Offsite Comments

The cold rolled out of Kansas, finally. Wind whipping the fallen leaves around. Nice to be warm, dry, and inside.

See y'all.

Speaking of respect for the colors, flying faded and worn flags really bothers me. It's not supposed to be the rose, gray, and turqoise.

I believe if you bought yourself a flag, you can do whatever you like with it on your own property.

Or so I might argue, purely from idealism of liberty, any other day of the year.

But that said, I might be slow to phone for help if, say, I saw irongrampa whoopin on a flag-burner. Sometimes I just can't remember the number for 9-1-1, y'know.

For today, I dug out some pictures we took at the 2006 re-dedication of the WWI memorial bridge here in my home town.

Here's one shot of the bridge, showing the plaques of names. I have both grandfathers and other relatives listed on there.
http://mindfulwebworks.com/best-of-spirits/ww1-mem-bridge-rededication-2...

A closeup of one of the plaques.
http://mindfulwebworks.com/best-of-spirits/ww1-mem-bridge-rededication-2...

Here's one, of one of the Vets attending the ceremony. I don't know who he is. Probably the Mrs took the picture. But here's to all of 'em.
http://mindfulwebworks.com/best-of-spirits/ww1-mem-bridge-rededication-2...

The bridge used to be one of the main roads into town, later relegated to being just a little-used exit from a four-lane. It was great to see it cleaned up, lamps put in as originally planned decades ago; they even used paint-repelling coating to discourage the graffiti that had plagued it for years. It's still clean and in good shape today.

Mrs had a dresser which belonged to her mother, and was giving it to our daughter, so, naturally, I get The Dirty Job, to vacuum up the cobwebs underneath it.

Stuck under the very bottom, rolled up, was a 1950 $10 bill. It wasn't under a drawer, it was stuck in a groove in the wood "skirt" around the bottom.

If you look at the back of the bill, you can see the patch of varnish stain on what was the outside of the rolled-up bill. Was it in there when (if) the dresser was refinished, or did the varnish just transfer over the years?
http://mindfulwebworks.com/best-of-spirits/found-ten-spot-back-copy.jpg

We've got it flattening out in a book. Mrs hopes to find a two-sided frame to display it. Nothing special about it. Just an old Federal Reserve Note.

But how did it get there? Did her mother put it there? Was it some kind of reserve emergency money? Not easy to stash or to get to, but sure wouldn't be found by an intruder.

This mystery - it's all I have to bring to the buffet tonight. That, and some real-sugar Mexican Coca-Colas and a barrel of discount cheese doodles.

"White House To Try Bold, Never-Before-Used Obamacare Strategy On Enrollment Figures: Straight-Up Lying"

Still, before we fully castigate the President for his rhetorical flights of fancy, it's important to keep in mind that Obama was — to a large degree — telling Americans what they wanted to hear.

:: pauses to keep that in mind ::

Okay, now we can fully castigate him.

sigh wrong thread - doesn't matter

I had a typo in my nic link for days, I discovered earlier. Nobody noticed, nobody clicks, nobody cares...

Don't pay me no mind - I'm just putting the 'real' sock back on.

Reading the comments today has reminded me once again how much I appreciate the community here. Thanks Ace & co.

If the city of Ace weren't in Peruvia, I'd move there. Maybe it can move to Oklahoma, after the Peruvian Progressives oust them.

Ta.

Oh Lord,just saw a news crawl that Obama is welcoming the oldest known veteran to the WH.
: steevy

Got the full Deming NM welcome... for the CiC's security.

where's my other cheeseburger?

danggit... the mate keeps getting lost in the dryer....

"We--meaning Vietnam Vets--decided that nobody would ever do that to a soldier again. You get parades because we didn't."

This.

Rest In Peace Dad.
Posted by: Oldsailors Poet

That was beautiful. Thank you to him from all of us who couldn't.

The left doesn't change. Ever. : Washington Nearsider

So correct. But there has been great change. The Patriot Riders, the welcomes for returning soldiers, the folks the other day who gave up their 1st class plane seats, and every personal thank-you to a Vet -there's much more of that overt display of appreciation. That Silent Majority has learned to shout, roar and honk. Like Westboro blockaded by Patriots, marginalized to insignificance. God grant this spirit continues to trumpet at full blast.

Long one; don't bother
-

We were not warrior class family, Dad's side.

Oh, Gramps served in WW1, but as a son of a middling-wealthy industrialist, I'm not sure how close to the fire he got.

Dad spent WW2 training pilots in Kansas. (The father-in-law I never got to meet also only served at home, teaching celestial navigation - but he insisted on enlisting even with only having one eye!)

But we boomers....

Eldest brother - I think his $10 weed 'sale' entrapment conviction made him undraftable.

Middle brother tried to get a CO, but was laughed off by the WW1 Vets on the draft board, so he got whatever you get to be deferred for allergies. (We really had them bad as kids. Doctor treated & all. Rich doctor. )

It was decades after the fact that I came to understand my Mom - God love her - wasn't really as concerned about my "finishing my education," when she pleaded with me not to drop out of college, as much as she feared my being drafted. Her father was never quite right after catching a whiff of mustard gas in WW1, and she remembered her brother Ed & others fighting & dying (Ed lived) in action in WW2. She saw Nam presented as meatgrinder on the evening news. Can't blame her too much for wanting to protect her babies. :/

Although my step-father had been a medic in the field in WW2, he was non-influential on my life, and Dad was dead. I didn't have any elder to advise me. And certainly there was no personal inspiration to join up. I ultimately just threw myself in with my citizen brothers, and Murphy's Law looked the other direction for me, just for the draft.

Mrs's eldest bro served in the Navy as if I told you what I did I'd have to kill you stuff, but mostly stationed on Guam, not Nam. Now, see, if I'd known that, even as a religious pacifist and mortal coward, but patriotic and dutiful, I might have been able to serve in some capacity other than unarmed frontline chaplain (I was pacific, not suicidal), I might have been encouraged to join.

Well, hate to say it, considering the sacrifices made for American security through the past two centuries, but just sitting here growing old in the middle of the nation, it's entirely possible I may yet be compelled to take up arms in service to the Constitution. Hope not; ready to (sort of).

Deepest thanks for the service, sacrifice, and inspiration of all who served and serve.

A man who was spat upon in Oakland by pretty young women and called a baby killer by a 4F co-worker -Sherry McEvil

I know it is in reaction to that horror that so many work to honor our servicefolk today. I know such despicable actions appalled and revolted me, in the '60s, and ever singe.

Lifetime civilian here ('won' the Nam draft lotto repeatedly) - and all too well aware of being in the protected class. Eternally grateful to all who served, and fervently praying that unrighteous engagements end and all battles henceforth be fought to be decidedly won. It is a great evil to abuse the noble loyalty of military servicepeople.

God bless you, too, Sherry, and all the homefront spouses.

Discussion of GW Bush last night, the man, not the Pres. WeirdDave posted a link to a fine article I thought worth re-mentioning. Miss him yet? :/

http://www.blackfive.net/main/2008/08/the-reason-to-d.html

Charlie asleep
So hard in my lap
It's hard to get up
To go ... get mote coffee.

::tosses away rhyming dictionary ::

Hi, folks.

"If you shoot all the monkeys who will fling all the poo?"
- Navycopjoe

We''ll always have Democrats.

@toby : Shopping online for Alpenhorns!

HEY! I didn't make the top ten sokk poppets. My secret stealth technique is working. (Yours for only $29.95 from Victor's Secrets.)

...he hasn't found anything new old, dead, rotten to roll in.
----------------------------
Fixed -Tobacco Road

^ This. Oh pewey pew this! All the fine, fragrant cowflop in the pasture and he finds a corpse to roll in. No taste at all.

I mean, at least cowflop smells like money. Death just smells like... the entropy of the universe.