Friday Follies...

Welcome to the weekend at last...and I'm sure for many of us, this HAS been one LONG-ass week.
The Heartland warmup continues today with temps reaching the upper 50s (maybe 60?) and the weekend will be even nicer with temps WELL into the mid-upper 60s!
Yeah, I know...time to move some more leaves to the edge of the property.
In the meantime, let's see what this Friday brings to our door, shall we?

*** Wifey and I are doing OUR best to help our economy, and that means taking the Wifeymobile into the shop to solve (once and for all) The Case of the Missing Coolant.

By helping the economy, I mean we will be "donating" several hundred bucks to have the car fixed.

(cheaper than blowing $20+K for a new one that will get recalled in several months, isn't it?)
Still, it's nice to know that WE (at least) are helping to keep ONE business in our area (Lord know the city hasn't done a damn thing in that regard).
Yes, looks like Yeoman's Service Center will be here for another year, thanks to our contributions.
(and they have damn nice CALENDARS, too)...lol.
*** The Poser-in-Chief will be making some sort of lip-service today (for "us" ) regarding the "fiscal cliff" this nation is rapidly approaching.

Funny, the paper states he's off to MYANMAR...WTF FOR I have no frigging clue (new golf course there?).
Good idea, find a way to send more BURMESE here to chew and spit their khat (see my post from 3 March 2011 for the lowdown on KHAT) all over the place.
I hear Obummer is wanting to "find a solution to our economic dilemma".
((...ahem...))
Thought we already drove down THIS street...anyone remember the plan that PAUL RYAN proposed, that was poo-pooed BY the administration?
And that was over a YEAR ago, if memory serves.
These libtards aren't concerned about such things as GROWING America...unless it means growing America into a European clone, replete with socialistic tenets and a wonderfully unsustainable entitlement mindset.
*** And speaking of our Poser-in-Chief, anyone catch the story that said he was CRYING???

Here's the story with video...
(sorry, I had to LAUGH):
http://www.myfoxorlando.com/story/20049304/president-obama-brought-to-tears?clienttype=printable
He was tearful while thanking his STAFF...the minions that tore apart every other oppositional candidate with falsehoods, lies, slander and sundry other things that would place a regular person in the hoosegow for months!

While those that spoke the TRUTH...well, they didn't win (the election...but they can SLEEP AT NIGHT).
If this posturing spoiled brat of what we're calling a president shed ANY tears, it SHOULD BE for the state in which he's placed this COUNTRY.
Now, THAT is reason to cry one's ass off, and all you need do to remind yourself is watch the news, go to any store, or even look out a window.
Sorry, but while I still respect the OFFICE he holds, I have absolutely NO respect for the manner in which he sees fit to manage it...OR this nation.
One might say I have little respect for the man himself...if any at all.
*** Jared Loughner was sentenced to SEVEN life terms in prison with NO possibility of parole.
Here's the story:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-jared-loughner-20121109,0,2771037.story

Makes one long for the days of JUSTICE...rather than the LAW.
He should have been hanged in a public square...that's a lot more "final"..
And that's a big problem in this country these days...adherence to whatever LAW comes about, instead of the pursuit of JUSTICE.
Used to be that the LAW (when enforced) secured JUSTICE for the victims of whatever crime had been committed.
Not any more.
Today, much of the LAW actually stifles JUSTICE, leaving the guilty to become the "victims" (of our society, as the bullsh* t flows), and the original victims with little if any closure in their lives, let alone any JUSTICE.
We're just so much better as a society though, aren't we?
(not even close)
*** Now, for those of you who've been wondering "How safe is MY city?"...well, wonder no longer.

This article seemed to get shifted way back on the burners...wonder WHY that was?
Anyway, here's the story:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-25-most-dangerous-cities-in-america.html
Those of you living (?) in Flint, MI might want to think about moving, because YOU have made it to the coveted #1 spot!
But you in Detroit have nothing to fear...you're RIGHT BEHIND those in Flint at #2.
The rest are as follows:
St. Louis, MO - #3, Oakland, CA #4, Memphis, TN #5, Little Rock, AR, #6, Birmingham, AL, #7, Atlanta, GA #8, Baltimore, MD #9, Stockton, CA #10, Rockford, IL #11, Cleveland, OH #12, New Haven, CT #13, Hartford, CT #14, Buffalo, NY, #15, KCMO #16, Miami, FL #17, Philadelphia,PA (my birthplace) #18, Nashville, TN #19, Newark, NJ #20, Washington, D.C. #21, Indianapolis, IN #22, Springfield, IL #23, Orlando, FL (Disney World) #24, And bringing up the rear is Baton Rouge, LA at #25.
The source is "Crime in the United States, 2011"
Here's the link from the FBI website:
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011
See how YOUR city rates.
(and then call the movers...lol)
*** Today is the U.S. premiere of the latest JAMES BOND film entitled SKYFALL.

In the last ten days since it's opening in the UK, it's already made $321 MILLION BUCKS, so I think the 50-year old franchise is doing OK.
Daniel Craig stars in his third outing as MI6's agent 007, and if you saw the movie No Country For Old Men, then you'll know who the VILLAIN for the new Bond movie is - that's right...Javier Bardem. And he looks just as "creepy", even with bleach blond hair.

The reviews for this movie have been nothing but exemplary thus far, so it's a good bet it'll do very well here "in the colonies"...
As I have said here, I really enjoy Craig's portrayal of 007...like a breath of fresh air to the genre.
He's got that cold, calculating demeanor about him...much the way Fleming describes Bond in the first series of novels (written way back in the 1950s).
Here's the trailer for the movie:
http://www.moviefone.com/movie/skyfall/10054025/main?flv=1

The movie has a new "Q", a "new" pistol (Walther PPK/S with palm print ID), a little nostalgia (the famed Aston Martin DB5 makes an appearance), some of Bond's "history", and a "changing of the guard" as it were...and I can't say anymore about THAT...(or I'll have to kill you)...so go see the film!
I don't think you will be disappointed (I still miss the Walther P99, though).
The title song is sung by Adele, and if you ever heard her voice, well, she's the best thing to hit the Bond soundtracks since Shirley Bassey in Goldfinger.
Some say this might be the BEST bond movie of them all...Gonna have to go some to top Goldfinger, but if they can pull that off...good for them.
*** Lastly today, there IS a correlation between the Bond movies and our lives, believe it or not.
Just as the situations around Bond change, so does our world.
Bond manages to ADAPT to that situation...as we must ALSO learn to adapt.

And, just like our lives, Bond frequently gets the snot kicked out of him, but manages to come out not only a survivor, but a better person for whatever experience he just endured.

Sounds a LOT like us, doesn't it?

(especially in such trying times as THESE)

Now, I'm not saying that automatically classifies every one of us as "00" agents ( we need TWO KILLS to make that grade)...it just shows the resiliency of the fictional character, the franchise itself, and curiously enough...OURSELVES (as Americans).

While much of this can be taken as entertainment and/or escapist-fare, you sometimes have to look below the surface to see the intent of the author, writer, or director.

That there is always hope, and that we can often succeed, many times through sacrifice is not just something a screenwriter dreams the hell up - it's something EACH of us clings to sometime in our life.
The person that stated that "art imitates life" was closer to the truth than they could have imagined...don't you think?

Do have yourselves a great weekend.

Be well, make a difference to someone today, and as always...

Stay SAFE out there, America.