Happy Birthday, Judy!

So Breezomatic called KC tonight. From what I gathered, the conversation went something like this:

Breezomatic: “Mom, the absolute WORST thing that could happen did happen!”
KC: “What?” (Fearing it’s a car accident or her apartment was broken into or a broken bone)
Breezomatic: “You won’t believe it!”
KC: “What?!”

It took me a few days to gather my thoughts and get them written down. At the time of this post, I didn’t have the photos published yet, but they should be up by tomorrow. But here is what happened last week:

Sunday

This was a day of travel. ZDog and J had come to our house on Saturday and spent the night. Sunday we got up, went to church, went to a friend’s grandson’s open house, and then took off for Chicago. Our destination was the Courtyard Marriott… our park-sleep-fly hotel. We got up there later than we had wanted, so I dropped KC off at The Streets of Woodfield where there is a Tall Girl shop. (She ended up buying a number of needed items there!) Meanwhile, ZDog, J and I sped off to the hotel. I dropped off the luggage and the kids and went back to pick up KC. We then picked up Subway for dinner and about that time our friends Randy and Cindy and their daugher Emily arrived. They got their stuff unpacked and signed in their car (as we had done) for parking all week. Then Randy, Emily and I (the only hungry three!!) went to a nearby Hooters for some food. Then it was back to the hotel and to sleep.

Monday

It was early when we got up. The hotel shuttle left at 4am for O’Hare International Airport. We got there and went through all the formalities and waited for the plane. Other friends of ours Jake, Lisa and their kids, and Dave, Kelly and their kids and their daughters’ boyfriends, were there waiting as well. Lisa works in the IT department where I do and Kelly cuts my hair (what I have of it). They were to be at other resorts than ours. Soon they call our flight and we’re off! Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, HERE WE COME! It was an uneventful flight. We touched down at about 11:30 local time and had very little line waiting at customs there. Then it was off to the Apple Vacations bus to be shuttled to our resort. It took about 40 minutes to get there as our resort was the last stop. It is the Ocean Blue Beach and Golf Resort. Let me just say that it was everything I had hoped for. Our room was ready so we dropped our stuff there. Since ZDog and J’s room was not ready, we had them put their stuff in our room temporarily. We then changed for the beach and headed there. And what a beach! White sand, cool to the feet (not hot like the sand at Riviera Maya!) beautiful waves coming in, and pounding surf out about a mile or so from the shore. Beautiful!

We then got towels using our towel cards and we all signed up for a snorkel/scuba trip the next day to Catalina Island. KC, ZDog and J were to scuba and Randy, Cindy, Emily and I were to snorkel. Since it was all inclusive, we grabbed a bite to eat at the beachside restaurant and then waited a bit before going in to the surf. What fun! The water was a bit cold going in but once wet you were fine. After we got out, I opened the book I had brought to read this week, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and began at page 1. Later, everyone finally got settled into their own rooms and we met and went to the Mexican restaurant on the resort. The resort offered Dominican, Italian, American, Mexican and Spanish restaurants as well as a buffet.

Tuesday

This was our earliest morning as we hopped a bus and took off inland to La Romana (on the south coast) via Miguey (the province capital). It took us about 3 hours to get to La Romana where we then left the bus and got on a boat. From there we went to Catalina Island, a mile or so off the southern shore. Catalina Island is one of the premiere diving spots in the Caribbean. It’s big diving attractions are The Wall and The Aquarium. The Wall is a nearly 50 meter vertical drop underwater where there is a lot of coral; I’m told that you need to be aware of your depth as you can’t see the bottom and it’s easy to go too deep. The Aquarium is a rather shallow (5-6 meters) area that is literally FULL of fish to see. KC, ZDog and J all had a great time scuba diving. Randy, Cindy, Emily and I wet snorkeling. Well, I tried snorkeling but I’m just not that good of a swimmer and didn’t have a life jacket so I spent a lot of time on the boat.

Later, we had a meal on Catalina Island and sunned. We took some pictures (which are in my photo gallery) and took it easy after the “workout”. Then we all piled on the bus and headed back. Later that night was dinner at the Italian restaurant. We were all in after the big day so we headed back to our rooms for an early night.

Wednesday

We deliberately took it easy on Wednesday, after all we did on Tuesday. Well, I was GOING to take it easy. We were all at different places, so I couldn’t get a message to KC; I went walking with Randy and Cindy to the southeast looking for Dave and Kelly. We found them about five resorts away; it was probably about a half mile walk along the beach. Cindy volunteered to go back to tell KC, ZDog, J and Emily where we were. Randy and I went with Dave and the boys and were soon body surfing. Poor Dave looked as red as a beet - you couldn’t tell where his skin stopped and his red swim trunks started! Soon, Cindy was back with Emily - she had talked with ZDog and J but couldn’t find KC. We talked a bit with Dave and Kelly, made plans for them to walk up to our beach on Friday, had some beers at their resort, and eventually started walking back. KC met us along the way - she had wondered where I had gone.

Wednesday evening was the American restaurant on the resort - burgers and fries, mainly. Afterwards, we took our time going back to the room but eventually made it another early night - too much walking along the beach!

Thursday

Thursday morning was pretty uneventful. Mainly because the government shut down the beach. The waves were lapping up at the second and third rows of shades on our beach. It even took out a number of beach-side shops that the locals ran. Yowee! Thursday afternoon was quite a different story. Randy, Emily, KC and I all went ziplining! Wow! Was that ever FUN! Our zipline guide, who looked like a 5′8″ version of Dwayne Wade, was really into his role: “When I say ZIP! you say LINE!…. ZIP!” (us) “LINE!”; “When I say GO! you say FAST!… GO!” (us) “FAST!”. Stuff like that on the way out. We went inland about 45 minutes by bus and then changed vehicles to what was similar to a troop carrier with no suspension. Good thing there was no suspension as the road was quite bumpy with potholes you could lose a VW Beetle in! When we got there, we were fitted with a harness and a helmet and then given a quick demonstration about proper technique. What fun! It will have to be an included excursion in all our future vacations! Afterwards we were treated to fruit and soft drinks and we were joined by a small lizard. It seemed taken with Randy. If you check out the pictures in the photo gallery, you’ll see the little guy really like crawling on Randy’s arm.

When we got back to the resort, we had dinner at the Dominican restaurant. I’d never had guinea hen before but I’d recommend it to anyone; it was DELICIOUS! It tasted like marinated chicken. (Doesn’t everything you have never had before taste like chicken? Well at least that’s what they said in “The Matrix“!) ZDog had the goat. That’s right goat. He said it was like a very tender beef. He didn’t even offer to share any!?! Afterwards we had some mamajuana, a traditional Dominican drink and the waiter led us in a traditional Dominican toast: Arriba, abajo, al centro, chiki-chiki, para adentro (Up, down, to the center, shake it, to the inside.). KC and I were so taken with the taste of mamajuana that we brought some of the bark and herbs back with us. After this and after all the activity, it was again early to bed.

Friday

Friday. Our last full day. We were planning on spending it on the beach and just lolling around. The problem was that time played a trick on us. We thought it would drag on and on so that we would seem to have been there for many hours. However, time seemed to jump on an SST and just flew by. All too soon it was over. It was early in the afternoon when I finished my book; what an ending to the entire series! Then it was off to the local shops to pick up some souvenirs - and we did pick up quite a few of them.

Earlier we had decided on returning to the Mexican restaurant. It was just as delicious as before. Afterwards we called it an early night as we all had to pack to get ready to return home.

Saturday

Saturday was a big travel day. Go from the resort to the airport. Go through checkin at the Punta Cana airport. Go from the airport at Punta Cana to O’Hare International Airport. Go through customs. Go from O’Hare to our Park/Sleep/Fly hotel. Go from the hotel to home. (Then ZDog and J got into their car and drove from our home to their home.) We got the car unloaded and then were very happy just to lay down and go to sleep in our own bed.

WHAT A VACATION! I DIDN’T WANT IT TO END!!

Happy Anniversary, TC and Jena!

Happy Birthday, Doug!!

Happy Birthday, Buck!!

The Tax System, explained with beer (so even a moron like me can understand it! Thanks, Jason.)

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

• The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
• The fifth would pay $1.
• The sixth would pay $3.
• The seventh would pay $7.
• The eighth would pay $12.
• The ninth would pay $18.
• The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that’s what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. “Since you are all such good customers,” he said, “I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. “Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’

They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so:

• The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
• The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
• The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
• The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
• The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 ( 22% savings).
• The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

“I only got a dollar out of the $20,” declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,” but he got $10!”

“Yeah, that’s right,” exclaimed the fifth man. “I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!”

“That’s true!!” shouted the seventh man. “Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!”

“Wait a minute,” yelled the first four men in unison. “We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!”

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics
University of Georgia

For those who understand, no explanation is needed.

For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

Happy Birthday, KC!!

You are my life, my one true love, my soul mate. I thank God each day for the blessing he has granted me in you.

Happy Birthday, Nathan!!

—————-
Now playing: Stabbing Westward - Save Yourself
via FoxyTunes

It’s the government again. As I said to a friend Saturday, “The government is already up my ass. I don’t need them so far up it they come out my mouth!”. This time it has to do with smoking. Please, don’t misunderstand. I am AGAINST anyone smoking! I don’t want to promote smoking in any way, shape or form. However, I am even MORE against the government telling me I can’t do something. The government already tells me a number of things I can or cannot do - most of them are common sense, but why should the government be telling me this?

It makes sense to wear a seat belt. I’ve seen the statistics and I wear my seat belt. I hate the fact that the government tells me I HAVE to wear a seat belt or I’ll get a ticket. WHY? Aren’t there enough people robbing or vandalizing or other more serious crimes? We have to have the government in our asses checking that we have our seat belts on?

It makes sense to not drive after you’ve had drinks (alcoholic drinks, that is). Again, I’ve seen the statistics and I don’t do this. However, AGAIN, I hate the fact that the government tells me I will lose my license and go to jail if I drink and drive. WHY? Don’t they have enough to do?

Now they’re doing it with smoking. No, I’m not a smoker. No, I’m not in favor of smoking. I think people who smoke are either stupid or stubborn - they are too stupid to stop smoking or too stubborn to stop smoking. In spite of all this, I don’t think the government should be telling businesses that they have to ban smoking. It should be up to the business. And before anybody chimes in with “second hand smoke kills”, you need to check out the commentary on the World Health Organization study done in 1998 that ran contrary to the “facts” they wanted to present so they buried this report (as detailed on the web site). Most studies and laws are based upon an EPA study done in 1992-1993 but it is a statistically flawed study, as detailed on the same web site. Again, I don’t like second hand smoke, either. But that’s not a reason for the government to jump up my ass. That’s not a reason for the government to get up in the face of businesses either. I say let the market place decide. If a place decides to go smokeless, then great! Let the market decide. If a place decides NOT to go smokeless, then great! Again, let the market decide. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT LET THE GOVERNMENT TELL THESE BUSINESSES HOW TO DO THEIR BUSINESS!

I didn’t think it could happen. I’ve never seen it; KC has never seen it. Our parents haven’t ever seen it. Seen what? Well….

KC and I were headed to Des Moines to visit her mom and her dad. We’re buzzing along on I-80 west, I’m driving about 72mph or so and all of a sudden the passenger door window on My Element simply shatters. Well, a better description is exploded. The entire window simply popped and threw glass all over the inside of the Element. As I said before, I’ve NEVER seen it. I’ve seen when a windshield does that when it gets hit with a rock tossed up by a vehicle in front of me. I’ve seen where a rear window had the same thing happen when some idiot kid shot the glass with a pellet gun. But I’ve NEVER seen the side window simply explode.

Luckily I didn’t swerve or anything, but I was kind of shook up. We managed to get to the Brooklyn exit (yes, there IS a Brooklyn, Iowa!!) A lot of the glass nuggets landed on KC; she was pretty shook up as well. At the Brooklyn exit, KC went into the restroom and shook the glass nuggets out of her shirt, I swept up most of the nuggets that were falling out and we regrouped. I bought a plastic poncho and some duck tape and jerry-rigged a temporary cover. We made it the final 70 miles to Des Moines.

There, ZDog and I went to Menard’s and got some more duck tape and some plexi-glass. (Also since he didn’t have one, we got a jigsaw so we could cut the plexi-glass.) Then we went to ZDog’s place and made a better jerry-rigged cover by cutting the plexi-glass to fit over the window and then using duct tape to hold it in place. It’s held since, so we must have done a good-enough job. Tomorrow I’ve got to call the local auto glass shop and get it fixed right.