I wonder if there is something wrong with me. I sit if front of this computer for hours and read, research, and even play games. A few short years ago I thought computers were for geeks. Now I am in a panic if I cannot use one for at least two hours a day. I believe computers are the real new age drug. I can honestly compare it to cocaine. I can’t get enough time to use it. I can’t get enough download speed, RAM, or other hard and software. I can’t get a big enough hard drive or monitor. I need to update this and download that. I must scan for this and remove that. I need this; I want that, it never ends this crazy computer Jones. So goes the life of a GEEK.
IN THE NEWS: DAYTON, Tenn. — The Ten Commandments monument banished from Alabama's state judicial building began a national tour on the back of a flatbed truck on Saturday — starting outside the courthouse where the teaching of evolution was put on trial almost 80 years ago, Fox news reported. This caused Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore to be removed from office when he refused to remove the monument. The ACLU won the battle and the monument was removed. I tell you there is a war against Christians in America.
MOVING ON—Bill Brown- Lead guitarist and vocalist for the re-formed country rock group Ozark Mountain Daredevils, who had played and toured with the band since 1989 (after their heyday), and who had recently began playing with the Titanic Blues Band, was killed in a fire, along with Don Shipps, at a duplex in Springfield, Missouri during the early morning hours on July 23. He was 44 years old.
Don Shipps- Top Midwestern blues musician and bass player, and founder of the Titanic Blues Band, a staple at Midwestern U.S. blues and jazz festivals for more than 10 years, whose band was scheduled to hold a live recording session the evening of July 23, was killed in a fire, along with musician Bill Brown, at a duplex in Springfield, Missouri during the early morning hours on July 23. He was 51 years old. Two great talents lost in the same fire. God Bless

NOW THATS A HOG!! 

“Boy howdy, do I feel better. I will soon have the same medical care as the President. He will pay for my college and he is going to create me a job, not just any job, but a good paying job. I will receive all this and he will not raise my taxes one cent! Hope and help are on the way.” Hallelujah!
I watched in amusement last night as Kerry rambled on for an hour. What a show. He talked about his service record and glorified himself a hero. He talked about what Bush has done wrong. He talked, and he talked, and then he talked some more. The only thing he did not talk about was his 20 years as a senator. He did not talk about cutting money for intelligence that he voted for. He did not talk about cutting billions from defense spending, that he voted for. He used Gods name several times while he supports everything the Bible says is evil and what the thousands of soldiers laying beneath white crosses died for. If you listened to his speech, his life ended at age 20 after Vietnam and was reborn last night at the closing of the DNC. Kerry believes Americans are stupid and will not research his record. I, for one, look at a mans actions, not his words. He can talk the talk but his voting record shows he does not walk the walk. The one truth I heard loud and clear last night was he would get a long better with foreign leaders. This statement should promote much thought by Americans. Why will the leaders like him I ask? He will cave in to the pressure they apply. We should care less if the leaders like us, as long as they respect us, and yes, fear us and our wrath. He says he will bring jobs back home buy taxing American companies over seas. That will make him real popular. I just don’t see that happening. He should of thought of that when he voted for NAFTA. Kerry will have a lot more talking to do as the Bush campaign will make him explain his voting record and his statements last night. I hope my ears can take it!
IN THE NEWS: Hope and Help Is On The Way! I think the above covers this for today.
MOVING ON: Fred Larue - High ranking White House aide to Richard Nixon who was called the Watergate "bagman", who served a prison term for delivering more than $300,000 in hush money payoffs to conspirators in the scandal and was among those rumored to be Deep Throat, died of coronary artery disease on July 24 in the Biloxi, Mississippi motel room where he lived. He was 75 years old. God Bless

   It was a rainy day here in Wise. I laid around and worked on resumes. My uncle received his first chemotherapy treatment today. It went well and as of this evening he was feeling a little weak but not sick. He needs our prayers. I am going tomorrow to put in more applications for work. No word today on anything and nothing new in the paper. I am keeping my hopes up but it is hard. I have several offers from other towns but I would have to move there to make it work. I want to stay here if I can and God willing.
IN THE NEWS: I watched Bill O’rielly interview Mikey Moore this evening. I came to this conclusion. Moore hates Bush and will blame him no matter what the facts are. All he has to stand on is that there were no WMD’s in Iraq. Who cares about the bad intelligence Bush was given, who cares about removing Saddam, who cares about helping women and children. I believe any man given the information he was given, and after the attacks on 9/11 would have acted the same way. After 9/11 Bush could not take the chance. Moore would not even admit Saddam harbored terrorists. Bush lied! Where was he during the Clinton era? Why is he not calling foul on Kerry and his documented flip flops. Kerry received the same info the president did, and he voted to go to war. Oh, that’s ok. Go figure.
  I had written about seeing a body Sunday morning. Well he turned out to be a friend from high school days. Now the story.
Moving on: (From the coalfield.com)
The body of Jody Ray Owens, 40, was found on the side of Coeburn Mountain Road on Sunday morning, after suffering head and chest injuries following a fall from a high embankment. 
 Police say Owens had been traveling with Leroy Lester Carico, 54, down Hall Mountain Road around 11:40 p.m. Saturday night, when their car nearly collided with a cruiser driver by Wise County Sgt. Russ Martin. Martin swerved out of the way, then doubled back to pull the car over. Carico was alone in the vehicle. Carico allegedly told the deputy that Owens had jumped out of the car just before Martin pulled them over. The deputy had not seen a passenger in the car when he first passed, so he did not know whether to believe Carico. Carico was arrested for driving under the influence, police said Monday. On Sunday morning, the sheriff's office received a call that a body had been found lying beside Coeburn Mountain Road. It was determined that the body was that of Owens, who had apparently fallen off an embankment.” It’s tragic that the subject jumped out of the car like that," Sheriff Ronnie Oakes said Monday. "They'd been drinking and partying. . .that was the reason this whole thing occurred.” The body was sent to the chief medical examiner's office in Roanoke for an autopsy to determine the time and cause of death. Oakes said the investigation is continuing.
  Jody was a classmate and friend. We partied together many times back in school. I had not seen Jody in a while, but I knew he was still there, on Pole Bridge Road, acting crazy and having a good time. When I would see Jody and ask what he had been up to, he would say, "still out on Pole Bridge."Jody signed my year book “ Keep on partying Kilo” I gave up the partying, but Jody never did. I will miss seeing him at the fair and at football games. Some how it feels odd knowing Jody is not there any more. Pole Bridge will never be the same. God Bless.

recieved in a e-mail

A man's daughter had asked a local minister to come and pray with her father.When the minister got there, her father was in bed with an empty chair beside his bed.The minister thought the chair was for him. “I guess you were expecting Me.," he said. “No," the man said, "who are you?"The minister told him why he was there and the man asked him to close the door.“I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. “I have never really known how to pray. Someone told me one time that it was as simple as having a conversation with Jesus." The old man went on to say, “They said to sit an empty chair in front of you and in faith see Jesus in the chair." Jesus said He would be with us always.“Then I just talk to him in the same way I am talking to you right now. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd think I'd gone crazy and send me to the funny farm."The minister was very moved by the old man and his way of prayer. The minister prayed with the old man and left him in peace.Two days later the daughter called and told the minister that the man had died.The man's daughter went on to say that when she found him, he was sitting in his bed but he had laid his head over into the empty chair in front of him and that he passed like that.“What do you make of that minister?" asked the daughter?The minister replied, “I wish we could all go like that."

This morning my family and I were going to church and we had quite a surprise. As we started down Coeburn mountain there were three police cars and a ambulance. There beside the road lay a dead man. The police were making pictures of the face down body. He was laying below a high wall. I did not see any rocks around so I don’t think one fell and killed him. This was the first time Shannon had never seen anything like that , and she was shaken by the sight. I will not speculate as to what happened to this man but I will find out in the morning paper. We visited a new church today that my uncle attends. Church service was great and I really enjoyed the fellowship. We attended our church for evening service and the message was very powerful. Today was a day that started off strange, but the Lord provided answers and comfort.
IN THE NEWS: The Communist Party USA and The Democratic Socialists of America Political Action Committee are supporting John Kerry. I am not surprised. I am sure Bin Laden supports him too.
Congress this week will start drafting new laws to create a national intelligence director and counterterrorism center as recommended by the 9/11 commission. This is a great thing and I am glad they are quick to act on it. I do believe that sooner or later someone will cry it costs to much.
Lance Armstrong Wins Sixth Tour de France! What a athlete. He has beaten cancer and now is one of the greatest , if not the greatest, bikers in the world.
MOVING ON: MIDDLEBURG HEIGHTS, Ohio — After a man was found dead on a couch in a hospital lounge, a nurse told police that nobody had checked on him for at least 17 hours. He appeared to be asleep, the nurse said. Robert F. Johnson, 55, who had emphysema, was found Thursday at Southwest General Health Center, police said. It was not clear when he died.( Kansas City Star) Can you believe that? No one checked on him? What is wrong with people today? Our morals and ethics are going away. Pray for his wife Robin and his family. God Bless

It is another Saturday night, just me and Shaninny. I turned in 4 applications on Friday. I hope and pray something good will turn up. All of the jobs I applied for will allow me to further my education. Times are tough in a small town and what jobs that are available seem to go to people with inside help, not the most qualified. Anyway, enough of my woes.
IN THE NEWS: Bloodstains found all over missing jogger Lori Hackings apartment. It looks to me like this crime will not be as hard to solve as Laci Peterson’s case.
House Panel to investigate Berger who is accused of taking documents from the national archives.
The Bush twins used a online chat forum Friday to gain support for their father. I like this idea of online forums.
General Tommy Franks has a book coming out and Fox news John Gibson had this to say: “Franks' new book, "American Solider," is coming out August 3. His publisher, Regan Books, is using the tag line... "The Man Who Will Tell You the Truth. This book is loaded with revelations about the Iraq war. Loaded. It is a whale which will splash all the water out of the pool, and leave the book publishing minnows flopping on the lawn. I can't reveal the revelations — I promised not to break the embargo — but I can tell you Gen. Franks' book will change the political debate in this country in a few important ways. He will tell us why we believed WMDs were in Iraq, who told us they were there and why it was believable. He will tell us how foreign nations left us hanging out to dry, breaking their promises to help.” Franks’ has been known to take shots at democrats and republicans alike. This should be the best read to come out in a while.
MOVING ON: Jerry Goldsmith - Academy Award-winning composer, who created the memorable music for scores of television shows such as "Star Trek", "The Waltons", and "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", and movies including "Chinatown" and "The Omen" (for which he won an Oscar), died in Beverly Hills, California on July 21 after a long battle with cancer. He was 75. What a great talent. I loved the Waltons theme and the score for The Omen was so powerful. Each time I write and research this part of my blog, it makes me realize we are losing so many talents. I hope their shoes can be filled by the next generation, but, I am doubtful we will hear anything like the Waltons again. God Bless

Well, did not get the job again. I am close to giving up. I am signing up for classes this week. I can always drop them if I get a job. I am confused about what to take in school. I would like to teach but I am also very mechanically oriented. Pray for my guidance to make the right decisions.
IN THE NEWS: Sandy Berger has been accused of taking documents from the national archives. He was  President Clinton's national security adviser and is under criminal investigation for taking highly classified terrorism documents that should have been turned over to the independent commission probing the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. He has admitted he took the papers by accident. Yet witnesses say he stuffed them down his pants and in his socks. That sounds accidental to me. He was also a adviser to John Kerry. Boy does this stink! Lanny Breuer, Berger's attorney said "Mr. Berger does not want any issue surrounding the 9/11 commission to be used for partisan purposes. With that in mind he has decided to step aside as an informal adviser to the Kerry campaign until this matter is resolved” I am just wondering the effects this will have on Kerry and how he will spin this. How will he blame Bush for his own advisers deeds. I compare this to Nixon and Watergate. Theft of documents is a felony. Just think if you or I had walked out with these papers. I just don’t trust Kerry or his friends. They blame Bush for bad intelligence, so Kerry is to blame for Berger’s theft. Vote for Bush!
MOVING ON:Jeff Smith. A former minister who became TV's popular "Frugal Gourmet," hosting what became the nation's most-watched cooking program during its years on public television from 1983 to 1997, who also authored a number of best selling cookbooks but saw his career ruined when seven men filed a lawsuit alleging he had sexually abused them as youths (a charge he denied), died on July 7 in Seattle of heart disease. He was 65 years old. I watched his show often and thought he was a very smart man who combined food with thought. I was amazed when the charges against him came out. That aside, he will be missed, by me anyway. God bless.

The sermon yesterday in church was about the armor God gives us. This armor protects us from head to toe. If we wear it nothing can hurt us and we can handle anything the world throws at us. This armor you may wonder is the bible, the Word of God. The text used was EPHESIANS chapter 6,verse 11-20. Prayer is our sword and I ask you to pray for this country and its leaders.
IN THE NEWS:Linda Ronstadt praises 'Fahrenheit9/11 and gets booed. Before singing "Desperado" for an encore Saturday night, the 58-year-old rocker called Moore a "great American patriot" and "someone who is spreading the truth." Well, the informed audience booed and left the theater, tearing down posters and throwing drinks. I will quote Aladdin President Bill Timmins “"She praised him and all of a sudden all bedlam broke loose. "Timmins, who is British and was watching the show, decided Ronstadt had to go — for good. Timmins said he didn't allow Ronstadt back in her luxury suite and she was escorted off the property. Ronstadt's antics "spoiled a wonderful evening for our guests and we had to do something about it," Timmins said. Maybe there is hope for us after all.
MOVING ON: Michael Tata - was found dead on July 6 in Henderson, Nevada. He was 33 years old. The cause of death is unknown and is under investigation. He was a casino executive who was the vice president of hotel operations at Green Valley Ranch in Las Vegas and was featured prominently in The Discovery Channel's new "American Casino" reality television series, which I have been watching and I really like. I will try to keep up with this.

I thought this was cool.  

Who made us policeman of the world?

I was using a local message board today discussing politics when a anti war poster asked “Who made us policeman of the world?” I replied:
“Since terrorists flew planes into the trade center and pentagon killing almost 4000 Americans. Since Iraq violated 17 treaties set in the Gulf War. Since these countries harbor terrorists, starve children, and degrade women. Since their religion teaches them to hate us, the infidels. It is not over, they will attack again. But hey, lets all hold hands and smoke a joint and chant, they may go away. Let’s disarm our military and let the UN protect us. Maybe we can get our French pal Jacques Chirac to be king. I am amazed at where our country is headed. The gay marriage thing, abortion, and taking God out of everything. This country was founded on God’s word. The liberals have twisted Freedom of Religion in to something it is not. I will quote George Washington from his farewell address and he had the Bible, not the Koran in mind when he spoke these great words:
“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connections with private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked: Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice ? And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”
These words should be posted everywhere.
In The News: A popular professor at Central Florida Community College who argued with her estranged husband on July 4 in an Ocala, Florida parking lot and then drove to police headquarters to get help, only to find the station empty and locked. Debra Vazquez was shot and killed in front of the police station by her husband, who then committed suicide. She was 50 years old. Her shooting has prompted a policy change that requires an officer to be on duty at the station 24 hours a day. Can you believe that? WoW!!
Moving On: Isabel Sanford - Popular actress who played Louise "Weezie" Jefferson on the long running sitcom "The Jeffersons," whose television and movie acting career included appearances in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", "All in the Family," and most recently on commercials for Denny's restaurants and retailer Old Navy, who was the first (and only) African American woman to receive an Emmy for best actress in a comedy series, and this year received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, died of natural causes on July 9 in Los Angeles, CA, ten months after undergoing neck surgery which had affected her health. She was 86 years old. I really liked her acting and spent many an evening laughing at the Jeffersons.

Today’s post will be short. I have a lot to do and I am in a bad mood to say the least. No word about the job as of yet. I can’t buy a job. ARGGGG. I got an e-mail about firewalls. In today’s world you MUST use a firewall. A good one is Zone Alarm from Zone Labs. It is a free download, easy to use, and effective. If you use the settings you can keep cookies from communicating and that helps stop those pesky pop ups. Give it a try and let me know how you like it!
In The News: Another hostage killed. Pray my friends, pray.
Moving On: Alexandra Middendorf . Emmy nominated television producer who worked most recently for The Learning Channel, who was nominated for an Emmy in 2001 as producer of "Junkyard Wars", one of my favorite shows,whose varied career also included work as an artist, a stuntwoman, circus performer and an actress, died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease) on June 29 in Kensington, Maryland. She was 52 years old.

It is another Saturday night and I am sitting here geeking out. It was pretty here today and I went to mow for my uncle. I am hoping to get some tech links up for all the geeks who read my blog. I will try my best to find freebies and good deals for all to share. Guess I will pass this on now. The new version of my favorite browser is out. Firefox /0.9.2 is awesome.Give it a try. IE has more holes than swiss cheese and Firefox is open source, so they patch quickly when there is a problem, unlike Microsoft (Hey Bill, we are still waiting on the new service pack).My advice to you is try different browsers, there are many (Mozilla, Opera, Netscape), and get away from IE and all the holes that take forever to get patched. I want to thank all the people who email me. It seems like they don’t post comments on here but prefer to use email. Thank you and I will try to respond as best I can.
In The News: VP candidate Edwards bashes Bush in NY Times interview.He says the president misled America about Iraq. Sen. Edwards cowers out when asked why he voted for the war. Kerry does the same thing, cowers out. It is strange to me they hold Bush responsible, yet take no responsibility for their support. I also noticed they had no answers or solutions to any question asked. I do believe Bush rushed to war but he did so because of the info he received. I believe Bush will keep the country safe no matter what the world thinks. Kerry will cower unless the UN supports us. I as an American want my president to protect me, not the UN. If you research it, you will find the ones who opposed the war, France, Germany, etc, all were making money off Saddam and his oil. Kerry and Co. will spin this into Bush making money. Don’t be fooled! I will have more on this later.
Moving On: Dr. Howard Frank - Groundbreaking heart surgeon and colleague of Dr. Paul Zoll, the cardiologist who first conceived the pacemaker, who in 1960 became the second surgeon (after Zoll) to implant a pacemaker in a patient, and who later helped refine the surgical insertion of the device, died June 27 at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts at the age of 89. It is amazing to think of the lives this man has helped. I think we all know someone who has benefited from a pacemaker. Thank you Doctor! And pray for his family.

Got a Interview!!

I have an interview at UVA Monday. This answered many prayers. Now, if God willing, I can get the job I am wanting. Pray for me. Shannon and I went to bible study last night. We really enjoyed the teaching and fellowship. We stopped for ice cream afterwards with my parents. It was a great night!
In The News: Adelphia Cable Founder Convicted! Jury finds John Rigas diverted millions of dollars and helped drive the firm into bankruptcy. His son is found guilty of conspiracy. Well Adelphia is my provider and I have family and friends who work there. I am glad to see this. They face up to 30 years in prison.
Moving on: Winona Sullivan. The New York native earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Manhattanville College and a master's degree in education from New York University. She did some modeling in Manhattan and studied Russian at the University of Leningrad, then decided to launch a career in espionage. Yes, she was a spy. She later was a mystery writer. If you never heard of her, Google It! Sullivan died on June 24 of lung cancer. She was 61.

Another storm

Another storm has passed through. The high wind laid my corn over so I spent the better part of the day in the garden. I will try to get some pictures up before long.
I am getting a Suse Linux 9.1 OS and other Linux software. I have always wanted to learn Linux and this free offer is sweet. I don’t have to download and it will be shipped in 7/10 days. The free offer came from http://kevinrose.typepad.com/ . This is a great site for any geek looking for info or good deals.
In the news: Kerry picked Sen. John Edwards as his running mate. All I can say now is that he is from the south. I will read up and gather some facts and see where he stands, and where I stand on him. I do know that he is far left on most things. I watched him on a Fox news interview from 2002 and he was against Saddam and said America will not be safe as long as Saddam is in power.
Moving on: Rookie –One of many police dog who searched for victims of the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center and was part of a national study on WTC search dogs, died Wednesday of cancer in Saginaw, Michigan, where he had been a member of the police department as a drug- and search-and-rescue dog since 1996. He was 8 years old. This makes you wonder….

Catching Up

I am a little behind in posting so I will try to try to catch up. Shannon’s baptizing went great! The weather was wonderful and a good time was had by all who attended. The singing by Livin Faith was a joy to hear. We all fellowshipped at the river and enjoyed some great food. It was a real blessing for me to be there amongst family and friends.
In the news: the terrorists killed another American hostage. He was from Utah and my prayers go out to his family. Iraq started their own police actions this week, we should pray for their success too. Fahrenheit 9/11 is falling as fast as it soared last week. I am all for increasing America’s exports and the first should be sending Mr. Moore to France. That gives a new meaning to dropping the bomb!
Moving on: Marlin Brando. The Wild One! The Godfather! What else can be said but..Stelllllllaaaaa!!! He is gone but his classic works live on!!!

Shannons Big Day! 

lol