JUST SOME POSTS

I heard a news story on the radio yesterday at lunch (and again with additional info going home) that brought home to me one of the major problems in our society. After I heard it I felt this blog coming on. Here we go... (this may be a bit disjointed, I started this Saturday a.m. and had to quit and went back Saturday evening. I tried to put a link to the newspaper story about this and a computer gremlin pounced upon the bits and bytes and took away half of this. I am now finishing it up Sunday p.m.) The story was about five benches that were placed by the city as a gift from a group that was trying to add ambience or a useful area to a greenway park that runs through parts of downtown Greensboro, NC. The benches, along with some large rocks and some sort of artwork, were place in a semi-circular configuration as an "oasis" and resting spot along the greenway; which until this placement had not had any benches or artwork. Now the problems began. It seems benches are inher...

Because we all love a flaming cow story: De Groene Amsterdammer (a Dutch newspaper): A Dutch veterinarian was fined 600 guilders [about $240USD] for causing a fire that destroyed a farm in Lichten Vourde, the Netherlands. The vet had been trying to convince a farmer that his cow was passing flatulent gas; to demonstrate, the vet ignited the gas, but the cow became a 'four-legged flame-thrower' and ran wild, setting fire to bales of hay. Damage to the farm was assessed at $80,000USD.The cow was unharmed. You gotta love a Dutch veterinarian.

"How old is that thing?" - If I had a dime for every time I heard that one! I thought I would do some more remembering. This is about another relative I got to know as a kid - Uncle Rufus. Uncle Rufus was a strange man, even by the standards of my other slightly strange relatives. He hated almost everything and everyone. He was the only man I know that would join a protest march and then join the counter-protest half way through. Luckily, Rufus did not have to deal with people a whole lot. Even in his job - see Rufus was a chinchilla farmer. He raised a herd, skinned them, and sold the pelts once a year at a furrier's market. In case you don't know, chinchillas are basically a cross between a squirrel and a hamster. From the face end they look quite a bit like a very large hamster. From the tail end they look like a squirrel with a bit less fluff in the tail. They are, however, blessed (or cursed, from their standpoint) with a fur that is about a soft as fur can ...

These are more headlines that are presented as real - whether they are or not - I love 'em. Here we go: COLD WAVE LINKED TO TEMPERATURES a simple start - no comment needed MAN IS FATALLY SLAIN Gotta hate when that happens - probably just meant to wound them AUTOS KILLING 110 A DAY, LET'S RESOLVE TO DO BETTER You gotta love a positive attitude NICARAGUA SETS GOAL TO WIPE OUT LITERACY They can start with newspaper writers and editors NEVER WITHHOLD HERPES FROM LOVED ONE Sharing is very important in a relationship MINERS REFUSE TO WORK AFTER DEATH It is SOOOO hard to get reliable help LAWMEN FROM MEXICO BARBECUE GUESTS Want fries with that? NJ JUDGE TO RULE ON NUDE BEACH The bailiff should probably skip the "all rise..." part SQUAD HELPS DOG BITE VICTIM Animal rights gone wild or just an Animal Planet show gone bad? And the Journalism Award of the Month goes to this gem: WAR DIMS HOPE FOR PEACE A Jimmy Carter devotee no doubt Gotta go read the pap...

I just finished a period of travel. I am now home for five weeks or so before I head out again. After Nashville for two days, Las Vegas for three days, and Atlanta for four days over the last four weeks, it is good to be home. The other good news is that the next trip I take (mid-October) is for ME! (or my wife and me) We are headed for Miami and the Bahamas on a cruise ship. Can't wait! This is just a collection of thoughts. Let's get this thing started: Friday was the 8th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I saw some stories memorializing the events, and some speeches and such. That is good. There was also a noticeable lack of attention in my opinion. For all the cries of "Let's never forget!" and other such sentiments it is amazing to me those that have apparently forgotten what happened that day. I saw and see news stories every day about releasing "enemy combatants"(we can't call them terrorists any longer, it may offend their sensibilities), f...

As anyone with eyes can tell when walking around a mall or shopping center - America is populated by overweight people. Actually, we are an obese people. Now, I know there are those of you that work at it and actually are NOT fat. I know there are young people that are still obese-in-training. But, look around - we are a LARGE group of people. Although I have lost substantial weight over the past two years or so, it is a constant battle to keep all or even most of it off. I was mulling this over lately; and yesterday while we were strolling through an immense shrine to consumerism (Opry Mills mall), I had some thoughts as I was viewing the people strolling with us. First, no respectable mall is complete without a huge temple to caloric intake - the food court. This mall is no different, there is a huge space of tables and chairs flanked on one entire wall by a veritable cornucopia of gustatory delights (and not so delightful - who thinks of some of this stuff! - but that is another p...

My wife and I are on a bit of a road trip. We travelled to Nashville, Tennessee yesterday to meet with family members. The trip consists of about six hours of actual drive time and then you add in the stops for various and sundry things. That gave me over seven hours of time to let my mind wander. My mind wandering is kind of like a three year old at the mall - flitting here and there and no knowing where he is going next. One of the things I was thinking about was writing a post about the trip, so I traversed hither and yon with different comments based on the journey and travel in general. You will have to trust me when I tell you some of it was GREAT - because I don't remember any of the details of it. We had our usual bathroom trials and tribulations, but I have done that. If you are not aware of what I am talking about -see this: http://justsomeposts.blogspot.com/2009/03/to-pee-or-not-to-pee-with-apologies-to.html People have, and do, think I am weird (correctly so, in m...