This morning HTP called the new system that he spent the whole day yesterday installing on my computer a "piece of crap". Now he wants to rebuild my whole system with a new hard drive. Anyone have a gun? I don't know if I want to shoot this computer because my new system treats me like I'm a total idiot or...Is Arizona a death penalty state? I suppose I could look it up on the net.

Murphyism of the Day

Hawkins' Theory of Progress

Progress does not consist of replacing a theory that is wrong with one that is right. It consists in replacing a theory that is wrong with one that is more subtly wrong.

OK. Just a quick blog. HTP decided to upgrade my computer to XP. He started this project right after breakfast. I finally have my wounded computer back. It works but I lost all my addresses, all my favorites, all my old emails, every single one of my programs. You get the drift. It's been a total disaster that took HTP the whole day to fix. I'll never be able to recover my old emails. I was able to reconstruct my address book from HTP's computer. I was able to find my passwords. Most of them. HTP backed up some of my emails so I might get some of them back. I started the reconstruction of my Favorites. And on top of all this...I have to get used to XP. You'd think I'd learn. HTP's wiped out my system memory every time he's meddled with it. Next time I plan to throw myself, armed, in front of my computer to protect it until I receive a 100% guarantee that he'll back up everything onto a CD...or maybe several CD's.

On a lighter note, while I waited to get my computer back, I made really wonderful sugarless brownies. And the sugarless Jan Hagel that I made yesterday tastes great too.

Murphyism of the Day

Old Grey Frog's Laws on Computer Upgrades

1. If a techie decides to upgrade your computer and assures you that it'll just take a few of minutes, thirty minutes max, it will take an entire day...or more.

2. The one time you fail to back up vital data on your computer you will wish you had because all will be lost.

I'm taking a break. I've turned off the Christmas music because it was getting on my nerves. I'll turn it back on when my coffee break is over. Thank goodness I still have hot coffee left from this morning's pot. There are two batches of brown sugar cookies baked, cooled and in a tin. I'll decorate some of them after supper so I can send them to my daughter in Omaha. She can't have them all. I love her but I think the rest of the family and some of my friends would kill me if I gave all my brown sugar cookies to one person. As it is, I'm not at all sure they'll make it to Omaha in recognizable pieces. Oh well, it's the thought that counts. After the dishes are washed (washing as I blog), I'll bake my Jan Hagel. Six batches. Two batches of cinnamon Jan Hagel, two batches of almond Jan Hagel, one batch of sugarless cinnamon Jan Hagel, and one batch of sugarless almond Jan Hagel. I have a long list of cookies that I need to make but I only have so much energy in one given day. Right now I'm exhausted. Hopefully I'll have more energy in an hour. I need to make Russian teacakes (with and without sugar), peanut brittle, fruitcake bars (Yes Virginia, some people do happen to like fruitcake and why I feel I have to apologize for this fact, I have no idea...did you realize that my spell checker doesn't even have fruitcake in its lexicon?), fudge, meringue cookies, and sugarless brownies. I'll have to tackle this list on another day. HTP is out shopping for some of the ingredients I need right now. He hates it when I play Christmas music. Maybe I'll see if he can bring home take-out for supper?

Murphyism of the Day

Merkin's Maxim

When in doubt, predict that the trend will continue.

I shopped until I dropped and I still need to get more stuff. My daughter and I visited CostPlus World Market first because I needed some pretty bottles for my Blackberry Schnapps and my Raspberry Schnapps. They need to be filtered and I need something to put the schnapps in after I do that. After that we walked through the closest mall, Mall #1. We walked over the entire square footage of Mall #1. We were able to check three items off our list. We decided that we needed to go to another mall. A larger mall. So we toddled off to Mall #2. We didn't skip lunch. We each enjoyed a salad and roll at The Wildflower Bread Company. After lunch, we hobbled around Mall #2 and found out that one of the purchases that we made at Mall #1 was cheaper at Mall #2. Fortunately we were able to return that purchase at Mall #2 instead of having to trek back to Mall #1. We repurchased the one item at a cheaper price and bought one more thing. Then I had to go to Target to return something that I thought I needed to buy but later found out that I didn't. It was there that I was able to do most of my shopping. I returned my daughter to her apartment at around 5:30 PM. My feet were throbbing but I still wanted to check and see if I could find a couple more items at a different Target that was on my way home. They'd run out of these items at the first Target. I found one of the items but not the other. Oh well. I suppose it wasn't meant to be. By this time it was 7 PM and HTP was home alone...starving. I stopped at the Albertson's to buy fried chicken for a late supper. The chicken looked greasy and old. I decided to buy lean hamburger instead...and hamburger buns. I didn't buy tomatoes. I refuse to pay $3.49/lb. for tomatoes. Who would? Even if I had money to burn, they weren't even ripe. I limped into the house at around 7:30 PM and found that my wonderful, beautiful, thoughtful HTP had done the laundry...most of it. I had started it in the morning. Wow! He really deserved his treat. A real, honest to goodness, pan-fried, hamburger. HTP even cooked the hamburgers while I folded a load of laundry that was just ready in the dryer. MMMM. Real hamburgers. Better then any restaurant! Now I just have to figure out what to do with the rest of these onion buns.

Cool-Deck Update

HTP and I noticed a fine white powder showing up all over the surface of our new cool-deck. We'd never seen anything like it before. We're veteran cool-deck owners so something didn't look right. Today we called our landscaper who still hadn't sent a crew out to move our patio furniture into place. He called the cool-deck people and they came out to check out the problem. Apparently, the rain and the cold weather caused some problems. The first layer of the application failed to set up and now it's leaching up through the top application. Argh! It's just as well that they haven't moved my furniture back. They are going to send someone out on Saturday to reapply the top application. They claim that the lower layer has cured and won't need to be reapplied. I hope they're right. I don't want to have to deal with snowy white glittery powder on my cool-deck. It's bad enough that I have to deal with duststorm dust blowing in from the desert.

Murphyism of the Day

Dunlap's Laws of Physics

1. Fact is solidified opinion.
2. Facts may weaken under extreme heat and pressure.
3. Truth is elastic.

We had our belated Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. My only excuse for not blogging. I made stuffing (without celery because no-one seems to like celery in the stuffing but HTP) and stuffed a 24-pound turkey. It took 7 hours to cook our turkey but it was worth it. I made all the traditional side-dishes. Green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and gravy, and cranberry sauce. My daughter and her husband took home all the left-overs. I suppose I should have kept some of it but I didn't. HTP won't be happy. He loves left-over Thanksgiving treats. I do still have an apple pie. We were all too "stuffed" to have dessert and I forgot to send it home with my daughter. Oh well, maybe I'll bring it over to her later today when we go shopping.

I addressed all my Christmas cards yesterday and HTP took them to the post office to mail out. I'm told the post office was really crowded. There are no lines anymore but they have a number system. Unfortunately, there is no place to sit down as you wait your turn. He grabbed a number, 76, and then looked up at the board and saw that they were currently waiting on number 43. Anyway, since he mainly needed Christmas stamps he saw that he could buy some in a machine by the front door. He bought 60 of the stamps before he realized that the machine was screwed up and he ended up with 60 flag stamps instead of 60 Christmas stamps. Thankfully, he saw someone come from the backroom to refill the machine and he was able to trade his 60 flag stamps for Santa ornament stamps. He spent his time waiting for his number 76 to come up, putting stamps on the Christmas cards. He still had to wait his turn because we have a couple of cards that we send out-of-country and they need special attention. Oh well, at least that's one more item crossed off my "TO DO" list.

I still have to do some baking and I have that scarf that I'm knitting for #1 son to finish. And I need to go out shopping and then wrap presents. Oh well, I still have time but I want to send some cookies to my daughter in Omaha...and I haven't even baked them yet. I'm not planning on mailing them out at the post office. I'll UPS them. I want them to get there before Christmas...or at least before she has to report to Parris Island after the first of the year.

Murphyism of the Day

Primary Rule of History

History doesn't repeat itself--historians merely repeat each other.

There are times that I just want to tell someone off. I want to rant, I want to lecture, I want to berate. But I don't. I suppose that's why I have so many headaches. I usually spend the rest of the day thinking up things that I should have said to these someones. Oh well, I suppose that's what blogging is all about. A form of cathartic release.

We recently moved to Wisconsin. I now have Wisconsin plates on my car. Since we returned to Arizona for the winter, I have noticed a decided lack of respect for my driving skills. I always faced the fact that my gender seems to bring a certain amount of this but I've been experiencing more disrespect since I returned to Arizona in October. My driving skills have not deteriorated in the summer months that I lived in Wisconsin. If I'm driving 50 mph in a 45 mph zone, there is always someone out there who feels that I'm driving too slow as they zip by me going 60 mph. Apparently, no local wants to be seen driving slower then a *shudder* "snowbird". If I need to switch lanes on the highway, there's always that one person who refuses to let me in. They actually seem to speed up so I can't get in. The same holds true for entering the freeway. This has been a truly bizarre experience. I just want to scream! I know where I'm going! I've been driving these Arizona roads for over 25 years. Moving to Wisconsin didn't make my brains leak out.

And then there's today. I went to church early. Not too much traffic so I didn't experience an inordinate amount of rude behavior. I did get a tailgater following me on the way home. Apparently 10 mph over the speed limit isn't fast enough if you have a Wisconsin license plate on your car. Anyway, I stopped at the grocery store after church. Everything was fine until I reached the egg section. The eggs were on sale so I decided to pick up a carton. There was an elderly couple hovering in front of the case choosing a carton of eggs. Some of the eggs were broken so this can take a bit of time. I waited until they were finished and then heard a woman huffing commentary in back of me. I thought she was talking to me so I said, "I beg your pardon?" She repeated herself. "I don't know why they don't shop during the week!" I replied, "Excuse me?" She continued in an annoyed fashion, "Retired people can shop anytime. They should shop during the week when the rest of us have to work." At first I was speechless and then I just bit my tongue. Nothing I could say would have made any difference and making a scene would have only made things worse. The couple she was talking about hadn't even heard what she said. I got my eggs and departed. She wasn't talking about me. She was commenting on the other couple but I'm retired and I was upset by her whole manner. All the way home and even now I wonder if I should have said something. I doubt it would have made a difference. Some people are just going to be rude. I wonder if this gal would like to see a new state law passed? No one who visibly appears to be of retirement age should be allowed to reside in Arizona unless they agree to remain holed up in their homes during any hours that people who appear to be under retirement age are allowed to roam about. Obvious signs that you may be retired are grey hair, shopping with your spouse, driving a car with an out-of-state license plate, and roaming about when "normal" people are working.

Murphyism of the Day

Burke's Rule

Never create a problem for which you do not have the answer.

Corollary

Create problems for which only you have the answer.

Fagin's Rule of Past Prediction

Hindsight is and exact science.

Well this is sure going to be a learning experience! Our daughter, Mink, is going through the beginning process of becoming a GI Jane...or maybe they don't refer to Marines in that manner? I think I may be mixing up my branches of the military. What does one call a Marine who happens to be a female? My neighbor tells me that they used to call them BAMs. Broad-Assed Marines. I'll have to ask Mink if they still use that acronym. Doesn't sound too PC to me. Anyway, she's going into boot camp (Parris Island, SC) on January 3rd and I'm learning all kinds of new stuff. She passed her physical and has been sworn in. She passed her suspended arm hang and crunch test and still has to show them that she can run 1-1/2 miles in less then 15 minutes so she doesn't get placed into "The fat farm" version of boot camp. I think she plans to do that next week. MEPS? ASVAB? What the heck is MOS? And then there's PFC...which I think may refer to the level at which my daughter enters boot camp? I assume it means Private First Class. And then there's E2? I think they're the same thing. And now I need to learn all about the mail system because I'll want to write to her...but I'm not supposed to send any postcards or anything odd or strange that could make her conspicuous or could cause problems with the DI. An RCT is a recruit. And then there's 4th Battalion Oscar Company. My brain was on overload at this point. I think I'll just concentrate on getting my annual Christmas card printed out and sent to everyone. And then I need to go shopping. And then there's the baking.

Murphyism of the Day

Warren's Rule

To spot the expert, pick the one who predicts the job will take the longest and cost the most.

The landscaper came by and wanted money. HTP went outside with him to inspect the work. Oops! They aren't done. They thought they were done but... They used the wrong color paint. This wouldn't have been such a big deal but they decided to "touch up" the bottom portion of two sides of my house. I now have huge areas of white splotches and streaks on two sides of my house. There's someone outside right now repainted everything.

I had to cover the plants again last night. It's only 33°F right now. My sheets are in the dryer right now getting ready again for tonight. Maybe if I don't fold them I won't be needing them again tonight. Apparently I live in one of those "cold outlying areas of The Valley of the Sun" that the weather people talk about. I have to take the lowest predicted low that they give us for any given night and, using a formula that HTP and I figured out using our own home thermometer compared to the thermometer at the airport over several days, subtract 8 degrees from that in order to get the temperature for our outlying area. And here all along I thought I was living in Chandler. Unfortunately, I don't think our formula holds true for the summer months. That's OK. I plan to be back in Wisconsin by then waiting for the ground to thaw out so I can plant my garden.

Murphyism of the Day

Weber's Definition of Expertsmanship

An expert is one who knows more and more about less and less until he or she knows absolutely everything about nothing.

It is currently 32.5°F and I have to run out and remove the sheets from my plants before they get faked into thinking that it's spring. Yes. I did go out last night at around midnight to dance with sheets. I carefully walked on only a small portion of the new cool-deck. Just enough to get to the garden areas and back. I tested to make sure that things were dry before I ventured forth. It seemed firm and dry and I didn't see that I was causing any damage...of course, it was pretty dark. The temperature when I got up this morning was a balmless 29°F, so I'm glad I made the effort to cover my poor plants. I hope things warm up soon. #1 son is expecting some warm weather for his winter break. This is not swimsuit weather. The weather in Minnesota is probably colder. I hear that they've had snow. The way the weather is shaping up here, I wouldn't be surprised to see a bit of snow. A blanket of snow might warm things up. We turned our furnace on four days ago. I'd rather be opening windows.

Murphyism of the Day

Mar's Rule

An expert is anyone from out of town.

We froze again last night and tonight looks like a repeat of the last two. I'm not fond of cold weather. The reason we live in Arizona during the winter and not Wisconsin is that we don't like cold weather. It isn't supposed to be this cold in Arizona. I guess it's all this global warming that "they" warn us about. I'm going to have to dance with sheets again tonight. I suppose it's because I washed, folded and put them all away in the vain hope that the weatherman was correct and it was supposed to warm up.

My tree is up and decorated. My annual Christmas letter is almost done. I should go shopping but we only have one car and HTP got it today. I should start my Christmas baking but I've been too lazy. I need to plug in some Christmas CD's. Maybe that will put me in a Christmas mood.

My cool-deck is being applied today despite the cold weather. They couldn't do the application yesterday because a concrete patch hadn't cured properly. They had fans on it all last night. Right now they have fans running constantly to dry the first layer of cool-deck.

Cool-Deck Update

What do you mean I can't walk on the cool-deck until tomorrow?! How am I going to get out to cover the plants in my backyard tonight? My poor plants! I can only pray that it doesn't get below freezing. I was told that I couldn't move my outdoor furniture back onto the patio for a full four days. I can't even use my back door right now because they papered me in and they won't be taking down the paper until tomorrow. I guess I'd better put on my winter jacket and walk the dogs...again. You know. They really drink too much...and they snore.

Murphyism of the Day

Weinberg's First Law

If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization.

It froze last night. The temperature when I got up was 27°F. Last night I desperately danced around my yard covering plants with sheets, towels and pillowcases. This morning I had ice floating in my fountain. It was 9 AM before the temperature warmed up to 32.5°F and I could remove the coverings from my plants. Despite all my efforts, I can see that my poor plants still suffered a certain amount of damage....but they're alive. I'm going to have to dance with sheets again tonight but I'm hoping for warmer weather later in the week. I'm not fond of dancing with sheets.

I dragged out and set up my Christmas tree today. As far as I'm concerned, I'm done with Christmas decorating...except for the ornaments. I'm going to wait on those until our belated Thanksgiving celebration. I'm relieved that I was able to find all my scattered Christmas decorations. I still need to get a smaller wreath for the front door but I may try to do that later today.

My cool-decking was supposed to be installed yesterday. It wasn't. Things look more promising today. Someone is outside right now removing everything that is currently residing on my deck. It looks like he's power-washing my deck now too. I wonder how long this stuff takes to set up especially at the current temperature of 44°F? I wonder if I'll be able to get to my poor plants tonight so I can cover them. I sure hope these guys know enough not to paint themselves into a corner.

Murphyism of the Day

LaCombe's Rule of Percentages

The incidence of anything worthwhile is either 15-25 percent or 80-90 percent.

In with the snowglobes and other Christmas decorations, and out with the non-Christmasy knick-knacks. I don't have enough room for both of them to remain side-by-side, so something has to be packed up and stored. I stored the non-Christmasy things in the boxes where I had stored Christmasy things. I've been decorating for Christmas despite the fact that we haven't had our belated Thanksgiving dinner. Since we aren't having that until next Monday, I thought I'd better just get busy. I still have to put up the tree...etc., etc., but I think I managed to make lots of headway today. I'll try and tackle the tree tomorrow. We'll see. Maybe I'll save that for later. I was supposed to go shopping today but didn't...yet. I still need to write the annual Christmas letter but I'm putting that off until I know more about what will happen in December. I'm not psychic despite what my kids would tell you and it's tough to give a synopsis of 2004 when parts of one whole month remain a mystery. I'll wait because tarot cards aren't always clear and my crystal ball broke during the move. And the cool-deck is supposed to be applied today. There's someone outside right now with a level so maybe something is going to be done. Even this isn't clear.

Murphyism of the Day

Weiler's Law

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself.

After breakfast, I started decorating for Christmas. OK. This is going to be our first Christmas in this house and I can't find anything. The Christmas stuff is all out in the garage scattered willy-nilly amongst the various cupboards. I had to consult the "spreadsheet" to figure out where stuff was located. After putting up a wreath, finding the green bulbs for the carriage lights and installing them along with the bows, and putting my "lawn ornaments" out...I decided to give up for the day. I still need to find a smaller wreath of some sort for the front door. I found the silk poinsettas but they're in two boxes stored way up in one of the upper cabinets in the garage and I'll have to back out the car, get the step-ladder out before I can get them down. I'm worn out. Obviously, I will need to reorganize things in the garage so all the Christmas stuff is stored in the same contiguous cabinets. When we moved, we just shoved stuff into the cabinets where the boxes fit...not where sense would be expected to easily find things in the future. In the meantime, I think I remember where my nutcracker men are so maybe I can get those out yet. I'll tackle the inside decorating after our belated Thanksgiving.

Murphyism of the Day

Miller's Law

You can't tell how deep a puddle is until you step in it.

HTP and I left Vegas this afternoon after enjoying a wonderful Saturday Champagne Brunch at The Fiesta...formerly known at The Reserve. We then drove to my folks place to pick up our dogs. HTP suggested that maybe we could just leave them at my folks' place until after the first of next year but he was only kidding...really. Thanks Mom and Dad for agreeing to look after our snoring dogs who drink too much and wake up at the crack of dawn and demand loudly to be walked and fed...first!

Anyway, we got back here to our Arizona home at around 7 PM. We lost an hour crossing the DAM because Arizona doesn't recognize daylight saving time or the lack thereof so its always the same time in Arizona no matter what the rest of the country decides...and we lost another hour stuck in traffic trying to cross the DAM...and then just when we thought we had clear "sailing" the wind gusts were really strong and made driving from the DAM to Kingman a really white knuckle experience and then HTP took over and drove the rest of the way home...and of course...the wind died down at that point. Anyway, then we got stuck behind some really slow vehicle after Wickenberg that no-one seemed to be able to pass and there were still people willing to risk life and limb to no avail because they still couldn't pass the guy who was driving 45 mph in a 65 mph zone. And this continued all the way to I-17. GRRRR!!!!! But at least we were going 45 mph...at the DAM, we were creeping along at 2 mph or at dead stop until we passed the police checkpoint and the construction. There is a lot of construction and I think everyone decided to leave Las Vegas today to avoid the crowds of returnees tomorrow. Hah! The DAM will be deserted tomorrow! Anyway, we made it. We're home.

We didn't have turkey for Thanksgiving. However, least you think I plan to forego this culinary treat, I should tell you that I put a frozen turkey to thaw in my fridge before we left for Vegas four days ago. It should be ready to cook in two or three more days. By then I may just be hungry again.

Murphyism of the Day

Segal's Law

A man with one watch knows what time it is.
A man with two watches is never sure.

Seafood buffet at Sam's Town. I had all the raw oysters I could possibly eat and then another whole huge plate of crablegs. And then, who could pass up real mashed potatoes with gravy and rare roast beef and a bite of turkey? Then, if that wasn't enough, I had a piece of lemon meringue pie (mine is a lot better because I use real lemons not the bottled stuff...oh...and my meringue is better too), and a bowl of Rocky Road ice cream, and a bowl of Peppermint Bon Bon ice cream...that's chocolate mint chip for those who aren't from where I grew up. And I had a cup of coffee. Yes, I overate. I overate a lot. I need to get home and exercise. I need to stay away from food for at least another few weeks. We're driving home tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, I'm making a Thanksgiving feast when we get home. And then there's Christmas cookies to make. And then there's Christmas, and then New Year's.... I'm doomed. Doomed!

My luck has not changed. HTP has had lots of luck. I've always noticed that when HTP is having luck at a casino, I'm not. Interesting phenomenon that. Oh well, I had lots of luck that last two time we came. I suppose I was due for a run of bad luck. I decided to come up to the room and blog. I read my book...I finished my book. I should have brought my knitting. Maybe if I'd brought my knitting my luck would have been better. Who knows? I also decided to pack. I always pack the night before we leave because I don't track too well in the mornings. Without coffee I tend to be too scattered in my organizational skills. Something that should only take 1o minutes ends up taking 30 minutes. Drives me nuts. So, I pack when I'm "together" and then maybe I'll hit those stupid machines one more time before bed. Grrrr!!!!! Evil machines!

Murphyism of the Day

Levy's First Law

No amount of genius can overcome a preoccupation with detail.

Levy's Second Law

Only God can make a random selection.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I'm looking forward to spending time today with my folks. I know that #1 son is going to spent Thanksgiving with HTP's side of the family today. HTP's brother is going to pick #1 son up at the University this afternoon. I'll have to get a full report tomorrow. I talked to #1 son last night and one of my daughters. I tried to call my other daughter and her husband but could only leave a message on their answering machine. I'll have to try again later today.

As for how much luck I've been having while we've been here in Vegas? HTP drove me out to a Waldenbooks and I picked up that book I was talking about in my last blog. Only a moron continues to feed the money-sucking machines after a certain amount of money has been lost in a given day. I plan to feed them some more today but...I have a book. Hah! The lack of available TV stations provided on our room TV will not drive me from our room. I may see if HTP wants to take in a movie. National Security looked kind of interesting. But HTP is having all the luck that I'm not having so... I may even take advantage of the Spa tomorrow. A facial and massage sounds good. But who knows? My luck may turn. I won't hold my breath. Blue faces are so unattractive and one must actually take a breath eventually.

Murphyism of the Day

Runamok's Law

There are four kinds of people: those who sit quietly and do nothing, those who talk about sitting quietly and doing nothing, those who do things, and those who talk about doing things.

We drove over the clogged rush-hour Phoenix traffic, and through the Joshua Tree Forest, to Las Vegas yesterday. Have I had any luck so far? Not much. I have time to spare to blog today. I am not eager to hit the money-sucking machines.

Last night I had a dozen raw oysters on the half-shell at one of the restaurants here. They were wonderful as usual. The filet mignon and the Alaskan crablegs were what I expected. I ate the crablegs, took a bite of my supposedly rare filet mignon and decided to pass on that. I don't know what Billy Bob's does with its steaks but they always are dry and tasteless. I had a great steak the other night at a place called The Keg but I'll probably try the ribs next time I have dinner at Billy Bob's. Tonight we plan to have dinner at Felini's, an Italian restaurant. Their food is usually very good. Just don't order stuffed salmon. I won't go there. With food so plentiful, we usually skip lunches but not on Thanksgiving. It'll be back to Billy Bob's for Thanksgiving dinner. I hope they do better with turkey then they do with steak.

I'm off to breakfast at The Harvest. I need coffee. Knock on wood, the money-sucking machines will loosen up a bit and return some of my money. If not...there's always Pogo up here in the room. Plus, my favorite author has a new book out. I suppose I could visit one of the Vegas bookstores.

Murphyism of the Day

Barth's Distinction

There are two types of people: those who divide people into two types, and those who don't.

Over the river and through the woods...

We're off to Vegas for the next few days. HTP and I will be enjoying a Thanksgiving Dinner, casino-style with my folks. If you don't see a blog, don't be surprised.

Murphyism of the Day

Fitz-Gibbon's Law

Creativity varies inversely with the number of cooks involved with the broth.

Breaking News

Since I find that most attached AP stories are lost after awhile, I'm attaching a copied and pasted a version of the above story for future...really future reading.

Autumn Tradition Turns Deadly in Wisconsin
Mon Nov 22, 6:50 PM ET

U.S. National - AP

By JOSHUA FREED and ROBERT IMRIE, Associated Press Writer

BIRCHWOOD, Wis. - As several deer hunters made their way through the woods of northern Wisconsin, they were startled to come upon a stranger in their tree stand. But what happened next was even more astonishing.

Asked to leave, the trespasser, wearing blaze-orange and carrying a semiautomatic assault rifle, opened fire on the hunters and didn't stop until his 20-round clip was empty, leaving five people dead and three wounded, authorities said.
The shooter was eventually captured.
The killings baffled authorities and stunned residents in a state where deer hunting is a rite of autumn — a sport practiced by thousands of people who scour the woods for nine days each November with hopes of bagging a trophy buck.
"This is an incredible tragedy, one in which a great family tradition like a deer hunt has turned into such a great loss," Gov. Jim Doyle said Monday.
Police identified the shooter as Chai Vang, 36, a hunter from St. Paul, Minn., who is a member of the Twin Cities' Hmong community. While authorities do not know why he allegedly opened fire, there have been previous clashes between Southeast Asian and white hunters in the region.
Locals have complained that the Hmong, refugees from Laos, do not understand the concept of private property and hunt wherever they see fit. In Minnesota, a fistfight once broke out after Hmong hunters crossed onto private land, said Ilean Her, director of the St. Paul-based Council on Asian Pacific Minnesotans.
The five killed and three wounded were part of a group of 14 or 15 who made their opening-weekend trip to Robert Crotteau's 400-acre property an annual tradition.
The visit was like any other until around noon Sunday. When two or three hunters spotted a man in their hunting platform in a tree on Crotteau's land, they radioed back to the rest of the party at a cabin nearby, and asked who should be there.
"The answer was nobody should be in the deer stand," Sheriff James Meier said.
One of the men approached the intruder and asked him to leave, as Crotteau and the others in the cabin hopped on their all-terrain vehicles and headed to the scene.
"The suspect got down from the deer stand, walked 40 yards, fiddled with his rifle. He took the scope off his rifle, he turned and he opened fire on the group," Meier said.
One of the men who was shot called for help on his radio, but it was too late. The gunman fired again, hitting the people who had just arrived on ATVs.
The gunman was "chasing after them and killing them," Deputy Tim Zeigle said. "He hunted them down."
It is unclear whether anyone returned fire. The members of the hunting party had only one gun among them.
The scene Meier described was one of carnage, the bodies strewn around 100 feet apart. Rescuers from the cabin piled the living onto their vehicles and headed out of the thick woods.
"They grabbed who they could grab and got out of there because they were still under fire," Meier said.

Someone in the group wrote the suspect's hunting license number, which hunters wear on their clothing, by tracing it on a dirty vehicle, Meier said.
The shooter took off into the woods and eventually came upon two other hunters who had not heard about the shootings. Vang told them he was lost, and they offered him a ride to a warden's truck, Meier said. He was then arrested; authorities plan to bring charges against him later this week. Investigators said Vang was cooperating.
Vang was carrying an SKS 7.62-mm caliber rifle, a cheap but powerful semiautomatic weapon, authorities said.
Mike Bartz, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resource's regional warden supervisor for the area, said the SKS is legal for hunting in the state and has no restrictions. He said it is not uncommon to see hunters with the guns.
"We see more and more of them being used. They're a fairly cheap weapon. They fire a cartridge very similar to a .30-30, which is a very common weapon used for deer hunting," Bartz said.
Killed were Crotteau, 42; his son Joey, 20; Al Laski, 43; Mark Roidt, 28; and Jessica Willers, 27.
Her said people in St. Paul's Hmong community have described Vang as an avid hunter. About 24,000 Hmong (pronounced "mung") live in St. Paul, the highest concentration of any U.S. city.
"They said he loves to hunt," Her said. "He is a hunting zealot."
Meier said Vang was on the wrong tree stand because he had become lost and wandered unknowingly onto private property. The county has thousands of acres of public hunting land.
Sang Vang said it was out of character for his older brother to blow up.
"Maybe something provoked him or something. He is a reasonable person," he said. "I still don't believe it. He is one of the nicest persons. I don't believe he could do that. We are so devastated right now."
The arrest has left some Hmong citizens in his hometown fearful of a backlash.
Michael Yang, a Hmong activist, said various Hmong groups held an emergency meeting Monday to talk about how to respond. Those at the meeting heard stories from some Hmong hunters about friction with white hunters.
The shooting has already provoked racial tension in an area of Wisconsin where deer hunting is steeped in tradition.
"It's pathetic. They let all these foreigners in here, and they walk all over everybody's property," said Jim Arneberg, owner of the Haugen Inn in nearby Haugen.


Hunter describes unusual day in the woods

Dennis Anderson
Staff Tribune Staff Writer
Published November 22, 2004

Nearby hunter describes unusual day in woods

Al Widiker hunts about a quarter-mile from the camp where five people were killed and three were wounded Sunday, and he said that he believes his party was inside its cabin having lunch when the shooting happened.
"Otherwise we would have heard it," Widiker said in a telephone interview Sunday night. "The hunters who were shot own 80 acres next to thousands and thousands of acres of county-owned [public] land."
After finishing lunch, Widiker and his party hunted a parcel of land in a direction opposite that of the neighboring 80 acres. "But it was pretty hard to hunt, because there was a plane flying low over us in the afternoon," he said.
Later, he learned it was a police or sheriff's airplane.
Also while hunting Sunday afternoon, Widiker heard cars on nearby roads repeatedly honking their horns. Friends and relatives of hunters in the woods, he said, were trying to alert them to quit hunting.
"What they understood at that time was that a man wearing camouflage clothing was in the woods, shooting hunters," Widiker said.
As his party departed their hunting area, Widiker said, they were stopped by authorities who checked their car registration and ID. They were then advised to remove their blaze orange clothing before continuing.
Widiker said he was told the suspect had been confronted that morning by one or more of the hunters who were later shot. The suspect was hunting on the 80 acres owned by the men and was told to leave.
Hmong hunters commonly gather to camp and hunt on the public land during the nine-day Wisconsin firearms deer season, Widiker said. The season began Saturday.
Early Sunday evening, officers arrested a 36-year-old St. Paul man, Chai Soua Vang, in connection with the shootings.
"There are square miles and square miles of public land next to that 80 acres," Widiker said. "Why would anyone want to hunt that private land when there was so much public land nearby?"
Widiker's party did not return to its hunting camp on Sunday. They plan to clean out the cabin today and not go back until next season.
"Who wants to be the next guy in a tree stand if someone comes shooting?" he said.

Never a dull moment at The Lake. Al Widiker is one of my neighbors at The Lake. Actually, this was more then a bit unusual for The Lake. This sort of thing doesn't happen. I guess this was a first? Deer season opened and someone (a weekender from St. Paul, Minnesota) went nuts near The Lake and killed 5 local hunters and injured 3 more and The Lake made National News. I was relieved to hear that my brother-in-law and our nephew weren't tangled in the incident. They had gone hunting up at The Lake over the weekend. If they had encountered someone hunting on our property, they too would have asked the intruder to leave. One of our friends and neighbors, a deputy sheriff, has always kept an eye on our property for us during the winter months. He has often encountered trespassers on our property and has had to ask them to leave. This whole incident happened way too close for my comfort. It makes you a bit scared of what some people are capable of doing even in the peaceful environs of The Lake.

Murphyism of the Day

When news reporters report the news, they rarely report the actual facts.

It's Sunday but it isn't really sunny outside. It looks like we might get a bit of rain. Tomorrow too. We'll have to call the landscaper and make sure he delays our cool-deck guy for a week or so judging from the forecast.

I spent the morning at church today. The orchestra met for its first practice for the Christmas season. And then I had to quickly go over the music that I had to play with the contemporary group at the late service. Good thing I'm not too bad at sight-reading. I have to go back to church in an hour or so for scheduled practice with the contemporary group...I haven't seen this music as yet. I shouldn't complain because some people I know are still at church and won't get a break at all. At least I could drive home and make some lunch.

On my way home from church, I stopped at the Home Depot to buy a couple of geraniums and another Malibu spotlight. The geranium slips I brought home from The Lake haven't responded to my rooting efforts. These new geraniums are kinda neat. They have star-shaped leaves and star-shaped blooms. I bought them to put in a couple of pots outside near the fountain. They're supposed to be perennials in warm climates but I don't think the growers were thinking of the amount of warmth we get here in Arizona during the summer when they made this reference.

Murphyism of the Day

Cohen's Law

What really matters is the name that you are able to impose upon the facts--not the facts themselves.

I got up early because I had the suspicion that we would be getting another visit from our landscapers. I was right. They were replacing all the "flag emitters" for our irrigation system with "button emitters". HTP and I don't like "flag emitters" because they break....a lot. Anyway, our landscaper used the stupid things even though we had told him not to use them and so he had to send someone out to redo them all with the button emitters which cause a lot fewer problems.

Because I was up so early, I decided to try my hand at a sugarless peanut butter cookie. The end product tastes great but...I didn't use peanut butter so can they really be called peanut butter cookies? Oh well. Here's the recipe so far. It tastes great as it is so I'm keeping this recipe...it reminds me of the Girl Scout cookie Savannahs...but not as salty . However, I may try to use natural peanut butter for half the margarine next time so I can actually call them peanut butter cookies.

Old Grey Frog's Famous Sugarless Peanut Cookies...First Attempt

1 cup margarine (1600 cal.)
2 cup Maltitol granular sweetener (832 cal.)
3 egg whites (60 cal.)
1 Tbsp. vanilla1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (676 cal.)
2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (1214 cal.)
1/2 cup Wheatena cereal (200 cal.)
2 cups dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped, but reserve 52 nice peanut halves to set on top of each cookie as decoration (1870 cal.)

Heat oven to 375°F. Beat margarine and sugar until creamy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Add baking soda and salt. Beat in flour, oats and cereal. Stir in coarsely chopped nuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons on ungreased cookie sheets. Set 1/2 peanut on each cookie as decoration. Bake 13 minutes. Cool 2 minutes before removing to cooling racks. These cookies are about 126 calories each. You'll have to do the math on carbs yourself. I'm too lazy. However, the recipe made 51 cookies.

Murphyism of the Day

Blaauw's Law

Established technology tends to persist in spite of new technology.

Our landscaping is done. OK, not quite but it looks, feels and works like it's done. The cool-decking still needs to be applied (Monday) but I can enjoy my backyard. Last night my daughter and her husband joined us for supper. We sat outside after supper and enjoyed the sound of the fountain as we sat and talked. HTP and I enjoyed our new view as we ate breakfast this morning. HTP still thinks the fountain isn't quite level. I don't see it but he's an engineer. It's bugging him. There's a rock that isn't quite where I want it and it's bugging me so I guess we're even. Originally I planned to add pots for annuals but now it looks like I should leave well enough alone. It's time to grab the paintbrush from my hand and tell me that the painting is done. It's time to move on to the next project which hasn't been thought of as yet.

I have to go out shopping today for groceries. HTP and I will be celebrating Thanksgiving in Las Vegas this year but I still plan to make a Thanksgiving dinner when we return. I'll put the turkey in the fridge to defrost just before we leave for Vegas so it'll be ready to cook when we get back. I still need to get the trimmings and they're all "ON SALE" right now. Time to take advantage of that fact. Besides, it's been a while since I've actually gotten out of the house by myself...other then walking to get the mail.

Murphyism of the Day

Law of Superiority

The first example of superior principle is always inferior to the developed example of inferior principle.

I enjoyed my backyard last night...as soon as I dragged a chair over to sit on. The workmen had moved all my outside furniture off the patio in preparation for cool-decking but...the cool-deck isn't coming until Monday. This morning, the workmen carried all my furniture back onto the patio so they could spread gravel. These guys sure work hard. Anyway, my gravel is now being shoveled and spread and...they ran out. My landscaper assures me that more gravel is coming along with flagstone for my walking paths. We had asked for concrete stepping stones, thinking that this would be the cheaper option but we're getting flagstone. Yeah! I love flagstone. HTP thinks that our landscaper must have leftover flagstone from other jobs. That's OK with me. These are stepping stones. They don't even have to match. They just have to permit me to walk barefoot through the granite and not hurt my feet. I expect my boulders will be coming today too.

Landscape Update

My flagstone stepping stones have been installed and look great! They work great too. My boulders have been installed too. Where you want them lady? I guess I could have made them move the one a little but I thought that may be pressing things a bit. I again shocked one of the poor workmen when I told him to put the flagstones closer together because my legs weren't all that long and I like to walk outside without shoes. He wasn't shocked about the shoeless part. He was shocked that I told him all this in Spanish. Most of these guys don't speak English and they sure don't expect me to speak Spanish. I still need more granite. Tomorrow?

Murphyism of the Day

Clarke's Third Law

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

There's a lot of sawing going on outside in my backyard today. The landscapers are installing the cap stone for my garden bed walls. HTP won the fight for his low-voltage lighting wire. He'd bought some wire and spliced it so he'd have enough for our garden lights and they chopped off a good 30 feet of it and it disappeared. HTP was not happy. The wire reappeared this morning after a call to our landscaper and HTP was able to splice it and wire up our lights. They work. My fountain is supposed to arrive today. Gravel is coming tomorrow. Cool-decking is the last thing they'll apply but I have no idea what they'll do with all my "stuff" in the meantime. We'll worry about that when the time comes.

Landscape Update

I have a beautiful backyard and it's all but done. My fountain is in place and running. I'm going to go sit outside and enjoy a glass of wine, a good book and the sound of dancing water. As soon as the workmen leave.

Murphyism of the Day

Rule of the Great

When somebody you greatly admire and respect appears to be thinking deep thoughts, he or she is probably thinking about lunch.

Our landscapers are here....again. This time HTP and I are here to keep an eye on them. They're hauling dirt to fill our raised garden beds. My plants are going to be planted too. And now I can actually walk on the new concrete that was poured yesterday. Things are shaping up. There were a few tense moments this morning when I had to run out to tell the workers, who don't speak English, that they weren't supposed to bury the low-voltage wire for our Malibu lights. I started out in English, then continued on in Spanish after ascertaining from their blank looks that they didn't speak English. My Spanish is not the best when it comes to technical terms but I got my point across. One hour later, the English speaking workmen arrived and HTP and I were able to go over our concerns about the irrigation system, plant placement, wiring for lighting, etc., etc. etc.

It's laundry day today so I'm splitting my time between that and peering outside to make sure everything goes according to plan. I'll be excited to see how far things go today.

Murphyism of the Day

Clarke's First Law

When a distinquished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.

Clarke's Second Law

The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into impossible.

Clarke's Law of Revolutionary Ideas

Every revolutionary area--in Science, Politics, Art or Whatever--evokes three stages of reaction.
They are summed up by three phrases:
1. "It is impossible--don't waste my time."
2. "It is possible, but it isn't worth doing."
3. "I said it was a good idea all along."


* Please note that my Murphyism of the Day section is taken in its majority (because sometimes I've interjected original thoughts) from the following book. The Complete Murphy's Law A Definitive Collection by Arthur Bloch. Credit should be given where credit is due. I've noted this in past blogs but few people actually go back and check out my past blogs so I thought I'd better reiterate.

I survived the dentist but was wiped out for hours afterwards. I am such a weeny when it comes to doctors and dentists. At least I don't have to go back to see the dentist for another six months. Let's make it a year. In six months I'll be back in Wisconsin.

Our patio was poured while we were away. It looks nice. They also laid the irrigation pipes but...oops. Mistakes were made. I've got a call into our landscaper. They're going to have to fix it before they bring in our plants tomorrow. I wonder when they plan to bring in the fountain. I suppose I'll have to remind him about the pomegranate too.

Murphyism of the Day

The Rule of the Way Out

Always leave room to add an explanation if it doesn't work out.

I noticed this morning that the termite people came and treated our yard sometime during the day yesterday. They must have snuck in while we were out shopping because I'm not that oblivious, especially with our teeny, tiny yard. I suppose this means that our concrete slab can be poured tomorrow as scheduled. I'm not sure if I want the slab to be poured tomorrow. I have a dental appointment tomorrow and HTP and I won't be around to supervise. I hate to see what may happen if we aren't here to supervise, judging by the mistakes that they attempted to make while we were there to supervise on Friday. I hate going to the dentist but I can't cancel my appointment because everyone, including the dentist and his entire staff, knows that I hate going to the dentist and they'll just think I'm chickening out again. Even with a valid excuse, no-one will believe me. *sigh* I hate going to the dentist.

Murphyism of the Day

Ross' Law

Never characterize the importance of statements in advance.

One thing HTP and I have learned in life is that you never can trust workmen to work unsupervised for any extent of time. One thing I have learned, is that male workmen never take a woman's advise or requests seriously. Yesterday, HTP and I (mainly HTP because no-one really listened to me) had to repeatedly go out and correct mistakes the landscape crew were making before it was too late. Our landscaper popped over once or twice to check on things but it ended up that HTP and I (mainly HTP because no-one was listening to me) felt that we had to be the actual supervisors of the work or suffer the end result being something other then what our design called for. As it is, the landscaping has begun. It rained last night so our backyard is a muddy mess. I had to pick up after the workmen after they left. They left food and empty beverage containers strewn throughout the worksite. Arizona is noted for its mean and nasty ants. Nasty, biting creatures, every single one of them. I suppose an ant would have to be mean and nasty to survive the desert climate of Arizona but that doesn't mean that I want to encourage them to come visit me. Anyway, they would have loved the leftovers these guys left. Since I'm not fond of swarms of ants on my patio furniture, I cleaned up after the workers. We also had to call the termite people to come and renew our protective barrier before the concrete is scheduled to come on Monday. I was told that the exterminator would come and take care of it last night but I don't see that anyone actually came. This could be because of the rain last night or it could be because they couldn't actually get into our neighborhood after 6 PM. We live in a gated community. However, no-one called. We haven't seen any landscapers this morning. I'm not even sure if we were expecting someone to come today or not. I got up at my usual time anyway...just in case someone showed up at 6 AM.

Murphyism of the Day

Potter's Law

The amount of flak received on any subject is inversely proportional to the subject's true value.

The landscapers are here! The landscapers are here! The doorbell rang (HTP fixed replaced our doorbell yesterday because the one the builder put in didn't work) at 6:30 AM. I think they actually got here at 6 AM but were afraid to wake us up. I was up. I overslept until 6:15 AM but I was up and dressed and my first cup of coffee was heating in the microwave. The dogs were barking in the backyard. I had to unlock our gate, let the dogs back in, and feed the dogs inside today. Before I could feed the dogs, I had to walk the job site with the landscaper to explain the design plan. I'll have to walk the dogs now until the landscapers are done. HTP doesn't want me to raise the shades while the men are working on our backyard. I feel like I'm living in a cave. I've walked around the block with the dogs twice so far. Our neighbor was outside with his dog Cindi, the second go round. Poor Cindi wanted to play with my dogs but she's twice as big as our dogs and my dogs didn't look too keen on the idea judging by the raised fur along their spines. Cindi was rather vocal but my dogs remained silent. At least I wasn't treated to snarls and bared teeth. Oh well. Dog walking is a good way to meet and greet the neighbors. I stuffed my pockets with dog treats as bribes to break the ice. My dogs aren't the most friendly individuals but they respond to bribery. Feed my dogs and you have a friend for life.

Murphyism of the Day

Allison's Precept

The best simple-minded test of expertise in a particular area is the ability to win money in a series of bets on future occurrences in that area.

Weinberg's Corollary

An expert is a person who avoids the small errors while sweeping on to the grand fallacy.

I've noted since we got back from The Lake, that we live in a neighborhood where there are a lot of small dogs and most of them seem to bark. There aren't too many times that I don't hear someone's dog out there barking. I really don't mind this too much. I can live with it. Unfortunately, I have two small dogs too and they bark. I suffer from the reality that I obsess over my own dogs' barking. I am in constant worry that my dogs may disturb someone. I race to bring them in or I yell at them thereby making more noise then they would or could ever make. Poor dogs. I know I shouldn't worry so much. No-one has complained. Their own dogs make more noise then mine.

I ran outside this morning to take "Before" pictures of our backyard landscaping. Our landscaper hasn't as yet shown up for the day but I didn't want to miss a photo opportunity. I also had to go out and mark where they will need to provide irrigation for the larger trees that they'll be planting. You'd think this would be obvious from our landscape plan but...

Murphyism of the Day

Malek's Law

Any simple idea will be worded in the most complicated way.

It's my brother's birthday today. Happy Birthday Willie !!! Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday Dear Willie! Happy Birthday to You! Did you get the card I sent?

HTP and I went out hunting for a fountain today. Tomorrow the landscapers come and we didn't know when we'd have time to find just the right fountain to fit into our backyard. We spent a fruitless half day in Mesa and then in Tempe looking at fountains. Nothing looked quite right. Then we went to Guadalupe. Still no luck. At last we revisited a place that we'd seen last weekend, closer to home. We got there at 5 PM. They closed at 5 PM. We pushed our way into the shop regardless of the time. Could we just look around? We found and purchased the perfect fountain...we even dickered. It just goes to show you that sometimes the very thing that you want the most and are searching for the hardest will usually show up right under your nose and it's been there the whole time. Now we just have to figure out how to get a five piece, 300# fountain from downtown Chandler to our house. They refuse to load something like that into the back of a SUV. We're going to talk to our landscaper tomorrow. He's got a pickup and so do his Hooligans (this is what he calls his work crew).

Murphyism of the Day

Dunne's Law

The territory behind rhetoric is too often mined with equivocation.