Cliff's Riffs

BRAVO J C Penney is bringing back sanity. No more "sales".

2012-01-28T17:40:00.000-08:00

Read about it at this link:

JC Penney is going to quit with all the bullshit! Amen - no more 50% to 70% or buy one get one for a dollar. They are just lowering all of their inflated prices by AT LEAST 40% and doing away with all the sales. I have been harping and whining about this for years - I have a least 3 posts on this blog about these fake sales.

YEEEEE-HAHH! It is a happy day in my world.

I am going to spend some MONEY at JCPenney.

The net effect of doing business with a local shop.

2012-01-26T12:45:00.000-08:00

Our daughter Ella has just completed her first complete year of owning and operating her coffee shop down the street from us in Lowell: Ella's Coffee & Cuisine

Ella is a culinary school graduate who prides herself on the handcrafted sandwiches, soups from scratch she offers along with the top shelf quality coffee she buys from local small batch roasters.

She has some help in the baking department from her sister Amy - who is constantly coming up with delicious and tempting treats.

Anyway - I am doing some end of the year book work and I decided to tally up where the money spent at Ella's ends up. First, let me thank each and every customer who has crossed the threshold at Ella's - we appreciate the way you have helped Ella's grow.

One of our goals is to spend as much money as we can using local - Lowell based sources like Gary's Meat Market, Agape Coffee Services, etc. Our next choice is a regional supplier like Grand Rapids Coffee Roasters, Mooville Dairy, etc. Finally we try to keep the money in Michigan if at all possible.

I am happy to report that 77% of our gross sales stayed in Michigan.

Of that total 58% went to suppliers and employees right in Lowell.

41% of that total went to regional suppliers and employees.

(FYI - everyone at Ella's now lives in Lowell.)

The last 1% stayed in Michigan.

We also collected and sent to Lansing $7,246.00 in Michigan sales tax.

So, when someone spends $1 at Ella's - .77 cents stays in Michigan and .44 cents of that stays right in Lowell - where it gets re-spent and re-spent. For instance, four people from Ella's rent apartments in Lowell so there is several thousand of our annual payroll being re-cycled in the local economy. They also eat and shop in Lowell, etc. etc.

NOTE: I am sure the real numbers are actually a bit higher, but I am only willing to tear this down so far. For instance, we have our liability insurance policy through a local agent - Dave Emmette at AIC right on Main Street - but the company is Hartford. The annual premium of over $2000.00 goes out of state, but the commission to the local agency stays right in Lowell. We have also spent money at local/regional branches of national chains and a small percentage of that benefits Lowell and West Michigan.

Even with my somewhat limited math abilities, you can see the benefit of supporting your local businesses. Thanks very much for doing so!

Want a world with no EPA? Want to remove regulations from corporations? Check this:

2012-01-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures for people who want to remove all regulations from Corporations. (Er, I mean to say "Corpersons" since the Soopreme Kourt made them equal to people.) China is not big on regulations, especially when it comes to protecting the environment. All we have to do is take a look at these results of unfettered corporate concern for people, water, the air, and the planet in general.

This lady is washing her clothes in a reservoir.

Here is the amount of coal dust collected on the back and neck of a worker after only a couple of hours. Oh yeah - the worker happens to be picking crops. Still wanna buy your vegetables from Club Club, Cost-Mart and Wal-Co or where ever you can get it the cheapest?

Here is an industrial sewage pipe going out into the ocean.

These yellow blocks of industrial crud are introduced into the Yangtze River. The Yangtze is the longest river in Asia - just short of 4,000 miles long. Anybody want to get a drink downstream of this sludge?

Another Corporate sewer emptying into the Yellow Sea - between Mainland China and Korea. Hey - I just heard they have a big sale on shrimp down at Wal-Co. Do those funny letters on the bag mean the shrimp come from China ..... or Korea?

Who needs those pesky (costly) smokestack scrubbers - think of the jobs created by all the savings for the Corporations if we would just let the smoke roll.

I found all of these images, along with thousands more, in seconds by searching for "pollution in China" - give it a try. Anyone with a memory back to the '50s and '60s in America can remember when our big companies and corporations did the same thing to the air and water in this country. Thank god for the GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS that put a halt to it.

Do you REALLY want to close down the EPA?

Stuff That Works: Talking Heads Chronology

2012-01-09T13:18:00.000-08:00

If you are a fan of the Talking Heads, then you need to get a copy of the Chronology DVD. It has some great stuff from the early days of the band - video record of them playing in the mid-70s.

Some of the high points for me are watching Tina gain confidence on her bass -you can see the difference a couple of years makes;seeing Adrian Belew crank out one of his twisted solos on "Crosseyed & Painless"; David doing some of his famous dance moves during "Animals"; the whole of "Burning Down The House" (recorded in '83 for Letterman" is tremendous but I really enjoy Chris Frantz and Steve Scales doing what they do so well on the all-important drums - speaking of Chris, his big smile is in full effect when they played "Life During Wartime" when they were inducted into the RnR Hall O' Fame.

If you enjoy Talking Heads - you will love this Chronology.

Get It Here From Schulers

Stuff That Works - Litehouse Bleu Cheese Dressing is the best there is.

2012-01-09T10:09:00.000-08:00

As we were out running errands today, Julie and I ended up talking about Litehouse dressings in general and their Chunky Bleu Cheese in particular. We came to the conclusion that it is simply the best we have ever had - in a restaurant or bottled for sale.

What more can I say about it? If you like Bleu Cheese, you owe it to yourself to try a bottle of this ($3.49 to $3.99) spectacular dressing. Delicious.

I am done with Amazon.com - here is why.

2011-12-26T15:17:00.000-08:00

Anyone who knows me knows I try to spend my money locally, regionally, or at least so it benefits the State of Michigan. We need to capture as many dollars for our state as we can. In the past I have had an account at Amazon. I used it primarily to get shaving supplies - I shave with a brush and razor and was not able to find any place to purchase nice shaving creams and supplies. But I have also bought a couple of books and some music there. No More.
Two things pushed me over the brink. First it was the way in which Amazon and other online retailers are fighting the efforts of Michigan and other states to have them collect and pay sales tax. Why shouldn't anyone who sells something to Michigan residents collect the 6% tax and send it in? Why should online retailers have a 6% advantage over a brick and mortar location that adds to the local economy and collects sales tax?
But the last straw came with Amazon's campaign to have their customers go into brick and mortar stores, look at products, scan them with their smart phones and then buy them from Amazon. A lot of people have been taking advantage of brick and mortar stores this way for a long time, but no one was actively marketing the process AND offering to pay people $5 to do so as Amazon did.

Bite me Amazon.

I contacted them and closed my account, which was no easy thing to do. The positive side of the time it took to do so and the interaction I had with Amazon employees (even if they were in a cubicle in Borneo) was that it gave me several opportunities to tell them exactly why I was ceasing to do business with them.
So, is Amazon going to grind to a halt now that I am spending my $22 on shaving cream somewhere else? Probably not, but at least I don't feel like I am talking out of both sides of my mouth.

TURN THE TIDE: Today - I had an even better idea. I turned things around. I received an email from David Byrne (former singer of the Talking Heads) in which he informed me of a new DVD: Talking Heads Chronology Deluxe with some footage of the band in their early days. Having been a longtime fan of the band and the various spin offs to come out of it, this DVD went to the top of my want list. When I clicked on his link to buy the DVD it took me to Amazon (bummer David), so then I read all about what was on the DVD, looked at some reviews from people who all seemed to like it and decided to make my purchase for sure. Then I got the ASIN # for the DVD from Amazon and ordered it from my local bookstore Schuler Books.
I plan on making this a regular part of my shopping for books, music, and anything else Amazon sells that I can buy locally. I will use their online information to get informed and buy it from a brick and mortar.

ONE MORE THING - according to this site New Rules Project Amazon claims that collecting sales tax from all states would be too complicated. At the same time they make these claims they are collecting sales tax for all the states for Target - Amazon manages their online sales.

Justice for Bank Robbers named Mike and Mark: What did Michael Vorce really do?

2011-12-25T06:20:00.000-08:00

Ahhh, the Justice that money can buy - even here in sleepy West Michigan. Once upon a time there was a white collar criminal named Michael Vorce. Mr. Vorce came from a fairly well off suburban family. Mr Vorce used a variety of methods to dupe several banks for MILLIONS of dollars.

Mike Vorce - high living thief of unrecovered millions.

While doing so, Mr Vorce lived the proverbial life of Riley. He owned what some called a mansion outside Grand Rapids as well as a nice pad in Florida. He drove around in one of several decked out luxury vehicles (you know anybody besides James Bond 007 who drives an Aston Martin Vanquish - with a price tag near 250,00 bucks?) as well as being a part of the "boating life" on Lake Michigan and in Florida.
One article I read related that when he was busted, law enforcement recovered about 9 million bucks from Vorce, but at that point 16 million dollars was unaccounted for. The dude was living the life.
You can read details of his 2009 conviction here:
Details on Vorce circa 2009

So after defrauding MILLIONS of dollars from various banks, etc. Vorce is given a sentence of 5 years and 3 months. He did spend another 10 months in the can awaiting trial - so lets just say he was handed a sentence of over six years. Fast forward to this year and we learn that the FEDERAL PROSECUTOR wants to make his prison sentence even lighter, because he ratted out some of his high living, lying and cheating compatriots. Hmm, my reading of the case makes it look like he was let off easy in the first place with the 5 year 3 month sentence and now a prosecutor has nothing better to do than to petition to make his life easier?
You can read about the effort here:
Feds Want to Make Life for Vorce Easier

Okay - so millions of stolen money taken and spent on a lavish lifestyle amounts to 6 years in the can with the new wrinkle of a Federal Prosecutor trying to make the sentence lighter. How does that compare with other people who rob banks in Michigan?

I found this poor guy from Bay City. Mark White has a history of trouble with the law including 13 felonies and 14 misdemeanors including multiple driving while intoxicated offenses - I am not defending those actions, just letting you know that White was not a serial bank robber. White even admitted that he had a lifelong battle with alcohol. I didn't read anywhere that Mr White lived it up in a mansion or purchased cars worth more than most peoples homes.

Mark White - almost stole $1,035.00.

While he was out on parole, White went into a bank with a note claiming to have a bomb and demanded money. (They found no bomb on him.) He got away with $1,035.00 - probably what Michael Vorce spent to have his Aston Martin tuned up and detailed or on a good lunch with cocktails with a couple friends at one of the clubs he frequented. White didn't get too far with the money - he attempted to carjack a vehicle driven by an undercover cop was subsequently arrested.
ALL OF THE MONEY - every dollar of the $1,035.00 White took - was returned to the bank. No one was injured during the robbery or arrest. Hmmm, so what do you think a judge handed to Mr White in the way of a sentence?
Mark White gets 35 years for $1,035.00

Banks in Michigan and elsewhere are out MILLIONS thanks to the efforts of Michael Vorce. The bank in Saginaw that Mark White robbed of just over one thousand dollars got all of its money back the same day.
Millions stolen = 6 years or less. A thousand stolen and returned = 35 years.

Stuff That Works - The Infatuations perform Blame it On You.

2011-12-23T05:02:00.000-08:00

Julie and I really enjoyed this group when we caught half of their set at Arts, Beats, and Eats in Royal Oak in the summer of 2011. The just released this video for one of their catchiest toons.
If you ever get a chance to see them perform - do it. Great positive vibe and musicianship.

Stuff That Works: Mowhawk Home Recycled Doormat

2011-11-28T15:36:00.001-08:00

How cool is this? While out buying some LED lights for the store, I came upon this new doormat from

Mowhawk Greenworks in Sugar Valley, GA.

Several things attracted my attention and pushed me to a purchase. First, it is a nice looking mat. Secondly - it is made of recycled car tires. On top of those most important things - it is MADE IN THE USA! Whoo-hooo, sign me up.

At this point it has been down for a total of 10 hours, so I cannot speak to the durability issue. That being said, I do not anticipate any problems in that regard. The mat is very heavy and appears to be well made. The weight will come in handy in front of our store because the wind just whips down Main Street in Lowell.

You can learn more about Mohawks green efforts here:

Mohawk Home Greenworks

Homage to Occupy Wall Street or How dumb is dumb? .

2011-11-21T18:25:00.001-08:00

I can't believe.

That in this day and age.

When almost everyone.

Is carrying a cell phone with a camera.

That law enforcement officers.

From the East to West Coast.

Are stupid enough to spray.

Elderly women,

Girls,

And young men who are peacefully protesting.

Will you gentlemen kindly

Remove your heads from your asses?

We are getting HOSED by both sides.

2011-11-10T19:51:00.001-08:00

Members of Both Parties

Pack it To Michigan Tax Payers

READ THIS ARTICLE (click for link)

We are getting some serious smoke blown up our skirts boys and girls. Both political parties are laughing all the way to the bank. Look at some of these wonderful double dippers - from a state that is going broke!

First some Republicans - you know, the party that is trimming our budget, cutting waste, etc.:

"Richard Bandstra, who was on the state Court of Appeals for 16 years and served in the state House for more than a decade, gets pensions totaling $117,920 through the Michigan Legislative Retirement System and the state Judicial Retirement System.

Bandstra left the court Jan. 8 with four years remaining on his latest six-year term and now works as chief legal counsel for state Attorney General Bill Schuette with an annual salary of $140,000."

"A number of pensioners also have top state jobs. Posthumus earns $170,000 as Snyder's senior adviser while drawing $92,489.52 from the Legislative Retirement System. "

"State Department of Human Services Director Maura Corrigan earns $140,000 annually in that role while drawing a $84,000 pension as a retired Michigan Supreme Court justice."

How about some Democrats - you know, the party standing up for the little guy.

"U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, draws $52,438 annually for her 16 years in the state House and Senate. " (As a US Senator, she makes at least $174,000 a year....plus bennies.)

"Former Democratic Gov. Jim Blanchard gets a $51,634 annual pension for his eight years as governor. "

"Former Democratic Lt. Gov. John Cherry gets $99,437 from the Legislative Retirement System; he served 28 years in state elected office. "

"Democrat Arthur Miller of Warren, who served in the Senate from 1977-2002, gets $107,747 annually, the highest pension in the Legislative Retirement System."

The double dipping - from Stabenow, Posthumus, Corrigan, and Bandstra - makes me really mad. What the hell is going on?

11/27/11 - just sent this email to our governor:
"Dear Governor Snyder,

Can you please tell me how and why a cash strapped state like ours allows politicians - allegedly "servants of the people" to collect a pension AND a pay check from taxpayers?
If the report in the Detroit paper is correct (http://detnews.com/article/20111107/METRO/111070361/49-state-retirees-collect-pensions-that-top-$100K) , this largesse seems to float to both sides of the political aisle. What service does Dick Posthumus provide that entitles him to a 90k pension in addition to a 170k salary? How does Debbie Stabenow justify collecting from taxpayers in Michigan twice? Maura Corrigan can earn 140k while she collects a pension of 84k?
Please help me to better understand this in a fiscal climate when benefits are being slashed everywhere."

Stuff That Works - Firstgear Navigator Gloves

2011-10-30T05:34:00.000-07:00

I had never spent much over $40 for a pair of motorcycle gloves, but a couple of years ago Andy from Grand Rapids BMW talked to me about the Navigators from Firstgear. (I think they were $89.00 - they are now $99.00.)
I live in Michigan and try to ride pretty much all year around - I like to get out during the snowy season for a variety of reasons - but I certainly ride in a) rain and b) temps below 40 and sometimes 30 degrees and c) sometime both conditions at the same time. Andy was aware of this and recommended the Navigators as a great glove to use a lot of the time.
As you can see they have a nice tall gauntlet, so they go up over the sleeve of my jacket or riding suit. They have a drawstring to close the end and a hook and loop (aka Velcro) strap just past the wrist so you can adjust them to be as snug as you like. I have big hands and went with XXL. They were a little snug off the rack, but have since stretched out a little for a very comfortable fit.
Boy am I glad I listened to Andy. These gloves have been terrific. I am writing this at the end of October and have been wearing them every time I ride with temps in the 30s to the 50s and PLENTY of Michigan sky water! When the temps get below 30 I switch to my winter gloves, but these gloves are great on my commute in the 30s and 40s especially since I have heater grips.
These gloves have been DRENCHED, soaked and poured on with two seasons of spring, summer, and fall rains in Michigan. My hands do not get wet. I don't think I have ever cinched up the cord around the end of the gloves except they day I bought them (to see how it works), but the Velcro strap gets regular use to snug them up on my hands.
You can tell I have worn my Navigators, but after two years they are holding up very well. I ride about 7-10k a year and use these gloves almost exclusively in Mar/Apr/May/Aug/Sept/Oct with some use when I know it is going to rain in the summer months. During the summer I keep them in one of my saddle bags just in case it rains. I would highly recommend these gloves - even if you DON'T make a point of riding in the rain all the time. They have held up, the look good and feel great. Thankfully I do not have to report how well they do in a get off - the one time I fell in the last couple years I was riding in the snow on my old Yamaha XT550 and was wearing my winter gloves.
Go to your favorite Firstgear dealer and try on a pair - I dare ya!

First Gear Gloves Here

Stuff That Works: A review of Clear Care solution.

2011-10-24T05:18:00.000-07:00

I have to admit the folks at Advanced Eyecare in Lowell were right. They told me about 2 years ago that Clear Care was the best contact lens cleaning solution on the market. I thought they were just trying to sell me some cleaner they had in stock.

I have been wearing contacts for decades and I have tried pretty much every cleaning/storing solution on the market - from the most expensive to the in-store house brands. Usually I would purchase what was on sale or buy something I had a coupon for. No more - I have been using Clear Care for over a year and it is far and away the best cleaning and storing solution I have found for my situation. (I wear Accuvue lenses from Oasys - I have Astigmatism in addition to my nearsightedness.)

WARNING: Do not put Clear Care directly in your eyes. It has hydrogen peroxide and some other ingredients in it that burn like hell. Don't ask me how I know - (mumbles something about an early morning encounter when he had overslept, etc. etc.) Make sure you use it in the manner they tell you to use it along with the cleaning case they provide in almost every box.

The Clear Care Use you MUST use.

I finally decided to try Clear Care just because it was about the only solution I had never tried. I have been using it ever since. I have to admit to stretching my contacts to as much as 4 weeks per pair and many times even at the end of 4 weeks they are still comfortable - Clear Care keeps the protein build up that gets irritating to a bare minimum with no rubbing needed. It does such a good job that I recently went 5 weeks on a pair of lenses. Didn't intend to - I just forgot to look at my records and they stayed comfortable the whole time.

FWIW - I always give my eyes one whole day a week where I do not wear contacts and I wait an hour in the morning before I put them in and I take them out a half hour to an hour before I go to bed. This gives my eyes time to breathe and I have been, thankfully, free of any eye infection the whole time I have been wearing contacts.

Learn all about Clear Care here: clearcaresolution.com/

Stuff That Works - a review of the Zildjian Zil-Bel. I have both sizes.

2011-10-17T05:17:00.000-07:00

This was exactly what I wanted as an addition to my kit. I bought it without actually hearing one, but I was not disappointed. Zildjian said this about the Zil-Bel, which the have as part of their EFX Sound Effects line: "Bright, singing musical tone ideal for special accents and effects."
It sure is bright and the clear tone lingers for a long time after you strike it. I mounted it on top of my 16" ZBT Splash using a Gibraltar SC-MCSA6 - which is a 6 inch extender that screws right into the top of the Splash. (BTW - Gibraltar makes a dozen different ways to attach something like the Zil-Bel to your existing cymbals. Really - they sent me a little brochure with my extender.)

6" ZIL-Bel atop my 16 inch Splash.

Anyway, the Zil-Bel performs as promised. I like mine mounted upside down because it seems to me that the tone is louder and has a longer sustain by having the bell curve up to the ceiling. The folks at Zildjian put the decals on both top and bottom of the Zil-Bel so it looks good either way. The sound cuts through (uhm, like a bell??) the rest of my kit and makes for some cool accents. I found a way to get a Leslie speaker effect by striking it and then moving a cupped hand up and down above the bell - try it, you might like it.
I bought the small version, 6 inches in diameter, and I plan on adding the larger one soon - looking forward to hearing the two of them in combination because it is my understanding that Zildjian makes them to be struck simultaneously - the sounds weave together.
You can listen to sample of it here: ZIL-BEL-Small

1/7/12 Update - I just added the bigger Zil-Bel to my kit this week. The two of them sound great - as advertised Zildjian has tuned them to harmonize very well. I cannot believe how long the decay is on this big bell. Great clean sound that lingers. I mounted it on top of my splash on the right side of my kit:

One note of caution - the bigger bell is HEAVY. You cannot see from this picture, but I ended up using some weights strapped to the bottom of my cymbal stand to counterbalance the bigger one.
I am very happy with these two bells - either of them sound great on their own and they compliment one another when struck together. Enjoy.

Stuff That Works - Anderson & Girls Orchard Review

2011-10-13T19:05:00.000-07:00

Julie and I have been enjoying cider from Anderson & Girls for the last two seasons, so we decided a visit was in order last Sunday. We wanted to get out and enjoy the beautiful fall colors and the trip to Anderson Orchards, just 3 miles north of Stanton on M-66 seemed to be just the ticket.

It was a great decision - we had a very enjoyable time and we really enjoyed ourselves. Everyone who we came in contact with was very friendly. The grounds were welcoming - there was a great vibe (if you can handle that kind of hippie speak). It was big enough to have lots to see and do, but not so big that a lot of time was spent in line or walking to and fro.

We were really impressed with the animals - they were in great shape, very clean and healthy looking. In addition to the animals one might expect on a farm, there were a good number of exotics. The two zebras were some of the most beautiful we have seen anywhere. The lemurs fur fairly glistened and Julie reported that the little Sicilian donkey had clean teeth!

Their cider is delicious and their bakery makes some great treats. We ate blueberry donuts and brought home some cinnamon bread and a loaf of fried apple something or another. Everything tasted great.

Because of the unseasonably warm temperature, I grabbed a malt while Julie went back for a quart of cider for the road home. We really enjoyed our visit - highly recommend this place to you.

Here is their website: AndersonandGirls.com

Stuff That Works - a review of the Roland SPD-S.

2011-10-10T17:03:00.000-07:00

After owning a Roland SPD-S for almost 2 years I have to give it a 9.8, two thumbs up rating. I don't know how I would improve it, but I didn't want to rate it a 10 because nothing is perfect!

After owning it for a couple months, I bought the KD-8 kick pad to go with it. It was well worth the extra money to have the added ability to kick when playing.

They work great together. I am a hobbyist who does some recording (see my review of the Tascam DP 02 here: Tascam-dp-02) and I have an acoustic set of drums. The SPD-S comes in handy for everything from laying down a rock solid consistent beat to build from using it and/or a combination of it and live drums to having some real fun with the sampling part of it. I recently did a custom birthday song for our son and used the pads to spell out his name by sampling (i.e. recording) my voice saying the letters to the different pads - this allowed me to record a pattern and riff on the pattern. It was a big hit.

I would guess that I have only used about 70% of what this little beauty will do - but that being said I would highly recommend it to anyone. The unit has a pretty good range of drum sounds but you can multiply them when you start to play with the various sound efx it contains. That coupled with sampling ability pretty much makes any percussive sound available at your stick tips (or non-percussive sound - you are only limited by your imagination as far as the sampling is concerned).

The Phrase Maker allows you to record a pattern that you can use on it's own or as a foundation to build from. Guess my point is clear - this does a great job for the money - even if you only had it and a pair of headphones you can have a great time.

What Would Jesus Do?

2011-10-10T16:21:00.000-07:00

Remember how popular WWJD bracelets were? Thousands of Christians wore them. I thought it might be fun to ask the question "What would Jesus do"? in relation to some of the social issues that plague our politicians these days. To answer these questions we will look to the words and/or deeds of Jesus according to the Bible (New King James edition).

Social welfare is a big concern - especially the cost of social programs, many of which have been cut. Some of them are very fundamental and involve feeding people who are hungry (school kids from homes below the poverty level, single parent families, etc).

What would Jesus do with the hungry?

Would He tell them to get a job and fend for themselves?
Not according to the Book:

John 6:11

"And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted."

Matthew 15:32-39
"Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”

33 Then His disciples said to Him, “Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?”
34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?”
And they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.”
35 So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. 36 And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude. 37 So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left. 38 Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala."

Even the "Lords Prayer", which is said by almost every splinter of Christianity contains the phrase "Give us day by day our daily bread." (Luke 11:3) Jesus is asking God for something to eat every day and asks Him to "give" the bread, not sell it or trade for something.

What about healthcare?

Did Jesus recommend that people quit complaining, save up their money and go to the doctors? Nope - according to the Bible, He seems to be an advocate of free healthcare for all:
Matthew 15:29-31
"Jesus departed from there, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there. ³⁰ Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus’ feet, and He healed them. ³¹ So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel."

Jesus had somewhat of a low opinion of lawyers and the wealthy according to Scripture. It almost sounds as if He was an advocate of CLASS WARFARE:

Luke 11:46
^"And He said, “Woe to you also, lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers."

Matthew 19:24

"And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Oh yeah, the thing about rich guys made it in the Book 3 times! (See Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25)

He also advocated the re-distribution of wealth:

Mark 10:21

"Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” (see Luke 18:22 as well)

According to the Book, the early Christians took heed of this message and SHARED what they had with those who were in need:
Acts 2:44-45:
"Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need."

Stuff That Works - Art Prize in Grand Rapids.

2011-09-26T16:22:00.000-07:00

Say what you will about uptight, conservative West Michigan/Grand Rapids.

We have ART PRIZE - what do YOU have?

Neener, neener, neener.

Sure - the attraction of the Big $$$$ for the winners can make things a little weird down there - like artists outside one venue handing out cards and urging me to go see THEIR stuff somewhere else - but c'mon Rest Of The World, Art Prize is fantastic.

Sure, some advantage goes to the artists who have their work placed in "better" locations, but I bet you that if some fantastic creation appears on the fringes somewhere we will know about it thanks to all the modern communication devices and tools that we have.

I cannot imagine another event or festival that allows ANYONE to experience the incredible variety of "art" for free. From the traditional to cutting edge and everything in between. I had my mind blown on my first visit down there today. It was incredible. Jaw dropping work of ALL KINDS.

I got so fired up and energized walking around Grand Rapids today. It was like being stoned - only I wasn't. Really.

Art Prize makes me PROUD to be from Grand Rapids.

Stuff That Works: The Infatuations.

2011-09-18T05:28:00.000-07:00

Julie and I enjoyed this fine band at Arts, Beats, and Eats in Royal Oak.

I became a fan. They just put this new song up on the web. Have a listen and watch them play right here:
The Infatuations

The band is tight with a real positive vibe. Upbeat, danceable music. More great stuff from MICHIGAN!

How many years until we really commercialize 9-11?

2011-09-11T09:38:00.000-07:00

Anybody care to wager with me about how many years it will take for companies to really market the tragedy of 9-11?
Before I proceed, let me say that my mind was blown on that day of horrible destruction and death. Julie called me from her office and told me to turn the TV on right before the second plane it - I was dumbfounded, shocked, and confused. She came home and we were pretty much glued to the news for the rest of the day and into the night.
Horrible loss of life. Thousands of families were changed forever. I understand the unexpected death of a loved one (my brother died in a freak car accident when I was six) and I know how it can tear apart family and friends.
That being said - what the heck is going on today? And yesterday...and the last week or maybe even longer. Every media outlet is plastering us with 9-11. I have real mixed emotions about this - do we really care about the events or is this just another media circus with some advertising revenue attached?
I lost interest in the 9-11 special on MSNBC last night after two or three commercial breaks. Some of the ads were relevant - ads by the National Ad Council talking about how we are all Americans and showing people of every stripe that make up the melting pot of our great country. Great message. But when the ad for Volvo's latest car and the incredible savings available for me with long distance service from Vonage came on they lost me.
As someone who used to SELL ADVERTISING (at country radio station WITL in Lansing) it really hit me that lots of salespeople had been working the phone lines, email lists, and fax machines over the preceding days and weeks to SELL ads during the broadcast of the 9-11 tributes. This is not news coverage with no breaks as it was on the day of infamy. This is radio, TV, and newspapers SELLING ads in the special 9-11 packages they are putting together. Yuck!
So, in my mind it is just a little step further before we have retailers offering special sales events to commemorate the events of ten years ago.
If you think I am smoking crack - read up a little on what Memorial Day (nee Decoration Day) was really intended to be.
"Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service." (see all the information about Memorial Day here: US Memorial Day)
Somehow we have turned a day to remember fallen soldiers into a bunch of sales events, extra shopping hours with an emphasis on grilling and getting to the beach - so why would we fail to do so when it comes to the Twin Towers?

Hope I am wrong.

Stuff That Works: Courtyard by Marriott in Troy, MI

2011-09-10T17:57:00.000-07:00

During our recent Labor Day visit to the fantastic Arts, Beats and Eats Festival in Royal Oak, we stayed for two nights at the Courtyard Marriott in Troy, MI.
The stay could not have been better - every member of the staff we encountered was friendly, polite, and helpful. The room was clean, the bed and pillows were comfortable - we had a hard time waking up Sunday morning after walking miles and miles in the 97 degree heat on Saturday!
The small pool was a perfect place to cool off Saturday night and I have to mention that the coffee served in the lobby in the morning is excellent. (And we know from coffee - our daughter owns and operates Ella's - a full service coffee bar and gourmet lunch and breakfast shop down the street from us in Lowell.)
We asked for a ground floor room and enjoyed sitting on the little patio in the evening looking out over the courtyard. It was quiet enough on both nights to hear the crickets. The shower was great and I even liked the shampoo & conditioner.
All the other guests we encountered were happy and smiling as well - they were probably just as happy with their rooms as we were!
Would stay here again in a heartbeat. I was very impressed with the value of the room - we had a King room for just $89.00 a night. Highly recommend it to you the next time you are in the Detroit Metro area for any reason.
Check it out here: Courtyard Troy

Stuff That Works: Arts, Beats n Eats Festival in Royal Oak.

2011-09-09T17:35:00.000-07:00

Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz, and Victoria Clamp doin' it funky in the wind!

Found this 4 day festival by accident this year. A friend of mine mentioned that the Tom Tom Club was going to be playing in his neck of the woods (i.e. the other side of the country). I was pleased when I checked their website to learn that they would be a part of Arts, Beats, and Eats in Royal Oak over the Labor Day Holiday.

Julie was as fired up as I was when she found out that we could also catch a ton of other music including some great local/regional bands - AND there's more: we wanted to see the The Psychedelic Furs and country/bluegrass/guitar picking wonder Vince Gill (to show my age, lemme tell you I first saw Vince when he was in Poco back in the previous century!). Here is Vince in action:

This festival is OUTSTANDING. We attended some of it all three days we were there. Michigan weather was in full effect - Saturday we roasted in upper 90's heat with humidity and by the time we saw TTC n the Pfurs on Monday it was jacket weather in the blowing breeze.

Among the many we listened to, here are some stand-outs: Reverend Marc Falconberry Oh my goodness, this man plays a WONDERFUL slide guitar. He licks were so hot I sat in the sun, roasting slowly and loving every minute of it. If you appreciate blues guitar (his piano player kicks butt, too and the drum n bass players fill out a tight ensemble) - give this guy a listen if he comes around.
We heard several good groups at the Alternative Stage. My top two faves were: The Infatuations - they had a great time making music for us. Great, positive vibe and really good interaction with the crowd. (They have a FB page, too.)

The Infatuations

I cannot find any web links for my other big fave: E.R. - they were right up there with The Infatuations - good, solid music with a real positive vibe.
We also caught rockabilly, accoustic stuff, etc. etc. etc. - take a look at the roster of music in my link to the Festival - they have it all.
We enjoyed The Infatuations right before we joined the crowd for Vince Gill on Sunday night. What a great performer - totally at home on stage and happy to play for us. Wow.
Monday we got there plenty early to be close to the stage for the Tom Tom Club. Wonderful stuff! Chris NEVER quit smiling. Tina was rocking the bass. The whole group was fantastic - you could tell they LOVE what they do. By the time they closed there set with a couple of Talking Heads tunes (that was a surprise for me) and GENIUS OF LOVE - the place was hopping and folks were dancing. (Sound notes below.)
We didn't want to give up our prime spots for the P Furs, so we stayed put for Big Bad VooDoo Daddy - so glad we stayed. BBVD is incredible. Absolutely had the crowd in the palm of their hands within 2 songs. Tight, tight, tight horns - did I mention they were tight? Together they blended like your favorite cocktail and their solos were outstanding. What a fantastic surprise - I would see this band again ANYTIME. They have played together for 18 years and it shows. WOW. Wow. wow.

The P Furs did not disappoint. (The sound did.) Richard Butler and his gang of merry men took us on a trip. Great musicianship from the whole band and it was fun to watch him dance around and interact with the appreciative crowd. The sax player wailed - the drums were hot and Richard's bass playing brother roamed the stage singing along (even though he wasn't mic'ed) and playing to the crowd. (There they are below)

SOUND: As someone who has run sound for a band, I know what hassles present themselves in outdoor venues with changing bands. With that said, I must say that the sound quality on the smaller stages was WAAAY better than the main stage - especially during TTC and the Pfurs. There were some great guitar parts from the TTC -- especially on L'Elephant (Adrian Belew did it on the album) - the guy was playing his heart out and was totally lost in the mix. With the Pfurs, the mix started great and then the more they played the louder and messier it became. Volume is not ALWAYS the answer. We want to hear the talented players.
Big Round of Applause to the sound people at the little stages. Not so much for the big stage.
All in All it was a fantastic festival. Great food. Polite, friendly people of every race, creed n color. Wonderful Michication! We will return to Royal Oak for this great time and I recommend that you do as well. Park for $10 to $15 per day and pay only $3 to get in! Worth every penny and way more.

Stuff That Works - JB Weld on a Motorcycle gas tank. (Beats permatex)

2011-08-28T17:16:00.000-07:00

This story starts with a sad part - someone vandalized my motorcycle in early June. I noticed a "crinkle" in my gas tank one day and upon further investigation found that not only had the tank ben dented or bent, but the clowns also did some damage to my frame where the tank attaches.

Yadda yadda yadda - call my insurance company and they work a deal with the Beemer dealer in Grand Rapids for a new tank. Life is good - well, except for the fact that BMW takes MONTHS to get a gas tank painted on over to the US of A. (It has been on order since the middle of June.) No mind you, my bike is not an antigue - it is a 2004! They produced the Rocksters for several years, but only in 3 colors: green, copper, and white. So hows come BMW can't just have a tank or two primed and ready to paint one of three colors? Where is the highly touted German engineering brilliance?

Anyhow, in the ensuing weeks, the worst part of the bend starts to leak gas - let me tell you having gas seeping out of the tank onto my person was exciting. SInce the tank ain't showing I decide to take some steps to stop the leak - went to NAPA and bought the NAPA/Permatex gas tank sealer. Uhm, it is made to seal gas tanks. HA! works for a few miles and starts to leak, so I remove the sealer and repeat the application according to the directions with same crappy results.

JB Weld to the rescue! They have a testimonial on their website jbweld.net dealing with a situation just like mine! So this morning I hustled out and bought me some of this:

JB Quick sets in 4 minutes and cures in 4 hours. Cleaned my tank of the poor performing Permatex and applied some JB Quick at 10:00 am figuring to take a long overdue spin on the bike by 2 pm. Here is how the JB Weld looks on my tank:

As you can see - the rapair is not a thing of beauty - not that it matters much now that the tank is trashed and uglied up from the fuel leaking through the Permatex.

I am happy to report that I fired the bike up at 2:45 and went out for a couple hours with no leaks. Thank you JB Weld!

UPDATE: 9/9/11 - sad to say that the JB Weld started letting go yesterday after many miles n smiles and 11 days. A friend just recommended something called "seal all" - he used it with success on a carb on his tractor. Will see.

Update 10/5 - tried "seal all" - it did not work at all. I re-applied JB Weld and have had success for over 2 weeks now. I have altered two things. First, I am no longer filling my tank all the way up - I put in about 2 to 2.5 gallons. Also, when ever I park the bike I open the gas cap to release the pressure (the bike does have EFI) and this seems to be helping. BMW does not seem to be able to produce the correct replacement tank - but that is another story!!

10/23 - JB Weld is still working. Have ridden hundreds more miles (I think we finally have the correct solution to my problem at BMW!) and it is holding fine. I release pressure from the tank every time I park the bike and do not fill it all the way.

Stuff That Works - Tascam DP-02 review.

2011-08-22T10:19:00.000-07:00

I purchased the Tascam DP-02 as part of a package from Guitar Center almost a year ago. It was a great package with some powered Fostex monitors, a microphone, mic stand, and cables (see above picture). It is currently offered at $650 for the package or you can buy the Tascam alone for $350 from GC.
What a fantastic deal. The Tascam was easy to use right out of the box - once upon a time I recorded jingles on a Fostex reel-to-reel 8 track machine - the controls are very logically laid out and with some help from the manual I was up and recording in no time at all.
My efforts are strictly hobbyist - I would recommend this Tascam to anyone who wants a small recording studio on a budget. There are two inputs and a total of 8 tracks. I have recorded the following with very satisfactory results: vocals via mic, guitar(s), live drums and percussion, Roland SPD-S, Korg Kaossilator and Kaossilator Pro, and other accoustic things mic'ed in one way or another.
The onboard effects add even more bang for the buck - I have had a good deal of fun with them and have combined them with efx out of a Korg Kaoss pad and/or the onboard efx from the Kaossilator Pro and SPD-S for some really cool sounds.
The onboard CD burner is the icing on the cake - you can make your recording and immediately burn it for play on other systems to see what it sounds like.
Extremely happy with the return on investment from the Tascam. Would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to explore digital recording with excellent sounding results on a budget.

Stuff That Works: Korg Kaossilator Pro review.

2011-08-18T04:30:00.000-07:00

If you have ever had the urge to create electronic music for yourself, this little baby can help you realize your dreams. Or if you just want to have some musical fun. The flexibility for the money is fantastic - I think I paid $400 at Guitar Center and it has been worth every penny. The only flaws that I can think of would come to light when playing live - it takes some time to load your saved set-ups. (So if you are doing lots of live gigs, have two of them so you can always be set up in advance.)

It has self-contained beats and drum presets that will let you make your own. It has some killer synth sounds - big phat bass and some nice leads. There is enough here to keep ameteurs and hobbyists happy for days.

I am strictly a hobbyist and I am sure that there are features and abilities of this little wonder that I have yet to uncover, but after owning one and using it to record some electronica on a Tascam Digital Recorder, I would have to rate it a 9.5. One of the best purchases I have ever made - it is relatively easy to use and the instruction manual has served me well when I needed clarification.

Stuff That Works - B2P Pens from Pilot review.

2011-08-17T04:51:00.000-07:00

The folks at Pilot had me in mind when they came up with these pens made from plastic water bottles. Well done!

I hate plastic water bottles - we have way too many of them and most of them end up in the dump. Pilot takes empty water bottles and turns them into pens. I needed a couple pens for my desk at work and since I have big hands I like fatter pens. These are perfect. Used one all day yesterday and I am a happy camper. I have to give the gel ink a bit more time to dry, but other than that teeny hurdle, these pens are great. Way to go Pilot.

1/2/12 - Happy to report that I just found the G2 gel refill at Staples.

Stuff that works: Crystal Body Deoderant Roll On Review

2011-08-16T04:32:00.000-07:00

Picked up a 2.25 oz bottle of this roll on a couple of weeks ago and am very happy with the way it works. I bought it because I want to stay away from products that keep me from sweating, i.e. anti-persperants. I figure if my body is designed to sweat, then it needs to do that. ON the other hand, I own and operate a retail jewelry store so running around with stinky armpits is not on my short list to business success.

For the first couple days I used Crystal under one arm and my up-to-now favorite brand (Mitchum) under the other arm. Even switched arms because I have read that many of us perspire more from one side or the other. Using my totally un-scientific "Sniff Test" I could not tell any difference at the end of the day, so I began to use the Crystal product exclusively. Very happy with it. Just the other day I did some much needed roof repair. I was in full-on August sun at 80 some degrees on a black roof - sweating like crazy all over my body, but my pits were not stinky using my Sniff Test.

Seems like a good product - oaid $3.99 for the 2.25 oz package. Will buy again.

The other thing that pleases me about this product is that it washes out easier! By that I mean when I used to wear Mitchum when I would shower and wash my pits, it took some doing - I had to really scrub and I could feel the residual product in my armpit. Now with the Crystal stuff my armpits clean up a lot easier.

Another great Michigan getaway: Interlochen & Mackinaw City.

2011-07-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

I have been a fan of Leo Kottke for a long time. Almost got to see him once a couple decades ago, but had never experienced his playing live. When I found out he was going to be playing at the wonderful Interlochen Center for the Arts I knew Julie and I had to be there. If you have never experienced a concert at Interlochen, you should put it on your list - the campus has a great vibe and the setting in the woods of Northern Michigan cannot be beat.
Leo did not disappoint. His skill level on the 6 and 12 string guitars is simply amazing. Personally, I really enjoy it when he sings. His voice is like none other - and the stories he tells between songs are as interesting as he is.
Once the concert was over, we beat feet for Mackinaw City. Julie has a cousin there who has the Mackinaw City Bakery - (we availed ourselves of their great pastries, coffee, and chicken salad sandwiches). They also have a little no-frills motel right across the street from the bakery: The Welcome Motel. You can call the bakery to book a room. The room was spotless, the shower was powerful and we slept like bears. I walked a block and a half to a public park and cooled off with a dip in Lake Huron. (TIP: wear surf socks or water shoes - Lake Huron has a ROCKY bottom.)Saving money on the room is great in my opinion - just gives us a little more to spend on fun things. Like this:

Sunday night we took a sunset cruise aboard the 65 foot tall sailing ship Appledore V. What a fantastic entertainment value this was. For the two of us it was less than $70. They took us out of the harbor and into the shadow of the Mighty Mac bridge - then we headed toward Mackinaw Island before turning back. Passengers are invited, but not required, to help hoist the sails and bring them back down - I pitched in with a few of the other passengers who were so inclined. Not much compares to sailing under the big bridge. What a great experience.

By the time we returned to the dock it was late and we had not eaten dinner. Luckily for us the Nonna Lisa serves dinner until 11 pm. This restaurant is a hoot - if you are offended by stuffed animals, then don't bother eating here. But if dining amidst lions and tigers and bears doesn't bother you - the food is delightful and the people who work there obviously enjoy what they do. We had some of the best Brushetta we have tasted for an opener and then both went with a Whitefish dinner (not real Italian - but how can you NOT have Whitefish when you are up North?)
Walking back to the motel we were treated to a fantastic light show in the heavens - lightning was so abundant you could easily read by it.

The next morning we hopped aboard a Shepler's Ferry to Mackinaw Island. (Here is a tip - when you get your morning coffee and pastry at the Bakery, ask them for a coupon and save $3 a head on the ferry ride). Riding the ferry over there brings back pleasant memories of doing so when I was a kid. I would be content just to ride back and forth, but the Island is beautiful once you get a couple blocks off the congested Main Street.
Once we said our good-byes to the bakery (did I get one MORE oatmeal cookie? Yup - at .99 cents each they are great tasting and a great value!) we took the back roads to Cross Village and one of our absolute favorite restaurants in Michigan: The Legs Inn.

If you have never eaten there, you need to. The food is fabulous - Polish cuisine at it's best. (We had the sampler - little bit of a lot of things - yummy.) The view of Lake Michigan from their garden (you can eat out on the patio as well) is FANTASTIC. Plus, when you leave there you are headed south on M-119 the tunnel of trees. This is one of my favorite roads in Michigan - especially on two wheels. It is filled with wonderful curves and some of the best views of Lake Michigan anywhere.

Speaking of Lake Michigan, I had to take a swim before I went home, so we headed over to a great little beach we found last year: Arcadia Park. Just go to the end of Glovers Lake Road and you will find a little slice of heaven - BONUS: dogs are allowed on this beach if yours is so inclined.
We had a great week-end and we enriched the Michigan economy with a little under $700. Great time in a great state with Great Lakes.

Don't want a helmet law in Michigan - well then how about no insurance either?

2011-07-04T13:41:00.000-07:00

I would like to suggest to all the motorcyclists in MI who want the freedom to ride sans a helmet that they should push further so that they do not have to have ANY type of insurance either. That would be true freedom from the oppresive laws of the government. It would also keep those of us who want to wear helmets whenever we ride our bikes from having to pay for your freedom.
Helmet laws, like seat belt laws, are proven to save lives AND resources. Why the heck would you argue with that?
Go ahead, fight for your freedom, but go whole hog and ride uninsured as well.
Here is a bit of irony:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/03/us-motorcycle-helmet-idUSTRE76220Q20110703

Another hot birthday toon from BRD Stewdios.

2011-06-05T14:41:00.000-07:00

(click the link below)

A Birthday Song for Amy.

While it may be true that Lil Amy is 24 today, I have somehow managed to remain 40 - and if you believe that, I have got some kinda special deal for YOU!

Michigan Road Trippin' To Lansing and Old Town

2011-05-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

Found some of the best things offered in Lansing and Lansing's Old Town today.
We started by taking a tour of the MSU Campus on foot. Julie wanted to show us her dorm and whenever we are in Spartie-Land, we have to stroll through The Beal Botanical Garden - a beautiful oasis in the midst of campus. Ella and Julie loved Urban Outfitters, but my next favorite stop was The Record Lounge a coolio vinyl only store that brought back a lot of memories for me. Picked up a neat Jack White poster and a Clash sticker for my bongos.
Then we went to Lansing City Market - what a great place. All new building since Julie and I last visited. Live music, great food, local...local....local stuff. Ice cream, cheeses, baked goods, sandwiches, etc. etc. all in a spanking new location close to the river. Highly recommend this.
Then we drove over to Old Town - we had lunch at a great little Mexican cafe there: Pablo's where we enjoyed extremely friendly service, delicious Cokes and some of the best Mexican food any of us had eaten in quite a while. Went around the corner to Cravings Popcorn (Julie and I just got through munching through half a large bag of Chicago Mix - cheese corn mixed with caramel corn - it was THE BEST). Next stop a few blocks away was the one of a kind Elderly Instruments - where you will find of the best selections of guitars, basses, mandolins, ukes, violins, and all the accoutrements pertaining thereto in the country. I don't play guitar, but I can happily spend an hour there taking in everything they have.
While Randall played several awesome guitars (including a beautiful black National), Ella and Julie found a cool cart for the coffee shop at Love, Betti - a unique blend of antiques and art. Betti has some really wonderful items in a beautiful shop. We had to take a spin around Preuss Pets - a pet store you have to see to believe. Really. Like aquariums? Fresh and salt water fish? Reptiles? Birds? Preuss has it all and then some.
Last, but certainly not least, any trip we make to Lansing has to include a stop at Horrocks Farm Market which has a mind bending selection of EVERYTHING. From every fruit, veggie, cheese, pepper, spice, baked good you can think of to flowers, beer, beer, and beer along with wine! You have to experience it to appreciate it.

Roger Clemens gets nailed and Goldman Sachs walks. WHAT?

2011-05-23T05:50:00.000-07:00

Matt Taibbi wrote about it here.

Roger Clemens was prosecuted for lying to the Senate about using steroids while playing baseball. The Senate felt the issue of steroid use in America's pastime was of enough import to warrant it's attention. When emails and other testimony made it clear Clemens fibbed under oath, they went after him for the simple reason that it is against the law to lie to the Senate.

Let me say that steroid use in sports is a subject that needs to be addressed and I think anyone who lies to our elected officials ought to be spanked. My point is that Clemens got spanked and the top dogs at Goldman Sachs lied to Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) and his counterparts when they questioned them about the great mortgage heist they helped perpetrate. To date, the crew from Goldman Sachs hasn't even had their hands slapped.
They sold garbage investments and bought insurance on said garbage and collected BOTH ways.That would be like a car dealer selling a vehicle it KNEW would cause the death of drivers and passengers and purchasing life insurance on them and collecting profits on the sale AND the death of the victims.
The internal communications Senator Levin uncovered clearly demonstrate that Mssrs. Blankfein, Viniar, Spaks, and Swenson lied to the Senate. Their emails to each other combined with other internal documents make it clear they knew exactly what they were doing.
Might I suggest the Feds do something about it?
Contact YOUR senators and urge that something be done.

Learn Yiddish with Cliff.

2011-05-22T05:10:00.001-07:00

Mozel Top: a spining toy, also called a "ladle" that Jewish people traditionally give 13 year olds for Christmas.

I am asking the Lord for a Pox on Harold Camping.

2011-05-21T04:09:00.000-07:00

My Predictions (based on Bible study, research, historical documents, quality time spent with my drums, and the input of our beagle):
1.Harold Camping and The Rapture Crew will be singing "I'm Still Standing" by Elton John at this time tomorrow.
2. His actions will have succeeded in turning more people away from the notion of God and the beliefs of Christianity than any atheist to date; up to and including removing prayer from school, Bill Maher's movie and the efforts of South Park et al.
3. Harold will release an explanation and give us a new date to be afraid of, e.g. a button was stuck on his calculator, the dawg ate his homework, etc.

My Hopes (based on little, except a wish for Cosmic Justice with or without the help of comic book sooperheroes):
1. A Biblical plague will visit Harold Camping (I am thinking sore boils or diaper rash) for the fear and division he has sown.
2. That there may be a similar, but friendlier, pox on all the publications and billboard companies who took his money to spread his message. The love of money is the root of all evil.

DSW - Enough With The Questions Already.

2011-05-16T01:30:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I was a bit hard on the cashier at DSW yesterday, but I am not apologetic. After the fifth or sixth question, I had had enough. Went to the store with Julie. Found a pair of shoes and some slippers and went to pay for them.

DSW: Have you shopped here before?
Me: Yes.
DSW: Last name?
Me: Yankovich....Y-A-N-K-O-V-I-C-H.
DSW: First name?
Me: Cliff...C-L-I-F-F
DSW: What?
Me: Cliff. KUH-Liff. Cliff - like you might fall off of a cliff. C-L-I-F-F.
DSW: Zip Code?
Me: 49301.
(At this point I noticed she had typed in "Wankovic" which was why I was not coming up on the screen, so I corrected her and we got that straightened out.)
DSW: Does your wife shop here?
Me: What?
DSW: Your wife, does she shop here?
Me: Yeah. In fact she will be buying something here in a minute.
DSW: Does she get our coupons in the mail?
Me: What? What does this have to do with anything?
DSW: What is her first name or initial?
(I had been transitioning from a nice, helpful customer to confused to irritated - I just want to make my purchase, not apply for a loan.)
Me: J....er Julie - wait a minute, she has a different last name than I do.
DSW: What is that?
Me: What does this have to do with me? I just want to buy these shoes. Can I just buy my shoes, please? Don't ask me anymore questions.

Thank goodness, she finally just rang up my purchase and I got out of there.

Next time I buy some shoes, I am going by the name of Jim Jones, zip code 49546, unmarried.

My initial excitement about Motor City Denim has faded.

2011-05-02T08:01:00.000-07:00

When I first heard of Motor City Denim I was very excited. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to support Michigan made products. At first glance, a company founded by a guy who used to make things for the auto industry is certainly something I should be wild about. I was - until I found out their target audience. It sure isn't me.
I guess my disappointment is my own fault. My thought pattern went this way: A company making jeans that is trying to be a part of the resurrection of The Motor City - which played a huge part in creating and sustaining middle class existence in Michigan and a large part of the Mid-West - would be targeting the regular people. Henry Ford broke things wide open when he concentrated his efforts on producing automobiles that EVERY family could afford. When I heard MCD co-founder Mark D'Andreta on the radio talking about the importance of keeping regular people employed and his drive to make a product in the US instead of overseas I was fist pumping and talking back to the radio.
Fast forward to the MCD website which is offering pre-orders on these made-in-Michigan jeans. My enthusiasm drained like the coffers of the City of Detroit when I learned that if I wanted to own a pair of Michigan made jeans I had to spend a minimum of $149 (8/28/11 - now they are $178) for a pair. (They have two styles for men - the Eight Mile for$149 and the Ambasadors for $169.) Believe me, I was NOT expecting to own a pair for the same $25 to $30 a pair I spend on Lee jeans made wherever Lee can find the cheapest labor force. My wife makes jewelry here in Michigan and I know we cannot compete with Chinese mass production in the area of price. By the same token we do not stock our store with strickly high end merchandise either. I guess in my mind the MCD jeans would come in around $50 to $60 at which point I would have been the proud owner, wearer, and advocate/salesman. Sorry, Mark - but $150 ($178) jeans are out of the range of my interest for casual, functional attire.
I wish MCD the best of luck and good fortune with their product. I am happy to see them working to keep Michiganders employed. I am truly bummed that I will not be buying their jeans. They do offer t-shirts for $25 and $30 bucks, but a shirt promoting jeans I don't wear is kind of silly in my book.
I can only surmise that Mark and his team have looked into their crystal ball and decided that the future of clothing Made in Michigan and/or the USA does NOT lie in the wallets of the dwindling middle class. They have set their sights on bigger check books than mine.
Bummer.

UPDATE: The same day I wrote this piece, I contacted Motor City Denim via the form on their website and expressed myself regarding their products and pricing. I thought it was the right thing to do. I asked if they would be introducing any lower priced jeans and expressed that I felt it was odd to be targeting high ticket sales only from the Motor City.

To date (8.27.11) I have heard no response from them.

Governor Snyder is one crafty dude.

2011-04-04T15:45:00.000-07:00

I was pretty fired up about the recent repeal of our consumer pricing law in Michigan that requires retails to have items individually priced. I wasn't upset about the price tagging, but I was very upset that the NEW law contained a provision that made it a law that could not be undone by popular vote i.e. a referendum.
I asked a friend of mine who is an attorney about passing such a law and she told me that the Michigan Constitution guarantees voters the power to change laws passed in Lansing by a referendum. So I went to look it up myself - and she is correct - to a point!

This is Article 2, subsection 9 of the Michigan Constitution
I highlighted the important parts. Please read the whole thing with attention to the words in red.

"§ 9 Initiative and referendum; limitations; appropriations; petitions.

Sec. 9. The people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and to enact and reject
laws, called the initiative, and the power to approve or reject laws enacted by the legislature,
called the referendum. The power of initiative extends only to laws which the legislature may
enact under this constitution. The power of referendum does not extend to acts making
appropriations for state institutions or to meet deficiencies in state funds and must be invoked
in the manner prescribed by law within 90 days following the final adjournment of the
legislative session at which the law was enacted. To invoke the initiative or referendum,
petitions signed by a number of registered electors, not less than eight percent for initiative
and five percent for referendum of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor at the last
preceding general election at which a governor was elected shall be required."

Okay, so if the Constitution of our State gives "the people" power to approve or reject laws by referendum, then how can Governor Snyder et al even suggest a law that contains a provision to stop this process? I asked veteran reporter Rick Pluta this very question on his Michigan Radio page - and so did a couple of other folks who were as concerned as I am. His answer:

"The Legislature included $100,000 for the Attorney General for 'consumer education' in the item pricing repeal. That automatically makes the new law an act that makes an appropriation for a state institution and exempt from repeal by referendum. [see the portion highlighted in blue] The bill did not go through the usual channels for a budget bill -- that is, having it approved by the House and Senate appropriations committees. But it is a budget bill nevertheless."

So there you have it - by attaching a measly 100k earmarked for "consumer education" from the Attorney General's office it immediately makes this bill safe from a voter referendum.

Is this the future for laws in Michigan that might be deemed unpopular by the public? Attach some small amount of money appropraited for a state institution and "bingo" no referendum is possible.

Pretty sly stuff.

"Not Exactly" - I finally made some music with lyrics.

2011-04-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

A song about how sometimes the detours are what make life great.

http://soundcloud.com/bigreddawg/not-exactly#

Not Exactly

words n music by Cliff Yankovich aka BigRedDawg

It wasn't exactly what I'd planned,
but I went with it. (repeat)
You see
It wasn't exactly who I am,
but I went with it. (repeat)

It wasn't the way I'd seen it,
And I thought it should be.
Sometimes the big picture,
Ain't all about me.
(Chorus)

It wasn't close to the road I'd drive,
if it was left to me,
But sometimes the detours
are where we're supposed to be.

(Chorus)
repeat both verses
(Chorus)

Charmin ad - are you kidding me?

2011-03-25T19:28:00.000-07:00

Look at this new Charmin ad - sad to say it was in Reader's Digest, who also ran a 1/2 page ad for Judgement Day on May 21st of this year. Times are tough and even Reader's Digest has to scrape the barrell for ad bucks.

Several questions come to mind:

1. Is this a problem for America - bits of TP stuck to our collective hinneys?

2. Who is inspecting whom for said bits and why?

3. How do they know the new Charmin leaves fewer pieces behind?

I just realized the correlation between this ad and the one for Judgement Day. This kind of lame ass ad COULD be an indication of the end of the world.

Thanks Reader's Digest for keeping me on top of things that matter.

What is it about President Obama?

2011-03-15T20:24:00.000-07:00

How come Republicans are so upset about President Obama?
How come Democrats are so excited about President Obama?

What has he done to inspire such vitriol or any kudos? I am mystified.

Let's see. Any big changes in foreign policy? Hmmm, we took some troops OUT of Iraq, but we put a whole bunch more in Afghanistan so that pretty much balances out. Our young men and women continue to lose their lives and limbs in the desert over there and we continue to spend over 120 MILLION DOLLARS every day in those two countries - things are moving along at the same pace as when Bush the Second was in charge. Suicide is a HUGE problem in the Armed Forces just as it was when GWB ran things. Gitmo is still open for business.
On the home front Prez O continued to write the bail out checks to "free market" Wall Street that Prez B started. He has done nothing to punish anyone responsible for the greatest financial meltdown since the Great Depression. The tax breaks that Prez B initiated have been continued by Prez O. Drilling for oil has resumed in the Gulf. Gay people still can't get "married". Our jails are still stuffed with people who smoke pot or take other drugs.
Labor Unions have long been a bulwark of the donkeys and his response to Wisconsin was tepid at best.
He just appointed someone from Goldman Sachs to help him around the White House.
I checked out the major contributors to our last two presidents and they have several in common in their Top 20: Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, UBS (another mega bank). Hmmm, does that smell funny to anyone else? If Obama was such a big stick in the mud for business and commerce, then why did 4 HUGE ass banks give him MILLIONS of dollars to win the office?
Maybe elephants are pissed off because his speeches sound better? That could be a source of pride for the donkeys, too.
All things considered I think President Obama is the best Republican president the Democratic Party has fielded in a long time.

Another song on SoundCloud

2011-03-14T10:38:00.000-07:00

My latest electronica/ambient offering:

http://soundcloud.com/search?q%5Bfulltext%5D=Bigreddawg+Guten+Tag

The impact of a small (micro) business.

2011-03-09T09:07:00.000-08:00

There has been a lot of discussion in our local paper about supporting local businesses. The Lowell community is really great at this - they want to see local shops and service providers succeed.
Last year we helped our daughter Ella (re)open a coffee shop here in Lowell. (you can learn about it here: http://www.ellasoflowell.com/). Julie and I were convinced that our favorite town needed a place for good coffee and fresh soups and sandwiches.
One of our goals at Ella's was to keep as much of the money in the local/regional/state economy as we could. We buy our meat from Gary's - a butcher shop a block away and we buy milk and other things at the local Meijers. Ella has soap and various products from Lowell area artists. ALL of our coffee is roasted in Michigan - Grand Rapids Roasters in Grand Rapids and Evelyn Bay in Brooklyn, MI. We sell Lighthouse dressings made in Lowell and kettle corn from Grand Rapids. We sell teas from Traverse City.
As I was working on some paperwork for Ella this morning I started adding up some totals that make the advantages of supporting a local business crystal clear.
Various studies have shown how when you spend a dollar at a local business, the money gets re-generated in the city or town. Here are some interesting figures.
Total sales to date (from mid-July 2010 to March 8, 2011) $72,000.00

Total spent by Ella's at local businesses including utilities: $17,272.00
Total spent by Ella's with local service providers: $1,722.00
Total local rent money for shop and Ella's apartment: $11,900.00
Total monies to local artisans and employees: $6,785.00
Total to Lowell charities or non-profits: $280.00

Total to Regional businesses: $11,037.00
Total to Michigan based companies $5,043.00

Total money that went back directly to businesses, service providers, and residents of Lowell: $37,959.00 (that is over HALF of the total sales!)

Talk about IMPACT on the local economy - almost 53% of the total amount Ella's customers spent in her shop in her first eight months of business was put directly in the hands of Lowell residents and businesses. What gets more exciting about this equation is that you know a good percentage of the $37,959.00 dollars spent in Lowell was RE-spent in Lowell and it goes on and on.

Another 15% ($11,037.00) stayed in the Greater Grand Rapids/West Michigan area.

Another 7% ($5,043.00) stayed in the boundries of our state.

That is a total of $54,039.00 that stayed in Michigan - 75% of the total gross sales which doesn't include the hundreds in sales tax that went to the State of Michigan.

Pretty big impact for a tiny little micro-business with 3 part time employees, isn't it?

Thanks to Lil Amy for telling me about Sound Cloud.

2011-03-07T08:12:00.000-08:00

So - Amy is in Texas for a few months and I wanted her to hear a little song I recorded for Hunters first birthday - was wondering how to get it to her and she told me about Sound Cloud. What a cool place - small timers like me can store up to 120 minutes of our "sound files" - be they music, poetry, or whatever - there for free. You get more storage space and features for a nominal fee of $40 US a year.

Sound Cloud was a great recommend - thanks Amy.

My music files are here: http://soundcloud.com/bigreddawg

I had no idea President Reagan was a pinko - I voted for him!

2011-02-26T02:29:00.000-08:00

Some random thoughts.

2011-01-26T02:52:00.000-08:00

1. Now that we have put Don't Ask, Don't Tell behind us in the military - we should allow gay people to serve openly in our Congress...on both sides of the aisle. No more wide stances needed in airport bathrooms.

2. We have some expensive, futile wars that are crippling our economy: Afghanistan, Iraq, and the War on Drugs - especially marijuana. I was in high school in the 70's and after 30 plus years of the War on Drugs it would seem that pot is as available (more avialable?) now as it was when I was a kid.

3. We also need to stop kicking the crap out of the Middle Class. The War on the Middle Class needs to ratchet down. The cost of higher education, medical care, and other fundamental parts of the American Dream need to be brought in line.

4. Some one has to explain to me how millionaires can cash government subsidy checks while begrudging assistance to poor or sick people.

The Amish and The Constitution.

2011-01-21T19:37:00.000-08:00

Who decides when progress becomes evil? Who gets to call a halt to it?
I have often wondered who in the Amish culture decided at which point progress became evil. How did they pick a point at which it MUST stop? Why have nice, round, metal clad wheels and spring suspension on your buggy - why not be dragged between a couple of poles or ride in a chariot standing up with no suspension or just freakin' walk?
I would like to apply this same question to the members of Congress who allegedly are all about the "intent of the Constitution" and what those who wrote it meant and wished for our country WHEN they wrote it. Well, the document has been amended 27 times. These amendments providided clarification, more detail and sometimes (GASP) made outright changes to things that were going on.
In 1865 we did away with slavery - why did we screw around with the INTENT of the Founding Fathers if everything they wrote was sacrosanct? How on earth did we decide to create/define income tax in 1913 if Holy Writ (the Constitution) did not accomplish this when it was originally written? Why on earth did we have to allow WOMEN the vote in 1920 - wasn't the intent of the writers perfectly clear in The Constitution? According to the intent we should own other human beings and not allow women to vote.
You can read The Constitution here: http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html
A lot has changed in America since the Constitution was written - we keep trying to make it a better place for everyone who is here.
Quit turning back the clock or trying to - get off your high horse ladies and gentlemen and embrace change.

Mayhap we can agree on this one thing?

2011-01-16T17:37:00.000-08:00

I was wondering if it might be possible for us in the US (be we Left, Right, Centrist, Independent, or Undecided) could MAYBE agree on one thing when it comes to guns.
First let me say that while I am not a hunter or gun owner, I really don't have an axe to grind with either of those groups. As a motorcycle rider who resides in the county that consistently leads the entire State of Michigan in deer-vehicle collisions, I am all in favor of the ladies n gents who enjoy hunting deer. More power to you. Feed the hungry with the deer you kill - from what I understand it is getting increasingly easier to do just that, but I digress.
With that being said, how about we put a Nationwide ban, with the exception of law enforcement and the military, on the sale of guns that hold more than six bullets? I don't want to take away any one's "right" to own a gun, but how about we make it harder for someone to tote around a gun that is capable of firing off almost three dozen rounds in less time that I can spell "Cincinnati" (I have a tendency to spell it wrong and always double check).
Why exactly would anyone besides a cop or a member of the armed forces need a handgun that can pack 33 rounds at a time? Target practice? Squirrels?
Can we all agree that offering such a gun for sale might could be a bad idea?
You can argue that EVEN if it was illegal, that nutjob in Arizona could have gotten his hands on one. Yup, you can argue that if you want. I suppose he could get his hands on a tank or a drone missle launcher as well, but at least we tried to make it harder for him to do so. It is time ALL of us in the US got together and decided that we MUST regulate the sale of certain types of guns.

Happy Thanksgiving - a Truly Socialist Holiday.

2010-11-25T08:39:00.000-08:00

Let's give thanks for Socialist America - especially on Thanksgiving - a holiday that showers us with socialism.

"Socialism: An economic system in which the production and distribution of goods are controlled substantially by the government rather than by private enterprise, and in which cooperation rather than competition guides economic activity."

Many of us will fill our vehicles with food and family and drive over hill and dale on freeways and roads that are paid for by socialism (our collective taxes going for the common good of said roads). If you are driving a GM product today, you should really be thankful for socialism - GM would be gone if not for socialism.
We travel in vehicles protected by socialism i.e car INSURANCE.
We live in houses protected by socialism. (homeowners insurance)
Why do I say this? Well, ALL forms of insurance are socialism - even if they are controlled by private companies they are regulated by the state(s) and federal gubments. Insurance involves everyone paying into a pool to safeguard everyone who pays into the pool against some kind of accident or unexpected expense.
What do we do today - stuff our faces with food that is low priced thanks to government FARM subsidies paid out to big food corporations and large family farms all over our nation. Did you know that FARM SUBSIDIES are okayed by Tea Party members? Yup, that kind of american socialism is okay even with people who swear up and down they HATE socialism. Just ask Bachmann or Grassley.
Most, if not all, of our grammas n grandpas (or moms n dads) receive social security checks.
Many, if not all, of older parents and grammas and grandpas are kept alive by the socialized medical care they enjoy. It is called MEDICARE.
We gather in front of our televisions which are powered by government subsidized electricity to watch football games played in stadiums - many of which are paid for in part or in toto by tax dollars. So we can enjoy socialist football! Yeah team.
We owe thanks to socialism for the fact that you can read and that I can spell the words you are reading. Almost all of my education (at 3 or 4 elementary, 1 middle, and 2 high schools) came thanks to the government collecting taxes and funding the schools I attended. Thanks to all of you who paid taxes so I could learn to read n write and cipher numbers.
Do you really want to get rid of socialism?
Nah, we might as well embrace it and be thankful for it.
In fact, if Americans would quite pretending we don't believe in or practice socialism, then we could work on it and make it perform really, really well.

I would like to end this with some food for thought. When the Bush Administration sent taxpayers $500 of stimulous money - what did you do with YOURS? Julie and I paid some debt and used the remainder to help pay for a much needed extended week-end mini-vacation.

Pete Odland and The Liberator

2010-11-10T09:04:00.000-08:00

L to R: Pete Odland, Michael Chambers, and Drew Born.

With all of the political rhetoric, creepy behavior, mudslinging, and outright lies we are bombarded with on the national stage every day it is very possible to miss the glint of gemstone in our own back yard.

Pete Odland, the president of White’s Bridge Tooling on Bowes Road in Lowell, is such a gem. He and his good friend Bob Schafer have used their combined skill set to create something that enables physically challenged men and women to do things they could only dream of.

To say that Pete enjoys hunting is to put it very, very mildly. He has shared that love with many people on the 337 acres he owns in Belding. Some of the hunters he has invited there have had various physical challenges and Pete has tried to accommodate them by modifying a golf cart so they could hunt from it. In the last couple of years his efforts to enable handicapped hunters has catapulted from simple wooden blocks to state of the art sophistication.

One of his hunting buddies is Ted Nugent. It was Nugent who provided the catalyst for Pete to develop The Liberator – a high tech piece of equipment that enables the disabled to participate in hunting in a manner that is humane and safe. Ted Nugent heard about four brothers in Idaho with muscular dystrophy. As the disease took its toll on their bodies, they lost their ability to hunt and missed it tremendously.

In May of 2008, Nugent invited the Clark brothers to his property to hunt in October of that year. He then called Pete and asked if he could enable the Clarks to hunt in that amount of time. It came right down to the wire, but Pete and Bob were able to supply them with a Liberator.

The Liberator is a frame that accommodates a hunter that remains in his or her wheelchair. The front of the framework contains a movable mount that can be fitted with a single shot rifle, shotgun, or a cross bow. Odland and Schafer modeled the joystick control which moves the gun or bow up and down or side to side after the joystick found on modern wheelchairs. There is a tiny camera mounted behind the scope of the gun which projects the image of crosshairs and the target onto a video monitor the hunters can easily view from their wheel chairs. A button on the top of the joystick fires the gun or bow. If the hunter cannot use a joystick, then The Liberator can be outfitted with “sip and puff” controls giving the same amount of control via a vacuum tube placed in their mouth.

Testing the "sip n puff" controls on the Liberator.

Safety is assured because there is a switch in the hands of the guide on the hunt. The trigger on the joystick will not fire unless the safety switch is pressed at the same time. Not only does this prevent an accidental discharge, but it also assures that there will be no bad shots from the hunter. The guide can check the monitor to make sure the weapon is aimed precisely for a kill shot before clearing the weapon to fire.

Lowell resident Mike Chambers can testify to how well the system works. Chambers is 24 and is in a wheelchair from muscular dystrophy. He has grown up in a hunting family but does not have the arm strength to hold a gun or bow. Mike is constantly on the lookout for new and different ways for handicapped people to engage in sports and activities. He has been active with the Grand Rapids Eagles Disabled Sports Team for over a decade and is the current vice president of the group.

Angela Kline using the Liberator fitted with a cross bow.

Mike saw an article in the Grand Rapids Press about The Liberator last year and then met 25 year old Angela Kline of Sparta this summer. Kline, who has cerebral palsy, not only knew about the device, but had used it to hunt. This spurred Chambers to get in contact with Pete and ask if he could try it. Odland responded by arranging a hunt for Mike at Born’s Bucks in Caledonia. Naber’s Taxidermy Studio of Grand Rapids agreed to mount the deer at no charge if Mike should happen to get one.

Well he sure did get one. After spending one hour in a blind Mike zeroed in on the 19 point buck you see in the picture. The buck was 60 yards away which was a walk in the park for The Liberator. Pete confidently asserted me that the Thompson Center Encore rifle mounted in The Liberator is so accurate “you could drive tacks with it at 200 yards”. He went on to explain that the Thompson was chosen for several reasons including the fact that it fires a single shot, another safety feature, and that it can be fitted with 12 different barrels for different hunting situations.

Mike Chambers could barely contain his excitement about his first ever hunt.

“My thing is that I am always looking for outlets for the disabled community,” Chambers explained. “To find a guy like Pete and a device like The Liberator is just amazing.”

When asked if he had spent any time on target practice before bagging the buck, Mike bragged about the intuitive nature of the device and how the transition from his wheelchair joystick to the joystick of The Liberator was effortless. Pete confirmed that Mike caught on very quickly and was able to focus the sight on various objects from the blind almost immediately.

Able bodied, non-hunters might wonder, “What is all the fuss about?” The answer to that is found in the name: Liberator. This device provides the freedom for physically challenged people to “do it themselves”. The very design puts control back into the hands of those who feel they have lost any vestige of control over their lives.

Pete and Bob have only built three Liberators, but the stories coming in from those who have used them are incredibly inspiring. Recently a representative of The Hope Network told Pete the “rest of the story” about a young man he helped hunt. Prior to hunting, the young man was very withdrawn and kept to himself. It turns out that he was actually contemplating suicide until he had a chance to hunt. That day turned his life around – not only has he become a vibrant, contributing member to the group of handicapped people he meets with, but he is working on a law degree.

Pete Odland is a humble man. When he relates a story about an 18 year old who successfully realized his dream to hunt with his brothers thanks to his invention, he is not attempting to pat his own back. He is amazed at the fortitude and strength of the hunters he helps and is pleased that his talents can help them realize their dreams.

Pete informed me that the work he and Bob have done to create and improve The Liberator is not something they do seeking payment. That is simply not true. If you spend any time talking with him about the positive effect their work has had on people, you will understand my meaning. When you watch his face light up, his eyes sparkle (and sometimes fill with tears), then you know he is getting paid big time.

Darn right he is.

We cannot allow anyone to teach our children.

2010-11-07T11:25:00.000-08:00

There is a lot of fear out there in 'Merica about letting gay people have positions of authority with our children. Apparently the big fear is that all gay people MUST be pedofiles This is presumably based on some incidents which PROVE that all gay people (and especially gay males) are pedophiles.
So I put the tapes of my life on rewind - trying to recall if any of the guys who were teachers or leaders/teachers/mentors in my schools or other areas of my life as a kid ever tried to mess with me in a sexual way. Couple things came to mind.
First, the only male who ever did anything that I considered inappropriate was a guy named Eric who was my Big Brother briefly when I was in the 4th or 5th grade. Eric was all macho for sure - he was a star athlete at his high school and drove a cool hot rod old Ford (I think). Eric never put his hands in my pants or exposed himself, but he did like to wrestle with me ..... a lot. And I can remember one incident when he stayed on top of me for a long time and I became so upset that I ended up throwing a rock at him through a window in our house. When I told my mom WHY I threw the rock, I never saw Eric again.
Secondly, there was one summer that I was involved in the Hope College Summer Repitory Theatre. I was a 16 year old high school junior and a friend of our family pulled some strings so that I was one of 16 or 20 high school kids who were "apprentices" in this first rate summer theatre program that had many paid professionals from all over the country. It was a great learning experience - I had a freaking blast.
First, there were several gay men of various ages - from my own age group up to one guy who was probably in his late 40's or early 50's. We worked pretty much around the clock for weeks on end as we rehearsed and performed (yes, I had a couple bit parts - chorus in Oklahoma and a silent walk-on in Moliere's The Miser) several shows over the course of the summer. We had most Sundays off, but other than that there were lots of 10-14 hour days. We changed backstage and lived/worked in very close quarters. Nothing inappropriate ever transpired between myself and any of the gay males. One bit of irony is that the summer theatre took place at what used to be a very conservative, Christian college in Holland, Michigan.
While reviewing my life I did recall two incidents of teachers being caught with minor students. One occured in Tucson when a coach was caught in a van with an eighth grader. They were NOT reviewing team strategy or studying for mid-terms. Uhm, coach was a dude and the student was a girl.
The other came as no surprise to me. One of the male teachers at another high school I attended was busted for having some stuff going on with one of his students. Male teacher with female student. Again. I was hardly shocked because I recalled this guy being more of a letch than any of his teenage male students. You could see this guy ogling the girls as he taught us. I would watch him staring at the girls - trying to look up their skirts and/or down their shirts.
Using the mathematical formulation that applies to gay teachers it follows then sexual misconduct by male teachers toward female students must mean that we ought not let heterosexual men teach female students. If all gay male teachers are on the prowl for boys then all male heterosexual teachers must be on the prowl for the girls. Shoot, I have just given you two examples from my life.
Then I thought about several incidents lately of FEMALE teachers seducing their students that have popped up in the media. When we plug those incidents into the formula.... yup, you guessed it - oh crap - female heterosexual teachers must be on the prowl for their male students because these incidents clearly prove they are on the make.
Therefore, we can't have men or women who have any kind of sex coming into contact with the children in school.

Home schooling seems to be the only viable answer.

Or maybe we should just hire eunuchs and their female equivalents.

DISCLAIMER: Obviously I am trying to make a point about generalization.

Nicely done - the red herring of taxes.

2010-10-06T04:29:00.000-07:00

What a great job of sleight of hand.
What a wonderful Red Herring we are being served up.
With elections just a few weeks away, political strategists have played their trump card.
The goal to get us arguing about income taxes.
That way we might forget about:

A (unfunded) war that has been going on for 7-9 years.
The Wall Street heist.
Foreclosures.
Unemployment.
The widening gap between haves & have-nots in America.
The futility of The War on Drugs.
A real solution to immigration.
500 million barrels of oil in the Gulf.
Continuing sale of derivative stocks.
Any number of other real issues.

Conservatives point to Ronald Reagan as The One and love the notion of trickle down economics. Well, the author of Trickle Down under Reagan was David Stockman. I heard him interviewed last week and not only did he say any promise of "no new taxes for the middle class" on the part of President Obama would be impossible to uphold, he also said the Republican Plan was just so much air.

Who cares about reality when we can fight about taxes?

Ready - WRESTLE!

Are Corporations "evil"? Well, by their very make-up - Probably.

2010-10-06T03:28:00.000-07:00

This is inspired by a discussion I was a part of on Facebook. The subject was taxes and the left and right weighed in and at one point someone from the right asked someone from the left, "Are corporations evil? They employ people, etc etc."
I had an epiphany.
The very nature of a corporation is our undoing in the end. One of the main reasons, if not THE main reason corporations were created was to put distance between a real person and his/her business. The idea of forming a "corporation" is to keep my personal assets separate from those of my business. That way if something goes wrong, e.g. you fall in my store and break your leg - you can't sue me personally and take my motorcycle. The amount of damage you can do is limited to the assets of the corporation/store. (LLC = Limited Liability Corporation says it all.)
I suggest this very distance, especially when taken to the extreme of large, very large, and mega-corporations is the Achilles heel in the whole deal. Let me boil it down with a real world example.
My wife and I opened a literal "mom and pop" jewelry store in the small town of Lowell, MI almost 9 years ago. About 6 months after we opened a lady named Michelle opened a similar size operation on the other end of our town. Classic story of American competition: we were both after the same market providing essentially the same services: jewelry repair, jewelry design and construction, watches, watch batteries, clock and watch repair, etc.
While we were competitors, things were never ugly between us. We visited each others places of business and knew one another. Julie and I never bad mouthed Michelle and to my knowledge she never said bad things about us. While our products differed, our prices were very similar for key items. We both belonged to the Chamber of Commerce and were involved in the community in various ways. Long story short - Michelle closed her doors a little over two years ago. For a variety of reasons, including some health issues on her part, we came through the "competition" and remained open and Michelle did not. Julie and I are an LLC, but we are so small we have to engage in the community to survive. I have served on a variety of committees, we support local charity, etc etc.
On the other hand, Lowell has a rather large corporation which operates a retail outlet that does it all. Meijer started as a grocery store in Grand Rapids, but has grown into a chain of superstores in MI, OH, and IN. They were once mom and pop, but now are huge by comparison - their fine jewelry and watch department does in excess of 175 million a year in sales: about 700 times what our mom and pop generates.
Is Meijer evil?
I hesitate to label them as such because of the many good things they do in West Michigan. Their jewelry department employs a lot of (part time) people. However, when you look at their jewelry department and their involvement in Lowell, things are not so rosy. The Meijer approach to selling jewelry involves constant "sale" prices which are almost entirely fictional in nature. For instance, I monitored a period last year of 35 weeks and for most of those weeks all the fine jewelry in the store was marked 70% off with one week being 60% off.
If you think about it logically, there is no way short of a going out of business sale that a business could stay alive selling its merchandise for 70% off. NO WAY.
The way they do this is simple. Buy a pair of diamond earrings and assign them a "retail" value of $1,000.00 and have them on "sale" constantly for anywhere from $300 to $400 (60-70% off). The $1,000 price is a straw man - an illusion - they have never sold a pair of these earrings for that kind of money and never will for the simple reason that they are NOT $1,000 worth of diamonds. What they are is a pair of diamonds worth $300 to $400 and they are selling them for their full value. No one who does 175 million a year in sales can really sell anything at 60-70% off day in and day out.
Can you work for 60-70% less than your salary? Week after week after week?
The very distance a corporation provides allows them to do this. I own the business and I am the one across the counter who has to look my fellow human beings in the eye when I sell diamond earrings. I cannot in good conscience represent a $300 pair of earrings as being worth 1k - especially to people that I am engaged with on other levels.
The man or woman in charge of the jewelry department for Corporate Meijer does not have this problem. He or she buys inexpensive jewelry in India and China and assigns it a ridiculously high price and puts it on a never ending sale. He or she has such a distance from the end customer that this all makes sense somehow. It must be good, right? After all, the corporation does 175 million in jewelry and watch sales annually.
Julie and I do not play the mark it up to mark it down game. We might have a special time when our $1k pair of diamond earrings can be bought for $900 or maybe $800 but not very often because we cannot easily give away $100 or $200 out of our pocket in real money.
This is why corporations NEED to be regulated. In spite of my pleas, the Attorney General in Michigan will not do anything to stop what I believe to be deceptive advertising because apparently there is no law prohibiting constant "sale" prices.
Well, you say it is a FREE MARKET - no one has to buy there. True, but you would be surprised at the people who get sucked into believing they are buying $1k in jewelry for $300 when they are actually paying full price for a pair of $300 earrings. It is especially hurtful to watch a young man buying a ring for his sweetheart who thinks his $300 is buying a $1,000 engagement ring, when he is really paying full price for a $300 ring that was mass produced in a way to keep the price and quality very low.
The bigger the corporation gets, the more this type of thing can flourish. When Henrik Meijer started his grocery store, he didn't claim that his ten cent apple was really a 70 cent apple on sale for a dime. He was in immediate contact with his customers and would never have tried to deceive them like that nor would they have believed such rubbish decades ago.
I don't mean to single out Meijers - all the giant retailers do the same thing. I buy a lot of my jeans/pants at J C Penneys. They are ALWAYS on sale in some way, shape or form. I have learned that I am paying the full price for my pants when they are 40 to 50% off or Buy One Get One for a Penny or what ever other "sale" they are having. No one ever pays the full price for one pair of pants and gets nothing else for their money there. If you want to get a headache, read all the fine print on the big SALE flyers from Penneys and Macys - the fine print explains how the "regular" price is not really a price that means anything. A small business could never get away with that kind of malarky. Do you do business with a local bank? Do you sit next to your banker at the Rotary meeting or at Boy Scouts or do your kids play on a team together? Could such a banker sell you a derivative stock? Could he or she look you in the eye and get you to gamble your money on a mortgage made to someone who does not have the ability to repay it?
Probably not, but it is easy for someone hundreds or thousands of miles away to do so behind the screen afforded by corporate distance. The idea of forming a corporation is not bad in and of itself, but when corporations grow beyond the ability of the end consumer to actually look the person in charge in the eye, then things can get out of hand - and they do. Bigger is not always better, in my opinion.

How can I vote for a guy who spends a fortune for this job?

2010-09-24T14:41:00.000-07:00

Rick Snyder is running for governor of Michigan. Here is some of his campaign rhetoric from his website:

"It's time we reinvent state government so that it runs efficiently and serves its citizens as customers. Rick wants to restore ethics, accountability and transparency to state and local government. Rick believes we need a new approach to governing that is not politically motivated, but solution oriented. Rick wants to replace an antiquated bureaucracy with a government that gives taxpayers results for their tax dollars."

We are supposed to believe Rick ain't politically motivated, right?
How can I possibly believe that someone who spent 6 MILLION of his personal fortune in the PRIMARY election for a job that pays $177,000.00 plus expenses a year? He spent 33.89 times his potential annual salary on the primary election - does that make any BUSINESS sense to anyone? Does that make any common sense to anyone? Does that make any fiscal sense to anyone?

Nope - but it makes perfect POLITICAL sense, doesn't it?

Another reason I love Lowell: Pink Arrow Pride 2010

2010-09-10T08:06:00.000-07:00

For the last three years our HS football team has been a catalyst for fighting cancer on a local level. For one day the Lowell Red Arrows become Pink Arrows. The seed planted by Coach Dean has grown into a community wide fund raising extravaganza.

http://www.pinkarrowpride.org/index.html

All manner of fund raising takes place from gas stations to coffe shops. Thousands of Pink Arrow t-shirts are sold and the community rallies. The cool part is that some 60-65% of the money raised stays right here to help local families with members who are battling cancer.

This video done by staff members at the high school is a good indication of the support for this effort:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c9ODFloTL0

This kind of thing is why we encouraged our son and daughter in law to move out here and why we helped our daughter to start a coffee shop in Lowell. It is a great community.

Everything is partisan - even counting crowds!

2010-09-04T05:28:00.000-07:00

Is there no end to the political divide in this country? Does everything have to have a spin doctored by whomever is making or refuting a point by filtering information through their political agenda?
Glenn Beck had a rally a few days ago and claimed hundreds of thousands of attendees. Beck claimed a minimum of 300,00 to maybe as high as 650,000. Michelle Bachmann chimed in with certainty that there were over a million people there based on the fact the she was there. NBC news used the number 300,000 citing "an unnamed Park Service person" and the New York Times just ran with the NBC number. NPR took the "safe" route and went with "tens of thousands". (Don't you love it when the media giants cite each other as sources - saves all that pesky research!)
CBS News hired two experts to analyze airial photos taken by cameras on tethered balloons.One came up with 80,000 and another with 87,000 people with a plus or minus factor of 9,000 - so there could have been as few as 78k or as many as 96k. CBS went with the 87,000 number. The folks on the right side of the aisle went ballastic assuring everyone that the person(s) doing the counting was a dupe for the left, used poor methods, etc etc.
Funny thing is, one of the experts (the guy who came up with 80,000) was ASU professor Steve Doig. If we go back in time to President Obama's inauguration, we find Professor Doig coming under fire from the LEFT while his methods were supported and praised by the RIGHT.
Doig used the same methods when he did the count estimating the crowd attending the Obama inauguration and his number was much lower than the 1.8 million that seems to be going down in history. Professor Doig put that event at 800,000 a full million FEWER than the number that is widely quoted and well below the pre-event estimates that climbed as high as 5 million.
When the experts number came in low on a left-side-of-the-aisle event - the right touted his numbers with glee while the left howled about accuracy. Same guy using same methods pisses off both sides of the aisle. Here is how Doig summed it up when interviewed by Brooke Gladstone for "On The Media" (which is a great show - http://www.onthemedia.org/transcripts/2010/09/03/04):
Doig said, "Exactly the same methods produced exactly the opposite reaction from the different ends of the political stream."

Jane Goodall has pushed me too far.

2010-08-26T15:51:00.000-07:00

DISCLAIMER: I dig chimps and other primates and we ought not be testing shampoo, make-up, or any other toxic waste on them.

I grew up reading about Jane Goodall - I can remember reports about her work with chimps in the National Geographic we got at the house when I was but a wee one.
Just read an interview with her in the latest Readers Digest that tripped my freakin' trigger.

"RD: Can you sum up what you have learned from 50 years of living among the wild chimpanzees?

JG: A little humility. We humans are unique, but we're not as different as we used to think. Between chimps and humans, there is only about a 1 percent difference in DNA. Our biggest difference is our spoken language, which has enabled us to develop culturally in ways that chimpanzees have not."

Okay Jane - I gotta differ with you here. I can think of a lot of bigger differences other than our spoken language.
TOOLS: Yes, I know monkeys use tools - but how does licking a stick to get termites on it in order to eat the termites compare with uhmmm, something like constructing the Hoover Dam or the Great Pyramid or building satellites?
THE ARTS: Outside of a couple Clint Eastwood movies and some TV spots, what have chimps and primates really done artistically? Sure, give enough chimps paint and canvas and eventually you might end up with some pretty good Jackson Pollack knock-offs, but c'mon already. Look where they live - do they ever spruce it up with painting, sculpture, or mixed media creations?
MUSIC: While we have seen monkeys dance to hand-cranked organs, they really don't do much else musically. Do they sing? Can they play the cello? Do they even crank the organs? In my little music room I have a set of drums. Sure, given enough time and stimuli, some chimps MIGHT play the drums (maybe as well as I do), but there is an equal chance they will just set up shop in the kick-drum and make everything smell bad.
LITERATURE: You know the old saw about a monkey n a typewriter and enough time might equal great literature, etc. etc. However, monkeys and typewriters/word processors have been around each other for decades - have they produced anything remotely like Shakespeare? Or maybe even National Enquirer? Methinks NOT.
HYGIENE: Almost all of us have a really weird relative or neighbor or kid we went to school with, but do any of them poop in their hands and toss it at people? I bet even your silly cousin Gina doesn't groom you when she sits next to you at Thanksgiving dinner. What? She does? - Well, I bet she doesn't eat the bugs she picks offen ya!
The checklist here is enormous - have chimps built houses? Can they use GPS? Have they developed methods of preserving their food? Do they have systems in place to dispose of their waste? Refrigeration?
Are they active on Facebook or other social media sites??
Do they have shopping malls? Movie theatres? 500 foot waterslides down streets in Grand Rapids, Michigan? Sure - they can ride bikes in a circus for treats, but did they invent automobiles? Can they do their go-zintas? Any sign of recycling in their community?

With all due respect Ms Goodall - you are fulla beans.

Got Ants? Terro ant bait vs Raid - Terro wins big time.

2010-08-08T05:23:00.000-07:00

We always get some ants in the late spring/early summer at our house. It is an annual tradition. Usually they are around for a week or two and then they take off for parts unknown. This year they must have decided our house is a very, very, very fine house indeed. Found them in the sugar, they massed in the dishwasher, but when I poured out a few dozen of them along with my cereal one morning, I knew I had to draw a line in the sugar.
Time to poison the little bastiges.
On my weekly visit to the grocery store I was looking for ant killer and was trying to find a bottle of Terro liquid. The ONLY thing they stocked was the Raid Ant Bait thingies pictured here:

Since I had no choice, I bought some. I bought two boxes of 4 and followed the instructions by putting them in the ant paths I could see. Put one under the sink, up by the sugars, in the cereal cupboard, one in the corner in the dishwasher (with just 2 of us in the house now we only run it every 4-5 days) and several along the counter tops.
The Raid did diddly squat. I would be willing to testify that the ants flourished and multiplied with the Raid bait. Sometimes we would go to the kitchen to get something, come back and sit on the sofa and we would have ants on our hands and arms. On my next visit to a local hardware store I looked and all they had was Raid baits.
Happily about 5 days ago I was in a Target store and they had Terro ant bait:

Problem solved. I bought a six pack of the Terro and put them in the same places I had put the Raid bait. The first thing I noticed was that the dishwasher got almost totally cleared of ants within about 36 hours after putting the Terro bait in there.
5 days later and you have to look pretty hard to find any ants in the kitchen. Sugar and cereal are free from their little selves.
If you have ants, don't waster your time with Raid - go for the Terro.

What is the difference between Mel and Charlie?

2010-07-31T16:52:00.000-07:00

Without a doubt Mel Gibson has been digging himself into a pretty deep hole with his racial comments and misogynistic comments. Women all over the country are outraged - vowing to never again watch a Mel Gibson movie.
Meanwhile Charlie Sheen remains the highest paid actor on TV. The same Charlie Sheen who:

"Accidentally" shot his girlfriend Kelly Preston in the arm in 1990.
Knocked his girlfriend Brittany Ashland to the ground so hard she lost consciousness.
Was accused by his second wife of threatening to kill her with a knife. (Should we mention the affidavit signed by the nanny? Nah.)
Was arrested and taken to the slammer on Christmas Day in 2009 for assaulting his wife Brooke Mueller.
Who is not only a tad rough on the women in his life, but also is very big in the 9/11 Truth Movement, those folks who think the Bush administration was actually behind the attacks on 9/11.

Ladies - why aren't you tearing your hair out and threatening or boycotting Mr Sheen with the same amount of enthusiasm/vitriol that you do Mr Gibson?

This new financial stuff is so cool.

2010-07-22T12:03:00.000-07:00

WARNING: My sarcasm light is lit!

I am so glad that our government has taken control of banking so that things are much better for small business owners like Julie and I. The evidence of the crystal clarity and great deals directed at small businesses is arriving in the mail.
Just today I received an exciting offer from TransFirst/On Deck Capital which contains "Unique Solutions to Enhance Your Business". What it boils down to is a business loan - IF I use them for my credit card processing. It is a bundle deal. Because of our excellent credit history and business performance, we have been pre-approved for anywhere from 5,000 to 100,000 bucks.
NO INTEREST - that's right. Interest is a thing of the past. This new, deluxe offer informs me that "the cost of borrowing is referred to as cents on the dollar". That is way, way better than interest, right?
So here is the deal they offered: The cost of borrowing is only 19 to 30 cents on the dollar. Oh - and it is a fixed rate for 6 to 12 months. Oh yeah, on top of the "cents on the dollar" there is a $25 "monthly fee for servicing your account". Wait, there's more - a 2% origination fee. Did I mention that this great deal on the loan is predicated on our doing a minimum of 40 credit card transactions for at least $10,000 each month.
How cool is that? Man, I am so glad money is freed up for small business owners.
Let us suppose we agree to this madness and borrow 10 grand for a year. How much is it going to cost? Assuming we would not qualify for the best rate (because no one ever does) lets calculate based on the median of the "cents on the dollar" which would be 24.5 cents.

Loan principal                  $10,000.00
2% origination fee                   200.00
Monthly fee x 12                     300.00
24.5 cents on the dollar        2,450.00

Cost of loan                       $2,950.00 which works out to 29.50 "cents on the dollar".

(Shoot, I can get a better deal from the guy with the baseball bat that hangs out down by the river!)

Plus I have to let them have my credit card business. Funny thing - they don't mention their processing rates in the document they sent.
Well, I bet their rates are super low and designed to help my business succeed.
Thank you members of Congress for your gallant action on my behalf.

Hey - call me if this sounds good to you and I will give you the phone number to call.

Happiest Drain in the whole USA.

2010-07-02T18:24:00.000-07:00

One night as I was flossing n brushing before nigh-nigh, I noticed that our drain seemed to be smiling at me. I thought it was unusual, so I snapped this shot.

Of course, once I had taken this step, there were many times when

the drain was smiling up at me.

Over the course of the next several days I began to check the drain for smiles when I would shave or brush my teeth. These pictures are PROOF that our drain is the happiest drain in the whole USA.

Sometimes the drain manifests a nose -

Sometimes the smiley face is wearing a patch -

Our drain seems to be telling us to smile - and the whole world will smile with us.

What is your drain saying to YOU?

Farm Subsidies - American Socialism. The good kind.

2010-05-20T10:25:00.000-07:00

When I first heard the words "farm subsidies" I figured it was money that was available to help farmers out when they get in a jam. Before we go on, I would like to point out that I live and work in a rural environment. Julie and I are lucky enough to be able to buy corn, honey, apples, maple syrup, eggs, and other items from a FARMER right across the street. We have a farm market in Lowell on Thursdays and there are probably 6-10 farm stands with various products between our home and our shop. We like buying right from the source for a couple reasons. First, you can't get produce that tastes better unless we grow it ourselves. Secondly, we like to directly support farmers and their families.
Back to subsidies for farmers - a little investigation reveals that these federal tax dollars are not going to help Josh across the street when his tractor breaks or his chickens become ill with something. It seems that the bulk of the subsidies go to huge farming corporations.
Spend some time looking here if you are so inclined: EWG Farm Subsidy Database Read the Subsidy Primer for a quick education about them. This website tells you a lot in terms of where the money goes and it breaks it down by State, County, Congressional District, and tells you who the top recipients are in any given state, etc.
All kinds of political double talk surround farm subsidies. You might recall Rick Perry, Governor of Texas, saying his state might secede from the Union because of the tax and spend mess in Washington. His cries of "socialism" sure fired up Tea Party members. One wonders how corporate farmers in Texas will get along without the MILLIONS AND MILLIONS they have received in Farm Subsidies. Texas is the top money getter in this social program - having received 9.3% of ALL monies given out from 1995 to 2009 - the total amounts to over 22 BILLION dollars in that time period! We can't have health care for every one, but we can drop a few BILLION to giant corporate farms? Lahey Farms Partners in Texas collected $795,140 in 2009 alone.
Hey Gov Perry - shut the hell up, okay? Or better yet, go ahead and secede AFTER you send US back our 22 Billion and change.
How about that Michele Bachmann - a US Representative from Minnesota. She was hollering all over the place about the socialization of health care. Blah blah blah. She makes 174k a year as a member of Congress and has one of the best medical plans on the planet. She has no truck with socialism.....well, except when it comes to the family farm of which she has an interest. The Bachmann farm has sucked just over a QUARTER OF A MILLION dollars from us tax payers from 1995-2006. Her annual income from her share of the farm has risen from a paltry 2k to near 50k. Someone ought to toss her in the harbor.
Chuck Grassley is a senator from Iowa. Grassley famously changed his tune on health care reform and was quoted saying things about "pulling the plug on Grandma." Funny thing - Iowa is #2, right behind Texas in having a hand in the Federal pocket for farm subsidies. Is it any wonder that Grassley's family farm has realized almost 1 MILLION dollars from farm subsidies over the last 11 years? Grassley himself has supplimented his $174k salary and bennies with $238,974 in subsidy money. His son; $699,248 (that is $63,568 a freakin' year). His grandson is following along with $5,964 in 2005 and $2,363 in 2006.
The list of farm subsidy recipients covers BOTH sides of the aisle for sure. Donkeys are gobbling at the trough right alongside the elephants. I just find it especially interesting that some of those most adamant about "free markets" and who HOWL at the very hint of socialized medical care that would cover EVERYONE with subsidies from tax money don't seem to mind socialism in their own check book.

More information on the Congressional race round here.

2010-05-13T19:15:00.001-07:00

The local view for my Congressional District

2010-05-13T19:14:00.001-07:00

Check it out.

2010-05-13T19:10:00.001-07:00

Elvis is ALIVE and dishing out bucks from Nigeria.

2010-05-08T04:11:00.000-07:00

Party @ My House. I am gonna be a millionaire. Elvis said so! (With that impressive list of references this must be for real.)
Just got this email today:
This is just a short true note about your unpaid fund, so you need to relax and read very well to your best understanding.

I am Mr Adeakunle Elvis. a computer scientist working with central bank of Nigeria. I am 25 years old, just started working with C.B.N. I came across your file which was marked X and your released disk painted RED, I took time to study it and found out that you have paid VIRTUALLY all fees and but the fund was not released to you.
The most annoying thing is that they won't tell you the truth that on no account will they ever release the fund to you,instead they allow you spend money unnecessarily, I do not intend to work here all the days of my life, I can release this fund to you if you can certify me of my security and assure me that when I make the release, you will settle me .
I needed to do this because you need to know the status of your Funds and cause for the delay, Please this is like a Mafia setting in Nigeria, you may not understand it because you are not a Nigerian. The only thing needed to release this fund is the Original Anti drug/terrorist clearance certificate which will be tendered to any of your nominated bank and the INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE(IRS) for clearance of the transfered amount in your account.
nce the Original Anti drug /terrorist clearance certificate is obtained funds will immediately reflect in your bank within 10 Minutes, the certificate is all that is needed to complete this transaction. The only authorized person who will issue you your Original document is Mr. Shelton D. Johnson and his personal Phone number is +234 7034 3297 84
Before you call him, I want you to know that you cannot get the certificate for free, as he will not even want to give you but if you indicate your file to him, he will understand.
Please Note: when contacting him, do not/ never tell him I was the one, just make sure you indicate your file letter X and tell him painted color Red so that he would recognise your file.
Note that the actual funds is valued at $15.5 MILLION USD and the president made a compensation fund release for all unpaid beneficiary valued at $10 million usd.
Therefore, you will not be able to receive your Original initial fund but the sum of $6 million will be transfered to you as soon as sthe original documents is cleared.
Listed below are the mafia's and banks behind the non release of your funds that i managed to sneak out for your kind persual.
1) Prof. Charles soludo
2) Chief Joseph Sanusi
3) Dr. R. Rasheed
4) Barrister Awele Ugorji
5) Mr Roland Ngwa
6) Barrister Ucheuzo Williams
7) Mr. Ernest Chukwudi Obi
8) Dr. Patrick Aziza Deputy Governor - Policy / Board Member
9) Mr. Tunde Lemo Deputy Governor - Financial Sector Surveillance / Board Member
10) Mrs. W. D. A. Mshelia Deputy Governor - Corporate Services / Board Members
11) Mrs. Okonjo Iweala
12) Mrs. Rita Ekwesili
13) Barr Jacob Onyema
14) Dr. Godwin Oboh: Director Union Bank Of Nigeria.
15) Mr John Collins: Global Diplomat Director.
16) Foreign fund diplomatic courier
17) Barr. Becky Owens
18)Rev. Steven Jones
19) bank of Africa
20)Mrs. Debbie Hargrove
21)Mr. Micheal Wagner
22) ADB Bank Ouagadougou Burkinafaso
23) FSA UK
24) NATWEST BANK
25) ECO Bank
26) Credit Bank

Do get in touch with me immediately to conclude this final transaction immediately,and also send to me your convenient tel/fax numbers for easy communications.

Regards,
Mr Elvis Adekunle

Woolies - join me as we flee the Great Conflagration.

2010-04-22T18:29:00.000-07:00

Are You A Woolie?

Something wonderful, challenging, and marginally scary has happened to yours truly. Through a series of (divine) internet coinkydinks and a voice that spoke to me out of my showerhead, I have made Chuck Woolery my Life Sensei Definitely (LSD). Why Chuck? Brothers and sisters, the REAL question is Why Not Chuck? Who better to steer us around and through the Coming Great Conflagration (CGC) than a beloved television star? (Besides, Tom Cruise is following his own path.)

Look, you either get it or you don't. You are IN or you are out. One of us or not. Fer us er agin us.

After imbibing a mixture peculiar to the tribes of the Lake Erie Delta (consisting of 2 parts Nuge Java to 1 part cough syrup chased with a Wonder Lab sublingual B-12 vitamin) the Three Angels appeared to me out of The Heavenly Contrail (THC). No, not Kate, Farrah, and Jaclyn - these angels are The Real Deal (TRD): Kling, Klang, and Kush (a friendly purple being). They gave me the Majick Headphones through which I could hear the voice of Chuck.
Time and space and the associated continuum prohibit me from sharing Everything Chuck shared with me, but I can start with the First Part (FP): I am to be The Annointed & Appointed Leader (Betty, you can call me AAL) of the Woolies. It is my job to gather His Phlox together and lead them to the Safety Zone (SZ) for protection during the CGC.
FYI: CGC = bad times ahead for All True 'Mericans (ATMs). As socialism rears its ugly haid, what with mandatory Healthcare, a 97% Value Added Tax (VAT), internment camps for ATMs, possible equal pay for wimmen, and who knows what all Real Bad Things (RBTs).
Thus Spake Chuck: ATMs are to band together and proceed to the SZ ASAP to best flee RBTs. For reasons known only to Chuck, and possibly his once and future wife Joann Pflug, the SZ is located in the heart of Humboldt County.
Are You With Chuck? Search your hearts.....

Healthcare for everyone UnConstitutional? Which Constitution are you reading?

2010-03-22T14:39:00.000-07:00

A lot of the hue and cry against the recent healthcare legislation is tied up in the claim that such legislation is unconstitutional. Personally, I am disappointed with the just passed legislation because I wish it had gone further and established National Health Care. One set of rules for the whole country. One insurer. One payer. Same set of rules from MA to CA. Call me a commie and a socialist (sticks n stones, etc) but that is what I believe is the only answer to the quagmire that is our current health care.
Back to the issue: I only went to high school (but it was a good high school) and even I can find some stuff in the constitution that might speal directly to nationalized healthcare:
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
Hmmm - "form a more perfect union". We have the only developed union (i.e. country) that allows its people to go bankrupt caring for sick family members. The United States stands alone as the only developed nation that does NOT nationalize its health care. So all of the other teams are wrong and we have it right? How bloody arrogant. We can do better. In my opinion our union of states would be more perfect if the high cost of getting sick and/or well was something we addressed collectively as a nation with nationalized healthcare.

"insure domestic tranquility" - my life and the lives of many of my friends would be more tranquil if we didn't have to worry about life savings, nest eggs, and homes being lost to the battle of trying to pay for sick people. We like to jump all over this part ot justify the 663.8 BILLION dollar defense budget, but I would ask to apply the same kind of money to helping the sick recover without draining entire families of their life savings.
"promote general welfare" - jeez, don't have to take this one very far to justify national healthcare do we? One does not need to twist the rhetoric here IMHO. What is more general to welfare than being cared for when sick? Why do we have to fear the devastating FINANCIAL effects of disease/sickness in addition to the devastation of the disease/sickness itself? How bloody stupid to live in a country with some of the best health care on the planet and not use it to promote the general welfare in a serious way.
Guess it is all in how you wanna INTERPRET these words. Current interpretation says while it is okay to spend billions insuring domestic tranquility via billion dollar bombers that don't fly or bomb anything and $640 "military grade" toilets, it is NOT okay to spend that kind of money keeping people from dying and/or ease their suffering. In addition to being unconstitutional, that is arguably moronic and possibly immoral.
"Article 1 Section 8. The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States;"
There is that pesky "general welfare" thing again. Why did the Founders put that kind of liberal, socialistic language in there if they didn't want us to act on it? So we can spend tax bucks on tanks and NOT spend them to learn about and defeat the ravages of cancer, AIDS, diabetes....(pick your killer of choice)? We can help military defense contractors like Blackwater/Xe roll in money and yet we worry about some one getting health care who can't pay for it? I cannot follow or buy into that line of thinking.
Personally I think it is unconstitutional to think that the Founders would want anything less than Nationalized Health Car

There are some positive things happening in Michigan.

2010-02-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

BuyMichiganNow.com is one of my favorite websites. (So much so that I recently researched and wrote a story for them about Litehouse foods in Lowell: http://www.buymichigannow.com/news.php?action=news_full&id=126)

Lisa at BuyMichiganNow is one of the driving forces behind getting people to understand the economic impact spending our money on Michigan produced food items has. If we all spend just $10 of our weekly food budget on things produced in Michigan, then 37 Million dollars a week stays in our economy! So get out there and buy food, beer, wine, dairy products, cereal, vegetables and other Michigan consumables.

Anyway, Lisa just put up some GOOD news about Michigan on her website: http://www.buymichigannow.com/news.php?action=news_full&id=127

Hmm, no one was at the park today....

2010-02-07T15:15:00.000-08:00

It was a blistering 24 degrees today, so I steered Newt toward the park by the river so we could cool off. Hmmm, no one else was there so we had the picnic tables all to ourselves. Wish I had brought some charcoal and animal parts to grill.

We scooted around the paved trail down by the Grand River. No swimmers or fisherman.

Checked my mirror and no one was behind me either.

No too many soccer players on the field today.

Tried to make it up this hill through a drift of snow. When we came to rest in the deep snow it was coolio - the heat from the engine and exhaust melted the snow and I was surrounded by steam. I crab-walked the bike back down the hill a little to get the shot.

We do not give up. Made it on the second attempt. After about 45 minutes of horsing around it was time to head home - my feetsies were getting cold.

Want to "fix" Michigan - don't look to Lansing.

2010-02-04T07:46:00.000-08:00

I read the story about Republican legislators visiting Lowell last week with ideas on how to fix Michigan with some interest. I could not attend because I had to work.
Might I suggest that the answer is not going to come from Lansing? These gentlemen are members of the same Republican party that voted themselves the biggest pay raise in history when they were in control of the government in our state. Our legislators are the second or third highest paid in the country while our state economy has been in the bottom 5 for the last 5-10 years. When our economy officially tanked at the end of 2008, these same legislators (both parties) took the "impressive" action of a pay cut - to take effect in 2011. What joke. How nice to have a guaranteed salary while the state economy goes down the toilet.
Before any democrats reading this get too smug, let me remind you that your lady has been running our state since 2003. Enough said?
My point is this - I am not looking for answers from men and women who vote themselves raises with our tax money and enjoy one of the best health care plans available. Just think - if they stick it out for 6 years, then they can enjoy said health care for the rest of their lives.
What can we do to rescue Michigan? How about looking to places like BuyMichiganNow.com? If everyone directed just $10 a week of their grocery budget to food produced in Michigan, it keeps $37 million dollars in the state. Buy cereal from Kellogg's; buy dressings from Litehouse; buy milk, beer, and wine that is produced in our state. Eat potatoes from Michigan. Purchase bread made locally. If we all do that to the tune of a $10 bill we keep MILLIONS in our state every week. More and more of the products in the stores are clearly labeled.
I am not suggesting that loading up on Michigan made products will solve all our problems, but it is a way all of us can make a huge difference. Supporting local, regional, and Michigan based businesses just requires common sense - something rare in Lansing.

Chelsea Winkelman demonstrates focus and consistency.

2010-02-01T05:58:00.000-08:00

When Grand Haven bowling coach Patrick Mitchell talked with us regarding Chelsea Winkelman the words “focus” and “focused” entered the conversation numerous times. Mitchell even went so far as to say that her focus was the strongest part of her game.

“Chelsea is a competitor,” Mitchell said. “When she gets locked in it is like watching a robot. She is probably the most focused one on the team.”

Focus and consistency are two attributes that separate great bowlers from the good ones. They have paid off for Chelsea, a junior, in the fact that she rolled a conference high single game score last season with a 276 and is currently leading the conference with a 259. Her concentration helps her keep her average consistently in the 180 to 190 range. Don’t get the impression that Winkelman is off in her own little world when she is bowling – she combines her attention to detail with a great deal of team spirit and is not shy when it comes to cheering on the rest of the Bucs.

Chelsea got involved with bowling when her friend, and fellow Buccaneer bowler, Meranda Helder talked her into getting into a league. Chelsea had so much fun it was an easy step to try out for the school team. She and Meranda, along with Mariah Olthof and Ashley Lacey, make up the core of the Bucs team. The fact that all four of them are juniors is a blessing and a curse for Coach Mitchell. He is glad to have had them all on the team together for the past three years, but he knows it is going to be a sad day when they all graduate.

Chelsea summed up her attitude toward her favorite sport early on in our conversation when she said, “I just love it.”

She loves every aspect of the sport and bowls as much as she can in her free time. Chelsea made it clear that she is “a bowler for life” and shares her enthusiasm with her younger teammates – she has even been working with some middle school bowlers lately. Chelsea is very appreciative of her coach and his wife Angela who helps with the team. Pat Mitchell has bowled professionally and works for Brunswick. He imparted some wisdom to us about how the way lanes are oiled can make a big difference in a team’s performance. This is one reason why some teams can do great at their home lanes and suffer when they travel. He has taught Chelsea and the rest of the Bucs how to “read” and respond to oil patterns. His insight is greatly appreciated.

“We are quite fortunate to have a coach like Pat. We have learned so much,” Chelsea stated. “Without him I don’t think I would be as good as I am today.”

Chelsea is the only member of the Winkelman family who bowls. But her mom assured me that they enjoy watching her compete – even her Grandma and Grandpa Yonkers have been known to show up to root for her. Chelsea does possess another skill set which is easier to track in the family gene pool: she and her mother, Sue, are both singers.

Chelsea sings first soprano and is a section leader in the concert choir at Grand Haven. She has also been recruited to sing in the ten member worship band at her church; Covenant Life in Grand Haven.

One of the things Sue most appreciates about her daughter is the positive energy she brings to “life in general”. Apparently it takes quite a bit to get Chelsea into a down mood. Her mom commended Chelsea for her compassion and the way she is both helpful and inclusive of others in any kind of social setting. Sue illustrated her point by relating how Chelsea was in elementary school with a young man challenged with cerebral palsy. When she would read aloud to him it gave him comfort and calmed him down.

Chelsea labeled herself “a math geek” and related that Algebra II is her favorite class because Mr. Mauro is a “great teacher who explains everything and makes it fun”. As you might expect from such a focused young lady, Chelsea has a plan for life after high school. She will get her core classes done at MCC and then transfer to GVSU to become either a teacher or counselor for elementary students. We can only imagine she will do well in either capacity.

Great date night - dinner, percussion, and chocolate.

2010-01-10T08:27:00.000-08:00

Great times are there to be had in our own backyard(s). Julie and I finished up at the store, came home to walk the dog and prep for our night with the Grand Rapids Symphony http://www.grsymphony.org/ - with special guest Dame Evelyn Glennie.
We started with a visit for dinner at Marco New American Bistro at Forest Hill and Cascade Roads. http://www.marcobistro.com/ I went with French Onion soup and a wonderful House salad - and we split "gratin exotic mushrooms baked in herbed mushroom broth, fontina and asiago cheese". Double yum. Neither of us drank since we were heading out and we didn't have time for dessert, but we enjoyed everything our own Ella Bella set before us (she makes a mean Long Island Ice Tea, by the way).

This would be Ella.

Before reading the program, neither of us realized just how wonderful a job the GR Symphony has been doing the last few years - gaining national recognition and Grammy nominations. They were on their game last night and percussionist Glennie brought the house to it's feet for a sustained Standing Ovation at the end of the Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra by Joseph Schwantner. Glennie is fantastic to watch and listen to her work her magic.
Wow - she started the Concerto working a kit behind the orchestra which made it hard for us to see her since we were seated in Row E, stage right. But during the second movement she came up from to play a selection of intruments there and we could see everything since she was 15-20 feet away. Wow. Wow.
She is something else. If she ever is in your area, I recommend you take the time to experience her talent in person. http://www.evelyn.co.uk/Evelyn_old/homepage.htm

When the concert concluded, we felt a need for chocolate so we hiked a few blocks to Tre Cugini - a fantastic Italian restaurant in downtown Grand Rapids that Julie introduced me to on our wedding night. http://www.trecugini.com/index.html We wanted dessert and we found one: Sfogliata di cioccolato al’amaretto - which is "Chocolate sheets filled with amaretto chocolate mousse." Three thin sheets of dark chocolate are stuck in the mousse diagonally across your plate with raspberry sauce on one side and chocolate sauce on the other. This will ALMOST cause a Chocolate OD. Almost.
Since we had just enjoyed musical talent from and about Scotland, I thought it was fitting to suppliment my dessert with Bonnie Prince Charlie's elixir: Drambuie. http://www.drambuie.com/ I have enjoyed Drambuie on the rocks for years - but up until last night had never had it along with chocolate. The combination is fantastic - to take a sip of Drambuie with the melted chocolate still floating around your mouth is wonderful.
Arrived home completely satisfied after a great night on the town with my best girl.

B. Nektar Mead: Something else to love from MICHIGAN.

2010-01-04T17:32:00.001-08:00

Julie Claire surprised me with a bottle of B. Nektar Mead - specifically one of their bottles of Tupelo Honey Mead (limited supply, but still available http://www.bnektar.com/). Very, very delicious. Not too sweet, but sweet enough. Yummy for my tummy.
Thanks Julie Claire!

Fun in Cleveland - born again in 3D.

2010-01-04T16:41:00.000-08:00

Wheew - me n the Jules celebrated 4 years of marriage at the Mecca of the Midwest: Cleveland. we had a great time. Stayed 3 nights at the Hyatt in the Arcade. Right downtown.

Maria took good care of us - we had some problems at check in, but she came through - got things straightened out and helped make the stay great. John works out in front of the hotel and he is a HOOT. He sings, smiles, salutes and generally makes you feel good - and he was doing this when it was snowing and 15 freakin' degrees!

http://cleveland.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp

FYI - the Hyatt has a Chocolate Bar restaurant attached to the North end (on Euclid). Julie and I had a desert there every night for 3 nights. Like chocolate - then you gotta go there. We started our three days with some fun at the Pickwick and Frolic Bar - they have a comedy club downstairs (Hillarities) and we caught the early show on NYE with Sebastian Maniscalco as the headliner.

He and the other two comedians did a fantastic job. I thought Julie was going to pass out from laughing so hard. We caught Sebastian on HBO when he was part of the Vince Vaughn Wild West Comedy Tour. If you get a chance, see him - http://sebastianlive.com/

The next day we spent HOURS at the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. Fantastic. Loved it. Best $22 bucks I have spent in ages. As part of our admission we got to see U2 3D. 1 hour and 20 minutes of their Vertigo concert tour in South America. This movie kicked my butt - it was a spiritual experience. Tremendous. To see thousands of kids rocking out and singing along to the positive message U2 brings tore me up. The 3D stuff was a bonus - it had me from the very first time we swooped in over Larry and his drum kit. When Clayton swung his bass around you almost want to duck. Best concert film I have ever seen - it just took the top spot from Stop Making Sense. If you get a chance to see it - DO IT. http://www.u23dmovie.com/

The Hall of Fame is great. You can even see the very piano upon which Ian Hunter wrote his defense of Cleveland:"Cleveland Rocks" - yes it sure does.

Did I mention the Museum of Art? Our visit to Little Italy and the Pennello Gallery?
http://www.pennellogallery.com/ Or the KILLER food and pastries we got in Little Italy? If you go make sure you hit Presti's Bakery and Cafe 12409 Mayfield Rd.Cleveland, Ohio 44106
The pastries and cookies there will knock your socks off.

Did I mention we traveled in a 63 foot diesel/electric hybrid bus? 5 bucks each and we could ride it all day. Took us out to the Art Museum and Little Italy.

Saturday night we got together with an old friend of mine (she and Julie FINALLY got to meet each other). It was great to see Diane - yup, we took her to the Chocolate Bar and she got pretty happy with some espresso and a plate of decadence! Cleveland Rocks for sure.

Riding motorcycles is fun - ANYTIME.

2009-12-28T14:22:00.000-08:00

Twas the day after Christmas with snow all around - perfect conditions for a ride on Newt, my trusty 1982 Yamaha XT550. Newt is complete with about 40 carbide steel studs in each tire.

Aptly named road to ride on such a day, no?

Temps were in the lower 20's, but it was a BLAST.

Sleeping Lawyer - too bad it's TRUE.

2009-12-02T15:39:00.001-08:00

Wrote this in 2002 and the San Antonio Current published it. Somewhat scary:

http://www.sacurrent.com/columns/story.asp?id=55666

Ian Hunter - 70 and still rockin'.

2009-11-16T15:16:00.000-08:00

Ianspirational - he is that.

I was fooling around on Rhapsody and uncovered a gem of an album that I used to listen to alla time: "Short Back n Sides" by the one and only Ian Hunter. Been listening to it all over again along with some of his work with Mott The Hoople.

Little did I know that he is still at it - in fact he JUST released a new album last month, and the Young Dude is now 70! The new album is "Man Overboard" - if you liked Ian back when we were all a little younger....then you will probably enjoy the new one. A couple of my faves from the new one are "Babylon Blues" and "Great Escape".

Way to go Ian. The picture below was taken in 2007 at a festival in England. Looking good.

Riffing on the War(s) - things to think about.

2009-11-08T23:41:00.000-08:00

Random thoughts to ponder about the war(s) in Iraq/Afghanistan/Pakistan:

4,359 miltary people have died in Iraq and over 31,000 have been wounded.
The number of civilian deaths range from 87,000 to over 100,000.

Cost of the war since 2001: 929 billion and climbing. (http://www.costofwar.com/)

Blackwater (now Xe) corporation has made over one trillion dollars since 2004 in Iraq.
Charges the gubment $900 a day for mercenaries - pays them $350 a day (example taken from mercenaries hired after Hurrican Katrina - maybe they pay them more overseas).
A corporal with 3 years service in the Army makes 19,980 a year.
Blackwater/Xe charges that much in 22.2 days for a mercenary.
A Blackwater/Xe mercenary makes that much for working approximately 57 days.

I met a lady in our store who made thousands of dollars a week to drive a truck in Iraq.
I have read stories where families of our troops need to collect food stamps to eat.
Eric Prince and Blackwater/Xe are making millions and millions.
Our troops cannot feed their families and people in the richest nation in the world cannot afford healthcare, but the private army receives millions and millions.

According to Wall St Journal and others we have sent 11 Billion dollars to Pakistan since 9/11 in order for that country to drive out terrorists - including the Taliban.
New York Times reporter David Rohde was kidnapped and held prisoner by the Taliban for seven months. They kept him in Pakistan where he found "a Taliban mini-state that flourished openly and with impunity...even had superior roads, electricity, and infrastructure."
Rohde was held prisoner in a building the Pakistani government built to serve as a "health clinic."

I find it interesting that Glenn Beck never served in the military.
Rush Limbaugh never served in the military.
Neither did Dick Cheney.

If you have not seen it yet, you need to watch the movie "War, Inc."

The best support we can give to our troops is to bombard Washington with demands that the wars be stopped. If we cannot afford healthcare for people who need it, then we surely cannot afford these wars.

Okay, so I am a little late to the White Stripes party.

2009-10-29T04:34:00.000-07:00

Better late than never sez I. In my defense I gotta say that I bought "7 Nation Army" from Rhapsody a couple years ago. Happened to catch Jack n Meg on some old Jules Holland show (gotta love that On Demand stuff you can find when you look on Comcast) and I really liked watching/listening to 2 people make all that noisy music so I started listening to more of them on Rhapsody. I'm in!

now if I can only get them to appear with The Hard Lessons somewhere next summer.....heaven!

The Little Things Help.

2009-10-12T17:20:00.000-07:00

Had a great day. Fixed a leaky shower faucet AND my Yamaha - all in the same day.

I get such a feeling of victory when I can complete a plumbing repair. I get frustrated and cuss like a sailor, but when things work I feel like I got one over on The Man (who ever that is!).

Been fiddling with this Moen single handled faucet over the past two weeks. Moen sent me a new cartridge FREE in the mail - they mean it about their lifetime warranty.

Put it in this morning. Trouble. Slow dribble instead of a leak and the water didn't run much at all. Talked to a nice lady on their 800# help line. She told me what to do, I did and it worked!

On a roll now - My winter motorcyle, a 1982 Yamaha XT550, has been having electrical problems. Like the light doesn't work. Took off the seat and side covers and the battery was corroded at both terminals. AND the water was way down. Topped it off with distilled water and cleaned the terminals.Was it going to be that easy? Fired Newt up and ........ NOPEY, no lights except the brake light.

Based on all the directions/suggestions given I decided to try finding a loose connection - specifically a loose ground. (black wire, right?!) well after 45 minutes or so, I found the problem area up front. The ground wire in this pigtail was not connecting well, I could shake it and the light would come on. Newt and I took a spill on the ice last winter and I am pretty sure this is when things got screwed up. The fall did some damage to the LR turn signal and broke the cover that was over the offending pigtail.

In looking around I also found a nut missing off of a bolt that holds the LF turn signal onto the headlight assembly. Ran up to the hardware, got a new bolt AND 2 new 6mm screws for attaching the side covers and some 3M electrical tape. Opened the pigtail up, pushed the loose ground part back into position - gave all the connections a light spritz with WD-40 and then carefully taped the pigtail to the little area where the cover broke off. Taped it over with several layers and sealed top and bottom with liquid tape. Replaced the missing nut and .................. BINGO.Took Newt for a spin and he is back to normal. The lights on the speedo and tach both work (haven't had that for quite some time) ALL the turn signals work, running light, brake light and hi AND low beam on the headlight all work. Whooo-hooooo!

Leni Truong - The Cheerleader who isn't one.

2009-10-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

Leni (pronounced “lie-knee”) Truong hit the nail directly on the head when she described herself as “the biggest cheerleader who isn’t a cheerleader”. While the Kellogsville senior may not be an official member of the Rockets cheerleading squad per se, the positive attitude Leni brings to her school in general and the volleyball team specifically has garnered the attention and appreciation of coach Mindy Wert.
“She is so positive,” Wert commented. “She cheers herself hoarse when she is not in the game.”
Wert has coached Truong for three years; one on the JV team and two on varsity. While Leni is not a starter, she is still considered a team leader by the coach because of her helpful, dependable day to day performance. Her teammates must share the coach’s opinion about leadership, because they elected Leni to be one of the captains this season.
“Leni is basically like an assistant to me,” Wert continued. “She is right there telling the other players exactly what I would say.”
Truong started playing volleyball her freshman year when a friend talked her into trying out. It was her first experience with a team sport competing against other teams and she loves it. Her favorite part of volleyball is working together toward a common goal: winning. Coach Wert assured us that Leni is a great example of good sportsmanship, but there is no doubt that she is competitive.
“I love to win,” Leni said with conviction. “I am all for the win, because when the team wins – we all win!”
Truong carries that same degree of enthusiasm into the rest of her school life. As a member of the K-Crew she travels with the football team wearing school colors and supporting the Rockets with both lungs. She has been involved in TAP (Teens Against Poverty) since the inception of the group three years ago. TAP members raise money for local ministries and conduct food drives to benefit people in need locally and as far away as Darfur. Leni loves science classes, her current fave is anatomy, and she studies hard which has paid off with a GPA of 4.327. She plans to attend the U of M to study pre-med.
When asked where she felt her studies would lead in terms of a career, Leni told us that she has debated between being a pediatrician and a plastic surgeon with plastic surgery being the current leader. Before we could comment on our perception of a big difference between the two she went on to explain that the type of plastic surgery she wants to specialize in would be reconstructive. Her goal would be to help those recovering from accidents or burns – with an emphasis on children.
Leni was elected President of the senior class after serving in a similar capacity as a junior. She presides over the 20 member student Congress which has helped her hone her diplomatic and leadership skills as she listens to the various ideas from members and tries to create a consensus. The Congress meets four to five times a month, more often around Homecoming and Prom, so she has plenty of opportunity to perfect the art of working with and leading a group.
As we were talking, Leni wanted to make sure she mentioned the most important people in her life. She is very proud of her mom, Helene, who is raising Leni and her brother Richard as a single parent. “I just love her for that,” Leni declared.
She also mentioned her “amazing best friend Aubrie Jarema”. She and Aubrie have been best friends since the third grade, but it has not always been smooth sailing.
“We fight all the time, but in the end we are always there for each other,” Leni explained.
In addition to coaching volleyball, Mindy Wert is the secretary for the Rocket athletic department which brings her into contact with most of the staff members at the High School. She reported that they all have positive things to say about Leni.
“The first thing I hear about her from staff members is usually, ‘Oh, I love Leni,’” Wert said. “I have never heard anything bad about her from anyone. She will definitely do well in life.”
We couldn’t agree more.

On Healthcare: "Yes we can" becomes "No, I guess not."

2009-09-30T03:36:00.000-07:00

Sent this message (or a slight variation) to the Prez and my two Senators:

A Democratic president was put in office under the banners of "change" and "Yes we can". The Democrats control both the House and Senate and yet the current legislation on healthcare sends a clear message to me - "We cannot change the current mess that is our healthcare system."
Obviously the effect of lobbying millions from Pharma et al mean more to you and your fellow members of Congress than effecting any real change. No public option on the table? No move toward a single payor easily transported plan?
What a joke.
What a disappointment.

Stuff That Works: a review of Tomahawk Tires.

2009-09-25T01:19:00.000-07:00

I wrote this product review for the BMW MOA Owners News 4 years ago:

Getting through this product evaluation might be a challenge for some of you, but please keep your mind open enough to read it completely. Tomahawk tires are re-manufactured, or as the president of the company likes to say “re-moulded”. Do not confuse Tomahawks with re-caps for the simple reason that these tires have been re-moulded onto a used tire core from “bead to bead” including the sidewalls. They are not merely capped with new rubber in the middle of the tire. Before I get carried away with the technology that goes into a set of Tomahawks, let me tell this story in a somewhat chronological manner.
I spend a lot of time on the web and a good amount of my playtime there is spent on the BMW MOA web forum. Just for fun I started a couple of threads to see what my fellow web-riders reaction to the notion of riding on re-manufactured tires might be.
The feedback was almost all negative. Here are some samples: “I would never entrust [my life] to off-brand tires.” “There is no freaking way I would buy, use, or ride on retread or remanufactured tires.” “Running refurbished used tires appeals to me about as much as buying a used toothbrush.” And “This is a joke, right?”
It was no joke. I contacted Steve Chlavin and he arranged for a set of the Tomahawks to be sent to Grand Rapids BMW for installation. The fine folks at my favorite dealership were not too sure of my sanity when I explained that I had some re-manufactured tires on the way for them to install on my ’04 Rockster Special Edition. They gave me some good natured teasing, including calling me “Re-cap Cliff” but they also expressed genuine concern for my safety if something should happen to the tires at speed. (Hey, at least they forgot to razz me for not keeping my bike clean enough!) It was worth the abuse because they let me drive back home on a loaner Dakar F650 and they let me take a K1200R out for a test when I came back to get my Rockster. The availability of loaner bikes and demos are just two reasons I like this dealership so much.
When I picked up the bike on July 11, there were 5,979 miles on the clock. I took some pictures before leaving the parking lot and measured the tread depth. It was 8/32 at the center of the rear, the deepest portion of the thread, and 6/32 at the outside. The little grooves were 7/32. The front tire had 4/32 the whole way around. I didn’t take the time to measure all of the treads, but picked seven of them on each tire to measure.
I am riding on Tomahawk’s sport compound, which Steve told me is similar to Michelin Pilot Sports in that they are sport oriented, but not an ultra soft (read sticky) compound that will wear out too fast. In addition to the basic black ones, Tomahawk also makes really cool colored tires for sport bikes and moto-cross bikes, tires for quads, and slicks for racing motorcycles. One guy set a speed record on April 5th of this year on a set of Tomahawks. He blistered the track in Chandler, AZ with an 8.65 second ET at 160 mph which is quite a bit faster than the Tomahawks on my Rockster have ever traveled. There are also a couple of motorcycle stunt teams who use Tomahawks exclusively. Those wild riding folks put their tires under way more stress that I ever will with their wheelies, stoppies, and other antics.
I was careful to spend the first 100 miles or so scrubbing in the new tires. One of the ways I did this was to go to a vacant parking lot and do some low speed maneuvers like circles and figure eights. I put on about 400 miles during the first week with the tires and about half of that was on a slab, which is unusual for me. I also rode for 45 minutes in a really heavy Michigan downpour and did some two-up riding out to Lake Michigan as well. My initial impression of the tires was to be very, very impressed. Wet or dry they handled as well or better than the Metzlers and Dunlops on which I have ridden in the past.
My style of riding is best characterized as “moderately aggressive”. I am not a speed freak, but I thoroughly enjoy the 0-70 mph portion of riding. I tend to avoid highway riding, much preferring to stay on the two laners when ever possible. I commute 20-30 miles six days a week and ride in to work every day the temp is above 20 and there is no ice on the roads. During the summer months week-ends are spent covering three local racetracks for a small newspaper chain which can add up to 300-400 miles a week with the bike being ridden seven days a week. I have a favorite S curve on one of my routes to the store. It is marked 35 mph, but I have worked my way up to 58-60 on the Tomahawks with no problem except the big grin on my face.
One of the most consistent remarks from the nay-sayers about re-manufactured tires involves pointing out all the “alligator tails” you see on the freeway from trucks. There are studies from a variety of sources which point out that such freeway blow outs occur because of under inflation and have nothing to do with the quality of the tire or whether or not it is re-manufactured. (You can read a lot more at the Tire Retread Information Bureau’s website: http://www.retread.org/.) The culprit causing our freeways to be decorated treads is abuse, and under inflation is considered abuse, is responsible for tire failure and not because a tire is remanufactured.
Speaking of tire inflation, the Tomahawks did an excellent job of maintaining pressure levels. I got religion about keeping my tires up to recommended pressure a few years ago when I went through a front tire in a little over one thousand miles because my method of checking pressure was looking at the tire and maybe kicking it a little. Since that lesson I have acquired a nice digital gauge and check my pressure about every 3-4 days because of the wide temperature fluctuations in Michigan. The Tomahawks performed very well in this regard and did not require additional air nearly as often as the Dunlops they replaced.
What further separates Tomahawk tires from the alligators littering the highways is the extreme amount of quality control behind the Tomahawks. The parent company, Dresser Tire and Rubber, also remanufactures tires for airplanes. Almost every tire, an estimated 90% of them, on commercial airlines is remanufactured and there are only 5 companies with approval from the FAA to supply planes with tires in the US. Dresser is one of those. For those readers who don’t think airline tires are under stress you can take a look at a graph prepared by Goodyear on the Tomahawk website: http://www.cycletires.com/. Airline tires hit the ground standing still and instantly accelerate to speeds up to 190 mph and must absorb up to a 50,000 load at the same time. That is stress by anyone’s definition.
What enables Dresser/Tomahawk to remanufacture some of the safest tires in the world is something called laser shearography. It is like taking an x-ray of the tire. Every single Tomahawk tire is tested on the $100,000.00 shearography machine to look for problems before it leaves the plant. New tires are not tested that thoroughly, most plants only test random batches of the tires for problems, but Tomahawk tests each and every tire before it goes out the door. You can’t get any better quality control than that.
The Europeans have been riding on remanufactured motorcycle tires since 1998. When the airline business slowed down after 9/11, the folks at Dresser began to look for new ways to keep their plant in California active and went to Europe to learn about remoulding motorcycle tires and Tomahawk was born.
It is worth noting that the “core” tires upon which the Tomahawks are bonded are also carefully inspected before the remanufacturing process begins. Tomahawk imports almost all of the tire cores it uses from Europe because tire re-cycling is much bigger over there. The cores are inspected for holes, plugs, weather checking, and other types of problems. If any problem is evident, then the core is rejected. The Tomahawk plant is selling everything they can make. I had to wait patiently for a couple of weeks before mine arrived in Grand Rapids.
I have saved one of the most fun parts about Tomahawks until now. Steve Chlavin, the owner of the company, is one of us. By that I mean he rides a BMW motorcycle and reads the Owners News. He just traded in his 1150RT (upon which he had Tomahawk blue tires) for a 2005 R1200RT that will have Tomahawks as soon as Steve finishes with the stock set. Steve is familiar with the Owners News because his other company, Cee Bailey’s, advertises in here on a regular basis. Cee Bailey’s has been making aircraft windshields since 1955 and they branched into motorcycle windshields as well. As an important side note, I had no idea Steve was a BMW rider until I had been riding on his tires for well over two months. I learned of the connection with Cee Bailey’s at the same time – near the end of September when I interviewed Steve about his tires. Editor Sandy Cohen had no idea of the connection until I told her a few days before the evaluation was turned in. I feel it is important to mention this lest anyone think my positive reaction to the tires had anything to do with Steve riding a Beemer or the fact that he offers other products for our motorcycles.
Thus far I have 4,065 miles on the Tomahawks. The tread depth on the rear varies from 6/32 to 5/32 on the main tread while the little ones are at 5/32. The front tire treads measured between 3/32 and 4/32.
Tomahawks are a total winner in my book. The tires performed as well or better than the Dunlops and Metzlers I have ridden on with this Rockster and on my two previous Beemers. In fact, I much prefer them to the Dunlops that were stock on my Rockster SE. The Tomahawks for my bike run $150.00 for the pair and if you tack on $80.00 labor to have the dealership install them the total is $230.00. The last time I had Metzlers put on my previous bike the total installed price was $405.00. For me the savings is substantial and meaningful enough to make a difference, especially when you factor in the confidence I have in them after several thousand miles of almost daily use.
Remanufactured tires are not for everybody. I know that and Steve Chlavin knows that as well. He acknowledged to me that BMW riders probably do not constitute a large portion of his target market, but he was very happy to have me evaluate his tires for the Owners News nonetheless.
“The tires are selling as fast as we can make them,” Steve remarked. “People that use them love them. Disinformation comes from people who have never seen or ridden them.”
Tomahawks are made in the US using the best technology currently available. I bought a BMW because it represented a good “bang for the buck” factor to me. I was interested in remanufactured tires for the same reason. I have every intention of continuing to ride on Tomahawks in the future.

NOTE: I just ordered my FOURTH set of Tomahawk Tires after having ridden a little over 34,000 miles on the first three sets.

Stuff That Works: A Review of Dyna Beads.

2009-09-25T01:03:00.000-07:00

Are you still riding around with ugly wheel weights on your motorcycle? Believe me - There is a much better way: Dyna Beads. (http://www.innovativebalancing.com/motorcycle.htm)
I have been using dyna beads in my BMW Rockster for the last 34,000 miles or so. I have had them in my last three sets of tires and they are great. Smooth ride and nice even wear on the tires. Here is a review I wrote about them for BMW Motorcycle Owners News the first time I used them:

"Look all you want, but you will not find any unsightly wheel weights on the Snow Queen, my 2004 Rockster SE. For the last 14k her wheels have been perfectly in balance thanks to Dyna Beads. These high-density ceramic beads are inside my tires and work their Dynamic Balancing magic from there.
Before we examine how they work, let me give you a little testimony. On my previous set of tires that were installed in early July 2006, the tech at my dealership had to put two ounces of weights on my front tire and there was still a bit of vibration in the bars. He explained that there was a big heavy spot in the tire, (which I purchased elsewhere so it was NOT the dealers problem). When I got home I went to our very own BMW MOA web forum and did a search on “balancing tires” and found out about Dyna Beads.
I ordered my beads and followed the advice of Robert Krueger from Innovative Balancing. He suggested I remove the weights and put two ounces of Dyna Beads in the front tire. Installation was a breeze – simply remove the valve core (bought the tool from the Dyna Bead people), then install the beads, put the valve core back in; inflate the tires and boogey down the road.
Being somewhat skeptical I marked the placement of the weights on the tire just in case the beads were a bust. They worked like a champ – NO bar vibration at all. I was really happy to have something that worked just as it was promised to do.
I had my third set of tires installed on 4/16/07 with a little over 22,000 miles on the bike. I brought my beads in with me and asked them to skip the weights and put the beads right inside both tires. They did and the pretty white wheels on my Rockster move down the road as smooth as glass.
A good explanation of how Dyna Beads work is found on their website in the FAQ section near the bottom:
“The physics of how/why the free mass inside the tire automatically knows where to go is hard to conceptualize. The best way to understand why this works is to exaggerate the problem.Imagine there is a 5 lb weight fixed to one place on the tire. When you spin that tire to normal highway speeds, it will be so terribly out of balance that the tire would probably hop off the ground with every rotation. The axis of rotation is actually moved away from the center of the wheel toward this extra mass because it’s pulling the whole tire with it as it spins. The free moving balancing weights inside the tire are not affected the same way by these forces. First as you get up to speed, centripetal force will make the balancing weight stick to the inside of the tire. Then the force of the unbalanced weight on the tire will move this balancing weight away from the imbalance. When enough of the mass is opposite of the imbalance, the vibration disappears and the axis that the tire is rotating on returns back to the center.” (http://www.innovativebalancing.com/)
The great thing about the Dyna Beads is that they will adjust instantly to any changes in your tire. For instance, if you pick up a stone or the subtle changes that can occur over the life of the tire – the wheels are being re-balanced every time they spin. The beads will also improve tire wear, eliminate cupping and give more miles of service.
Prices range from $7.99 to $11.99 including the applicator depending on how many ounces you need. (Yes, they work in tubed tires.) A valve core removal tool is another $2.99. Pretty minor investment for a high tech development that will give you a glass smooth ride each and every time and spare your bike unsightly wheel weights. "

I have a fourth set of Tomahawk tires coming, but I had to get some dyna beads first. They work - try them, you will like them!

The March of Dimes Ride ....rides again!

2009-09-08T07:45:00.000-07:00

The annual March of Dimes Ride for Babies is coming up this week-end. It is a great event raising money for a great cause (pretty cool when you meet people who tell you flat out that their son or daughter is alive because of the March of Dimes). MOD puts your money to work - they have very low administrative costs.

Got a bike you want to ride? Sign up here: http://bikersforbabies.org/

Can't make it and want to sponsor me? Here: http://www.bikersforbabies.org/personal_page.asp?si=401723C7-B8A5-4484-ADB9-AFB3735C43A1&w=14856

MotorCity to Michigan Brewing Company - A Labor Day Michigan Adventure.

2009-09-07T12:08:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to see Steely Dan. For my birthday this year, Julie Claire gave me two tickets and a night at the Motor City Casino (http://motorcitycasino.com/) on the Saturday night of Labor Day weekend.

We got up bright n early Saturday morning to make the most of it. Made to Motor City before noon and checked in. Very, very nice people - great room - lots of casino hub-bub. Gambling is not my type kind, but Julie parlayed her gambling budget of $30 into a $188 win at the slots.

Julie celebrated her winning by buying me a drink - such a deal.

We hopped in a cab to Greek Town for some chow. Stuffed ourselves with sauganaki and other yummy stuff, hopped on the people movcr (http://www.thepeoplemover.com/WE-LL-TAKE-YOU-THERE!.id.2.htm) to the Ren Cen. From there we walked out to the Riverwalk - which was amazing. The Detroit River is beautiful ( we thought it would be all dirty and stinky) we walked in the refreshing beeze along with lots of other folks, watched the kids playing in the fountains, got some ice cream and headed back the other way. People were very nice - folks were happy, even though Michigan leads the country in unemployment and Detroit is one of the hardest hit cities in the nation - you would not have known it from the people we encountered.

Guess what - the Detroit Jazz Festival was going on. (Who knew?) There was some great music coming from Hart Plaza - I saw a older gentleman playing piano on the screen (we were too late for a seat) and then heard the band break into a Dave Brubeck standard .... what? I walked over to check the line-up on a poster - Yup, it was Dave himself playing while we were there.

Back to MCC for Steely Dan. I knew the show would be great, especially since the Sound Board Theatre only seats 1,500 people or so. It weas everything I could have asked for. 4 horn players, 3 back up singers, a killer drummer - Becker and Fagen - and a guitar player from NYC named Jon Herington (http://www.steelydan.com/2kband.html#herington). Wow - what a great two hour show. If you know SD music, you know how complex it can be - The band nailed every note - Fagen's voice was a little strained, but the audience kicked in a number of times and Mr Herington nailed all the CRUCIAL solo guitar work. I got to shake his hand and thank him for a job well done a couple hours after the show when Julie and I were scarfing down burgers and he walked by.

Sunday morning we headed out to Tom's house in St Clair Shores. One the way we toured Belle Isle (http://www.fobi.org/). Wow -I had never been there. What a gorgeous park in the middle of the Detroit River. It has the most incredible fountain - all made of marble - in the middle of the park. Bicycle paths, spots to fish - picnic - all just 5 minutes from downtown Detroit.

Then we were off for boating, beer, and fun with Tom, Diane, and Floyd. Tom and Diane live on a canal off Lake St Clair. Just so happens their neighbor down the canal is none other than Patti Smith - two of her songs ("Gone Pie" and "Persuasion") are constantly on my MP3 player. What a hoot! We drove by, but Patti didn't come out to say howdy. Tom and Diane took us for beer at Jacks (http://www.jackswaterfront.com/) where you can motor right up, climb out of your boat and sip a drink while musicians played on the deck - then Julie piloted the boat some on the way home (we cruised by one of Kid Rock's mansions which is on the shore of Lake St Clair). Not content with mere boating fun - Tom turned us loose on his big two-seater Yamaha wave runner. Whoooo-hoo! Back for burgers and dogs on the grill and we all conked out.

This morning we mosied home with a stop at the home of some of the best beer in Michigan (to say nothing of their killer root beer): The Michigan Brewing Company in Webberville.

Hey - it is Labor Day - and I celebrated with a killer Raspberry Wheat beer and some chicken tenders and potatoes - grrrrrreat breakfast, eh? We were the first ones in - we got there right when they opened at 10. I was glad they were making food.

It just so happens that I was at the Michigan Brewing Co the first week-end they opened - about 14 years ago. Met Bobby the owner and he gave me a tour of the place (it was much smaller then) and introduced me to Heffe Weizen! YUMMY stuff.

We brought home 2 six packs of root beer, an assortment of their brews and I bought a case of their seasonl Pumpkin Ale. Oh - did I mention they also distill vodka and gin? We bought a fifth of their vodka, too. (http://www.michiganbrewing.com/)

Well anyway - we made the most of our great state this week-end. Music, friends, the water, great beer, - it does not get any better than that.

Healthcare debate has me wrestling myself.

2009-08-30T19:45:00.000-07:00

I find myself thinking and writing things I would never have thought of writing a few years ago. I love capitalism - shoot, my wife and I own a jewelry store. I love my country and believe the US is truly a land of opportunity - there is nothing I enjoy more than rags-to-riches stories.
How then can I actually think/write that we need to put a limit on what doctors, pharmacutical companies, and other healthcare companies/corporations can earn? I keep wrestling with this and I believe clarity is arriving slowly.
You can look at many different earning arenas in the US and see absolute wildness. Should someone who can play baseball/football/basketball really make 30 million a year? Should musical groups actually charge over a thousand bucks for a VIP seat at their concerts? Can a human being actually command several million dollars for pretending to be someone they aren't while acting in a movie that takes 3-6 months to complete?
So if Shaq can make 35 million a year playing roundball, what is the matter with some surgeon making 10 million a year performing operations? Derek Jeter gets 35 mill for baseball. so why can't drug company execs make millions, too?
Sports salaries are out of sight, but no one is making anyone attend a Yankees game. My family physician is not recommending that I attend a Jimmy Buffet concert with Inner Circle tickets in order to live longer or better. If we don't like the fact that ______ gets millions to make a movie, then we don't have to shell out the ticket price - but who cares, seeing or not seeing a movie is not going to prolong anyone's life.
Somehow the profit motive has got to be lessened when it comes to medicine. It just has to. We all need water to live - water is a public utility and the prices are regulated by the government. If private companies provided water (like they are starting to do in some other countries) we could get screwed every time we take a drink. Rates for electricity and heating fuel are regulated by the government - why not do the same for medical costs?
I am over 50 - my doctor strongly recommends that I get my colon scoped. Lots of fear inducing lingo is introduced into the conversation. This procedure is NOT covered by my insurance and could cost me upwards of $2,800 and the testing facility wants payment when the service is rendered. Almost three grand for a procedure that takes what - half an hour to an hour? So the provider can do 6-8 or more of these a day? 6 a day times 5 days a week times 50 weeks is 4.2 million bucks. BULLSHIT.
Sure, we can scream that trial lawyers are bringing silly lawsuits and walking away with millions. But capping what they can earn is no different than capping what some Butt doctor can earn or telling Phizer et al they have to GIVE AIDS meds to poor people.
It is time for a change. It can be done - other countries spend half what we do on healthcare and live longer, healthier lives than we do. It can be done.

Don't fear the Death Committees - we need to fix healthcare.

2009-08-30T08:33:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting statistics for you to consider in the Healthcare debate.

According to the American Journal of Medicine (hardly a wing of lefty socialism) in 2007 medical expenses accounted for 62% of bankruptcies filed that year. That was an increase of 50% over 2001. What is really amazing is that 75% of those who filed bankruptcy had insurance and the NEJM study said "most were middle class and well educated".

HELLO - PEOPLE IN OTHER COUNTRIES DO NOT GO BANKRUPT BECAUSE OF MEDICAL TREATMENT.

Medical spending in the US represents 17.6% of our Gross Domestic Product. Is it any wonder that the medical establishment is spending billions - with something like 6 lobbyists per Congressman - to keep the status quo??
Depending on which study you read between 20% and 31% of that expenditure is ADMINISTRATIVE. (A New England Journal of Medicine put the amount at 31%) Other developed countries with single payer set ups have administrative costs that range from a low of 1% to a high of 15% in the Netherlands.

Yeah, but our medical system works the BEST. Really? According to the 2009 CIA World Fact Book the United States is behind 49 other countries when it comes to life expentency. Canada is #8 and Australia is #7.
We are #46 when it comes to infant mortality with 6.26 deaths per 1,000 live births. Canada is 10 spots ahead of us with 5.04 per thousand, Australia is #29 with 4.75. Believe it or not South Freakin' Korea whips our ass with only 4.26 and they are ibkt #21.

Don't believe the fear messages. Our healthcare system MUST be overhauled and NOW. It is not working. Write the president and call him on one of his MAJOR campaign promises - contact your senators and representatives and let them know this is unacceptable.

ONE MORE THING: I find it delightfully ironic that the same people who cry "SOCIALISM" when we talk about somehow limiting the amount of profit to medical corporations, drug companies and/or doctors are all about limiting the amount of money malpractice attorneys can earn. So how can you apply one standard to attorneys and another to doctors? Never thought I would want to limit profits for anyone, but I think we should put caps on the whole lot.

Tale of Two Teds (Roosevelt and Nugent).

2009-08-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

Just read a book review about a new bio of Teddy Roosevelt. (The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America by Douglas Brinkley) Roosevelt receives muchos kudos for being the driving force behind establishing our National Park system and rightfully so.
What struck me was that the magazine I was reading had some excerpts and one of them was about the struggle Teddy had in beheading a bison. Teddy was complaing about what a chore it was to cut off the head of a buffalo he had just killed by shooting it several times. TR would blather on and on about how fantastic it was to hunt and kill animals and BAM - it hit me like the Wango Tango - this Ted sounds just like Michigan's own Ted Nugent.
Terrible Ted Nugent is ripped to shreds for being a hypocrite who proclaims his love of the wild and the residents thereof all the while hunting them and (GASP!) eating them.
Seems that TR had many of the same emotions, feelings, and driving forces concerning "the wild" that TN did. Yet we villify one and admire the other. 'Splain that one to me Lucy!

YOU registered at the National Marrow Donor Program?

2009-08-26T17:50:00.000-07:00

You know that YOU might be able to undergo a relatively painless operation and completely change someone's life?
Bone marrow transplant is a life-saving treatment for people with leukemia, lymphoma and many other diseases. First, patients undergo chemotherapy and sometimes radiation to destroy their diseased marrow. Then a donor's healthy blood-forming cells are given directly into the patient's bloodstream, where they can begin to function and multiply.
For a patient's body to accept these healthy cells, the patient needs a donor who is a close match. Seventy percent of patients do not have a donor in their family and depend on the Be The Match Registry to find an unrelated bone marrow donor or umbilical cord blood.
Go here to sign up: http://www.marrow.org/ or get thee to a Red Cross Center (that is where I registered about 8-9 years ago).
Jump on board - TODAY!

Insurance companies are leveling forests.

2009-08-19T04:23:00.000-07:00

Good Lord Allmighty - is it possible for insurance companies to send any MORE paperwork through the mail. Of course they HAVE to send printed copies of everything, every time because of all the legal ramifications.
What a joke. We just switched insurance coverage at home and at the store. Stacks n stacks n pages of crap.
Best ones are the notices from the old insurance company that you will be receiving a check now that you canceled coverage. They even tell you the amount of the check in the notice about the check. Makes sense to me - send me a piece of paper in an envelope with postage on it that tells me to expect another piece of paper in an envelope with postage on it. Lil Amy actually received TWO notices that she would be receiving a check.
Yup, them insurance people must own a forest or two.

Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park - Most Excellent

2009-08-18T04:20:00.000-07:00

What is not to love about this place. Julie and I were going to go to the beach with my sister from Colorado yesterday, but weather outlook stunk. So we had a nice breakfast with Vicki and then she took off for Traverse City. Julie and I decided to go to Meijer Gardens - it has been about four years since I walked around there.
Wow - what a great place. All kinds of gardens inside greenhouses and outside. Miles of trails to hike - with the walking rewarded by sculptures from all around the world. Beautiful Dal Chihuly ceiling in the cafeteria, nice gift shop, LOTS for kids.
Did I mention the outdoor concert venue? Saw David Byrne there a couple years ago.
Meijer Gardens is one more reason to dig Michigan.
Meijer garden home: http://www.meijergardens.org/index.php
Here is a link to the sculptures: http://www.meijergardens.org/gardens_experience/sculpturepark_gallery.php?tag=sculpturepark&title=Sculpture%20Park

Think yer RSS feed is fast. Ha! Mines better.

2009-08-15T04:23:00.000-07:00

I have a beta version of a feed that gives me information as people think of it - before they type it. It feeds the words onto the screen on the upper right hand of my monitor. If I give the "read" command, then the whole business scrolls across the bottom of the monitor. Unless I am sleeping in which case I have a wire connected to my superior vena cava which runs the feed directly to my sub-concious.
I can hack into the major news sources for important stuff - you know - E! and National Enquirer and all those snipey blog folks or I can switch to MSNBC to learn what FOX said about what MSNBC is saying about FOX's response their their editorial on gay marriage abortions.
It allows me to know what you are thinking -
I know if you are sleeping,
I know if you're awake,
I know if you have been good or bad,
so be good for goodness sake.
Go to Google and type Santa Ap.

Ron Wenger: The Hardest Working Man in the Fair Business.

2009-08-10T08:54:00.000-07:00

Over the years soul singer James Brown was often referred to as “the hardest working man in show business”, but anyone who has ever been involved in the Kent County Youth Fair (KCYF) knows better. While he might not sing, shout, and do the splits like Mr. Brown did, Fair Manager Ron Wenger could easily take the “hardest working” trophy home.
Without a doubt the eight days of the 75 year old Youth Fair and the week leading up to it are the busiest of Ron’s summer schedule, but he can usually be found somewhere on the fairgrounds almost any day of the week from May until the middle of October. Much to Ron’s delight, the fairgrounds are busy with a variety of events from countless horseshows to Native American pow-wows, car shows, and two bluegrass music festivals. Throw in a circus, a barbeque cook-off, the annual duck race and a gathering of air boat enthusiasts and you can see why Ron took advantage of the one free week-end he had to visit one of his daughters and his grandkids over the Fourth of July.
Wenger has been involved with the Youth Fair in various capacities for decades. In addition to being in charge, he has been a volunteer as well as a member and president of the Board of Directors. He was very pleased to report that involvement in the Fair continues to grow: For 2009 he has 1,283 registered exhibitors and 171 Explorers – explorers are between the ages of five and eight. Most of the 1,454 kids who will be at the Fair are members of 4-H, but there are FFA members and some independents as well.
Ron didn’t hesitate for a second when asked about the most important aspect for the kids involved in the KCYF.
“It teaches young people life skills,” Wenger answered. “They learn about responsibility, commitment, and follow through. Book learning is good, but you have to apply what you learn.”
Not everything participants learn at the Fair is pleasant – mucking stalls and cleaning poop off your animal before you enter the show ring is hardly glamorous. Wenger cited an extreme example to demonstrate how young people can grow and learn even in the face of adversity. A few years ago he was called to the pig barn on a Sunday morning. One of the pigs had died. Ron and several other adults were concerned about the effect it might have on the young lady who brought the pig to the fair. She was a high school senior and this was her last fair – would she be crushed with disappointment? His face lit up as he described the way she didn’t let her misfortune drag her down in the least. She doubled her work efforts around the barn and did everything she could to help out other exhibitors. She even volunteered to help in the show ring since she was no longer able to compete.
Working with young people like that has given Wenger an abundance of faith in the coming generations. Ron doesn’t pay too much attention to all the negative media reports about young people.
“They need to come here and see the kids I get to work with all the time,” Wenger said with a smile.
He illustrated his point with another example of KCYF kids rising to the occasion. The Fair has a special Handi-capable Day (Friday August 14th this year) designed to encourage folks with special needs to come out and interact with the animals and the exhibitors. The rabbit barn has a gravel floor which makes it almost impossible to navigate a wheelchair through it. The kids showing the rabbits overcame that hurdle by bringing their animals outside for the visitors in wheelchairs.
“Those kids weren’t told to do that – no one coached them,” Ron explained with pride. “They did it all on their own.”
The more one learns about Wenger’s background, the more his position as Fair Manager seems like a natural fit. He grew up on a farm near 60th and Buttrick and his parents still live there. After a year and half at Moo U, Ron owned a landscaping business for a little over eight years. Then he bought a farm of his own. He “milked cows” for about ten years and then raised hogs for half a dozen years after that. Right before he settled in at the fairgrounds he was in charge of maintenance for the Ionia County Fair.
Ron and his wife Barb have three children. Julie is the oldest and she is a doctor in Stanford, CA. Middle child Carrie lives in Phoenix, AZ where she co-ordinates surgical teams who work with all kinds of surgeons. Mike is the youngest and he works in the energy industry in Houston, TX. Ron and Barb still live on the farm, but they have sold off over half of the initial 500 acres and rent out most of the remaining acres. Ron still makes maple syrup there and confessed that he likes to be able to look out at the cattle grazing on his farm every day – even if they do attract flies.
When the Lowell Farm Market launched three years ago, Ron accepted the additional responsibility of being the Market Master. The weekly farm market, which is open every Thursday from 3 to 7pm, is doing very well. Folks from MSU told Ron to expect it to take five years for the market to get established and it has happened in just three. There are consistently 20 vendors every Thursday and both customers and vendors are happy.
When asked how he managed to get the market going so well in a short amount of time and to avoid “problems” that many Market Masters experience with their vendors, Wenger’s answer was the fact that he is very much a hands-on guy. He has a booth selling his maple syrup in the market, but he gets out and talks with all the vendors every week.
“Just like in school – everything goes well when the teacher is in the room but when the teacher leaves then the spitballs fly,” Ron related as he explained his management style.
Wenger doesn’t miss a thing. During the recent Riverwalk week-end, my wife was walking on the fairgrounds with him. He spotted a trash can that was so full that two or three items that had overflowed to the ground.
“Looks like we have a trash problem,” Ron said. “We don’t have trash problems on my fairgrounds.”
The question on many people’s mind is, “How long will Ron keep running the fairgrounds?” It would appear we will continue to be blessed with his efforts. First, he comes from good stock – his parents are 90 and 89 and they still live independently on the family farm. Secondly, he has no desire to retire any time soon.
“I will stay as long as I still enjoy it,” Wenger said from his desk between phone calls. “Why would I want to retire? I am having too much fun.”
Looks like we are stuck with The Hardest Working Man in the Fair Business – and that is a good thing.

Full Circle 100% biodegradable bags - Made in Michigan!

2009-08-10T07:34:00.000-07:00

Found these last week and got happy in the store aisle!! They are Full Circle Large/Tall kitchen trash bags. (The ones I bought are white - but this was the only Full Circle picture I could find). Not only are they 100% biodegradable - AND made from 80% recycled plastics - THEY ARE MADE in Michigan.

How cool is that? A plastic bag that "fully biodegrade into water, CO2 and biomass within 9 months to five years wherever other materials are acticely biodegrading" (as in landfills, dumps, and composting operations). Done deal - I am a new customer.

Big question remains: Why aren't ALL plastic bags 100% biodegradable?

Fun in, and respect for, Lake Michigan and rip currents.

2009-08-10T07:00:00.000-07:00

I have been swimming in Lake Michigan as well as many other bodies of water in my favorite state for over 40 years. I have heard many times about rip currents and the dangers thereof, but until yesterday I never really experienced the power of one (them?) firsthand.

In an effort to beat the heat Julie, Amy, and I headed out to the beach at Grand Haven State Park yesterday. It was WINDY and the waves were rockin' as you can see from these pictures. Naturally the red flag was out which means No Swimming. There were a lot of people on the beach by the afternoon, and there were a good number of us who had to get in the water - red flag notwithstanding.

Amy and I went in. You can see our heads in this picture to the left of the white swim area marker - (my head is kind of sticking out of the head of the guy with his back to us in the picture). Anyway, the waves/current were powerful enough to knock me on my keister a couple times. They were also powerful and big enough for me to body surf quite satisfactorily.

That same power was enough to pull a swimmer waaaay off course. Normally I like to swim out much further that where I am in this photo - about twice as far out - the bottom drops off to 6-8 feet deep around the white marker but if you keep going out, then you encounter a sort of sand bar that runs parallel to the beach (see where the waves are breaking behind us?) and the water is back to 4-6 feet deep again.

Anyway I thought I might try swimming straight out to that area where the waves were first breaking to see if I could body surf out there. Michael Phelps I am not - but I am a competent swimmer and fairly strong. I was swimming a combination of freestyle and a breast stroke and in my mind's eye was swimming straight out or "west". NOT. I hadn't gone very far when I looked back at the beach for a reference and could see that the current had pulled me three or four feet "north" for every foot I went "west". If I floated, then I was moving "north" quite rapidly.

Message received - went back to the 4-6 foot deep water and contented myself with playing around there. After going in the water three times yesterday several muscles in my shoulders and upper back let me know of their existence this morning!

Driving while talking against the law? I thought so.

2009-08-01T01:48:00.000-07:00

I recently heard a program on NPR with a columnist from the Boston Globe who wants to make driving while talking on the cell phone against the law. Hmmm, I had the same idea a little over 5 years ago.

Put down phone and driveCliff Yankovich
PUBLISHED: May 27, 2004 in The Heritage Newspapers

As much as I dislike more government control over our lives, it is time for Lansing to regulate cellphone use in cars.
Over the next few days, take the informal and unscientific Cliff Cell Phone Survey. Should you have an unsatisfactory interaction with another driver, check to see if they are on the phone.
Monitor yourself and see if you “miss things” or have close calls while using the phone and driving. (Legal disclaimer: Do not put yourself or your passengers at risk. Liability is neither expressed nor implied. Participation is voluntary.)
Is a vehicle being driven erratically? Not keeping a proper speed or moving from lane to lane? Does it seem like the driver is somewhere else?
From what I have been observing lately, there exists a strong likelihood that the driver is probably engaged in a phone call.
There have been numerous studies that make a strong case for the real impact of cellphones on distracted driving. One study in the New England Journal of Medicine makes a comparison that driving while talking on the phone is equal in risk to driving while intoxicated.
Another NEJM article put forth the theory that cellphone users are 400 percent to 500 percent more likely to get in accidents than those who do not use cellphones while driving.
In my own informal study, I noticed that I had a couple of close calls when on the phone because my mind was wandering. In the hope of making myself safer I bought a head set so both my hands could remain on the wheel. But I have still noticed myself becoming too engaged in the conversation and having close calls.
Now that I am riding my motorcycle every day, I can’t use my phone. When I am on my bike, I pay close attention to what is going on in the cars around me, and I don’t like what I see.
The other day, in less than one-half mile, eight out of 10 cars that passed me going the other way had drivers on the phone. Every one of them was holding the phone up to his or her ear.
A few months ago, there was a terrible accident near our house in which a person drove into the rear end of a lumber delivery truck that was stopped for a train. The person driving was on the phone and was killed on impact.
Are our lives so busy that we have to multi-task when we are driving? Are we so unconcerned with safety that we are willing to put ourselves, our families and others at risk so we can be on the phone and behind the wheel simultaneously?
I think it is time for us to get our priorities straight and if the government has to step in to accomplish something that is for the greater good, then that is what I believe the government is for.
Whole countries have laws outlawing cellphone use while the vehicle is in motion: Australia, Great Britain, Japan, and others.
I wore my seat belt most of the time before it became a law, and now I wear it all of the time. It is a wise law that saves lives.
A law regulating cellphone use while driving would be equally wise with the same results.

Want some fun - hit "Next Blog" a few times.

2009-08-01T01:28:00.000-07:00

There are some very interesting blogs out there. Have found some faves simply by hitting the "Next Blog" button at the top. Sure, you will have to wade through a bunch that are in foreign languages - and some that are in English, but might as well be in a foreign language. For instance, I just found one written by a young lady and she had dreamy pictures of herself with "Lets dance the (sic) walts" written across the top!
One wrong letter and it made me wonder so many things....who are The Walts? how many of them are in the group? are most of The Walts the same age or does it vary? and of course it made me yearn to learn to dance The Walts.
So, go to the top of the page and hit "Next Blog" and see where it takes you.......

Sven Alm - words to live by.

2009-07-31T11:39:00.000-07:00

Here is Sven (in green) doing one of the things he does best.

Sven Alm just returned from a trip to Mecca – that is to say the small “m” mecca of the wrestling world. The FHC senior spent almost two weeks at an “intensive training camp” at the University of Iowa with three of his teammates. For those of you who don’t know from wrestling, the Iowa Hawkeyes dominate the sport with 22 national championships since 1975 – Ranger coach Brad Anderson likened his guys training there to high school baseball players getting to train with the New York Yankees.
For Alm to spend some of his summer vacation at a camp that starts every morning with an hour long run followed by a couple hours of technique training, then weight lifting, more technique training and then “live combat” is no surprise at all to anyone who knows him. To say that Sven is focused on his sport is to put things very mildly and he enjoys a challenge.
“I like to look for the toughest thing to do,” Sven said. “If it is tough and challenging, I want to do it.”
Sven and his older brother Charlie both got involved with the Forest Hills Wrestling Club at a young age. Sven was five and Charlie seven when their parents, Charlie and Marilee, noticed an ad for the Club and signed their two oldest children up. Dad had to encourage the boys to stick it out the first season, but since that time wrestling has become a way of life for all of the Alm brothers; including sixteen year old Nicholas, fourteen year old Magnus, and nine year old Donald. (The Alms have two daughters as well; Madalyn, 12, and five year old Hannah.)
Forest Hills Central wrestling coach Brad Anderson has been involved in the sport for many years and is a former State Champion, so when he labeled Sven as “the hardest working wrestler” we paid attention. Sven told us how he set the goal to run five miles every day during the summer after eighth grade and he did so for two years straight with the exception of maybe 10 days when he was away from home. Alm has been recognized with the Rangers “Mr. Hustle” award three years in a row and was the team MVP for the last two years. Sven finished in seventh place in Michigan as an All State wrestler at 145 pounds with a 47-6 record. It is noteworthy that his weight class is full of talent and probably ranks as one of the top five toughest classes in the state. He can bench press 225 pounds and is proud of his ability to do 42 pull ups in a row.
Sven is one of 25 or 30 Ranger wrestlers who have over 100 varsity wins. He is on track to finish his FHC career with one of the top five records in the school’s history; possibly as high as number two on the list. On the night we spoke to his coach, Sven was out in Lowell wrestling a guy who is two weight classes heavier.
“His work ethic is second to none,” coach Anderson related. “He practically turns the lights out behind me when I leave the wrestle room at the end of the day.”
Alm puts his work ethic front and center in every aspect of his life. He can be found washing dishes every week at The Gathering Place and he saves his money in order to pay his own way to Iowa and for other expenses related to wrestling. His father recently got Sven and Charlie jobs working with concrete on the Medical Mile (Michigan Avenue) for Christman. On the day we spoke to Sven he had just returned home from wrestling practice at 8:30 pm after putting in a full day working concrete.
Sven was home schooled until middle school, as are all the Alm children, and he learned how to apply himself to schoolwork. He has overcome some learning difficulties and earned a 3.2 GPA and scored a 26 on his ACTs. His academic efforts will no doubt help in his quest to wrestle for the Chippewas at CMU. Several smaller colleges have already expressed interest in having Sven attend their schools and wrestle for them, but he has his heart set on CMU.
“He loves the sport and he loves life,” Charlie Alm said. “Sven is committed to God as well.”
Sven may be focused and dedicated to his sport, but even more importantly he has learned lessons that apply to life off the wrestling mat. His father believes wrestling is a great sport for developing young men because they have to learn to balance their strength with self-control.
“Wrestling teaches you hard work and commitment,” Sven told us. “You might not always get what you want, but if you put all you have into it then you can’t be disappointed with what you get.”
Well spoken words to live by for wrestlers and non-wrestlers from Sven Alm.

These are two of my favorite things......

2009-07-29T03:08:00.000-07:00

Cliff stands up and walks to the front of the room, grasps the podium with both hands and looks out over the small crowd of people arranged in a semi-circle in the donated room in a church basement in Anytown, USA.

"Hi, my name is Cliff and CHOCOLATE MILK ROCKS!," he screams as he lifts a half gallon of Country Dairy Premium Chocolate milk to his lips and downs at least a third of the container without breathing.
(Que music.)

The crowd rises as one and yells, "Hi Cliff!" as they reach for their own containers.

You like chocolate milk? Live in Michigan? Then you owe it to yourself to give this stuff a taste test. Cool part is that, not only does it support a Michigan family-owned and operated dairy, but it comes from cows that are NOT fed hormones. http://www.countrydairy.com/home/

Speaking of chocolate dairy products from my favorite state: let me introduce you to my second best friend after Julie Claire. Sleeping Bear Dunes Bear Hug ice cream from Hudsonville, MI.

Oh my, my - very nice chocolate ice cream with "chocolate covered cashews swirled with caramel". Found this about 6 weeks ago and have been consuming it on a regular basis.

These folks have been making Ice Cream (yes, I use capital letters for this most sacred food item) since 1895 in Hudsonville - just a bit west of Grand Rapids, MI. It was later moved just a wee bit to Burnips because they were widening the road. Still family owned - the average employee has been with the company 20 years - they must be doing something right.

http://www.hudsonvilleicecream.com/story.html