Thoughts For Thursday...

If you like your summer days a bit on the "soit" side, then welcome aboard.
A wonderfully humid day looks to be in store for our area.
Always gets my sinuses playing up...love when that happens.
Our Hoosierland weather for today  consists of mostly cloudy skies, temps climbing to around 80 degrees, scattered showers most of the day, and yes, lots of humidity.
We're going to try and make this short and sweet today (I hope), so let's get things started with a nice cup of coffee or tea...or perhaps a tall glass of something nice and cold.

Might as well be wet on the inside, considering how wet it's been outside, right?
*** First off of the runway is the answer to yesterday's WHO SAID THAT? quote:

"A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find that after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us." 
This was spoken by someone you ALL should be acquainted with, because you studied his works in school...one John Ernst Stenbeck, Jr (February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968), who was an American author of 27 books, including 16 novels, six non-fiction books, and two collections of short stories.
And here is his WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Steinbeck
He is probably one of the most prolific authors when it comes to movie adaptations of his novels (Stephen King comes close). Of course, Steinbeck's works were mostly done when movies were of a more classic style.
((The Pulitzer Prize-winning The Grapes of Wrath (1939) is considered Steinbeck's masterpiece and part of the American literary canon. In the first 75 years after it was published, it sold 14 million copies.))
And, yes...it's a pretty decent movie as well.
((Most of Steinbeck's work is set in central California, particularly in the Salinas Valley and the California Coast Ranges region. His works frequently explored the themes of fate and injustice, especially as applied to downtrodden or everyman protagonists.))

Considering that Steinebck grew up and spent most of his life in California, he kept most of his novels centered around that area. Nothing like keeping things "real", is there? Later, he did visit the Soviet Union a few times, as well as Tel Aviv.
Steinbeck was involved in WW2, and in 1943 found himself as a war correspondent for the New York Herald, and worked with the Office of Strategic Services (O.S.S.), the predecessor to the C.I.A.
Steinbeck returned from the war with a number of wounds from shrapnel and some psychological trauma. He treated himself, as ever, by writing. He wrote Alfred Hitchcock's movie, Lifeboat (1944), and the film, A Medal for Benny (1945).
Both his religious and political views are interesting.

The WIKI is a very good read, and it's refreshing to read ABOUT the author of sich notable works, because it's lends another dimension TO those works, as we read about the characters in those novels.
We get a better understanding of who they are and why they were created.
*** Next up, time for our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
JULY 27 -
---It's National Chili Dog Day

(fresh out of buns...dammit)
---It's National Creme Brulee Day

(don't worry...it's a custard dessert)
---It's National New Jersey Day

(seriously? You gotta be kiddin'?)
---It's National Refreshment Day

(isn't that EVERY day. C'mon now)
---It's National Scotch Day

(Alright...NOW we're talking)
*** Next, just when you thought it was safe from having all these "entities" and sundry taxes reaching into your "hip-national-bank", along comes something like THIS:
http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/20170727/im-makes-request-for-197-rate-increase

((Indiana Michigan Power has asked the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to approve a 19.7 percent rate increase as part of its Building the Future proposal.))

Building the future...on the backs of the working class, who never receive anything close to a 19% RAISE in their paychecks (or seniors and disabled in the social security checks.)
Only ONE way to explain this one:

"Whiskey - Tango - Foxtrot ???"
What the hell drugs are these people on? A (whopping) 19.7% INCREASE?
That's on top of all the recent taxes we had shoved down our throats...everyone suddenly FORGET about that shit?

Getting pretty damn dizzy now.

Naturally, the "spin" on this increase is meant to make us all feel at ease...bullshit on that.
For example:
1) It's meant to reduce outages and outage times (shoulda addressed that AGES ago)
2) The last increase was back in 2011 (so that makes another fleecing okay?)
3) Its only less than a dollar a day (well that sounds much better than saying less than $365 more dollars a year, right?)
4) "It will allow us to offer customers new, cleaner energy options" (like smart meters that monitor OUR usage?)
5) Improvements through infrastructure upgrades (please refer to number 1 above)
((The power utility's fixed residential service charge would also increase from $7.30 per month to $18. Utility officials say the fee changes are necessary “to more fairly and accurately reflect the true costs for a customer to use the system.”))

Okay, I can see rental rates RISING as well to cover the increase.
I mean, we're not ALL "government'subsidized" (yet), are we?
((The power utility sought to increase its revenue by $174 million when it requested a 22 percent increase in September 2011. However, it was granted half that amount – about $85 million – in February 2013.))
How's about we do that again...HALF the amount, and then tell them to work with that, and cut all the bosses insanely high salaries in the process?
So, when can we expect the NEXT rate (or tax) increase and from what source?
...Because we KNOW it's a'comin'.
*** Next, city councilman Jason Arp has a very good editorial in today's J-G:
http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/columns/20170727/hard-landing

Love the title...A "hard landing" INDEED.
This refers to that area of downtown known AS "The Landing", and how exactly the funding is acquired.
States Arp: ((The theory is that by sprucing up our downtown, we won't lose our youth to Chicago or New York. These projects have required escalating amounts of government funding and have shown little in the way of results, considering each subsequent project has required substantial subsidy from the taxpayer.))
Nice and succinct...I like that.

He then goes into the "nuts and bolts" of the what, who, where and whys concerning how things are being paid for.
The developers are the ones who ultimately do well with such projects (don't they always?), and as usual, the taxpayers are still "on the hook" for the public funds.
*** Next up, time to swing on by "Kitten Corner"...

As could be expected, the kids were less rammy yesterday. In fact, they spent some time following me about, and I had to keep watch to make sure I wasn't going to step on either of them.

Lots less running about, and more time best utilized napping (where the two of them can dream about running around instead)...heh.
*** Next, let's see what's happening with "Midnight and Company".

Now, yesterday, Midnight stayed near the house ALL day, and even past dusk. That's fine by me.

Whiskers is ALWAYS near the house...lol.
And always ready for food and to rub against your leg.
After that, the cat usually pulls out the "cuteness card" and rolls on the ground.

Also, the large caterpillar was there as of late yesterday, and I even saw another (smaller) one. Didn't see either one today. Wonder if the rain washed them off the plants? We'll keep watching.
*** Last back to the hangar...another rate hike looms (with more waiting in the wings).

You KNOW that to be true.
And apparently, we're expected to keep paying through teh nose for much of the same old stuff.
I suppose we're to go out back, yank some Franklins off the old money tree and pay for this.
Or maybe we're gonna crap out some Grants and Hamiltons to cover these rising costs.
Maybe we can just PRINT some more money...the way the FEDS always do...lol.
(sure to devalue our dollar, that's for sure)

Whatever the case, when is America going to rise up and say "enough is truly enough"?
When are these companies and entities going to be MADE to make due with less...like all the regular folks have to do daily?
When are we going to STOP with all these effin subsidies to the undeserving?
How many slippery slopes do we, as citizens of the best nation on this planet, have to endure before we grow fatigued with attempting to stand back up on our own two feet?

Most everyone is on some sort of "limited income", whether you put in 40+ hrs on the clock, or are one SSI or SSD, our just living off a pension. Most of those amounts are somewhat FIXED, unlike the wants and desires of governments and the myriad departments, agencies with their hands out. That's an aside from ALL the other private-sector people companies, and utilities with THEIR hands already in our pockets. And I haven't even mentioned sales tax and increased cost of items we use daily, or have a need for purchasing (like clothes, fuel, repairs, etc).
We're headed into a very scary realm concerning such things, and have been on this trek for some time.
Maybe, we should start deciding if the trip is indeed worth the destination.
Just a thought.

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