I finally know the truth

Verbal Engineering

The following scenario is one that we are discussing in my Business Class that i am taking. Right now we are covering Human Resources. I agreed with Nicole and every chick in the class has busted my ass about it. In my opinion i defended what Nicole did but it sure pissed of the women. The men in the class tell me to keep up the good fight but they don't want to piss off the women.

Here is a statistic for you, 42% of all women who go out under FMLA for childbirth do not return to work.

Susan, who is visibly pregnant, has applied for a job with Bradley Corporation. Nicole, the hiring manager, has invited Susan to interview based on the strength of her resume and is not aware of her pregnancy. When Susan arrives at her interview with Bradley Corporation, Nicole is taken by surprise. Although Nicole thinks Susan would make a very fine employee, she wonders if Susan will stay in the position if hired.

Nicole is worried about having to train Susan and get her situated in the new position only to have her quit after her maternity leave. Nicole is savvy enough not to say, "I'm not going to hire you because you're pregnant" out loud, but she has decided that she will not hire Susan.
What would you have done if you were Nicole? Be prepared to defend your position.

Another hurdle cleared

Well, Christmas has come and gone. I fared much better than i thought i would. I was expecting a lot of..... well, I'm not sure what i was expecting. I just didn't think it would turn out to be fun. In the end it was a pretty good Christmas.

I got off work at 1500 on Tuesday and have been off since. I spent Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday with the GF and her family. GF had to work Christmas night, Friday and Saturday night. We found the time to be with one another and we both had a Merry Christmas.

She understood this was a difficult time for me and gave me the room i needed but stayed close. It was wonderful. Now that the holidays are behind us we look forward to getting on with our lives. We will start our own new traditions.

I spent some time with my Grandson. It was in the 70's here so i took grandson out riding on the motorcycle. That child has no fear and loves to ride. He likes it when we go fast. I don't believe in getting a child clothes for Christmas. I got him trucks, and lots of them. I also got him a Thomas the Train set. The boy was happy.

One of the nights GF had to work i went next door to Mardy and Samantha's. We drank plenty of beer and burned some steaks. Now she has new pictures of me passed out on their couch. Its a funny sight. Me passed out holding a beer and an 80 pound pit bull sleeping next to me. Life is good.

I hope Y'all had a Merry Christmas and I'll see you soon.

Ray.

Christmas, why December 25th?

Scholars can't agree on exactly when Christ was born, but how long has Christmas been celebrated on December 25?

The exact circumstances of the beginning of Christmas as we know it remain obscure. The oldest existing record of a feast to celebrate the birth of Christ is in the Roman almanac called the Chronographer of 354 or the Philocalian Calendar. This almanac noted that a festival commemorating Christ's birth was observed by the church in Rome in the year 336. Chronographers of the third century were the ones who reckoned December 25, around the winter solstice, as the most likely day of Christ's birth. Many historians believe that the church stirred up interest in a festival at this time of year to counter the pagan festivals surrounding the solstice, but no historical document proves Rome's involvement. The record shows that such a festival was adopted throughout the Christian world by the year 458. The word Christmas comes from "Christ's Mass."

Frank Feldman, I feel his pain......

A man walks out to the street and catches a taxi just going by.

He gets into the taxi, and the cabbie says, "Perfect timing.
You're just like Frank."

Passenger: 'Who?'

Cabbie: "Frank Feldman. He's a guy who did everything right all the
time. Like my coming along when you needed a cab, things happened
like that to Frank Feldman every single time."

Passenger: "There are always a few clouds over everybody."

Cabbie: "Not Frank Feldman He was a terrific athlete. He could have won

the Grand-Slam at tennis. He could golf with the pros. He sang like an

opera baritone and danced like a Broadway star; and you should have

heard him play the piano. He was an amazing guy."

Passenger: "Sounds like he was something really special."

Cabbie: "There's more... He had a memory like a computer. He remembered

everybody's birthday. He knew all about wine, which foods to order and which

fork to eat them with. He could fix anything. Not like me. I change a fuse,

and the whole street blacks out. But Frank Feldman, he could do everything

right."

Passenger: "Wow, some guy then."

Cabbie: "He always knew the quickest way to go in traffic and avoid traffic

jams. Not like me, I always seem to get stuck in them. But Frank, he never

made a mistake, and he really knew how to treat a woman and make her

feel good. He would never answer her back even if she was in the wrong;

and his clothing was always immaculate, shoes highly polished too. He

was the perfect man! He never made a mistake. No one could ever measure

up to Frank Feldman."

Passenger: "An amazing fellow. How did you meet him?"

Cabbie: "Well, I never actually met Frank. He died. I'm married to his damn widow."

It's official, a black president and Hell froze over

Motivational Posters

This one just cracked my ass up. I know there is nothing funny about domestic violence, unless you put it in a motivational poster.

Familiarity

Tonight really sent my head and my heart in two different directions. Sometimes i wonder if i should just crawl into a cave and be alone. The battle raging in my head seems to be too much to overcome. Let me explain.

If you are a newly wedded couple, you will not understand. For those who have many years under their wedding belt it all makes sense. When Ruth and I married she had two kids fully grown. Over the years we came to know each other and a family bond was formed. The same goes for her Father and her Brothers and Sisters. After 8 or so years i was Uncle Ray who everyone expected to see at family gatherings and i was a part of her family. Her family entrusted items to us. Items that belonged to her Mother, her Grandmother her Father and his family. We were the couple that everyone new would be together forever. Her family expected us to store all these items and display them at Christmas and other holidays. The familiarity was there that everyone expected.

And we did. Items from her children's childhood, her childhood, my childhood, her great grandmothers nativity set, her Father's mother's nativity set, all these things were brought out at the appropriate holiday. Her family expected to see these things and we always had stories to tell about them. We were together so long i could tell her stories from her childhood. We were the Aunt and Uncle you expected to see at family gatherings and we knew the secrets of each others family. Life was good.

The reason i talk about this is because about 2 weeks ago her daughter called me and asked if i would send her the Nativity sets that her Mom used to set up at Christmas time. Parting with the Nativity sets wasn't the issue. I simply didn't want to go digging through all of Ruth's decorations to find them. Then i realized that i was being selfish. I called her back and told her i would find them and send them to her.

I went in the back yard to the shed where i put all of Ruth's stuff. I opened it up and started hunting for the Nativity sets. I found them, wrapped them up and shipped them off. Actually, the new GF helped me find them. She was very understanding and supportive. When i packed them for shipment i took one last look at them and knew i wouldn't ever see them again. This didn't bother me either. These items belonged in Ruth's family and now her daughter would be the one to carry on the traditions out in California.

What messed with my head was tonight. I have completed my Christmas shopping. I told everyone not to buy me anything for Christmas. I wasn't doing Christmas this year. The only one i was buying gifts for was my grandson. period. Not open for discussion.

I went to the shed to retrieve the wrapping paper and other stuff. We kept it in a big plastic storage container. When i opened it up it just made me start crying. All the paper and ribbon and tape and everything that Ruth and I used last year and previous years to wrap all the gifts. It was right here where it was supposed to be and just like Ruth was in the other room. After i wrapped the first gift i went through the box to get the tags to indicate who the gift was for. I wrote on the tag to Seth from Papa Ray and Nana. Just habit i guess and then i lost it. My emotions took control and i had to walk away. Almost a whole year later and i still can not control my emotions when it comes to Ruth. I am so weak sometimes.

As i sit here and type this i look around. Everything in the house is exactly like it was when Ruth died. There is actually potato chips still in the bag on the baker's rack that was there the night she died. I haven't changed anything. You have to question whether or not this is healthy behavior or not. I simply don't know.

Ruth used to go all out for Christmas. This house looked like a department store with all her decorations out. It was beautiful. This year i didn't put up a tree or a single light. I just wasn't in the mood. It doesn't feel like Christmas to me.

People tell me that only a new Love can replace and old Love. Those people are full of shit. You CAN NOT replace and old Love. You may find new Love and make room for it in your heart but it does not replace the old Love. When a union between a man and women is ended by death rather than divorce or seperation, that Love never dies. When your spouse dies while your still in Love, that Love will be there forever i think. One must learn to move on and accept the fact that their loved one is gone and there is nothing you can do about it. Sometimes life just sucks.

The bailout explained

Once upon a time a man appeared in a village and announced to the
villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10 each.
The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys around, went out to the
forest and started catching them.
The man bought thousands at $10 and, as supply started to diminish, the
villagers stopped their effort. He next announced that he would now buy
monkeys at $20 each. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they
started catching monkeys again.
Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to
their farms. The offer increased to $25 each and the supply of monkeys
became so scarce it was an effort to even find a monkey, let alone catch
it!
The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50 each! However,
since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would buy
on his behalf. In the absence of the man, the assistant told the
villagers: "Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has
already collected. I will sell them to you at $35 and when the man returns
from the city, you can sell them to him for $50 each."
The villagers rounded up all their savings and bought all the monkeys for
700 billion dollars.
They never saw the man or his assistant again, only lots and lots of monkeys!
Now you have a better understanding of how the
WALL STREET BAILOUT PLAN
WILL WORK !!!!

The question that threw me

I was talking about relationships with a buddy the other day and he told me that you don't really know your girlfriend until you have a major fight. He said you need to know if she fights fair or dirty. The way he explained it at the time made good sense. He then asked if the GF and I have had a fight. I told him no, it's no big deal. He says to wait and see.

When it comes to relationships, i am very flexible. I don't care what we eat, what's on TV, where we go for the most part. I like to think that i am as flexible as Stretch Armstrong. On the other side of the equal sign is the inflexibility. I will not waiver on my belief in Pro-Life, 2nd Amendment, Catholicism and my creed "Loyalty above all else, except honor"

I was tested in one of the above listed beliefs. It was not my shining hour. I could have responded, retorted and reacted much better than i did. In the end, it is what it is. Now she knows without a shadow of a doubt where i stand. There was a rift created between us and i created this rift. For this i take responsibility.

I was confiding in a great friend and he asked me if i Love her. I looked back at him and said "What is Love?" Neither of us could define it. We had examples but what is the real definition of love. Love will make a person do things they wouldn't normally do. What causes this? Is it a chemical thing? What makes a person do stupid things for love? What is the difference between Love and Lust?

To me, Love is when you put that persons needs and wants before your own. It is as simple as that. Love can not be measured by money or any other monetary object. It is a feeling that makes you want to please the one you Love.

A buddy of mine was having relations with a married women. I asked him how he could do something like that. How would he like it if some guy was banging his wife. He told me " I never saw a ring that could plug that hole. I saw a rock that could plug it once, but that was only one time" I guess the definition of Love varies from person to person.

Am I in Love? Maybe, sometimes i think i am and sometimes i think our relationship is so fragile that the blowing wind may break it. I figure that when she becomes the most important thing in my life and i put her before everything, then that is real love. Only time will tell.

The following are what other call Love:


"One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love." - Sophocles

"Attention is the most basic form of love; through it we bless and are blessed." - John Tarrant

"We love because it's the only true adventure." - Nikki Giovanni

"Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away." - Dorothy Parker

"Love is friendship set on fire." - unknown

"Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing." - Goethe

"To be in love is merely to be in a state of perceptual anesthesia." - H.L. Mencken

"Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it...It really is worth fighting for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk everything, you risk even more." - Erica Jong

"Sometimes love is stronger than a man's convictions." - Isaac Bashevis Singer

"Love is the master key that opens the gates of happiness." - Oliver Wendell Holmes

"Maybe love is like luck. You have to go all the way to find it." - Robert Mitchum

"Love stretches your heart and makes you big inside." - Margaret Walker

"Love has no awareness of merit or demerit; it has no scale... Love loves; this is its nature." - Howard Thurman

"Love is like war: Easy to begin but hard to end." - Anonymous

"Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each other." - Rainer Maria Rilke

"Where love is, no room is too small." - Talmud

"Loves makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place." - Zora Neale Hurston

"Love is the irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired." - Mark Twain

"Love is more than three words mumbled before bedtime. Love is sustained by action, a pattern of devotion in the things we do for each other every day." - Nicholas Sparks

"To love is to receive a glimpse of heaven." - Karen Sunde

"A love song is just a caress set to music." - Sigmund Romberg

"Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit." - Peter Ustinov

"Love is like a violin. The music may stop now and then, but the strings remain forever." - unknown

"Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence." - Erich Fromm

"In the final analysis, love is the only reflection of man's worth." - Bill Wundram, Iowa Quad Cities Times

"Love doesn't make the world go round, love is what makes the ride worthwhile." - Elizabeth Browning

"Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,
A medley of extemporanea;
And love is a thing that can never go wrong;
And I am Marie of Roumania."
- Dorothy Parker

"To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering one must not love. But then one suffers from not loving. Therefore to love is to suffer, not to love is to suffer. To suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy then is to suffer. But suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be unhappy one must love, or love to suffer, or suffer from too much happiness. I hope you're getting this down."
- Woody Allen,

Movie Review

This week i was up in Borger TX and GF was working nights. She calls me Thursday afternoon and tells me that Friday night will be "date night" for us. My response is what it always is, Woo Hoo, i love date night. I ask her what the plan is and she tells me she will let me know. Even better, i don't have to figure out what to do. Life is good. I have learned to trust GF and her plans. We have so much in common that i don't have to worry about going to some play or stupid shit. We both like the same things.

On my way home from Borger i get the plans. We are taking her parents out to eat and then GF and i are going to Academy to look around and then we are going to the 2140 showing at the drive-inn. Sounds like a damn fine evening to me.

Dinner goes well and the conversation is great as always. We leave the restaurant and head over to Academy. We pick up what she is looking for and we go thru the gun section. I am standing around salivating and she looks at me and says " I can't take you out in public can I? At least it isn't other women that light your fire" so she drags me out and off to the movies.

We decided to see Four Christmas's and it is one funny movie. It has a well rounded cast and is funny as hell. It stars Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, John Voight, Tim McGraw and a host of others. Laughed our butts off.

We pull in and find our parking spot. We head to the concession stand and get our goodies. The movie starts and we are about half way thru the movie when GF leans over and kisses me. I'm thinking that's cool and then she does it again. I look at her and say "hold up"

She gives me this puzzled look and says "excuse me"

I say "Look here women, i spent $12 to get in here, $10 on popcorn and soda and you want to make out? I don't think so. When we were teenagers, making out at the drive-inn was cool. We had no choice then, that's the only place we could be alone. We both own our own homes, if you want to make out, we can do it there, not at the drive-inn. We 40 years old and i am here to watch a movie. Keeps your hands and your lips to yourself until the credits roll"

You do believe i told her that, right?

If you do then your nuttier than a squirrel turd.

But seriously, the movie is pretty good and i will buy it when it comes out on DVD.

Ya'll have a great weekend.

The Big 3 can kiss my ass

In 2007 GM sold the same amount of cars as Toyota. Toyota recorded good profits and GM wants 16 Billion dollars. What is wrong with this picture?

In my business, if i want to succeed i must do it better than my competition. If i am more expensive, i have to convince my customer that he gets more value from my product than my competitors. Sometimes i do, sometimes i don't. That is the nature of business.

We have the best technicians in the business and that comes at a price. Our company wants 10 years plus employees so we will pay for it. In turn, we are normally higher priced than our competition. I have well paid salesman to educate our customers that they get a better value with us than someone else. We are the largest and the 2nd oldest company in our business. You get what you pay for.

The Big 3 need to restructure their business to become competitive with those who are whipping their ass. I would guess that the UAW is driving their cost through the roof. The UAW can either back off or their people will be unemployed. Its time to make the hard decisions.

The class of 57 had its dreams

The other day the GF and I were riding around and The Class of 57 by the Statler Brothers came on the radio. I guess we both kinda drifted off in our own thoughts. I started thinking about my dreams when i graduated in 85. I suppose that GF done the same thing.

After the song was over GF asked me if i thought i had lived a fulfilling life and if i was happy. I smiled and looked her in the eyes and said "Of course i am happy, why do you ask?" she replies "i was just wondering if you had fulfilled your dreams"

I cocked my head to the side and thought about it for a bit. I said " I guess i didn't fulfill my high school dream of being a professional cowboy but i have had an interesting life" She says" What made your life so interesting?"

So i explain. Whether or not a persons lives a fulfilling life is a matter of perspective. What i consider fulfilling you may not. To me it has been. I am 41 years old and have been to 32 states and 22 countries.

I have lived in Italy and toured Europe and the middle east. I have walked the 14 stations of the cross, seen the manger where Christ was born, the church where He performed his first miracle, the river He was baptised in and the place where He was crucified.

I flew over the Swiss Alps in a decompressed military POS, traveled to England by ferry, train, plane and double decker bus. I have pissed on the Eiffel Tower and almost died in Beaumont Ser Mair, where they filmed Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

I have seen the Mediterranean Sea as smooth as a sheet of glass. I have sailed through the Realm of the Arctic Circle and been on top of the world.

I have seen the Gladiator Stadium in Athens Greece and passed out from Ouzo in Athens. I have been on all the continents and have visited government run whore houses in Turkey.

I have jumped out of a perfectly good airplane and snorkeled in the Caribbean and Mediterranean Sea. I have swam in all bodies of water surrounding CONUS and two of the Great Lakes. I have ridden a boat through the Sault ST. Marie locks.

I have been shot, stabbed, cut and hit with a bull whip. I have ridden bulls and bronchs and did a little roping.

I have found God, totally ignored him when he cramped my style and found him again. Now i try to live my life to serve him.

I have tried almost every drug out there and was addicted to Heroin and Hash for a while. I have watched as a best friend almost died in my arms from an overdose and i never saw him again after they flew him to Naples Italy.

I stood behind another best friend when he was wrongly convicted by a Mississippi court. I'm not saying he was innocent, but he got convicted of a crime he didn't commit. He did get it appealed a few years later.

I have looked a man square in the eyes and lied about the relationship between his wife and myself. Back then i didn't have a problem with it, now i think it is repulsive.

I have been locked in a burning compartment on a Naval ship where a human life is expendable and will be sacrificed to save the ship. It was put the fire out or die trying. I have extricated dead bodies from automobile accidents and performed CPR for 45 minutes on a 16 year old girl in Fritch TX in the middle of the highway. Her Father was driving to work and came up on us doing CPR on his little girl. The Chief of Police asked if we would help contain her Father if he went after the other driver. I told the Chief i wouldn't do shit to stop him and wouldn't see a damn thing. That fucker had it coming in my opinion.

I have had an employee arrested, charged, tried and walked for killing his 7 week old baby. They said they didn't have enough evidence. I told a Texas Ranger to dig up her body. That should be evidence enough. He didn't like me after that.

I have taught doctors and nurses CPR and countless others. I had one of my classes make the evening news. I have failed people in those classes because they were lazy or stupid. You either do it or don't. Its pass or fail. No middle ground.

I have fought against Marines in countless bars overseas, and then beside them when the locals started trouble. I have gotten drunk in Burger King too many times to count. It is hard to beat a Whopper and a Heineken. I have eaten God knows what overseas and in Louisiana. I can not stand the taste of Camel or Mutton.

I have seen The Rock of Gibraltar, sailed the Straits of Gibraltar, Seen the Suez Canal, the Pyramids in Egypt, Buckingham Palace, The White House, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Roman Coliseum, The Vatican, the running of the bulls in Spain, and on two continents at one time (Turkey).

I was there when we killed Muammar al-Gaddafi's (Kaddafi) daughter and was at the Wailing Wall minutes before a Palestinian grenade attack.

I have married and buried my best friend, my wife. I have seen a lot of things only Veterans would understand and been places most people only dream about. I believe that i have lived a fulfilling life and wouldn't change anything. My experiences have helped define who i am and what i believe. In 41 years i have experienced a lot. I can only dream of what the next 40 years will be like.

Merry Christmas to me

The other day i get a wild hair and decided to do some knife shopping on the Internet. I looked at the Cold Steel knives and many others. when it was all said and done i bought Cold Steel knives from here, much cheaper than Cold Steel themselves, and thought all was good in the world. Then i find out that about half of the knives i ordered are illegal in Texas. What a jip, but who cares. These aren't the first illegal items i have ever owned, right?

I picked up these little beauties which are fiberglass reinforced plastic. Supposedly they can pass thru a metal detector. I nice little boot knife to have on your person, provided you don't get caught. The manufacturer does put a hard to remove metal key chain on the handle. Notice i said hard to remove, not impossible. These are illegal in Texas. I can't figure out why.

I picked up an assortment of throwing knives as well. Throwing them is a lot harder than i thought it would be. If anyone has any tips on throwing knives, i would like some advice.

This little gem is my favorite. It is perfect for when words aren't enough. You simply grasp the T handle and let the blade protrude between your ring finger and bird finger. Punch like a boxer. You can definitely ruin someones day with this. Make sure you check your states laws before you buy a push dagger like this. You do not want to be caught with it.

I figure i have been concealing a handgun for so long, how hard can it be to conceal a push dagger. If i have to use it, just throw it away before the cops get there and swear up and down he started stabbing himself. This is Texas after all.

Two things

Two things in this world will make a man do things he wouldn't normally do. Can you guess what they are?



Sex and money. Notice i didn't say Love. Love is a word used too often to camouflage Lust or sex.

I am lucky in the sense that when i lost my wife i was still in love. I was not interested in a sexual relationship so when i met my current GF, sex was not an issue. I think it intrigued her that i wasn't looking to get "lucky". Back in the day we called this the "Jedi Mind Trick".

Most women think that all men want is sex. When your wife or GF ask you to fool around, tell her your not interested. This will blow her mind. She will make up all kinds of shit in her head and the next thing you know, you are almost raped by her. This is the Jedi mind trick. It works every time.

With power comes responsibility. Use this knowledge only to benefit those in need. Do not abuse it.

Gf and i are getting along very well. I finally met someone who's OCD is worse than mine. If you ever go into my pantry you will find all my canned goods sorted and stacked by contents. I looked at GF's pantry and hers are the same as mine except in alphabetical order. Be still my quivering heart...

When i do laundry, my clothes are organized. I put them in the closet or drawer on the right and pull from the left. that way all clothes are worn equally and they don't wear out prematurely. GF has her clothes numbered. I like it.

I am 5 weeks into this relationship and i am happy as a lark. I have taken her to church with me and she gets along well with my friends. The future is looking good. Everything seems to be coming together well. I am back to being my old self. Life is good.

Here is my dilemma. Can a person be too happy? If i am happier than i have been in many years, what does this say to my previous marriage? I believe that a person can have more than 1 soul mate. I am not comparing the two relationships, just noticing the differences. If something seems too good to be true, is it?

I guess there is only one way to find out. I know my heart was broken before but i can not let that stop me from pursuing what might be. I'll let you know what i find.

I'm a college boy

Today i started my first semester with Kaplan University online. A month or so back i had a lot of free time and a little extra money so i started researching online colleges. I started talking with Kaplan and when we pulled my military transcripts, i had 48 hours and Kaplan would transfer 30 of them into a degree for me. An associates is 90 hours and a bachelors is 180 hours. I am 1/3 rd of the way to my associates so i figured why not go for it.

With my veteran status they gave me a price of $230 per credit including books. That is a damn good price. My company has a tuition reimbursement plan and when i talked to HR about it, they agreed to pay double what they normally pay because my degree is in business management. In reality i can have my associates in two years and cost out of my pocket will be $3,000. I plan on doing it a lot faster than two years so my cost will increase also.

I am taking 10 hours this semester. Not bad for having a full time job. My two classes are Introduction to Business and Academic Strategies for the Business professional. Each course is 10 units and we have a week to complete each unit. I completed mine today in about 3 hours. If it continues to be this easy i will up the classes that i will take.

I can feel my brain growing already LOL

Fear

Yesterday i realized that i was living in fear. Not a particular fear, just fear of the unknown i think. Last night i shook of that fear and became myself, again. Now i feel really good.

I am an administrator at my job. Yesterday two individuals had words and almost resulted in a physical confrontation. For whatever reason, this shook me awake. For the last two years i have been in a position where the employees kinda had the upper hand and were taking advantage. All that changed last night.

This morning we had a branch meeting and i layed all the issues on the table. I made some changes with personnel and informed them that if they didn't like, they were free to leave. They will operate under my structure or take their toys and go play elsewhere. I refuse to be held hostage by the employees any longer. If i must start over with new ones, so be it, i will.

What amazed me was how many of the people liked the new structure and jumped behind it. This recession is not going to hurt my company. The services we provided are mandated by the government so it must be done. With companies laying off like they are, we have a better pool to pick from for new employees. In the past two years you couldn't hire anyone out here. Now the oil companies are parking rigs and the hands are looking for work. The tail no longer wags the dog. All the men who left solid companies to go work the drilling rigs for a fast buck, are left out in the cold. I'm sorry this happened but if you can't see your future, don't expect me to see it for you.

3 major companies in this area have started or announced their layoffs. It will result in about 950 people into the labor pool. An entire plant is shutting down within 6 months. In a town of 100,000, that is a big influx.

Everyone at my company is safe as long as they continue to perform at the top of their game. The days of employees threatening to leave if they don't get a fat raise, gone like the wind. The next 18 months will be dicey put we will prevail. We will not fail, failure is not an option!

Diesel $2.50 a gallon, Dually Fender $600, Cat-free, look on GF's face, priceless

Have you ever been cruising along and some dumb ass cat try to run out in front of you? Sometimes you have to swerve real hard to take them out. Sometimes you don't.

So we are driving down this little country road about 50 mph just looking around. We are talking and just having a good time, the world is in harmony. About 50 yards ahead of me a cat shoots out into the road. I was just goofing around and stomped the gas and swerved for the cat. I had no intentions of taking out said feline, i was just goofing.

For whatever reason, i think the cat was suicidal, it decided to come back across the road and play chicken. When it did this i instinctively turned the wheel to avoid hitting the cat. (i swear i was trying to avoid the cat). I missed the cat with the front wheels but it got caught up between the dualls in the back. After it spun around a time or two it became dislodged and shot through the fiberglass fender. It didn't actually put the whole body thru the fender, just a portion of the head.

Now i am pissed that this cat cost me a fender and i am being accused of killing animals for the fun of it. "It's just a cat" was not the desired response she was looking for.

So now i have a pissed off women, a dead cat and my truck smells like dead pussy. Lucky me.




* no animals were actually harmed inthe telling of this story

Too damn funny

Ricky and his wife went to Las Vegas and had this picture taken. He had the photographer superimposed his head on my body. I told him he was wrong for doing it but he didn't listen.

When i look at this picture i simply laugh my ass off.