Ah, Christmas in the 'hood

Christmas Eve A-hole playing loud music

Christmas Day at Moon River Brewing

Boom Boom! Out go the Lights!

All is calm, not a ho' in sight!

Ah, Christmas time. On Christmas Eve, this A-hole was playing music so loud it was rattling my windows. I opened the door and yelled this is not an entertainment zone- turn it down. Someone at Dirty South must have said something 'cause he jumped into his car and left.
On Christmas Day, it was so quiet in the 'hood. Not a ho' nor a drug dealer in sight! However, minutes after I took the above photo, a scumbag started walking into the driveway next door, unzipping his fly and pissing while he was walking. Nice.
Later on  Christmas Day, we went uptown to Moon River Brewing Company. Cute sign.. Yes, you can get a beer to go, and drink it while walking in the historic district from River Street until I think Liberty Street. NOT here in the 'hood, though you would think so with so many people walking around with cans...

Somebody is getting their lights shut off at the rooming house. Ha Ha. Merry Christmas!

It's officially winter

Bird bath

This greeted the birds on Saturday morning, the first full day of winter. Why does the bird bath look cloudy? It is full of ICE! Yes, it is officially winter.

This morning, Bill left for Massachusetts. Rachel leaves for NYC on Friday and Bill returns on Saturday. I'm not sure when Rachel will be back. She is going to a concert in Virginia then off to NYC to see the ball drop in Times Square. Not sure when she will be back. It will be quiet here. I'm looking forward to scrap booking and reading. I picked up "Trust me I'm Dr. Ozzy." It's an advice book based on a column that Ozzy writes. Yes, Ozzy giving advice on love, diet, exercise and drugs... Who Knew?

I made up some really cute Christmas cards. Kind of like dioramas. Sending them out late, but oh well...Each one is different.

Hell time

It's been a tough week. Last Saturday (the 15th) I came down with a migraine. Thought there was plenty of meds under the counter...Turns out the boxes were hormone therapy crap not Imitrex. Bitch. I tried all day to sleep, took Exedrin Migraine and 800mg. Ibuprofen, but to no avail. On Sunday afternoon I drove to Charleston SC by my frigging self, while Bill watched TV and/or slept in the big chair. Nice. I got a shot, and then had to drive the 115+ miles back home.  Only bright spot was the Subaru, listed as 29 mpg on the highway, I got 30 on my round trip. Pretty impressive. Then, Monday morning, I woke up with the migraine headache again. I went to the VA clinic in Savannah (which isn't open on the weekends and no longer really takes walk-ins) at 7:30AM and finally got my shot at 11. Then I came home and slept for a few hours. Though I kept getting twinges of pain in my right eye, the migraine did not come back.

I was supposed to have a job interview at a temp agency for Paralegal work on Monday at 10. Had to re-schedule it since I was sitting at the VA almost in tears at that point. I will be sure to never run out of migraine pills again...My appointment has been re-scheduled for after Christmas. We will see if anything comes of this.

Savannah Tech is offering to teach us Tax Prep on Jan 17 for free. We have to agree to donate (i.e.means NOT get paid) time to prepare taxes for underprivileged. I'm OK with that. It will give me something else to add to the resume. It's all good. Now, we just have to watch what congress does. They MAY NOT extend the child care tax credit of $2500, it may drop to $1000. That does not bode well for me.

Lastly, Rachel finished high school 2 weeks ago today. We were told by Savannah Tech that if she got a letter stating that, she could be accepted there and could start taking classes in January. We got the letter but when we went back to SavTech, turns out the person who told us that, was dead wrong. She cannot start there and have the Pell Grant/Hope Scholarship pay because the district will not give her a diploma at this time. She can go to school if I want to PAY cash.. WTF? I don't have the money. The point was she wanted to use both Hope Scholarship and the Pell Grant and then she would get cash back.They will not pay until she gets the diploma. Those will only be issued in late January (after college classes start) or in June. She wants to walk with her class and has opted for June. That said, the grants/scholarships won't pay without a diploma to even start classes. CATCH -22... So, instead she will work full time and make money to buy a better car before starting college in the fall. That is still not a bad plan.

I like this!

"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting."

-- E.E. Cummings, American poet

Professionals make all the difference

Non-Professionals cut tree and fence

Professionals cut trees

This is what happens when you hire professionals to cut down trees in your yard. Several guys show up, they have saws, and ropes, and boots made for climbing. They clean up the yard and it all looks good.

Then, you have the non-professional... Guy showed up with a tiny chainsaw across the alley on 34th street. Standing on the roof of his vehicle, he cut limbs and dropped them ... Then, he dropped the frigging SAW. Take a look at the fence! it is all cut up... Bill was watching this scene and was positive the guy was going to cut off his leg.. After this fiasco, the dude was done...

School days

Today is supposed to be Rachel's last day of high school. She is taking her end of course test for mathematics and then she will have all her requirements to graduate in June. Cool! No more screaming at her from the bottom of the stairs to GET UP! and GO TO SCHOOL. YEAY! She is planning on signing up at Savannah Tech to take some classes in January. That will be good for her, but she doesn't need EARLY classes...

I'm finishing up my semester at Sav Tech. Not thrilled. My presentation last night went OK. After I was nearly done with my presentation last Wednesday, the asshole teacher said "I thought I had told you that you don't do the presentation on the author that you did your research paper on," I was thoroughly pissed. So, without asking, I decided to do my presentation on Bob Dylan, an American Poet and the song- "The times they are a -changin'." It went well but I didn't break down the rhyming style. Too f'n bad. The scheme wasn't important. The lyrics are. I used my I-phone to play a clip from the song. My PowerPoint presentations are always different from everybody elses...My classmates liked it, but I'm sure the bitch gave me a B or even a B-, just because she is that way. Can't wait for this semester to be over.

Tumultuous week

It has been a one of those weeks. On Monday evening, my mother was hit by a car while walking her dogs. On Tuesday (by the way, that was my birthday) she had surgery to repair her broken pelvis and shattered knee. Today, I believe she is having surgery on her TWO broken arms. Then, next week she will have surgery on her broken leg. Damn. After the flight by helicopter, I guess she can write that off her bucket list...

Peg being Air Lifted to Hospital

2 weeks ago, I came down with some god-awful stomach virus. I went to the VA and got a note to stay out of  school on 11/19. So that was the day my literature teacher gave out the assignment for us to complete a Powerpoint that we will present next Monday (Dec 3rd) in front of the class. When I went back to school the day before Thanksgiving, she handed me the rubric stating what the requirements were for the assignment. I worked on mine over the next week and last night went to class with mine nearly done. Half way through class, she said that it could NOT be on the author we had previously written out term paper on. WTF? She never stated that to me before. What an asshole. Now I have to research another author. I am PISSED. I will definitely slam her on my review....She is such a little bitch. She and I butted heads the very first night of class when I looked at the syllabus and saw we had to read Flannery O'Conner, an angry woman from Savannah (she had some terminal disease and died in her early 40's, I believe). Turns out, this teacher LOVES her and did her master's thesis on O'Conner. I told her that I refuse to read another word that angry bitch wrote. That was that. I don't see me getting an A in that class. Ha Ha...

"It is the studying that you do after your school days that really counts. Otherwise, you know only that which everyone else knows."

-- Henry Doherty

Patriots 49 Jets 19

Stop me when you've heard this before... The Jets just fumbled. (#4)

The day before Thanksgiving

 

"A major stimulant to creative thinking is focused questions. There is something about a well-worded question that often penetrates to the heart of the matter and triggers new ideas and insights."

-- Brian Tracy, Author 

Not much happening. I have class tonight. Finished my paper on Thoreau and Civil Disobedience. Not my best work but not too bad either.  I do believe we need to start a revolution and civil disobedience is a good way to start. This country is not in a good place. Weak leadership is keeping the country involved in wars we have no need to be involved in as well as forcing the American people to support a new health care system while not providing funding for it (which was passed by people that didn't read it and who don't have to pay for it because Congress get free healthcare for life...) and calling it a TAX, this is beyond ridiculous. This country is now no better off than a third world nation.

 

Ah, the new normal

Over five thousand years ago, Moses said to the children of Israel , "Pick up your shovels, mount your asses and camels, and I will lead you to the Promised Land."

Nearly 75 years ago, (when Welfare was introduced) Roosevelt said, "Lay down your shovels, sit on your asses, and light up a Camel, this is the Promised Land."

Today, Congress has stolen your shovel, taxed your asses, raised the price of Camels and mortgaged the Promised Land!

I was so depressed last night thinking about Health Care Plans, the economy, the wars, lost jobs, savings, Social Security, retirement funds, etc ....

I called a Suicide Hotline.

I had to press 1 for English.

I was connected to a call center in Pakistan ..I told them I was suicidal.

They got excited and asked if I could drive a truck......

Folks, we're screwed

Interesting note on the news today

Heard on the news that many states are planning on seceding from the United States. Wow! We are living in historic times. Obama and his policies have polarized this country and now we have proof.

"I quietly declare war with the State, after my fashion, though I will still make what use and get what advantage of her I can, as is usual in such cases."

Henry David Thoreau 1848

"I was taught to strive not because there were any guarantees of success, but because the act of striving is in itself the only way to keep faith with life."

-- Madeleine Albright, secretary of state

"Nurture your mind with great thoughts for you will never go any higher than you think."

-- Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield

Amazing

Friday night, Rachel took the Honda and drove with 3 friends to a concert in Columbia SC (that's 300 miles round trip!). Surprise, it made it with no problems. Cost $55 in gas but that's not bad since it was split between the 4 girls. I'm grateful I didn't get a call in the middle of the night!

I'm pleased, I have no school tomorrow. Gives me plenty of time to do my homework. Rachel is not happy as Chatham county has school.. Ha Ha.

Oh Boy! the Patriots won today. Another heart stopper. They were ahead by like 14 points at half time. Then in the last 2 minutes, they were only ahead by 6 and the Bills had the ball and were closing in on the goal line. Good thing it wasn't on TV. I would have walked out of the room yelling at Belicheck and Brady! But, the Pats managed to save it with an interception in the end zone. Whew!

I didn't watch the Falcons, but they finally lost today. They were 8-0 for the season. Pretty remarkable. This could be their year...Still not going to a Falcons fan, just saying that they are having a good run of it.

The other day I saw a real piece of sh*t car on Bay Street (had Chatham County tag). A 4 door Toyota that had been hit in the front, had no hood, had been hit on the passenger side and the 2 side doors were tied closed together with a rope, had been hit in the rear and had a GREEN bungee cord holding the trunk closed (like Rachel's car used to have!). Wow! There was a bumper sticker on it that said "Never Settle". (?)

Typical

True then, true today

Well, got a check from the attorney's office for work performed. Check was late. And, when I went to the bank, guess what? Bounced again. WTF?
I had to call the office and 2 hours later the money was transferred into the account. What kind of way is that to do business? I haven't been called to meet with any clients lately even though they gave me paperwork for a different attorney out of Atlanta.

Still haven't sold the I phone. Every time I renew it on Craigslist, I get e-mails that say, still available? Then either nothing or the scam- I'll pay you $100 over asking price if you will ship it.. No, I'm not shipping anything. The point of using Craigslist is to sell to local people. Craigslist is becoming a huge scam.

Rachel and the election

Rachel doesn't pay much attention to the news. Rachel doesn't pay any attention to elections. BUT!
This morning she said "Washington and Colorado legalized pot." I asked if she was thinking about moving, and she said she's thinking Colorado. Rocky Mountain High has a whole new meaning!

Obviously the financial community don't have much faith in the US . Dow Jones dropped over 300 points on the Wonderful news of Obama's re-election. Screwed, the US is screwed. Old dude I spoke with up at Starbucks (Sunny) for the last few months had told me the fix was in, Obama would win but a worse recession was headed this way. I believe it completely. We need a REVOLUTION!
Look back at the '60's and early '70's, revolution was in the air. It was a wild time to be alive. I remember it well. I went to demonstrations in Norwood, Mass. It was exciting. Bras being burnt, draft cards being burnt, people took a stand for something. We need that today.

Ah, the violence in Savannah. 7 people shot at the Coastal Empire Fair on Saturday night (about 1.3 miles from my house). No one saw nothing... Police are begging people that were there with cell phones to turn over the pics to the police. Rewards are being offered to find out who the shooters were.  Unlikely much will come of this, code of silence and all..
Last night just before 9pm, Bill heard 5 shots outside. About 15 minutes later I came home from school and saw a paddy wagon and a cruiser on 34th and Jefferson. Hope they got the bastard. This is just too much. If they kill each other off, then OK. But improperly aimed guns hit innocent targets.

It's all over now

Jump boys on 35th street

Well, the election is over and now the country is heading into a major nose drive. I will never get a full time job again and my grandkids will be living in a socialist republic rather than a constitutional democracy. All this time I've been telling my kids that lying will come back to bite you in the end, but now we have a president that lied about his nationality to get into college and a senator elect in Massachusetts that lied and said she was native American to get into college but that's all right. In this country, liars can be elected and the lemmings will continue to vote for them.
Yesterday afternoon, about 6 police cars blocked the 200 block of  West 35th Street. They jumped out and arrested some dude and then he started screaming. The hood'kins were milling around Montgomery street and watching... Then one lunatic stood in the middle of 35th Street and started yelling that his stuff was "pure and hasn't been stepped on." Ah, life in the 'hood.

Vote on Tuesday

“But, to speak practically and as a citizen, unlike those who call themselves no-government men, I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be one step closer toward obtaining it” Henry David Thoreau (Civil Disobedience, 1848). Truer words cannot be spoken today.   Everyone needs to vote for the candidates who will keep government respectable (without subjecting tax payers to lawsuits for personal behavior lapses), unobtrusive (not demanding that every citizen pay for health insurance by calling it a tax), and not, as it is proudly proclaimed on the Washington DC license plate, Taxation without Representation.

 

This WAS the Bounty when she was in Savannah

The Bounty when she was in Savannah

The Bounty going out to sea

The first 2 pics are the Bounty in good times (pics taken by Bill), on the Savannah River. The bottom pic is from a few hours ago. The Bounty was actually made for the movie "Mutiny on the Bounty" in 1962 (starring Marlon Brando). The bottom pic is the Bounty going down in the storm of the century, Sandy. The captain is still missing and one woman has died but the rest of the crew is alive having been rescued by the coast guard.

Circle of life

Ah, remember that sweet song from the Lion King movie, the Circle of Life?
We have our own little circle going on in the backyard. I throw bird seed and bread out in the backyard everyday and Louise and Chip love to chase the birds and squirrels. But now and then, it happens like this morning. I threw seeds out there and heard a loud rustle of wings out there. So, I threw bread and more seeds out there. The pigeons flew into the yard. Then, it happened. A hawk flew into the yard and scooped up a pigeon! Now we have no pigeons back there. But that was so cool!

Nice thought

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes in to us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands, and hopes we've learned something from yesterday."

-- John Wayne, Actor

 

I always liked John Wayne. 

Rachel's car - what a piece of sh*t

Last night Rachel calls and says, her driver's window made a strange sound, and now it won't go up all the way. Sheesh. Just got rid of the worst dent and the frigging bungee cords and now, the window screws up. Please, God, let me win Mega Bucks so we can afford to fix that piece of sh*t car!
Did you ever hear that Adam Sandler song, piece of sh*t car? Well, I think he based it on the Honda...
bald fucking tires (hes got a piece of shit car)   (replaced all the tires at a used tire place)
no rearview fucking mirror (piece of shit car)   (side view mirror glass moves)
  7 different colors (hes got apiece of shit car) ( paint is peeling all over)
  fucking rag for a gas cap (piece of shit car)  (I replaced her lost gas cap)
  tailpipe making sparks fly everywhere (piece of shit car) (Thank God, no)
  whoaaaa the whole town thinks im a loser (piece of shit car)

the engine likes to flood,

  the car always fucking stalls,   (It took a couple hundred dollars, but doesn't stall now)

  and the seat cushions got a big rip     (Actually ALL the seat cushions are ripped )

Ah, the memories of the Rachel car... Hard to believe, but it  still runs and drives...

It's Hiyah Time

It's Hiyah Time!

Get Up Hiyah

While Hiyah may not live across the street anymore, he is still part of the neighborhood. I found a can of his fave, Old Milwaukee in a bag in the alley. It added just the right touch for the front yard.

Car not looking so bad

Rachel brought the green monster to Dave Haberman's shop. Scotty did a good job taking the front cover off, drilling some new holes and putting it back on. Then she took the green monster to the place where I get her tires. I told the guy we were practically family since Rachel has been through I think, 4 or 5 tires in just over a year. So when she went to get the right front tire replaced, the guy said they do a little body work, too. For $35 she got a decent tire mounted on the car and most of the dent pulled out of the right front fender. WOW, what a bargain! Now she actually isn't embarrassed to be seen in her own car!

big dent gone.

No more bungee cord!

Getting ready for the big day- Halloween

Inside the front hall

Front yard

Office

I've been decorating for the big day. Neighbors have been enjoying the frights! At night I turn on the tube lights (orange and purple). Nice and creepy. I love these panorama shots from my I phone 5. I can fit so much more into my pictures now and you get a better feel of all the creepiness. This year's theme, Zombies. The targets look great and I sprayed "blood" all over them. Barbie is a Zombie Killer this year.

Barbie is always involved in Halloween festivities

Happy Friday

see the chicken

You know you are in a trailer park in Georgia when no dogs are allowed, but, Chickens are!!!


I've been busy this week. The law office gave me a few people to sign up and that worked out nicely. I got several people to check on with the Bank of America. Made about $60 for that. Slowly but surely I'm getting some bills paid.

I went to Sav Tech again. They absolutely will not let me take a lower math class. There are no tutors available for that God Awful class, either. So, I'm stuck getting a big fat F in that class. It really makes me mad and gives me no incentive to work in my other classes. I feel really used by the Paralegal dept head who pushed me to take the paralegal studies at ST. None of my paralegal classes from South Univ are being accepted at ST and she won't let me into the internship part of the program unless I complete the program. I don't have the time to complete the program there as VA is only giving me 12 months of schooling total. They wouldn't let me take any of the paralegal classes until I took their INTRO to paralegal, even though I already had INTRO and about a dozen other paralegal classes. With VA, I had to be full time and someone in their infinite wisdom decided Math 1111 class would fill the schedule. Well, it filled it but it was also taking up all my time. I was spending so many hours on the book and the computer studying that math, that my eyes were too tired to do the rest of my homework.

Crime and Rachel

When I told Rachel that the Crab Shack had been robbed, she was in disbelief. After seeing it on the news, she believed. Still, in the life of Rachel, it had little meaning beyond the novelty of it all. That is until I asked her, Did you get your paycheck? Huh? It seems checks are ready on Monday and put in the safe. The thief stole the safe Monday night... Rachel did not pick up her check Monday... Oh no!

More crime

I know I haven't written anything the last few days but that doesn't mean nothing is happening. Rachel went to her friend's funeral on Friday. Very sad. They did pick up the guy that was at the gas station buying a gallon of gas, holding a rag, and ...driving the car Amber was found in about 3/4 of an hour later... He isn't saying anything.

The Crab Shack (where Rachel works) was robbed last night.

A man who walked into a popular on Tybee Island seafood restaurant Monday night wanted more than just dinner. Crab Shack owner Jack Flanigan said a man wearing a mask walked into the restaurant's office just after 10:00 p.m., brandished a gun, and demanded money from the female worker inside. The man got away with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Flanigan said he and the other employees present were unaware of the robbery until the police came.
He said they have dozens of cameras at the restaurant already, but today are adding more cameras and motion-activated lights to the area near the office. He hopes that enhancements to the surveillance images will give officers better clues to the robber's identity.
He said they are offering a $1,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.
According to Savannah-Chatham Metro Police, the robber is described as a black male, around 5'10", weighing 165 lbs. If you have any information, call police.

I am grateful Rachel wasn't working last night. You never know what could have happened.

Inspiration?

I get these e-mails sent to me almost everyday. They contain inspirational quotes. Although, I don't know if I'd call today's message, inspirational...

"I think there's a great beauty to having problems. That's one of the ways we learn."
Herbie Hancock, musician.

Really? Damn,  I'd like to have less a few less problems.  I can handle a little less learning!

Crime

Man, you can't turn on the news or pick up the paper without hearing about crime in this town. They have finally released the name of the 18 year old (Amber) found burnt in the car uptown. This is so sad. Rachel is clearly disturbed by this development. We will wait to talk about it when we know more of the details.

There is something seriously wrong with people today. The 19 year old debutante who was killed uptown back in 2005 was murdered by 3 black men out to get some easy money for drugs. The unrepentant shooter said "Bitch shouldn't have bucked" when he demanded her purse and she didn't turn it over immediately.  What is wrong with him? His own uncle turned him in, but that's a different generation. Too many young people want instant gratification and are demanding that everyone else give them what they want NOW.
We don't yet know why Amber was in this burning car. It is unlikely she "accidentally" set the car on fire herself and died in it.
We still don't know why the 2 young people were killed about a 1/2 mile from my house. They were  practically feet  from the young woman's apartment and should have been safe. Why were these 2 killed before their time? It is so tragic these law-abiding, good people were murdered.
The answers can't come soon enough for the families so they can begin to heal. For us, it is too late. The bloom is off the rose (Savannah). Mentally, we are out of this place. As soon as possible, we are selling the house and getting the hell out of Dodge. This place is becoming like the OK corral. And we know how that ended...

Crime is still in the news and in the hood

This morning at 2:30 am I woke up to hear 4 gunshots. I ran downstairs but didn't see anyone out there.
Just after 10 pm, Rachel called to say that a girl she knew named Amber, was found dead in a burning car in Yamacraw Village around 7 am today. The police aren't releasing any names yet nor whether she was dead before the car burned or was burned alive. It is getting very, very dangerous to be in Savannah. The last time Rachel saw Amber was a couple of months ago. Rachel picked up Amber and her boyfriend along with another friend of hers. Later, Rachel couldn't find her tablet that I gave her for Christmas... She had it when she picked up everyone as she was listening to the music. Rachel felt that Amber or her boyfriend had taken it, now she thinks it was for drug money. Very sad...

Sicko to go along with the crime, crime, crime

This afternoon I was walking the dogs across Barnard Street at 35th Street, I saw a young,black, shirtless, man behind the house next to Delany Hall. As I walked past him, I realized his ...manhood... was out. He stared at me and proceeded to (it doesn't rhyme with Gee) ..... The SICKO.
I was wearing pants with small pockets and it took several seconds to get my phone out of the pocket. Then, the soft stretchy cover that I have on it is one made for the IPhone 4 so it ends up covering up the bottom of the screen on the front and the camera lens on the back.. the parts so that I couldn't make a call or take a pic. Just as I tried to take the cover off the phone so I could use it, Louise pulled hard to the right and Chip pulled to the left and the phone fell on the ground. F*CK. I picked up the phone and told the sicko I was dialing 911 and that what he was doing was a sex crime. Pervert. He took off down Brady Street. Too late for me to call 911 at that point. I have got to get a cover for this phone that will fit it.