Thoughts on "Thorsday"...

Alright, so we're closing in on another weekend at breakneck pace.
And soon, it won't be long before the kids go back to school (which is making parents giddy as hell).
It also looks like the forecast will be providing us with another nice day here in the Summit City.
Maybe not AS nice as yesterday, but we'll take what Mother Nature doles out, right?
Our Hoosierland weather will have us with partly to mostly cloudy skies and the chance of rain showers later on (mostly to the south of us here).
Temps will reach again into the upper 70s, and humidity in fair areas will remain lower and comfortable.
With that over, let's all grab our cups or glasses, fill them with our favorite morning beverage, and take a stroll into the void to see what's been going on elsewhere...
*** First off of the griddle is the answer to yesterday's WHO SAID THAT? quote:
"Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain't goin' away."
Wifey nailed this one, and I hope you did too.
This is attributed to none other than..."THE KING" himself (and no, NOT our Fort Wayne mayor...the OTHER and much better king).

ELVIS AARON PRESLEY...!!!
(cue the C.C. Rider music intro)
And here is his WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Presley
Think of this as a CLIFF'S NOTES version of his biography, and you know it's worth the read.

There's not to say about Elvis that hasn't already been said, so let's just remember him as one of the best recording artists in our lifetimes, and as someone who changed the face of American culture.
I know my mom loved him and his music, and perhaps his legacy is what we will recall...and hopefully, with much fondness.

Moving on...

*** It's now time for our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
August 6 -
---Today is NATIONAL ROOT BEER FLOAT DAY

(got ahead of myself and celebrated it 10 days ago...)
I'm currently operating in a "root beer deficit"...kinda like our nation's BUDGET.
---And, it's NATIONAL FRESH BREATH DAY

(Damn, so no garlic on my Pizza, or onions with my cheesesteak?)
---It's also WIGGLE YOUR TOES DAY

(which will serve to show you that your spinal cord is still intact)
---Oh, and today marks the 70th anniversary of our dropping the FIRST ATOMIC BOMB in 1945 on Hiroshima, Japan.

(and some call us terrorists for doing so...everyone's a damn critic without the brains they were born with - just get over it...we WON the damn war, didn't we?)
*** Next up, I finally got some tomatoes off of the plants we stuck in the garden a couple months back. Been a while coming.
They're cherry tomatoes, so none of those huge buggers...better for salads.

"Well, they don't LOOK alien, but..."

Haven't got that MANY yet, but the top growth is looking good with plenty of yellow flowers (and that means more fruit).
And, those little chili peppers have turned RED, and that means we will let the "hotness commence".
*** Next, the paper carrier FINALLY managed to get the paper on the TOP step..only took FOUR days to get him to figure this shit out...amazing.

One day in a ROW...!

Guess he CAN be taught (or threatened with a job loss) - either way works for us.
*** Next, we lost one of our twin baby LEMURS at the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo...
Zeus passed earlier this week but his 7-week old twin brother, Apollo, is doing well.

That's sad to hear, because the lemurs are one of MY favorite critters to visit (along with the big cats, sea lions and yes, THE OTTERS!
I just think they have the best "personalities", and I'm an "observer" anyway, so it's a good fit.
*** And speaking of critters, last night around 2300 hrs, I heard a noise outside, and I had a sneaking suspicion as to WHAT it was.
I was right again...a small RACCOON was alone on our relatively new roof.
How the hell he got UP there is a mystery, as the branches from any nearby trees had been trimmed back away from the house.

You got UP there, you can damn sure get the hell DOWN, Bub!

Anyway, the hose didn't work, and when I capped him in the ass with my BB pistol, that just made him hunker down next to one of the dormers on the front side of the house.

On our roof - NOT cute.

I didn't see him anywhere on the roof this morning, so I can only surmise that somehow, he found his way DOWN...and both Wifey and I trust that he will not be coming back soon.
(unless he LIKES copper BBs and angry homeowners.
The new shingles are the type that doesn't encourage gnawing anyway, but better safe than sorry.
If I see or hear him again, we're calling the pest guy we had last time that trapped one, and see if we can "repeat the process".
We live in a dam,n CITY for God's sake...not "The Wild Kingdom"...
Well, that does excludesall the wild-ass two-footed locals in our area...LOL
*** Oh, and since we're talking about the "locals", we had another shooting...imagine that.

It was NOT on the SE side, but it WAS on the SW side (where crime has been spreading).
This took place around 2230 hrs last night in the 300 block of W. Branning Ave
(and NOT the 3300 block as WANE described)
The FWPD found a man in the middle of the street and he was taken to hospital in serious condition with multiple gunshot wounds.

And that's about it in the information department.
From the aerial view, this looks to be in the area of Harrison St not that far away from Lafayette Esplanade.
*** That Sports and Spirits Bar that had ALL those police calls looks to be closing.
Here's the story link:
http://wane.com/2015/08/05/neighbors-relieved-after-bar-loses-liquor-license/

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

I really LIKED this story, not because of the bar closing, but that neighbor who was interviewed - reminded me a LOT of myself and what we have to put up with in OUR part of the ghettohood.
Arthur Stewart and I have to be from the same generation...his mindset of observing the place in the dark from his living room is JUST what I have to do from time to time, and if I had a camera that could take night vision photos, I could show you some really weird shit going on.
(the type of things the POLICE never get to see...or remove from our area)
Never had a puddle of blood in our driveway, though, as Arthur did...that would creep a lot of folks out.
Would not surprise me if Mr. Stewart has a weapon or two...for personal protection in that nice house of his.
*** Last back to the fire-pit...where we live hasn't ALWAYS been a centerpiece of criminal activity in Fort Wayne.

Thanks for SO much...

It took years of dedication to achieve such a dubious distinction, and one which is deserved whener you ehar about the CRIME in our area.
There are just SO many to "thank": for this, not the least of which if the last several mayors of this city, who chose to IGNORE a growing problem, until it was all but too late TO change any of it.
And we have to thank HUD for moving in, and turning SO many (once) nice houses into rental properties, and then finding some of the worst dregs of ethnic society to stick in the soon-to-be hovels.

Be nice to get SOME of this back once again, too.

Wish a had a dime for EVERY renter's agreement violation down here...I could buy a damn island along the St. Lawrence River (the thousand island area up north). Yes, it's THAT bad.
Then, we have those who "think" they're making the properties nicer, when in fact, they make it even MORE ghetto.

The ONLY game to "play" in OUR part of town.

And when you have bad PEOPLE in an area, you have all the other fun stuff...bad behavior, disregard for laws, code violations, drug dealing and abuse, alcohol abuse, rape, robberies, burglaries...you name it...we got it, and in abundance.
Can't say the same thing about ANY other part of town...can we?

If you ever want to see what ignorance on behalf of city leaders looks like, just drive through most ANY part of teh Southeast side of Fort Wayne, and see where your tax money goes, along with how little it affects a change for the better
The GOOD part of a city will pretty much take care of itself, revenue-wise. Businesses thrive, people flock to live, work, and shop there, and private sector growth is excellent.

My God...we've discovered WOODHENGE...!!!

The BAD part of a city is blighted...and remains that way, no matter HOW MUCH money is tossed at it, and it's NOT because of folks like Wifey and myself...we're the "anomalies" down here.

We still give a damn.
We're the "undesirables", because we want a part of what we USED to have (and what everyone elsewhere HAS had).
Shouldn't be that hard a problem to solve, but with more government comes more bullshit, and therefore LESS action to better things.
But when people in power never take the time or effort to DEFINE the problem properly, whatever is done is never the solution...it just prolongs the problem.
Helluva way to operate, and certainly VERY unproductive for all but a few who do make out on this. And they know who they are.
Might have to put on that Elvis version of PROMISED LAND...just to feel better.

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