Friday 3/16/2012

Friday at work did not end as planned.  But, I had a 50-50 shot at it anyway.  Get off at noon.  The earliest I can leave work under "normal" circumstances is noon, even if I am on overtime.  

I started the day off this morning at the full allotted hours for the pay period, meaning all day today is overtime.  Around 11:45 am, I get calls.  More than one yes.  About the same thing:  a huge order being put into the system to be pulled today, loaded and delivered today.  I figured 4:00pm before the day would be over - I was close, it was 4:40pm before I clocked out.  10 and a half hours of overtime and yes, I"ll take it. 

According to the forecasts - and I have looked at a lot of them - there is, depending on which site you look at - an 80-90% chance of rain on Sunday.  That usually means it's definitely going to rain.  I haven't seen real rain in about 6 months.  It if REALLY does rain like that all day long, I will be in heaven.  I will leave the east side door open and listen to the water pouring off the roof, into one of the ponds that is close enough to the house that the water pours into it.  

I won't be driving anywhere, if at all possible. People around here do not know how to drive in the rain.  In fact, most people around here don't know how to drive at all, whether clear, blue skies or watered down streets.  When it really rains here, the accident list goes WAY up.  I won't want to go anywhere, anyway, I will want to sit here and listen, watch and feel it all day long.  I truly HOPE it happens.

Which means, however, that that gaping hole I put in the trailer roof last weekend by means of removing a vent will have to be done tomorrow.  I planned on doing it anyway, but now a fire has been lit on my feet and it is going to be done.  I will be greatly hoping that the other vent I already installed will hold tight against the water - though I still have to put a bead  around the edges and cover it with elasomesoteric coating - all will be done tomorrow.  I have everything I need to finish it, just have to do it.

But, I am staying up late - for me anyway, at least 10:00 pm.  I have no need to get up early in the morning and I don't WANT to get up early.  I have been getting up early forever.  I will get up around 7 or 8 in the morning and that is an extremely late rise for me : )  I want to sleep in and then get up, take a long, hot shower, eat some breakfast with coffee and then, get on the internet, take my sweet old time and THEN, I will get up on the roof of that trailer and finish that vent thing.  Which doesn't mean that roof is finished, but it is getting there.  

Okay, I will have to get out of bed earlier than that to let the dogs out of the room so they can go outside and do their business, lol.

Well it's bedtime.

Nite'.

ben

"The First Amendment to the Constitution prohibits the government from infringing upon the freedom of speech, the freedom of association and the freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Speech is language and other forms of expression; and association and petition connote physical presence in reasonable proximity to those of like mind and to government officials, so as to make your opinions known to them.

The Declaration of Independence recognizes all three freedoms as stemming from our humanity. So, what happens if you can speak freely, but the government officials at whom your speech is aimed refuse to hear you? And what happens if your right to associate and to petition the government is confined to areas where those of like mind and the government are not present? This is coming to a street corner near you.

Certain rights, like thought and privacy and travel, can be exercised on their own. You don’t need the government to cooperate with you; you just need to be left alone. Other rights, like those intended to influence the political process, require that the government not resist your exercise of them. 

Remember the old one-liner from Philosophy 101: If a tree falls in a forest and no one is there, does it make any noise? Here’s the contemporary version of that: If you can criticize the government, but it refuses to hear you, does your exercise of the freedom of speech have any value?

When the Framers of the Constitution wrote the First Amendment, they lived in a society in which anyone could walk up to George Washington or John Adams or Thomas Jefferson on a public street and say directly to them whatever one wished. They never dreamed of a regal-like force of armed agents keeping public officials away from the public, as we have today. And they never imagined that it could be a felony for anyone to congregate in public within earshot or eyesight of certain government officials. And yet, today in America, it is.

Last week, President Obama signed into law the Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011. This law permits Secret Service agents to designate any place they wish as a place where free speech, association and petition of the government are prohibited. And it permits the Secret Service to make these determinations based on the content of speech.

Thus, federal agents whose work is to protect public officials and their friends may prohibit the speech and the gatherings of folks who disagree with those officials or permit the speech and the gatherings of those who would praise them, even though the First Amendment condemns content-based speech discrimination by the government. 

The new law also provides that anyone who gathers in a “restricted” area may be prosecuted. And because the statute does not require the government to prove intent, a person accidentally in a restricted area can be charged and prosecuted, as well.

Permitting people to express publicly their opinions to the president only at a time and in a place and manner such that he cannot hear them violates the First Amendment because it guarantees the right to useful speech; and unheard political speech is politically useless. The same may be said of the rights to associate and to petition. If peaceful public assembly and public expression of political demands on the government can be restricted to places where government officials cannot be confronted, then those rights, too, have been neutered.

Political speech is in the highest category of protected speech. This is not about drowning out the president in the Oval Office. This is about letting him know what we think of his work when he leaves the White House. This is speech intended to influence the political process.

This abominable legislation enjoyed overwhelming support from both political parties in Congress because the establishment loves power, fears dissent and hates inconvenience, and it doesn’t give a damn about the Constitution. It passed the Senate by unanimous consent, and only three members of the House voted against it. And the president signed it in secret. It is more typical of contemporary China than America. It is more George III than George Washington.

The whole purpose of the First Amendment is to assure open, wide, robust, uninhibited political debate, debate that can be seen and heard by those it seeks to challenge and influence, whether it is convenient for them or not. Anything short of that turns the First Amendment into a mirage."

Another Woman, Another Car

Well here we go.  I'm driving the semi on I-10, approaching the Salt River bridge - though no river anymore, we just call it the Salt River bottom.  A lady in a tin can car in front me going 65mph, the speed limit.  I'm following behind, moderate traffic.  An Arizona Highway Patrol cruiser comes up in front of us, just past the 27th Avenue on-ramp.  There is a Highway Patrol yard on 27th avenue and that is where they get on if going eastbound.

Well, suddenly, this lady slows down to 55mph.  I had no where to go, too much traffic to safely change lanes and anyway, I knew what was coming ahead: I was in the best lane for moving along and for getting off where I need to get off at, even if 5 miles away.  We get on the bridge - I can see well ahead, brake lights, a whole sea of them.  This lady is now 150 feet or more behind the nearest car in front of her.  She was maybe 30 feet before.  I'm getting annoyed, keep up with traffic.  But I gave up on the attempt to get over in the next lane, traffic too heavy and I didn't NEED to get over besides this person going to slow.

We're down to stop and go traffic.  The cop is staying either behind us or beside us 2 lanes over.  I finally got it: this lady has some sort of legal issue, that cop is seeing what she is doing - erratic driving  - and what is going to happen next.  Well, for quite a while, nothing.  Yet, the cop didn't attempt to move on like they always do if there's no prospects.  He's still just there in a sea of cars, moving very slowly.  Yes, he could have gotten into the HOV lane and taken off, so I knew SOMETHING had to be up.

Well, 10 minutes of this and finally the cop moves ahead in traffic and is beside a semi, out of the view of the lady in the car though totally in my view.  He hits his brakes.  Slows down to let the semi pass.  Gets into the lane next to me.  He's ahead of me in the next lane over.  I already knew what was going to happen, I slowed  down and let him in.  Lights flashing, behind that lady and I can tell that lady is freaking out.

I dunno what happened there today, but it was a few moments of - umm - drama? - just attempting to feel out what the cop was doing and how non-nonchalantly he was doing it, as if he wasn't paying that car or it's driver any attention at all, yet undoubtedly inputting the license plate info and the owner info into his computer's database and finding out what's going on.

People make themselves obvious.  I could see it when the cop was in FRONT of us and hadn't even seen this woman's driving behavior. If she had driven normally, that cop probably would never have spotted her in that kind of heavy, heavy traffic.

So, a few minutes ago, I am on my facebook page.  A FB friend posted a site with dog pics, so I clicked on it.  All kinds of lovable, furry critters in all kinds of different poses, then I get to this photo, here: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=305442369508815&set=a.120132051373182.37467.119712771415110&type=1&theater
A picture of a man crying after being reunited with his beloved dog after his house was destroyed.  The dog's name? Coco.

Thursday 3/15/2012

I guessed, when this first came out, that Obamacare would cost at least 3 to 4 times what they are saying it is going to cost.  So, if it's going to cost 1 trillion, it's actually going to be closer to 4.  Well, guess what.  We are now half way there.  That's right, folks, the price tag has now doubled to 2 trillion dollars, but I can guarantee you it isn't over yet.  It's the government.  If there is one thing the Obama has done that all effort should be made to get rid of, it's Obamacare.

We can't afford it.  I have gone through periods of my life when I didn't have health care coverage, it sucked but I didn't go around all over the place, crying on the news about how I can't afford "my contraceptives" and all this other BS that is being espoused all over the place.

Yeah, and next: a flag with Obama's picture on it - stars removed.  How sick is that?  Seriously, I don't care WHAT party a president is from, that person's picture or anything else for that matter should never be placed on an American Flag.  PLEASE.

4 more years of Obama? And just think, all restraints will be off if he gets another 4 years.  He won't be trying to appeal to anyone because his tenure will be over after 4 more years and not worried about another election - anyone want to talk about Socialism?  I didn't think so.

I don't like Romney, but if he wins the nomination, I'll vote for him ANY day of the week over Obama.

Thanks.

Whatever.  I'm off to work.

G'day.

ben

The Woman In The Car - OH, Make That The Women In 2 Cars

First incident today.  I'm driving in the "slow" lane on a surface street in heavy traffic. Not moderate traffic, not light traffic, heavy traffic.  Truck has a partial load on it, very light, maybe 5,000 pounds worth.  Trucks don't even hardly feel that kind of weight.  I'm behind the car in front of me, not lagging behind is what I am saying.  There is a turning lane on my right.  It is obviously a turning lane and the lane obviously ends - at a block wall.

This woman in a compact car decides she is going to pass me in that lane, which is not a passing lane but more importantly, she doesn't have enough time/room to MAKE that pass. I would have had to STOP the truck entirely to let her in since by the time we were almost at that block wall, she was only at the side of my trailer.  At first I didn't know if she was turning in that turning lane or if she was playing these stupid games that everyone does around semi trucks. Well, I wasn't going to slam on my brakes for someone else's stupidity, I figured to let her do that in her own car since she was speeding - probably going 65 to 70 in a 45 zone and also attempting to pass in a turning lane.  Yup, she slams on her brakes and JUST stops short of that wall.  Amazingly, there was a motorcycle behind her that apparently also figured to pass me who was also stranded.

Now, stuff happens in traffic all day long and I was definitely driving, all day long.  But some of it is amazingly ridiculous and stupid stuff.  Like the guy stuck behind me today on the freeway on-ramp. Apparently, I was going to slow for him so he decided to pass me on the emergency lane on the right side of me.  What I am doing is going through the gears and if the truck is heavy, it takes a while to get up to speed.

Then, there was the second lady.  I am turning on a green arrow.  I was accelerating.  This woman apparently thinks I am going to slow and starts honking her horn at me!  She gets by me and flips me off.  I have done or said NOTHING to this woman, no gestures, no middle fingers, nothing.  Then, a black car following her has a finger come out of their window as well.  This is the joy of driving in a metropolis.  A daily event, though it doesn't happen so much in my car since I can keep up with every one and also - because I am cut off so frequently in the truck, so often, I don't LET people cut me off while in the car.

I can't tell you how many times on the freeway today a car comes speeding up beside me, cuts directly in front of me and then slams on the brakes to avoid - hitting the car that is in front of me that is now in front of them.  Morons.

Sooo, last night at the church group.  A lady starts sobbing as she starts talking about her doggy and how the doc has told her the dog doesn't have much time.  She knows it is going away.  That started it all over for me.  I didn't say anything but inwardly I was churning.  The dude that runs the thing looks at me and says how I had just gotten a new doggy - I replied yes, but I just put down my beloved doggy and looked at the lady and empathetically said: It's not a lot of fun, I know.  Well, anyway, he prayed for both of us which turned the faucet on yet again.  I haven't gone to get her ashes yet - and in no hurry to be honest.  I guess I better get them before something happens to them, but at the same time, I'm not sure how I will be able to handle that.

Enough of that.  I had a very long day at work, 10 hours non-stop and I don't even want to go there.  So I won't. Sophie is now learning about commands, especially the one that says "come" and she - decides to ignore me.  I don't know how anyone else trains their doggies, when a dog ignores me and actually starts walking off, I get out of my chair, grab the dog by the collar and yes, we go and we do what I told that dog to do in the first place.  I don't tolerate disobedient dogs, not that I beat the crap out of them, but I do take action to correct it and quickly. I am taking it a bit easy with her, though, I am guessing by the way she reacts that she has been subjected to some abuse in the past.  She's a sweet, gentle and loving dog, though and I don't think it's going to take too terribly long to get her adjusted to my way of doing things.

Still, it takes quite a while for a dog to be around you before it really starts understanding you, how you want it to behave and what lines can be crossed and can't be crossed.  It's a big investment in time, really, to train a dog to the point that you don't really have to say much of anything to get them to do what you want them to do, they already KNOW what you want them to do before you say it. I like getting them to the hand gesture phase, where you simply point and they understand.  I can click my fingers at Prince and he will come, I point at the floor and he lays down.  Nothing complicated or outstanding, just an example.

Well, bedtime.

G'nite.

ben

Wednesday 3/14/2012

I was at the Phoenix LTL (less than truckload terminal, will not say which in case it gets Googled) terminal today, picking up a large delivery of material that for whatever reason, had not been delivered directly to us.  We got to talking about loading flatbeds versus loading vans since Conway doesn't have flatbed trailers, which led to this and that and then he started talking about his hernias and on and on.

I asked him - aren't you about ready to retire?  Not in mocking way, it was a sincere question as he is obviously well up there in years.  He replies that he is 72 years old, but then does the finger rubbing gesture - the one that denotes money and in this case, the lack of it.

72 years old and still operating a forklift because he doesn't have enough money to retire.

This is exactly what I am afraid of.  72 years old, operating a forklift in a warehouse and loading trucks because I don't have enough money to retire on.  How did we get ourselves into this position?  So many people at retirement age that have nothing near the amount of money stashed away that is necessary to enjoy at least a decent retirement without feeling like you are living in want.

Gave all 3 dogs flea baths yesterday and the treated all 3 for fleas, even though the Danes show no sign of it. Sophie didn't exactly like the cold water; Duke loves water and doesn't care how cold it is and Prince - well - he just stood there with a pathetic look on his face, lol.

I need another vacation.  I am trying to hold off until summer.  May warms up then June brings hell.  So maybe 2-1/2 months off. Gonna have to take another 3 day weekend before then, I do believe.

Also went to the small church group yesterday.  I like it a lot better than last week, but - there is always one or 2 people in such groups that feel they must dominate every conversation that comes up.  Their opinion, apparently, is equal to the value of gold and therefore must be heard.  One woman especially.  She couldn't and wouldn't stop talking.  Whenever someone had something to say about the discussion that would be put forth, this woman would chime right in and go on for 5  or even 10 minutes.  I got very tired of listening to it.  If they don't do something to stop it, I may opt out of that small group and go to a different one.  Way back when, when I was leading small groups, I remember a guy that would not shut up.  He would go on and on and on the entire time, leaving very little time for anyone else to say much of anything.  I ended up confronting him on it.  He claimed he didn't realize he was doing that.

Anyway, everyone has a viewpoint and an opinion about everything, including things Bible related.  I just don't get people who think they are somehow pre-eminent  and will never shut up.  They sidetrack entire conversations and go off into tangents that are usually extremely personal - and extremely boring - things that only relate to them and have nothing to do with the conversation that was originally floated.  That's great in your social circle, I guess, but not so great in a church group.  I am not going to say anything, yet.  I will see what happens next week.  Basically, the group leader just needs to take charge and do whatever he has to to limit one person from taking over everything that is brought up.

Well, whatever.  I hate to speak negatively about it, but it became rather annoying after an hour of it and I would doubt that I am the only one that feels that way.  The meeting was supposed to be over at 8:30 pm, which it was not, but the leader saw me looking at the clock and offered that anyone that needed to leave, could.  I got up, said I didn't mean to be rude but I have to get up at 4:30 am, I gotta leave.  They all gave their blessing on it.

Time to go to work, plenty to do today, too.

Later.

ben

Tuesday 3/13/2012

So it's like Tuesday the 13th. Which has no bearing on anything but it suddenly dawned on me this morning I have several payments to send out that need to be there shortly, so, okay.

The new doggy has fleas, I have figured out.  She will be getting a flea/tick shampoo later on today and then Hartz liquid put on her body and that will wipe them out.  I will have to get the stuff for my Danes as well, since fleas don't care what dog they are on.  They aren't scratching - yet - only a matter of time. Fortunately, fleas are a relatively easy thing to get rid of once you realize what the problem is.  Ticks are a different story - I HATE those things!  The pest control dude pretty much keeps a handle on the tick problem around here, though.

The basically get to my property from the unkempt properties next door.  Ants as well, though I would far rather have ants crawling on my property than ticks anyday.  Anyway, the people behind me have piles of dog poop laying around and that is nice stuff for ticks.  They love it.  The pest control dude soaks the back fence very nicely to deal with all of that and said he would spray over the fence, but he isn't legally allowed to do that.

Yes, and those people aren't legally allowed to have a bunch of dog feces laying perpetually all over the place, either.  I dunno, but all of these neighbors have turned on themselves in the last 2 months, I am no longer the focus of their - boredom I would call it, people who have nothing better to do than to try and make life miserable for others - so, I hear the news here and there but say nothing.   I rarely even see 350 man anymore, he's either bothering the neighbors on the other side of him or in his house, apparently.

Well whatever.  Gotta git to work.

G'day.

ben

Monday 3/12/2012

So I have a big, gaping hole in the roof on  my trailer.  Okay, I did it on purpose.  Just gotta get back up there and finish the job.  I don't have any plumber's putty which is why I didn't finish it - just so happens my company sells the stuff and getting it at cost means paying almost nothing for it.  You are supposed to coat the screws with it before you put them in the roof to hold the new vent in place.

Sophie - the new doggy - is adjusting well.  She wanted out once in the middle of the night - definitely got up to allow that to happen but there were no accidents on my bedroom floor when I got up this morning, very nice thing.  She started out laying on the bed I have for the dogs and ended up laying on the floor next to my bed.  She's a follower, no doubting about that.  Whatever I am doing, she is right there in the middle of it.

Weekends - they always disappear too quickly.

Afghanistan in the news yet again.  The dude that killed all those people has now started a vow of revenge amongst the Taliban.  Isn't that wonderful?  What the h*** are we doing over there?  What is the POINT of staying over there?  bin Laden is dead, we should have moved out as soon as that happened.  Goodbye and good riddance.  They wanna keep killing themselves, have at it, what good reason do we have to stay there and have our troops killed along with them?

I hope that doesn't stay a rhetorical question forever.

Regardless, almost time to leave for work.

G'day.

ben

Sunday 3/10/2012

Well I have been preoccupied all day long, so no entry til' now - just before going to bed.

I did not go to church this morning because I did drive 50 miles out to the middle of the desert to get a doggie.

I was led by a Ford pickup - extended cab, raised, diesel engine, 8 foot bed - down a nameless dirt road to another nameless dirt road.  Ummm, not really comfortable driving down that in a low rider car, but made it without a problem driving very slowly.  

In the middle of nothing was a house, a barn, stables and horses.  We're not talking shabby here, either.  Nice property. Greet the lady that is taller than I am, I'm 6 feet 2 inches: she is skinny and very amiable introduced herself and we shook hands.  A man walked out of the house and we were introduced as well.  

Okay, let's meet the dog.  Taken to an enclosed pasture with numerous dogs in it, though I recognized my dog from the get-go.  Much smaller than my Danes, probably around 40 to 50 pounds, absolutely gorgeous. Didn't take a brain surgeon to figure out which eye is dead - it was obvious and blanked out.  

Brought her home, yes I did.  She is laying on the floor, next to me.  Very cool dog, very sweet dog, very lovable dog and a very obedient dog that knows basic commands.  Oh, and very beautiful dog  as well.  I don't need 3, giant dogs.  She's a darling.  She is also very tired out from the living conditions - not bad living conditions but I am guessing not very good for sleeping.  I removed the bedspread on the doggy bed in my room today and put another one on it.  Yes, Coco had relieved herself on it and the mattress below, which has also been removed.  My Coco.  Well let's not get started on that.  But I soooo miss that dog.

I dunno what else.  I just wrote about Coco and put myself back into that funk again.  I try not to go there, but I can't help it when it comes.

G'nite.

ben

The Roof

Freaking trailer roof.
Endless job.
Took forever to get the old screws out of the roof to remove the vent. They get filled up with sealant and you have to push down hard on the tool to try and force enough sealant out of the slot to get the tool into it to turn the screw out of there.  24 screws.

Now?  The grinder I bought was admittedly a cheap piece of junk: brand new junk off of Harbor Freight shelves.  Problem?  It heats up in about 2 minutes to the point you have to shut if off, let it cool off for 20 or 30 minutes and then resume. It's half done at this point, using it to clean all the old sealant off of the metal down to the metal.

Trying to at least get it all cleaned up by the end of today and then maybe tomorrow put the new vent on it.

Another card came in the mail today, just a few minutes ago.  It was a card from my regular veterinarian.  They had been notified of Coco's demise.  They sent me a very nice card and everyone that works there signed it.  Actually, I had stopped using them some years ago for no more reason than the other place I normally go to is closer. But, the closer place is much more expensive - and getting a personal, hand written card from a vet? I'll be going there from now on.  The emergency clinic I took Coco to last Saturday called yesterday and left a message: her ashes are ready to be picked up.

Those will have to sit around her for a few months until I get the trailer up to my mom's property - that is the area where I want to spread them.  Not anywhere on the property she uses or walks around on, but on the unused portion of the property and on the Tonto National Forest floor - which is adjacent to her property.  I dunno.  I might make a trip up there just to do that.  I don't really want it sitting around here forever, but if I put it somewhere out of sight, it will be "out of mind".

It's a beautiful day out.  Perfect temperature.  I remind myself to get out there and enjoy it because soon? It's going to be very, very hot out there.

Long interlude.  Done for the day.

G'nite.

ben

Saturday 3/10/2012

I believe I have found the dog.
I have done a lot of searching on the internet that last couple of days, including daily searches that county shelters - there are 2 of them in the Phoenix area.  I found a Catahoula that was absolutely gorgeous - but 8 years old!  Who would get rid of their 8 year old dog?    I don't know, but I was looking for something much younger, at least figure to have a number of good years with it before the inevitable, starting off at 8 years, who knows.

Anyway, I am going to meet the dog tomorrow afternoon.  It's a private shelter.  The people running it have a farm, basically and apparently have all KINDS of animals there.   Got into a conversation with the person running it, no real requirements excepting the following:  Do you have cats?  NO, not a cat lover here.  Good, she replies, because this dog doesn't like cats, either.  She apparently doesn't do cat rescues, lol, as she stated she doesn't like cats at all.

I don't know what it is about cats, you either love them or hate them, there doesn't seem to be much middle ground.  I find them to be very detached animals that only want to come around when it's time to eat and pretty much stay up all night long, making noise around the neighborhood and getting in to cat fights.  I'm sure cat lovers will tell me something different - but I grew up with cats and I just got to the point that I didn't much care for them and would much rather have a dog any day of the week.

Well, the dog is blind in one eye.  Which doesn't bother me as long as the dog has one good working eye, who cares.  From the pics, you can't TELL the dog is blind in which ever eyes.  The dog appears to be pure Catahoula.  The description states that it is very loyal and will follow you everywhere you go - yup, the same as Coco was.  That dog followed me EVERYWHERE when I was home.

Well, that's tomorrow, so on to other things.  Which there ain't much more.  I am still pretty beat and though I have great aspirations to get some projects finished around here, I am just not sure that's going to happen this weekend.  We'll see.  It's only 8:00am right now, I usually wait til' late morning before I start on anything major if I'm going to get started at all.

Well, I am going to do the basic stuff around here at the very least.  All the plants need watering - I cannot get a break, no rain since last year and no sign of any coming.  My water bills are down during the winter months regardless just because the heat of summer isn't sucking the water right out of the ground, but I am stil having to water everything a couple of times a week - growing season is here already and I am also going to spray Miracle Grow on everything as well.

Hmmm, some weeds need pulling as well.  Lots of fun there.  I also found a tree sapling growing behind another tree yesterday.  It is not the same type of tree it is growing next to, which is one of the Sissoo trees.  It appears to be a Chinese Elm, which I have planted elsewhere on the property.  I am going to soak the ground nicely around it and dig it up and plant it in a planter and see if I can get it to grow.  I can't leave it where it is, it will interfere with the Sissoo eventually and one or the other will have to go.

Whatever the case, the day is not getting any younger, fried potatoes, bacon and eggs cooking and soon a breakfast then after that, get outside and get something done.

G'day.

ben

Friday 3/9/2012

I was running on OT today and wanting to go home, frankly.  But, 3 more deliveries that had to be done - leaving the yard at around 1:20 pm.
I found a gorgeous, beautiful Catahoula on the internet.  Problem?  Dog is in Kingman, 180 miles away and this particular adoption agency won't adopt a pet to you without a home visitation first.  Nixed that one off the list, they aren't going to drive 180 mile, one-way, to visit my house, lol. I just wrote them an email describing the situation.

Meanwhile, I have been looking to rent a pickup truck with a fifth wheel plate to haul that trailer up to the mountains myself.  Penske will not rent a semi tractor to an individual, only business.  I could haul it up there with the tractor at work, but I am not even going to ask about it - I have used company truck in the past with permission to haul things here locally for personal use, but never anything outside of town.  If something were to happen, whoever gave the permission would probably have some serious yuck on their hands from corporate.

I am giving up on that search as all roads have led to a dead end.  I was referred to a local company that rents a pickup with a fifth wheel - only to find out that they stopped for whatever reason.  I may run an ad on Craigslist, but the last time I did that people were asking for $300 plus to haul the thing 28 miles.  I wonder how much they think hauling it 125 miles is worth? LOL!!!

The man that I was going to use is continuing to raise his prices, so I am looking for a backup or two in case he starts going off the deep end.  In the end?  I will pay whatever I have to, if I have the money, lol, to get that thing up there.
Still some work left to be done with it, though.

Umm, getting late - by my standards anyway.

Thursday 3/8/2012

What started out as going to be a short day in terms of deliveries ended up to be a marathon. BUT, there was one big difference today than many other days, that being that I had to wait for long periods of time at deliveries and even pickups.
I take all the junk with me with my laptop anymore in the truck. Junk being the DC to AC converter and the charging cord for both the computer and the mobile broadband device.  Oh, was I ever-so-loving glad I did today.  I bet I spent 5 hours sitting in the truck with nothing to do - nothing, of course, unless you have a laptop computer that has internet access.
When I am able to engage myself during the day during the waiting periods, I don't get sleepy and lethargic.  Which generally helps the day go by much easier than if I'm just sitting there taking short naps.

It's also nice to recharge the computer off the semi DC outlets : )

Umm, tomorrow is Friday already.  It has been a long and a short week at the same time.  I cannot get Coco out of my head.  Not that I am breaking down at this point and going haywire, but I miss that doggy.  But, my  Danes are more than happy to see me when I get home and wagging their tails, jumping up and down, running around, smashing into my side, you know, nice doggies.  Life goes on and time will help, but not that much time has passed yet : )  I haven't lost a human, but as far as I'm concerned, I have definitely lost a family member.

I did not search for any dogs today, I have gone through so many sites that it became overload and decided today not to do any of it today.

As for the rest of my life, well, it is what it is.  Long day at work today and looking to be a long day at work tomorrow as well with 7 deliveries in the system already.  Yes, if you are delivering pizzas, that isn't many deliveries, if you are delivering truckloads, completely different story.  Especially if your duties not only include driving the truck, but also pulling the orders, verifying quantities; palletizing and shrink wrapping the product and also putting it onto the truck.  A vast majority of truck drivers do not engage in all of that, trust me, I know from a a lot of experience.  Not that I am better, but it is definitely more engaging.

Annuals are on sale at Home Depot.  I would like to put some color out front in the form of flowers and - well just want to add something different out there.  Well they aren't "on-sale" as in some reduced price, just that they are now available.  I have 3 large pots out there and they look really nice when I fill them up with flowers.

I haven't worked on the roof of that trailer in several weeks now.  I was preoccupied with Coco and trying to get her well.  I didn't want to do anything else.  I am hopeful to have the resolve restored in me this weekend to get up there and get more done with it.  Well, I don't know and certainly not saying I am definitely get up there, but I hope to.

So that's it for now.  I am sick of all the s*** with the GOP race for the nomination for presidential candidate and the more I see Romney, the less I like.  I will vote for him if it comes down to it to get rid of Obama, but it would be nice to see something suddenly appear in the Independent realm that would actually be to my liking.  I would rather not have to vote FOR someone just to get rid of someone I don't want in there.  I actually liked Bachman, to be honest, but that's history and I would rather vote for Santorum over Romney.

Done.  Tired, out of it and it's almost 8:00 pm.  Close enough to my bedtime.

ben

Well This Isn't Very Much Fun

I mean, I went as far as a nationwide search for the hoopla of it, there are some of the same mixed breed I am looking for here and there, but definitely nothing near HERE.  Yet, anyway.  I dunno, maybe some other breed of dog will totally capture my fancy and I will do something completely different.  I have never, now that I think of it, repeated the same breed twice.  Visla; German Short Haired Pointer: German Shepherd Mix; Great Danes; Catahoula Mix; Golden Retriever; Chihuahua; Rat Terrier; dogs when I was a kid and I didn't know what breed they were - neither did my parents.  

Okay, here goes my heart to melt mode again, I just now opened a letter that came from the emergency clinic, specifically from the vet that had to do the dirty work.  I am going to just post, verbatim, her hand written note:
"I send you my heartfelt sympathy during this difficult time of loss.  Coco was a very sweet girl, and was so lucky to have so much love in her life. May the memory of Coco and the good times you shared live on in your heart forever. Sincerely, Dr. Crane"  I was over the tears until I read that note.

Wednesday 3/7/2012

Hump day already?
Well there's a full day's worth of stuff to do at work and I have to be there early, yet again.
A fire burning out of control in the southwest valley.
Crazy.  I was driving home yesterday and was on the ramp that goes over I-10 from the Superstition Freeway to the I-10 eastbound and looked over to my right - west. Are those clouds?  Off to the west looked to be cloud formations but they were low.  I couldn't figure out what it was until I got home and read the news.  A farmer decided to do a "controlled" burn on a day that was slated to have 40 to 60 mph winds.

How do you control a fire with that kind of wind going on? Obviously, in this case, you don't.

Well whatever.

I went to the small group at church last night - but it was a waste of my time.  I was too tired to get into any of it.  It starts late and ends later.  If I'm getting up at 4:00 am, going to bed at 9:00 pm the night before isn't very helpful, at all.  So, I'll pay for it today.

Later.
ben

Tuesday 3/6/2012

Every passing day is getting much better.
There's one thing that is definitely true about grief: You do NOT want it to go on forever.
It is far more draining than most things that come at you in life.
I got off work today and went to the pound.
I could not believe how many Pit Bulls or Pit Bull mixes were in there. I'm guessing 75% of the dogs in that place.  I have absolutely no inclination, whatsoever, to have a dog that has any Pit Bull at all in it.
I don't care about the so-called experts statements that they are not a bad breed, it is THE breed I read about that kills it's own human family members and basically mauls people to death.  I don't really like the way they look, anyway.

There was only one, single dog in the entire place that had any allure to me, but, it wasn't really what I was looking for, so I passed on all of them.  I had an excuse to go in there: had to pay the Dane's license fees, which were already overdue.  Allegedly, if my dogs get out and they have current, paid-up tags and Animal Control catches them, they will try to bring them back to your house, first, before taking them into the pound.

I also slept pretty well last night, which was a big help today.

Anyway, I just bridged a big hurdle-  something I couldn't even get myself to do on Sunday, and that is go out front and water the plants.  Coco would always be out there with me, always.  I decided to let the Danes come out there and help me along with this..........but it wasn't too terribly tough anyway and those Danes are always getting in the way of things.............lol.

Well, I'm a bit tired but I think I am going to force myself to go to the small groups tonight, anyway.  It'll make me that more tired and ready to go to sleep when I get home, starts in 55 minutes.

Later.

ben

It Caught Up To Me

The extreme fatigue, that is.
I was dragging through the day today.  The weeks of dealing with Coco and all that went into that - well it's over but the fatigue is not.
It was good, however, to go to work today and get my mind off of the whole situation, which in turn helped me when I got home.  It usually doesn't take me very long to get over a dog, though I will never forget her of course, the emotion at least tends to dissipate quickly.
I miss her, but the grief is starting to come to a much lower dial tone at this point and that is a good thing.
I had even started to think of possibly getting another dog of the same or close to the same breed.  Catahoulas are extremely intelligent dogs and I would like to have another one.

But it might be a bit soon for that, no hurry in that department.  At the same time, they are killing dogs all over the place, especially in Maricopa County, every day, because there are more dogs up for adoption than there are homes to adopt them out to.  I got Coco and the 2 Danes off of Craigslist, but I got the little Chihuahua for Mark and Lynnette out of the pound - and that is definitely their doggy. It mostly stays in their bedroom all day long and has never been encouraged to become a part of the rest of the pack in this house, at all.  Their doings, not mine.

So, who knows.  I haven't had a puppy in decades - always just get already grown-dogs.

Umm, well whatever. Have to be at work early tomorrow, but only half an hour early.  Just gonna go to bed at the normal time and hope that I can get enough sleep to make it through tomorrow.

ben

Monday (whatever date it is)

I didn't sleep well last night.
Went to bed at 8, woke up around 1:30 and never got back to sleep.
I should have just gotten up and done something to make me sleepy, but I didn't.

I guess I won't go into all the thoughts.  I called my mom yesterday to tell her that Coco
has passed, thinking I was going to be able to have a conversation about it, but I quickly
found myself breaking down again and realizing just give it a few more days or so and this
will pass.  Perhaps those images of her death won't pass so quickly, though.

Going into work today might be a bit rough. I've been off for 3 days - I took a vacation
day on Friday, but I will call it anything but a vacation.  When I first started this process of
getting that travel trailer to go up to the mountains, speaking of vacationing, it was with all
these dogs in mind, especially Coco.

Perhaps a little time will change it, but now it seems a moot point.  You know, running around in the
woods and having a grand ole time.

I probably should just shut up at this point, I have nothing positive to say, my thoughts are bleak.

ben

I have to vent this, because it is a sight that will never leave me.
Coco was supposed to just pass out and that would be the end of it.
A little muscle twitching would occur after she passed.
The vet did not give her enough of the fluid.
She was on the stretcher, upright.
When the fluid hit her, she laid down, so to speak.
I was looking into her eyes and telling her how much I loved her.
Then there was a bit of twitching, which was expected.
A few more seconds.
Her gaze was fixed on me.
Then, violent, extreme body convulsions.
Her mouth opened wide and she let out shreiks.
Twice.
The vet pulled out another syringe and injected it into her: "Oh, I better give her more".
This will never leave me and this is what is causing me more grief than anything, that
my dog suffered, that what was "supposed" to happen, didn't.

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