One Day More...: February 2017

Sunday, February 26, 2017

Freedom Of The _____.

This past week not-my-president Trump excluded the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Politico, BuzzFeed, the BBC and the Guardian from a press briefing. In other words, the press was excluded from a White House briefing. OUR White House. We The People's White House. Yours and my White House.

One of the first things Hitler, Mussolini and Stalin did was restricting the press and replacing them with their propagandists. But, that can't happen in America, right? After all we have the First Amendment that guarantees freedom of the press. That is until not-my-president Trump usurped that right.

Today's freedom of the _____ in not-my-president Trump's Amerika.

Just one day more...

Monday, February 20, 2017

See A Pattern?

During not-my-president Trump's campaign he used vitriolic language against other races and religions, primarily Mexican and Muslim. By doing so he garnered the support of white supremacists and neo-nazis. Slow to denounce these groups, not-my-president Trump only emboldened them.

Today eleven Jewish Centers across America received bomb threats.

There have been fifty-four such threats in twenty-seven states since January.

That's right America. Fifty-four bomb threats against Jewish Centers since the campaign and coronation of not-my-president Trump. Anyone see a pattern here?

Just one day more...

Sunday, February 19, 2017

Thank Goodness For MAS*H Reruns

As I sit here this morning with my coffee and bagel I'm reminded that I haven't watched the Sunday morning news programs since the coronation of not-my-president Trump. For a news junkie that can be a form of withdrawal.

YES, FAUX NEWS IS NOTICEABLY ABSENT

And, while we are on the subject, I miss Tim Russert, (deceased) and Bob Schieffer (retired). Both men of journalistic integrity.

For years the Sunday morning news programs have been a part of my Sunday morning ritual. Unlike all the mush heads that believe not-my-president Trump when he whines that there is a media conspiracy, I am able to watch the news and evaluate what I am watching. For all the Trumpie mush heads: it's called critical thinking.

Withdrawal is a bitch. But, I don't need the aggravation of watching the arrogance and idiocy of the not-my-president Trump administration. Thank goodness for M*A*S*H reruns.

Just one day more...

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Undeliverable

Yesterday I picked up a bag of ground coffee at the grocery store. I like a vanilla flavored coffee that can be brewed, not by adding syrup to get the flavor.

You would think a coffee labeled "very vanilla" would have a pronounced vanilla flavor. Not so. Thinking the company would want to know, I sent them an email:

Greetings

Yesterday I purchased your "very vanilla" ground coffee. I'm having my first cup right now and am not at all pleased. I am always in the hunt for a vanilla coffee that has a true vanilla flavor. Vendors always want to add vanilla syrup, which simply corrupts the taste. When I saw your "very vanilla" on the grocery store shelf I thought - Aha!, finally a true vanilla coffee. Unfortunately there isn't even a hint of vanilla. Maybe someone put the wrong coffee in this bag? I guess I'll keep searching.

The response I got (which happened to come from Starbuck's):

Thank you for contacting Seattle's Best Coffee. We were sorry to hear about your experience with the beans you purchased. In order to address the situation directly, we shared your feedback with our specialists in the Coffee department for their attention. I hope you will give us another chance to bring you a great cup of coffee. I have arranged for a coupon, good for a complimentary bag of our Levels coffee to be mailed to you. If you reply to this

email with your mailing address, I'll get it right out to you. We even have some delicious flavored coffee for you to try.

Huh?! What's this about beans? I said ground. And why would I want a coupon to get
another bag of the same thing I am letting you know wasn't flavored vanilla?

Which is what said when I emailed back. The email was bounced as undeliverable.

Just one day more...

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Next Time

I've settled back into the routine at the RV park after spending last week in Yuma and out in the desert with the pickup camper.

It was a rather uneventful week, with the exception of one morning when I woke to a flat tire. The first day out I decided to get off the beaten path and drove a rocky trail further into the desert.

Turns out I hit a sharp rock which caused a "fracture" in the tire. What I didn't think about was that the tires were inflated to the maximum of 80 lbs. for hauling the camper. It's not a good idea to drive over rocks with fully inflated tires, especially when in an area with no cell phone coverage.

I started the process of getting the flimsy pickup jack to change the tire, but first thought I would try the 12 volt compressor in a kit in the pickup. It's not meant for much other than small tires, but what the heck, I thought I'd give it a whirl. It work. That is until it got to 60 lbs. when it fried. As I discovered, it's a good idea to stop after 10 minutes to let the compressor cool down.

All's well that ends well and I was able to drive 30 miles to Quartzsite to get the tire repaired. While there I picked up another 12 volt compressor.

FRIED NEW

Next time (hopefully there won't be a next time) I will know to let it cool.

Just one day more...

Friday, February 10, 2017

If Only They Could Talk

One of highlights of the stopover in downtown Yuma was the marvelous 1930 art deco Hotel San Carlos. One can imagine all of the guests that stayed there over the years and hob nobbed in the hotel “coffee shop.” It was even “air cooled” back in its days, which likely was swamp coolers.

The hotel hasn’t been restored - more like renovated - however it appears to be in minimum maintenance required to be on the National Registry of Historic Places. It is currently utilized as low income housing. Understanding the costs involved with maintaining an older building, hopefully the city of Yuma will see the merit of keeping it in good condition.

Close inspection shows the art deco trim on the building, including the magnificent spires at the top, which were likely bright with lights back in its days.

The lobby remains virtually untouched, with dark woods on the counter and mail boxes. The floor has a deco pattern.

A few blocks away, on the other hand, is the Hotel de Sol with a Southwestern motif. It appears to also be circa 1930’s, but is boarded up and disrepair. In 2012 the city of Yuma received a $144,000 dollar planning grant to transform the historic building into a transportation hub for the City of Yuma. It appears nothing has been done since.

No doubt the Hotel del Sol had just as many clients as the Hotel San Carlos. If only they could talk; the stories they could tell.

Just one day more...

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Another Unqualified Billionaire

My wife is a retired public school teacher and our daughter is a public school teacher. It is an understatement to say that our family thinks the confirmation of billionaire Besty DeVos as Secretary of Education is outrageous.

This is a woman who has no education experience. None! Zero! Her only qualifications are that she gave a ton of money to the Republican party.

She may have plagiarized language on her senate questionnaire and during her senate hearing advocated for guns in schools to protect from grizzly bears.

Another unqualified billionaire in the not my president Trump administration and the idiot train keeps chugging along.

Just one day more...

Sunday, February 5, 2017

Enough Lavish Living

I didn’t make it too far today. I was lounging around this morning and decided it would be a good day to take in a movie.

I got to the one of the movie theaters in Yuma this morning and ended up staying for a second movie. It isn’t too often we get to a theatre back home on the farm since the closest theatre that shows recent movies is in Lincoln. That is a drive of 60 miles one way, so it’s a trip we don’t make too often.

This afternoon I decided to check out the old downtown of Yuma. All it took was finding a microbrewery.

I decided to stealth camp tonight. I found a parking lot downtown and blend in well enough that it should be a quiet night. Much better than the casino parking.

Enough of the lavish living. Tomorrow I’ll head for the desert outback.

Just one day more…

Saturday, February 4, 2017

No Plans

My wife is in Minnesota until the 13th helping take care of the new baby and she reports all is going well. Here is a pic of grandson #1 holding his brother, grandson #2.

Since I didn’t want to be rattling around the RV park until then, I decided to hop in the pickup and take the pickup camper to parts unknown. I ended up in Yuma.

Actually, I wanted to check out the Arizona Marketplace and the Yuma Swap Meet, both of which have vendors plying their wares. The Marketplace is much similar to the vendors at Quartzsite. The swap meet is a mix of flea market and vendors, with a more Mexican presence.

Lots of walking today, so at the end of the day I ended up boondocking at the casino. Far too many campers close together for my liking, but I did go through the buffet. Tried to watch a little TV, however all the channels are in Spanish from Mexico, with the exception of one that plays crappy movies in English.

I’ll see what tomorrow brings, since I don’t have any plans or a destination.

Just one day more…

Friday, February 3, 2017

The March Continues

Chief executives of major U.S. companies and Wall Street met with not my president Trump at the White House on Friday to discuss cutting Dodd-Frank bank rules established after the 2008 economic crisis and reducing their taxes.

Trump pledged during his campaign to repeal and replace the law, which also created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Dodd-Frank is a disaster," Trump said earlier this week during a meeting with small business owners. "We're going to be doing a big number on Dodd-Frank.” Trump signed an executive order today instructing the Labor Department to delay implementing the fiduciary rule.

One key provision of Dodd-Frank was the fiduciary rule" which was aimed at blocking financial advisers from steering clients toward investments with higher commissions and fees that can eat away at retirement savings. The rule required financial professionals who charge commissions to put their clients' best interests first when giving advice on retirement investments. Reasonable, right? Not according to Wall Street and the banks.

The march towards an oligarchy and plutocracy goes forward unabated, all the while America does nothing. Draining the swamp has taken on a new meaning - deregulation and increasing the wealth of the 1%.

Just one day more…

Thursday, February 2, 2017

Second Open Letter To President Peña Nieto

Second Open letter to Mexico President Enrique Peña Nieto

Dear President Peña Nieto:

It’s me again. I didn’t think I’d be writing a letter to you again, however I see in the news reports that Trump phoned you to patch things up over his plan to build a wall and pay for it with tariffs. As usual, his arrogance got in the way of any diplomacy.

According the Associated Press, the U.S. and Mexico conduct some $1.6 billion a day in cross-border trade, and cooperate on everything from migration to anti-drug enforcement to major environmental issues, so it would be in our best interest to work with you. Not so with a wacko in our White House.

According to what AP describes as a transcript of the call, Trump told you that, "You have a bunch of bad hombres down there," adding: "You aren't doing enough to stop them. I think your military is scared. Our military isn't, so I just might send them down to take care of it."

CNN reports that AP was quoting an official readout of the call written by aides, not the transcript. According to the official transcript, CNN says, Trump noted the "pretty tough hombres in Mexico" and offered "help with that big-league," because "you have not done a good job knocking them out.” News reports also indicate that your government officials have denied that Trump threatened to invade.

You know what President Peña Nieto, you need to lay the cards on the table. We can handle it. We know we have a egotistical nut job for a president. Even though the reports are a little mixed on exactly what Trump said, there isn’t much doubt it was something smart-ass.

Take heart. Trump has tasked his goober son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner — a real estate executive with no foreign policy experience — with managing the ongoing dispute, according to an administration official with knowledge of the call. Well, then again that might be just as bad since Trump keeps his family members on a short lease.

Anyway, I’m sorry you have to deal with what now must seem to you to be a psychotic freak. My suggestion is that the next time Trump calls, don’t answer the phone.

(signed) Bill in Nebraska (and sometimes Arizona)

P.S. On second thought, maybe you better take the call. Otherwise it might piss him off and he is just crazy enough to invade Mexico.

Just one day more...