Mexicans Going Home???

So, the illegal aliens are going home in "Record Numbers".

The returnees have "put pressure on social services".

And "advocates" for illegal aliens are "disturbed by the trend".

See the story HERE.

Advocates for immigrants are disturbed by the trend. Albert Ruiz, an organizer for the League of United Latin American Citizens, agrees that more undocumented immigrants are going home — but says families are being torn apart in the process. If a father is deported, Ruiz says, his family members in America are forced either to fend for themselves or follow him to a country where they've never even lived.

Well, boo freakin' hoo. I may weep in my cerveza.

These clowns (the illegal aliens) have been costing us (that's the US citizenry) a butt-load of money for a long time - much more than they contribute to the economy.

So Jose and Maria have to haul their cute little family back to Jalisco, or wherever doesn't cause me one bit of heartburn.

Now, let's finish that blasted fence and really put the screws to the Mexican government to solve their problems instead of exporting them.

Fickle Fay The Tropical Storm, Or...

... How my teenage daughter managed to make me forget about the crappy weather we're having here in the beautiful, genteel Souf.

Shall I explain?

Can you say "Thirteen-year-old female"?

Sheesh... I really don't want to go there.

Ostensibly, this is about Chickie's retainer - which is a gizmo that one uses after one's braces are removed from one's teeth - which Chickie has managed to lose, somewhere, somewhen in the last 12 hours.

In reality, this is Chickie being... thirteen years old.

Read "Monumental pain in her parents nether regions".

By the way, we're having all kinds of other fun with Tropical Storm Fay - who has decided to park her moldy self's northern edge right over my house for the next thirty-six hours.

It's going to be a lonnnng weekend, neh?

More on Weather

In the post below, please keep in mind that hurricanes affect weather hundreds of miles from the center of the storm.

Looking at the scale, you will see that we are within 100 miles of the CENTER of where Fay is projected to be - right in the "pink" zone.

Not just a sigh - more like what Achmed the Dead Terrorist said, in that high-pitched voice: "Holy Crap!" (See Achmed HERE... and Achmed is definitely NSFW!)

What Can You Do About Weather?

Not too much - you just get to suffer through it.





I rather suspect that we're going to have a Very Interesting Time over the next few days...

Sigh....

Not A Good Day

When I got back to Georgia after watching my Dad die (Not fun, but I'm glad that I was there), I had a number of things to deal with besides my own personal grief.

Just getting me out to Washington (State, NOT D.C., thank goodness!) was Very Expensive. Not to mention the costs of just being there, what with hotel and food, etc.

Then there was the simple stress.

Simple?

Riiight.

And when I got back, well, I guess that grief doesn't show much on me.

I've been getting some... odd, shall we say, looks and comments.

Listen up, people. Death and stress and grief and sadness manifest themselves in many different ways with different people.

I miss my Dad. I love him, and miss him. And my Mom. And my grandparents.

The me you see every day is not the me that's inside.

I don't beat my breast, and weep and wail.

I just do what Mom and Dad would expect of me.

I get on with it. I hug my girls. I hug my wife. I treasure each day, from beginning to end. I do my best. As Mom and Dad would expect me to do.

So, what don't you see?

You don't see the hole in my heart. You don't see my tears, when I'm alone. You don't see the aching endless void that is the place that my Mom and Dad hold. The ones who always could be counted on for a wise word or three when I needed advice, or when I neede a little propping up when I was unsure of myself. Or a swift kick in the ass when that is needed.

What you do see is OWW getting himself together to meet the day. To cope. To do the best I can.

Because that's what's expected.

Family

Just had a chat with brother Tom.

We strolled down Memory Lane about The Old Man and a few of his friends.

When Dad was dying, his fried Joe would come over to play the piano, and sing a little bit, some of the stuff that Dad grew up with. Joe is also in his 80's, and God Willing, will be around for a few more years.

Dad and Dr. Wylie, between them, kept me out of jail more than once.

I paid, oh Lord, did I pay - in sweat and humiliation - but I learned, Oh, My, did I learn.

In later years, Tom, Mike, Bob, and I would draw on The Old Man's store of knowledge and logic, and request advice - which we mostly followed.

We all have "Dad Stories" - and all of the stories have a point.

We all have "Mom and Dad Stories" - and all of them have a point.

Most of them have pointy, sharp, and "Oh, You Dummy!" type of points.

We miss you...

Fairness Doctrine My Aching Patootie!

An interesting poll by Rasmussen (see the article HERE)

Fifty-seven percent (57%) say the government should not require websites and blog sites that offer political commentary to present opposing viewpoints. But 31% believe the Internet sites should be forced to balance their commentary.

That 31%? They can KMA...

Or maybe da Gummint can force what's his name that runs the Daily KOS to provide free access to me so I can get my viewpoint across to his audience?

Naaaa...

A Visit Home

Kevin showed up today. Flew in on the Great Iron Bird.

From the 'Stan.

In one piece.

For the next two weeks, we (all of us) shall treasure "The Pleasure of His Company".

Until then we'll sweat bricks until this USN "Box Kicker" comes home to stay.

In five minutes we talked about hide-out guns, Afghan Army troops, K9 dogs & Handlers, mortars, close air support, and artillery. And .. other stuff.

Back Home Again

Well, I finally made it home on Tuesday, after more than 24 hours of dinking around airports and riding on heavier-than-air contraptions.

Dad's death has weighed on me for a few days now, causing much reflection and thought, but surprisingly little pain.

It is a comfort to know that he died the way he wanted surrounded and attended by family. My sisters Connie and Rosy, who cared for him in his last months, especially Rosy who lived with him. My eldest daughter, who visited frequently. My brothers Bob and Tom. His lady-friend Norma, with whom he had a morning telephone call at 8AM, "Just to make sure we're both still around". And myself, making the trip from South Georgia to Olympia on what I expected to be a "normal" 3-day visit that turned into an "in the nick of time" sort of thing.

This quote, from Gerber Daisee, summed up the way that Dad approached life, from his time as an Infantryman in WW2 to the last days of his life.

"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well-preserved piece. Rather, it is to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly worn out and shouting,

"WOW - What a ride!!" "

Dad was always a gentleman. Unless you were a complete clot, he always had a kind word and a place at the table for you. He wasn't perfect, by any means, but he could be remarkably tolerant of the foibles of others - as proof, I offer the fact that he let me live past my 15th birthday.

His acts of kindness and generosity were and are legendary. His curiosity of the world around him remarkable. His command of the English language was a marvel. And when angered, his command of invective (not necessarily swearing) was awe-inspiring (and frightening, if you were on the receiving end!).

Mrs. OWW wrote him a letter, HERE.

So long Dad. I'm missing you more every day....

Stuck In Seattle

And sleepless, too.

The blasted airplane broke some gizmo in the Engine Dept. (Caps intentional), so here I am at Seattle-Tacoma International. We had backed away from the gate at 7:50AM PDT, and were just starting to taxi when one of the 737's two engines was shut down. We went back to the gate, the airplane mechanics looked at it (and scratched and belched, no doubt), then they declared the engine unfixable for an undetermined amount of time, and that they would reschedule us, and would we please go to Carousel #9 to retrieve our bags so we could go through the ticketing/bag check-in process all over again?

(snark) Thank you for flying Continental! (/snark)

I shouldn'g bitch, I guess. At least the damned engine didn't quit during take-off.

I've had a pretty good grouch going since 9:30AM, but I'm mostly over it now. I rolled out at 4AM to get from Olympia to SeaTac in plenty of time, since I knew that I was going to have to deal with TSA people for a while (more on that in a later post).

My new flight takes off at 9:30PM and I arrive at Jacksonville at 10:30AM tomorrow morning, presuming the weather doesn't get in the way.

Sigh.

You just gotta know it's going to be a bad week when....