Google's Runnin' Me Ragged!

I had a heck of a time getting into my blog today. I guess because I haven't made an entry in so long that Google has made "improvements" to the system.

To my way of thinking, it is comparable to what my grocery store keeps doing to me. Just about the time I know where everything is located and which aisle I need to take to get to the peanut butter, they move stock all around and totally confuse this old man!

After 90 minutes of making the same mistake trying to access "travelins" today, I finally changed a password and suddenly things are humming again. At least for now.

The only real reason I wanted to blog today was to introduce my reader(s) to Ebbets Field Flannels of Seattle, Washington, because they are a top notch company that manufactures BY HAND, accurate reproductions of minor league baseball team uniforms of the past.

Imagine how excited I was to find that I could purchase an Eau Claire Bears 1952 home jersey and cap!

As you may well imagine, since these caps and jerseys are well-researched and manufactured with the exact same materials as the originals, they come with a healthy price tag.

for many months all I could do was gaze at the Bears cap and 1952 home jersey with the number "5" on the back, the jersey of none other than a rookie named Henry Aaron. When I was eleven, my father would milk cows early on game night and pile three of his sons into the Hudson and wend our way to Carson Park to watch real, live baseball!

This Christmas, two wonderfully whimsical things happened. The jerseys went on sale, dropping nearly $60 in price! And my friend Doug gave me "Christmas money" as a present. I immediately made my order!

Several weeks ago, about the time I was due to receive my Christmas gift, I received a telephone call from the Ebbets Field Flannels Customer Service agent. it seems that the completed jersey was ready to ship but upon inspection, a minor flaw was discovered. The agent said that another jersey to replace the flawed one had already been put on the line, but his question was this: Would I like to have the flawed jersey at no additional cost to me?

As you can see by the photograph, that was a "no-brainer".

Now I eagerly await the other jersey so that I may use this one as "frameable" for my office, and perhaps some day get it autographed by "Hammerin' Hank" himself!

If you are a baseball fan and into the history of the game, you would do well to search google for: Ebbets Field Flannels, Seattle, Washington. They are a class company and I recommend them highly!

There! I said it!





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Walker: LIAR, LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE!

If you haven't seen this story, it is worth noting that our beloved governor makes shit up when it suits him:


Questions about gun control were on the mind of reporters when Gov. Scott Walker held a news conference in Madison on Jan. 10, 2013.

Reporters, including one from the Wall Street Journal, asked the first-term governor about the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, where 20 children and six adults were killed in December 2012 by a man with a semi-automatic weapon.

Did the carnage affect Walker’s stance on gun control?

The governor responded that a variety of factors, including the mental health of the perpetrator, need to be considered to prevent future tragic events such as Sandy Hook and the August 2012 shooting at the Sikh temple in Oak Creek.

Walker said too much attention is paid to the weapon in such shootings and cited a recent case as an example: "We just had someone last week in Neenah near a school kill someone with a bow and arrow."

He added that if gun control efforts are "just focused on the weapon, that gets away from the question of who are the people committing these heinous acts and what is it that’s happening that we’re not able to prevent them from doing that."

Walker has enjoyed considerable support from the National Rifle Association, and the group has given him an A-plus rating. His response to the gun control question was in line with groups fighting restrictions on guns: Don’t blame the weapons.

There was only one problem with Walker’s statement about the bow and arrow murder.

It never happened.

We asked Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie to explain the governor’s comment the day after he spoke. He responded three days later with this emailed statement:

"The Governor misspoke when he said someone was killed. I believe he was referring the recent standoff that involved a bow and arrow."

Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department Capt. David Mack provided the details, starting with the most important one: "No one got killed. I know because I was there."

In fact there were no serious injuries in the Jan. 3, 2013, domestic dispute in the Town of Clayton, located just west of Neenah.

According to Mack:

Authorities were called at 9:16 a.m. to a home after receiving reports of a disturbance between Shawn Coenen, 21, and his father.

During the dispute outside the house, "the son shot an arrow at the father, but the arrow did not strike the father," Mack said. Instead, it hit a vehicle.

Coenen was inside the house when authorities arrived. Initially, police weren’t certain that he was inside, so, as a precaution, they sent several officers to Clayton Elementary School, which is 2.5 miles away.

"The school was in session, and they were advised about the situation and placed in lockdown," Mack said.

Authorities determined that Coenen was in the house and were told by family members that there were a dozen firearms inside, but that the guns were locked in a gun cabinet. The SWAT team and crisis negotiators were called, and Coenen was arrested without incident at 1:22 p.m., Mack said.

Coenen faces three felony charges -- second degree reckless endangerment, failure to comply with an officer, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Our rating

Reporters asked Walker about his views of gun control in the wake Sandy Hook school shooting. Walker responded by discussing a homicide involving a bow and arrow near a Neenah school.

Trouble was, there wasn’t such a homicide. What’s more, while the incident was near a school (2.5 miles away) it didn’t have anything to do with the school. And the SWAT team was called because the suspect was holed up inside the house -- with potential access to guns.

Finally, Walker’s staff allowed his statement to go uncorrected for four days and only admitted that it was incorrect after being asked about it by PolitiFact. Pants on Fire.

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It's no wonder that this Tea Party Boy Wonder is so popular with the NRA. He will even lie for them.

We need to vote him out of office next time around!

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THE 1959 MIRACLE IN GREEN BAY

In the year 1959, I was a senior at Menomonie High School in Dunn County. My three brothers and I, farm kids all, begged and cajoled our dad into getting our first television set, a black and white with rabbit ears antenna.

Before the purchase of that first television set, the four boys would gather around the radio on Sunday afternoons after church and listen to whatever game was being carried that was within our reach.

We would mostly hope that we could get a broadcast of the Baltimore Colts games because Baltimore had this big fullback named Alan Ameche who had played for the Wisconsin Badgers and we remembered his scoring heroics in "the greatest game" played on December 28, 1958, against the New York Giants - the first nation-wide televised NFL game that Baltimore won in another first, an overtime victory!

What made it all the more special for us Badger fans is that Alan "the horse" Ameche scored the winning touchdown from one yard out. So in 1959, we were Baltimore Colts fans. But the dramatic "greatest game" was our strongest talking point when we begged dad to get a TV. We didn't want to not SEE the next "greatest game"!

And then a miracle happened in little Green Bay, Wisconsin. A coach named Vince Lombardi was hired. He made us quickly forget about the Colts. The highlight of my senior year was when Lombardi sent many of his players out to the hinterlands of Wisconsin to speak to high school students. Menomonie High School was assigned to one of Lombardi's ends, Gary Knfelc, who gave a very entertaining and in-depth look at what was happening under the new coach.

We were hooked! From then on, every Sunday after Mass, we would rush home and turn on the TV, to watch the Green Bay Packers and maybe get a glimpse of Gary Knafelc.

Every Thanksgiving brought with it the hard-fought games against the arch enemy Detroit Lions - dinner was planned around the game. And so it has been ever since. I still miss the loss of that traditional Packer/Lion Turkey Day game. And Ray Scott.

I AM THANKFUL FOR ...

I am thankful for many things this morning. I am thankful to have found Kim Wilson at a time in my life when my psyche was in shambles and she stood by me while I stumbled back, patiently giving me the time and the room to become whole. For that I am thankful, not just for today but for every day she continues to be my life's partner and I hers.

I am thankful for my two sons, Jon and David, both who have grown to be good, caring men of great talent and vision. I am thankful that even though they both live a long ways away from me, always make an effort to stay in touch with me and keep me abreast of what is happening in their lives.

I am thankful for all the good that was instilled in me by both my parents, Jack and Alice. Not a day goes by that I don't find myself doing something that reminds me of one or both. To my father, I am thankful especially for showing me that only through hard work does one accomplish goals. To my mother, I am especially thankful for teaching me to be accepting of all my fellow beings, black, white, red, yellow, gay, straight - to know that all people of different cultures are to be treated with deep respect and with a sense of justice.

I am thankful also for my three brothers, all of whom I love very deeply. I marvel at how different yet alike all four of us are, proud of the fact that all of us were educators at one time in our lives, and that my three brothers also learned the same values that I did from our parents.

I am thankful for my sister-in-law Kristi, who through example, has taught me the concept of self-control in all endeavors. She has exhibited a keen ability to be able to analyze any and all facets of her own life and in so doing has not only helped herself to a better life, but has served as a great example for me.

I am thankful for my close friends. Wil Denson has long been a mentor and pillar of strength for me. I am very thankful that my friend Doug Cox still loves me in spite of our political differences. Doug is the most generous and kind person I know, even though he pretends that this is not so. I am thankful that he was able to weather the terribly long storm of poor health that he went through the last couple of years and that the "old" Doug is back! I am thankful for every minute that we get to spend together!

I am thankful that I have survived heart surgery and several motorcycle accidents. By rights, I should be long gone by now!

Finally, I am thankful that I am still able to be an entertainer, whether it be making people laugh after dinner at conventions, or going into people's homes and making my home made pizzas for a party, or taking my guitar into senior centers and connecting with them through my music - all are things that make my life worthwhile and give me a sense of purpose.

AN OPEN LETTER FROM A FRIEND

Friends,

I'm sitting at my computer this morning wondering if I really want to send this out to all of you, but I REALLY feel compelled to do something, so please bear with me a moment.....

We have all been bombarded with ads, emails, phone calls, etc. during the past month(s) regarding the upcoming election. Well, I've been able to handle all this until this week...now I'm just plain angry! Fifty years ago, many of you (myself included) were working for equal rights for women in the work place and in our personal lives. We've fought that battle, and now politicians are coming out of the woodwork making statements like "if a woman is raped and becomes pregnant, God must have intended that and that child is "A GIFT FROM GOD!" (Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock) Makes me wonder if I stepped into an episode of the Twilight Zone!

Now, I'm a Christian and I've wavered at times in my life on the issue of abortion, but these politicians are putting me over the edge! I don't believe any rapist is an ambassador of the Almighty! This has gone beyond the issue of whether we feel we are Republican or Democrat. In my opinion, this is just plain extreme. Rape is rape! I believe
that a woman's decisions regarding her health and reproductive issues should only have to be discussed and decided between her and her doctor and her family. I believe many of you feel the same way.

The comments that we are hearing from MANY far-right political candidates are not fantasy. This is truly how they feel...ALL ABORTIONS SHOULD BE ILLEGAL, even in the case of possible death of the mother. You can fact check this one: Gov. Romney stated he would be "delighted" to sign a bill making all abortions illegal in this country. (This is what he said earlier in the campaign...recent statements he has made are less clear.) Now, I'm past the age where I have to personally worry about this issue, but what about our daughters, our granddaughters. I don't have any but if I did, I'd want them to have the freedom to make intelligent choices about their own bodies. We need to think in terms of the future and the generations of women to come.

My dear women friends, we have a very serious choice to make in nine days. I know I will be voting for candidates who understand that women can make intelligent choices, and who appreciate that women deserve equal pay for equal work. President Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter Act which addresses that very issue. I'm afraid we have a lot to lose if we don't make our voices heard. Please share this with other female friends (and males, too) if you like.

Thanks for taking the time to read this....I appreciate all of you! Please vote on Nov. 6!

Most sincerely,

Judy

REPUBLICANS FILIBUSTER, ROMNEY BLAMES OBAMA

Dear Red States:


We're ticked off at your Neanderthal attitudes and politics and we've decided we're leaving.
We in New York intend to form our own country and we're taking the other Blue States with us.


In case you aren't aware that includes California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois and the rest of the Northeast.


We believe this split will be beneficial to the nation and especially to the people of the new country of The Enlightened States of America (E.S.A).


To sum up briefly:
You get Texas, Oklahoma and all the former slave states.

We get stem cell research and the best beaches.

We get Andrew Cuomo and Elizabeth Warren. You get Bobby Jindal and Todd Akin.

We get the Statue of Liberty. You get OpryLand.

We get Intel and Microsoft. You get WorldCom.

We get Harvard. You get Ole' Miss.

We get 85 percent of America's venture capital and entrepreneurs.

You get Alabama.

We get two-thirds of the tax revenue. You get to make the red states pay their fair share.

Since our aggregate divorce rate is 22 percent lower than the Christian Coalition's, we get a bunch of happy families. You get a bunch of single moms.

With the Blue States in hand we will have firm control of 80% of the country's fresh water, more than 90% of the pineapple and lettuce, 92% of the nation's fresh fruit, 95% of America's quality wines (you can serve French wines at state dinners) 90% of all cheese, 90 percent of the high tech industry, most of the US low sulfur coal, all living redwoods, sequoias and condors, all the Ivy and Seven Sister schools plus Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Cal Tech and MIT.

With the Red States you will have to cope with 88% of all obese Americans and their projected health care costs, 92% of all US mosquitoes, nearly 100% of the tornadoes, 90% of the hurricanes, 99% of all Southern Baptists, virtually 100% of all televangelists, Rush Limbaugh, Bob Jones University, Clemson and the University of Georgia.

We get Hollywood and Yosemite, thank you.

38% of those in the Red states believe Jonah was actually swallowed by a whale, 62% believe life is sacred unless we're discussing the death penalty or gun laws, 44% say that evolution is only a theory, 53% that Saddam was involved in 9/11 and 61% of you crazy bastards believe you are people with higher morals then we lefties.

We're taking the good weed too. You can have that crap they grow in Mexico.

Sincerely,

A blue-stater.

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BOB CESCA: Republicans Filibuster Everything, Romney Blames Obama for Not Working With Congress


I don't know whether to be brutally outraged about the latest Romney ad or to congratulate the Republicans on an outstanding execution of political obstruction and subsequent projection. For now, let's go with brutally outraged.



Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell famously told the National Journal, "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president." Not economic growth, jobs, healthcare or military strength. A failed Obama presidency was the primary -- and I would argue the only goal of the last two Republican congresses.


And so the Republicans proceeded to rack up the highest number of filibusters in American history. During the president's first two years in office, the 111th Congress, there were 137 cloture motions filed to end Republican filibusters. During the president's second two years, the 112th Congress, there were 109 motions filed to end Republican filibusters and we still have a few more months to go. 246 total cloture motions. Compare this to George W. Bush's first term when there were a total of 133 cloture motions filed. Not even a handful of "sensible" Republicans had the guts to break ranks and vote with the Democrats. Meanwhile, on the House side, the Republican majority has voted in near-lockstep against almost everything.
What bills have the Republicans filibustered?

Here's an astonishing one. The Republicans filibustered the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act -- basically, healthcare for 9/11 heroes. Every Republican senator voted to filibuster this bill. I suppose the Republicans are only interested in 9/11 heroes when they're used as political props.

On the House side, every single Republican, including Paul Ryan, voted against the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act, which forces Congress to pay for new legislation through either budget cuts or revenue increases.

You'd think that by helping to pass these bills, Republicans could boast a solid record on fiscal responsibility, job creation, veterans affairs, anti-terrorism, senior citizens and, hell, 9/11 workers. Instead, they blocked all of it. Jobs for military veterans, tax cuts for small businesses -- you name it. Why? So President Obama and the Democrats could be accused of failure.

And it's working.

To name a few more:

H.R. 12 - Paycheck Fairness Act
H.R. 448 -- Elder Abuse Victims Act
H.R. 466 - Wounded Veteran Job Security Act
H.R. 515 - Radioactive Import Deterrence Act
H.R. 549 -- National Bombing Prevention Act
H.R. 577 - Vision Care for Kids Act
H.R. 626 - Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act
H.R. 1029 - Alien Smuggling and Terrorism Prevention Act
H.R. 1168 -- Veterans Retraining Act
H.R. 1171 - Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program Reauthorization
H.R. 1293 -- Disabled Veterans Home Improvement and Structural Alteration Grant Increase Act
H.R. 1429 -- Stop AIDS in Prison Act
H.R.5281 -- DREAM Act
S.3985 -- Emergency Senior Citizens Relief Act
S.3816 -- Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring Act
S.3369 -- A bill to provide for additional disclosure requirements for corporations, labor organizations, Super PACs and other entities
S.2237 -- Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act
S.2343 -- Stop the Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act
S.1660 -- American Jobs Act of 2011
S.3457 -- Veterans Jobs Corps Act

CRITTERS ATTEMPT MOVE TO WINTER QUARTERS

Every autumn, about the beginning of September, brings the annual influx of my little furry white-bellied friends, the deer
mouse, carrier of such things as the Hanta-virus, which it turns out, is carried in their urine and feces.

It is believed that humans can get sick with this virus if they come in contact with contaminated dust from mice nests or droppings.

Fortunately it cannot be spread between humans.

Rodents carrying the hantivirus have been found in many U.S. National Parks, but most people who are exposed to the virus have come in contact with rodent droppings in their own homes.

Early symptoms are similar to the flu and include chills, fever, and muscle aches.

Without going further into the very gory details, suffice to say that if severe enough, it can lead to your demise.

It's enough to make you go out and invest in a very large cat!

Instead, every Fall, here at my office, out come the good old reliable "Victor" mouse traps which I bait with either a very fragrant cheese or some thick peanut butter.

I then make the chart you see at the top of this post and the extermination, the war of attrition begins.

Here it is, the middle of October, and already I have 40 kills!  Yesterday I scored the daily double, arriving to find two traps with victims attached.

Okay.  I seem to have this under control.  But  this early morning as I made my way up the back steps to the office a familiar sickening smell filled my nostrils:  SKUNK!

For several years I had wood chucks that had burrowed under the foundation near the back of the place, nested and raised their young.

Although I know they can be destructive, I decided to try to live in peaceful coexistence and hope that they would move on, which they did.

But now I have at least one skunk that has decided that the former wood chuck apartment is just dandy for a long winter's nap.

This is intolerable.  The older I get the more difficult it is for me to destroy the life of any living entity, but come next Spring my problems will only multiply as the skunks do what comes naturally.

So today when my friend Steve (Roy) Rogers stopped in for a brief visit, we discussed a strategy.

Steve has dealt with skunks before so he has a handle on what to do.  We will live trap next week, cover the caged quarry with a black garbage bag to keep from being sprayed, take it out to the woods behind the house and there will be a 16 gauge execution.

It is not something I savor, but it is a must do