In Brightest Day and Blackest Night...

http://www.dot.state.oh.us/news/Pages/ODOTseeksGreenLanternHelptoProtectSnowplows.aspx

Tron Legacy Using Subliminal Manipulation???

[The Drew step saver:BOSTON TERRIER]

Now,to my post:

Ella:Well,if isn't my good old friend,Don.How ya been?Here,have a seat,let me move it towards the center for you.

Don:Ha,ha,thanks...Hey!

Ella:Oh,I'm sorry.I'm just getting into the habit of 'taking' seats 'away' from you:-)

Don:Again,hardy har har.I'll have a Guinness,please.What are you drinking?

Ella:Just some little girlly drink.Ever hear of a martini?

Don: Ouch.

Ella:So,honey,what ya been up to?

Don:Just went to see the new,'Tron Legacy',movie.

Ella:And you didn't take me?!? How was it?

Don:Sorry,your phone went to voice mail.

Ella:Soooo?!? How was it?

Don:There's the rub.Do you want the short answer or the long?

Ella:I like for them to begin small then grrrooow larrrger:-)

Don:Um,how many of those martini's did you say you had?Three?Ok

Ella: :-)

Don:Ok,well the short answer is that it was a good satisfying movie,It had a plot,good special effects.While the first ,'Tron',was universally panned,this one should get generally good reviews.

Ella:Buuut...

Don:The effects were great..except for the The character,Clu,I mean,he looked just like a young Jeff Bridges.The likeness was crazy dead on realistic...except for the eyes.

Ella:The eyes?

Don,Yeah,you ever see the movie version of ,'The Polar Express'?The animation was fantastic..except for the eyes.

Ella:Yeah,I know.They couldn't capture the range of human emotion in them.It gave them a soulless creepy like feeling..

Don:Yes,yes,exactly.Besides that I thought it was a really really good movie.Kept me on the edge of my seat.

Ella:Ok,the key word in your sentence is,'thought'.How come you don't think it is,now?

Don:Because I now believe I was told what to think.

Ella:Thus...the long answer...proceed.

Don:Once upon a time around ten years ago I was working as a product selector at a food distribution warehouse.Ever see those blue pallets in grocery stores with different cans of food piled high on top of them,wrapped in Saran wrap?

Ella:Oh,yes,wonderfully contraptions,love seeing them.U.S.A.;U.S.A.;U.S.A.

Don:Well,my dear,dear,Ella,I used to do just that.I would walk beside or ride this double electric pallet jack,and stack these cases of produce on one or two of these pallets.Some orders were so big,that when I was through selecting the order I would have lifted more then a ton!

Ella:My Hero:-)

Don:Yes,well to slowly,but surely get to the point,while we were selecting these orders,they would pipe in this muzak.But there were different types;pop,rock,country,rap,etc.

Ella:Did you actually say,'etc.'?No no ever actually says etc.Hmpft.But go on.

Don:Well,not all the speakers worked.Since some aisles played music and some didn't,it just became like background noise.Sometimes you heard it,sometimes you didn't.It was just something to make the night go by quicker.

Ella:One martini is not enough and two is too many..and I am on my third.

Don:Then I have some catching up to do.Another Guinness.

Ella:Good boy.Go on.

Don:This one night I caught myself singing,'Like A Virgin'.I hate that song.It was the song that made me determine that no matter how terrible a song was,if you heard it enough-over and over and over again-most people would begin to not only accept it,but actually begin to like it,too.

Ella:Hmmm.

Don:The same principle works in movies.How many people's favorite Christmas movie is a terrible piece of tripe just because they have seen this movie over and over and over again?

Ella:Idon'tcarewhatyou say...I still like ,'Scrooged'.

Don:I'm getting off point.Here was a song I just couldn't stand.Hated!And here I was singing it!

Ella:I hope you like Usher.I really like Usher.

Don:Stick with me,here,my dear.I stopped in my tracks.I thought,'Why in hell am I singing this song?'And then it hit me:'Like A Virgin' was playing over the speakers.Until that moment,I did not realize that I was even listening to it.I had NO recognition,no recall.I evidently was,but I had idea that I was hearing this song.NONE.

Ella:Whoa.That's sobering.WoW!

Don:I know.Here's the kicker.I got good at noticing it.It got to the point where my body would automatically draw up in response to this ..this...subliminal manipulation.It became like smelling smoke,or being timid around an electric wire.It would snap me to attention.SNAP.

Ella:You really need to get a life,you know that,right?

Don:Well,while watching Tron Legacy today,my body snapped!

Ella:I bet it was the music,you thought you were hearing,'Like A Virgin',again.

Don:You drunkenly have a point.This 'is' Disney we're talking about.The music was very fitting.It did grab you.It was very intense.But,no.I was literally grabbing my armrests when the first snap came.I thought.This moment isn't that intense.They over played it....I was being subliminally manipulated.My body doesn't just snap on it's own accord.
Ella:I'll see about that.:-)

Don:Whoa...hold on,tiger.

Ella:What's wrong...can't,can't take a joke?

Don:I tell ya what,Ella, [ let me get us a taxis to ride home] you,my dear,are probably right...it's all in my head.

Ella:Hey,why don't cha treat us to a taxi ride home?That would be so kind of you.

Don:Sounds like a deal to me.You ever drink martini's before?

Ella:No never,you?

Don:Only once,at a nephew's wedding.I don't talk about it much.Let me help you with your coat.

Ella:Come here,come here...You are soo sweet.

Don:Thank you.So are you:-)

Happy Boxing Day

Merry Christmas 2010

Happy 21st Birthday,Tyler,Nikolas & Adam

CREEPY

In one of the greatest stories of love that I have ever witnessed,Robyn's Mom gave out her and Pa's Christmas gift to the whole family.'Kiss The Cook' a family cook book that they worked on together in secret...WoW!

How do you judge the tem­per of a man?On how he loved and treated his fam­ily and friends?His work ethic?His faith?How tol­er­ate and com­pas­sion­ate he was?How forgiving?Did he go to the armed services?Go to college?Help people?Treat every­one equally?Did he help build a business?Was he an asset to the community?On how he suf­fered death?On how he lived his life?My father-in-law was of the finest metal judged by any and all of these standards.He died this morn­ing at 3:30am.God be with you Pa.Thank you for everything

The Hawk That Hit The Window

The hawk you see in this photo smashed into our dinning room picture window today.Right,then,it was a little dazed and confused,but as the video below shows,it soon recovered

A MUST LISTEN

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Sanders

The Wunderle Five

Tow Plow

As a person that plows snow for a living,maybe I and my ilk would be the only ones interested in this relatively new device.As reported in the news [ http://www.wksu.org/news/story/26793 ] ,ODOT will be trying one of these babies out.With an advertised fuel saving of almost 85% over running a more traditional two truck combo,the tow plow is supposed to be a money-and man power-saver...
...unless it breaks down..
..then,we'll see...







How would you like to be behind one of these big boys?

Lincoln/Kennedy

Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846
Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946

Lincoln was elected President in 1860
Kennedywas elected President in 1960

Lincoln wife lost a child while living in the White House
Kennedy wife lost a child while living in the White House

Lincoln was directly concerned with Civil Rights
Kennedy was directly concerned with Civil Rights

Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy who told him not to go to the theater
Kennedy had a secretary named Lincoln who told him not to go to Dallas

Lincoln was shot in the back of the head in the presence of his wife
Kennedy was shot in the back of the head in the presence of his wife

Lincoln was shot in the Ford Theatre
Kennedy shot in a Lincoln, made by Ford

Lincoln was shot on a Friday
Kennedy was shot on a Friday

The assassin, John Wilkes Booth, was known by three names, comprised of fifteen letters
The assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was known by three names, comprised of fifteen letters

Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and fled to a warehouse
Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and fled to a theater

Booth was killed before being brought to trial
Oswald was killed before being brought to trial

There were theories that Booth was part of a greater conspiracy
There were theories that Oswald was part of a greater conspiracy

Lincoln’s successor was Andrew Johnson, born in 1808
Kennedy’s successor was Lyndon Johnson, born in 1908

A week before he was shot,Lincoln was in Monroe,
Maryland
A week before he was shot,Kennedy was in Marilyn Monroe


(Yes,I know,a long way for a bad joke)

Meanwhile In Almost Local News....

and :

http://www.ohio.com/news/107162808.html

My Tea Party

As a Democrat,I have to begrudgingly give kudos to the Republican/right leaning Tea Party for their political gains this past election season.The masses have spoken;they want what they want and they want it now.

Do I agree with everything the Tea Party is standing up for?No,Of course not.Do I believe that their post election rhetorical arrogance about how they are now the voice of the nation to be totally true?Pah-please..

But,still,Kudos Tea Party.You are American Citizens taking part in the system,to adjust the system in the way you feel best.I wish more and more Americans had your passion.You,Mr.,Mrs.& Ms.Tea Party person affected change through the legit American channels.I bow to you.Kudos.Job well done.

Because{again as a Democrat},I felt flustered by your agenda,I steamed and boiled in my head on just what it was,you,as The Tea Party stood for.So,I went to your web sight [ http://teapartypatriots.ning.com/ ].

Let me tell ya,the web sight is not easy to access unless you sign in.In order to sign in,you have to become a member.So,to feign interest I have to join?I guess that is one way of boosting numbers,but no...no thank you,please.

Yes,I couldn't even read member's posts without joining...what kind of crap is that?How am I supposed to know if I am Tea Party enough to join if I am denied access to the rants and raves of the web sight's members?

What are ya hiding Tea Party?!?And why are you hiding it?Huh?

I,un~handy Andy that I am-did eventually find their mission statement .

It's not the Constitution, but then again,what is?

The 'Free Market' section was-ahem-not exactly my cup of Tea.I'm a government guy.I believe in my United State of America's government.The Constitution is pretty much a tangible thing.I get it.Free trade...I'm still trying to wrap my finger around that.

Less government and free trade can not always go hand in hand.Take the original Boston Tea Party for example.Sure,the Americans involved were protesting taxation without representation,BUT,they were also protesting free trade.The East India Trading Company was pretty much the Wal-Mart of the day.Less we forget,the Boston Tea party protest was almost as much about them as it was about the British gov't having it's way with us.Rightfully so.Wars,governmental takeovers,slavery etc were all either enforced,controlled,manipulated and or inspired by this out of control big business.

One of the reasons,I believe,The United States of America was formed was to get away from this kind of injustice...at least the lesson of The Boston Tea Party seems to show this to me.Let me reiterate:In my opinion,America was directly founded on the fact that it opposed [NOT EMBRACED] the big business practice of free trade.

Government should control the actions of businesses on it's citizens:NOT VICE VERSA!

It's not that I am anti-business.Hell no.

In,fact,the opposite is true.

I hold the common belief of many many people around the world that America is the land of opportunity;the land of milk and honey;that our streets are paved with gold...need I go on?

So many people believe this self evident truth that many Americans are of the opinion thatour  great country is being over run by immigrants...both legal and illegal..in their attempt to harvest this dream.

You can get rich here...or so the story goes.

And the kicker:IT'S TRUE!!!

The American Dream is one of the classic truths in this world of ambivalence and misconceptions.

So,just how is it,that with millions of people streaming into our borders to make a better life for themselves that the people whom have 'made' it here are complaining that they pay too much in taxes?!?

Hell,even if it were true...were else could you make it like you make it here in the good ol' U.S.of A.?
{And,you can argue that it's not.Some facts state that the rich pay 50% less then they did in the 1950's!}

I neither have the time or inclination to get into the modern versions of the evils of governmental deregulation and the wrong belief of less government is always better.

But if you,The Tea Party,believe that free trade and less government is the answer to what ails America...well...I'll just have to congratulate you on participating and leave it at that.

Kudos,Tea Party,Kudos.

Funny Cartoon

http://www.midnightbeach.com/jon/US-Constitution.htm#Preamble

Being @ The Obama Rally

Robyn and I went to yesterday's President Obama Rally on the Ohio State campus.Robyn's brother,Ben,Ben's wife,Sara and our Rev.Rob went with us.There were many speakers including John Glenn and Governor Ted Strickland.Musical guests included The Central State drum line and Springfield famous native son,John Legend.

But the highlight of the night had to be the joint appearances of both Michelle and Barack Obama.Though Robyn and I were a somewhat far away seventy yards from the stage,I could see fine.For,only five foot tall Robyn,it was a totally different story.She could only see once she got upon my back,piggyback style,to see the Obamas. 

This photo,from the allot closer Ben,Sara and Rob,show a pretty close up photo of the president and his beautifully wife,Michelle.The president told about how the Republicans have driven American into the ditch and the only help that they were giving to get it out was to tell  the president and Ohio Gov.Ted Strickland that they weren't pushing the correct way to get it out...remember D means drive forward and R means reverse.



Here is Robyn if front of the 'Moving America Forward' sign.We were amazed at how many different people(young,old,Indian,Japanese,Afro-American,Muslim,etc) joyously smiled to have their pictures taken in front of this sign.It gave us such a huge message of HOPE.



A Couple Nice Autumn Photographs

More Juan De Fuca

Yeah,I know...I took way too many photos...The group gave me the backpacking name of Kodak.Well.anyway...here is a wallop of a bunch of photographs showing our first day of hiking The Jaun De Fuca Trail on Vancouver Island,Canada



It was a beautiful hike.



Our first suspension bridge crossing

Follow the Orange blaze

Your friendly neighborhood Drew

Walking the log stairs

cvwiii getting water

WoW!Look what we found....

...Mystic Beach!





Might as well set camp,here.

My and Robyn's packs

Carl & Tammie pitching their tent

What we saw from our tents

First night camp

Books That I Am Reading

ROOM by Emma Donoghue

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson

Earth(The Book)by The Daily Show

Shopgirl by Steve Martin

Jonathan Strange & Mr.Norrell by Susanna Clarke

In The Name Of The Father Washington's Legacy,Slavery And The Making Of A Nation by Francois Furstenberg

K~Tune 155

Small Reprise~Queen + Paul Rodgers

Djohariah~Sufjan Stevens

With or Without You~Sarah Darling

Maps~Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Sober Driver~Dengue Fever

Ohio~The Black Keys

Saturday Night~The Misfits

Thieves~She & Him

Come Undone~Mark Lanegan & Isobel Campbell

Goin To Alcapulco~Jim James;Calexico

Louisiana Fairy Tale~Yim Yames;Preservation Hall Jazz Band

Corinne Died On The Battlefield~Tom Waits;Preservation Hall Jazz Band

Riders On The Storm~Santana Featuring Chester Bennington & Ray Manzarek

Creep (Radiohead Cover)~Scala & Kolacny Brothers

No Karma~Jaydiohead

Small~Queen + Paul Rodgers

9/11 & Why I'm Voting Domocratic

Who does not remember where they were on 9/11/2001?Waking up after the actually event[I worked third shift],I first saw the burning buildings on MSN via the world wide web.I immediately turned on the Tv,and telephoned my Mother.Watching the towers burn,I stated to my Mom just how horrible it was watching them burning.Her reply,"Andy,don't you know that they fell?" came exactly as the images on Tv showed the first tower imploding.

*

I was in an instant state of shock.

*

Though no longer Catholic-I am now Presbyterian-for some reason,I felt compelled to go to our town's Catholic church,light a candle,kneel down and say the Rosary.

*

That night at work..though it was a very slow night...lasted twelve hours...because everyone was just too numbed and,to be honest,befuddled,to go at it very hard.

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The following Jeff Stahler cartoon,published soon after what is now simply known as:9/11,summed up what most of us Americans felt.To this day,I consider it not only the best,but definitive 9/11 cartoon.Why it did not win a Pulitzer,is beyond me.

*

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America was at a crossroads...were we going to hate back?
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Apparently so.

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Flip forward to today...America is now not only filled with hate for our enemies,but hate for those that oppose us.

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The Republican party and it's nasty offshoot,The morally ambiguous,Tea Party(filtered through such outlets as Fox News)have created a nasty attitude of hate against all things that they stand against:especially,president Obama.Never mind that president Obama was elected into office.Never mind that actual good things have already happened in his under two years in office[ one war,for all practical purposes -over/major al-Qaeda operatives neutralized/a major banking disaster averted and an aggressive Stimulus package that appears to be working].Attack,attack and attack is the only thing these hate filled naysayers seem to understand.

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The Republicans are so good at hating,they even attack their own kind.There is NO compromise within the power/hate mongers of the GOP.Crossing over to vote with the Democrats on anything/for any reason is cause for shouts of,'Off with his head!'.

*

The message is clear:Hate or be hated.

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This is not The American Way.

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But it is the way of cooperation giants like the infamous Koch brothers{international corporate sponsors of the Tea party} & of the international media corporate giant,FOX media.

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Both are playing on the fears,hate and bigotry of the American people,to force their hand upon The United States of America.

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Don't believe me...watch this clip from the 'comedy' news show,called 'The Daily Show'.Fox news-an oxymoron if I ever heard one-gets caught,here,doing it's daily practice of taking partial clips-totally out of context-and running them with hate speech sneering announcers,as if the clips were actual verbatim news stories:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Are You Ready for Some Midterms? - MSNBC's Political Narrative
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

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My question is:Fox News..if your opponent is so evil and back assward..why use Nazi style propaganda?Why mis-lead instead of lead?Why lie?

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Because lying is the only way to get your way!

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Shame on you Fox News!

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The sad thing is that it is working...and working well.

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Reading the current edition of ODOT's 'Transcript Newsletter'(Fall 2010) that reported that the Obama Stimulus package is actually working,a quasi-Republican fellow worker told me to,"Shut UP!".

*

I guess,his mind was made up for him.The truth was irrelevant.The truth no longer had any meaning for him.Only the often quoted lies and mis-leading propaganda gauged his decisions.

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Abraham Lincoln once said,"You can fool some of the people all the time,and all of the people some of the time.But you can't fool all the people all of the time."

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Ya ain't foolin' me.

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Give me liberty or give me death!

*

I'M VOTING DEMOCRATIC!

Two Quick Things

Ok,I am not usually a sucker for seeing these images of Jesus on toast,water stains,etc...but this one is pretty cool.Yes,I know,especially as an ex-treeman,that this is just an optical illusion-at best,and a case of just seeing what you want to see-at worst...but this is still pretty cool(says the ex-treeman).


Second,this 17:03 minute song by Sufjan Stevens called,'Djohariah'[about his younger sister],is BY FAR the best song of the year.The twelve minutes plus guitar work is simply amazing;the chorale chants,the horns,and the blow you away lyrics-just make this a fantastic song.None better this year.


I have been really burnt out on the lousy state of pop music lately,'Djohariah' is a God's send.One GREAT song.


Listen to it:HERE

Our Great Juan De Fuca Adventure Begins...

Soon after our trip into Seattle,Carl & Tammie arrived.We spent the rest of the evening at the pool.The next morning,we got ready for our trip{packing and unpacking the car would become the bane of our existence during the whole trip} to The Juan De Fuca Trail up on Vancouver Island,Canada.It is called the Juan De Fuca Trail because it goes along the coast of the Juan De Fuca Strait.

We left Seattle and drove up to Port Angeles to catch our ferry into Canada.While I was drinking the local,'Juan De Fuca' beer,the waitress told us that the movie/book,'Twilight' was supposed to take place in the next town or two over called,Forks,and they have been having an influx of tourists.What I found even  more interesting was that Port Angeles is the start/finish of the famous west coast route,Rt.101.

We got Black balled...well the ferry line was called,Black Ball Ferry~Line.We saw Pilot whales...but too far off in the distance for my camera.

An hour or so later,we were finally on Vancouver Island,Canada,arriving in the very beautiful and progressive city of Victoria.

Another hour or so we finally got to our destiation:China Beach:The trailhead into the Juan De Fuca Trail

Our great adventure had begun...