What A Week

It's been a sad past few days, hasn't it. America heard of the passing of Davy Jones, Andrew Breitbart, the tornado victims in Indiana, Kentucky, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, etc. So much tragedy. So much need. We offer prayers and heartfelt sympathies for all involved.

And now yesterday we learned about losing a beloved cousin and good friend.

Around the first of the year his e-mails just stopped one day. He mostly conversed with my Hubby with everything from politics to family life to his new trucking business. Hubby thought, well, maybe he's busy with too much on his plate right now to send an e-mail. Time passed. Life got in the way and we temporarily forgot. Then the other day, Hubby said, "I haven't heard from 'Cousin'. I wonder if something's wrong?" He sent an e-mail. No response. He tried calling their home, then the cell phone, they'd all been disconnected!

Hmmm ... my amateur detective brain took over at that point. Something is afoot. So I 'googled' his name and bingo up popped his obituary! Oh. My. Goodness! Turns out 'Cousin' died suddenly last December. (I've left his name off to protect the family.) To put it mildly, we where shocked for a bit. Nobody had called or let us know. That kind of hurt but then we got to thinking, maybe I'm being selfish and there's a back story to their silence. I did a little more internet researching and found the newspaper article about finding his wrecked truck on the side of the road with a gun shot to his head. Uh huh!! Our dear friend and cousin chose his time of demise. I knew he worried (unduly, in my opinion) about the government and all the nefarious goings on. But that!? That is a pretty drastic measure. I didn't think he was that distraught but it goes to show ya, one never knows what demons one has to deal with. Cousin could write beautifully. He could hold a thought together and weave a story in a way that makes me totally jealous. He was so bright. Such a waste and it’s so sad. We're gonna miss him terribly.

All this tragedy did get me to thinking about something else. What if I 'suddenly disappeared' off the internet? No, I'm not suicidal, in fact, if anyone else says that's what happened it isn't true! Someone done the 'ol girl in if they say I did that. I'm too much of a Polly Anna. In spite of the crap one often gets handed, I like life. I’m a fighter. Nothing like a good scrap for my Scotish-Irish blood! And I'm a chicken and don't like pain but I do have a dodgey heart and I am a bit of a risk taker. Things happen. Poo occurs. But anyway, I personally don't believe many would lose any sleep over my disappearance. I'm not being grouchy, it's just a fact. Most of us go through our daily lives only touching someone for a moment, then they're gone. It's not selfishness on our parts, it’s just the way life is. The strong move on. But I know now I'm gonna make a list of people to be notified "just in case" to be given to a trusted family member. It hurts to learn someone you loved and felt close too, or just knew on the internet, is suddenly gone and one didn't get a chance to send respectful sympathies to the family.

Thought I'd share that thought ... you know ... just in case ...



PS: If y'all make a list too, please add me to it?! Hopefully, we'll never have this situation but life is what it is ...

Funny Friday ~ I Miss Bill Clinton

All good jokes have an element of truth to them.
This one sure hits the nail on the head.

From a show on Canadian TV, there was a black comedian who said he misses Bill Clinton.
"Yep, that's right - I miss Bill Clinton! He was the closest thing we ever got to having a real black man as President.”
Number 1 - He played the sax.
Number 2 - He smoked weed.
Number 3 - He had his way with ugly white women.
Even now? Look at him ... his wife works, and he doesn't! And, he gets a check from the government every month.
Manufacturers announced today that they will be stocking America 's shelves this week with " Clinton Soup" in honor of one of the nations' distinguished men. It consists primarily of a weenie in hot water.
Chrysler Corporation is adding a new car to its line to honor Bill Clinton. The Dodge Drafter will be built in Canada.
When asked what he thought about foreign affairs, Clinton replied, "I don't know, I never had one."
The Clinton revised judicial oath: "I solemnly swear to tell the truth as I know it, the whole truth as I believe it to be, and nothing but what I think you need to know."
Clinton will be recorded in history as the only President to do Hanky Panky between the Bushes."

Oh Say Can You See

My vision has been getting progressively dimmer of late. No eyeglasses would work ... at all. So I paid a visit to the eye doctor today. Quite literally "paid" by the time I could escape the office. I hate doctor offices. They're like black holes that suck you in and you can't escape until the evil wizard is vanquished by throwing money at him. [What a drama queen, right?!]

Prognoses? Cataracts!? That was a shock. No wonder my eyeglasses didn't work so well anymore. My first lens replacement surgery is scheduled for mid-March.

I told my husband I want sympathy and lots and LOTS of vanilla Blue Bunny No Sugar Added ice cream with chocolate syrup! He had a good laugh. Well, ok, I'll settle for the ice cream. That's probably more realistic.

In the news, I hear that my Teen Idol, Davy Jones of The Monkees, passed away. Another shock! I had such a crush on him in the '70s and had all The Monkees albums. [sigh] I can't take two of these in one day.

I'll need more ice cream to handle all this bad news.

Ouch! Let's Change From The Dope To Real Hope!

I don't propose to be an expert on the economy. But I know that something is seriously wrong with our country. I am only an average citizen that is paying close attention to our personal finances. Our costs just keep going up and up. It's especially noticeable when buying groceries and at the gas pump. It now takes over $65 to fill my gas tank and I don't even have what is commonly called a "gas hog". Heck, my Suzuki V-Strom costs over $15 to fill now! At least it gets 65+ mpg but I can't run all my errands on the bike. Gas has climbed 20 cents in one week! We are now at an average of $3.69 a gallon (at this moment). Could be higher by the time I hit the Publish Post button. This ecomony is far worse than living under Jimmy Carter and I lived through that one.

And O'Bummer been liein' ... again. He said in a recent address: "... we (America) consumes 20% of the fuel in the world and only have 2% in reserves". THAT'S A LIE MR. OBAMA! The Congressional Res. Service estimates that we have at least 145.5 BILLION barrels of crude oil within our reach (off shore, under the soil, etc.). That's not counting natural gas. This is enough to last us for at least 250 years or more. (1) The problem is not the muslims overseas, the problem is the muslim in the White House. So far he has personally shut down everything that comes across his desk to allow us to prosper. He won't permit oil drilling, he won't permit oil to be imported, he won't permit ... us to live free!

Also, in other news ...

We will, quite possibly, find this guy stuffed in a dumpster in Chicago one day. Here's a video of Larry Sinclair describing his homosexual fling with Obama back in 1999.(2) I blogged about this subject before but haven't seen the video until today. Yep, O'Bummer is as pure as the driven (cocaine) snow!

Please, y'all tell me again how the Obamanation will be
I can't afford much more of this Dope's Change.

(1) h/t Gerri Willis at Fox News Business
(2) h/t My good pal Pappy's Ponderings :)

Funny Friday ~ Eat Your Chicken Nuggets America

h/t Reason Magazine

It's Not Easy Being Greasy

My 2005 Jeep Liberty recently began experiencing winder window problems. Rolling it up and down it would rumple and thump. Okkkkk, I knew something was going wrong. After a short internet search, I found a forum on what the problem was: the electric window regulator was going bad. A little more research revealed that when one electric window winder breaks, be assured that the other three will soon follow suit. I also learned from other Jeep owners that this was not a cheap fix! Yipes. So, did a little more searching and I found a PDF file on-line on how to fix this problem ourselves. The instructions are fairly precise and it looks like an 'easy' fix plus it would save us well over $700. One thing other owners stressed was do not go to a Jeep dealer and have this repaired. They replace the broken offender with the same el cheapo plastic part. Steiger Performance sells a better version of the product than Jeep. The ones we bought are made from heavy metal and not cheap plastic.

I could just have easily named this post "Regulator Nation", huh?! *lol*

So, here's our afternoon in pictures.

Before the teardown.
There are only two screws,
within easy reach, that hold
the plastic cover on the door.

Pulling the door apart is slow but easy.





Now, we disconnected the speaker,
the electric mirror, electric door locks and
the electric window winder.

The moisture barrier.
Pull this off gently, perserving the
gooey stuff for reuse between the barrier
and the metal door.

You're committed now!
Or should be ... ha ha
You're down to the metal
and everything is revealed.

With the regulator and other
devices removed, you have to make sure the
window stays in place. Tape works.
I recommend overdoing this part.
Don't want busted glass on
top of everything else!
Then it would get expensive.

Don't do what we did, though,
and work in the back of the Jeep.
Next time I'll put a table with
a strong light next too the truck
to work on. This is hubby attaching
the new part. There's a lot of
little piddly stuff to go through
to do this but it's not hard,
just time consuming.

The offending part! Grrr!
The replacement part is metal.
Do everything in reverse
to put it back together
and you're good to go.

Ta da! The window works fine! I'm tired but happy and still have that $700 in my pocket.

Now, only three more windows to go *sigh* ... I think we'll save that for another afternoon. :)

URGENT: Concerning The EPA And House Bill H.R. 3199

Today I received the e-mail from the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) below. I need every one's attention please. It's concerning House bill H.R. 3199.

This bill, H.R. 3199, would force the EPA to seek outside scientific opinion before mandating ethanol content in gasoline. If the EPA allows the content of ethanol to increase to 15% or more it will bring disastrous results in small motors (motorcycles, etc.) especially those that are air cooled. Anything over 10% will clog up the fuel systems of lawn mowers and other devices. Allowing 15% or more WILL BE RUINOUS! Please take the time to call your local US Representative. Please tell them to vote YES for this bill. This effects everyone!

House Committee passed bill to require EPA to seek independent scientific analysis on the effects of 15 percent ethanol Take Action!
Urge your Representative to support today!

On February 7, 2012, the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology reported H.R. 3199 favorably, as amended, with a vote of 19 - 7. The bill, introduced by Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to seek independent scientific analysis on the effects of 15 percent ethanol blend (E15) gasoline.

To watch an archive webcast of the markup, click here. To see how the Representatives voted, click here.

The bill now heads for consideration on the House floor. No date has been scheduled.
"The EPA's decision to allow E15 into the marketplace will impact every American who owns a car, lawnmower or boat," Sensenbrenner said. Automakers insist that using E15 will void warranties, lower fuel efficiency and cause premature engine failure. In off-road engines, the effects can even be dangerous for users.

"There are serious concerns that the EPA used only one Department of Energy test and rushed E15's introduction into the marketplace," Sensenbrenner said. "This test was limited in scope and ignored a plethora of evidence – albeit inconvenient evidence for the EPA – that shows E15 gasoline has a negative effect on engines."
The new E15 gasoline formulation may appear at a fueling station near you and you need to be careful where you use this new fuel blend. That is because the EPA, in October 2010, approved E15 for use in model year 2007 and newer light duty vehicles (cars, light-duty trucks, and medium-duty passenger vehicles). In January 2011, it added model year 2001-2006 light duty vehicles to the approved list.

Riders should pay attention to this list because no motorcycles or ATVs are currently listed.

The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is concerned about E15 because it burns hotter than gasoline that contains a lesser amount of ethanol. In engines not designed to dissipate that extra heat, damage in the form of premature wear can result. Although this is a concern in all motorcycles, it's particularly problematic for air-cooled engines found in many bikes. Moreover, use of E15 may even void the manufacturer warranty.

Since the approved list includes many light-duty vehicles in use today, refineries, distributors, and fueling stations may choose to offer primarily E15 gasoline because of this action by the EPA. This should concern all motorcyclists and off-highway enthusiasts since this may affect the availability of gasoline with less or no ethanol (E10 or E0).

We need your help to pass H.R. 3199 when it reaches the House floor. You can find contact information for your Representative at AmericanMotorcyclist.com > Rights > Issues & Legislation, then enter your zip code in the "Find your Officials" box. A prewritten e-mail is available for you to send to your federal elected official immediately by following the "Take Action" option and entering your information.

In a previous AMA alert, Rep. Sensenbrenner also introduced H.R. 748. This bill would prohibit the Administrator of the EPA from authorizing the use of gasoline containing greater than 10 percent ethanol in certain vehicles. For more information on H.R. 748, click here.

Again, the AMA urges you to write your Representative today and ask them to support H.R. 748 and H.R. 3199.

For a detailed analysis of this issue, including access to related documents, please sign up to be an AMA Defender member at http://AmericanMotorcyclist.com/membership/join. If you are already an AMA member, please call us at (800) AMA - JOIN. Defender members who sign up to receive Action Alerts automatically receive the detailed analysis.

If you are an AMA member, thank you for your support. If you aren't a member, please consider joining. More members means more clout and your support helps the AMA fight for your rights – on the road, trail and in the halls of government. To join, go to AmericanMotorcyclist.com/membership/join.

Just remember, if the EPA is allowed to continue to run roughshod over us American citizens, they will help to bring more ruination to our country. They must be restricted in what they can and can not do ... for now. Then hopefully be defunded and thrown on the trash heap of history.

Thank you fellow Patriots!