If its Tuesday, it must mean another bailout...no...wait...Nevermind.... Now we see this Administration telling Military Veterans that they will have to get insurance to pay for their medical bills for injuries incurred during service to the USA. Ummmmm....am I reading this right. You mean to tell me that Obama expects a soldier, if he is wounded in combat, comes back to the States, and has to have further treatment... that he expects them to pony up a deductible and cross their fingers that good ole Blue Cross will foot the bill? Wow..I knew his inner circle was arrogant, but...WOW!!!! If this becomes true, there goes that segment of vote for good. Does Obama think that he can just go running way off into Liberal Kool Aid land wacky left , Commie Land and think he will be able to keep that swing vote that got him elected?

Now I must agree that the indignation over the AIG bonuses is justified for the most part. But what of Chris Dodd? He and Geitner KNEW that this would happen and manouvered so it would remain so. For them to be standing up jumping up and down is hypocritical, isnt it?

And of course the "Politics of Change" sees the DNC attacking South Carolina's Governor for trying to use the bailout money to pay off debt... which is what virtually anybody who gets a windfall of money would do, right. Pay off the bills, then look at what"s left to spend. But...Obama doesnt want the stimuls to go anywhere they don't control. This is starting to seem more and more about...Control. Control this stimulus and bailout crap and be able to control power and...votes. Far be it to let the money go to pay off debt. doing that would mean that Obama and the administration would not have...wait...here it...comes... Control over you.

...and Pelosi is clamoring for the Newspapers to be bailed out. Whatever happened to the market deciding that Newspapers are no longer needed? Oh...I get it...The newspapers would then be beholden to her, wouldnt they?

Starbuck: There's this one song that he taught me, it made me feel happy and sad all at the same time

The Piano Player: The best ones do.

I am starting to beleive that a LOT of people were adversely affected by the time change. This seems to be more than the usual "grab-a-quick-nap-on-Sunday" and it clears it up thing. It seems to have lingered way into the week...very much like jetlag...

Here is what I have to say about Clemson Basketball.... ?....

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? ... ? ?

.. ? ? ...

Last episodes of Battlestar Galactica starting tonight.... ER last night was somewhat dissapointing, although I did get how it was all tied together....

another day...

another day...must mean another stimulus bill. While some of you must find this boring to be kept mentioned, but today ANOTHER 410 Billion in spending was passed with almost 9000 earmarks. Earmarks Obama promised in his campaign to not allow. But now...its a "We'll do that the NEXT TIME".... very convenient...how much you wanna put down that the next bill he wont cut out anything. Seriously. How much? I dare anyone to take me up on it. And Pelosi is today stating that another Stimulus Bill is being written right now.

This is more like it...

Temps in the high seventies...THIS IS WHAT WINTER IS SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE IN THE UPSTATE!!!!

.. I-Man had his first Soccer Match over the weekend...he was in Goal for about a half, then played some defender and a short time at forward.... On Saturday, we did some cleaning up, then went to a local park for a while before heading over to Brandy and AJ's for dinner with his parents...

First match for I-Man in the spring season tonight. I plan to do some serious picture taking of his match so I'll post a couple of action photos later...

The Emperor has no.... well.. um.. Nevermind...

I want to find it funny, but sadly...it's not... Another day, another large drop in the Stock Market and another Obama Cabinet nominee deciding to drop out... wait... sorry... make the TWO people dropping out... oh, and more bailout proposals to the tune of 400 Billion. Sitting here reading that and suddenly a thought popped into my mind... Where is all this money going to come from?

..and I said a long time ago that I thought all this fawning over how well Obama "speaks" was smoke and mirrors... a myth perpetuated by the people in media who have too much invested see Obama fail now...the ones talking of a "feeling running up their legs" Hell... I can read a speech and slowly but surely the Obama myth of his oratory skills is starting to fall apart... read this article and know that virtually everytime you have seen or heard him speaking, be it a real speech, or an actual answer in a town hall meeting, has been read... not answered off the top of his head. Admittedly the article comes from The Politico, a right leaning website so those of you drinking the now watered down kool aid can take it for what its worth. But I think it telling that Bush was constantly chided for how he spoke, and Obama is constantly lauded. If everytime i spoke in front of people, i could simply read the same bullet points and sound bites, i guarantee I would be impressive. Guarantee.... click here http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090305/pl_politico/19663

"Ahh...music, a magic far beyond all we do here." - Albus Dumbledore

Watching Battlestar Galactica DVR'd today reminded me of why I like the show...in that Music is a somewhat subtle, yet HUGE part of this story. There are a couple of songs from the first season that I listen to on an almost daily basis...

...as a matter of fact, whenever I take my IPOD into work and simply plug into it all day, it changes my mood for the better, and makes the day go by so much faster. As a matter of fact, I think I will take time tonight to clean up my playlist (i have a lot of duplicates...same songs, different names) and add all the current stuff I have downloaded recently....

"The friendship that can cease has never been real." - Saint Jerome

I had the opportunity to see my friend Kristen last night. And was reminded as I drove home thru the night that I have few friends. Perhaps because of my post below, or perhaps because I have been extremely cautious as to whom I have become close to over the years... As I have mentioned in posts before, the closest circle of friends for me are in Brooklyn...New Jersey...Raleigh...Atlanta...Charlotte.... Tallahasee.... I am fortunate to have one in Anderson whom I never seem to speak to anymore and one in Greenville who I am blessed to be able to see occasionally. I say these things not to call anyone out or rail on anyone. We all have our families and our own lives and time is precious... I just sometimes feel that the times of seeing people for any appreciable time is over. Its a stop over here... couple of hours there... a tailgate then....a stop by now... it saddens me. I love my family and I definitely love my wife. My son and daughter are the reason I do virtually everything and most of you reading this experience this for yourselves everyday. But...it saddens me... life goes on. You hear news of unexpected sickness with friends and it gives you pause. You say a little prayer even though you are not prone to sayin prayers... you hear of additions to friends families and you smile inwardly, knowing they have been blessed again. But it saddens me... with those blessings go away the weekends at a Nascar race, or a cabin in the Georgia Mountains... it saddens me that to even make plans with family is even difficult.

But... I guess I will continue to see these people. And try to make the most of the time together. i think it is why I have put so much mental energy into planning something like a weekend at the All Star race, or thinking about getting family together for a July 4th weekend. Some think it silly, but I really look forward to the exchanges, and the ability to create memories... its why I can understand why my wife's father purchased a ATV and jetski, and why I extend an offer for people to join me when I go to a race. No.. I never am the life of the party... but I certainly like watching the life of the party. At the end of the day, when the end is near or when whe are standing around drinking some punch at a memorial service in 30 years, i will be glad I took the time to ride down to see Kristen for 3 hours. And I need to figure out how to do the same with some other people too...

So... for those of you who read this ( and you KNOW who you are)... I aint just sending you a text because I'm bored...

Social Justice and Shared Sacrifice

Social Justice and Shared Sacrifice... is this what everyone wants? Is this what I am supposed to go along with. No longer am I really giving any thought to the numbers anymore. Every other day is more bailout, stimulus and another program that costs money. Mixed in between the handouts of MY money is another cabinet nominee who has somehow forgotton, overlooked or made an "innocent" mistake in paying their taxes. If i hadnt paid 10,000 in taxes, do you think I would be getting to be a cabinet post? Yet somehow, this is OK that Obama ( or his people) trots out person after person who has has some sorta issue. Dont misunderstand me... nobody"s perfect. But how is it that time after time the same sorta issues are propping up with these people?

I am beyond the numbers now. I have seen enough. I can add the math...and no matter how you spin it, those numbers never add up to the utopia. You can want it to add up. You can HOPE that it adds up. You can think it will CHANGE everything. At this rate, it will... and the CHANGE I'm seeing with will adversely affect my children. Obama's children, his grand children and their children are set. My heirs will be paying for his Vision. His wont be. Period. That you cannot throw some number at and say won't be the case.

I dont like what I see. Obama has been reckless in making a dash to get his Vision done before people realize what hit them. And he is right. Pelosi is right. "We Won!!!!" But the agenda is barreling toward socialized banking, health care.. EVERYTHING. Can't let the banks fail...TOO BIG To FAIL!! Can't let the mortgages fail...TOO BIG To FAIL!! Can't let the Car companies fail...TOO BIG To FAIL!! Can't let the Obama fail...TOO BIG To FAIL!! Let me ask this question... Is it no longer a possibility to let anyone or anything fail? History has proven that the way Obama is approaching this DOES NOT WORK. Can anyone show me a historical precedent where it did work? Will it work this time? is the 4th time a charm?

Social Justice and Shared Sacrifice... Is this about evening the playing field? Since when does the American Dream mean that we are ALL owed a house? What about earning the house. Oh, I'm sure Will will pipe up about predatory lending, etc.? Its not all the banks fault. definite fault there. Its not all Wall Streets Fault. Definite fault there. and guess what...its not all Bush's (Republicans, Conservatives, whoever you want to try to place blame on and not critcise Obama ) fault. Definite fault there. But guess what... beside Brown, I havent seen anyone else who shows any sorta testicles to post here to do any thing that criticises Obama or his coat-tail riders. Or the Democrats. Who has been running the Congress for the past 2 years? Oh...wait...wait...wait for it... it's George Bush's fault, right? plenty of blame with the masses too. (yeah...I know John... i can hear you pitching a fit right now... you have mentioned that fact.)

I am beyond the numbers now. I see Obama wanting everyone who "is of means" to feel the pain of those who are not. That is what I see and I dont agree that two wrongs make a right. I do not have a small business like Kristen and John, but I do know that they give as much as ANYBODY, yet it seems Obama feels that taking half of what THEY work hard for and earn everday by themselves isnt enough. We need to take more from them becasue they are bringing in more than 200 grand a year. We need to "spread it around". Why is it that he knows best how to spread it around? virtually everything he has positioned himself to do since coming into office has been to play Robin Hood. If I make money legitimately, why do I HAVE to give it to someone else. That is at the crux of what I see with Obama.... And I have yet to see him say..."OK. this should be enough". Every Bailout, Stimulus and handout is followed with "we may need even more".... I'll throw this question out there since I dont think I have asked it before.... where is all this money supposed to come from?

Social Justice and Shared Sacrifice... Since when are we supposed to be handing over our financial system and those major decisions to people in other countries? this global thing is going too far. Wasn’t America founded by people wanting to get away from Obama, er…, King’s rule? I think it is somewhat interesting that over 2000 people met in Greenville on Friday on the Reedy River in the cold for a "tea party" to protest Obama and this wild orgy of spending. Bet you didn't hear about that did you? And there are plans for a bigger rally once the temps rise...

"WHAT DID YOU THINK A STIMULUS BILL IS?".... Fits and starts for wall street are not important? Day to day gyration not worthy of attention? Well, Obama may not pay attention, but everyone else does. Does he think that his solution is the only solution? There for the fact that he tells people to buy stocks sends people into another panic? There is a reason that whenever he speaks, the market taildives...

...and Health Care community centers…who will be using these? Let me guess...people who havent paid for them with their taxes and illegals...sigh...

despite Obama's claim ( and even louder shouts by others) that he has some huge mandate(67 million voted for him), over 58.5 million people did NOT vote for him. A lot of people seem to be forgetting that. And a lot of people seem to be forgetting that it will come time to vote again soon. Obviously Obama knows this as he seems to spend most of his time giving that same campaign speech from his teleprompter over and over. However, I can't say that he isnt making an effort. And for that, you have to applaud the man. He said he was going to go to Washington and make changes. And he hit the ground running... so at least he has attempted to do what I wanted to see...leadership

but... I dont want Socialism. I want everyone to stand on their OWN merits. I dont want a handout. And I dont want MORE of my money being taken out of my paycheck to go to all this crap... Bumblebees and Swine odor?

And Erik, people have told me to "move on". You haven't. And you won't because you believe that everyone should have the same voice you have. You and I are two sides of the same coin... mother a school teacher, father hard workin middle class... workin for that house and the BMW.... Our life experiences are a a little different since Clemson but I cant wait for you to look into the eyes of your son and/or daughter, then look up and suddenly see the world completely different... not sayin you'll be calling up Michael Steele for tips or anything..but... just sayin...And while I wont pull a Limbaugh and say that I hope Obama fails...I am very worried that his Vision is not one I currently teach my children, or one that will help them in the future. Plain and Simple.

I still kinda am tryin to figure out where all this money is coming from? I think I am starting to figure it out but was hoping someone else might actually own up to where it is coming from. Oh well...tomorrow is another day...around noon we should see either some new "package" for some random Billion dollar number or...some report of a caninet nominee that somehow forgot to pay 30,000 in taxes...

Finally, I rant about this because I dont want to live in Europe. These policies havent made people want to get in boats, fly in airplane tirewells or make boats out of plywood to get to France, have they?

in other news....

I-Man has started soccer practices and his first game is next week. Looks like he will be doing goalie duty and defender duty mostly this half season. I think this suits him for now. He is still not aggressive enough for striker and he seems to prefer that defensive mindset.

The Frat has its Candidate Retreat this weekend and Alumni are officially invited for the first time. Even though I only expect about 15 Alumni, I think it is a positive step in the direction that will give Alumni an avenue for involvement as well as a planning step for the future.

And Battlestar is winding down... i am wondering if their is a huge ending to this or if it will pull a Seinfeld and simply whimper off into the night...

...speaking of which, don't get me started on Clemson Basketball....

one last time

"This spending-leads-to-growth concept is a perennial failure that can actually harm an economy. Its advocates suffer from a crucial error in their understanding of economics: for in fact, consumption is an effect, and not a cause, of economic growth. Stated simply, more spending without the greater output of goods and services that results from increased saving and investment -- and concomitant higher real incomes -- can only lead to higher prices and inflation. Alternatively, if government spending programs engender uncertainty and loss of confidence, while at the same time excluding incentives to invest (such as through tax cuts on profits or capital gains), the demand for money holding can increase dramatically, choking off recovery. The former scenario played out in the U.S. stagflation of the 1970s, while the latter occurred in the U.S. in the 1930s and Japan in the 1990s." — John L. Chapman, research economist for the conservative American Enterprise Institute, arguing why President Obama's economic plan will fail


Ok.. I am going to dare to be not just go along with Obama and just take it.... I want someone...ANYONE.... to tell me where the money is going to come from for the spending bills, stimulus, programs... whatever that comes out every other day. I have asked... no-one can tell me. There are not enough taxpayers in this country to pay for this crap that I am supposed to sit and just go along with. I will ask again...where is the money coming from? And no..."Its Bush's fault" wont work...

OK...I'll go back to being a coward now.. I'll just go back to doing what I was told to do...just shut up and go along with it all.... after all, I am the ONLY person (well, John in Florida too, I guess... oh, and a bunch of people at Foxnews) who thinks this way. Right?

Who is going to pay for all this?

Its Thursday, must be time for another stimulus package....

Sigh... so as I mentioned, we have another plan to avert the crisis of foreclosure. This is supposed to keep people in danger of foreclosure from losing their home. Hmmmm.... looked in my mailbox, no check to help my situation out. doubt one will be coming, either. I am a "person of means".

Brown sent me forward the other week, and I have actually given it some thought as I think it does ring a theme that I think is true in many ways....

A holy man was having a conversation with God one day and said, ' God , I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like..'

God led the holy man to two doors.
He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.
In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished.
They were holding spoons with very long handles, that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful.
But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths
The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.
God said 'You have seen Hell.'
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one.
There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water.
The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't understand.'
It is simple,' said God . 'It requires but one skill.
You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.'

Remember that I will always share my spoon with you.

So we can all be plump together)

Ok... gotcha.

But....

Here is what bothers me... Is it fair that those who were given a house when they obviously couldnt afford a house, and now are losing that house, are STILL given that house while those who worked for a house, bought the house they could afford, make the payments on their house, and are getting no aid are getting the shaft? Isnt this simply redistribution of wealth? Is it fair that I am getting taxed to give other people something they have not earned? Is it fair that if I call Citibank and ask to have my mortgage cut in half, they are going to look at me, see that i make my payments on time, have plenty o cash on hand and tell me that I am a person of means and havent had that "personal misfortune"?

All of this smacks of Obama and "the left" feeling that they can/will redistribute the wealth around. I just don't see how that is fair when a lot of people receiving this simply haven't earned it. Its one thing to have lost your job because if this mess and need assistance. Its another thing to have NEVER made an effort and feel you DESERVE a home and will be given one. If you have never worked for it, how do you deserve it? Can someone explain this to me?

wow...check this out...

Remember when I mentioned a kid named Tanner Smith playing at Clemson??.... check out this link

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=3914889

dude is on the front page of ESPN.com

Superior leaders get things done with very little motion. They impart instruction not through many words, but through a few deeds. They keep informed about everything but interfere hardly at all. They are catalysts, and though things would not get done as well if they were not there, when they succeed they take no credit. And, because they take no credit, credit never leaves them. ~ Lao Tzu

Why is it seems evertime I get on the internet or watch TV news, there is some sorta of bumbling announcement coming from this Obama admnistration? If it isnt someone having not paid their taxes, then its someone else backing out of a Nomination for any number of reasons. Commerce Sec #2 dropped today. I find it amusing that all we could hear (and still hear as excuses for any problem Obama has) is Bush this and Bush that. I am tired of hearing this crap everyday. I will say this again... Bush caused some problems. Bush is to be blamed for several issues. Obama (and those riding his coattails now) seem to want to still turn your gaze to the past. Wasnt this about Hope for the future? A different kind of Washington? Change we can believe in?

Today I see where Obama is contemplating using taxpayer money (isnt it all, but I digress) to directly pay some of, or all of Mortgage payments for people who are either in foreclosure or "nearing" it. Well... somehow I am betting that I wont be seeing a check helping me out of my mortgage anytime soon... and I am perpetually 3 months away from foreclosure all the time. If this happens, he will lose me for good. Especially since a lot of these people were given mortgages without credit checks, proof of employent or even paying 200 dollars down payment , much less 20,000.00 Oh wait, I already know the answer some will give me...Bush was President then. its all his fault.

And what of the transparency. Wasn't this stimulus bill going to be "posted" for the public to see for 48 hours before they would vote. Yet Pelosi and company seem to think that "the American people dont care" and surprise, are not letting hardly ANYBODY see whats in it, even Democrats. I guess I shouldnt care about little porky parts of all of this and should stop listening to the chatty people or something like that...

...why is it that all I see out of all this is manipulations to make more and more people reliant upon them, so they will feel compelled to vote for them in the future? I have a great parable/story that Brown sent to me. Its one thing to want to help others in need. I am willing to do that. I am not willing to simply give to people and do nothing but enable them into a reliance on the government for handouts. And that is where we are going...the governement will pay for my mortgage, electricity, food, car, gas...whatever. I dont want the government giving me anything except the money that I earn. Well...that and maybe the powerball payment, but..again... I digress...

Oh and all this money and "stimulus" gets me $7.70 a week more in my paycheck....

on a different note, did anybody see Joaquin Phoenix on Letterman last night? Wow...

True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost. - Charles Caleb Colton

The Facebook thing is interesting. I have resisted the temptation to do the 25 things thingy but I might as I have thought about it often over the past few days

... And now A-Rod admits he used performance enhancing drugs a few years ago. Look, I aint perfect and I have made mistakes. And I certainly am not a public figure like Alex Rodriguez. But this dude was going to be anointed as the saint of baseball as he approached Aaron then blasted by Bonds. Now... this all reminds me of... VeVickers... I can see what i will be thinking if/when he passes Bonds..."There arose a mild applause, amply merited..." as I was tellling Brown via text tonight...what next? Micheal Phelps will get caught taking a puff at a frat party? Oh...wait...that already happened....

Oh...and the #29 takes the Bud Shootout. Off to a good start for the year. Lets see if we can actually contend this year instead of finishing 6th every race.

Updates of the twins

Ok..for those of you clamoring for recent pix of the twins...here ya go... Age 7... taken today out back on the hammock swing near the creek on a glorious 68 degree day in February!!!

What's interesting is that their photos make you think of their personality as one way, while in reality they are trending to be about as polar opposite as you can be. Guess which one is the emotional one.. privy to outburst of laughter or instant meltdowns? And guess which one is the cool, even keel, calculating one?

a repression of "dissent" under the guise of "fairness."

I am glad that Obama seems to be against this Fairness Doctrine bull. I think its funny that almost every liberal, progressive whatever radio show fails. No one listens. Or watches. Almost 3 times as many people watch Foxnews as Msnbc. Is it because the people on the "right" are more entertaining? Hardly not.... and one of the reasons NPR still exists is because it is subsidized by tax money. But politicians and media wanna get all upset that Rush Limbaugh spouts his mouth off and millions of people listen and nod their heads while a a few thousand people tune in to Rachel Maddow whine about how its all Bushs' fault. I sense that Obama sees that he isnt beyond criticism. However, the media is so far invested in Obama that to criticise or have him fail would be an indictment of themselves...

And why is this DTV thing being extended? estimates are about 5 million TV/homes who dont already have cable or sat havent got the boxes they would need. My question is..Why not?.... I havent been able to turn on the TV or watch NBC for more thata 5 minutes over the PAST YEAR without a commercial or crawl across the screen YELLING AT US THAT THE ANALOG SIGNAL WOULD BE GOING AWAY ON FEBRUARY 17TH!!!! if you havent seen this constant announcements and infomercials on NBC and PBS and taken steps by now when you have had almost TWO YEARS to get a box, then I am willing to drop a large amount of money and say that 95 percent of these people wont be ready this summer. You would think that if you were sittin there without cable, and they are telling you that your TV signal is going to stop, that might... just might...make you take notice. And what will happen this summer? ... extend it again?

Micheal Phelps has been suspended from USA swimming for 3 months and has lost a couple of sponsors in reaction to the photos of him taking a puff of the bong down in Columbia. Look... arguments can be made that its stupid for that to be illegal while Alchohol and cigarettes are perfectly fine... but my only question for Mr Phelps is this... "Was she worth it?"

Change We Can Believe In!!!

Clemson basketball is definitely not playing with the malaise that hangs over everything else... Clemson.... The basketball team took Duke out back... and they might have to call DSS becasue of this beating.

...And.... Does Obama know anybody to appoint to a cabinet spot who has paid their taxes, isnt a former Clinton guy ( or gal ) , isnt a recent lobbyist? or have several conflicts on interest with their position and its dealings with others? Wasnt this supposed to be an Administration based on ethics? No...I dont want to hear the "Well, Bush blah, blah, blah..." nope. Aint hearing it. 37percent approval for this "stimulus" package... why is it that Obama has basically let Pelosi take this and add all this crap to the supposed stimulus package. Is Obama President? or Pelosi? This is at the root of why I was always turned off by this guy. Obama seems..."weak"...not masculine..."passive"...it seems to me that he said... "i want a stimulus package." and basically handed the wheel over to Pelosi who has proceeded to hijack and add all this crap and stipulations...

Dude...Obama... Man up, dude. And it is NOT a coincidence that you are starting to hear the bluster (albeit typical grandstanding) and rhetoric about Obama and the US being "weak"

This stuff abou the government taking over EVERYTHING isnt going to sit well...

"Every month we do not have an economic recovery package 500 million Americans lose their jobs". - Nancy Pelosi

meh

Snow in the Mountains, Snow in Northeast Georgia, Snow in North Carolina... snow in Myrtle Beach!!! but...no snow here...no clouds, and all sun.

put up or shut up

...tomorrow is time to get off the porch and run wth the big dogs time for Clemson Basketball. I almost hate to say anything for fear I furthur jinx the team. They showed some moxie on the road at VaTech last week and this is definitely the best "program" at Clemson. They certainly seem to be the best coached, best organized and least affected by the permanent cloud of "getting punked" that floats over Clemson. on another note, the football team seems poised to get a small, but impressive recruiting class...

...someone actually commented at work today that we didnt really need to have Black History Month now that Obama is President... um...anybody who is reading this who beleives that, please speak up.

...looks like the frat Alumni retreat is a go. 15 dollars a person for Alumni. I am now looking forward to saee how many alumni actually show up. The last time the actives made efforts to accomodate Alumni, only 1 person showed up.... now that the Actives seem to have nailed down a place/time/etc, I think I will take a more active role in setting up an Agenda and Activities that would make it worthwhile for the Alumni to show up

... First Nascar race is this Saturday...

...but Jessica's parents ( and Aunt Ellen I think) are coming into town to assist with the re-do on the downstairs half bath. Jessica has ripped up the tiles, and has taken out the old sink....

the phenomena that is facebook continues. It is so interesting to see people from WAAAYYYY back back and see their families and kids, and think back to those many years ago...

Super Bowl!!!

Ok...I think that even if I were Pavorotti/Justin Timberlake/Ray Charles and James Cleveland all rolled into one, I would NOT sing the National Anthem at the Super Bowl... even if they were offering me a whole huge wad o cash. Well, if I were that person, as wad of cash wouldnt be that significant, I hope. I mean, no one will ever top the Whiney Houston National Anthem from 1991 ( even though she lip synced it) and even Jennifer Hudson's seudo throwback anthem wasnt even close.... The Boss should have just sang "Glory Days" for 12 minutes...

...and the first 5 minutes of The Office was simply hilarious....

FINALLY!!!!

I finally got that Frakkin google virus off my lapper, after booting in safe mode (per harwood's recomendation) and running this removal tool someone had posted online, then taking another 3 hours to figure out that some random driver had installed for my Wi-i card, I FINALLY got my lapper working for Wi-Fi and normal searches. It wasnt that everything else was broken, its just that it annoyed me to not be able to search.

heading to Elon on Saturday for a frat thingy...should be interesting to see how Kappa Beta brothers interact with other...

I'll give you a Stimulus Package!!!!

"The yardstick of generosity is not how much you give others, but how much you want in return." - Leonid S. Sukhorukov

So... 816 Billion in Stimulus passed. And what of the 750 Billion last fall. Oh wait, half of THAT (350 Billion) has been spent..but...wait...NO ONE can tell us where and how that money was spent. And the majority of this Stimulus passed yesterday wont get out for another 18 months, just in time for the House and Senate elections....hmmmm???? And I bet I dont see any Bank or Car CEO's missing their mortgage payments, will I?

And why is it that when Bush was in office, there was a constant bashing of him on TV, Radio, etc. yet now that Obama is in office, any criticism of him (valid or not) is now subject to petitions and warrants? Is the man beyond criticism? If Limbaugh wants to say what he says, does that mean he should be taken off the air? I disagree with Limbaugh more than I agree, but I do beleive that if Olberman can basically call Bush names everynight for 4 years, Limbaugh should have the same latitude, whether you agree with him or not.

I was reading last night to I-Man and Ryles and they had picked out some random Dr. Seuss story... now, these stories are boring as all get out and somewhat long. So I was going to cut a couple of corners by trying to maybe skip a page or two. As I have said in the past, it is weird how they can figure this out. I'm reading and CAREFULLY skip a page in my hand before i turn the page. I turn the page and keep on reading without skipping a beat. After about 4 seconds, I-Man reaches over and says "You skipped a page". I'm like.."Whaa??" "YOU..SKIPPED...A.... PAGE!!!!! Daddy!!!" me thinking..."Curses!!!" Now this is a story I cant remember having ever read to them, but these guys can somehow decypher out in this endless rhyme that I skipped over something. I'm kinda thinkin "WHY AM I READING THIS TO YOU IF YOU ALREADY KNOW THE STORY?"...but... i digress...

Companies are laying people off left and right... hope no one I know gets caught up in the economy thing...

Monster Trucks!!!....

A friendship that can be ended didn't ever start - Mellin de Saint-Gelais

Went to see Monster Jam at the Bi-Lo Center here in Ole G-Ville. It was fabulous. I-Man went nuts because...just imagine...GRAVEDIGGER (his favorite truck) won. Now...let it be stated that GRAVEDIGGER wins 90% of the time. But then again, I don't think I-Man is sweating facts in this regard right now... Not sure Ryles and Jessica are really getting into this Monster Truck thing. Might have to start making this a boys night out sorta thing for the future...

Got some sorta Yahoo/Google Redirect virus on my laptop and it is annoying as hell. After hours of research, I think I have it figured how to get it off my laptop without a format. you tech guys reading this might wanna take a look at this one. It's really the first virus I've gotten on any of my machines in a long time ( yeah, I have gotten an occasion spyware infection, but nothing like this) and I and somewhat annoyed with this...

Finally got my white muslin last week and I think in a couple of weeks I'm going to start experimenting with high key....

This is really kinda slow time for sports... nothing on TV and not much going on. The Superbowl does not have me really excited and I guess it will be about the commercials this year for me. Two week till Nascar Spools up and Pitchers and Catchers report. Then I will have some stuff to watch again, I guess. Which is pretty much it for me right now.

..other than the occasional frat stuff...

Did I mention that we played Cadoo tonight?...and of course, i won!!!!!

I think the whole worlds addicted to the drama

Times tickin fast.... too fast... just yesterday I was pickin out clothes for Ryles to wear...now, whenever we havent laid out clothes for the week, I will put out an outfit for her to wear before I go to bed. Funny, now... without fail, she walks past my outfit, I hear her scrum around in her closet for 30 seconds or so, and see her come out with another outfit. EVERY single time. And I am confident that the outfit I pick out is perfectly fine... meanwhile I-man just groggily gets up.. throws on the jeans and plain color polo shirt I have picked out for him (backwards) and stumbles down the stairs without complaint. The only issue I have with him is his fascination this past week with the sweatshirt Jessica picked up at Target for .97 cents in a pinch when we were going to the Planetarium and he had no shirt on except for the plain color polo that he had managed to get turned the right way. He wears this like 3 days in a row and I'm tryin to get him to wear any other sweatshirt because I am sure his teacher is probably thinkin that his parents aint got no skillz...

I am somewhat impressed the Ryles fashion sense. I must admit to being a little saddened by the fact that I was walking through the mall the other day and realized that I see many outfits I think she would look good in. But I just don't know for sure anymore... while I know I can get I-Man virtuallly anything, as song as its green or has something to do with soccer.

Its Obamamania!!

So..cool...Obama is now President. It is historical in its significance along racial lines. I am glad that that barrier is seemingly broken. I am glad that this event at least signifies that a lot of people voted for him based on what they thought of his ability to lead, etc.

Now what? Are we still going to simply fawn and try to re-create Camelot? How much is the reporting now going to be over what dog is in the White House as opposed to how much of our tax money is going to the CEO's of the auto companies and banks? How much more time is going to be spent gushing over what dress Michelle Obama is wearing as opposed to addressing the Middle-east/Asia stuff? yeah...I know...Obama isn't asking that the media fawn over that stuff. But I am already tiring of the constant excuses being given for him..the "its going to take time to fix this mess" argument, "blah, blah, blah... it George Bush's fault...blah, blah, blah..." Well, that is a legitimate statement. But I want to see it being fixed... not reports of what the kids are doing tonight at the White House. I guess this is more directed at the media that seems to be trying to create a story, or recreate JFK. And I still have not seen the answer to the question of where all this money is supposed to be coming from to bailout everyone, except me. When it comes time for me to make my house payment and car payment, do I send the bill to Obama?

Nice to see the two Baritone players from Brooklyn and Tallahassee respectively kinda come to a "Lets Agree to Disagree" stalemate. I could and do see the argument from both sides... although when I see all the crap we try to recycle here at home clutter our space while we wait for the recycle day, only to see the trash guys take the recycling and throw it in with the trash, I simply shake my head and start wondering why waste my time... and space. But I suppose the efforts of Brown and my wife are a good cause... albeit an uphill one.

'bout time for me to start spooling up prep for the May Races. I am wondering what kinda participation I will have with me this year as I realize that funds are somewhat tighter than in the past, and i suspect a closer look at budgets may affect some decisions. I am already pondering trying to get more people involved to dilute the cost per person for the usual camping event. However, the more people, the more agendas... sigh...

Next up..Monster Trucks this weekend... I'll be taking a shield to watch out for flying parts...

random...

My mother and brother are going to Washington next week for the inauguration of Obama and it does make me ever so slightly nervous, because you never know if some fool KKK jackass might be wanting to do something, or some fools from the middle east might wanna be wanting to meet their 40 virgins or something equally whacked....

...eating my genero rice krispies from Aldi this morn and just wonder whatever happened to milk. Yeah, I know I have been eating the 2% fat free skim devoid of life milk for sometime now. But its so sad to almost feel as those I am eating cereal and water with a touch of white...

... its supposed to be getting super cold here later ths week. Wasnt it not too long ago that everyone was talking about global warming... er... "Climate change"? ...speaking of which, with all the Clinton people Obama has chosen to posts (whatever happened to "Change we can beleive in" for Washington?), where is Al Gore? Oh wait, I guess jetting around in his Lear jet burning fuel all over the world making speeches...

...While I am still waiting for the other shoe to drop with Tiger basketball, I remain optimistic that this team will make some noise this year. speaking of which, after watchng them knock off NCstate the other day, I am ready to see what happenes now that the true tests on Wake, UNC and Duke loom on the horizon. But I must admit that the long term future of the team seems very bright...and where did this Tanner Smith kid come from? just when I had him typed as the slow white kid picked up from Fike, he goes zooming in with the ball in one hand, then switches to a two hand power slam. I'm like.."whoa...kid's got skillz!!!" when I saw that and i bet a lot of people in the ACC suddenly sat up when they saw that and definitely changed their opinion of him.

...still wondering why Isaac and Ishmael are fighting over sand and rocks after all these years. Saw plenty of room in Nevada the other week. I would have long ao caught the first boat out of dodge from the land of milk and honey...

Rawr!!!

Go Panthers!!! oh...wait...um... nevermind.

well lookee here...

checkin out the "National Championship" game on right now and who do I see as Referee, but good ole Ron Cherry. He of ACC fame. He has been a lead ref in the conference for several years now and it is actually a great accomplishment to get to Ref the "National Championship Game" he is famous (or infamous) for several calls he has made against Clemson over the years, although honest assesment of history shows he has made equally bad calls that have favored Clemson too. I will always remember him for the time I was standing with Dr. Hosler watching Tiger band do script Tigers and he comes walking over to us and says "I just absolutely LOVE Tiger Rag. I just love hearing that song!!!" I just remember casting a glance at Dr. Hosler when he said that while chuckling with the ref. We both commented afterward that I bet the other team would have just LOVED to hear him say that....

And off we go.......

The first normal week of the year... basically starting the grind, I guess. It kinda always seems to be a sorta letdown at this time of the year. No big holiday on the horizon, cold weather socked in... nothing but routine on the horizon. But I wonder if routine is so bad.

At any rate, I have always tried to offset the routine by having things to look forward to, and the family schedule is starting to fill up for the first half of the year... Monster Trucks is up first, with soccer, Gymnastics, Dance the daily things going on. On the horizon are Nascar Races with trips to Florida/NY/NJ to see friends coming in late June/early July. I also have the usual Frat stuff with conventions and rituals and meetings, as well as Valentines day, Birthdays, Mothers Day and.. BASEBALL!!!

I think that I am going to try to concentrate on those resolutions with figuring out how to fit in the Y membership and utilize it, while addressing the house here and there. We have so many things to keep us entertained here at the house, with the kids games and GUITAR HERO WORLD TOUR!!!!.

My mother and brother are headin to Washington for the Obama coronation.

and finally...

Happy New Year!!!

So Christmas was pretty good. Santa hit up the twins with some stuff and I was blessed to get some stuff from friends and family.

here are my resolutions for 2009...

1) Live Healthier!!!

2) get some things about the house fixed (baseboards downstairs, carpet for stairs, cleanout of house)

3) See a Celtics game, either in Charlotte or Atlanta

4) Rent an RV

5) take the twins to Wally World

On deck...

we opened family gifts last night... finally broke out the Guitar Hero World tour band kit, which is pretty cool, although I think I may be able to wean Ryles off the drum thingy because of this...she started to get tired after the 7th song or so... I-Man took his turn on the drum set and lasted about a quarter thru the first song before quitting. I think it will eventually be Ryles on vocals, I-Man on bass, Jessica on lead guitar on.. gulp...me on drums.

..today see us hitting Grandma for lunch, then continuing on to Nanna and Pappa's for Christmas eve, with Santa finding his way down there tomorrow morn. I will return back late Chrismas day for I have to work Friday. I might use time on Saturday to catch up on some stuff around the house....

Dude...you like..um...SUCK!!!!

I kinda think Kanya West is average. But his performance on Saturday night live left something on the table... ouch... click here or google it on the web...

Happy Anniversary!!!!!

We celebrated 10 years on Friday. A lot of times I have a tad bit of chip on my shoulder concerning this but I wont delve into it this year.

We celebrated at The Eiffel Tower Restaurant and that Filet Mignon was as tasty as tasty can be. They came out with a special small dessert (some sorta Chocolate thingy that was flat out awesome) for Jessica and I to share. Jessica also had some sorta souffle that took 30 minutes to cook for dessert. It looked awesome... I just sipped my French Martini, which i had several of during our stay... We all stayed at Paris Las Vegas, and while the view from the room was uninspiring, the hotel itself was pretty slick. It was a definite change of pace from the typical casino hotels. We spent a lot of time sitting around and drinking spirits and people watching. And boy, were there people to watch. The things some women chose to wear was...um...questionable.... yet entertaining. I figure we gambled less tha a 100 dollars while there, but it was nice playing the games and never quite figured out the deal with the supposed free drinks to you when you were playing. I guess me playing at 25 cents a play didnt warrant the "high roller" treatment. We didnt really do a club/dance thing but I dont figure I missed much. Maybe when we return in ten years... I also didnt get to a strip club... sigh... oh well... not like I'm missing out on anything.... the interior of the hotel was like you were sitting outside in Paris with shops and tables outside for people to sit and watch everyone else. Really did remind me of Paris in that while inside, even at 2 in the morning, it was still a glow to the air... all in all I had a blast on the trip and I think it was appropriate for the event. I guess all else I want to say is that I am grateful to be blessed with my family... Jessica , Ian and Rylee. I think we have done good so far and I look forward to 10 more years and the many adventures that it will lead us to...

I set out on a narrow way many years ago
Hoping I would find true love along the broken road
But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you

[Chorus:]Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart they were like northern stars
Pointing me on my way into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

VEGAS!!!! Baby!!!!

So... we went out to Vegas for a couple of days to celebrate our Ten Year Anniversary. It was a lot of fun and I think overall, the trip went fine. I will post some pix tonight once i get home... the only thing kinda weird about it is the letdown now...I have devoted so much mental time to this trip tha i am now kinda at a loss...gotta spool up for the next event, whatever that is going to be. In the meanwhile, after arriving back home @ 2:30am, I am back at work.

Yea!!! we are more better 7!!!!!

Ryles and I-Man celebrated their official birthday last night...a day early. They couldnt wait to open their last couple of presents from us and themselves...now all that's left today is another cake... Seven Years!!!...wow... I-Man continues his Star Wars/Clone Wars/Iron Man/Batman/Transformers/Hotwheels/Speed Racer/Lego/anything green run O' Loot while Ryles continues to be a little more diverse, hitting Hanna Montana/Miley Cyrus/Barbie/Bratz/Baby Born(in her hand)/"Butteryflies"/anything pink along the way... by the way, that's a Star wars Tie fighter I-Man has, and he went to bed with it over his head last night with his head under it...

by the way, Congrats to Josh on the birth of his Son... way to go, guys...

Next up...10 years of marraige....

KNIGHT RIDER HAS BEEN CANCELLED!!!!!... how could they cancel such a fine and well produced TV show?

in other news, the twins had their birthday party last Saturday at the YMCA. It was a pool party and i must admit that it went better than I initially thought it would. About 10 kids showed up, along with various adults. Most of the kids were from the twins' class at school. And the swimming was a big hit evidently. It was an indoor pool and when you walked into the pool area you were hit by a wall of heat. It felt like it was a 100 degrees inside, except for the blaring sun, which made it actually cool to be inside... imagine a sauna with an olympic size swimming pool. And the twins got a bunch o stuff... a week early at that. Their actual birthday isnt until next week... Today I-Man and I finished the X-Mas shopping by getting his gift to Ryles at Wal-Mart. Did I mention that the twins' Piggy banks (with an aditional jar of money from Pappa) netted them $156.00 for Birthday and X-mas gifts for each other? They will open these on their actual birthday and when we open gifts for family. So..I think we will stick with this program for the future.. nothing like taking a couple of jars of change you have been collecting all year, dumping them in a machine, and having it ring up 150 dollars. I'm like...BONUS!!!

Turkey Week

Wednesday saw my Mother and Brother coming to town and bringing turkey meat. We had Thanksgiving food stuffs with them and put up the tree... Thursday we then headed to Florence and met up with Aunt Ellen, Uncle Wes, Aunt Ashley (and her Mother and Step Dad), Cousin Madison, Grandma Catoe and Nanna and Pappa for Turkey Meat. I actually baked a Chocolate Applesauce cake and it seemed to go over well... Friday saw us come back to Lextown for more turkey meat with Grandma Moore and the long lost enigmatic Uncle Buddy from Knoxville. Came back to the home ranch Friday night and I went over and watched Clemson beat USC...(yawn)..again... like...ISN'T THIS SUPPOSED TO BE A RIVALRY OR SOMETHING??? gets to be boring if we win all the time... tsk, tsk... Then Saturday night went over to Brandy and AJ's house for a while...played this strange new game called Costanza. Went to Frat meeting tonight and listened in on discussions on giving bids to candidates...seems like everything that was said I have heard about people since 1994, but it is always interesting to hear the slightly different twists every year... twins having an early Birthday party this coming weekend...more on this at another time...

a small beef

I have very few things that bother me...but... when I do drop by a fast food joint for a burger and fries, I would appreciate IF YOU WOULD JUST GIVE ME EXACTLY WHAT I ORDERED, ESPECIALLY THE DAD GUMMED, FRAKKIN DIET COKE. NOT COKE... NOT PEPSI... NOT Dr. PEPPER... JUST EXACTLY WHAT I ORDERED...a DIET COKE, WHICH I REPEATED 3 (THREE!!!) TIMES.... A SIMPLE, SUGAR FREE DIET FRAKKIN COKE (or PEPSI)

pretty busy weekend...

...the twins were off to visit Grandma for a couple of days this past weekend.... We met up with a friend of Jessica's from work, Chris and Aunt Ellen and Kenneth for dinner at Stax Omega, then saw Quantum O Solange or something like that. It was pretty decent for a Bond movie...

... then I went over to the Homecoming game and stood around on the sidelines for a half and watched the team upclose. Interesting seeing how the team reacts to Dabo... watched the band at Halftime then bolted back to the house...

...It was great to sit around 2 (TWO!!!) firebowls and visit with Chris Sloan, Brent White, Aunt Ellen, Kenneth Russell, Brian Harwood and wife Jessica, Gresham and Cheryl Barker, Mike Spacholtz and girlfriend Christina and talk about old times....

???

I know we talk about this every year, but....

Even though Walmart and the Malls have their Xmas stuff out now... in oh.. say... September, I noticed yesterday while at the Mall that Santa had made the trip into town and was at the Mall taking pictures with children. November 12th!!! I remember when we didnt even have a mention of Santa until Turkey Day at the earliest...now I get to see him sitting in town at least 2 weeks earlier now...

Santa has last laugh.....

Well... "Anonymous".... Santa tells me that you can keep chuckling, but He's ALL DONE. The fix will be that Ryles and I-Man both have piggy banks with about 60 dollar coin in them both... here's the plan...each one splits their banks to the tune of 30 dollars jack for one gift each for their birthday and Xmas for their sibling. I will give them each one of the 2 Toys R Us catalogs (complete with 10 dollar off coupon) we've gotten in the mail, let them circle 3 things they want, and take each one separately shopping for each other to get gifts for the other one... follow that. Any extra things not manufactered by Santa can be retrieved from the Toys R Us assembly line quite nicely, thank you.

Santa tells me that he has already spooled up the ThinkThank for birthday/Xmas 2009. Gotta keep pushing ahead before Obama tells me I need to tell Santa to give gifts to people who failed to plan ahead and spent their stimulus checks getting their hair and nails done or wasting it on 20 inch rims next year. Yeah... i know...complete stereotype there...but...well..its true...

Who's coming? Homecoming?

Everyone is invited to drop by after the game on Saturday... Alumni, Actives,spouses, significant others and kids are all welcome to drop by. We'll be hanging out all evening, so drop by whenever. Need directions, email me or call me or text me...

TV ads suck...

..or at least thats what Santa tells me.... especially when he was telling me today about how he has his list of naughty and nice boys and girls here at the house, and has virtually completed toy making. And how it really sucks when one of those blasted toy makers puts on a TV ad for the newest, greatest, hottest, most possible funnest toy EVER, and you get to hear your son and/or daughter go "OOOOHHHH...that's SOOOOOO cooooooolllllllll. THAT'S WHAT I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS!!!!!!....I'm going to ask Santa to bring me that for Christmas!!!!!"...silence...crickets chirping...

Obama Wins!

Obama takes the White House by 7 million ( or so) votes, or a 52-46 count. Time for less talk and more action. I wanna see all this change happen. The Democrats hold the Executive and Legislative Branch. No excuses. if you want to do all these things, I expect to see them happen. if they dont, i suspect you will get booted out too... (see Republicans '94)

glad this is over

I long ago stated that I thought there was a definite slant toward Obama from the NBC/MSNBC, CBS, and ABC. Several studies have shown that these outlets have "reported" up to 70 percent of their stories about McCain as negative. I have seen legitimate questions about Obama go unasked or be downplayed, yet see story after story go on about what dress Palin is wearing. I dont beleive this election has been fairly reported. Perhaps Obama is the right choice. But I dont think all the information has been placed on the table for ALL Americans in the same light about Obama as has been about McCain. I no longer take ANYTHING NBC news has to say about the elections as serious. I may never again. If you are looking at a place for fair reporting towards both sides, I go to www.fair.org It is these types of places where I made my decision regarding my vote... not Foxnews or MsNBC and their obvious or subtle slants on their coverage. Because it was even shown that coverage of the debates and how they had cameras posed on candidates was designed to make you think a certain way about candidates...

..my biggest beef now is ths... if it is so important that you vote, why is this not a national holiday? Or at least change the day to a Saturday. Why do you have to make plans to get to the poll @ 7am or wait in line @ 7 pm?

????

Click here (here) and (here)

Halloween...

I-Man was a.... soccer player. He dressed up in his soccer uniform. Ryles was a gymnast. She dressed up in her gymnast leotard. That is what they wanted to be. We didnt even have to point them in that direction. they decided on their own. So... no trip to the Halloween store this year.... thank goodness...

Hot water

Ok...so after purchasing and installing the new water heater (and removing the old gas water heater), we now have hot water. Had to add a circuit breaker to the fuse box and run another cable and wire directly to the heater, but the job got done. Many thanks to my Uncle for the electricity expertise and making sure the wiring was all good.

Screw Fort Hill Natural Gas... I will enjoy walking in on Monday and canceling my service.

P.S., anybody want a used gas water heater?

Tickets, please

"At one time, most of my friends could hear the bell. But as years passed, it fell silent for all of them. Even Sarah found, one Christmas, that she could no longer hear it’s sweet sound. Though I have grown old, the bell still rings for me. As it does for all who truly believe." - Hero Boy

...Santa was talking to me a couple of days ago(we have a surprisingly close relationship) and he was telling me that he figures this might be the last year I can think that the kids will not ask any questions about what is in the house right in front of them...

...After our HD Box went dead on Sunday, I have realized after all the comedy of error on part of Charter, that they are idiots... After 3 days of snafu and a bunch of irate calls and 2 visits to the local office, we finally have cable and HD again downstairs....

..and then did I mention that after I reported the smell of gas near our house, they came out and found the cause of the gas smell way up the hill at another house. Then they supposedly found a potential leak underground at the base of the fron of the house, but they cant actually confirm a leak..but... they cut our gas off and wont turn it back on until we pay to have test run on our lines, potentially dig up our front yard and eliminate any possible leak that may or may not be there...at our expense. Well... looks like the gas powered Hot water heater is about to be heading to the dump and in comes a new fangled electric hot water heater...

So..the comedy of errors for a week is about to end...just when I thought I would have to figure out a way to run power over to where the hot water heater will go...well.. lookee here...whats this? well, i'll be...there is power running down the wall right exactly where I need it. looks like someone was thinking WAAAYYYY ahead of me about this.

So...agenda for the weekend... drop 300 on a hot water heater, get it hooked up and see if we can get it powered up so we can get hot water again...oh, and go to I-Man's last soccer match of the Fall...oh, yeah...Halloween tomorrow night...

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions"

....or L'enfer est plein de bonnes volontés ou désirs ("Hell is full of good intentions or wishes") - St. Bernard of Clairvaux

Thank goodness this election stuff is about over. Then what, a couple of months before we start it all over again? Seriously....

...but... McCain... has a long record of experience...patriotic...more moderate in the Conservative movement...Obama... a definite catalyst with ability to galvanize people... fresh approach at this level of politics....

I have wavered for a while now, but have remained somewhat right leaning in my thinking in regards to this election. Since the first George Bush, I have had a moderate conservative way of thinking. I supported Bill Clinton, then I supported the current Bush for election then re-election. I think some people mistakenly take me as a neocon, while others assume I am a member of Operation Push. i am none of those things... but here is a sampling of what I believe, for what its worth...

I believe it is a Woman's right to choose (up to a point)

I believe that you should be a citizen of this country and pay taxes to use the infrastructure (schools, hospitals, banking system, etc.)

I believe that it was the right response to go after the people (and the supporters) who attacked us on 911

I believe that the US got sidetracked by greed in pursuing the previous response

I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald was part of a large, covert conspiracy to kill JFK

I believe that my money that i work for should not be taken away and given to people who have not worked hard for it. I will decide who I want to assist. Not someone else. If I want to keep every single penny of my money, that should be my right. Period.

I believe that the same people who jumped up and down and accused the Republicans of altering voting 4 and 8 years ago are doing the exact same thing now.

I believe that we are not alone

I believe that the overwhelming majority of the media has slanted the entire coverage of this election process to elect who they want to elect.

In addition, I believe that the coverage of the polling is slanted only to those polls that show Obama ahead by larger margins. Coverage rarely mentions the slim leads in the most respected polls.

I believe that education should be a top priority of our society.

I believe that peanut butter and jelly should be mixed very carefully, with about 2 parts peanut butter to 1/2 part jelly being about right.

I believe that America as a whole is ready to elect a Black man or a Woman as President

I believe that racism and sexism are still a huge problem in this country, and that problem may unfortunately play a factor in this election

However, for me race is not a factor at the bottom line. Obama getting to this point is a fact that I can be proud of in some form. But honesty must tell you that he got to this point because he is black. If he was white, he would quite possibly not even be a Senator. But he has used the opportunities given him and made the best of them, and he is to be applauded for his acheivements in so short a time. However, i cannot support the somewhat far left thinking that he seems to support. Be it the past associations that he seems to always have an excuse for to the more recent comments about redistribution or spreading the wealth. His past comments that are record seem to show support for a socialist way of thinking. While I certainly am not in the super rich, rich, wealthy, well off, or financially set for life category I am still ahead of the paycheck to paycheck category...albeit not by much. And even then, i do not want other peoples money. yes...that stimulus check helped buy an extra tank of gas, but the more you squeeze the people supplying the goods, the more that same tax break or credit is simply going to get eaten up by the increase in costs/price handed down to me by the taxed. And where is Obama going to get all this money for all these entitlements? where is it going to come from? i keep hearing that redistribution thing over and over. Well, we just bailed out the banking stuff...there went a whole heap of programs and other promises by Obama. Then how is he going to keep these promises? by taking from those who have money and giving to those who dont even pay taxes? how is this going to work, let alone even fair?

While McCain certainly has his drawbacks... somewhat ill-tempered, somewhat old, somewhat well... a bunch of things... he doesnt scare me with the radical associations and changes that are potentially out there with Obama (and more importantly..Pelosi). Some people call it the smell test, and when I see Obama at this point in time, I see an untested politician who we are taking about giving the keys to, who has shown bad judgement at times in the past, and who hasnt really done ANYTHING of note at this level, other than run for President. I will say again...McCain has his shortcomings, but I sense that his Change is a better type of change that we need...will McCain keep some Bush things in play?...Yes...will he change some things and end some things...Yes. Does he have experience at this level working? Yes.

Now all this being rambled on, Obama is still playing with the lead. The polls are all over the place, with some giving him a 10-15 point lead (oh, NBC/MSNBC shout about this nonstop...) to some like Gallop and Rasmussen citing a 3 point lead with likely voters (never hear about these polls, do you?) Lets see...the last two elections had both Gore and Kerry winning the same way with the polling data going into election day, where Bush squeaked it out by a 200-300 thousand votes or so. Will the ACORN stuff get Obama over the top in a similar type of tally? we shall see...

So... I am choosing to go with the proven experience and a more temperate mode of change of McCain versus untested and unknown experience and ideas (Do we REALLY know if he is as radical as his friends are or is he just using them to get to the top?) for change from Obama that reek of a socialist society and government acting as a nanny for us all. For me, it has nothing to do with his skin color. It has to do with his lack of record, as well as his on the record statements for what he believes in.

Maybe Obama gets elected and is the person he has led us to believe he is. If he does, I will be happy. For now, he has not met my bar. I have not bought in. I will cast my vote for McCain

"Memories of the past remain in the past, but as you make new memories in the present and walk towards the future, the past is still simply, the best. ~ Mark Aaron A. Corrales "

This has been a kinda cool week in that I heard from a childhood friend the other day, and that really brought back some memories...these come from WAYYYY back, long before band and all of what followed that really steered me toward my friendships, wife and family of today. These are a couple of cousins that I feel I really had a lot in common with, at the end of the day. Our paths veered away from each other as their parents had to move elsewhere, but one of my few memories now of childhood are from playing out in the yard with them. Thinking back on walking up and down the road to each other's houses, I wonder if that would be allowed in todays "here today, snatched and kidnapped the next minute" society...

..I then went to see the old highschool play the local highschool tonight. I had not seen the highschool play since the 80's and, well, they kicked butt just like to State Champs years from my highschool days...I stayed thru halftime to watch the band (of course) then left for I think I will be spending friday nights watchin my kids in some form or fashion soon enough.... be it Football ( i doubt), band, cheerleadin...something... I dont think I want to think about my kids walking around with a cell phone glued to the ear trying to be cool....

I noticed a particular game last Spring during a seemingly random NBA game that seemed to be "aged" and have a different look, with a lot of different camera angles, etc. Well, the Florida State/NcState game had that same look tonight. Interesting thing about this is that it only looks this way in high def. On the "normal" TV upstairs, the game looks normal. It suddenly dawned on me that this must be some sorta way of rehearsing this look for the BIG games in the future. Maybe I'm just seeing things...

...but I did notice that FlaState is eerily in the same boat as Clemson... talented skill players with a average QB, a stout defense that is forced to stay on the field all the time...and... a horrible, inexperienced offensive line makes the offense look miserable....

well, well, well...

Bowden "resigns" today and gets out of town before the lynch mob can get to him. Cant say i wouldnt have taken the money and bowed out too. Imagine what it must have been like...everywhere you go you know that everyone is talking about you, and most people are talking bad about you, when you were trying your hardest to give these same people what they want... imagine knowing that your wife and kids have to hear people curse your name all the time. Yeah.. I know he was (and will be) well paid for it. But imagine the ENORMOUS pressure he was under. And wow...What kinda person must Harper actually be, the way he piled on after the fact with his statements...kinda ironic when it was Bowden who stuck by him over the past year of ineffective performances when everyone else was screaming to replace him. An NFL scout was quoted today as stating that Harper dropped from a potential second round pick to 6th round at best with his statements... At any rate, the "resignation" will set up the AD to make the best choice possible and give plenty of time to search and be contacted about the job. They better not mess this up. He made a good hire in Purnell and he will need to to make a similar hire again or else the out of whack expectations will have the fans complaining again in what?...3 or 4 years?.... I sometimes wonder if this is as much a move to buy 5 years of giving from IPTAY and keep the focus away from the AD and the President. There are plenty of discussions out there about who they will hire. And Swinney may actually be the best fit for now. But I just wonder if we will be right back here before the London Olympics... I think we"ll see more energy overall, and it will be a positive move. But unless we are going to import a bucket of better offensive linemen Gatech will give them a problem, FlaState will present a problem, Boston College will present them a problem and South Carolina will present them a problem. Maybe the Korn factor will allow a different type of playcalling mentality, which I think is what Bowden had decided. Once again, how ironic Harper spouted off like a punk 6th grader who had his Nintendo DS taken, when it was his ass Bowden and Spence kept tryin to call plays for to make him succeed over and over again. I hope Korn shows the abilities he showed in high school and we never see Harper again. But if we do, I hope Harper keeps his mouth shut and plays hard. And I hope i can finally go to a game and not have to hear nothing but negativity from the so-called Clemson Family.

Change, passion and hotties

So... looks like Bowden has said "Look son, I appreciate all you have done but... I got a BIG mortgage to pay, and my job is on the line. If you cant MAKE a PLAY, you got to got to gots to go sit down and if I'm going to get fired, at least I wont have left any options on the bench".... All these fans been talking about playing the backup...well... we're going to see if he's the real deal or not...

I watch Dr. Lou on Thursday nights and while a lot of people like to make fun of him, he does actually say some profound things... one of the things he mentioned last time was talking about having a passion for something... here is his quote..."everybody needs four things in life: everybody needs something to do, someone to love, something to hope for, and something to believe in. You have to have those four things." I heard that and it struck me because that is something i personally have tried to always apply to myself. talking to a friend the other night, I heard them mention that they were a little "down" and and my mental question to myself was "do they have these four things to think about?" I couldnt remember the exact Dr. Lou quote, but found it for them... I always end up falling back on my own little personal statement that sometimes drives my wife crazy, but has yet to not be true... "The sun will rise tomorrow...everythings going to be just fine."

I-Man had a moment the other night while watching the beginning of the race... when the camera showed the Lowes car and its driver, they showed his wife standing beside him. I-Man immediately says "Ohhhh...she's a hottie!!!....wow...she's hot!" (crickets chirping in room as I tried to process the many different levels of meaning and ramifications of that statement) Me..."what did you just say I-Man?"... I-Man says..."SHE'S REALLY HOT!"...giggles and walks off with his lego pieces to make another random vehicle... Of course, when Jessica got home, I immediately waited till the Lowes car was on TV again (not too long, unfortunately) and asked I-Man to tell momma what he told me...she didnt think too highly of his statement....

watchin the game...

I'm watchin this Clemson/Wake game.... here are some observations whilst this game happenz...

Defense seems ready to play... Offense is still playing soft. Our offensive line is playing horrific, snapping the ball on the ground, getting smacked in the mouth by the Wake defensive line...wait...this reminds me of Alabama again here... is this "weak, soft" mentality still rearing its head. Ah... the announcer just said it..."Someone needs to get in the face of the offensive line", he says. The tightend just gets plastered. Harper throws a weak lollipop pass down the field. Davis tiptoes to the line. There goes the announcer again...and he says EXACTLY what i have been saying all along..."I put this on the players. They are not performing"

Hmmm...Good pass down the field. But...Davis seems to be running NOT to get hurt. That means he has no confidence in the offensive line. Well...then again, the replay shows Wake guys standing there as soon as Davis gets the ball.... And down goes another lineman. What? We calling Daniel High tomorrow for some linemen? ...tsk, tsk.... a fake punt and the line cannot get a half yard.

OK..It is now EXTREMELY obvious. The old adage still holds true. The offensive line is HORRIBLE and it has pretty much affected the entire team, especially the offense. Defense still seems to be playing hard. I know what I do when playing my videogame, when I cant run the ball. I THROW THE BALL EVERY DOWN!!!!... I dont care if its 1st and inches...I throw it EVERY DOWN. Spiller and Davis are going to get drafted anyway. I tell the linemen to just get in somebodys way for 2 or 3 seconds... and i just start sending everyone out for a pass...

OH...yep...announcer said it again..."If you hit Clemson in the mouth, they just dont respond" and he also said "the players know they are good. They just are not playing" I am sure that Bowden will get hammered and I am sure he has jumped and down and spoken til he is blue about playing hard and with intensity. But have you seen ANY clemson player show ANY emotion? I am tired of hearing the crap about Bowden. I want to see all these skill players MAKE A PLAY!!!! Goodness. If you want to fire Bowden, go ahead. BUT...things wont change with the next coach until the players change. Period. I am willing to bet George Patton, Hannibal, Vince Lombardi, General Lee, Lou Holtz or General Swartzkopf (sp) could all show up and yell at the players and it doesnt seem as those the guys on the offense would show any life... oh another throw to Kelly who seems to get tossed around like a ragdoll everytime he catches the ball... his draft stock is falling everytime he gets shown on TV.

OK...halftime... went to Talladega over the weekend. That was pretty awesome. my guy was doing awesome until the big wreck at the end and he gets taken out. Got a chance to see Kristen in Atlanta on Saturday night after spending time with Andrea and Will at a bar, listening to Will try to persuade me as to his side on a variety of subjects. Not sure he was persuasive enough...heh, heh. At any rate, spent the night at Harwood's and we drove on to the race where we surprising drove right in and parked with no traffic, and after the race got out of the parking lot in about 5 minutes. By the way, my guy and the guy who caused that huge wreck got into a fight/scuffle at the track today. That's why I cheer for the #29, baby!!!

Ok..Second half. lets see what happens. Wow..the announcers just said what I said above. Just start throwing the ball...

Well, looking at this... The offensive is obviously an issue. But Harper is showing NO leadership now...taking too long...looking with that DEER in THE HEADLIGHTS look. So time and time again, they have left the defense hanging. Sooner or later, Wake is going to score.

offense showing a tad bit o life.... BIG interference call.... time out. Harper is WAAAYYYY too chalant. I see the coachs yelling and screaming at the players, and Spiller getting in the players faces. Spiller seems to be the only guy being a leader.... and he's out of the game.

FINALLY.... A gutty drive for a score.

Last time out called after it seemed some sorta trick play was being setup and some people didnt have a clue where to go. I sometimes wonder if having too many good players is NOT agood thing. it looks like we spend too much energy trying to get everyone the ball....

Harper throws an interception..oh..like... RIGHT to the Wake guy. Hmmm...wonder if thats Bowdens fault too....

Wow...on a Davis run, as soon as he is given the ball, he runs into the back of an offensive lineman that has been driven backwards into him. wow...

Wake drives. Throw into the flat. Clemson guys needs to make a tackle...whiffs. Wake scores...

Wake guy runs thru and over two Clemson blockers to sack Harper...

...and how many Clemson players do we have to see get knocked out of the game???????

Our offfensive line is terrible....

Kelly doesnt hang on...hmmm...imagine that. Has he ever made an IMPORTANT catch?

OK... People are going to scream for Bowdens head. I am not sold it is totally his fault. And beware of watch you wish for. but... when do we start to call out the players who are supposed to be great? Harper showed NOTHING. The offensive line is horrible. Its real convenient to blame the coaches. And you can see the anger in Bowdens face with his players. But I guess somebody has to pay for the way out of whack expectations for Clemson football. Lets see what happens....

Nothing but negativity for the rest of the year for Clemson football. I wonder if those fans who show up for Gatech will show up to cheer Clemson, or boo the coach?

well.. I passed 4 gas stations that were closed...out of gas entirely...came across a Pumpers that had regular unleaded and...DIESEL. Mercy, mercy, mercy.... pull in, and get the gas so I am good for a couple of weeks at least.

This so called bailout got shot down yesterday. Maybe if they wouldnt have tried to have all this crap added to it... money for all types of radical groups... no oversight initially...what are these people in washington thinkin? And dont think people cant see that this is BOTH sides that are trying to screw us over. Republican president and Democrat led House and Senate. Seems like the people in Congress and Senate got bombarded by calls and emails and with elections coming up in a month, they cant afford to not listen now, can they? But i wonder what wouyld happen if all this had happened in February. Would they listen then?

By the way... as long as president Barker and the Trustees are happy with Bowden, no amount of whining by the Clemson fans will force a move to remove the coach. And all indications are that as long as Season tickets are where they are, the teams wins 9 games every year, there is no public embarrasment to the institution... and most important...Bowden offers no threat to their power.... Bowden will not be removed. The major reason they removed West wasnt because he went 3-8, it was because only 40,000 people were coming to games. They will remove Bowden only if their is an obvious lack of ability on his part, and the Financial bottom line starts to change. So...if Clemson fans continue to come to games, they can bitch all they want as far as Barker cares because he would rather have a Bowden who is in line with the "Family" than a Ford type coach who maybe usurps their power at Clemson. I still contend that Clemson will only succeed at the highest level when everyone gets on the same page and moves in one direction, not trying to protect their own little places of power.

ya know...I was going to respond to stuff about the football game, but I just am starting to not care right now...it aint that important right now... I have to go get in my car and take a gamble that I can find a station within a 50 mile radius of my house that actually has diesel available to purchase. I have been putting it off because every gas station around here has a 1 to 2 hour wait. THIS is they type of stuff i feel Obama and McCain have NO CLUE about. Non...not at all...I'll say it again...when was the last time THEY had to pay for gas. instead, I am paying for their gas, and their campaigns while I am fixin to go get in my car and pray i get back to my house... of course you here very little mention of that on the networks...

tsk, tsk...

Lots to say about the Tigers, but since I am guessing that there will be a gut check internally on the team, I'll wait and pass judgement after their next game. I think it isnt the coaches. I think its the players. You KNOW the coaches had a sense of urgency against Maryland. You could see it. The players didnt. And dealing with that same age bracket in another venue, i can tell you from experience that they dont EVER get it until its too late. They never learn until they experience the exact thing you talk about over and over and over trying to prevent it from happening. Bowden jumped up and down and yelled at his team to not let up and close the deal during halftime. But it was obvious the team kinda started out going thru the motions in the second half, and I have seen it happen time after time with these college kids... they think that the other team is simply going to give up and they let them hang around and Suddenly...you are in a dogfight and 1 or 2 plays go against you and you are sacked with a loss... Happened with Southern Cal, happened with Florida.... At any rate, the season is far from over and the Conference championship is still attainable.