Easter Morning: A Happy Easter to all and may you have gratitude for all the things you have been given!!

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Midnight Report: Boy howdy and whee doggies, we had a toad floater of a rain. Short lived but it was a downpour. Stangely coincidental however, that this occured on a night that I went out to eat with parents and family. The last time it stormed like this was in August....on a night I went out to eat with my folks. In ordinary years I wouldn't care and actually I love storms and lightning. But with a storm sensitive Dog, it makes me feel guilty to go out and leave him in a panic. However, he is very much better about the storm situation since I've been counseling him. And since he now has his own bathtub to crawl into to. It's insulated you know...from the static electricity. To be honest, I must say that lightning and thunder of the very close "Flash/Bang" variety does get to me too. It's too much like mortar rounds exploding, it makes me want to "duck and cover" which I sometimes do, flinch anyway. Read more about lightning at: Flash/Bang.Com

Three O'Clock Report: in one word.........RAIN. Yes we had a modicum of rain. With gin-u-wine- thunder and lightning. This was much appreciated and came in a timely manner as I had just dosed my lawn with it's second measure of fertilizer. Sometimes things do happen correctly. Rain......if you've never lived in West Texas, you don't know what the sound of that word does for the soul. And probably more on the way. Check in on Pedro's weather at: Pedro's Rain Map.Com

Well here it is 4:40 in the afternoon and it's been a strange day so far. I was awakened twice during the night by a dream and then by a real dog. I don't think I sleep that well as I was still fast asleep at 8 a.m. this morning when there came a rap, rap, rapping at my front door. Actually a ring, ring, ringing. I wondered who it might be, my first thought being the Sheriff. I thought that whomever it was would surely go away. But the ringing persisted and so I had to put on my non-color coordinated "morning stuff" and my monogrammed bathrobe and go to the door. It was a neighbor who wanted to use my "facilities". Actually I'm glad the neighbor showed up as I didn't intend to sleep that late, and I want my neighbors to know that my restrooms are always open to them.

Now I am waiting for my laundry to arrive at the prestigous and award winning Zenith Cleaners. They won't be open either Friday or Saturday and all my clothes are there. This iritates me as now I have to drive the whole 2 miles back over there at 5 P.M. to retreive my clothes......and this means that I will miss my nap. Life is indeed, very tough. While you are waiting with me you might visit the Digital Taxi Cab in Aspen at Ultimate Taxi.Com

Well the new Baseball Park opened in Midland tonight. The name of the stadium is the First Somethingorother Bank Ball Park. My, this certainly is a name all the citizens of Midland can be proud of. It has a certain ring to it. The ring of cash registers in our City Councils ears. Ears which they should have cut off and stuffed up their.....well we won' t go into that. I suppose politics never changes......well yes it does, it gets worse. The citizens of Midland will be paying for the First Somethingorother Bank Ball Park for decades....glad we have a great name.
On a more positive note, Gen. Tommy Franks returned to his old hometown to throw out the first pitch, at the First Somethingorother Bank Ball Park. Gen. Franks spoke to a large crowd this afternoon downtown, and I was fortunate enough to be able to speak with him for a moment, after I informed his aide we had mutual friends in the Army. Like Gen. Dick Cody, commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division. I still have a bed I bought from Dick in 1972. I invited the General over to see it......he declined.

It was a beautiful day, but a day like many others. Helping other people, which I enjoy, but who the hell is ever here to help me with squat? Well that's life. But I may just go to San Francisco or Santa Fe to think about the nature of my life. I think maybe I'll be a hippie for awhile. Or perhaps what I need to do is go to the Rosebud Indian Reservation for awhile, and help the folks there. Maybe they'll help me in return.

"I'm mad as hell....and I'm not going to take it anymore"!! Remember that classic movie line? Well that's the way I feel today, and for that matter most everyday. So if you don't want to read a diatribe, here's your chance, just take the easy way out, and go to TV Land.Com.

I'm angry at the way the world is, the new reality sucks, mostly.
*First I read that after 32 years, Wall $treet Week with Louis Rukeyser is gone. Yes just gone. The Moron 30 somethings at the PBS station wanted to change the format, Rukeyeser said no. A format that has worked for 32 years and had me watching for about 28 of those years. So they just fire Rukeyser, an institution.
*Then on the Nightly News I hear that the ban on snow mobiles in Yellowstone National Park has been rescinded. A ban that every single person, even some snowmobilers thinks is wise. 2000 snowmobiles a day causing noise and air pollution so bad, that the Park Rangers have to wear ear plugs and breathing apparatus. But the Bush administration apparently thinks that the snowmobile lobby is more important. Where is simple common sense?
*And while I'm on a tear......have you recently tried to get in touch with one of your public utilities, your gas or electric company. I mean actually speak to an real person about your bill or a problem? Don't bother. In the good old days, you would just drive over to Wall St. in Midland to where they actually had an office and speak to a real person. Not today. They are all megaconglomerates based in Dallas or New Delhi or West BumFxxx Egypt! But you can get the "telephone tree" in Spanish!
*Which brings me to my nest egg safe stock investments. Which in a word, aren't anymore. Safe holdings like Indianapolis Power and Light which is now part of something called AES, with offices in every country except Moldavia. They have taken the stock from $34 a share to a whopping $6 a share within a year or so. And WorldCom which, once upon a time was MCI, an innovative technology leader. WorldCom is now worth somewhere around $5 a share. And don't even mention Enron. I understand that the stock certificate is now worth more as a collectors item than it is on the market.
Well yes, I'm mad as hell....and I'm not going to take it anymore. But who are you going to complain to? Some phone tree? In Spanish?

Evening News: more hard work, toil and leaf blowing this afternoon for which I am to be admired, but you don't want to hear about it. What you do want to know is that my pet turtles tell me that winter is over! Yes, one of them, Mrs. L. Bob Smitherman, was out from hibernation today. These turtles are smart, and even several weeks ago when it was warm they didn't come out. They knew that more blustery weather was in the offing. But not today, winter is over. Turtles are some of the smartest people I know. View a pet turtle at: My Pet Turtles the Smithermans.Com

Blower/Sucker Update: I waited anxiously all night until I could start the Model 51591 up again. And start 'er up I did, at 0945 hours. Very close to the house next door, to make sure they were awake. They need a role model in yard care. It almost made me cry to see how easy blowin' leaves out of the ivy in front was. I used to do this by hand due to the tangled ivy mess . The Model 51591 performed this task in minutes, blowing all the debris into the yard for easy disposal. And.....if I weren't such a model citizen I could have turned her up to the "1/5th the speed of sound" setting and had all the leaves in the street in short order. But as I say I'm a model citizen, plus I was afraid of getting caught.
My next project is an engineering one. The Model 51591 comes with several connections which allow the operator to choke down the air flow. I'm thinking that if I devise several more of my own, to really choke it down, I can get the true air flow up over the speed of sound. I'm wondering does a stationary object create "sonic booms". I hope so, it'll be a good movitator for the neighbors in doing their yard work. To read more about this subject go to: Speed of Sound.Com

Well I'm just plumb wore out from all that leaf blowin' today. But what last year took 4 days, this time with the Atomic Powered Blower/Sucker took only 4 hours. With the rake, last year I was constantly sticking the rake tines on shrubs, vines and roots, but the Atomic blower/sucker just blows them things right out of the way. I had envisioned sucking the leaves out of the flower beds, but when I tried blowin'...I quickly saw that this was the ticket! At the 180 mph setting it was like a leaf hand grenade going off. Them leaves was shootin' 5 ft. up in the air. And when I pumped it up to the 215 mph top velocity, it was just too much. It would take several inches of top soil off and was knocking down small trees. It was a thing of beauty. I pushed all the leaves to the corner of the yard and then out the gate into the alley. Now they're someone elses problem, hopefully the Gilkersons up the block.
Still I had to tote 18 loads of my large yard waste recepticle out. Yes sir, I'm tuckered out, and I did have some blower/sucker noise related guilt, but it was worth it. And I'm not an incessant blower/sucker noisemaker, merely an intermittent one. For more blower/sucker noise morality issues go to: Blower/Sucker Noise.Com

Today I mark as a pivotal day in my electric power tool career. I have always been averse to those noisy leaf blowers, and I don't think it's right to blow one's filth out into the city streets. But to hell with morals the stress of dust and leaves got to me. I bought a leaf blower/sucker today. Not any leaf blower sucker, but the top of the line Toro Model 51591, yes you heard me right the 51591 Atomic Powered 3 in1 blower/sucker. You can check out the state of the art specs yourself at Atomic Blower/Sucker.Com
I had gone into Ace Hardware with an open mind and the thought of possible purchasing an economy model. But then I talk to Juan, my Ace Hardware blower/sucker consultant. He asked what my needs in a blower/sucker were and when I told him that my main requirement was one that would shoot leaves at least three houses back up the street he smiled and said he had the one for me! He grinned when he told me that the 51591 developed a true atmospheric thrust of 215 mph, and with that kind of power I could not only blow leaves three houses back up the street, I could knock doors off of their hinges and blow the leaves inside. That sold me.
And man o' man was he right! When I fired the Ol' 51951 up on full power, I wasn't prepared for that kind of thrust. It spun me around like a top and and the only thing that saved me was that the electric cord finally wrapped all the way around me and unplugged itself. On low power I knocked every leaf on the driveway off into the street in seconds and then went after the embedded leaves in the garden. you wouldn't believe how she blows those leaves out of the ivy! I had the thought, that if I got two more of these things and strapped them on me....I believe I could go airborne.

Gee Whiz it's cold! And after such a beautiful start to the day. It was just perfect early on; it felt like a day in the mountains with a crystal clear sky and just the right touch of coolness in the air. In fact, I had just gotten thru with an email to Arly Carrara, wife of Doc Carrara, surgeon at the LZ XRay battle. Arly has just returned to Chicago from an extended stay in Hawaii and she was complaining about the weather in Chicago upon her return. I had to crow about how lovely the weather was here, with no wind for a change. I had literally just hit the send button on the email touting this fact, when I heard a deep groaning outside and saw the trees were doubled over with wind, dust followed. Lesson: God don't like you crowing about your good weather.......he can change it just like that! Poof! And out here He often does. Poof, just like that. West Texas is called God's country, for just that reason. He is experimenting with how much patience humans have and just how much they'll put up with. Apparently some of us are willing to put up with quite a bit, we're still here.
But I do have that home improvement loan pending with my bankers. Perhaps the improvement will be to buy some land south of town, have a large hole dug and bury my house. The lawn will be on the roof and all the dirt and debris will pass straight on over me. No leaves on the patio, no cares. And I'll go in for more concrete flooring, simply hose the home out. Simplicity.
Many readers have been asking for more information on Notrees, Texas. I am happy to oblige at: Notrees.com Though I think the editor of this site has vastly over-estimated the population, having never seen an actual person in Notrees myself.

A beautiful day in the desert, and personally productive. Except, before I outline events, I must confess that I am full of angst and guilt. I admit my mistakes here. I once again had two [2] doughnuts.......yes that's two and I even ate one of them completely whole without nibbling at it. To make matters worse, I had access to "free pizza" at lunch, where I had two [2]...no I can't lie, three [3] pieces. One with the dreaded "sausage". I have taken years off of my life. I am crushed by my lack of will power in these matters, but what would you do? It was all free.
The free lunch was provided by the Confederate Air Force, where I am on the committee for the Air Show. We are in the first stages of planning the 2002 show. All is going well, but the events of 9/11 have affected us. The cost of explosives has gone up, mainly due to tighter control. We use about $10,000 worth, and are used to blowing up whatever we feel like, but no more. Damn Arabs. I also, had the opportunity to use one of my Washington D.C. contacts in the Air Force to try and arrange to have a C-17 flown in for the show. The world's largest airplane, and with them in use in Afghanistan hard to get. But there is a chance I'm told.
For the remainder of the afternoon, I went to visit my old friend Charles Schwab to move some money around; people don't know how much you have if you move it around. And then to my partner Del Sloan's office to talk about doing a "horizontal drilling" project, a lateral run from a well we drillied last year that found the only water laden porosity in a field surrounded by very good producing zones. we hit a dip.........you, of course, know how that goes.....!

A late entry today, so I apologize to all the early readers. Not really, but it looks good to say so. It was a beautiful day, for West Texas, rainy and humid. Which is beautiful out here. Not much rain, but some, and the humidity holds the moisture in the ground instead of having it waft away with the wind. Not much wind either until, late. I do believe that El Nino is returning, a good good thing. But, the Big Gold Dog must have heard thunder. When I came home for lunch he was in the guest room bed. It's more secure in there. He is sensitive to this you know..well really to the lightning which is the physical effect, the thunder is only a psychological effect. But under my counseling he has gotten better over the years. He used to be a maniac. Now he is only midly disturbed. But he finds the most protection in one of the bathtubs. It's insulated which helps with the static electricity which disturbs him. It's late and someday I will write a book about this, but for now to learn more go to: Crazy Thunder Dog.com

In a major, breaking story on CNN.Com, I've just learned of a great new advance in airport security. The Rapiscan Secure 1000 is a new security devise using low level X Ray technology to see right thru clothing! This is a major advance in security technology, and I want to know if they are available for home use and if not, do they need operators at the airports?

Today will be a day of gratitude! Upon awaking last night at 2:45 A.M. to write down the crazy dream I had for Pedro's Dreamland I looked out to the patio and saw that it was wet. At first in my dreamlike stupor I thought that the sprinklers had gone on, or it was still wet from the dust hosing earlier in the evening. But no....it was the miracle of RAIN. Surprising because the morons at the Weather Channel had made no mention of rain for the foreseeable future. I hope those people don't make too much money, except for weather babe Christina Abernathy. Anyway, rain no matter whether predicted or not is a blessing. Althought it did knock all the accumulated dust off of my roof, down the gutters and deposited it on my clean driveway. It's worth it! And more rain possible. If in fact it does rain again, I'll include pictures for those of you, like me, who have never seen rain before.

Sunday, a day of rest. Not......for pedro. After the prefunctory lunch at Luby's [and my wasn't the square fish especially good today!] I was hard at work cleaning up the residual dust from the driveway. Yessirre Bob, a good hosing actually restored it to it's natural gray color. Then on to the "weed and feed" followed by the start to the leaf cleanup in the flower beds. A job for many weekends and evenings to come. It's nice to have a forest in the backyard, but the work is eternal and infernal and I'm thinking about getting all plastic trees with my home improvement loan. I estimate there to be 1000 metric tons of leaves back there......conservatively. Later on in the evening I forced myself to watch Maude on TV Land and was reminded why I didn't watch Maude when it was originally on. It is smarmy liberal feminism at it's lowest. The only thing good about it was that Adrienne Barbeau who I used to think was a "hot chick" but when viewed in the present is only a "luke warm chick".

Well an interestin' day all in all. Healthy breakfast, walk the big gold dog, and then sweep up pecan crap from the driveway once again. Squirrels! They're trying my patience. They also broke another flower pot. With all the freekin' pecans laying around, why in the damn hell do they need to dig in the pots....answer me that? To find out more about squirels go to: Squirels.com [ editors note: squirel is kind'a of a funny looking word if you study it closely]
A great experience in the afternoon at the Confederate Air Force, three pilots from the famous Blacksheep Squadron made well known on the old TeeVee show Baa Baa Blacksheep. Which the genuine pilots say was so much crap, but at least made them famous.

Upon returning home, I had received a solicitation from The Happy Hill Farm Childrens Home. Now I've never heard of The Happy Hill Farm Childrens Home, but they sure knew me. They had sent me a page of return address labels with dogs on them....with my correct address. Furthermore, they put on the solicitation, "Please help the children and their pets" Now I figure that the children can fend for themselves, but I sure as hell want to help their pets. So I sent them a little something to feed their dogs.
If you are a parent with children at home, and ever get tired of them and want to dump them somewhere and run off; I recommend The Happy Hill Farm Children's Home.......and tell them to bring their pets; there is plenty of dog food available.

As I sit here in my office, I want to admit to having two [2] doughnuts! I try to be open and honest about my defects of character, and doughnuts are certainly one of my flaws. But I did eat them in small increments over several hours so that this is probably not the same as eating two [2] doughnuts at once. And I only eat doughnuts when they are directly in front of me. But perhaps this is "justifying" my actions to some degree. I certainly should not be eating any [0] doughnuts and I want to admit my error publicly, but also to announce that I will do it again in a heartbeat the next time doughnuts are provided. To learn more about this addiction go to: Doughnut Philosophy.Com