Mitch (the owner of this house) has now broken up with his girlfriend, and has brought his druggy ways back here. He has come here twice in the last four days, waking me up in the middle of the night and wanting to yammer at me about bullshit that he’s been talking about for years. Then, he has to do drugs and stay up until all hours of the morning. Last night, he managed to close ALL of the blinds in the house, lock himself into the upstairs bedrooms (both of them,) and let Barney out of the back yard. I just came home from a few hours away running errands and shopping with Chuck, and his truck is in the garage. The house smells of chemicals, and he’s no where to be found (although I must admit that I didn’t go into the last bedroom to see if he’s passed out there.)
I have to speak to him tomorrow or tonight and tell him that a.) I’m not interested in buying the house at anywhere near to what he’s asking, b.) I’m not willing to live here if he’s living here (I didn’t sign on for a room mate,) and c.) no more late night visits or drug use here, please.
Seems that Cassandra the Psychic was right on in telling me that it’s not the place for me to live. Yurg.
She said a lot of things yesterday. I’m digesting them, and I’ve shared most of them with Chuck – but no one else.
My wireless network isn’t working worth a shit down here in the living room. Blarg.
So, I’ve been out shopping for cars for months now. Ruby’s nearing 90,000 miles, and she’s had a few expensive repairs. She’s still not quite right, and .. well .. it’s been five years now. I’ve looked at the Phaeton (and shied away given that it’s probably the most expensive car to own in the US right now,) the Acura RL (which is about the same size inside as my friend’s Honda Civic four door,) the Infiniti M35/45 (which uses cheap looking elements inside, and doesn’t work with my Bluetooth at all,) and .. I didn’t like any of them enough to do something.
I’ve been looking at the Buick Lucerne online for a while. I saw one in Florida while helping my Dad shop for a car, and I saw one at the car show. They were both CX models – the base model that replaced the base LeSabre. Not impressive at all.
Of course, the one that I like the best is the CXS, which is basically a Cadillac DeVille DTS as a Buick. All the equipment that one can get on a DTS. Same engine, driveline, suspension, so on. I had looked at it, and it was interesting – nearly the exact size as the Acura RL, Infiniti M and Lexus GS. Much less money.
I took Chuck over there today to look at one that I had seen on David Taylor’s inventory. We didn’t see the one that we went to look at, but saw one that was black with the Tuxedo Blue and shale interior. It had everything on it but the navigation. They were willing to discount that one. I want one with navigation. Same colors, but with navigation. I asked them to order me one. They were all nervous about it. Apparently, the one I drove has been sitting there for some time unsold. They REALLY wanted to sell me that one.
I’m loving many things about this house – the room, the storage space, having the space between all the stuff. The backyard for the dogs. The garage. The wide driveway. But, you know – the house on Arncliffe that I used to live in would have these features; it would need updating, but it would have everything that is here – just not quite SO much room. But enough.
I do like this house, and this much room though. Cassandra said that this particular house was NOT good. And that Mitch was not someone to engage in at all.
Barney came back around noon, by the way. He’s had his little adventure. Ugh.
Another very full day tomorrow. I need to be rested; hopefully tonight won’t be full of drama.
DJHJD
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Tuesday with DeLay
Interesting. I read last night in a breaking news piece that DeLay was going to resign his seat in the House and not seek re-election. Immediately, I thought "that means they're fixing to nail his butt."
How many others are going to get caught up in this? Will we see this go straight up to the top?
How many others are going to get caught up in this? Will we see this go straight up to the top?
Monday, April 03, 2006
If they were stealing your wallet, would you look the other way?
Every year, the board of trustees of the Social Security Trust fund is required to produce and release, by April 1, a report about the Social Security Trust fund, including:
the balance in the fund
the financial performance of the investments
disbursements
a five year forecast
This is so that the public can see what is happening to the balance in the fund, and what trends there are.
The social security trust fund is overfunded, and the bush administration has been talking about eliminating it, or changing it.
With the administration clearly intent on doing what they choose to do, regardless of the laws that are on the books, the Treasury Department's statement today that not only was the social security report NOT released, but that they have no plans TO release it is very disturbing (to me.) It should be disturbing to everyone.
This shows a fundamental indifference to the letter of the law and their disclosure of what they're doing with public trust funds.
This is probably the most serious thing I've written to you
about.
It's time to get on the phone and call your United States senator. I
called Kay Bailey Hutichison's office, and just asked "why is this not being
released? I think this is important to know what is happening here."
They're "looking into it through the DC office and calling me back."
The rest is what I copied and pasted from two web sources. After you
read this, call one or both of your US Senator's offices and ask "where is
the Social Security Annual Actuarial Report, and why are they not going to
release it as required by Statute?" Be nice about it, but ask why
until you get to a staffer who will help.
the balance in the fund
the financial performance of the investments
disbursements
a five year forecast
This is so that the public can see what is happening to the balance in the fund, and what trends there are.
The social security trust fund is overfunded, and the bush administration has been talking about eliminating it, or changing it.
With the administration clearly intent on doing what they choose to do, regardless of the laws that are on the books, the Treasury Department's statement today that not only was the social security report NOT released, but that they have no plans TO release it is very disturbing (to me.) It should be disturbing to everyone.
This shows a fundamental indifference to the letter of the law and their disclosure of what they're doing with public trust funds.
This is probably the most serious thing I've written to you
about.
It's time to get on the phone and call your United States senator. I
called Kay Bailey Hutichison's office, and just asked "why is this not being
released? I think this is important to know what is happening here."
They're "looking into it through the DC office and calling me back."
The rest is what I copied and pasted from two web sources. After you
read this, call one or both of your US Senator's offices and ask "where is
the Social Security Annual Actuarial Report, and why are they not going to
release it as required by Statute?" Be nice about it, but ask why
until you get to a staffer who will help.
I looked into the statutory obligations of the Social Security Trustees
as set out in the Social Security Act and this is what I found:
The Board of Trustees shall meet not less frequently than once each
calendar year. It shall be the duty of the Board of Trustees to-
(1) Hold the Trust Funds;
(2)[11] Report to the Congress not later than the first day of April of
each year on the operation and status of the Trust Funds during the
preceding fiscal year and on their expected operation and status during the next
ensuing five fiscal years;
(3) Report immediately to the Congress whenever the Board of Trustees
is of the opinion that the amount of either of the Trust Funds is unduly
small;
(4) Recommend improvements in administrative procedures and policies
designed to effectuate the proper coordination of the old-age and
survivors insurance and Federal-State unemployment compensation program; and
(5) Review the general policies followed in managing the Trust Funds,
and recommend changes in such policies, including necessary changes in the
provisions of the law which govern the way in which the Trust Funds are
to be managed.
The report provided for in paragraph (2) above shall include a
statement of the assets of, and the disbursements made from, the Trust Funds during
the preceding fiscal year, an estimate of the expected future income to,
and disbursements to be made from, the Trust Funds during each of the next
ensuing five fiscal years, and a statement of the actuarial status of
the Trust Funds. Such statement shall include a finding by the Board of
Trustees as to whether the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund
and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, individually and collectively,
are in close actuarial balance (as defined by the Board of Trustees). Such
report shall include an actuarial opinion by the Chief Actuary of the
Social Security Administration certifying that the techniques and
methodologies used are generally accepted within the actuarial profession and that
the assumptions and cost estimates used are reasonable. Such report shall
also include an actuarial analysis of the benefit disbursements made from
the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund with respect to
disabled beneficiaries. Such report shall be printed as a House document of the
session of the Congress to which the report is made. A person serving
on the Board of Trustees shall not be considered to be a fiduciary and shall
not be personally liable for actions taken in such capacity with respect to
the Trust Funds.
Source article
The Missing Report
By Matthew Yglesias | bio
I spoke to Sean Kevelighan at from the Treasury Department's public
affairs office about the case of the missing Trustees' Report. He said "there
isn't a timetable" for the release of this year's report, but that there
would be a 2006 report, he just couldn't tell me when. I brought up the
Trustees' apparent statutory mandate to produce a report by April 1 and he said
he didn't know anything about that, but conceded that there is a statutory
requirement to do a report each year. "I wish I could tell you more,"
he said.
I don't know exactly where this fits on the fishiness scale, but it's
pretty fishy.
Monday, Monday ver. 754.01
Okay, I need to run downstairs and grab another cup of coffee before working on this.
The house is amazing, how quickly everything's coming together. Chuck came by last night and said "P&J were shopping for a freezer, and didn't find one, but they DID find a cooktop at the scratch & dent." So, I'm waiting to hear from him today as to WHERE this cooktop is, so I can go nab it.
Everything is looking so awesome. I need some book cases, I need a queen bed frame/mattress/foundation, a dining table and chairs, some drapes, more cleaning (say, a week's worth,) a pool man and three Centro Americaners with weed whackers.
Today, I have to organize the office and prepare a stack of tax returns. I was expecting Babs today, but she's MIA at this time.
I'm on dial up until Wednesday. At least they CAN get the DSL out here. Thank goodness; RoadRunner is so damned expensive. The ceiling fans in here are awesome. Last night, I think Chuck got frostbite, and the thermostat was only set to 74. I think I can go up another degree or better on the settings and see how that is.
If Barbara comes over, I'm setting her on the guest room. Daniel is coming over later, and he's going to be scrubbing the kitchen floor, the back door (outside, it's disgusting,) the upstairs bathroom and .. something. Oh, the windows on the front door. Scraping and cleaning.
Sleeping in this house has been interesting; for one, it's so big, that it requires an expanded sense of self, second, it's so QUIET. No drunk screaming people in the parking garage at 2:30, no cars bustling in and out, no roaring air conditioner, no rock quarrying upstairs.
I'm really loving being here. I'm already so much more comfortable here it's amazing.
Dial up is a hoot - it's so 1997. Still, it's better than working on my CELL phone. Urg. I need to finish up these non-work tasks, get downstairs and clean up, and then start putting this place together. Back later.
The house is amazing, how quickly everything's coming together. Chuck came by last night and said "P&J were shopping for a freezer, and didn't find one, but they DID find a cooktop at the scratch & dent." So, I'm waiting to hear from him today as to WHERE this cooktop is, so I can go nab it.
Everything is looking so awesome. I need some book cases, I need a queen bed frame/mattress/foundation, a dining table and chairs, some drapes, more cleaning (say, a week's worth,) a pool man and three Centro Americaners with weed whackers.
Today, I have to organize the office and prepare a stack of tax returns. I was expecting Babs today, but she's MIA at this time.
I'm on dial up until Wednesday. At least they CAN get the DSL out here. Thank goodness; RoadRunner is so damned expensive. The ceiling fans in here are awesome. Last night, I think Chuck got frostbite, and the thermostat was only set to 74. I think I can go up another degree or better on the settings and see how that is.
If Barbara comes over, I'm setting her on the guest room. Daniel is coming over later, and he's going to be scrubbing the kitchen floor, the back door (outside, it's disgusting,) the upstairs bathroom and .. something. Oh, the windows on the front door. Scraping and cleaning.
Sleeping in this house has been interesting; for one, it's so big, that it requires an expanded sense of self, second, it's so QUIET. No drunk screaming people in the parking garage at 2:30, no cars bustling in and out, no roaring air conditioner, no rock quarrying upstairs.
I'm really loving being here. I'm already so much more comfortable here it's amazing.
Dial up is a hoot - it's so 1997. Still, it's better than working on my CELL phone. Urg. I need to finish up these non-work tasks, get downstairs and clean up, and then start putting this place together. Back later.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Friday - the last day at the Casita
I think I only have about another ten minutes of internet connectivity before they shut it off to transfer to the new place. I won't know until later this morning whether they will even be able to turn ON the DSL at the new place; otherwise, I'll have to go back to Road Runner.
Not a peep out of Mitchell on whether he's gotten the electric meter fixed, so as to know whether I'll have power this weekend, nor about the keys, the cooktop, and his vague statement about coming "this weekend" to take his bed and dresser out is rather .. well, unbelieveable.
I had forgotten to watch what was being packed, and all my Pyrex measuring cups are gone - so, I was boiling water for coffee in a cereal bowl this morning. Just like camping, isn't it?
I have so MUCH stuff yet to hand carry to the car, drive out west and unload before the movers arrive after noon ...
Not a peep out of Mitchell on whether he's gotten the electric meter fixed, so as to know whether I'll have power this weekend, nor about the keys, the cooktop, and his vague statement about coming "this weekend" to take his bed and dresser out is rather .. well, unbelieveable.
I had forgotten to watch what was being packed, and all my Pyrex measuring cups are gone - so, I was boiling water for coffee in a cereal bowl this morning. Just like camping, isn't it?
I have so MUCH stuff yet to hand carry to the car, drive out west and unload before the movers arrive after noon ...
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Toosday. Tuesday. Twosday.
Greetings from the largest totally invisible city in the Generica.
Again with the rumors about Houston being nuked by the Bush neocons to create an event that will allow them to further control the process and suspend the constitution. WHo knows? It could all be just so much "black helicopters and UN storm trooper" nonsense, but it's the THIRD TIME IT'S COME TO MY ATTENTION. What's up with THAT?
I'm going to have to break down and take an antihistimine. Urg. All this dirt that's being raised is just too much to handle.
I couldn't get myself out of my chair to take another load over to the new house today. I have some kind of sinus infection, I think. I've been running a low fever, and I can tell those "cedar pollen" signs in my stomach and head.
FINALLY, tax return business coming out of the woodwork. I also must get on the stick with some mortgage books. That before I move, I guess.
Mitch is already waffling on longer term at the new place. Well, I can deal with that, I'm sure. He wants to sell it, for sure.
Had good news at the doctor today - blood sugar was normal, cholesterol was normal, blood pressure was so close to normal that we called it that, triglycerides were slightly high, as were liver enzymes. I'd lost three pounds in two weeks.
I wonder what time Guns will show himself tomorrow. He made mention of having some time conflict in the morning. I'm hoping to feel so much better in the morning that I can bound out of bed, throw the hanging clothing, the closet stuff and .. well, isn't that enough .. into Ruby and make a run out west.
Barney is starting to display some real signs of winding down. He sleeps so soundly now that clapping my hands loudly doesn't bring him around. I have to go nudge him to get him to come outside. He has been limping this week, and is having trouble balancing when he's standing. Plus, Lisa and Rick kept commenting yesterday and today that he's drooling a lot.
Yurg.
New place - dogs kept only on slate tile floor. No carpeting movement at all.
Had lunch with Chuck today at Denis' Seafood Restaurant near Memorial City. It was lovely. Chuck was wearing a dark blue/gray suit, with leather braces, a white shirt and beautiful tie. He looked like a million dollars. He had atchafalya catfish which was so tasty it could have altered the flow of space and time. Wow. I had fried catfish, which was outstanding - this from someone who doesn't LIKE catfish!
I just love Chuck. I adore him. I'd have a very hard time being without him. You could just eat him with a spoon.
Time for snoozing.
Again with the rumors about Houston being nuked by the Bush neocons to create an event that will allow them to further control the process and suspend the constitution. WHo knows? It could all be just so much "black helicopters and UN storm trooper" nonsense, but it's the THIRD TIME IT'S COME TO MY ATTENTION. What's up with THAT?
I'm going to have to break down and take an antihistimine. Urg. All this dirt that's being raised is just too much to handle.
I couldn't get myself out of my chair to take another load over to the new house today. I have some kind of sinus infection, I think. I've been running a low fever, and I can tell those "cedar pollen" signs in my stomach and head.
FINALLY, tax return business coming out of the woodwork. I also must get on the stick with some mortgage books. That before I move, I guess.
Mitch is already waffling on longer term at the new place. Well, I can deal with that, I'm sure. He wants to sell it, for sure.
Had good news at the doctor today - blood sugar was normal, cholesterol was normal, blood pressure was so close to normal that we called it that, triglycerides were slightly high, as were liver enzymes. I'd lost three pounds in two weeks.
I wonder what time Guns will show himself tomorrow. He made mention of having some time conflict in the morning. I'm hoping to feel so much better in the morning that I can bound out of bed, throw the hanging clothing, the closet stuff and .. well, isn't that enough .. into Ruby and make a run out west.
Barney is starting to display some real signs of winding down. He sleeps so soundly now that clapping my hands loudly doesn't bring him around. I have to go nudge him to get him to come outside. He has been limping this week, and is having trouble balancing when he's standing. Plus, Lisa and Rick kept commenting yesterday and today that he's drooling a lot.
Yurg.
New place - dogs kept only on slate tile floor. No carpeting movement at all.
Had lunch with Chuck today at Denis' Seafood Restaurant near Memorial City. It was lovely. Chuck was wearing a dark blue/gray suit, with leather braces, a white shirt and beautiful tie. He looked like a million dollars. He had atchafalya catfish which was so tasty it could have altered the flow of space and time. Wow. I had fried catfish, which was outstanding - this from someone who doesn't LIKE catfish!
I just love Chuck. I adore him. I'd have a very hard time being without him. You could just eat him with a spoon.
Time for snoozing.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Moving energy, moving mountains
Well, I've decided to move. I'm moving into a house on the west side of Houston - something large enough for all my stuff. I have made a spectacular deal to live there, and I'm looking forward to leaving where I am. I've started packing things and moving them here and whoo boy, do I have a bunch of crap! How did this happen? It's everywhere - boxes and boxes of stuff I don't use. Stuff I didn't remember I had. Supplies of stuff that hasn't been touched in eight years.
However, when my dad comes to help me work through all this unpacking and cleaning in the new place, I'm sure a lot of it will be used.
Tuesday, it's the clothing, the rest of the books, the boxed stuff in the closets, the rest of the glassware, the cleaning supplies, the stuff from the walls, and the rest of the tschotkes. Wednesday, it's the pots & pans, the stuff in the pantry, and packing up the office.
Part of this process is that New Vision is having their garage sale in a month; I'm going to seriously undertake to unload a bunch of this stuff.
However, when my dad comes to help me work through all this unpacking and cleaning in the new place, I'm sure a lot of it will be used.
Tuesday, it's the clothing, the rest of the books, the boxed stuff in the closets, the rest of the glassware, the cleaning supplies, the stuff from the walls, and the rest of the tschotkes. Wednesday, it's the pots & pans, the stuff in the pantry, and packing up the office.
Part of this process is that New Vision is having their garage sale in a month; I'm going to seriously undertake to unload a bunch of this stuff.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Thursday ..
But what to say about this Thursday? I've cleared through a bunch of paperwork, done about six tax returns, talked on the phone, gottena commitment for new book keeping work for tomorrow, freaked out twice, stressed all day long, and .. what has been accomplished?
Chuck is headed out of town in the morning, and I'm watching his dog. Interesting. His house is SO cute. He has all this furniture and stuff - who would have guessed?
Class tonight was outstanding - we talked about death and dying. It was terrific.
Will the clients come through tomorrow, or is big time change in the works?
Chuck is headed out of town in the morning, and I'm watching his dog. Interesting. His house is SO cute. He has all this furniture and stuff - who would have guessed?
Class tonight was outstanding - we talked about death and dying. It was terrific.
Will the clients come through tomorrow, or is big time change in the works?
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Shame (and we ain't talking Evelyn Champagne King here)
Source article from Georgia10
by georgia10
Tue Mar 21, 2006 at 03:51:32 PM PDT
I am ashamed. I am ashamed of this President. Aren't you? After watching his press conference today, a sense of shame overtook me. I'm ashamed that he took to the podium today as if he emptied out a container of laughing gas. I'm ashamed of a President who has the temerity to laugh when asked a question about war. I'm ashamed of the whores of the fourth estate who care more about having the honor of being the butt of one of the President's jokes than about exposing the truth to the American people. I'm ashamed that millions of my fellow Americans are so scared and so desperate for leadership that they believe the President's bullshit.
I am ashamed. I'm ashamed of this President, this megalomaniac hellbent on leaving his assprint on the map of the Middle East, no matter how much destruction is wrought and no matter how much blood flows in the streets of lands that never threatened us. I'm ashamed that when I see the American flag waiving, images of flag-draped coffins flash in my mind. I'm ashamed of Freedom's MarchTM. Ashamed when I see villages reduced to rubble. Ashamed when I see the tiny little corpses. God, they're so painfully tiny--lined up in a row, little angels wrapped in colorful blankets that starkly contrast against their gray-tinged faces. Ashamed when I see wailing Iraqis slam their hands against plain, unvarnished coffins, over and over, asking "Why? Is this democracy? Why?" When I see those image of funerals, of broken families, I want to crawl into my TV, I want to go to them and grab their slumped shoulders and scream "I'm sorry, good god, I'm so sorry. I want to leave, I want us to leave, believe me. But they won't listen...No one listens anymore."
I'm ashamed that the word "massacre" is even uttered in connection with our actions in Iraq. I'm ashamed it's not just one massacre that is alleged, but two. I'm ashamed it's gotten to the point that I can't even tell this little voice inside of me to shut up, that little voice that says maybe, just maybe it could be true. That the impossible may be plausible. Before this war, I would have rejected such claims outright. But that voice of plausibility is the consequence of those black hoods. It's the consequence of those leashes, those snarling dogs. It's the consequence of those detainees chained to bedframes. Of naked pyramids. Of forced sex acts. Of beatings and blood-streaked floors.
I am ashamed. Ashamed that Justice is no longer blindfolded, but gagged. Ashamed that in America, in AMERICA, I can only protest in "free speech zones" the size of postage stamps. Ashamed that by the time I'll take my oath as an officer of the court to support the Constitution, I'll be swearing to uphold a tattered document that has managed to survive over 200 years only to be shredded by this President in less than eight.
I am ashamed. Ashamed that in America, I see bearded men panhandling in the street, holding cardboard signs that read "U.S. Vet, can't work, need food. God bless." Ashamed that somewhere, in our America, a grandmother is sitting alone at her kitchen table, crumpled bills clutched in her thin hands, agonizing over the choice before her: medicine for her pain, or food to keep on living. Ashamed that there is a child who will go to sleep tonight on a cot in an orphanage, with no one to read him a story, no one to stroke his hair and kiss him goodnight, because the American Taliban thinks gay Americans can't love, can't parent, can't provide.
I am ashamed of my fellow Americans. Ashamed that they haven't flooded the streets. Ashamed they care more about Brangelina than the Bill of Rights. Ashamed that they're seemingly ok with the subtle but steady transformation from democracy to dictatorship. Ashamed that they are so gullible.
I am ashamed of myself. For not having the courage or the strength to do anything else but sit here and blog. I write. I protest. I vote. And yet, I'm impotent. Stuck in a unrelenting cycle of hope and despair and hope and despair. What a curse it is to be 23 and want to change the world. What a curse to be so disillusioned so early in life. What a curse to want to change a world that will not change...that cannot change? That cannot change as long as we sit and wait for others to change it. That cannot change as long as our elected Democrats refuse to take a principled stand. That cannot change until they--until we--appreciate the gravity of the situation before us: we are losing America.
This is not America. I refuse to accept it. America doesn't torture. America doesn't jail people incommunicado for years. America doesn't sit idly by as an entire people are exterminated in Darfur. America doesn't stifle science. America doesn't conduct massive, secret spying on innocent citizens. America doesn't believe the individual is an annoyance, an impediment to supreme government power. This isn't the greatest democracy on earth. This isn't the nation that pioneered human rights. This isn't the America that leads the world, that leads humanity towards a greater good. No, I refuse to accept this America of shame. This is not my America. It is an America perverted by Republican stewardship. A nation that under GOP rule has abandoned its founding ideals of freedom, liberty, and justice for all. True Americans--coast to coast, young and old--now bow their heads silently in collective shame for a nation that has lost its way.
by georgia10
Tue Mar 21, 2006 at 03:51:32 PM PDT
I am ashamed. I am ashamed of this President. Aren't you? After watching his press conference today, a sense of shame overtook me. I'm ashamed that he took to the podium today as if he emptied out a container of laughing gas. I'm ashamed of a President who has the temerity to laugh when asked a question about war. I'm ashamed of the whores of the fourth estate who care more about having the honor of being the butt of one of the President's jokes than about exposing the truth to the American people. I'm ashamed that millions of my fellow Americans are so scared and so desperate for leadership that they believe the President's bullshit.
I am ashamed. I'm ashamed of this President, this megalomaniac hellbent on leaving his assprint on the map of the Middle East, no matter how much destruction is wrought and no matter how much blood flows in the streets of lands that never threatened us. I'm ashamed that when I see the American flag waiving, images of flag-draped coffins flash in my mind. I'm ashamed of Freedom's MarchTM. Ashamed when I see villages reduced to rubble. Ashamed when I see the tiny little corpses. God, they're so painfully tiny--lined up in a row, little angels wrapped in colorful blankets that starkly contrast against their gray-tinged faces. Ashamed when I see wailing Iraqis slam their hands against plain, unvarnished coffins, over and over, asking "Why? Is this democracy? Why?" When I see those image of funerals, of broken families, I want to crawl into my TV, I want to go to them and grab their slumped shoulders and scream "I'm sorry, good god, I'm so sorry. I want to leave, I want us to leave, believe me. But they won't listen...No one listens anymore."
I'm ashamed that the word "massacre" is even uttered in connection with our actions in Iraq. I'm ashamed it's not just one massacre that is alleged, but two. I'm ashamed it's gotten to the point that I can't even tell this little voice inside of me to shut up, that little voice that says maybe, just maybe it could be true. That the impossible may be plausible. Before this war, I would have rejected such claims outright. But that voice of plausibility is the consequence of those black hoods. It's the consequence of those leashes, those snarling dogs. It's the consequence of those detainees chained to bedframes. Of naked pyramids. Of forced sex acts. Of beatings and blood-streaked floors.
I am ashamed. Ashamed that Justice is no longer blindfolded, but gagged. Ashamed that in America, in AMERICA, I can only protest in "free speech zones" the size of postage stamps. Ashamed that by the time I'll take my oath as an officer of the court to support the Constitution, I'll be swearing to uphold a tattered document that has managed to survive over 200 years only to be shredded by this President in less than eight.
I am ashamed. Ashamed that in America, I see bearded men panhandling in the street, holding cardboard signs that read "U.S. Vet, can't work, need food. God bless." Ashamed that somewhere, in our America, a grandmother is sitting alone at her kitchen table, crumpled bills clutched in her thin hands, agonizing over the choice before her: medicine for her pain, or food to keep on living. Ashamed that there is a child who will go to sleep tonight on a cot in an orphanage, with no one to read him a story, no one to stroke his hair and kiss him goodnight, because the American Taliban thinks gay Americans can't love, can't parent, can't provide.
I am ashamed of my fellow Americans. Ashamed that they haven't flooded the streets. Ashamed they care more about Brangelina than the Bill of Rights. Ashamed that they're seemingly ok with the subtle but steady transformation from democracy to dictatorship. Ashamed that they are so gullible.
I am ashamed of myself. For not having the courage or the strength to do anything else but sit here and blog. I write. I protest. I vote. And yet, I'm impotent. Stuck in a unrelenting cycle of hope and despair and hope and despair. What a curse it is to be 23 and want to change the world. What a curse to be so disillusioned so early in life. What a curse to want to change a world that will not change...that cannot change? That cannot change as long as we sit and wait for others to change it. That cannot change as long as our elected Democrats refuse to take a principled stand. That cannot change until they--until we--appreciate the gravity of the situation before us: we are losing America.
This is not America. I refuse to accept it. America doesn't torture. America doesn't jail people incommunicado for years. America doesn't sit idly by as an entire people are exterminated in Darfur. America doesn't stifle science. America doesn't conduct massive, secret spying on innocent citizens. America doesn't believe the individual is an annoyance, an impediment to supreme government power. This isn't the greatest democracy on earth. This isn't the nation that pioneered human rights. This isn't the America that leads the world, that leads humanity towards a greater good. No, I refuse to accept this America of shame. This is not my America. It is an America perverted by Republican stewardship. A nation that under GOP rule has abandoned its founding ideals of freedom, liberty, and justice for all. True Americans--coast to coast, young and old--now bow their heads silently in collective shame for a nation that has lost its way.
Monday, March 20, 2006
Monday, Monday ver. 739.01
What a weird day. Guns showed up 40 minutes late, as per the norm, with another dramatic story of domestic silliness in the heterosexual community. We worked out for a bit more than an hour, with today's unusual physical activity involving squat jumps - crouching as low without resting on one's heels, then jumping (thrusting) upward and forward as high and far as one can off of the heels.
Three sets of 15 forward; three sets of 12 backward. Oof. And, I'm not wiped out like I was last week when we did lunges. I also failed to almost pass out, and I didn't have to lie on the floor for 15 minutes.
Guns was most impressed.
Then, I came back here, had a phone call or two, an IM or twenty, did my reading, did my banking, started getting cleaned up for a lunch meeting and had the most COOL and amazing idea about redeveloping existing subdivisions. I had to call Donna about it, and she got all excited too.
Lunch with John, Tom the Army Boy was our waiter, and oh my - he's a good one. Came back, more phone calls. All of a sudden, I remembered that I needed to put Ruby in for balancing/rotation and alignment. So, off to NTB (in the neighborhood) to drop her off. They wanted $8.99 PER WHEEL for balancing. I was like "you have GOT to be kidding me, right?"
I mentioned that I had purchased the tires from Sam's Club and had free balancing there, but didn't feel like driving outside the loop to accomplish this - I almost walked off, but then I thought - I have WORK to do today; I can't afford to drive a half hour to a Sam's, wait for two hours, then drive a half hour back. So, I turned back to the counter and said "just do it, please. I need it back by 5." They did it FOR FREE. Thank you VERY much.
Walked home by way of Randall's, the mailbox and the Warner Cable store. Then, what did I have to work on? Something. Then, it was nearly time to pick up the car. The mechanic at NTB told me that he's tweaked something in the suspension, and that it should both ride and handle much better. Then, off to have her cleaned up.
I'm driving to Port Arthur in the morning, and then back here to work for a while, then down to class in Clear Lake. Ruby was a little bouncy in the front between 60 and 70 mph.
So, that's done. I've gotten (through paid help) more Fabulair events researched up. Seventy one of them, actually. So, that makes - 20 + 47 + 71 + 50 = 188 events for the calendar. Only 2,312 to go.
I have signed up as the class reunion contact for our 30th anniversary of high school graduation (no one else was doing it,) but I'm NOT going to be the one who plans the whole thing. Fabulair will.
Three sets of 15 forward; three sets of 12 backward. Oof. And, I'm not wiped out like I was last week when we did lunges. I also failed to almost pass out, and I didn't have to lie on the floor for 15 minutes.
Guns was most impressed.
Then, I came back here, had a phone call or two, an IM or twenty, did my reading, did my banking, started getting cleaned up for a lunch meeting and had the most COOL and amazing idea about redeveloping existing subdivisions. I had to call Donna about it, and she got all excited too.
Lunch with John, Tom the Army Boy was our waiter, and oh my - he's a good one. Came back, more phone calls. All of a sudden, I remembered that I needed to put Ruby in for balancing/rotation and alignment. So, off to NTB (in the neighborhood) to drop her off. They wanted $8.99 PER WHEEL for balancing. I was like "you have GOT to be kidding me, right?"
I mentioned that I had purchased the tires from Sam's Club and had free balancing there, but didn't feel like driving outside the loop to accomplish this - I almost walked off, but then I thought - I have WORK to do today; I can't afford to drive a half hour to a Sam's, wait for two hours, then drive a half hour back. So, I turned back to the counter and said "just do it, please. I need it back by 5." They did it FOR FREE. Thank you VERY much.
Walked home by way of Randall's, the mailbox and the Warner Cable store. Then, what did I have to work on? Something. Then, it was nearly time to pick up the car. The mechanic at NTB told me that he's tweaked something in the suspension, and that it should both ride and handle much better. Then, off to have her cleaned up.
I'm driving to Port Arthur in the morning, and then back here to work for a while, then down to class in Clear Lake. Ruby was a little bouncy in the front between 60 and 70 mph.
So, that's done. I've gotten (through paid help) more Fabulair events researched up. Seventy one of them, actually. So, that makes - 20 + 47 + 71 + 50 = 188 events for the calendar. Only 2,312 to go.
I have signed up as the class reunion contact for our 30th anniversary of high school graduation (no one else was doing it,) but I'm NOT going to be the one who plans the whole thing. Fabulair will.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Hump day - jump day
The second day of working out with "guns." He had me working on legs. Now, I understand why Guy speaks about legs with some trepidation. I did "lunges," for the first time, and after two sets (12 lunges each side) I was ready to pass out.
I had to lie on the floor for about 15 minutes. Yet, I feel so much better physically. Wow.
What I find also interesting about working out with "guns," is that I find him completely uninteresting sexually. It seems like a good idea (now that I've been thinking about it) to delay any potential sexual contact until AFTER several days or weeks, and after the initial rush of attraction has passed.
It's nearly time for sleep. I'm reading an article about just how bad the debt and deficit has gotten. It's pretty shocking. Like, really shocking. As in .. holy shit, are they KIDDING?
When Clinton left office, less than 2% of the government's cash flow was from borrowing. Now, it's over 20%. Doesn't everyone know that the Federal debt is financed on an ARM? As in, the rates adjust? As we issue new debt, it's at newer or higher rates. Can't anyone see that the rise of interest rates is going to turn this whole tax cut/rampant spending increase plan of the last six years into a train wreck?
I think it's best to stay a renter. Holy shit.
Canada is looking better and better.
Here's the article ..
Economic Suicide
By: James Turk, The Freemarket Gold & Money Report
Copyright © 2006 by The Freemarket Gold & Money Report. All rights reserved.
Anybody who has been lending money to the US federal government by buying T-Bills and its other debt instruments received a brutal one-two punch last week. It was hopefully a sobering experience, causing them to question why they would want to hold any US government paper.
The Washington Post landed the first punch with the following report on March 6th. “WASHINGTON -- Treasury Secretary John Snow notified Congress on Monday that the administration has now taken “all prudent and legal actions,” including tapping certain government retirement funds, to keep from hitting the $8.2 trillion national debt limit…Treasury officials, briefing congressional aides last week, said that the government will run out of maneuvering room to keep from exceeding the current limit sometime during the week of March 20.”
The second punch was delivered a couple of days later by this Dow Jones Newswires dispatch: “WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) -- The U.S. government ran a monthly budget deficit of $119.20 billion in February, an all-time monthly record that was still slightly less than forecast, according to a Treasury report Friday. The February federal government deficit was 5% greater than a year earlier, according to the Treasury Department's monthly budget statement.”
These two reports make clear the dire financial straits the federal government is facing, but its financial position is even worse than it appears. The $8.2 trillion debt limit -- that has proven inadequate to meet the federal government’s borrowing needs -- covers only its direct liabilities. In other words, this $8.2 trillion is the total amount of dollars owed to all the holders of US government debt instruments. Excluded from this total debt are all of the federal government’s other liabilities, which total another $38 trillion. In “The 2005 Financial Report of the United States Government”, US Comptroller General David Walker reported that “the federal government’s fiscal exposures now total more than $46 trillion, up from $20 trillion in 2000.”
Yes, it’s insane. But it’s even more insane that people buy the US government’s T-Bonds and T-Bills thinking that they are a safe, low-risk investment. Maybe they used to be that, but things change. US government debt instruments are no longer a safe place to park your dollars. To substantiate this assertion, here are some shocking facts to mull over.
1) REVENUE -- Federal revenue peaked at $2.03 trillion in 2000, and then declined for three years, bottoming in 2003 at $1.78 trillion. That’s never happened before. Revenue typically declines during a recession, but the most it has ever declined before was two years in a row, during the severe recession of 1958 and 1959. Revenue has rebounded the last two years and reached $2.15 trillion in 2005, but in constant 2000-dollars (i.e., adjusted for inflation), revenue remains 6.3% below that received in 2000.
2) EXPENDITURES -- While the federal government’s revenue has been constrained, not so with expenditures, which have continued to soar. They were $2.47 trillion in 2005, an alarming 38.2% above the federal government’s expenditures in 2000. Expenditures soared even in constant 2000-dollars, scoring a shocking 21.8% increase over the five years from 2000 to 2005.
3) RELIANCE UPON DEBT -- As a consequence of constrained revenue and uncontrolled spending, the federal government has come to increasingly rely upon debt in order to obtain the dollars it spends with gay abandon. In 2000, 1.1% of the federal government’s cash flow (revenue plus the annual increase in debt) came from new debt. This reliance on debt grew to 20.4% in 2005. In other words, for every $100 spent by the federal government in 2005, $20.40 came from borrowed money, compared to only $1.10 in 2000.
4) INTEREST RATES -- Of all the major expenditure categories of the federal government, only one declined from 2000 to 2005 -- interest expense. It paid $361.9 billion in interest in 2000, and its interest expense burden fell to $352.3 billion in 2005. During this period, the federal debt climbed 40.5% from $5.63 trillion to $7.91 trillion. So given this increase in debt, it is obvious that the federal government’s interest expense burden declined for only one reason -- interest rates fell. In fact, the average interest rate paid by the federal government on its debt in 2000 was 6.4%; it was only 4.6% in both 2004 and 2005.
5) INTEREST EXPENSE BURDEN -- During the 1990’s, 24.0% of the federal government’s revenue on average was used to pay interest on its debt. During the Bush administration that burden has declined to only 17.5% on average. The reason is that the 5.2% average interest rate paid by the federal government during the Bush administration so far is significantly less than the 7.2% rate it paid on average in the 1990’s. It is clear that the lower interest rates engineered by the Federal Reserve after the 2000 stock market peak have favorably impacted the federal government’s budget. Lower interest rates reduced its interest expense burden, thereby making the deficits incurred so far during the Bush administration much smaller than they would have been if higher interest rates prevailed.
The above facts are indeed shocking as they clearly highlight that both the runaway growth in federal spending during the Bush administration and the resulting deterioration in the financial position of the federal government have been cloaked and little noticed because interest rates have been falling in recent years. So the above facts therefore make the immediate future frightening because as we all know, the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates.
What will happen to the federal government’s financial condition now that the Federal Reserve is raising rates in order to try suppressing the growing inflationary pressures in the economy? The federal government faces a potentially toxic mix of constrained revenue, soaring expenditures, ballooning debt and rising interest rates.
The federal government desperately needs strong economic activity in order to generate the highest possible tax revenue to decrease its reliance on debt. But rising interest rates work against this objective. Rising interest rates dampen economic activity. We have already seen what has happened to the housing market since the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates.
In addition to adversely impacting revenue, rising interest rates also have an unfavorable impact on expenditures. This impact is purely mathematical. A 6% average interest rate on $8.2 trillion of debt results in a higher interest expense burden than a 4.6% rate.
Thus, higher interest rates restrain tax revenue while increasing the level of expenditures. Together these factors worsen the budget deficit, which then causes the federal government to borrow even more money. The resulting higher level of debt leads to a greater interest expense burden, further worsening the deficit. Consequently, the federal government is rapidly moving to the point where its borrowing becomes an increasingly important source of the dollars that it needs to meet its interest expense obligations.
It is clear that these circumstances create a vicious circle where the federal government borrows money to obtain the dollars needed to meet its debt obligations. This condition is not sustainable, and it will end in one of two alternatives -- either the dollar is saved or it isn’t. If the vicious circle is not addressed and corrected, it will turn into a death spiral in which the dollar is destroyed.
To explain this point, the federal government will never default on its debt. With the ever-helping hand of the Federal Reserve and the banking system, the federal government will always come up with the dollars it needs to meet its interest expense and other debt obligations. But if the vicious circle described above is not addressed, the federal government will repay its debt obligations with dollars that are worth less and less until they become worthless when the death spiral occurs.
The vicious circle does two things. First, it increases the supply of dollars by creating ‘out of thin air’ the dollars needed by the federal government to meet its debt obligations. The second point is less obvious but just as pernicious. The vicious circle lessens the demand for the dollar as people over time come to understand the ruinous, underlying dynamics of what’s happening to the currency. Higher supply and lower demand mean only one thing -- the purchasing power of the dollar is being inflated away.
These circumstances are not new. They are experienced by every fiat currency sooner or later when the discipline of the gold standard is removed. The discipline of the gold standard is needed to constrain government spending. In the absence of that discipline, a fiat currency inevitably reaches the vicious circle. In fact, it’s even happened before with the dollar.
The dollar was in a vicious circle during the waning years of the Carter administration. Paul Volcker was appointed Federal Reserve chairman to break the vicious circle, and he did it by raising interest rates. He kept raising interest rates until real rates (nominal interest rates less the inflation rate) soared to greater than 6%, historically a phenomenally high rate. It was not surprising therefore that the demand for the dollar started rising, thereby breaking the vicious circle and saving the dollar from a death spiral. But Mr. Volcker had an advantage not available today to Mr. Bernanke.
Back then the federal debt was not the burden it is today. Recall that the US was the largest creditor nation in the world back then. The total level of dollar debt was not only much less, but manageable in the environment of rapidly rising interest rates and the high real interest rates ushered in by Mr. Volcker.
Today the US is the world’s largest debtor. The US savings rate is negative. American home owners have consumed most of the equity in their houses. In short, the federal government and many consumers are borrowing just to try keeping their head above water. What’s worse, there is all the uncertainty arising from trillions of dollars of outstanding financial derivatives, essentially none of which existed during Mr. Volcker’s era.
In short, Mr. Bernanke cannot raise interest rates the way Volcker did, which I believe is well understood by both Mr. Bernanke and Mr. Greenspan. After all, look at what happened during the last year of so of Mr. Greenspan’s tenure at the Fed. He raised interest rates, but throughout this period, real interest rates remained close to zero and at times were negative, which is a condition that creates a highly inflationary framework for the dollar. In other words, there was a lot of jawboning from Mr. Greenspan to save the dollar from inflation by raising interest rates, but he did not even come close to following in the footsteps of Mr. Volcker. Mr. Bernanke won’t either.
Today’s monetary system is not only broken, it’s completely crazy. For this reason I found the following quote in the current issue of Barron’s to be of interest. It’s by Richard Daughty, from the March 8th issue of his newsletter, The Mogambo Guru (9241 54th St. N., Pinellas Park, Fla. 33782):
“What a scam! The week [before last], the Fed snaps its fingers and creates $2.2 billion, and then uses it to buy $2.2 billion in government debt! What in the hell can you do but laugh at the sheer audacity! Somehow, a government creating more and more money and spending it is not, for the first time in history, going to turn out to be a bad thing? And especially one where the money is just paper and computer blips that they can create on a whim? Of course, I sigh wearily as I note that the banks themselves are in on the scam, and they bought up another $13 billion in government debt [the week before last]. Foreign central banks continue to soak up government debt, and they swallowed another $7.6 billion [that] week, too. The government sells debt to get money to spend on its deficits, and the bank creates the money to buy the debt. Debt and money supply both expand, and it expands to create a bigger and more expensive government! And higher prices. This is economic suicide!”
Indeed, it truly is “economic suicide”, but it’s even worse than that. It’s also monetary homicide. The dollar as we know it is being killed, poisoned by debt from the hand of the federal government with its accomplices in the Federal Reserve and the banking system. So far it’s been a slow death, with few people watching, but that’s about to change. With the horrific new amounts of debt being injected into the dollar’s weary remains, its death is not far off.
link to article
I had to lie on the floor for about 15 minutes. Yet, I feel so much better physically. Wow.
What I find also interesting about working out with "guns," is that I find him completely uninteresting sexually. It seems like a good idea (now that I've been thinking about it) to delay any potential sexual contact until AFTER several days or weeks, and after the initial rush of attraction has passed.
It's nearly time for sleep. I'm reading an article about just how bad the debt and deficit has gotten. It's pretty shocking. Like, really shocking. As in .. holy shit, are they KIDDING?
When Clinton left office, less than 2% of the government's cash flow was from borrowing. Now, it's over 20%. Doesn't everyone know that the Federal debt is financed on an ARM? As in, the rates adjust? As we issue new debt, it's at newer or higher rates. Can't anyone see that the rise of interest rates is going to turn this whole tax cut/rampant spending increase plan of the last six years into a train wreck?
I think it's best to stay a renter. Holy shit.
Canada is looking better and better.
Here's the article ..
Economic Suicide
By: James Turk, The Freemarket Gold & Money Report
Copyright © 2006 by The Freemarket Gold & Money Report. All rights reserved.
Anybody who has been lending money to the US federal government by buying T-Bills and its other debt instruments received a brutal one-two punch last week. It was hopefully a sobering experience, causing them to question why they would want to hold any US government paper.
The Washington Post landed the first punch with the following report on March 6th. “WASHINGTON -- Treasury Secretary John Snow notified Congress on Monday that the administration has now taken “all prudent and legal actions,” including tapping certain government retirement funds, to keep from hitting the $8.2 trillion national debt limit…Treasury officials, briefing congressional aides last week, said that the government will run out of maneuvering room to keep from exceeding the current limit sometime during the week of March 20.”
The second punch was delivered a couple of days later by this Dow Jones Newswires dispatch: “WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) -- The U.S. government ran a monthly budget deficit of $119.20 billion in February, an all-time monthly record that was still slightly less than forecast, according to a Treasury report Friday. The February federal government deficit was 5% greater than a year earlier, according to the Treasury Department's monthly budget statement.”
These two reports make clear the dire financial straits the federal government is facing, but its financial position is even worse than it appears. The $8.2 trillion debt limit -- that has proven inadequate to meet the federal government’s borrowing needs -- covers only its direct liabilities. In other words, this $8.2 trillion is the total amount of dollars owed to all the holders of US government debt instruments. Excluded from this total debt are all of the federal government’s other liabilities, which total another $38 trillion. In “The 2005 Financial Report of the United States Government”, US Comptroller General David Walker reported that “the federal government’s fiscal exposures now total more than $46 trillion, up from $20 trillion in 2000.”
Yes, it’s insane. But it’s even more insane that people buy the US government’s T-Bonds and T-Bills thinking that they are a safe, low-risk investment. Maybe they used to be that, but things change. US government debt instruments are no longer a safe place to park your dollars. To substantiate this assertion, here are some shocking facts to mull over.
1) REVENUE -- Federal revenue peaked at $2.03 trillion in 2000, and then declined for three years, bottoming in 2003 at $1.78 trillion. That’s never happened before. Revenue typically declines during a recession, but the most it has ever declined before was two years in a row, during the severe recession of 1958 and 1959. Revenue has rebounded the last two years and reached $2.15 trillion in 2005, but in constant 2000-dollars (i.e., adjusted for inflation), revenue remains 6.3% below that received in 2000.
2) EXPENDITURES -- While the federal government’s revenue has been constrained, not so with expenditures, which have continued to soar. They were $2.47 trillion in 2005, an alarming 38.2% above the federal government’s expenditures in 2000. Expenditures soared even in constant 2000-dollars, scoring a shocking 21.8% increase over the five years from 2000 to 2005.
3) RELIANCE UPON DEBT -- As a consequence of constrained revenue and uncontrolled spending, the federal government has come to increasingly rely upon debt in order to obtain the dollars it spends with gay abandon. In 2000, 1.1% of the federal government’s cash flow (revenue plus the annual increase in debt) came from new debt. This reliance on debt grew to 20.4% in 2005. In other words, for every $100 spent by the federal government in 2005, $20.40 came from borrowed money, compared to only $1.10 in 2000.
4) INTEREST RATES -- Of all the major expenditure categories of the federal government, only one declined from 2000 to 2005 -- interest expense. It paid $361.9 billion in interest in 2000, and its interest expense burden fell to $352.3 billion in 2005. During this period, the federal debt climbed 40.5% from $5.63 trillion to $7.91 trillion. So given this increase in debt, it is obvious that the federal government’s interest expense burden declined for only one reason -- interest rates fell. In fact, the average interest rate paid by the federal government on its debt in 2000 was 6.4%; it was only 4.6% in both 2004 and 2005.
5) INTEREST EXPENSE BURDEN -- During the 1990’s, 24.0% of the federal government’s revenue on average was used to pay interest on its debt. During the Bush administration that burden has declined to only 17.5% on average. The reason is that the 5.2% average interest rate paid by the federal government during the Bush administration so far is significantly less than the 7.2% rate it paid on average in the 1990’s. It is clear that the lower interest rates engineered by the Federal Reserve after the 2000 stock market peak have favorably impacted the federal government’s budget. Lower interest rates reduced its interest expense burden, thereby making the deficits incurred so far during the Bush administration much smaller than they would have been if higher interest rates prevailed.
The above facts are indeed shocking as they clearly highlight that both the runaway growth in federal spending during the Bush administration and the resulting deterioration in the financial position of the federal government have been cloaked and little noticed because interest rates have been falling in recent years. So the above facts therefore make the immediate future frightening because as we all know, the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates.
What will happen to the federal government’s financial condition now that the Federal Reserve is raising rates in order to try suppressing the growing inflationary pressures in the economy? The federal government faces a potentially toxic mix of constrained revenue, soaring expenditures, ballooning debt and rising interest rates.
The federal government desperately needs strong economic activity in order to generate the highest possible tax revenue to decrease its reliance on debt. But rising interest rates work against this objective. Rising interest rates dampen economic activity. We have already seen what has happened to the housing market since the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates.
In addition to adversely impacting revenue, rising interest rates also have an unfavorable impact on expenditures. This impact is purely mathematical. A 6% average interest rate on $8.2 trillion of debt results in a higher interest expense burden than a 4.6% rate.
Thus, higher interest rates restrain tax revenue while increasing the level of expenditures. Together these factors worsen the budget deficit, which then causes the federal government to borrow even more money. The resulting higher level of debt leads to a greater interest expense burden, further worsening the deficit. Consequently, the federal government is rapidly moving to the point where its borrowing becomes an increasingly important source of the dollars that it needs to meet its interest expense obligations.
It is clear that these circumstances create a vicious circle where the federal government borrows money to obtain the dollars needed to meet its debt obligations. This condition is not sustainable, and it will end in one of two alternatives -- either the dollar is saved or it isn’t. If the vicious circle is not addressed and corrected, it will turn into a death spiral in which the dollar is destroyed.
To explain this point, the federal government will never default on its debt. With the ever-helping hand of the Federal Reserve and the banking system, the federal government will always come up with the dollars it needs to meet its interest expense and other debt obligations. But if the vicious circle described above is not addressed, the federal government will repay its debt obligations with dollars that are worth less and less until they become worthless when the death spiral occurs.
The vicious circle does two things. First, it increases the supply of dollars by creating ‘out of thin air’ the dollars needed by the federal government to meet its debt obligations. The second point is less obvious but just as pernicious. The vicious circle lessens the demand for the dollar as people over time come to understand the ruinous, underlying dynamics of what’s happening to the currency. Higher supply and lower demand mean only one thing -- the purchasing power of the dollar is being inflated away.
These circumstances are not new. They are experienced by every fiat currency sooner or later when the discipline of the gold standard is removed. The discipline of the gold standard is needed to constrain government spending. In the absence of that discipline, a fiat currency inevitably reaches the vicious circle. In fact, it’s even happened before with the dollar.
The dollar was in a vicious circle during the waning years of the Carter administration. Paul Volcker was appointed Federal Reserve chairman to break the vicious circle, and he did it by raising interest rates. He kept raising interest rates until real rates (nominal interest rates less the inflation rate) soared to greater than 6%, historically a phenomenally high rate. It was not surprising therefore that the demand for the dollar started rising, thereby breaking the vicious circle and saving the dollar from a death spiral. But Mr. Volcker had an advantage not available today to Mr. Bernanke.
Back then the federal debt was not the burden it is today. Recall that the US was the largest creditor nation in the world back then. The total level of dollar debt was not only much less, but manageable in the environment of rapidly rising interest rates and the high real interest rates ushered in by Mr. Volcker.
Today the US is the world’s largest debtor. The US savings rate is negative. American home owners have consumed most of the equity in their houses. In short, the federal government and many consumers are borrowing just to try keeping their head above water. What’s worse, there is all the uncertainty arising from trillions of dollars of outstanding financial derivatives, essentially none of which existed during Mr. Volcker’s era.
In short, Mr. Bernanke cannot raise interest rates the way Volcker did, which I believe is well understood by both Mr. Bernanke and Mr. Greenspan. After all, look at what happened during the last year of so of Mr. Greenspan’s tenure at the Fed. He raised interest rates, but throughout this period, real interest rates remained close to zero and at times were negative, which is a condition that creates a highly inflationary framework for the dollar. In other words, there was a lot of jawboning from Mr. Greenspan to save the dollar from inflation by raising interest rates, but he did not even come close to following in the footsteps of Mr. Volcker. Mr. Bernanke won’t either.
Today’s monetary system is not only broken, it’s completely crazy. For this reason I found the following quote in the current issue of Barron’s to be of interest. It’s by Richard Daughty, from the March 8th issue of his newsletter, The Mogambo Guru (9241 54th St. N., Pinellas Park, Fla. 33782):
“What a scam! The week [before last], the Fed snaps its fingers and creates $2.2 billion, and then uses it to buy $2.2 billion in government debt! What in the hell can you do but laugh at the sheer audacity! Somehow, a government creating more and more money and spending it is not, for the first time in history, going to turn out to be a bad thing? And especially one where the money is just paper and computer blips that they can create on a whim? Of course, I sigh wearily as I note that the banks themselves are in on the scam, and they bought up another $13 billion in government debt [the week before last]. Foreign central banks continue to soak up government debt, and they swallowed another $7.6 billion [that] week, too. The government sells debt to get money to spend on its deficits, and the bank creates the money to buy the debt. Debt and money supply both expand, and it expands to create a bigger and more expensive government! And higher prices. This is economic suicide!”
Indeed, it truly is “economic suicide”, but it’s even worse than that. It’s also monetary homicide. The dollar as we know it is being killed, poisoned by debt from the hand of the federal government with its accomplices in the Federal Reserve and the banking system. So far it’s been a slow death, with few people watching, but that’s about to change. With the horrific new amounts of debt being injected into the dollar’s weary remains, its death is not far off.
link to article
Monday, March 13, 2006
Monday, Monday ver. 734.01
Interesting day - I spent nearly three hours on the phone today with a client about a job that they want done; it's something I've been expecting to be assigned since early December. I need to write up a proposal and scope of work then send it off. Tonight just won't happen, though - I'm just wiped out.
Went today (for lunch) and drove a VW Jetta TDI. It was a great little car. It seemed to be more than adequate; the one I drove had some cool features. It was getting 33.6 mpg according to the trip computer.
However, I think I'd just soldier on with Ruby rather than spend $26000 on a car. Ruby needs a little more attention, unfortunately, some of that would best be done by T, who is about as unreliable as anyone else.
Tonight, my head is just splitting. Don't know why. I'm going to take these dogs out in a few minutes here and then hit the sack early. I have a big day tomorrow, and lord, I'm falling behind faster and faster. As Robyn said, I seem to be overcommitted.
Hoo, I have two term papers to write this week, a visit to a hospice to make, four "client" treatment plans to write, tomorrow night's class to prepare for, tax returns to crank out.
I am very excited about our New Vision garage sale at the end of April. I have a TON of stuff that I'm going to clear out and sell. I am just sure that the group can raise all of the money necessary to move into this new space through this garage sale. I can feel it in my heart.
Today, I got the Fabulair trademark certificate from the US Government in the mail. Pretty cool stuff. I worked on the Cafe Press site tonight, and then begged for help from the more technically proficient on my "team."
Tom is going to work on some of the back office and techincal functions of the Fabulair website, which is just SO wonderful. I should email him and ask him if he can do some of the adobe work that I need done about a month ago.
Since I can't get anyone else to do it.
Okay, so I'm going to walk the mutts, and crawl into bed early. I think that this headache is sinus related, since it's abated after pumping a bunch of Tylenol and decongestant into it, but I'm still feeling yucky.
Went today (for lunch) and drove a VW Jetta TDI. It was a great little car. It seemed to be more than adequate; the one I drove had some cool features. It was getting 33.6 mpg according to the trip computer.
However, I think I'd just soldier on with Ruby rather than spend $26000 on a car. Ruby needs a little more attention, unfortunately, some of that would best be done by T, who is about as unreliable as anyone else.
Tonight, my head is just splitting. Don't know why. I'm going to take these dogs out in a few minutes here and then hit the sack early. I have a big day tomorrow, and lord, I'm falling behind faster and faster. As Robyn said, I seem to be overcommitted.
Hoo, I have two term papers to write this week, a visit to a hospice to make, four "client" treatment plans to write, tomorrow night's class to prepare for, tax returns to crank out.
I am very excited about our New Vision garage sale at the end of April. I have a TON of stuff that I'm going to clear out and sell. I am just sure that the group can raise all of the money necessary to move into this new space through this garage sale. I can feel it in my heart.
Today, I got the Fabulair trademark certificate from the US Government in the mail. Pretty cool stuff. I worked on the Cafe Press site tonight, and then begged for help from the more technically proficient on my "team."
Tom is going to work on some of the back office and techincal functions of the Fabulair website, which is just SO wonderful. I should email him and ask him if he can do some of the adobe work that I need done about a month ago.
Since I can't get anyone else to do it.
Okay, so I'm going to walk the mutts, and crawl into bed early. I think that this headache is sinus related, since it's abated after pumping a bunch of Tylenol and decongestant into it, but I'm still feeling yucky.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Saturday night at home
Chuck's been here a while; we've got the NV presentations done, I've baked a cake for the potluck, have everything all set up to be put into the car tomorrow morning.
He's just had a call from his "backup date," and is headed out now. I'll be here watching more episodes of Angel, it seems and trying to get enough sleep tonight.
I got my wireless print server installed and working today all by myself! Well, with E's help walking me through.
Four loads of laundry today. Did some cleaning up. Mailed off some stuff. Have some bags of trash to take out. Need to vacuum. Chuck just noticed the mass of Barney hair on the carpeting. And twigs and leaves from Jackie. Hm. "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...."
Just found an INCREDIBLE brand new Phaeton in West Palm - white with Sonnen Beige 4 seat! It's just singing to me. Yep. I've copied over the pictures, changed my screen savers, and generally sworn my loyalty to the concept.
Watching "The Sand Pebbles" tonight. My blood sugar has been as high as an elephant's eye lately. Urg. I'm reading Depok Chopra's book about health. It's very interesting - but, I'm not yet finding anything that's new than what I've already read by other authors. Of course, I haven't yet gotten to the second half where he discusses creating good health.
Watched "Before Stonewall" last night. It was poor production quality, but Harry Hay, Ginsberg, all kinds of historic gay figures. WOW. I had forgotten that we used to be arrested just for being in a "bohemian" bar. That the police would show up and arrest everyone inside.
What was really fascinating was that there was all this archival footage of the NYPD arresting and harassing gay people, and then the State of New York paid for this movie in 1986.
Just read an article that CP sent me about the Fed starting to lean on commercial real estate lending. It's very interesting. read here He's asking "how do we make money if this is the case?" An excellent question.
Ruby's butt is jacked up with the air shocks. I think that there's something wrong with the .. sensors or the .. whoozies and it's causing her to ride hard and break shocks. It is nice to have functional brakes again, though.
This movie is interesting. How on earth did it seem reasonable to us to try to control China in this fashion?
Listening to CP tell me how we're going to have all this work coming in. Oh my. I hope so, that would be lovely.
So, it seems that guns is willing to train me, and is willing to do it for much less. He's willing to start on Monday. He wants to be my "date" Monday at Berryhill's anniversary party, and .. such.
Okay, it's time to vacuum and then get ready for bed. Laundry to fold. The rest of this movie to watch. Church in the morning.
He's just had a call from his "backup date," and is headed out now. I'll be here watching more episodes of Angel, it seems and trying to get enough sleep tonight.
I got my wireless print server installed and working today all by myself! Well, with E's help walking me through.
Four loads of laundry today. Did some cleaning up. Mailed off some stuff. Have some bags of trash to take out. Need to vacuum. Chuck just noticed the mass of Barney hair on the carpeting. And twigs and leaves from Jackie. Hm. "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...."
Just found an INCREDIBLE brand new Phaeton in West Palm - white with Sonnen Beige 4 seat! It's just singing to me. Yep. I've copied over the pictures, changed my screen savers, and generally sworn my loyalty to the concept.
Watching "The Sand Pebbles" tonight. My blood sugar has been as high as an elephant's eye lately. Urg. I'm reading Depok Chopra's book about health. It's very interesting - but, I'm not yet finding anything that's new than what I've already read by other authors. Of course, I haven't yet gotten to the second half where he discusses creating good health.
Watched "Before Stonewall" last night. It was poor production quality, but Harry Hay, Ginsberg, all kinds of historic gay figures. WOW. I had forgotten that we used to be arrested just for being in a "bohemian" bar. That the police would show up and arrest everyone inside.
What was really fascinating was that there was all this archival footage of the NYPD arresting and harassing gay people, and then the State of New York paid for this movie in 1986.
Just read an article that CP sent me about the Fed starting to lean on commercial real estate lending. It's very interesting. read here He's asking "how do we make money if this is the case?" An excellent question.
Ruby's butt is jacked up with the air shocks. I think that there's something wrong with the .. sensors or the .. whoozies and it's causing her to ride hard and break shocks. It is nice to have functional brakes again, though.
This movie is interesting. How on earth did it seem reasonable to us to try to control China in this fashion?
Listening to CP tell me how we're going to have all this work coming in. Oh my. I hope so, that would be lovely.
So, it seems that guns is willing to train me, and is willing to do it for much less. He's willing to start on Monday. He wants to be my "date" Monday at Berryhill's anniversary party, and .. such.
Okay, it's time to vacuum and then get ready for bed. Laundry to fold. The rest of this movie to watch. Church in the morning.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Hump day dynamics
Funny, this post has been sitting here for nearly six weeks unfinished. This was right about the time that I got really derailed, I think.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Tuesday turmoil
God love Chuck. He came over tonight to hang out and watch DVDs with me. This day requires some TLC.
Things seemed like they had started off so well today. Lunch with Ben was wonderful. Then, I came home and - disaster. My afternoon was all planned out - balance checking account statements, four business tax returns - and it was ripped away. I don't know that I've ever been completely speechless before. I know that it was the first time in my life since I have cohesive memory that I had no idea what to do next.
It took four hours to straighten my emotional state out, and then another hour to recover a sense of equalibrium.
So, I guess that it remains to be seen whether I have lost any business from this, but I certainly lost a half days' productivity. There's more waiting in my "in" box to be processed, but I think that I'll wait until tomorrow morning to deal with that.
Ruby's still up on a jack - AutoZone had to re-order her shocks and they won't be in until tomorrow morning. The brake pads are easy enough - only $20.00.
Had a call today from a student from last fall - they want me to do book keeping for them. Hopefully, Ruby will be ready for me to make that meeting tomorrow night. They have five months' worth of accounting to do right away.
Not a word out of the guy who was supposed to come work on stuff for my two websites and help me with my mortgage books. What is it that has people just utterly avoid their promises and then expect you not to notice?
Still working on the land loan that I've been working on for seven months.
Things seemed like they had started off so well today. Lunch with Ben was wonderful. Then, I came home and - disaster. My afternoon was all planned out - balance checking account statements, four business tax returns - and it was ripped away. I don't know that I've ever been completely speechless before. I know that it was the first time in my life since I have cohesive memory that I had no idea what to do next.
It took four hours to straighten my emotional state out, and then another hour to recover a sense of equalibrium.
So, I guess that it remains to be seen whether I have lost any business from this, but I certainly lost a half days' productivity. There's more waiting in my "in" box to be processed, but I think that I'll wait until tomorrow morning to deal with that.
Ruby's still up on a jack - AutoZone had to re-order her shocks and they won't be in until tomorrow morning. The brake pads are easy enough - only $20.00.
Had a call today from a student from last fall - they want me to do book keeping for them. Hopefully, Ruby will be ready for me to make that meeting tomorrow night. They have five months' worth of accounting to do right away.
Not a word out of the guy who was supposed to come work on stuff for my two websites and help me with my mortgage books. What is it that has people just utterly avoid their promises and then expect you not to notice?
Still working on the land loan that I've been working on for seven months.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Monday, Monday ver. 733.01
Nothing like a day that starts off with N8 stopping by at 0800. I was cleaning up the floor after Barney's created quite the huge mess - from the laundry room door to the baby gate. He started drinking at 10, and was drunk out of his mind by 2:00 - he started yelling at people - oof. Just was wondering where things were going to go.
That boy is a tortured soul.
His presence did make me quite productive inasmuch as I was trying to do nearly anything to get away from him .. while he sat there and peppered me with disconnected questions and phrases.
Rosita gave me some drink mix for people with diabetes - I mixed up a big pitcher and have been working with it. Not having food after 4:00 anymore - I hope. It's tough. I hope this stuff isn't terribly expensive, 'cause I can see that I'm going to be going through it pretty quickly.
Barney, after spending the morning in the laundry room, was busted loose by N8 who spent a half hour badgering me about how horrible I was toward Barney - he's been without his blue hood since this morning (he made a horrible mess of it in the kitchen) and he's been okay with it so far.
The Phaeton that I want has been sold. On a good note, it's been sold to a guy who buys cars and only keeps them for six to twelve months - it's really the one that I want, and I'm thinking that this is the universe's way of hiding the car from the world for a few months until I'm ready for it. Of course, I could make MORE money and buy an A8L with the four seat package. With that car, I could get the nifty refrigerator in the rear seat. Plus, it has bluetooth.
And, in the meantime - do I keep it going with Ruby, or buy a new car? I'm attracted to a VW TDI - either a Jetta or a Beetle. The Beetle is about 10% cheaper, and I could put Ruby's custom stereo into it. Advantage has a gray one with an automatic.
Ruby's in the hospital - left rear shock broke and she needs brake pads. This means a trip to Auto Zone tomorrow, and hopefully this will cure some of her issues. But. I'd really rather have the A8 or the Phaeton, and give Ruby to my brother in Grand Rapids.
And, I'd still probably buy the TDI to drive to and from Clear Lake.
My Treo is rebooting itself over and over. I think it's time to call the manager of the Sprint store again.
That boy is a tortured soul.
His presence did make me quite productive inasmuch as I was trying to do nearly anything to get away from him .. while he sat there and peppered me with disconnected questions and phrases.
Rosita gave me some drink mix for people with diabetes - I mixed up a big pitcher and have been working with it. Not having food after 4:00 anymore - I hope. It's tough. I hope this stuff isn't terribly expensive, 'cause I can see that I'm going to be going through it pretty quickly.
Barney, after spending the morning in the laundry room, was busted loose by N8 who spent a half hour badgering me about how horrible I was toward Barney - he's been without his blue hood since this morning (he made a horrible mess of it in the kitchen) and he's been okay with it so far.
The Phaeton that I want has been sold. On a good note, it's been sold to a guy who buys cars and only keeps them for six to twelve months - it's really the one that I want, and I'm thinking that this is the universe's way of hiding the car from the world for a few months until I'm ready for it. Of course, I could make MORE money and buy an A8L with the four seat package. With that car, I could get the nifty refrigerator in the rear seat. Plus, it has bluetooth.
And, in the meantime - do I keep it going with Ruby, or buy a new car? I'm attracted to a VW TDI - either a Jetta or a Beetle. The Beetle is about 10% cheaper, and I could put Ruby's custom stereo into it. Advantage has a gray one with an automatic.
Ruby's in the hospital - left rear shock broke and she needs brake pads. This means a trip to Auto Zone tomorrow, and hopefully this will cure some of her issues. But. I'd really rather have the A8 or the Phaeton, and give Ruby to my brother in Grand Rapids.
And, I'd still probably buy the TDI to drive to and from Clear Lake.
My Treo is rebooting itself over and over. I think it's time to call the manager of the Sprint store again.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Sunday evening thoughts -
Church today went great. The work everyone did was great.
Afterward, Chuck and I went to Barnaby's - the service was stinky, and Michael the beefy ex-marine waiter was an exercise in studied indifference. The waiter we had was DREADFUL. He ignored us the whole time we were there until it was time to bring us the check. We had dealt with the shift manager the whole time, and she took care of us. The waiter needs to find some other line of work, I think.
After, we went looking at some houses for Chuck to rent - we found the PERFECT Chuck pad, which was great - it's gorgeous. I wish it were MY house to rent. But, who am I kidding, I don't want to leave my neighborhood.
After we did all that, we headed out to the Tiajuana Wal-Mart at West Rd. Urk. It was dreadful, but we did stock up on dog food.
Watched the movie "Sneakers" tonight - it was very cute.
I have to get on the ball tomorrow morning. AND, Ruby's broken another rear shock. These shocks from AutoZone appear to be worthless. My computer help is starting to act flaky again; I've advertised on craigslist for someone; we'll see what happens.
Time for more internal work, I think. Who knows.
Afterward, Chuck and I went to Barnaby's - the service was stinky, and Michael the beefy ex-marine waiter was an exercise in studied indifference. The waiter we had was DREADFUL. He ignored us the whole time we were there until it was time to bring us the check. We had dealt with the shift manager the whole time, and she took care of us. The waiter needs to find some other line of work, I think.
After, we went looking at some houses for Chuck to rent - we found the PERFECT Chuck pad, which was great - it's gorgeous. I wish it were MY house to rent. But, who am I kidding, I don't want to leave my neighborhood.
After we did all that, we headed out to the Tiajuana Wal-Mart at West Rd. Urk. It was dreadful, but we did stock up on dog food.
Watched the movie "Sneakers" tonight - it was very cute.
I have to get on the ball tomorrow morning. AND, Ruby's broken another rear shock. These shocks from AutoZone appear to be worthless. My computer help is starting to act flaky again; I've advertised on craigslist for someone; we'll see what happens.
Time for more internal work, I think. Who knows.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Friday evening -
Bizarre. Curtis (from three years ago) started calling tonight, the married guy who was saying he wanted to meet up started calling; both phones were ringing one after the other. Crikey.
Dinner was at the Hobbit cafe - which was good (food wise) and disappointing (service wise.) I'm just wiped out, mostly. Chuck is snoozing on the sofa, Jackie's snoring on the floor and Barney's in the laundry room. We're screening another crappy movie - with the Owen brothers in it. Chuck's not too engaged in it; he's just snoozing. I've been surfing for Marvin stuff (and hoooo boy did I find some) and otherwise occupying my time with mindless research. I did find a FABULOUS 2006 VW Beetle TDI manual white with WHITE upholstery. Very fun.
I think I'm going to take the dogs outside and see what quick end to this movie can be created.
Dinner was at the Hobbit cafe - which was good (food wise) and disappointing (service wise.) I'm just wiped out, mostly. Chuck is snoozing on the sofa, Jackie's snoring on the floor and Barney's in the laundry room. We're screening another crappy movie - with the Owen brothers in it. Chuck's not too engaged in it; he's just snoozing. I've been surfing for Marvin stuff (and hoooo boy did I find some) and otherwise occupying my time with mindless research. I did find a FABULOUS 2006 VW Beetle TDI manual white with WHITE upholstery. Very fun.
I think I'm going to take the dogs outside and see what quick end to this movie can be created.
Friday reflections
It's 18:30, and I'm waiting for a tax client coming at 19:00. His stuff is all done, and he just needs to pick and pay. I should probably vacuum before they get here.
I've been working through all day today - not laboring intensively or anything, but just getting it done all day. I pumped out about 15 pieces of mail, got a bunch of paper off my desks, got myself lined out for future work, did some cleaning and organizing, found that Max sells recycled toner cartridges for my printer at $20 off retail, blah, blah, blah. Tomorrow needs to be another very productive day.
I determined today that my favorite client is NOT the same person that I had nudie pics of from someone in New Orleans. Well, I still think it's him, but he says it's not. He did admit to being friskier in his youth. That was, of course, only a few years ago.
Yesterday, if I blogged, I had a call from the lad with the 18" biceps. He brought over his GORGEOUS girlfriend; she has an amazing figure, great hair, beautiful face, everything going on - for a loan application. While she was sitting there talking to me about her loan, he was making eyes and trying to flirt (marketing?)
Anyway, today, I called over there to tell her that I had worked up her loan and was sending her a packet of information - he answered (and his name is NOT Will, according to the DPS) and blah, blah asked if I was going out tonight? No, not that I know of. I did allow that he could call later if he chose to.
Okay, tax client here, gone and paid. Now, is the married guy coming by (as he says he is,) or should I just go hit dinner with Chuckeroo?
Dinner wins. Chuck wins. Enough already.
I've been working through all day today - not laboring intensively or anything, but just getting it done all day. I pumped out about 15 pieces of mail, got a bunch of paper off my desks, got myself lined out for future work, did some cleaning and organizing, found that Max sells recycled toner cartridges for my printer at $20 off retail, blah, blah, blah. Tomorrow needs to be another very productive day.
I determined today that my favorite client is NOT the same person that I had nudie pics of from someone in New Orleans. Well, I still think it's him, but he says it's not. He did admit to being friskier in his youth. That was, of course, only a few years ago.
Yesterday, if I blogged, I had a call from the lad with the 18" biceps. He brought over his GORGEOUS girlfriend; she has an amazing figure, great hair, beautiful face, everything going on - for a loan application. While she was sitting there talking to me about her loan, he was making eyes and trying to flirt (marketing?)
Anyway, today, I called over there to tell her that I had worked up her loan and was sending her a packet of information - he answered (and his name is NOT Will, according to the DPS) and blah, blah asked if I was going out tonight? No, not that I know of. I did allow that he could call later if he chose to.
Okay, tax client here, gone and paid. Now, is the married guy coming by (as he says he is,) or should I just go hit dinner with Chuckeroo?
Dinner wins. Chuck wins. Enough already.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Tuesday developments
Went to the doctor's for my monthly visit; their BG meter reads about 30 points lower than mine does; I guess I need to check and see about recalibrating it.
While there, I had the nurse prac freeze off a bunch of skin tags that had been annoying me. Now, I just ache. Yowie. I have never had anything frozen off before and it's ouchie. I need to focus on doing some work here, and I am just being a baby right now.
Got an email coupon from a VW dealer for $1500 off any new VW in stock. Hm. They have one Beetle TDI 5 speed and ten-ish Jetta TDI 5 speeds. 40 mpg. The new beetle may be the least expensive car to own on the planet. The Phaeton that I want is the most expensive (probably) at a dollar a mile for annual use, exclusive of interest costs.
Thinking, thinking, thinking - and I have some work to do for this afternoon. Some of it thinking work, some of it work work. More later.
While there, I had the nurse prac freeze off a bunch of skin tags that had been annoying me. Now, I just ache. Yowie. I have never had anything frozen off before and it's ouchie. I need to focus on doing some work here, and I am just being a baby right now.
Got an email coupon from a VW dealer for $1500 off any new VW in stock. Hm. They have one Beetle TDI 5 speed and ten-ish Jetta TDI 5 speeds. 40 mpg. The new beetle may be the least expensive car to own on the planet. The Phaeton that I want is the most expensive (probably) at a dollar a mile for annual use, exclusive of interest costs.
Thinking, thinking, thinking - and I have some work to do for this afternoon. Some of it thinking work, some of it work work. More later.
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