What a Bunch of …

Been an OK week so far.  Weather’s been nice.  Pollen is gone (for the most part).  And, been some interesting things in the news.  Have a veritable smorgasbord of topics to cover this time.  See if you can stretch your imagination to figure out the common theme.  Hope you enjoy:

• Did you hear about Boobquake?  Seems an Iranian cleric said we are having all these earthquakes cuz women ain’t covering up like he thinks they should.  So, some American lady started a movement on Facebook for women to show a little cleavage so folks could test that theory.  It quickly spread onto other outlets such as Twitter.  Even saw a story on several of CNN’s outlets.  Not sure how many people really participated in it, but it’s amazing how quickly things like the color of women’s bras and exposed cleavage on Facebook get coverage in the mainstream media.  Talk about titillating coverage.  Anyway, last time I checked, still haven’t been any major earthquakes cuz of it.  Maybe y’all should try again. Uh, in the name of science, of course;
• Seems KFC is selling chicken in pink buckets to advertise the fact they are making a big donation to the Susan G Komen Foundation, a great and wonderful cause.  Should be noted, money is NOT being donated based on each individual purchase.  They are just making a big donation.  Anyway, some group I’ve never heard of came out this week saying KFC is taking advantage of poor people and the SGK Foundation, a great and wonderful cause, shouldn’t be attaching their name to something unhealthy like fried chicken.  Guess they haven’t heard KFC sells grilled chicken now.  Anyway, think the most absurd statement I saw from the group I’ve never heard of was “poor people can’t help it if they don’t make healthy choices” or something to that effect.  As the late great Lewis Grizzard used to say, “Do what?”  Now, I know healthy food does tend to cost more than not-so-healthy food.  But, there are affordable healthy choices, too.  And, funny how people in the Great Depression weren’t pushing 250.  Besides, last time I checked, the grilled chicken at KFC is the same cost as the fried.  To me, this is just another case of a group you’ve never heard of trying to take advantage of something to get a little free publicity.  If you don’t like it, don’t buy it; 
• Lane Bryant recently produced a TV ad for lingerie which several networks said was a little too racy to be aired during the “family hour” of TV.  Saw the ad on another blog site (thanks for posting it, Sue Mac) and don’t think it was worse than anything else you’d see on network TV nowadays.  Actually liked it more cuz the models are a lot more realistic.  Better lookin’ to me, too.  Anyway, lots o’ folks are speculating it was turned down because the women in the ads ain’t what you normally see in these types of ads.  Personally, just cuz they show the other ads, don’t mean they should be, especially in the so-called “family hour.”  But, if they are going to show the size 0’s, they should show the size 10’s (and larger), too.  Wouldn’t feel too sorry for Lane Bryant, though.  They got a lot more publicity out of the free media coverage than they would have by paying for the ad time.  Maybe there was a method to their mad-ness…;
• Speaking of free publicity, Apple sure got a lot of it after the prototype for the latest iPhone was left in a bar.  Totally on “accident,” of course.  This case may end up solving a lot of issues.  First, were lots of rumors out there about the new phone before and this has answered a lot of ‘em.  Second, was this really an accident?  Some folks think the dude who left the phone may have planted it as a free market test.  Eh, maybe, maybe not.  Third, the question of whether bloggers are considered media or not may be resolved once and for all.  Seems there’s a California law which says members of the media cannot be forced to give up their confidential sources.  There’s been all kinds of search warrants and police questioning trying to find out who found the phone and sold it to the bloggers who broke the story.  The bloggers say they are members of the media so they should be exempt from all this harassment.  Imagine we will be hearing about this stunt for years to come.  If we are considered media folks, where can I send my request for media credentials to the Super Bowl and the Masters?;
• Reckon you’ve heard about the immigration bill passed by the State of Arizona.  Lots of folks ain’t necessarily agreeing with the new law.  Do believe there is cause for concern that legal citizens could be subject to random questioning by the police.  What I can’t understand is why folks are concerned about the rights of the ILLEGAL immigrants?  They are not exactly law-abiding citizens since they are in the US ILLEGALLY.  Would think people who came here legally would have the most to gripe about, too.  Why should someone who entered ILLEGALLY have the same rights of someone who did it the right way?  Think most folks seem to be missing the other point that Arizona passed the law cuz the Feds won’t do anything about ILLEGAL immigration reform.  Do I think the Arizona legislature made a wise choice?  Probably not.  In the end, guessing the courts will overturn the law based on the 4th amendment.  Can’t just stop a citizen without due cause.  Last time I checked, the way you looked ain’t considered due cause, either.  At least it better not be; 
• Been a lot of chatter about Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of Great Britain, calling some lady a bigot the other day while leaving a photo op for the upcoming election.  Apparently he forgot he was still wearing a wireless microphone.  Naturally, the media heard the comment and immediately put it out for everyone else to hear.  He’s now apologized twice and some reports say the lady has even forgiven him for the comment.  Think this is much ado bout nothin’ myself.  Politicians are human just like everyone else.  They have their opinions and biases just like everyone else.  They should be entitled to make ignoramus comments just like the next guy, too.  One poll said 90% of those asked said this won’t affect the way they will vote.  Reckon the media has to have something to yak about.  Some things I’ve read indicate he wasn’t too far off with his comment, but would still suck for him to call me a bigot whether I deserved it or not.  Think he was already behind in the polls so not sure this will cost him the election.  Purty sure it won’t help, though.

Well, that’s all I got for now.  Were you able to figure out the theme?  You may have to think literally and figuratively on this one.

Y’all take care.

More Musical Memories

Music is such a wonderful thing.  It helps us feel good, wallow in our sorrows, feel better, think about stuff, and a wide variety of other things.  Music can even take you back to specific moments in time.  Thought I’d share more of my musical memories with you.  Maybe they’ll trigger some of yours, too.  Will list them by song title and the artist most famous for performing them:

• Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash) – Ah, the “Down, Down” song.  That’s what my kids called it when they were around 3 years old.  We’d get in the truck and they’d want to hear the “Down, Down” song.  They pretty much liked all of Mr. Cash’s songs, but usually asked for this one in particular.  Could tell they were going to have a real appreciation for music;
• Sir Duke and Over the Rainbow (Stevie Wonder/Judy Garland) – Marching band, freshman year of high school.  Enjoyed my four years in the band, but will always think of this one as the best.  Had some real characters that year, and we were pretty good if I have to say so myself.  Can still see a fellow trombone player flipping over backwards cuz he was trying to play real loud during one performance.  Good times…;
• Piano Man (Billy Joel) – Saw him in concert during his Nylon Curtain tour.  My bud Jimmy and I were sitting about halfway up in the balcony at the back of the arena.  Jimmy said he was amazed cuz Billy was making the harmonica sounds with just his mouth.  Pointed out he was actually using the harmonica he’d put around his neck.  The lady sitting next to me let us borrow her binoculars to confirm it.  Purty funny.  And, yes, we were completely sober.  Really miss talking to Jimmy.  He’s still alive.  Just don’t get to talk to him;
• Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd) – You may remember listed this last time.  But, have another memory associated with this song, too.  One morning when Mr. Mayhall was late…again…was listening to this with Ronnie, Jud and Sean in Ronnie’s car.  When the little piano plink representing the pin prick played (wow, look at that alliteration), Jud reached up and flicked Ronnie on the ear.  I know, an odd thing to remember, but it’s in there;
• Bridge over Troubled Water (Simon and Garfunkel) – Was listening to this song on the radio and had to get out before it ended.  Drove me so crazy not being able to hear the ending had to go buy it on tape.  True story;
• Wild, Wild West (Kool Mo Dee) – This song may shock some of you.  But, used to listen to it when I would go out onto the Wesley Foundation balcony to watch the nightlife on the Tuscaloosa strip.  Saw some purty wild things…Also listened to Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder, and several other bands while out there;
• Riders on the Storm ( The Doors) – Was listening to my walkman radio while writing a paper one night in college.  This song came on and swear could feel raindrops falling on the back of my neck.  Pretty eerie feeling which was cool all at the same time.  And, yes, again, was completely sober;
• Photograph (Def Leppard) – First real heavy metal song I ever liked and among the earliest music videos can remember seeing on MTV when we first got it.  Still remember the air band competition from high school.  The dudes that did this song won the whole thing and deservedly so;
• Cult of Personality (Living Colour) – Saw them on Saturday Night Live.  Still see Corey Glover slinging his braids around during the guitar solo every time I hear it on my iPod.  Awesome song wrapped around a pretty good history lesson.  Almost bought tickets to the Stones concert just to see these guys open for them;
• Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd) – Way back when I was in school, they used to play this before every Bama home game.  May still do.  I don’t know.  Anyway, the entire student section would keep the beat with our shakers.  An awesome sight for this Tide fan;
• Jump (Van Halen) – Chicago Cubs baseball back in the 80’s.  Every time I hear it still expect Harry Caray to come on and say,”Hello again, everybody!  It’s a great day for baseball!” when the music fades away;
• I Melt with You (Modern English) – Can see that couple dancing in the video every time I hear that song.  Still haven’t been able to figure out if the blonde guitarist in the white shirt was male or female;
• Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana) – Have always liked the song even though have never understood the lyrics.  Can hardly figure out what Kurt Cobain is singing but they still don’t make much sense when I read them.  Finally figured out a couple of weeks ago they’re not supposed to make sense cuz the teenage mind quickly jumps from thought to thought, at least it did when I was one.  That’s what I think, anyway.  Only took me 20 years to come up with that theory.  I’m such a gueenius…

Well, hope this list triggered some memories in you, even if you thought of some different songs.  Will probably be a part three sometime.  The hard part will be picking the soundtrack for this blog.  Too much to choose from…

Y’all have a good one.

Sporadic Thoughts

Well, the pollen has finally died down a little where I’m at, and that makes me happy.  Was actually able to wear my contacts all day today.  Woo-hoo!!!  Hope it’s better where you’re at, too.

Not really much going on in the news which interests me, but have a few things rattling around in me noodle that need to come out.  So, if you’re ready, here we go:

• Started posting song lyrics on Twitter and Facebook this week.  Most of the time they reflect my mood and/or different thoughts going through me brain.  Sometimes I’m just being silly.  Always enjoy it when someone continues the lyrics.  Only had one response which threw me a little.  Anyway, if you follow me on Twitter or on Facebook, hope you are enjoying them and/or recognize most of the songs.  Due to character limits on Twitter, don’t usually credit the artist, but, if you want to know, feel free to ask.  And, if you’re curious enough about the trainwreck, you can follow me on Twitter @scotps23;
• Have told y’all before about my European tweeps.  Think what fascinates me the most is they tend to have actual conversations using Twitter.  Don’t see that much from my American tweeps.  Americans just tend to throw their thoughts out there but not comment on others.  Least not what I can see.  Not really sure why, either.  Maybe it’s unique to the folks I follow.  Or, maybe folks just think I’m boring.  Don’t know.  Anyway, it’s a lot of fun to watch their conversations ebb and flow throughout the day;
• Well, now that the airline industry lost billions cuz of the volcanic ash, the blame game has begun over who’s idea it was to ground the planes.  Believe you should always err on the side of caution when it comes to air safety.  Bottom line is no one really knew what, if any, effect the ash would have on the planes.  In the end, you have to ask yourself what’s worse, being inconvenienced or dead if you crash?  How would you like to be the airline executive who made the decision to fly when the plane crashes?;
• Been a lot of stuff out there about this whole Goldman Sachs mess.  Folks getting all excited cuz President Obama took almost a million smackers from them.  Well, they gave money to just about everyone on both sides of the aisle.  Someone asked if Mr. Prez was going to give it back.  He basically said no cuz it was from the employees rather than the company itself (long story how that is but true from what I’m reading).  Who in their right mind would think a politician would ever give that kind of dough back?  Anyway, his administration still appears poised to go after them fer now.  We shall see.  What concerns me more is the fact the Goldman Sachs indictment (or whatever it was) conveniently came out just as they are starting to make a push for Wall Street reform, whatever that means.  Nothing like using the judicial system to push your political agenda.  Of course, they are saying the timing is all just coincidental.  Uh-huh.  Whatever…Will just have to wait and see what happens;
• The Stanley Cup playoffs have been pretty awesome so far!  Lots of overtime games.  Even the ones that don’t go to OT have been pretty close.  The Stanley Cup commercials have been pretty good, too.  Have forgotten just how exciting playoff hockey can be.  Best thing about OT in the playoffs (other than the excitement of wondering which shot will be the last) is no TV timeouts;
• Been lots of hullaballoo about the NFL draft this week.  Hard to believe they are devoting an entire night of primetime just to the 1st round.  Guess it will REALLY be big time if it ever lands on a major network, not that ESPN is a slouch to be on.  Actually know some people who are going out of their way to watch them.  Will follow it close enough to see where my fellow Bama alums are going, but not much more than that;
• Peace reigns where God is present. Peace reigns when Love is present. Simple formula then: Where you have Love and God, you find Happiness – Posted on Twitter by Billy Corgan.  Billy Corgan?  Of Smashing Pumpkins fame?  Yep, that one.  Have always liked him;
• In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on. - Robert Frost

Y’all think about it…

A Little Mish-Mash

You’re not just reading the blog of any half-brained nitwit.  You’re reading the blog of a half-brained nitwit who was quoted in Cory McCartney’s NASCAR article on SI.com this week.  Who says having a little redneck in your blood don’t pay off every now and then?  Anywho…

Got some thoughts on a few topics this week.  So, here we go:

• My son called me today and the first words out of his mouth were, “I luuuuv youuuuu!” just like his momma does from time to time.  Knew right away they either wanted to buy something or had already bought something.  After much hemming and hawing, he finally fessed up they’d bought another cat.  Black cat by the name of Zoe.  Makes three cats in less than a year.  Could have been worse.  Figured they would have bought one already.  Wonder what took ‘em so long?;
• May have seen a friend of mine posted a comment ‘bout me taking up for both President Obama and Sen. Chuck Schumer in my last post.  What can I say?  Even a broke clock is right twice a day.  Well, the ones that actually have a face, anyway.  Besides, wouldn’t be right for me to criticize folks for not seeing both sides have some good points if I didn’t acknowledge when someone is right myself.  Or should that be left?;
• Reckon you’ve heard about all the volcanic ash over in Europe.  Somethin’ else!  Travel plans getting ruined all over the world. Even President Obama had to cancel his trip to the Polish president’s funeral cuz of it.  Someone tweeted it’s a good time to be filming shows set in the Middle Ages cuz won’t have to worry about airplane contrails being in the background.  Now, that’s the power of positive thinking.  Anyway, read this volcano is considered a small one.  Hate to see what will happen when a big one finally goes off;
• This is a great time of year to be a sports fan.  Baseball’s going strong, the NFL draft is coming up, the NBA playoffs are starting up, and, best of all, the Stanley Cup playoffs have started.  Been watching them this week.  Forgot just how exciting playoff hockey really is.  You should drop by VS tv one night and check it out.  If you are lucky enough to catch an overtime game, you might just be hooked for life.  And, if it’s a game 7 in overtime, you definitely will be;
• Read today that Peter Angelos, the owner of the Baltimore Orioles, refuses to hire Cal Ripken, Jr, an Oriole legend to say the least, to help out with the ball club.  Says he doesn’t want to ruin Ripken’s legacy if it doesn’t work out.  Also allegedly said he doesn’t want Ripken to get the credit if they finally start winning.  That’s a shame.  Just goes to show Mr. Angelos is not about the team winning.  He’s all about himself winning.  Very sad.  Think Ripken is one of the classiest players who ever played the game.  Never wanted him to break Gehrig’s record.  But, when I saw how classy he was in finally breaking it, became one of his biggest fans.  He was the reason I came back to baseball after the strike.  Still get goosebumps every time I think about him taking that victory lap.  Even saw him at Epcot in 1996 but wouldn’t go talk to him cuz he’s so classy didn’t want to bother him while he was with his family.  Sure hope Angelos changes his mind.  Imagine a lot of Orioles fans do, too;
• Get to listen to Pandora when I work on Saturdays.  It is TOTALLY AWESOME!!!!!  Have three stations:  Guns ‘N’ Roses, Pink Floyd, and Nirvana.  Used to have Metallica but some of the songs were too hard even for me.  In case you’re not familiar with Pandora, you choose a band you like then it programs songs for that channel based on songs in the same general category.  Although, have heard the Beatles on both Pink Floyd and Nirvana and Led Zepplin on all three.  Pretty amazing if you ask me.  The station plays that band about every third song or so, sometimes even sooner.  Highly recommend you check it out if you haven’t already.  You may ask why not just listen to your iPod?  Well, you got me there except you may hear songs on Pandora not on your iPod.  Still purty cool.  Don’t cost a dime, either;
• A lot of folks I follow on Twitter are European.  Mostly British and Irish but some others thrown in there, too.  Pretty interesting to follow their conversations.  Been a lot of talk about the volcano ash this week, naturally.  But, it gets really interesting whenever there’s a football game being played.  (That would be soccer to those of us on this side of The Pond.)  Seems like they all are watching it.  Same thing when Britain’s Got Talent is on.  (You know, that’s the show Susan Boyle got famous on).  Have been some interesting political discussions, too. Sometimes I have to ask for clarification on a few topics and they are always nice enough to provide the extra explanation this dumb American needs to follow along.  It really is a small world after all;
• Gotta couple new blog links to the left.  One by Girl Gone Healthy (follow each other on Twitter) and the other by Forevafit.  Ms. Forevafit just started following my blog today.  Not sure how she got here, but welcome!  Checked out her blog.  It’s still in the developing stages but looks pretty neat!  Ms. Healthy’s does, too.  Both are related to fitness.  Know you will probably enjoy both just as much as I will;
• Special shout out to my friend Sue Mac!  She has several blogs over to the left, too.  She ran a 15k race this weekend that bills itself as the toughest run in the South.  Has two hills in it that must be killerz cuz everyone she talked to about it told her to walk up the hills, even the dude who signed her up.  You know those jokers have to be bad!!!  Well, she managed to finish in under two hours.  Pretty good considering she just started training for it last week.  Congrats, Sue Mac!  And, no, I’m not gonna run in it next year…probably;

Well, that’s all I got for now.  Appreciate you hanging in here with me.  Y’all have a great weekend.  Looks like I will be out buying some new running shoes myself.  Wore the tread off of the old ones doin’ all my runnin’!!!  Woo-hoo!!!

Y’all keep ‘em straight out there!     

More Gapses in the Synapses

Been some great weather where I am, but the pollen is still thick as all get-out.  Driving my eyes nuts, especially when wearing my contacts.  The more I blink, the more my eyes feel gummy. Yuck!  Anyway, have some more random thoughts to share this week.  Hope they interest you:

• The White House press corps got its panties in a wad this week cuz President Obama broke protocol and slipped off without them one afternoon.  This was the first time in about a bajillion years that a president has done that.  Oh, the horror!!!  It’s “protocol,” in other words, tradition, not the law, that the press goes with him everywhere.  Know he’s the most powerful man in the world and all that, but he should be allowed to sneak out every now and then.  So, just exactly where was he going?  Turns out he was going to watch his daughters play soccer.  Shame on him for not wanting the press to disrupt their game!;
• Speaking of the press, if you want to see how fickle they can be, hope you’ve paid attention to the Masters coverage over the last week.  Starting last Monday, Tigger was just about the only golfer they would talk about.  Thursday through Saturday you would have thought he was leading the tournament with all the coverage he was getting, and Thursday two legends of the game were leading when the day was through!  Now that he didn’t win, the press is talking about how horrible he played, he shouldn’t have played, Elin wasn’t there, etc.  Folks, he came in tied for fourth after not playing competitively for five months.  Pretty dang impressive to me, and y’all may recall ain’t exactly one of his biggest fans.  Just another example of how the press builds folks up just to tear ‘em back down.  Oh, by the way, congratulations, Phil, for winning!;
• Very sad what happened to the Polish government over the weekend.  Shows why our leadership and most big corporations won’t let all their powerbrokers fly together.  Sad thing about this is it could have been avoided.  The pilot totally ignored the air tower’s warning not to land.  Very sad;
• The Vatican sort of apologized for statements they’ve made about the Beatles in the past.  Made it in their newspaper while commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Beatles’ last album.  Probably goes without saying the Vatican was not happy when John Lennon said they were more popular than Jesus.  Anyway, someone asked Ringo what he thought of the apology.  He basically said they have more important things to do than apologize to the Beatles.  Don’t think he was trying to slam the Vatican.  He was just trying to keeps things in perspective.  Guess he felt he and Paul moved on long ago so they should, too.  In the grand scheme of things, he’s right.  Gotta love that man!;  
• An update to an earlier observation.  Senator Charles Schumer, D-NY, said he was going to introduce legislation outlawing airlines charging for carry-on luggage.  Now, can probably count on one hand and cut off some fingers the number of times I’ve agreed with Chuck on anything, but glad to see him come out against the airlines trying to pull this crap.  Fly quite a bit and see all these yahbos try to carry half their house onboard, but they really are the exception.  No need to punish the rest of us cuz of these knuckleheads.  Stick with it, Chuck!  Guess I’d better sew a finger back on, too;
• A friend of mine is a school nurse.  Said a little girl was sick enough to check out of school but didn’t want them to call her mother cuz “Mommy’s job is very important” or something to that effect.  Not passing judgment on the momma (could be she’s a single parent with 2 or 3 jobs), but it really struck a nerve with me.  Makes me worry that my kids might think the same thing about me.  Hope my kids don’t ever think they can’t call me when I’m working, especially if there’s an emergency;
• Have read Kitty Kelley is releasing an unauthorized biography of Oprah.  Thing is, none of the usual talk shows want to help pimp it cuz they’re scared of Oprah.  That’s pretty sad if you ask me.  But, with as wacky as some of her followers are, they probably won’t buy the dern thing no matter who’s trying to sell it.  Will probably get more pub this way, anyhow;
• Have really been enjoying Twitter.  (I’m @scotps23)  Have made lots of comments to folks but haven’t received many back.  Oh well, it’s still fun.  Am following a few celebs but don’t expect any of them to follow me back or even comment on my occasional comments to them.  Rick Harrison of Pawn Stars started following me this week.  He actually followed me first.  Think it’s cuz one of my tweets was about the show.  Pretty cool!  Have “met” some neat people on there.  Speaking of which…;
• Know some of you are health conscious.  You might be interested in one of my new blog links from the Chubby Chick.  Follow each other on Twitter.  Anyway, she’s blogging about her journey to lose weight.  She’s doing a great job with both!  Hope you’ll drop by and give her some encouragement.  Everybody needs a little dose of that every now and then.

That’s all for now.  If you live in the US, don’t forget your taxes are due April 15.  Gotta pay fer all this stuff Congress is passin’ somehow! Hope you’re having a great week and that the pollen ain’t choking you out, too.

Out!

Random Randomness

Sometimes I have a theme, sometimes I don’t.  Have some real random thoughts this week.  Can randomness be a theme?

Anywho, here I go:

• Some women in Maine marched topless the other day to protest the fact men can legally go without shirts and they can’t.  Then, the organizer got mad cuz a bunch of men stood around and gawked.  Let’s see.  You’re protesting to draw attention to your cause, then you get mad when people pay attention to your cause.  Makes sense to me.  Guess if it ever does become normal for women to walk around topless, men won’t pay attention to things like that.  Nah, doubt it;
• Can see a swingset out of my office window.  Saw a grown lady swinging on it the other day.  Thought how awesome it was that she apparently can still get a thrill out of that part of her childhood.  Far out;
• Why does it seem like you are always going uphill no matter which way you go when you are running?  Probably a metaphor on life there somewhere;
• Pollen sucks.  Sorry, that’s a little crude, but there’s just no other way to put it.  Know it’s an important part of the circle of life, but it sure makes my eye miserable this time of year.  Can’t hardly wear my contacts more than a couple hours at a time;
• Can tell I’ve lost weight over the last year.  Put on a pair of pants today that I had to hold my stomach in just to button this time last year.  Noticed they were bunched in the front today from where my belt had to hold them up.  Should probably help stimulate the economy by buying some new ones;
• See where Spirit Airline is going to start charging people for carry-on bags.  First bag will be free.  Will have to pay for the second one.  Can’t remember if a woman’s purse counts or not.  Guess airlines will start charging you extra to sit down before too long.  “Will that be standing or sitting?  Oh, and by the way, it’s illegal to stand…”;
• Was the Butler/Duke game awesome or what?  That, my friends, is what sport is really all about.  Drama for all 40 minutes of the game.  Even if you are a Duke hater, you still have to admit both teams played well.  Butler proved without a doubt that they belonged in that game.  You have to wonder why the media keeps calling them Cinderella when they had more top 100 recruits (3) than Syracuse (0), who were picked by several folks to win it all.  Makes a better story, I reckon;
• Saw an article the other day that said passage of the healthcare bill is a sign of our decline as a country.  Said history has shown people start losing their ability to be innovative as they start relying more and more on the government for stuff.  Interesting theory.  Not sure I totally agree with it, but may have some merit;
• People are already calling up insurance companies asking if they can get their free health insurance now.  Folks just don’t pay attention, I reckon.  Still won’t have free health insurance…yet.  Anyway, most of the provisions in the bill don’t even go into effect until 2014.  Never heard either side mention that, did ya?  At least not very loudly if they did;
• Read today that 50% of Americans don’t pay any kind of income taxes.  Wish I was one of ‘em…;
• Jessica Simpson posed for Marie Claire magazine without wearing any makeup or having any computer touch-ups to her pictures.  Wonder what it says about society in general that this is even considered newsworthy. Thought she still looked nice from the picture I saw.  Personally think women don’t really need it.  Dread the day my little girl starts wanting to wear it all the time;
• Have enjoyed Twitter so far.  Lots of information to digest if you can keep up. Very fast-paced, especially if you start following a lot of people.  Have “met” some interesting people from all over the world (literally) on there.

Done for now.  Thanks as always for reading.  Since you can’t tip your waiters and waitresses here, be sure to check out my blogging buddies on the left.  Some haven’t written in a while.  Other have, though, and they’re usually pretty interesting.

Peace out.

Proud To Be An American!

Have seen some things this week that have really made me proud to live in the good Ol’ USA.  Mean that literally and sarcastically all at the same time.  Got stories from both sides of the aisle, too, and the best story is last.  You may notice there’s no soundtrack.  You’ll see why later.  Anyway, here’s what I’m talking about:

• President Obama gave a 17 minute reply to a woman who said we are being overtaxed.  He outlined seven, count ‘em, SEVEN points to the woman. No one is sure he if even answered her comment.  There’s two things that tell me he probably did not give her a truthful answer.  First, he’s a politician.  Politicians and telling the whole truth are two things which do not belong in the same paragraph, much less the same sentence.  Second, (and, if you’re a female, about to let you in on a secret you may have figured out anyway) the more a man talks when answering a question, the more likely it is that he’s lying, or at least stretching the truth.  Probably cuz he’s trying to convince himself at the same time.  Anyway, twice said his answer was going on too long so he realized what he was doing but still couldn’t stop.  Appears even he knows the definition of “the rich” will expand before it’s all said and done.  Must have left his teleprompter at home that day, too;
• Phil Hare, the Democratic Congressman who represents the 17th District in Illinois, recently said “I don’t worry about the Constitution” on camera when asked if the healthcare bill was Constitutional. (You can hear it for yourself)  He went on to say the Constitution “says people have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”  When asked if he read the bill, he claimed to have read it 3 times.  People have jumped on this as an example of how out of touch politicians are these days.  In his defense, the cameraman said, “Jackpot, Brother” after the first remark, which leads me to believe they goaded him into saying something(s) stupid.  Rep. Hare later released a statement saying he meant he’s not worried about whether it will pass the Constitutionality test.  Willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on his intent.  The Constitution does give government the right to promote the general welfare of the people.  However, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is in the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution.  Again, in trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe an easy mistake to make in that situation.  However, have to throw the BS flag on reading the 8,100 page bill 3 times before voting on it.  Let’s say it took 2 minutes per page just for argument’s sake.  That would be 16,200 minutes, or 270 hours, which breaks down into 11.25 days just to read it once.  So it would have taken him about a month to read it 3 times if he read 24 hours a day with no breaks.  You can break it down even further if you want.  Even if he really did read it, is it possible he comprehended all of it since he would have essentially been speed-reading?  The American public may not be all that smart, but we ain’t that stupid, either…are we?;
• Just so y’all won’t think I picking on the Dems, it came out this week that the Republican party approved an expense report with a tab close to $2,000 from a bondage-themed strip bar around Hollywood.  Was supposedly for meals.  Seems the fiscal conservatives don’t mind stimulating the economy (insert your own joke here) in some settings, anyway.  Along those same lines, the Pubs also sent out a fundraising letter this week with the phone number to a telephone sex operation on it instead of the party’s.  (Why does it seem phone number mistakes are always to sex lines?)  Talk about a typo.  Pretty sad when you don’t even know your own phone number.  There’s nothing I can say in defense of either one of these blunders.  Guess they’re taking the ‘P’ in GOP seriously these days;  
• All right, now onto something that does make me forevermore proud to be an American.  Heard of the Patriot Guard Riders but had never seen this.  No comments can do it justice other than “THANK YOU!!! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!!!”  You just have to watch the clip to see why.  This was put together by the family of United States Army Specialist Bobby Russell West, who gave his life serving our country in Iraq.  Be sure to turn your sound on and watch it all the way through.  WARNING – Watching this may cause tears, choking sensations, and a sudden urge to give a standing ovation and salute.

 

Our veterans are truly a different breed.  May God bless you always!

Hope you had a happy Easter!  Thanks as always for reading. 

The Empty Tomb

This is the holiest week of the year for Christians. This week excites me more as a Christian than even Christmas. Why? Easter is the day that separates Christianity from every other religion in the world. This day celebrates our Savior has an empty tomb!

Almost 2000 years ago, there were a lot of sad people on this day. They had seen someone they saw as The Messiah perish on a cross. Not just perish, but suffer a cruel and painful death. Life as they saw it was over. Little did they know how right they were!

Jesus chose to die as a sacrifice for all the sins of the world. Three days later He was alive! There are many reasons He arose from the grave. The most important is so He can walk beside those that let Him into their lives. He died so that we may live.

My family and I choose for Jesus to be a part of our lives. Does that mean our lives have been easy since that decision? Nope. Not even close. But, what it does mean is Jesus walks with us every day. He is there to comfort us and give us direction in our journey through this life. When we choose to listen, life seems a little easier. We know we will have strength and encouragement to get through the bad times. We also have someone else to help us celebrate the good things. Ultimately, we know we will have life after we leave this world. All these reasons give us the peace and happiness most people seek for their lives.

And, it's all because of an empty tomb.

If this post seems familiar to you, that's cuz it's the same one from last year.  Just couldn't think of a better way to say it this year.

Have a happy Easter!