Why am I concerned about this?  I don’t actually care that much but haven’t we reached a point yet in our society where people can just quit being so fucking up tight about anatomical depictions of the human body?  Sorry, if your kid is asking what that is hanging between his legs, clearly you’ve failed as a parent and never taught him how to pee.  I’m not a parent but I’m no fool to believe some kid is going to need to be lectured about sex as a result of seeing a naked statue.  What’s to blame for this repression?  Religion.  Remember, the world ends on May 21, 2011.  Nuff said.

As we get closer now to the new year, it’s time for a little reflection on this past year.  It’s been quite a year for me.  Back in January of 2010, I had no idea that by the end of the year I’d be living in my own house, that I actually would qualify and get a mortgage after so many years of financial damage had been done to my credit report.  I had no idea that it would take me the better part of 6 months to fight with the credit reporting agencies about their own failure to report and document things correctly or that, by the end of it, it would only take me 30 days to close.  So now I own a house with a mortgage, in the little town of Interlochen with a dog, a yard, and new neighbors.  And I’ve done all this largely on my own except for the bits and pieces of financial help and MASSIVE amounts of encouragement I’ve received from my folks.  I think they are as impressed as I am that I was able to get this done without having to borrow lots of money from them.  It makes me feel good that I didn’t have to, after all, I SHOULD be doing these things on my own at this point in my life.  I have a good job, a good income, and finally, I will now have a tangible asset and of course a LOT more responsibility.

This has also been quite a good year for me at work.  My income only continues to grow but more than that I’ve finally reached a point now at work where I can be considered an experienced manager at least by my companies definition.  In April of this next year, I’ll be entering my 7th year with my company and my 5th year as part of the management staff.  I think that without question, that gives me a degree of credibility and earns me some respect from my peers and employees.  People listen to me as a leader, not necessarily because I’ve got the experience under my belt but more because I have and can keep a level head in a VERY unleveled working environment.  I have been able to stick it out and make my job work for me as my career and I’ve been able to promote (or rather convince) other employees that retail employment can really work for you if you let it.  NEVER in my life did I envision myself becoming a retail manager, I think this job is not one that most people dream of having.  I never did.  But, it has worked out very well for me despite having to put up with random idiots, freaks, and fools, I do enjoy my job quite a bit and I enjoy the fact that it keeps me entertained.  I could never go back to a desk job at this point.  How boring, how tedious, how monotonous.  Every day is new adventure for me and I hope that I’m never forced to change that.  It takes a toll on my body but that is of my own doing.  Part of my new routine now going into the new year is to start taking a little better care of my aging body in hopes that it will last me a while.

My photography has also taken off quite well this year.  I purchased a professional level camera in February which has allowed me to capture quite a number of truly amazing photos.  While photography is still just a hobby for me, my work has been featured on Leelanau.com 4 times in the past year, I’ve had multiple requests from people to buy my pictures, I’ve even had to sign an affidavit at Meijer because they could not believe the pictures I was developing with them were my own.  That puts me in an exclusive little club at this Meijer up here.  Their little file isn’t very thick which I suspect says more about their inability to develop quality images using quality materials than it does about me since there are so many great photographers in this region who rightly choose to develop their photos through professional photo labs.  I am looking forward to moving ahead with my photography this next year and perhaps doing another book in addition to the others I’ve already published.

On the family side of my life, I am looking forward to the addition of a niece named Lucy.  This will make child #2 for Sarah and Brian and I could not be a prouder (is that word) Uncle!  I am always saddened that I don’t get to see them very often however that is not uncommon for people in our age group.  Families simply don’t all live in the same city or state any more and I accept that fact I think more than my folks do.  I know they would like to be closer to their grandkids and to Sarah and Brian but it’s not a reality that is possible at this time.  At least it gives all of us a reason to get out of the state every now and then and visit other places.  I’m sure if we did not have family in Iowa, we never would have made it out to Colorado this past fall.  Exploring our environment means having to take risks and having to take trips.  I can’t wait to make a trip out to see little Lucy and her brother Christopher this next year.  I look forward to learning the nickname for Lucy to counter Wally.

I’ll wrap this post up for now and leave by saying that I hope you readers do stick around.  There are lots of things going on in politics right now that I want to write about and share when I can find the time to do it.  At the very least, you will all find some amusement or pleasure in reading what I have to say.  Today then I’m off to clean out my garage in hopes that I’ll soon be able to park my car inside it.  Cheers!

Alright, that’s the most annoying question I get asked 500 times a day.  My rant tonight really has to do with the level of intelligence I see on a daily basis up here in the northwoods. Granted, I’m not highly educated but I do consider the 3rd grade lessons of speaking in complete sentences something that is important in every day life.  I do consider my adolescent years training of knowing how to read, understand, and communicate effectively through appropriate body language something that EVERY person should be able to do.

Alright, thats about all I want to say on that for tonight.  I don’t like to rant too much about work because I do like my job.  It’s just the people I can’t stand.

Most of you know I read a LOT of blogs on line that pretty much span the spectrum of intelligent political discussion to crude humour.  I ran across a quote that I thought was interesting on one of the more obscure blogs that I read.

“The so-called Christian nations are the most enlightened and progressive…but in spite of their religion, not because of it. The Church has opposed every innovation and discovery from the day of Galileo down to our own time, when the use of anesthetic in childbirth was regarded as a sin because it avoided the biblical curse pronounced against Eve. And every step in astronomy and geology ever taken has been opposed by bigotry and superstition. The Greeks surpassed us in artistic culture and in architecture five hundred years before Christian religion was born.”
- Mark Twain

Someone said on NPR the other day that Religion today is more important in the lives of people than at any other point in recent history.  I always have a lot to say about religion, especially science and religion.  It’s nice to know that one of the greatest writers in our history also knew of the asshattery of organized religion.

So now it’s off to bed.  Off on Tuesday, hopefully the weather will get better up here.  This pic cracks me up.

So anyhow, I’ve built a campfire and I’m trying not to get burned up as the wind blows directly into my face.  Gavin is asleep behind me.  We had quite a busy day today.  We hiked Pyramid Point today.  It was quite busy, lots of people around.  Gavin did well.  I have to practice waking with him on a leash lately, he’s so used to not having one and now that the Parks have started issuing tickets rather than just warnings, I have to keep him on one when we go anywhere in the park…(unless it’s completely deserted).  It was quite a nice day for a hike.  Low 70′s and a little overcast.  I got some great pictures that I will likely upload later on tonight once I go back inside for the night.  After that we went down to the beach for some stone hunting.  I found one Petoskey today.  They are getting harder and harder to find up here.  I think the tourists must have figured out what they were and they are taking them all.

After the beach we went home where I promptly fell asleep on the couch for 2 hours.  I was rudely awakened this morning by someone powerwashing my garage doors.  Apparently those are going to either be cleaned now or painted.  I don’t know which one but they could have at least waited to start that noisy shit until 8am don’t ya think?  Anyhow, that pissed off the dog and I just decided to get out of the house as soon as possiable today.  What I was getting as is that I was still quite tired.

It’s getting dark so early now.  It’s only 8PM and already it is dark…dark enough to make me look stupid sitting here outside with the laptop writting in my blog.  Oh well, at least it’s possiable to do.  Now that Dad is wireless, I can use all my toys inside and out and I can write in my blog while sitting in the boat!!…not exactly but close enough.

I’ll write more sometime tomorrow.  Look for new pictures at www.leelanauphotography.com either sometime tonight or tomorrow.

OK, usually when people are assholes to me, I will step back, and take a look at my OWN behavior.  Maybe I’m the one with the problem here, maybe I have the attitude and my existence is just pissing people off.  Once I determine that I’m in reasonably good spirits I look at the bigger picture, what’s my team doing? Is anyone else having these issues.  When it turns out that EVERYONE is having the same problems with customers then there is something much bigger going on, something beyond my direct control.  That’s where we are folks.  EVERY single person I talked to at work is having the same problems with rude, arrogant, and completely oblivious customers.  A LOT of these customers come in to the store just pissed off at the world and ready to fight with anyone who even DARES ask them how they are doing.

Reason:  Its the economy stupid.

So my rant for today is WAKE UP WORLD.  Your lives are ALL way too short to be so pissed off all the time.  You WILL NOT automatically get your way by being rude and inconsiderate of everyone around you, in fact, you will likely end up quite embarrassed that you were so foolish to believe you were ANY better or more important than the person in front of you.  YOUR behavior is the problem, it’s not my fault that you don’t know what the fuck you are doing, it’s not MY fault that you can’t read directions, it’s not MY fault that you are an impatient bastard.  GROW UP FOLKS, love each other…make love not war…

Fucking bastards.

1. You have to be against abortion, but support capital punishment on demand.
2. You have to believe that governments create oppression and businesses create prosperity.
3. You have to believe that the man wearing a turban in the airport is more of a terrorist than the white man carrying a concealed gun.
4. You have to believe that federal funding is a handout and that disadvantaged people should be able to “pull themselves up by their bootstraps,” just like you and your daddy and his daddy before him.
5. You have to believe that someone made up global warming to scare you into not driving that gas-guzzling SUV.
6. You have to believe that being sexually confused is an abomination that God hates.
7. You have to believe that the people advocating those afflicted with AIDS should “stop whining.”
8. You have to believe that if schools don’t provide sex education and/or condoms, then kids just won’t think about sex and it will all just go away.
9. You have to believe that animal rights activists aren’t doing “what God intended,” but hunters are.
10. You have to believe that if someone has fallen on hard times it is their own fault and they should be given no help.
11. You have to believe that God lives in your own little box and that He hates all the same things and people you do.
12. You have to believe that the ACLU is bad because it supports certain parts of the Constitution, while the NRA is good because it supports certain parts of the Constitution.
13. You have to believe that the tax on your yacht is too high and that the homeless man isn’t being taxed enough.
14. You have to believe that the contributions to American history made by Caucasian men are more important than those made by women and African-Americans.
15. You have to believe that Black History Month is reverse racism, but the Confederate flag is just a historical symbol.
16. You have to believe that any war we fight is for a good reason, because the president said so.
17. You have to believe that God loves everyone, except for gay people.
18. You have to believe that this message is part of a crazy, left-wing revolution.

Some people are just irritating.  Others are just plain stupid.

The population is beginning to change now up here for the summer.  Today I pulled into The Coffee Bean to grab a cup of coffee on my way home from work and I had to park next to what I think was the BIGGEST SUV I’ve ever seen in my life.  It was the size of a small school bus, it was BRIGHT white (I hate white cars) and it was clearly driven by someone who cares nothing about how that vehicle makes them look when gas is now at $4.00 a gallon up here.  I would venture to say that the owner of that car has been made rich by the stupidity of others and is now showing off his ego. The only thing missing from this truck was a set of bulls balls for the hitch. (I don’t know who the woman is below, this is just to show you what bulls balls are).

Summer time up here brings with it some pretty crazy people.  Some even more so than the back woods meth-heads that populate the area in the winter.  These people have money, love to show it off, and care about nobody but themselves.  To the locals these people who come up here only on the weekends and then somehow think they live here are known as Fudgies…a horrendously bad nickname in the first place.  These are the folks who whistle at me at work in order to try and get my attention to help them.  Guess what folks, I don’t stop for people who whistle at me.  I’ll loose a sale before I am treated like that.  I’m not a dog, I don’t have a tail.  If you want to treat me like you would a dog than you had better have a treat for me in that fucking bag of yours or I’m going to jump on you, bite you and give you rabies you stupid fucks.  Pardon me, will you help me?.. works much better.

Spent this evening outside raking leaves out of my garden pit.  I’ve got to pick up some mole traps again this year.  They’ve not started yet but I can feel that I’m going to have problems again.  I don’t think the random cats around here will do much to control the problem.  I will be doing another vegetable garden again this summer.  Since I’ll be here for pretty much the entire growing season, it doesn’t make much sense to just let those expensive raised garden beds and premium soil sit there to be used as a big cat box.  Not sure what I’m going to plant, hopefully I can start just about everything from seed this year.  Last year I could not do much form seed because my team member got hurt and I was working 80 hours a week.  I’ve already told the GM’s that I refuse to pull that shit again this year.  My team is perfectly able to run the show when I’m not there…well most of the time they are…they will be after my department meeting with them on Tuesday.  That’s another post.

Here’s some music to listen to while you look at the picture below.

The Winter’s Gone

I expect dumb ass, inconsiderate, and stupid behavior from kids.  I don’t understand why I’m supposed to expect it from 30 year old adults too.

Work was, well, stupid to put it nicely.  It was slow as expected.  What I had forgotten about however was that the typical Christmas Eve shopper is a complete ASSHOLE with a capitol A.  Not only have they put off shopping for Christmas until just a few hours before, they all seem to forget that we employees have families too that we would MUCH rather be spending time with for this holiday.  Even if you are not religious, this holiday in America is about spending time with family.  Do you really think that ANYONE working today actually wanted to be there?  Do you really think that ANY of us give a flying fuck that you are pissed off because we are closing early so WE can spend time with OUR families?  No, you people don’t give a shit about anyone but yourself.   FUCK ALL OF YOU, start shopping earlier next year you MORONS.

Here’s the part where I had a great meal with my folks.

Now on to the part where I am home at the computer and all I can smell in the house is CAT PEE.  I couldn’t take it anymore tonight.  I spent 3 hours cleaning the basement where my roommate lives.  I cleaned the laundry room, her bathroom floors, the entry way (where the cat pee was), I vaccummed for what I guessed was the first time since she moved in.  I had resolved ONLY to keep the laundry room clean since that was a common area of the basement.  She is a grown woman, I am not her fucking housekeeper.  She has free reign of all the other rooms and I don’t feel by any stretch that it is in any way my responsibility to clean her living space.  I clean my living space daily (thanks Mom for training me not to be a complete slob).  I keep the floors clean, I pick up after myself, I do the dishes, I make my bed, I clean my clothes, I fucking shower DAILY.  She does none of those things and I have a FULL vacuum bag to prove it.  Sadly, when she returns from her little holiday, she will not have noticed that anything is different.  I will not be thanked for cleaning up her cat’s pee and litter that was all over the floor.  I won’t be thanked for throwing out a dipping sauce from 3 months ago that had things growing on it.  I won’t be thanked for clipping the dead leaves off her pathetic looking house plants and watering them.  She won’t notice that the floor is clean, her laundry is folded, the cat boxes are clean and they all have food.  She won’t know that I threw away 5 really old orange peels that had dried up or that I spent 30 minutes cleaning the carpets with spot treatment to get who knows what out of the floors that weren’t there before she moved in.

The fact that I’ve still managed to remain civil to her is amazing.  I should in fact receive a gold star but alas I won’t.  She’s been bitching lately that it smells in the basement.  WELL DUHHHHHHH dip shit.  When you don’t pick up after yourself things STINK.

Anyhow, I’m done now.  Now I’m going to relax and finish preparing for Christmas Day.  I still have a couple of things yet I need to do with the gifts and I’ll be good to go.  Have a Happy Christmas readers, I’ll be back on the 26th or soon there after with more from my crazy life.