Saturday notes

Here, we have been very fortunate in our weather. There has been above average temperatures and plentiful sunshine everyday. We've gotten out and played golf, walked, swam, and even just sat and looked at the sunshine.

Yeswterday, we saw a flock of wood storks gathered near a pond. They are evidently in the mating mode. I counted 35 of them, but they were dancing and strutting and flapping around. Maybe there were a few more or a few fewer. As we tried to approach them near enough to get a good photo, they kept moving farther around the pond so that we never got any closer.

We went to several evening concerts at the Curch-on-the-Square. The best was the Highland Lakes Choir who did Christmas songs very well. The worst was a lounge singer who fancied himself Frank Sinatra in some reincarnation or other, with the worst wig we've ever seen. His rendition of Christmas carols as if they were torch songs struck me as so funny, whats-her-name spent most of the concert trying not to make eye contact wth me for fear of bursting out in hysterics.

We have serious reasons for having to be home this next week, so we're watching the weather forecasts; and our plans now are that we'll leave Sunday for home, then probably allow ourselves to be delayed by the weather before getting to Kentucky. Then, finish on Monday. Often we've driven straight through, but oif there is bad weather in the middle of the trip, we won't try to make it tired and car-worn.

One advantage of coming home is that I can get back to my computer and resume my usual postings.

Besides, I'm lonesome for a bunch of people.

The Mitchell Report

So, George Mitchell has made a report on steroid and other drug use among baseball players. That's what he was hired to do. Here is a man whose whole career has been honorable.

But now, many players are scrambling to deny it all. One top-of-the-line pitcher claims he was "slandered."

If you want to know how to throw a baseball, ask a pitcher. If you want to know how hit a baseball, ask a batter. If you want to know how to cheat without being caught, ask a manager. If you want to know how to sign a check, most baseball players may be able to sign their names. If you want to know how to act priveleged, spoiled and unsophisticated, how to tug on your genitals in public, how to swear proficiently, how to disingenuously thank God for small favors, then ask a baseball player.

But, if you want your child to know how to manage a marriage, or tell the truth, or exhibit magnanimity, or practice humility, or demonstrate respect for the law, then look elsewhere.

Thursday morning

Greetings from sunny and warm Florida.

I have no access to my smile-makers, so I'll have to wait until I get to my own computer.

When we get home, we'll have so much to report on, the computer will probably burst into flames. Which brings up a bad topic: We got word that a house across the street back home has burned down. Many thanks to Jerry B. for letting us know this. He is a good friend to keep us informed.

We're trying to determine if any damage was done to our house. The good news is that the people were not home and no one was injured in the fire. We hear that it took many hours to stop this fire and then it rekindled in the night. Evidently, the people lost everything they nown including a car in the garage. They were new to the neighborhood and we didn't really know them, but our hearts are with them in this tragedy.

====
Thanks to everyone who did the quiz and was willing to report their scores. Like Alice, I got the "stans" all screwed up. It would be a lot easier if the Soviet Union hadn't broken up and created all those little dusty places. If Bush could get reappointed tro the job by the Supreme Court, we would propably be invading a few of them before long.

We'll be home in a few days. Thanks to everyone for the emails and news from home.

a few thoughts

These are some thoughts on this bright sunny morning in Florida:

I really am sorry about the ice storms that have afflicted some people I know. I went through one of those crippling disasers myself once, and I know how awful it is. Marie, In Illinois, has had damage to her house and been without heat or power for 20 hours. Felix says the storm missed him. John and Scot say they had some ice, but evidently not a lot.

I see the headline, "Baseball Drug Results To Be Reported." I was just wondering, how does a baseball behave when drugged? Maybe a lot like when Zumaya throws one.

Britney is back in the headlines. I was going to print her picture just to try and shake up Irene who thinks I have a fixation on the wonderful mother and wife Britney is. But, I haven't got the heck of posting pictures with this computer. I did it last year, maybe I'll gigre it out. When I try to copy a pic, the computer asks me if I want to copy it and when I say yes, it just sits there.

See you all soon.

Tuesday Evening Quiz

Geography

GO HERE: CLICK FOR QUIZ

Take the difficult little quiz.

Send me your results by email or post them under comments. We grade on the curve and usually, there's more than one gold star.


(Next week, I hope, there'll be one of MY quizes. Meanwhile, this can be challenging and fun.)

Monday Morning Friends Report

We are in Florida this morning and I have a borrowed computer.

So, I will have to pass on my Monday Morning Friends Report. Hello to friends who will be checking in, though. So far, we keep up on email and appreciate it very much.

When we get home, I'll do a full update.

Meanwhile, I see that the shooting has been extended to Pastor Haggard's former church in Colorado, you know, the one that loves him but threw him out. They hate his sins, they say, but him they can keep loving at arm's length. Pastor Ted is lucky they pitched him out of their Christian congregation, because he otherwise might have been shot with something besides a needle.

Irene has sent a poem. This is an Aussie's impression of the American gun obssession. I don't believe she is the author, just the messenger:

"The right to bear arms" is a lazy
Excuse for gun laws, rather hazy,
That have the effect
To completely protect
Your right to be killed by the crazy.
===
I know that we have missed a lot of really bad weather in parts of the country where some of our friends live. I hope you are all O.K. and not suffering under the ice and slop. We're conce4rned about Felix who is right in the middle of the ice storm, we think.

on the road

We are traveling just now and are quite busy, but there will be updates, and of course, e-mail will be read.

WACKO OF THE WEEK (12-08-07)

I know you think I should be giving the Wacko of the Week Award to that guy out in Omaha who abused his rights to guns and shot up a mall full of people. But, remember, he committed suicide afterwards, so that doesn't count. If you commit suicide after doing a dumb thing, you're forgiven. No sense adding insult to injury.
====

So, the real winner this week is:

JAPANESE SCIENTISTS

They decided to test the computer skills of chimpanzees and college students. The reward was a peanut. If the student or the chimp could swiftly solve an on-screen puzzle, the computer gave a peanut.

The Japanese "scientists" reached just the wrong conclusion. If you want to see a college student perform well on a quiz, give him a reward he really wants. Try BEER or SEX. I can't think of any American student I ever knew who was motivated by a peanut.
CLICK

Sunday Silly Sites

Go here to order Bulgarian canned fish. The minnows in tomato sauce look especially enticing: CLICK

Go here to learn how to build a doghouse: CLICK

Go here to take a dementia test (thanks to Mike Carroll who I believe passed it, or failed it, depending on your point of view): CLICK

"Chicken Run"

Two N.C. Inmates Recaptured in S.C.
Associated Press
December 7, 2007

TILLERY, N.C. - Two prison inmates who escaped from a work crew and are suspected of robbing two hunters of their guns were recaptured early Friday in South Carolina.

Cloman Smith and Jesse McCrobie were arrested without incident in Summerville, S.C, after a police officer recognized a pickup truck stolen from the hunters, North Carolina Department of Correction spokesman Keith Acree said.

Smith and McCrobie escaped from a work crew at a poultry house Wednesday afternoon, Acree said.
----

Comment: Oh, I see , it was just another one of those chickenshit outfits. And to think, we were on that highway with them as they fled the state. Scary! Boy, if I'd seen 'em I would have shot them with that AK-47 I keep in my glovebox!

so, I was wondering

If it's illegal for mentally ill people to have guns in our society, how did this guy get a high-powered rifle?

What am I missing?

Would some gun advocate explain to me how we can prevent mental cases like this from arming themselves to the teeth and shooting the rest of us poor dumb schlunks?

Ummm ... and so?

PIMP C. FOUND DEAD

Quiz is easily solved!

GOLD STARS AWARDED-

Overnight, the following people sent in answers to the Quarterback Quiz and were 100% correct:
IRISH MIKE
DASHMANN
FELIX
DOUG

These people sent answers with only one wrong:
SPARTY
MARSHA

I am going to post the answers under comments, so anyone else who wants to take a try at it can check their answers.....

The gentle face of madness

This man is a mass murderer. He was the leader of a group responsible for the killing of 202 people, mostly foreigners, in Bali, Indonesia, in 2002.

Here, with tenderness in his face, he talks with his daughter. The girl will grow up without a father. He has been sentenced to death and has chosen not to appeal for his life. Craziness is a territory with boundaries far beyond the appreciation of us more normal souls. In this picture, that territory includes the prison in which he meets her.

His name? We know it, but what difference does it make? To remember it is to remember the name of evil. Even he understood this. He generally went under aliases. Maybe he'll be unrecognized also by his god.

Tuesday Evening Quiz 12/04/07

QUARTERBACK SNEAK -
This won't please everyone, but some of you should know who who these famous guys are (or were.)
To help keep your answers hidden from others, you may want to send them by email.

1.


2.

3.

4.
5.
6.
7.

More sad news

When Will They Ever Learn?

This will keep on happening as long as this gang is in control of the government in Washington . They don't believe in enforcing environmental laws, they don't seem to believe in science at all, they don't believe in administering the regulatory function of government.

When will they be gone?

Chesapeake Bay Health Worsening
By Wyatt
Associated Press
December 3, 2007

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Chesapeake Bay's health is going from bad to worse, according to an environmental group that graded the bay's health a "D" for the ninth consecutive year.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation gave the bay a failing grade for one of its most persistent pollutants -- nitrogen -- along with Fs for water clarity and dissolved oxygen.

"We must all voice our outrage so that those with the power to effect change -- the governors and legislators at the state and federal levels -- do more to implement the known solutions of reducing pollution," Foundation President Will Baker said in a statement.

Read more here: CLICK

'Freeway Blogger' fights against war

The so-called "Freeway Blogger" in California has causes which he trumpets from overpasses and roadside fences. He believes, obviously, in free speech, but also in Impeaching the President and ending the war. I've seen his style copied by others in other states, like W. Virginia.
See some of his work here:
CLICK

Monday morning friends report.

Try to keep us updated on your activities. Here is what news we have of friends around the birches, what they're seeing, what they're laughing at, what they're doing. Let us know about holiday plans. I'll be asking you some questions about that soon.
I hope you will all plan to give at least one someone, at least one book. Also, if you are able, contribute to your local "food kitchen" or "food pantry."
====

MARSHA - sent PAT W. a Christmas present with instructions to open immediately. A picture of the gift is below. Pat had to promise to share it with others. It is, as you can see, a religious gift: a church with birds in its belfry. On each of the holy days of Advent, one removes a little bird and places it on its perch outside a little window. It is as cute as hell .... I mean, heaven. You can see that there is a little bluebird above the front portico and a little red bird on the side. Today, another bird will be revealed.
Word from PAT is: THANK YOU. Everyone who sees it loves it.

====

IRENE - addressing the matter of tasering wrote this:
"To stop his criminal behaviour,
They could give Dick Cheney a taser.
His weak heart muscle
Won't stand the tussle,
And we would all be done a favour!

Irene may be in another country, but she hasn't stopped being American, too.
--
She also says this: As for more funny Japanese things on the web - have you seen the human tetris? CLICK
(I went and watched it. It's hysterical.)
====

LEN - took some friends on a backstage tour of the local community theater, Pit and Balcony, where he has been working as a volunteer on the set. This set is a castle for the musical "SOUND OF MUSIC." He and others have built a wonderful looking set. An interesting and educational little tour. Thanks.
====

JERRY - (a retiree) sent a FAQ sheet about retirees. Some were pretty funny. Here are a couple I especially liked:

Question: What is the best way to describe retirement?
Answer: "The never ending Coffee Break."

Question: How many retirees to change a light bulb?
Answer: Only one, but it might take all day.
--

JERRY also sent a picture of an absolutely amazing helicopter rescue in Afghanistan.


I checked out its accuracy and Snopes says it is absolutely true. Further research turned up this demonstration which you should definitely go see.
CLICK FOR MORE
====


IRISH MIKE - is still looking for the world's perfect glass of Guinness. (It is Irish, you know!) He has found many great ones, but you see, there's always a chance that somewhere, there's the "perfect" one. Now he's thinking maybe Nigeria because of this story, which says that Guinness is declining in many places, but not Nigeria or America: CLICK

Then, this discovery: turns out Guinness is a Nigerian mainstay industry! It's either oil or "getting oiled" there. I'm game. Grab your passport and let's go!

Guinness Nigeria
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Foreign Extra Stout, the main product of Guinness Nigeria. See also the back label
Guinness Nigeria plc is a Nigerian brewery founded in 1962. Guinness and Unilever are the main shareholders, although some of the shares are owned locally.

The main beer is Foreign Extra Stout (7.5% ABV). This is now brewed under license from Guinness, using a concentrate sent from Dublin which is dark stout with the water removed. It is then blended with a local pale beer. Nigeria is the third largest and fastest-growing Guinness market in the world. The sweeter taste of this offering is often said to be a result of the sorghum used as a part of the recipe."
====

SPARTY - tells us that according to the New YorkTimes,
These are the best fiction books of 2007:
MAN GONE DOWN By Michael Thomas.

OUT STEALING HORSES By Per Petterson.

THE SAVAGE DETECTIVES By Roberto Bolaño.

THEN WE CAME TO THE END By Joshua Ferris.

TREE OF SMOKE By Denis Johnson.

And these are the 5 best non-fiction books
IMPERIAL LIFE IN THE EMERALD CITY: Inside Iraq's Green Zone. By Rajiv Chandrasekaran.

LITTLE HEATHENS: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression.
By Mildred Armstrong Kalish.

THE NINE: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court. By Jeffrey Toobin.

THE ORDEAL OF ELIZABETH MARSH: A Woman in World History. By Linda Colley.

THE REST IS NOISE: Listening to the Twentieth Century. By Alex Ross.
====

SCOT and TRASE - will be leaving for Australia on Christmas Day. They will be highly missed by Michigan friends over the holidays, but our loss is a gain for IRENE and TONY who will be hosting them for part of their stay.

We're expecting them to send us some digitals to post of the curious and funny and important things that happen.
====

BILL FROM WNNCO -
a busi-
nessman -

is naturally plagued with
paperwork and of course
heavy taxes.

He says he's found a solution for cumbersome paperwork: look at this. If it gets any worse, he has provided himself a way out.
====

DASHMANN and JOANNE - spent several wonderful days at Daytona Beach and were reluctant to fly back to mid Michigan especially as they arrived home the same day as the storm was hitting. They were really reluctant to catch that plane. They report that Daytona is looking less shabby than it did even a year ago -- the place is sprucing up.
====

FELIX - Works for John Mellencamp who will be inducted into the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. Felix points out that he has, as a result of his position, crossed paths with many hall-of-famers such as Donovan (rock and roll) , Mark Messier (hockey), and Larry Bird (basketball) as well as lesser lights such as me. (In the next posting on BIRCHES below, read an excerpt from Felix's latest adventure.)
====

ALICE - a teacher, works for an administration so incompetent and untrusting of its professionals that it has required everyone to sign in and out every day. Now she says she wonders how this will apply to homework. Is she not to do any because she doesn't have access to the sign-in sheet? Good question.
====

PAT - had put some hazel nuts out in a bowl. Some came up missing. She found one on the basement stairs, another on the floor of the basement. At first, she blamed her careless husband who was totally innocent. Then she found this in a basement corner, along with a bit of loose insulation:

She claims she wishes no mouse harm, but she won't live with a thief. Now it has been assassinated.

friend's report addition: Felix's hike

This is an excerpt from Felix's reporting on his hike last week in Massachusetts:

There was a little sliver of 'sunrise' visible right at the horizon. Otherwise, it was pretty overcast. I'd say upper 30s. Breezy but not uncomfortable. I hiked on. I made it to Chesire with dreams of coffee and breakfast. These dreams were dashed, but fortunately they were dashed early and I didn't have a lot of time in pursuing unfulfilled desires. I went in the post office where the clock said it was 9:15. I was proud to have hiked 4+ miles by 9:15.



I asked the woman where the nearest cup of coffee could be had. She looked at me as though she'd never heard of coffee, much less know where a cup of it could be had. She asked a not-seen-by-me person behind a partition where a cup of this mystery drink could be found.

"The gas station is the closest place" I heard from behind this half-wall.

I'd seen the Shell station as I crossed the highway. I didn't want gas station coffee. I wanted a cup of strong coffee with toast...and, eggs and bacon and some sort of cooked potatoes. I was not tied to this want, however.

"Or, there's the (?) down the (?)" I couldn't make out what she said. She finally stepped out from behind the wall and I could see who my informant was....She told me where this mystery coffee-selling place was and I asked how far.

After much calculating, I was told it was about a half-mile.

With a grimace I said "I don't want a cup a half-miles worth."

"How do you like your coffee?" she asked.

"Black and strong" said I.

"I'll get you some;" and she did.

"I have a cup. Do you want it?"

"No. I'll give you a cup." Of course, that meant a styrofoam cup. I thanked her and took my cup of free coffee across the street to the cheese monument and ate a bagel and drank coffee.

It was nice, in a cold and windy dreary day sorta way.

Sunday silly Sites #4

Go here to watch a film that's more than 100 years old. It takes you on a trip down Market Street in San Francisco before the great quake and fire. I thought it was fascinating. CLICK

(Thanks to Jerry) Go here to take a quiz on cars by pictures of their parts. This is very hard. CLICK

Go here to see "a hundred" ways people have tricked up the Mona Lisa. Some of them are pretty funny. CLICK

(Thanks to Mike Carroll) Go here to listen to a very funny (scary?) look at ordering Pizza in the future CLICK