Monday Musings...

Looks to be a very nice day, if we can glean anything from a beautiful sunrise out here in the Heartland, but that doesn't mean that whatever starts well, ends well...does it?
Sorry, that's just the cynic in me talking.
Yeah, I'm back to what passes for normal in OUR house, which happens to be a LOT more normal than what passes OUTSIDE the walls of our "Fortress".
(no brag...just fact)
The weather will be right up "my" alley, with temps reaching the low 70s and some clouds, with maybe a slight chance of a brief shower later in the day.
We call that a WINNER in my book.
So, let's get busy with the rest of what's going on.
*** First up today, Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez is STILL...dead.
(damn fine start there and thank God for that)
*** Next, I did get out EARLY Sunday (the day of rest, I know...) and mow the lawn, which is not to be confused with our back yard.

I DO make that distinction, because the YARD is our pride and joy, whereas the "lawn" is what is apparently used as a community trash receptacle.
Our yard has no dandelions, but our lawn has plenty, thanks to those assholes that never weed THEIR lawns, allow the dandelions to go to seed, which always seem to blow onto OUR lawn. We're seriously thinking of getting one of those "chem-lawn" companies to take care of that.
I'm not 25 anymore, and the cost might just be worth it.
I began around 0715 hrs, and I figured if all the "locals" can keep US awake with all THEIR noise...I could return the favor. We have an electric mower, so even THAT noise isn't all that bad. It does make the area around the house smell good, though whenever you do mow the grass.
I will say it was nice to feel good again, after a lousy "last week".
*** Saturday was our grocery day (saw reporter Rod Hissong from WANE at the Bluffton Rd Scotts/Krogers - he was on his way out when we were entering). And yes, he DOES look just like himself...LOL.
We had a light purchase, so we headed off to K-Mart (where America shoplifts) to redeem some price changes (refunds for sale items), and I decided to look for some casual knock-around shoes...MAN, was I disappointed.
I hated everything they had...and I'm a person of SIMPLE tastes, so what's THAT tell you?

Nothing was anything I'd want to have on MY feet, and that's a damn shame. even the "cheap-sneeks" or "Bo-Bos" as we used to call them, were ugly as sin (would look great on the locals, though...I don't do LIME GREEN soles or BRIGHT BLUE uppers, sorry).
Looks like I'll be wearing tactical shoes for some time. At least THOSE look like they belong on MY feet.
God help me if I ever have to go to a REAL shoe store - the sticker shock will probably kill me.
Luckily, I have several pairs of shoes from times past, and I took very good care of them, so they have a LOT of mileage in them still.

That's a troubling thing these days...the way things don't last near as long as in times past, plus the changes that follow in the wake of that.

Used to be a time when simple necessities such as SHOES were not considered a "disposable" item.

You had them RE-heeled, or RE-soled, and the longer you had 'em, the better they felt.

And they were made with REAL leather...not this imitation leather like "veneer" that flakes the hell off after a few months, or one soaking.
We had SHOE REPAIR shops, with craftsmen who could work magic to get your old shoes looking as good as new.
And they often fixed them WHILE YOU WAITED.
Yeah, those WERE better times, you have to admit it.
Moving on...
*** As a public service to you, my devoted readers, I am always endeavoring to bring you the best (or is that the WORST?) in human nature, and that can often mean the MOST STUPID acts that go unnoticed, unreported (not for long when I'm around), and many times, unappreciated.

Here is a case where the word LAZY takes on a whole NEW meaning.
We have these Hispanic neighbors that moved into a house a couple doors down, and decided to cut off parts of a dead tree (rather than have the entire tree taken down which is by itself, marvelously stupid). Now, I can't fault the male there, because at least HE WORKS...(amazing, isn't it? A minority in the minority.).

But, he did stack the cut down logs along the curb strip...(a code violation).
This was WAY back on 9 February, and since then, I've been TRYING to get Neighborhood Code Enforcement to act on this.
Whatever they've done SO far hasn't worked, in spite of the pile getting smaller through the "intervention" of people wanting firewood.

So, we STILL have THREE logs sitting there...until yesterday, when the Hispanic male mowed (they apparently always follow MY lead...lol), and moved them to the sidewalk...
And then LEFT THEM THERE, effectively BLOCKING the sidewalk from damn near all foot traffic.

Now, it's a damn good thing we DON'T have anyone who's wheelchair-bound, otherwise they'd HAVE to roll into the street, and with the number of speedsters we have that NEVER get pulled over thanls to our understaffed FWPD, that would not be the safest method to get from A to B in our part of the ghettohood.
I have NO idea while people do such blatantly STUPID SH*T, but you can easily see WHY we have so many "broken windows" down here, and why, when things like this go unattended, that sends a message that damn near anything will be (and often is) tolerated.
If we have laws, then why don't we enforce them?
Can this city be THAT bad off , or does the city just NOT CARE about the SE side?
Personally, I'm thinking is a combination of BOTH.
Let's face it, THIS would NEVER happen in say, Mayor (king) Henry's neighborhood, would it?
The guy down the block COULD have just tossed the logs into his SUV, driven them down to the nearest dead-end, short dump them, and be DONE with the whole deal, and while I don't advocate such tactics (short-dumping is, and always has been illegal, according to Solid Waste Department), it's done down here with great regularity (and is never caught).
But, I'm just saying that this ONE time, he'd had a damn good chance of NOT being caught at all, and the wood would wind up in a wooded area or dirt pile a mere few blocks away.
Sheer laziness...no other excuse.
*** Lastly today, nopr, no shooting deaths for a change, but always "shots fired" every damn day down here.
And the sad thing is, the general populace is NEVER made aware of that...and SHOULD be.

To me, there is little difference between shots fired and people shot.
The ONE aspect that defines one from the other is that the bullet hit SOMEONE, instead of something or nothing at all.
We could call that luck, rather than skill, especially down here.
When you have stupid people doing stupid sh*t for stupid reasons,...well, you can pretty much predict the outcome every single time.
Now, I can't be the ONLY one seeing this crap...I just happen to be the only wanting to DO something about it.

Everyone else who also sees it, and does nothing, becomes part of that problem in my book.
And truth be told, we have WAY too many problems down here as it is, without adding any to the mix.
Thing is, people have become so desensitized when it comes to the problems, that they have accepted them as just everyday occurrences.
For example, my skin crawls whenever I see a realty ad for a house down here that advertises "a quiet neighborhood"...
THAT is a load of bullsh*t.
Perhaps Chief YORK'S neighborhood is QUIET, or Mayor HENRY'S neighborhood, but not down here.
Then again, if those in power spent some TIME down here, they'd have figured THAT much out by now...perhaps.

Blinders and earplugs do NOT make things go away, and anyone that believes that never studied Mark Twain who said:
"Denial ain't just a river in Egypt."
Maybe they should post THAT over the doorways of ALL the Fort Wayne City Hall entrances?
Be a novel idea. Practical as well.
Have yourselves a great week.

Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.