31 January 08 - 08:08Hope this helps!!

This is a joke, Son!!

A woman went to the emergency room, where she was seen by a young new doctor. After about 3 minutes in the examination room, the doctor told her she was pregnant. She burst out of the room and ran down the corridor screaming.

An older doctor stopped her and asked what the problem was; after listening to her story, he calmed her down and sat her in  another room.

Then the doctor marched down the hallway to the first doctor's room. 

'What's the hell's wrong with you?' he demanded. 'This woman is 63 years old, she has two grown children and several grandchildren, and you told her she was pregnant?!!

The new doctor continued to write on his clipboard.

Without looking up the new doctor said, 'Does she still have the hiccups?'

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30 January 08 - 07:07Hell Freezes Over - I agree with Ted

Ted Kennedy has come out in support of Barack Obama as his choice for the Democrat party presidential candidate.  I agree with him, and maybe for some of the same reasons.  For those of you who do not know m, I am 57 years old.  The first major political race I remember was the presidential race between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon.  What a choice, either was a credible candidate to run the country, each had strong positions, and the race was close and exciting.  It was probably also the first race that received national television coverage with the first of the statistical predictions that have become so common, we think they were always here.

Although my family was Republican, the election of John Kennedy was a milestone in history.  He was the first president who was not a member of a Christian, protestent church.  He was, gasp, a Catholic!!!  This was a big deal in those days.  Imagine that, a Catholic!  It appears that the Democrat party will be nominating either a male who is not white, or a woman.  Either will be say more for the American melting pot concept (if that is even still around) than anything I have seen in my lifetime.

As for religion, Barack had an atheist father and mother, he did have a stepfather who did go to some Muslim services. Barack himself, however, goes to "The United Church of Christ" which is, to the best of my knowledge, a fairly enthusiastic, evangelical Protestant Christian Church. These churches usually yield people who are "people persons" so we shall see.

I don't want to say any more because if I do I will get into the topic of Hillary.  For now it is enough to say, the Armstrong hat is off to Ted for picking the right candidate.  I might still vote Republican, however.  The last Democrat candidate I voted for was Jimmy Carter.  Nice guy, peaceful (won a prize in that area), but not a ball of fire when it came to being a strong president.

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29 January 08 - 23:12Taxes are Done

Well, I have finally finished my taxes for another year.  Hoperfully they will stay done.  Last year I underreported my short term capital losses so the IRS wanted me to absolutely ensure to them I am an idiot when it comes to investing.

Everything worked fine wrapping the software for Linux using Crossover Office except for the electronic filing.  I had to do that from Windows.  Disappointing, but understandable due to encryption and such.

I am happy to be done.

I hope your taxes work out for you this year, and no matter what operating system you use, this software worked fine for me and it can work for you as well.  Download it and save yourself some dough.

It is possible to use the free version of this software, although I paid for the Deluxe version so I could do a couple of returns.  One for myself and the lovely Marla and one for the lovely daughter.

Later

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27 January 08 - 22:59An old Joke

The banker saw his old friend Tom, an eighty-year old rancher, in town.

Tom had lost his wife a year or so before and rumor had it that he was marrying a 'mail order' bride.

Being a good friend, the banker asked Tom if the rumor was true. Tom assured him that it was. The banker then asked Tom the age of his new bride-to-be. Tom proudly said, 'She'll be twenty-one in November.'

Now the banker, being the wise man that he was, could see that the
sexual appetite of a young woman could not be satisfied by an eighty-year-old man.

Wanting his old friend's remaining years to be happy, the banker tactfully suggested that Tom should consider getting a hired hand to help him out on the ranch, knowing nature would take its own course.

Tom thought this was a good idea and said he would look for one that afternoon.

About four months later, the banker ran into Tom in town again.

'How's the new wife?', asked the banker.

Tom proudly said, 'Good - she's pregnant.'

The banker, happy that his sage advice had worked out, continued, 'And how's the hired hand?'

Without hesitating, Tom said, 'She's pregnant, too.'

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17 January 08 - 00:47Lisbon Mill from the Last Century

I was told as a kid in the 1960's that there was always a dam in Lisbon.  Today I recieved the last piece of information I needed to get a really good reproduction of a time period colored photo from the period.

The "Lisbon Mill" was owned by different people at different times and was a source of community employment, a place for farmers to sell their crops, and a source of (I assume) a quality product useful for cooking in the homes of the area.

For my own enjoyment I have retouched a photograph in the colorized style of the period.  The mill was called Sorenson Mill from 1903 to 1908.  The location was on the north side of town, and this view is looking southeast from the north side of the river.  Based on the shadows it is the late afternoon, and the time of year is late summer, judging from the trees.

This type of local industry is no longer found in our country.  It is our shame, possibly one of the few shames of capitalism.  Making a dollar drives the economy, but making a dollar runs over a lot of opportunities.  I think, sadly enough, that it would be very difficult to reproduce the local industries with all of the governmental protections we have adopted over the years.  As citizens, we are safer, but there are fewer opportunities for the little guy.  The surprise is that the liberals are the reason for a lot of the lost opportunities we see today.

It's true.

Anyway, enjoy the picture of the job and flour factory of 100 years ago.

Later.

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15 January 08 - 22:08Multiple Choice Test

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Aptitude Test

Please pause a moment, reflect back and take the following multiple choice test. This test is based on events that are real.
         
Do you remember?
                 
1. 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by?
a. Superman?
b. Jay Leno?
c. Harry Potter?
d. A male Muslim extremist between the ages of 17 and 40?  
                 
                 
2. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics, athletes were kidnapped and massacred by?
a. Olga Corbett?
b. Sitting Bull?
c. Arnold Schwarzenegger?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                 
                 
3. In 1979, the US embassy in Iran was taken over by?
a. Lost Norwegians?
b. Elvis?
c. A tour bus full of 80-year-old women?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                 
                 
4. During the 1980's a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by?
a. John Dillinger?
b. The King of Sweden ?
c. The Boy Scouts?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                 
                 
5. In 1983, the US Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by?
a. A pizza delivery boy?
b. Pee Wee Herman?
c. Geraldo Rivera?
d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                 
6. In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year old American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard in his wheelchair by?
a. The Smurfs?
b. Davey Jones?
c. The Little Mermaid?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                 
7. In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a US Navy diver trying to rescue passengers was murdered by?
a. Captain Kidd?
b. Charles Lindberg?
c. Mother Teresa?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                
8. In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by?
a. Scooby Doo?
b. The Tooth Fairy and The Sundance Kid?
c. Jimmy Kimmel
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?   
                
                
                 
9. In 1993 the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by?
a. Richard Simmons?
b. Britney Spears?
c. Michael Jordan?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                 
10. In 1998, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by?
a. Mr. Rogers?
b. Hillary Clinton?
c. George Clooney?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                 
11. On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked; two were used as missiles to take out the World Trade Centers and of the remaining two, one crashed into the US Pentagon and the other was diverted and crashed by the passengers. Thousands of people were killed by?
a. Bugs Bunny, Wiley E. Coyote, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd?
b. The Supreme Court of Florida?
c. Mr. Bean?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?  
                
                 
12. In 2002 the United States fought a war in Afghanistan against?
a. Enron?
b. The Lutheran Church ?
c. The NFL?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?
                
                 
13. In 2002 reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by?
a. Bonnie and Clyde ?
b. Captain Kangar oo?
c. Billy Graham?
d. Male Muslim extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40?  
                
If you do not see a pattern here you are an excellent candidate for the ACLU staff.  You need to get out there and fight against profiling.  Enforce the need to stop little old ladies and blonde tootses, Establish the need for law enforcement to play stupid on purpose.  It may be less effective, but it is more fair, right?
                
Wrong.                 

If you are not ACLU material, but you agree there is not a pattern there's a good chance you are a Democrat or should be one.  Also, if you cannot detect the pattern, be aware that you are not yet to the analytical cognitive level of thinking.  Once you get there you can be a Republican, too.

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14 January 08 - 23:42Understanding Microsoft

I see that the European Union has figured out Microsoft, again. They are probing them for antitrust violations. Let me once again remind the youngsters out there how Microsoft's marketing research works.

1) They see a successful application and copy the concept
2) They create special "hooks" and entry points in their operating system that make software perform better
3) They make use of the special provisions, but competitors do not, because they don't know they exist
4) They might even incorporate the software into their operating system package for good measure

When the IBM PC came out in the 1980's I was there selling "clones" when "clones" were not popular with Microsoft. More than once I called for assistance with a software issue and was informed by the Microsoft rep that they did not support computers which were not IBM. Eventually this changed, but not at first. The real story is Microsoft. here are a few examples of their behavior, children.

1) Lotus 123 was a great spreadsheet. So great that it is sometimes credited with making the IBM-PC successful. Microsoft squeezed them out by creating Excel and making it cheaper to buy. They also were able to leverage future operating system technologies that they knew about before Lotus Development did, thus allowing Microsoft to quelch Lotus 123.

2) Word Perfect was considered a masterpiece. Microsoft managed to kill them around the time they came out with Windows 3.1.

3) Various disk compression systems existed and small software firms competed, until Microsoft included the technology in the operating system which made their businesses obsolete.

4) "Disk Doctor" type of programs with defrag and such have had a lot of their features kiped by Microsoft.

5) Database programs died when Microsoft started integrating their spreadsheet, word processor, and database software with operating system help.

6) They sucked the life out of Netscape by including Internet Explorer in the operating system and causing Netscape to work poorly.

And so on and son on......

Can anyone else think of some examples?  Why do they see this with such much greater alacrity in Europe?

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13 January 08 - 23:03My New Tax Software

TaxACT LINK I have been looking for Tax software that works on Linux.  As you have probably figured out, I am very serious about switching to Linux entirely.  At the LINK saved here you can go to a website for Tax Act.  The neat thing about Tax Act is that it is free, or you can pay for an upgrade.  Quite frankly, for simple taxes, you could do it for free, but I bought the $9.95 download just to support them.

On its own Tax Act does not work on Linux, however......  I recently spent $40 to get a software package for Linux called "Crossover Office." This software is the commercially available version of WINE, a windows emulator for Linux.

I have used TurboTax and TaxCut over the years and find this software quietly effective.  Even the electronic filing can be free, if you want (or so they say).

On another topic, I have also been successful loading AutoCAD 2000 LT.  It works perfectly after a bit of diddling with Microsoft IE 6.  I am very happy with the current result of Linux.  It seems to do 99% of what I did on Windows at 1% of the cost.  This Linux gets better every day.

The next thing I want to see?  MAC software for a PC.  It should be doable since Apple changed to the Intel style processors.

Later!!

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09 January 08 - 00:44Hillary Dillary Doc

Here is a headline for you -

Clinton Defeats Obama in Primary; McCain Takes Republican Contest

I find it interesting that Hillary was damn near crying earlier today thinking she had lost to Obama (it was close, floks).  And McCain, whom we had thought was doing badly won.

The process we have in the USA has to be one of the best in the world.  We definately have choices, and we do make a difference.  This process of primaries is great!!  So far on the Republican side, neither of the "leaders" has won squat.  I am referring to Romney and Guilliani.  These were the only two you heard about in the media and so far Huckabee and McCain have taken the first two contests, one being a caucus and the other being a primary.

The last thing.  What is the difference between a Caucus and a Primary????

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04 January 08 - 00:05Huck has won in Iowa

Just a quick note to note that Huckabee won in Iowa. I am please to no end that Mr. Huckabee has been able to win in Iowa.

I like the man for as much as first impressions go, but there is more to it than that. I am impressed with the people of Iowa. They have voted for a man that spent a fraction of the amount spent by his opponents. That means that the American people (at least in Iowa) really can see through the sound bites and fancy commercials to make a decision on their own.

I hope things go well for the man, I intend to learn more about him. For now, I am impressed with Iowa.

Wow. This may mean that the presidency really can't be bought by CNN, the New York Times, and the like with stupid slanted comments combined with the personal ads of their favorites. Sorry Hillary, you still come across as a bitch. You just do.....

(Yes, I know, they are from different parties. I am actually tickled that Obama won. As my close friends know, I am a member of the NAACP, not because I am black, but because I support their cause.)

Really. They send me emails and everything.

Later.

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03 January 08 - 23:41Verizon Needs to get their Poop Together

Today Verizon sends me an envelope with a single page letter. It claims to be from a Vice President, but it isn't. We are all used to that little lie when we get one of these offers. The problem is, I liked the offer and can't get it. The Verizon website doesn't work. This matches their crappy cell phone service when I travel. I call it "The Patchwork." I fact, my wife and daughter dropped Verizon for another company which recently became ATT due to Verizon's crappy signal in our area of Plano, Texas.

But I digress.

Let me tell you about what happened when I tried to sign up for the Triple Dipple Super Nifty offer which is phone, television, and internet. WOW!! ninty nine ($99) dollars is a great deal!! I know they can't do it because I have 5 televisions and their crappy service will be more because of the interpreter boxes required, but, I want to try!!!

No matter, their website doesn't work when I go to the address in the letter, so, I have not changed a thing. But change is coming, and it might look a lot like satellite or Time Warner Cable. I like options.

Besides, I don't trust a patchwork that sends an army of its employees to spy on junior high school girls talking about getting ponies for Christmas. These perverse buys need to get a real job and maybe Verizon can lower their costs.

Walking around following little girls, jeesh.

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02 January 08 - 23:56Mike Huckabee is a funny guy!!

Tonight I watched the Jay Leno Show to see how he does without writers. The show was noticeably rougher, but still entertaining. I will be interested in seeing how things go tomorrow. Certainly we all know the writers have value for these shows, but, frankly, I would think there are a lot of people who could step in and write if it wasn't for the eccentricities of guilds and unions.

I could go on for hours about how this strike shines a flashlight on the liberal nature of the Hollywood set, and how this taints their ability to balance their reasoning, but I will leave it at this. The star of the show was not Jay Leno or Emeril Lagasse, it was Mike Huckabee. What a wonderful persona.

I have no idea how Mike would do as president, that's not what I am reporting to you. What I saw was a very humorous and interesting individual. I got really good vibes as to the sincere nature of this man. Obviously sincerity, a good sense of humour, and being a nice guy does not make you the right guy to be the next president, but you know what? I am going to check this guy out.

Mike definitely has a great presence and sense of humor. He should line himself up on all of the talk shows.

Time for bed now.

Later.

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01 January 08 - 23:55Hold the Presses!!!

I usually don't publish the pictures that others send me because I get so many.  Cartoons, groups of cartoons with a theme, roadside signs, whatever.  The number of goofy pictures I see every week is a large number.  This is not to mention the pictures in the news of, say, Britney Spears attacking the paparazzi prior to coming up with her new plan of sleeping with them.

Anyway, I digress.  You have to look at this picture and realize that the person (a woman, it appears, possibly with children) who is wearing this sorta tank top actually made it herself.  Note the ragged edge where the sculpting for the neck is cut out.  Very handy work.

The thing is this, once you realize what the original use for this "tank top" was, you really wonder what the person wearing it was thinking.  This is probably why I thought of Britney Spears when I saw the picture.  It is what she would do if she didn't have money.

Let me know if you can't figure out what this was before it was a sexy top for the woman pictured.

Later.

Ewwww, this is a really weird outfit.

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01 January 08 - 20:52The Lisbon Mill - Some more stuff

Ever since I walked behind the small house my friend lived in during grade school I was fascinated by the remains of the flour mill that used to be located in my home town.  The mill mostly went by the name Lisbon Mill or Bemmel Mill when it was talked about, but it changed hands often.  You can click on the picture to the right and see a larger version.

It's not apparent what caused this, but it is apparent in some accounts that the mill would have been much happier with a bit more of a drop in depth of the water and the volume of water was a bit low in the later months of the summer. Perhaps the need to adapt power sources put a strain on the business.  All in all the business lasted until 1922 when the facility burned and was not rebuilt.

The mill was originally powered by a single water turbine, later two, supplemented by steam during the late summer and winter months when the flow of the river was less than required for what was needed to turn the roller mills. Over the years the mill became more elaborate and the building which was originally simple and square is quite complicated due to additions and changes.

Here is a map showing the location of the mill in the time frame prior to 1900.  The color photo with the overly shows the improvements made during the Bemmel years and was overlayed on the map based on sketches done by Northern Pacific railroad engineers, the kind that built the railroad not the kind that drove the trains.

This is good stuff.

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