It's a Good Thing the Grass is Dormant . . .

After a long holiday weekend with friends and family, and after dealing with construction management hell, and after successfully avoiding retail establishments on Black Friday -- and after the Hogs gave that little squeaker to the Tiggers -- Pepper and I made it back to New Orleans yesterday afternoon in plenty of time to unpack and thaw something from the freezer before the Saints/Giants kickoff.  And, what a lovely victory that was, but I digress.

So, this morning I walked Pepper out to the truck in the cold air, carrying his coffee mug, when he asked, "Why is this open?" pointing to the hasp that keeps our back gate secure.  I replied, "And where is the [dog leash] clip?" that we use to keep it locked.

I knew that I double-checked the gate before we left for Little Rock because I went out back to do just that after I had double-checked one of the back doors and found it unlocked.

Pepper stepped out onto the sidewalk and spied the clip in the flowerbed.

Great.

He said, "Can you tell if anything's missing?"  And I replied, "You mean like the lawn mower?"

And we just stared, for several moments, at the suddenly very empty spot where the mower used to sit.  Then we fanned out to try to discern whether anything else was missing.  Generator?  Present.  Porsche?  Present, locked, and intact.  Chainsaw?  Present and accounted for.  It seems that just the lawn mower went on walkabout. Or rollabout.

Crap, nonetheless.

So, Pepper shook his head, climbed into the truck, and headed downtown.

I went inside to file the police report.

Remember when Moogie mounted the Neighborhood Watch sign way back in 2009?

Before our neighborhood was able to call itself officially a Neighborhood Watch area, worthy of displaying the signs, a certain number of residents had to undergo a series of weekly trainings about observation, crime-fighting resources, etc.  One little tidbit I found particularly valuable was the training Officer's explanation of the Non-emergency Police number.  His admonition to use that number when merely reporting something suspicious or minor, so that we wouldn't tie up the emergency 911 operators, struck me as important enough that I programmed the number into my cell phone (along with the FBI's and the DEA's!) right then and there.

Today, I'm not so sure why they bother to maintain separate numbers.

The same people answer the non-emergency number as the emergency 911 number. 

Now I understand why one reads about people getting busy signals, or being put on hold, when calling 911.  Even so, the nice Non-Emergency-911 lady said she could take my call and send over some uniformed officers.

Of course, when I asked one of the officers (who responded within 15 minutes, by the way!) why that was the case and explained that I didn't want to tie up the line in case someone had a real emergency, he told me that you wouldn't believe why some people call 911.  One of his favorites was the mother who wanted the police summoned to tell her teenage daughter that she couldn't go out dressed "like that."  Sheesh.

Anyway, the officers asked me a bunch of questions and talked to one another in code about how they would classify this incident since our garage is open-air on the sides and wouldn't totally support a classification of breaking and entering or burglary.  P.S., Crime statistics are very important in Orleans Parish.  I told them I'd be happy to settle for a little Criminal Trespass and Theft of Property valued at less than $500.00, because I doubted whether we'd ever see the mower again.

I remarked that whoever did it had to know enough about us to figure out that we were leaving town -- Bouie went with us to Little Rock; his big voice has chased many a miscreant away from the yard. -- and how to reach over the gate to unlatch the clip.  He said his best guess was that it was done by some crackhead who regularly strolled the neighborhood looking for jobs cutting grass to support his habit and eat.  I'd say that's probably pretty close to hitting it right on the nose.  And pretty creepy.

So, after the officers did much talking on the radio (while in possession of my drivers license. ???) and filling out paperwork and consulting with other cops, I now have in my possession an official "NOPD Form 26" telling me that I may acquire an official Police Report in 14 -21 "working days,"  for a fee. 

So, if it's not bad enough that you've been robbed already, the City sticks it to you again if you want to file an insurance claim which, in this case, would just be a worthless effort.

By the way, it must have been a slow crime day in the Crescent City -- they sent 2 squad cars and 4 policemen to investigate a stolen lawn mower.

And that picture at the top?  That shiny new padlock is today's MVP -- Most Valuable Purchase! In the sack is a length of chain for the front gate (and another padlock) since it's now cold enough to shrink the metal to where the tongue in the lock won't stay engaged. If the worthless, self-entitled miscreants want to get in again, they're going to have to work for it.

*sigh*

It's Gameday!!! WPS!!!

We're coming for you.  Here kitty, kitty, kitty!

Woooooo Pig Soooiiieeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hogs are on fire!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

May your day be blessed with good food and good times.

And a little Wooo Pig Soooiieeeee!!!!!!!!!!

SEC, 1-2-3, and More Conflicting Emotions

Pretty amazing.  And all in the SEC West!  Countdown has begun to the Decline and Fall of Mike the Tiger -- my Razorbacks will reverse those rankings come Friday.  And make a total mess out of the BCS.

On a sad note, I'd like to offer my sincere condolences to the Razorback family at large, and especially to the family of 19 year-old tight end, Garrett Uekman, who passed away yesterday in Fayetteville.  There will be a candlelight memorial service this evening at Walton Arena in his honor.  And, as a friend noted on Facebook this morning, the Hogs now not only have something to win for, they have someone.

 Please remember this family, and remember to cherish every moment with loved ones this holiday season. 

Woo Pig Soooieee.

The Shaking-My-Head, Not-a-Christmas-Post, Post

I understand that it's not past Thanksgiving yet, but this isn't really a Christmas post.  It's an "I can't believe the lengths some PC people will go to to pander to the religion of peace" post.  Are you ready for this?

The British Red Cross has banned Christmas from its fund-raising shops.  All 430 of them.  Because any celebration of the Christian holy day could offend Muslims.  For real.

This PC nonsense is so dumbfounding that it sucks all the oxygen out of the room.

I mean, seriously, their name is the Red CROSS!  You know, like the cross where Christ was crucified.

(The organization's symbol is a red cross on a white field, the inverse of the Swiss flag, where the International Red Cross was formed and is headquartered.  The Swiss flag's cross has its roots buried deeply in Christianity.  Shoot -- the crescent is used in arabic countries' flags and symbols, not to mention for the Red Crescent, and in arabic countries pretty much everything carries some sort of religious connotation.)

So, the fund-raising stores can't display Christmas trees or creches, but they can certainly sell Christmas cards to make a profit.  I wonder if they have to store the Christmas cards behind the counter like porn magazines.  Sheesh, give me a break.  I guess soon we need to be prepared for this:

Sorry. This whole thing has Moogie feeling rather peckish.

Maxine's Observations About Life in these United States

It seems that Maxine Waters is awake.  I speculate that she's awake because, if she's awake, she's talking.  And, as you can see, she's indeed talking.



Well, perhaps "blathering" is a more accurate description of what she's doing.  "That's life."  Seriously?!?!

With the investigation into her startling lack of ethics ongoing, you'd think she'd lay low instead of stepping into the OWS sewer.  I wonder when the outside counsel hired by the House Ethics Committee back in July will issue an opinion?  Seeing Maxine get slapped around a little like Charlie Rangel did (or, a lot more than Charlie Rangel did) would make something nice to be thankful for!

(H/t to Chicks on the Right)

Blogger Has Lost its Mind -- or Perhaps It's Occupied. Or Haunted.

Something is amiss with Blogger -- I think it's maybe had a little Occupy Overload.  Or a small stroke.

It won't keep me signed in, so I can't edit my posts.

As a consequence, I'm unable to add the video of the Occupants doing their litany for the City Council to the previous post (since it wasn't in the embed code I used there.  *Sigh*).  So, without further delay, Moogie presents the exciting, the riveting (the confused) Occupy NOLA Snarks:


And, as a little lagniappe, Moogie also presents another lizard pic!  I was driving down Tchoupitoulas this afternoon and this little guy started crawling across the hood. 

Fortunately, I didn't have a wreck while trying to photograph him.  Unfortunately, I don't think the little guy had a happy ending.  Last I saw him, he was disappearing over the edge of the hood, and there was a bit of a headwind . . . .

Apparently Moogie Was Preoccupied

See the follow up posted later for the City Council video. Stupid Blogger.



So, there appears to be a little more to the story that I didn't know about when I did the Occupy NOLA post yesterday.  And, it appears that I didn't imagine the swollen ranks of cops in and around City Hall -- they really intended to be prepared for an onslaught of community-organized  protesters.

Today's Times-Picayune reports that a dozen or so Occupants did make it into the Council Chamber.  I guess they came in behind me and decided not to be rowdy at precisely that moment.  Come to think of it, at least one lady in the video below looks familiar -- I remember seeing her enter the room with a rather surprised expression on her face.  Perhaps her expression can be attributed to the following from the article:

"About a dozen protesters entered New Orleans City Hall late Thursday morning to find themselves far outnumbered by uniformed and plainclothes police officers on hand to keep an eye on them.

When they got to the City Council chamber, where they had proclaimed they would hold a sit-in, they discovered it was nearly filled with uniformed military personnel on hand for the council's annual salute to the armed forces and the economic importance of local military bases.

The protesters sat quietly for the rest of the 'Military Day' program, including the playing of all five armed services' official hymns or songs . . . ."

Methinks the protesters made the right decision at the time -- there were more than a hundred men and women dressed in the uniforms of all of the services seated in the chamber, plus an armed joint color guard.  Except, maybe the Merchant Marine wasn't represented.  I'm sure they noticed.

Apparently, however, after all the military-type folk left the building, even though they abandoned the sit-in project, the Occududes found a slot on the consent agenda where one of them could sign up to address the Council.  Pretty impressive stuff (says Moogie as she tries to extract her tongue from her cheek). 

After the commercial and the Responsive Litany of Occufolk in the Council Chamber, you can see the several hundred who marched from somewhere around the Superdome to Lee Circle, snarling traffic and making at least one good point: the Fed needs to go.  Do you suppose they're aware that dissolving the Fed is one of the Tea Party's hot issues?  Nah -- I doubt it.


At least they had some pretty good musicians. 

I'm ready for them to go home now.

Do You Suppose They Were Preoccupied?

Weren't the Occupy dudes supposed to have some big, hands-across-America-ish, nationwide demonstrations today? 

Apparently, the New Orleans chapter either never received, or ignored, the memo.  (Okay, it wasn't a memo, it was an email from MoveOn.org -- yes I'm still undercover!)

I was at City Hall this morning to speak to the Council and Mayor on Military Day about ESGR. City Hall is right across the street from Duncan Plaza where the Occupy folks (and their homeless chums who were run out of Duncan Plaza a few years ago, but seem to have found their way back on the coattails of the Occupy Cognoscenti) have pitched their tents (and the city, being ever-prepared for parades and parties, has set out several PortaPotties).  There were a bunch of extra cops both in the entry area of City Hall and the Council Chamber, as if they expected a bunch of Occupiers to storm the seat of city government. 

When I arrived and saw all the cops I actually grew a little apprehensive about being able to get out and to my car after the session without encountering a mob of foolish, fragrant people -- our session with the Council began at 9:30 and was supposed to last until about 11:30; the Occupy Show of Force was supposed to crank up at 11:00 near a sign erected on the sidewalk across the street.  As I prepared to leave, I could see a sea of television news trucks through the front windows.  Hmmmm, I thought.

Then, I walked outside.  And saw this:

I think the news folk outnumbered the Occupy folk.  Here are the PortaPotties.

This whole Occupy thing is starting to get a little amusing to us irrelevant people who live in flyover country.  You know a thing has jumped the shark when The Daily Show starts gigging it:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

But, I think my very favorite jab at the Occupants so far is this:

Go ahead, Occupunks, make his day.

A Heads Up

Fair Warning -- Andy threw down the gauntlet and Moogie scooped it up. 

There is a wager on the table between Andy and Moogie concerning the impending Razorbacks v. Tiggers football game that will rivet every good soul to his or her television on Black Friday, the day following Thanksgiving.  Who wants to get out amidst the great unwashed at an hour that the good Lord never intended people to be up and about in pursuit of gift-giving treasure anyway?  That's waaaaay too rough on the blood pressure.  A nice, calm Razorback victory will be ever so much more relaxing.

I plan to have extra blood pressure meds on hand.

My Hogs must first dispense with the Mississippi State Puppies this Saturday before they can concentrate on the Tiggers, but I wanted to give you Fair Warning that the terms of said wager will be forthcoming, so be expecting them.  It'll be interesting.

Zeus' Place Does It Again!

You may recall an earlier post about Zeus' Place, the wonderful New Orleans kennel and rescue operation where Bouie and Rosie go to board and be groomed.  Well, they've been at it again.

They rescued a sweet little pup in September and named her Bethany.  The big problem with the little cutie -- in addition to the usual issues associated with rescues -- was the devastating injury sustained by her rear leg.  And, I mean devastating.  Michelle, the owner of Zeus' Place, made the decision to have the leg amputated to save the little bundle of sweetness, not knowing where the money (a rather substantial sum!) to pay for the surgery would come from.  New Orleans answered the call, and now Bethany has a long, happy life ahead of her to share with her new forever family, including Quinn, a German Shepherd who is her best buddy and protector.  Meet Bethany and Quinn, and enjoy a little feel-good dog story!

A Snark From Today's Inbox

5 RULES TO REMEMBER IN LIFE:

 

1. Money cannot buy happiness, but it's more comfortable to cry in a Mercedes than on a bicycle.

2. Forgive your enemy, but remember the bastard's name.

3. Help someone when they are in trouble, and they will remember you when they're in trouble again.

4. Many people are alive only because it's illegal to shoot them.

5. Alcohol does not solve any problems, but then again, neither does milk.

Ah.  Number 3.

College GAMEDAY, A Follow-up

By now, you are probably aware that the Clash of the Titans weekend in college football is in the books, with a nice win by the Razorbacks.  Some other SEC teams played, too, and one game was pretty important, I suppose.  It was important enough for Pepper to fire up his laptop so we didn't have to toggle back and forth between SEC games on the tv.  Of course, the more important game played on the bigger screen, but the Tiggers from up I-10 did all right on the laptop, even if the final score in that game more closely resembled a baseball score. (Man, that was some pretty awe-inspiring defense!  I think the Hogs had better put in some extra practice time during Thanksgiving week.)

Now, this is the way to watch football!

College GAMEDAY!!!

Lots of action going on today! I barely found a parking spot at the grocery store. With that many people stocking up on party food and beverages, there must be an awful lot of folks around here who are as excited about the Razorbacks/GamePullets matchup this evening as we are!

Saving a little here and there by enrolling in one of the top colleges online is all right, but there is one thing that makes traditional education worth the money: GAMEDAY.  The excitement, camaraderie, and revelry will stick with you even as you work a couple extra hours here an there to pay back the loans you may have incurred.

There's another SEC game on at about the same time, but I'm sure everyone's just ready to call the Hogs with their friends and family!

Whoo Pig Sooie!!!

Thanksgiving Still Comes First! And, There's Football Tomorrow!

That having been stolen from Facebook and posted here, I think I'll re-run last year's rant in favor of letting Thanksgiving have its time in the spotlight for a solo act.

"It's Still November -- Give Thanks!

Witness the proof of Moogie's contribution to the "Thanksgiving Comes First" campaign worming its way through cyberspace.

It always irritated my children to no end that we were not among those whose Christmas tree went up the day after Thanksgiving. I was not a particularly hard-ass mom overall, but I did adhere to one hard and fast rule: no Christmas anything until after December 1. No tree. No music. No decorations. No Christmas movies. Not until at least December 1, because Thanksgiving and Christmas both deserve their own month's celebration.

I still abide by that rule.

Some years my kids abide by the rule; others, they get too excited about having their own places to adorn and get ahead of the game.

But never does Christmas appear before Thanksgiving, even at The Son's house where there are 3 young 'uns. Never before Thanksgiving. So, I guess I didn't go totally wrong.

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday because it's about family and friends and being together, even if only in thought or memory (JB gave me that crafty turkey when our girls were still in pre-school, and it brings her to mind every time I lay eyes on it). So, I'm totally aboard the "Thanksgiving Comes First" train with a one-way ticket! Come on board!

Thanks to Buck and Suldog, in Autumn colors, for establishing and promoting a burgeoning movement. "

 

Now, I think I'll go bake some pumpkin  oatmeal cookies so we'll have something fall-ish to gnosh onm tomorrow evening whilst the Razorbacks trounce the Old Ball Coach, and some other SEC teams play on another network.

Proof Positive

There is finally conclusive evidence that Osama bin Laden and Moamar Gaddafi are dead.

Yesterday, they both registered to vote in Chicago .


(Stolen from a Facebook friend)

Oops! Correction!! Where Have You Gone, Emily Post? Our Nation Turns Its Lonely Eyes To You. . .

Buck advises me that the article referenced below came from the New York Times rather than the WSJ.  Oops -- my bad!!

Blog Buddy, Buck, emailed me a link today to an article in the Wall Street Journal entitled, "A Last Bastion of Civility, the South, Sees Manners Decline."  In addition to me, apparently several scholars of southern tradition and culture have documented a definite erosion in what was once the headquarters of politeness, deference, and making one's guests feel at home.

I believe that erosion has reached a critical stage, where, if we don't build a retaining wall pretty soon, etiquette, common courtesy, and table manners may just crash right onto the highway to hell. 

We are living through the Jerry Springer-ization of America.  There is not much evidence around these days suggesting that people of different opinions can engage in a reasonable debate without yelling over one another, and/or slinging furniture.

The article explores many possible causes for the death of Manners: parents too busy to teach their children; hyper-sensitive political correctness; feminism.  Damn Yankees.  I'd like to add the absence of military service as a common practice -- there's a culture of respectful behavior if ever there was one in which one must adhere to The Code to survive, not even mentioning to thrive. 

Back in the '90s, when I was teaching in the College of Business Administration at UALR, a male colleague and I wrote a Grant Proposal to fund a team-taught class in Business Etiquette to be presented from both a man's and a woman's perspective.  We included not only such obvious things as Interview Protocol, Phone Etiquette, and Correspondence Do's and Don'ts, we also included Table Manners, Cocktail Party Etiquette, and Varieties of Attire.  We didn't get the grant, and the idea pretty soon faded.  It's a shame that we were ahead of our time (and that the Dean at the time did not have Southern roots!).

At least the article ends on a hopeful note -- it seems that 70-year old Mrs. Dorothy McLeod, who teaches ballroom dance and etiquette to children, has no room in her classes; they're filled to the brim.  Let's just hope someone comes along to keep her mission alive.

As an aside -- contemplating a time when good manners were de rigeur -- I'd like to share a little piece of the tour I took last week of the Houmas House Plantation on River Road.  The house and grounds have been meticulously and lovingly restored to a period when gentlemen retired to the Drawing Room after dinner for cigars and bourbon while the ladies made do with brandied fruit and embroidery -- and the servants did the dishes.  (I think I could get into that "servants doing the dishes" thing!)  The Docent, Judy, was among the best I've ever seen -- she was spirited away from another plantation when the current owner of Houmas House (who actually lives there!) saw her perform.  She's been with him since 2003 and is raising three children on what she earns there.  She's funny and very knowledgeable, being a student of history, the Arts, and human nature. And talk about talented!  She not only described the 1813 Steinway grand piano in the front parlor, she played it!



She chose to do "Desperado" instead of a period piece because she really likes The Eagles.  And, she thought our group was fun.  And, of course, we were.

So, let's all just slow down a little bit and try to engage in a little bit more Golden Rule action.  Remember, as I pointed out yesterday, Karma can be a bitch.O

Some People Need to Break Out of Their Own Little Universe

If I had to choose one thing that makes that big vein in Pepper's temple swell and pulse to beat the band, it's encountering another driver who is talking, or texting, on a cell phone.  (Asian women drivers in New Orleans are a close second, but cell phones definitely win). 

I can usually tolerate chatting drivers, unless they're totally distracted and approaching me under head-on-collision conditions, but I saw something today that I. Could. Not. Believe.

I was sitting at a red light and heard/saw an ambulance coming down the four-lane cross-street with lights flashing and siren blaring.  There were several cars ahead of it, most of which were jockeying for position to get out of its way.  Most of them, that is, except for the lady talking on the cell phone and gesticulating wildly as she moseyed on down the road in her silver Altima, totally oblivious to the ambulance on her rear bumper.  I mean totally oblivious.

She didn't even react when the driver honked at her as he turned onto the side street where Touro Hospital is located.  I suppose Touro was its destination, and that tells me that it was loaded with someone in enough medical distress to summon an ambulance.  And with the cost of medical transport these days, there had to be plenty of medical distress involved to make that kind of investment!  And, although unlikely, that woman could potentially have cost that patient precious seconds in receiving life-saving treatment!

They say that what goes around, comes around, and that Karma is a bitch.  If that's the case -- and I do believe it is -- I'd say that we should all steer clear of the lady in the silver Altima for the near future.

Sheesh.  Some people.