People on Welfare

What's the definition of welfare?

W e
E njoy
L iving
F ree
A t
R eal Workers'
E xpense

Recently I had the opportunity to notice some people who collect benefits from governments, but they don't work. AKA Welfare.

My favorite welfare people are those who have children without the means to support them, unless of course, the taxpayers assist. Must be nice.

Then when they run into some unearned income, they get mad if they have to pay income taxes on their unearned income. After all, only suckers work full-time jobs. People are cool if they reproduce, then collect government assistance even though they are able-bodied and employable.

Wow, I guess I'm just too uncool to be on welfare. I spend too much time supporting myself with gainful employment. I pay my taxes.

And never once, have I received so much as a 'thank you for supporting me and my children' from the slackers on WELFARE.

I remeber when I was raised by my parents (yes, that's plural, as in 2 parents, not one) - they would usually not accept public assistance unless it was for something hugely important, such as college tuition assistance.

My, how times have changed...

Vehicle Maintenece Blog - Testing 1-2-3

Well, I got my truck's oil changed recently. Oil changes are important to people who drive vehicles regularly. I need my vehicle to go to work. WORK I said.

WORK: doing something productive.

WORK: only for people who pull their own weight in this world.

WORK: not for the weak.

WORK: not for welfare recipients.

WORK: what an engine does when a vehicle moves your ass around town.

WORK: the only thing I respect.

WORK: please send me your comments on this subject.

TV Set & Internet Upgrade

Well, I decided to finally join the 21st century! Above, see my old TV. Below - Verizon FIOS, TV & Internet, and my new 37" HD TV - welcome to the 21st century for me.

WOW, I can't believe how sharp HD shtuff is! Also, I couldn't believe how much dust there was behind the old set. Mountains I'm talkin'.

So I have this fiber-optic line now. It comes into the house and goes to this big white box installed in the basement. It's like I've got the HAL computer now (2001 Space Oddesey movie) running all my comm equipment.

FAAAAST internet - 15 Mbps download, and 5 Mb upload. Great for multi-media.

Now I just have to learn how all this new shtuff works. And what am I gonna do with all my old VHS video tapes? I guess I'll be copying them over to DVD now. They all look so blurry though, now that I'm spoiled w/ HD.

Music, sports, movies - on demand, WOO-HOO!

Buffalo Sabres - Maybe Next Year

Well the Sabres just lost round 1 of the NHL Hockey playoffs. I was hoping they would make a big comeback, but maybe next year will be better.

Time to break out the golf clubs I guess...

Earth Day 2010

HAPPY EARTH DAY! Wikipedia has a cool write-up on the Earth and since today is Earth Day - I think we can all spend a few minutes today learning, or re-learning, neat things about the Earth. Life has been on Earth for billions of years but human civilization has been around for only a few thousand. That's like the blink of an eye!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth

Enjoy.

Oh, the picture of the Earth above is from one of the Appolo missions back in the day.

Pictures From NASA

Well, here are some pictures from NASA. The above picture: the Sun, up close and personal.

Above: someplace far away where stars are born, not Hollywood.

Spiral galaxy.

And here is a picture of that volcano that is cancelling flights around large parts of Europe. This is the only picture from here on Earth. There's a joke going around Iceland (or so I've heard) that says England asked for some money that Iceland owes England. The English said "Give us some cash" and because Iceland's language doesn't have a 'C' in it, they said - "OK, we'll send you some ash".

First Tomato Sprouts Of The Season

Well, spring is really here. See above for the "First Tomato Sprouts Of The Season".

They are a Beefsteak type of tomato from seed I saved in 2003 from one of my home grown tomatoes. I also have several other tomato types and peppers, scallions, and cantelopes that are planted but not yet sprouting.

They Found Water On The Moon!

Well, I heard they found water on the moon. They, meaning NASA. I thought the moon was a barren piece of rock orbiting around our lovely planet Earth. Why, with water on the moon, it might mean life. So let's get excited. After all, water on the moon means great things.





So here is a picture that represents an advance forward in space exploration.

Apparently the original astronaughts did not drink from this mighty water fountain because their gloves were too big to let them push the button that says "push here" and they could not drink from the mighty fountain of moon youth. Too bad.

Well that means there will be more water there for me when my ship arrives.

Happy belated April Fools' day. I waited until now because I cannot fool anyone until several days after Apr 1st because everyone is too alert for that kind of thing.

Finally Got A Picture Of A Mallard

Well I finally got a picture of a Mallard Duck. My neighborhood just north of Buffalo, NY has Mallards all over the place. They are even protected by town law if I'm not mistaken. They like to walk around right in the road sometimes, even with their little chicks following close behind.

This is a male, and he's just about to take off. The lady a few houses down feeds all the animals who visit her yard, ducks, rabbits, squirrels, etc. Sometimes her house looks like a duck airport, there are so many taking off or landing at any one time.

And off he goes to another duck adventure. This time of year that usually means finding a female to 'play house', if you know what I mean.

FOOD: Frying Potatoes

I was looking for an excuse to cook up something in my cast-iron skillet, and I had some red potatoes, so I put 2 + 2 together & decided to fry up some sliced and shoestring potatoes.

I had some vegetable oil, enough to cover the skillet surface about 1/4 inch. I will try this again with bacon grease next time. The thin slices came out just like potatoe chips, and the thicker ones more like french fries. My potato peeler has a section where you can push through a frech fry shaped raw potato and it slices it into 3 shoestring potatoes. They cooked the fastest and were dee-lish.




These potatoes came out great. I love being able to cook up my own food without making a huge production out of it. It stank up the house a little bit, but it was worth it.

Wordless Friday

Well, I have not had a Wordless Day in a long time, so here's one in the comedy department. Add your own words.

Actually, there are some words, but they are mis-spellt.

Pictures Of Spring!

Time for some Pictures Of Spring! Finally the plants are growing again. Woo-hoo!








Finally things are turning green again. Robins are all over the place and worms are creeping around as well. Maple trees and other plants are sporting their springtime buds and soon I'll be crankin' up the lawn mower. Goodbye snow, see ya next year!

More Burgers & Fries

Spring is in the air around here in Buffalo. Time for more burgers & fries shtuff.

Tips for better burgers:



http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/03/the-burger-labs-top-ten-tips-for-better-burgers.html

Frozen fries review:



http://burgerdoctor.com/frozen-french-fries-test.html

St. Patty's Day

St. Patrick's Day - enjoy!



I've had some trouble with putting links up onto this blog, so if you have a tech support issue, try this:

www.2stews.com/2010/03/guinness-irish-stew.html

Oh, and follow your dreams!!!

Donsta

2 Feet Of Snow - Whew! That's A Lot!

Recently people in the Eastern USA had a major snowstorm that left 2 feet of snow on the ground.

WOW, 2 feet. That sounds like a lot of snow to me.

See below.

The Truth About Cars - The Blog

Here's a blog I've been following lately - it is:

www.thetruthaboutcars.com


Lots of cool info and opinions about cars and other vehicles.

Enjoy.

Nice Weather - Start The Grill

We had some nice, sunny, Buffalo weather recently, and it was time to say:

"Nice Weather - Start The Grill!!!"



Fiesta gas grill - check. Johnsonville Brats - check. Match - oh wait... Ok check.

The automatic starter is not working. Oh well, match got it going.

Some horsey mustard and relish - good to go.



I can't wait for spring.

Talas - A Buffalo Rock Legend

I don't know how I ever survived before YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFcTuQsr1TM&feature=related
\

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JK7DUfB8Fo&NR=1

Rock on Buffalonians!

Talas is one of the best bands to ever play in Buffalo. Billy Sheehan is one of the best bass players I have ever listened to. Check out:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Sheehan

I think that because I'm from Buffalo I should shout about the good things in this city. This is one of those moments.

Would You Like Some REAL FRIES With That???

Enjoy.

BBQ Show On TLC

Came across this TV show on The Learning Channel. It's a reality show about competition barbeque.

http://tlc.discovery.com/tv/bbq-pitmasters/

Lots of interesting tips these guys are giving away. Sometimes competition bbq-ers won't share any tips with you. These guys are part chef, part athlete & part 5-star General. Cool. And I don't doubt for a second that it's very competitive. This is NOT grilling hot dogs & hamburgers.

Oh, and follow your dreams.

Snowstorm Part II

Well, the snowstorm is mostly over. I survived!!! Woo-Hoo. There's still some snow falling but I do not mind. It was a pain but it proves that people here in Buffalo can bounce back when confronted with bad weather. And we really didn't get that much snow. 12 inches of snow? Who cares.

I'm going to yawn now...

The Donsta

Gettin' Ready For A Snowstorm

Well the big snowstorm the weather geeks are predicting is about to hit. I got my shovel ready, got food, batteries, activated a school & business closings feature on a local radio station so it will send me a TXT to my cellphone, and got a full tank o' gas in my truck. I got bread, milk & eggs, you know, the things that stores always run out of when a big storm is on the way. Like my big bag of Doritos, never go into a big storm without your fave foods. I'll set my alarm clock extra early so I can shovel my way out in the morning. So hopefully because I'm ready, the storm will not be so bad. We'll see...

New Shocks On My Truck

Recently I had the shock absorbers on my truck (AKA "Shocks") replaced. It seemed like my tires were wearing faster than usual, and my neighborhood repair shop said my shocks looked old and maybe even original to the truck. The truck has over 78,000 miles on it, so I got them replaced. WWWWOOOOOOOWWW! What a difference good shocks can make. I ride over the same bumps in the road that made me think "Wow, what a crappy road this is, they should fix all these huge bumps." and now I hit the same bumps and think "Wow. What a smooth road this is if you just get your crappy shocks replaced with new ones." You see, with old, crappy shocks, your tires do not stay in contact with the road when you run over bumps and potholes. With new, good shocks, tires stay in contact w/ the road just fine, and they do not wear out anywhere near as fast. Every time the tire loses contact with the road and then touches down again, it wears off some rubber.

I meant to take some pictures but we're getting a lot of new snow today, so words will have to do. Hopefully I can get this post up to a thousand words to make up for the lack of a picture.

So, if you have a car or truck with old shocks, bite the bullet and spend the bucks to get new shocks & you may feel like you have a new vehicle. Plus, your tires will last much longer, PLUS IT'S MUCH SAFER in case you have to slam on your brakes in a traffic situation where you need to stop fast unexpectedly. Plus, it's just cool to know you have a conversation starter the next time you are hangin' out w/ friends & family.

My Sister Is Blogging Now!!!

I have a sister who decided to start 2 things in cyber space: one is her online store site where you can buy various things made from yarn, and two - a blog!

She said I inspired to start the blog, and she asked if I could feature it, so here we go.

I'll start with the blog:

http://www.raigecreations.blogspot.com/

There's a link to her store on her blog page, and that address is:

http://www.raigecreations.etsy.com

Enjoy.

125th Post: Ramen Noodle Time

Wow, 125th post already! WOO-HOO! To celebrate, I cooked up the easiest meal I know: Ramen Noodles.

I always like to throw in some herbs or powdered veggies, or dried veggies, into the water before I heat up the water & throw in the noodles.

About equal parts of:
onion powder
garlic salt, or garlic powder
cayenne pepper - more or less, depending on how hot the shtuff is that you have
dill weed
paprika - use more if you want a more reddish-orange color

That's it. Eyeball the amounts, boil the water, toss in the noodles, cook 3-4 minutes, then (optional) toss in the salty "flavor" packet they always give you with these noodles. Or, just throw in part of it. If you put in your own ingredients with the noodles then you'll still have plenty of flavor.

Radio Controlled Tyranosaurus Rex Toy

I was recently browsing through some Christmas photos of the family and I found this little gem of a toy my nephew got. My how times have changed. We didn't have little radio controlled Tyranosaurus Rex toys when I was his age!

Better than a Chia pet though, that's for sure!

New Dish - Seafood Sausage

Last week I tried something new from Wegman's - seafood sausage. It's a blend of salmon, shrimp, and spices, stuffed in a pork casing. It grilled up great on my Fiesta gas grill & although it doesn't taste as good as regular sausage, I'm sure it's better nutritionally.

I didn't get any pictures of it since it really didn't look all that great! I think next time I'll use the charcoal grill & see if it goes any better.

MY FIRST ORIGINAL TUNE IS NOW ON THE INTERNET!!!!!!!!!

FYI - MY FIRST ORIGINAL SONG IS NOW LIVE ON THE INTERNET ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Whew, it sure took long enough.

Here's the link:

http://home.att.net/~born2playtunes

Then, go to the Links tab and it's the song Nude Day. The song reminds me of a newborn baby, since it was my first original song I ever recorded, and of course we are all nude when we're born. Unless there's something really wrong that is.

It's a play on words with 'New Day'. Get it, new day, nude day? They sound the same in English.

This song was recorded in 1996. I was in a band at the time, and Ollie was our lead guitarist. He had a 4-track cassette tape recorder and we recorded this tune with a drum machine, guitars/bass, and the cassette machine. Ollie programmed the drum machine, I recorded the guitars & bass, and he recorded it all. If I recall, he owed me a debt of some kind and this was easier than waiting for him to come up with the cash.

Oh, and always follow your dreams - and this song is one of my dreams - to have an original song live on the internet. Woo-Hoo!!! THE DREAM IS NOW REALITY ! ! ! Now I just need to write some lyrics and vocal melodies...

Belated X-Mas Photos

Bills Search For Coach - Maybe Cowher???

So the Buffalo Bills are searching for a new coach these days. Recently BILL COWHER may have been interviewing for the slot.

That could only help the Bills. That guy will light a fire you-know-where and motivate the players.

Winter Snow - Where Was This @ Christmas???

Well, it's another snow storm for this January 3rd, 2010. Where was all this snow at Christmas time?

Oh, well.

Back From Blogging Vacation

Well, I've been taking a vacation from blogging for the month of December. Now I'm baaaaaaaaaccckkkkkk.

I decided to try not blogging for a month, and it was nice. However, time to get back into it. One of my New Year's Resolutions is to evaluate all my internet/on-line shtuff and see what can be done to improve things.

Also on the Resolutions list: play music every day, and lift weights every day, unless too sore from the day before.

Happy New Year to all and may 2010 be better than ever!