Etc.

I broke out the shorts today, signifying that there is now hope that summer will actually arrive after all.  Of course one is smart to delay the flower and most garden planting until after May 10th, supposedly the last day of recorded hard frost or freeze.  We did reach into the 20’s within the last week but so far it doesn’t appear there was as much damage to things as last year’s late freeze that definitely set everything back substantially.  I managed to hose down and clean the screened in patio that we will really use and appreciate for the few short months ahead.  Then I spent the rest of the day cutting limbs and shrubbery into small enough pieces to pass the recycling and lawn refuse in bag requirements for pick up.  That seems to be easier for me than cutting into the three foot lengths and tying with twine.  (Gift wrapped so to speak)  Tuesday is the day for this type of pick up, and I didn’t complete the task entirely so will have to try and finish up next week.  All of this was tiring and I did enjoy just sitting and relaxing in the newly cleaned screen room after working as long as I felt like.  I also spent an hour at the YMCA in a Senior Exercise Class,  so all in all, I will probably be ready for bed.

I’ve been reading some of Fanflower’s recent blogs depicting her’s and granddaughter Ali’s displeasure with male pick-up truck drivers, whom, it seems, tend to be less courteous and downright irresponsible.  I too have noticed while on daily walks that require walking on roadways (because of an inadequate city ordinance that no longer requires construction of sidewalks–perhaps more on that later) that pick-ups bear closer scrutiny.  For whatever reason, they just generally demand their space and one better be prepared to step aside.  However, I might add that my experience has been that the situation is not limited to men.  Perhaps we have more females driving pick-up trucks in our area, but the gals seem to be more oblivious to walkers than the men.  Anyway, I no longer drive a pick-up but find that I sometimes miss it.  It was just a little fella, a trusty old Ford, and I don’t remember ever threatening anyone with it.  After it reached the age of 18 and the number of new batteries needed, nearly exceeded the number of miles recorded each year, it just seemed like it was time, and we had to put him down, an episode almost as hard as when we had to do the same to our dog Trouble a year or so before.

I don’t want to get into an argument over the biasness of the cable news networks, other than to say they certainly are.  I do watch them a lot, until sometimes I can stand no more.  I generally like the right and centrist hosts and analysts on MSNBC and I like the left leaning hosts and analysts on Fox.  CNN also has it’s bias, but it seems less abrasive most of the time, but also is generally not as interesting for me.  I guess my reason for mentioning this now, is because of watching MSNBC this evening for a while.  Keith Olbermann, MSNBC and Sean Hannity on Fox are the most obnoxious with Keith winning by just an edge.  He definitely needs to get a life.  He presently lives for three things primarily.  To out hate Fox more than anything in the world.  Next, to out hate Bush and any Republican more than Howard Dean or any other living soul. Thirdly, he is so wrapped up in his civil rights that he would trash our government, country, flag, history and anyone who might see things a little differently.  All of which only invites foreign disdain for America.  (Can’t blame him for that entirely however)  It just seems to me that any one willing to speak as he does constantly, would just as quickly trash the constitution itself if the situation suited his own agenda.  His rights above all else, forgetting the lives given up, sometimes rightly and sometimes probably wrongly, to keep his right to trash intact.  I’m reminded why I seldom watch him anymore.  Oh now Cornbred, Keith’s not a bad guy, not the fairweather American he seems.  We shouldn’t question his patriotism.  It just seems like he is the “Worst person in the worrrld.” 

The same can be said with the order somewhat reversed for Hannity.  He would sacrifice anyone’s rights to prove his own misguided concept of what the country ought to be like.  He hates, just the other way around, similar to Rush on radio.  Can’t listen to him either. I only watch Hannity, if there is nothing else.  I enjoy his counter part, Alan Colmes, who actually has a nice program whenever Hannity is gone.  Dan Abrams, couldn’t host a Seventh Grade news program.  Just doesn’t know which end is up.  Bill Riley is obnoxious, but ever so slightly less than Olbermann and I don’t watch him either.  Juan Williams offers stability to the biased Fox panels.  (Whenever they let him speak)  The rest, on both channels can be tolerated whether I agree or not.  However I don’t know how much longer before MSNBC gives up on this prison bit they are hosting nightly after 10 and seemingly most of the week-end.  I keep going there to keep up on the political race, hoping there will be somebody besides Olbermann and for whatever reason we keep seeing the inside of every prison ever built and the sordid life within.

It’s somewhat interesting that MSNBC has become the Obama channel and is forced to trash Hillary a long with the Republicans.  And equally interesting that Fox who wanted nothing to do with McCain, has been forced to embrace him somewhat, with him being the only one left. so they can trash the Democrats and Liberals.  As for McCain, I was surprised a few days ago, when he came to Iowa to again attack farm subsidies.  I liked that and I thought, the man has guts to come to a farm state and do that, but since have decided that the issue is bound to play well throughout the rest of the country and he did it for political reasons and Iowa be damned.  He is right on that though, in my opinion.  Also it is my opinion that he is dead wrong on the summer gasoline tax reprieve.  How can you encourage less usage by lowering the price and sacrificing infra-structure repair on roads and bridges.  And as Obama has said, the price would probably go up in price equal to the reduction in federal taxes.  McCain also believes that ethanol should compete without subsidies.  Here, Here, to that.  Yeah, he changes his mind and has voted against his own bills sometimes.  That being after amendments have rendered them useless.  I also like the fact that he doesn’t drain the budget by asking for all the “non-sensical” stuff for his state that every other person in Congress does.  But—he’s old and the man hasn’t got a chance of becoming President.  The current President and the past Republican Congress’ have insured this being a Democrat year.

More later.  Just wanted to blog.  Heck, I really don’t know what I’m talking about.