Tag Archives: writing

Competition for Dollars

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I don’t much care for repeating this, but those that read my posts vary. So I feel the need to an explanation for some before I proceed.

I am not rich. I basically live off Social Security. With that, I do have to pay for utilities, food and transportation. Mostly, the highlight of the day for my wife and I is going out to eat. Here in Desoto County, we have a wide variety of reasonably priced restaurants that are really pretty good. Many of the people that work at these places have gotten to know me enough to wave at me as they see us entering. We would eat at home but for two things. With just the 2 of us, a lot would get wasted. It is difficult to prepare portions for two. Then too, would you deny us of our one highlight of the day.

Now to get to what I wanted to say. Did you know that there are about 1 million official charities in the US. That means, if I had 1 million dollars and gave one dollar to each charity, I’d be broke again. It is, as I have said, they are all competing for my dollars. And, as mentioned, I don’t have many dollars.

Even if I meticulously pare down all the charities to those I would like to give to, that’s about 20. If I were to give ten dollars to each, that’s $400. Sorry. Can’t afford that. I would have to give up eating for a few days a month. And by the way, there’s a lot of inflation going on out there. I’m having to pay $40 for what I used to pay $25. I am already having to cut back, back at the store and the restaurant. These days, we have to pass on salads and desserts.

The radio station I listen to is a important to me. I have already done away with cable and if the prices keep going up, I’ll have to go to a restaurant to gain access to the internet. However, every time I turn around, someone on the station is coming up with this reason for me to send them money. I’m not going to get specific for these reasons, but I am sure you have an idea.

This time of the year, there are dozens of folks looking for contributions for campaigning. I understand. Really I do. I would like to give them the money. They all have good reasons. On the other hand, over the years, I have also become fond of eating. I hope you understand.

The thing is, they don’t limit themselves to charities. They have businesses that are paying their bills. They are called sponsors. They pay the bills for the radio stations and for the productions. They also pay the salaries of the talk show hosts and their staffs. They all live better than me, I’m sure. So I am quite reluctant to let go of mine.

Still, I have no use for many of the the things they advertise. I mean there are ads tempting me to get security systems. May I remind you, I don’t have much. If a burglar were to break into my house, he’d be tempted to leave me a dollar or two when he saw the way we live. Not much to steal here.

Even so, you must understand. It is a competition for what little I have. If I give to the charities and candidates they want me to give to, I have no money to buy the security system. Even if I had a little money, I would have to be careful, you see. I can’t contribute to the charities and candidates and make the purchases of what all they advertise.

I don’t think I am alone in this. Some are worse off than me. My little house is small and it isn’t worth much. It does need some serious attention, but it is paid for. Some of us living on Social Security can’t say that. Some might be making big house payments too. Some may not yet be on Medicare so they are paying $1800 a month on Obama care.

The truth is, as they compete for the dollars, there are some of us who just don’t have many of the dollars for anything other than paying the bills. I don’t write this out of self-pity, but rather to enlighten those seeking money from those of us who simply don’t have it. It has been my experience that when I say I can’t afford that security system, they think I am lying to them. It’s not my problem if they have a hard time with that.

You can thank Obama care for some of that. Before my wife got on Medicare, I paid out 35,000 on Obama care for my wife. If I hadn’t had to do that, just maybe I would have been just a little more generous. For that, we can thank AARP for backing the plan just enough to get it passed. (I wonder who got a dollar or two for that one. You think maybe AARP and Obama had a few face to face meetings. Does AARP represent the elderly who pay their dues, or Obama?)

Observation of Security Cameras

Posted in Crazy Nuts, Crime by

About 2 or 3 times a year, someone will come by and try to sell me a security camera. Well, actually, they would love to sell me a complete thousand dollar security system. I don’t have the money for that. I have big car payments and a bigger insurance payments. A couple of thousand a year for my house, a couple of thousand for my car.

Maybe I should take my drill instructor’s advice and not buy things like that. Then, there would be no upkeep or insurance. Somehow, in the next few months, I will have to buy some real insurance. The tree at the corner of my house is starting to work on the foundation. It will likely cost me 2 K to bring that thing down and keep it from tearing up my home.

At any rate before you got me off subject, I tell them no. I can’t afford it. One guy got very indignant with me. I got the impression he thought I was lying to him. Like, what difference does it make. I don’t have to explain my decision to him. What in the world would make him think I owe him any kind of explanation.

At any rate, the latest salesman got me to thinking. Do the things work? I mean, if I put a bunch of cameras all over the place and someone steals something, will it help me recover my property?

That, in itself creates other questions. If the thief can find much worth steeling, I suppose I will have to tip my hat to him. I have an antitheft method that works good. I simply don’t don’t have enough to make someone want to break in.

At any rate, let’s say he breaks in and runs off with my old $100 dollar TV. Just what would be the chances of me ever seeing that particular TV again. Actually, my wife has a wedding ring he could steel. However, if he took it to a pawn shop, the guy would laugh it him. He might give him a ten dollar bill for it. It’s not gold and the stone is fake. The fake looks really nice but it’s fake. When we got married we couldn’t afford one. (That’s OK. I have a fifty year marriage instead)

So, here I am, still. Wondering how successful would I be in retrieving the TV. It makes me think about all those news reports on TV. They flash a picture up on the screen and they ask, “Have you seen this person?” “If you know this person, can you please call the police?”

Sometimes, I’ve thought about taking a copy of the photo around Memphis and see if I can find the culprit. Honest, it does make me want very badly to help. I know what it is like to have someone take things from me. It just is that most of the time, they guy has his face covered, usually with a hoody. (maybe we need to outlaw hoodies) The other half the time, if I passed the man on the street, I wouldn’t know it. I never was all that great at remembering faces, especially those I will likely never see again.

I would guess this world is full of folks as me, who isn’t good with faces.

And so, it makes me wonder, just how many people get phone calls when they put something like that on the TV. It makes me wonder, of all the times that a picture is taken of the thief, how many times is it that the thief is caught as a result?

If someone knows an instance or two when their security camera helped, maybe you could send me a comment. I don’t mean where the neighbor is caught but rather some stranger breaks in and you lose the family silver. Did you ever get it back because of the camera.

For quite a while, people steered clear of cameras. Not so much anymore. It would appear the crooks have come to the same conclusion as I have. I don’t think the things do much good.

I wish they did. Then I might buy one, just to keep people from breaking in, even if I have nothing.

The Daily Walk

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It had developed into a regular thing. At lunch, after eating, we used to take a short walk. It was an area of town that had many shops. Of course on each door was a something that identified it, though frequently there was no clue as to what the purpose of the shop was.

It had become something of a guessing game as to what this shop or that shop did. Many of them we never figured out. Then, one of the guys I worked with came up with an interesting idea. Maybe we could lease one one of the places and put a name on the door. Then, if someone came in and asked what we did there we could answer, “I don’t know. What is it you would like us to do?”When I saw the daily prompt, it brought back the memory and I had to have a short laugh. I know, it did not warrant a long or hard laugh. Really, it was a too many words for too short a laugh. Moreover, it didn’t answer the prompt.

When I was 14 or fifteen, I went to visit my brother during summer vacation. He owned a TV shop. Back then, people paid to have TVs repaired instead of just throwing them away. Even back them, I had a pretty good knowledge of electronics and I was a lot of help to him, especially when it came to putting up antennas. Strange as it might seem to people today, that was a large part of the business in the day. It was very common to put up 50 or 70 foot antenna so the customer would be able to pull in five, maybe six stations.

After working on computers for almost 12 years, I really did consider opening up a computer shop. I was good at fixing them and I knew a few others who might have thrown in with me. Then I thought back on my brother’s TV shop. He told me a couple of times, to run a TV shop, it is more important to know how to run a business than knowing how to fix TVs.

I have thought about what he said many times. When I thought about opening a computer shop, his words echoed in my mind. There are many who have started businesses to have them fail on them, not because of a knowledge of the craft but because of a lack of knowledge of how to run a business.

I think before I open any kind of business, I would want to make sure I had some kind of degree in business. Even so, the main reason I was so reluctant to go into the business of fixing computers is because of my fear of coincidence.

You see, electronic components work real good, sometimes for decades. However, they are full of smoke. If the smoke ever gets out, they never work right again. I know it for a fact. I have seen it first hand. So a customer brings in a computer with a problem but still working. He walks out the door and suddenly, the computer he leaves with me lets all the smoke out. Now what do I do? Not only do I have to replace the guy’s computer, but he is angry at me for losing all his data. He gets on the internet and tells the world not to come to me because I am a bad computer tech because I let the smoke out of them.

There are those who like taking risks. If I were single, I would have. However, I had three more to feed besides myself. It was just too much of a risk for me.

It is a real shame I did not open my little shop. I would have made a lot of money at it, until computers became throwaway as TVs.

I don’t know. Maybe I could start a shop making custom shoes. Could I make shoes that people would be willing to shell out $200 for. I’d likely not be able to give them away. It would still be interesting to try it. Who knows. I just might be good enough at business to run a business.

It would be better to take on a partner with a business degree, I think.

Daily writing prompt
If you were going to open up a shop, what would you sell?
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As the Youth Die

Posted in Abuse of Power, Biden, Border wall, Bribes, Build the Wall!, Christian values, City of Memphis, Communism, Crime, Deceit, Drug Abuse, Drug Culture, FOC, Immigration, Kamala Harris, Lawyers and Representation, Liberals, News Anchors, News media, Our Legal Systems, Politally Correct, Politcal Opinion, Uncategorized by

When I wrote my book, “Mitch” I tried to put passages in it that would drive the youth away from drugs. As you can see, that didn’t work. Not many read the book. If they read it, they haven’t paid any attention. I would say my words fall on deaf ears, but they fact is my words don’t reach their ears.

In one of the passages, the main character, Mitch, is explaining to Margo one of his worst fears as policeman in drug enforcement is to one day look down the barrel of a gun held by a twelve year-old. In the book, he doesn’t explain it further. The reason for his fear is obvious. Does he kill the youth in self-defense or because of his age, does he allow the youth to pull the trigger on him?

As I wrote the words, and more over the years, I do wonder if there are similar situations that police officers are put in from time to time. I suspect it does happens. Sometimes the officer allows the youth to pull the trigger. In some cases, the officer pulls the trigger, knowing that he will live with the regret… knowing that those who appointed him to protect and serve will accuse him forever and a day. For sure, many times the officer goes to prison.

Don’t get me wrong. The officer is not always right to pull the trigger. I would never make a good cop. I would be among those that might pull the trigger when the kid has a B-B gun. Then I would have to suffer the rest of my life knowing that I made a mistake, though it isn’t really a mistake. B-B guns frequently do look like real guns, especially in the heat of the moment.

When I was a kid, that sort of thing didn’t happen. Why is it so commonplace today? There might be many reasons. However, I know of two. When I was a kid, kids were not involved in crime. Today, it is more and more common for younger and younger kids to have real guns and pull the trigger with little or no reason. Without police, the eleven and twelve-year-olds would be shooting each other as, to some degree, they do today.

The second reason is a little more difficult to see, but it’s there. The proliferation of the drug culture. At first, it was just the adults that were the only ones shooting at each other over the drugs and money. I guess, in the future we can look forward to 10 or even 9-year-olds shooting at each other.

As the youth die, the dems don’t care. They do nothing to curtail drug use. In fact, they seem to do things to encourage it and the accompanying violence, you know, like letting the cartel import the poison over the border.

You never, ever see the dems shedding a tear at the loss of the lives of children, actually over anyone. It facilitates the goals of ridding the country of law enforcement by decreasing their funding, which only adds to the problem, which, of course is by design.

I’m Retired

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So I’ll reply retroactively. Actually, unless my memory has deceived me again, I think I already said something about that. Well considering the number of posts I posted, it would stand to reason I did say something about it.

I used to have a really good job. I had checklist I had each night and I did what was on it. I started at 5:00 PM and left about 1:00 AM. Moreover, I worked alone. There was no one around to complain about what music I played or how loud. It was better than being at home where my wife complained about the sopranos and the volume. (singers, not the mob show) Also, sometimes I tried to sing along, which she would have really complained about.

I listened to show tunes, songs by John Gary, Ed Ames, Percy Faith, ABBA, Simon and Garfunkel, and kind of the whole pre-80’s things. I listened to some pre-1950’s things. I was constantly adding to my list of selections. It irritates me that I have lost a few of them.

Many of them were of special interest. Simon and Garfunkel produced the song, “Homeward Bound.” While I was in Vietnam, I was not the only one who liked that one. I know. It has nothing to do with those of us carrying around a rifle and wearing a helmet. Still, many of us did adopt the tune.

I listen mostly to same thing now. I have added a little. I listen when at home, sometimes while writing posts. I listen to them while walking. I listen to them while in the car. By the way, the car system has about the best sound, especially with it being electric. No engine noise to interfere.

There are two differences now that I’m no longer listening at work. I have to turn the volume down and I can’t sing along. My wife would complain and, maybe, the neighbors.

I wish I could listen while eating in restaurant, especially with some of what they play over their speakers. I suspect the management would complain. If they didn’t some of the customers would.

Daily writing prompt
What do you listen to while you work?
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Making Things Better?

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Besides changing computers, I have changed phones. I have decided to give up T-Mobil. When I first signed up with them, I could just go down to the nearest T-Mobil store and get most anything resolved. Then they merged with someone else. Now they are more expensive and I have to get everything “resolved” over the phone… including disconnecting lines. About all the local stores do is sell phones and there is quite a line for that. It’s now all new and improved, you know.

I am still under contract but once I am able to break free, I will go from about $170 a month to about $35. I think that is the kind of improvement I can live with. Moreover, there will be no contract. I wonder if they will ask me why I changed.

So, the other day, I decided to copy about 500 photos from my old phone to my new computer. It used to be easy. I plugged the phone into my computer and did a copy, as if copying from one disk to another. A word to the wise. It doesn’t work that way anymore. MS has decided on a “New and Improved” method, you know.

Isn’t that neat? And they didn’t even ask me. I’ve spent hours trying to use the old method and the new one. So far, I have not transferred so much as one photo.

Well, I am not totally foolish. I have a micro memory card in the phone. Now it is simply a small matter of making sure all the photos are on the micro card and then remove the micro card. Then it is a simple matter of installing it in the new computer with the help of an adapter, maybe.

Of course nothing is certain. They just might have figured a way to stop that too. I don’t know. These engineers are real geniuses these days, you know. Turn the world over to them and it just might come to a complete grinding halt. They might even find a way to stop its spinning.

On the “Outlook.com” matter, in about two or three weeks, it will be completely removed from the new computer. I already have another mailbox set up and ready to go. It is just a matter of going through the past messages and copying the ones I need.

Tonight, while I was trying to deal with the photos, MS tried to pitch their new Office suite again. It just sort of popped up out of nowhere. They keep asking why I don’t like it. I don’t guess they read my replies because they keep trying to push it. If it were half as good as the old version I have, I would be willing to pay for it. However, like everything else, it’s the new improved version. Slower, more bells and whistles I don’t need and more difficult to use.

They are always making everything better you know, like Windows ME. Then, they can’t understand why I don’t want it.

The Three Point Basket

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In 1979, NBA basketball players started making the 3 pointers. Why? I don’t know. I tried to look it up. I am very sure it it is documented somewhere.

I do know a thing or two about it. The ABA was the first to use it. It does seem to equalize things. It does somewhat offset the slam dunk.

Moreover, they had to change the defense some. It pulls some players away from hoop a bit and, maybe opens the inside a little. Also, it would seem a good shooter becomes a threat almost the instant he crosses the center line. I do wonder how many points Jerry West or Oscar Robinson would have had if they might have been able shoot three pointers. It might have changed the outcome of games or even seasons.

It also distorts the statistics. Recently, 2 records were broken. Highest woman’s points fell first, then men’s.

I noticed that whenever it was announced that Pistol Pete’s record fell, they quickly followed by saying it was before the 3 pt shot.

It prompted a thought for me. They were playing a different game with different rules. It does make me wonder about the new record.

To be sure, all professional games change. May I note that the NFL has had a change. It will effect the stats. It has to. There will be far more attempts at kickoff returns. That in itself is a significant statistic.

So, it is important to be careful about changes in the games. Poor Babe Ruth lost his record because they added a few games to the season. Hence, the asterisk has been added to the stats. Now we have asterisks all through the record books.

It is already difficult enough to compare players of different times. It does make me wonder with the little time limits rules changes that they are playing with in baseball. That one already directly effects one stat, game times.

I’m sure at least the umps will appreciate that.

Useless Information

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I don’t even remember what I was watching but I heard a word I hadn’t heard in ages, nixie tubes. When I was in junior high and high school, it was a common term to me. Now, a person would have to search high and low to find a person who knows the word, let alone what it is.

Of course, I knew the word and I actually know, conceptually, how they work. However, they were all but well on the way to being replaced by the LED by 1980. Yet, had we not had Nixie tubes in the 50s and 60s, it would have made the computer revolution much more difficult.

I’m not going to tell you about it. It is useless information today. Yet, here I am, carrying this useless info around in my memory for no reason whatsoever. It isn’t lingering there by itself. You might find this odd, but I can build circuits using vacuum tubes, though it will do me no good. Easier, faster, cheaper and better circuits can be purchased.

So, here I am, wondering around with all this wonderful useless information in my mind taking up precious space.

It makes me wonder, would I be better off if I could rid my mind of the useless information and push more current more useful info into it. Guess that’s not up to me. Here I am, carrying around all this useless info. Then, when I want to use a very useful word, I search my mind without success, and I stand there at the counter, looking like an idiot, trying to order mashed potatoes.

Worse, when I want a tuna sandwich, I say turkey, and visa-versa. I will say one person’s name when I mean the other and know it immediately.

If you see the wrong word now and then in one of my posts, it’s likely not because I don’t know better. Sometimes, it just is my mind gets cross wired. If you think I’m bad when I write, it is far worse when I speak.

Women Will Talk, and Talk, and Talk

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I am somewhat of an expert. It really isn’t new, nor was it ever. You have a large room full of men and women and another couple enters and the tongues start wagging. The more attractive the couple, the faster the tongues wag. This is especially true when the woman is especially attractive and wearing especially nice clothes.

It is prompted by jealousy, you know, because of the long blonde flowing hair and the perfect figure. The more perfect the figure, the greater the jealousy. Then of course, the more the tongues wag and the faster they wag, the greater the jealousy. In truth, they would all prefer to be the target of the discourse.

Why do I know this? Because I keep my mouth closed and observe. If others observed as much as me, they would be experts too.

Now! Why in the world did I decide to write on something that everyone knows? Well, it seems the last few days, people, especially those on TV and radio, have been talking…about a well known couple. It has filled the news. 1 out of 5 minutes of the news is about a famous couple, him a football player, her a singer.

I will settle it all in but a few words. It’s just a heap of green demons rising their ugly heads and we’d all be better off ignoring it all. And by the way, I am the self proclaimed expert on the subject.

Humorus Things, Usually

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When I was in Marine boot camp, I laughed at the confession I was in. The man next to me warned me that if the D.I. saw me I’d be in trouble. I replied, “If I don’t laugh I’d have to cry.” He looked at me as if I were nuts, which of course, I was. No one, but no one wanted to be caught laughing without permission.

Of course there are many other things that prompt me to laugh. Children are my favorite. Unfortunately, I am not around them all that much anymore. It’s one of the disadvantages of getting old.

Dogs, cats and occasionally birds make me laugh. My border collie loved to chase remote control cars, big bouncy balls and bubbles. He would chase them until he could hardly stand. Others watched him too and laughed. I have already said how I love to watch the cats chase lasers.

I like a good comedy movie. As I’ve said, I’ve seen Kelly’s Heroes at least a dozen times and just thinking of some parts make me laugh. Then there is Paleface with Bob Hope and Support Your Local Sheriff with James Garner.

A good joke will cause me to laugh while the dirty ones just turn my stomach. Sometimes, the right phrase will cause me and others to laugh. Today, I noticed some people in a restaurant slightly laughing. I looked over at the the total strangers and cautioned them that they were having entirely too much fun. We all laughed, especially them. Obviously I am not very good at quelling an outbreak of laughter.

I guess the little heading that was in Readers Digest is valid. Laughter is the Best Medicine. I always feel better after a good laugh. I think most of us do.

Daily writing prompt
What makes you laugh?
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