The List

It started out to be a good day here on the ridge. After dragging out of bed and heading straight for the recliner, I'm thinking, now this is the life! But then, on the end table was my list of "must do's"
before winter. Almost everything had been crossed off, but a quick scan of the list told me that pressure washing the house had not been accomplished yet!
I guess the reason it was glaring at me, is because I put this in the same category as watching paint dry!
Our home has vinyl siding, so when we bought it, I thought it would be maintenance free, WRONG!!
The crud in the atmosphere is drawn to it like a magnet. It looked clean, but the first swipe of the pressure washer told the story---- Covered with Big Al Gore's industrial pollution from some where!
Now, this chore is somewhat mindless and fall's into the same area as cutting grass, fence staining, and using the weed eater. But this requires the use of a ladder. O.K., I can handle that with out a problem, but throw in the meds I have to take in the morning...which make me about half drunk until about noon, and it can be a real challenge! I'm sure the neighbors who happen to see me stagger out to the mail box in the mornings, must think it's awfully early for him to have his snoot in the jug, bless their hearts!
It's going to be cooler tomorrow, so think I'll wait until after lunch to finish the job.

On another note, Dapper Dan over at The Cumberland Post, has published his latest book "Blood Country." I got a copy a few afternoon's ago, and once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. I finished it in the wee hours, and was still thinking about it after I went to bed! It's a great mystery novel, and Dapper Dan pulled out all the stops on this one!
Dan, I hope I didn't embarrass you, but it's a good one!

Wimpy's Delight!

I don't claim to be the "Duncan Hines" of hamburger joints, but here in the ridge, up by I-65, we have three. A Mickey D's, a Hardee's and a Windy's. The interstae keeps them all pretty busy most of the time, so if you can find a parking spot, a grease burger is in your immediate future!
Having slipped the surly bonds of my cardiologist, I have enjoyed what all three have to offer at one time or another. My conclusion is that Hardee's make the best burger for the buck. The "Thick Burger",
is so loaded with condiments that they will run down your arms if you are not careful. They taste like a hamburger should, with no guessing about the mystery meat inside the bun!
I don't think they are nationwide yet, so some of you might not be familiar with this chain, based out of Spartanburg, S.C., maybe there's one coming near you!!
Some years back a rumor got started about Windy's putting ground up worms in the meat, it almost put them out of business here in the south! The rumor was soon dispelled, and everybody was happy again.
The old standard, Mickey D's, is kind of like going to Mr. Walton's place. Never know what will drag in off of I-65. You can see it all, right there! I got to say their cardio-fry's are still the best of the chains! Bon Apatite', Y'all.

No Gas!

My old Ford truck wasn't getting any gas, so naturally it wouldn't start. Well, all I could see was a whopping repair bill for a new fuel pump. Last evening I got on the net, typed in the problem, and the soultion popped up. "Replace the fuel pump relay", so this morning I went to the parts store, came home, popped the relay in place, crossed my fingers, and the damn thing started right up! I am now building an altar for my HP Pavillion to rest upon. Instant results, now that's my kind of religion!
Speaking of religion, I read that Bachmann said that Irene and the earth quake were sent as a message to the politicians in Washington. Look's like we have another one with a direct line to the heavens!
Give me a break!

New Jeans!

I had to go to WalMart today and purchase a couple of pairs of new blue jeans. My old ones would probably qualify for "Antiques Roadshow" if it weren't for the fact that the a$$ on them is about to come apart! I found some that actually fit, looked at the tag and saw that they were made in Mexico.
This was a definite improvement over the short crotched stuff made in China and Indonesia.
I hate to not "Buy USA", but not a single pair could I find. Even the "old standard" Levi's are made off shore, besides they are made for seventeen year old anorexics!
So now I can sport about in my Mexican jeans, maybe they will help my limited Spanish!

The News???

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm tired of hearing about Libya!
Throw the bum out and get on with it, (Humm, sounds a little like our situation here in the U.S.!!)
The networks had 'ol Mo'mar long gone before the rebels even reached Tripoli! Guess they wanted to "out scoop" each other. The whole thing reminds me of the story about the dog barking furiously at the door and the cat laying on the couch saying he could care less! Apathy is sneaking into what I used to think was creditable news reporting!
I think I'm beginning to see the cat's point of view. So who cares!!

Something New Every Day !

The Quik-O oil place here on the ridge was not busy, so I made a dive for the empty bay. The Ford truck was just about ready for an oil change anyway, so I tossed frugality aside, and went for it. I was guided over the oil pit by a very attractive young lady, nice change I thought! When I got out and happened to look down in the pit, another young lady was draining the hot oil! My curiousity was killing me, so I asked them where did they learn about working on trucks and cars. Come to find out, they had returned from the Middle-East where they had served a tour with Uncle Sam, working in the motor pool. When they got out, they needed a job, so they took these at Quick-O!
I've got to admit, they did a far better job than the grease monkey, drop outs I have encountered in the past.
Now, how 'bout that! "Go Army!"

Back On The Blog !

Yesterday, the weather here on the ridge moderated a little (Just 90!) so it seemed like a good day to install the new mailbox and post. The old one was looking pretty bad, survived a few drive-by
ball bats and was fodder for neighborhood gossip! The project started out just fine until we hit limestone rock about ten inches down. I would have been just fine if I had my ice spud, from my Michigan days to break up the rock. Three hours later the project was complete, my wife and I both covered with concrete dust! So now we will see how long it takes some little bastid to work it over!
Over the course of the summer, after haggeling with the insurance company, we got a new roof.
The storm damage occured in April and evidently did more damage to the roof than we had thought.
But, all is well now!
The big event for the summer was helping move our son and family into their new home here on the ridge. It took three days but we made it. I'm just glad we don't have to worry about moving our selves again, it's just too much work! The Pres. might have all of us retired folks eating cat food before he's gone, but at least we will have a place to call home!
We still have not gone on vacation, just too many doctor visits and other projects kept getting in the way.
So now we are going to try for mid-September, at least all of the kids will be back in school, and the old geezers like us will be taking their place on the road, (Scarey thought, huh!)
Where to go is the question. Do we visit kin folks, or do we just follow the hood on the Honda, and see where we end up? Either way, we need a little road time!