Dickster's Random Thoughts

This Just Doesn't Seem to be My Day

2010-09-08T22:34:00.000-04:00

Image via WikipediaThere are some days when you just think you would be better off just staying in bed. Yesterday happened to be one of those days. I am going to show my age a little bit, but yesterday reminded me of the old Monkees song, "This Just Doesn't Seem to be My Day." The song starts off "Well I guess I should have stayed in bed. My pillow wrapped around my head." The song is embedded below.

The day started fairly innocuously. Traffic was a little heavier than usual due to the end of the three day weekend and all school systems in the area back in action. Still, I was making pretty good pace to the office. I got to my exit about 8:30 only to discover that the police had blocked off all the exits. Fortunately, I had my Garmin in the car. Unfortunately, the alternate route got me to the office 40 minutes later.

Turns out, some asshole decided that if he couldn't have the girl, nobody could. After his girlfriend broke up with him last week, and got a protection order against him, Joshua Prince allegedly took a shot at her with a high powered rifle. Fortunately he missed her, and she was unharmed. Unfortunately his selfish act created a major hassle for commuters in the areas. He later surrendered to police in Pennsylvania. Why is it that dumb fucks like this guy, or people who threaten to jump off bridges always do it during rush hour so as to inconvenience the greater number of people?

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. Traffic was pretty light for the evening rush hour, and I got home fairly quickly. I decided to unwind with a couple glasses of wine. I took a swig of wine, and felt something in my mouth. I was snacking, so I didn't think too much of it. However, I decided to spit out what was in my mouth and discovered a fly. It apparently had landed in my glass of wine. It either drowned, or was too drunk to fly away. Either way, I didn't bother to finish that particular glass of wine. Instead, I went upstairs to find a bottle of Listerine to rinse my mouth out. Truly not the best of days.

Burn the Qu'ran Day

2010-09-07T20:49:00.000-04:00

Image via WikipediaI am not what you would call "politically correct." Oh, sure, I can play the PC game when I need to, such as at work or around people that I don't know that well. There are certain words or phrases that I will not use. For example, I would be more upset if I heard my son use the N-word than if I heard him drop the F-bomb. That being said, I usually fall down on the side of free speech and freedom of expression.

I tend to consider the intent of the phraseology instead of the actual words. It is for that reason that I am not that easily offended by off-color humor. I have no problem with comedians like Chris Rock spouting off about "white people" in their routines, as I know the intent is humor, not to denigrate the white race. People as a whole need to chill out a little bit in their desire not to offend.

I make these comments as a preface to my thoughts on Pastor Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Centre in Gainesville, Florida, and their plans to hold a "Burn the Qu'ran Day" on Saturday on the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Jones has been reported as saying that the event is to remember those who were murdered that day and to send a message to the radical elements of Islam. The White House and General David Petraeus have come out warning that the event will put our troops at risk.

In this particular instance, I find myself in rare agreement with the White House that the event is not a good idea. I do agree with the General that such actions will likely put our troops in greater risk for harm. While a very valid concern on the part of General Petraeus and the White House, that is not the reason I am opposed to the burning of the Qu'ran. It is not even the thought that the event will offend those that are not part of the extreme wing of the Islamic faith, though it surely will. The fact that there have been few of the less extreme Muslims speaking out against the radicals is equally offensive.

Book Burning in and of itself has a long and ignoble history in the human era. The Wikipedia entry for "Book Burning" begins by stating that "Book Burning is the practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material and media...The practice, usually carried out in public, is generally motivated by moral, religious, or political objections to the material." The practice of Book Burning has been used from the 3rd century BC to modern times by secular and religious leaders as a means of suppressing views that could be considered heretical or a threat to the prevailing order.

It is the idea of book burning and the suppression of thought that is what I consider the most egregious part of Pastor Jones and his church's planned activities. Sure they have the right to express their views, just as the folks who want to build the Ground Zero Mosque have a right to build where they want, but having the right to do something doesn't make it right. It is also actions like those planned by Pastor Jones that give Evangelical Christianity a black eye.

Music Monday-Lee Brice "Love Like Crazy"

2010-09-06T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today is my parent's 52nd wedding anniversary. When deciding a song to pick for Music Monday, today it was a pretty easy choice. "Love Like Crazy" by Lee Brice makes me think of my parents. My mom was 17 years old when they got married, and the words of the song say "17's to young to know what love's about." Well they haven't been together "58 years now," but it's pretty close.

My parents are without a doubt each other's best friend. Ain't that crazy? Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad.

Lee Brice More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos

Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the actual post link here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.
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Pizza, Heat, and the Economy

2010-09-05T23:00:00.000-04:00

Image via WikipediaAbout a month ago, I was lamenting how poorly things had been going at my part time job delivering pizzas on the weekend. At the time, I was wondering whether the decline in income from working my 5pm-midnight shift on Saturday nights was due to the poor economy or the excessively hot summer we had been having.

Starting about three months ago, the DC area was broiling under one of the hottest summers in some time. We had a string of 90 degree or better days that looks to be the second highest number of 90 plus degree days in the area on record. It was during this period that my Saturday delivery income dropped from $70-$80 per night, to about $45-$55 per night.

The last few weeks, we have seen a significant break in the summer heat. While there have been a few 90 degree days, for most of August the temps were running in the 80's. With the break in temperatures, I have see a return to the $70-$80 range on Saturday nights, which is a tremendous relief for me. Making $70-$80 or more on a Saturday night pretty much pays for the groceries for the week.

So the question is, what has changed over the last month. Surely the economy hasn't been improving over the last month. In fact, unemployment ticked up a bit. The only real change around my neck of the woods is the lower temperatures in August compared to June and July. Which begs the question, when the weather is hot, are you more or less inclined to eat a hot meal?

What is Your Passion?

2010-09-02T21:47:00.000-04:00

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Haagen Dazs. All opinions are 100% mine.

Passion. Websters defines passion as "a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept." We all have a passion that drives us. That passion can take different forms for each of us. For some of us, that passion can be our work, an artistic pursuit, our families, or any number of other things.

What is your passion? Over the years, I have had several passions. At times, I have had a passion for photography; in particular sports and landscape photography. Sports has always been a passion for me, both as an observer and participant. Other times, I have had a passion for cooking. Over the years, my passions have changed in their intensity. Some have taken a back seat to other interests, and some have faded to mere interests. None have completely died.

There is one passion, however, that always remained strong and is probably the overriding passion in my life, aside from my family. That would be my love for music. For as long as I can remember, music has been an important part of my life. My quote for my senior year of my high school yearbook, I said that "Music will always be man's way of communicating his innermost thoughts and desires." I still feel that way today.

The great thing about music is that it is universal. It covers the whole gamut of emotions in the human experience. Everybody has a song, or in my case songs, that bring back memories. Every couple it seems has "their" song. For some folks, the song they played for their first dance at their wedding reception brings the good times to mind. I think our first dance was either "Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw" or "Friends in Low Places."

When my son was younger, he loved Kenny Chesney's song "When the Sun Goes Down." With his autism, he liked to listen to the same songs over and over again. We were driving to a vacation in North Carolina and for almost the entire 6 hour drive, he wanted to listen to that song and have his old man sing along with it. Good times. I can't hear that song without thinking about that time. There are just so many other songs that bring back specific memories.

The folks at Haagen Dazs have a passion for ice cream. They also want to share the passions of some of Canada's most interesting personalities through their sponsorship of the television show Passion Profiles. The show is hosted by ET Canada's Cheryl Hickey. She brings you up close and personal to some of Canada's most interesting personalities. Musician Jann Arden will be featured on the September 8th episode of Passion Profiles.

Music Monday-Josh Thompson "Way Out Here"

2010-08-30T07:00:00.001-04:00

Teddy Roosevelt said that “Americanism means the virtues of courage, honor, justice, truth, sincerity, and hardihood—the virtues that made America." This quote is shown with a tattered American flag at the beginning of this video of Josh Thompson's "Way Out Here."

Roosevelt goes on in that quote to add, "The things that will destroy America are prosperity-at-any-price, peace-at-any-price, safety-first instead of duty-first, the love of soft living and the get-rich-quick theory of life.” It is important to consider both halves of the quote, because if we don't have the first half, we may be destined to chase after the second.

The first and last lines of this song are "Our houses are protected by the Good Lord and a gun. You might meet 'em both if you show up here not welcome, son." This song promotes the values described by Teddy Roosevelt. It also promotes the lifestyle of those our President described as "clinging to guns and religion." Both work for me.

A Major League Tantrum

2010-08-29T19:49:00.000-04:00

When I was a kid, I was a huge Washington Senators fan. When they left DC to go become the Texas Rangers, I eventually became a Baltimore Orioles fan. During those years, I got to see several animated arguments from their manager, the legendary Earl Weaver, over the years. Not that Earl was the only one to get a little over the top with his arguments. There was also some pretty good disagreement from the fiery Billy Martin. Lou Piniella also had some pretty good ones too.

These days, most of the baseball games I see are minor league games. For the past 10 or 12 years, we have become avid fans of the Bowie Baysox, usually attending 15-20 games per season. In those games, we have seen a few arguments with the umpires, but nothing that compared with the likes of Earl, Billy, and Lou. I guess I always thought that those types of major hissy-fits were reserved for the major leagues.

But no more. I found this video on Yahoo! this evening. It features manager Gary Robinson of the State College Spikes (a class A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates of the New York-Penn League.) Robinson is debating a call where the umpire ruled a batter hit by pitch. He thinks that the ball hit the bat instead of the batter and should be ruled a foul ball.

After the usual yelling, kicking of dirt, and gesturing, he gets thrown out of the game. He walks over to first base and pulls the bag from its base. Instead of tossing the base onto the field a la Lou Piniella, he does something I have never seen before. He takes out a pen, signs the base, and hands it to the fan. Truly a major league tantrum and a great souvenir for the fan.

Talk About Distracted Driving

2010-08-26T21:25:00.001-04:00

Image via Wikipedia
Studies show that if you are texting and driving that you are 23 times more likely to be in an accident. The Washington Post cited a study saying that 28% of accidents involve cell phones or texting. There are also reports that 80% of all accidents are caused by some sort of distracted driving. That tells me that there are a lot more accidents by other forms of distraction than cell phones, but that is another matter. It is one reason I am not in favor of laws singling out cell phones.

Speaking of other forms of distracted driving, if texting or talking on a cell phone while driving increases your chance of having an accident, how much more likely is it that Colondra Hamilton would have been involved in some sort of accident had the police not pulled her over? According to The Smoking Gun, she was pulled over because the windows of her car were overly tinted. When they pulled her over, they noticed her pants were unbuttoned.

The officers questioned Ms. Hamilton and she admitted that she had been masturbating with a vibrator. She was also watching a pornographic movie that her passenger had playing on a laptop. She was charged with "impaired alertness." I'll say! Now that is what I call distracted driving. They also charged her with possession of drug paraphernalia. I decided not to post her mug shot, but rather let you leave it to your imagination. If you want to see her, check out The Smoking Gun link above.

Hampton Hotel Sweepstakes

2010-08-25T20:15:00.000-04:00

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Hampton Hotels. All opinions are 100% mine.

Remember what it was like to get together for a road trip with a big group of friends? Wasn't that a blast? Or maybe the family has gotten spread out across the country and it has been a while since you have all gotten together at the same time. Wouldn't a weekend family reunion be a great way to get reconnected?

The folks at Hampton Hotels is having a sweepstakes that could make you the hero of your family or social group with their Hampton Chain of Friends Sweepstakes. You can enter by booking a room online with the Hampton Hotels. However, like most great Sweepstakes, there is no purchase necessary to enter the contest.

So what can you win if you enter the Hampton Chain of Friends Sweepstakes? We will get to the Grand Prize in a bit, but they will be giving away a daily prize between now and September 4th of four rooms for you and a group of friends for a weekend stay at any Hampton Hotel. A nice little get together for you and a few close friends.

The Grand Prize, however, will make you a hero. If you are fortunate to win the grand prize, you will win a weekend getaway for you and 100 of your closest friends. Plus, you will get $5000 cash to help pay the hotel taxes for the weekend. How great is that?

What would you do with an entire hotel to yourself for a weekend and where would you go? Personally, I am thinking of either Vegas, or since it is a weekend, maybe a trip down to Myrtle Beach with the family, and I mean the whole family. Every brother, sister, in-law, out-law, nephew, niece, and maybe even a few cousins I haven't seen in a while.

So if you are planning a trip for yourself, book a room at a Hampton Hotel and enter that way. If not, enter from the link above. What have you got to lose? If nothing else, you have a chance to have a memorable weekend for your family and friends.

Music Monday-Elvis Costello and the Attractions

2010-08-24T21:02:00.000-04:00

In the early 80's, 1981 to be exact, MTV was launched. Originally, they played music videos almost exclusively. Over the years, the emphasis on music has declined to the point to be almost an afterthought. One of the artists that I came to know in those early days of MTV was Elvis Costello.

Since my Music Monday post is a day late, I decided to make it a Two for Tuesday with two of my favorite music videos from Elvis, "Every Day I Write the Book" and "The Only Flame in Town" featuring Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates.

Re-Boost with Boost Mobile

2010-08-23T20:02:00.000-04:00

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boost Mobile. All opinions are 100% mine.

These days, if you are anything like me, there are probably two things that are true in your life. One is you are looking to cut expenses and save a buck or two whenever you can, and second you rely more and more on your mobile phone. Our phones do so much more than make calls, like email, text messaging, web browsing, and staying connected on your favorite social media sites. All those features can get pretty expensive, but Boost Mobile probably has a plan to help you save money and have all the phone features you need.

One of the great things about Boost Mobile is that you do not have to have a contract. With my current cell phone provider, I am tied in with a two year contract that doesn't expire for well over another year. Unless I want to pay a heavy early termination penalty, I won't be able to switch for a while. Boost Mobile offers both pay as you go plans at $.10 per minute or text, or unlimited monthly plans at $50 per month. Their unlimited plan includes web browsing and unlimited text messaging.

My wife and I each carry a Blackberry phone. If you are Blackberry fan, Boost has got you covered. Their unlimited BlackBerry plan will run you about $60 per month. It also includes everything you could want; unlimited minutes, unlimited web browsing, and unlimited text messaging. It also includes unlimited 411 directory asssistance. We currently share minutes in a family plan, then we each pay $30 month for the BlackBerry data plan, and we each pay extra for a text messaging plan. All told, everything we currently pay adds up to more than two unlimited BlackBerry plans with Boost.

No matter which Boost Mobile plan you use, you can take advantage of their Re-Boost program. Re-Boost is their method of allowing you to add funds to your account to pay for your charges. It is quite flexible, allowing you to make payments online, at a Boost Mobile store, or by phone. If you sign up for their auto re-boost automatic payment plan, they will give you a $20 credit to use for ring tones and wallpapers to personalize your phone, whether it be a BlackBerry or an Android powered phone. For each month you use the auto payment plan, you get an additional $2 credit to use.

So I hope you can see that Boost Mobile truly offers a lot for a little. These days, you can't go wrong with that.

Sports, Politics, and Unruly Fans

2010-08-21T16:05:00.001-04:00

I am a huge sports fan. In recent years, I have become more and more interested in politics. I don't particularly care for it when those two worlds collide. In fact, I hate it. A case in point would be last weekend when folks protested outside of the Washington Nationals game. The reason for the protest? The Nationals were playing the Arizona Diamondbacks and people were protesting against Arizona's illegal immigration enforcement law and next year's baseball All-Star game being played in Arizona.

In my opinion, sports should be apolitical. They should be a welcome and joyful respite from the everyday concerns of the world. They should not become a vehicle for one's political agenda. Nothing turned me off more than when the Phoenix Suns started wearing "Los Suns" jerseys to protest SB 1070. About the only time sports and politics should intertwine is during the Olympics, and then only to root for one's own country. While I disagree with those who oppose the bill, and understand and support their right to protest, please leave my sports out of it.

There was another bit of action in regards to the protest at the Nationals/Diamondbacks game last weekend. In addition to the protest outside the game, two idiots decided to run out onto the field with a banner to protest the law. Rather than comment about what I think should happen to morons like that, I decided to show you a few examples I found on YouTube.

First there is this classic from Baltimore Colts linebacker Mike Curtis. It doesn't get much better than this.

Here is another nice one from the world of football from Pittsburgh Steeler James Harrison.

While I sometimes think that police can be too quick to use tasers, this member of Philly's finest gives this fan what he deserves.

Revenge of the Bull

2010-08-19T21:37:00.001-04:00

I will never be confused with a bleeding heart liberal. Nor would I ever be confused with animal rights activists like those folks at PETA. There are certain areas where I can find a little common ground. One of those happens to be with the tradition of bullfighting.

I consider bullfighting to be a totally barbaric institution. I almost called it a sport, but I just can't. There is nothing sporting about killing an animal for entertainment. There are those who would call out hunters as killing an animal for sport, but the main purpose of hunting is for food, not sport. Besides, in hunting, there isn't a crowd in an arena cheering for the demise of the animal. I should say that for myself, I do not hunt, and I do not want to. In fact, I have often said that if steak did not come neatly wrapped on a tray and I had to kill my own meat, I would probably be a vegetarian.

Now, I never want to see anybody get seriously hurt. However, I think you live by the choices you make. If you decide to participate in the bullfighting tradition of the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, and you happen to get gored or trampled in the process, then I feel you have brought it on yourself. You can't blame the bull for your stupidity or for reacting like an animal.

Below is a video of an incident that occurred during a recent bull fight in Spain. They do everything they can to get these animals riled up to the point where they are going to attack. After all, you want the bull to put up a good fight and put on a good show for the crowd. This particular bull thought he saw a way out and made a run for it. Fortunately, nobody in the crowd was killed, but 40 folks were injured. The bull was killed for his actions.

I am not saying that those that were injured got what they deserved, though you do take the associated risk in attending any event. I have seen people hit by line drives at a ball game, and it is an unfortunate to see. The bull however, is always in a no-win situation. If the bull loses the fight, he gets killed. If he wins and injures or kills the matador, he still ends up getting killed. Where is the sport in that?

Roof Update

2010-08-18T20:04:00.001-04:00

Image via WikipediaOn Friday the 13th, we discovered we had an issue with our roof. Without going into all the details, there was a hole in the roof from a combination of bad storms and bad plywood used by the original builder. While there was a specific spot that had the damage, the roofer recommended that the entire roof be replaced.

I guess the insurance company has been busy with claims from all of the bad weather that we had been having around here. We finally received a visit from the insurance adjuster this morning (five days after filing our claim) to assess the damage, and to give us an estimate for the repairs.

It was a bit of good news, and a bit of bad news. The roofer had already told us to expect that they would not cover the entire roof replacement. He had given us an estimate of $3600 to replace the roof. As expected, they could only compensate us for the storm damage where the water entered the home.

Between the storm damage to the roof, the portion of ceiling that fell in our closet, and damage to clothing, the adjuster will be cutting us a check that should cover about half of the new roof. Hopefully, we will be able to find somebody who can replace the ceiling and insulation above the closet for a reasonable fee.

Hands Off My Happy Meal!

2010-08-16T21:32:00.001-04:00

Image via WikipediaFirst the folks at PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) protested rather graphically about the treatment of chickens used in the creation of McDonald's Chicken Nuggets, calling them "Unhappy Meals." Then you have the killjoys at CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) threatening to sue McDonald's for using toys to "lure" children to eat unhealthy foods. Now the City of San Francisco is proposing an outright ban of toys in kids meals that they deem to be "unhealthy."

I live by a very simple rule of thumb; give me information and let me make an informed decision about how to live my life. I do not try to force my belief system on you, and for God's sake don't force yours on me. Unfortunately folks like those at PETA and CSPI don't live by the same credo. Instead, they want to force their belief systems (agenda) on those of us who don't think like they do. In their worldview, we are simply too unenlightened or too stupid to know what is good for us. That seems to be a common behavior from those elites on the left.

It is bad enough to have groups like PETA and CSPI trying to force their lifestyle choices on us, but now we have the ever present nanny state trying to step in to raise our kids, because we are not capable of doing it ourselves. Is there no end to their reach? I guess we really shouldn't be surprised that such proposals are coming from that bastion of liberalism that has given us Nancy Pelosi, the People's Republik of Kalifornia as frequently referred to by Capitol Commentary.

I really do not need some government hack telling me what to feed or how to raise my kid. They say it is to try to help stem the very real problem of childhood obesity, but it is more about taking more of our freedoms away from us. The bottom line is that the same people that keep saying that we need to keep the government out of the bedroom (in order to promote their gay rights agenda) are the same people that want to take away my rights to eat what I want to eat. The occasional hamburger and fries from McDonald's isn't what is making kids fat. It is more a sedentary lifestyle. What next, are we going to ban Playstations and other video games?

Music Monday-BB King & Tracy Chapman "The Thrill is Gone"

2010-08-15T21:56:00.001-04:00

I have always been a huge fan of the blues, partly because it is primarily a guitar driven style of music and partly because of its raw emotion. One of my favorites, is the legendary BB King. His guitar and vocal stylings are unique. His classic song "The Thrill is Gone" is one that I can never get tired of hearing.

A few years ago, he did a duet album of several of his hits called "Deuces Wild." Performing "The Thrill is Gone" on that album was singer Tracy Chapman. Now, I can't say that I am a fan of Chapman's, but I don't dislike her. I enjoyed listening to her early hits like "Fast Car" and "Give Me One Reason."

In this version of the "The Thrill is Gone," I think their voices work really well together. I hope you agree.

Fun with Guns and Condoms

2010-08-14T15:52:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago, I had a post called Fun with Crawfish that was based on feature called "YouTube is Better than Television" that I first saw on the Undercover Black Man website. I wasn't sure if it was going to be something that I would continue, but anoher friend at Intrepid Ideas enouraged me to continue with it.

Here is a case of a video not going quite as planned. Still, there is something about a hot blonde with a condom, and a gun that works for me.

Friday the 13th

2010-08-13T21:13:00.000-04:00

Image via Wikipedia
Generally speaking, I am not a superstitious guy. So, when I woke up this morning and realized it was Friday the 13th, I didn't think too much about it. In fact, the day started pretty much with out incident and it seemed like it was going to be just another day.

There was nothing unusual in my commute to the office. There were no major catastrophes waiting for me when I got there. Things went pretty smoothly through the morning. Most days, I eat lunch at my desk, but they were having a party in the office for one of our coworkers who is getting ready to be married. That's when things took a turn for the worse.

After I finished eating my sandwich, I was sitting and talking with one of my friends in the office while the guest of honor opened a few gifts. The phone rang, and it was the wife. She called to inform me that there was a gaping hole in the ceiling of the closet in our bedroom and thought maybe that we had a leak in our roof.

Now yesterday, two sets of hellacious thunderstorms rolled through the DC area. One hit during the morning rush hour, and of course, the second hit during the evening rush hour. This morning, when I got dressed for work, I didn't notice anything amiss in the closet. So, I told the boss I had to leave, and I headed home to assess the damage.

I got home and headed upstairs with the Shop-Vac and some heavy duty trash bags. The entire ceiling (mostly drywall) above our closet and caved in. There was insulation everywhere, and I could see a hole about the size of a brick in the roof.

I filed a claim with our home owners insurance and should hear from an adjuster in the next few days. I called my father in law to see if he had the number of a reputable contractor, and fortunately he did. He came out to put an emergency patch on the roof and assess the damage. It doesn't look good.

He said the entire roof needs to be replaced due to the type of plywood the builder used when constructing the roof. His estimate for the new roof, $3600. He also said that based on the plywood, it might be a situation where it might not be completely covered by insurance. He did say that there was the possibility that the insurance company might know of some class action suits that might defray some of the cost.

This latest disaster comes just a couple weeks after my car died. As I said previously, I have never been a particularly superstitious person, but I am starting to wonder if I was born under a bad sign or something. It is not that I have it so much worse than everybody else, but I just don't seem to have much luck when it comes to financial matters. Hopefully, knock on wood, we will make it through this latest incident without too much hardship.

Beat the Heat in Branson

2010-08-12T21:43:00.000-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Hiltons of Branson. All opinions are 100% mine.

Summer is quickly coming to a close. Did you get a chance to take a vacation? Perhaps you are planning a fall get away to beat the summer heat. If so, you ought to check out the family friendly offerings of Branson, Missouri. There literally is something to do for every member of the family. The Hilton Promenade at Branson Landing and the Hilton Branson Convention Center Hotel are both conveniently located near everything that Branson has to offer.

Branson is probably best know for being an entertainment capital of the mid-western part of the US. After all, there are 49 live entertainment theaters in the city, but it offers so much more than that. Nature lovers can enjoy the scenic beauty of the Ozark Mountains and Lake Taneycomo, or enjoy a river walk. The kids can enjoy fun activities at local theme parks. My son would love to go for the Go-kart tracks and miniature golf courses.

While Dad is taking in 18 holes at the new Payne Stewart Golf Course, Mom could be enjoying a shopping excursion at the many local boutiques or the new Branson Landing shopping complex. Afterward, visit one of the museums or local wineries. End the day with dinner out on the town and a show. The only problem would be choosing which of the many shows to attend.

The Hilton Hotels of Branson, Missouri are within an easy drive of all the activities that Branson has to offer. They also have a number of different promotional packages available to suit whatever type of trip you want to plan, whether it be a golf package or a romantic getaway. Check them out.

Autistic Boy's Father Talks About Olive Garden Attack

2010-08-11T07:00:00.000-04:00

I saw this posted on iowntheworld.com and had to comment about it here.

As I have mentioned numerous times, I am the father of an autistic 16 year old boy. Most people have no clue as to what parents of an autistic child goes through. It is not that our kids misbehave, it is that they often do not have the filter that a lot of "normal" kids have.

Earlier this week, my wife had an extremely difficult occurrence with our son. She needed to go to the local Target store for some reason. While there, my son had one of his meltdowns. For him, his meltdowns often include dropping to the floor and refusing to move. Often, these occurrences are accompanied by hitting or kicking anybody that comes near him. Such was the case with our son on this day.

In no way do we condone these sorts of actions on the part of our son. On most trips out and about he is able to go to stores like Target without an incident. We have no way of knowing when these outbursts will occur or what can set him off. Sadly, most folks do not have the understanding or patience in helping a parent through these occasions.

On this particular occasion, the police were called. Fortunately, after some time, my wife was able to get our son up and out of the store without police intervention. As well, it is fortunate that we did not have to deal with a physical attack upon my wife or son like the asshole that these folks had to deal with at Olive Garden. Parents of autistic children need support of the community, not calls to the police or physical attacks.

If you are unable to view the video below on this website, I believe you can click on a link in the video to watch it on YouTube.

Music Monday-Brad Paisley "Online"

2010-08-10T20:08:00.000-04:00

It is time for this week's Music Monday selection. I know it is Tuesday and technically a day late, but I was busy yesterday blogging about online dating services. Consequently, it got me thinking about Brad Paisley's song "Online," so it was a natural selection for me for Music Monday.

Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the actual post link here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.

PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

On Line Dating Services

2010-08-09T21:03:00.000-04:00

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of MeetLocals.com. All opinions are 100% mine.

Twenty years ago, when I was a single man, I tried a lot of different methods to meet members of the opposite sex. Even though I liked going to bars and having a drink or two with my buddies, it was hard for me to meet women in bars. After college, I signed up for different classes at the local community college and community center to try to meet people with similar interests.

At one point, I signed up for a local dating service. This particular service did an extensive interview with me to learn about my likes and dislikes. They would then contact me when they thought they had a female match for me. I would then call the lady for a date. I eventually met my wife through a personal ad in a local advertising mailer. Who'd have thunk it?

When I was on the dating scene, online dating wasn't an option for me. Had it been, I would have been all over it. Back in those days, I was what you would call an "early adopter" of technology. If it was new, and technology related, I tried it.

So what kind of people are using on line dating services? Probably a lot of ordinary single folks like you and I. It is interesting that on June 22nd reality television star Heidi Montag recently posted the following on her Twitter account "maybe being single wasn’t such a bad idea after all..Shop4Guys.com." Later that same day, her soon to be ex Spencer Pratt tweeted "HAH!! while Heidi shops, I’m meeting hotties on Meetlocals.com."

Now, I am not saying that if you signed up for either of those dating websites that you will meet somebody like Heidi Montage, but you'll never know unless you try.

Are You Ready for Some Football

2010-08-08T14:39:00.000-04:00

Image by Keith Allison via Flickr

The NFL preseason kicks off tonight with the annual Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio. I haven't really thought too much about football yet; it has been too hot. I usually associate football with the start of fall and the cooler autumn weather. Though the first game of the preseason is an indicator that we will soon get a break from the summer heat.

I suppose I should be a little more excited about the start of the football season. My Redskins have upgraded themselves in two key areas this season over last season. First the addition of Mike Shanahan as head coach over Jim Zorn, and Donovan McNabb at quarterback in place of Jason Campbell. Both are significant upgrades over last season.

As for tonight's game, I have no real compelling reason to watch the game other than former Redskins Russ Grimm was inducted into the Hall of Fame yesterday and will probably be interviewed and highlighted at some point during the game. The game itself will feature the dreaded Dallas Cowboys, who I despise, and the Cincinnati Bengals. Like most preseason games, the front line players will see very little playing time and it will be mostly 2nd and 3rd team players trying to make the team. Still, it is football, and in the end, that is all that really matters.

Happy Blogoversary to Me

2010-08-07T15:32:00.000-04:00

I was visiting some of my favorite blogs earlier in the day, when I saw on injaynesworld that Jayne was celebrating her 1st Blogoversary this past Thursday. Jayne has a smart, witty blog, though her political viewpoint is much more liberal than mine. Check her out. Congratulations, Jayne on your Blogoversary.

After seeing Jayne's post about her Blogoversary, it reminded me that I was coming up on mine. So I went back and checked the date of my first blog post here. It was August 4, 2008, so I just celebrated my 2nd Blogoversary. To think, I almost missed it. I usually don't like to acknowledge birthdays and anniversaries as they tend to remind me of my increasing age.

When I started this two years ago, I wasn't sure how long I would stay with it. I found a couple of old friends through their blogs and they inspired me to start mine. One of them warned me that it could become an addictive habit. He was right. I want to thank everyone who visits here on a regular basis to see the ravings of my lunatic mind. I especially want to thank all of those who also take the time to comment.

Ray Stevens "God Save Arizona"

2010-08-06T07:00:00.000-04:00

Last night, a heavy rain came through the DC area an hour or two before rush hour. That started the traffic mess. Then, another wave of heavy rains came through the area right as the rush hour was hitting full force. Consequently, nobody could remember how to drive and traffic was more hideous than usual.

So, after a much longer than usual commute home that saw me get home at 8pm instead of my usual 6:30, I was feeling rather frazzled. I was glad to see an email alert from RayStevens.com announcing his latest music video, "God Save Arizona." I was hoping that it would be another one of Ray's humorous looks at one of the topical issues of the day, the government suing Arizona over their immigration law. It wasn't his usual humorous treatment of a serious issue, but I thought it worth posting here anyway.

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