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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31806102017-08-12T12:36:59.499-05:00simplerich strikes backPersonal blog in every sense of the phrase. What's going on with me. It'll have my writing practice and progress and general personal stuff as well. Always interesting, but maybe not always interesting to the same people. :)Rich email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-29839069945842136252017-06-15T19:29:00.003-05:002017-06-15T19:32:06.607-05:00Wonder Woman with Mom
 So, I went to see Wonder Woman today with Mom. It was on purpose. It wasn't the purpose of the trip across three states to get here, but I knew I wanted to do it while I was here because I credit her with many/most of my opinions about women and I'd hoped she'd like the movie. She said she did. (Dad didn't want to go. I asked... I knew a 2.5-hour movie was an unlikely "yes" though. I wasn't sure Mom would go, but she did.)

 On the drive back to their house I mentioned that I didn't understand when people say little girls need to see role models of strong women so they know that being strong and independent and standing up for yourself is a thing that is possible for women to do. I have two sisters. They are both all those things and have been since they were little. It's always been my assumption that kids, both kinds, are born with a strong sense of self and an inborn sense of what they will and won't put up with, a sense a fairness and being treated fairly is just sort of there, as well as a sense of standing up for one's self and the idea that they can do anything. I've always seen that as being something that kids have when they're kids. Some kids grow out of it... but it has always felt like something kids are born with to me.

 So, if someone is worried their kids are being socialized out of that... if they're seeing their little girls turn into princesses instead of generals... that seems to me as if they're allowing something ELSE to be more important to the kid than they, as parents are. I don't think my parents ever considered for a minute that it was possible or that it would be put up with for the opinions or lessons of tv, movies, or commercials to be more important to us than they (our parents) were.

 I'm not a parent. I was a brother and my two sisters grew up to be: One, a Marine that worked on attack helicopters I think, and the other a scientist who then went into law, specifically intellectual property law in the very narrow field in which she was a scientist. Those are not fields that are typically "for girls" but I'm almost sure neither of them ever considered that as an obstacle but did what they wanted to do because they wanted to do it. We were brought up to do what we want to do and obstacles may be there, but they're not insurmountable. Most things will eventually yield if you smash yourself against it with all your will and intelligence and determination enough times. That was what we were taught. That's what we saw our parents doing over and over again. Did they have problems or stresses and were they sometimes tired and overwhelmed? Yep. I'm sure of it. But they didn't stop as far as I ever saw and they taught us not to either. We lucked out in the parent lottery.

 The lesson we learned was if you do your best and failed you'd done all you could have done and now it was time to find out what went wrong, address that, and try again, but don't half-ass it. Don't give up. Don't decide it's too hard because too hard just means too lazy and lazy isn't okay.

 So, raise strong girls. Raise strong boys who recognize that strong girls are good to have around and they aren't a threat but an asset. Encourage it, but don't assume it's not already there in the very young. I'm sure it is, and remember that they will be who they saw you being and they're watching. God knows they're watching and listening and remembering so make sure you're the person you want them to grow up to be. Model the behavior. Show them what strength is. Show them what determination looks like. Show them what it looks like to not pay attention to the limits other people want to put on you. Let them see you living it and doing it. If you have to, fake it and fake it convincingly. I'm sure there were times when my parents were staring at something like a house and yard hit by a hurricane and a house fire and 3 kids and and and... and they kept on going and just did what needed doing and we kids didn't know how hard it was. We just saw them doing what needed doing and then it was done. That's what all three of us learned: boys & girls alike learned it from seeing it, and today, we're doing it.

 So, I was glad to see the movie with her but when I think of strong women I don't think of Gal Gadot. I think of my Mom, my two amazing sisters, I think of my Granny, and my various aunts, my 103-year-old Great Aunt Annie who raised her siblings and has buried many of them if not all... outlived her parents, and some of her kids even. Those are my wonder women.
 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-36190243168477116132017-05-09T13:16:00.001-05:002017-05-09T13:24:55.716-05:001st run of the seasonRan today for real. Not just walking or mostly walking I don't think. Maybe by time, but distance I think was more running. I'm not sure.

 It's nice to put on the shoes and be able to do a little running again. Yes, it was only two miles. Yes, I know it took almost half an hour. Like I said, there was some walking in there but it was my first run of the season so I'm okay with it. If I can get back into doing it as a habit it'll improve. If I can't get it turned into a habit then you're going to see lots of these little runs where I feel super motivated for a little while and then a long period of silence about running. I'm hoping that's not what happens.

 No, it wasn't a great run but statistically, odds are, it's better than most of the people I know online or off so I'll take it, and, like I said, if I can get back in the groove of things it's just the beginning.

 Oh, the picture's unrelated. I just stopped to take a picture of a bee.

Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com Dodge, IA 50501, USA42.517283392082064 -94.18424606323242242.511431392082066 -94.194331063232426 42.523135392082061 -94.174161063232418tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-6542025955703532162017-04-22T21:11:00.000-05:002017-04-22T21:11:40.298-05:00A motif: A disturbing, atrocious motifWhile doing some research on Isaiah "Teat" Dorman (The only black man to die at Custer's Last Stand) and Inkpaduta I came across something I keep seeing coming up when someone describes an enemy they want to make sure we, the reader, know is a vile and horrible enemy or that something is truly terrible.

Inkpaduta is said to have dashed a baby's head out by holding the baby by the ankles and swinging it like a bat. Not all the sources say this is the case, the one I'm linking to, for example, doesn't say HOW the baby's head was dashed in with the stove wood.

The Cankiri Tree was made by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia specifically for the soldiers to do the same thing to babies and small children of their opponents.

I've heard, but can't find it online, where the Mongols were supposed to have done this as well during their rampage across Asia and Europe.

Psalm 137:9 even mentions it: Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks

 Why am I mentioning it? Well, it's a thing when researching something historic where the accounts are all anecdotal, from letters, from stories told by people instead of pictures or video, to be aware of. If you hear something once, at one place, it may be a thing. But when you hear it over and over again... maybe it's a thing. Maybe it's real, but maybe you need to dig a little bit and make sure you're not just reading something that sounds good.

 Where does this fall in that for my Inkpaduta & Isaiah Dorman research? Well, I can't find a reliable source I'm willing to hang my hat on with it so I'm leaving it out. Everybody agrees the baby was beaten to death, but since most of those beat to death in the head were done so with the butt of a rifle it's just as likely that was what happened. Possibly while the infant was laying on the pile of stove wood. I'm not willing to say he swung the kid like a baseball bat.
 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-56875072359278357012017-04-12T05:31:00.001-05:002017-04-12T05:31:57.432-05:00Wait. You mean I've gotten old? When did that happen?

 Watching #DoctorWho and as luck would have it this was the one on BBCAmerica tonight so I watched it even though it's an old one. It's one of my favorite and he's my favorite Doctor. Although Rory & Amy's love story is my favorite story arc of all.

 So, this isn't all that Doctor Who related but it's sort of Time-related, yeah? Yeah.

 I realized last week and when I say this you're going to think I've lost my mind, or maybe you won't. I imagine it'll depend on how old you are. Me? I'm forty-eight. This past week I realized, and I'm not sure what prompted it, that, let me start over. I've always assumed I'd have a kid. I'm not sure why or when, but I sort of felt like at some point I'd be a dad and there'd be a kid and school and field trip notes and teaching to drive and having them go through a phase where I'm an idiot and hopefully they'd grow out of it and think I was a pretty okay person.

 I don't know why I thought that and I didn't realize until last week just how strongly I felt like that was something that was going to happen. And last week I realized if I found a person right now who said, "Put a baby in me you big hunka man," and got started right then and there I'd be um... 66 when they graduated. Um, sixty-six? What the hell? Also, what woman of safe & sane baby-making age is going to look at an almost fifty-year-old man and say, "We should totally get sweaty and roll around on the ground together and exchange fluid and mingle our DNA into some sort of unholy abomination of a baby." I can answer that, no sane woman.

 So, last week I realized I wasn't going to be a dad because when I wasn't paying attention I got too old. Before you say anything about movie stars doing it etc. I'm not a movie star. I make cat food cans. Hell, that is a bit glorified. I stack the cat food can ends (You'd call them "lids" but you're wrong, trust me, I'm old I know these things) on pallets. I don't actually FEEL old. I feel about thirty or so. I really didn't notice that I'd entered softly and silently into an age beyond which being a kid's dad was contraindicated.

 That was kind of a depressing blow.

 Then, also this week, I got an e-mail fro my parents saying my Dad had health issues that are of the older person variety. Very carefully NOT saying he's old in case he reads this. But me being old means he's probably a bit oldish as well. Anyway, so, suddenly, without my paying any attention at all I've come face to face with my own mortality and I don't like it one bit. So, I thought I'd watch some good old fashioned escapist TV and turned on some Doctor Who. What should happen? Turns out it's one of my top two favorite episodes ever... also one in which The Doctor dies. Of course it is. But dangit... it's got Wilfred in it and I love that crusty old man. Like seriously. I know it's irrational, but at my age, I'm prone to irrationality. I should point out I've been saying that for years, decades now apparently.

 Anyway. The past week has been a little bit rubbish, can you tell I've been watching British TV? Yeah. I have, and I like it a lot. I don't like the past week much though. No, I don't like it at all. So, if you see me looking off into space a bit wistfully I'm probably thinking about all the things I didn't do with my non-existent kid. Don't sweat it. The mood will pass. I'm not even really that sad about it anymore, just surprised that I got this old this fast without noticing. It seems like something you'd notice, doesn't it?Rich G.https://email@example.com Dodge, IA 50501, USA42.4974694 -94.16801579999997842.4038364 -94.329377299999976 42.5911024 -94.00665429999998tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-5678544697868480872017-03-21T19:02:00.001-05:002017-03-21T19:02:27.593-05:00Dear Brick & Mortar stores
Sometimes I want to pick something up and touch it before I buy it. Sometimes I want it right then. Those are times I go to brick and mortar stores.

My hope is, if things go well, that I walk out if your shop with less money, a smile, and a bag of stuff I went to get.

You know what I don't need to do? Go to your store and be told you don't think those sell well enough to stock but you can order shipped directly to the store at no cost and I can pick it up... some time.

No. I know how to order things and I can also have them delivered to ME and not have to go BACK to your store that didn't have what I wanted in the first place.

So, I get it, you instruct your helper monkeys to offer that service, but seriously, I'm holding a smart phone in my hand. I'm showing you your own website that says you have it. I know how the Internet works.

I also know I have never and will not ever, let a brick and mortar order something for me that I have to go back to get. At least offer to ship it to me. I'll still say "no," but at least it'll appear you're trying to be convenient for me.
 Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-41467735169304940372017-02-14T00:01:00.002-06:002017-02-14T00:01:57.838-06:00Review: Alpha Defense Gear Jacket

 After the complete crapstorm that was geek hoodies, no link provided because I can't find a single person who has had a good experience with them and find SCORES of complaints about substandard product shipped months late, I was hesitant to buy clothes online again. I like to hold clothes in my hands, look at the seams, look at the quality, make sure I'm not buying some piece of crap that takes 71 days to get to me. (Can you tell GeekHoodies left a sour taste in my mouth? I really can't say enough bad things about the experience I had with them.)

 But I saw Alpha Defense Gear and thought I'd give them a try. This time I looked at reviews and they were good. What I was looking at was the Alpha Defense Poly-Tech Soft Shell Jacket but I didn't want to jump into an eighty dollar jacket without seeing the quality and speed of their products. So, I did a test order of some face shields. They arrived in about a week and are really nice... REALLY nice. So, while I thought about it I got a coupon for a Jacket, a t-shirt, some face shields, and a baseball cap for less than the cost of the jacket. Well, I bought it and crossed my fingers.

 I needn't have worried. It arrived in about a week. The build quality was outstanding. Today was nice out, 49F and 11mph winds so I went for a walk with the new jacket and it was great. It blocked the wind and kept me super warm. Keeping the wind off me was a big help. Now, it's not a jacket that "breathes" so don't wear it running. Jackets that breathe, and I have one, are great if it's not windy. Wind cuts right through those breathing jackets. This jacket is a wind stopper. A brisk walk, really brisk walk, a jog to some people, had me warm and the jacket kept the wind off me perfectly. I could zip & unzip it to moderate the temperature and I was really happy with it.

 The zippers and zipper pulls seem well made and are stylish as well. You can't go wrong with this company or this Alpha Defense Poly-Tech Soft Shell Jacket. Huge fan.

Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-46463203217267189202017-01-22T07:38:00.002-06:002017-02-13T23:39:52.373-06:00Review: GeekhoodiesI recently ordered a hoodie from an ad I saw on Facebook. They looked cool and I needed a hoodie. My classic gray was getting threadbare and I thought something a little more stylish would be okay and the price wasn't bad with the promotional price they offered on their Facebook ad.

 I ordered one based on Assassins Creed on November 10th, 2016. Why am I including the year? Well, that becomes important.

 It took a while, but on November 24th, two weeks later, I got an e-mail saying it had shipped... from China. Well shit.

 Finally! I'd hoped to have it during sweatshirt season in Iowa and that was rapidly coming to an end as real coat weather arrived.

 And then I waited.

 And waited.

 And waited. You've heard the expression something was coming "on a slow boat from China?" Well, that's more than a saying. It's a real thing.

 January 20th, 2017 -- 71 days after I ordered it the hoodie arrived. The size was right. Sadly the material was stained/damaged/discolored in several spots, faded like it'd rubbed against something bleachy while folded?

 So, if you're wandering around on a site and see an ad from geekhoodies you may have better luck than I did, but I got a badly made product over two months after I ordered it. I can't recommend them. I didn't contact them to see about having them fix this because, quite frankly, by the time a replacement arrived even if I could find someone in China who was willing to address the problem, it would be after sweat shirt season was over and the whole experience has left a bad taste in my mouth. So, it went from mailbox to house to take a picture of it and then to the dumpster. If you're feeling like throwing away twenty bucks do it on something like delicious tacos.

Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-61961200722757784012017-01-19T09:20:00.000-06:002017-01-19T09:20:16.621-06:00Skyrim: Adoption & Why I can't parent

 Skyrim is an amazing game that's six years old and still going strong. It features a civil war between the Empire and some rebels. You aren't really a "hero" in the game as you, if you play it all the way through, wind up being head of the thieve's guild and head of the assassin's guild in addition to being in charge or a bunch of werewolves who only gain levels by eating the bodies of those they have killed. All in all... it's a little morally gray area here. Maybe those people you assassinated needed it? Grelod the Kind was a heinous person to run the orphanage. If anybody was asking for it she was.

The problem with wars, civil and otherwise, is they make orphans. And orphans need adopting. So, with the Hearthfire expansion, Skyrim added the ability to adopt orphans to the game and the orphans actually talk and interact with you, their parent. They talk and interact with each other as well. Sometimes I'll come home from a long day adventuring and find them in the living room arguing. I'll tell them both to stop and send them to their room. Eventually they stopped fighting. They could learn! The AI in the game took into account my behavior and changed THEIR behavior.

 Then I lost my game due to carelessness and had to start over. Dangit! My poor orphaned kids! Wait. What else did they program the AI to do? What else will the Skyrim programmers let my kids learn? I wonder.

Enter The Prince and the Frog. Up above you see the Prince. I adopted him. Next is the Frog. I adopted him as well and so began an experiment. Remember, these are new kids. They hadn't learned not to argue yet. So, I started off with them in my home and they would argue and I would discipline only the Frog. The Prince I would give a sweet roll to. Periodically they will come up to me and ask me for money. The Frog gets nothing. And as soon as I'm done with the "I don't have any money" dialog I tell him to do chores. The Prince I give the maximum amount of money allowed in the game, every time.

The game has a functionality where you can play games like tag or hide and seek with the kids. When I play hide and seek with the Frog as soon as he hides I leave and never look for him, leaving him out there in the cold, perhaps being chased by a giant or a dragon! I dunno. Meanwhile I continue to shower the Prince with gifts of sweets, new clothes, toy swords, money, books, all he could possibly want. The Frog gets nothing.

 Well, almost nothing. I recently gave him a dagger. An enchanted soul stealing Dragonbone Dagger. Now, if he wants what his brother has he has a way of getting it. All he has to do is use the dagger and it's all his.

 Meanwhile, I don't sleep at home any more. It's not safe. He has a dagger.

Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-44654423157128267632017-01-01T15:47:00.001-06:002017-01-01T18:41:38.547-06:00Review: Grip6's web belt and buckle
 I have bought two things through Facebook ads. One, a hoodie, was over a month ago, well over, and it's still not here from China. I may never see it. I couldn't be less happy with that company.

 The second item was a web belt from https://grip6.com. I wore my first web belt in the US Navy and fell in love with them. When I saw the Facebook ad show up, doubtless as a creepy result of Facebook cookies noticing I'd been recently searching for web belts, I liked the look of the buckle on the grip6 belt. It had no moving parts.

 The price was right and I was willing to try a Facebook ad again. This product is made in the USA and it arrived in about a week. Christmas was in there messing with mail times and it still arrived quickly.

 It's a fantastic belt and the buckle, a curved piece of metal with two slots in it, is nice looking, sturdy, and sits flush against my pants so I don't get that weird belt buckle bump if my shirt isn't tucked in.

 It looks great and is an excellent product. I initially thought the webbing too thin because it's thinner than what I was used to in the Navy buy it works fine and it being thinner means the belt isn't bulky looking/feeling at all.

 I'm ordering another of these. I can't say enough good things about the quality, speed, and price. They are all outstanding.
 Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-45270272355190544872016-09-22T09:33:00.001-05:002016-09-22T09:39:44.814-05:00Writing in color & S.A. HuntI've been rolling this post around in my head for days because I'm not sure how to say it properly. I've decided to just say it because I think it needs saying.

 I'm reading Malus Domestica by S.A. Hunt and really enjoying it. According to my kindle I'm exactly halfway through it. It's a horror novel, it says so right on the cover. It's reminiscent of early Stephen King to me... along the lines of say, Pet Semetary. It's not the same kind of scary, yet. But it's building nicely. I'm really enjoying it.

 While I'd always assumed that Malus Domestica meant something along the lines of Ordinary Evil or Evil in the Home or something like that I was quite wrong... humorously wrong in fact. In fact it means Orchard Apple. I'm not even kidding. The Mal in Malus isn't bad at all! Apples are about as pure and wholesome as... well... as apple pie! What could be wrong with an apple? Nothing! (Please don't ask Snow White how she feels about apples. Her opinion is biased by the lone interaction with a witch and an apple. How often could that POSSIBLY come up?)

 I'm not here to talk about apples though. I'm here to talk about reading. I've been reading for years, over 40 years and I read several different ways. I read for entertainment. I read to learn new things. I read as a writer to see what I like and don't like in a story. That's part of what I'm going to talk about here. First some background about me.

 See that? That's me according to my DNA. What do those places have in common? White. I'm incredibly white. If I'm not careful on a sunny day you can see straight through my skin to the muscles underneath.

 Why does this matter? Because I read a lot of books. I read a lot of science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, and adventure fiction, a LOT. Those books are primarily written by white guys for white guys and tend to be populated, oddly enough, by more white guys. Even fantasy settings. Elves? Check. Dwarves? Check. Owl headed monsters leaping from closets? Well, sometimes. White people? Oh hell yeah! They're like EVERYWHERE! Just relax gentle reader. As foreign as these fantasy and science fiction worlds may be you may rest assured you will always feel at home as a 99% white guy because everywhere you look will be tons of other people JUST LIKE YOU!

 As a white reader I don't even notice. Honestly. I don't. I don't pay any attention. The default for me is "white guy protagonist." I'm not saying it to be proud of it or anything I'm just saying that's my reading world and I am mostly not even aware of it. It just happens.

 So, when I pick up a book and it has a person of color in it I notice. I don't object or recoil and throw the book down but I notice. That's a recent thing and it's because I've started writing. Want to read my book? Cool. Go get it and read it. I'll wait here. But about people of color in books. Sometimes they're there to die as in the "black guy dies first" trope. Sometimes they're the "magic negro." Sometimes they're sort of a side character we don't really get to know but the author wanted to be inclusive and diverse so (s)he made sure to have a non-white person in there. A lot of times diversity for the sake of diversity, in books, doesn't work. Either the writer doesn't know what they're doing, or they're trying too hard, or sometimes it's just a weird sort of "I don't know anybody who is from India so I'll make them like Raj from Big Bang Theory" kind of thing going on. It's jarring.

 Which is what made me nervous when I saw that S.A. Hunt had included multiple races and was using not just a token person from each race he wanted to include, but actually had a black father & son as main characters. There's a "Juan" whose country of origin I don't know so won't guess, but i'm pretty sure I know. There's women all over the place, well written ones too. That's another thing, sometimes men write women badly.

 I'm happy to say S. A. Hunt writes both really well. I was afraid he was going to botch it or get preachy with things or go too far but he didn't. He's hit exactly the right tone. Now, I'm saying this as white guy. You've seen my DNA so you know. But my point is. Here, here's an example. The point of view character here is a young black boy. Something S.A. Hunt is not, according to his author profile on amazon at least. But he handles the casual day-to-day racism that I KNOW really exists because I see it. And he doesn't go into what's going on in the boy's head as a result. He doesn't try to guess is he hurt, resentful, angry, what? He puts it there and moves on. Because that's what life is like on the daily for people of color.

 Racism is bad. We can all agree on that. And when someone says "racist" or "racism" I think lynch mobs. I think throwing people out of a diner or off a bus. But that's not all there is to it. There's this here. There's the ignoring them unless forced not to. That's a big deal. It's a daily, constant, "You don't matter" that they deal with and it never goes away. How would that feel to be treated like that day after day after day? What would that do? Here's a thought experiment. Ignore your kid for say, a week. Like unless they demand your attention don't pay them any at all... you're already thinking, "WTF is wrong with you Rich?" Exactly. That's exactly my point and it's exactly what happens and it's insidious.

 In another place in the book there's a group of white people discussing the new neighbors and one of them casually drops the N-word. Nobody blinks they just go on as if he'd said "cabbages are green." Why? Because it was just them. Nobody was hurt by it... It happens all the time. It's casual. It's made okay because nobody else heard it. It's there. I see both of these things constantly in real life.

 S.A. Hunt has written a really enjoyable book that is a supernatural horror thriller that has characters in it I really enjoy and like. I didn't mention the handicapped man who doesn't define himself by his handicap... mainly because I strongly suspect he'd take his leg off and beat me with it then put it back on and walk off. I didn't mention him because it's not WHO he is. He's not a HANDICAPPED man. The other characters aren't a BLACK family. They are not defined by their adjective as so many authors do. There's a man who has a prosthetic leg. There's a family that is also black.

 So, what I'm saying is if you're writing, include some "other" in there. Something besides white men or white folks. And if you're wondering how? Do it like S.A. Hunt does because he does it really well, and does the interactions between them really well. I can't say enough good things about it.

 Without being a screed or preachy manifesto it's made me think and that's what good fiction does. This is really good fiction.Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-61943199534145008122016-08-03T19:38:00.000-05:002016-08-03T19:39:31.539-05:00Book Review: Earth Alone by Daniel Arenson

 Earth Alone by Daniel Arenson was... you know, I don't know HOW I found it. I suspect it was on promo or something in some mailing list of discounted books or something. I'd never heard of Daniel Arenson before which is odd because he's written a LOT of books, and they're the kind I like. But somehow I kept not reading him.

 Until now.

 Earth Alone is the first in a series, maybe a trilogy. I should have looked before reviewing I guess but I just finished reading it and was excited to come tell you about it. Oops. I just broke the fourth wall. Please excuse me. I'm excited.

 Earth Alone is military science-fiction if you had to shelve it that's where you'd put it. You'd be limiting the readership too much though. Listen. I know all about military sci-fi. It often starts with, here's the arc:

 1) Meet the protagonist & see him in normal environment/home. Nice guy. Likable. Maybe a bit artistic/sensitive.
 2) MILITARY!!!
 3) Bootcamp is hard, a series of examples of how hard it is and how overwhelming and "I just wanna go home, I miss... stuff."
 4) Things start coming together, the company/platoon/whatever starts gelling and getting less haggard feeling.
 5) Death. Someone dies. Not an important character but one that's been added in there, perhaps after the story was written because all boot camp stories need this person to die. You can literally remove them from the story and it doesn't change in any way. It just serves the purpose Coulton's Death did in The Avengers and brings the team even closer together. "We're doing this for DEAD GUY!!!"
 6) Graduation. Everything's golden.
 7) Off to war. OMG - it's horrible. I hate this. Thank Glob for all that training! this is what we trained for people! Our protagonist turns out to be a great leader of men but denies it and says he was just doing what had to be done.
 8) Much death but remains of the troop go on to bigger things.

 That happens in ALL boot camp stories. It's THE story arc and I felt like this book was doing the same thing. Hitting all the same beats as Ender's Game (Orson Scott Card - read the book, ignore the movie) Starship Troopers (Robert A. Heinlein - read the book, ignore the movie), and countless others that've gone before.

 You know why it happens this way? Because it works. The death scene that is always there and that I always see coming even if I don't know who it's going to be... it's there and it is the *click*. It's the moment the hero goes from the person he was when we met him to the person he is going to be in the end. It's a transformative death, the chrysalis moment where he changes and the death is a punctuation mark, an exclamation point when done correctly, and a comma when done incorrectly (I'm looking at you Madonna's baseball movie A League of Their Own... nobody even knew who that character WAS! You knew the beat, but you did it wrong.)

 This book hit all those beats, and you know it's going to. It's that kind of book. And it did it exceptionally well. To the point where I finished the last of the book (Beats 6-8 above) in Taco Johns eating their super nachos and drinking a giant tea and crying. Literally wiping my eyes with a napkin and sniffling crying as I read it. I cried from happiness and joy and sadness and pride. It was outstanding. I cried unashamedly and kept reading right there in public with a napkin in one hand as I blotted my eyes with it one at a time so I didn't have to stop reading. At one point I thought I was going to choke on my churro as I tried to swallow it and found that being "choked up with emotion" is more than a figure of speech. My throat rebelled against the idea of swallowing at that moment.

 The characters are good. I liked them. There's one, a tiny girl, who has a story she tells about two times too often but, it's there to make a point so Arenson beats us over the head with it, the characters too. I get it. I went to boot camp and the mouthiness these characters had... and the punishments they were given... that part was unrealistic to me. They had quite a few more smart-assed remarks than I thought they should have. That bugged me some. But it didn't take away from how much I liked the characters, the story, or the book itself.

 Listen, it's not A Tale of Two Cities, or The Stand (seriously, one of the best books ever written) but it's really really good. I read it on my kindle and on the last page when it offered to sell me the next in the series I clicked BUY NOW without a moment's hesitation. I won't read it next though. I'm wrung out. I need something lighter.

Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-34438902131601839912016-07-28T22:23:00.002-05:002016-07-28T22:23:52.141-05:00Review: Batman: The Killing Joke (movie)

 (Ignore the quality of this picture.
I took it with my cell phone to send it to a friend)

 Batman: The Killing Joke was a really great graphic novel/comic and I've looked forward to the movie adaptation of it for a long time. I was thrilled to hear it'd be the voices from Batman: The Animated Series, my favorite Batman, by the way. If you're an Amazon Prime member you can watch it for free. It's included with Prime.

 I liked little things, like the TO in STORAGE blinking off and on so the sign next to Batman read "Gotham's rage." It was a nice touch, and something akin to what a frame in a comic would do. It was subtle, but it was there. That's one of the things about animated movies that I like. There aren't any accidents. Everything is drawn and done on purpose so something like this... it's intentional. I appreciate those touches.

 Just one bad scene... I liked it. I really liked parts of it. I was good with the Batgirl part right up until the scene under the gargoyle. That felt forced, but it wasn't the scene. The ambiguity at the end wasn't the one I expected from the comic, or the one I wanted. I'd spent the whole movie wondering how they'd do it and then they did it by NOT doing it. Still, I liked it and will watch it again. Probably skipping the Batgirl bits completely.

 The scenes at the Fun-house were just as I remembered them, almost shot for shot (in my memory) from the source material right up until the ending... the ending was different and not what I had expected or really wanted I guess. I still have the ending from the comic in my head as the best ending and if you haven't read the comic yet watch the movie first and THEN read the comic I think in this case. There's something great about a comic. Looking at the panels and seeing the details.
 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-46561963889547065002016-07-04T19:43:00.001-05:002016-07-04T19:43:20.663-05:00Book Review: Crooks & Straights by Masha du ToitCrooks and Straights by Masha du Toit is set in South Africa and is the story of an adopted big sister trying to protect her "special" little brother. I use the quotation marks here on purpose because he's special for a reason and that'll come clear.

 The setting is one I don't see often enough. I really enjoyed the feel of the novel for being set in Cape Town, I think it was Cape Town, suddenly I think that's where the author is from lol. It doesn't matter because it's not our world or our town. Magic works and there are magical creatures, and djinn you can summon in a cup of tea, a magical mafia-esque underground, and hints of a totalitarian regime of purists (non-magical folk, AKA muggles in the Potterverse) growing in power. I suspect we'll get more into them in the second book.

 Which brings me to my only real complaint, it ended too soon. I realized I was already 98% of the way through the book and there wasn't any resolution happening. It never DID happen. In a story arc type thing we closed the book because it was over around the time where Luke gets on the Millenium Falcon for the first time to leave Tatooine. Yeah, not kidding. WAY too soon. All set up, beautiful set up, interesting set up, great world building set up but then YOINK! The waiter takes the salad plates and presents the bill with no meal or dessert.

 That being said, do I recommend Crooks and Straights? I don't know. I do like the setting and the characters, except the Dad. I thought he was a little hollow and underwhelming. He mostly got bossed around by the women and did whatever they told him to do whether it's his wife, the hired help, old woman down the road, or the daughter. He was there, but only barely. I don't remember his name even... Kesel maybe?

 Yes. Get the book. I liked the story so far. I liked the setting. I want Masha du Toit to write more stuff and I'm a supporter of indie authors and it's worth the money. But get it knowing you'll want to get the next one because you're not really buying Book 1 so much as Part 1.Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-46699344848711891322016-06-18T18:29:00.000-05:002016-06-18T18:36:30.082-05:00Father's Day
 It's Father's Day, or close enough so as to count. If I were closer I'd be taking him out to eat today because I work tomorrow. (No, the picture on the right is neither me, nor my dad. It's a father/son I've known since the dad was the age of the son and it makes me smile whenever I see it. It's one of my favorite pictures in the world.)

 <a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/syazefK9fXnMEhrRQY5zKvTNsvTJM0ArdJNK9SF2DA0Vfe2If2qjcGawXAZzJ-fX3bXXU7dngyMSr4zQV2cCW4Om9C0kovooOd2Rtos8Fpojz7Vvtsu0go50PWTLb13WOYEdGAV75HTCZQG8mo6uwLdHCCM_KG7OzR44Iktk1kF9rsaldDuWEG69F-Xe0ZJsj8uFyyuR0PRtSks-dI7pEJBw2-N6ljjlHXmXwnsQZmDDAWVluktAsCh_JRrDCwVuEBXwFcfSaRKyUY5e0iSWNJyPRJQgoBrnX7319EO4PxGjxQyeiXRg-AHU8ytHqL6UtIjEoUKYoB4MGDckA_GZBTSq4FLUNVSD-iJu7TdqL8_ynkgpADeVOSHpbs8IaQMBxEOxEi4QoE9aleE1FZPgjnK2SI0jI1HuXg7xsN5fIxyzOEXNwydlE2e6qEOaT2GGe4vL2baxYI3PbuRtxv6rom-LRdPIOmjCO8KQMazCkpYtBBdYvkEoRVvj-z4EUU2hm8l8YtR1oaZaiuGJKHcn6DvcJtxMf8AwS6imqtiYN3yj6tRhu6afmMNSbG6AdU9XEOePISRdbSxCL8_fzm17JhRqtZyKis1O=w474-h631-no" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/syazefK9fXnMEhrRQY5zKvTNsvTJM0ArdJNK9SF2DA0Vfe2If2qjcGawXAZzJ-fX3bXXU7dngyMSr4zQV2cCW4Om9C0kovooOd2Rtos8Fpojz7Vvtsu0go50PWTLb13WOYEdGAV75HTCZQG8mo6uwLdHCCM_KG7OzR44Iktk1kF9rsaldDuWEG69F-Xe0ZJsj8uFyyuR0PRtSks-dI7pEJBw2-N6ljjlHXmXwnsQZmDDAWVluktAsCh_JRrDCwVuEBXwFcfSaRKyUY5e0iSWNJyPRJQgoBrnX7319EO4PxGjxQyeiXRg-AHU8ytHqL6UtIjEoUKYoB4MGDckA_GZBTSq4FLUNVSD-iJu7TdqL8_ynkgpADeVOSHpbs8IaQMBxEOxEi4QoE9aleE1FZPgjnK2SI0jI1HuXg7xsN5fIxyzOEXNwydlE2e6qEOaT2GGe4vL2baxYI3PbuRtxv6rom-LRdPIOmjCO8KQMazCkpYtBBdYvkEoRVvj-z4EUU2hm8l8YtR1oaZaiuGJKHcn6DvcJtxMf8AwS6imqtiYN3yj6tRhu6afmMNSbG6AdU9XEOePISRdbSxCL8_fzm17JhRqtZyKis1O=w474-h631-no" width="239" />
 I was talking to someone recently about something we'd been talking about doing, the mechanic's test at work. Evidently it's in three parts and takes from 6-8 hours to complete and MANY people don't pass it the first time. The other person said they didn't want to fail it and have everyone know they'd failed. I said they'd do fine and the real question is how long do we have to wait after passing to become a mechanic and what kind of training is involved, and what if we hate it do we really have two months to say we didn't want it?

 They asked, "You're already thinking of what you'll do if you pass?"

 I said, "Um. It could happen. I've passed things by accident before."

 The thing is, the idea of NOT passing it hadn't really crossed my mind as a serious thought. The same of the Pharmacy Tech Certification Test thing I had to take. A lot of people take it more than once. I toyed with the idea of what if I didn't pass it, but it never really felt real that I might not. I'm not a super genius. I really am not. But I am confident I can do what I set my mind to do.

 I saw that growing up. Both my parents, from my point of view, seemed to make up their mind they were going to do something and they just did it. I'd never seen my dad roof a house before but then he did it. Chop down/up trees after a hurricane? Did it. Build just about anything? Yup. This was even before YouTube so he wasn't learning it on the sly by watching videos online. It was just a thing. Once you decided to do something you found out how to do it and then you did it.

 If I had one thing to kvetch about growing up it would be that I was inadequately prepared for failure. It just wasn't something that came up an awful lot. It wasn't an option that was on the table. My parents, to my eyes, didn't fail and they did impossible things all the time. What's that? Want to go to Germany and be teachers? Okay. So, they did and we went to another country, half way around the world.

 I'm sure there were times when they weren't as fabulously successful as they appeared and I probably never knew about the times that things didn't go the way they were supposed to, but the lesson I learned from watching him just DO stuff was that the expectation was, once you make up your mind to do something you'd better, by God, do it. Learn it, do it. In that order. There's not a lot of room in there for Mess up and start over or do it again. All that won't fit between the comma after "Learn it," and the words "do it."

 So, this Father's Day I'm celebrating the confidence and expectation of success I got from both my parents. Not in a "You will be the best or you're a failure!" way, but in an "Of course you can do it if you want to. You just have to figure out how first and then do it," way. The expectation that we kids were capable of whatever we wanted to learn how to do and then DO, has turned out to be valuable to me in life.

 The confidence in my abilities is good, but that first step is the important part so many people don't have. TONS of people believe they can do anything but not as many realize, "learn how" is the first part. Maybe it's because my parents were both teachers. They valued learning and reading and competence. Today I still have those values and I know where they came from. My parents. They believed in me before I did.

 Thanks Dad. Thanks Mom.

 Happy Father's Day, and eat something good for you! :P

 And, since I know he'll see this because Mom will share it with him...

 Love,
 Rich
 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-61475813831334979112016-06-17T17:38:00.001-05:002016-06-18T14:24:03.070-05:00Book Review: Demon Invasion by Ryan Toxopeus
 I've read +Ryan Toxopeus before and enjoyed his A Noble's Quest which I also recommend.

 Demon Invasion is high fantasy with magic very much present. It almost had to be with demons as the main characters. Set in the world of his novels this novella serves as back story and world building for the main books but is on itself a good tale and interesting read.

 In the 90s and 00s I played a lot of DnD (2nd edition s the best!) and read a lot of Forgotten Realms novels and Ryan's stories evoke that same feeling of escapism and wonder. I like the way he tells a story and I enjoy his characters.

 If I had one quibble it isn't about the story which is absolutely fine, it's the cover. It doesn't look consistent with the others in the series and if I weren't familiar with his writing already i wouldn't have gotten it. This is a case where the cover doesn't do justice to the story inside. The cover looks kind of stock and amateurish but the writing isn't at all.

 If you want a quick summer read and enjoyed Forgotten Realms type fantasy back in the day I recommend the whole series. (The last book isn't out yet.)

 Start reading Demon Invasion by Ryan Toxopeus for free with the kindle app.

 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-18582439792116738322016-05-24T16:59:00.001-05:002016-05-24T16:59:33.023-05:00Memoir Fodder 02: State Street

 State Street is getting its own post. It's a weird time because it's confusing. I'm pretty sure I was in third grade when I lived here but I'm also sure neither parent taught at the school I went to. It was Rosa A. Lott school then, but it's not now. So, that means that they were still teaching in Mount Vernon I suppose. I believe Mom carpooled there with someone.

 While we lived on State Street I had my first memory of having a friend whose house I would go to and we'd play in his back yard and watch Batman, the sixties one, after school sometimes. We'd also play Batman with imaginary villains out in the back yard. They lived on Oak Street and I walked there. The thing is, I can't find the house on Google Maps. Evidently things change in 40 years. I found one that I think is right, it's got houses next door on either side that could be the right ones... maybe.

 To the right when facing the house was a very old lady, very old, and she had tiger lilies I believe they were, growing along the sidewalk from her front door to the sidewalk along the street and one time I believe she hired me to weed those things and take out the brown sticks they leave after the blooms fall off. To the left was Mister Gilmore, now dead, who slept on his front porch. I remember him as being profoundly old as well. They can't have been thrilled to get these kids living next door.

 Now, I seem to remember the back yard being long and thin with some sort of outbuilding on the right side of the property but I don't remember anything IN the outbuilding. Mostly what I remember in the back yard was me and my sister catching bees by hand. If you caught them by the wings when they landed they couldn't do anything. Sort of like dangerous butterflies. I don't know if they survived our catching them or not. I don't remember my sister being stung, but I'm told she was. I don't remember ever catching bees again though so someone probably did get stung.

 I remember the cement step at the back door and I remember it because I found an old tarnished dime and I couldn't read the date so I thought if I polished it up by rubbing it on that cement step I'd be able to read the date better. It didn't work so well. It sort of did in that it got shinier, but the date didn't pop out at me... probably because I smeared it across the step.

 I don't think we were here long because I don't remember how I got to and from school and I know in 4th grade I was in the same school, but at a different house. I might have ridden to school with the librarian from the school? Maybe? I remember going to his house. He had a great yard. Lots of flowers. I think huge elephant ears and sunken maybe, below street level and under giant oak trees. I could be making all that up though because I don't remember HOW I got to school. I might be revising riding with him into it. Maybe I took the bus. I don't remember that at all and I'd think I would. We were there over a Christmas because I remember coming downstairs and stopping on a landing seeing all the stuff Santa had brought.

 Oh, that picture at the top... it has nothing to do with anything. I just really liked it.Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-20421491332952208282016-05-04T21:31:00.000-05:002016-05-04T21:31:15.268-05:00Memoir Fodder 01: My earliest contiguous memoriesMy earliest memories that I believe are all mine and not those I've recreated from stories I've been told are from 1976, the summer of 1976. I remember brief glimpses and snapshots before then but just glimpses and pieces.

 For example, I remember a trailer and a sandbox there. I remember a big playhouse with two stories. I remember a dog, Caesar. But only glimpses, nothing continuous. Nothing connected. Later I think there's a house for a while. This is the house I think I remember. It'd be funny if the trailer were real and the house imagined, or a friend's house we visited. I don't feel like that's the case though.

 I was 8 in the summer of 1976 and the price of a stamp went to 13¢. I remember thinking that was very clever of them to go to 13¢ on our bicentennial when there were 13 colonies 200 years ago. Who could be unhappy about that? I don't remember it ever being 10¢ so why it's a big deal it became 13¢ is odd to me except I made the connection to 13 colonies. Maybe I didn't. Maybe the advertising did? I don't know. I remember it as a thing though. I remember the post office in Mount Vernon, AL and I thought we lived across the street from a cemetery. When I look on google maps I can't find it though. That's not terribly surprising. It's been forty years. I doubt the cemetery has moved, but it may not have been big enough to be on Google Maps. I don't remember that much. The thing is, if we were in Mount Vernon in the summer of '76 we had to have moved soon to Citronelle because in 3rd grade I was in Mrs. Pierce's class and I remember that. I sat up front and hated it so much. Mostly because of her. She was the first teacher I ever had that I thought didn't like kids and that I didn't like at all. At all.

 I went to Kindergarten and 1st grade in Mount Vernon, AL. In the '70s it was a small town with a population of around a thousand people, mostly African American. The only friend whose name I can remember was African American. Her name was Irna. I think she was older than me. She was taller. Her mom was the librarian at the school. I thought that was pretty slick, probably almost as good as being a teacher like my parents.

 There was a couple, a Cuban couple we would visit sometimes. I feel like she was a teacher or maybe worked at the school in some capacity, an aid maybe? Her husband was, I think, a doctor at a mental hospital nearby, Searcy Hospital. I had to look up the spelling. They (the couple, not the hospital) made fried banana plantain, fried big bananas that were delicious and salty. I think I ate tongue there once too I think. But, we moved to Citronelle soon and I don't remember going over there as often any more. We still had the banana plantain though. I liked when Mom would make it.Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-30935870186162481112016-05-03T04:43:00.000-05:002016-05-04T21:32:01.154-05:00Memoir Fodder 00: The premise

 At work the other night it occurred to me that with the paucity of letters from my youth when I am famous later in life the biographers will lack good information on the early years to flesh out the pages of my biography. My intention here is to write down what memories I have of the early years.

 Some of my memories may be memories of stories I was told by other people. I'm going to try and stick with what I remember. The thing with old memories is they are not really reliable sometimes. There are some things I only have a vague feeling about but don't remember much else.

 For example: I remember seeing Bambi in the theater but don't remember anything about it except the big fire scene. I don't remember being sad the mother died, spoiler(?), but I remember the awesome terribleness of the fire. I don't remember it being something I was afraid of as much something that was terrible and awful (as in full of awe). That's not much of a memory really, but it's what I've got to work with sometimes. I'll try and be a little more interesting in my tidbits that I share.

 My plan is to talk about:

Mount Vernon - 1976 (?)

Citronelle school & summers, two posts probably.

Growing up in Southern Alabama in the '70s

Germany arrival & getting used to another country

Germany touring favorites

 I don't expect anyone will think of this as terribly interesting but I do think it would be cool for other people to do the same thing. C'mon, talk about your childhood before you get old and feeble and forget it.

Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-25125988434940706872016-04-18T22:27:00.001-05:002016-04-18T22:27:55.123-05:00Podcast Suggestion: Myths and Legends PodcastThe Myths and Legends Podcast is becoming one of my favorites. The host, Jason, researches a myth, legend, or fairy tale and tells it during the podcast with some background information for color before, during and after.

 He tells the story like that, a story and it's fun and engaging. He's got a good sense of timing and knows when to interject an observation or comment for the modern listener.

 He has chosen both stories I thought I was familiar with, and stories I've never heard of and I find both interesting and they hold my attention. He's an excellent story teller in retelling these stories to a modern audience he doesn't forget, or allow us to forget their source and that he's aware of how ridiculous some of the stuff sounds, talking animals again, nobody questions this? Without making fun of or belittling the story or the people who told it. The episodes are short, only a half hour or so I think, and they go quickly. Some are longer than can be managed in half an hour, like the King Arthur story, and it is done in multiple parts. Several of them are that way, but they can stand alone if they needed to because you had a long gap when you didn't listen.

 The first few podcast episodes didn't include the mythical monster of the week but later on he added that feature and I like it. Oddly, my favorite was on the Australian Drop Bear and it was listener(s) submitted.

 If you have at least a half-hour drive you do on the regular give the Myths and Legends Podcast a try. If you like it tell a friend.Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com Dodge, IA 50501, USA42.484305029483849 -94.20578130292972242.437476029483847 -94.286462302929721 42.531134029483852 -94.125100302929724tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-13596767527869415362016-04-09T08:26:00.001-05:002016-04-09T08:30:49.105-05:00I don't get it... (Warning: Adult language)So, I thought we'd get a break after trans-person Caitlyn Jenner came out and things cooled down. Well, that didn't happen. Evidently now the issue is where people can use the bathroom.

 I'm going to start out with I don't care. If there are stalls and not urinals in the bathroom knock yourselves out. I don't care. Shut the door and piss or crap away. Not my problem. I'm going to do the same and don't care who's next door to me expelling waste. There are those who can't seem to stop the ideas of sex from springing to mind whenever discussions of waste spewing out of their bodies is brought up though and they're full of "OMG THINK OF THE CHILDREN!" right now that if a trans-person is in the stall next to their Little Billy or Little Mary then some harm will come to the kids and for that reason alone the trans need to go use... I guess their own, third bathroom.

 Issues of why waste removal and sex with kids leap to mind whenever the topic of voiding ones bladder or butt aside, the issue is clear to me as one of comfort. The people against it aren't comfortable with trans-people. That's fine. I don't care.

 Truth time: I'm not comfortable either. I get pronoun-confused. I want to ask inappropriate questions. I just plain don't GET it.

 Doesn't matter. There are a lot of things I don't get.

 I don't get Uggs. I don't get dreadlocks. I don't get how anyone can watch Big Brother, or professional wrestling, or Dance Moms. I don't get liking tofu. I don't get the why anyone would choose dark meat over white meat when there are wings and breasts RIGHT there why would you pick up a thigh? Gross!

 There are a lot of things I don't get. That's MY problem. It's not their problem. If nobody else is actually hurt by something then it's not my problem and my opinion isn't one that matters. I don't have to get it. I don't have to like it. I don't have to understand it. I don't have to approve of it. In the case of trans-people. I don't get it. But, to me, it doesn't matter. Their sense of self, their identity, the things they do to their body are no more my business than if they get a tattoo. It's their body. It's their life. It's THEIR business. It doesn't affect or impact me in the slightest unless they're a friend and I have to pay attention to pronouns and I fuck it up.

 They want to live their lives. I want to live my life. There's probably something about my life they don't get. I don't want people who just don't understand me, to be able to tell me I can't do a thing because it's not their thing. That's not how this works. That's not how ANY of this works.

 I'm not a SJW (Social Justice Warrior). I'm a guy who thinks we should pull our noses out of other people's asses and let them live their lives.

 Quit clutching your pearls and screaming to "think of the children" because honestly... I'm taking a crap here, and thinking of kids while doing that appears to be the purview of those who are bitching so much about it all and I just don't get that either.Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-3625347442945094912016-04-05T19:07:00.002-05:002016-04-05T19:10:45.464-05:00Podcast Suggestion: Art of ManlinessI'm listening to a lot of podcasts because I drive a lot. One of the sites I discovered a long time ago when I was looking at shaving and finally decided to take up shaving with a badger hair brush, a lavender shave soap to make a nice lather, and a Merkur safety razor like my grampa used to use, is Art of Manliness.

 I go to the website periodically and read the articles there that catch my attention. They aren't all aimed at me, but all men aren't like me so I get that. The ones on style, for instance... I'm not very stylish or fashionable so those I pretty much skip.

 I recently discovered Art of Manliness has podcasts and I really enjoy them. I've been listening to mostly interviews of authors who write books that I would never read because I tend to read escapist fiction and these are books about, here are some topics I've listened to and enjoyed:

Forces of Character

The Wonder of Boys With Dr. Michael Gurian

Level up Your Life

Improving Strength & Durability With the Kabuki Movement System

Ancient Roman Honor With Dr. Carlin Barton

Hard-wiring Your Brain for Happiness with Dr. Rick Hanson

 There's a wide variety of topics and authors and ideas presented and they're man-centric. That's not to say they're anti-female. I recently encountered two very good friends of mine who are men around my age (They're between late-30s and mid-40s) who independently of each other started a conversation saying, "I know I shouldn't say this but..." then they went on to talk about something somewhat man-centric. It was pro-male without being anti-female. It's not a zero sum game. It bugged me that they seemed to be apologizing for being male. That's annoying.

 One of the things I hear/see is white, CIS-male privilege being figuratively shouted at white males online when we espouse an opinion on a topic that differs from someone who is not born a white male. I get it. My experience will differ from someone who is not a middle aged white males experience. I have the privilege of being who I am in the culture in which we live. I'm not apologizing for that though. Nor do I feel ANYONE should apologize for it.

 These podcasts are nice in that they address being a man in today's world and what that means, what it has meant historically, and things we, as men, might find interesting. I enjoy it. I think many people would enjoy it and I recommend it. I think many people would enjoy it and I recommend it to anyone regardless of gender. They interview both male & female authors or scientists about topics on a variety of subjects.
 Rich G.https://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-14464486691427380102016-03-30T20:13:00.002-05:002016-03-30T20:32:49.317-05:00Review: The Flash Crossover episode of Supergirl

 I don't usually review TV shows. That's not my thing but I'm a huge fan of The Flash and have been watching Supergirl and giving it a chance to see if it turns into a good show. I've been looking forward to what they would do with this cross-network cross-over for a while now. The first one to air was the Supergirl episode that had Flash going to her world. What'd I think?

 (SPOILERS -- Don't read if you haven't seen it!!!)

 I hated it. I hated everything about it.

 Barry Allen/The Flash, by himself, showed, by his contrast, how bad the acting and writing and story are in Supergirl. He was so much better than they were that it made their bad acting look even worse. It was painful to watch.

 First Scene: Supergirl: Most powerful woman on the planet is introduced to perhaps new viewers having relationship problems and getting dating advice from Ally McBeal. That's like getting dinner party advice from Mary Tyler Moore. If you get that reference you're older than I am. But seriously. "Why can't I get him to like me?" is the driving force behind almost every B story line on Supergirl since the show started. It is a SHIT way to introduce her to new viewers. Pissed off already.

 Introduction of The Flash? Annoying. He's a brilliant CSI and computer guy. But, sadly, OOPS! I ran to the wrong universe. OOPS! I ran clear out to North Dakota or some shit. WTH? Really? He oopsed himself into another universe? Ugh.

 New Super-villain created: A female: What's the first thing she does? She does her make-up. Then she and the supervillain she frees from the most secure super-prison in the world, how? No clue how she got there, perhaps she used the PLOT DEVICE, the two of them, our heroes, take off, with no plan at Supergirl's insistence they go to fight the two baddies...

 Remember super smart CSI hacker? Well, he attacks a villain with a name like LiveWire that uses electricity as a weapon WITH electricity. Charges her up so she can kick some butt. Which she does. So, Supergirl and The Flash are knocked down and what happens next? The most sexually charged scene in the show.

Does Supergirl use her heat vision to melt a hole in the villain's heart killing her instantly?

Does Supergirl use her super strength to punch the villain's head off her shoulders?

Does Supergirl use her ability to fly to whisk the villain off to outerspace and chuck her into the sun?

Does Supergirl use...

 You know what? No. She doesn't do ANY of that. She uses her superbreath and gives a super blowjob to the chick obviously showing The Flash what he could have. He immediately responds by showing that he's quite adept at using both hands in a repeated oscillating motion rather than succumb to super blow-job. Then they leave.

 What happens next? Well, she admitted to The Flash, that she just met, that not only is she crushed that she can't get a boy to like her, the whole city doesn't like her either and in spite of being super powerful... she just doesn't know what to do and she needs a man to help her and tell her what to do. Fortunately The Flash does just that and she, of course follows his advice because she, in spite of being Supergirl, always does what a man tells her to do.

 There's a scene that desperately wants to be the subway scene from Spiderman 2 that makes me cry every time I see it but is, instead, just a shitty scene that is unbelievable and badly acted. Ending with the two super villains who consistently beat the hell out of Supergirl and The Flash being beaten by some men with a hose.

 That's right. They turned the hose on them and beat them. I wish to hell I was kidding. I'm not. The solution for the villains that the Fastest Man Alive and The Most Powerful Woman on the Planet couldn't beat was to get them wet.

 Ugh. Kill me now.Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-54642499437285727692015-08-14T18:37:00.003-05:002015-08-14T18:46:47.090-05:00Book Review: Far Beyond the Pale by Daren Dean

 I got a review copy of +Daren Dean's new novel, Far Beyond the Pale and was pleasantly surprised. I've been given review copies before and I've wondered if the people who are giving them to me have read my other reviews before asking. I don't think I'm an overly generous reviewer. I want people to trust me if I recommend something. Enough about me. How's the book?

 In this darkly comic novel Nathan "Honey Boy" Kimbrough narrates a boy's search for a father and his mother's search for a "good man" in the mid-1970s. (from Amazon.)

 Far Beyond the Pale had a real Tales of a Texas Boy (by +Marva Dasef ) feel to it, which is probably a book you've never heard of but that I heartily recommend as well. Tales is available on audiobook through audible and it's worth the listen even if it's short, only a bit over two hours I think. Daren Dean's novel was in my sweet spot for nostalgia. I grew up in the seventies in the South and while this takes place in Missouri instead of Alabama (where I grew up until I was 11) it has a real Southern novel feel to it that I particularly liked and felt right at home with.

 The language is what really stands out in this book. Daren Dean's command of colloquial Southern at the time was almost lyrical to read.

 Here are some of my favorite quotes. Remembering that this book is narrated from the point of view of a thirteen year old in Missouri in the seventies:

Aunt Oleta had always been the type that if you throwed her in the river she'd float upstream

Vaughn knew when to disappear. He had a sixth sense about cops, and a scanner.

"I'll tell you what . . ." Roy chewed on his peanuts with his front teeth. "If she gets to heaven she'll ask to see the upstairs."

Mrs. Trapp always went around with hair piled up Pentecostal style.

 I loved reading it. I liked the people in it and I liked the kid's real struggle to be good in spite of not always doing good.

 The cast of characters is varied and they're fleshed out enough to feel like real people. There were times when I caught myself wanting to go to the crappy little town and visit it, stop at the gas station and get some of that Doctor Prune Juice and shoot the breeze with the gas station owner... forty years since the book was supposed to have taken place and the part where it's fiction make such a trip unlikely barring my finding a TARDIS.

 I've been reading a lot of books lately where the people in them are all bigger than life, great at everything with no flaws. Space Opera type Übermensch as the good guys and incredibly hollow bad guys... I haven't reviewed those. Mom said if I couldn't say something nice about someone I shouldn't say anything... the characters in this book are flawed and human. They seem to be trying with what they've got doing what they can to get by. Some with the church, and some by trying to find safety and security for themselves and their son in the arms of a man... I know people like these people in this book. Nobody's an Übermensch and nobody's perfect, but they're all trying. I like that... to be fair, Vaughn isn't trying in any kind of way anybody else likes, but he's playing the hand he was dealt and doing the only way he knows how... it's not a good way and probably won't end well for him.

 If you're looking for a good summer-time read I recommend Far Beyond the Pale.

 * Interesting note: he used the word "dork" in the book and I thought that seemed like an anachronism until I looked up the etymology and saw that it was coming into common usage in the Midwest in the mid-to-late sixties and originally mean well, penis and came to mean someone who looked uncool which is exactly how it's used in the book.

 ** I had a review copy (digital) and there were some editing issues that I suspect have been cleared up by now. Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-78281806001528713662015-06-14T17:33:00.000-05:002015-06-14T17:33:22.475-05:00New Orleans - A love letter to a city on a river.

 In 2005 my work took me to New Orleans on July 10th. Hurricane Dennis had just turned and was going to miss New Orleans and it was a month before Katrina got there.I was there from July 10th - August 8th for work.

 I didn't take enough pictures.

 It was the first time I'd been to New Orleans since 1976 when I was 8 and I don't remember it then. I remember the King Tut exhibit but I don't remember the town, or didn't think I did.

 New Orleans has been on my mind a lot lately. Summer's here and it's been hot and humid. I've never done humid like New Orleans does humid though. I don't drink so Bourbon Street I just skipped and my whole three weeks was spent in the French Quarter. I ate everywhere. I walked the streets looking at things, just the homes and houses were fantastic. The Garden District is beautiful. The wrought iron is lace frozen in place. The streets in the morning are wet and empty. But not desolate empty. They're the empty of a deep breath being taken and held... it's the quiet of the held breath. You can see people stirring in shops. The little crowd at Cafe du Monde for beignets and cafe au lait. The oppressive humidity and complete lack of a breeze... the hidden gardens you can glimpse through wrought iron gates.

 I loved New Orleans from the first time I stepped out of the cab into the heat on Chartres Street. I loved the voodoo. I love the cemeteries. I love the street performers. I loved the music and the food and the history and old buildings and the feeling that this place, this city is a place where wonderful things can happen just because it's Tuesday. I loved every day of my time there and I didn't take enough pictures. I didn't take enough pictures because there was a weird familiarity to it all. When I saw something it wasn't like seeing it for the first time it was like seeing it again after a long absence.

 I didn't fall in love like a new lover, I fell in love with the town like old High School friends seeing each other again decades later. It was beautiful and wonderful and had a stately grace to it in the mornings... remember, I didn't walk down Bourbon Street more than a block at most. I crossed it a couple times but didn't care for it. That's not my thing. I could smell the piss and puke smell of Bourbon Street anytime a gentle lazy breeze would come from that direction but that wasn't what I went for and it's not anything I took any part in.

 I wouldn't have thought I could miss a town I'd only visited for work but I have been missing it lately. I'd like to go back. I don't know that I could go back and visit it long enough to stop wanting to go there. I know the city is doomed.
 I know that at some point the water will come and fill the bowl that is New Orleans and when it does that, my favorite city, will be swallowed up and that makes it sweeter I guess, bitter sweet. It's so special and so wonderful and there's no other place like it in the world.

 It's unique and amazing and if you ever get a chance go. Go and do all the tourist things. Take the ghost tours, the graveyard tours, the historic walks and bus rides. Do it all, and in the mornings get up early and just walk around before the heat gets too hot, before the sun's too high, and before the press of crowds happens and just walk and take it all in. Look at the buildings, the architecture, the history, the windows and the wrought iron. That's what I remember the best is my solitary walks in the morning just looking at the city and remembering memories that I couldn't possibly have but that the city itself has and has so strongly they infected me.

Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3180610.post-49451448265249611542015-05-30T19:54:00.000-05:002015-05-30T20:03:02.796-05:00Comparison: Fitbit Flex, Striiv Touch (Walgreens), and Jawbone Up Move

 <img alt="Image result for fitbit flex" border="0" height="200" src="data:image/jpeg;base64,[encoded data, 5768 characters]" width="173" />I've worn three different step counters for the past few weeks to compare them. Here are the results of a week's worth of data from them. I wore them when I walked, hiked, and worked (retail) I used them all to track my sleep as well, but that's not what I'm reviewing here. I'm talking about their step counting accuracy. All three are ONLY good for counting steps and I haven't tried using them in my sock or whatever for biking so I can't speak to that at all. They're pedometers, not really fitness trackers I don't care what they call themselves. And that's a gripe I have about a lot of these things. Their APPS may help track your fitness but the gadgets themselves... they're pedometers. Swimming? Nope. Biking? Nope. Weight lifting? Nope. Stop calling yourselves fitness trackers. You're not. You're hundred dollar pedometers. You're not fooling anybody with the fancy names.

 The three devices are the:

 $86 Fitbit Flex (amazon affiliate link) - pedometer, sleep tracker, worn on wrist, no watch
 $80 Striiv Touch (Walgreens) - pedometer, sleep tracker, worn on the wrist, has a watch.
 $45 Jawbone Up Move - pedometer, sleep tracker, worn on your belt or in a pocket.

 They came in about as accurate as their prices would indicate (Prices are accurate as of May 30, 2015) with the most expensive, $86 being the best, the Touch was slightly less money and less accurate, and the Jawbone Up Move was MUCH less money and FAR less accurate as well. Here are the numbers I got on my test week & my test walks (how I got them is below)

<colgroup><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col><col width="100"></col><col width="82"></col><col width="100"></col></colgroup>

	Weekly Total	Daily Avg	Avg on 700 step walk*	% accuracy

Fitbit Flex	60446	8635	686	98%

Striiv Touch	32949	4707	602	86%

Jawbone UP	26872	3839	364	52%

 So... will I keep wearing all three? I'm not sure I will keep using the Up Move. I like that I can put it in my pocket because at some jobs watches aren't okay, like in a factory or any job with rotating/moving machinery. You don't want your arm ripped off in the interest of counting steps... or the band ripped off (more likely) and run through the machine. So, I like having the UP Move in my pocket, but if it's not going to count correctly why bother? Also I like the Up Move's battery. It's replaceable and not rechargeable but it lasts for WEEKS. The other two need charging, Striiv every other day and Fitbit Flex about every 5 days.

 The Striiv Touch is nice because the app has a game in it where steps are used to generate energy that you use to do things like build castles or gardens or trees and such and you can build a little fantasy world so I imagine that'd be motivational if you only needed a few hundred more steps to upgrade your Tiger Garden you're more likely to do it I think. Also, it has a time feature that's nice on a wrist wearable. I hate that the Fitbit Flex doesn't do anything but show me five (or fewer) dots based on my steps. Really Fitbit? Is a clock that hard? Yes, the newer ones have them and they cost a significantly more. That seems stupid of fitbit.

 All in all they are all good at something but if you're getting one to be a pedometer that's accurate I'd go with the Fitbit Flex. It was VERY accurate. Honestly, I'd probably go with a newer fitbit that tells you what time it is, but I didn't test one of those because I don't have one so I can't really recommend something I've never used. That'd be crappy of me.

 * I walked a fixed distance of 700 steps on flat ground without carrying anything in the hand wearing the bands so it was swinging like normal. The Jawbone Up Move was on my right hip the whole time on a belt using the clip it comes with. I did five laps and counted the steps each time, stopping at 700 and then taking them off and setting them on the ground while I counted them so I wouldn't get any accidental steps as I recorded results. Scientific? Nah, not really, but better than just guessing which was most accurate. I did five laps and averaged the numbers for my chart here.
 Rich G.https://firstname.lastname@example.com Dodge, IA 50501, USA42.4974694 -94.16801579999997842.4038364 -94.329377299999976 42.5911024 -94.00665429999998


text:
Skoda plant on fast track
Car major Skoda Autos new factory at Aurangabad in Maharashtra would begin operations by the third week of January and produce nearly 15,000 high-end luxury cars annually in completely knocked down condition, a top executive of the company said. Nearly 45 per cent of the work had been completed on the plant, coming up with an investment of $56 million, said Bipin Datar, general manager of Skoda Auto India.
metaljunction.com, the joint venture between Tata Steel and the Steel Authority of India Ltd, has reported a 263 per cent rise in business at Rs 704.78 crore transacted in the first half of this fiscal as against Rs 194 crore transacted during the corresponding period last year.
Peerless Inn
The Peerless Inn in Durgapur, a Peerless Group hotel, has been renovated to include High Octane, an economy bar, Indigo, a multicuisine restaurant, and an air-conditioning plant.
AirTel plan
AirTel has launched Festival 150, a post-paid scheme, at a monthly rental of Rs 150 in Calcutta. The plan offers cell to fixed-line and mobile-to-mobile calls at Rs 1.99 per minute.
Voltas launch
Voltas Ltd, a Tata Enterprise, has launched refrigerators under the Coldcel brand. The refrigerators have an optimised cooling system design, a rust-proof body and an energy-efficient compressor.
Spykar range
Spykar, a leading denim brand, has launched its winter range of garments in asymmetric print and embroideries, pigment sprays, bold and psycho graphic prints and appliqué works.
Whirlpool pact
Whirlpool has entered into a strategic alliance with Scavolini, Nokia, SOTC, Parker and NIIT to launch a marketing scheme for its consumers, under which a customer will receive products of partner firms as gifts on buying Whirlpool products.
Online lottery
DhanDhanaDhan Infotainment, a Shapoorji Pallonji and Forbes venture, has launched two online lotteries named Dhan Chowka and Dhan Keno in Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Bengal and Goa.
IT consortium
Epson, Hewlett Packard, Canon and Logitech have formed a consortium under MAIT, an apex body representing the computer hardware, training and software industries, to prevent the spread of spurious IT products.
Ipca drug
Ipca, a pharmaceutical company, will market Aceclofenac, a pain killer and anti-inflammatory drug, in the country.
Sony theatre
Sony has introduced Wega Theatre to provide enhanced audio-visual technology for home entertainment.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Arugula Map
953 Farmington Ave. (S. Main St.)
860-561-4888 | Make Restaurant Reservations
Use this map to Arugula to get there and back safely. If the "Get directions" pop-up does not appear, click the green arrow to get driving directions to and from this restaurant.
Find out which restaurants and chefs top the list of GAYOT's 2016 Annual Restaurant Awards.


text:
Rizo was a Bajoran male and father to Petra. In 2370, he led the hijacking of the Phoenix. By this time he had become mentally unstable. When Jadzia Dax attempted to regain control of the tanker using subterfuge, Rizo discovered who she really was. He managed to stun her, but soon the tables were turned when he was knocked unconcious by Odo. When he came to, he babbled on about ghosts on ship. He was later confined to a cargo bay on the tanker. Shortly after being confined, Petra was discovered to have hidden aboard the ship. After Dax and Odo found them together, Dax told Petra she could stay with her father in the cargo bay. Later, when the tanker was attacked by Cardassian fighters, Dax asked Rizo for his help in stopping them. He assisted, but soon turned on Dax. However, she managed to reason with him and he surrendered.
During the Occupation of Bajor, he was a farmer until the Cardassians took Petra's mother. Even though he asked around, he never found out what happened to her, but assumed that the Cardassians raped her to death. After her disappearance, he ran away with Petra and joined the Bajoran Resistance. Two days later he killed his first Cardassian. (DS9 novel: Antimatter)


text:
What happens when you aren't able to perform any part of your work because of your injury? For instance, what if you suffered an injury like a rotator cuff injury to your shoulder when you fell in a hole on a construction site? Your doctor has recommended surgery but you'll be off of work for about two months because you'll need to rest. So TTD (Temporary Total Disability) benefits are for these types of employees who get injured on the job and are completely disabled after the accident for a "temporary" period of time.
Example Situations
This situation tends to happen a lot and generally involves workers who break a bone, have a surgery, or need therapy. Although they're not permanently injured, they are completely unable to return to work for a period of time. This could be because the injury is severe or it could just be because the doctor has not "released" the worker to return to work yet. Another situation is when the doctor has released the worker for "light duty" work, but the employer doesn't have any light duty work available. Some examples of light duty work include work with restricted standing, bending or lifting, or jobs involving telephone work or greeting customers.
Temporary Total Disability (TTD) is sometimes just referred to as "comp". It's calculated as 2/3 of your average earnings over the prior 52 weeks before your injury. Sometimes this is a straightforward calculation and other times it's not. Sometimes we're able to include overtime in this wage calculation or remove weeks that you were on vacation or didn't get all the hours you wanted. The workers comp benefits for TTD are subject to certain minimum and maximum limitations that an experienced attorney can help you determine.
These TTD payments will eventually end when the treating doctor decides to release you because you're all better, or when it's determined that you're just not going to get any better. This is called MMI (Maximum Medical Improvement).
Independent medical examination for personal injury claims Types of personal injuries Work-related personal injuries Employment Employment law and finances Workers' compensation Employee wages Employee wages and overtime pay Employee break laws and work hours Social security
Post a free question on our public forum.Ask a Question
- or -
Search for lawyers by reviews and ratings.Find a Lawyer


text:
Get an overview of this hotelMotel in Sault Ste. Marie with free breakfast and fitness center
Popular property highlights
Situated in Sault Ste. Marie, this motel is within 2 mi (3 km) of Sault College, Station Mall, and Essar Centre. Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site and Canadian Bushplane Heritage Center are also within 3 mi (5 km).
Property Features
A fitness center, coffee/tea in a common area, and a business center are available at this smoke-free motel. Free continental breakfast, free WiFi in public areas, and free self parking are also provided. Other amenities include a meeting room, a 24-hour front desk, and a computer station.
Room Amenities
All 68 rooms provide free WiFi and free wired Internet, LCD TVs with cable channels, and conveniences like refrigerators and microwaves. Guests will also find coffee makers, free newspapers, and free local calls.
Guest Highlights
- Spotless guestrooms
- Good location
- Proximity to shopping
- Helpful staff
- Guestroom size
Super 8 Sault Ste Marie ON
Hotel Amenities
Hotel Amenities
A computer station is located on site and wired and wireless Internet access is complimentary. This motel offers access to a business center and a meeting room. Guests can enjoy a complimentary breakfast each morning. Event facilities measure 300 square feet (28 square meters). This business-friendly motel also offers a fitness center, coffee/tea in a common area, and complimentary newspapers in the lobby. Onsite self parking is complimentary.
Super 8 Sault Ste Marie ON is a smoke-free property.
- Computer station
- 24-hour front desk
- Total number of rooms - 68
- Number of floors - 2
- Business center
- Coffee/tea in common areas
- Free newspapers in lobby
- Free breakfast
- Elevator/lift
- Express check-out
- Fireplace in lobby
- Fitness facilities
- Designated smoking areas
- Free WiFi
- Free wired Internet
- One meeting room
- RV, bus, truck parking
- Free self parking
- Conference space size (meters) - 28
- Conference space size (feet) - 300
- Year Built 2003
- Smoke-free property
- Number of buildings/towers - 1
- Television in common areas
Family Friendly Amenities
- Family Hotel
- Free Wi-Fi
- Refrigerator
- Microwave
- Cribs/infant beds (complimentary)
Available in all rooms: Free WiFi , Free wired Internet
Available in some public areas: Free WiFi , Free wired Internet
Free self parking, RV, bus, truck parking
Room Amenities
- Free cribs/infant beds
- Free newspaper
- Air conditioning
- Phone
- Free local calls
- Refrigerator
- Coffee/tea maker
- Microwave
- Daily housekeeping
- Private bathroom
- Free toiletries
- Hair dryer
- Shower/tub combination
- Iron/ironing board
- Television
- Desk
- Cable TV service
- Free WiFi
- Free wired Internet
- Blackout drapes/curtains
Where to Eat
A complimentary continental breakfast is served each morning between 6:30 AM and 10 AM.
Nearby Things to Do
Recreational amenities at the motel include a fitness center.
The recreational activities listed below are available either on site or nearby; fees may apply.
- Golfing nearby
- Downhill skiing nearby
- Cross-country skiing nearby
- Snowboarding nearby
- Snowmobiling nearby
- Snowshoeing nearby
- Mountain biking nearby
- Hiking/biking trails nearby
If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please note them at check-out when you book your room.
- Accessible bathroom
- In-room accessibility
Hotel Policies
Check-in time starts at 3 PM
Minimum check-in age is 18
Check-out time is 11 AM
Payment types
Children and extra beds
- Children are welcome.
- Kids stay free! Children 16 years old and younger stay free when using existing bedding.
- Rollaway/extra beds are not available.
- Free cribs (infant beds)!
- Pets allowed for an extra charge of CAD 18 per pet, per stay (maximum CAD 15 per stay)
- Up to 20 lb
- Specific rooms only, restrictions apply
- Pet-friendly rooms can be requested by contacting the property at the number on the booking confirmation
You need to know
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy.
Optional extras
- Pet fee: CAD 18 per pet, per stay (maximum CAD 15 per stay)
Hotel Name
- Super 8 Sault Ste Marie Motel
- Super 8 Sault Ste Marie Motel Sault Ste. Marie
- Super 8 Sault Ste Marie Sault Ste. Marie
- Super 8 Sault Ste Marie
We should mention
Children 16 years old and younger stay free when occupying the parent or guardian's room, using existing bedding. The property allows pets in specific rooms only and has other pet restrictions (surcharges apply and can be found in the Fees section). Guests can arrange to bring pets by contacting the property directly, using the contact information on the booking confirmation.


text:
Question: Melissa the owner of a sole proprietorship does not provide
Melissa, the owner of a sole proprietorship, does not provide health insurance for her 20 employees. She plans to spend $1,500 lobbying in opposition to legislation that would require her to provide such insurance. Discuss the tax advantages and disadvantages of paying the $1,500 to a professional lobbyist rather than spending the $1,500 on in-house lobbying expenditures.
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View Solution:
Answer to relevant QuestionsElla owns 60% of the stock of Peach, Inc. The stock has declined in value since she purchased it five years ago. She is going to sell 5% of the stock to a relative. Ella is also going to make a gift of 10% of the stock to ...Wayside Fruit Company is a sole proprietorship owned by Neil Stephenson. The company's records reflect the following: Sales revenue ................... $185,000 Operating expenses ................ 125,000 Depreciation ...A number of years ago, Kay acquired an interest in a partnership in which she is not a material participant. Kay's basis in her partnership interest at the beginning of 2013 is $40,000. Kay's share of the partnership ...Rene retired from public accounting after a long and successful career of 45 years. As part of her retirement package, she continues to share in the profits and losses of the firm, albeit at a lower rate than when she was ...You have just met with Scott Myers (603 Pittsfield Drive, Champaign, IL 61821), a successful full-time real estate developer and investor. During your meeting, you discussed his tax situation because you are starting to ...
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text:
Ingram of Giants Testifies He Broke N.C.A.A. Rules
By STEVE FIFFER, Special to the New York Times
Published: March 17, 1989
CHICAGO, March 16— Mark Ingram, a Giants wide receiver, told a Federal jury here today that he knowingly violated National Collegiate Athletic Association regulations when he agreed to be represented by Norby Walters and Lloyd Bloom. He also accepted loans from the agents before his eligibility at Michigan State had expired.
Walters and Bloom are standing trial on charges of mail fraud, extortion and racketeering in what the Government says was a scheme to defraud universities by signing athletes to contracts before their college eligibility expired, in violation of N.C.A.A. rules.
Both agents have pleaded not guilty.
Ingram testified that he signed a contract with Walters and Bloom Aug. 4, 1986, before his senior season, and that the agents agreed to conceal the signing and date the contract Jan. 2, 1987, when his college eligibility would have expired.
Upon signing, Ingram received a $7,500 cash loan and a promise from the agents to loan him $250 a month until the National Football League draft and to pay for a $500,000 insurance policy. Over the next four months, the agents loaned Ingram approximately $25,000 in cash and other benefits until he terminated the agreement.
Under cross-examination by Bloom's attorney, Dan Webb, Ingram said that while officials at Michigan State learned of his signing before the end of his senior year, the university did not revoke his scholarship.
Ingram also acknowledged that he was arrested on a theft charge after his freshman year at Michigan State and that during his junior year he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of breaking and entering. He eventually served 30 days of a 90-day sentence.
Bloom's attorneys suggested that the scholarship should have been terminated when Ingram was convicted of the felony, before he met Walters and Bloom.
But Gwendolyn Norrell, a former Michigan State faculty athletic representative, who testified after Ingram, said the rules governing scholarship renewal were discretionary, and that while she found Ingram's behavior undesirable, she said it was ''not enough to revoke his scholarship.''


text:
What is BADDEST (WORST IN YOUR WAY) SAID TO YOU ON GIRLSASKGUYS through message? thnx.
Most Helpful Girl
creeps are pretty common on here...
its like i have a big D... do you wanna see it? i'm like what dafuq?98|10|0
Yeah seriously. Like we're not here to see dicks.
thanks for MH
@musicbrain5 :yeah


text:
What is JotForm?
JotForm is a free online form builder which helps you create online forms without writing a single line of code. No sign-up required.
At JotForm, we want to make sure that you're getting the online form builder help that you need. Our friendly customer support team is available 24/7.
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Hi I set my account to encrypted forms and created a form and turned onAsked by johnmoore on July 23, 2015 at 12:32 PM
Hi I set my account to encrypted forms and created a form and turned on the encyption for that form. I aslo downloaded my key. I got my first submission and it's encrypted like I wanted it to be but I don't get asked for the my key. What am I missing? I've read through the forum but I don't see an answer. Please help
This is a re-post of a comment on Introducing Encrypted Forms: The Ultimate in Online Form Security
Once you login and access the encrypted submission you will be prompted to upload the key,
kindly try clearing your browser cache then login again and try accessing the encrypted submissions you will be prompted to upload the keyfile.


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Bob Burrows
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Bob Burrows has been sports editor at the River Falls Journal since 1996 and at the Hudson Star-Observer since 2009. Prior to joining the Journal, Burrows served as sports editor with Ledger Publications in Balsam Lake, Wis. A native of Bayonne, N.J. and a U.S. Navy veteran, Burrows attended Marquette University before completing his studies at UW-River Falls in 1992.
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Hudson junior Amanda Baker qualified for the WIAA State Gymnastics Championship in three individual events and the all-around by finishing in the top five at last Thursday's sectional tournament in Chippewa Falls. Baker placed third in the floor exercise, uneven bars and vault while tying for fourth place in the all-around competition with a total score of 35.15. The only event she didn't qualify for state in was the balance beam, where she finished ninth.
Backed by stellar goaltending and spurred on by four power-play goals, the Superior Spartans held off the Raider boys' hockey team, 6-0, in a WIAA sectional semifinal game last Tuesday night (Feb. 22) in Superior. The Raiders outshot the Spartans 32-23, including 18-2 in the second period. But the Spartans scored three times in the final period, the last time on a 5-on-3 power play, to advance to last Saturday's sectional championship game where they were defeated by New Richmond, 4-3. "We probably played the best game of the year and lost 6-0," Raider coach Mike Stoskopf said.
Raider senior Nick Larson placed fourth at 152 pounds while senior Gordon Johnson and junior Tanner Owens were eliminated in the preliminary round at the WIAA Individual State Wrestling Tournament in Madison over the weekend. All three wrestlers will hit the mat again this weekend when they join their teammates at the WIAA Team State Championships in Madison. The Raiders will take on Holmen in a state quarterfinal match Friday, March 4 at 7 p.m.
Hudson junior Amanda Baker qualified for the WIAA State Gymnastics Championship in three individual events and the all-around at Thursday night's sectional tournament in Chippewa Falls. Baker placed third in the floor exercise, uneven bars and vault while tying for fourth place in the all-around competition with a total score of 35.15. The only event she didn't qualify for state in was the balance beam, where she finished ninth.
John Knutson has a different soft-sided briefcase for each organization he belongs to lined up alongside each other along a wall in his office at RESCO on Heggen Road. Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, Junior Achievement, Knights of Columbus, United Way, Big Brothers Big Sisters... the list goes on and on. Knutson recently added another briefcase to the collection; one for the Hudson High School girls' soccer program. Knutson was named Raiders' varsity head coach earlier this year.
The UW-River Falls men's basketball team advanced to the WIAC Tournament Championship game for the first time in school history by defeating UW-Platteville, 69-60, in a semifinal game Thursday night at Karges Center. Falcon seniors Jontae Koonkaew and Jake Voeltz, playing for the final time in front of the Karges faithful, carried the team on their backs in the second half as UW-RF hit the 20-win mark for the first time since 2004. Koonkaew scored 20 of his team-high 23 points in the second half while Voeltz finished with 20 points, 14 after intermission. The Falcons will travel to UW-Steve
The Raider boys' basketball team knocked off Chippewa Falls, 52-41, at home last Thursday before dropping a 65-52 nonconference game to Woodbury, Minn., on Saturday. The Raiders, now 5-7 in BRC play, 7-14 overall, will wrap up the regular season with a nonconference game this Thursday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m. before opening WIAA regional play Tuesday, March 1, at home against Eau Claire North. Last Thursday against Chippewa Falls (6-5, 8-12), both teams started slowly as the Raiders led by a score of 4-2 at the end of the first quarter.
Sophomore Lucas Rukavina didn't plan on competing in three different events at Saturday's WIAA State Swimming and Diving Championships in Madison.
Chippewa Falls edged Hudson by just .025 to capture third place at the Big Rivers Conference Gymnastics Championships in Rice Lake Friday and move into a tie for second place with the Raiders in the final BRC standings. Chippewa Falls finished Friday's tournament with a total team score of 130.500 while the Raiders finished with a total of 130.475. Hudson entered the tournament all alone in second place with four points by virtue of its 4-1 conference dual record while Chippewa Falls was in third with three conference points after going 3-2 during the regular season. The Cardinals third-pla
Ryan Dau scored off a scramble in front of the net six minutes into the third period to snap a 1-1 tie and lift Hudson's boys' hockey team to a 2-1 victory over River Falls in a WIAA Regional final game Thursday night in River Falls. The fifth-seeded Raiders move on to face top-seeded Superior Tuesday, Feb. 22, in Superior. The Spartans pulled out a 3-2 double-overtime victory over No.