And, in other news......

Before I do my very first "End of Year Wrap Up" I need to ask a question in all seriousness: Is Washington, D.C. (our Nation's Capitol) just a magnet for stupid? To wit: on the front page of today's Washington Post Metro section are two stories of stupid. The head line photo tells the story of a driver that, while using his/her cell phone, hit a back-hoe and managed to then drive the car into a hole that was large enough to eat the front end of the vehicle. So the driver runs away. The registration is in the car & the plates are still there - do they really think they'll not get caught?

The second story was about a woman who admitted to police that she killed her daughter & set the house a fire. But then blamed it all on an unknown intruder. Yeah - that'll fly. I guess some one told her what happens to mothers who murder their kids - strange how their survival rate in prison is near zero.

Anyway - so here we are watching the final hours of 2008 spin off into oblivion and the pages of history. Normally, after a year like this, I'd say; "Bring on the new year" but God only knows what 2009 is going to hit us with. Having watched almost $40K in cash evaporate over the year from my 401K, the value of my brokerage account shrink faster than an ice-cube in August and the value of my home plummet to the point that we may very well be upside-down on the mortgage, I am not really certain I'm all that excited about 2009.

Everyday brings new revelations about how the Government was so sound asleep on the job that they didn't see the devastation that was about to befall us. They also missed a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme that promises to do as much damage, if not more, as the sub-prime lending debacles. And, please, do not fool yourself into thinking that Messiah Obama is going to wave a magic wand and make it all better. He's already discovered that revoking tax cuts to citizens is not the way to jump start an economy.

For those of you who missed it - Vlad "the Impaler" Putin almost made good on my prediction of cutting off energy supplies to Europe. Hiding behind the ruse of the Ukraine not paying the gas bill, Russia was going to cut the supply - thus not allowing re-sale to the EU. Today it was announced that the Ukraine had magically delivered a few million to the Soviet energy company and all was well.

It looks like the Israelis have gotten serious about peace negotiations with Hamas. They decided that the Gaza strip would be much more peaceful without a Palestinian presence and are gearing up for an invasion. Now, I am not a huge fan of Israel - simply because they've made it very clear that a peaceful end to the whole Palestinian question is not what they are interested in. If that's the case, fine - start the war and get it over with. Otherwise, be serious about negotiations and stop with the bulldozers and "accidental" armored assaults on Palestinian settlements.

And so, on the 20th, we inaugurate a new President. I will be watching eagerly as, according to his supporters, upon the completion of the Oath of Office magical unicorns will suddenly appear granting wishes to all the people of the world, causing all of the armies of the world to beat their weapons into plows, dogs & cats will lie down in harmony and there will be a large envelope of unmarked $100 bills delivered to every mailbox in America. I can't wait - really. Sadly - we all know what will really happen - Rahm Emmanuel with club them all to death.

Well, kids, here we go. While we may not all see eye-to-eye on things I think we can all agree that we are in this together. As Ben Franklin said; "If we do not all hang together, we shall surly hang apart."

Happy Chrismakwanzasolstikkah!!!!!

To All My Democrat Friends:
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2009, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere. Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

To My Republican Friends:
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

And they wonder why I drink . . .

Please visit http://wondermark.com/ to see the rest of David Makli !'s most excellent work.

Not to Beat a Dead Horse . . .

As you can tell from a previous post I get more than a bit peeved when folks call out "sick" from work. It's espcially aggrevating when they call out and I check their FaceBook status that says; "Really Wimpy Guy is SOOOOOOOO hungover." So, because junior can't manage his life I am now a man down and have to find someone to cover as I need two people on deck at all times.

Well, the next time you feel like not working because you have a headache, consider the following.....

This is an excerpt from a Washington Post article (URL at the end)reporting on the awarding of the Silver Star to 10 Green Berets from Operational Detachment Alpha 3336 of the 3rd Special Forces Group. The article reads:

As Ford and Staff Sgt. John Wayne Walding returned fire, Walding was hit below his right knee. Ford turned and saw that the bullet "basically amputated his right leg right there on the battlefield."

Walding, of Groesbeck, Tex., recalled: "I literally grabbed my boot and put it in my crotch, then got the boot laces and tied it to my thigh, so it would not flop around. There was about two inches of meat holding my leg on." He put on a tourniquet, watching the blood flow out the stump to see when it was tight enough.

Then Walding tried to inject himself with morphine but accidentally used the wrong tip of the syringe and put the needle in this thumb, he later recalled. "My thumb felt great," he said wryly, noting that throughout the incident he never lost consciousness. "My name is John Wayne," he said.

So, sniffles, what say you haul your sorry carcass out of bed and get to work?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/11/AR2008121104080.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Documentation

Oh Dear Lord... no, please. Anything but that. Well, almost anything.

I have to re-write our Business Continuity Plan. From scratch.

Perhaps I condense it to: Update resume, post on Craig's List.

Monday Morning Mish-Mosh

What a weekend. I was such a couch potato I think I gained five pounds. The weather was completely crappy both days - Saturday being overcast and cold, Sunday being WINDY and below freezing. So, I was in sweats all day both days watching football and playing Colonization (have I ranted about that yet?).


It all started with the Navy/Army game at noon on Saturday. While Navy won the game handily Army totally out cooled us with those uniforms! I mean - LOOK AT THAT! Digi-cam helmets, pants & numbers. Then there was the Navy Face Plant. As the teams ran out of the tunnels the Navy player carrying the flag totally tripped, fell, faceplanted and dropped Ol' Glory. All on national TV. Ah well, whaddya gonna do?


Starting at 1300 (that's 1PM for you civilians out there) I had to flip back & forth from N/A to VA Tech & BC for the ACC Championship. Stayed mostly at the Tech game as it was pretty clear the Middies had things well in hand. Coach Beamer & Crew doled out some revenge on BC and earned their way to the Orange Bowl against the Cincinatti Bearcats? Who the heck are they?


Well, they are one of the leftovers from the Big East and have an impressive 11-2 record. Evidently Tech has played them 8 times and has a 50/50 record witht hem - hrmmmmm. I might have to take these guys seriously. It's gonna be a late game too - 8PM on New Year's Day.


Sunday was Pro-Ball day with some great games between Philly & New York, Dallas against Pittsburgh and capped off by the 'Skins loosing to the Ravens. Seriously - how in the heck do the 'Skins still have a spot at he playoffs? It's getting to the point where the only teams NOT invited to the dance are the ones at the very bottom of their conference! When are we going to learn that not everyone can be a "Winner"?


In other news - I'd like Blog Spot to get their act together. Please do not put a "Remember Me" checkbox onthe log in page if you are not going to remember me. It makes you look dumb and annoys me.


And finally