Obama, Will Ferrell, and Another Reason To Hate Hunting

NEWS FLASH is basically news or thoughts that may be changing over time - an update or an evolution of thought that covers a multiple of topics. It is what makes a blogger tick and it is the reason why we read. So, with that in mind, I came up with NEWS FLASH as an acronym that stands for what is going on in life:



News (or current events)
Entertainment (movies, TV, celebrity, etc.)
Work (thoughts on the job or employer)
Spirit (thoughts on God and/or the supernatural)
Family (or friends)
Love
Anxiety (a rant or a trouble)
Sports (also considered should be contests, reality tv, recreation, cards, games), and
Home (house, yard, or even another family type of thought.
___________________________________________________________________

NEWS - I am finally ready to make a prediction in the presidential race. No, this prediction isn't based on any psychic thoughts so those of you trying to urge me to get back into that deal can relax. Nope, this is based on my knowledge of politics and political history. So, with my poli-sci degree held firmly in hand, Psychosomatic Wit projects Senator Barack Obama the winner of the Democratic nomination for president.

Here is the reason: Hillary Clinton has no chance without the super delegates alligning for her. For those of you that do not know, super delegates are those who vote for who they want to regardless of how the citizens voted in their states. The super delegates will NOT vote for Clinton if the majority of the popular vote and elected delegates support Obama. It looks like this will be the case.

The Democrat party cannot afford to have the appearance to steal the election away from an African-American. It would ultimately lose a big portion of their voting base if they did. African-Americans are loyal to a culture more than a party. They were overwhelmingly Republican until 1960 - when the Kennedys championed ML King and the causes of civil rights. As a group with a painful history of oppression, they could easily change allegiances if they feel betrayed. Since African-Americans are overwhelmingly supporting Obama, Democrats will have to tread lightly. They would easily risk the White House this year to the Republicans in return for not losing the African-American portion of their base.

ENTERTAINMENT - I caught the new movie, Semi-Pro, the new Will Ferrell vehicle. If you like all of his other movies, you will like this one. If you are wanting something a little different, you will be disappointed. What bothers me the most about his movies is that they could make them "PG" without losing any humor. Think of the funniest parts of a Will Ferrell movie. They are seldom the things that would cause an "R" rating. I guess we will always be stuck with some content that isn't suitable for kids - or the rest of us for that matter.

WORK - Things are picking up a pretty good pace here. I have a big meeting coming up, an annual report and a budget that has to be done. I also, have to reschedule our big event that was cancelled because of weather. On top of that, my intern disappeared and got married. She is just 17 and still in high school. Poor kid!

SPIRIT - Life is very difficult and confusing right now for me. It feels like I am ALWAYS at a crossroads. I honestly don't know what is going to happen with any facet of my life presently. These are the times when I thank God that I don't have to know. I can let go of the wheel and let God guide me to where I need to be. My best thinking has gotten me to this state of confusion so I understand that surrendering to a higher power is the best way to get me to where I need to be. I just so happen to be able to commune with the highest power. Praise God.

FAMILY - Oh boy, my little sister is in the hospital again and they want to put her in a nursing home. She is not happy about it. Every one in my family has car troubles and transportation now is at a premium. We (my wife and I) are down to one working vehicle. We'll get by.

LOVE - I continue to learn and practice stated learning about how to deal with my marriage. Lately, my wife has been struggling emotionally. It scares me, but now I have been just giving her space. She has told me that she doesn't want space during these times, but I guess I want it. I don't trust myself to say the right things. As thin as I am spread now, I REALLY don't trust myself.

ANGUISH - What is bothering me the most right now is illness. I just can't seem to get and stay healthy. I think it is a combination of being spread too thin, being around little kids that I tutor, and not getting enough rest. Now, on top of this horrible cold that I have, I also sport a conglomeration of cold sores on my upper lip. It is the worst thing. Everywhere I go, I feel like that Tide commercial for the stain remover where the guy is in a job interview, but the stain on his shirt keeps attracting the interviewers attention by shouting nonsense words while the poor guy is trying to answer the interview questions. With me, it is the cold sores that draw the attention of everyone around me like ham sandwich attracts a dog's. Either I have the worst colds on the planet, or I am the biggest baby when it comes to colds. I don't really care which it is, the fact remains that I really suffer through these things.

SPORTS - It is championship week for college basketball. The tournament brackets come out Sunday and I am usually in the middle of several pools. I normally run my own, so if anyone wants to fill out a bracket, let me know. It is hard to be too excited for my Indiana team, though. They haven't done very well since losing their cheater of a coach. I think they are probably one win and done this year, which is a shame since they have all the ingredients to make a strong run.

HOME - The drama of the week around the homestead has to be with my retriever Marley. A while back, I told you about his problem with his hip and back. You should read about it here to get the full effect of this bit of drama. Ninety-nine percent of you are skipping the link and continuing so I guess that is your loss. Anyway, we took him to our new vet (the one my wife now works for) to see what he thought about it. He cleaned out some infected scar tissue and had an x-ray done. The x-ray should have been done last year by former vet because it had an interesting story to tell. My poor dog, Marley, has an arrow head in his back. It is one of those nasty hunter's tips that expand inside its target. It barely missed his spinal cord but is still causing problems. Someone must have shot him from a deer stand when he was just a little pup. The bones have now grown around the arrow head and it will nearly be impossible to get out. The vet has referred him to another vet in another town that is more of an expert on this type of back thing. This will be very expensive so we can kiss Jamaica goodbye.

You know, I really hate hunting and the whole hunting mentality. How someone can get enjoyment out of killing beautiful animals is beyond my ability to understand. It is also pretty scary. I mean, if someone can guiltlessy slaughter a beautiful and graceful deer, how far is that removed from blowing away an ugly and offending human? Now I have a great dog that has been suffering needlessly for years because someone with no sense was, and probably still is, weilding a weapon. It sickens me.

NEWS FLASH #17

NEWS FLASH is basically news or thoughts that may be changing over time - an update or an evolution of thought that covers a multiple of topics. It is what makes a blogger tick and it is the reason why we read. So, with that in mind, I came up with NEWS FLASH as an acronym that stands for what is going on in life:


News (or current events)
Entertainment (movies, TV, celebrity, etc.)
Work (thoughts on the job or employer)
Spirit (thoughts on God and/or the supernatural)
Family (or friends)
Love
Anxiety (a rant or a trouble)
Sports (also considered should be contests, reality tv, recreation, cards, games), and
Home (house, yard, or even another family type of thought.
___________________________________________________________________

Bear with me while I am still unpacking. It was quite a trip (proverbially speaking), but it is good to be home.

NEWS - Have you heard about this new superbug staph infection thing that is killing folks in record numbers? I don't know if this could be considered as part of my predictions or not. Back in January, I predicted, "there will be a new pest related problem (insect, etc.) that will either threaten people's health or damage major agricultural production." Even though this thing is being called a "superbug", I guess it is a stretch. There was already some kind of thing that someone told me about that was agricultural some months back, but this is more what I had in mind.

ENTERTAINMENT - Saturday night, as a part of my one-year anniversary celebration, my wife and I saw The Classical Mystery Tour. It was wonderful! If you are even marginally a Beatles fan, you should do what you can to see this production. The Broadway cast of Beatlemania were accompanied by the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra in a stunning time warp extravaganza (I don't have a joke here; I just like to use the term, "extravaganza"). Do yourself a favor and check here to see if this show is coming to a venue near you. (Psst, Charles, they are coming to Rochester.)

WORK - The office has calmed down. I should cruise into the new year from here - barring unforseen tragedies.

SPIRIT - I have been doing a lot of self-reflection lately. I have determined that I am a wretched human being. No, I don't steal or cheat on my wife, but my heart harbors some awful things that leaves a bad taste not only in my mouth but on down to the deepest part of my gut. I may explore this more in the future - probably in my other blog that most of you don't read, so you will be spared. However, I am in too good a mood to go there today.

FAMILY - I have two disable sisters and one disabled mother. One of my sisters STILL hasn't been granted "disabled" status although she has multiple physical problems that prevent her from walking much. Plus, she is in pain quite a bit and is an acute diabetic. She cannot work; she is going to lose her apartment (the power has already been cut off). She applied for disability two years ago and even has attorneys working on it. Now, she is sleeping on my mothers' couch. Because she isn't technically "disabled" yet, she also cannot get healthcare or consistently take her prescribed medications. She needs insulin twice a day, but she rations it. I am genuinely concerned about her future here on Earth. When I think about the status of healthcare here in the US, I am sickened by the greed that rules us in the guise of "healthy capitalism". Did I mention that I was in a good mood?

LOVE - As mentioned earlier, my wife and I have made it a whole year. We had a wonderful few days of celebration. We saw a play, went out for a nice dinner, ate some year-old wedding cake, and capped the thing off with The Classical Mystery Tour. Whodathunkit?!?

ANXIETY - My dog, Marley, will not leave his hip alone. He had a problem with it in the past. You can read about it at the link above, but it healed up - a few times. I think he has developed a habit of messing with it and so it never fully heals up. It used to be a growth, but now it is just a sore where he continues to irritate it. A few days ago, I put a funnel-collar on him so he can't get to it. I can't tell if it is healing up or not, but he is dangerous with that plastic monstrosity on his head. He terrorizes the other dogs with it, unknowingly, but they are scared to death of him when he wears it. You would think he had a Hoover upright on his head, for crying out loud, by the way the other dogs are acting.

SPORTS - My Cincinnati teams now have TWO African-American head coaches leading them. The Bengals have Marvin Lewis as the head coach of the team for the past five years. Now, the Reds named Dusty Baker to take over the manager duties of the baseball team. This is somewhat significant because Cincinnati has a reputation of being backward when it comes to racially equality. Congrats to the men and the city.

HOME - Things at home were the cause of my hiatis from the blog. Things seem to be stable now and that is a plus. My wife has started work as a veterinarian' assitant/secretary. This will help in a whole lot of areas. We need the income as many of you have kept up know, but also she gets (or will get) significant discounts on vet care. Hang in there, Marley!

I am not going to get into details about the reasons for my hiatis. Some things are best left alone. I often wondered if anyone out there had theories why I was gone. At any rate, I am back for now and hopefully permanently - but I can't promise.

Cut it Out? Not Yet!

My head is spinning. This is a frantic week for me. I thought I was going to have to my dog, Marley go under the knife again. The growth he had on his hip returned. For some reason, I failed to mention this before, so I will fill you in.

When we first got Marley back in late October, he had a growth on his hip. The woman that gave him to us said that the vet didn't think it was a big deal. Not long, he began to mess with it. He would lick and chew till finally it started leaving little doggy fluid tracks all over the place. I took him to the vet where they removed it and told me that it was due to some foreign material that was a result of a puncture wound. They cleaned it out and it healed up okay.

I noticed last week that the growth came back and he started messing with it again. I took him to the vet and they recommended that it be cleaned out AGAIN with the additional cost of about $500. This was very troublesome. I didn't really have the money nor did I want Marley to have to go through the ordeal again. I started him on antibiotics Friday.

I told the vet of my theory about how they probably didn't get all the foreign matter out last time and it festered up again around the fragment. She didn't like that theory, but was not offering a theory of her own. I told her that I couldn't afford to do the surgery every couple of months. She agreed but offered nothing of any value.

Last night, I noticed that the growth was smaller and it was draining. I took him to the vet for the appointed surgery and told them unless there was a compelling reason to do the surgery TODAY, I was going to take Marley home and keep an eye on it. That is just what I did.

This has been the first time that I have been flirting at discontentment with this vet. There are four doctors that work there and I seem to get a different one each time I come in. I am not thrilled about that. Now, I am wondering about the competence of some of them and the ethics of others. I don't REALLY think they are incompentant or unethical, but this situation makes me uncomfortable all the way around. I know that medical work isn't guaranteed, but there should be some kind of compassion for the pocketbooks of those that struggle yet give their pets priority.

If only I could put Marley on my med plan at work!