A SELF-QUIETING WEEK

Photo from Ace of Spades

I have been following the taking of a knee and jamming fists in the air from afar. Used to be that Sunday afternoon was spent in my man chair. Her would fix a fun snack lunch and I would consume a game and a half. Flip between games with maybe, burst out a cheer or utter “crap” and other expletives. I was a fan and I left life for the entire Sunday afternoon to watch football. I had a few favorite teams, quarterbacks, wide receivers and the such. Her calls one of the top NFL quarterbacks a girl (still does) but I always overlooked that cause the guy can play the game. But he does not walk the manly man walk nor carry himself in the manly man manner. 

And I will say here, as an aside, that I always enjoyed the National Anthem and the pre-game flyover. Always, always, always touched places deep inside me. If well sung, a tear in my eye.  

Very poor sportsmanlike conduct from one of my west coast teams last season put that team out of the house here. Then this season, Kaepernick (one of my/our favorites a few years back) finally pushed the whole NFL program off the property. The NFL is no longer our dads' sport and I am sure NOT going to listen to all of the crap during pre-game just to see the kick-off and stay with the game. The off button works just fine. And to the sponsors here, I will no longer spend my money on your stuff. The off button works just fine at the store's, too. I will not be a participant in S***ing on my anthem and my flag. There is an old saying that you do not crap in the same place you eat. Not good for long term health and welfare nor a business model the board will appreciate. 

There was a time when the NFL and its sponsors brought taking a knee to their fan base and we loved it and them for it.  

I see now where some are questioning our National Anthem. Not surprised. "Weak", says John Ledgend.

Leah Tysse, kneeled while singing the National Anthem recently, stating ".... Let's be honest. Until we can recognize that white privilege exists, we cannot have a dialogue about race."

Hillary, bless her heart, perceives blacks as super predators. Give her a call, Leah, and report back to us on your lengthy conversation with her about race and the wonderful solutions you both brought forward.  She indicates a willingness to talk before the video ends. I am sure that great inroads await us all from you two putting your heads together.

Deplorables, Super Predators, Needy Latinos, the list of "Acceptables" is getting smaller. 
.............................................................................................................

Skimming the Net this week

A Good Gray Man Read.

The Elite Have No Idea

..............................................................................................................

I am grateful that I have not had to worry about Paris Hilton for awhile. Nor do I worry anymore about Tom Hiddleston and Taylor Swift. I did enjoy seeing them out and about, but apparently he wanted a public life, she did not; talk of children and then they moved on. Tom Hiddleston has become one of my favorite actors after watching the mini-series, The Night Manager, Tom will do just fine, me thinks. James Bond material. And probably a song soon about ol Tom from ol Taylor so she benefits, too.

But this week I am worried about poor Billy Bush. Never watched him on TV other than flipping channels and briefly spending a few seconds with him. Never held my attention nor interest. But Billy has said bad words, was way too close to "The Donald" many years ago and of course has been suspended by NBC. Poor guy now fears his career may be over in broadcasting for trash talking filth and dirt.  Wikileaks has his value at 9 million dollars. The upside for Billy is that he is the only broadcaster everyone is talking about and attention is attention, even if it is bad. Billy should wear all of this attention as a badge of honor. No, I am not condoning all that he and The Donald said regarding kitty cats, but my god, who is without sin saying bad words? My money is on Billy doing just fine after all of this.

I see the good old boys of the GOP have again thrown "The Donald" under the bus this week and "The Donald" is now going it alone now without the party's support. I do love an underdog! The more nastiness the teleprompter readers throw at "The Donald", the stronger he becomes. Like a super hero. Apparently, if he wins, everything that happens in the future, from past political actions and to future catastrophes, will be blamed on him. But he is not a politician nor has had any part in the history of political doings. He's donated and rubbed elbows, but not been a decision or policy maker. Flies in the face of common sense, huh? Where's the underdog?

SNOWFLAKES

I enjoy visiting with people I do not know when I go to the grocery store. I never go to the store under any kind of hurry-up come and go pressure. I like taking my time and enjoy quick visits with strangers. Ninety-nine percent of the times folks engage, joke and visit. And it is probably my fault that I bring out the 1% on occasion.

Noon-thirty on a Sunday afternoon is not the time to go to the store. Everyone is shopping and the lines are always long. But I did, had a small basket and stepped into a 7-person long line at the quick checkout. Peeking around the corner, I noticed it was the gal who is ALWAYS very slow checking folks out. The gal in front of me was hand-carrying 3-4 items, expressionless. I pulled in behind her and nicely asked her “if she could please hurry up.” See, this is a joke, folks. No one standing in a long check out line can hurry up. Was my opening line to start a conversation. It works 90% of the time starting a conversation, even a brief one. Ninety percent know it is a joke. 

In the past years, an older gal always worked that #1 check out line and we interacted several times a week with pleasantries and joking. I would often ask her to hurry up and she would throw it back in my face. She knew I was pushing her buttons in the way of joking. I quit doing that, not because she objected or saw it as some kind of micro aggression, but because other folks in line thought I was some kind of real asshole. If looks could kill, there would be no “afterblog” here.

The gal in line looked at me with incredulous eyes. Not believing what she heard. How rude of me to ask her to hurry up when she had no control over this whole out-of-control day with all lines backed up and no one moving to any noticeable degree. Yikes! There it was, in her eyes and void expression. I immediately go into my “I am just teasing” apology and body language. “I was just joking.” Nothing, absolutely nothing in response. Yikes, again.

So I look at line #2. It is shorter with a younger girl running it who is faster and HAS expressions and life on her face. I wanted to get out of line #1. I choose line #2 and, low and behold, I move through at lightening speed. Line #1 is still backed up and I dare not look at the gal I tried to tease and start a conversation with.

I get all of my cart on the belt and put the little plastic thing behind my last item indicating the free space now available to whoever is next. The check out gal says hello and how are you? I say "top shelf looking up." I turn back to look at the next person and it is the gal I tried to tease. I could not resist.

“Oh, you are the gal I just teased about hurrying up.” She smiled, said nothing, but smiled. I said, “This is just not fair, just not fair.” See, after all was said and done in those few moments, I tried to tease, start a conversation, was all checked out before her line was moving. And she had to come in behind me when she was once ahead of me. See, just unfair.

But, she smiled.

In all honesty, calling her a snowflake may be too judgemental. I could have just been another asshole in her life that day that she did not want to deal with. Long lines at a grocery store do not always bring out the best pleasantries in folks. I need to smooth out my starting-a-conversation-with strangers approach.

WWW III

I do worry still about WWW III and nuclear war. Too many stories and threats and incidents being traded between nations and their leaders. One would think people are also concerned but maybe it is just more to worry about than anyone wants to worry about. Head in the sand works, too. Besides, we ought to be spending our time on she said, he said, they said and OMG OMG. Regardless, I worry about the big one now and soon. 

It will be game-on with the big flash in the sky. Do you have your Potassium Iodide? Buy it today. It will vanish and be sold out in a heartbeat.

Do you know how to flush your body system in the days after the bright light? You can get much of this stuff today from your local grocery store. Do your homework and act. You will need to be drinking more water daily, in the after, than you are drinking today. Your everyday availability to have water can also vanish in a heartbeat.

These are just a few of the many sites addressing, need to know, information after a nuclear bomb attack. 

Protect Yourself from Nuclear Radiation Exposure.

Nukes and Fallout 

22 Ways to Naturally Detox

I am reminded of a class I took in junior college after leaving the Army. I was a little older than most of the kids and a lot more serious about my education.

I took a class in world history/relations. Do not remember the exact course title. We spent a good part of a week working with partners (3) representing a major country of the world. We “gamed” the countries' self-interests in the world through research and then interacting in the affairs of the world with the other team countries. We were given problems to solve as world leaders. We had to make choices in our own self-interest and then the world's self interest as we problem solved. After running a full scenario, we were given a different county to represent the next day and gamed a different set of circumstances all over again. Never Ever Did We Game all of this where WWW III did not start in the middle east and was a nuclear event. NEVER! This was back in 1970.  Rigged? Maybe, but we tried our damnedest to not have our sessions turn into war as a result of our combined problem solving. 

If this is indeed the case of near-future human events, then maybe you and I ought to be vewy vewy ready. Vewy vewy ready!!

WHAT I DO KNOW FOR SURE IS COMING.

Iced Over Driveway Last Season.

This is mother nature at work here every winter and part of some week in the near future. Snow melted, then iced over, more snow on top, melted again by the afternoon sun and re-frozen that night. Poor dog's legs slide out to the side when she has to go out and do her business. She always looks back at me, during these moments, saying bad dog words. Upside, when all is said and done, is her knowing the warm brick hearth behind the wood stove awaits her return to the warm living room.

November and December, sound like a cold, wet, snowy mess here according to the Farmer's Almanac. 

Tractor is with our mechanic doctor with front driveshaft problem. Picked up a new bearing and bushing cushion this week. Ought to have the old girl back by week's end. Yes, it was getting close to failure and there is no doubt in my mind she would have failed at the bottom of the hill, late on a Friday afternoon with two more feet of snow in the forecast that night. That is the way of the ignored mechanical world.

Her rig is in the shop too with a possible radiator leak. Exploratory surgery appears to be the answer. Good news is that her rig does not have a head gasket failure with water leaking into the oil pan. Engine light came on and O2 sensor was easily replaced. But her rig will soon again be winter ready. Yep, needs a new radiator.

Prime rib, lobster and a night at the opera are out of the question this month facing these repair bills.

A self-quieting week when all was said and done.