The accused may be innocent until proven guilty, but that doesn’t mean you can’t build the gallows and practice tying knots now.

• I had a long time co-worker call me an asshole in the nicest way possible, and I couldn’t have been more proud.
  • He also said that I always got the job done right the first time I did it, which was almost as good.
• I woke up this morning to the dulcet tones of my beloved Irish Woman as she tried to figure out why the dog needed to be up and making noise before the sun was up, why the 5 year old had the TV up so loud, and why the cat needed attention right-bloody-now.
  • It’s good to have the family back together again.
• Nothing like putting away the summer clothes in a box and bringing out the winter clothes.
  • I much prefer sweater weather to “Holy crap, I’m going to die from the heat!” weather.
• Finding boxes of ammunition you forgot you had is a nice side effect of cleaning up the basement.
• The fact that Koshka did not throat punch Crash when he took a piece of ham away from her tells me that she’s mellowed quite a bit in her old age.
• Hot fire, clean house, lazy dogs, and quiet kids – My favorite way to finish a day.

• Oatmeal would be much easier to eat if you could add eggs, sausage, biscuits, and hashbrowns.  And take out the oatmeal.
• Just so everyone knows, when the hood on a 2012 Ford Fusion is open, but still latched, it will cause the “Door Open” idiot light on the dashboard to light up.
  • Repeatedly opening and closing all of the passenger doors and the trunk will not correct this issue.
• I don’t know if you all heard, but today is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy by a socialist tool.  Or maybe it was a mafia hitman.  Possibly a CIA agent under orders from Vice President Johnson.  Outside chance he’s still alive and that was a Martian meat puppet in the car.
  • I just wanted to make sure, because the press seems to be keeping quiet about it.
• For once, I went to an airport and didn’t come away thinking hateful things about the TSA.
  • Of course, I was just meeting Irish Woman and didn’t have to go through security, but you take what you can get.
• When you screw up my pizza order, put it down under the wrong name, and give me attitude when I give you my phone number so you can look everything up, you give up all rights to be shocked that I do not tip you.
  • My name is not Bob, and I did not order a thin crust meat lovers with extra cheese, along with a stuffed crust pepperoni.
• Old challenge coins make for excellent pirate treasure.

• Boo watched a Charlie Brown cartoon on TV tonight, and thought that the character of Lucy was the best.
  • Not sure what this means about my future daughter-in-law, but I’ll enjoy watching the situation unfold.
• Irish Woman woke up in Denver this morning, and there was about half a foot of snow on the ground, with more promised.
  • It was almost 5 degrees Fahrenheit out.
  • She was thrilled, as you can expect.  My darling Kentucky sweetheart isn’t exactly a fan of cold weather.
  • She asked for an emergency resupply of snow boots, buffalo coats, and bourbon.
• My cousin in North Dakota reported that it was -6 degrees Fahrenheit, with a wind chill of -23.  The memories that brought back were wonderful.
• If there is a scientist out there who wants a human specimen for testing suspended animation techniques, I’m game.
  • I’ll be available from November 29 until December 26.
  • I’ll fatten myself up nicely on Thanksgiving, then sleep through Christmas.  It’s a flawless plan!
• I put a new lightbulb in Irish Woman’s sunlight lamp today.
  • My goal for this winter is to not have that “fight or flight” feeling when I realize Irish Woman is ‘feeling a little down’.
  • I’m also buying Vitamin D by the truckload, and will be lacing her food with it.
• You know, it’s strange how long it takes for my insurance company to get a check to me when they are so quick and prompt to take my premiums out of my checking account.

• I believe I’m going to have to be careful with Boo when it comes to automobiles.
  • When a Shelby Mustang pulled away from us at a light, he insisted that I “go fast” and “catch that guy”.
  • It broke his little heart when I explained that a Ford Fusion, even if I were to floor it, would not be able to keep up with a Mustang.
• It is never a good thing to hear the tinkle of running water under a sink that you are trying to unclog with a plunger.
• If Crash the Combat Kitten tries to escape out the back door one more time tonight, I am going to close the door and let him spend a night outside.
  • A similar outcome will occur the next time he gets himself trapped in the kitchen garbage can.
• Apparently I’m a big meanie because I shut off the television this afternoon, handed my son a box with about $50 worth of Lego’s and told him to entertain himself.
  • I know, I know, I’m horrible.
• The next dog that chases Koshka across my lap with her claws extended is going to spend a night in the box.

• Tonight I had the tact to not get in someone else’s way when they were making an ass of themselves.
  • Emily Post would be so proud of me for minding my own business.
• The young man who accompanied Girlie Bear to her ball last night invited us to go shooting with him and his father at a local gun club.
  • I must say, he’s taking the correct path.
• Irish Woman is off on a business trip in the morning.  The most stressful part of this has been convincing her that I will not let the house fall down around us, the children will not die of starvation because they can’t eat my cooking, and that I am capable of juggling job and home.
  • My boss has been very cool about my schedule for this week, I have a crockpot, and I do my best housework when the kids are asleep.
• Irish Woman hasn’t flown much in the past few years, and I explained how seating on Southwest works, as well as how getting through security goes these days.
  • I told her she had the choice of the porn-o-tron or Uncle Bad Touch, and she wasn’t impressed with either.
• We got buckets of rain this morning and tornado watches this evening.
  • No damage here, but others seem to have hit pretty bad.
• I’m starting a new project for the blog that will appear in the new year.  Hopefully it gets me to post more often and actually put some thought into it.
• I think I’m going to have to replace our TV sometime soon.  It’s started having some issues with picture, no matter which device is giving it signal.
  • Seriously?  Only 11 years of life out of a JVC?  Y’all should hang your head in shame.
  • Sigh, yet another consumer electronics rathole into which I shall have to do research.
  • Plasma, LCD, LED, EIEIO
• Had to have the “You tried to write a novel before, and you ended up burning it because it was terrible” discussion with myself again.  It happens every couple of years, and I’ve matured enough to know my limitations.
  • Short rants and essays – good, and a great way to blow off steam.
  • Short stories, the sillier the better – good, and a lot of fun to write.
  • 250+ pages of derivative detective story twattle?  – not so good.
  • 1000+ pages written over two years, only to find that you’ve written a horrible knock-off of The Hobbit?  – bad

• Going out for German food and finding that the restaurant stocks one of my favorite beers, which I haven’t had since 1994, was a real treat.
• Irish Woman spent 20 minutes eating her dessert last night.  She was analyzing “Mutti’s Apfeltorte” so that she could make it at home.
  • She also liked her rahmschnitzel, and seemed intrigued by the make-up of my rouladen.  I foresee more German food in my future.
  • Yep, she’s a keeper.
• Girlie Bear has spent the week getting ready for her JROTC formal ball.
  • With the dress, the make-up, and the hair, she certainly didn’t look 15 tonight.
  • I will give the young man who is attending the ball with her some credit.  After weeks of Girlie Bear convincing him that I am a psychotic killer of a father and that I will do evil things to him if he touches my daughter, he had the guts to look me in the eye, however briefly, when we shook hands and did not wet himself in my presence.
• It’s kind of scary to watch Irish Woman toy with someone she knows is lying to her.
  • Here’s a hint:  If we put out a bunch of yard waste cans and bags on Saturday,  the trash isn’t picked up until Wednesday, and Irish Woman works from home and has a view of the pile of yard waste from her work area, don’t tell her that you were by to pick it up and nothing was out there.
  • I just stayed out of her way when she went out to chew on the gentlemen who came by after she called the waste company to complain.  I don’t want to catch the edge of the ass-chewing and I don’t want to be a witness.
• When you go to give yourself a haircut, always make sure you put in the correct size guard before applying the clippers.
  • When you make that initial cut that’s not right, you pretty much have to finish out the entire job at that length.
  • My hair hasn’t been this short in decades.
  • On the plus side, I only needed about half a teaspoon of shampoo when I took a shower.
• Man hath no love like a labrador retriever watching a human being make a pulled pork sandwich.

• Boo has his first two loose teeth.  Irish Woman says that makes her feel old.
• The yard work is pretty much done for the year.
  • Most of the leaves are up, and the ones that aren’t up are a small amount that have fallen since we raked and mulched.
  • Our compost heap is about 10 feet long, four feet wide, and three feet high.
    • It includes three 30 gallon barrels of mulched leaves, a further six 55 gallon bags of mulched leaves and grass clippings, three large bags of composted cow manure, and a 30 gallon barrel of kitchen waste, all mixed up.
    • Hopefully, with additional stirring over the winter and lots and lots of rain/snow water, it will be good, rich fertilizer for the garden and fruit trees.
  • The guy who is going to pick up our yard waste on Thursday is going to hate me.  There’s almost as much stuff that I rejected for use in the compost pile as I accepted, and all of the bad stuff got put out to be hauled away.
  • I owe Girlie Bear quite a bit.  She’s been working like a field hand all weekend.
• I had a strange dream last night.
  • I was in a David Drake “Hammer’s Slammers” story, which was really cool.
  • However, it was rendered as animation in the same style as the B-17 vignet in “Heavy Metal“.
  • I remember most of it.  I may file this away and write a fanfic piece.
  • OK, I’m a geek.  I admit it.

In Flanders Fields

By Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

• At the Veteran’s Day ceremony at Girlie Bear’s school yesterday, I noticed something:
  • The World War II combat veteran had four ribbons.
  • The Vietnam War veteran colonel of artillery who went on to serve over 20 years on active duty had four rows of ribbons.
  • A couple of the more recent veterans had a tower of ribbons on their chest that went almost to their shoulder boards.
  • Not saying they don’t deserve everything they get, because they truly do, but I just thought it was odd.
• An afternoon at the range is a wonderful thing.
• When the RSO stops talking during the safety brief and glares at you and your girlfriend, maybe it’s time to stop talking loudly about your friend and how drunk she got last night.
• That steel target I put together from scrap steel  will occasionally stop a 5.56 round, and .22 bounces off it very well.  Knob Creek has changed their policy so that I can bring it close enough to reliably hit it with a .22 rifle, so I think it will be going to the range more often.
• Our yearly family ritual of gathering up the leaves in the yard is almost done.  They’ve been mulched and bagged.  Tomorrow, they go into a compost pile with kitchen waste and grass clippings, and by the spring should be good dirt for the garden boxes.
• Irish Woman had a nice long talk with a ‘mixologist‘ last night about how to make infused bourbon.  I guess I’ll be picking up a couple extra bottles of Woodford Reserve this week.
  • The cocktail he made last night included Jack Daniels, honey, and other yummy things, so he knows of which he speaks.
  • Leave it to the Irish Woman to come away from an event , which had me offering to marry my youngest son into the chef’s bloodline in exchange for their recipes, with a method to improve booze.
• Halloween is officially over when you put the last of the decorations in the attic and throw out what remains of the candy.