Sunday morning

Sunday morning once again. And it looks like we’re about to experience a “false” spring. The weather forecast tells me that we will experience temps up into the high 60’s next week; and that will rush some plants into leaf and blossom production. Next, the temperatures will quickly revert to winter norms and possibly damage the plants. After all…it’s still February! But it is nice to be able to walk outside in a t-shirt…

I spent some time repairing the toilet yesterday, not my favorite task. This repair involved taking the tank off and installing a new flush valve and flapper. The job seemed to go well and I had it all back together in about an hour and a half. I flushed it and looked for leaks; all looked good. Then I walked into the bathroom last night about 10:30 and my bare feet contacted…water!

After shutting off the water, I flushed the toilet to remove the rest of the water from the tank and spread a towel on the floor. Now I have a new task for today, whether I needed it or not.

I use my Outlook calendar to remind me of many chores and appointments and it’s pretty handy for that; the reminder function nagging me over and over until I do what is required. And yesterday the Bidwell Classic ½ Marathon message flashed up on my screen with a warning that it was only 3 weeks away. That’s a better indicator of spring’s imminent arrival than experiencing a few warm days in February.

I saw some interesting news this morning…
“AOL and Yahoo are about to start charging companies 1/4 of a cent to a penny per message if they wish to bypass spam filters.”

AOL has enough public relations trouble just being themselves…why would they want to add to it? And guess who will pay for the email that we didn’t really want in the first place? Those companies will simply pass on the cost to the consumer and we’ll end up paying for the spam we will have to delete manually.
Yep; your inbox will soon look just like your mailbox.

“The Army's strategy for persuading young people to join the military includes video games, Web sites, cellphone text messages and helicopter simulators.”

Funny? I don’t see “money” as one of the tools to enhance recruiting. It must have been too obvious for some Generals to understand. Here’s a thought…take all of the money used for these cool strategies and use it for enlisted personnel salaries. Whoa! That’s a bold idea…and one that will never fly. OK. How about a “Salary Simulator” instead?

“Most counties in Nebraska have lower populations today than they had in 1920.”

I’m pretty sure the same thing can be said for Iowa, North and South Dakota and Missouri. I’m not sure why, as they are pretty nice places. But I happen to like them because there aren’t a lot of people around. And Nebraska is home of the Nebraska Furniture Mart…one of the nations great stores! And Warren Buffett lives in Nebraska. I guess that’s a recommendation?

“AP - Iran said Sunday that it was still willing to negotiate with the international community over its nuclear program…”

I may not be a diplomat or a politician…but it seems to me that now would be the time to stop making any public pronouncements about the situation in Iran. The president and all of his men/and one women, should stop talking about it completely. Just say, “No comment” when questioned by reporters. That alone would be enough to change the way Iran is operating. As long as we’re both shouting in public, the rhetoric can only heat things up. The sound of one voice shouting leads to a reduction in volume. And imagine how puzzled Iran would be. They would be confused by this new tactic of ours…a most worrisome tactic.