Poor Mr. Poo

Mr. Poo barked at 0300 hrs this morning (I didn't hear him), and the Ol' Man told him to Shut Up...which was the wrong thing to do. The Hound of the Baskervilles doesn't normally bark at 0300, which should have been the first clue. Second clue should have been that the dog hasn't been feeling up to snuff lately. After a few minutes, the dog did "shut up"...and then hit the ghastly smell. On go the lights to illuminate the liquid poo all over the carpet. Yeah...we were up at O dark thirty trying to clean up, pardon the pun, a sh*tload of poo off the carpet. The dogs went into their crates (in the garage) for what was left of the night.

Fast forward to 0600. More barking from Mr. Poo. By now we know what that means. More liquid poo in the crate, which is better/easier to clean up than the carpet in the bedroom. However, being in the garage does not negate the fact that it still has to be cleaned up, and the dog needs a bath. Take him for a walk, more diarrhea and projectile vomiting.

Skip to 0900. Call the vet (thank the gods their open on Saturdays). Vet Shirley says not much she can do but give him some meds to control the diarrhea. Keep him quite, no food, plenty of water.

Poor Mr. Poo. Could it have been the peanuts? The pig ear? Some canine bug going around? He seems peppy enough now. We'll follow the vet's advice, medicate and keep him crated for a day or two. Stand by

I woul have liked to sleep in

However, the lady Hound of the Baskervilles determined it was not to be so. Her pretty little face peeked over the side of the bed, and she informed me it was time to get up. She then proceeded to lick my face, in a way, I suppose, of apologizing for the rude interruption of my sleep. As sorry as she seemed to be, she still insisted that I get up. What that little lady wants, that little lady gets. I got up...earlier than I wanted to. It's probably not a terribly bad thing, though. I've got enough to do today anyway....

Death and Taxes...

Or, maybe it's just taxes...

http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article.aspx?id=541131

This is a pretty eye-opening article on how the American public is going to be royally HOSED on taxes come 2011. The Titanic comes to mind once again...the water is GUSHING, and no one knows, yet, that the boat is going to sink. Well, we're going to find out soon enough...

My dogs

My feet hurt, right heel to be specific. I've got a Dr's appointment today, so I hope I'll find out what the skinny is. I did some "research" on the Internet, and I came up with Plantar Fasciitis. I don't know if that's what it is...but maybe the doc will shed some light. I'll keep you updated.

Another great thing about Obamacare....

MORE TAXES! MORE TAXES! MORE TAXES! MORE TAXES! MORE TAXES!

According to ABC - "Gold Coin Sellers Angered by New Tax Law
- Amendment Slipped Into Health Care Legislation Would Track, Tax Coin and Bullion Transactions"

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/gold-coin-dealers-decry-tax-law/story?id=11211611

Can anyone tell me what earthly connection buying and selling gold has with health care? No wonder this "slipped' through, seeing's how the "Health care legislation" was, what...2800(+) pages? You can't tell me that all those elected officials who voted Yes READ, much less UNDERSTOOD the legislation they were voting on.

I got an e-mail from my M-I-L that had a picture of a calendar page - November 2. The notation on the page was "Don't forget to take the trash out". Damn Skippy. We need to get rid of all incumbents...ALL incumbents.

Enough already with more and MORE and MORE taxes! I'm a FAIR TAX proponent...check it out: http://www.fairtax.org/site/PageServer

Update on Mr. Poo

The vet was perplexed. She couldn't say what the matter with him was. He's peppy and back to his old self. She said it wasn't Lyme (otherwise he would have still been "sick") - she took his temp (normal), checked his tummy and joints, etc., and he got an OK. She said it might have been something he ate, the heat, or just a bug. Anyhoo...his tail's riding high and he's playing with Perle Ray. His appetite is back to normal. Whew...!

Poor Puppers

The Hound of the Baskervilles caught Lyme disease from a tick last year...pretty scary stuff. Last night, it seemed like he had a recurrence. Poor Puppers...he could barely walk, had liquid poo, and didn't want to eat anything. I called the emergency Vet, and he said keep him quiet, and call your vet in the morning. The HOB was much better this am, but still not his peppy self, so I called our vet and have an appointment at 10:45. I don't know if Lyme is a recurring/remission kind of disease, but I know that once dogs have it, it's in their system forever. Poor Mr. Poo...he was moving like he was 100 years old with arthritis...it broke my heart. I'm glad he's doing better this morning, but he's still going to the vet. Makes me think about when he gets "old". Rotties only live about (max) 10 (ish) years...it's going to be so sad when he dies. One of the pitfalls of owning a pet, I suppose....

Fat Report

Have y'all heard? The US Government is, under the new rules of the stimulus law (not even the ridiculous Health care Overhaul!), going to now "monitor" your fat.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/17/feds-monitor-obesity-white-house-promotes-obama-cook-senior-position/

According to a Fox news article (see above), "the Health and Human Services announced this week that under the stimulus law, health care providers must establish "meaningful use" of electronic health records to qualify for federal subsidies or risk seeing their Medicare and Medicaid payments slashed. The electronic health records must include Americans' body mass index, or BMI, height and weight."

Pardon my French, but, WTF??? What EARTHLY business is it of Uncle Sam how much I weigh? Oh, yeah, since the Government is taking over everything, distributing everything, controlling everything, they need to KNOW everything...including my weight. That way, they can tell me I can't have X or Y or Z because I weigh too much. Or that my insurance will cost 12x more because I'm overweight. Or I'm not allowed to buy Twinkies.

They've taken over health care, finances (yeah, that passed with little fanfare, unfortunately), they're working on climate control (and you can only vaguely imagine how that's going to spread it's magic fingers into every aspect of our lives from what kind of car you can drive to what kind of deodorant you can buy...). I just wonder, even if the voters "kick the bums out" in November, if this stuff can be reversed. Can this country change course? I should imagine it's going to be like trying to turn the Titanic before it hits the iceberg...or have we already hit it and only the mechanics down in the depths of the ship know the real damage? Let the orchestra play on....

Wal-Mart People

I don't know how many of you have received the 'Wal-mart People" e-mail,...the one with pictures of, well, just plain every-day folk who shop at Wal-mart. You can check out the website here: http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/ Judge not, least we be judged...but, holy cow! Do some of these folks even look in a mirror before the go out the door? I have to admit, I don't always dress to the 9's when I walk out the door, but I am presentable. The Wal-mart people who dress, shall we say, "differently" may live in their own world and have their own sense of fashion - which is fine by me. I don't have a problem with folks who march to a different drummer. It's the folks who have body parts (or just body!) hanging out, who are dirty, or sweaty, barefoot or wearing clothes 3 sized too small that I have an issue with. What has become of our society that makes it acceptable to go shopping in your underwear? The economy isn't the only thing going down the toilet these days...

Tango Uniform

One of our computers went "Tango Uniform" (that's "tits up" in military lingo!), and the other one is on it's last legs. Since both the Ol' Man and I are going back to school (both of us on-line) next month, I figured I'd have to pry the locks off the check book and buy a new one. I shopped around and found one on sale at BestBuy for $300. Nothing fancy, but enough to do the job. When I got to the store, they only had 3 left, and all 3 had been pre-installed by the GeekSquad, for the low, low price of $69.99. I told the sales girl that I didn't want that, but I guess I was stuck...she said, yeah...so I asked her if she could cut me a break. She talked to her manager and came back with, "We'll deduct $70 from the price of the computer"...which was basically giving me the computer for $300 (the sale price), and throwing in the pre-loaded/installed stuff free. I was good with that. Now, all I have to do is re-load all my favorites!

Cheating

I made some homemade raisin/cinnamon bread in the bread maker. It was a different recipe than I usually use, and I can't say I'm too thrilled...it's too dry. I also made some cheesecake lemon bars, which turned out fab...but I cheated - I used a box mix. Is that bad of me?

Cooking Shrimp Scampi

According to the cookbook, you're suppose to broil it in the oven. I have to say, that sure creates a LOT of smoke! Tasted damn good, though...

Chocolate Pudding

I had this chocolate pudding recipe...made with honey. I thought I'd give it a try as it seemed fairly simple and "healthy" (as healthy as chocolate pudding can be, I suppose). It turned out really smooth...but, you could taste the honey. Not that it's a bad thing, but my taste buds just arn't use to chocolate pudding with a hint of honey. The Ol' Man wasn't diggin' it too much, so I guess that recipe will go in the trash.

Combat Apron

The Ol' Man's favorite color is Milspec Multicam. I made cooking aprons for the boys a while back, and the boys decided you can't be a 'real' cook unless you wear an apron. The Ol' Man does all the grilling, and the boys decided he needed an apron...however, there was no way he was going to wear a "girly" apron...he wanted one made from Multicam (of course). I searched all over for Multicam, and could only find it on line, in a 5 yard bolt! Pricy, too...but, nothing's too good for the Ol' Man and the boys, so...here I go. Since I've got so much material, I decided to make 4 aprons. One for the Ol' Man, and 3 others for his best friends. I'm sure they'll get a big kick out of the manly-Multicam-grill aprons! I'm not quite finished yet...I've got to add beer holders (of course), as well as loops to hold grill tongs and other implements of destruction! The material is kinda weird...it's like it's plastic coated/waterproofy.

4th of July

While it's not exactly a "quilt", I made some placemats. My M-I-L is the kind of lady who has decorations for every occasion/holiday. She did not, however, have any placemats/table runner for the 4th of July. Horror! So, I decided to make some for her...and I made a few extra for us. I know now why I dislike the applique...what a pain in the rear those stars were! Especially since I used gold thread...remind me never to to a project again with gold thread! That stuff gave me fits!

Salad

I had a fresh spinach salad with cucumbers, tomatoes and strawberries with Catalina dressing for lunch. I had vanilla yogurt with granola and blackberries for breakfast. I think more fresh fruit is on the menu for dinner. One of the wonderful things about summer!

Keep your fingers crossed

I bought a Millionare Raffle ticket, and the drawing is tonight.......

Yes, We Can!

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/07/08/jon-kraushar-obama-republicans-yes-laws-tax-cuts-spending/

I like this article...especially this part:

"Fair enough. Republicans can counter that they are actually “the Party of yes,” offering an alternative to Obama’s failed agenda.

Republicans can say:

• Yes to consumer-controlled spending and no to government out-of-control spending.
• Yes to stimulating civilian jobs and no to stimulating government jobs.
• Yes to wealth creation by private citizens and no to wealth redistribution by government confiscation.
• Yes to enforcing existing laws and no to forcing new big government laws.
• Yes to free market exchanges and no to government controlled exchanges.
• Yes to tax cuts and tax simplification and no to tax increases and IRS complication.
• Yes to individual responsibility and no to bureaucratic irresponsibility.
• Yes to fair deals in an open labor market and no to sweetheart deals for unions.
• Yes to incentives for growth-seeking small businesses and entrepreneurs and no to special favors for bailout-seeking, mismanaged businesses and government enterprises.
• Yes to free trade and no to trade protectionism.
• Yes to returning America to its Constitutional roots and no to turning America into a European welfare state."

Now, that's the kind of change I can believe in!

Toy Story

They just don't make toys like they use to. The Ol Man buys the kids the "action figures", and within about 5 minutes, the heads are off. They're not the most expensive things on the planet, but, yeesh... No wonder they say for 5+ years; those heads could get stuck in a throat pretty easily. I don't remember Barbie's head ever popping off that easily, or Johnny West's head. It kinda creeps me out.

Drive Safely

www.metacafe.com/watch/yt-az1smQMWHYk/drive_safely/

Excellent video, great song. Shows the awful consequences of not paying attention while driving (too fast, angry, distracted, texting, etc...)

I don't have a problem with stupid people dying, but it bugs the crap outta me when they take the innocent with them.

Saving $$$$

Just went to the grocery store...saved 27%! The goal is to save at least 25% - using coupons, taking advantages of sales, etc. Our grocery store has the "spend $X and you save $X on gas"...I've saved so much, I'm getting $1 off on gas! Hey, it's the little things, right?

Beach Weather

Weather's been smoking hot the past few days, and the heat wave will continue for a few more...which is fine with me. I love the hot weather. Took the kids to the beach and to an amusement/water park. They had a blast. We'll be heading back to the beach today.

America's future....

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/03/business/economy/03illinois.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&ei=5065&partner=MYWAY&adxnnlx=1278331400-MrX9me6rEKlAY1AIjcTfyg

Excellent article on Illinois' financial mess/meltdown. Can the Federal Government be that far behind?

Happy birthday, America!

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday, dear America!
Happy Birthday to you!

Showing

We've got a showing on the house today....a whopping 4 hours notice, which spun the Ol' Man out of control. We've told the realtor, time and time again, that we want/require 24 hour notice. We live in our house, and it's not "dirty", but it does get dusty, dishes in the sink, laundry, etc. - it's not "showroom" ready at all times. The Ol' Man considers it pretty damn rude when we ask for 24 hours notice, and the other Realtors blow that off. Our realtor tell them 24 hours notice, but..it's a buyer's market, so, what can ya do? Clean up the house, that's what. Keep your fingers crosses these folks put in a bid...

Eyesballs and butt holes

So, I'm cleaning out the litter box, and the Younger is feeding the kitties (his chore). He says the kitties must have big butt holes, because of their poop. He then proceeds to inform me that HIS butt hole is as big as his eyeball, showing me how big his eyeball is by stretching his eyelids. Learn something new everyday, eh?