Pumps' Perplexities

Seems like David Beckham and Victoria Adams
(aka Posh Spice) are having their difficulties after
crossing the "pond" is search of wealth and fame.....

Poor old "bend it like" Beckham has had too many
"boo-boos" playing football, (USA soccer)......

Seems also that "Posh" has yet to make her name
in Hollywood.......Some TV failures I think.......

One thing is for certain, both will take their
multiple Dollars and return to England and exchange
them for either Pounds or Euros.......

The best foreign player to play football/soccer in the
US was Pele......Pumps

Well it is Political Season........During these political days
people give money to candidates in order to gain something
or another......I never figured out what exactly.....

Every so often the news reports a candidate taking money
from someone they should not have......What do with this
"bad" money?.....It seams that they rarely give it
back but rather they, in turn, donate it to some
charity.........

Don't they get a "tax deduction" for this contribution?
It seems that "they", the candidate, is not losing a "dime"
and still taking full advantage of the "Political Donation".....
Pumps

Processed foods have come a long way since I was a kid.......
Swanson frozen chicken entrees no longer taste like
cardboard and we now have frozen meatballs.......
Take your pick, regular, Italian, Swedish beef or even
turkey.......

I remember that you had to make these little things from
scratch......Bread crumbs or stale bread, eggs, seasonings
and ground beef.......Then you had to try to make them
all the same size by rolling them between the palms of
your hands......Today you take them out of the freezer
bag and throw them into the microwave.......

Besides the invention of the laser in the Twentieth Century,
the production of the frozen meatball is next on my
list of man's great accomplishments.......Pumps

I am glad that I grew up in an age where this subject
was taught in grammar, middle and high school....From
the earliest of my years I was instructed on how
"money" works and most of all the fact that "you do
not spend money that you do not have".......

I guess like everything else the "Boomers" lost sight of
that simple fact and now they and their offspring are
caught up in a "credit crunch".......

It will all "wash out" in the years to come and lessons
will be learned.....But after all, that is what life is all
about......One big learning experience......In the mean
time it is back to canned beef ravioli for some.....Pumps

I am very happy to hear that Mr. Vick is repentant and
has found God which resulted in his guilty plea in the dog
fighting enterprise which he financed......

Now I believe that Mr. Vick should serve the jail time
he is given and pay his debt to society.....Then he
should forsake his worldly possessions and serve God
as a missionary in some far flung corner of the world....

Pumps

Years ago growing up in New York City, if you were
strapped for cash, you could go down to your
neighborhood corner "gin mill" or bar/tavern and
talk to "Joey the Bat".........He would lend you the
money and you paid him back on time......Or else......

Well, while this practice still exists, it is not major
news anymore........What is news are Quick Cash
Stores which are operating under various names......
Here in Jabunyaville, we have a few......All legal.......

It seems that the business model of "Joey the Bat"
has made its way to Finland.......In Holland a
Finish company will lend you 300 Euro (Dollars)
for 15 days with a payback of 375 Euros.....

That is an annual interest rate of 600 percent......
Why do I get the feeling that it was cheaper to
do business with "Joey"?........Pumps

Mr. Vick will go down in history as a dog killer......Better
yet a man that did not like "puppies" usless they grew up
and won in their dog fights.......

I have no sorrow for Mr. Vick......He knew what he was
doing and had the money to do it.....Plain and simple.....
A simple "drug bust" of one of his associates led to the
graves of losing grown up "puppies"........

If there is one word a dog may remember, out of the 20 or
so it does, is "puppy".....A dog does not know how big it is,
so calling one a "puppy" brings back the time of youth, love
and cuddles......

Looks like Mr. Vick has been banished to an unknown
world....But he will have some company, due to his
mis-deeds and gambling, Pete Rose.......Pumps

Today was "banking day".......Years ago you could present
your "pass book" and simply ask for your money......Then
walk across the street and put it into another bank.......
Not today......

They said that computers would make life easier....That
we would be "paperless".....Hate to tell you but that is
a "crock"......

There is more paper produced and more time talking
on a telephone - to a computer - to get business properly
transacted.......What a "pain".....

Why do I think that things were easier in the olde days?
Pumps

Fact: Smaller banks pay better interest and have better
customer service than larger banks......

Seventeen years ago I left a BIG Bank.....Went to a Small
Bank.....Small Bank merged with other Small Banks and
then they were bought out by Medium Bank.....Finally
Medium Bank was bought by BIG Bank......

Now I am leaving the BIG Bank to start all over in a
Small Bank.......

On thing that I have noticed, with all these banking
changes, is that the only one that makes any money on
the transitions are the trustees and the shareholders
of the banks, themselves.......

I suspect that if it takes seventeen years for this "new"
Small Bank to become a BIG Bank I will not care
anymore......Pumps

For the past few years the cellular telephone industry
has increased its desire to construct more towers
in order to improve telephone service for the customer....

There have been many an occasion when the local
residents have said, "Not In My Back Yard"......Their
complaint was either it would destroy the view,
reduce property values or fall on their house........

The "cell tower" now has, to its advantage, the obesity
of school children.......To keep the school children thin
and healthy many schools are removing the soda/pop
machines from the schools......This was a source of
income for many school and athletic activities........
The school districts are losing the profit from the sale
of soda/pop.......

Thus to make up for the revenue shortfall one school in
Jabunyaville is allowing the construction of a cell
tower on school property.....The operator of the tower
will pay the school "rental" money which will be
applied to the school's athletic program......

I suspect that this "revenue gain" will be a new
trend........Pumps

Here it is, 2007, and the TV nightly news is constantly
"running" stories about the poor Air Traffic Control
system in the United States.....Their stories also include
the plight of overcrowding, departure delays and
baggage loss.......

It seems like they are "running" the same stories, with
some updated data, that they "ran" back in 2000-1.....
The days prior to September 11, 2001......If I remember
correctly the airline industry was having the same
problems........

After 9/11 no one bothered to travel and the Air Traffic
Control problem went away......There were less
travelers and less airplanes in the sky........

Looks like America is back to normal......Six years later
the same old problem......Between late 2001 and 2006
the system was not broke so no one fixed it......Well
guess what America must be back to normal because
the problem has returned......Pumps

I suspect there are a lot of people mad at this TV cable,
Internet Provider and telephone company after the storm
which pass through Richmond, Virginia last Thursday
night and Friday morning.....

It is one thing to have a bad storm and lose some of your
essential services like power or light......But, at least you
know that people are trying to fix things and your local
TV/radio and newspapers keep you posted on the
progress being done......

No with Comcast Cable......There was not one news
worthy report about "their" problems......Telephone
calls to the company were all "automated" for
answering......It was just like they did not care about
their customers with any kind of update or progress
report.......(We got them from the electrical company.).....

This is another reason I will not give all my service,
TV-internet-telephone, to one company......If all your
eggs are in one basket and it falls, you are screwed.....

Just as a note: Our lack of service was a total of 60 hours....
Telephone battery back up service from this company
is only 8......Enough said.......Pumps

Dear avid readers, at 9PM on Thursday August 16th,
a major lightning and rain storm passed over
Jabunyaville (aka Richmond, VA).......There were
38500 lightning strikes in a six hour period.......

Needless to say that there were power and other
utility outages as a result of this massive event of
nature.......

My local cable and internet providers was one of
the companies which was gravely effected by this
storm.......

I am proud to say that I am back on line after almost
48 hours of outage......Wife is also happy that she
got her TV running again.......Till tomorrow.....Pumps

The "bodega" is a Hispanic grocery store......You will find
them on many a corner in many a town were Hispanic
people live.......And, it is a common practice of Hispanic
men to stand in front of them while consuming a Bud,
Corona or Heineken.......

I am sick of reading newspaper reports that the newly
arrived non-citizen Hispanic is being "taken advantage of"
because they do not know legal laws, employment
practices and "how to count American money".......What
a "bull story"......

What do you think these new arrivals talk about while
standing in front of the "bodega" or a Home Depot Store?....
Outside of their most recent sexual conquest, the latest
soccer score, they discuss "How Every American System"
works, Governmental, Civil, Corporate.....They know
exactly what they are doing.......They just play dumb.....
(But this not entirely a Hispanic practice.)....Pumps

"OK men, lets mount up and ride to the river in order
to protect our rights to the water.....Them varmints
ain't goin' to use it for their cattle".......

Water, the basic sustenance of mankind, has always
been a worrisome issue......In this modern time it
involves "purity".......People want to drink the purist
of water.....But the Global Warming folks are telling
us that shipping or trucking water from one place
to another is no good for the Earth.......Drinking it out
of a plastic bottle is no good for the Earth.......

I have come to the conclusion that if, #1 it takes
good; #2 does not smell or have a strange color;
#3 has not killed your neighbor......Then it is good
enough to drink.......Let's face when did the word
"water filtration" enter into common usage?......
Pumps

With every piece of US Mail that you receive in your
mailbox, there should be a "Post Mark" in the upper
right hand corner of the envelope or package......

These days do not go crazy looking for it anymore......
A lot of credit card and bulk mail companies no longer
have them......Forgetting about the "junk" bulk mail,
lets look at your credit card or cable bill......

In the upper right hand corner of THEIR envelope now
appears a printed square saying, "Presorted First Class"......
Now this saves money for the "mailing company" and
handling at the post office.......But there no longer
appears a "date" when the envelope "entered" the United
States Postal Service.......

If for any reason the piece of mail is mishandled by the
US Postal Service, you have no longer a way to prove it......
All that is known is the credit company SAID they mailed
it......And PRESUMED you received it......All responsibility
for a late or non payment of that bill now becomes YOUR
responsibility........Both the Company and Post Office
know "from nothing"......You are left with any overcharges
and "holding the bag".......

If you pay your bill electronically, which the credit card people
would love for you to do, you will also save them postage
money and get an "accounts receivable clerk" fired......
They no longer will need anyone to open your remittance
and process your personal check......

Maybe it is about time the "consumer protection" services
get the Post Mark reinstated.....Pumps

Two thousand and eight is going to be the year that things
will change.......Since it is a presidential election year, it
will be different.......

The current credit banking problems will once again carry
over to next year......When banks start to lose money, due
to THEIR bad decisions and investments, their customers
and depositors will have to pick up the "slack" with higher
loan rates and customer fees......Your bank will say it is
"friendly" but it will not be.......

The stock market will not know what to do because
everyone in the US Government will not know what is
going on......Everyone will be using both hands to cover
their "you know whats"........

Both political parties will not have a truthful word
amongst them......There will lie after lie and break
promise after broken promise......All they want to do
is get elected.....They care nothing for THEIR voters.......

Since no one is really "running the governmental store",
prices will increase on anything and everything......And,
politicians, as usual, will promise to correct things, (see
above.).......

My only advice is to do what the politicians will do.....
Protect your own butt, lean back, watch the fun and
frolic and celebrate New Years Day 2009.........Pumps

Reading the Australian newspapers, via the internet
everyday, I have come to the conclusion that what
ever happens there soon winds up on the shores of
the United States.....

For example, they had their housing crisis some 18-24
months ago and still have not recovered from it......

There are only a little more that 20 million people living
"down under" in a land of limited habitable space and
water resources......Due to their current draught
conditions most of the people believe in Global Warming....

So much so that most of them will be willing to pay an
additional $400AU ($338US) a year for "clean" energy.....

Be prepared America, it will not be too long now that
someone will want to charge you "extra" for electricity
coming from a "wind farm"......

Drilling for oil and mining for coal cost money.....I wonder
who is going to make the profit from "free air"?....Pumps

This is the exact date and time that the 2008 summer
Olympic games will begin in China......

News reports state that China wants to make everything
perfect and be able to project its country into the
"world arena".......It is taking great pains to do so........

Was this not done by Hitler, in Germany, back in 1936?

Hope the USA has another "Jessy Owens" moment......

Pumps

Having grown up in the years after the Great Depression,
I must admit that I am "frugal"......No cheap - "frugal"......
The dispensation of monetary funds is carefully
monitored.......It seems it is a habit from the "war years"
when you prioritized the spending of a 25 cent piece,
which was "burning a hole" in your pocket......

Rubber ball, bubble gum, soda (pop) or marbles?.....
Always decisions at a young age.......

Well it appears that a lot of these early traits have also
been held by the olde men on Wall Street........As of late
the Stock Market has risen and fallen with "abandon".....
"Buy or sell"....."How much will I gain, how much will
be lost"......."What will be left?"......

Sounds like they are still playing with THEIR marbles
against the curb on Maple Street......Only the 1 cent
marble is now a million dollars and the street name
changed from Maple to Wall........Pumps

I have come to realize, after some 5o years, that I grew
up using this Creed.......It was printed on every paper
place mat and napkin in the now gone Mayflower
Coffee Shops in New York City.........

"As you ramble through Life, Brother,
What ever be your goal.
Keep your eye upon the Donut
And not upon the hole."

The Mayflower Coffee Shops were a little more stylish
than today's Dunkin Donuts and their restaurants
c0-existed with another New York City landmark
restaurant chain, Horn & Hardheart.........Pumps

The "Dog Days" have come to us who live in lovely
Jabunyaville.......Temperatures "nipping the nose"
of 100 degrees (F).......The humidity and the heat
index have raised the "feel like" temperature to
105F.........

No records broken though......It hit 107F back in
1918.......(Now they were the Global Warming
days-----LOL).......

While the dogs lay under the porch, during this
high heat, or the story goes, we mortals just hide
in our little houses surrounded by air conditioning......
This is the modern way.........

I often wonder what the people did back in 1918......
Perhaps they sat in front of the open door to the
original "ice box" and fanned themselves while
drinking a chilled "mint julep".......

What ever they did, it worked.......For if it where
not for them, we would not be here today.....Pumps

If you were born around the early 1950's, you were the
proper age to buy a copy of the Mother Earth News
which started publication in 1970........

Here "you" were back then, in your "idealistic youth",
being made aware of how to save energy, recycle and
save "things" of the earth......

The periodical is still in print but it seems the
"idealistic youth", of the time, decided to buy big
houses, cars, air conditioners, TVs, sound systems and
other materialistic things........

The 1990 group of newborns, now the "idealistic
youth" of 2007, are trying to convince the older "boomers"
to try to "Go Green"......If the "boomers" did not do it
with the Mother Earth News I doubt they will do it
the "Inconvenient Truth" movie.........

Or, better yet, is this attempt by the "failed boomers"
to have the "Y" Generation do what they chose not to do......
(Al Gore's date of birth 3/31/48).........Pumps

I JUST HATE OLDE POLITICIANS.......Here are these
guys sitting in Congress just because of the "ranking"
and "power".......

They could not fly a commercial plane......They could not
be a train engineer, fireman or policeman, but yet they
sit in a office and control other people's lives.......

Their desire for "a battle on the floor" in a congressional
or senate fight has long gone......They just sit there for
their "vote"......They can not resign because that may
upset the "political party's apple cart"........

Remember Strom Thurman?.......He was "wheeled in"
in a wheelchair on to the floor of the US Senate just to
vote Yea or Nay........

I wish some of the olde farts in the US Government would
just, in General MacArthur's words, "fade away"........
They have money, medical insurance, statesman's status.....
Who needs the "power" when you are not olde enough
to properly use it?........Pumps

Have your ever noticed that if you order a "take-out"
pizza or order one for "home delivery", the slices are
never the same......You wind up with two or four small
slices and/or two to four big pieces......

The only place I have seen slices of pizza that are the
same size is in a store window where they sell pizza
by the slice......Then and only then does someone take
the time to cut the pizza pie into "equal portions"......
That's because you are not going to pay for a smaller
piece when you can pay the same price for a larger
piece.......

But buy a "take-out" or "home delivery" pizza and
THEY do not care.....You have bought a "whole" pie
so why should THEY be worried how THEY slice it......
For some reason I find this disconcerting.....Pumps

This, "above subject", term is the twenty-first century
governmental word for the twentieth century word
"pork".....A fancy word or words for a Senator or
Congressman to send money from Washington DC
back home, to build or fund - something or other.......

It is all part of the "big governmental game"...."Send
me to Washington and I will get federal funds to
support the mouse experiment at the local college"....

Each Senator or Congressman should now start using
his/her 'earmarks" for the repair of the infra-structure.....
Spend the money on roads, bridges and water systems.....

But this is a fantasy and will never come to pass.......An
"earmark" to fix a bridge does not get a Senator or
Congressman "one" vote........If you send "earmark" funds
to a college for some study on Mickey Mouse at least
the President of the College, some professors and
students will vote for you........Pumps

Having been associated or directly involved in the US
painting industry for some 40 years, the issue of lead
paint and children is well known to me........

For the past few years the "tort" lawyers have been
suing the many manufacturers of American paint
claiming that lead in paint products manufactured prior
to 1978 is STILL effecting today's children.......

Agreed that in renovating an old house or structure
care must be taken to reduce the amount of paint dust
that may be created......The paint industry and
renovation contractors are aware of this and do take
precautions..........

But the next time a lawyer tries to take a modern
paint company into court for "lead pollution", I do
hope some defense lawyer plays the Brita Water
Filter TV commercial, which says it will remove 90%
of the LEAD from the water........Or note the recall
of all the Fisher-Price children's toys which are
made in China with an excess of LEAD on their
painted parts.......

Since the "tort" lawyers find no profit in trying to
sue a city water system or a paint company in China
they have to try to sue an US paint company......

Does anyone remember the days when a lawyer tried
to help his client instead of himself, first?......Pumps

I am not a Starbucks guy......I'm "A cup of Joe" guy.......
Just take a look at my profile photograph and then
ask the question, "Would they let this guy, even,
into a Starbucks?"........

If you look at the "profile type" which buys the "super
double latte frap-a" something, they did not question
or complain about the raise in the price of their coffee
"delight"......Not one bit......They will continue on with
their daily tradition........

The price of a cup of coffee went up by 9 cents due to
the price of milk and transportation costs.......
DUH......Because of ethanol and the price of corn, a
major feed for COWS........

So the Starbucks' customers will complain about a
9 cent raise in gasoline as they sit not complaining
about the "transference of product cost" to "their
cup of Joe".......Pumps