Saturday Bag o’ Christmas Spirit

Last night Donna asked me if I couldn’t see my way clear to working up a little Christmas spirit. Sigh. Millions are affected by holiday season depression. I always thought they were weak, but now I’m ready to admit I have a touch of it myself. It certainly helps explain my seasonal grumpiness, which rarely lifts […]

Thanksgiving Photoblog

We’ll start with the official family portrait, taken with the big Canon on Thanksgiving day: This is as much of our family as we can gather together these days: our granddaughter Taylor had to stay behind in Las Vegas to work, but at least she was able to share Thanksgiving dinner with her boyfriend’s family. […]

Fiddling in the Kitchen While Rome Burns

We’re having friends over for dinner tonight, my excuse to make braised beef short ribs, which we haven’t had in literally years. I don’t know about where you live, but here we rarely find beef short ribs in the grocery store or base commissary. We get ours at the local butcher shop, where they cut them to […]

Tuesday Bag o’ Fraud

For the second time in two months, my debit card’s been compromised. Donna picked it up right away: four small charges from Angeles City in the Philippines. I always examine card readers on gas pumps and ATMs and am pretty sure I haven’t fallen victim to a skimmer. Well, who knows? This time I had to make […]

Expanding the Ministry

Aye, I do some ministerin’. I signed up for a mail-order Universal Life Church ordination about 15 years ago in order perform weddings for Hash House Harrier friends. Word spread, and before I knew it I was also marrying non-hashing friends and relatives, then random couples (no disrespect intended, if any of them are reading this) off the street. […]

Trailer Trash (with Money)

Just when you think a presidential candidate would be trying to say something intelligent about the terrorist attacks in Brussels, Donald Trump is sending out nasty, insinuating tweets about a rival candidate’s wife. And this interview with Washington Post editors? Lord almighty: RYAN: You [MUFFLED] mentioned a few minutes earlier here that you would knock ISIS. You’ve mentioned […]

Pick-up Sticks

Like my sticks? They’re mine! All mine! Our sprinkler and drip irrigation system has given up. The timer doesn’t time, the master valves stick open, the underground tubes leak … the entire system has to be replaced, and the estimate is over 2,500 bucks. Of course it doesn’t have to be replaced. I can always […]