Today, two headlines really caught my attention. Both were worthy of Jay Leno’s headline segment…too bad he’s off the air.
The first entry is from Indonesia.
This Indonesian House Is for Sale and Comes With a Pond, a Backyard and … a Wife.
Yeah, that’s right buy a house get a wife. When I was single, my New Year’s Resolution for many years was “get a life, get a wife.” Someone finally did me one better. I’m glad some enterprising woman has found a way to prosper in Obama’s economy; however, I think you should get title insurance in case what you find under the burka really belongs there. Actually, she’s not bad. See her photo below. Do you think Obama could try this in Detroit?
Health Officials Warning Of Incidents Of Ocular Syphilis Along West Coast
Ok, let’s analyze this one. In this news story, doctors are advised to keep an eye out for this rare form of syphilis. Where are people putting their body parts to get this disease…in their eyes? Yeah, I know your momma said it could make you go blind but did she really mean this? Yuck….
“Funny” can mean humorous but it can also mean “peculiar” or “just not right”. This next story certainly meets that definition.
Feds have 6.5M Social Security numbers for people 112 years old, and up
Yes, even though worldwide there are only 35 people aged 112 and older, our government has 6.5 million social security numbers for folks in that age bracket that are currently receiving benefits. Just remember this statistic when you hear a politician talk of the pain that would result in people’s lives if government tried to reduce fraud and waste.
OK, first we had headlines about SUVs attacking people and property and now we have rebellious body parts causing problems. (With Bill Clinton visiting a nearby college today, this remark seems even more appropriate.)
Jose’s finger is reportedly resting comfortably, it is unclear if he is now considered “dismembered”. How the rest of Jose is feeling after the accident is unclear. Presumable the gun is at fault.
This license plate frame was seen yesterday. Oh, in case you were wondering, the driver was in fact a woman.
The commonality of both of these pictures seems to be public education.
Here is the plot synopsis: An NTSB investigator seeking the cause of an airline disaster meets a warrior woman from 1000 years in the future.
Yeah, future babe travel thru a wormhole and steals bodies off a doomed commercial jetliner to save the human race in her time.
CNN’s Don Lemon has been entertaining all sorts of theories about the missing Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, including the chance something “supernatural” happened, but on Wednesday night, he actually asked panelists about the possibility a black hole was involved.
Lemon brought this up along with other “conspiracy theories” people have been floating on Twitter, including people noting the eerie parallels to Lost and The Twilight Zone, and wondered, “is it preposterous” to consider a black hole as a possibility?
Mary Schiavo, a former Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Transportation, said, “A small black hole would suck in our entire universe, so we know it’s not that.”
Here’s another theory I’ll just throw out there: what about the plane entered a wormhole into another dimension? I don’t know if that’s how the science works, though.
A few days ago, I asked my son if he knew what “Black Friday” was?
He answered, “Isn’t that the day Jesus died?”
You can’t really say he is wrong. I think it puts the Christmas season in a better context and helps remind me that this time of the year is not about “retail therapy”. Please remember that Jesus is the reason for the season. Stryper has a song by that name and I think I’ll give it a listen.
Yesterday was the 69th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion at the beaches in Normandy France.
It also happened to be the day of our month meeting of my local California Republican Assembly chapter. As President, I took the opportunity to remember the soldiers that participated in this assault; especially the 9,000 men that lost their lives that day.
Launching the invasions from bases in England, I can’t help but think that for at least some of these men, the last thing they prayed was the Anglican Prayer In the time of War and Tumults from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
O ALMIGHTY God, King of all kings, and Governor of all things, whose power no creature is able to resist, to whom it belongeth justly to punish sinners, and to be merciful to those who truly repent; Save and deliver us, we humbly beseech thee, from the hands of our enemies; abate their pride, assuage their malice, and confound their devices; that we, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore from all perils, to glorify thee, who art the only giver of all victory; through the merits of thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
We then had a moment of silence and began our meeting.
Over all, I like my Jeep Liberty but I have had a few vehicle problems during my 106,000 miles. Some were manufacturer defects and a few were just wear and tear.
The first problem that I encountered was the tail lights. I used to go thru light bulbs as often as every three days. What I finally figured out is that the plastic inside the tail lights was touching the bulbs. The heat from the bulbs touching the plastic inside the light fixture caused the plastic to melt to the bulbs and they would break the bulbs—probably due to vibration—and the bulb would need replacing. Over a series of months, I used needle-nosed pliers to break out all the loose plastic inside the light fixtures. Once all plastic was removed, the bulbs worked properly.
The braking system was made using cheap parts. I had to replace rotors and pads after a few off-road trips. They go too hot and warped like crazy.
Also, the rear window motor on the driver’s side went out. The dealer charged $400 to replace it.
I have experienced the infamous key getting jammed in the ignition and not being able to remove it. This appears to be a frequent complaint of Jeep owners. I found many complaints on the Internet.
My latest adventure began with turning the ignition key and not being able to start the vehicle. Then the next time I would try, it would start right up. The last time this happened, my Jeep ran fine for two weeks before giving me trouble again. The only thing I noticed was that I had to turn the key as far as it would go and it would then start. The key movement was not right.
Well finally this week-end, it just died on me. I went to the local auto parts store and they advised me that intermittent problems—especially electrical ones—were the worst. The advice I was given was to bear with it until something failed completely and check the Internet for others experiencing similar problems.
Well, yesterday evening, the key mechanism failed completely. There was absolutely no resistance when I turned the key. Whatever happened, the break in the ignition system was no longer intermittent. When this happened, two lights on my dash board and the radio came on. I knew from reading the Internet that I needed to disconnect the battery until the issue was repaired.
I went only the Internet and found this entry. http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/ignition-switch-pin-actuator-repair-1378503/ The problem that I experienced was the actuator pin assembly was broken. The URL above described my problem and it includes a link to a video on how to remove and replace the broken part. The vehicle in the video, however is a PT Cruiser and not a Jeep. I would like to explain the differences between the video and the Jeep Liberty.
Broke Actuator Assembly—Metal Shard at Top—and Key Cylinder
First, the housing around the steering column is attached with two T-20 screws. They are recessed in two square holes on the bottom side of the cover, closest to the steering wheel. The top cover has some wires attached so it must be pushed out of your way.
Next difference from the video, the assembly for turn signals, wipers, etc. that is shown with T-20 screws in the video, just sits on top of two pegs on the steering column.
You need to remove three T-10 security screws to complete the disassembly. One screw is in the starter switch. This is the square box on the left side of the steering wheel with lots of wires running to it. The actuator assembly has two screws holding it in place. I found a small mirror came in handy when looking for the screws. I could remove them without crawling under the steering wheel.
Once I removed the assembly and inspected things, I noticed that the metal portion of the actuator was broken-off where it goes into the ignition switch. I required some needle-nosed pliers to remove a broken piece of metal from the switch. For some reason, I was unable to locate a second piece that was broken off of the actuator.
In total, it took ten minutes to locate the tools and remove the actuator assembly. I am writing this blog while waiting for the part to be delivered from the warehouse to my local auto parts store.
The part arrived from AutoZone an hour earlier than promised. Aligning the key cylinder with the actuator was a pain. It took several attempt to get it aligned. Once both pieces are inserted into the steering column, you do not get all key movements. You get both Off and a large, slushy On zone. After the ignition switch has been installed the movement gets better, but not until the actuator cover is screwed in place will you get all the proper key positions. Please note that the spring that must be installed with the cover must be correctly aligned or the cover will not fit over the actuator properly. Also, the tiny pin in the cover kept falling out and I had to hunt it down at least twice on the carpeting of the vehicle.
I hooked up the battery and the Jeep started just as it should. Then I had to program the radio and clock and now I’m back on the road. Cost of my part was higher than the Internet prices. Including tax, I paid $44.27. Elapse time was less than an hour.
Today, the Telegraph newspaper is reporting “Iranian scientist claims to have invented ‘time machine’”
Their story appears here, but when I read the headline, this is what I expected to read:
Iranian scientist, Abdul McFly, claims his invention will take you from the 7th century to the 21st century simply by driving his mechanical invention at 88 mile per hour from Iran to virtually any other country in the world. Religious rulers in Iran were angered by McFly when he told them that in the future there would be air conditioning, running water, indoor plumbing, and virgins would be in short supply on television.
Since today is the end of the world, here are some movies titles to consider watching as we enjoy our last few hours on the planet.
Armageddon – Bruce Willis
Out of Time – Denzel Washington
Resident Evil – Apocalypse – Milla Jovovich
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Martin Freeman
In the Blink of an Eye – Eric Roberts
The Mark – Eric Roberts
Deep Impact – Robert Duvall
Night of the Comet – Catherine Mary Stewart
Knowing – Mel Gibson
Spaced Invaders – Douglas Barr
End of Days – Arnold Schwarzenegger
(Please note: had the Mayans used legal sized clay tablets for calendars instead of the cheaper and more plentiful letter sized ones then we could have enjoyed a few hundred more years before our apparent extinction because there will be no tomorrow.)
The following is an essay that won the Fallen Soldiers Scholarship at Elk Grove High School in 2010.
It is proudly written by Kendall Connolly.
Veterans of Foreign War
Most people understand that, on the surface, one is a veteran after one has served in the Armed Forces. Most people believe that once a soldier becomes a veteran, he hangs up his uniform, gun, and camelback and goes on with his life. Most people believe that a solder’s life stops after he leaves the army, and the soldier becomes a normal, everyday citizen. They assume that veterans are just as common and just as ordinary as anyone else in this country. That assumption is false. Veterans are not ordinary people – they’re extraordinary people.
Veterans are different from others not in the fact that they wore a uniform at one point, but in the fact that though their uniform is hanging in the closet, they still perform as if they still wore that uniform. In other words, a veteran never stops being a soldier. A veteran carries the values he learned in the armed forces – pride, honor, dignity, hard work, unity, and courage – and lives by them every day of his life. A veteran knows that these qualities are what makes any team successful. A veteran knows that through his hard work, he can help the greater good of the country. A veteran knows that by living with these qualities, he can do anything he sets out to do.
While normal people struggle with everyday problems and complain about the smallest aspects of their lives, veterans take these things in stride. How? It’s simple: they’ve been through things normal people can’t even imagine, and they’ve learned to fight through whatever comes their way. To veterans, everyday problems seem like a walk in the park. When life hands them big problems, though, they’re just as stoic, just as poised, just as steadfast as they are when they fight through the small problems.
That’s how veterans serve their community, their state, and their country. Veterans don’t live a “normal” life. To a veteran, life means so much more than getting by. To a veteran, life should be spent becoming everything one can be. To a veteran, life should be spent exemplifying what it is to be a soldier, what it is to be a citizen, and what it is to be an American.
