Friday's Odds and Ends

First, thank goodness that storm that could have been as devastating as Super Storm Sandy didn't pack the same punch, but in Colorado the wildfires still pose considerable threat. Isolated thunderstorms are predicted for the area today, but the storms will have lots of high, gusting winds, but little rain.

The Black Forest fire, which is the worst in the state's history, has killed two people and destroyed 379 homes. Currently, residents of Colorado Springs on on alert for evacuation orders, with as many as 13,000 residences in potential danger. More than 38,000 people have already evacuated the area.

My thoughts are with all of the people who are too close to this terrible fire.

As the story of Edward Snowden, the self-avowed National Security Agency leaker unfolds, it reminds me of the spy thrillers I used to read and enjoy. All the intrigue was, well, intriguing, but I prefer the fiction to real life. It is disheartening, and a bit scary, that Snowden is on the lam and we don't know what he plans to to with the top secret information he was privy to in his job with the NSA. He has already provided documents to journalists revealing the existence of secret programs to collect records of domestic telephone calls in the United States and the Internet activity of overseas residents. And if he is planning to defect to China as some news reports have said, what secrets will he turn over to the Chinese governement?

Another news story that has parallels in fiction is that of Jose Martinez, who was recently arrested for killing a man in Alabama in March. As it turns out, the 52-year-old man from California who is a U.S. citizen, has killed as many as 30 men as part of his job as an enforcer for Mexican drug cartels. Apparently he was called when someone got crossways with the cartel. During his interrogation by Alabama investigators he said,  "I'm the guy that pays you a visit if you don't pay."

I made a note of his story, and that great line, for possible use in my current work in progress, Desperate Season, the third book in the Seasons Mystery Series. This story revolves around deaths related to the drug "cheese" which is made from the black tar heroine that comes up to Texas from Mexico. I thought it would be interesting to  have a character, like Martinez, who appears to be just a regular suburban homeowner but is an enforcer. That juxtaposition of identities is always interesting and is what I like most about the television show The Americans, the FX original series that features two KGB agents posing as Americans in the suburbs of Washington D.C. The series stars Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, and Noah Emmerich.

 Now for a bit of fun from Garfield. In the first panel, Garfield is listening to Jon who is yelling from another room. "This computer has a virus."

In the next panel, Jon says, "Now it crashed."

Garfield thinks, "Jon does not do well with technology."

Then Jon shouts, "Now it's packing to leave."

I can relate. How about you?

I almost forgot. It's Flag Day here in the U.S. today. I did get my flag out.

Friday's Odds and Ends

Yesterday's blog hop was so much fun. I hope you had a chance to go visit some of the blogs and see where people went via the wormhole.

The big news for Roman Catholics this week is the election of a new Pope, Francis the First.   Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires was chosen on Wednesday, and reactions from most Catholics has been positive. There was some advance speculation that Cardinal Bergoglio was high on the list of favorite candidates, so there is not a lot of surprise with the choice. It will be interesting to see if he will take the church in a new direction, or it will be more of the same'ol same'ol.

In other news, the U.S. government is still grappling with setting a new budget. It is politics as usual with both parties looking after party interests instead of the interests of the people. And of course the items being cut, or under consideration for cuts, are programs that directly help the people. Nobody has talked about cutting some of the totally unnecessary items like portraits of cabinet secretaries and administrators. Big bucks are spent on those portraits. The Environmental Protection Agency spent nearly $40,000 on a portrait of Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, while a painting of Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley will cost $41,200, according to federal purchasing records.

Didn't we just elect a president? Now there is already talk of who is running next. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush recently said, "I'm not saying yes. I'm just not saying no."

The city of Austin, Texas has banned the use of plastic shopping bags for some time now, and Rep. Drew Springer of Muenster, has introduced a bill to overturn the ordinance. He calls the bill "Shopping Bag Freedom Act." Okay, of all the freedoms being threatened in our country, is this one really that crucial?

Now for some fun from Garfield.  Jon is holding a door open for Liz, saying, "Allow me to get the door for you, Liz. I'm always the gentleman."

To which Liz responds, "That's the closet."

Garfield has one of his inimitable comments, "He said he was polite, lady. Not smart."

Literary Lesson: "Dreams never die. Sometimes you think they are dead, but they are just hibernating like some big old bear. And if that dream has been hibernating for a long time, that bear is going to wake up hungry and grumpy." A character from Harlan Coben's Fade Away

Friday's Odds and Ends

Today on Friday's Odds and Ends we start with a quote from President Obama, "This administration has no interest in leaking classified information."

But does that mean that they didn't?

This comment was in response to allegations that the White House disclosed sensitive information to mold Obama's image as tough on terror.

Memo to Obama: Stop letting advisers "mold" you into anything. We the people sure would like a president, or any government servant, to be real, not some statue that only becomes what someone else thinks he or she should be.

In a recent economic speech in Cincinnati, Ohio Mitt Romney promised that the Keystone Pipeline would be approved on day one of his administration. "It will be built if I have to do it myself."

David Daniel, an East Texas resident who started STOP Tarsands Oil  and has been fighting to stop the Keystone Pipeline from coming through his property and destroying his natural springs and much of his timber, had this response. "I found that quite interesting from a man who probably has never lifted anything heavier than a silver spoon."

Daniel was also a bit surprised that this has become such a hot political issue, and he wishes folks would spend less time and effort blasting the other party and work together to find an alternative to fossil fuels. "The Republican's try to get mileage from supporting the pipeline because of lobbyists wno support them and the oil industry. And the Democrats are appealing to all the environmentalists who are concerned for the future of our planet. Once the election is over, will any of the politicians care?"

Ruptured pipe in the pipeline in Michigan. It dumped toxins into the Kalamazoo River.

That's an interesting question. Candidates rally around issues to garner votes, but what happens to those issues after the elections?

While our democracy works so well on so many levels, it is stuck in a political quagmire. We desperately need to have political reform: Do away with lobbyists and the two-party system.

To end on a lighter note. I can really relate to a recent Garfield cartoon. Jon is out mowing the lawn and when he finishes he smiles and says, "Finally."

In the next panel, there is a large BOOM, and the clouds open up to dump rain on him and the newly mowed grass. Then the sun comes out and there is a loud SPOING.

The next panel has Jon peeking out of grass that has grown to his nose. "That's not fair," he says.

Garfield says, "Suck it up mow boy."