my opinion, do not have a serious grip on what it is like to be a rational human being, one who cares for those who are not as well off in wealth or health. These are the persons who advocate for closed or offsite meetings, school funding cuts and meeting opening prayers. Its a wonder anything gets accomplished when the 5 Commissioners get together. Maybe things will change for the better after the upcoming elections.
Candidates for the Maryland House of Delegates: I guess I am just dense, but I can't see why one of the Republican candidates wants to show an episode of Criminal Minds to buttress her thoughts on funding. Elaine likes that show and I do watch it sometimes.. usually, it depicts some nut-case who has figured out a novel way to slowly torture and kill a vulnerable woman or child. At exactly 8 minutes before the end of the show, the FBI raids the house of the "unsub" and rescues the victim. This is followed by a "post-mortem" kind of session on a jet plane, where a pithy quote from some famous author completes it all.
This is a well written and produced show, but if my kids were under 21, I would not let them watch it. Too damn bloody and besides, I'm sure it has given lots of "good" ideas to generations of serial rapists and murderers. Why it should help us learn why a candidate is running, is beyond me at the moment. Let's see if Dean Minnick addresses this in his monthly column in the Carroll County Times.
Goodbye!
World and National News:
Monica Lewinsky Returns: You remember her, right? Monica wrote an essay in Vanity Fair bemoaning her fate since her notoriety. If you want to get a good insight on her story, you can read extended articles about it in The New Yorker, and in The Nation.
Helping Kids Become Un-Healthy: The Associated Press reports that House Republicans are attempting to allow schools to opt out of the program to follow healthier food guidelines for their cafeterias. This has made Mrs. Obama mad.
Mrs. Priest?: Pope Francis indicates that he might be amenable to a possible change in the 1,000 year rule that Roman Catholic priests should be celibate. "The door is always open to change..." says Il Papa.
W: George W. Bush (former President) just received a new (partial) knee. He celebrated by walking up and down a flight of stairs. (Now.. if he just could get a new brain.... no, no, I didn't mean that.. just fooling.)
Civilization?: In Lahore Pakistan, a pregnant woman was stoned to death by her family because she married someone she loved instead of the person who was arranged for by the family.
More Dangerous than Baltimore or Detroit?: It must be very hard to live in South Korea. The people are constantly bombarded by nuts from North Korea, recently 33 elderly patients and a nurse were asphyxiated in a nursing home fire, 300 or more people are dead or missing in a ferry overturning, and major accidents have occurred recently in two different subway systems. I wonder if there are muggings on the street there?
Baltimore, Maryland News:
Disappearing Street: The folks who had their street disappear during the April rains had good news this week. They will be able to return to their homes by June 15th. The cost to repair and invent a new street will be 18 1/2 million dollars... I think that is just the cost to the City. I assume the railroad company will pay a bit too.
Don't Drink the Water!: Baltimore harbor water earned a failing grade for water quality last year. The year before, it received a C minus. So please.. no longer "swim or splash around" in the trash and sewage-fouled upper reaches of the Patapsco River.
Even though the score went down, officials say that's just the result of how grades are developed and the water was as disappointingly polluted last year as the year before. But I'm sure everything will turn out better, at least before the harbor catches on fire.
Little People No More: The Baltimore Sun reports that a young lady from Arkansas has had limb-lengthening surgery at Sinai Hospital. She has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism in which limbs do not grow in proportion to the person's torso.
This lady is extremely happy now that she has grown from 3'10" to almost 5'. Now she can walk without pain, drive the family car, use "normal" sinks, and function in a "tall" world.
I'll have to check to see if Sinai can get me back the 4" in height I have lost just by becoming an old man!
Carroll County News:
Weaponry: Carroll County is an area where almost everybody is an NRA member and knows what to do with firearms; however, new weapons emerged suddenly this weekend:
1. A man threatened his neighbor with a butcher knife.
2. A woman sliced up her neighbor with broken glass.
3. A man chased and tried to hit his neighbor with a child's scooter.
Prayer: The Sykesville Town Counsel recently talked about opening future meetings with a prayer instead of the usual moment of silence, because of the recent Supreme Court ruling that such prayers are not unconstitutional. I thought that one of Counselors made a very interesting comment, when he said that to incorporate a Christian-themed prayer would open the door to all creeds and religions wanting to participate. .
I wonder if the feisty Carroll County Commissioners have thought of this point yet? I think not.
CC Budget: Speaking of the Carroll County Commissioners, the 1915 Budget was passed yesterday by a vote of 3 to 2. The 2 being the usual commissioners that, in my opinion, do not have a serious grip on what it is like to be a rational human being, one who cares for those who are not as well off in wealth or health. These are the persons who advocate for closed or offsite meetings, school funding cuts and meeting opening prayers. Its a wonder anything gets accomplished when the 5 Commissioners get together. Maybe things will change for the better after the upcoming elections.
Candidates for the Maryland House of Delegates: I guess I am just dense, but I can't see why one of the Republican candidates wants to show an episode of Criminal Minds to buttress her thoughts on funding. Elaine likes that show and I do watch it sometimes.. usually, it depicts some nut-case who has figured out a novel way to slowly torture and kill a vulnerable woman or child. At exactly 8 minutes before the end of the show, the FBI raids the house of the "unsub" and rescues the victim. This is followed by a "post-mortem" kind of session on a jet plane, where a pithy quote from some famous author completes it all.
This is a well written and produced show, but if my kids were under 21, I would not let them watch it. Too damn bloody and besides, I'm sure it has given lots of "good" ideas to generations of serial rapists and murderers. Why it should help us learn why a candidate is running, is beyond me at the moment. Let's see if Dean Minnick addresses this in his monthly column in the Carroll County Times.
Goodbye!
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Surgery, The Watchman, Cartooning, Health Tips, The Brain and Managers.
Boy have I got a headache! Today I had surgery to remove the last vestige of forehead cancer. Now I really am a cancer survivor. My son went with me in case I couldn't drive, but I was ok. It was great to be able to talk to my son for two hours. He's a great guy. Extremely smart.. and good looking too... he must have gotten those traits from his mother.
My son is a writer and while waiting for me to get carved up, he was reading a book on how to make "war stories" better. He also knew all about the "Watchman" book that I was just learning about. I will try to download it to my Kindle Fire so I can see all the colorful graphics and bend my mind a little. As Tacitus (I think) said: "Who watches the watchman?" Why, superheroes of course!
My son is a natural cartoonist. I practice a lot, but I will never be as good as he is. I'll bring some of his work up on a blog soon. His daughters are great cartoonists and graphic artists too.. they have always been into Anime and Manga (sp?) You know, the Japanese characters with the big eyes.
The other day I bought a small sketch book so that I can draw something every day, and maybe when I am 100 I will be able to create something that really looks like a human.. maybe not, but at least its a lot of fun for me. I was doing the daily cartooning bit for quite a while about 10 years ago and those are the cartoons that I have plugged into my blogs of that time. Most of my cartoons were lousy... ah... but a few were good.. so I'll keep on keeping on.
Joke: When my wife and I got married, we decided to share everything, even our checking account. I got the deposit slips.
Health Tips: What I learned from brochures in the mail and at Hopkins:
1. The 5 second rule for dropped food doesn't always work. Sometimes one gets an instant pick-up of germs. It depends on how clean you keep your floors.
2. Cinnamon may help maintain healthy blood sugar levels.
3. Becoming a vegetarian may lower your blood pressure.
4. Tomatoes protect some women from breast cancer.
Words of wisdom: George Orwell said: "Dickens told small lies to reveal big truths."
Mystery: What animal broke a chain and stole our suet holder, which had been a big hit with the birds? Attached next to it was a bag of so-called squirrel deterrent. I guess it didn't work.
Brain power: Sometimes I feel like that poor guy 30 years ago who had a brain operation to relieve him of violent epileptic seizures. The surgeon decided to remove a big hunk of his brain. This did take care of his seizures, mostly, but it also caused him to immediately forget everything that happened to him, although, he did have some memory of long past experiences.
For this guy, every day was filled with new and exciting experiences.. and new friends.. he even had to be reintroduced to his doctors because he couldn't remember ever seeing them before.
Anyway, when he died, his brain was sliced like ham and is constantly being examined, as medics try to learn more about how his brain worked.
I feel like he must have felt when I try to remember whether what I'm saying in today's blog entry is just the same as I said in yesterday's. I probably repeat myself all the time.. but I'm not going to analyze my entries to see if that is true.. I just hope that I'm consistent in what I say.
My son subscribes to Geek Magazine, a great mind expander. I was looking at an article in the latest issue about a company that has formed to upload (download?) all of the content of your brain so that you will be immortal. Your body isn't really you.. is it? Lately, people I know are getting replacement knees, hips, .. even shoulders. Why should great minds be confined to broken and twisted bodies anymore? (More on this later.)
Management: "Frederick Herzberg dismissed "job hygiene" as motivating.. Instead, he felt that man has a need to achieve, and through achievement experience a psychological growth. He does suggest letting Mickey Mouse people (who do not want job enrichment) do Mickey Mouse jobs."
I don't know who wrote that, but it reminds me of when I was a manager. I had three kinds of people in my Branches.. 1. Super achievers, who loved coming to a new adventure each day. 2. Everyday kind of folks, who did their jobs for 8 hours and then went home, satisfied. 3. The under achievers, who had to be given those "Mickey Mouse jobs". Luckily, I had enough jobs to satisfy all three types of folks... usually. However, a big problem with Government jobs is the "feast or famine" effect. When that happened, the super achievers would leave to go where they could do some more of that "achieving" stuff.
After a while, if the jobs kept on being scarce, the everyday folks got antsy too and started to leave... however, the third group never left, and were a big pain in the butt.. usually. That is where the good manager figures out how to give out "made work" that doesn't look like "made work."
Enough of this stuff.. I'm rambling.. good night.
My son is a writer and while waiting for me to get carved up, he was reading a book on how to make "war stories" better. He also knew all about the "Watchman" book that I was just learning about. I will try to download it to my Kindle Fire so I can see all the colorful graphics and bend my mind a little. As Tacitus (I think) said: "Who watches the watchman?" Why, superheroes of course!
My son is a natural cartoonist. I practice a lot, but I will never be as good as he is. I'll bring some of his work up on a blog soon. His daughters are great cartoonists and graphic artists too.. they have always been into Anime and Manga (sp?) You know, the Japanese characters with the big eyes.
The other day I bought a small sketch book so that I can draw something every day, and maybe when I am 100 I will be able to create something that really looks like a human.. maybe not, but at least its a lot of fun for me. I was doing the daily cartooning bit for quite a while about 10 years ago and those are the cartoons that I have plugged into my blogs of that time. Most of my cartoons were lousy... ah... but a few were good.. so I'll keep on keeping on.
Joke: When my wife and I got married, we decided to share everything, even our checking account. I got the deposit slips.
Health Tips: What I learned from brochures in the mail and at Hopkins:
1. The 5 second rule for dropped food doesn't always work. Sometimes one gets an instant pick-up of germs. It depends on how clean you keep your floors.
2. Cinnamon may help maintain healthy blood sugar levels.
3. Becoming a vegetarian may lower your blood pressure.
4. Tomatoes protect some women from breast cancer.
Words of wisdom: George Orwell said: "Dickens told small lies to reveal big truths."
Mystery: What animal broke a chain and stole our suet holder, which had been a big hit with the birds? Attached next to it was a bag of so-called squirrel deterrent. I guess it didn't work.
Brain power: Sometimes I feel like that poor guy 30 years ago who had a brain operation to relieve him of violent epileptic seizures. The surgeon decided to remove a big hunk of his brain. This did take care of his seizures, mostly, but it also caused him to immediately forget everything that happened to him, although, he did have some memory of long past experiences.
For this guy, every day was filled with new and exciting experiences.. and new friends.. he even had to be reintroduced to his doctors because he couldn't remember ever seeing them before.
Anyway, when he died, his brain was sliced like ham and is constantly being examined, as medics try to learn more about how his brain worked.
I feel like he must have felt when I try to remember whether what I'm saying in today's blog entry is just the same as I said in yesterday's. I probably repeat myself all the time.. but I'm not going to analyze my entries to see if that is true.. I just hope that I'm consistent in what I say.
My son subscribes to Geek Magazine, a great mind expander. I was looking at an article in the latest issue about a company that has formed to upload (download?) all of the content of your brain so that you will be immortal. Your body isn't really you.. is it? Lately, people I know are getting replacement knees, hips, .. even shoulders. Why should great minds be confined to broken and twisted bodies anymore? (More on this later.)
Management: "Frederick Herzberg dismissed "job hygiene" as motivating.. Instead, he felt that man has a need to achieve, and through achievement experience a psychological growth. He does suggest letting Mickey Mouse people (who do not want job enrichment) do Mickey Mouse jobs."
I don't know who wrote that, but it reminds me of when I was a manager. I had three kinds of people in my Branches.. 1. Super achievers, who loved coming to a new adventure each day. 2. Everyday kind of folks, who did their jobs for 8 hours and then went home, satisfied. 3. The under achievers, who had to be given those "Mickey Mouse jobs". Luckily, I had enough jobs to satisfy all three types of folks... usually. However, a big problem with Government jobs is the "feast or famine" effect. When that happened, the super achievers would leave to go where they could do some more of that "achieving" stuff.
After a while, if the jobs kept on being scarce, the everyday folks got antsy too and started to leave... however, the third group never left, and were a big pain in the butt.. usually. That is where the good manager figures out how to give out "made work" that doesn't look like "made work."
Enough of this stuff.. I'm rambling.. good night.
Monday, May 26, 2014
Memorial Day, Evil Kid, Pot, Mandatory Sentencing, Most Wanted, Birds, JFK Assassination, Whitey, Evil and Villains
Good Morning! It's a beautiful sunny, hot Memorial Day in Maryland. Over 85 degrees and climbing.
All over the State, as I'm sure it is in the rest of America, parades are weaving through cities and towns in honor of our veterans, living and dead. Even me... I was technically in the Korean War, even though I spent my 4 year enlistment in Germany, the still bombed-out Germany of the 1950's.
Crazy news!
A 16 year old boy in Scranton told police that he shot and killed a cab driver because he was: "taking the long way and ripping him off."
When the police asked him why that bothered him enough to kill, he responded: "That's what I do to people who don't listen."
Wait for the copycats!
Marijuana: Candidates for the Maryland House of Delegates from my district were asked their position on the legalization of pot.
Republican candidates gave a resounding NO WAY! Democratic candidates said LETS WAIT AND SEE how those places that have legalized it make out.
Mandatory Sentencing: The Alleyne v United States decision by the Supreme Court last year found that juries, not judges, should decide whether a defendant committed crimes that trigger a mandatory minimum sentence. This has apparently caused mass confusion in some Court systems, especially in Pennsylvania. Interesting.
Most Wanted: My colleague, Jim, on the local TRIAD/SALT counsel, is the guy who puts pictures of criminals in the newspaper each week. They show up under the Most Wanted heading and some characteristics are listed to help in identification. Today, one guy's entry showed: HAIR: Blonde. However, his picture shows a guy with a billiard ball shine where hair should be. I'll have to needle Jim about that one.
Nice Bird News: A lady named Sue Yingling writes a column in the local newspaper about birds seen in her backyard. Elaine and I enjoy her insights. We are privileged to see lots of birds where we live, for instance: blue birds, red winged blackbird (only one shows up), mocking birds, woodpeckers (2 kinds), blue jays, mourning doves, sparrows, cow birds, chickadees, cardinals, robins, starlings, finches (some yellow), and others like the giant hawks that Elaine often sees but I miss.
Book: I finished Mortal Error: The Shot That Killed JFK by Bonnar Menninger. This was the book hinted at by Anonymous when I inquired about the Sun Paper reporter, Ralph Reppert. When I started the book, I believed that there was a conspiracy about the assassination. However, having read the book and reviewed the evidence presented over the years by Baltimore Gun Expert, Howard Donahue, I now believe that the third shot, and the one that killed JFK, was accidently fired by a weapon that was already primed to fire when it was hurriedly picked up by a Secret Service Agent, who was jostled as he stood on the car seat. I don't think that the Secret Service has wanted to hear that and have ignored and/or maligned Mr. Donahue and his evidence. Read the book for yourself and decide.
I started to read: Whitey.. a life of Whitey Bulger, Southie Boston's answer to crime in the big city. The book was written by Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill. Reading about his young life in Boston, I am reminded of myself at that age. My activity paralleled a lot of his. So... why did I turn out to be a "goody goody" person, and he turn out to be a vicious gang lord and murderer? I have my theories, which will be included as blog entries from time to time.
EVIL: The 16 year old boy mentioned above.. as well as Whitey.. and Hitler.. and Stalin.. and others could be called EVIL persons. Do you believe in SATAN? Do you think that he causes humans to do bad things? Why do some non-Christian religions believe in a benevolent SATAN? Fallen, but still "good" angel? Challenger of God? Or.. is EVIL just an evolutionary trait that helped mankind become master of other creatures? Whatever your belief, keep your eye out for an advertisement for my seminar on EVIL.. probably in August of this year.
Another Book: I just downloaded a book sample to my Kindle because I heard an interview on the Kojo Nambe Radio Show (DC) about it. The title is Villains, Scoundrels and Rogues by Paul Martin, retired National Geographic official. I read the first chapter, about the Bristol, Rhode Island merchant who was involved in the slave triangle during the 18th and 19th century. The triangle was: Shipping rum and household goods from Rhode Island to the West Coast of Africa, exchanging these goods for slaves and carrying them across the ocean to southern slave cities where the slaves were sold and goods bought to bring back to Rhode Island. Mr. DeWolf was the man who maintained this triangle, even when it was against the law. His ancestors today are trying to do good works in order to clean up the DeWolf name.
Other villains and scoundrels that I am anxious to read about are: John Parker, Abraham Lincloln's "would be" bodyguard who disappeared after Intermission, and whose disappearance allowed John Wilkes Boothe free access to Mr. Lincoln. Also: a Mr. Davenport, who developed the nasty science of Eugenics. (I am related to Davenports and I need to know if he was a kin.)
Enough!
All over the State, as I'm sure it is in the rest of America, parades are weaving through cities and towns in honor of our veterans, living and dead. Even me... I was technically in the Korean War, even though I spent my 4 year enlistment in Germany, the still bombed-out Germany of the 1950's.
Crazy news!
A 16 year old boy in Scranton told police that he shot and killed a cab driver because he was: "taking the long way and ripping him off."
When the police asked him why that bothered him enough to kill, he responded: "That's what I do to people who don't listen."
Wait for the copycats!
Marijuana: Candidates for the Maryland House of Delegates from my district were asked their position on the legalization of pot.
Republican candidates gave a resounding NO WAY! Democratic candidates said LETS WAIT AND SEE how those places that have legalized it make out.
Mandatory Sentencing: The Alleyne v United States decision by the Supreme Court last year found that juries, not judges, should decide whether a defendant committed crimes that trigger a mandatory minimum sentence. This has apparently caused mass confusion in some Court systems, especially in Pennsylvania. Interesting.
Most Wanted: My colleague, Jim, on the local TRIAD/SALT counsel, is the guy who puts pictures of criminals in the newspaper each week. They show up under the Most Wanted heading and some characteristics are listed to help in identification. Today, one guy's entry showed: HAIR: Blonde. However, his picture shows a guy with a billiard ball shine where hair should be. I'll have to needle Jim about that one.
Nice Bird News: A lady named Sue Yingling writes a column in the local newspaper about birds seen in her backyard. Elaine and I enjoy her insights. We are privileged to see lots of birds where we live, for instance: blue birds, red winged blackbird (only one shows up), mocking birds, woodpeckers (2 kinds), blue jays, mourning doves, sparrows, cow birds, chickadees, cardinals, robins, starlings, finches (some yellow), and others like the giant hawks that Elaine often sees but I miss.
Book: I finished Mortal Error: The Shot That Killed JFK by Bonnar Menninger. This was the book hinted at by Anonymous when I inquired about the Sun Paper reporter, Ralph Reppert. When I started the book, I believed that there was a conspiracy about the assassination. However, having read the book and reviewed the evidence presented over the years by Baltimore Gun Expert, Howard Donahue, I now believe that the third shot, and the one that killed JFK, was accidently fired by a weapon that was already primed to fire when it was hurriedly picked up by a Secret Service Agent, who was jostled as he stood on the car seat. I don't think that the Secret Service has wanted to hear that and have ignored and/or maligned Mr. Donahue and his evidence. Read the book for yourself and decide.
I started to read: Whitey.. a life of Whitey Bulger, Southie Boston's answer to crime in the big city. The book was written by Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill. Reading about his young life in Boston, I am reminded of myself at that age. My activity paralleled a lot of his. So... why did I turn out to be a "goody goody" person, and he turn out to be a vicious gang lord and murderer? I have my theories, which will be included as blog entries from time to time.
EVIL: The 16 year old boy mentioned above.. as well as Whitey.. and Hitler.. and Stalin.. and others could be called EVIL persons. Do you believe in SATAN? Do you think that he causes humans to do bad things? Why do some non-Christian religions believe in a benevolent SATAN? Fallen, but still "good" angel? Challenger of God? Or.. is EVIL just an evolutionary trait that helped mankind become master of other creatures? Whatever your belief, keep your eye out for an advertisement for my seminar on EVIL.. probably in August of this year.
Another Book: I just downloaded a book sample to my Kindle because I heard an interview on the Kojo Nambe Radio Show (DC) about it. The title is Villains, Scoundrels and Rogues by Paul Martin, retired National Geographic official. I read the first chapter, about the Bristol, Rhode Island merchant who was involved in the slave triangle during the 18th and 19th century. The triangle was: Shipping rum and household goods from Rhode Island to the West Coast of Africa, exchanging these goods for slaves and carrying them across the ocean to southern slave cities where the slaves were sold and goods bought to bring back to Rhode Island. Mr. DeWolf was the man who maintained this triangle, even when it was against the law. His ancestors today are trying to do good works in order to clean up the DeWolf name.
Other villains and scoundrels that I am anxious to read about are: John Parker, Abraham Lincloln's "would be" bodyguard who disappeared after Intermission, and whose disappearance allowed John Wilkes Boothe free access to Mr. Lincoln. Also: a Mr. Davenport, who developed the nasty science of Eugenics. (I am related to Davenports and I need to know if he was a kin.)
Enough!
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