Following

In my very best Jerry Seinfeld voice:

What is up with the TSA?

< ....and scene >

Really?  For years they've been following passengers?  And they don't call it 'surveillance" - which might be the biggest joke / insult of the entire thing.

As a guy who was a road warrior, I had to chuckle at the criteria for being followed:

• whether they change clothes or shave while traveling
• abruptly change direction while moving through the airport
• sweat
• tremble 
• blink rapidly during the flight
• use their phones of computers
• talk to other travelers
• use the bathroom

One has to ask:  has TSA actually ever been ON a plane?


Save talking to other travelers - because who the fuck wants to do that? - this could be me.

Ok, I don't really sweat or tremble, but you have been on UScare, right?  Almost everybody sweats, trembles and blinks.   .....then invariably uses the bathroom....and usually right after the movies is over, but before the credits.

The phone / computer thing killed me.

I guess the bigger question would be: how many people does TSA actually employ?  Because of these are the triggers, wouldn't they have to follow 74% of every plane everywhere?

I get we have little privacy anymore, but what is the end game here?  What it tells me is that TSA didn't do their job at check-in, at bag check or at assigning pre-check.

You want to follow me, TSA?  I dare ya to go into that airplane bathroom after me! I dares ya!  I also triple dog dare you to look at my phone. The music selection alone - as anyone here will attest - will make you cringe, though it's probably not a lock-up-able offense, must to the dismay of many.

I'd say this is all just so fucked up, but these days it barely warrants a shrug.  And that's kind of sad.



Song by: the Bangles

My Music Monday

Right off vacation, I have no plans for a song. All I'm really doing is dreading (kind of) going to work this morning. I considered logging in and getting through my emails before walking in the door, but then said, "fuck it".

For today, you're getting the 10th selection of a rotation from my liberry.

Oddly enough - or not - this song was playing in the car when we dropped Shep off at the boarding place a week and 3 days ago.  "Insects" is an overlooked song from Chris Isaak's last disk, First Comes the Night.

Isaak recorded the album in Nashville with mostly studio session guys, so it's a little more slick than what he usually delivers. That has its pros and cons.

But Isaak is Isaak.  He's good writer, instrumentalist and vocalist, so it all works.

See if I Care

They say 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery'.  It might be true, unless you're Blobby.  Then it's the sincerest form of mockery.

....but mockery with a message.

A month is a millennium in a news cycle. Hell, news cycles don't last that long. So it's been over a month since Melanoma wore her now infamous $29 Not Caring Jacket®.

I will give the Dems this, they got right on it and offered the shirt I now wear, but it took four weeks to get it in my hands. A lifetime.

I'll say - it was questionable to wear it on vacation. This is North Carolina, after all. As I'm not in Charlotte or Ashville, I think I could be deep into BLOTUS country.  Wrightsville Beach has a surfer / redneck vibe going on here. I could easily be beaten and dumped in the ocean.

Still, it is important to send the message.

It cost me all of $20.18 (plus shipping).  I even threw in a $10 donation to the dems to do with it as they wish - though I'm 99% sure they won't use it wisely enough.

I no longer see the shirt on the Dem's on-line store.  Maybe it was a limited offer. Maybe they're out of stock.  Or maybe they don't really care. 

Time will tell.



Song by: Gary Allan

the Prisoner

As we are away for the week, Mr. Shep has been spending time at his daycare / boarding facility.

I know he's being well taken care of, but our hearts tug more than a little knowing he's not with us. From his end, he probably feels like a captive.....albeit, one with beds, friends, food, security and love.  I doubt he sees it that way.

So, I took NONE of the photos this week. These all came from the daycare themselves. They're good about keeping us updated, but not so much so that we are waiting for texts every so often.

Weaving through dogs we don't know. I'm guessing they're not of his posse. 

Hanging with Truman. 

When asked if they were buddies, I was told not really. "Truman is like 100 years old and cannot keep up with Shep".  Too bad. I hope they know they share similar breeding. 

Shep is fickle. He slept with Otis. 

They're on the sofa in the background. Shep is on the right. 

Dr. Tongue. 

Asked if he played in the pools at all, I got a, "Shep uses them as his water bowl".   That's my boy!

No Sophie Smut this week. No worries, she is being taken care of, but we're not getting pictures from them.  Sigh.




Song by: Howard Jones

Just Like Heaven

I'll be the first to admit, for someone so cynical, how I can be so easily baffled by some people's thinking ?

710 had the nerve - the nerve!, I tellz ya - to read me snippets of a Washington Post article on BLOTUS voters regarding g-d, BLOTUS and the meaning of morality.

The fact that I could stay on the road is testament to what a great individual I am.

All I can say is: if you're not a Post subscriber, please do so. They are better than the NYT for covering this administration.  And please do so you can read the above hyperlinked article.  It. Is. So. Fucked. Up.

How the reporter did it with out busting a gut or saying to their subjects: "are you FUCKING kidding me?" is beyond imagination.

Just regarding heaven alone:

“Most say it’s gonna be 15,000 miles wide and that high,” Jewell said. “We don’t know whether when it comes down how far it will come, if it’s gonna come all the way or if there will be stairs. We don’t know that. But it’s gonna be suitable to each person. You know that old song, ‘Lord, build me a cabin in the corner of Gloryland?’ See, that’s not right. It’s not gonna be you have a cabin over here and I have one over there. It’s gonna be suitable to each person. So, whatever makes me happy. I like birds. So outside my window, there will be birds.”

Who are these 'most'?   I have never heard the dimensions of heaven.

They know 'this', but don't believe in science. Or facts.   ....and you know what, I do NOT know that 'old song'.

The discussion on BLOTUS and his morality - and these folks' ever changing view of morality, when it suits them - is just stomach churning.

But folks - THIS is what we are up against. There is no logic involved here. None. We are not going to win on that front, so it has to be some other fucked up method, though I don't know what it will be.

Honestly, if you can get through this article, you should. You won't be glad you did.




Song by: the Cure

Farm

First off, I totally stole this image from Christopher.

Secondly, I can't believe I have to write about politics on my vacation.

BLOTUS - what a stupid fuck. His followers - what stupider fucks. But this isn't out of the blue. This 12 BILLION dollar bail out / subsidy is a tactic.

Sure, BLOTUS fucked the farmers with his tariffs and his trade wars fuck-up.  Sure, he's borrowing 12 BILLION dollars from China, one of the very countries with which he's going to trade war - so, irony!

But here is the outcome - besides taking the national debt to $21,263,807,944,392 (and counting) :  the farmer's now think BLOTUS is "saving" them, ensuring votes for the GOP in the mid-terms.

And THAT isn't just a coincidence.

Many of these mid-western farmers probably voted for him in the first place, they probably are against socialism - so, irony.

This behaviour is constant and so exhausting - and depressing.

I really don't know how this turd isn't exposed for the piece of shit he is.  Yet.......here we are.



Song by: Midnight Oil

One of the Drunks

It's true. I might be drunk.

And by "might", I mean, I "am".

Vacation suits me.

Admittedly my boss texted me needing something, so I logged into my VPN yesterday, but that's it. I did what was needed and got out.  I'm not sure I would have even done that had it not been pouring out.

Rain, nonetheless, I. am. loving. it here.

We had an incredible thunderstorm. Two actually. One was so strong, I could feel the house swaying. The one the night before last, the bolts of lightening were incredible. The kind you could see through closed eyes. Yet the day cleared up by noon and we had a fabu day.

Later afternoons are spent on the top deck - oh yes, we have two! - with wine, cheese and grapes. It seems a bottle of vino does not go very far. Ruckiry (not Jon's boss), we can walk to places for dinner where I might have a drink and then come home and sample a Golden Monkey (it's a beer, not a Kama Sutra thingy).

So yes, it's 21:30 and I'm d-runk.

The place is great. Our upstairs / next door neighbors are ok. Mom, daughter and granddaughter (I'm guessing), a gay son and his three gay friends and three fag hags.  Oy.   The mom is nice. The young fags won't acknowledge these older ones.  In 20 years, they have a shock coming their way.

But the right next door folks are nice. Mike and Janet.  I don't know that's their names, but that is
what I have dubbed them. (710 to me: "really? have you ever met anyone named 'Janet', ever?") .

Mike is FINE! Too good for Janet, if I say so, though she is very nice. Mike like to not wear shirts - and Blobby is just fine with that.  He drives a big Ford F250 which might be over compensating, but I'm ok with it.

The only downside to vaca is no Shep.  Sure we miss Sophie, but she can take care of herself. Shep we kind of feel needs us, and us him.

So I type this hearing the palm tree tap against the side window.  The doors are now open since the humidity dropped and we can hear the ocean.  Tis great.

I might have one more drink before bed. Probably not........but I'll leave it open as an option.



Song by: Panic! At the Disco

Shopping with Blobby

Yet another installment in the drudgery that is everyday shopping. The camera-phone makes it a bit more fun - though I get looks whenever I take pics of products. Like I care what people think!

This is actually a Shopping with Becky.

Rebecca sent this my way back in May and I just had it in the queue.

It's a shame I don't drink coffee and rarely drink hot tea. I would LOVE to have one of these Climate Change Mugs.

Unfortunately, all my friends and colleagues are not climate change or science deniers, so I would only get a chuckle from them instead of ticking someone off.

But the holidays are coming up.  They could make White Elephant or Secret Santa Gifts.

My Music Monday

I am once again, theme-less, at least in My Music Monday.  I think I can sail though the rest of July until I decide what to do - if anything.

This week I have new-ish music.  Mike Shinoda formerly of Linkin Park.

Yeah, I liked some of Linkin Park's stuff, but I can't say I'm a fan. I think they had a good mix of rock with a little bit of rap (which generally I'm not a fan of).

Shinoda wasn't the primary vocalist for Linkin Park, and I haven't listened yet to (or sampled) his solo disk, but I keep coming across its first single, "Crossing a Line".

Normally I'm not a fan of auto-tune, and while Shinoda uses it, the distraction is less than I'd have imagined.  The tune is at times predictable and then not as much.  I dare say I like it.

Surf's Up

It's that time of summer.......vacation time.

Due to a work project I was told I could have no time off in August, so we went for late-ish, July.  Naturally, said project got pushed back to September now.

We did not go to Maine this year, but back to North Carolina. We did not go to the Outer Banks like normal, but closer to Wilmington, as it it closer to my sister-in-law (who relocated there recently) and her daughter.  We are hoping to entice them to join us for a day, or five.

The trip down was, let's say, not the greatest. It was ok. Better than I-95 to OBX, that's for sure. An hour of West Virginia driving was harrowing, and I wasn't even behind the wheel. It was teeming, and at times having less than 40 feet visibility.

We made it to Raleigh, and yesterday we spent three hours moving my sister-in-law into her new place. It was the best three hours I've spent in 2018.

But we made it to the beach in the afternoon. 

710 really wanted a house on the beach. Not near, but on. He got his wish.

It's a beautiful place, but they don't allow pets, so no Shep. Our heart breaks a little.

But we have three bedrooms, three and a half baths, two balconies, a full kitchen - and now after a trip to Harris Teeter, a stocked one too.

I get people think having to make food during vacation is wrong. It's nice not to have to go out. And let's face it, a lot of the fridge is stocked with wine and beer.  .....and some ice cream.

So yes, I'm sure I'll be posting daily.  I think.  I'm giving me the option to opt out. And if I don't, my posts might not be scheduled like usual.  I really am taking it easy this week.



Song by: the Beach Boys

Wade in the Water

Two day. Two dog parks. One of them new and near my mother's place. It's a nice addition to the doggie rotation.

Shep isn't much of a swimmer, but he's happy to cool his belly in the water. 

New dog park. It's a nice one. And he loves to run. 

I don't think Shep is an agility pooch, but he liked the plank. 

......and of course......HRH

Song by: Eva Cassidy

Conjunction Junction

Way to go Colbert.






Song by: Schoolhouse Rock

Dr. Evil

I don't really have much for today.  It was a 13 hour work day and I hadn't touched even the slightest of news.

Sure, I saw that MGM is suing 1000 people who were under attack from a guest at Mandalay Bay.  In a way I totally get their take, as where is the line on how you regulate your guests.

Should they have known someone was setting up shoppe to kill a few dozen folks?  Wait - before you say 'yes', think about what - and whom - you do in hotels.  Do you want them knowing that?   Granted, what they're doing is a shitty PR move but you have to read the articles to know it's a countersuit. It's not like they just opted to up and sue 1000 people.

....and it's business.  No one is just parting with their dough. Certainly not casinos.



.....on another note.  You know I read the local obituaries daily. Sad but true. It beats Mary Worth.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't laugh at this one.

Apparently his middle name isn't "Danger".    No word on how Dixie Normus is taking the news



Song by: They Might Be Giants

Russians

Two chew toys so disgusting I refused to get them last summer whilst in Maine for even Shep to tear apart upon our return.

I have nothing I could possibly add to the debacle that is BLOTUS and his Helsinki trip.  I see headlines of course, but I haven't had the stomach to read his partial, pseudo, faux retraction.   .....if you can call it that.

I do love how everyone is clutching the pearls, as if they expected something different.

Everything this "man" has done for 18 months is provide his support to the Supreme Leader.  I'm not sure why,  but I'm sure it's not over a golden shower video. 

My lord, the "man" has done so much worse that his blind followers have been ok with - and yes, I'm talking to you Franklin Graham. Melanoma might not like it, but I think he'll be ok if she moves on.

GOP leadership (I had to hold back vomit typing those two words) were quick to smack him on the wrist with their pinkies they were so gosh-darn mad!  Rob Portman - that total fuck of a loser, and "my" senator thought the press conference was "troubling".  Way to take a stand Rob.  Even your faggy, cock-gobbling, butt-fucking son has to have more commitment than that.

Yeah. I went there.

So let's see, Ryan said something. Hatch. McCain. McConnell.   Who is not on that list?  Who could it be?  Who in the world could it be?

Oh yeah - the lady in waiting:  Michelle Pence.

I guess it's hard to talk when you have to lips firmly attached to an anus.

That BLOTUS' sycophants didn't stand up and walk out the door to any of this finally means there is no rock bottom for any of them..............and for us.


Of course, even the cynical me (no....it's true!) figures this entire event is a distraction of something even more heinous.



Song by: Sting

Strangers

Three Identical Strangers hit the Cleveland International Film Festival a few months ago, but I didn't get a chance to see it then.

I'm not sure I would have even known about it, had it not been for a friend of mine, Josh, who was adopted into a Jewish family.

The movie centers on three adopted men finding out they're separated triplets - all of which happens in the span of like, three days.

Of course, there is the fun of the discovery and finding out their commonalities, but the movie take a dark turn. Turns.  Plural.

It's not just that the boys were separated on purpose, it's that it happened for an alleged psychological experiment. And not just them, but any number of identical Jewish twins. I say 'any number of' because no one truly knows how many.

So, those are some of the spoilers, but not all of them.

Depending on your point of view, regarding the boys, there is discussion about nature vs nurture. It all ties into what folks think the experiment was about and what it might have been about. Either way, the points of view still apply.

I would say the whole audience was captivated by the subject, but I'd also say the filmmakers missed a number of opportunities. Yes, they could have kept delving into how eerily these guys were alike, but never discussed their differences. There is also a part regarding each of the boys and their mental health issues as children. Sure, they mention it - barely - but in a movie that is so much about a psychological experiment, I would have thought it would go into greater detail, or at least tie in a little more.

The movie was very interesting and I liked it a lot. It's not an upper and there are no real outcomes, but still it's weird to know that in the 60s-80s weren't far enough from the Holocaust to forget that experiments were still happening involving the Jews.  The irony of course was that it was in America and with Jewish children.....with the help of a Jewish run orphanage.

Ok....maybe not irony, but sadness.


See it if you can in the theater, or when / if it comes to Netflix.



2018 Movie Count / Goal:  10 of 12


Song by: the Kinks

My Music Monday

I come to the end of my Facebook series of top albums during my formidable years. There are so many more than 10, but like your children, they can't all be winners.

For my last selection, I went with Touch, by the Eurythmics.

Truth be told, I could have easily gone with Sweet Dream or almost any one of their albums.  And for this selection, I could have gone with any one of their songs from Touch.  Not a clunker in the group.

I toyed around with ones that has "official" videos, but like the Trident panel, I'm the 5th dentist who is like the cheese that stands alone. I rather highlight a deeper track.

You know how music shows are: they pretend they're live but they're just artists lip-syncing to the song. So no official video for "No Fear, No Hate, No Pain (No Broken Hearts)", but you do get the recorded version of audio.

Resistance

I'd say, "I got nothin'", but I do - it just might not be written as much as shown. I can't seem to deal with the SCOTUS stuff, though horribly annoyed am I at emails I get asking for donations to help block the current nominee.

FUCK. YOU.

Give money?  To whom exactly? And to do what?

The senate votes on this turd. Do I actually have to donate $$$ for a democrat (cuz let's face it, there isn't a republican who won't vote "aye" for this guy) to vote 'no'?   Politics on both sides of the aisle is just shameless.

So the rest of my post are just visuals on current and semi-current political shit.  No more commentary.

Song by: Muse

Hello Kitty Kat

Kitty Kat lovers:  REJOICE !!!!!

We are Sophie heavy this week.

Soph has taken to hanging out on the ottoman in front of me. And she takes ALL the ottoman. {sigh}

Sister and Brother.  One active. One very very passive.

On a truly windy day, Shep might just be able to fly. 

It would be such a relief if she'd just do a blog post or two per week.

Song by: Smashing Pumpkins

12 of 12

So I'm doing my 100th 12 of 12.

Normally it is 12 pictures taken on the 12th of the month. Since I only post once per day, you get my images the following day. All pictures taken with my iPhone. Click images to enlarge, if you choose.

Created by Chad Darnell and picked up from, what I can tell, any number of random bloggers who then link back to him and vice versa. Chad is no longer doing this, nor is successor coordinating the linking of other 12 of 12'ers anymore. Now it's just Erik and myself - that I know of.....as it's the only blog post he's still doing......for now.  

I still continue to do this, because of all my consistent post topics, I actually like this one the most.




Truth be told - in the back of my mind for the last 2-3 years, today was going to be my last ever blog post.

I figured I didn't know where to end it, so #100 of 12 of 12 seemed like a good enough milestone as any.

As it turns out, I was kind of right - I do NOT know where or how to end this. So for the time being, you are stuck with me......at least until blog entry #5000.   That was my second option.

04:53.  Sophie visiting me as I "get ready" for the a.m. dog walk.

05:25.  Steak for breakfast. 

.....well, steak and an anti-anxiety med as I start to pre-treat for his nail clipping on Saturday. 

06:20  Doggie Daycare Drop Off

06:35.  Iced Tea and a b'fast sammie. 

Blobby didn't have b'fast at home. 

07:15. Charge entry. 

My charge entry person is on PTO and I have two secretarial openings, so I entered all Pulmonary Function professional charges. 

12:05.   Hour long conference call. 

Little did I know I'd be presenting, let alone to the hospital president and the president of physician services.  I nailed it. 

17:45.  Shutting down.  Not emotionally. 

17:55.  Driving home.  Kind of. 

18:10.  Provisions. 

Milk. Cherries. Panko. Fresh fish. Ice Cream. You know, the staples. 

18:35.  Mom Wild Turkey and her 5 kids making their way through our struggling lawn. 

19:35.  Dinner prep.  Using two of those provisions I bought. 

21:20.   Peanut Butter and Chocolate ice cream.  Or what was. 

WTF?

.....the thing is - it was only a matter of time before someone from the BLOTUS administration stuck their foot in mouth from the Thailand cave thingy.  The question wasn't really if, more like when, but definitely, 'who'?

It was the Feckless Cunt........no, the other one........KelleyAnne.

It is my assumption that she floated some kind of fucking test balloon for the administration - though I don't know why. They don't care what most Americans feel and their base will cheer them on no matter what.

My first thought? 

Surely this is a fucking sick joke, or seeing how far this administration can push folks in its absurdity in what they do on a daily basis.

Surely they are not so stupid - - hard as it is to believe, I don't think they are.   They're just assholes. 

Of course there were the 1400 twitter replies. While amusing, somewhat predictable. I tried to find some I liked more than others.

....I love you Trish Thornton. 

I love you Sienna..............and Regina George!

Song by:  OK Go