Archive for the ‘Just Saying’ Category
I have a few things that really bother me. I’m sure you do as well just like everyone else. I try not to let them make me too crazy but there are times I could just scream. Nothing really too earth shattering but just a number of little things that nag at me when I have time to sit and think about them. See if you agree.
Vegans – Why do certain people think that refusing to eat meat or fish makes them special. To be a true vegetarian and to stay healthy requires taking vitamin supplements. I love veggies as much as the next guy but only a fool could believe all the hype we’re constantly hearing. Get a clue people. Human beings are classified as omnivores for a reason. We’ve developed to the top of the food chain because of our ability to survive and flourish by eating a variety of both meats and vegetables. Extremes of any kind tend to be a problem for me and this is the perfect example. Oh yeah one more thing, if you’ve ever spent any time at all around Vegans you know their farts are the worst. Eat a burger stinky.
Organic food – This may be the biggest scam going. Slapping an organic label on just about anything gives companies the right to increase prices by at least thirty percent. I’m enough of a skeptic to believe that no checking is really done to verify those claims. Maybe in the future when I make homemade salsa, pickles, apple butter, and other products I’ll label them as organic. It wouldn’t be totally true but who cares. It’s all about making certain people feel like their eating healthy and making them pay for the privilege.
Pre-owned Cars – This is politically correct BS that just makes me crazy. Truth in advertising be damned. A freaking used car is a freaking used car. It’s not pre-owned or anything else. I suspect that once used cars became pre-owned the price just may have suddenly increased overnight. I’d like to meet the fast talking used car salesman that came up with that idea. He should be arrested and then beaten severely about the head and shoulders.
Decaf Coffee – I watched a middle aged and reasonably intelligent looking guy order a decaf coffee at a local donut shop recently and then watched the cashier write on the cup "Decaf". He immediately told the cashier to add a turbo shot of expresso to it as well. He must be married to a woman who requires him to drink only decaf coffee which will help him live fifteen minutes longer. He takes this approach so he can show her the cup to verify his purchase of decaf. If people realized how most decaf coffee was made they’d never drink it again. If you’re going to drink decaf, why bother drinking coffee at all.
Jehovah Witnesses – I’m not religious and having these folks show up unannounced and uninvited on my door step just pisses me off. For years I’d just tell them to go away and stop bothering me. Then I wised up and decided to play along with their routine. On one occasion I was dressed only in a pair of shorts on one hot summer afternoon. A young man and a young woman showed up and I cordially invited them in. As I sat there half naked listening to a few minutes of their bible readings I then went into my routine. I began asking them for all kinds of sexual advice since I was having serious problems with both my wife and my mistress. They were gone within minutes and I was never visited again while I lived there. It was fun too!
Push Up Bras – Let me qualify this one a little. I love shapely women or should I say I’ve loved shapely women but the trend these days with push-up bras is out of control. The last thing I need to see is a fourteen year old teenage girl who has yet to develop hips running around with what little boobs she has pushed up until they’re damn near rubbing on her chin. Just as bad are the adult women who shall we say are well endowed to start with but then wear a push-up bra to make it creepy and nasty looking. Stop the madness girls. Being a bit more subtle is way more sexier than what we’re seeing now.
These are just a few of the things that make me a little crazy. I’ll bet anything that if you’re honest with yourself your list is much longer than mine. Does my whining help fix these issues, not a chance. I have to admit it makes me feel a whole lot better venting to you.
I’m a bit tired today after yesterday’s drywall work. If you’re expecting anything spectacular on this blog today you’re sure to be disappointed. I often hear people on their blogs complaining about writer’s block. I’ve never had that problem but I seem to be suffering from a block for which I have no name. It could possibly be called an ‘artists block’ or a ‘remodeling block’, or even a ‘get-the-hell-out-of-bed block’. I’m feeling like a big giant lump with no motivation to do anything except write about how lazy I’m feeling. Which for the record is mighty effing lazy. At the same time my mind is racing and I’m visualizing work that still needs to be completed on the remodel tomorrow.
Unfortunately for me when I’m working any kind of project I’m consumed not just by the work that I’ll be doing but by constant mental activity that I can’t turn off. It can also make sleeping extremely difficult. Even after having my better-half tell me to take the day off, I struggle. I should be relaxing and enjoying my down time but for me there is no real down time.
She’ll be talking to me about work or family and if I’m lucky I may get every other word or just a general idea of what the subject matter is. I suspect she thinks I’m getting forgetful but that isn’t the case at all. It also isn’t that I don’t care or I’m not interested, I’m just focused on my tasks at hand almost 100%. It’s totally out of my control for the most part and it’s something I’ve resigned myself to dealing with.
Even as a kid I was consumed by my painting, sculpting, reading, and once I started something I kept at it until it was completed. Especially my art work. I’d start a painting and would work around the clock with little or no food or drink until it was finished. I love that feeling of being in the moment and just staying there as long as possible is a real pleasure for me.
At times I have difficulty getting a project started and will procrastinate a little. It’s not that I don’t want to do the project, it’s because I know that once I start I probably won ‘t be able to stop. You could be in the same room with me and during those times you cease to exist. Even my surroundings in the room become a blur except for the piece I’m working on. It can be maddening when interruptions occur and I lose my temper and become difficult.
I thought in my younger days that this compulsion would lessen as I grew older but it has not. It’s been both a blessing and a curse over the years but I’m certain I would miss it if for some reason it just disappeared. I guess I’ll do my best to relax today but both my better-half and I know what I’ll be thinking about. Tomorrows project.
Probably my favorite pass time is reading. If I have a free moment I almost always have a book with me or nearby to pick up and read. It’s been this way since I was ten years old when as I was walking home from school one afternoon and saw a box of books sitting at the end of a neighbors driveway for trash pickup. I stopped for a few minutes and began looking through them. Up until that time I’d been reading the occasional Edgar Rice Burroughs paperback of which there were many. They were a quick and easy read for a young kid and I really enjoyed them. I can’t even guess how much of my meager allowance went towards those books.
As I continued to scrounge through the box I found one that caught my eye. It was an old copy of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. I stuck the book into my bag, took it home, and relished every word in it. I sailed around the world with Captain Nemo on the Nautilus and deep sea dived in every ocean with his crew. I kept that book for many years but unfortunately while I was away serving my country it was discarded by my mother with most of my other books.
I’m reading more now than ever before but things are changing dramatically. With the advent of the Kindles and Nooks and the thousands of available ebooks it’s hard to keep up at times. As much as I love my Kindle, Nook, and IPad I can’t completely switch over from reading real actual books. I’ve really tried hard to make the change completely to digital but it’s seems impossible for me. When I read to relax the process of reading an actual book gives me great comfort.
I’ve always given my business to those small discount book stores that can be found if you really want to search them out. Every three or four weeks I visit a small one near my home to bring back books, get a credit, and buy another bag full. After my visit last week I find myself feeling very sorry for the proprietor. We’ve become friends over the years through our mutual love of books. He’s a former reference book author with many titles to his name and has settled in for the last few years of his working life to run his bookstore. He fears that the digital revolution in reading will eventually put him out of business and has resigned himself to that fact. He’d planned to run his store after retirement but that no longer seems a valid option.
I hope he’s wrong but that’s just nostalgia talking. I can’t imagine sitting with a young child on my knee and reading to him or her from a Kindle. The act of touching a book, turning the pages, and introducing a young child to millions of new experiences is the ultimate gift and I look forward to doing just that for my better-half’s new grand child. My better-half while not much of a reader has kept every children’s book she ever purchased for her kids who are all grown and gone. She understands the importance of those precious moments she shared with each of them as she read to them. We have a huge library of children’s books which have been stored for many years in the attic in anticipation of the expected grand children. They were unpacked and dusted off soon after her daughter announced her pregnancy last year.
I hope that books survive these modern day changes and in all honesty I’m not sure they will. Maybe it’s just me refusing to accept change. The best thing I can do is to pass my love of books and reading on to the new generations and hope they do the same with their children and grand children. If that happens then books will continue to survive and be enjoyed by many more generations of readers.
We can only hope!
I had a relatively interesting day today. I was able to accomplish a few things that weren’t planned and somehow those always seem the best. People joke about spontaneity when discussing love and personal relationships but you never hear it in relation to other things. I have to admit that everything usually returns to people relationships but every once in a while it’s possible to be pleasantly surprised by an unplanned encounter.
My first spontaneous conversation and introduction to someone new occurred this morning. On a regular basis I turn into a recycling, take care of the environment, conscientious "Greenie". Every few weeks or so I trek to a place to recycle bottles, cans, and plastic containers. It’s one of my assigned duties from my better-half to religiously collect all this crap, save it in large bags, and then deliver it for CASH. All of a sudden I didn’t mind recycling if there was cash involved. I agreed to this chore as long as all those nickels remained in my pocket and not into the household general fund. And so began my adventures in doing my part to save the freaking environment.
I manage to make about $20.00 every six weeks thanks in great part to my better-half’s beer bottle contributions and a great number of plastic water bottles. Truth be told it’s a huge pain in the ass but I do it to keep peace in the household which makes the effort worthwhile. Also the cat loves it because all of my pet related expenses are paid for from this small but important fund. If by chance we have a party or a lot of visitors during the summer months I might even I be able to embezzle enough of the cat fund for the odd bottle of gin. Don’t tell the cat because he’s a major league nag and I’d never hear the end of it. Any purchases that aren’t Fancy Feast or special treats will really make him hard to live with.
So I arrive at the recycling center which is a cross between a gigantic, stinky and smelly garbage can and a college frat house on Sunday morning. It truly is a disgusting place where no one stays any longer than necessary. As I enter the building dragging two huge bags of containers I bump into Ryan, the man in charge. In his twenties, six foot three, 60’s hairdo (not quite a mullet), raggedy ass clothes, and an odor just a little less awful than the surrounding piles of bottles and cans that are apparently his entire life. He manually sorts through my bags on a large table, plastic here, cans there, brown bottles over there, and white glass over here. He never writes anything down but when he’s finished, he spends a few seconds on a calculator and hands me a credit slip with my total redemption amount.
I was extremely skeptical when I first started using this facility and for the first five or six deliveries I pre-counted them at home just to check their counting procedures. I never found an error. The guy is freaking amazing but always accurate. I made the mistake today of starting a spontaneous conversation to see if I could distract him or trip him up in some way. We talked for approximately ten minutes while he scurried around sorting and checking the containers. He never missed a beat and his count was right on. The downside was the actual conversation because Ryan is really passionate about bottles and he spent those ten minutes telling me how he counts bottles and then a few war stories about some of his more unusual customers and their quirks.
I was trapped like a rat and couldn’t escape. He held me captive and talked about empty bottles until I just wanted to scream. OMFG! I now know way more than I ever wanted to know about his career choice and why he had the best job ever. I picked up my credit slip and got the hell out of there.
It was a smelly and disgusting experience but interesting in it’s own way. As a former business professional I always appreciated people who were passionate about their jobs. My good buddy, Ryan, was as passionate about his job as anyone I’ve ever met. He loves his job and tries desperately hard to excel at it. He actually tries to supply friendly and smiling customer service in an a garbage pile atmosphere which is amazing in and of itself.
I now know I can finally stop pre-counting my contributions because my bottles and containers are in good hands with Ryan. My cat need never worry about starving because Ryan is on the job.
I’ve been listening to the political reporting very closely for the last few weeks and I’m seeing a number of things occurring that I warned everyone about more than a year ago. I can go into the specifics but I suspect it will do little or no good and a total waste of my time. Most of the people in this country have gotten too fat and far too comfortable to listen or believe what the Obama administration has been doing. They continue their relentless attack on our civil rights or what rights “We the People” have left.
I won’t get into the abuses of the NSA in the monitoring and collection of information on all of us under the guise of combating terrorists. Or the use of anti-gun rhetoric to collect more private information to add to the federal databases. They know that an attempt to ban or collect guns could create an uprising they couldn’t control and even possibly cause an outright rebellion. So they do the next best thing which is to scare the gun owners and manufacturers into agreeing to more intrusive background checks, gun registration, and other steps. This makes it much easier for Big Brother Obama to then track gun owners, their guns, and to collect as much additional personal information as they can.
I’ve watched Obama and his administration totally ignore and disregard the constitution since stepping into the office of the Presidency. I’ve also watched the Main Stream Media ignore almost every occasion in which attempts were made to violate the Constitution. Even the liberal leaning courts have given up our rights without flinching. Is this the beginning of the end of the United States as we know it? It’s a slippery slope when we allow our civil rights to be steadily worn away by greedy and conniving politicians out to feather their own nests.
The constitution apparently has lost the respect of many of the American people who seem more concerned with what they can leech out of the government rather than respecting how this country was created. I never took the term “nanny state” too seriously until recently. I’m sure our fore-fathers are spinning in their graves with what is occurring in the nation they founded. Listen to our first president and then look at what’s happening in our country now.
“The basis of our political systems is the right of the people to make and alter their constitutions of government. But the constitution which at any time exists, until changed by an explicit and authentic act of the whole people, is sacredly obligatory upon all.”
George Washington (1732-1799) Farewell Address 09/17/1796
When the left tries to influence public opinion it’s always “about the children”. Everyone is willing to give up more tax dollars and their civil rights to protect the children. What will happen to the children in twenty years when the government finally takes complete control of this country and suddenly reminds you, you no longer have any rights. It will too late then.
Just saying again.
I’ve decided to have a quiet and restful day today to catch my breathe and relax a little. My better-half is off to work in my car since her vehicle took a hissy fit this morning and refused to start (allegedly). I was awakened by her at 5:00 am from a wonderfully deep sleep to be brought up to speed about her car. It’s moments like that for me that test the limits of any relationship.
I became just conscious enough to tell her where my car keys were and for her to take my car. I immediately attempted to fall back to sleep but as you all know once your awakened it’s sometimes impossible. I laid in bed for another half hour and finally gave up. I threw on some clothes, had a cup of really awful coffee, and headed to the garage to address her problem.
You must understand that my better-half has super powers never before seen on this planet. She is Anti-Technology Girl and has the ability to just look at a piece of technology or machinery and cause it to not work. I cringe every time she walks by any of my computer equipment because sometimes that’s all it takes. She has the ability to cause any device with virtually no moving parts to malfunction repeatedly but only when she’s using it. It’s freaking scary sometimes.
She can pick up a brand new remote control that was working properly for me five minutes ago and have it fail. I try to humor her but at times it’s just not possible. Her list is endless; computers that make errors that are impossible for them to make, her car that never had a problem starting won’t start, and on and on it goes with no possible explanations from her.
Being the trained observer that I am I’ve come to the conclusion that the problem just might be her. She can’t set the time on a clock, she can’t do anything on a computer without retraining every week, and I’m the guy who gets to spend his life following her around to fix these problems.
All of that being said I just knew that when I arrived in the garage this morning that her car would start. I climbed into the car, turned the key, and it started immediately without any weird sounds or hesitation whatsoever. Oh, did I forget to mention what the first thing she asked me in my groggy half-awake state? "What did you do to my car? That statement alone should tell you the rest of the story.
It’s not often she’s rendered speechless about anything but when I called to tell her the car was fine I received a full five seconds of dead silence. I should call the Guinness World Record people since in my experience that is a world record if there ever was one.
Now I’m free to go about my life knowing I’ve solved another of her hundreds of mysterious problems that seem to fix themselves as soon as I arrive. That’s what every successful relationship is I suppose; give and take, good and bad, and about a ton of BS you both have to ignore to survive together.
Ain’t love grand.
I just spent a little quality time with my snowblower this morning. With another huge snowstorm coming our way I thought she might need a little pep talk before I send her out into another nasty old snow storm. I don’t think she was too happy to hear about this storm because she refused to talk to me or even look me in the eye. Snowblowers can be so temperamental if they’re not treated like God’s gift to all snowblowers. I gassed her up, wiped the dirt from her beautiful red body, gently checked her oil, and then rubbed her all over with a clean rag. It’s strange that this entire routine reminds me more than just a little of most of my previous relationships. I baby them, pamper them, feed them, clothe them, make love to them, and then maybe just maybe they’ll do something I request. I did say MAYBE because it’s never ever been a sure thing anyway.
It’s always amazed me just how all things seem to be related in so many ways. There are millions of men out there who love using sports metaphors to explain almost everything but since I’m not a sports fanatic I tend to go my own way. As with women most vehicles and machinery require exactly the same treatment if you expect to get anything in return. Cars, garden tractors, leaf blowers, wood chippers, and even things as small as battery operated face massagers need some TLC occasionally. I’ve found that bathing them regularly and talking softly to them really goes a long way to keeping them happy and working properly. As in all things a few loving caresses here and there won’t hurt either.
They all require constant attention and if they don’t get it then problems will almost certainly ensue. So men, always remember that all of your mechanical devices require all of your time and effort to keep them happy. God help you if they think they’re being ignored, there will be hell to pay.
All of my former vehicles demanded on occasion a nice warm bath as well as a vigorous rubdown with scented cleaners. I recommend that you make that part of your maintenance regime, you won’t be sorry. Spending a little time, effort, and gentleness will pay off in a big way if you play your cards right.
Talk to your vehicles as much as you can and never walk by without a gentle touch and a kind word. Snuggle up in those nice soft seats and don’t be afraid to gently stroke her every so often.
Give it a try and you won’t believe the results. Buy her a sweet smelling air freshener and maybe a cute set of floor mats and she’ll follow you anywhere. Gas her up regularly and maybe she’ll let you take her out on the expressway and blow the carbon out of her pipes and yours as well.
Just saying.
More good news today. After an entire week of forty-five degree sunny days, we have another effing snow storm working it’s way here from wherever the hell they come from. Once again we’re to be buried in more than a foot of snow. There goes that good old Spring Fever feeling right out the bloody window.
Today is sunny and wickedly cold but I’ll deal with the cold to have this much sunshine. It’s amazing what energy a little sunshine can create to help motivate me. I’m doing a small amount of work on the remodel this morning but nothing too strenuous. After all it’s Sunday and that supposed to be a day of rest, right?
Since it’s a lazy day for me I’m determined to do a few things that I’ve been procrastinating about for weeks. I spent some time cleaning my camera and lenses. Removing the silicon skin used for protection against my clumsiness is a pain but the camera needs a thorough cleaning. It’s something I should be doing on a regular basis but for some reason I never seem to make the time to do it.
Next is my work shop. It’s a freaking disaster area and while I might make some progress in cleaning it today, it’s going to take many more days before it’s anywhere near clean and functional enough. What I really need is a huge dump truck, a five gallon can of gas, and a pack of matches. Nothing says cleanup like a raging bonfire. I’ve promised myself that fifteen minutes after the last of the snow has melted there’ll be a huge bonfire and I’ll be feeding it until the workshop is emptied of trash and old wood scraps.
This snow storm is really screwing not only with my head but my Spring schedule. Mother Nature truly is a "heartless bitch". Our Spring and Summer seasons here in Maine aren’t very long as it is but these late snow storms are just salt in the wounds. I guess I’m becoming something of a whiny little bitch so I’ll shut and get on with things. Thank God It’s only a few stupid chores that are irritating me. I mean it could be much much worse. I could be returning to the workforce, right Lily?
It’s time for me to get to moving, stop complaining, and become a useful citizen once again. I hate that.
Finally a day out of the house. I’ve been granted a day without thinking of the on going remodel or anything house related thanks to a few of my better-half’s relatives. They’ve decided because of their enjoyable visit to see us last summer that spending a week here this year is just the ticket. I’m assisting them in their endeavors in finding a home or cottage rental somewhere near the Scarborough or Old Orchard beach areas.
They’ve apparently been looking on-line but haven’t had much luck. I’m on my way this morning to check out a place located at Camp Ellis, Maine. This is an area along the coast just north of the city of Saco and has been a harbor for small boats and lobsterman for years. There’s a large breakwater protecting the harbor and a small beach nearby for sunning and swimming. My job today is to find the building at the address they’ve given me, evaluate the area, and report back. The renter is asking $1800.00 a week which to me is ridiculous but what the hell do I know. I’m told it can be as much as $3000.00 a week just a few short miles further north in the Old Orchard Beach area which in my opinion is again highway robbery.
Before any investigation can begin I’ll be forced to stop at Dunkin Donuts for a jolt of fresh coffee and something sweet to make me extra happy. I want to be as alert and clear headed as possible as I make this evaluation so an extra turbo shot of espresso will be required.
I should mention that this winter has been difficult in certain areas of Maine with terrible wind storms and heavy snow falls. The Camp Ellis area was hit pretty hard in the last storm which I was made aware of as I attempted to reach the address I’m supposed to be checking out. It’s located on a short little street a short distance from the beach but not only is the road closed and a detour in place but the small beach is only half the size it once was. I’m told that the beach was partially washed away in the last storm as well as a few yards of the shore road. Scratch one potential vacation spot.
I’m now forced to cruise north along the shore road to Old Orchard Beach and Scarborough, a trip of approximately four miles. It’s a chilly but sunny day making the ride a real pleasure and a perfect opportunity for a little photography. I hadn’t driven more than a mile when I came on a huge flock of geese that stopped for rest and food in a nearby protected wildlife area. In just a few minutes I was able to take a few terrific pictures and for a change I had my telephoto lens with me and it worked out perfectly.
I began writing down telephone numbers and the names of local realty companies as I rode along. I then dropped a voice mail to her relatives with all the information I’d collected. I hope they find what their looking for at a reasonable price because I’m really looking forward to their visit later in the summer. Spending a week on the beach with them would really kick-start the summers festivities.
It’s another day I’ll spend washing joint compound dust from my hair. My better-half and I are quite the drywalling team it would seem. We worked like a well oiled machine today which helped keep the remodel ahead of schedule. The construction has really accelerated with the completion of the hardwood flooring. I always knew that installing a drywall ceiling was going to be a real bitch and I wasn’t far wrong. We were able with the minimum amount of difficulty to get the ceiling installed without a major incident or loss of blood on my part.
As I’ve said many times before I’m really clumsy and every job I’ve ever done requires a quantity of my blood to be sacrificed. Today is the first time in many years where my sacrifice wasn’t required. I’ll be putting the finishing touches to the ceiling tomorrow with the taping of joints and final application of the joint compound. Over the next week I should be able to complete the walls and then prepare for primer and paint. Hooray!
It’s been another weird weather day in Maine and it starting to get old. The morning started out after a night of rain as gray and dismal and typical for March. Just a few hours later the clouds parted and the sun peaked out for an entire fifteen minutes. It appeared we would have a really beautiful day but I was wrong again. As we were working I walked past the window and looked outside a few minutes later and it was snowing a freaking blizzard. It wasn’t quite white-out conditions but it was snowing hard and fast and beginning to accumulate. I got back to work and forgot about the weather for a few minutes and an hour later, no snow. We’d come full circle back to cloudy, dismal, and gray.
This Spring Fever is starting to work on my head and I’m getting the urge to do things I shouldn’t even be thinking about this early in the year. We were shopping in a couple of local stores yesterday and it was all I could do to stay out of the garden centers looking for plants, seeds, and everything Spring. I’ve got it really bad and I fear it’s only going to get worse.
Local retailers are not helping to be certain. There are beginning to receive and display their Spring product lines which is going to force me to stay out of the stores for at least four more weeks. I’ve been fooled in years past when I started buying seeds and plants early which all later died a horrible death. I learned a lesson but the Spring Fever craziness won’t get out of my head. Thank God I have this remodeling project to keep me busy for a few more weeks and it should carry me through into the beginnings of Spring.
My better-half has been on a work-related shopping spree today in between times of helping me with the drywall. She’s in charge of an MDA breakfast tomorrow and she’ll be preparing sausage, eggs, and french toast for fifty or more people. I love that she never hesitates to offer her time and efforts to charities but I just don’t know where she gets the energy. Her energy level has always been amazing and much higher than mine could ever be. I’m sure the event will be a huge success.
I have a few more things to do this afternoon then a nice long hot shower and and some good comfort food to round out my day. I started rereading a series of five ebooks that I purchased some time ago and I’m looking forward to an hour or so of reading. I should sleep well tonight and be ready in the morning to do it all over again. Spring is coming and I need to get these winter projects finished.
everyuselessthing.com 