Wearing it on your sleeve

I was on the way home from work the other day and stopped in for a six pack, and saw a Naval representative gassing up.
I suppose he was a recruiter, since as far as I know, the closest Naval facility to Castroville is in Beeville.
He was a Second Class Quartermaster with four years in.

I could tell that by looking at his left sleeve.
The Navy has a symbol for every rating they use (or had), some have been expanded because of technological advances needing more specialization. Some have disappeared or been absorbed into a like rate.

Anyway, the Navy has different traditions from the other services due to their specialized needs and history. Yes, different from the Marines, too- who follow the ground based military traditions.

One of the differences is their rank and rating system. Every Enlisted has a rate (if they're above E-3) they're specifically trained for (an MOS is different)and it's embroidered on their rank patch ( their Crow).

This was mine- a Construction Electrician.

I was a CE-2 Construction Electrician Second class Petty officer (E-5)CE-2.

The reason I knew my Quartermaster had been in (at least) four years was the red stripe he had near his sleeve cuff, each one of those represents four years of service.

I'm not sure of the Exact reasoning behind these peculiar Naval traditions, but I imagine that it was the need to recognize the people capable of doing certain jobs when the SHTF and they were on another watch. You don't want a Hull Tech playing with high pressure steam lines when the ship lost all lights, or an Engineman trying to fix a fire control computer.
The red service indicators would let you know how much experience the rating had.

Ok, your 'other service' lesson is over for today. Next time is why the traditional Dress Blues look the way they do.

So, how do you like your leftover sammich?

Mine is white bread, Miracle Whip, white meat, a spoon full of stuffing and maybe cranberry sauce (home made).

Merry Christmas from the family!

One more Twisted carol?

Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas


These head bangers have more Christmas cheer out there than the more mainstream bands...funny how that works, huh?

Remember the Berkely tree sitters?

The ones that have decided to protect a grove of trees that were scheduled to be humanely removed for expansion of an athletic facility?
The Best of craigslist has a letter to them from a fellow believer:

Open letter to Berkeley tree-sitters
Date: 2007-11-01, 4:28PM PDT


Dear Berkeley tree-sitters,

Let me begin by stating that I like trees. Some of my best friends are trees and I generally support the peaceful coexistence of humans and trees. Similarly, I worry about carbon dioxide emissions and their impact on global climate. I also work on the UC Berkeley campus, and I often walk or ride along Piedmont Ave. on my way to or from work. Thus, I encounter your encampment on a near-daily basis. I see your slogans chalked on the sidewalks. I see your Tibetan prayer flags. I pass through clouds of your collective body odor and exhaled marijuana smoke. Having observed your actions for quite some time now, sometimes I wonder if you've ever considered just how much damage you're doing to legitimate pro-environment, pro-leftist movements everywhere.

Let us examine a few key points that may help you understand why your effort to save the oak grove manages to be futile, ridiculous, ignorant, destructive, and offensive all at the same time:

(1) Consider what you are fighting for.
How many trees does UC intend to destroy for its construction project? (Answer: 38). Is the coast live oak an endangered or threatened species? (Answer: No). Will the removal of these individual trees have any significant impact on the health of the overall population of the species? (Answer: No). Consider how many collective man-hours your campaign has devoted to saving these trees. Has it occurred to you that your time may be better spent focusing on (for example) the huge swaths of the Amazon that are cut down by loggers and developers every day? Are you choosing to protect 38 trees because you really think it is a significant, meaningful cause? I hope not--because that would be ignorant. It seems much more likely that you choose this battle because it is relatively convenient and riskless. Honestly--why don't you sac up and take on a *real* environmental offender?

(2) Consider your conduct.
Do you intend to win the hearts and minds of the people with catch-phrases like "Guantanamo Berkeley" chalked on the sidewalks? Do you really think you have anything in common with the prisoners currently incarcerated at Guantanamo Bay? Perhaps in a momentary flash of sobriety, one of you will realize just how offensive it is to draw a comparison between your fenced-in encampment and an actual prison.

(3) Consider the backlash of your actions.
You are the source and embodiment of all negative stereotypes that conservatives hold against liberals. If you're going to stage a protest, are you capable of doing it in a dignified, respectable manner? Hint: smoking drugs in the trees does not exude dignity. Also, consider periodic showers. Rather than winning popular support from pedestrians who encounter your encampment, you are actually contributing to their mistrust and ire toward environmentalists. Perhaps you are Republicans dressed up as hippies deliberately trying to damage public opinion of the left?

(4) Consider your hypocrisy.
Is that your 60's-era VW minibus parked next to the "Stop driving" message chalked on the sidewalk? Do you know what the gas-mileage on that thing is? (Answer: ~14-18 mpg) Have you considered investing in a catalytic converter? Perhaps you are also the same people who spray-paint "driving" on all the stop signs in Berkeley. Do you think your graffiti will trigger a massive, group epiphany in passing motorists and cause them to suddenly abandon the automobile as a mode of transportation? In reality, your graffiti (and your very presence) only detracts from the natural beauty of this campus and the surrounding town.

In summary, do not think for a moment that you exist under a shield of popular support. You are wasting your time on a futile, meaningless cause. If you're going continue living outdoors and imparting your naïve views on pedestrians, I suggest that you move your operation to People's Park (or perhaps the sidewalk of Shattuck Ave) where you can peacefully co-exist with the rest of Berkeley's hobos.

Go home. We're sick of you guys.

I'm sure by now that you've seen this Fred vid

The Christmas Thank You to those who deserve it.



It's tasteful, understated and best of all doesn't have another politician out there shoving his (her) face into every camera they see.

I'll be voting for Fred because he's someone to vote *for* instead of just because he's better than the alternative.

I also look at what the "experts" consider negatives as additional reasons to vote for him.
He'd not campaigning hard enough- Good! Nothing p*sses me off more than phone spam from politicians
He's lazy- So am I. We have too many politicians that think they need to make useless legislation just because they're sitting in plush offices in some capitol.

Lets get Fred on the ticket!

More nose art

I got some good responses from my other post about nose art, so I thought I'd make it a weekend feature.
Here's the B-24 Miss Please who was shot down over Yugoslavia on October 14, 1944.


Joltin' Josie a B-29 in 1944, and her creator who charged a 5th of whiskey for her.



(UPDATE)
I'm looking at Josies gun barrels on the top turret.
It just occurred to me that the plane has to be going at least 350MPH, right?
Why would they need to keep those barrel cooling fins on the turret guns?
Even a .50 or 20MM should be air cooled without the aerodynamic drag produced by all those holes in the cooling shroud- right?
_or am I missing some obvious thing that anyone alive in the war years would know?

I can understand the b-17's and B-24's having off the shelf .50's, but the B-29 was supposed to be *THE* hottest bomber around, ya know?

I *know* I did this before

1. Link to the person that tagged you. That will be William H and post the rules on your blog.

These are the rules.

2) Share Christmas facts about yourself.

3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.

4) Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here goes:

1. Wrapping or gift bags? Wrapping. Wrapping.

2. Real or artificial tree? Artificial, real ones leave a mess.

3. When do you put up the tree? This year- Karen drug it out last week-end. Usually Thnksgiving week-end.

4. When do you take the tree down? New Years week-end.

5. Do you like eggnog? I'll nave a beer, thanks.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? At 14, my very first bb gun.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? No.

8. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A weight set.

9. Mail or email Christmas cards? ummmmm---ooooops. And we forgo my moms birthday earlier this month.

10. Favorite Christmas movie? It's a Wonderful Life.

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Didn't even think about it until today. Every ones cards will be after Christmas, too.

12. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? A german fruitbread.

13. Clear lights or colored? Colored.

14. Favorite Christmas song? A Robert Earl Keen song, Merry Christmas from the Family.

15. Travel at Christmas or stay at home? This year, stay home.

16. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Dasher and Dancer, and Prancer and Vixen. On Donner and Blitzen. On Commet, on Cupid, And the most famous reindeer of all---
Rudolph the red nosed reindeer!

17. Angel or star on the top of your tree? Angel.

18. Open your presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Christmas morning.

19. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Oh, I can only pick one? The horrendous traffic.

20. What do you leave for Santa? Santa's skipping the house this year, we'll be visited by the Grinch.

21. Least favorite holiday song? All that have been subverted into ads.

22. Do you decorate your tree with any specific theme or color? Hunny.....

23. Favorite ornament? None specifically.

24. Family tradition? A certain teen will be sure to show how much she would rather be anywhere but celebrating Christmas with me around.

25. Ever been to Midnight Mass or late-night Christmas Eve services? Yes.

Well, color me shocked

I mean totally flabbergasted about this unexpected occurrence.

Who would have ever thought...
It's like discovering that Liberace was gay, or Democrats want to increase taxes.

The Shiite leaders are upset about the Sunnis joining more neighborhood watch groups.
It's not surprising, really, because basically we're talking about two groups of people who's idea of government is your oldest uncle.

Oh, and because it's all about the money they get for doing the patrols, not that they actually *want* to help keep their neighborhoods safe fron Al Quada, you know...

The groups have become a controversial aspect of the U.S. military's counter-insurgency strategy in Iraq . More than 75,000 people, 80 percent of them Sunni, have signed up for the groups under a U.S.-sponsored program that pays Iraqis $300 each to patrol their neighborhoods.

The groups began in Anbar province, a predominantly Sunni area, where they're credited with curbing al Qaida in Iraq , but it was the U.S. push to form similar groups in mixed Sunni-Shiite areas of Baghdad and Diyala province, as well as in mostly Shiite southern Iraq , that has sparked the anger of Shiite officials.

Recently, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki , a Shiite, has directed that no councils be formed in the predominantly Shiite areas of southern Iraq , where violence is caused primarily by rivalries between the Mahdi Army militia loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr and the Supreme Council's Badr Organization militia.

In recent weeks, the government has taken steps to quash any possible formation of awakening councils.

Hey guys, if you don't want those watch groups to be controlled by the Sunnis- get your people involved.

I'm getting a little better on the whole Xmas thing

I found out that the "no overtime" thing was paywize- not *no overtime authorized*, so I'll be able to get almost a week off, starting Feb. 7 '07 for JURY DUTY- yes, just what I always wanted.
"Yes your Honor, I'd love to serve because the Police would *never* arrest someone who wasn't guilty!" can-I-go-home-now?

So to celibrate my newest Noellie feelings, how about your favorite biatch in "Silver bells"---if it were me, I wouldn't be celebrating a second Christmas there.....but then there must be SOME compensation,,,, for our rotund friend

I bet ACORN has something to do wit it

When I first heard about the N'awlins public housing demo protest, I wondered "why would they protest brand new homes?"

It turns out that the N'awlins protesters AREN'T the residents, but imported protesters- some from as far away as Mass.

You know, , , I know they're Socialists- and all, but WHY protest something better?
Besides, I think this is the first time since Katie that N'awlins has done something positive for their citizens.

Sorry

Just not in the Christmassy mood.

More in the mood for FOGHAT!
Slow ride



Home in my hand



Fool for the city


Driving wheel (they kinda lost the edge by 2007)

SIR! will do just fine

Only my female harem need to call me Master.

Your Score: Zombie Master.

You scored 80% survivability and 55% kickass-ability!

You were born for z-day. Not only will you be killing zombies left and right, but you will be leading the other survivors. You will be the one making decisions and the person who is looked to for advice. Congratulations.

Link: The Non-lame Zombie Survival Test written by jesmanpokeyfun on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

But I thoughtn ALL the Gitmo inmates wre innocent goatherds

...who were rounded up just so the CIA could practice their waterboarding techniques.

But it appears the France, that bulwark of righteousness and moral uprightness has other ideas on former Gitmo guests.











And, no. I can't sleep, I have the Gulag of the Comal on my mind.
Another unpaid 3 hours OT and more to come. At least now we have all the pole bases poured and almost all the new conduit connected to the existing.
We still have to finish the worst of the lot (right next to the river- under the water table), and then pull wire and try to figure how we'll set 29- 15' light standards where we can't get a boom truck (and a backhoe has trouble).
I'm thinking some kind of A-frame.

I want to get out of their, the supervisor wants to get out, the owner is taking a bath on this job because the guy that estimated it spent a whole 5 minutes throwing together a bid.
And we're working on a 25- 30 degree slope,,,if it's not next to the river and the clayey mud there.

Gawd, I will never voluntarily EVER visit New Braunfels again.
Except for the fact that I'm driving, I'd close my eyes every time I went I-35N through the town.

I'd appreciate a British translation- please

According to this Telegraph article, somehow the Queen will be the oldest Monarch.

Except that none of the dates mentioned seem to [my American math] to match.
Q.E. was born on April 21 [a woman does not disclose her age].
Queen Vic was 81 when she died on Jan 22, 1901.

BUT...this Saturday...for some British mathematical reasoning- she'll be the longest reining British Monarch. If I read the article right.


GAWD, so confusing- mixing English accounting with American ways of telling time.....

Are they finally growing a pair?

Usually when the UN gets a building bombed, they close shop- don't they?
Now, they're sending their boss over to Algiers.

That's what they do on a UN sanctioned effort under American leadership cause of unilateral aggression over in Iraq.

Ok Ban, when can we expect to see some action in Darfur?

You know

You people who are looking for Chelsea Clintons nipples are kinda disturbing.
I mean, really- she has the worst features of BOTH of her parents. I can't say anything about her personality or work ethic, but being raised by them....gives me the skeevvies
just thinking about meeting her alone.



Oh, and to ad onto that wonderful thought, I have to go back to the nightmare on the Comal today.

Continuing Christmas cheer

More Christmas spirit

Oh, come all ye faithful

Dear Europe,

Just listening to all the hyperbole about the effect (CO2) causing the cause (Global warming) over in Bali-and was wondering: y'all signed onto the Kyoto thing- didn't you?
You were supposed to bring your CO2 down to like 2004 levels- or something.
Have ANY of you come close to meeting that goal?

When you do, let us know- K?

Oh, just a thought.
Next time you want to throw a global "Climate Change" get together- we have something that the High Priest of Carbon offsets invented, it's called the INTERNET. With it you can teleconference and see each other face to face without wasting hundreds of thousands of gallons worth of fuel.

I don't think this will end well

America went through this before and it was vicious and bloody enough- without a Communist dictator in charge

Lets party like it's 1773

The Boston tea party was held on this date to protest another of King George's user taxes.
Back then, the Colonists were paying far more into a distant and uncaring government than they were getting back in services...............

Wait-a-minute- that was 1773? Cr@p, it sounds like us today, doesn't it?
Except this time we'll never get out from under the thumb of D.C.

I'm just curious about Hillaries supporters

The ones who keep telling us about how "uniquely qualified" she is to be a Democrat president.
I mean besides being the only white woman running.

Is not being able to remember jack chit about what you did in your life one of those qualifications? You know- not remembering what your job was in the Rose Law firm, Who's decision it was to fire and then prosecute the White House Travel Office staff. Has anyone found out who Hired Craig Livingstone of the FBI files in the White House basement? How about the magical appearance of Hils billing records...AFTER she testified that she couldn't remember nada about her job there?

Not to mention her forthrightness on her Government health care fiasco.

"NUTS!"

From:
General Anthony McAuliffe,
acting commander of the 101st Airborne
Bastogne, Belgium

To:
German General Staff
Berlin, Germany

About that bandwidth problem I was having with DISHtv

After we finally came off their Fair Access Policy- we hardly ever break the top of a 6250MG download -out of an allowable 12000MG average. That's with everything going the same way we always did. Including music and pr()n educational video downloads.

After calming down and thinking a bit, I'm starting to think it's Wildblue company policy to FAP new customers in their first two months...just to teach them a lesson (or sell upgrades[more download bandwidth]).
It happened to us when we first got Wildblue (and we upgraded to the next tier), and it happened with wildblue via DISH Internet when they saw us as a new customer.
I wonder how many upgrades they get by just turning off a reset counter for a week or two?

And now,,,

THE ultimate modern Christmas song.


Doesn't it match our modern day Christmas spirit?

Nose art

I'm watching reruns of the Memphis Bell.
And in the opening half hour they show the take-off roll of the bomber wing.
So I thought I'd give you some anti-PC eye candy.

In looking, I ran across this site, which should tweak some sensibilities:

Although some examples of non regulation art can be found on the military aircraft of other English-speaking countries, the phenomenon is predominantly American, perhaps due to the streak of rebellious individualism attributed to American culture. Nose art is important as an historical and societal indicator over time, an example of folk art or popular expression, and a record of the past.

~and~
The characteristics of World War II aircraft art and the fact that it flourished during that time are indicators of that era. The art reflects the attitude of the people involved in the war--both at home and on the front, and, in the case of World War II, the attitude was positive (Davis v. 3, p. 3). The images--often patriotic and sometimes propagandistic--clearly reflected the spirit of the times, the all-out American effort to fight the good war. The combat crews were backed by a unified, supportive public. This was a war with a clear objective, and one in which the whole country challenged a known evil. At first look, the art that was a product of the war seems to be nothing more than silly names and irreverent images. But taken as a whole, the images indefinably suggest an underlying determination of the country to right a wrong.-My bolding

OK, so did I p*ss off enough Brits and 'patriotic' Libs?

Anyway, on to the un-PC patriotism of the Airedales...





She is part of the C.A.F. San Marcos Squadron a B-25




And look at their life in Europe:

I was looking for a specific plane, 'The magnificent Obsession' because a friend of mine from Port Aransas (and San Antonio) Col. Art Rupert (Ret.) flew with her during the war.
I DID find another piece of nose art that another friend flew as a 'Volunteer' in China, though...

With a tip of a rat-killing .45 to frank.

Coffee?

I got to clicking links and ended up at 'The Anchoress' where she was talking about take-out coffee.
She'd rather have take-out than home brewed.

I *HATE* the taste of industrial coffee, it always tastes bad- too burnt, bitter, old, or (Insert your dislike here). I usually drink it black -like my men- , but even adding the flavor maskers doesn't work, just tastes nasty.
If I have to drink that nasty cr@p, at least they have a couple pieces of ice to cool it down (and dilute it a little)

But my dear Erica, making Ice Coffee intensifies the dog c@rp factor by over 100%- I don't know who convinced you that it could possibly be near as good as Iced Tea, but NYC is as Liberal as Seattle, so maybe it was osmosis.
The sweet kind.

A question for the Gore-acle Himself

Hiya Albert!
I was just reading Eric's' take on your latest version of the "we're all gonna fry!" speech.

After all your self righteous hyperbole. Would you please tell us just exactly *how* or *why* this particular 'Global warming Climate change event' is any worse for the earth, (and the human race) than any of the uncounted (that's before people could keep reliable records) history of global warming cycles?
Is it because there could be disruptions to the way animals live? Isn't that the religion of Evolution that you libs pay homage to?

But *WHY* -aside from the fact that you and your chicken hearted enviro-Crusaders are alive now- is ANYTHING different from the other hundreds of warming cycles that have reshaped the earth and it's (sorry---Her) inhabitants?

Also, given the way your Dems and eco-wienies have destroyed our petroleum self sufficiency- and jacked the price of home heating up so it *really* hurts the poor; why would it be so bad to have warmer winters?

Weather update

We're now getting the rain they've been promising for the last two days.
I have to take the backhoe to a new school complex about 10 miles away from the Pennies project.
My supervisor wants me to road it instead of going all the way out to the Orchard (the new main office) and getting the haul truck.
That will be an interesting experience- hauling butt down 1604 at 25MPH in the rain.