I’m in a really odd mood today. We had an impending-Spring day yesterday, and today we woke to a world covered, not with daffodils, but snow. I hadn’t slept well, so I went back to sleep. Now I’m playing with computers, re-installing a Mac system on one of those old Mac Mini’s.

But what’s driving me crazy is something that doesn’t happen in our community: some thoughtless person (probably young) has some sub-woofers going that are vibrating the entire neighborhood, and I’m getting ready to put some clothes on and go out there and beat the shit out of him/her! Or call the police. His/her freedom of choice does not include jangling every nerve ending in the known Universe.

I like music, I like it probably better than most people do and I listen to music all the time. But this isn’t music. It’s a post-modern tribal ritual, or something akin to an amplified moose call during rutting season. But if his stone are getting rattled as much as my brain is, there’s probably going to be birth defects involved.

There. The car drove off. And guess what. It has purposely-noisy exhaust pipes. People like that crave attention. But they need psychiatric HELP.

Each year, since their introduction, there have been horror stories of people who have followed their automobile’s GPS instructions, only to find themselves stranded in deep snow or mud on rarely-traveled rural roads. The GPS has no sense of season, nor of road conditions that vary during different times of year.

Even in good weather, when you’re driving in unfamiliar country — particularly if it’s rural == don’t accept your GPS as the final word. It could save your life to ask questions instead of blindly following the voice in the box

I had a dental appointment to deal with a toothache yesterday, but when I arrived at the VA, I was told the appointment had been canceled. Normally the VA is very good about notification of cancellations or reschedules, so this was a unusual slip-up. In any case, I spent the night in pain, with not only the toothache, but a dreadful headache, as well.

Today is the day of the massive Chilean earthquake, 8.8 on the Richter Scale.

Please. I hope they give Philip Roth the Nobel Prize for Literature BEFORE he dies. The man has spent his life trying to explain to us what it is to be a man, a certain kind of man, a kind of man with whom we have shared much pain and life, yet a man who has survived, despite the wimsies of fate and fortune.

If one isn’t a Roth fan, all this that I have written makes absolutely no sense. But if you are, it does. Absolutely.

At least prednizone doesn’t make me grouchy or depressed. While it’s working on my lungs, it gives me some relief from other chronic pain for the eight days I’m on it, plus a few. And I have some extra energy. But therein lies, as they say, the rub. It keeps me awake! Once, when I was on massive doses, having had two consecutive pneumonias that raged on and on, I stayed awake, on two separate occasions for 36 hours straight. Now, that was something I could do in my youth. It was a survival skill. But that bag of tricks spilled out many years ago, and I need copious quantities of Morpheus’ arms encircling me.

But it ain’t happening tonight.

Last night, when I finally, fitfully plunged into darkness, I was soon awash in a dream about finding our dog, Margo, part of our trio for almost 15 years. Someone had found her, but she was emaciated and her flawless coat was torn on one side. I weeped at the though of her being back and she showed me she understood, licking my face, the love that saw me through countless crises, both physical and emotional. Like the night I stopped breathing at 3 am and collapsed in the hallway, with no way to call out. She came immediately, began making noises, and and soon as Dalia was there, she lightly rested her head on my lap and stayed there until the EMTs arrived. Then she moved quietly aside, with out her usual fuss over new friends in the house, and let them do their work and carry me off the the emergency room.

So, when I woke this morning, I was almost expecting her to be there, in my face, waiting for nothing but acknowledgment that I, and she, were okay.

Margo died quietly, over a year ago, still a puppy in her heart, but a pain-wracked old dog in body. Margo is dead. She won’t be coming back. No one will find her and bring her home. But I know, as it has been before, the dreams will come home instead.

She usually comes home with the predinzone.

If you don’t know about the Cloward/Piven strategy, it’s only because you know it by another name: The Obama administration.

http://onesobservations.blogspot.com/2009/08/cloward-piven-strategy.html

The world in connected. While Americans watch the Olympics, other in the world know that Greece, the country that founded them, in ready to collapse, to collapse completely into chaos. A collapsed country is fertile ground for growing extremists.

The Euro is plummeting. Good for travelers from America. But we are not just travelers. We are connected by a tenuous web to that Euro, that massive debt to China, multi-country, single religion war that is being waged against us. Against YOU.

Most of you, most of my family and friends, are awake. Fear not only the enemy, fear the people who sleep around you. All that’s necessary for the evil  to succeed is for the people around you to do nothing.

Why do we let evil surround us, so long as we feel convincingly safe?

What price do we have to pay to wake the others?

MY SPIRIT
I sat there today… thinking, then I silently said to you
I need to talk to you right now, please show me what to do
Please come on down and sit with me, we need to talk a while
Or we can take a walk outside, we’ll walk the endless mile
For many days I reach to find the peace inside of me
I know that it’s in there hidden deep, this smile that people see
Please talk with me, you know my pains, my wants, my needs, my hurts
You know I want to make you proud, I want to put you first
So why did you lead me to a road where love and heartache flow
Why did you let me feel these things, the path I had to go
You know I strive for good and whole, my life is yours to be
The strength right now is yours alone, this force inside of me
Touch me now with angels breath, let me feel your kiss
Wrap your arms around my life, the lessons I shall not miss
You brought me to this place in time, this is all here meant to be
I will find the path you brought here now, the story that is me
I didn’t always make for you the wisest choices then
Where life’s decisions have taken me, you know just where I’ve been
From here on out, I’ll find your blessing in my hardest hour
You’ll help me build a life anew, I’ll simply be a tower
Walk me through the darkest tunnel, hold my hand at night
For dawn is breaking at the end, I bask now in its light
The creatures beautiful melodies are erupting into song
Let me feel their purest joy, I’ll simply sing along
You shown me life’s too beautiful for regrets and ache and pain
To step out there, enjoy the view, for dancing in the rain
Thank you for each day, each breath, each moment that I see
I’ll dance and sing and laugh and love, give all that is in me
So go back now, thanks for our talk, I’ve finally found my voice
I will be what you’ve made me to be, I always have a choice

–

LORI,

Thank you. From the bottom of my heart.

Bill

Here is a typical weather report, at this time of year, for our part of California. Thought you might be interested in seeing it.

A COLD LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DROPPING OUT OF THE GULF OF ALASKA WILL
BRING MODERATE SNOWFALL AT TIMES TO THE MOUNTAINS OF NORTHERN
CALIFORNIA LATE MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY. ALTHOUGH HEAVY SNOWFALL IS
NOT EXPECTED...AS MUCH AS 4 TO 7 INCHES OF SNOWFALL WILL BE
POSSIBLE ABOVE ABOUT THE 4000 FOOT LEVEL BETWEEN LATE MONDAY NIGHT
AND TUESDAY EVENING. HIGHER ACCUMULATIONS OF SNOWFALL WILL BE
POSSIBLE OVER THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS OF THE SIERRA CASCADE RANGE.
THE COLD AIR ASSOCIATED WITH THIS LOW WILL BRING SNOW LEVELS DOWN
TO AROUND 3000 FEET AT TIMES WHICH WILL BE LOW ENOUGH TO IMPACT
SOME OF THE MAIN HIGHWAYS OF SHASTA COUNTY AND THE INTERIOR
COASTAL RANGE. THE HIGHER ELEVATION TRANS SIERRA ROUTES WILL LIKELY BE
IMPACTED AS WELL.

IF TRAVELING INTO THE MOUNTAINS OF INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
LATE MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS WEATHER
SITUATION CLOSELY AND CHECK THE LATEST ROAD AND WEATHER REPORTS
BEFORE DEPARTURE

It was a crappy day today. Could hardly breathe and I hurt all over. I turned up my oxygen, at the doc’s instructions, a few weeks ago. But it may have to go up some more. So out of energy, I didn’t do anything but sleep and sit. Was too tired to even go to the doctor. Hope for a better day tomorrow.

Housing Red Flags Ignored

My incredible friend and first cousin, Lonnie, has a daughter named Lori. Lori wrote a poem that I want to include here because, though it may not have been written for me, it might as well have been. Thank you, Lori, for letting me reprint it.

–

“Inner Strength”

If there is something that I have learned this year
It is that we find our strength in weakness, find our strength in fear
Just when we feel life has taken our air
An answer will show, a soul will appear
Life hands us moments where we must make a choice
They help us to grow, discover our voice
We don’t know our own strength til the walls crash on down
Do we sit there and crumble, or move up and move out
Decisions are painful, some break your heart
But today, you will see, they’re the means to a start
So follow your voice in the moments so dim
That inner strength you find comes only within
The choices in front are not easily made
But know that tomorrow is a much brighter day
For you were not built to crack and to break
But meant to move mountains, for your soul to awake
You will find in due time that there is much more for you
Once the storm clouds have lifted and you take on the view
But til then, step out and take on the rain
And know that you are strong enough to take on the pain

• Newfoundland’s Premire has come to the U.S. for heart surgery. Newfoundland is part of he the Canadian health care system.
• Rahm Emmanuel dropped both the “F” and the “R” bombs at a meeting in August, reports the Wall Street Journal. Palin is furious, because the “R” word was “retard.”
• The Saab sale was almost stopped by the U.S. because of the Russian Mafiya’s involvement in the deal. As do most crime syndicates, the Russians are laundering and legitimizing their money and themselves, by investing in legit businesses.
• What does Iran have up its sleeve for Feb. 11. Ahmadinejad has made the threat. Is that why we’re moving more missiles to the Gulf region?

Last U.S. veteran of WWI turns 109

Why is President Obama working on eliminating nuclear weapons, on one hand, and then:

Obama seeks money for nuclear weapons work

I will read anything Connie Willis writes. She hasn’t had a book out since 2002, I believe. But here new book, BLACKOUT, was just released today. I got it for my Kindle for PC, so I can read it on — you guessed it — my PC. I highly recommend both: Kindle for PC, a free download; and anything Connie Willis has written. Period.

Roddys have served their country in EVERY major war. We’re directly linked to primary ancestors, Roddys, who fought in the Revolutionary War.

Now, here is photographic evidence of how long I wanted to serve in the Navy. The little guy is my brother, Bob, who is now a big guy and a real hero to me. He served his country by being a teacher for his entire career.

Republican, running for U.S. Senate, in Illinois.  “The Illinois Scott Brown”?

Judge: Italian spies likely knew of CIA kidnap

Jerusalem Post

Jeb Bush is back, and some think he’s looking presidential

Was the recent trip to the White House by Jeb and his father a courtesy call or a portent?

One word leads to another, as does one discovery. Following up on a mention of the Sumerian civilization, I tried to track down some cohesive and coherent thread of understanding, but found myself wading in a morass of gods and daemons, and ultimately staring blankly at Genesis 6:5-6.

“. . . there were giants in the earth in those days,” said the text, rather cryptically. Word for “giants” is reported to also be  “the Nephilim,” which might be interpreted to mean  “the fallen ones.” Or not. But the life-like representations of humans, carved in stone, along-side stylistically depicted “gods” of the time before the Flood, a complex, puzzling communication from the past.

The Sumerians were probably the oldest know human civilization, and they occupied the area of Mesopotamia, which is now Iraq. They flourish for about 3 thousand years, beginning 6 thousands years B.C.E.

So it could be said that we moderns are now fighting over the most ancient of places, that no matter how far afield we travel, inevitability will always draw us back to that land. As I’ve mentioned before, Iraq the second-most mentioned place in the Bible, aside from Israel.

I’m making not conclusions here, not even trying to, I’m just fascinated by the chain of events that led me to sit here in my chair, typing on a computer.

President Obama likes to think of himself as another John F. Kennedy, while many of his policies have been the exact opposite of the president who challenged the country with the famous, “Ask not what your country can do for you, as what you can do for your country.”

In another un-Kennedy-like policy decision, Obama has stripped funding from further moon missions, sealing the probability that either India or China will get there first.

The early moon missions were emblematic of this nation’s strength and its ability to accomplish anything.

Obama’s anti-Kennedy decision declares exactly the opposite.

The Obama administration has begun to look at possibilities for new locations where they can hold the trials of KSM and friends, now that congress has promised to de-fund the trials if they are to be held in New York. I suggest they (whomever “they” are, in the Obama administration) move the venue to Florida and hold it at Disneyland, since it will be such a circus anyhow. Perhaps all the Secret Service can dress as Donald Ducks, and the other guards can dress as the Seven Dwarfs for this Micky Mouse trial, which should be at Guantanamo. And maybe Goofy can be the judge, ya think?

In one of the most sensationally stupid moves of the Obama administration, Richard Reid, the infamous, convicted “shoe bomber,” serving time in the Colorado Supermax prison, was moved out of the isolation wing and into the general prison population. Worst fears realized, he, with his celebrity among the worst criminals in the world, has the opportunity to proselytize his warped view of Islam and Western society.

What a stupid move, on the part of the government.

U.N.’s Global Warming Report Under New Attack for Rainforest Claims