the money problem:

I solved it and
it did not take much time
the Need for more dollars for Health ( isnt it really sickness insurance?) care.
and in fact probably the greater part of the deficit. Heck, this may take care of Social Security too.

They * tax cigarettes and they tax alcohol, they tax luxury boats and cars and tires. There is a proposal to tax sodas and fruit drinks..... But if you really want to steal some money from people caught in the bind of addiction, Tax COFFEE. yes it would cause a revolt, and it would not sit well with all the coffee drinking staffers on Capitol hill, but the congress would probably exempt themselves anyway.

* YOU know who they are unless you are one of them.

thanks a bunch

My facebook page has been disabled
it took them ten days to even reply to my original complaint
and now another week later
they solve my problem, which I had already fixed,
By taking down my account.

So what?
I was just building a small prayer circle to pray for and help
individuals. Its harder to do that without my account...

But with God nothing shall be impossible

Kindle me this

Kindle me a fire
I have some electronic books I want burned..

Nay I say NAY on this way of reading.
Having BOOKS of paper and ink is GOOD for the environment
for books require Bookshelves, and bookstores
and bookshelves have begotten craftsmen who make them with pride, right in your hometown.
Bookstores have created small communities of book enjoyers, also known as READERS, who just might turn out to be NEIGHBORS.
Our books carry so much more than the message on the pages.
They also carry the potential of shared experience, a gift to be given,
a novel to be lent out, and then discussed at the bus stop or in the break room.

The makers of Kindle are not out to kill all that, but they could, and what would be gained?
Nothing by my accounting.
what might be lost? The possibilities are too serious for my playful brain.
When books come from machines, and the machines are controlled remotely,
then the controllers do not have to ban, collect and burn 'dangerous' books. They will KNOW who owns them, and an what "Kindles' the anti- Government or anti-war or anti choice writings are currently stored. It's a short next step to erasing or editing what you have, so that you only get to read what is for the good of "the many".

Don't buy me a Kindle for my birthday, buy me a long straight pine board. I am building more sturdy bookshelves for the tree house. where I will sit and read and sway in the breeze, turning pages made of paper that have a copyright date, and the writers full words on them, not some sanitized version approved by a central committee.

Letter from a nut case

Dear beloved neighbor of mine,
Your yard looks different than mine
and I must say there are times when I might have been envious.
Your dedication to raking often and with great vigor, combined with your fear of planting has produced something resembling a dog park appearance; functional, austere, nothing to lift a leg on.
The clever use of concrete, gravel and perfect brown dirt is so easy to maintain; Rake, broom and blow it away and you are free to do.... not much else.
Compared to mine, you look like you are winning hands down. All winter my woodpiles moved about as I split, stacked and dried the last great renewable heating source our mountain has for free. My other stuff has had to rest outside from time to time, and the clutter factor is irritating I know and I would bet you would like to say something about it (so get your own blog, Steve).
In the fall when you were raking falling oak leaves, I ignored them ( thanks for raking some of mine, was that a hint?). All winter the ground you raked bare was frozen hard and became almost sterile, while the oak and pine debris in the rest of the forest protected the roots of the dormant plants by creating a layer of insulation we call mulch.
Now that it is spring, the tables are about to turn, as the heads of daffodils and tulips poke through and the perennials that survived the herbicidal tendencies you could not repress will come forth, crying aloud for joy at the warmth of a spring day and pushing their way skyward in a riotous display of color. Do not worry, your gravel will still have leaves to rake that have blown in from across the street. and though my fence did not stop you from raking in my yard, apparently my putting down redwood bark mulch has helped you to see that I do care for my yard, I just need to have it different than yours. The next six months belong to spring and summer, and my plan comes out looking like a winner.
As a consolation prize I will scatter a few of my spare pine needles over the fence for you to play with. I would hate for you to have no 'yard work' to do.
Regards
David

a whole string of bad words

have you ever waited for something you did not want?
waited for it to happen
or for a letter to come that was NOT WELCOME.
ever had a black and white behind you and WAITED for the red lights to come on?
(I will bet Sage and Russ know all about that)

this is more personal, closer to home. I shall continue to allude.
What is this feeling, dreading, expecting, KNOWING
that around the corner is a scene I do not want to be in
a role I do not want to act out
Just over the next rise in the road is a tanker truck, barreling toward you in your lane
and the driver can not see you. The oaths your mouth would utter become a silent scream as they are obliterated by his massive air horn blasting.
The book you are reading is headed in a terrible direction and you can not put it down.
you have skied hard all day and are tired, but following a friend, you crest a cornice and the bottom falls out, leaving you airborne and out of control, a hard landing is the best youcan hope for , but a trip to the bone setter is more likely.
Thankfully none of that is going to happen, but damn, it feels like i am swimming hard left in a swirl going right. Right down the toilet bowl.

mm mmmm good

.
or Berry berry good

as
as mentioned in the previous post I got FREE pair of Levi's 501's
well, actually they were not free, it is just that I did not buy them
someone else did.
A careless person who must have put them on top of their car
and then driven toward the ski area,or back toward their hotel.
Funny thing about tourists, they drive too fast
strange thing about pants, they fly off when you drive to fast
( not off your body, off your car)
so I saw something in the center lane, getting run over by tourist tires
(Locals try to be nice, driving around, not over your jeans!)
I turned around, stopped in the middle lane, set the flashers
and retrieved a fine pair of TOO small Jeans
some cool warm up pants ( name brand) were out there too
I am a 36 - the jeans are a 34
but I am fitting in by eating less and working out more
Thanks to the tourist, I feel great and look sharp too!

Quick contest: tell me your best free clothes story and I will send the best entry a jar of
Black berry - Raspberry preserves

------------------
Update Saturday noon
found - cast iron griddle/ grill for the stove top.
Destination today: Lake baby! windy but I will find some coves to explore!

i only thought

I was midly depressed
until i looked at the election results.
Oh dear God.
What did we do to deserve this?

a total shambles, that is what we are heading for unless something
turns around and quickly.

Going to bed, I feel sick.

re-integration of David

I am putting me back together,
a new, better faster me.
Smarter ( you didn't think it was possible?)
and more attuned to myself and those around me.
- - - - - - - - - -
I am also seeking help with my industrial poetry.
How about if each of you readers comes up with a couplet
or four lines each and then I can edit them into a
sweet poem about, say...re-tiling a shower?

here are your choices for words we can rhyme:
tile
mortar
studs
grout
tub
water
acrylic admix ( for you over acheivers)
trowel
float
leak
mold
( you get the idea)

I got my mom to and from her sister's house,
the least you can do is write me a line or two.

Splitsville: episode two, Condiment wars!

in case anyone in Television is reading, I though of this FIRST!

A real time, non scripted show featuring former roommates, or ex-lovers, or used to be boyfriend-girlfriend couples that are now parting ways and having to divide all the stuff that has accumulated during the years.

Disclaimer: this is not based on my life, just came out of my insanely fertile brain, as I am looking at the packing of all things "here" into two sets of boxes.

In this weeks episode the refrigerator is being cleaned out and the cast members are deciding who owns the mustard, and in particular the Grey Poupon. You know that roommate A is a type A who only buys the finest, roommate b has few funds for feckless frivolity, and buys store brand 'Old yeller" mustard in the jumbo quart jar. This one is a no-brainer, but who will take custody of all the seven types of BBQ sauce, or the Extra Virgin Olive oil???? Stay tuned!

ten for tuesday

the color of tuesday morning is green,
like the fresh oregano waiting to be added to the herb garden.

the flavor of this morning is rasberry tea, hot with wild honey

the smell of this fine morning is mint, also destined for the herb garden

texture this morning is wool carpet under bare feet ( i almost typed bear feet! hehe)

the attitude is "not a statistic" go get help with your insanity

the inspiration of the day is people who have adversity, but follow God and make a good life, counting it a blessing to raise wise children, for they are the future.

the humor for the day is provided by an unnamed atheist, who objects to hearing "God bless you" when she sneezes. to her I say 'Zeus watch over you!' funny how people will pick a fight over stuff like that. why not just ask God if he is real, and to reveal himself to you?

I ate too much and lived to tell,

here are 52 things:

side lighting marigolds is the best, how does God do that every day!

back lighting new oak leaves makes them appear liquid

skin is the most amazing sensory organ, even my typing fingers agree.

wood is the most abundant of construction materials other than mud
( a nod to the elbonian engineers)

I have not three, but at least six saws.

when I want disgusting heat and crowds they are only an hours drive away

blogging in your underwear is over-rated. Too confining

I survived my birthday dinner with only minor swelling

it was swell

when was the last time you used 'swell' as an adjective?

birds are my last pet, until i get more zoo space

seems silly to have caged birds when the wild ones come right up to the window

when I took the time I could handle my pet birds, so I guess there is a difference

you can have a break, I think you are halfway through.....

back already? good!

if you understand light, please explainit to me, I am in wonderment

why did the young scrub jay hop right up to me yesterday and allow mw to talk to it?

flowers have no time to complain, they are busy being naturally beautiful

I missed my dentist appt. yesterday, I was 11 days early, hehe

any one left out there who doubts my insanity?

for those two I will go on:

I work with electric circuits HOT because there is NOthING like 110v scampering across your skin.
I taught my sons to do the same, as I must leave weird legacies

(more because you soak up this stuff :-)

the hum of a computer fan draws me like a moth to a flame

i still have no prescription, which means i am still blogging.

If I get "well" and stop blogging is that a cure that I can tolerate?

number 1 son has fixed my computer, it is only 5 hours away.

that means I could be back in time for more of michele's meet-n-greet.

i am almost tolerating a laptop's different keyboard

but I think I still like the one that sits on a desk

could you imagine me with a portable computer?

tomorrow is a big day for a good friend's family

clear cool weather in August would be nice for an outdoor event

I really need more work time and less "down time"

who EVER says THAT?????

i also could use a lottery win

I have more plans than HGTV..... hehe

I am going to a "progressive dinner" at our church tonight

I hope that is not what they now call "Liberal dinners"

I will eat conservatively, no matter what

enough about me, lets talk about my pets:

Mango is a love bird with no spouse

Beautiful is half of two parakeets I received from my good friends

the other parakeet did not make it

I do not mourn lost birds, or hamsters

I still miss my cat Patches

and double that my dog, Chipper

( evening break)


more later - as access permits

for now I am able to post, and read YOU ( if you comment)

shalom is the perfect word, it says it all
Peace

Bring me the special pill, nurse Ratched!

while all of you are planning my birthday bash i just have to manage to get a lot of work in.
SOMETHING NEW: refinishing and old tub!
Something borrowed: too much to list
something blue, half of the sky, apart from where there are thunderheads.
many pictures taken, waiting til i get my computer back from brilliant son number one,
then I can post them

thinking of starting a new prescription for the ADD
after I talk to my Dr. friend, that is
I need traction, have none.
Need focus, have about a hundred.
Need friends, so glad I have you.

side trip to a ficticious country

Today's Elbonian proverbs:

When the coffee bean is ready,
the hand will appear to pick it.

When the bean is perfectly roasted,
a sack will be provided.

When the sack is full of beans,
watch out ( hold your nose).

When the beans hit the grinder
the noise will wake the only non coffee drinker in the house.

The boiling of the water will take less time if there are no beans.
It will take longer if there is snow on the ground,
and will not happen at all if you did not pay the gas bill.

When the beans are ground just right,
and the water boils,
and the cup is clean,
there will be no filters.

Thank you to Scott Adams, for the place of Elbonia,
whose citizens make even our Senators look smart.
No small task.

Say no to Amnesty, say yes to a good strong fence.
Keep an eye out for Fred Thompson.
links today are to Wikipedia
and are brought to you by the number blue, the color seven, and the sound of an empty coffee cup ( waaaaahhh!)

crazy is just another word

crazy is what happens when a creative mind runs free with no tether, no leash

my interview questions

I visited contemblogging, and requested an interview, and here it is:

Suzanne: Hey thanks for stopping by. I tried to read some of your blogs first so I would know who I was talking to. Here goes....and happy blogging.

1. You keep 4 Blogs! How in the world do you find the time to post on them all, and which one was your first blog?
David: Well, I rarely sleep more than five hours a night, and I do have Matt to help post on the ADHD blog, Concrete coutertops is a work related blog, mostly pictures, so that is easy. Sugarloaf Mtn is my first and favorite, and I need to WRITE more to it, but life is so fun and exciting right now, I blog when I can, I live the rest of the 19 waking hours of the day.


S: You work in construction right? Have you ever hurt yourself really bad? ( I saw the photos of the nails through the skulls! yikes!)
I LOVE that picture - and I have worked with stupid guys that have hurt themselves or others badly. Once when I was doing a favor for a window cleaner guy I slashed a 1.5 inch cut in my forearm with a razor window scraper, another time I nicked my thumbnail with a Skilsaw. No big stuff , Thank the Lord, in heaven, who preserves me for better things with all ten fingers intact!


S: You are a Leo. Here's a blurb about Leo's. "Leos like to live like a king. (according to the stereotype of course) You are a very ambitious person and want to rise to the top in the profession of your choice. You have been blessed with a strong personality, which can take you places if you so desire. You are logical in your approach to most things but sometimes you get so confused over the small issues.
What kind of small issues confuse you?

D: Suzanne, really, astrology!? That is so Nancy Reagan! I live for the moment, I have ADD (bad!) and give thanks for the creativity and nuttiness it adds to my life. people around me adapt, or run for cover. The big issues are settled: When I die I go to heaven, and I will only worship God, not money. OOOO, i just read that again, I DO LIKE to live LIKE A KING! hmm.... now you got me contemblogging!


S: I haven't read State of Fear, but I would like to. What's the synopsis and your opinion.
I love that the research done for the book is referred to in the appendix, so its a fictional account of ecological idealism run amok, but it seems like it could happen. He is such a talented writer, reading him makes me want to try writing a book.

S: If I was going hiking at Big Bear Lake, where would you advise us to go?
Hike to The Teddy Bear Restaurant!
After a short stack of hotcakes, mosey across town to the Eastside Book Cafe and check your email, while having yummy coffee, then for altitude and views, hike north from highway 38 up to the Pacific Crest trail junction. AFterwards Hike to the creek runner lodge and soak in a hot bath.

There you go. That should keep you busy for a blog post!

Thanks again for playing,
Suzanne


Thanks to suzanne for the great questions. and thanks to my faithful readers for waiting a long time between posts! Its a very alive time in my life, and I am busy lliving it and dreaming of great things, and gardening!!!!

you bet your bunny tail...

yes, we boiled and dyed eggs here tonight.
Miss Hannah and I - playing silly kids together.
remembering days long past when holidays were
filled with joyous together times. Too soon she will be grown and off to college, so I treasure this sort of Father-Daughter time. Precious.

Now to go put them on the front porch so that when the Rabbit gang comes they wont' kidnap anybunny.

not so good

not BAD either,
but I am just getting hemmed in
and feeling less free.
as that happens I need to resist
the urge to run or the temptation to collapse
( not in a literal sense)
I have stuff to do ( like all of you)
I just need to do my stuff
and not worry to much about stuff that is beyond my jurisdiction.

I liked a joke Jay Leno told last night
Something about the eight federal prosecutors getting fired.
He said you know its really bad ( for the Bush administration)
when people ( the press, democrats) take the side of the lawyers
and are sympathetic to them. I only liked two lawyers in my whole life
and one of them was my brother.

God bless you all, praying for you, as I post this.
----------------------
ps. my right little finger hurts, almost all the time. not sure why??

take a side trip with me

I just read ( for a second time) something terrible, horrific and really sad.
( but not TRAGIC, thankfully)
I hope you will benefit in some way by knowing this blogger
and reading her powerful post:
NOT A CINDERELLA STORY

There is always the possibility of (me) being the nice neighbor who was too good to let evil go on unchallenged.
Could You be the neighbor in some other child's story?

--------- friday, I am off to save a 60 year old Chinese Elm by pruning it,
so that the owner would not "rip it out" to avoid the 'maybe' of it falling on the stupid jerk neighbor ( and making the planet a nicer place)
maybe I can drop a chainsaw on this crazed and evil woman?

you know what?

I am just excited
so many things going on
small things:
like my mom doing better every day
and the peace I have that overcomes nagging doubts.

Big things, like good work and challenging
projects and renewed contact with good clients.
healthy activities and beautiful art work.

not to mention all the mornings I wake up here
at 7000 feet and enjoy the clean air and deep blue sky.

and maybe, just maybe God will let me have that sailboat.
some day this week I will go inspect it, after laying my hands on it
my heart will be knit to it, and the blood in my veins will go a bit saltier
even though I know that
Yes there is a sailor inside of me,
but he does not have permission to cast off shore just yet.
"Patience, your time will come, Lad."

Aye Captain. ( sighs)
someone go to my paypal account and put in xx,xxx.00
just for fun, ok?

Globaloney

Yeah, its hot out there! somewhere,
and later it will cool off, Thank God.
and surprise, when the sun comes back up, it will get warm again, maybe really warm. Even uncomfortably warm. Let me tell you, it was cold in my room last night, darn cold.
but then, i climbed under three blankets and a comforter and warmed up just fine to sleep right on through the COLD night until my eyes popped open at 5:30 ( my ears opened first, haha) and made my way down to feed the infernal combustion machine that is my woodstove.
PRESTO - I had warmth.

all this to say... I have no idea about the Global warming and cooling cycle EXCEPT to say that it is a cycle and it does manage itself. THE BIGGEST source of heating of this planet is our own SUN and we need that, so until the eco- enviro- hollywood- leftists find the Thermostat for the sun, we are going to have cycles of global cooling and warming.
I am ok with that.
we should worry about other things that we CAN do something about
and then DO something about them.
SUPPORT kids clubs, coach a team, hug your children and tell them you love them.
Take good care of your parents when they are old.
AFTER THAT, if you can catch the emissions from a cow, and use it to boil some water, have a cup of tea, and read Ann Coulter ( side bar ) and here. She is funny, and brilliant ( like me!)