New Shoes in the Rain

Did you watch the Oscars at your house, as we did at our manse?  All in all it wasn't a bad show, although not very fulfilling for a variety of reasons. Let's get the business of the first time host, animation producer and part-time big-band crooner Seth MacFarlane, out of the way right up front.  The guy is the brains behind numerous animated programs like "Family Guy," "American Dad" and others, and also wrote, directed and kind of starred in a movie called "Ted" last year.  Subtlety and propriety are not among his strong suits, and were Seth here now to discuss with us, he'd most likely agree readily. I thought MacFarlane was entertaining, somewhat bawdy, sang and performed well when called upon (he often sings in character in the context of his animated programs) and did the host "thing" well enough.  The theme of the ceremony was some sort of a salute to music in the movies, and I'm sure he didn't object but he also h...

Did you hear that the United States Postal Service is really, finally going to suspend delivery of regular mail on Saturdays?  But they're waiting until August?  And the Post Offices that are currently open on Saturdays will continue that practice, and packages where the sender has paid the extra fees for Saturday delivery will also be delivered. Let's think about the Postal Service for a moment.  They're the only federal government agency or program that's required to fund in advance and in full its retiree healthcare program for 75 years.  The agency lost over $11 billion just in the first three quarters of 2012. Heard somewhere that UPS contracts with the USPS to deliver a large percentage of its packages.  Why?  Because the Postal Service is already delivering mail to remote areas.  UPS (and FedEx and the other package services) figured out long ago that they couldn't do what the Postal Service does and try to make a profit, which, of course, i...

Greetings, one and all.....checking in today from windy Richmond, Virginia.  I had loads of fun getting here yesterday, as my home area in central Kentucky was afflicted with heavy wind and rain early yesterday morning, and my flight connection in Atlanta was delayed 90 minutes by the same.  But I'm here, and arrived safely, so that's what counts. As promised, today's entry concerns a new item in my business travel arsenal. You no doubt recall my past mentions of Colonel Littleton, the unique "purveyor of fine accouterments in the Americana tradition."  My gateway drug happened to be the No. 48 Phone Holster, which led to the No. 5 iPad Pocket, then the Front Pocket Wallet, then the No. 3 Mousepad and finally the No. 3 Key Ring.  I'm looking around the hotel room to see if I failed to mention anything! Anyway, all through this period of becoming more familiar with and fascinated by the Colonel's operations and products, I had very much wanted one of ...

Greetings, all.....snow and cold has struck central Kentucky overnight, making a mess of roads and the morning commute.  Not that it affects me, since I work at home.  A number of school systems here in my home area had already cancelled school for today in an effort to be proactive and safe, and it looks as though they were right. So Kentucky's very young basketball team lost another one, this time on the road at Alabama on Tuesday night.  They're not world-beaters this year, by any stretch of the imagination.  But what I find puzzling and even a little troubling is that there have been comments posted online in various places I visit talking about the "sad state of Kentucky basketball."  Remember, Kentucky's team won the NCAA men's basketball championship LAST YEAR. Suppose that there are NFL cities where the same thing is happening, as it's going to be the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens clashing in this year's Super Bowl (I have no...

Good morning, one and all...I hope that January is unfolding in a positive direction for you. Lots of changes happening these days.  I can't talk about work in this space, prohibited from doing so by my company's policies, but suffice it to say that I now work for different people (three of them) than I have for the past several years.  Should be interesting going forward. I can't recall if I'd mentioned this here, but my wife retired from full-time work about eighteen months ago, then spent a little more than a year as a part-time employee at a daycare center.  She stepped away from that job in October, so she and I are still adjusting to her not going off to work each day and leaving me here at the ranch working (if I'm not traveling).  We're doing fine with is, but it's change, so it requires a little adaptation. With time around the house, my wife is on a tear cleaning out drawers and cabinets.   Nothing catastrophic, but I can tell you that our tr...

Happy New Year,  everyone!  I hope 2012 was a good year for you and yours, as it was for me and my family, and I also hope that 2013 brings even more positives! Quick health update:  my sinus infection apparently made a little bit of a comeback in the past ten days. Nothing I couldn't handle, and I was able to function normally, eat, etc., but what a nuisance.  I'm really tired of blowing my nose, although with this much practice, I must say that I have achieved a high level of proficiency. I suppose the United States Senate feels pretty proficient this morning, having passed a tax relief bill in the wee hours this morning.  NOTE:  I'd like to know who either wasn't present for this vote or abstained!  But our country went over the "fiscal cliff" anyway, which I suppose we all knew would happen anyway.  After all, President Obama jokingly said that this Congress, if given one extra second to do anything, would wait until that second was exhaus...

Merry Christmas, albeit belatedly, to all.  I hope that you were able to enjoy some special time with family and friends during this most festive of seasons. I love Christmas, always have, but I believe I love it more now that I'm older.  It's especially rewarding with grandchildren in the family, as the wonder and amazement that the Christmas season holds for little ones is unmatched. I think I gained a greater appreciation for Christmas once I became a parent, or, more correctly, stepparent, which happened virtually simultaneously with my marriage almost 27 years ago.  Once you have others for whom you'll be the primary giver of gifts, it all changes.  And so much for the better! So we had a wonderful Christmas in our family.  We traveled to Colorado to see our daughter and her family (our granddaughter there is approaching celebrity status, having performed for the second consecutive year in the local production of "The Nutcracker" AND played in a mini ...