Four Mikes & a Malcolm in the Morning

I was half-watching TV early this a.m., an old re-run of Malcolm in the Middle. I enjoy the show, but never watched it when it was on primetime network TV.

The show was about the family joining a church in order to take advantage of free daycare. (if you've never seen the show, the family is "sweetly despicable" that way) As I said, I wasn't paying full attention to the show but perked up when I heard something very profound, a lovely quote.

The show was over shortly after and I changed the channel to my favorite sports show, Mike and Mike in the Morning. (Wiki Entry Here) I then got online, thinking I would look up the quote, see to whom it was attributed, but made the mistake of opening up my email program at the same time I opened up a browser window. Needless to say, I got sidetracked reading mails, following some links and then thought "What was it I was gonna look up?"

At that very moment one of my favorite football players of all-time, Mike Ditka, a guest on one of the Mike and Mike show segments said the exact same quote I was wanting to research.

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is God's gift; that's why it's called 'the present'. "

ThinkExist.com, my favorite quote site, attributes the saying to Joan Rivers. (of all people) Others say it's spun-off from various essays or poems. I don't much care, because I spent more time researching the quote than I wished.

Instead, I obsessed about how many "M's" I could cram into the title of this blog post.

(I'm the fourth Mike, btw.)

"Home" Again

Did you know you can return back to the "home" page (with the latest postings) simply by clicking the logo at the top of this blog? (or any other Blogger blog)

Excellent Ellipsis Essay

Ellipsis, I love 'em and use them far too often. It's a bad habit, but I cling to the practice because sometimes it's simply a lazy way to insinuate something without having to explain...well, you know.

Wiki defines ellipsis:

Ellipsis (plural ellipses; from Greek ἔλλειψις 'omission') in printing and writing refers to the row of three full stops (... or . . . ) or asterisks (* * *) indicating an intentional omission. This punctuation mark is also called a suspension point, points of ellipsis, periods of ellipsis, or colloquially, dot-dot-dot. An ellipsis is sometimes used to indicate a pause in speech, an unfinished thought or, at the end of a sentence, a trailing off into silence (aposiopesis).

The site goes on to say:

The use of ellipses can either mislead or clarify, and the reader must rely on the good intentions of the writer who uses it.

That's a pretty fair warning to anyone reading this blog. Ambiguity is probably one of my better traits, in fact. I am what I am....

I sometimes often misuse ellipses and sometimes almost always fail to end a sentence that's ending in ellipses with the correct extra and fourth period, the extra ellepses. I hope that's simply an oversight, a typo, and not some character fault.... It probably validates the fact that I'm lazy....

I'm making an effort to be correct. That might not be good enough for you, but...there ARE ellipses haters out there....

If they find their way to this blog....

I've used ellipses a lot, and have even been accused by a former girlfriend that I also speak that way. Imagine that.... I will have to admit I do sometimes speak haltingly... and sometimes st...st...st...stutter a bit. She and I had a rocky relationship, to put it mildly, and it finally ended badly after ending semi-badly a half-dozen previous times. I'm sure you know how that goes.... I also easily lose my train of thought which isn't hard when one has a one-track mind....

I always preferred to quietly breakup with her via a note left on her pillow or in a sock drawer. As per the definition of ellipses, I would write my sad and tortured thoughts in a melodramatic way: "I gave and gave to this relationship, but you never even tried...."

I quit writing those the next-to-last time we broke up when she said "Is this another one of those damn dot-dot-dot letters?"

Did you know that "dot-dot-dot" is the Morse symbol for the letter "S" as in "SOS"? I wasn't for sure...some folks don't know things like that. "- - -" or "Dash-Dash-Dash" is "O". Just thought I'd mention that... Sometimes I use dashes -- when I think they're better instead of ellipses--but usually only one - or at the most, two --.

FOUR dots .... or "dot-dot-dot-dot" is the Morse code for the letter "H".

Just thought you should know....

Now you can spell "HOSS" in Morse Code.

My next essay:

"What's so wrong with using three question marks??? "

I'm Seeing Double...Again

Ever watch Everybody Loves Raymond?

I never watched it; oh, I've seen bits and pieces of a few reruns, so I am familar with it and the cast. It's a cleverly written show, but I figure it will be on one channel or another (or several at the same time slot) for the next twenty years, so I expect I'll get to see each espisode a dozen or so times before I die.

Speaking of dying, I was saddened to hear of Peter Boyle's death back this last December.

(he's the one in the middle)


You may remember his role as The Monster in Young Frankenstein.



That brings me to this: If you're a regular reader of this blog (and the question would be: Why WOULD you be?) you would most likely know that I'm always "seeing double". No, not in vision, but seeing similarities between people. For instance, I sure think my friend's betrothed looks like a famous movie star and I had a post the other day where I thought the angel atop the empty tomb at the Groom Cross looks like my ex-wife.

As I've mentioned a hundred and forty two times before, I really love to go over to the Groom Cross and am particularly intrigued by the bronze statue's faces. One of my favorite stations is the first one, where Pilate is washing his hands and leaving Jesus to His fate.



After gazing into Pilate's face a dozen times and taking dozens of photos, sorting them, cropping the best ones down to how I like them, I've decided that Pilate has a double, too.

MUTO by Blu

A wall-painted animation by Blu.

There's something green...

In my fridge, but I'm not sure if it's old meat or new cheese.

What Your Fridge Says About You

You don't need a lot of stuff to be happy. There isn't a greedy bone in your body. You tend to be a fairly thrifty person. You splurge occasionally, but you're mostly a saver. You don't tend to be a very adventurous person, but you do surprise everyone now and then. You have a bit of a wild side. You try to be responsible, but you don't always succeed. Your heart is in the right place though. You are likely to be an alcoholic.

What Do the Contents of Your Refrigerator Say About You?

The results say I'm an alcoholic only because there's nothing in my freezer but a couple of bottles of beer.