It's Friday morning and something has been bugging me all week. It started on Monday. I had been sitting at my desk, hard at work. Every few minutes a nice breeze would come through the window bringing with it the smell of burnt wood. As it is still summer I didn't think to much about it, I just figured someone was about to fire up their grill. Thirty minutes later I still smelled the same burning wood smell, so I took a look around and seeing nothing on fire I decided that it was nothing to worry about.
I went back to work and ignored the smell. Lunchtime came and it was time for me to go to a doctor's appointment. Upon arrival I was treated to business as usual, sign in and then wait. Then it was the same old why are you here routine that we go through every time. Four years I have been back in St Louis, going to the same Medical Facility and after four years I am still just a number without a face when I walk through those doors.
After being thoroughly frustrated and wasting half of my day I returned home determined to get some work done. While sitting at my desk working I was continually distracted by the smell of smoke. About an hour later my wife was sitting across from me talking on the phone and I noticed a look of surprise on her face. As she hung up the phone she asked me to go outside with her.
On our way outside she told me that while she was talking on the phone, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something really big fall in our backyard. We made into the backyard and sure enough there was a large branch laying in my yard. We both began to look to see where the branch came from because we didn't have any trees in that particular spot of our yard. We both looked up and discovered where the branch came from and the source of the smoke smell.
We discovered that one of our neighbors trees had split and fallen over, and had came to rest on the overhead power lines. Apparently while it was resting on the line a piece of the branch had been smoldering, hence the smell of burning wood. We weren't sure how long it had been like that, but it was long enough for that branch to be burnt all the way through causing it to break off and drop into my yard.
While I was out there looking at the branch the wind picked up a little and the power line began sparking and popping. I immediately went inside and called the power company. Within an hour someone from the power company arrived, but he was by himself and said that he didn't have the right equipment to remove the branch. He said that the tree cutters would be there later that evening to remove the tree. By the time I went to bed no tree cutters had arrived.
Fast forward to Wednesday, still no tree cutters and I was back at the doctor's office, and back to playing the whole why are you here routine (which I didn't find funny and led me to making some complaints and making a change to a different care provider.) After a long day of dealing with their usual process which makes less work for them, but more inconvenience for the patients, I was thoroughly exhausted and didn't get much work done at all.
Thursday came and I was feeling somewhat better, and decided to get some work done. I had a fairly productive day, I ran a few errands and spent some time with the family. We were sitting down to watch a movie together that evening when it began to rain. The winds were picking up and it was getting pretty nasty out. I sent my son to close some of the windows in the back of the house, as he was closing them he said he saw flames coming from one of the trees in the back yard.
I thought that he was exaggerating, but when I went to look, sure enough the branch that still resting on the power lines was blazing, I ended up calling the fire department, who arrived within minutes. Because of the live power lines they were unable to approach the branch and as the winds died down, the flames subsided into a small smolder. While they were there they put in another emergency call to the Power Company. The fire department instructed me to stay out of the back yard, just in case the power lines snapped...and so I have.
Which brings me to today, it's Friday morning, and still the same large tree is resting on the power lines, still sparking occasionally, and apparently not enough of an emergency for the power company to send someone out to remove it. Just another Friday morning of business as usual.
So it looks like I wont be getting too much done today either because the firemen explained to me that if the line does end up snapping it could arc and cause electrical damage. So until the problem is resolved I am going to keep everything powered down.
...With Krispy Kreme Donuts
I love em...but I hate em...but I love em...but I hate em cause they love me right back...refusing to leave me...clinging to the very heart of me...literally. Grabbing a hold of me and attaching themselves to my "love" handles. Why oh why do they tempt and tease me so...calling me with the flashing red light....I must investigate to discover what level of hell these sultry treats were created in...
My children and I were out the other day. Being the observers that we are we are, we couldn't help but notice how many young guys were doing this funky penguin waddle walk. The walk was the result of their pants being way down near their knees. Every few minutes, sometimes even in unison they would reach down and pull them up just a little to prevent them from falling all the way down.
I began to chuckle to myself, because it was a funny site indeed. That's when it hit me. I came up with an idea for a new game. Those country kids sneak out at night and have fun cow tipping. Why can't the urban folks have a fun game like that...they can...it's called Thug Tippin!
The object of the game is to wait for the right time, and when someone with their pants down at their knees walks by...you give them a quick push..and watch them topple over. (Be sure to have you video camera ready) Bonus points are awarded if you can take out an entire crew like a set of dominoes. We're still working out the details...but it's gonna be fun LOL!
Just kidding :), you can read an article I published for more about what I think about recent proposals to make saggy pants a crime, it's called "No End In Sight." Enjoy!
Early this year on another of my blogs I mentioned this movie. I knew once I had seen the premise that someone was going to have a problem with Robert Downey Jr. playing the role of a black person.
Personally having seen some of the movie already I happened to find it hilarious. Anyone familiar with Ben Stiller knows that no one is off limits when it comes to making fun of people...especially on this go round where the real targets are actors.
I was prepared to hear some flack about Downey being made up as and acting like a black person, I was surprised to see the real fallout was over the repeated use of the word retard. I'm pretty sure that Tropic Thunder is far from being politically correct...but most Hollywood comedies aren't...I think that sometimes that's what makes people laugh.
Maybe that's what people need to do more...laugh at themselves instead of just sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for someone to say something offensive so they can raise up in protest.
It was exciting to see Cullen Jones get the opportunity to go for the gold as part of the US Men's Olympic Swim team. Although he is not the first African American Olympic Swimmer, not the first to receive a Gold Medal, the fact that his participation is a part of the Phelps Phenomenon has permanently etched Jones win in athletic and Olympic History. Ironically the first African American swimmer to go gold was Anthony Ervin, in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney Australia swimming on the relay team with a young (15 year old) Michael Phelps.I have always enjoyed watching the Olympics. It's better that watching a soap opera or a dramatic movie. The 2008 Olympics in Beijing have been particularly interesting to me. I can't help but be inspired as I watch athletes like Michael Phelps push themselves to do what was once thought to be impossible. To be honest after watching him win all of those medals and do it with such style and grace I was tempted to go hop in the pool myself. In any case the 2008 Olympics in China are shaping up to be extremely memorable indeed.
Senator John Edwards has come clean and has admitted to cheating on his wife. In so doing he has fallen from grace with many of his supporters. Personally I am not surprised when political officials get caught in affairs. They make a living out of rationalizing things and making things look good for the people..it's not a far stretch for them to justify having an extra marital affair.
What is puzzling to me, however is the apparent double standard there seems to be. Here we have John Edwards on the hot seat because of his affair...and yet earlier this year Babara Walters was rewarded with a pat on the back and an increase in book sales when she confessed of her own infidelity. It just has me wondering if there is a double standard here? I think adultery is wrong no matter who you are...but it does seem that we make allowances and excuses for some when they do it...what do you think...
It's never about who's the best person for the job...it's always I'm better than the other guy. But this new trick by McCain is actually pretty darn clever...if you are not the most popular choice then paint the popular guy as a celebrity and nothing more...that way as your popularity begins to decline you can attribute it to that fact that you are not a celebrity like that other guy...it's wickedly brilliant don't you think? Or as Paris Hilton would say "That's Hot!"
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so...
One thing my parents and teachers have always told me is to think before I speak. It's worth the few extra minutes it takes to put some thought into what you are about to let come out of your mouth, because once it comes out...try as you may you can't take it back.
This year I have been paying close attention to the political race...well not really close attention, just more attention than I normally do. I can't believe how many times someone has opened their mouth only to have to come back later on and apologize and back pedal on what they said.
A recent example is the new line of ads coming from the McCain Camp. The ads equate Obama as nothing more than a celebrity similar to Paris Hilton and Brittany Spears. Ironically Paris Hilton's mother happens to be a McCain supporter and she didn't think the ads were funny at all. Maybe when they came up with the idea it seemed like it would be funny...who knows maybe if they would have actually took a minute to think about it that might have decided on something else. Bottom line is once the words come out...you can't take them back...so it is always a good idea to "think before you speak."
