06 July 2012

Friday Follies - Let It SNOW Edition...

Joe said he needed to take a week off and take a rest at the North Pole...and who am I to argue with the Sarge, eh?
So, some of my friends are filling in...
(hey, we still got a BURN BAN in place, guys!)
Yeah, I'm about ready for winter....a good, old-fashioned McMurdo AFB kinda one...!
How's about you?
I hear that about 10K residents are without power AGAIN in Fort Wayne...
(it's been downgraded to under 8K now)
I'm REALLY starting to like councilman Mitch Harper's idea of BURYING the power lines.
But HOW best to it, from a cost-effective standpoint...and WHERE to do it where it will do the MOST good (and not just make a nice area look "nicer" )? The logistics of such an undertaking are pretty severe, but at least all the newer additions and developments don't seem to have this issue, so they become a non-sequitor to this fact.
It will be an interesting proposal...and an even MORE interesting project to implement.
We shall see...
-- In the meantime, back in the sweat box...
We've got more LINKS today than the anchor chain of the (retired) U.S.S. Kittyhawk, so let's get busy before it gets too hot to think.
*** Yepper...welcome to PHOENIX ARIZONA EAST, people...gonna go up PAST the century mark and slated to top out around the 105 degree mark.
Oh yeah...it's gonna be "TOO GEEDEE F$CKING HOT" outside today, so take EXTRA precautions IF you do find yourself OUT in this heat AND humidity. If you're INSIDE...STAY THE HELL PUT, set the A/C to 70 and pour a good TALL cold beverage with as little alcohol OR caffeine in it as possible.
Bring in the pet, too...no need for him/her to stay out in this, either.
(unless your pet happens to be a Bengal Tiger, in which case you might want to refrain from the above...purely for SAFETY reasons.)
What amazes me about this heat, is that there are some folks who think this is a "new" occurrence...not so.
((Caution - Educational alert - You may learn something.))
We had similar heat waves back in the late 1980s, the early-mid 1950s, the mid-late 1939s, and they DO have a WIKI for that one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1936_North_American_heat_wave
Them there was the New York heat wave of 1896, and here's the WIKI:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Eastern_North_America_heat_wave
But we weren't the ONLY ones that suffered such things, as evidenced HERE with the "great stink" of London, back in 1858:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Stink
And if you read history, you find that temperatures during the Battle of Gettysburg topped the 100 degree mark, as did some of the Revolutionary War battles fought farther south in NC and SC.
Imagine fighting in WOOLEN clothing in such heat...and managing to survive to tell about it.
And WAY back around 1500 A.D. most of Europe was sizzling due to the heat.
(didn't know that had "global warming" back THEN? Where were all the cars and factories contributing to it????)
So, even though such extreme heat is upon us, it's interesting to note that we've had similar situations throughout time.
Nature (and our planet) tends to operate in a cyclical fashion...what goes around comes around, as it were.
There was also the heatwave in NYC and Philly back in 1948, as well as the summer of "The Son of Sam" which was 1977, where temps soared way into the 90s and then there was....a BLACKOUT (sound familiar?).
Here's an example of how you dealt with heat waves in Philadelphia...circa 1776:
http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2012/06/20/how-philadelphians-handled-heatwaves-in-1776/
You ladies out there might want to thank your stars for today's fashions rather than boned corset, long frocks and hoop skirts (and I'm sure the guys will too...LOL). That is, unless you're into the whole S&M gig.
Mechanical Air conditioning was pretty much non-existent until 1911, but the ancient ROMANS had their aqueduct systems that ran through the walls of houses to keep them cool.
And the Han dynasty invented a rotary "fan" (manually-powered, naturally).
The Tang dynasty had water-powered fan wheels later on.
Ben Franklin in 1758, conducted experiments to explore the principle of EVAPORATION to cool objects (he was on the right track and "getting warmer"...ironic, yes?).
But, you can see it ALL of it for yourself HERE:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_conditioning
There is the history and applications of A/C...long may it reign!
Now, for the "geeknotechies" out there, we didn't forget YOU either...here is the "nuts and bolts" as to WHY you feel comfy when you flip that switch and that cool air comes out:
http://home.howstuffworks.com/ac.htm
Everything you need (or care ) to know about your cooling system...it's a pretty interesting field of endeavor, and I speak from experience (another lifetime of mine).
Let's just hope that this is one of the typical cycles this old Earth is going through.
I mean it could ALWAYS be worse...like what was postulated in this TWILIGHT ZONE EPISODE (entitled Midnight Sun):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Midnight_Sun
*** As for the lovely Mrs. Bobby G. and myself...well, grocery shopping was "fun" - the Scotts in Waynedale suffered an outage and ALL the ice cream had been pulled from the freezers, so we booked back to the Walgreens at Southgate, and paid a bit more for two 1.75 qt containers of ice cream to replace that which we lost last week.
-- Wifey is headed up to the mall today for her hair appointment, and I always worry like a parent (well, MINE anyway).
It's not HER driving I fret about...it's ALL the idiots out there doing stupid sh*t because they can.
(and DO as the news will tell you)
Some people are dumb as rocks when it's nice out, let alone when we're in a heat wave...then they get working on that SPECIAL KIND OF STUPID...the type that gets others killed or injured, because they have to "get their drunk (or high) on"...before 9-freaking-AM!
-- What did get me laughing with the news, was that people on FOOD STAMPS can get MORE food stamps to replace any foods lost during the outage.
((...AHEM...))
No proof is required at the outset when going to the NSSA building, so who's to say WHAT was lost, HOW MUCH was lost and how SOON the fraudulent claims will come rolling in like a RED TIDE, hmm???
Wouldn't it be BETTER to open up the old trailers and hand out cheese, rice, powdered milk, and the like...the way they USED to do?
I mean NONE of these people seem to EVER "eat at home" (read cook at home unless it's grilling, because THAT is easy).
Well, some who try to cook at home fall asleep and burn the house the hell down.
The rest just bring in TAKE OUT...every single frigging day...the trash truck can tell you that much when they empty the BINS - 180 gallons of fast food trash, beer bottles, and cans for a "family" of THREE (one adult, two kids)...yeah, that speaks VOLUMES.
But, that's the way the gov't "takes care" of them...actually it's more like ENSLAVES them, and they're not even aware of it...that's the SAD part.
I suppose things could change for the better...just not today, right?
Hang in there, folks...that tunnel ain't THAT long or dark.
Keep cool this weekend...and DO take care.
Have yourselves a good weekend, despite the heat.
(that's what card and board games are for...lol)
Be well, make a difference to someone today, and as always...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

05 July 2012

It's Another "HHH" Kinda Day...

Looks like the Midwest will be spending some time in the 100 degree+ range for the day...
That means THREE things:
Hazy...
Hot...
Humid...
!!!
Period!
I noticed that on our outdoor thermometer, it was well into the 70s before the sun came up, and right now before 0700 hrs, it's tickling 80 degrees.
And it FEELS it.
Humidity is up as well, so welcome to Thailand WEST...lol.
*** The lovely Mrs. Bobby G. and I spent the 4th inside, staying comfy, and had pizza for dinner.
Sorry to break tradition with the grilling thing (even though the county WAS allowing that during this drought), but somehow, I just did NOT feel like standing in the sun, cooking and sweating, But we did get the flags out, and overall, the REST of the neighborhood behaved themselves...somewhat.
-- I watched some Military Channel shows on The Revolutionary War...excellent series (sounded like it was narrated by Charles Kuralt), while Wifey watched the History Channel which was showing the series The Presidents.
Yeah, never hurts to LEARN something every day, does it?
(Besides, I already have ALL the FIREFLY episodes on DVD, so I didn't need to flip over to the SCIENCE CHANNEL and watch their marathon...lol)
The central A/C was running non-stop, and even then, the house climbed to 78 degrees...but the humidity was LOW.
Funny thing, never did hear or see ANY ice cream trucks out and about yesterday...
I wonder why???
Overnight, the A/C was kept on, and it reduced the inside temperature to a mere 72 degrees...but it's pretty comfy, nonetheless.
-- We DID have some fireworks being set off, beginning in the later evening (some were in fact aerials) so SCREW that BAN on personal pyrotechnics, hmm? There must be a contingent of folks "who do what they want".
I was thinking about calling the FWPD (they said they were citing AND arresting violators...really???), but I was in a quandary as to HOW I would address the issue.
Dispatch would no doubt ask me WHERE the fireworks were being set off, and probably want to know the HOUSE(s) doing it.
Hey, I would love to know that as well, but I could only speak in ambiguous terms when referring to precise LOCATION.
Face it, these law-breakers aren't out in the street being THAT blatant...they're tossing them out the door, or setting one off in the backyard, then dashing back INSIDE, and the FWPD has this thing about SEEING people do sh*t, instead of taking one's word.
I know, I've heard it on the radio MANY times.
My first thought was to tell dispatch to send a car to a specified area (giving boundaries and cross-streets), for I figure that THIS alone would suffice, but with all the OTHER crap the officers were dealing with (yes, people DO wail on one another in record heat for the dumbest things...go figure)...wasn't gonna happen.
Then, I also (erroneously) believed that a FWPD cruiser would be in the area ANYWAY, knowing the "nature of the beasts" living down here all around us...but that would mean there was some PROACTIVE patrolling being done, and I really haven't seen all that much these days...at least not enough to warrant these ghettohood dipshi*ts from refraining from their "typical" behavior.
So, you hunker down, say nothing and let it all pass for the time being...
I know it sure beats having to play "ask me another" with dispatch when none of THEM lives down here, and have NO idea what the ghettohood is all about...or ever will. That's called a DISCONNECT, btw. And this city suffers from a chronic condition of it...been that way for at least 20 years down here.
Fortunately, the fireworks were minimal, but we expect it to pick up sometime in the future. It ALWAYS does.
I know the store sales of such devices were way down...and personally, I'd like to see the year-round ban be reinstated IN the city.
Some towns are ACTIVELY PURSUING the ban violators, like HERE:
http://www.indianasnewscenter.com/news/local/Two-Arrested-for-Violating-Burn-Ban-and-Catching-4-Yards-on-Fire-161422985.html
Wow...FOUR yards (in Goshen, IN) caught on FIRE...now who coulda seen THAT one coming (F$cking morons!).
BUSTED!!!
(BTW, homeowner's or renter's insurance doesn't cover ASSHATTERY...just sayin'...)
-- You live in the sticks and have a nice chunk of real estate on your hands...I got absolutely NO problem with setting off anything that doesn't leave a 50-foot crater on the property, or blow out windows in a one mile radius.
But, if you live in a city...where OTHER PEOPLE are also living, and usually within shouting distance, it makes NO sense to bother THEM with YOUR "need" to be obnoxious.
Some folks have medical conditions and would love to NOT be bugged by displays of dumbassery by others.
Other folks have emotional or psychological issues that cause them to react to such things as fireworks in a much more stressful way than the average man, woman, or child.
Why bother them needlessly?
What did they do to you?
Well, Bob...SOME of them fought for our liberties and freedoms in far off lands, sacrificing much so we could act stupid here at home...!?!
That's hardly a reason to disturb THEIR lives after they have performed and served with honor, is it?
Yeah, some people will NEVER "get it", I suppose.
But the whole gig here is that we should all be able to live with as little angst as possible, and that goes for EVERYONE.
-- Back in Philadelphia, considered by many (myself included) to be the ACTUAL "Cradle of Liberty" , for our founding documents were written there, they had a fireworks ban in place for as long as I can remember - only sparklers.
They had PUBLIC displays all over, however...and some really bad-ass ones, too.
So, there was little (if any) "need" to act irresponsible and set off any ordnance that disturbs everyone else's calm...and that worked.
It was this whole MUTUAL RESPECT kinda thing.
And THAT is the sort of thing I would THINK extols much of the virtues of the Midwestern mindset...
Imagine my amazement when I find I'm incorrect in that supposition.
Yes, there ARE many who will adhere to the burn-ban and personal display of fireworks, and ALL of those people are to be commended.
But you also have this faction that suffers from a terminal case of O.D.D. (Oppositional Defiance Disorder), and that spoils the milk for everyone else.
Listen to a police scanner, and you'll know exactly what I mean.
WhatEVER law, ordinance, suggestion, mandate, or edict that comes along, THESE people will just thumb their primate nose at it (when they can manage to remove that thumb from their ass, where it usually is).
Now, I suppose that if one were to approach this from a purely psychological standpoint, we could use REVERSE psychology and trick them into doing the right thing, by saying it's OK to do the wrong thing...but no dice with that.
They know enough to just go ahead and do the wrong thing...most all the time, like it's bred into them or something.
-- It's like I always say...everyone HAS to know their boundaries in life...that their rights end where mine (or yours) begin, and that your rights end where theirs begin..it's that simple an equation to balance. And many of us do it without blinking an eye.
We're taught right from wrong...from little on up, and we pay the price for our inattention along the way.
So, WHY do some follow through and do the right thing while others simple choose not to?
Well, THAT is the reason...the word CHOOSE.
It all comes down to CHOICES in life...always has and always will.
Some of us are just a lot better at it than others, but that does not excuse those making the bad choices, it just says that some are more adept at skulling out the consequences for making the wrong choice...so we make the best good choice we can.
Formal education can only do so much in this regard...sooner or later each of us has to think on their own, and many times, we learn by "trial and error". Mistakes are always part of the learning process, but should never become the ONLY recourse in one's life.
We make a mistake here and there, (hopefully) glean some knowledge from the event...and then move forward.
Others...not so much (and you can hear the "tires spinning" as a result).
They rarely pay attention to what THEY do, let alone what choice they're making.
And sometimes, the consequences for not paying attention can be harmful or fatal...to themselves but more often than not, to others.
I had a friend of mine from Philly, a black Baptist preacher man named Daniel, great person, who once told me that living a good life wasn't all about "don't do this and don't do that".
In fact he explained it this way:
"As you go through life, you need to focus on doing the DOs, 'cause if you're too busy doing the DOs, you don't have time to do the DON'Ts."
Yeah, that works for me just fine.
Thing is, we need to have that drilled into the skulls of the morons...the idiots...and the dumbasses around us.
That would certainly go a LONG way to solving much of this nation's problems.
Come to think of it, that's a lot like the way we USED to be in this country...
Who could have known?
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

04 July 2012

Humpday Happenings -
INDEPENDENCE DAY EDITION...
Welcome to the 4th of July...the BIRTHDAY of America, and I must say that for 236 years old, she ain't looking all that bad.
We are going to forego the military quote as there are WAY too many to include about today, so instead, we're taking a gander at the holiday itself.
((Caution - History lesson ahead. You may learn something.))
And, as expected, here's the WIKI on today:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence_Day_(United_States)
There are many people out there (you readers not being inclusive of that crowd) who believe that the 4th of July marked the END of our war for independence. It was more like the FIRST SHOT instead.
The Revolutionary War REALLY began (at Concord) in 1775 and ended in 1783.
Yes, Virginia, there's a WIKI for THAT, too:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War
And, as wars go, we got a "bargain" as it ONLY cost $37 million at the national level and $114 at the combined state level.
The Brits spent 80 million Pounds (sterling) and the French 1.3 BILLION Livres (about 56 million pounds sterling).
What sets US apart from other wars for independence, is that ours ACTUALLY SUCCEEDED, and our nation GREW and expanded outward, as opposed to other nations that became fractured by in-fighting from rival factions after their wars had ended.
Our economy and trade grew and thrived - other nations...not so much.
Our population set about expanding the boundaries of our nation.
All of it was due to the fact that WE (back then) wanted to be FREE FROM TYRANNY and OPPRESSION from what the colonials believed to be an unjust government, bent on control and domination of a people wanting to set their OWN course and live their OWN life here in America.
And, as they say: "We done good...we done REAL good".
-- Here, at this website is the COMPLETE text of what was included in the Declaration of Independence, and I would take a read on it, as it speaks to WHY America had to extricate itself from the ever-tightening grasp of England:
http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/index.htm
And after reading this, you can plainly see that our very own CONSTITUTION addressed ALL these issues, and provided for the people in these matters.
At THAT time, there were NO celebratory gatherings...this was all done "behind closed doors", as it were.
Any REAL commemoration came a year later in 1777 in Bristol, Rhode Island - the first documented account.
In 1778, General George Washington marked the day with a DOUBLE ration of RUM for the troops.
And the rest, as they say...IS history.
-- Celebrations only GREW with time.
The 4th was really an UNPAID federal holiday until 1938, when Congress decided to change that to a PAID day off.
Today is usually spent setting off consumer fireworks, watching professional displays of fireworks, singing patriotic songs (BTW, the song "THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND" has some progressive-socialist terms included in it...just wanted you to know that Woody Guthrie was okay with that)
Aside from that, the STAR-SPANGLED BANNER (derived from a 17th century British Antecreontic Society - a men's "social club"...I heard it was a PUB song...same thing?) and MY COUNTRY 'TIS OF THEE (derived from the British melody GOD SAVE THE QUEEN) are two favorites.
We even do THEIR songs prouder...sure glad we decided to "break away".
I think in some ways , we, as the people of AMERICA, have lost touch with what the REAL meaning is...
We're often too occupied elsewhere, doing the cookouts, and the fireworks, and hitting sales at stores to even concern ourselves of the SCOPE of what transpired 236 years ago today...it was a pretty big deal back then, and what was accomplished by these brave men echoes today...if we stop to listen.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."
Think of the sheer POWER of that one sentence...what is being stated, and HOW it is presented.
Look at the words THEY capitalized...especially the word CREATOR...the acknowledgement that there was (and still is) a HIGHER POWER to which we ALL answer to, and it's not J.C. Penney...or Kingsford.
There truly is power in the blood, and certainly power in the written word, as evidenced here...and then, all those 236 years ago.
Take some time to get to KNOW your Declaration of Independence...why YOU enjoy all that you do, and know that if not for a few score of brave and uncompromising patriots in a fledgling colony, things for us would be a LOT different today.
We call that being APPRECIATIVE...and HUMBLE.
Have yourselves a fantastic 4th.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

03 July 2012

There's Got To Be A Tuesday After...

With apologies to the writer of the original song to which I've paraphrased, the big cleanup continues in and around Ft. Wayne, and according to sources, will continue for MONTHS.
Not the best way to get rolling this AM, but it's better than standing still, right?
So, let's get busy finding out how things have been going since last we convened, shall we?
*** Close to 40K citizens are still without power, traffic lights in certain areas are still not functioning, and the police radio was abuzz with continuations about downed tree limbs and power lines.
Guess those trees weakened by the storm that did NOT come down are finally giving up the ghost.
And there is no lack of related stories regarding this "land hurricane" as some have labelled this recent storm.
Our mayor (the venerable King Henry) is petitioning county council to seek FEDERAL funding for the cleanup and to declare a state of emergency for Allen County.
And here's the story link:
(This link also provides the list of intersections with NO working lights.)
Now, I've often learned that if things are messed up, you "circle the wagons", all pitch in together , sort it out, and clean the damn mess the hell up yourselves...BUT, if you want to take that mess and make it worse, the best recourse is to get the FEDS involved...!
*** Temperatures around the area are expected to top out in the mid-high 90s most all this week, and with the HEAT INDEX factored in, it will FEEL like the low 100s outside, so be aware of such things IF you have to venture out and about.
Remember those safety tips I tossed out last week, and you'll do fine.
*** With such scenarios as what we have had here in the Summit City over the past 72+ hours, coupled with the human nature we see displayed these days, as compared to times past, you just KNOW you'll hear about stories like THIS one.
Here's the link:
People rushing out to grab needed supplies and items with which to weather the bad situation...when ALL it really takes it a lot better methodology when it comes to PREPARING for such an event...even if it never arrives.
Yesterday, the lovely Mrs. bobby G. and myself booked out to Menards, because we had a short list of things not that we NEEDED, but rather what we WANTED, in order to NOT NEED them later...makes sense, huh?
We picked up TWO more of those battery-powered LED camping lanterns, and for ONLY $5 each!
We also found some sale plants to amend the garden (always a good thing), and some suet cakes for the birds, and I was surprised at how FEW people were sharing the aisles with us...I had expected more folks stocking up on all those little things that people find themselves without, whenever some nasty thing comes along...like this recent storm.
Now, knowing this part of town (and it's inhabitants) the way I do, I can imagine where they were, and what they were buying, based on behavioral "norms" (for them). They were at WalMart, stocking up on CHARCOAL and PROPANE tanks for their GRILLS (with a damn BURN BAN IN EFFECT through the rest of this week).
What part of "NO OPEN BURNS" are they not wrapping their primate brains around, anyway?
Maybe they should try cooking INDOORS (if they have an electric stove), or maybe even go OUT for the 4th, instead of placing themselves, their house, or the houses of OTHERS nearby AT RISK...'ya think?
People like this are not concerned about such things...it's all about THEM, and what THEY feel they can do.
Fireworks are another issue...sales are still brisk around town, and in OUR part opf the ghettohood, there has NOT been ONE night for the past 2 weeks that has NOT included SOME type of loudass fireworks.
The FWPD has stated that people will be cited or arrested because of the ban that's in place with this drought.
(Yeah, like to see THAT happen...about as much chance as me hitting the PCH million buck giveaway, too...right?)
I know I WILL call in anyone using fireworks during the drought/burn ban...got NO problem with that.
*** In a related article, you might find this interesting, if not sadly disturbing.
Here's the link:
The story relates the trouble with PTSD that many vets suffer from, thanks to inconsiderate asshats playing WITH those store-bought pyrotechnics.
I can understand the situation these folks feel when exposed to such noises.
There is always that "specific" boom that catches you off guard, and you immediately feel your body tense, your heart race, the breaths come in short gasps. You might even feel yourself flinching to "avoid" whatever it might be. Some might refer to this as a panic attack...whatever.
A LOT more people suffer such things than you might realize, and unlike the common cold, doesn't just up and go away when you take a pill or chug down some medicine.
I've said MANY times, that the greatest problem that can be found in and around a city is NOISE, and we're not talking the typical background road or even construction types. I mean the noise created specifically for the "wow" factor...the FEAR factor, or even the intimidation factor, by certain moronic individuals who have more time to waste than brains between their ears to understand that the world doesn't revolve around them.
Nuff said about that...for now.
*** Here's another storm-related story about WHY it sometimes seems to take forever to get things going again...and it's a decent read:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20120703/EDIT07/307039993/1021/EDIT
Keeping our power grid up and running is like stacking Faberge eggs...very DELICATE deal.
You need to tread cautiously, and any outside influence is often enough to bring everything crashing down.
And then, you pick up ALL the pieces...for a long time.
There really aren't any "band-aid" fixes here...and that's because the AGE of the power grid is such where most of the entire system is ALREADY slapped together with band-aids...and bailing wire, and spit...and rubber bands!
Hasn't been much in he order of UPGRADES to it for a long time, and we see the evidence of such neglect (and about 40,000 here in Fort Wayne are still feeling it).
There is a proposal floating about the county council here for BURYING some of the power lines to prevent another situation like we just had...great idea.
The ENTIRE downtowns of most cities have NO POWER LINES above ground, and with good reason - got enough gridlock there as it is...don't want another reason to have even MORE, right? And that works.
So, maybe it's time to do likewise in areas that have trees in abundance...in case they are taken down by storms, and subsequently take down the power lines...or when a drunk driven marries his vehicle to a utility pole. It has promise, and would serve to bring a LOT of the problems we not face under better control.
*** Tomorrow is Independence Day and along those lines, columnist FRANK GRAY has a very good tale to tell.
Here's the link to his article:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20120703/LOCAL0201/307039962
(( Caution: there is some HISTORY involved and you might learn something. ))
I found out there is a lot more Revolutionary War history here than I first thought, and it's rather intriguing.
I mean we ALL know about (Mad) Anthony Wayne, but there is so much more. And maybe we should take some time to check it out.
*** Lastly today, tomorrow IS the 4th of July...pretty important date in this nation's history, if you ask me.
And with this drought and burn-ban, it makes sense to perhaps forego the USUAL fol-de-rol when it comes to celebratory behavior.
Let's face it, too many people don't REALLY celebrate the 4th in the manner to which the holiday is meant to be celebrated...they just USE it as an excuse to do STUPID SH*T...a LOT!
(and it shows)
I've done the cookout gig, downed my share of brews and had some great times, but we always knew WHY we were celebrating, and NEVER taking it to the point where we bothered others, or caused unnecessary harm to anyone else or ourselves...maybe that was just the way WE were brought up.
We were told from early on, that Independence Day as a pretty BIG deal for America...and we ran with that.
Most times, we went to parades and public fireworks displays, because they were better than ANYTHING we could dream up (or afford).
Today, we see laypeople with NO idea what's behind the proper use and display of street corner pyrotechnics getting drunk of high and then proceeding to show everyone else how "cool" they can be with the hundreds of bucks of fireworks they just bought...
Where they even GET all the money to BUY all those items is beyond me, because NONE of them works a lick!
(it must come with the nice new car with the loudass stereo and 24 inch rims the government gets for them on OUR dimes)
I say take the time to REALLY understand what the 4th should mean, and celebrate in the manner intended.
Don't become a poster child for DUMBASSES...we've plenty enough to go around as it is.
You can enjoy the holiday while being perfectly responsible...
It's things such as THAT which hold true as to what it REALLY means to be a citizen of this great nation.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

02 July 2012

Monday Musings...
(Post Mini Apocalypse Edition)
Okay, so ,maybe the FOUR HORSEMEN didn't really show up and ride through Ft. Wayne...but in some cases, it seemed they were saddling up.
The GOOD news is...we're still alive and well at the "Fortress".
The BAD news (for the locals) is...we 're still alive and well (at the "Fortress" )...LOL.
It all began at 1457 Hrs on Friday...that's when we "went dark" (and ran silent, but not by choice or design)...the clock stopped, the computers crashed, the A/C and fridge ran no longer, and we were pretty much transported IMMEDIATELY back into the 18th century (where's George Washington when you NEED him?).
Doc Brown and his DeLorean couldn't have done a better job!
-- Getting SOME type of communication (for us) was a chore, as Wifey needed to charge her cell phone up, and the land-line was on Verizon FioS, which had resorted to battery backup that eventually failed, leaving us without ANY phone service, until Mrs. Bobby G. recharged her phone from her car.
Well, she was with a "professional" when it comes to someone who can deal with spontaneously WEIRD situations...LOL!
-- We did have the foresight to grab us a hand-crank radio a few years back, and we still have a couple other portables that run on batteries, so that was fine.
We had "ears" at that point.
After the power was off for an hour, we both figured it was time to take inventory of what we NEED to do in the order we need to do it.
(...training kicked into overdrive...)
We had already gone grocery shopping THAT morning, so running out of anything (except patience) wasn't an issue, plus our pantry is always stocked up for at least 2 weeks worth of grub and liquids like juices, soda and bottled water.
Our main concern was loosing any perishables, as the fridge was gonna be MIA from this point until power came back.
 (Ditto the A/C naturally and anything that required electricity on a regular basis.)
We turned on WOWO (which did a exemplary job of staying up-to-date with ALL the local news, after they got a backup generator for their station when THEY lost power...we were listening to Pat White on another AM station up to that point.
MY hat's off to Greg Henson, Zack Bonahoom, Dave Wheaton (and all the gang there) for staying the course with this storm and it's aftermath, keeping us up-to-date..
-- As the sun dove towards the setting horizon, it was obvious that power would not be restored in the short-term interim, and since all the street and utility pole lights were affected, our neighborhood would wind up "darker than usual", if you get my drift.
No worries there...that's what a 12 gauge pump is for, and I slept with that baby within reach, as well as the 2 pistols.
The house fared well overnight...didn't heat up as bad as I thought, as cloud cover the day before kept the sun away, but with no A/C, wifey and I knew it would get worse the following day.
We had both refrained from going into the fridge for fear of loosing what cooling was available to keep the foods fresh, and our main concern was the MILK (1 1/2 gallons to be exact). The freezer was packed, so the foods would keep one another frozen for at least a day...perhaps two (word to the wise there, better a packed freezer than an empty one...always).
-- The Lovely Mrs. Bobby G. decided she'd venture out and see what was open for breakfast because we had CEREAL for dinner the previous night (Southgate Plaza was WITH power...go figure with no B/U generator).
The manner of the locations of the outage were beyond odd.
So, I held down the fort alone...for about 2 hours...?!?
When she finally got back, she told me she had to drive down to DECATUR to find any place that had breakfast - the BK nearest us was a madhouse, as was the Renaissance restaurant (missing staff) near Southtown, and Wifey made the call to head OUT of town.
She couldn't call me on her cell to update me because:
a) "I" don't have a cell phone.
b) The battery on the Fios phone line crapped out.
(Note to self 1- see about bypassing Fios with a dedicated hard line with a standard phone soon -
That shouldn't be hard to do - I've done T-COMMS hookups in the past...another one of my many lifetines)
As for ambient lighting around the house (which gets pretty damn DARK , especially after the sun goes down, and there's nothing OUTSIDE that shines in, except the solar PATIO LIGHTING..seriously), we had a small LED lantern I got a few years back for the hell of it...gave off a good amount of light, too (takes 4 AA batteries), and you can read by it.
Both of us carried small LED torches I got on eBay for a buck a while back, and we had PLENTY of batteries of all types, so we could SEE where the hell we had to go (bathroom excursions via flashlight...whatta trip!).
Anyway, Wifey and I enjoyed a rather cool breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage and homefries, courtesy of some small place in Decatur, Indiana, for which we THANK you.
Listening to the radio, the prospect of getting power restored (soon for us on the SE side) wasn't looking all that good.
And neither was one of our tree limbs that apparently had snapped and came to rest on the crest of our garage roof. It straddled the roof line nicely, so there was no chance of it sliding down and blocking the driveway.
-- The sun was up by now for a while, and the house was starting to heat up a bit, so we opened as many doors and windows NOT facing the streets, so as to at least have SOME air move about the first floor, and with a slight breeze, it wasn't that bad...reminded me of my childhood when we didn't have A/C.
Wifey did chat with a few folks in her breakfast-seeking travels,and heard that a neighborhood called CROWN COLONY already had power back up...
!?!
Now, that's odd, because that is located on the...(...all together, gang...)...SOUTHEAST SIDE of Ft. Wayne (as are we), and coincidently, that's the area ( I believe) where our 6th district councilman GLYNN HINES LIVES...imagine that.
After hearing that and getting pissed off (which doesn't aid in keeping one's cool in ANY way, shape, or form) I wondered how OTHER such city council members were doing, as well as the mayor (King Henry) and his loyal court?
I do know that damn near most of the city was "S.O.L." on the power thing, as was much of the immediate surrounding area and small towns.
By this time, it was late morning, better than 16 hours into the blackout, and still no sign of relief, save for AEP bringing in some additional "troops" from neighboring states to assist in power restoration...(good call and props to them for hitting the ground running on this one).
So...what does a married couple do when there's nothing TO DO?
Well, I brought out the patio table umbrella, and dug out something we call DOMINOES!
(with a breeze blowing, playing cards wasn't gonna cut it...and dice bounce on the glass table top too much)
Wifey dug out another board game, and we really had a nice time, in spite of the near apocalypse unfolding around us.
Others had some MAJOR branches come down, and one Hispanic house was out there, chain-sawing the tree trunk down to manageable sizes, stacking them ALONG THE CURB...kudos to them for doing a decent job ofimmediate cleanup!
Perhaps there may be hope for this part of the city...maybe,
On the other hand, the black woman across the street took the EASY (read lazy) way out...she tossed ALL her branches INTO THE GUTTER (street)...nice job, buttwipe!
(that's NOT what the city said to do, anyway)
As I said, we pretty much had OUR damage during that ice storm several years ago, so I guess mother nature decided to "share our wealth".
But, we still were ALL without power...that was the issue.
-- Mrs. Bobby G . later called the local Pizza Hut (which was open and operating at Southgate) and grabbed us lunch (was more like an early dinner - amazing how you lose track of time when nothing works...LOL)
Well, we did have battery wall clocks that told us the time, and we powered up my Mom's ancient "SPLASH DANCE" radio (play that IN the shower - remember those?) and were following the reports of progress on WOWO.
(note to self 2 - get a battery powered CD player...or better yet, a DVD player!!!)
What gets me, is how we take for granted ALL the technology we are so damn DEPENDENT UPON.
(yeah, that's includes even me...dammit!)
I had to step back several times and remember my youth, when we barely had a TV...it was ALL radio...and word-of-mouth.
Think of it as kinda like camping out...without all the "fun".
(that would be a bivouac in a combat zone, wouldn't it, Bob?)
-- Shelters were open for those with breathing and other health conditions, other locations were handing out bags of ice...much of it provided by AEP themselves - nice job. Gas generators were being snatched up as fast as they could put them out, and with gas prices dipping to around $3.25 a gallon (or even lower) it makes sense for some to go for it...we're even thinking about it now.
You have to remember that with an event of this scope, your Internet AND your cable/satellite will go OUT (and not to a movie)...so maybe that dusty copy of MONOPOLY or CHUTES AND LADDERS might come in handy some day...you never can tell.
-- By now, the afternoon was waining, Wifey and I were yahtzee'd out and we polished off the melted ice cream in the freezer (was like a FROSTY from Wendy's actually), and we retired back to the patio to grab some kind of cool (BTW, shaving by lantern light IS a lot like camping...in one's own house).
While outside, we were hearing reports of some parts of town coming back online, so I was hopeful that we'd be up soon...exactly HOW soon was what I couldn't figure out.
It was then Wifey noticed the porch lights across the street were on (street lights weres still out), and we both got real hopeful.
We also saw an AEP cherry-picker truck canvass the alley, so THEY were in our area.
It wasn't long after that, Wifey noticed the family room light was on, and I was shouting my pleasure in a job well done by AEP.
And then...we ALL rested...for a bit...!
The next thing was going around the house, resetting things, setting clocks, VCRs, and then assessing what ALL we lost from the fridge.
I can truthfully say that (today) I am enjoying my morning coffee with the milk that we feared would go bad...it has not.
The OTHER gallon hadn't been opened, and was still fresh, as were all the lunch meats we purchased back on Friday.
The ice cream was ALL we seemed to have lost (most of it was lost down our tummies...LOL).
Overall, Not...too...bad.
Now, all we have to do is call for the tree guys to come out and get that branch (about a thick as two of me) that's on the garage removed...and we already know the sooner we call, the sooner we get put "on the list", because ALL those people will be busy for quite some time.
-- As of today, there are STILL over 50K+ citizens without power...but the DOWNTOWN area (usually not that busy on a weekend) was up back with power less than 12 hours after the blackout...the areas HARDEST HIT, like the quadrants with the GREATEST DENSITY of population, the highest number of SENIORS, and the highest number of "poor" people (actual or perceived) is DOWN here on the...(...all together, gang...)...SOUTHEAST SIDE...and we were without power for damn near TWO days!
Wifey mentioned that it was nice of the city to toss the SE side of town under the bus...at least that showed that CITILINK was running, but I knew EXACTLY where she was coming from.
In that, the city had it's priorities skewed (imho)...
We heard on the radio that getting ANYTHING down here was a madhouse at what FEW majors stores we have...and traffic UPTOWN was horrendous - no traffic lights for over a day, so snarls and hot tempers were to be found anywhere at any time.
Accidents at intersections were frequent (because people don't know FOUR-WAY-STOP protocol...dumbasses).
I know most all the locals around us went elsewhere (to keep cool...and to create mayhem) because they sure weren't down here doing it.
-- I hear that this morning, the FWPD chief is even out DIRECTING TRAFFIC...(looking good, Rus...for a change).
Things down here are very slowly returning to as close to normal as they're even going to get...
Elsewhere, people are picking up, cleaning up, stocking up, and doing what they need to do, and that includes helping one another.
(didn't really see any of that down here, however...that's the way THESE people shake...pretty sad.)
I would be interested to see how any of you from other parts of Hoosierland made out, so feel free to comment or shoot me an email and I'll post your stories and comments if you want.
It might not have been the author's hackneyed fallback line - "It was a dark and stormy night"...but it was defintely an adventure, and an exercise regarding PREPAREDNESS...
We didn't worry all that much...we were prepped, and I'd rather have all I need to get by, even if I never use any of it at all, than to be needful in such a time as we experienced over the last 72 hours.
-- Maybe it all comes down to asking oneself:
"What would Jack Bauer do?"
He only had 24 HOURS...we had at least 72 (and still counting for many)...
Have yourselves a good week.
Do what needs to be done, and make the best decisions you can to work through this trial.
You have it in you to do so...all you have to do is KNOW it.
And BELIEVE it.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.