Friday Follies...
Yeah, we had to give Joe the week off...he's been working too many weeks this year without a break, so we have our "alternate", and you 'll see why I chose HIM is a few.
Today's weather is going to be ANOTHER rerun of yesterday...some sun, some clouds, highs around 80 with appropriate humidity for late Summer, and the chance of rain ay some point...maybe, or maybe not...who knows?
Anyone else's "RUT-DETECTOR" going off as mine has been?
In any event, let's get this week over with and the weekend started with some brio, fair enough?
*** First up, as we're doing ALL this month to prove the nay-sayers wrong when it comes to events of note, I present:
"Bobby G's This Day in August History"
August 9 - 
1843 - The opening of the SISTINE CHAPEL in Rome with the celebration of Mass.
1854 - Henry David Thoreau publishes WALDEN
1936 - Jesse Owens wins his 4th GOLD medal at the Berlin Summer Olympics, becoming the FIRST American to win four medals in one Olympiad, and that really pissed off that little corporal in charge of the 'Reich".
1944 - Smokey the Bear makes his FIRST appearance from the U.S. Forest Service and the Wartime Advertising Council
(quick trivia - who does the voice over for the commercials THESE days?)

That's one BIG plane for it's time!

1945 - Nagasaki is devastated by the dropping of the SECOND atomic bomb, nicknamed "Fat Man" by the American B-29 bomber "Bockscar" (still on display in Dayton, OH). Approximately 39,000 people were killed outright in the blast.
1988 - Wayne Gretsky is traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the L.A. Kings, and Canada has yet to forgive us for that "steal"...!
-- And it's the birthday of the man at the top of today's post - none other than SAM ELLIOT.
(who does the Dodge RAM commercials and YES, he does the "only YOU can prevent wildfires" commercials)
So there you have it...everything you NEED to know about...TODAY.
Moving on...
*** I was HOPING we could make it through the damn week WITHOUT some mook shooting another, but, since this IS Fort Wayne (aka "L'il Detroit", according to my favorite ex-LEO, Momma Fargo...LOL) we got one, and since I can't find ANY link to the story I heard JUST this morning, I'll recap:

-- Police discovered a man who was driven to a local hospital suffering from gunshot wounds. The FWPD are trying to determine the time and location that this shooting occurred, and no other information has been released as of yet, but the man was listed in serious condition.
Jeezus, now we're BURYING the damn stories, so we're all lulled into a false sense of crime going DOWN?
The media should be all over this like white on rice, so as to keep the public INFORMED, and PREPARED for whatever else these thugs have planned for the following day, because you KNOW they're all up to something they shouldn't be...:

-- EDITOR'S NOTE - Spoke too soon again in this city...here's a link to the UPDATE of the story:
http://www.indianasnewscenter.com/news/local/Wanted-Man-Shows-Up-At-ER-With-Gunshot-Wound-218998501.html
Imagine that...the shootee from this last Gunfight at the Eden Green "Corral" is the person that winds up in the E.R. And he's ALREADY wanted in Kosciusko County!
Astounding...talk about F$CKING LUCK!
Well, that's ONE way of capturing a thug...not the BEST way, just A way...LOL.
James Guinn , the latest stupid-ass thug to grace the confines of the Allen County lockup is now wearing his ORANGE jumpsuit and flip flops with a $25K bail, awaiting extradition to Kosciusko.
*** Wifey is prepping to go back to school, and as such, this is the LAST Friday we'll be going to the grocery. We're back to Saturdays starting NEXT week, and that's always nice, because traffic is much lighter and you can actually ENJOY THE RIDE!
(kinda like the way I tell some people to go to hell...LOL)
-- And our female cat is a bit perkier since the beginning of the week - she comes out and walks about even IF it's NOT "din-din" time.

I'm taking a rest between meals.

She's not back 100%, but it's a lot better than this time LAST week, I can tell you.
-- Wifey has also been taking pics with her camera/phone/game platform/mini-computer social networking device.
And I have to say the resolution is pretty damn good...for a PHONE!

What? I ALWAYS wear camos in a war-zone.

An admiral butterfly (at ease, sailors)

Viceroy and Swallowtail - a "two-fer"

-- So, the lovely Mrs. Bobby G. is heading up to the mall to get her hair cut, and I was thinking of tagging along, so I asked her HOW LONG it would take (real men NEED to know such stuff...it's a boredom thingy), and she says "about two hours", and I told her "Ahh...No thanks"...you don't want ME wandering about up THERE with some "plastic" in my one pocket and the "hip-national bank" in excess of a hundred bucks with all THOSE stores around...like Toys R Us, Gander Mountain, Dicks Sporting Goods, and a couple other  FIREARMS shops...!
Somehow, coming home with a few bags of action figures, comic books, some more ammo and maybe another firearm and a few shooting "ascessories" would NOT be the best choice to start the weekend.
Hey, like Clint Eastwood said in Magnum Force:
"A man's gotta know his limitations."

Plus, I prefer sleeping INSIDE the house, and not in the garage.
My Mom didn't raise no fool.
*** Lastly today, you always hear me rag about how BAD this part of town is, and that's fact, not fiction.
I don't wear blinders, and refuse to allow whatever is passing for the status quo down here to become so commonplace that I become desensitized to the issues, as so many others have already become.
I don't believe in being politically-correct...NOT when truth gets trampled underfoot, ignored or supplanted with some fiction that I'm supposed to BELIEVE is the truth, when I know otherwise.
I DO believe that this part of town has a future...a damn good one, should (read IF) the city make some tough choices, and starts holding everyone accountable to the same standards that normal citizens are held. That shouldn't be asking for the moon here, either.
And, truth be told, I and the Missus have done MORE for this neighborhood than anyone else is aware of...that never gets published or put on the evening news, not that it should, for we're not looking to become famous in any way, shape or form.
WE are the ones that call in suspicious behavior or loud music.
 WE are the ones that call the city when someone short dumps a sofa in some alley, or decides to drop off a big-screen television in another alley.
WE are the ones that call Code Enforcement for weed violations, broken windows, or piles of refuse.
I have to admit that it would be SO damn nice to have a few more people that felt the same way...like an ally that thinks (to use Obummer's hackneyed phrase) "Everyone plays by the SAME RULES".
If it's good for one group of people, there no reason it can;t apply to all the others.
Like I say...not DOUBLE standards...just BETTER standards...for everyone.
And that begins with common sense, and some better CHOICES, doesn't it?

Do have yourselves a great weekend.
Be well, make a difference to someone today, and as always...
Stay SAFE out there, America.