Friday, September 22, 2017

Sometimes I Talk To Myself


I have to because sometimes I need expert advice. Being a night owl, I'm subjected to stupid attorneys doing their own TV commercials. I listen to politicians and media types start their sentences with "So...", which is today's substitute for "Um". I sit through moronic commercials that insult my intelligence.

Even a sixth grader knows that "so" indicates the continuation of a thought, not the beginning. They then continue answering every question or beginning new sentences with "So.....".

Yes, I talk to myself. I also answer myself, Some of my best conversations have been with me. I watch General Motors doing commercials using theoretical unknowing participants whose "canned" comments are believable if you're five-years-old.

The news is a joke and every headline or story varies to suit the networks political views and affiliations. The only thing they can't fake is catastrophes because most are obvious. That is, excepting weather reporters who make sure they wade into water to emphasize the situation when dry land is twenty yards away.

Just once, I'd like to see a chicken cross the road without someone questioning his motive. But, that's just me.....

My heart and prayers go out to the people of Texas and Florida who continue to recover from catastrophic hurricanes and to the people of Puerto Rico and Mexico who are currently experiencing hurricane and earthquake woes respectively.  

The News As I See It: Some 7-Eleven stores are now offering what they are calling "restaurant quality" dishes. Olive Garden representatives said, "We're going to try that too."

Target is letting customers download an indoor map to help them find their way around the store. If you get lost at Costco, they just tell you to forget your old life and move in.

Taco Bell said it will start serving alcohol at some locations. So the next time you think that you're having a bad day, imagine the guy who gets cut off by the cashier at Taco Bell.

Happy Rosh Hashanah to my Jewish readers. Of course, Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year. So happy 5778, everybody! I'm so glad it's 5778 because 5777 sucked.

This Date In History: 1901; Queen Victoria of England died after reigning for 63 years (the 4th longest among longest-reigning monarchs and the longest for queens). 1905; 500 workers were killed by the Czar's troops in "Bloody Sunday" in St. Petersburg.

1938; Thornton Wilder's play Our Town first performed publicly in Princeton, N.J. 1973; The Supreme Court legalized some abortions in Roe v. Wade. 1997; The U.S. Senate confirmed Madeleine Albright as the first female secretary of state.

Picture Of The Day: Yosemite Sam's pissed too..... !



Printable Things I Never Told You: 1) Parenting is having your kids reject everything you cook and then watching your 2-year-old eat a dog treat from off the floor and then ask for another. 2) My girlfriend told me she had an epiphany last night, which surprised me because that wasn't even my "A" game. 3) What North Korea really needs is some decent barbers who know how to cut hair. 4) Knowing when to keep opinions to yourself is, apparently, a skill that I do not possess. 5) My father once told me: "Son, you should never lie. One lie begets another lie, then another lie and before you know it, you're either a lawyer or a politician.....and that's five !

Today's Horoscope: Virgo - September 22nd: Your weaknesses may turn out to be your strengths today and you'll find yourself easily swayed by nonsense that you read on Facebook. Don't confuse dumb waiters with Afghani asylum seekers. They're normally taxi drivers. Sex on the beach is not an act, it's a drink.....most of the time.

Birthdays: Michael Faraday, English scientist 1791, Theodore Clement Steele, artist 1847, Babette Deutsch, poet 1895, Tommy Lasorda, baseball manager 1927.

The AREA 51 Retirement Home Bar And Grill: For his birthday, little Joseph asked for a 10 speed bicycle. His father said, "Son, we'd give you one, but the mortgage on this house is $280,000 and your mother just lost her job. There's no way we can afford it."

The next day the father saw little Joseph heading out the front door with a suitcase. So he asked, "Son, where are you going?"

Little Joseph told him, "I was walking past your room last night and heard you telling mom you were pulling out. Then I heard her tell you to wait because she was coming too. And I'll be damned if I'm staying here by myself with a $280,000 mortgage and no friggin' bike!"

Calvin Rickson, an engineer from Texas A&M University, has designed a bra that keeps women's breasts from jiggling, bouncing up and down, and stops nipples from pushing through the fabric when cold weather sets in. After a news conference announcing the invention, a large group of Texans took Mr. Rickson outside and kicked the shit out of him.

The Hits Just Keep On Coming: There was a blonde who was sick of all the blonde jokes. One day, she decided to get a make over, so she cut and dyed her hair. She went driving down a country road and came across a herd of sheep. She stopped and called the sheep herder over.

The woman said, "Tell you what. I have a proposition for you. If I can guess the exact number of sheep in your flock, can I take one home?" The sheep herder said, "Sure." So, looked at the herd for a second and then replied "382". The herder said, "Wow! That's exactly right. Go ahead and pick out the sheep you want to take home."

So the woman went and picked one out and put it in her car. Then, the herder said, "Okay, now I have a proposition for you". The woman asked, "What is it?  The herder said, "If I can guess the real color of your hair, can I have my dog back?"

An old cowboy sat down at the Starbucks and ordered a cup of coffee. As he sat sipping his coffee, a young woman sat down next to him. She turned to the cowboy and asked, "Are you a real cowboy?"

He replied, 'Well, I've spent my whole life breaking colts, working cows, going to rodeos, cleaning my barn, working on tractors and feeding my dogs, so I guess I am a cowboy."

The woman said, "I'm a lesbian. I spend my whole day thinking about women. As soon as I get up in the morning, I think about women. When I shower, I think about women. When I watch TV, I think about women. I even think about women when I eat. It seems that everything makes me think of women." The two sat sipping in silence.

A little while later, a young man sat down on the other side of the old cowboy and asked, "Are you a real cowboy?" He replied, "I always thought I was, but I just found out that I'm a lesbian."

That's it for today, my little tumbleweeds. Remember, poetry would be a lot harder if violets were orange. I'm heading over to AREA 51 for happy hour.

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More next week.

Friday, September 15, 2017

Irma Devastating But Not Without Quirky Moments


During the last trying weeks, the nation suffered through the heartbreaking ravages of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. But even in the worst of times, little rays of humor managed to surface and I'd like to tell you some of my trials and errors.

Time erases memory, but Irma wasn't my first rodeo. I filled every receptacle I had with water and put them in the freezer. I precooked meats and put them in Tupperware. I was sure I had candles, and I was right. I had three candles, each about 5 inches long.

No worries, the weather people indicated the brunt of the storm would hit the west coast. I completely forgot that the "dirty" part of the storm was in the northeast portion. The hurricane was moving at a good pace and then it slowed. I still had power and a functioning cell phone.

Around 1:00 pm Sunday, I lost power but I still had a positive attitude.The night moved in, the winds increased and the son-of-a-bitch upstairs turned on his generator, clearly in violation of the law. I lit candle number one, had some iced tea and a snack. My cats, usually aloof, now seemed to feel I was their best friend, each curling up next to me.

Over the following hours, I cannot tell you how many times I turned on the light when I entered the bathroom. It never came on once (because, you see, I had no damned electricity,). At first, I tried to go to the bathroom using the ancient art of mental imaging and target location by sound. But, as I said earlier, time erases memory and when I didn't hear the "sound" of success, I realized that candle number two was going to be needed in the bathroom.

Scooter, my faithful companion who feels the necessity to accompany me on all my bathroom treks wholeheartedly agreed as he was the recipient of the poorly plan mental imaging and sound experiment.

I cursed myself over putting off buying an emergency radio, so there I sat, listening to the mind numbing staccato of the generator and watching my candles get smaller and smaller. I fell asleep sometime in the wee hours, only to be awakened by the howling winds but no generator sounds. It seems the generator had been shut off at first light.

Still sleepy, the winds roared as I prepared something to eat. I was sure the damned storm must be in Tampa by now, but my sister called and said it was in Naples. Candle number one burnt out and conservation of the final candle was a priority.

That evening, as darkness fell, the cats remained in a crouched position mainly due to the various loud noises. Right on time, shit-for-brains turned on his generator. Conserving the remaining candle, I sat in the dark plotting how to destroy the annoying generator and the owner, if necessary, as well. Peanut butter and bread became my go to snack. Sleeping off and on, the sun finally arose and dumb ass turned his generator off, so I tried to catch up on some badly needed sleep.

I woke to a conversation coming from my living room. Since I live alone, I assume I had unwanted guests. As it turned out, it was the television and I had electricity again. Although food was low and I was out of ice, I knew that it could only get better, 

Hollywood's hurricane relief telethon turned political with many stars using the opportunity to share their liberal platforms. Originally conceived as a benefit for victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas, the "Hand in Hand" telethon was expanded to help people in Florida and the Caribbean devastated in recent days by Irma.

Stevie Wonder opened the one-hour televised event with a monologue about coming together, regardless of race, religion, political affiliation or sexual preference to help those devastated by the storms. However, he then closed the speech by taking a shot at those who deny climate change, saying "Anyone who believes there’s no such thing as global warming must be blind or unintelligent.

But the event was a potentially polarizing and alienating move at a time when, even as images of the powerful storms and monumental wreckage they caused literally flooded our screens, the impulse, especially from politicians, to call for prayers in lieu of recognizing science has become an exasperated meme.

To wit, after Wonder’s quote was tweeted out, responses came in chiding the singer for “undermining the objective of the telethon by alienating half the country in the first 30 seconds.”

Houston native Beyonce said in a video message aired on the telethon that hurricanes Harvey and Irma were a big blow following the recent "violence and racism in this country. She added she thought times "couldn't possibly get worse," but then the hurricanes hit.

All things considered, the event raised more than 44 million dollars for the victims of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, so I guess one has to overlook the moronic, blatant politicalization and be content that the monies ostensibly will help millions of people.

The News As I See It: Hillary Clinton is promoting her new book, "What Happened?" She told Anderson Cooper that a lot of people come up to her now to apologize for not voting. And when they do that, she says she doesn’t forgive them. I guess she used all her forgiveness up on her husband, Slick Willy.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked about Clinton’s book. She said she thought it was sad. Which is true. I mean, it is — I don’t want to spoil it for anyone who’s planning to read it, but at the end of the book, Donald Trump becomes president.

Huma Abedin and soon-to-be ex-husband Anthony Weiner say that they want to keep their divorce proceedings private. Weiner, however, insisted he’s still going to keep his (private parts) public.

It's official  - Pro Football has begun! I saw that the Patriots will play a game in Mexico this November. The U.S. border Patrol will be checking the returning team for anyone with a mustache and wearing a serape.Then again, the Patriots could sign Colin Kaepernick and then trade him to Mexico for two day laborers to be named at a later date.

Meanwhile, the New York Jets are 1000-to-1 long shots to win the Super Bowl. That means if you bet just one dollar...you will lose just one dollar.

Kim Kardasian and Kanye West have announced they are expecting their third baby. And this time, they’re going to name the baby something normal. That’s the name. Something Normal West.

Target annoinced announced that it will hire 100,000 seasonal employees during the holidays. Ten of them will be on the register; the rest will wander around saying, “I don’t work in this department.”

This Date In History: 1789; The U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs changed its name to the Department of State. 1821; Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador gained independence. 1835; Charles Darwin and the HMS Beagle reached the Galapagos Islands.

1917; Alexander Kerensky proclaimed Russia a republic. 1935;  The Nuremberg Laws deprived Jews of their citizenship and made the Swastika the official emblem of Nazi Germany. 1963; A church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, killed four young black girls.

1989; Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Penn Warren, the first poet laureate of the United States, died. 2004; The National Hockey League lockout began. The 2004-2005 season would ultimately be canceled.

Picture Of The Day: Yep, I figured by 2:00 p.m., I figured Irma would be nearing Tampa, Wrong, hurricane breath!



Printable Things I Never Told You: 1) Men reach their sexual peak around age 18 while women reach their sexual peak around age 35. Just about the time women reach their sexual peak, men are beginning to realize they have a favorite chair. 2) One year, I couldn't afford to take the kids to a corn maze, so I took them to an IKEA instead. 3) Forrest Gump's Facebook account has been hacked. His password was "1Forrest1". 4) If you play a game with your girlfriend where you pick one person you’d be allowed to sleep with, choose a celebrity and not "Liz from Accounting." 5) Starbucks should have a separate line for people who don't know what they want or how the world works.....and that's five !

Today's Horoscope: Virgo - September 15th: Your footsteps will seem louder today as you break in new shoes. Everything you've ever felt about anything will be tested today during some troubling moment in which you'll learn something about anything or everything. When gazing upon the face of a loved one, close your mouth and stop babbling on about how much you wish that restraining order had been quashed.

BirthdaysJames Fenimore Cooper, American novelist 1789, William Howard Taft, 27th president of the United States 1857, 1857 Bruno Walter, conductor 1876, Agatha Christie, writer 1890, Jean Renoir, film director, writer 1894, Oliver Stone, filmmaker 1946, Dan Marino, football quarterback 1961.

The AREA 51 Retirement Home Bar And Grill: A farmer went to town to see a movie. The ticket agent asked, "Sir, what’s that under your arm?" The old farmer said, "That’s my pet rooster Chucky, wherever I go, Chucky goes." The ticket agent said, "We don’t allow animals in the theater." The irritated old farmer went around the corner and stuffed the bird down his pants.

He returned to the booth, bought a ticket and entered the theater. He sat down next to two old widows named Mildred and Marge. The movie started and the rooster began to squirm. The old farmer unzipped his pants so Chucky could stick his head out and watch the movie.

Mildred whispered, "Marge, I think this guy next to me is a pervert." Marge replied, "What makes you think that?" Mildred whispered, "He unzipped his pants and is exposing himself."

Marge said, "Well, don’t worry about it, At our age we’ve seen them all." Mildred said, "Yeah, but this one is eating my popcorn."

In California Unleaded gas went to $4.00 a gallon last Thursday. Sister Mary Ann, who worked for a home health agency, was out making her rounds visiting homebound patients when she ran out of gas. Fortunately, an Exxon station was just a block away.

She walked to the station to borrow a gas can and buy some gas. The attendant told her that the only gas can he owned had been loaned out, but she could wait until it was returned. Since Sister Mary Ann was on the way to see a patient, she decided not to wait, and walked back to her car.

She looked for something in her car that she could fill with gas, and spotted the bedpan she was taking to the patient. Always resourceful, Sister Mary Ann carried the bedpan to the station, filled it with gasoline, and carried the full bedpan back to her car.

As she was pouring the gas into her tank, two Baptist ladies watched from across the street. One of them turned to the other and said, "If it starts, I'm turning Catholic."

The Hits Just Keep On Coming: A frustrated wife buys a pair of crotchless panties in an attempt to spice up her dead sex-life. She puts them on, together with a short skirt and sits on the sofa opposite her husband. At strategic moments she uncrosses her legs.

Finally, after she had crossed her legs enough times, her husband asks, "Are you wearing crotchless panties?" She answered with a seductive smile, Yes." Her husband replied, "Thank God. For a moment, I thought the stuffing was coming out of the sofa." (He never heard the gunshot.)

An older woman is shopping in a supermarket when she notices this handsome muscular boy doing the bagging at one of the checkouts. Making sure she goes through his line, she leans over and asks if he'll carry her groceries out to which he responds, "Sure lady."

No sooner than they get out of the store, she leans over and says to the boy, "You know I've got an itchy pussy." The boy responds, "You'll have to point it out, lady, all those Japanese cars look alike to me."

That's it for today, my little tinker toys. Remember, if your smart phone gets wet, put it in a bag of dry rice. Then at night, the rice will attract Asians and they will fix all your electronics for you. I'm heading over to AREA 51 for happy hour.

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More next week.

Stay Tuned !