Blazing Inferno

I don’t have any children yet, but one of my sister’s lil’ Georgia Peaches is already reading at a very young age. For her birthday, I think I’m going to send a copy of the book that first lit my fire. The inferno that is the incessant pursuit of knowledge was sparked by that one book. I hated reading before that, sometime around the third or fourth grade, and I didn’t do much of anything aside from playing “war” in the woods with friends. I was always outside doing something or going on some sort of adventure. Discoveries of new places and the building of “forts” was a regular activity on the weekends from dawn until dusk.  Of course, this contributed greatly to Mom’s anxious moments and stress levels when I would come home with various wounds. No worries, though, because I think I turned out alright. 

            Soon after that first book, I became a huge comic book fan. I remember my first comic books like it was just yesterday that I treasured them, tension and drama increasing with each turn of the page. I am a firm believer in the power of reading, and I still read voraciously to this day. Last night, K and I sat down to watch a movie that we both meant to see in the theater. “The Dark Knight” was recently released on DVD, and one of my guys at work, Jon, let me borrow his copy. We saw “Iron Man” earlier this year at the theater with Scott and Jen, and we all loved it. It was the first great comic book movie. Most of them just don’t hold up well when depicted on the big screen. For whatever reason, something is usually lost. “The Hulk”, ”The Punisher”, and several other comic movies were far from good. “Spiderman” was good, but something just wasn’t the same. Casting has a lot to do with that, though. Even the “X-Men” movies didn’t really excite me, but maybe because I wasn’t a big reader of the comic. Don’t even get me started on “The Fantastic Four” movie. “Iron Man” changed that for the better. I loved it, and when a friend of mine (and fellow comic geek) said that “The Dark Knight” was better, I was skeptical to say the least. 

 “The Dark Knight” lived up to the hype and then some. Two and a half hours flew by like it was an hour. I must admit that in my heavy comic book reading days, I was a regular reader of these books: The Incredible Hulk, Batman, Detective Comics (Batman series), Iron Man, Spiderman, and Fantastic Four. These books made up the bulk of my interest, so I think I’m naturally drawn to these characters when it comes to cinematic adaptation. I’ve yet to see the latest version of the “The Incredible Hulk” with Edward Norton, but lackluster reviews have kept me from speeding over to the movie rental joint with reckless abandon. I haven’t bought any newly published comics since about 1995 or so, but I’ve bought some old comics (silver age mostly from the 60s) here and there to add to my collection. 

 It’s unfortunate that my little nieces live so far away because they are both big Spiderman fans. For now, the little house shoes with light-up Spiderman faces on them that I sent for Christmas will have to suffice. I’m sure I have a couple hundred comics I could let them read in a few years. Maybe someday, if I have kids, I’ll be able to share my comics and spark something good. I’d love to start the fire in someone new to the finer things in life. 

Wake Up

  Monday night, only a day after getting to see my beloved Steelers come through in the end for a resounding victory over the Dallas Cryboys, I was treated to a surprise appearance by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Versus. Well, I say treat, but in the end it was painful to watch. I caught the game right after the first intermission. Soon after starting the second period with the Buffalo Sabres, the Penguins looked to be in control of the game. They put one in the net to give themselves a nice cushion with a 3-1 lead. Well, as it played out, the Penguins played sloppily in their zone for the next thirty-five minutes, giving up ridiculous goals by not blocking out Sabres that were crashing the net. It was painful to watch the Pens fail on a 5 on 3 opportunity and 2 more power plays before it came to an end with the Penguins coming out on the losing end, 4-3 at home. 

  I haven't seen a game since then, because I only get to watch when they're on Versus, but I heard yesterday that they've been on a three game losing streak. Ouch. Well, last night, as I was watching the ESPN scroll, I saw that the Penguins finally woke up their offense with a huge win over the NY Islanders. 9-2 was the final count, with two unlikely players(Sykora & Dupuis) garnering hat tricks. The stars of the team, Crosby and Malkin, ended up with five assists and a goal between them. Not too shabby.  I'm glad to see they can rebound after some tough losses, and I'm hoping solid play will only build as they come up on the second half of the season. 

The Time is Nigh

              The times are tough, and I don’t think we’ve had even a taste of what is to come. This is one of the few times in my life where I will be absolutely elated if I am proven wrong. The world is an absolute mess- both socially and economically speaking. Here in our great country, Democrats argue with Republicans about what we should do to fix the matter. Most Democrats want the government to supply “bailout” money to anyone that may be hurting because of the credit crunch. Most Republicans seem to be the minority in voicing their correct assessment that government intervention leads us all on a perilous slope toward a socialist society. At what point did “we the people” allow the government to spend our hard-earned tax dollars in any way they so choose? I know we elect our representatives, but what is supposed to be a democracy is obviously not working. Government should be spending less and intervening less, but just the opposite has been happening since the end of the Second World War.

            I don’t have a PhD in political science, history, or anything close to it. I educate myself, and consider myself to be fairly intelligent. I don’t understand why so many people, who have plenty of history available to them for education, fail to see the problem with big government having so much power and control. This, I believe, is the fundamental difference between people that are for and against a government with more power than the people. The government of the United States was given permission by the people to govern and oversee the country and to work for the people. The primary reason for our declaration of independence from England was to be free from the hands of a big government. It seems that we are now trying to come full circle, with the only difference being that we are building our own big brother from scratch.

 It’s been said that all great societies, or empires, in the history of the world have gone through cycles of success that last a few hundred years. This would indicate that the US is on the back slope of one of these cycles, but in this instance as well, I hope it fails to come to fruition. An even larger picture is painted when one looks at the history of man as we know it. There are clearly 1500 to 1600 year cycles of man’s success and failure ever since the beginning of recorded time around 3000 BCE. I find it very interesting that the ancient Mayan calendar puts the “end of the world” at December of 2012 CE. This is roughly 1500 years after the fall of the Roman Empire. We could very well be on the precipice of tough times, indeed.

Vindicated

    The hit that Ryan Clark put on Wes Welker in last Sunday's spanking of the New England Patriots has been talked about quite a bit. See Scott's Blog. Clark got flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, which I thought was ridiculous. The league has told their officials to call things like this in order to try and protect players from injury. Most Steeler fans thought it was a bad call, and most Patriot fans thought it was a justified call. Well...The league came out today and said the hit was OK and there should not have been a flag thrown. Well, no Sh#$. 

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08339/932643-66.stm

    I can't remember the last time I was so happy about a Pittsburgh Steeler victory like I was after the New England game. Well, having said that, probably Super Bowl XL. The Patriots have been taking the Steelers to school for the last few years and it felt good to give them a righteous beating in their own house. 

    There's another huge game coming up this Sunday- The Cowgirls. I hate them with a passion. I absolutely despise the Dallas Cowboys. I have hated them since I first put on that black Terrible Towel t-shirt. Yes, that was probably at age three or four and I can't really remember much from that era, but I'm sure I hated the Cowgirls as much then as I do now. I'm ready to put to rest all of the smack-talking I'm hearing from the local Cowgirl fans and a few of my friends that are unfortunate fans. The forecast is cold, about thirty degrees, with a forty percent chance of snow. That is Stiller Football, and I can't wait for a game with an outcome just like Super Bowl XIII.

Justified

I was doing what most people do on a normal day on the computer. Clicking away, heading to my email account during one of my ‘not so busy’ moments when I stumbled upon a football story. This one was sort of football related, and turned into kind of a diatribe on the author’s part. It was a story about Plaxico Burress and his latest bad decision. You can read the entire story here:

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/8877402?MSNHPHMA

  Yes, Plax had a gun in a place where he shouldn’t have (establishment that serves mostly alcohol) and apparently doesn’t have a license (and therefore, the training) to carry a weapon on his person. I’m not arguing that he is not a knucklehead. There were reasons beyond financial for my beloved Steelers letting him go a few years back. He does not possess the kind of good character attributes that the vast majority of current Steelers have.

 There were a few lines toward the end of this particular story that really caught my eye, though. The first sentence is in reference to former Washington Redskin Sean Taylor being shot and killed in his home-he didn’t have a gun.

You wonder: would a gun have made any difference, though?

Perhaps. But I tend to think not. I'm still waiting for the first gun story with a righteous ending. You don't hear about the guy who popped the two burglars as they were coming through the screen door. No. The stories usually end like Plaxico Burresses, just not as funny. Or as lucky.

Funny, but one of my best friends in the world sent me a story a few days ago that would fill Mr. Kriegel’s self-proclaimed void. He hasn’t read any sort of stories like this because they never make it past the smaller newspapers to be reported on television or printed in big newspapers that cover mostly metro areas with a million plus readership. Big cities also tend to be the ones that have passed Draconian gun laws making it very hard for law abiding citizens to possess handguns, let alone carry one concealed for protection. This one was in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette:

  

LR home intruder fatally shot No charges yet for homeowner who fired at 2 men, killing 1 By Jacob Quinn Sanders Tuesday, November 25, 2008 LITTLE ROCK — A Little Rock man fired four shots early Monday at two men trying to break into his house, killing one while the other escaped, police said. Little Rock police have so far declined to charge Jason Cook, 27, with a crime for firing the shots. Investigators plan, however, to send their file to the Pulaski County prosecuting attorney’s office for review. According to a police report, Cook was on the phone in bed at 30 Rosemont Drive just after midnight when he heard his doorbell ring. Cook told police he was not expecting company. He told police he grabbed a handgun and walked down a hallway. He heard the doorbell ring again and then heard loud, banging sounds, according to the report, then saw that the door from the carport had been forced open. Two men walked inside Cook’s house, according to the report. Cook fired, hitting the first man three times, his wounds forcing him to the floor, according to the report. The second man ran away. The first man got up and dragged himself outside, according to the report. Police found Roderick Jacobs, 19, still alive outside Cook’s house inside a 1999 Buick Park Avenue, which had its motor running. Metropolitan Emergency Management Services workers drove Jacobs to St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center, where he died from his injuries later Monday morning. Though only a legal adult for less than two years, Jacobs had been charged with at least eight separate felonies since his 18th birthday in February 2007, Pulaski County court records show. He pleaded guilty to five of them, one was dropped in exchange for a plea deal and two more were pending. The cases included gun, drug and theft charges. Jacobs was scheduled for a bench trial Dec. 5 on charges of theft by receiving and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He faced a probation-revocation hearing set for the same day based on the same charges. He was on probation for a 2007 guilty plea after he was found carrying four grams of crack cocaine. Jacobs’ death was the 37th homicide in Little Rock in 2008, Little Rock police said.

 The perpetrator in the Little Rock case was probably not taking classes at the local community college, nor was he likely collecting money for a charitable organization at the time of his demise. Unfortunately, the world is full of bad people, and to own a handgun or rifle in order to protect oneself from such bad people is a right and responsibility I and millions of others don’t take lightly. I hope I never get put in a position similar to Jason Cook’s, but I can tell you I wouldn’t hesitate for a moment to protect myself, my home, and the people I hold most dear. If that means taking the life of someone like this winner, uh..suspect, then so be it.

CZ

Nature Calling

I left the woods with a deer in the back of my truck this weekend, but the only problem is that it wasn’t mine. My good buddy Scott sat in his stand for several hours over the last few weeks with nary a sighting of a buck with a big enough rack. Sunday was actually perfect hunting weather. Overcast, negligible wind, and a temperature between thirty and forty-five. You can’t get better weather than that, really. I had been battling a head cold or something all day and couldn’t shake a mild headache that I woke up with at five thirty that morning when the alarm told me it was time to chase the big boy. As I stood in the frigid air, it felt good, but I knew I had seen many days just like this where I felt better. My heart was there, but my body was not cooperating.

Scott’s stand overlooks a little clearing next to a small pond. He had seen several small deer and many doe, but nothing with a rack. That is, until Sunday afternoon. As we stood in the cabin, pulling on our warm weather gear, we both joked about the final trip of the weekend back into the area where we hunt. We had the normal discussion about where each of us would be going so that we’d have a general idea of where the other one was should we have to pull the trigger. I decided to go back where I had seen all the deer, even one shooter with more than six points a couple weeks prior. While I was putting an honest living in at work during the week, Scott and I got several reports from the elders of bigger bucks hanging out in the cedar thicket where I saw the bruiser, but nobody was lucky enough, or a good enough shot, to bring him home.

Back to our discussion, Scott sighed and said he would be back in his stand again where he had seen plenty of small deer. He sounded dejected,
“You know, I’ve been using the same bullets for three years and haven’t seen a single buck worth shooting.”
“Changing the Mojo, huh?” I said.
“Exactly, I needed a Mojo change.”

Apparently, the Mojo Gods were listening because we weren’t back to our respective spots for fifteen minutes before the sharp report of his .243 broke through the cold afternoon air. Fifteen seconds later, I hear a jubilant shout, “Whooohoooo!”

I knew it was Scott’s rifle when it went off, and the announcement was all I needed to know that his new bullets had saved the day. I was only about five hundred yards uphill and west of his stand, so I decided to walk down and see just how big his deer was. I trampled through the thick undergrowth to see Scott reaching down and dragging out a nice little six point. Not the bruiser I had seen a few weeks ago, but worthy of providing several good meals.
“Were you hand-feeding it when you shot it or what?”, I shouted.

The deer was lying a mere ten or so feet from his stand, but Scott later explained the deer had been standing over near the pond, about forty yards away, when he sent the .243 caliber slug into the deer’s lower ribs. He was dead and didn’t know it, but a bit of adrenalin let the guy run a few yards, toward Scott’s stand, before expiring. Seeing the huge smile that belied both relief and happiness on Scott’s face made the weekend trip worth it. I wasn’t feeling well, but just being out with nature and good friends combined for a great weekend.

El Toro

RRrrrrr, ssssssssssswwwwoooossssssshhhhhhh..Bahhhwwhhhuummmpppp.. Uh oh.. What is that? Oh no. There he was, entrails hanging out in all directions for the world to see. I kneeled down for a closer look, only to confirm the worst. Could he be saved? Patched? Sewn back together? There was nothing I could do. Mr. Giraffe had met his demise at the hands of El Toro. He was a good toy. He was enjoyed by some of the great puppies of the world. Well, two puppies, who are only great in K's eyes, but that's not the point. Guadalupe and Sandro (affectionately known as Lupe & Paunchy) were his biggest fans. For hours they would sit, contemplating the rough life of a dog in the Nash household, gnawing at Mr. Giraffe's head, tail, or whatever felt right and good at any given moment. They would always end a play session with him by lovingly licking his head, adding to the dried saliva collection and overall nastiness of the lovable entertainment. Curiously, Mr. Giraffe was devoid of any limbs. One little tail that was only days away from being detached was all he had, but they loved him nonetheless. Handicapped as it were, Mr. Giraffe provided countless hours of entertainment and oblivious joy. A stand in may be found, but a replacement?-Never.

I just wrapped up mulching the leaves in the back yard. Ugh. I'm not smart enough (or too lazy) to go buy a mask, so my mucus is appropriately peppered with the remnants of what was once full and green on our trees. The mower, a six and a half horsepower Toro mulching mower, did a masterful job of shredding them down to nothing. Unfortunately, one of the dogs (Lupe being the likely culprit) took Mr. Giraffe out to play when they were on a bathroom trip to the great outdoors. Of course, to avoid peeing on him, he was dropped in an innocuous pile of leaves. Unseen and unmissed by either myself or Karen, little could we know of the foreboding future of Mr. Giraffe.


Finished for now, I battled with the decision to move forth this morning. I knew I had better do it now, after mulching the front yard yesterday, because I wouldn't have time to do anything else in the back yard for another two weeks. This coming weekend, I have another date with my bruiser that awaits me in the woods of south Washington county. Up on the ridge, a bit beyond the hay rake he lies, not oblivious to the many hunters tramping around in the field in search of deer like him. The victor remains to be seen, but maybe next weekend, I'll have the venison to prove myself more cunning than he.
CZ

Quitter

Sometime before my last post, I struggled with the possibility of giving up writing in my blog altogether. Maybe incorrectly, I assumed that I was losing readers. I thought that a lack of comments meant a lack of interest. As soon as outside interest is gone, there will be no reason to post. Of course, maybe I’m to blame for getting a little too serious in comparison to some other light reading that my constituents might be used to. I know I’ve offended some with a few of my opinions, but that is inconsequential because if I’m not ruffling feathers on some issues that I discuss, I’m not making an impact and not making people think.

I guess another part of the reason I felt a lack of love was the fact that my blog stopped delivering emails to tell me when people posted comments. I’ll have to investigate further because I was able to read several comments today that I had no idea were there. Mom alerted me that my beloved sister’s comments ‘made her contacts float’. Thanks, Mandroni, you know I’m thinking about you always and hope that, above all other things, Tony is delivered back to you with nary a scratch. We recently found out that Tony is officially ‘in country’ and won’t have an APO address until he comes home in December. Evidently, things will only get uglier in Afghanistan for the time being. I just know they better send Tony back on time. My Georgia Peaches anxiously await his return. Brigid even posted, and I’ll always remember her for the kind words when Yuengling passed. She understands the power of the unconditional love one gets from great pets. She holds a prominent place on my list of regular reads with Breda. This is my ‘chicks with guns’ blog entertainment. I wholeheartedly recommend both blogs to those that love the finer things in life as much as I- good food, good guns, a good read, and a free America. Of course, when Brigid’s comment revealed an IQ identical to the level at which I’ve been tested, it surprised me at first, but it became clear to me why I still regularly read what she and Breda have to say. My tolerance for blather is almost nonexistent, and that could probably be considered a fault. Sometimes one has to wade through the swamp to get to the beach. Their beaches are sunny, warm, and have plenty of white powder sand. I still learn something new every day, and I hope never to see a day that I add nothing to the library in my head. For now, I’ll be a writer, a gunmaker, a good husband, son, and brother. I’ll just do what I can to put my stamp on the earth and make my home in the hearts of those I love. CZ

Idle Thoughts-albeit a fast idle.

Intelligence is a funny thing, and some people obviously have a lot more of it than others. There are different aspects to discussing intelligence, such as common sense and what is generally accepted as the ability to measure the capacity for human intelligence. This would be widely known as the intelligence quotient, or IQ.

Let me preface by explaining that in the business in which I choose to make a living I get to see a very broad dynamic of people who correspondingly cover a wide spectrum of respective intelligence quotients and the capacity to learn and speak with an ability to get their points across in a clear and concise manner. This would cover both people that come in as customers and people that are hired. I recently hired two guys that I would consider sharp. When I say sharp, this would mean that their capacity is above normal, with 100 to 115 points generally being accepted to be the average intelligence quotient on standardized tests. I would say these two are above normal by fifteen or twenty points respectively. My most recent hire has intrigued me the most of late, simply because he is one of the few people that I’ve ever met that can hold their own when discussing anything from the histories and beliefs of the myriad religions of the world (even with our respective beliefs being nearly opposite), all the way to the merging of Einstein’s theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics as discussed and extensively studied by Stephen Hawking with respect to time, space, black holes, and how they relate to each other in the continuum. With my other hire from a little more than a year ago, I can discuss -at great length- camshaft lobe separation, degrees of duration, valve lift, and the effects of a crossover pipe in the exhaust of a Generation III Chevrolet V8 and what they all can do to contribute to increased horsepower and torque.

I have to fight the inclination to get into discussions with these two because it is my job to make sure they are being productive and earning the salary that the owner of our establishment has graciously given me the authority to dispense. It is rare that I can talk to anyone that gets my mental juices flowing, and these two have done that in many different ways. I have to both learn and teach simultaneously. I have to learn how to properly manage these two dynamic and active personalities, but I also have to teach them how to do their jobs in the most efficient manner possible. This is easy to do (put my foot down) when they get into a deep discussion about music, MySpace, or whether or not Dumb and Dumber should be on the never ending list of good movies. Keeping them busy is a balancing act, and one with which I must concede, I don’t have an abundance of experience. Anyone that knows me well will tell you that I will always be in pursuit of knowledge, even if it is as simple as learning how to keep others busy. There’s an innate human desire to be the good guy, held in high esteem, and at the same time, garner respect. I have to be the bad guy when those discussions get a little out of control and impair efficiency, but it’s a lot harder to do when the discussions intrigue me and get the engine in my brain revving like the wicked purr from an eight cylinder Ferrari engine.

I was guilty of falling victim to the latter this morning when Nikola Tesla and the highest recorded IQs were brought up. Curiously, Tesla wasn’t on any list I found in a short Google search. It’s been widely touted on the web this election season that Obama has an IQ of 124. I’m not sure if he’s actually taken a standardized test for this, but I would venture a guess that the estimate is close. This would put him in the above average to gifted range, and a tad outside of the genius range which starts around 145. Whatever his IQ, I just hope he does a good job of occupying the most important seat in the most important house in the world. Meanwhile, I’ll just have to strive to be one of the best managers money can buy.

Countdown

Here we are, five days from the day we will make our voices heard in the presidential election. I just read a very concise and intelligent article that I think speaks volumes. I've made it very obvious that I don't support Obama in any way, and this article explains one of many reasons why. Socialism is a flawed system. It doesn't work and ends up being the antithesis of it's original premise in that it hurts society when the original hope and promise is to help. The author read my mind: http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20081030/cm_csm/yboudreaux

It's been an argument of my less-than-right-leaning friends that Obama's stance on guns is not a valid argument for not voting for the man. I would respectfully disagree because his gun stance is a small piece of a big government puzzle. When the majority of society finally sees the big picture, enlightenment if you will, only then can we truly be free.
CZ

As Suspected

I didn't really need a political test to tell me how I feel, but in the spirit of the season I thought I would join the fray since Scott found a good website for it.

As I suspected, I have a bunch of libertarian socialist friends (and wife) that see the world like Mohandas Gandhi and the Dalai Lama, but I get along with them just fine because of similar libertarian views. Where we divide is in regards to how much the government should intervene in our daily lives, economically speaking. According to this test, a lot of my friends and wife lean away from capitalism (and free market) and toward a labor party belief. Check here.

The scariest part of the analysis is that almost all of the world's governments (including ours) are far more authoritarian than they should be. Control of the people through goverment regulation under the premise of "patriotism" is far more prevalent than any sort of freedom or liberty. There is, unfortunately, a huge part of the population in the United States that has become a part of an entitlement state and embraced a sort of protectionism without knowing what it means and without realizing the ramifications of both in tandem. These two beliefs, when coupled, lead to a government free to do what it wants and a government that falls in the upper right hand corner of this chart. This is explained in the paragraph below.

I'm sure you've all heard, with so many 24-hour news channels, how many people think the United States in general is leaning toward being a "Europe-Lite" sort of government. Check this chart and see how accurate this assessment is. Astonishingly close, actually. Nearly everyone in this election falls into the same area as the entire European Union.

Most of all, the prudent observer would also see the mental anguish I face when choosing a candidate. Thus the reason why I have yet to make a decision, even though I am less than two weeks from having to put pencil to paper. For shame. CZ

Culinary Perfection

There are two things I always like to do when my birthday rolls around-Eat and drink like a King. I did both today, so I thought I would share at least a picture of the glorious meal I had for dinner. Filet Mignon cut fresh from Paul's Meat Market and grilled to perfection on the grill Pops and Michele bought me. You really can't beat fresh from the market. Perfect is all I can come up with to describe this Meat Euphoria. Thanks, Karen for driving over there and picking them up. I love you with all my heart.

I also wanted to thank all of my fantastic friends and family for emailing, texting, and calling to wish me a Happy Birthday. Sam & Kevin, SK, Brownie & Tam, Jen & Scott, JohnL & MaryL, Mandroni and my Georgia Peaches, Aunt Terry & Uncle Jim (and Benderville), Mum, Maaa & Larry, Cass, Madeline, Jamie & Amy, Jason & Angie, Steve & Jennifer, Craig & Katie, Peppas. I'm in awe every day at how many people care and how lucky I am to have you all in my life.

CZ

Stand Tall & Proud

Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of individual liberty, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to agree to such new governance as to them shall seem most likely to protect their liberty.

To celebrate my 33rd year of existence, I shall exercise my right to free speech.

We, the members of the Libertarian Party, challenge the cult of the omnipotent state and defend the rights of the individual.
We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise sole dominion over their own lives, and have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live in whatever manner they choose.
Governments throughout history have regularly operated on the opposite principle, that the State has the right to dispose of the lives of individuals and the fruits of their labor. Even within the United States, all political parties other than our own grant to government the right to regulate the lives of individuals and seize the fruits of their labor without their consent.
We, on the contrary, deny the right of any government to do these things, and hold that where governments exist, they must not violate the rights of any individual: namely, (1) the right to life -- accordingly we support the prohibition of the initiation of physical force against others; (2) the right to liberty of speech and action -- accordingly we oppose all attempts by government to abridge the freedom of speech and press, as well as government censorship in any form; and (3) the right to property -- accordingly we oppose all government interference with private property, such as confiscation, nationalization, and eminent domain, and support the prohibition of robbery, trespass, fraud, and misrepresentation.
Since governments, when instituted, must not violate individual rights, we oppose all interference by government in the areas of voluntary and contractual relations among individuals. People should not be forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the benefit of others. They should be left free by government to deal with one another as free traders; and the resultant economic system, the only one compatible with the protection of individual rights, is the free market. -from www.lp.org

Even if you don't learn anything, go here, for me-for my birthday. Educate yourselves, for that is the only path for growth.

However you choose to vote on November 4, vote your conscience. It is your duty as a proud American.

Now We Roll

Since I got the ball rolling and the Dems (well, one) out swinging, I thought I should make sure everyone is well aware of Obama's stance on concealed carry.

Obama voted for a bill in the Illinois senate that allowed retired law enforcement officers to carry concealed weapons. If there was any issue on which Obama rarely deviated, it was gun control. He was the most strident candidate when it came to enforcin and expanding gun control laws. So this vote jumped out as inconsistent.

When I queried him about the vote, he said, "I didn't find that [vote] surprising. I am consistently on record and will continue to be on record as opposing concealed carry. This was a narrow exception in an exceptional circumstance where a retired police officer might find himself vulnerable as a consequence of the work he has previously done--and had been trained extensively in the proper use of firearms."
It wasn't until a few weeks later that another theory came forward about the uncharacteristic vote. Obama was battling with his GOP opponent to win the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police.
Source: From Promise to Power, by David Mendell, p.250-251 Aug 14, 2007

And it is that very stance that could possibly affect in the future, my ability to defend myself, my home, and my loved ones. I am trained and licensed to carry and I don't plan on giving up that right. If I can do one small thing as a citizen and cast a vote not in favor of Obama in order to preserve that right of mine then yes, it is a valid reason to not vot Obama come November 4.

Softening Up

Good friends, even husband and wife can disagree when it comes to politics and religion. I'm living proof of both.

There was a comment on 'Perfection' that maybe I shouldn't be so quick to assume Obama is anti-gun. Well, if one were to do some background work and fact-checking, the truth would bear that Obama consistently votes anti-gun.

http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Barack_Obama_Gun_Control.htm

Sure, he'll let us keep our "guns for hunting, and guns in our homes", but if Obama were to let pass a law that instantly made a gun with a magazine capable of holding over ten rounds illegal, would that make him pro-gun in any gun owners eyes? I think not.

So, maybe you don't think that can't happen, either. Clinton passed the Federal Assault Weapons Ban in 1994. (check your facts, Scottie-Clinton did take some guns away)

Hundreds of firearm and gun equipent manufacturers had to re-tool and remanufacture thousands of weapons and magazines because of this law. One of the biggest was Colt. Yes, that American icon. Many consider this company to be the most famous of all gun companies.

California has already gone so far as to do just that (force state-wide confiscation of guns). Keep law-abiding citizens from owning guns they could previously own legally. I actually own a few firearms this very minute that I could not own if I were a resident of California. Does that make me a bad person? No. Am I a danger to society? No. Should I be able to defend myself and my loved ones in case of emergency? YES. This is what the founding fathers intended, and we should all be ashamed if we let our government control us instead of work for us.

Perfection

I overheard a discussion while sitting in the bleachers at the Northside game last night that made me think a little. A few women were yapping it up about being pro-Obama in a discussion held previously in their offices. Their talk made me think about my two biggest (although there are many) reasons for not backing someone with his beliefs.

1. He has voted time and time again against a person's right to bear arms.

2. He holds fast to the flawed, socialist belief that taking from the rich and giving to the poor is right and good.

Most agree with it being right and good until they become one of the "rich". I am educated enough to know that history shows us how flawed this idyllic system really is.

Thomas Sowell, a very respected print columnist, wrote an essay that included an almost perfect quote. I don't believe in any religion, but historically speaking, this says it all.

"Socialism has long sought to create a heaven on earth but an even older philosophy pointed out that the road to hell is paved with good intentions."

There are historical figures that have also said things far more eloquently than I that perfectly describes our current situation in history-especially in this election.

Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote.- Benjamin Franklin

Spaghetti

The National Football League is awesome this year. Anyone who watched any of Sunday’s games would agree. My wife, who really isn’t a big NFL fan anyway, even enjoyed (with heartbreak for my boy Jason) the crazy ending in the Chicago game. Of course, I REALLY enjoyed watching the Cardinals beat up on the Cowgirls. The Steelers had a bye this weekend so that all the banged up players could get some much needed R&R. This caption was posted by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette a couple weeks ago and I’ve been meaning to post it because I think it’s hilarious, and quite possibly the coolest cartoon I’ve seen to date. The Stillers have three injured running backs (Fast Willie-he's in the very back of the jeep- will be back this weekend) one of which is done for the year with a broken shoulder, a punter that’s out for the year, and no less than four other starters that have missed time due to one malady or another. Coming out of five weeks of football with only one loss is a good thing. Going back into the rest of the season starting off with the lowly Bungles is a great thing. Sunday afternoon’s matchup should make for a nice tune up for the rough schedule to come. I’m looking forward to it immensely if this past weekend’s excitement is any indication of what I should expect.

This weekend also meant more fun wrapped up in my seemingly never-ending Jeep project. I got out the new wiring harness, switches, and myriad gauges to start routing the brand new wires that look like a mound of multi-colored spaghetti sitting under the dash. I mounted the fuse block, routed some of the wires, and got the engine harness and computer mounted and wired under the hood. It’s not extremely hard, but very tedious and time-consuming. Gathering a ton of scrambled information on what connects where and keeping it straight is the hardest. I’ve got the service manuals from the 2001 Silverado that the engine came from and it’s a necessity. Five books and approximately 3500 pages of codes, diagrams, and schematics make for a lot of reading and sorting. I use three of the manuals mostly, because the only thing I’m using from the truck is the engine and computer-the heart of the beast. I also have fifteen to twenty sheets of schematics and diagrams for the new harness for the Jeep. I take that and the harness for the computer and engine and make them work together as one. It sounds like a nightmare, but it’s really enjoyable and I’ll be diving right back in tonight when I get home. That’s the only way my baby is going to be road-worthy again. I’m so close I can almost feel the rumble of the V8.

A couple of readers noticed that I haven’t been posting recently and I really don’t have an answer for why this is the case. Much of it can be attributed to the fact that I’ve been much busier than normal at work. I lost my number one salesperson a month ago. This necessitated a new hire and a ton of training. I always seem to lose track of how much knowledge is required to work here and do the job well. Rephrasing, a job done well enough to meet my standards, anyway. My standards are high, so this takes a while. The new guy is coming along nicely, but is still about a year shy of being completely up to speed. I’ve come to realize over my eight years of service here that it takes around a year to be completely proficient at everything involving the daily duties of a parts and accessories salesperson. Who knew there was so much information to absorb about our toys-motorcycles, ATVs, and most recently-scooters. In addition to Kawasaki, Polaris, and Suzuki, we picked up Kymco recently. They sell ATVs, UTVs, and scooters, and I’m actually excited about a new franchise bringing in a whole different clientele. Rockers and Mods will both now be regulars. It should be fun next spring.

Fueling Up

I know this will come as sort of a shock to you all, but I'm sort of a gearhead. I like to know how mechanical things work. I also like making things and putting things together with my own two hands. I've been working on a Jeep project for quite some time now, and this weekend I got to squeeze a lot of wrench time in. It's good for the soul. To get it roadworthy, I just have to finish the fuel system and the electrics. Everything else is bolted in and ready to go. The biggest reason it's taking so long is the fact that I'm putting in an engine that came from a 2001 Chevy Silverado. '82 Jeep CJ-7 with an '01 5.3 Vortec V8. Yeah. It will be a substantial drivetrain upgrade.

The top picture is the Dana 300 transfer case. This is what transfers power to the front wheels when I'm in four wheel drive. I rebuilt it completely and modified it with two shifters (twin stick) so that I can control whether I'm in four wheel drive, two wheel rear, or two wheel front drive at any point. Yeah, you read that right. I can make my Jeep a front wheel drive vehicle as easily as a rear wheel drive, just by shifting. It should be fun, and I can't wait.







This is the fuel tank and fuel line I spent the weekend on. There's just something beautiful about aluminum AN fittings on stainless steel braided fuel line. Extra abrasion protection is provided by the black fire resistant conduit wrapped around it in sections where the line may touch the frame and body. It should last as long as I'm alive and , in my opinion, overbuilt is always better.

This is where it feeds the engine. The return line is hooked up to the manifold, but I don't have the feed line hooked up yet. You see, with some fuel injection systems, there is a need for a return line back to the fuel tank for when your engine isn't using all the fuel being pumped to it at any given time. It all runs at about 50 psi, so braided line is almost a necessity. Look at those beautiful fittings. It makes me all warm and cozy inside. $24 just for the two blue fittings to adapt it to the Vortec manifold. Black corrosion resistant fittings (like the one connected) are $9 each, and worth every penny.
Last weekend I worked on getting the fuel tank mocked up to make sure everything would fit, and this weekend, I finished installing the pump assembly and sending unit. It's all set and ready to send the life juice to my sweet power plant under the hood. I'll spend next week installing it under the back end permanently.

These are my two beautiful Optima Red Top batteries. One for starting the engine, and the other is switched on once in a while for other things (like a winch in the future) and for emergency backup. The alternator charges both, and the microprocessor powered solenoid right above them switches between the two as needed. I flip a switch on the dash if I need emergency startup power. Yeah, I know, too cool.

So, I've gotta say my day was a good day. Not only did I not watch as the Dow Jones Industrial average had it's single worst point drop in history, I didn't have to do any yard work. It's starting to cool off here and the grass is finally slowing down a little. There for a bit I was mowing every five or six days. Not my idea of fun. My good friends have an awesome lawn of Zoysia, and the wife has commented about copying said greenery. Well, I checked out the cost involved in switching to Zoysia, and that may not be as high on the list of "things to do" as we first thought. We'll see. Maybe a little more research will uncover some better methods to a beautiful, low maintenance lawn next year. That will mean more time for playing in the Jeep and exploring cool places with my lovely wife.

More Rambling

Keeping my eyes open the past few days after crawling out of bed really hasn't been a problem. I've been sleeping really well of late, and I've been trying to get up early before going to work so that I have a couple of hours to do what I want. Eat a nice breakfast, maybe lounge out on the patio with something interesting to read, and drink a delicious cup of coffee. Autumn is here, and I really like this time of year, but I wish the sun would come up a little earlier. I guess I have to wait until daylight saving time comes in a month and a half or so.

I've been getting up around six, and the sun doesn't peek up over the backyard fence until seven or a little after. Dew on the grass, shining silver at first light. Gone is the oppressive, stifling humidity of August. I'm ready for cooler weather, but by the time Christmas is here, I'll be ready for Spring. I know. I can't have my cake and eat it, too. Looking at the latest in Rolling Stone has me wondering why I read this liberal rag. Every month, especially in this time of political tension, there is something negative about the Republican candidates. It's good writing, though, even though I often don't agree with the author. A well-written story exposes things about the author though, and oftentimes the ignorant adolescence shines through like a SWAT team spotlight in some articles. You can tell when a writer is jaded by years of experience and pessimism, or when the writer is so fresh from campus life they couldn't tell you a thing about what's really going on in the world outside of keggers and gossip. It's a great magazine, though, and I'm not sure if I can bring myself to stop getting it on a regular basis.

The wife is up and is propped up in my comfy chair, two hands holding her coffee, glued to the television so she can hear about what Robin is saying and see what she's wearing. Robin, for those that don't watch CNN Headline News in the morning, is the hottie of choice for CNN first thing in the morning. It's still a tossup in my mind as to which is more visually appealing-Robin Meade, or Christi Paul.
CNN often throws Christi in there when Robin is off or 'on assignment'. Both are very easy on the eyes, and thus, the reason they are on first thing in the morning. Their sole purpose is to pull you into the news that will be repeated every twenty minutes, three times an hour, all day long. 24 hour news is not my favorite thing, and is almost obsolete in this day and age with the internet instantly available at every waking moment.

The economy is on the precipice of complete collapse, and there seems to be an alarming number of people that are totally oblivious to it all. The results of the economic bailout currently being debated in Washington will affect every single person in this country. Some believe this is the end of days, and others just think it's another recession like we've seen before. Personally, I think the real answer is somewhere in the middle. I think this downturn will be much worse than anything my generation, or my parents' generation, has ever experienced, but I really do hope I'm wrong.

Day After Day

Here I am again, going a week without posting. Busy is relative. Some people work more in one month than others do in a year. I don't work like someone that say, is on a drilling rig, or someone that digs ditches for a living. I do work hard indoors, though. Dealing with the public in a retail (kind of) environment can be stressful and hectic at times, especially when in control of a department in a multimillion dollar business. The last few weeks have been just that because our shop is going through quite a few personnel changes. I also recently hired a replacement for one of my best guys that had been with the company for nine years.

There's nothing quite like training someone new with a clean slate to make you realize exactly how much needs to be done properly on any given day to make everything run like a fine Swiss watch. It's ridiculously overwhelming for the new guy, and I know because I was him eight years ago. Imparting the knowledge of everything in the operating system is daunting, but it just takes time and patience on everyone's part. Showing the basics and letting them feel their way is the best way. Everyone has to set their own process and pace to get comfortable and be proficient enough to do the job. The last time I had to train anyone was the summer of '07. That person is still at the shop with us, is advancing, and I couldn't be happier.

Seeing someone succeed because of what you have taught them is a rewarding experience. I've missed that feeling. It's been quite a while since I've had the experience, and I am enjoying it every day, even during the most trying of times.

Some have wondered why I've not discussed my thoughts on the financial debacle being experienced worldwide. It's really depressing, and I have to say, disappointing. We live in the greatest country in the world, and yet, I find that we the people have become too reliant as a society on someone always being there to bail us out. People no longer want to take responsibility for wrongdoing and failure, and it's going to be the downfall of this wonderful land in which we live.

It is said that all great civilizations in history sustained themselves for a period that averaged about two hundred years. Is our time up? I sure hope not, but people are going to have to change their way of thinking when it comes to being entitled to anything and everything without working for it. Big brother is stepping in to save Lehman Bros., Fannie, Freddie, AIG, and yet 70% of all businesses in the US are considered small businesses. The majority of them fail within a year. Where is their bailout? Come one, come all. Preferential treatment does not bode well for our economy, I fear. I hope I'm wrong. Either way, we as taxpayers are in for a long and bumpy ride. If this indeed is the bottom, or close to it, everyone needs to be on their toes and ready to pounce on the opportunities abound in an emerging market. Hand over fist, baby. I'm ready for it because I think being a pessimist is partly to blame for my thinning hair.

Big Government

There's a problem with cash flow in the United States right now, and it is hitting everyone. There is a web site that I frequent that I've passed on to a few friends. They see the world, for the most part, just as I do. The Cato Institute is a very informative collection of articles by authors who know what they are talking about. There was a very succinct article about Fannie, Freddie, and their respective failures. It's a shame what they've done, and it's a shame that big brother let them do it. Money makes the world go 'round, and do not ever forget that even our government appointees get paid. Talk is cheap. Especially talk of change.

CZ

Better Days

The rain was coming down in a steady drizzle. Not too much, but enough to make it a dreary afternoon. It was another busy and rough day at work, but I'm heading home, soon to be basking in the glory of a pint of Murphy's Irish Stout. Ahhh. I can almost taste it.

I still don't know why the guy caught my eye for too long. It was an odd gait, and his face, when I passed him, seemed to be angry. Weird. Walking in on a road not normally walked. I look up to see bright brake lights and the back of a little green Chevy Cavalier.

Too Close. She's stopped with a turn signal on.

Crap.

Brakes on, and wheel turned, but nothing. Nothing but the horrible noise of my tires screeching along the wet and slick concrete pavement on Free Ferry in a previously quiet neighborhood. Like sliding into home plate, the front of my nice little Tacoma was soon to be not-so-nice. I felt stupid. It seemed like forever that I stared at the back of her car, and it just kept getting closer.

CRASH!! Her bumper looks like hell, and the trunk lid is all curled up.

She pulled forward as I think about how mad at myself I am.

I look up to see her getting out and walking toward me.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, how about you?"

"Good, I'm fine. Let's pull up to get out of the street."

I agree and pull into the driveway in front of where the carnage just occurred.

I can't believe it's been nearly fifteen years since I've had the unfortunate misery of having to deal with an accident on my record. A ticket, too, to add insult to injury. Back then I was young and dumb. Now I'm married, have a mortgage, and a good job. Not young or stupid. I'm still in shock, and still angry at my carelessness. I'll get over it, but it may take a while. The bruise on my ego will take longer to heal, for sure.

I could have gone the entire time I have left on this earth without having another moving violation, but it wasn't meant to be. I've had better days and better weeks. I'm alive and unharmed, though, so things could be worse. I have a beautiful wife that didn't get angry or gripe at me. Chalk up another point on the good side. It's going to be like rubbing the wound with alcohol for a bit though, as I find out how much of a financial pinch this will put on us over the next few days. At least it was mild enough that my airbag didn't deploy. There's almost a grand saved right there. Suck it up. You're a big boy. CZ

Friday Night

“Wow, they’re awesome, aren’t they?”, said the woman down a row and over one seat.

“Yeah, they really do sound good.” , said the kid right in front of me.

“We’ve been playing the same songs for YEARS! It’s so refreshing to hear something progressive and innovative. I went to college at an all black school and it was just like that. The band was always so much fun.”

I couldn’t agree more with the sentiments of the attractive and gregarious woman that was interacting regularly with everyone around her. She was talking about the highlight of the night- the Pine Bluff marching band. They blew everyone away with their powerful performance at halftime. Their instruments were louder, their drum beats were felt in your chest, and the show put on by the dance crew was choreographic perfection. As much as I hate to say it, everything they brought to the showdown was head and shoulders above what was trotted out by Northside. The NSH band wasn’t bad at all, but they were just overshadowed and outclassed by a far more progressive unit from Pine Bluff.

The air was clean, crisp, and filled with something palpable, but indescribable. It was Friday night football, and it was grand. Unfortunately, my Alma Mater came out on the losing end, but the game was good to the end. Pine Bluff had made the trek to Northside to face our Grizzlies in a Friday night grudge match.

Donning red and white, supporting Fort Smith’s finest, Karen and I sat with her co-worker, and Scott joined us through the first quarter. It was a good time until the end when we came up short on a hail mary pass in the end zone. I hate disappointment.

Sixty yards to go with fifty-seven seconds remaining should have been a cake walk. I say should have been because for some reason, the Northside coach was reluctant to call a much-needed timeout when they failed to get a first down on the third play of the drive. We were only down six because the PB kicker had missed his valuable extra point.

“He’s savin’ ‘em. You know, for the next game.”, Said the same woman that was as enamored as I was about the Pine Bluff band, but not so much about the coaching on our side of the field. The coach had three timeouts to burn, yet didn’t call one until twelve seconds remained in the painful exercise in futility.

Nearly half of that precious minute was chewed up with overweight referees bumbling with the placement of the ball, and players scrambling because they couldn’t get a clear call from the sideline. These types of things are learned and adjustments made as the season progresses, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the small errors in a High School football game. I have to continually remind myself that this isn’t the NFL we’re watching.

K and I will be at all the other home games for NHS, and I’m hoping the end results in all of them will be victories. I know I won’t see a better band than I did last night, so it’s up to the football team not to disappoint.

That's gonna sting

I'm just hanging out watching the tournament since I've already put my name on the list for the 1-2 no limit game. The casino is busy, as usual for a Thursday evening, and there are about fifty people in the tournament that had a fifty dollar buy-in. I'm not interested, really. I'm here for the cash game. A few other people walk in, and the list is still at about five. An Asian fellow with bright white, cheap flip-flops walks in. He gives the girl his name for the list and proceeds to wander around like nobody sees him.

I notice the one full table for the cash game loses a player. Ballsy mister white sandals thinks he can sit down and buy in before waiting his turn on the list. Hmm..I see that the dealer almost calls for chips, but the floor crew rightly catches him and corrects the near foul play. I don't like people that intentionally don't play by the rules. Noted.

I've been sitting at the table for about an hour or so, and I look down at this hand that's in the picture. I finally have something worth playing. I look up after taking a glance to see the kid cowboy two seats down go all in for $24. He had already lost a hundred bucks on the second or third hand played with pocket kings and had rebought for another Benjamin.

I am middle table, not last to act, and the Asian gunslinger on my left has yet to play. Poor kid is down and is already in, so I put him on a middle pair. Jcks or something. I've gotta call, since I have a good flush draw, too. I throw out my quarter. Gunslinger on my left quickly calls. It's just the three of us when it comes time for the flop; four, king, queen. Interesting, I say to myself. Gut shot straight draw may be worth it. Of course, Gunslinger bets fifty. Damn. Cowboy is already all in, so he isn't a factor. I say to myself I'll never win if I'm not in it, and I'll kick myself if the ten or ace comes out.

Mr. Gunslinger white-flops has been slinging chips since we all sat down to play, and has shown some carelessness. He won a hundred off the cowboy when the kid had the pocket kings earlier, but the poor dude was obviously pretty green. Gunslinger tossed chips up until now to the point where he was down a couple hundred and only had about a hundred more to bet before he'd be all-in. Of course, the next card is a seven. No help for a flush or straight, so I'm pretty safe unless he bets big.

"One hundred is the bet", says the dealer.

I say to myself, "Damn. I hate this game. Well, you're pot committed, you idiot. Now you'll go home having learned a good lesson." For some reason, I get the feeling the guy may be throwing money again just to chase me out. Inexplicably, I put in my hundred. The river comes.

"Ten".

Unbelievable. I can't believe how lucky I just got, especially when the Gunslinger turns over his pocket rockets (aces) and thinks he's won. He even reaches for the now giant pile of red chips until I say "hey, whoah".

He doesn't speak English well enough to talk in complete sentences, but he does understand "straight". He says, "Where?", only to sulk with his buddy for the next five or ten minutes while I pile my winnings in neat little stacks in front of me. I'm still in shock as I write this, but I've had my share of bad beats and bad luck, so I was due for some good luck. Poker. She can be nasty.

I lost a little of those winnings in the next hour or so because I started making stupid plays. I am getting better, but I need to get close to eliminating the "maybe this will go somewhere" hands that cost me ten or twenty a piece when I'm up for the evening. As long as I keep coming home on the plus side, it's all gravy.

The DNC

If you're one of the unfortunate many that watch Obama tonight and believe in what he says, you should really read this: http://mausersandmuffins.blogspot.com/ and think twice before voting in November.

Hamstrung

Recently, my beloved wife and I got into an argument over politics. I hated it. I'm the first one to admit that I'm a horrible debater. I just can't do it. I never had it in school and I don't have any training in the craft whatsoever. This would also make me a horrible politician. In this regard, it also makes me a poor advocate for my belief systems. I have a hard time justifying my views to those less informed, simply because I can't vocalize what I know. I know I'm not an idiot, but this kind of situation sure makes me feel like one.

I found a great article at The Cato Institute that makes my point perfectly against a socialist like Obama getting into office. My wife says the only reason I'm against him is because of his anti-gun views. This is far from the case, and he has several other flaws in addition to thinking he can stop crime by taking away the tools of law abiding citizens. The problem is that most of Americans that are behind him are in just that position because "he speaks well". He is a very crafty and gifted orator, but that does not qualify him to be the head of the greatest country in the world. Many of the democratic voters out there have no clue about the actual platform of the candidate or beliefs on government, they just like to hear him speak of "change", and unfortunately, this is good enough for a vote.

Ramble On

Entire weeks between posts is getting to me. I don't know why I've gone so long without it, but it seems the further along I get in this Married Years quest, I sometimes feel pressured to write something. Now, this isn't pressure initiated by anyone else, it's all me. Some sort of weird feeling that I'm letting people down, I guess. After mom told me she reads all the time and offered high praise (not really warranted) for my writing, I sort of neglected my baby.

Being busy at work hasn't helped much, nor has being busy at home. I used to spend two to three hours a day on my computer at home. Now, I'm a homeowner, and it seems there is always something to do. I came home this evening to mow the back yard and move some things around in the shop. The lawn was ridiculously thick because of all the rain we've received this August. It took only five days for it to seem like I didn't mow at all last Thursday.

I haven't even spent much time on my computer at work, either. We're losing a critical manager at the shop and I'll no doubt be needed for extra help, guidance, and consultation for whomever takes that position, whenever that may be. Until then, smoke and mirrors abound. I've also felt a sort of rebirth at work since I've recently brought on yet another young prospect. He's smart, witty, and has good character, but his immaturity rears up in the form of horseplay with my other help that is sometimes hamstrung by his ADHD. Keeping these two characters pointed in the right direction is almost a full time job in itself. I'm learning a lot from teaching, though, and that's rewarding, so I can't complain.

I got another book in the mail today, and yes, I'm a dork. I've been back on a reading kick lately, and stupid Amazon keeps coming up with these cheap reads. I got The Western Canon by Harold Bloom. Shakespeare, Dante, Cervantes. The Canon is a review of twenty six of the world's most respected writers and a few of their gifts to mankind. I've read a lot of what is in the Canon, but I know there is still more out there, and I'm sure this will only be one of many trips on my never-ending quest for more juicy knowledge. For five bucks, how could I turn it down?

I watched a pretty good show on the History channel with Karen last night. It was a show about a guy in pursuit of scientific proof of the existence of Noah, his Ark, and the Great Flood as depicted in the Old Testament. I really felt like a geek when one of the guys whom the host was interviewing said something like "the flood is the oldest story known to man" and I retorted, "Actually, Gilgamesh is the oldest known work". Of course, right after I said it, the host of the show said to the unknown guy that The Epic of Gilgamesh was the oldest known work and it is widely believed that a similar flood in that story is the source for the more famous one in The Bible. Gilgamesh wasn't generally accepted by readers because of what many say was an overtly homosexual relationship between the hero and his friend Enkidu.

I'm a sucker for anything historical, really, especially those involving religion or philosophy. The fact that people have built their lives around beliefs for centuries absolutely fascinates me. How could there be so many different religions and beliefs and everyone still think theirs is "the one"? Who knows if Jesus of Nazareth is the true Messiah? The Jewish people sure don't think so, and there have been countless 'messiahs' just like him throughout history. Judaism was well established long before Jesus' birth, yet so many millions think he is the one true savior. Fascinating.

On a completely unrelated note, I dug out my pride and joy hunting rifle tonight to get her ready for what is to come. October and November are just the beginning of cool weather enjoyment of the outdoors. I finished this rifle last winter, and have only a few small details to work on before she's ready for her inaugural hunt. I would have posted a picture, but the camera fought me mercilously with nasty, out of focus pictures until it succumbed to a dying battery. I poured every skill I have as a gunsmith into this gem. If I had commissioned another maker to complete such a work, the cost would have been in the ten thousand dollar range. Warm, rich, dazzlingly figured walnut with an ebony tip under hours of rubbed-in tung oil. Three hundred hours is what I've spent on her, and she'll reward me with a lifetime of pride in ownership. CZ Nash, Gunmaker. It will stand the test of time, just like good literature, and that can never be taken away.