It's Friday And I'm Heading To AREA 51 On A Wing And A Prayer !

In my journeys around the Internet searching for pictures, I ran across this excellent graphic and the artist's interpretation (aptly named "A Gentle Hand") of the emergency landing of the U.S. Airways jet on the Hudson River. Of the many descriptions and thoughts of many people, I think this picture paints my innermost thoughts and feelings about the capable Captain C.B. "Sully" Sullenberger and the powers above that allowed the 150 passengers and 5 crew members to land safely without injuries. Of course, anyone nicknamed "Sully" would obviously have many redeeming qualities.

Tax time looms on the horizon and this should be an interesting year. President Obama is bent and determined to give as much money away as he can, yet some one's going to have to come up with the funds to pay for the giveaways. I have a gut feeling it won't be the welfare recipients and I'm relatively sure the wealthy have already come up with a plan to avoid the coming new taxes, so guess who's going to pay?

It seems reasonable to me the everyone who voted for Obama will be more than willing to pay their share of the probable coming tax increases, but methinks they're either recipients of the giveaways or don't make enough to make a dent in the new tax burden.

Today's Friday and if all goes well, I'll be heading to AREA 51 for a little rest and recreation. The ankle and foot is better although I'm not quite 100%. It's been too long since I was out and about and I'm looking forward to hanging out with my pals tonight. The recent changes in Lakes Cafe and Sports Bar are not really meeting my expectations and the karaoke show is one of the areas that need improvement, not in talent but in management. We'll see what the evening brings.

This picture has nothing to do with today's entry, but it has a special meaning for me. As a child, I could not stand vegetables, especially asparagus and broccoli. I still abhor asparagus and even more so when served with the dreaded liver. The mere thought of that combination which I had to eat as a child sent shivers up my spine.

Thankfully, I taught my trusty dog Beanie to catch food in mid-air and when Dad wasn't looking, I'd toss a piece of liver to my dog. Of course, the next tidbit I'd toss Beanie was a piece of asparagus, which he downed with one gulp, without chewing. Then he'd make a face that he often made when Dad happened to pass gas near him (L-R Jimmy, Beanie and my brother Kirt).

It would take a while to coax him back to my side and when he came, I'd give him another piece of liver. Not being very bright, he'd fall for the old "asparagus toss" once again, and this went on until my plate was clean, a requisite that my father always enforced. Since that time, I've learned to enjoy broccoli very much and I ofttimes prepare it for dinner. This picture sort of brought back those memories.

The Cat's Ass Trophy (Cat) Award has one nominee this week thus far. Garnett nominated Marcelino de Jesus Martinez, 36 who was arrested for arranging for his 14-year-old daughter to marry a neighbor in exchange for $16,000, 100 cases of beer and several cases of meat. Remember that anyone may make a nomination for this week's CAT Award and nominations are open until Monday at 12:00 noon.

This Date In History: 1845; The United States Congress decrees the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November to be the universal election day for presidential elections. 1924; Ramsay MacDonald becomes prime minister as leader of the first Labour government.

1960; Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard and US Navy lieutenant Don Walsh descend into the bottom of Challenger Deep (35,810 ft), setting a new undersea record. 1968; United States relations with North Korea are strained after North Korean gunboats seize the crew of the US Navy intelligence ship Pueblo after it had allegedly strayed into North Korean waters.

1973; President Nixon announces over nationwide television that agreement on all terms for a formal ceasefire in Vietnam have finally been reached. 1989; Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí dies.

Picture Of The Day: Captain C. B. "Sully" Sullenberger did a masterful job in making his emergency landing of a U. S. World Airways jet into the icy Hudson River. At a time when a news flash involving the crash of a commercial jetliner usually spells tragedy, the thought that miracles can happen is a soothing thought.

Birthdays: Édouard Manet, French painter 1832, Jeanne Moreau, French actor 1928, Humphrey Bogart, actor 1899, Derek Walcott, West Indian poet and nobel laureate 1930.

The Hits Just Keep On Coming My thanks to my pal Garnett for his contribution to today's stories.

A big game hunter walked in the bar and bragged to everyone about his hunting skills. The man was undoubtedly a good shot and no one could dispute that.

Then he said that they could blindfold him and he would recognize any animal's skin from its feel, and if he could locate the bullet hole he would even tell them what caliber the bullet was that killed the animal. The hunter said that he was willing to prove it if they would put up the drinks, and so the bet was on.

They blindfolded him carefully and took him to his first animal skin. After feeling it for a few moments, he announced "Bear." Then he felt the bullet hole and declared, "Shot with a .308 rifle." He was right.

They brought him another skin, one that someone had in their car trunk. He took a bit longer this time and then said, "Elk, Shot with a 7mm Mag rifle. He was right again.

Through the night, he proved his skills again and again, every time against a round of drinks. Finally he staggered home, drunk out of his mind, and went to sleep.

The next morning he got up and saw in the mirror that he had one hell of a shiner. He said to his wife, "I know I was drunk last night, but not drunk enough to get in a fight and not remember it. Where did I get this blackeye?"

His wife angrily replied, "I gave it to you. You got into bed and put your hand down my panties. Then you fiddled around a bit and loudly announced, "Skunk, killed with an axe."

Two priests died at the same time and met Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter said, "I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer's down. You'll have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can't go back as priests. What'll it be?"

The first priest says, "I've always wanted to be an eagle, soaring above the Rocky Mountains." St. Peter replies, "So be it," and off flies the first priest.

The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, "Will any of this week 'count' St. Peter?" St. Peter says, "No, I told you the computer's down. There's no way we can keep track of what you're doing." The second Priest says, "In that case, I've always wanted to be a stud."

A week goes by, the computer is fixed and the Lord tells St. Peter to recall the two priests. The Lord asks, "Will you have any trouble locating them?" St. Peter says, The first one should be easy. He's somewhere over the Rockies flying with the eagles. But the second one could prove to be more difficult."

The Lord asketh, "Why?" St. Peter says, "He's on a snow tire, somewhere in North Dakota."

That's it for today, my little Cauli Flowers. Have a great and safe weekend and more on Monday.

Stay Tuned !