Tuesday Tidbits...

If you're a person who prefers rain to snow, then today will be right up your alley.
Looks like we're not going to have much else today, but at least we got rid of all the fog we had yesterday.
Our Hoosierland weather for today has us enjoying (?) mostly cloudy skies into tonight, with the rain tapering off to isolated showers by afternoon, and temps reaching back up into the 40s.
After that, temps will start dropping later into the 30s by nightfall.
So, what say we get a morning cup of whatever wakes you up, as we see what's been going on elsewhere, hmm?
*** First off of the rain-washed streets is our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
JANUARY 17 -
---Today is National Bootleggers Day

(think Al Capone's b'day. The term bootlegger got it's start in the MIDWEST, curiously enough in the 1880s)
---It's also National Hot Buttered Rum Day

(light on the butter, please)
*** Next up, it's Tuesday, and that means another jaunt through the FWPD blotter to see all the important calls the media forgot to mention (because they're busy sticking up for John Lewis and bashing Trump in the same breath)

SHOTS FIRED ((113)) / ARMED ROBBERY((53)) CALLS - 01/09 - 01/15
((23,113 - vandalism by gunfire))
=======================================
JAN 09 - 
17F003205 01/09/2017 03:00am 113 SHOTS FIRED 4300 LIMA RD & COLISEUM BLVD W
17F003206 01/09/2017 03:12am 113 SHOTS FIRED 600 MAPLE GROVE AVE E & HANNA ST S
17F003467 01/09/2017 07:55pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 6800 JOHN ST
17F003488 01/09/2017 09:20pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2900 LILLIE ST
17F003498 01/09/2017 09:41pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 3900 FAIRFIELD AVE
17F003506 01/09/2017 10:02pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 1000 ELMWOOD AVE
17F003528 01/09/2017 11:19pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 4900 MOUNT VERNON PARK DR
17F003529 01/09/2017 11:22pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2700 CRESCENT AVE & CURDES AVE
17F003530 01/09/2017 11:24pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 900 BERRY ST E E
17F003532 01/09/2017 11:25pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 1000 ELMWOOD AVE & ONEIDA ST
17F003536 01/09/2017 11:45pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 4400 BOWSER AVE
17F003462 01/09/2017 07:42pm 53 ARMED ROB 2400 CALHOUN ST S
17F003384 01/09/2017 03:59pm 58 SHOOTING 1600 WINNSBORO PASS & SR 3
JAN 10 -
17F003983 01/10/2017 10:38pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2300 REDWOOD AVE
17F003845 01/10/2017 05:45pm 53 ARMED ROB 6700 BLUFFTON RD
17F003676 01/10/2017 10:55am 58 SHOOTING 2900 GOSHEN RD
JAN 11 -
17F004167 01/11/2017 12:11pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 3800 LAFAYETTE ST S & RUDISILL BLVD
17F004386 01/11/2017 09:20pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2100 SHERMAN BLVD
17F004419 01/11/2017 11:31pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 4600 GAYWOOD DR & CAPITOL AVE
17F004421 01/11/2017 11:37pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2800 HOAGLAND AVE
((NO armed robberies))
JAN 12 -
17F004495 01/12/2017 07:16am 113 SHOTS FIRED 2700 PLAZA DR
17F004837 01/12/2017 10:37pm 53 ARMED ROB 1800 COLISEUM BLVD W
JAN 13 -
17F004883 01/13/2017 02:02am 113 SHOTS FIRED 4400 COLONIAL AVE S
17F005009 01/13/2017 11:29am 113 SHOTS FIRED 4600 OLIVER ST
17F005217 01/13/2017 06:44pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 800 PEMBERTON DR
17F005230 01/13/2017 07:25pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2400 WEBSTER ST  
17F005299 01/13/2017 11:04pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 2200 OPECHEE WAY
((NO armed robberies))
JAN 14 -
17F005359 01/14/2017 01:19am 113 SHOTS FIRED 2500 BERKLEY AVE
17F005374 01/14/2017 01:48am 113 SHOTS FIRED 700 DEWALD ST W POPLAR
17F005406 01/14/2017 03:46am 113 SHOTS FIRED 3500 ABBOTT ST & OXFORD ST
17F005703 01/14/2017 09:36pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 4700 WEISSER PARK AVE  
17F005720 01/14/2017 10:22pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 3700 SMITH ST
17F005726 01/14/2017 10:49pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 5800 CHALLENGER PKWY
17F005756 01/14/2017 11:51pm 113 SHOTS FIRED 6700 MAYSVILLE RD
17F005362 01/14/2017 01:21am 23,113 5100 BERKLEY CT
17F005410 01/14/2017 04:02am 53 ARMED ROB 600 WALLACE ST E & HANNA ST S
17F005551 01/14/2017 02:13pm 53 ARMED ROB 7400 ANTHONY BLVD S
17F005735 01/14/2017 11:05pm 53 ARMED ROB 7500 DECATUR RD  
17F005740 01/14/2017 11:16pm 58 SHOOTING 400 JEFFERSON BLVD W & FAIRFIELD AV
JAN 15 -
17F005807 01/15/2017 02:39am 113 SHOTS FIRED 1800 MCKINNIE AVE & ANTHONY BLVD S
((NO armed robberies))
===========================
And we simply can't forget the ONE asshole who managed to set off some fireworks, can we?
FIREWORKS CALLS 01/09 - 01/15
===========================
17F005330 01/14/2017 12:00am 44FW 5700 BLUFFTON RD
============================
*** Next up, we lost another American hero. 

Former astronaut Eugene Cernan passed away at the age of 82. 
Here's his WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Cernan
He was the last man to walk (and ride) on the moon (back in 1972), and was part of the Apollo 17 mission to our spacial "neighbor".

His journey into space begins with Gemini 9, and how he barely made it back into the capsule after becoming exhausted during a space walk. 
He made four walks total.

It culminated with his driving the lunar rover on the surface of the moon.

A remarkable life, to be sure, but now he gets to walk in eternity.
*** Next up, another "decree" from our reigning monarch (aka mayor), King Henry, as he stopped by the Rotary Club to avail us of his vision for the coming year (can we stand the strain?).

Here's the story:
http://wane.com/2017/01/16/fort-wayne-mayor-cites-public-safety-as-top-concern/
Now forgive me for being a might "slow" on the uptake here, but exactly HOW LONG has this man been in office? He's pushing public safety only NOW?

And didn't he once run on the platform of SAVING money by NOT hiring more police officers?
(wonder what the hell CHANGED his mind?)
Sorry, your highness, but it's getting WAY too easy to spot the deceptions.
What I also find amusing, is that his majesty cites "guns, drugs and gangs" as the cause of recent homicide rates.
Let's REVERSE those three, just to be HONEST here. It's GANGS, and then drugs and finally, guns...got it?
The gangs are selling the drugs, and manage to get illegal guns to enforce their "trade". Simple enough.
Why Henry allowed the FWPD numbers to drop as they did eludes me (he was saving money, Bob)...oh, yeah.
But, he didn't bat an eye when it came to the downtown and riverfront (all expected to cost around $600 MILLION total) for the 5 "major" projects, did he?
Full-speed ahead, damn the taxpayers, right?
Having a vibrant downtown area is, like most anything else within a city...it's CYCLICAL.

Still waiting to see some of THIS on the SE side, bub.

It will have it's UPS as well as DOWNS, and no amount of money tossed into any "redevelopment" or revival will KEEP it vibrant for generations...that's a pie-in-the-sky pipedream.
Philly invested a load of money into it's downtown, when the major department stores began to close, and today, it's not that safe a place to be, and definitely not at night. Then again, they HAVE had democrat rule there for over 50 years (and all the frivolous spending that goes along with that).

But, if you WANT to be like other cities, you're on course to mimic them (rising crime shows that much). Just don't point at anyone (or anything) but yourself when the shine wears off, your highness. It WILL happen.
*** Next up...sometimes, it pays to fall asleep with the television on.

Because when you wake up around 0400 hrs and find the cable off (as well as the phones and Internet), what better way to greet the day than to call into your provider to find out WTF is going on...right?
Welcome to my morning as it was a little while ago.
Had to call into Frontier and get them to work some magic, and after me stumbling about, resetting things HERE (God, I feel like a road tech again), they reset things THERE...and pretty much nothing, so they started a work order for today (between 8-10AM), and wouldn't you know it...less than 20 minutes AFTER the call, everything came back UP. Phones, Fios and Internet.
Imagine that.
But, I'm not cancelling the call. I want the tech to make sure nothing is bad on OUR end, plus I want to play "20 questions" and find out what it COULD be (at their end), if that is the case.
Funny...NEVER had this trouble when phones were hard-wired copper, and television came in over the FREE analog airwaves from our antenna. Hell, even the old basic cable (boxes) didn't have the issues we see today.
Our technology is getting away from us...and it shows.
*** Next, and speaking of technology, there is this OP-ED in today's paper:
http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/Cheating-death-daily-17305965

I've suffered 1000 Micromorts, and it's ONLY Tuesday!

A "micromort" sounds like something you'd find in some Doctor Who episode, but it is a valid unit of measurement...just not in the "traditional" sense.
We face risks every day, with travel being one of them. A micromort is the mathematical probability of a one in a million chance that you will be killed. Now, this only works with "sudden, unexpected fatalities", and not long-term disease and the like.

(guess we could stick homicides in there?)
It's a fun read, but I can see where such probabilities can be skewed when certain x-factors come into play.

Still, it's not bad when you consider that the possibility of accidental death is only ONE micromort for EACH of us...EVERY day. Good, now I can sleep better at night...lol.
*** Next up, time to calm back down and drop by "Kitten Corner"...

"You gonna play with me, Daddy?"

More cuteness, more manic behavior, and plenty of nap time.
All this in-between meals.

"You guys play...I'm gonna nap".

And, aside from the fact that when the repair guy show up today, I will have to plan to keep the cats OUT OF THE WAY, which should prove "interesting" at best. Should be easy enough to sequester them in the laundry room during the duration of his visit.
Sure don't want them getting out or into stuff they're not supposed to. The kids are way too "congenial" in that regard.
Let's hope al goes well with that, right?
*** Last back to the rain barrel...life does have it's share of risks...and challenges.

Whether we like it or not, we do have to face them daily.
And that's okay, for it helps with making us better people.
Many would say that without risks and challenges, we could do so much more. I beg to differ.
Without that which urges us all to achieve more in life, and not just for ourselves, we'd wither on the vine.
This is an instance where change in our lives can be beneficial, even if we don't see it from the start.
How we react to such events is just as important as those events themselves.
Our reaction has to be based on knowledge and wisdom we've accumulated over time.

This goes for what we say and do as part of our reaction.
Some argue that to do nothing is still something. I don't believe that for a moment.
To do nothing when something is required denies you any hope of victory when facing a risk or challenge.
It also takes away and chance of learning from the experience.
But, as usual, our DECISION in such matters is what determines the outcome.
And that means being able to choose the best course of action.
Sounds like a plan to me.

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