Month: March 2008

  • GENERATION "Y"

    In it's January 22, 2008 edition, the Quebec City newspaper Le Soleil had a topic about generation by age groups.

    Generations were identified as follows:

    *  The Silent generation, people born before 1945.    
    *  The Baby-Boomers, people born between 1945 and 1961
    *  Generation X, people born between 1962 and 1976
    *  Generation Y, people born between 1977 and 1989

    For the last one, if you ask why Y?...

    This caricaturist explains it...

  • MIKE'S LACROSSE GAME HIGHLIGHTS!

    Our grandson Mike was named captain of Lyons Township lacrosse team this year.  He started out the new high school lacrosse season by scoring five goals in the season opener against Naperville North on Friday as they won 12 to 4.

    Here are some highlights of the game.  Mike is wearing number 20 in the blue. He also does the face offs when he's on the field, and he's pretty good at that too.

    If you don't believe me, just watch the video.

  • BIRD SIGHTING

    Last week our next door neighbor called and told me there was a perigrine falcon in her back yard.  It was sitting in a lilac bush about a hundred yards from the house and about three feet off the ground.  It looked to be about 18 inches tall.

    I took this picture and blew it up, but it looks like a hawk to me.  I always thought falcons liked to sit up high.

    Does anyone know how to tell the difference between a falcon and a hawk?

  • MY NEW DIET

    For the past five days, I've been successful in losing weight. 

    I call it the flu diet!

  • WHY MEN DON'T WRITE ADVICE COLUMNS

    Dear Walter:

    I hope you can help me. The other day I set off for work leaving my husband in the house watching the TV as usual. I hadn't gone more than a mile when my engine conked out and the car shuddered to a halt. I walked back home to get my husband's help. When I got home I couldn't believe my eyes. He was in our bedroom with our next door neighbor.  I am 32, my husband is 34, and we have been married for twelve years.

    When I confronted him, he broke down and admitted that they had been having an affair for the past six months.  I told him to stop or I would leave him. He was let go from his job six months ago, and he says he has been feeling increasingly depressed and worthless. I love him very much, but ever since I gave him the ultimatum he has become increasingly distant. He won't go to counseling, and I'm afraid I can't get through to him any more. Can you please help?

    Sincerely, Sheila


    Dear Sheila:

    A car stalling after being driven a short distance can be caused by a variety of faults with the engine. Start by checking that there is no debris in the fuel line. If it is clear, check the vacuum pipes and hoses on the intake manifold and also check all grounding wires. If none of these approaches solves the problem, it could be that the fuel pump itself is faulty, causing low delivery pressure to the carburetor float chamber.

    I hope this helps.

    Walter

  • HE SEES WITH HIS EARS

    Ben Underwood is 14 years old and blind. He lost his eyes to cancer when he was
    2-years-old, but you would never know it. Ben
    gets around fine without the use of a cane or guide dog. In fact, he
    rollerblades, has pillow fights and even plays video games and fooseball.

    He has taught himself to use
    echolocation.

    Echolocation is the device used by bats and dolphins. By emiting sounds, they navigate based on how the echoes return.

  • Zangazine

    One of my all time favorite xanga sites may be coming back from near death.  It was a xanga magazine featuring posts in several different catagories that were suggested by other xangans.  Stop by and leave a comment if you are interested.

    http://www.xanga.com/ZangaZine

  • WHO'S THE ENVIRONMENTALIST?

    House #1
     
    A 20 room mansion ( not including 8 bathrooms ) heated by natural gas. Add on a pool ( and a pool house) and a separate guest house, all heated by gas. In one month this residence consumes more energy than the average American household does in a year. The average bill for electricity and natural gas runs over $2400. In natural gas alone, this property consumes more than 20 times the national average for an American home. This house is not situated in a Northern or Midwestern 'snow belt' area. It's in the South.

    House #2

    Designed by an architecture professor at a leading national university. This house incorporates every 'green' feature current home construction can provide. The house is 4,000 square feet ( 4 bedrooms ) and is nestled on a high prairie in the American southwest. A central closet in the house holds geothermal heat-pumps drawing ground water through pipes sunk 300 feet into the ground.
     
    The water (usually 67 degrees F.) heats the house in the winter and cools it in the summer. The system uses no fossil fuels such as oil or natural gas and it consumes one-quarter electricity required for a conventional heating/cooling system. Rainwater from the roof is collected and funneled into a 25,000 gallon underground cistern. Wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets goes into underground purifying tanks and then into the cistern. The collected water then irrigates the land surrounding the house. Surrounding flowers and shrubs native to the area enable the property to blend into the surrounding rural landscape.


    HOUSE #1 is in the Belle Meade district of Nashville, Tennessee; it is the abode of the 'environmentalist' Al Gore.

    HOUSE #2 is on a ranch near Crawford, Texas; it is the residence the of the President of the United States, George W. Bush.

    For Al Gore, this is truly an 'inconvenient truth'.

    I've checked this on Snopes.com and it's TRUE

    Al Gore defends his extraordinary personal energy usage by telling critics he maintains a "carbon neutral" lifestyle by buying "carbon offsets," but the company that receives his payments turns out to be partly owned and chaired by the former vice president himself.

    Gore has built a green money-making machine capable of eventually generating billions of dollars for investors, including himself, but he set it up so that the average Joe can't afford to play on Gore's terms.

    Gore has described the lifestyle he and his wife Tipper live as "carbon neutral," meaning he tries to offset any energy usage, including plane flights and car trips, by "purchasing verifiable reductions in CO2 elsewhere."

    But it turns out he pays for his extra-large carbon footprint through Generation Investment Management, a London-based company with offices in Washington, D.C., for which he serves as chairman. The company was established to take financial advantage of new technologies and solutions related to combating "global warming."

    Hypocrite!

     

  • REAL HOLLYWOOD HEROES

    In contrast to the ideals, opinions and feelings of today's "Hollyweird" the real actors of yester-year loved the United States . They had both class and integrity. With the advent of World War II many of our actors went to fight rather than stand and rant against this country we all love.

    They gave up their wealth, position and fame to become service men & women, many as simple "enlisted men".

    This page lists but a few, but from this group of only 18 men came over 70 medals in honor of their valor, spanning from Bronze Stars, Silver Stars, Distinguish Service Cross', Purple Hearts and one Congressional Medal of Honor.

    So remember; while the "Entertainers of today" have been in all of the news media lately I would like to remind the people of what the entertainers of 1943 were doing, (65 years ago).

    Most of these brave men have since passed on.

    Alec Guinness (Star Wars) operated a British Royal Navy landing craft on D-Day.

    James Doohan ("Scotty" on Star Trek) landed in Normandy with the U.S. Army on D-Day.

    Donald Pleasance (The Great Escape) really was an R.A.F. pilot who was shot down, held prisoner and tortured by the Germans.



    David Niven was a Sandhurst graduate and Lt. Colonel of the British Commandos in Normandy.

    James Stewart Entered the Army Air Force as a private and worked his way to the rank of Colonel.During World War II, Stewart served as a bomber pilot, his service record crediting him with leading more than 20 missions over Germany, and taking part in hundreds of air strikes during his tour of duty.  Stewart earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, France 's Croix de Guerre,and 7 Battle Stars during World War II In peace time, Stewart continued to be an active member of the Air Force as a reservist, reaching the rank of Brigadier General before retiring in the late 1950s.

    Clark Gable (Mega-Movie Star when war broke out) Although he was beyond the draft age at the time the U.S. entered WW II, Clark Gable enlisted as a private in the A.A.F. on Aug. 12,1942 at Los Angeles.  He attended the Officers' Candidate School at Miami Beach , Fla. and graduated as a second lieutenant on Oct. 28, 1942. He then attended aerial gunnery school and in Feb. 1943 he was assigned to the 351st Bomb Group at Polebrook where flew operational missions over Europe in B-17s.  Capt. Gable returned to the U.S. in Oct. 1943 and was relieved from active duty as a major on Jun. 12, 1944 at his own request, since he was over-age for combat.

    Charlton Heston was an Army Air Corps Sergeant in Kodiak.

    Ernest Borgnine was a U. S. Navy Gunners Mate 1935-1945.

    Charles Durning was a U.S. Army Ranger at Normandy earning a Silver Star and awarded the Purple Heart.



    Charles Bronson was a tail gunner in the Army Air Corps, more specifically on B-29's in the 20th Air Force out of Guam, Tinian, and Saipan

    George C. Scott was a decorated U.S. Marine.

    Eddie Albert (Green Acres TV) was awarded a Bronze Star for his heroic action as a U.S. Naval officer aiding Marines at the horrific battle on the island of Tarawa in the Pacific Nov. 1943.

    Brian Keith served as a U.S. Marine rear gunner in several actions against the Japanese on Rabal in the Pacific.



    Lee Marvin was a U.S. Marine on Saipan during the Marianas campaign when he was wounded earning the Purple Heart.

    John Russell: In 1942, he enlisted in the Marine Corps where he received a battlefield commission and was wounded and highly decorated for valor at Guadalcanal.

    Robert Ryan was a U.S. Marine who served with the O.S.S. in Yugoslavia.

    Tyrone Power (an established movie star when Pearl Harbor was bombed) joined the U.S. Marines, was a pilot flying supplies into, and wounded Marines out of, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

    Audie Murphy, little 5'5" tall 110 pound guy from Texas who played cowboy parts: Most Decorated serviceman of WWII and earned: Medal of Honor,Distinguished Service Cross, 2 Silver Star Medals, Legion of Merit, 2 Bronze Star Medals with "V", 2 Purple Hearts, U.S. Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, 2 Distinguished Unit Emblems, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with One Silver Star, Four Bronze Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead (representing assault landing at Sicily and Southern France) World War II Victory Medal Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar, Expert Badge with Bayonet Bar, French Fourragere in Colors of the Croix de Guerre, French Legion of Honor, Grade of Chevalier, French Croix de Guerre With Silver Star, French Croix de Guerre with Palm, Medal of Liberated France, Belgian Croix de Guerre 1940 Palm.
                       
    So how do you feel the real
    heroes of the silver screen acted when compared to the Hollyweirds of
    today who spew out anti-American drivel as they bite the hand that
    feeds them?

    Can
    you imagine these stars of yester-year saying they hate our flag,
    making anti-war speeches, marching in anti-American parades and saying
    they hate our president?

    I didn't think you would; neither did I!