Spent the day cleaning up ash in the back yard. We finally got some real sunlight today:) I'll have to try washing my truck tomorrow, good thing it's already gray!

I have to get some of the pics up from my trips this summer before it actually turns into 2008. As we get older time just can't be caught up with- why is that? I remember the last time I was actually BORED. It was in Ohio in the summer sometime in the 80's! I guess that means I need to slow down. Well see on that one...

The fires are really bad out here! I'm not in any fire danger where I live and it's like living in an ashtry! I can't imagine how the people closer to the fire are coping. All the homes lost and people evacuated, it's so sad to see. I hope they catch the idiot arsonist that set the canyon fires! What an evil person!

Obviously I have been out of the country this summer. I can't believe my last post was almost a month ago in Hong Kong! As soon as I have a chance to go through the 5,000 pictures I took on my trip I'll have them posted as well. Hong Kong was a fun place, the JW Mariott is a gorgeous hotel! From there we went to Beijing, and then on to Tokyo. In July I went to Los Cabos for a week in Mexico and I still haven't caught up from that trip! More later...........

Po Lin Monastery




A few buildings I spotted the other day. The really tall one in the middle was featured in the movie "Tomb Radier"

A really fuzzy picture of Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle giving Rudy a Stanley Cup Hat from the Ducks.

Okay, so it's June already! Some global warming, I barely have a tan. I even had to go to Laughlin to get it! On top of that, it wasn't that warm there either. Ahh...... back to my outlet for whining.
I went to the Flag Day dinner last night in Irvine, along with 1100 other Orange County Republicans. Rudy Guiliani gave a speech that convinced me that he should be our next President! Well, now Rudy can relax since I'm on his side:) If you weren't there, you need to watch some of the video clips from the OC Register's website.
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1725243.php

He talked about what's really important, illegal immigration and our security. Oh, and as a bonus....... he had a plan. An actual plan for stopping illegal immigration. Of course, building the already-authorized fence and enforcing the already-made laws made too much common sense. So he went beyond that and talked about a plan implemented in NY that significantly reduced crime. Then he spoke of how we could use that plan to stop the illegals from continuing to pour over the border. Simple. Yeah, yeah, I know...... sounds good if he means it. I think he does.
I bought a great picture of Ronald Reagan at the Berlin Wall, it even has his autograph in the frame. It was a great night, five hours went really quick. I felt bad for Steve Poizner, our Insurance Commissioner, he had to try speaking after Rudy and through dinner. John Kobylt from KFI AM 640 was there, he's so funny! I knew I could count on him to yap long enough for a restroom break.

Okay, I can't believe that January is almost over already. Halloween thru Superbowl just seems to fly by every year! Time to start adding up the tax stuff now that the year end stuff is out of the way. Maybe around March I'll get the 2007 files started. Right now that's just another box on the office floor. I need a personal assistant!
I had to get away so I flew to Laughlin last week for a couple of days. I had never been there in the winter, and now I know why. It's cold! I prefer to lay in the 115 degree sun on a lounge chair drug into the 55 degree river. Instead I was stuck inside a freezing casino full of smoke. I still hit my blazin' 7's though, so I can't complain too much:)
Well, back to the piles of paperwork!

Happy New Year!

This blog entry is for the people ( Terry) that are complaining I haven't updated recently. Basically someone is complaining that I'm not complaining enough. Perfect!
What can I say? I found out the $34k for my surgery is now $35k and that's just a "facility fee" which doesn't begin to cover any of the surgery or Doctors. Lovely. The ambulance ride turned out to be $747. I was driven about a mile. Insurance pays $250 maximum. I'm realizing that my insurance sucks. It would probably be cheaper if I had no insurance and just paid the "cash" rate. If I didn't have a job, a home, citizenship, responsibility...................... I guess then it would be free. Something just isn't adding up. Gee, I wonder if the ArnoldCare will fix all these problems? Oh, wait, I'm an employer that will have to fire people to keep my employee count to under 10 to avoid paying 4% of my recently minimum-wage-increased payroll so that everyone will have healthcare. Meanwhile, I'll be working more hours to pay 20-50% of a bloated hospital bill because of a useless organ! I would really like to have a talk with the salesman that sold me my insurance 8 years ago. At almost $500 a month for coverage I should not have to pay the price of a small vehicle for a one night stay in the hospital! Well, at least I am alive and well. I can't afford to dead yet:)

Friday night and I'm watching TV still recovering from surgery. I can't believe a week has gone by already! I must have watched over a dozen movies this week, several of them filmed in South Africa? The "Constant Gardener," and "Duma" were among my favorites. Except now I want a pet cheetah. Honestly, who can stand to watch any of the day time TV shows? Anyway, I started researching appendix on the internet and came across this extremely helpful site:

http://www.louisck.com/appendixremoval.htm

Check it out, it's funny!

I found out that having an appendix is unnecessary and potentially excruciatingly painful! I am home from the hospital after having an emergency appendectomy. Just the fun I had hoped for over the Thanksgiving weekend. A nice turkey dinner with friends, a little Texas Hold'em, and a 4am wake up call the next morning from what feels like a knife in your stomach! I did get to ride in an ambulance for the first time, the EMT's were kind of cute. All day in the ER was not a day I wish on anyone. Everything looked fine after several tests and the doctor left it up to me if I wanted to do a CT Scan. A few banana milk shakes later ( minus what I immediately returned to them via the little pink trays,) I was off for a scan of my insides. I was sure they would spot some sort of alien trying to dig it's way out of my stomach. Another couple of hours went by when a doctor dressed in a nice suit showed up and asked me to point with one finger to where it hurt. A few pokes later and I was on my way to surgery. Next thing I knew I was in recovery looking at a lovely picture of a balloon-like object that was about to become organ confetti had they waited much longer. Guess I'm lucky! That would've required at least a couple weeks in the hospital provided I didn't die.
The "lucky" feeling did start to wear off when the hospital called today and demanded a payment of $1,000 towards the so-far bill of $34,000. Maybe I should've turned down that one vicodin pill at 5am, I should really start cutting out unnecessary items. Oh, wait....... that's exactly what I did:)

Here we go again.............. I picked the football games again this week in place of Randy. He gave up after getting beat by my intricate, complicated, well-thought-out process whereby I choose winners based on color and mascot. Well, at least this week.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/sports/columns/article_1351441.php


Had a great time last night celebrating with all the Marines! Semper Fi!

Happy Veteran's Day!

Happy Birthday USMC!

I actually won the football picks against Randy in the OC Register, or so I was told by a customer of mine today. The Lions even won:) I did a lot of research on that pick. ( I like cats.)

I was wondering why I hadn't received my mail today when I got home after 4pm. It's not a holiday, the mailman didn't skip my house, gee........... why the delay? Well, I just went out to check the mailbox and I should've known. It's the big Election tomorrow! I already voted absentee last week but that doesn't stop the influx of last minute slate, smear, irritating voter guides. I received 45 campaign mailers just today! 45! Please! I also received one very nice, precise, clear flyer from a gentleman running for City Council, George M. Collins. It stated on the flyer that he would not be adding to the mess created in our landfills by all the political propaganda mailers and yard signs. I did get a chance to hear him speak at a meeting last week and was impressed by his intelligence and abundance of common sense so lacking in the other politicians. The fact he's not sending out mailers or using yard signs leads me to believe that besides wanting to save the environment, he also has no money. Too bad, seems like a good guy.
Check out his website:
http://www.collins4council.com/

Unfortunately I haven't been able to help out with this election like I had planned. I'm still trying to recover from the car accident 2 years ago. There's good days and bad days. I did have a great couple of months this summer though! ) I still need to get those pictures uploaded before the year is over.) Anyway, let's just hope for the best tomorrow. That is, let's hope the Democrats stay home and the pissed off Republicans realize that they don't need to make grudge votes!

Well, back to work. I cannot turn on the TV right now with the ad blitz. One more commercial with Cruz Bostonian's saying how fat he used to be and I'll scream! What does being fat have to do with being the Insurance Commissioner? Go back to being a butcher Cruz!

My "diehard" Angels pic that wasn't included in Randy Youngman's article:)

Okay, I am no expert on football and here's proof in today's Orange County Register:

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/sports/columns/article_1344283.php

How else was I going to make it into the sports section?