Waste and Gotta Get Wasted

This is both Democrats and Republicans. It a nonpartisan cluster affair!!!

Sometimes our elected officials never cease to amaze me.

Do you remember the $600 toilet seat and the $400 hammer purchases the Government made in the 1980's?

That was cheap!!

The Government should hire my wife to do their shopping and I guarantee you she could save hundreds of billions of our hard-earned money.

How you say?

Well take a look at some of the things your government shoppers pay for items:

The Pentagon is buying $20 plastic ice-cube trays.

That's right, 99 cents at the Dollar Store or $20 each from a Pentagon vendor.

In the spring of 2004, the Pentagon paid $1,000 each for hot plates, even though it had previously bought the same ones for $450.

The Pentagon shelled out $22,797 apiece for 34-inch refrigerators. It costs $99.99 at Lowe's!

Since the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) initiated what it calls the prime vendor program, the Pentagon has been encouraged to buy from a cherrypicked group of manufacturers.

The idea is to favor vendors who will speed up the delivery of goods to our military bases.

It's a great deal - for the manufacturers, that is.

They don't have to worry much about competitive bids, which means they can charge absurd prices for their products and services.

I bet my wife could team up with Target and WalMart for a lot lower prices on purchases with Fed EX and UPS for delivery, and I bet she can beat the delivery time the Government is experiencing now!!





Switching gears,

How many of you have become hooked on all the poker games that are on TV?

I know I sure have, but how would you like to win this?



Girl Allegedly Offered as Bride to Settle Debt

The 17-year-old was to be surrendered as a bride for the son of Lal Haider, the man who won the card game years before.

Umrani said her husband was a gambler who ran up the $165 debt at a poker game when Rasheeda was 1 year old. He promised Haider that he would get Rasheeda in lieu of payment when she grew up, the mother said.

Man you gotta know when to hold them and know when to fold them.

The winner should have folded them. I bet his son has got to hate his Dad now after this prize!!!




This would require a lot of alcohol!!!







Party on dudes and dudettes. Join me again tomorrow for more of less!!!!

Silly and Serious

How silly is this?

Chinese businessman seeks stand-in to take wife’s battering for mistress

BEIJING - A Chinese businessman has advertised on the Internet for a stand-in mistress to be beaten up by his wife to vent her anger and to protect his real mistress.

"When the woman found out her husband had a mistress, she insisted on beating her up," the Beijing Youth Daily said, citing the advertisement posted on a popular online jobs forum on sina.com.

More than 10 people had applied for the job. The "successful" candidate would be 35 and originally from northeastern China and would be paid 3,000 yuan ($400) per 10 minutes.

Many Chinese businessmen keep mistresses in second homes, a trend banished after the communists swept to power in 1949 but which has made a comeback with market reforms in recent decades.

Wouldn't it be better for the wife to just beat her husband? It appears a lot of Chinese women like to get beat up for bucks!!!!




Even sillier

A case of quantity over quality?

107-year-old man speculates chastity may be behind his longevity

HONG KONG - A 107-year-old Hong Kong villager, who still enjoys an occasional smoke, has attributed his longevity in part to decades of sexual abstinence, a newspaper reported Sunday.

"I don't know why I have lived this long," Chan Chi — one of Hong Kong's oldest people — was quoted as saying during an annual feast for the city's elders.

"Maybe it has to do with the fact that I have lived a sex-less life for many years — since I was 30," said Chan, a widower whose youthful bride perished during the Japanese invasion in World War Two.

Chan, from Hong Kong's less built-up New Territories hinterland, was pictured looking sprightly and eating heartily at the banquet.

A former chef, he said a low-fat diet and regular dawn exercises had helped him fight off the ravages of old age.

So he has lived to 107 years old because of decades of sexual abstinence. No sex since he was 30. Living to 77 years and having a regular diet, and little or no exercise and lots of sex would be much better????





On a serious note!

Today's public information post:

This is especially important if you have children or if you are a woman living alone.

I tried this with my phone number and it worked.

Google has implemented a new feature which enables you to type a telephone number into the search bar and hit enter and you will be given the person's name and address.

If you then hit MapQuest, you will get a map to the person's house.

Everyone should be aware of this!

It's a nationwide reverse telephone book.

If a child gives out his/her phone number, someone can now look it up to find out where he/she lives.

The safety issues are obvious, and alarming.

I tried my number and it came up along with the mapquest and directions straight to
our house.

Try your own phone number and see if it works!

Note that you can have your phone number removed or blocked.

In order to test whether your phone number is mapped, go to:

google http://google.com/ Type your phone number in the search bar ( i.e. 555-555-1212) and hit enter.

If you want to B L O C K Google from divulging your private information, simply click on your telephone number and then click on the Removal Form.

Removal takes 48 hours.

Although this may not apply to you if you have an unlisted number or cell phone as primary contact, you may know someone who needs to know this.


That's all for today folks. Take charge of your life and join me once again tomorrow of a whole lot of nothing!!!!

Monday

The blog writer has decided to take another day off.

Try back tomorrow. Thanks.

Weird and Wild

Today let's take a walk on the weird or wild side!!!


Bound Fur-Ever

A dog bride and groom wait for a mass dog wedding ceremony at a Hong Kong mall. The pooches walked down a red carpet and took the oath of marriage by stamping paw prints on a wedding certificate.

I'm not sure the groom is sold on this marriage. I assume it was arranged by the families. The Groom's family probably had to give a couple of Pigs for the Bride!!!






Porky Peck

Pig bride Huang Pu-Pu, right, and groom Shui Fu-Ko kiss during their wedding ceremony in Taiwan's Yilan County. The pigs' owners married the animals for the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Pig.

I'm not sure who the groom is. I assume the marriage was arranged by the families. The Groom's family probably had to give a couple of Dogs for the Bride!!!



Let's hope the dogs and the pigs didn't have a problem on the honeymoon like the following bears did on their first date:

Rough courtship leaves polar bear all shook up

Female breaks leg after suitor pushes her over ledge at Memphis Zoo

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - As first dates go, this one didn’t end well.

A male polar bear who was trying to court a female polar bear apparently pushed her over the edge of a 14-foot drop while playing, Memphis Zoo officials said.

Cranbeary, the 5-year-old female, had surgery Saturday to insert two steel plates and 26 screws to repair a broken leg.

Payton, the 3-year-old male, is on loan from the Brookfield Zoo in Illinois as part of a breeding program. This may be both bears’ first romance, and it got a little awkward, said Matt Thompson, mammal curator.

Zoo officials said Cranbeary is in heat, which could have led to Payton’s aggressive behavior. A visitor reported seeing him tussling with her atop the cliff before she fell.

Cranbeary will stay in her cage for at least 10 weeks until her leg is strong enough to return to the exhibit, zoo officials said.

Man, what do you think she said to provoke that response? Did she start laughing at his techniques or something else? Or was it just a case of rough sex gone a little overboard?






Backyard Bear Gives Woman a Scare

MAPLEWOOD, N.J. - A woman glancing out a kitchen window in this bedroom community just west of New York City was startled to find a black bear peering back in at her.

"I was making a pot of coffee, and I turned around and there he was in the window looking at me," said Lorraine Grossman.

She screamed, spooking the 211-pound bear, which ran to a nearby tree, climbed 40 feet up and wouldn't budge. More than 50 neighbors gathered in Maplewood to watch for five hours as the creature just yawned.

"He's really kind of cute," said Joanne Penaluna.

State wildlife officers eventually shot the animal with a tranquilizer dart. After hanging on for about 10 minutes, the bear dropped into a net. It was taken away, tagged, then released at a state wildlife management area.

Authorities said the bear, a male estimated to be 2 or 3 years old, might have been snacking on birdseed and likely wandered in from the nearby South Mountain Reservation.

She screamed, spooking the 211-pound bear, which ran to a nearby tree. Do you know how much trash talk he is going to get from the other bears? Bears are supposed to be mean and not let a woman scream and chase it up a tree!! What a wuss!!!



OK, another gem I know, but remember this "It ain't easy being me!!!"

Blog alert - The writer is taking the weekend off. Please return Monday for more of all the silly news no one else will use!!

City Farmers

Farm aid


How many of you have seen or heard of Willie Nelson's concerts to raise money for the farmers.

Real farmers, that is, and his is a noble cause.

But,

Did you know our government is paying big bucks to wealthy individuals who happen to own rural land somewhere, as long as they agree to federal rules about how - and even whether- they cultivate their spread.

Years of pocketing lots of money ­- your money. Amazing as it sounds, your tax dollars have been going to rich guys like these in the form of farm subsidies.

And what about these farmers? Check out who receives aid and who gives aid and who actually farms:

Let's name a few you might recognize.

Ted Turner, Sam Donaldson, David Rockefeller, and the late Ken Lay.


From 1995 to 2005, Lay, the now­ deceased Enron CEO, got $23,326 for conservation land in Missouri.

Business-mogul Turner raked in $590,823 for farms in Nebraska, South Dakota, Montana and Florida.

Donaldson supplemented his earnings as a broadcast journalist with $88,308 for a livestock ranch in New Mex­ico.

Rockefeller, a financier and philanthropist, got $553,782 for two farms in New York.

Those are just a few. It's worse than you think. According to a study by The Washington Post, since 2000 the government has paid people around the country $1.3 billion a year not to farm.

That equates to 40 million acres annually-"the equivalent of making every farm in Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio idle," according to Brian Riedl, a senior budget analyst at the Heritage Foundation.

In 2005 alone, 75 percent of the $20 billion in farm subsidies was paid to farmers for cultivating select crops like corn and soybeans.

Among those soaking up the subsidies are well-to-do operators of large industrial farms.

Meanwhile, the small, struggling farmer who may actually need assistance is getting squeezed out of business by the big boys lined up at the public trough.

It all began during the Great Depression, when FDR got Congress to pass laws designed to help cash­strapped farmers.

The government introduced price supports for vari­ous crops, and in periods when the crop yield outpaced market demand, the feds agreed to buy the excess supply.

These and other subsidies continued to grow until, in the 1970s, the government also started paying farmers to leave some of their land fallow.

Today the full farm lobby does all it can to hang on to these subsidies, even though most of that assistance goes to large and profitable farm business.

To be sure, federal money is helping keep the owners of small farms afloat.

But when over 70 percent of the subsidies go to the top 10 percent of producers, you know politics is at play.

On the farm subsidy website of the Environmental Working Group, you'll see some baffling zip codes like 90210.

That's Beverly Hills, which has 136 subsidized farmers listed!

In Washington, D.C., the site identifies 62 farmers getting federal money and 80 on the Lower Side of Manhattan.

There were a lot of struggling farmers where I was raised. I guess they didn't understand the golden rule: Those who have the Gold, rule!!

I would love to see if any of these so called farmers could jump on a tractor with a plow in tow, actually know how to start it and be able to plow straight!!


Is that Ted Turner? I think not!!!

I guess the old saying "What's right is right" has been replaced by "If it's there, take it, it's yours!!"

Those are my rants and raves for today. Hope to see you on the flip flop!!

Ron

Today this blog is dedicated to our friend Ron who is recovering from back surgery he had done yesterday.



For months we've watched you and you could hardly sit, let alone walk or run.
But you were hard headed and would not go get anything done.


Finally the pain got so bad and you were really sore.
You turned to Ben and said take me to see the Doctor.


Your dog April was so happy to hear that, she started to bark.
Yes daddy Ron get better so you can walk me at the park.


The Doctor said Ron you've waited long enough, the time has come to operate.
He said it would feel so much better you would even be able to sleep late.



You've had your surgery and for a while you will be blue and black.
But all your friends will be happy when to the park you come back.

Straighten up and walk right so your story to the park people you can tell.
Until then though, from all your friends, here's a hurry up wish for you to get well!!!

Feel better Ron!!

Join me again tomorrow for I know not what!!

Some of Nothing

Ok, the real caption for Saturday's post was


Milking It

An activist sucks on "Freeda the Cow" as part of Animal Liberation Victoria's "Milk Sucks" campaign on Feb. 9 in Melbourne, Australia. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the effects dairy farming can have on animals and the environment.

I had much better ones, but dared not!





Thai woman who got on wrong buses 25 years ago reunited with family

BANGKOK, Thailand - A 76-year-old Malay Muslim woman from southern Thailand who got on the wrong bus 25 years ago and ended up living at the other end of the country has been reunited with her family, officials and domestic media said Tuesday.

Unable to speak, read or write Thai, Jaeyaena Beuraheng boarded a bus in Malaysia thinking it was bound for Narathiwat, one of three Muslim-majority provinces in Buddhist Thailand's far south.

Instead, she ended up 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) to the north in Bangkok. Her predicament grew worse when she boarded a bus she thought was heading south only to end up in Chiang Mai, another 700 kilometers to the north, the Nation newspaper reported.

She eked out a living as a beggar for five years before being arrested in 1987 and put into a center for homeless people in a nearby province, where she has remained ever since.

She was finally reunited with her eight children — who were told she had been run over by a train — after three students from Narathiwat came to work at the center and spoke to her.

"It was only when the students in Muslim clothes visited her and she started chatting to them that we realized she wasn't mute."

The woman had been known as "Mrs. Mon" because the center’s staff thought her mutterings sounded like Mon, a tribal language in neighboring Myanmar, she added.

Thailand's three southernmost provinces were annexed by Bangkok a century ago and remain culturally distinct from the rest of the country. Eighty percent of the population are Muslim and speak Malay as a first language.

You figure she could have walked back by now !!!!




Man's body found in front of TV year after death

Television was still on, authorities say; body partially mummified

HAMPTON BAYS, N.Y. - The partially mummified body of a man dead for more than a year has been found in a chair in front of his television, which was still on, authorities said.

Vincenzo Ricardo, 70, apparently died of natural causes, said Dr. Stuart Dawson, Suffolk County’s deputy chief medical examiner.

Police found Ricardo’s body this week when they investigated a report of burst pipes.

The home’s dry air had preserved his features, morgue assistant Jeff Bacchus said.

“You could see his face. He still had hair on his head,” Bacchus said.

Ricardo’s wife died years ago, and he lived alone, Dawson said.

“He hasn’t been heard from in over a year. That’s the part that baffles me,” he said. “Nobody sounded the alarm.”

Neighbors said they had thought Ricardo was in a hospital or nursing home.

“We never thought to check on him,” said neighbor Diane Devon.

15 of his favorite shows had been canceled during that time!!

He was close with his neighbors for sure!!!







Israeli beauty queen drops arms to save legs

Miss Israel gets OK not to carry rifle while in army to avoid ugly bruises

JERUSALEM - Miss Israel has been given permission not to carry her assault rifle during service in the Israeli army because she says it bruises her legs.

Reigning beauty queen Yael Nezri, a private who recently completed basic training, said the bruises were making it difficult for her to model in photo shoots.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Nezri, 18, had been granted an exemption by her commanders during her two-year army stint.

Now there's the problem with women in the military!! Nails, hair, legs - I can't fight. I might break a nail or muss my hair!! Don't get mad ladies!!



With that, I leave you with this:

A lady friend's husband passed away last night.

She was with him when he died so I asked her if he had any last requests before he died.

She said yes he did. His last request was "put down that damn gun..."




There we go for Tuesday. Someday there might be a Gem on here so check back!

You Don't Know Jack

Today is Monday, and tonight my favorite TV show is on.

Some people just don't get it - maybe that is the problem in this country.

Bad guys should get no special treatment.



Group Decries Jack Bauer's Use of Torture

NEW YORK - Demanding information, Jack Bauer faces a terrified man tied to a chair in front of him. Through a window over Bauer's shoulder, the man sees his two children bound and gagged.

Tell me where the bomb is, Bauer orders, or we'll kill your family. Silence. The prisoner watches as a thug kicks down the chair his son is tied to and fires a gun at point-blank range. He screams but still doesn't relent - until the gun is pointed at his second son. Having gotten what he needed, Bauer whispers that the execution was staged.

The scene from Fox's "24" is haunting, but hardly unusual. The advocacy group Human Rights First says there's been a startling increase in the number of torture scenes depicted on prime-time television in the post-2001 world.












Even more chilling, there are indications that real-life American interrogators in Iraq are taking cues from what they see on television, said Jill Savitt, the group's director of public programs.

And my question is, SO WHAT'S YOUR POINT? Television is, after all, an educational tool!!

The advocacy group Human Rights First won't be around when we are taken over by another country and forced to live under their rules.

Hello, do you get it???

Jack interrogates and kills good, deal with it!!

Jack Bauer power hour!!!!! Go Jack, do whatever it takes to extract information from the bad guys!!


Those are my Rants and Raves for today.
See you same time, same station tomorrow.

Canines and a Cat

Let's spotlight the animals today!!


Crash Victim Says Dog Saved Her Life

THOMASVILLE - A south Georgia woman bloodied in a car wreck says she owes her life to a German shepherd who - thankfully - just wouldn't stay in his yard.


Shannon Lorio says that after her car careened down an embankment, the wayward dog found her bruised and battered on the vehicle's trunk, pulled her by her shirt collar, dragged her about 50 yards through briars to a highway and let her lean against him so she could flag a passing motorist.

"I was bleeding from my face and my nose," she said. "All of a sudden, I felt a presence - a really huge presence. He was straddling me. I have watched too many horror movies about werewolves and vampires. I thought he was going to eat me."

Instead, the dog licked her face, she said.

The 2-year-old dog, weighing 70 pounds, dragged the 136-pound Lorio to the highway, then stood by to help her summon help before she collapsed, she said.

She didn't even know the dog and the dog didn't know her. Heroes come in all different uniforms!!





Man Bites Dog and Dog Bites Back

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - Man bites dog; dog bites back. That was the sequence when Alsatian police dog Edge cornered two suspects on a cliff side after a grocery store robbery in Napier, New Zealand, police said on Thursday.

One of the suspects leaped down the slope and landed almost directly into the hands of police officers waiting at the bottom. The other suspect, who was armed with a knife took on Edge, and bit the dog in the struggle.

"He bit the dog first," Detective Sergeant John McGregor told The Associated Press.

Edge was unfazed, sinking his teeth into his attacker.

"The dog did win the fight, the offender ended up with one or two lacerations," McGregor said. "I think he knew he was going to get bitten - so he bit the dog first."

In June 2006 Edge underwent emergency surgery after an offender stabbed him in the chest with a hunting knife. After surgery and a blood transfusion, the dog made a complete recovery.

This is one bad (good) dog. The bad guy musta thought he was Mike Tyson!!!





Dog Eats Owner's $5,000 Wedding Ring

RAISINVILLE TOWNSHIP, Michigan - Here is a dog with expensive taste: A pit bull ate its owner's $5,000 wedding ring before being made to throw it up again. Tina Burlett had thought someone broke into her house and stole the custom-made ring. But her grandmother suspected the family dog, Missy.

X-rays showed she was right.

Missy has been caught gnawing on VCRs, electric blankets and even Burlett's diamond earring.

"I did have a dog eat a watch once," said Dr. Linda Fung of the Country Creek Animal Hospital. "Animals swallow a lot of stuff. It's not an unusual thing. We just made her throw it up."


Well, hello, yeah Pit Bulls eat everything, including people.






Mother Cat Adopts Newborn Rottweiler

MERIDEN, Conn. - Who says cats and dogs don't get along?

Workers at the Meriden Humane Society are marveling at a short-haired mother cat that has adopted a 6-day-old Rottweiler puppy that was rejected by its mother.

The tiny pup, named Charlie by Humane Society volunteers, nurses alongside a jumble of black and gray kittens recently born to Satin, who was taken to the shelter by an owner unable to care for her.

Charlie's mother was found by the side of the road in Meriden a couple of months ago. She gave birth to two puppies, but one was stillborn. As sometimes happens with a stillborn in the litter, the mother refused to accept Charlie.

Volunteers bottle-fed him every two hours, but the effort was exhausting for them and insufficient for the puppy, volunteer Chris Chorney said.

Research indicated that a suitable substitute could be Satin, who had given birth to four kittens that have quickly warmed to Charlie.

"The kittens scrum up with him and the kittens treat him like one of their own," Chorney said. "There's a certain social benefit of small animals being with each other."

Such relationships are not all that unusual in certain circumstances, said Deirdre Chiaramonte, a veterinarian at the Animal Medical Center, a specialty teaching hospital in New York.

The cozy arrangement between Charlie, Satin and the kittens will likely change as the pup grows. Full-grown male Rottweilers commonly weigh 100 pounds.

Volunteers are hoping that dog owners will volunteer their puppies to be Charlie's playmates.

"Dogs need to be with a litter of puppies, to learn to play with other dogs," Chorney said. "He has to learn to be a well-socialized dog."

Just a little feel good story for your Sunday.

That's all for today. Don't forget it's not too late to post your comments on yesterday's blog!!!

You Tell Me

Let's talk.


OK, it's Saturday and this is going to be a short interactive blog.


Yeah, you read it right - interactive.


I am going to try something different today and give you the opportunity to write your caption for the picture I am going to post.


I have been doing all the writing on here, and now it's your turn.


It's simple, it's fun. Just hit the comment box and post your caption.








Ready, set, go:














C'mon now, I expect some good ones!!!!

Potpourri

Hey, it's Friday. Let's mix it up a bit for a change.

Question:

I was just wondering, since so many illegals from Mexico now reside in the United States, don't you think this country should now qualify for foreign aid from the United States Government?




I think I'm old:

A friend's daughter was doing a high school class assignment and part of that was to ask an "older" person about their life.

She asked me if I would mind answering the questions.

I agreed to respond and one of her questions was "What was the biggest historical event that happened in your lifetime?"

After much thought, I answered it would probably have been the Moonwalk.

She got this real disappointed look on her face and said "That dance was the biggest event in your lifetime?"



Speaking of the Moon:

Can someone tell me why we keep sending people to the Moon?

In all this time if we haven't learned all we need to know about the Moon we never will.

Besides how important can it be since NASA must not care as they lost a bunch of the film!!

Wouldn't the money we spend going to the Moon be better spent on our own problems here in the United States?

Oh yeah, we can build houses and live on the Moon. Right!!!!




Speaking of out there:

They say marriage is made in heaven. I have a news flash for you - so is Rain, Hail, Thunder and Lightning!!!!!!!


My wife and I were meeting friends for dinner the other night and she took so long getting ready we were going to be late.

I knew if I complained to her I would be in real trouble so I asked God to give me patience and I asked him if he could hurry up.

My wife told me meditation would be good for me and that the key to success with meditation is to keep your eyes open and focus on a spot in front of you.

Boy, was she right. I never felt that good - I was able to meditate 4 hours by focusing on the television.





Speaking of TV:

Did you know at least 90 million toilets were flushed during the Super Bowl?

That is enough water to flow over Niagara Falls for three minutes.




Speaking of water:

We ventured to Hoover (Boulder) Dam the other day to see the water level. Take notice of the former water line near the top.







I think they should scoop up all the snow in New York and put it in refrigerated railroad cars and ship it to us to put into our lake! I'm sure the people in New York would be as happy to get rid of it as we would to receive it!! Send water please!!



That's it for today. I will leave you with pictures of the Big Horn Sheep we saw along the roadside on our way to the Dam.








The end!!!!!!!!

A Short Story

From the dark side.

Let's try something completely different today, whatcha say?

A short story titled:



Who Will Miss Him When He's Gone
By Wag

I was driving down a long lonesome highway late one cold night when I spotted an elderly man walking along the roadway.

I slowed my car, made a u-turn and approached him and asked if he would like a ride.

He got a big smile on his face and said he would if it would not be too much of an inconvenience to me.

I said jump in, I would enjoy the company, and then we were back driving on the road.

He said he really appreciated the warmth in the car and appreciated someone would stop and give him a ride.

He asked if I would mind if he smoked and when I said I wouldn't mind he pulled out his pouch of Bull Durham, his papers, and he proceed to roll him a smoke.

As he was rolling his smoke, I asked him where he was headed and he replied he was going to the end of the road.

I laughed and said we are on the West coast and this road goes all the way across to the East coast and that is a long road.

He turned and looked at me and said the road is not as long as you think and that it could end at any time at the top of a hill or at the next curve, you just never know when or where the road ends.

I thought to myself, I've driven this road before so I would have to think about what he meant about that.

As we drove along the desolate road in the darkness I asked him if he had a wife, to which he said yes, but that she had died a few years back.

At that moment from the reflection of the dash lights on his face I saw a tear streak down his cheek.

I asked if he had any kids and he said yes he had two sons who he and his wife had revolved their life around when his wife was alive and the boys were young.

Oh, I said, do they still live with you? No, he said they both got married and moved out of the house and I don't see them much anymore.

I said well when the kids move away to other towns you sometimes don't see them as often as you would like too.

How far away did they move from you I asked?

He paused and took a long drag of his hand-rolled cigarette and he said one son had moved about three miles from him and the other moved about five miles away.

I said they live in the same town and you don't see them much, to which he responded well once in a while I see them at the grocery store, but not that often.

As I spotted another tear rolling down his face he added, you know they have their own lives and are very busy, but they did spend an hour with me after their mother's funeral and that was nice.

After about ten minutes of uncomfortable silence as we were driving by a remote military base, I asked him if he had ever been in the service.

He said he had in fact and had served in the Marines during the Vietnam War.

He went on to tell me he had lost a lot of friends to that war and said how hard it was when he returned home because of the way he was treated by people.

He said he served his country and even though the war was unpopular, he didn't understand why people blamed the soldier for a war the politicians didn't fight to win.

At that point we pulled into a little town and stopped at the gas station for gas and a pit stop.

Once the car was gassed and ready, I asked the old man if he would like a pop for the road.

At that point I saw him smile as he said, funny how some call them soda and some call them pop.

It's for sure we come from part of the states that called them pop and sure I'd love a Coke in a glass bottle if'n they got um.

We both had a laugh at that one as we sped off down the road drinking our Cokes out of the plastic bottles.

The old man finished his pop and pulled out his tobacco pouch and papers and rolled himself another smoke.

I felt he was feeling a little better so I asked him where he had worked when he came back from the service.

He said he worked for several years at IBM and then one day out of the clear blue they had what you call a reorganization and he was laid off.

He said after several years of odd jobs to make ends meet he landed a new job which ultimately he had all his life savings invested in and that job was with Enron.

He said once Enron crashed he saw his wife start to fade away until one day she reached the end of her road and passed away. He added his life after that had no purpose.

It now became clear to me what the old man meant when he said he was going to the end of his road.

He went on to say that he wasn't needed anymore. He said neither his kids nor anyone asked him his opinion or advice about anything any longer.

It's funny he said but people think when you are older you don't know anything and are of no use to them so they just ignore you.

He continued, people used to call me to help them move or to help them fix things. They called for advice or just plain wanted my opinion about things.

Then when I reached a certain age it stopped, and now the phone never rings and I am just passing time.

It's funny, now I have a lot of time for those things and no one wants any of my time.

We were coming into the town I was going to and sadly I turned to him and told him we had reached my destination and I was sorry I couldn't take him any farther down the highway.

I asked him if he would consider staying at my place for a while as I had really enjoyed his company.

Once again from the glimmer of the dash lights on his face I noticed another tear as he said how much he had enjoyed the trip but he could not stay as he knew he was about to reach the end of his journey.

I wished him luck and told him I hoped his road would never end.

With that he got out of the car and as I drove away he was rolling another smoke as he was slowly walking down the road.

As I tossed and turned that night trying desperately to sleep, I wondered, besides me, who will miss him when he's gone!!



That's a wrap for today's blog. Return once again tomorrow for who knows what!!!!

Won't You Be My Sweetheart?

Welcome to Wag's tips on how to stay out of trouble today.

Do you know what day this is? That's right, Valentine's Day.



Valentine's Day is a holiday on February 14th. It is the day of the year when lovers show their love to each other.

This can be done by giving flowers, candy, or Valentine's cards. Love notes can be given to one another. These notes are called valentines.



Symbols of Valentine's Day are heart shapes and Cupid with his arrows.






Valentine's day checklist

Make sure this Valentine's Day goes off without a single hitch! Below is a general checklist of things you should consider when planning your Valentine's Day! Good luck, and have a most romantic holiday with your sweetheart!

1. Your Schedules

Before you can decide on anything, you need to find out what both of your schedules are. Do one or both of you have to work? Find out what hours. Does your date have something else planned during any part of the day? Make sure to find out everything, then tell your date AS SOON AS POSSIBLE what time to reserve for your interlude.

2. Consider Your Date's Interests

Is your date a "flowers and romance, dance all night" type, or a "stay at home in front of the fire" type of person? This is important in determining what you are planning to do. If you're not sure, ask your date what they like.

3. Plan Your Date

By now you should know what timeframe you have to work with and what your partner's interests are. With this information it should be much easier deciding what to do. While you're planning, make sure to check if reservations are needed, any tipping requirements, transportation you might need, any possible dress code, timeframe of any events, and if there are any restrictions on any mood enhancers you might want to bring, like candles. Don't forget to let your date know about any information they need to know, like dress codes, etc.!

3. Select Mood Enhancers

With the date idea selected, it's time to plan your "over-the-top valentine romance!" For a list of great ideas when planning these, check for any of the things mentioned above that are relevant.

4. Your Gift

The gift is almost as, if not more, important than the actual date. It doesn't need to be expensive, but it does need to show that you've put a lot of time and care into selecting it. If you're deciding to give a traditional favorite, like flowers or chocolates, try and do something unique with them. For example, have 12 single roses delivered separately, or try one of the creative chocolate ideas.

5. Confirm Everything!!!

The night before, take some time and confirm any reservations or plans you have that involve a third party. This not only helps ease your nerves a bit, but also reminds the other person of their possible duty.

6. Relax And Enjoy!

Pick up your date and enjoy each other's romantic company! Relax, because you've taken all the steps to plan the perfect Valentine's Day date!!






There is something about sweets and Valentine's Day that goes hand in hand. But with a traditional gift, such as chocolates, it's easy to be considered out-dated and uninventive. So this year, use one of the creative ideas below to give a standard romantic favorite a new feel!

1. Make a candy love letter.

Write a love letter out of candy bar titles. Get a piece of brightly colored poster board and a bunch of your favorite candy bars. Write your love letter on the board in a contrasting colored pen. Replace key words with candy bars taped onto the poster board.

2. Chocolate bouquet.

Get your love's favorite chocolates and thick wood skewers. You'll also need a box or basket and a piece of styrofoam cut to fit inside the box or basket. Cut the skewers in half with a small saw and lightly sand down the blunt ends. Stick a chocolate on the top of each blunt end. Then stick the pointed end into the stryofoam piece. Cover the stryofoam with moss or ribbon.

3. Never-ending chocolate box.

Get a set of boxes that fit inside of each other. The more you can get to fit inside of each other the better. Buy your love's favorite chocolates or sweets and some tissue paper. Line each box with tissue paper and place one chocolate or sweet inside of it. Then cover it with another piece of tissue paper. Keep doing this until you've filled all your boxes. If you have more chocolates than boxes, start with one chocolate in the first and more in each box following.

4. Trail of chocolates.

Get quite a few bags of chocolates, some tissue paper and curling ribbon. Layer two pieces of tissue paper and place one handful of candy in the middle of it. Pull up the sides and tie a piece of curling ribbon around it. Repeat this until all the candy but one bag is left. Put your bags of candy in a strategic location with a love letter in front of them. Then make a trail from wherever your love will be to the candy pile. This is a great "wake-up" surprise!

5. Chocolate roses.

Combine the classic favorites together and give your love a bouquet of chocolate roses. Attach a note saying, "I decided to give you these chocolate roses instead of real ones because our love is something that should be sweet and savored."






Considered one of the most powerful aphrodisiacs and a highly sensuous, forbidden food, chocolate provides the perfect prelude to sensual, romantic "intercourse." Below is a list of our favorite ways to enjoy this fun appeteaser!

Freshly dipped chocolate covered strawberries hand fed to each other.

Melted chocolate dripped over your partner's body to be licked off slowly.

Chocolate covered peanuts or almonds and other bite size chocolates to be used as commodities for a game of strip poker.

Chocolate cake frosting for use as body paint.

Leaving sensual hints and/or notes in the "tag" of Hershey's Kisses.

Bringing a gift of a chocolate rose bouquet as an alternative to fresh roses.

Chocolate fudge, chocolate ice cream and chocolate sprinkles to be used as the ultimate chocolate human sundae!

Leaving a trail of Dove Promises from the door to the bed with a note of the events planned.

Sharing chocolate cookie dough (or the ice cream) after love-making.

Sharing an intimate moment in the nude together with the classic solid milk chocolate bar.


Now if this doesn't cover it nothing will!!

Here's wishing all of you a Happy Valentine's Day.

Join me once again tomorrow for the blog that has it all!!!!

Hot Cars 'n Fine Music - Part 2

Welcome back!

Sit down, shut up, and hold on tight as we tach it up with part two of hot cars 'n fine music.



"Dead Man's Curve"
by Jan and Dean

Jan and Dean sang this song about a Corvette and a Jaguar facing off with dire results at Dead Man's Curve. Ironically, Jan would be severely injured in an automobile accident in 1966 at a similar curve.



I was cruisin' in my Stingray late one night
When an XKE pulled up on the right



And rolled down the window of his shiny new Jag
And challenged me then and there to a drag



I said, "you're on, buddy, my mill's runnin' fine
Let's come off the line, now, at Sunset and Vine
But I'll go you one better if you've got the nerve
Let's race all the way To Dead Man's Curve"

Dead Man's Curve, it's no place to play
Dead Man's Curve, you must keep away
Dead Man's Curve, I can hear 'em say:
"Won't come back from Dead Man's Curve"

The street was deserted late Friday night
We were buggin' each other while we sat out the light
We both popped the clutch when the light turned green
You shoulda heard the whine from my screamin' machine
I flew past LaBrea, Schwab's, and Crescent Heights
And all the Jag could see were my six taillights
He passed me at Doheny then I started to swerve
But I pulled her out and there we were at Dead Man's Curve

Dead Man's Curve, it's no place to play
Dead Man's Curve

Well - the last thing I remember, Doc, I started to swerve
And then I saw the Jag slide into the curve
I know I'll never forget that horrible sight
I guess I found out for myself that everyone was right
"Won't come back from Dead Man's Curve"

Especially out west, street racing was what Friday and Saturday nights were all about as was the music. Almost every town had a dead man's curve that people could relate to.


And along came this specialty car.

"Hey Little Cobra"
by The Rip Chords

A song about the Shelby Cobra

Hey, Little Cobra, don't you know
you're gonna to shut 'em down

I took my Cobra down to the track,
hitched to the back of my Cadillac,



Everyone was there just a waiting for me
There were plenty of Stingrays and XKEs,

Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might
Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might

Hey, Little Cobra, don't you know
you are going to shut them down

When the flag went down, you could hear rubber burn,
The Stingray pulled me going into the turn

I hung a big shift, and I got into high,
When I when I flew by the Stingray, I waved bye bye.

Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might
Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might

Hey, Little Cobra, Don't you know
you are going to shut 'em down

Around the turn into the straight away
I was blowing off everything that got in my way,

Stingrays and Jags were so far behind
I took my Cobra out of gear and let it coast to the line.

Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might
Spring little Cobra getting ready to strike
Spring Little Cobra with all your might

Hey, Little Cobra, Don't you know
you are going to shut 'em down

Shut'em down, shut'em down, shut'em down...


Now this little Shelby monster was all horsepower - no body weight and no frills.

This was strictly all about speed, but it cost big bucks and was a limited edition. But baby did the ground shake when you fired it up!!!!!!!!!



Chevy declares war


"409"
by The Beach Boys


She's real fine my 409
She's real fine my 409
My 409

Well I saved my pennies and I saved my dimes
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
For I knew there would be a time
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
When I would buy a brand new 409
(409, 409)
Giddy up giddy up giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 40...

Nothing can catch her
Nothing can touch my 409
409 ooooo
(Giddy up giddy up oooo)
(Giddy up giddy up oooo)
(Giddy up giddy up oooo)
(Giddy up giddy up)

When I take her to the track she really shines
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
She always turns in the fastest times
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
My four speed dual quad posi-traction 409
(409, 409, 409, 409)




Giddy up giddy up giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 409
(Giddy up giddy up 409)
Giddy up 40...

Nothing can catch her
Nothing can touch my 409
(409 409 409 409)
Giddy up 409
(409 409 409 409)
Giddy up 409
(409 409 409 409)



This song immortalized the Chevy 409 engine and is one of the most famous muscle car songs.

The 409 engine became the hottest thing on the street, and the rest is history.

With this engine General Motors Chevrolet division officially threw down the gauntlet for factory street machines.

A few years later General Motors also threw their Pontiac into the competition with the GTO.


"GTO"
by Ronny and the Daytonas


The song that helped fuel the GTO craze.


Little GTO, you're really lookin' fine
Three deuces and a four-speed and a 389
Listen to her tackin' up now, listen to her whi-i-ine
C'mon and turn it on, wind it up, blow it out, GTO



Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(ah, little G-T- O)



You oughta see her on a road course or a quarter mile
This little modified Pon-Pon has got plenty of style
She beats the gassers and the rail jobs, really drives 'em wi-i-ild
C'mon and turn it on, wind it up, blow it out, GTO



Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(ah, little G-T- O)

Gonna save all my money and buy a GTO
Get a helmet and a roll bar and I'll be ready to go
Take it out to Pomona and let 'em know
That I'm the coolest thing around
Little buddy, gonna shut you down
When I turn it on, wind it up, blow it out GTO

Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(yeah yeah, little GTO)
Wo wo, wo wo wo wo wo
(ah, little G-T- O)



Now this little baby produced 348bhp with the optional Tri-Power setup, 3 2bbl carbs and this was an intermediate size car.

It soon became known as the "Goat" that would stand the automobile industry on end and lead to a host of imitators. But no one in the mid-sixties would get it together quite like Pontiac.

Mike, a friend of mine had one of these bad boys.

I remember we were cruising the main street of a small town one day with me driving and a young lady in the front seat with me and Mike and a young lady in the back seat.

I made a u-turn on the main drag and the girl with Mike said, "Oh it really turns me on when you squeal the tires."

Let me tell you, in those days when a girl said what turns her on you did what ever she wanted, you know what I mean?

Well, I stopped right there and looked in the rear view mirror at Mike and he smiled and said, "Well, turn it loose."

So I tached it up and dropped the clutch and boiled the smoke off those rear tires and laid down 128 feet of rubber. I certainly was trying to do my part to help Mike's girl get turned on if you know what I mean.

I was grabbing second gear to light up those tires again when I saw the deputy sheriff standing there observing my exhibition.

It was amazing how fast he was able to get into his car and locate us, and it was also amazing how irritated he was.

When he asked me just what I thought I was doing, I explained I was just doing a favor for Mike in the back seat and told him how the young lady liked to be turned on.

The cop was not at all understanding. He took me directly to the courthouse and called in the judge for me to appear in front of (small town kinda service).

The judge's parents were friends of my parents so I felt pretty good about court until I realized the friendship did not trickle down to the kids.

He proceeded to admonish me and slap a heavy fine or jail time on me. I certainly didn't have that kind of cash which I explained to the judge.

The only thing he did for me was to give me 24 hours to post bail or off to jail I would go.

So Mike and I pooled all our cash, borrowed from the girls, and contacted others who helped so I could avoid jail.

Needless to say when I smoked the tires it made Mike's girl hot, but when I asked to borrow money she cooled off quick.

I don't think I ever apologized to Mike for that!! Sorry Mike, I tried!!!

That's my story of when cars and music came together. There will never be a time like that again!!

Well, that's the end of this little stroll down memory lane. Tune in tomorrow for something, I know not what!!!

Hot Cars 'n Fine Music - Part 1

Welcome back! I missed you!!

For something different, let's talk about the old days of cars and music.

Do you remember when you would see a car on the road and immediately recognize the make and model? Unlike today where all cars look the same.

Those were the days when you rolled your pack of smokes up in the sleeve of your white tee shirt, slipped your comb out of your back pocket and slicked back the sides, spun the curl in the front and fine tuned your duck tail of your Brylcreamed hair.

Then off you walked down the street in your harness boots with the horse shoe taps a clattering, checking every car parked at the curb.

You could not wait until the new cars came out so you could rush to the dealers' lots to see what the new cars looked like.

Yes, you did that every year, as every year the body styles changed.

And then it happened, muscle cars and music came together and we grew up with rock and roll on the radio and a hot car in the driveway.

Cars were cool and the songs were all about fast cars. Muscle cars and music were tied together!

Now we had a need for speed.

Here are just a few of the songs that helped define and popularize the muscle car.

Pull into the local drive-in for a burger and a cherry coke or vanilla malt and watch the cars cruise through while the music blares.



First up:


"Little Deuce Coupe"
by The Beach Boys

Well I'm not braggin' babe so don't put me down
But I've got the fastest set of wheels in town
When something comes up to me he don't even try
Cause if I had a set of wings man I know she could fly
She's my little deuce coupe
You don't know what I got
(My little deuce coupe)
(You don't know what I got)


Just a little deuce coupe with a flat head mill
But she'll walk a Thunderbird like it's standin' still
She's ported and relieved and she's stroked and bored.
She'll do a hundred and forty with the top end floored
She's my little deuce coupe
You don't know what I got
(My little deuce coupe)
(You don't know what I got)

She's got a competition clutch with the four on the floor
And she purrs like a kitten till the lake pipes roar
And if that aint enough to make you flip your lid
There's one more thing, I got the pink slip daddy

And comin' off the line when the light turns green
Well she blows 'em outta the water like you never seen
I get pushed out of shape and it's hard to steer
When I get rubber in all four gears


Now this was a hot rod of the 60's, a 1932 Ford Coupe. The flathead mill was a ford flathead motor normally with 3 deuces or sometimes referred to as 3 twos (3 two barrel carburetors).


These were times when the cars you bought off the showroom floor were quick, so a street race and/or Sunday at the drag races was a cool thing to do.

"Shut Down"
by The Beach Boys

A classic song about drag racing.

Tach it up, tach it up
Buddy gonna shut you down

It happened on the strip where the road is wide
(Oooo rev it up now)
Two cool shorts standin' side by side
(Oooo rev it up now)
Yeah, my fuel injected Stingray and a four-thirteen
(Oooo rev it up now)
Revvin' up our engines and it sounds real mean
(Oooo rev it up now)

Tach it up, tach it up, tach it up
Buddy gonna shut you down


Declinin' numbers at an even rate
(Oooo movin' out now)
At the count of one we both accelerate
(Oooo movin' out now)
My Stingray is light the slicks are startin' to spin
(Oooo movin' out now)
But the four-thirteen's really diggin' in
(Oooo movin' out now)

Gotta be cool now power shift here we go

Superstock Dodge is windin' out in low
But my fuel injected Stingray's really startin' to go
To get the traction I'm ridin' the clutch
My pressure plate's burnin' that machines too much

Pedal's to the floor hear the dual quads drink
(Oooo pump it up now)
And now the four-thirteen's lead is startin' to shrink
(Oooo pump it up now)
He's hot with ram induction but it's understood
(Oooo pump it up now)
I got a fuel injected engine sittin' under my hood
(Oooo pump it up now)

Shut it off, shut it off buddy now I shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy now I shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy now I shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy now I shut you down
Shut it off, shut it off buddy now I shut you down



The Stingray was the Corvette, four thirteens was the gear ratio in the rear end for launching from a dead stop, slicks are tires specially for drag racing, dual quads AKA 2 fours are 2 four barrel carburetors and power shift means you hit the clutch and slam the shifter from one gear to the other fast and with force because you do not let up on the accelerator.

Too slow on the shift or miss a shift, the engine over revs and will usually sustain some sort of damage.


Both the Stingray and the Superstock Dodge were bad cars for sure. (bad meaning good)

Interestingly, since the Stingray was very expensive to buy, a lot of the ones that showed up at the drags were rental cars.

The rental car agency lots were full of muscle cars and they had no idea people were just weekend warriors and a rental car was an inexpensive way to get your kicks at the strip.



But who knows what lurks behind those garage doors?

"The Little Old Lady From Pasadena"
by Jan and Dean


Jan and Dean sang this classic single about a new red Super Stock Dodge that terrorized the streets of Pasadena, California.

It's the little old lady from Pasadena

The little old lady from Pasadena
(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
Has a pretty little flower bed of white gardenias
(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
But parked in a rickety old garage
Is a brand new, shiny red Super Stock Dodge


And everybody's sayin' that there's nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
(She drives real fast and she drives real hard)
She's the terror of Colorado Boulevard
It's the little old lady from Pasadena

If you see her on the street don't try to choose her
(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
You might drive a goer but you'll never lose her
(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
Well, she's gonna get a ticket now sooner or later
'Cause she can't keep her foot off the accelerator


And everybody's sayin' that there's nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
(She drives real fast and she drives real hard)
She's the terror of Colorado Boulevard
It's the little old lady from Pasadena

(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
(Go, Granny, go, Granny, go Granny go)
The guys come to race her for miles around
But she'll give 'em a length and then she'll shut 'em down


And everybody's sayin' that there's nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
(She drives real fast and she drives real hard)
She's the terror of Colorado Boulevard
It's the little old lady from Pasadena


There were some hidden gems of cars out there that older people had and when they passed away the cars were a find. Usually the little old lady was selling it but it had been her husband's toy until he died.

OK that's a wrap for today!

We are back in action and this is part one of a two part story. Please return tomorrow for more of a walk back in time.