AAR - Oklahoma City

"Something called 'the Oklahoma Standard' became known throughout the world. It means resilience in the face of adversity. It means a strength and compassion that will not be defeated."
- Brad Henry (D) - Gov. Oklahoma

Let me throw a few little comments from JAFO for you to start this off...

First- In Oklahoma City, the Airport is not on Airport Rd...
(And just to add to the irony- Terminal Rd is NOT where the Terminal is located.)

And since we're starting on The Airport...
It's called the 'Will Rogers World Airport'?
Because Will Rogers International Airport was taken?
Will Rogers Intercontinental, maybe?
Meh.

(Looking at the flight displays there weren't many flights to Madrid or London.
There was a flight to LA so I guess its KINDA like an international flight.)


Now, the Chesapeake Energy Arena- now this was a nice place, and the guys running it were top-notch...

But - the name...
With the 'Chesapeake' in the name I would expect it to be in Baltimore or Norfolk... It might be reasonable to give that name to an arena in Richmond VA (University of Richmond- Go Spiders!)...

But in Oklahoma City- How about a local Fortune 500 Company?
Why not The Sonic Arena, or the Braums Forum, or maybe the Hobby Lobby Center?
(I would even suggest the name "Love's Shack" as an arena name, as Love's Truck Stops & Country Stores is a large corporate entity in OKC, and they have a decent marketing presence inside the arena already. Not sure how it'd go over with the B-52s though.)

Anyhoo-
Quite the trip. It was a last-minute gig, and on the spur of the moment I took a chance at reaching out to Famous the Evyl Robot and his inestimably better half- Jennifer to see if I could coax them out to a nosh and good conversation over tiffin.
And glory be- they acquiesced! And they brought along That Guy (a/k/a TeenBot) from Intelligenttrousers.com... A soft-spoken young man, but from reading through his 'blog, he might well be a force to be reckoned with in the 'blogosphere if he continues his writing...

Michael suggested we met up at a little joint in beautiful downtown Edmond OK,
Zarates Latin & Mexican Grill...
Holy mackerel! Such food, you would not believe...
Check out their menu-
I highly suggest a visit any time you are within 100 miles of the place.
I had the Pabellon- a Venezuelan version of Ropa Vieja... shredded beef, peppers & onions in a red sauce... Sooo good.
Michael had the chuleta and Jennifer had the Peruvian saltado (I think...).

I got to see Michael's modded Leatherman, and man, I'm going to whip up a pair of them tout damn d'suite... Go check it out...
Michael and I also discussed my desire for some custom leather for the the 92F Twins and my Anaconda. We'll see how that works out... From the photos and examples I've seen of his work, it should be amazing.

The conversation ranged far and wide- I got to hear the first-hand tales from the NRA Convention, which has steeled my resolve to attend the festivities in Indy next year. We discussed the different bloggers we have all met over the years, talked about firearms, blogging, family, shooting (and lack thereof recently) and all manner of things we find fun...


I got Jennifer to tell the tale of her banner pic with the KSG by Oleg Volk, and we discussed rampant stupidity of mouth-breathing droolers (Those colors don't go together!)
Jennifer and & broke out our iPads and shared pictures, and generally we all had a great time.

But- all good things come to an end- they had obligations and I had an airline employees to make miserable, so we parted company- only briefly, I hope.
One never know who will show up at a blogmeet.

They are Good People-
Odd how that works- JayG and all the NE Blog Crew, Borepatch, the folks in Indy, and all the Texas bloggers like KX59 and Belle in Houston, to BobS and good folks up in Dallas, to the danged Florida bloggers like Robb and McThag that I can never seem to get around to visiting even though they are 3 hours away....
The GunBlogging community are just amazing folks to be around, and I count myself fortunate to be able enjoy their company now and then.


Wrapping up- Michael, Jennifer & Teenbot- y'all are awesome- thanks for a great afternoon.


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Campaigner-In-Chief

I think he just likes the IDEA of being President, not the actual work involved... He didn't know it was going to be so hard.

(Well, I think they (Mooch-elle and the Obamettes) like all the perks too- Worldwide spare-no-expense vacations, unlimited golf, all the Hollywood glitterati fawning over their every move, etc)

Seems like whenever the work-work-work gets to be too much, he either a) Leaves DC to go give a campaign speech for an official visit somewhere to talk about job growth or the economy or wahthaveyou, or b) goes off on vacation with Michelle and the girls to some far-off location surrounded by friends, cronies, wannabees, Secret Service agents, lackeys, toadies, minions and ass-kissers.

Basically he doesn't like the job, he doesn't like the Media, he doesn't like dealing with the senators or congresscritters of either flavor, he feels like he's a Washington outsider, and he hates American exceptionalism.

What he DOES like is giving a well-written speech- full of buzzwords and 'let-me-be-clears', stern looks, finger pointing/shaking on a properly functioning teleprompter and giving his shit-eating-grin as he accepts the enthusiastic applause of the beguiled masses.

He's almost as bad as the last Democratic shitheel that held the office of President...
The one who lied through his teeth just like our current Chief Executive and everyone believed him, or they just didn't care...

You remember- Mr. 'I did not have sexual relations with that woman.' and 'I never inhaled.'

This one carries on that grand progressive tradition with his greatest hits: 'I only found out on Friday when I was watching the news' and 'You can keep your doctor' and 'I don't want to take away your guns.'

Which brings me to an aside on Austin TX... (reading the account of his recent visit to Austin was what triggered this missive, just-so-you-know...)
Texas is the textbook definition of a Red State, every city in the Lone Star State I have ever visited has been as conservative as they come...
I've driven across the state on coast-to-coast runs probably 8 times, worked multi-day events in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, and spend several days in Midland-Odessa, Bridgeport, Corpus Cristi, and Amarillo... and Austin is the ONLY place that came across as being full of hipster-emo-pinko turds of the first order.
I find on reflection that the only way it can be explained it that Austin is the state Capitol (thus, filled with career politicians- who as a rule are typically progressives) and the location of the University of Texas- a hot-bed of leftist activity if one ever existed.
(As a matter of fact, google up some of the tenured professors that teach politics at UT, then look at their CV- you find most of them [all of them I looked at] are proud activists.
If you have left-wing activists teaching your political courses, what do you think they are teaching?)
I don't know how Borepatch ever made it through his tarriance there...

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Who Does This Sound Like....

...Suddenly, another voice spoke, low and melodious, its very sound an enchantment. Those who listened unwarily to that voice could seldom report the words that they heard; and if they did, they wondered, for little power remained in them. Mostly they remembered only that it was a delight to hear the voice speaking, all that it said seemed wise and reasonable, and desire awoke in them by swift agreement to seem wise themselves.  

When others spoke, they seemed harsh and uncouth by contrast; and if they gainsaid the voice, anger was kindled in the hearts of those under the spell. For some the spell only lasted while the voice spoke to them, and when it spoke to another they smiled, as men do who see through a juggler’s trick while others gape at it. 

For many the sound of the voice alone was enough to hold them enthralled; but for those whom it conquered the spell endured when they were far away, and ever they heard that soft voice whispering and urging them. But none were unmoved; none rejected its pleas and its commands without an effort of mind and will, so long as its master had control of it.

Ring any bells?

TBG

OMFG-Dark-30 Ruminations

Flight time: 6:31a Sweet Jeebus, why did agree to this dog's breakfast?

After waking up every twenty minutes or so starting at 2:00am, at 3:40 I couldn't stand it any more.

I got up, showered, dressed and strapped my bag on my bike and headed for the airport.

I got about a mile then went back for a thicker jacket.

Ambient temp was 50, and considerably cooler in a t-shirt and a 70mph wind chill factor.

I got hit by a wave of aromatic nostalgia during my ride out to JAX...

As I crossed the Intercoastal Waterway there was a heavy scent of salt marsh in the air and the smell brought me memories of driving down US1 down in the Keys in the days of my sordid youth.

The smell of exposed salt flats and decaying seaweed always takes me back to those days where I spent my days diving and my nights swilling paint-thinner tequila and throwing up,

Good times.... Good times.

- - - - 

Chesapeake Energy Arena is in my crosshairs this morning...

The OKC Thunder are about to be eliminated fromthe playoffs and we'll be there to help drive the last few nails in the coffin.

One of these days arena personnel are going to start recognizing us as harbingers of doom and quit being so helpful when we come knocking.

But until then....

- - - - - 

Meanwhile... Can I interest you in some mockery?

- - - - - - - - 

(While deplaning in Atlanta)

I understand that you have been incommunicado for 45 minutes on our flight from JAX to ATL, but for cripes sake, can you either stay in your ferschlugginer seat and finish your text message, or wait until you get out to the concourse.

Because this "I'm going to block the entire jetway as I slowly try to walk and text at the same time" is going to get you a quick leg-sweep from that ogre behind you...

Srsly. 

- - - - - - - - - -

Gotta say, the Chesapeake Energy Center is quite a nice arena...

- - - - - - - - - - 

TBG, in the press box.

Puzzler Of The Day

One of my left-leaning co-workers today opined that Joe Biden was behind the re-opening of the Benghazi hornet's nest...

"He's doing it to make Hillary look bad- that way he'll be President in 2016." she said.


Man, I'm surrounded by morons.

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Oceanus Non Carborundum

ZOMG! The little esquimaux are gonna drown causa teh Globull Warmenings!
DOOO SOOMETHINGS!

Seriously USAToday?

Alaska town to vanish by 2017, report says
When it comes to the fate of the 350 residents of Newtok, Alaska, the Guardian pulls no punches: "Exile is inevitable," it writes. That's because their coastal village, located about 480 miles west of Anchorage, is in the process of being washed into the Bering Sea.

I don't know about you, but where I'm from we have this thing called "erosion".
That's where the land is washed away by the movement of water.
And last time I checked, "erosion" ≠ "rising sea level".

While you are checking out 'erosion', 'abrasion' and 'desedimentation', look up 'estuary'.
See if you can figure out why you shouldn't build a castle in a swamp.

Srsly.

Knock it the fuck off, you're scaring the low-info voters.

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Pop Quiz: "Never Let A _______ Go To Waste"

-or- "If it's good for the goose, it's good for the gander."

Carney: "Because, you know, what we have here with one issue – Benghazi – is so clearly, as we’re learning more and more, a political sideshow. A deliberate effort to politicize a tragedy."

Cracker, please.
Yo- Spokesguy!  - Were you not paying attention for the last 6 months?
Do the words "Sandy Hook" mean anything to you?

But this is SOP for the Obama Presidency... The administration's mantra that is famously attributed to Rahm Emanuel says it all...... Never let a serious crisis go to waste.
They never finish the actual quote when they use it... it goes something like:
"...unless you are a Conservative, in which case if you use a crisis for political gain you are low-life, scum-sucking cretins just like us."

What gets under my skin is the hemming and hawing that they do-
"Let's not jump to conclusions..."
"We can't act without all the facts"
"We are looking into it..."
"We don't have irrefutable information on this situation..."

Seems to me most of these prevarications are shorthand for "we don't know how we can turn this to our political advantage yet, but when we do, you'll know it when we use it to bite you in the ass"...

With any luck, by June there should be several White House entities back in the private sector, earning $20,000 a pop for speaking engagements.


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Then & Now

From Adam Baldwin on Twitchy via Doug Ross

Yes... "Save this for 2016" indeed!

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Feeding The Monkey

It's D-Day for Kazan...

Actually it's more like S-Day-
Shipping Day.

All my equipment for the event ships today. If it ain't in the box now, it ain't goin'.
(Mainly because I'm not going to even try to hand-carry any equipment over there.
It's a bite in the ass both going and coming home.)
And let me do the math... It's May 13, event starts the first week of July...
I assume it's going by some combination of airfreight, cargo container, semi, cargo van, and camel caravan.

So my cases are all packed except for one element-
I needed some backpacks  for the volunteers to carry their equipment in when they head to their work locations... So they arrive this AM to be packed in my last case.

If you are familiar with international shipping you know if you put something like "backpack" on a manifest, Customs Officials usually assume it is a 'giveaway' item, and it is dealt with in a completely different manner than our other carnet items like our laptops, etc. So instead of "backpack", which would get red-flagged, I'll tag them as "equipment deployment bags"... Yeah- that has success written all over it.

Yes, it has rather ominous connotations, especially if you are a suspicious Customs guy, but I've gotta try something.

Meanwhile, after my cases roll out the door, it will be business as usual.

This is just about how my workday runs, on average...

I'm usually in one or the other of these roles, depending on the day and the event.

Actually, I think it's more like this...

As my man Pete would say: "Feeding the monkey to watch it shit..."

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Mockery, We Has It.

Dumbassery.

From Breitbart...

“DEFCAD files are being removed from public access at the request of the US Department of Defense Trade Controls,” reads the banner at the top of his website defcad.org. “Until further notice, the United States government claims control of the information.”

Really? You think that's gonna work?



TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Random Thinks - Tuesday PM

So, it seems like 2 kids were punished for pretending pencils were guns and going pew-pew-pew.

Kinda like the kid that bit his pop-tart into an Idaho/pistol shape...

Of course, the Authorities in both cases over-reacted. (Gee, y'think?)

I don't know if these jerkwads know anything about human psychology, but the more you make a big deal about something, the more attractive it is to kids...
Dumbasses.
I can see where this is headed...
And I'm going to tell you how to profit by it, it it isn't too late already...
Go down to WallyWorld, Tagret, and S-Mart and buy up all the cheap-assed plastic pistols you can find and ferret them away.
Every cap pistol, water gun, nerf gun, etc- anything with a barrel and a trigger.
In 5 years you will be able to make a killing (heh) on E-Bay with these collectibles.

I can just see a teenager in a trench coat, on a streetcorner near an elementary school in about 10 years...
Saleskid: "Pssst! Hey kid! (opens his coat) Got a dart gun here... comes with 3 suction-cup darts. You in?"
Impressionable 8 year old: "Naahh. I want a cap gun... And not one of those danged six-shooters that use roll-caps. I want the one that takes the plastic yellow ring of caps."
SK: "Oh... a connoisseur! Well Tex,... I have a Western Legends Outlaw- die cast, 12-shot ring caps, comes with a holster."
I8yo: "Perfect! How much?"
SK: "Oh, this fine piece of workmanship will set you back 150 yuan."
I8yo: "100 RMB and 2 supersize Big Gulp cups."
SK: "125, the cups, and you introduce me to your big sister."
I8yo: "Wait a second, this isn't one of the California models... Bright green or orange, right?"
SK: "No... I only got quality stuff here....Look you want it or not?"
I8yo: "Ok... Deal."

We shall draw the curtain of charity of this felony transaction....


Moving on:



From our "It's not my fault; Society is to blame" Department:

Lauryn Hill, an entertainer of some sort, has violated the US tax code and is now in the  defecation of quite some depth... to the tune of a cool million dollars.
(Not enough to make her a candidate for an Obama cabinet post, but still...)
Now poor mis-educated Ms. Hill is going to spend a night or three in some sort of Federal housing for her transgressions, followed by a nice stint of house arrest.

Money (heh) quote:

“I am a child of former slaves who had a system imposed on them,” Hill said before U.S. Magistrate Madeline Cox Arleo. “I had an economic system imposed on me.”

Hmm. I had this economic system imposed on me... Does that mean that I don't have to pay taxes either?

Meanwhile, instead of following the Apostle Timmy Geithner, she instead followed the Church of Wesley Snipes and Willie Nelson...

At the time of her arrest last year, Hill wrote a criticism rejecting pop culture’s “climate of hostility, false entitlement, manipulation, racial prejudice, sexism and ageism.”

Right. So that makes it all okay then.

Personally, I think it is just a matter of magnitude... Apparently she didn't owe enough to warrant that cabinet post, perhaps an ambassadorship or a seat in the US Senate- the usual place you find tax dodgers and thieves.

Oh well.

Next up:
A buncha cool kids (OldNFO, JayG, Jennifer, etc) went to the NRA Convention in Houston. Looks like they had a great time...
I might have to look into going next year.
It's going to be in Indy; One would hope the Hoosier Gunbloggers will rise to the occasion and have a blogmeet of epic proportion, given the possible guest list.


From my "Already Blogged By Better Folk, But I Still Want To Make A Point" file:
From the Palm Beach Post:

"Florida House and Senate budget leaders have awarded Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw $1 million for a new violence prevention unit aimed at preventing tragedies like those in Newtown, Conn., and Aurora, Colo., from occurring on his turf."
...
“We want people to call us if the guy down the street says he hates the government, hates the mayor and he’s gonna shoot him,” Bradshaw said. “What does it hurt to have somebody knock on a door and ask, ‘Hey, is everything OK?’ ”

 Great googly moogly.
A million bucks...
And his plan?
Ask the good folks of Palm Beach County to inform on neighbors, friends and relatives if they think someone is "anti-government".
Here- here's a tip line for you to call.
Okay... that's about $200 or so, depending on where the Sheriff took the reporter from the Palm Beach Post for lunch to deliver the press release. I wonder what the other $999,800 will be used for?

Now, there is someone with quite an axe to grind with Mr Bradshaw that could probably give a reasonable guess as to where the money will go...
(This website is quite a hoot.)
Guess who will be the first to be "investigated" with the Sheriff's new initiative...

I have a good idea who will be second- I wonder how many of the 'person making anti-government comments, threats or speeches' will be leveled at Palm Beach resident Rush Limbaugh?
Over at The Gormogons, serial commenter Island Dweller riled up The Czar with some interesting observations on this whole kerfuffle, and The Czar, as he is wont to do, broke down the entire situation quite nicely... Go take a peek. Tasty stuff.

-----------------

All right, enough already.
The highway is a'callin'...


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Russia "How Do I..." Items

I was compiling some items for my 'How To' list I give to my victims coworkers...
Tips on basic polite phrases, ordering drinks, finding the bathroom, etc.

In discussion with one of my many co-conspirators this weekend, I was getting a few protips (he spent 4 years in Moscow) and learned that body language goes a long way...

Yours Truly: "So, how does one ask for the check in a restaurant?"

Moscow Mike: "Well, what I do is throw my empty plates on the floor, then grab an empty vodka (or beer) bottle and slam it against the wall. Then I pull out my wallet and wave money in the air. The smashed plate is to get their attention, and the broken bottle shows them I mean business."

YT: "Uh, yeah... So... How are the Russian prisons then?"

TBG, pondering the true meaning of "некультурный"

What? Where? When? Whoa.

Ok- next on the agenda...
Kazan.

Where? - That's what I said.


Ye Ghods.
This is gonna suck.

So I go chat up Travel Girl...
I give her the details and she waves me off-
"No worries- I'll get something arranged for you..."
(You can't rush Travel Girl. You wind up with a size 16 colon in a middle seat back by the bathroom on a trans-Atlantic hop after a close encounter with a pair of blue gloves and a TSA Speculum. Let her do her job in peace. Learn from my mistakes. Srsly.)

So I waited- watching my United travel app on my iPad.

When the booking finally showed up I was in the airport in Houston on my way Brooklyn with Blee and Dingo. I started walking through the cities, times and connections.


Looks like a good start...

DC to Frankfurt didn't look too bad...Only 10 hours.

Then-

Jeebus Pete. 10 hours to Frankfurt and 13 more to Kazan?
Wow.
Gonna be a loooooong day.

Now... About coming home...


Wait a sec... Kazan to Istanbul? 18 Hours?
Oh HELLS no.

Dingo and Blee got quite a laugh, then we started google mapping.
1300 miles... 18 hours... that's... 76mph?

Dingo: "Did you piss off Travel Girl? 'Cause that looks like she's got you on an airline that uses Cessna 150s as their primary equipment."
Blee chimes in: "You're either riding in a zeppelin (Led or otherwise) or they are gonna tie a metric shitload of helium balloons to your happy ass and push you out the door."
Dingo: "I know... You'll go down the jetway in Kazan and there will be a bus labeled 'airplane'... Better you than me, Big Guy."

Blee is googling Selcon airlines- "It's a Nigerian outfit."
That explains it all...
I guess this is the latest iteration of the 419 Scam.
They sell you a ticket on-line then when you get to the airport, there is no airline, no flight, you're on your own.

I resolve to have a word with Travel Girl when I get back to the office.
---------------

So- in Kazan.
World University Games 2013... We're doing scoring and stats for Tennis.

Let's see-
Talk about an environment fraught with peril for an ogre far from home...
A couple thousand college kids- the law of averages says half of them will be female...

For instance- This is a cut-sheet from their press kit.


As I have said before - this can only end in tears.
Their tears will be from the shock and terror, mine will be from the tasers and pepper spray.


You heard it here first: This will probably end badly.
Film at 11.
-----------------


Some of the REAL fun is figuring out how to code the equipment carnet to get our stuff in and out of Russia without 1) a huge number of bribes to everyone from Putin to the local dogcatcher in Kazan and 2) theft of all my equipment.
After all, what customs inspector couldn't use 8 or 9 laptops...

But...

I have a friend in Minsk,
Who has a friend in Pinsk,
Whose friend in Omsk
Has friend in Tomsk
With friend in Akmolinsk.
His friend in Alexandrovsk
Has friend in Petropavlovsk,
Whose friend somehow
Is solving now
The problem in Dnepropetrovsk.

And when his work is done -
Haha! - begins the fun.
From Dnepropetrovsk
To Petropavlovsk,
By way of Iliysk,
And Novorossiysk,
To Alexandrovsk to Akmolinsk
To Tomsk to Omsk
To Pinsk to Minsk
To me the news will run,
Yes, to me the news will run!
 - Lobachevsky - Tom Lehrer- (not this one, this one.)

 Yes- the solution is quite complicated, including photographing every single piece of equipment on the carnet and making each one a line item...
(Well, it's not quite that bad, but close.)
Oh, this is gonna be fun.
Stay tuned, kids.

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Late-Night Houston Hooters Quote-of-the-Night

After the OKC/HOU game...
(in which the Rockets came back from a 26 point deficit only to lose in the last few seconds of the game- Note to HOU- on those "strategic end-of-game fouls", don't hack the guy with a 98% FT average)
...we hadn't indulged in the pre-game meal down in the press room, so we were a bit peckish.

We tried to go to a place near the hotel with the intriguing name of "Twin Peaks"...
I argued that it was a strip club, and thus the menu options were probably limited.
Blee countered that the place had windows, so it wasn't a topless club.
Hmmm. Ok, let's give it a shot.
We never found out who was correct- it was so crowded we bailed...

We went to Plan B, Pappasitos... They locked the door as we approached.
It could be that it was after 11pm, or it might have been that they saw me facing off with a clueless driver in a parking lot pas de deux...

...So we wound up at Hooters.
(Who didn't see THAT coming?)

Aside from the witty banter, (mostly) innocent flirting, not-so-subtle innuendo, and dirty jokes, the subject of food came up. Kati (our waitress, owner of all-organic free range implants) had spent some time in Spain where she had sampled camel in a market, was questioning Dingo about eating kangaroo... She wondered if any 'roo part was particularly better than another, and how it would compare to camel.

She was the one who opined the winning quote:
"I just want to eat the hump and the pouch."

Uh... Yeah.

TBG, nauseated and titillated at the same time...

Quote of the Day - Houston

Early edition:
(As Yours Truly was attempting to correct a small navigation error)
Dingo: "Give it a try. Surely it won't be the stupidest thing you do today,"

Followed by:
(As YT was trying to escape the Dead End Parking Garage by driving back down the UP ramp 4 floors)
Blee: "Give it a shot. What's the worst that could happen?"


TBG
"With friends like these, who needs enemas?"

Just What We Needed...

Rain, Lightning, and the human stupidity that goes along with it.

Houston We Have A Problem...

Wow.

Wotta evening.

I had originally intended to hook up with KX59 and Belle back in February during a visit to the NBA All Star Game in Houston.
Alas, I was tied up with stuff for A Nice Golf Course and never made the trip.

However, arena visits are like city buses for me... There's always another one coming.

I'm on a little visit to a few NBA Arenas (Houston, Brooklyn, Oklahoma City) this week, so I let KX59 know and we set up a meet.
There's a place near my hotel where I know I can get good crawfish (in season) and I suggested it, and he was amenable... We had a bit of a late arrival to IAH (Thanks Sequester!) and busted ass for Southside Freeway and our hotels to freshen up.
We got to Ragin' Cajun only a few minutes later than the proposed meet-up time, by which point KX59 had had 2 beers and already sent me 2 text messages about punctuality and alcohol consumption.

I dragged along Blee and Dingo (who had flown directly from London for this little shindig) and we tucked into some awesome cajun specialities- I had a bucket of crawfish (small, but very tasty!) and a boudin link... Nice!
Other items consumed at our table included Etoufee, Jambalaya, more boudin, and gumbo...
Belle showed me a new way to consume boudin- open it up and spread it on crackers.
Who knew?

Good conversation, lots of fun... Lots of abuse for Belle who confesses to indulging in a different social media platform these days... I promised not to divulge her new passion, but for the right incentive I could be persuaded to share a hint or two.
A good time was had by all- including the Dingo, who was falling asleep in his etoufee.
Poor bastard.

On to the arena...

TBG

Nicely Put

I'm liking the cut of this guy's jib...

Via That Guy at Rock in the Sea of Chaos

"We are told not just Muslims based on the actions of a few...
I suggest we give millions of responsible American gun owners
the same courtesy."

Yeah-
I like that...

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Cordless Phones, Luggage & Pressure Cookers Oh My!

...or, "TBG, Please come to the lobby; A nice man from DHS is here to see you."

So... There I was, minding my own business, trying to buy a GSM cell phone for an upcoming gig...


Oh look. $70. Exactly what I need.



Wait... What's that in the side bar?
Pressure cookers!
Holy crap.  I'm outta here... Clear cache, erase cookies.
Man, I wish I had set Firefox to private browsing mode before hitting this site...


Which reminds me... 
Where was I reading that someblogger (Cough!*KX59*Cough!) was looking to buy a pressure cooker?

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Dispatches From A Nice Golf Course: "Dock that volunteer a day's pay!"

Tournament Friday, 2:00 pm
Things are going reasonably well.
(In a nutshell, I'm only moderately sick, play is underway and we are a data-generating machine.)

The last group is getting ready to tee off, so in 20 minutes or so we will start breaking down equipment on the First 9.

The phone rings... SGK* gets it.
SGK: "Ball position."
(Pause)
SGK: "Yes... We have volunteers on the 10th green."
(Longer pause)
SGK: "Could be. Let me check."
She puts the phone on hold.
SGK tunes our Live Feed from Hole 16 to Hole 10.
We all look at the feed.



Oh crap. You're killin' me, Whitey.

She picks up the phone-
SGK: "Yep. Hes ours. We'll take care of it."
(Long pause)
SGK: "Yes sir. I understand."
(Long pause)
SGK: "Yessir."
(Long pause.)
SGK: "Yes sir, I'll let him know."
Click.



She picks the mic for her radio.
SGK: "Hole 10 green, come in."
Radio: "10 green, go ahead base."
SGK: "Hole 10, is that you I see, sitting on the grass next to the greenside bunker? INSIDE THE ROPES? IN THE FIELD OF PLAY?!"
The figure stands up, moves out of camera shot.
SGK: "If I get another call from Tournament H.Q. about you, I'm going to move you straight to 11 green, back there with the moccasins and the copperheads.

After the ass-chewing I knew she got from THQ I'm surprised she didn't go out there and beat him to death with his Geodimeter... Or at least stab him with the tripod.

She's starting to get mellow in her old age...

*Other SGK@ANGC content here and here and here...

TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Good Reads

I've picked up a new entry on my RSS reader.
Erin at Lurking Rythmically has quite a varied range of topics...
My man McThag linked to her post on 2A rights and her takedown of a recent commenter who was dismissive of her rights. She kicked some ass. Completely and eloquently...

She's also heavily entrenched in the RPG activities...
Reading some of her stuff (especially her Traveller discussions) harkened me back to my lost weekends from my high school days where we spent waaaay too much time rolling oddly-shaped dice and arguing damage probabilities, unconventional tactics and good-evil-law-chaos alignment.

Read her stuff on her D&D campaign called Pellatarrum...
She's put a ton of work into it. Great stuff if you have any D&D/RPG background.

She's over on the sidebar now... Go. Read...


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Watching Watertown

...hundreds and hundreds of alphabet soup people (ATF, FBI, WFD, BPD, etc) standing around...

All I can think is that every one of the mf'ers is on the clock. Cha-ching!

I'd tell 80% of them to clock out and go home.

Edit: 8:47pm - DEA? FBI Gang Taskforce? Really?
I want a jacket that has "EIEIO" in big reflective letters...

TBG

Daily Comments - 4/17/13

Watching the US Senate live feed from c-span...

One of the many 'blogs in my RSS feed (I think it might have been Robb NoPants) sugested that before you can write legislation on something, you should be a PhD on the topic,  not just be able to spell most of the terms in the nomenclature...

From some of the speeches I've heard today, I'm convinced that most of the US Senate (and probably the US Congress) can't be trusted with a bucket of piss or a burnt-out match.

FTMF

Edit- 2:03PM EDT -
ESPECIALLY Jack Reed (D - Rhode Island)
Deceptive quotes out of context, prevarication, cherry picking his stats, conflagration and outright lies. Double FTMF with a curare-tipped barbed-wire dildo.

Edit - 2:06PM EDT
Oh yeah- One more thing...
"Oh no... This new background check system can never be used as a base for national registry or confiscation."
Right...
Like we can believe ANY-fucking-THING you Washingturd assholes say...
i.e.:
"This legislation will not add one dime to the deficit."
"We will have the most transparent administration in the history of the US"
And my personal favorite:
"The public will have 5 days to review every bill that lands on my desk."
Or any of the several hundred more examples why we cannot put any faith in anything they say.

Last one: 2:55 -
They are going waay out of the way to refer the legislation as "Manchin-Toomey" and avoid mentioning Chucky Schumer... Having him as the primary name on the act would be the death-knell to the bill.



TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics

Yeah-
That 90% figure they are using regarding background checks...
As in the President's tweet:



First- the sampling demographic-

"Polls of voters in Virginia, New Jersey and Pennsylvania in January by the independentQuinnipiac University"

 And how many people?
1,134 in Virgina, 1,647 in New Jersey and 1,221 in Pennsylvania...

Hardly 90% of "all Americans", in my estimation...

Why don't you ask some folks in Florida, Alabama or Texas. You know, the ones that have been to gun shows and know that 95% of sales there ARE background checked, instead of asking dumbass Yankees who wouldn't know a multi-clip magazine if it bit them in the ass.


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Double Standard at NBC

You know, one person can fire off a letter/email/telegram complaining about some talking head making a comment that is too conservation or (Heaven forbid) something that promotes Christian values and the network will fire that person so fast all you will hear is the whistle as they fly out the door.
MSLSDNBC will get THOUSANDS of complaints about Chris Mathews for his immediately linking the Boston Marathon bombing to right-wing extremist groups...
Guess what?
He'll still have a job there forever.

Friggin' hypocrites.


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Just A Few Thoughts...

...as I try to get recovered from my trip to A Nice Golf Course.

On the radio yesterday around 2:00 - (Fox New Radio, no less!)
The talking voice was discussing the new gun control legislation and about the possibilities of adding restrictions on "multi-clip magazines"...

Huh?

If you want to read some asshattery, dial up your favorite search engine and google "multi clip magazine"

-=-=-=-=-

As news came out on the Boston Marathon bombing all I could think about was how lives can be saved if we had better laws controlling bombs and explosives...
(Seems my man McThag had the same thoughts...

-=-=-=-=-

Listening to the press conferences from Boston I finally realize why JayG at MArooned always refers to the mayor of Boston as "Mumbles Menino". Dude talks like he has a mouth full of cat turds.

-=-=-=-=-

I don't care what AP calls them, they are still Illegal Aliens. Period.


-=-=-=-=-

Nanny Bloomberg thinks there is something wrong with you if you sell a gun to a family member.
So... In his mind, if you want to do this, you are mentally ill and should be prohibited from firearm ownership anyway.
Does that mean that if you disagree with him about trans-fats and 32 oz. soft drinks, does that make you mentally ill too?
Obese=Mentally Ill?

Sorry- FTMF.

 
TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

In lieu of REAL content...

Another Talking Dog...



TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Still Alive...

...but just barely.

I took a quick trip to NJ on the 28th and a woman sitting behind me on the plane was working on coughing up a lung the whole way...
I was thinking "Perfect- the one time I don't take my Airborne is the time Typhoid Mary is sitting behind me."

By the end of the day on the 29th I couldn't catch my breath and any attempt at a deep inhale would leave me blue from hacking and my throat looked like something was clawing at the back of it.

It was all I could do to get to the airport at 5:30 on Saturday AM for my flight home.
I got back to Jax, and barely made it home.

I coughed and sweated through the rest of the weekend, hoping that I would shake it off before my next departure (Monday AM - to Augusta ).

No good. When Monday rolled around I wasn't any better... The Woman Who Knows Most Things and the Perfect Child were concerned and told me I shouldn't go.
Ha.
Right. I'll just call in sick. Someone can just take over my project...

The guys bundled me into the cargo space in the van and we all drove to Augusta.
Tuesday through Sunday we got all our hardware setup and worked on testing our software and procedures- fortunately my staff here worked well on their own...
On Sunday I mustered all my strength and did my training class-
Teaching our 66 volunteers how to do our thing...

Most often heard phrase this week: "How you doin' Big Guy? Cause you look like shit."

Yeah- well, looks aren't deceiving. I feel like shit.
Horrible hacking cough, fever. Still.



One of my volunteers comes up as we are wrapping up on Monday night. I'm sitting outside my ops trailer, coughing and sweating...
"Hey- let me take a look at you..."
He tells me he's a PA over in Charleston. He looked at my eyes and took my pulse...
"Hmmmm. Let me go out to my car for a second."
Comes back with a stethoscope and a thermometer...
He checks me out. 
"Yeah- you've got walking pneumonia."
He writes up 2 scrips - "Publix pharmacy is open 'til 9. Go fill these. Now."

Started taking my meds yesterday AM, and I actually feel semi-human this afternoon...
Up until this afternoon, I have had only enough energy to get my work done, then go straight back to my room - skipping dinner - and going straight to bed.
Today I actually feel good enough to break out my laptop, check my emails, reply to a few...

And I guess I could write a little something to let people know I'm still alive. Mostly.


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE

Don't Blink!

One of my favorite bloggers, the fair Brigid at Home on the Range put forth definitive proof that Black Labs are actually Whovian Weeping Angels...


(You DO know Weeping Angels, don't you?)


Go read her complete breakdown here, as I don't want to even paraphrase one word of her prose...
(Plus, I don't want a visit from Barkley in the dead of night...)

But I never really thought about it... Until Brigid brought it up.

Whilst nibbling on goodies as I watched Downton Abbey (yeah... you got a problem with that?)
the Dark Menace slowly and demurely approached...



And then the fatal mistake- I looked away for a moment.



Great Googly Moogly, Black Labs are Weeping Angels!


TBG- ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE