Gettysburg

Tomorrow - November 19, is the anniversary of the Gettysburg address...
These 269 words are perhaps, the greatest speech in our nation's history from, perhaps our greatest President.

Given the current situation in our country - I hope that the last sentence in Mr Lincoln's speech remains true...

The Gettysburg Address..

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war.
We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here,
have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.
It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause
for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—

That this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—

and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

The Civil War: The Gettysburg Address

Lincoln felt he had failed the people with his short address, and yet, those 269 words were spoken and all speeches…

YOUTUBE.COM

Wow - 2 in a week

Greetings and Salutations ..

and let me start by saying this - and I am in no way minimizing the loss of the people that are shot in this country every day,,, or in every one of these incidences involving multiple fatalities....  but f'ing A  - we may as well as say "our thoughts and prayers go out to all those killed and injured by _______ "
you fill in the bank with the location and the number killed and wounded,,,  Leave the damn flag at half mast - cosue it takes longer toraise and re lower it for the next shooting takes place.

We had better find a way to have a serious discussion on how to control the firearms in this country without having to hear the NRA and the 2nd amendment supporters saying that it infringes on their right to bear arms and that these are not GUN incidents - they are people incidents. I will tell you what they are  - are  DEAD people incidents and they will continue to happen with greater intensity and impact if we don't do something about it..

Hey - Norrie will once agin be left in a few capable hands on Thursday,,,  but only for 1/2 day or so,,, hey maybe I can fit in a bike ride - spose to be near 50 - Eddie - give me a call in that morning and  I will see if I can meet you guys ,,,,

Did I say Aaron Judge unanimously won the AL Rookie of the Year  !! 

Greetings,

Well well well,, it's freaking mid November - when the hell did this happen, ?!?!

I've been working near every day getting the Marina closed up and in shape for the Winter - that is coming,,,,,   Floating dock support pipes removed (ugh - I go the the mud end of most of those - of course I'm the FNG ) Electrical shut off and about 1/2 ton of wire pulled back to shore and coiled up - never knew that wire could be so heavy, 80 some Ice eaters installed,  finger docks removed and stacked in the parking lot, Comfort station winterized, long sailboat docks pulled into middle of Marina, etc etc,,,  maybe 1 days work left to do... then I get laid off for the 1st time in my life !!  Oh - and I nearly fell into the river only 2 or 3 times ,,, and yes in years past others have gone in  - so leave your cell phone and wallet in the car ! 

The winter  - I hope  - will be a series of small jobs, painting the inside of a customers home, and , and siding on another  are all lined up ,,, and for me maybe a popcorn ceiling or two will be removed  ....  and I am just starting to work with my router on making "name"signs,,,, its not as hard as I though and with some patience (yea - gotta work on that) they come out pretty good,,,, I'll post some pictures here as I get a few completed,,,,  I am  hoping for at  a cold winter and some snow,,,    I get better photo opportunities with the Eagles when the reservoir and river freeze - plus Id like to see that all the work at Norrie paid off -

Moving on,,, Aaron Judge was unanimously chosen as American League rookie of the year.  Very well deserved and we can only hope he is anywhere near the last ROY that the Yankees had (Derek Jeter)  - and maybe in a few years named Captain or co Captain (with Sanchez)   as Mr Jeter was ,,,,

Who will be the new Yankee Manager ??  - I gotta tell ya , none of the name I have been hearing thrill me,,,  I'd like Tony Perez,,, or  perhaps Robbie Thompson - But David Cone ,,   Aaron Boone  ??  if we need a home-run off Wakefield to win a game - but who knows he might be ok.  Guess I am waiting see with everyone else,,, I think this is like Torree in the mid nineties,,, he took over a great team after Buck Showalter  - and went on that great run winning World Series,, I think the next yankee manager will have a similar opportunity - he is taking over a really good team,,,

the POTUS is still a JACK ASS - the ties to Russia are more exposed every day, His lack of leadership more apparent with every turn.  He tells everyone he ask Putin about Meddling in our election and of course the Russian leader denies it and Rump Believes him - believes him over the evidence that is brought by the USA's own intelligence agencies,,, What a Dick head ! what a slap in the face to his own country.

Hey - start thinking about candidates for Song of the year, and Album of the year...  I will lay out a few possibilities in the next few weeks and see if you agree. I have alse been thinking about what the best Live show  saw this year, - its really a hard choice ,,,, Amos Lee ??  Jorma  ? Tedeschi Trucks Band ?? 


Ok I gotta get ready for work,, I'll leave you with Susan and Derek and a Beatles cover

,,,,  see what ya think,,

So ,, let's see where this goes

First,, I have been so busy ,, I have forgotten to ride my bike,,,,  and it doesn't look too good ...

Sunday - Monsoon season
Monday  -
Tuesday - Work
Wednesday - let me try to get out there about 9:30 - 10 am ish -   walkway should not be too busy,,,
and maybe I can meet up with you guys around Moriarty / Pages 9:30 - 10 am o'clock ish,,,, 
Thursday - work - and everyone working day to get the marina winter ready,,, 
Friday - see Thursday.... ugh...

We are working on several projects.... there is a house siding that needs to be started and completed by winter.....  good work - Outdoors. New Siding - but that needs to get painted - so it needs to be above 35 degrees  for many hours to do that....    A Deck project that I can't seem to get the switchback stairs drawn up correctly - but thats a Fishkill project - and we may need to form an LLC to get the right insurance to do that work.  We have a indoor painting project in the Back pocket for when it gets really cold.  I started the work on the framing for the "Crooked Playhouse"

Yea - so the framing looks like this and I can't find any plans - so this will be a bout of an adventure of angles and bracing...   Then there is a play room to finish the toy boxes for ,,, and a loft bed that needs to be built to look like that.... he already  has the car bed,,, just need the Texaco gas station part....

so  - as you can see - I have a few things on the plate....

I have yet to secure winter employment...  but I gotta believe that HD or the Local lumber store will be looking for Seasonal help and if not - there is always unemployment,,,,, as I might be too busy to get a job !!

No onto more serious items.....  

Lets talk about the Astros player - Yuli Gurriel  - who mimic'd Hu Darvish by pulling his eyes back to simulate Darvish as he is oriental - this after this Low life hit a homer off Darvish. Now MLB does not want to suspend him because it would hurt the whole Team (forget what it did to Darvish and any other oriental person or player) and I guess the Astros don't have the balls to suspend him either .  And the Astros manager called the Dodger manager to say how sorry he was that his player did that and Ok the player himself is remorseful - most these assholes are AFTER they do shit like this cause they don;t wanna get suspended, and Big Fucking deal that they suspended his 5 games at the start of next year ! who gives a shit bout that......  but the manager  don't have the balls to keep him put of the line up - as it might hurt the team.  SO - Lesson learned here KIDS -  you can taunt and make fun of  others ethnicity IF you are an important part of a line up or a team playing in an important series or Game. This to say nothing of the Despicable fans that gave him a standing ovation when he came to bat for the 1st time in last nights game - WTF is wrong with you people !!   I think Mr Darvish might be scheduled to pitch game 7 if it gets that far  - I will be very interested to see if he does not run a fast ball into Mr Gurriel's ribs just to say howdy !  

and If you did not read anything in my posting before the POTUS is complete and Utter ASSHOLE - LIAR - JerkWAD, Dick Head ...   I'm just saying,,,,  and I am glad to see that members or GOP - have come out and said as much. The way this comes apart is from the inside out,,, so hopefully we are starting to see that happening.   I will reiterate that I am concerned if the country will survive this Presidency.  That the fabric of the country will be so torn - we may not recognize it after this Incompetent asshole gets finished.  And I have to laugh that he is still fighting the fight against the Obama administration, and that he and he Shitheel supports can;t make an argument on their own that does not mention the Clinton's or the Obama's. Truth stands on its own and does not need to be propped up with mention of others.... 

I'll end with this one by John Hiatt..

 

Hey - where the hell have you been !!

Ok,, so that is a good question,,,     Let's  get you caught up on vacation happenings,,,

We had an exceptional week in Las Vegas....    about two weeks after the shootings that left 59 Dean and 500  wounded... that city is a s vibrant as ever,,,, Casinos are open, shows are being performed  and thousand of visitors are arriving daily to enjoy America's play ground..

There are 59 White Crosses in a "Make Shift"  Memorial at the Welcome to Las Vegas sign on the Strip - the Sign - If you do not know is on Las Vegas Blvd - south of Mandalay Bay.

You can barely make out the crosses, as people have left items at each one, Flowers, , wreaths,  Personal items, Beer Cans, Bottles of Tequila, CowBoy Hats, etc etc  - some of these Items  have already been taken by the Clark County Museum.. the ones they thought were dangerous, likely to be stolen (although what low life would do that) or would blow away - they are keeping everything to display at a permanent - yet undetermined Place in the future. 

On a Happier note,,, we ate like - well.... we ate...........  In No particular order ... Carbone (Italian in Aria) Big B's Barbecue out in Henderson.    The TAP - Sports bar at MGM (maybe best Onion Rings I have ever had...  ,  Dillinger's in Boulder City,    are places making Burgers bigger these days, cause the ones at the TAP and Dillinger's are huge,,, and delicious.

This trip - as others - featured a few excursions to the Strip .....   we saw the Rolling Stones Exposition,, Hand written lyrics, guitars, clothing, etc,, great memorabilia from the world's greatest rock and roll band-- there was a small display of harmonics that were Mick's ,,,, and a note  of the Lesson he got from Howlin Wolf (aka Chester Arthur Burnett) on playing the harp... remember the Stones were greatly influenced by all those old Blues guys,,  anyway - Mick asked him about how to play the Harp  and Wolf told him,,, " there are parts where you blow into the fuckin thing,, part you suck on the Fucking thing  and that's how you play the fuckin harp - now get the fuck outta here" - Micks comment was "Lesson Over" !

We saw the Beatles "LOVE" - the Cirque Du Soleil  show at the Mirage, it was completely re done since last time ,, and I think better than the 1st time we saw it - anyway both were excellent.  

One of the Reasons we went when we did was to catch the Million Dollar Piano Show - Elton John at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace...  We got Rear orchestra tickets for Sunday night  and Elton did not disappoint,,, 2 hours of what was a nice mix of his music. at Over 70 - he can still sing and really can play the Piano.... the Highlight for me was Mona Lisa's and Mad Hatters from the Honky Château album from 1972.....  and  the  version of Bennie and the Jets.. he concluded the evening with Can you Feel the  Love tonight  from the Lion King soundtrack...   PLUS we were lucky enough that our son scored us some VIP Orchestra Seats (Gratis)  for the show again on Wednesday night...  Elton had his sons with him in the Audience and the were on stage for a song also,,,,   the Set list was very close to the 1st night .. The Bitch is back, Bennie and the Jets, Rocket man, Levon, Your Song, Mona Lisa and Mad Hattters, Better of Dead, Apache Sunset, Tiny Dance, Good Bye Yellow brick road, Tiny Dancer, Don't let the sun go down on me, Philadelphia Freedom, I'm Still Standing, Crocodile Rock, Saturday Nights all right for fighting, and Can you Feel the Love....   

This trip we decided to drive over the the South Rim of the Grand Canyon....  and I can tell you as someone that has seen Several of our National parks,  from White Mountains, to Acadia, to the Everglades that there is nothing that tI have ever seen that compares to the Grand Canyon,,,  let me explain this way,,,  I know you have seen photos of the Canyon,,,   those pictures in no way capture the experiance of seeing it in person,,, it is just too vast.  so - if you have never seen it in person, I can't explain it to you . and if you have seen it in person - you know exactly what I mean.  We took the Shuttle bus that runs along 20 or so miles of the South Rim of the Canyon,,, and were on and off at a dozen or more stops some offering nice views of the Colorado river far below , all breath Taking...   I'll spare you the tale of the ass hole tourists that climb over and around the rails and fences for a "better look" - I understand that 12 -15 of them fall over every year ,,,,,  and there are another 250 visitors  that need rescue every year... so the park service is busy with all that.....  anyway  - was well worth the trip to see it all... 

So - all and all an excellent trip - we got to spend time with our son and his "wife" - and the Doggies,,,,, they are terrific hosts,,, looking forward to the next trip out West - San diego and the Pacific Ocean will be the Excursion for that trip 

Pictures from the outside porch at Omnia,, and some of the PUPS..

WTF is going on

Greetings,,,,

Not really even sure how to start this off,,,,,

Waking up at ~midnight and I usually have the TV on CNN all night anyway with no sound,,,, I am 1/2 awake looking at  .....  I am not sure,,,  there are people running from something at a concert,, ?  a Bomb maybe,,,   I put up the sound and read the BREAKING NEWS headline of a mass Shooting on Las Vegas ........   holy shit ,, my Son and Daughter in law (hopefully soon) Live in Las vegas,,,   I pick up my phone to text my son - make sure all is allright....  and the thought of what if he does not answer crosses my mind,,,, I text him anyway,,,    HEY - YOU OK ??

I get back an immediate response that  - YES - he is ok,,, he is at the MGM club Hakkasan - they are in Lockdown mode - shelter in place -  due to the still active Shooter situation.  Club door locked and secured inside by the Club security - and outside by Vegas Metro Police.    He just returned from escorting the 2 EMTs that they have at the Club down to the Dean Martin Blvd side of MGM, that has a circle drive. They have set up a triage area there and in the lobby of the MGM.. the Circle drive is the key , so the dozens of Ambulances can enter one end and exit the other , no turning around,,,  He says ,, it looks like a war zone down there,,,  But he and his "wife" are ok,,, at least physically.

Ok - so now the Gun Control debate stirs up again,,,  - I hear ,, this is not the time to talk gun control - it's too soon after the Killings to do it...  and you hear the 2nd amendment folks pop their heads up about being afforded the right to bear arms by the Constitution - really ??  this guy had what 2 dozen Weapons total - all we are told  -- acquired legally ... and he had this Bump Stock accessory - that my son was telling us they found on the Rifles the killer used - The boys friend was one of the team that breached the hotel room, and send him pix of the Rifles and the guy dead on the floor.  So how many guns does one need  ??  2 or 3 dozen,,, and an accessory that turns a semi automatic into pretty much a Full out Automatic....   Did I miss something - was that in the 2nd amendment   ??  right to bear dozens and dozens of guns and a Bump stock ??  If it was then Jefferson is more of a Genius than I already think he was.....   and I love the analogy - IF I guy drive his car into a crown and killed people - would you ban cars ???   ummm No - but we would make sure he had the car registered,, and inspected every so often,, and the had a license to operate that vehicle safely that he had to renew every few years... 

What will come of this, ???  I can see a security check that has you "check" all luggage into the Hotel at the front desk and they will scan it - like the airports - and you pick  up pn the other side or it gets delivered to your room...  so that no one can carry in that many guns again,,, and If you have one - they can see that it is legal and you have a permit,,, if its a pistol - all good stuff I think...

OH - and can we stop using the Killers name every 15 seconds on TV ??   Identify him - Once - so we know who he (or she) is,,, then call them the Killer  ,,, or the Murder ,,, or the FUCKING ASSHOLE ,,, anything buy give them more notoriety that maybe they was looking for in the 1st place,,

Here is what we know for sure - that after Sandy Hook, Orlando , Blackburn VA at VA Tech, Killeen Texas, the list goes on.... and now LAs Vegas - this will not be the last,,, we will add names to the killed list  and the Death toll will continue to rise - Where and When is the only question ,, where is the next Maniac with a gun kill a group of innocent people.. What will be the reason ??  WTF could the Reason possibly be ??   Are the groups or individuals out there that learn for these things , so as to better plan the next assault,,, but hey - we have a 2nd amendment that gives them the right....

A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. 

Most folks forget about the well regulated militia part and how that ties to the security of a free state......   You read it like you want - just be ready to honor the next set of Victims that are killed and get the next  "WHAT EVER TOWN"  Strong - that we are/

He laid out the rifles, he loaded the shotgun,
He stacked up the cartridges along the wall.
He knew he would need them for his conversation.
If it went as it he planned, then he might use them all.

He said Listen you people I've got a question
You won't pay attention but I'll ask anyhow.
I found a way that will get me an answer.
Been waiting to ask you 'till now.
Right now!

Sniper - Harry Chapin