Why Always the Diet Cola

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I know it is a conspiracy. I can prove it, well at least as well as what’s his name proved the Russia, Russia, Russia conspiracy. I’m still waiting for that liar to present his proof. Regardless, that’s off the subject. I walk into a restaurant and ask for Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi and they say they are out.

Three things immediately come to mind. First, is it intentional. Do they see me coming and turn off the diet spigot. Then too, they have a lot of other flavors. I wonder if they ever run out of Diet Dr. Pepper? Who drinks that stuff anyway? Someone gave it to me one time and they immediately received my ire. Can they even give that horrible stuff away?

Third, are they rationing the diet colas? For that matter, are they trying to get me to switch to tea. I do like tea but I much prefer diet cola. By the way, I am paying for it. I ought to get what I pay for, right?

One day I went to the “down under” outfit. I figured my wife deserves a break. Actually, she always does, but I figured I could really go for a steak too. As we took our places, the waiter asked what we wanted to drink. I said, Diet Coke. They said they had none. I couldn’t believe it. A nice place like that running out of their only diet soda. The waiter replied, “I mean we have no soft drinks at all.”

The wife and I immediately looked at each other. We stood and walked out the door. It wasn’t just aggravating but it was also aggravating. I know. That sounds like I am repeating myself, but I’m not. I was aggravated that there were no soft drinks but I was also aggravated they didn’t bother telling me. I mean, we might have settled for tea, but they were trying a fast one. They figured we’d stay if they waited to break the news.

Well, you will be happy to know that all was not lost. We went over to Huey’s and had a nice dinner there. The food is just about equally good there. Not only that, every time we went in there, they had Diet Coke.

I understand, they might have been having problems with their fountain machine. That sort of thing does happen. However, I am a person who believes in little things such as signs. They really should have told us before we settled in. It does sort of make me wonder if they were out of diet tea and were hiding that from us too.

The Tragedy

Posted in Christian values, Crime, Gun Safety, Immigration, Important things, Lawyers and Representation, News media, Our Legal Systems, Uncategorized by

There will be many that will disagree with me. Then again, as I have said before. I try to be honest in my posts in the way I think and feel. I do believe, frequently, I do have proper and or logical reasons for what I write.

There has been a recent news story about a 13 year-old shot by police in Utica. To be sure, I cannot claim I know everything about the situation other than it was a tragedy and that should never have happened. Yet, it happens all the time. As I said in one of my first posts, sometimes decisions are made that cannot be undone. I did so by saying that life does not have “undo” functions. There are no backspace keys. I used the case of an old woman shooting her own son thinking that he was a burglar. Certainly that woman would have done anything to reverse the last ten minutes. But, sometimes, it is just impossible to change the past.

Sometimes, while driving, I take a wrong turn. It can have consequences, but generally, I think little of it. On the other hand, I have made mistakes, big ones that I will never be able to change. It does happen. I am sure most others have too.

Going back to the shooting and what I know and what I suspect. I would think right now, the officer that shot that boy would do just about anything if he could hit that backspace key. When he left for work that day, I am pretty sure he did not say to himself, You know, I think I will just shoot a 13 year-old-boy today. It was not part of his plan. It was likely the farthest thing from his mind.

In one of my books, a detective told a woman that his greatest fear was to look down the barrel of gun being held by some 14-year-old. The book is fiction. However, I am sure many policemen do live in that fear for real.

As near as I can tell, he saw the pellet gun and thought it was real. So I ask, one and all. If you were a policeman and some thirteen-year-old was pointing a gun at you, would you shoot him or would you let him shoot you and others.

As I said, it was and is tragic. It should have never happened. As with most tragedies, there were likely many things that led to the time the officer pulled the trigger. Now, I am going to guess at some of it. They said he was an alien. I would suspect he and his parents were here illegally.

Does that make it alright to shoot him. Of course not. However it is part of what led to what happened. He ran from the policeman. Why? Maybe because he was illegal and didn’t want to be caught. No one will really know the reason he ran.

The instant the policeman confronted him, he should have told the officer he had a pellet gun and then followed the instructions. Regardless, run or not, he should have never pulled the gun out. He had to know the policeman would have thought it was real.

Running was a mistake. Pulling the gun was a mistake. Then again, 13-year-olds do make mistakes. I certainly did. It just so happens, the mistakes he made became fatal.

And now, the shooting will have repercussions. It will change the life of the officer who shot him. It will likely change the city and the police department. I guess it can be said that there are and will have repercussions throughout the country.

There will be those who will say the officer should not have shot. There will be those who will rush to the officer’s defense. I suspect that few will consider that which led up to the tragedy.

In the end, as bad as it is, we the public will have to face it. It was a horrible accident. However, it was an accident. It was one that did result in a death, which I hate and I’m sure most others dislike it too.

Now, let’s get realistic. As the official observer of Memphis, I notice that there are shootings about everyday in the city. It seems there is an average of a murder a day and most go unsolved. There are just so many they don’t have the manpower.

Where is the concern for those lives. And I might mention, many of those people killed are not running from the police. Sometimes we are talking of children lying in their bed at the time the bullet hits them. Where is the concern for them? Where is the outrage? Why are we releasing people guilty of crimes involving guns without bond?

Sorry. I don’t understand the outrage of a policeman doing his job and the lack of outrage at real murders and murderers.

Also, let’s take another look at the media. Why do they like to make the officer the villain before the investigation is started, while making the criminal just an unfortunate man down on his luck. To me, that in itself is a tragedy.

It Does Sound Logical

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The latest decision by The Supreme Court does sound logical. However, it just might make it nearly, if not completely impossible to find a good man to run for president. It makes it possible for any district attorney to make charges on the president for political reasons, even if the president has not done anything wrong.

It makes me wonder, just who would be willing run for president knowing that a NY, NY prosecutor will try to put him in prison, in effect, for running for president. To be sure, we need to make sure that all presidents are protected in some way from flagrant prosecution. I’m not completely sure how that can be done, but it needs to be. If it were up to me, if a prosecution is proved flagrant, the prosecutor should be punished in some serious way.

Otherwise, any president will be in danger of being tied up in legal knots while not guilty of anything. Worse, it is that it is the party more willing to use the law as a political weapon to benefit politically. I would hope that republicans would not use the law as a weapon, but then, a decade ago, I didn’t think the democrats would either. This seems to be more of a conviction of the democrat party than of the president, at least for me.

The Blame Game

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As I have said before, one characteristic of a good leader is that he will own his mistakes tenaciously. The bad leader will quickly find others to blame. Wouldn’t you know it; a few days after the debate and Old Joe’s team is blaming three people for his bad showing during the debate.

In this case it is particularly bad. He is not doing the blaming, he’s letting his staff do that for him. That way he doesn’t have to own the fact that he’s blaming others. We all of course know better. Joe is the leader. It is Joe that failed and it is Joe who is blaming the aides. If he wants someone for his bad showing. he needs to look in the mirror.

Old Joe is an example of exactly what a leader ought not do.

One Year

Posted in Electectric vehicles, Electric Automobiles, EVs, Uncategorized by

Just got an E-mail from the dealer. My Nissan EV is no longer new. It is a year old. Since I bought it, I refilled the window washer fluid once. Other than recharging it, that is it. On the other hand, had I not bought it, I would have had to put 6,000 dollars maintenance into my Chevy. (steering, gaskets, tail light and likely, a few more things.

To be sure, I did not save anything by paying 40 thousand for the new car, neither did it cost me the full 40 grand. No oil changes. As near as I can tell, it is a wash between gas and charging, maybe a tad more for for electricity.

Of course, being retired, I do only put 5 to 10 miles a day on it.

As far as I’m concerned, the only real concern is taking the long ride. I don’t have much confidence in finding a place to charge the for the long run. If I am going over 80 miles from the house, I’ll use the Chevy.

I think, ultimately, the EV just may find its niche, especially for folks like me that don’t drive much. I also suspect that smaller cars might be better for some. There is plenty of room for 7 in my car and I’ve never had more than 3 in it. The vast majority of time, it was just the wife and me. Sometimes, just me. Personally, I do like the size but others might not.

The Great Pretender

Posted in Abuse of Power, Biden, Kamala, Mistakes, Politcal Opinion, Social Media by

Somewhat staying with the music idea, let’s say a word about the 1955 Platters song “The Great Pretender.” Though it is an old song, it has a staying power. Just a wild guess, but I would guess that at least 60% of the the current US population have at least heard the song once. Quite frankly, I can see why. The tune is nice, but the words really hit home with just about all of us. Well, maybe, all of us. Certainly most of us have felt like singing the words right out loud, and mean them.

Indeed, most of us do some real pretending, pretending that everything is okay. We are doing just fine while we are breaking up inside. We don’t want the world to know just how much we are hurting.

Well, to me, the song, or at least the title has new meaning. You see, the dems are now the great pretenders. They have been pretending that everything is fine. Old Joe’s doing fine and his mental faculties are that of a forty-year-old. Now, things have changed. Their secret is out. I dare say close to 99% of the country now knows of his mental problems.

How-some-ever, the pretending has changed. You see, they all knew all the time, especially those that saw Old Joe on a regular basis. However, they pretend they didn’t know. They pretend that they are as surprised as the rest of us. No one wants to admit their part in the pretense.

The reality was… they knew alright and they knew all the time. It just is they they also knew they didn’t want us to know.

Now there is panic. Do they keep pretending Old Joe’s fine in spite of what the world has seen? Do they try to get him to step aside? Do they invoke amendment 25? All the choices have problems. All solutions have advantages.

For instant, if they invoke 25th, it is only a temporary solution. Old Joe is still on the ballot unless they can figure out some way to get him off of it. If he refuses to step aside, he will be selected on the first ballot at the Democrat convention as the nominee. I see no way around it. Even if he does step aside, the party really has a big black eye, trying to force a mentally disabled man on the country.

As I see it, maybe the best possibility is to allow Joe to run, and then immediately remove him with the 25th. As I say, It might be the best possibility, but it would appear, the best ain’t good. It would have to improve some to be poor. I’m really not looking forward to listening to Kamala’s voice for the next 4 years.

At any rate, we can now denote the Democrat Party as the party of the Great Pretenders.

The Grizzly Question

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I noticed that the Memphis Grizzlies managed to get a 7′ 4″ player yesterday. My guess is that he will contribute to their winning. At his height he would not have to jump much to drop the ball through the hoop. I truly hope it will help. I also hope it will increase interest and attendance. As near as I can tell, Memphis needs all the help they can get.

However, it does beg the question, when will those with the power decide to put in a few parking lots? The idea with putting the stadium downtown was to draw folks down there to see the games. My best guess is, most who attend will go, attend and return home. It sort of defeats the purpose of putting the stadium down there. Will it actually draw any business outside of the game itself? For that matter, how much will the lack of parking hinder the actual attendance.

You won’t find me fighting the traffic to get there, fighting to find someplace to park, paying a bundle to park, walking a block or two to the stadium and then sort of repeating the whole process in reverse when the game is over. For what purpose would I go to a shop or restaurant before or after the game?

I’m not trying to tell Memphis how to run their city. However, I am the official Memphis observer and it is simply an observation that demands the question, who is it that is making these ridiculous decisions. Does anyone, anywhere realize that the importance of being able to accommodate the auto if they have any hope of doing business with their owners. You know, it the old days, the shops had parking spaces in front of the shops. It would seem we have gotten away from that idea.

As an aside, why in the world are any cities building any sports arenas for players taking home millions of dollars. Many of the individual players make enough to buy enough land to build a stadium on. Yet, Memphis gives the land to them. If the NBA can afford to pay their players that much, they can afford to pay for the arenas. If they did pay for their own arenas, businessmen would make the decisions as to where build and they would very likely be built where the fans would have easier access.

But then, that would just make too much common sense. Better the tax payers pay for the stadium most of whom will never attend.

Well, maybe they will at least increase the TV audience if they start winning games regular. Maybe those in Arkansas and Mississippi will start taking note if they should actually be in the running for a championship. I don’t know. The NBA lost this fan when they decided to play ball with China. As far as I am concerned they ought to just move the stadiums over there. For me, they serve no purpose here, or in downtown Memphis.

My Apologies for a Memory Lapse

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Sometimes I remember things for absolute fact that just aren’t so. On more than one occasion, I have had to apologize to my wife for such things. Well, such was the case with the song, “Put Another Nickle in” When I wrote the post yesterday on music, I was thinking thinking that it was two separate songs, which might have confused a few out there. “Music, music, music,” is a line in the one song, not a separate song.

I realized it yesterday after noon as the tune kept going through my mind. I would have corrected it earlier but I was fighting a little fever and sore throat. I didn’t do much of anything but sleep. The illness still lingers, but just slightly. I would like to blame my error in memory on it, but I was feeling fine at the time of the post. I guess I’m just going to have to own this one.

Incidentally, it does say something about the song when it has a tendency to continue to go through my mind 70 years later. It does make me wonder, how much of the current music will be remembered for one decade, let alone seven.

Music, Music, Music

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I can remember the old song by the above title as well as “Put Another Nickle In.” My guess is that few will remember listening to those songs by Teresa Brewer shortly after their release as I did. On the other hand, my wife and I were walking into a McDonald’s three or four years ago and kid in the back was singing Rocking Robin, and doing pretty good. (originally released 1958) I yelled back to him, “Hay! You’re not old enough to know that song!

He had a hard laugh and said his mother played it a lot.

In answer to the question asked, I enjoy a lot of music prior to 1970 and a little post 1970. As far as I’m concerned, if after 1980, it doesn’t exist. I like everything done in Gilbert and Sullivan operettas (around 1900) I have listened to the music over and over. The lyric are humorous and the tunes are catchy. There aren’t may who can keep up with “Modern Major General” from the Pirates of Penzance.

I have often said, my favorite song is Whispering Hope sung by Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae (1949). When I feel bad, I have been known to play it repeatedly for 19 or 20 times. I don’t know. Maybe more. It sort of took a personal turn as I walked guard duty in Vietnam in the morning as the rain beat down me in December of 1969. Then of course, as the song says, the sun came up. The world seemed so much better as I remembered the words.

Stafford and MacRae recorded I guess a dozen or so Christian songs about the same time and they are all really good. I remembered listening to them when I was 4 and 5. The rest, I don’t remember all that much, but I always keep Whispering Hope handy.

I am a big fan of the show tunes of the 40’s, 50’s and a few of the 60’s. I have copies of many of them. If I were to lose them, I would replace them. This is especially true of Fiddler on the Roof. I have no idea how many times I’ve watched it or listened to the songs. It’s just one of those things that touched my mind and also touched my heart. It is also one of the main reasons that I have become so pro-Israel. I do not understand how a person can see the show and pay close attention to it without also being in favor of the Israeli people.

It is something of a oddity, I guess, that I also like most the ABBA songs. I also enjoy listening to the instrumentals whenever I hear them. None the less, my favorite of these is Chiquitita. Strangely, I have not met many who don’t like the song. Or, maybe it’s not so strange.

When I was seven, I remember listening to a song, “Donkey Serenade,” in which the character in the movie is singing to mules drawing a stage. Okay. That one sounds strange I admit it. But it’s no less strange than the beautiful song from “Paint Your Wagons,) I Talk to the Trees. By the way, those are also the first words in the lyrics. However, to be truthful, I’d love to be able to sing well enough to do both songs justice.

Speaking of strange songs, consider the song, “Does Eat Oats (and little lambs eat ivy)

I guess the way to sum it up. I like what I like and I don’t like what I don’t like. If you disagree with it, it is entirely up to you. It is also a shame you will never get to listen to that man serenading the mules.

Speaking of mules, how many out there have heard “On the Trail,” by Ferde Grafe. It was so good it was used for advertising way back when.

Daily writing prompt
What is your favorite genre of music?
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