The Year in Review

Your Year Was an "F" Year

No need to sugarcoat this one... you had an absolutely horrible year. Possibly the worst of your life. It was the year when very little went right. There's not much to salvage from this one! It may take you a while to recover from this year, but that's okay. You'll end up stronger from it eventually. Take a big breath, and prepare yourself for the coming year. Hopefully it's a big more manageable.

How Would You Grade Your Year?

The First Rule of Blogthings Is: You Don't Talk About Blogthings

Amish Christmas Lights

From the email archives:

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Lovely photo of some Amish Christmas lights:

Silly! You know very well that the Amish don't use electricity.

Little Girlie

Got another one of those "Saw your profile" spam emails this morning. The subject line was "Hulloo!" It had the usual teaser text:

Hi How are you doing? I like your profile.


Want to check out my best private photos?


Email me at selianoy669@hotmail.com and i am going to respond back with my private pics.

And it included this photo: (just barely holds to this blog's "G" rating, I think)

The mail was from "Little Girlie", along with the reply to address - igive2live@gmail.com - and this one also in the text- vdrxiztdy@haverkamp.com

I include the addresses in hopes the email spiders will pick up on them and other spammers will then spam the spammer.

Pretty hot photo, though, but it didn't show her face. I've got a program that will take the embedded information in the photo and will show the other side of it. I'm sure glad I did that before I replied asking for more pics.

No Age Discrimination Here!

I was entering a contest earlier (for a washer/drier combo) and the entry page wanted all my pertinent information: gender, address, email and my age. Now, I understand why they want the contact information and also why they want the other information for their marketing purposes, but something struck me funny about the drop-down menu for the birth year:

I wonder just how many over a hundred yr. old folks they expect to enter the contest? I'd say they were already a winner for living that long.

I really need that washer/drier combo, though.  I hate going to the laundromat; I figured a while back that I could easily buy a washer and drier with what I spend there in a year.  Just the other day I was listening to a local "swap and shop" program on the radio and heard someone say they had a barely used washer and drier for sale for 25 bucks.  I quickly called the number and made arrangements to go check out the pair. 

I was disappointed after I got there, though...I found out the washer and drier was an old douchebag and towel.

No wonder they were so cheap.

Combo Spam

For a change, I didn't have a lot of spam in the junk mail folder, but there were these three. I thought the combination of them was funny.

What can I say? I'm weird.

Finder's Keepers

Losers weepers, so goes the old saying.  That was also said in this recent Amarillo Globe-News article:

Good Samaritans turn in $1,200 lost cash

There wasn't the usual comment section at the website, but their Facebook page linked to it with this comment:

If you randomly found $1,200 on the ground at the mall, would you keep it or turn it in? Be honest!

I found that ironic after reading the comments; many were "honest" and said they'd keep the money. Here's my comment:

I wouldn't turn it in; I'd inform the mgr. of the store where I found it that I had found a sum of money and give him my contact information. If someone called me and told me they had lost that specific amt. of money, then I'd return it to him. Otherwise, the mgr. might very well keep it - I've seen that happen before with smaller amts.

This was a lesson I learned a long time ago; my sister found a bill (forget what it was, but I think it was a ten) on the floor of a dept. store and turned it in to the service desk. My folks were proud of her for being honest, but also told her that they bet the clerk probably kept the money and the next time she should do just as I commented. That always stuck with me.

I've found money and wallets and in the case of the latter, always managed to get it back to the rightful owner. The times I've found money, it wasn't by or in a store, so I figured there wasn't any way to find who had lost it. One time I found a twenty stuck to a weed while I was out walking!

Like most controversial subjects, the comments on the Facebook page were varied. Some, as I mentioned, said they'd keep the money, but most said they'd return it. (I got something like 15 thumbs up for my comment). And, is the case, there were self-righteous people criticizing those who said they'd keep the money and a few snarky comments in reply. Far be it from me to judge them - if I was really hurting for money, I would probably justify my new-found windfall some way.

I've not lost total hope in my fellow man, but my half century plus on this world has made me a cynic in human nature. Not long ago, a local EMT was arrested for stealing the wallet of an injured man; another fairly recent case was of a fireman responding to a vehicle fatality and taking a Rolex off of the victim's wrist.

One of the replies on the Facebook post was by an Amarillo TV news anchor; he said he'd turn it in to the police. (naming the officers he trusted) I thought that was all well and good, but like the emergency responders who stole, cops can be thieves, too. It reminded me of the case of a local man who, while driving to work, saw a briefcase in the weeds by the side of the road. He stopped and got it, then when he got home, jimmied the lock and found a couple ounces of cocaine and something like $14,000. He did the "right" thing and turned it into the police.

Texas law states that, if no one claims it, the finder gets the found property after 90 days. (Of course, he wasn't going to get to keep the drugs). The three months came and went and the sheriff's office stonewalled him, claiming it might be needed for a trial. They kept putting him off for close to a year and the man had to go to court to force the law to hand over the money. Rumors were hot and heavy about why the sheriff didn't want to hand over the money, but I figured he thought he could bluff the guy out of his find. (the Sheriff was a beloved figure here in town for many years, one of Texas' longest serving law enforcement officials, but he ignored civil rights and enforced only those laws he wanted to enforce. It was said that many times he would bust someone for a large amount of pot, then in a few months the weed found its way onto the street..."somehow". )

Due to many betrayals of trust, I have found it hard to trust people. The last straw for me was about three years ago at this time of year and learning from the wife of a friend that one of my sister's classmates had terminal cancer. I got a Christmas card, put a hundred dollar bill in it plus a $25 WalMart gift card and the next time I was visiting my friend, told them I was going to go over to her house and give it to her.

My friend's wife told me that wouldn't be a good idea, that she was very sick and having visitors wouldn't be good for her, that she would give it to her the next time she saw her. So, I gave the wife the envelope.

A few weeks later, I was visiting again and asked what the woman thought of the present. The wife stuttered and stammered and said she was thrilled. Something about her attitude struck me as odd, but I shook the feeling off. Surely my friend's wife wouldn't be so low as to steal from a dying woman. Noticing a new TV, I asked about it and my friend said they had just got it from WalMart.  Hmmm....

Anyway, long, sad story short, the woman passed away. I later became Facebook friends with her brother, an older guy I had always liked. I private messaged him, told him what I had done and asked if his sister had ever mentioned my gift. He told me no, but it was unlike her to have not told him. I told him the arrangement I had made and he asked for my number and called me just a few minutes later, telling me he had heard my friend's wife had been a little shady in her dealings with some people he knew.

A few weeks after that, I had messaged another Facebook friend I had gone to school with, asked her what she thought of my friend's wife. (I didn't mention the suspected theft) She told me a story of some money going missing from a purse at a party they had both attended and her being fairly sure that it was the woman that stole it.

So...forgive me for being cynical. I wouldn't want to keep money that didn't belong to me and I'd hate to think that if I did, it would cause extreme hardship to the person who lost it. As far as the $125 I'm sure my (now ex) friend's wife stole...well, that's an awfully low price for which to sell her soul.

Damn Ham

Shortly after Thanksgiving, I was shopping in the grocery store closest to my house. I pushed my cart through the meat section, looking for sales on my favorite lunch meats, hamburger, etc. when I noticed they had hams on sale. They weren't "real" hams, but those pressed lumps of pork, usually with a fair amount of gristle.

Now, I don't eat a lot of pork. I like it, but for various reasons I try to avoid it. Oh, I'll get bacon or sausage on the rare occasion when I eat breakfast at a nearby cafe, but I don't normally buy it. I try to buy chicken or beef hot dogs and about the only time I'll eat a wiener made w/ pork is when I buy a corn dog from the convenience store. I don't REFUSE to eat pork, but like I said, I just don't eat much of it.

So, when I saw those hams, I started to walk on by, but I stopped. The price was certainly good: $5.99. I hadn't seen them so cheap for years. About ten years ago or so, I practically lived on those things. (one of the reasons I don't eat much pork) At the time they were five bucks and one of them made meals for a week or more. That was nice, but ham sandwiches twice a day made me start to dislike them.

Still, a ham sandwich DID sound pretty good, so I bought one and took it home. I unwrapped it, cut off the "rind" and cut that up for the stray cat that hangs around, then thinly sliced enough off for a fat sandwich. I slathered two slices of of my double-fiber bread (I hardly ever eat more than one slice/day because of the carbs) with salad dressing, sliced up a tomato and made a sandwich that would have made Dagwood jealous.

It was delicious! So, for the next week I had a ham sandwich every day. When I reached the end of the meat, I went back to the store to see if they had more. They did - they must have over-ordered too many for the holidays. I had more ham sandwiches. I ran out again the other day, went back to the store and bought yet another one. I was a little worried about eating too much bread, so I ate ham on crackers, diced it up with beans, nibbled on a slice without anything else just for a snack. It tasted SO good, even if it wasn't a "real" ham.

Then the other day I stepped on my scales. I read the number, then thought I'd better take off my shoes and hoodie I was wearing because that weight COULDN'T be right! I stepped back on the scales and saw that the items of clothing I had taken off hadn't helped much...I was ten lbs. heavier than I had been just a few weeks ago!

Just polished off the last of the ham for a midnight snack. I think I've hammed it up enough. Tomorrow I start on a diet. -sigh- Damn ham.

Best Slam Ever!

There's a time for snark and there's a time to just not say anything if you can't say something positive.

An Amarillo news outlet's Facebook page posted a link to a horrifying article:

Texas online editor walks into plane propeller

Lauren Scruggs, 23, landed at Aero Country Airport -- off Virginia Parkway -- about 9:30 p.m. after viewing North Texas Christmas lights from a small, private airplane.

The prop struck her upper body, according to her friend Janeé Harrell, resulting in a skull fracture, severe facial cuts and the amputation of her left hand, among other injuries.

There were several comments wishing the injured woman well, but as is far-too-often the case, there were some cruel and thoughtless posts, too. (One said "She's a blonde!") Someone wrote they couldn't understand how this could happen and I wrote:

One of the posters who had the poor taste to make a crude comment then made this reply to another person criticizing her for her comment, then someone else replied to her with the best slam I've read on the 'net in a long, long time.



Yep, that described her to a "Tango".

French Toast & Fresh Tears

Earlier today I followed a link in my reader to a recipe site post about French toast. I didn't learn anything; the post was about how good the ends of a loaf of bread were for that dish, but a single sentence about her mother eating the ends of the bread because her kids wouldn't eat them touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes.

Moms make sacrifices all the time, both big and small. I didn't realize it at the time, being a self-centered child, but my mom sacrificed so much for her kids. I couldn't even begin to list the things she gave up so my sisters and I could have a better life...and there were probably hundreds more I never knew about.

I sure miss my momma. I’d give half the rest of my life to have her back for just one day.

You Don't Have to Spell 'Em

To have 'em, I suppose.

This screenshot is from the Facebook page of an Amarillo media outlet. The subject was mandatory testing for AIDS and as is usual with controversial topics, there was plenty of outrage...and "moral" superiority.

The names were blacked out because...well, I'm pokin' fun at 'em.

I had "some" Moriales once...Rosa, think her first name was.  She didn't give me AIDS, just a little something penicillin cured right up.

Just kidding, but the real joke was the self-righteous attitudes, one lecturing on "moriales" and the other calling the first one out, not realizing she was nearly as bad as the first - and making a spelling error, too.

I Found My Thrill

With a blueberry spill.

Went out to WalMart yesterday evening; I'd been having problems with the sound on my computer and finally figured out it had to be my headphones. I really don't like to get out and waste gasoline on a single item, so I gave a quick thought to what else I needed at WM.

Got there, got my headphones (no inexpensive ones in the headphone section, but there was a greater selection in the mp3 player aisle, go figger)then went shopping for the other items I intended to purchase: dry cat food, tuna, bread and I also wanted to price small coffee makers or a french press if they had one.

I got the things I needed, then since I was near the bakery dept. on my way out, I decided I'd go look at and smell of the donuts. (was tempted to buy a half dozen, but didn't!) As I was making my way towards the check-out counters, I went by the produce section. For some reason, WalMart usually doesn't have as low prices on produce as does my grocery store, but I noticed blueberries at a decent price, so I stopped, grabbed one of the "clam shell" packages to look at the berries. I like to inspect not only where they're from (I don't buy produce from Mexico) but also check to make sure there aren't many broken or off-colored berries. They're too expensive to buy rotten ones.

As I turned the pkg. over to look at the bottom berries, the top gave way and berries went everywhere! To make matters worse, at the same time a man in a wheelchair passed by, crushing berries as he went. I hastily said I was sorry, briefly thought about trying to pick up the berries - some of which had rolled 15-20 ft. away - then did like a kid who had just hit a baseball through a window and skeedaddled after grabbing another pkg. (I didn't inspect this one)

I picked the closest cash register and started checking out. From my vantage point, I could see a produce dept. employee standing there, hands on his hips, shaking his head with a scowl on his face. I really wanted to go over to apologize, but that wouldn't have put the berries back in the box and I was afraid I might be banned from the store.

Oh well. At least I got some blueberries for my oatmeal. I'm a little leery of karma though and am afraid one will get lodged in my windpipe.

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Blueberry Hill - Fats Domino