Monday, March 07, 2022

CAKES!!

I live in a household of TEN people... which means ten birthday celebrations each year.  (I've celebrated enough birthdays of my own now, that I'd just as soon pass... but such is life, right?)

Among those householders are two extraordinary cake bakers / decorators - my bride Robin and daughter Hollie.  Yesterday I saw some CUPCAKES that Robin had decorated... I'm not even sure of the occasion.

I've snapped photos of some of those cakes over the years.  Most are for kids... but the "Lambie Cake" was my birthday cake a few years back.  (Granddaughter Bonnie was adamant that her grandpa would really like a lambie cake.)  Check these out!  I wish you could enjoy a slice - they are as tasty as they are beautiful.

This is yesterday's cupcake (!!):

Here's my "Lambie Cake" from a few years back:


(The lambies are chocolate and coconut.  Grandma J in the background isn't quite as thrilled as Bonnie and myself...)

Here's an assortment from the past 6 or 8 years:
















Son-in-law Cameron prefers pie - check out this birthday apple pie!

Sunday, March 06, 2022

Bank Attire Ettiquette

The signs on the door of my bank both amuse and confuse me.

Masks - YES!  Sunglasses and helmets - NO!

And what's the deal with not being able to display my weapon?  Another of life's little pleasures, spoilt by petty rules and regulations!




Friday, March 04, 2022

My kind of cell phone!

I dislike "smart phones."  Generally.

Why?  Probably because I believe they've diminished our society in many ways.  Every day - pretty much all day - I observe people, including wonderful people who I have great respect for, surrendering their precious time to inane "smart phone activity."  (Maybe it's stuff that really appeals to them.  They'd probably argue that they're lovin' every minute!  I hope so, because I see them devoting their attention to their phone instead of the wonderful surroundings and situations they are in, and/or the people that they are with.)

- People lurching along our "crown jewel" Greenbelt - oblivious to their surroundings because their face is in their phone.
- Moms and dads at the playground with their kids - ignoring them because their attention is fixated on their phone.
- Four people sitting together at a table at a restaurant.  Between bites, they aren't enjoying cheerful repartee with their companions - they're mesmerized by four handheld gizmos.

Another thing that I don't like about 'em - people WHO ARE DRIVING - are looking at their phones instead of paying attention to their driving.  Thousands of innocents fall victim to them, every year.  And - apparently our society is comfortable with that.

Smart phones AS A TOOL are amazing things!  But they should enhance your life, NOT detract from it!  (I hope the reader understands what I'm talking about.  Any honest observer has to agree that there are a lot of people, devoting a lot of time, to a lot of "smart phones"!)

OK - rant out of the way.  Now check out this cell phone WITH ROTARY DIAL!  Oh YESSSS!  This engineer lady built it.  I think she'd sell a bunch of 'em, if she put 'em on the market - it's CUTE!  Gotta love the turquoise - my mom would!  It should also be available in white, black, ivory, and AVOCADO to match the vintage kitchen appliances!

More info HERE.




Tuesday, March 01, 2022

Invasion of Ukraine

It's disheartening to see conflict break out in another place - this time eastern Europe.  I s'pose war is part of the Human Condition.  A familiar saying comes to mind: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."  Ultimately, I'm confident we have a God who is in charge - who knows the end from the beginning - and our best bet is to be in line with His guidelines.

I'm no military tactician... but when I hear reports of a 40-mile-long convoy of Russian military vehicles on a highway, I immediately think of the A-10 "Warthog" aircraft, as is familiar in the skies over Boise regularly.  Could we loan a couple of 'em to the Ukranians?

The A-10 is equipped with the infamous GAU-8 "Avenger" hydraulically driven seven-barrel Gatling-style autocannon.  Which fires 30mm (1+ inch diameter), 14-ounce HEI (high explosive incendiary) bullets made out of depleted uranium - specifically designed for anti-tank use - at a rate of 65 per second.  I imagine some well-trained A-10 pilots could drop in on that convoy and quickly produce tons and tons of scrap metal.  No?

Some relevant photos below: 1) aerial photo of the convoy, 2) A-10 with gun exposed, 3) gun with VW bug.