12 November 2008

Humpday Happenings...
Yesterday wasn't so bad as "yesterdays" go...
I was putting out our flag just as the sun was trying to peek over the trees - no problem there.
And we went to Glenbrook Mall to perform our bi-yearly pilgrimage to retail. My wife even got her picture taken (by me and my trusty digicam) with the Chik-Fil-A "mascot" (didn't know they HAD one)...in a tennis sweater to boot!
And I wasn't stalked once.
I have noticed stores I remember being there curiously missing, and whatever "new" stores took their place being more of THE SAME, and by that I mean predictable, cookie-cutter fashion stores to add to the plethora of ones already there.
We stopped in the Barnes & Noble Bookstore, and I have to admit that I was not nearly as "impressed" as I thought I'd be, in spite of the fact that we DID purchase some stuff there (but NO Garfield 2009 wall calendar...???). I still miss the Waldenbooks, the Reader's World, and the B. Dalton stores. They were a lot more personable.
And maybe that's part of today's problem...
Not ENOUGH personable-ness to go around.
I was people watching as well yesterday, and I was thinking to myself how these folks were just walking with little or no thought to anything else. Now I don't expect people to be somersaulting their way through a stinking mall at 10AM, but I mean at least ACT like you're trying to have some sort of decent time, hmm?
I suppose that if these people live in MY part of town, they WOULD be GLAD to be among a large group of relatively NORMAL people (as I usually am whenever I get the chance to leave the area for whatever reason).
**Curiously enough, that brings me to something Fort Wayne is now to be noted for; the best place to raise children (in all of Indi-frigging-ana) ..!?!
Yeah, I kinda thought the same thing.
WTF are these people talking about?
Oh, wait...the pollsters at YAHOO probably meant that Fort Wayne is the BEST place to raise children, IF your zip code doesn't end in 06, 05, or 03.
Yeah, that's just GOT to be it.
I can't imagine YAHOO being THAT far off base with their assessment.
Then again, the COUNTY was pretty far off (on the high side) with the assessment of OUR PROPERTY for the last FOUR years, so maybe there IS a smattering of misplaced reasoning at work here.
I'd wager that the "places" in and about Fort Wayne the study "studied" were most like as far AWAY from OUR part of town as possible.
I mean c'mon now...who would say that a drug-infested neighborhood, full of rental flotsam-filled hovels, sex offenders, prostitutes, boomcars, gunshots, and pitbulls is CONDUCIVE to properly raising a child...ANY child?
That explains the behavior "nuances" of those that are being "raised" in our neighborhood. Welcome to the next generation of "Playas" and welfare-leeching baby-mamas, folks, brought to you by every government agency that reaches into YOUR pockets to fund it.
Yeah, that about sums that up nicely.
The ACTUAL places were most likely the newly-annexed Aboite area, and who can blame them for picking an area like THAT? That's a lot more the American Dream, than our neighborhood American Nightmare ANY day.
But hey, whatever floats your boat, I guess.
**Let's shift gears for a moment, shall we?
I've been TRYING to follow and fully comprehend this whole "bailout" thing, giving it time to sink in, to digest the pros and cons, and why the government feels the "need" to do it.
And I keep coming up with the SAME conclusions...
It's WRONG...dead wrong.
Now I wouldn't begrudge the government bailing out the AUTO industry, and with good reason...they would have to lay off a $hitload of workers if THEY shut their doors. And the LAST thing we need in this economy is MORE PEOPLE on the DOLE!
But bailing out the BANKS???
WHY? They did this to THEMSELVES, didn't they?
I mean it's not like they didn't meet fuel-efficiency standards...they just made some really BIG BONEHEAD calls when it came to mortgages and home loans. They didn't just lay an egg on that one, they laid a frigging VERMONT VOLLEYBALL!
That HAD to have hurt like hell.
But yet our illustrious government has seen fit to toss a crapload of cash at these banks...in the HOPE they won't wind up in a similar predicament further down their "yellow (read golden) brick road".
Now you tell me...isn't that JUST LIKE REWARDING BAD BEHAVIOR?
Let's say Johnny is having a BAD day...a REALLY bad day...even worse than me. He failed a test he KNEW he should have studied for, came home with a chip the size of Mt. Rushmore on his pre-teen shoulder, and decided to take it out on his sister and the family dog my kicking the piss out of them both.
As a parent, what would be the FIRST thing you would do (other than dive for the bottle of Tylenol Extra Strength and the nearest "board of education")?
Well, if you were the U.S. Government, you'd probably take his misbehaving little ass up to Toys R Us and buy him a Wii, some games to go with it, and probably a new bicycle, and then take him to McDs or BK for lunch, right?
WRONG!
You chastise his butt (aka put the fear of GOD and YOU back into him) with every disciplinary item at your disposal, and get him into some tutoring, and anger management course. Hell, you might even consider making him go out back, and cut his OWN "switch", and then demonstrate (to him) how best to utilize it upon his "seat of knowledge".
You just DO NOT act in such an irresponsible manner as to ignore bad behavior.
You don't give him a second chance, especially when you know he already has had FIVE of them in the last several years, and hasn't learned a damn thing in all THAT time.
Same goes for the Wall St. debacle.
You don't "reward" banks by GIVING THEM money they pissed out the window with failed mortgages set at sub-prime rates to at risk individuals with little or not credit rating...unless you know for a fact that monkeys will soon be sprouting wings and flying about.
I feel this is setting a disturbingly bad trend...it's sending the WRONG message, plain and simple. Anyone that cannot see this obviously has two earfuls of sand to contend with.
I have said (here) time and again that EVERY ONE of us either succeeds OR fails on their OWN merits (or lack of them). The analogy should also apply to any and all corporate entities, including banks and the entire financial industry.
If YOU fail, you can bring yourself out of that failure to succeed.
If banks or lending agencies fail...ditto.
Someone needs to grow some balls and start making decisions that are based on facts, not fantasy.
**Lastly, when it comes to appliances, I pretty much know my way around the block...used to do it for a living (in another life). So when our fridge started to "short-cycle" (not really a good thing, but manageable), I did what ANY decent technician would do...apply "Emergency Repair Procedure #1", which is to get a nice sized mallet and WHACK the snot out of the compressor.
And that worked...for a time. Used to go a whole SIX months before another "whack" was required.
But I think our long-toothed refrigerator is trying to give up the ghost.
It doesn't want to start at all without being knocked about...and I'm only too willing to oblige. I have this pent-up anger thing with the inhabitants of my neighborhood and the lack of city involvement over the last decade.
That's why I have a shooting gallery in the basement...to avoid going postal on a daily basis.
But now, I'm starting to think it's time to "trade up", and get us a new fridge.
And somehow I think these girls are NOT an "accessory" with ANY fridge...at ANY price (darnit).
It served well over the last ten years that we've had it (and even more when my wife's parents lived here). It's probably close to 15+ years old, and in dog years...yeah, it should be DEAD.
Well, it's trying it's damnedest to LIVE up to that...or is that DIE up to it?
In any event, it's time to start SERIOUSLY looking around for the replacement, which hopefully will serve for another 15 years, yet with today's history of planned obsolescence, I'm not going to be holding MY breath.
But I DO prefer my ice cream FIRM and COLD, as opposed to being in a warm, liquid state.
Don't we all?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

loved your camel. i agree fort wayne the best place to raise a kid.........whatever. maybe waynedale back in the 70's/early80's but i had a older lady friend that lived near the park that wont let me go to the tennis park area until a crowd showed up. she said strange things happened there. i didnt care stayed on her porch for the cookies and juice. and the refridgerator. well i got mine for 250.00 at lowes scratch and dent about 11yrs ago. still working fine. i would try the local scratch and dents first.
good luck finding a good fridge.

Murphy said...

In regards to the succeeding or failing on ones own merits, it does seem to me that the old phrase comes true, eventually... the only question is when one says, 'the heck with it' and let 'em learn the hard way.

I know for me personally I'm waaay past the 'heck' stage!


Also - gun range in the basement?

[green w/ envy]

Bob G. said...

Indy:
Raising kids is like raising "cain"...there's a RIGHT WAY...and a WRONG way, no matter WHERE you live or who you are.
re: fridge-
I've got no problem w/ the S&Ds...used to refurb them back in the day (one of many days in many lifetimes)...if I can find one, I'll get me that bad boy ASAP!

Sarge:
The pistol range...only for airsoft, BBs, pellets, and paintballs...nothing OVER 400FPS!

(Now my buddy upstate as got a perfect setup for a REAL shooting range, both indoor AND outdoor - amazing what buying 3 ACRES can do for a man)

"My" gallery just keeps the reaction times sharp.
Plus, it's only out to 5 meters (small basement-CQB)
Still, poppin' a 4 inch-tall toy figure at 5M is a LOT like picking off a baddie at say...30M.
(VBG)
I've been told that there are a few people that would love to see my "resume"...
(sorry to disappoint)

;)

Thanks for the comments!

B.G.