Friday, November 30, 2007
Old Age is Hell .....
While eating, an older gentleman walked by the table, gave me one of those "knowing" looks and walked on. "OH, WHO WAS IT?" .... I think it was Bill Colville, who I have not seen in probably 30 years. When he retired, he became a park ranger or something, somewhere, but this had to be him.
I asked my wife to check him out, she was sure it was him.
So, I got up and walked to the front, tapped him on the arm, and with a smile on my face of, recognition, "Aren't you Bill Colville?"
"No, I'm not from around here."
Strike out ONE.
Then, when we were about done eating, I looked over at a couple who was finishing up also, and it had to be old Dick Odor. Aged some, but it had to be him.
As they walked by, I extended my hand, he shook it, told me that his memory was not so good, so I told him, "I'm Joe Dooley, I used to work part time for you when you were at the clothing store."
Well, his wife told us that this was not Dick Odor, gave us some other name. We talked with them for about fifteen minutes, had a lot of mutual friends and acquaintenances, but this was not Dick.
He looked like Dick and talked like Dick, the other guy looked and talked like Bill Colville.
So, I got to wondering if all these folks were having .... well you know, some of those senior moments .... and forgot who they were, or didn't remember. If you look like Dick Odor and talk like Dick Odor, you must be Dick Odor, but this guy and his wife did not know that.
OR
I could not have been wrong on both counts, I don't think, well, maybe ......
We have one friend, who has Alzheimers, now living with his ex-wife, who also has it, and I guess they have forgotten all of the past .... worked out well for them ....
Old age is hell ....
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Almost December
A guilt trip is layed on the man who DOES NOT purchase diamonds for his wife. The commercial shows, well, a lot of them are men giving diamonds to their wives, in the morning, while they are in bed .... and if you notice .... there is a pause, then a blank, on what happens AFTER she gets the diamonds. Advertising EXTORTION. IF YOU want to have a .... nice ...... Christmas, give her diamonds. When, where and why, did diamonds become the ultimate christmas gift. And, Christmas is for KIDS, but we never see Dad giving diamonds to his kids, just his wife.
Many years ago, the office of a retailer, all the salesmen are there, looking depressed, probably in August, hot, overhead fan humming ....
"People, people, listen to me, sales are down, we're stuck with a bunch of summer stuff that didn't sell, and never will .. any ideas we can drop in the well......"
"Chief, hay prices are up, it's taking more money to keep the horses going, so the milk guy has to spend more, the iceman, the bread guy, it just goes on and on. Hell, my lunch today cost over 45 cents, no one has any money to spend on things."
"Look people, if we don't do a good November and December, we are in trouble, BIG TROUBLE. Harry, you marketing guys, any ideas?"
"Well, a couple of weeks ago we hired that guy that used to me a minister, and well, we were talking at lunch about Christmas coming up, and he's a bit of a nut, goes in to the whole story thing, the guy, his wife, no room at the inn, the whole thing ..... but I remember he was talking about them three smart guys that brought GIFTS for the baby, on December 25th. Well, Charlie in shipping and old Cory in maintenance, well we was talkin at bowling, about the gift thing, and well, I just wondered if we culdn't start spreading that thought .... give gifts, in December, at Christmas, well, not to the kid, but to each other, make it a BIG selling thing. Hell, start right after Thanksgiving, everyone is full and happy, get 'em out shopping, drill that advertising into them .... gifts, gifts, presents, presents, more, more ... and then after Christmas, BIG SALES to get rid of everything ... and then start all over .... might work, huh?"
"Harry, let's drop that in the well and listen to it splash .... I think you got something there, I can see big parades and the guy in the red suit comin to town .... get the kids to not shut up till they let 'em know what they want ...... I like this .... Harry ..... may have hit on something."
It started earlier, but this put it over the top. Old Harry, in Marketing, who'd of thought it!
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
I WONDER WHY
THE SCHOOL, THE MEDIA, THE COACH, THE TEAM, THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM, THE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR are all guilty of promoting the HYPE of the football team. With the frenzy they are trying to create, last week was minor, I think, to what they are going to see.
They have been hyping since the end of last season, and when they got ranked number one in the pre season, all we see on tv is football, how great the team is. I noticed in WalMart last weekend, almost everyone was wearing the colors.
With the schedule they have, they could go undefeated, and perhaps, the championship. If it happens, I predict some serious problems for Columbus.
The school has whipped the fans in to a frenzy, and now they wonder where to lay the blame.
THEY market the football program, they fan the frenzy ... THEY are to blame ... no brainer, they should just shut up. They will single out a few and prosecute them, but OSU is to blame.
They are seeming the results of their MARKETING .... they are making MILLIONS on the marketing .... they should SHUT UP, try to back the hype. IT IS JUST A FOOTBALL GAME.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
ONLY HERE
A lady wrote the best letter in the Editorials in ages!! It explains
things better than all the balderdash you hear on TV.
"Recently large demonstrations have taken place across the country
protesting the fact that Congress is finally addressing the issue of
illegal immigration.
Certain people are angry that the
make it harder to sneak into this country and, once here, to stay indefinitely.
Let me see if I correctly understand the thinking behind these protests.
Let's say I break into your house. Let's say that when you discover me
in your house, you insist that I leave. But I say, "I've made all the beds and
washed the dishes and did the laundry and swept the floors; I've done all the
things you don't like to do. I'm hard working and honest (except for when
I broke into your house)."
According to the protesters, not only must you let me stay, you must
add me to your family's insurance plan and provide other benefits to me
and to my family (my husband will do your yard work because he too is
hard-working and honest, except for that breaking in part).
If you try to call the police or force me out, I will call my friends who will
picket your house carrying signs that proclaim my right to be there.
It's only fair, after all, because you have a nicer house than I do,
and I'm just trying to better myself. I'm hard-working and honest. um,
except for well, you know. And what a deal it is for me!! I live in your
house, contributing only a fraction of the cost of my keep, and there is
nothing you can do about it without being accused of selfishness, prejudice
and being anti-housebreaker.
Oh yeah, and I want you to learn my language so you can communicate with me.
Why can't people see how ridiculous this is?
Only in
Saturday, September 09, 2006
SLOT MACHINES IN OHIO
The commercials actually say, "Nothing but good can come out of it."
The truth is, "nothing but good can come out of losing money you can't afford."
I honestly do not know how anyone can believe in that garbage. Good is going to come out of gambling. How naive can anyone be. All the money will go directly from the slot machine to the schools. OK, well, maybe some will go toward a few government things, like keeping track of it all, licensing, another state agency, a massive payroll, THE HOUSE!
I spent many years in the industry in the Nevada, I have seen the good and the bad, I have had friends lose money and commit suicide, I have bought jewelry from some very nice folks, for practically nothing, because they lost their money and had to get home.
I was in a rest room, at the Horseshoe in Reno, a man pulled a gun out, put it to his chest, and pulled the trigger. He had lost all his money.
I knew an elderly man and his wife. They had sold a business in New York. They were going to move to California, and took a leisurely cross country drive. They stopped in Reno, he played a few slots, as did his wife. They lost a little money, he got mad. They wanted to get back, the little they had lost.
Within three days, they lost all they had. When I knew them, some years later, she was running the news stand at the Golden Hotel, and he was roaming around town, still trying. In those days, we had a dime table at the Nevada Club. He would look for nickles on the floor, find a couple, and head for the the crap table, hoping to get his money back, that he had lost, 9 years before.
Ironically he had lost his millions at the Nevada Club, where I worked. In 1956, he was 86'd from the club. He had some injuries, that were not healing well, he had an offensive odor, and was ordered to stay out, of the place, by the man, who had his millions.
My friend, Wick, had lived in Nevada all his life. He owned 5 barbershops around the state. He never gambled in all that time. He and his wife, and some other couples, got together on Friday nights. Pot luck supper, chatting, the wives would play canasta, the guys, a little penny ante poker. One night, Wick lost about 20 dollars, he tipped more than that at dinner. It made him mad. 3 days, lost it all, wife left him, drove out by the airport and put a gun to his head.
GOOD will come out of slots in OHIO, money for our schools. Yea, someone will make millions on selling the equipment. The casinos won't take any money. Who is going to buy the machines, oh, racetracks, they certainly are honest, they will see the schools get it all.
Nothing but good will come out of gambling ..... in Ohio. BULLSHIT, OHIO, get your collective heads out of your collective asses .... do you REALLY think, that educating children, is best accomplished, by people losing money that they can't afford, and YOU really think, ALL of that money will go to schools.
These stupid little machines springing up all over around here now, one guy here in town lost 70 thousand on one of them ... how are they legal... they are everywhere, openly visible.
I have a bridge I would like to sell, would look good over the Scioto.
Be interesting to know who really paid for those stupid commercials.
Friday, August 18, 2006
KATIE?
I, for one, have never liked her, and that will never change. I really can't understand what she is going to do diffrently. They are saying she will be the best ever, a whole new approach to presenting the news. God, I hope she is not going to be nude.
I don't understand either, why it is taking so long to get her on. Why won't she be ready till October. They are even going to let us know, in advance, what she will be wearing, so there goes the nude aspect. Maybe she is taking singing lessons, and will sing the news.
Just think of the obscene amount of money they are paying her to do the news. I really do not understand it all.
I had a chance once to meet her. I was invited, by a rather high ranking employee of NBC, to take a tour of the building, and, meet Matt and Katie. His office was right below theirs. I declined for some reason or other.
Maybe it is just me, I get most of my news from the RADIO, NPR, local news, etc. I listen, evaluate, picture in my own mind what is going on. I just don't think that news should have a personality. News should just be the truth. I can take it from there.
TV news, often dissapoints me too.
"Bank robbery, tonight at 11."
So I tune in to see the robbery, it happened this morning, not at 11.
I've missed a lot of meetings too.
"School board meeting, tonight at 11."
At 10:30 I leave for the school. Doors are locked, they met at 6. Why did they tell me 11?
At least we now know why Brokaw and Rather and all the good guys retired. They knew, they looked ahead. They got out while they could. Come October, Katie is taking over.
Is all of this leading to a .... woman ..... running for President. Katie, Oprah?
Let the females of the world do their thing, I am all for it. I do not like Katie though, and please, take them off .... being on the sidelines and doing ......... color ..... at football games.
Women play tennis. They do a great job broadcasting tennis. Same with golf, cooking shows and others. They DO NOT play in the NFL. They may be fans, like many, but PLEASE let someone who has played the game do that sideline commentary.
I am not excited about Katie doing the news, the radio just told me I was. She won't be on the radio, I hope.
And now, perty, perky little Katie, will give us her in-depth analysis of the news, just as soon as the little perky, perty cheerleaders leave the set.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
WHICH ONE WILL WIN?
Gates and Clinton, an unlikely pair, are fighting AIDS. Gates is putting a couple of fortunes in the pot to help out. I'm not sure of Clinton's position. It seems ludicrous that he is involved in safe sex. But he seems sincere and is probably getting a lot of money for his efforts. I think Gates is very sincere in his efforts. That is highly commendable.
AIDS COULD EVENTUALLY KILL MOST OF US ...
TERRORISTS COULD EVENTUALL KILL MOST OF US ....
Let's talk about the future.
So much for that, we apparently don't have one. What if all the terrorists got AIDS. They seem to want to die anyway, and be with all their heavenly virgins or whatever it is. What a program, when it is so easy to convice people that dying is a good thing. They will soon be competing with the Mormons. Instead of 2 kids knocking on the door, now there will be four. 2 with head wraps, 2 in black suits.
But, life goes on. Here in Nerk, Ahia, the sun is shining, it is quiet out, everyone is going about their daily lives, I hear someone cutting their grass, they are getting the apartment across the street ready for some new tenants, just like nothing is happening.
AIDS vs. terrorism
Republicans vs. Democrats
Those four things probably encompass 95% of the problems in the WORLD. And I am not sure which of the 4 is the worst. Those are driven by SEX, RELIGION, MONEY AND POWER.
There is cause for optimism. Please tell me what and where. Maybe those kids I watched last night playing little league softball, someone, somewhere, has to have some sense.
GREAT TELEVISION LAST NIGHT
What a great show last night. I knew it was going to be on, waited all day for it, turned it on at 9:30, and had the great pleasure to watch good television. I thoroughly enjoyed it, great entertainment.
The Championship Game, the Big One, the Champion was Crowned, in girls little league softball.
Pure sport, 100 percent, and pure joy on their faces, that is great to see. Makes me feel good, just to see the joy on their faces, a little part of
A team from
The
In interviews, most of the gals had Derek Jeter as their hero. Turned out, he was born in
It is nice to see fond memories created, and those gals will never forget last night. They are champs, in more ways that one. And, I guess, the team from NJ is going to be met at the airport today, and paraded back to their town.
A local spot in Mattawan was elbow to elbow for the game, I think they indicated they had 20 plus TV’s set up. Mattawan, is a Village, not too big. The town will be BIG today, filled with pride. And well they should be. How great to be able to show pride, in bunch of great kids who played their hearts out, rather than the somber parades we see nowdays, for returning casualties. If I was younger, I would drive up there today, just to be a part of it.
Great television last night, and most of the country missed it. What a shame.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
The GNATS are OK
They seem to come and go. I don't know where they dissapear to, but they do seem to come and go. Yesterday, for example, they had gone somewhere, when we went to WalMart. We got some bananas. Set them on the kitchen counter when we got home, and by golly, they came back from wherever they had been. And, even brought some friends with them.
I initially got a can of " bug spray" to get rid of them. They seemed to like it. They went swimming in a pool of it. Mostly backstroke, but very accomplished. I would do a heavy spray on our trash can. That seemed to attract them. I got mad and sprayed everything, coffee pot, water filter, the sink, everything. Seemed like they went to the living room, got a breath of fresh air, and came back.
They are also very difficult to sneak up on. A towel does not seem to work getting rid of them. I think they like the soft terry cloth. I have gotten a few with a rubber band, but have inadvertently flipped myself more than the gnats.
I got my little portable vaccum out, they moved faster than I could.
I have a spider living in my living room window. I don't like spiders, but I have respect for tnis one. And, I had hoped the spider ate gnats. I put a little bananna by the spider. Will see if that works.
Anyway, as of now, the gnats are thriving, alive and well.
So, I now watch them
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
The only thing worse than women color commentators at mens sporting events, is TWO women at such events. And, they go on and on and on... about worthless drivel .. I doubt that I watched 3 minutes of the whole game.
I watched Little League baseball ... Livingston NJ vs Staten Island ... Now that was great .... Game decided ... Bottom of the last inning .... Home run, SI wins. The only sideline they had was some kid from one of the teams ... Made some comments, he was great. NO replays, just good stuff .. SI went up by 2 runs .... WHAT ... The kid did not touch 3rd ... TAKE THE RUN OFF THE BOARD .. Game now tied 1-1.
WHY do they do pre-season football ... And WHO are the idiots that go to the games. They panned the concession stands one time, more fans there .. Drinking and eating. I guess football fans are so starved to see a game, they go. Why not just extend the season ... If we need that much.
I have to admit, I no longer watch a lot of NFL ..... I am hooked on the MAC, big 10, college football .... Toledo, Bowling Green, Miami, these are some great games, a lot of talent, i.e. Pittsburgh QB, and many others. It is just good solid football, and not a lot of the BS we see in the pros, and even some of the MAJOR teams.
For the pros .... They can start at the end of the season .... with a TV show, show what they do in the off season, then training camp, then pre season, and the regular season .... 52 weeks a year ... we can watch some sort of NFL football.
My heros have always been cowboys... not NFL players.
Looks like WalMart has overdone it a bit, maybe the NFL has also.
MNF will NOT be the same ... without Al and the Coach ..... 5 airheads plus the three at halftime .. well .... not for me .... ...