Gotta put this on the list to see on our trip!!!


This is across the river from Grandma's house ! ! !


The Oregon City Municipal Elevator is unique because it's the only outdoor municipal elevator in the United States. What's more, there are only four in the whole world. The elevator connects two neighborhoods in Oregon City; people used to rely on stairways built into the cliffs until the first elevator was made in 1915. That one was water-powered and it took three minutes for a one-way ride. The new (and current) elevator was dedicated in 1955. The observation deck at the top lets viewers check out views of Willamette Falls, the Oregon City Bridge and the Abernethy Bridge. (Source)

From the Wirecutter...



via

Double Shot Liquor & Guns





In Schulenburg Texas.
From their website:

Double Shot Liquor & Guns is a unique woman owned business. Locally owned and operated. We opened our doors on April 1, 2008. We carry a large selection of liquor, wines, cigars, import/specialty beer as well as domestics.On the flip side of the liquor business is the incorporation of guns, hunting and fishing gear, ammunition, hunting accessories, deer stands, deer feeders, optics, gun cases, firearm safes and much more. You name it, we will find it for you. We do custom orders and we ship nationwide. Our policy is to try to meet or beat big city prices of which we have accomplished more times than not.
Next time I'm down that way I'll have to stop in and check this place out.
I wonder... In the Liberal mind, does the fact that this is a woman owned business offset the fact that she is selling ammo and tequila from a drive thru?


Instructions...


The Influence Hierarchy

Countertop was kind enough to give us a rank ordered list of types of people important to politicians:

Based on my considerable experience in this area, here’s how - generally speaking - a candidate will prioritize the interests of stakeholders - all in the name of winning elections and diminishing the effort they need to undertake to win.

1 Ability to organize and deliver large numbers of constituents
2 Ability to organize large numbers of campaign volunteers
3 Ability to raise money from large numbers of donors
4 Constituent who donated money and worked on campaign
5 Constituent who donated money
6 Constituent who worked on campaign
7 Non-constituent who worked on campaign
8 Non-constituent who donated money
9 Constituent who is known to member and is a member of same party
10 Constituent who is member of same party
11 Constituent who actually votes (and voted for member)
12 Constituent who actually votes
13 Constituent

As you can see, a little effort and organization on our side can have a huge impact on Gillibrand.
If even 1/10th of the gun owners in New York donated 25 dollars, and called to tell her to vote against a new gun control law, she’d be hard pressed not to listen. That would be serious money she’d be putting at risk by going against you, and her natural inclination as a politician seems to be pro-gun.

There are limits to this, of course, you’re not going to turn Chuck Schumer pro-gun no matter how much you donate, because he’s a true believer, and he can make up that money elsewhere. But Kirsten Gillibrand has a record, and it’s good. Those pooh poohing her because she’s not good enough, or because she frames gun rights in the language of hunting are forgetting that a) this is New York we’re talking about, and she has to win a Dem primary in two years and b) it’s sometimes necessary to take a gamble on someone new and promising in order to build influence early. If you support her, either through donations, organizing or volunteering, and she screws you over, you can always withdraw that support, and make sure she knows why. This is a prime opportunity for gun owners, but will enough capitalize on it in a smart way?

from Snowflakes in Hell by Sebastian

Cool...



Food chain friends ! ! ! ! !

Coolest Sleeping Bag EVER ! ! !


So, what are all those wires?


For Melissa...


Gonna get in trouble for this...


Farrah's gone, Michael is finally dead BUT thank God...

http://www.abevigoda.com/ffb.php

For Jess...


HAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAA


Wow, that was fast!!!

Uh, damn ! ! !

Sign us up ! ! !

Me and Tattoo Jim and Wirecutter will make a formidable force...

Luxury yachts offer pirate hunting cruises

Luxury ocean liners in Russia are offering pirate hunting cruises aboard armed private yachts off the Somali coast.Wealthy punters pay £3,500 per day to patrol the most dangerous waters in the world hoping to be attacked by raiders.When attacked, they retaliate with grenade launchers, machine guns and rocket launchers.Passengers, who can pay an extra £5 a day for an AK-47 machine gun and £7 for 100 rounds of ammo, are also protected by a squad of ex special forces troops.The yachts travel from Djibouti in Somalia to Mombasa in Kenya. The ships deliberately cruise close to the coast at a speed of just five nautical miles in an attempt to attract the interest of pirates.

For Grandma...Men who knit...

This guy is knitting a hammock from nylon rope, using shovel handles.

via

Holy crap ! !!

The 4th of July is coming...


EMBED-FIREWORK NUTSHOT FAIL - Watch more free videos

A new project for Tim and Rich ! ! !














































Tim has an Opel and Rich has a Jeep maybe they can collaborate and create something like this.


This one of a kind vehicle was built from a 1969 Opel GT, a 1985 CJ7 Jeep frame and a 1978 CJ5 Jeep drive train. The engine is a new crate engine, a 258 cubic inch straight 6 cylinder with 200 miles clocked since building the vehicle. Transmission and transfer case is original 78 CJ5 (3 speed).
List of new parts: 258 cubic inch straight 6 cylinder, oil pump, electric fan speed control, all new gaskets, distributor, cap, rotor, plugs, wires starter, clutch and pressure plate, U-joints, steering box, poer steering lines, carburator rebuild kit, 3in suspension lift kit(springs, shackles, shocks, U-bolts), brake shoes and pads, calipers(front), wheel cylinders and drums(rear), stainless steel braided caliper brake hoses, stainless steel brake lines with protective spring steel, master cylinder, vaccum booster, 35 inch tires, chrome wheels and lugs, windshield and rear window rubber, door and door window rubber, wiper blades, racing style seats, carpet, dash mat, bumpers(welded 3 inch schedule 40 pipe), 2 sets fog lights, red underglo kit, 11 inch high rear spoiler.



For Brad ! !

A Brett Favre t-shirt Green Bay residents will be eager to buy if he signs with the Vikings.

Sold out?


For Michelle...


Wow

My four year old is already slamming doors when she's upset.

The teen years are gonna be fun.

Hey Iran...

It's YOUR country. YOUR election. YOUR future.

There are only a small number of people oppressing you.

There are a large number of you being oppressed.

Your election was a sham so obviously the normal routes for change are out the window.

Revolt.

The future you want is within your grasp.

Reach out and take it ! ! !

Get a kleenex . No, get a box of kleenex...


Colby Curtin, a 10-year-old with a rare form of cancer, was staying alive for one thing – a movie.

From the minute Colby saw the previews to the Disney-Pixar movie Up, she was desperate to see it. Colby had been diagnosed with vascular cancer about three years ago, said her mother, Lisa Curtin, and at the beginning of this month it became apparent that she would die soon and was too ill to be moved to a theater to see the film.

After a family friend made frantic calls to Pixar to help grant Colby her dying wish, Pixar came to the rescue.

The company flew an employee with a DVD of Up, which is only in theaters, to the Curtins’ Huntington Beach home on June 10 for a private viewing of the movie.

The animated movie begins with scenes showing the evolution of a relationship between a husband and wife. After losing his wife in old age, the now grumpy man deals with his loss by attaching thousands of balloons to his house, flying into the sky, and going on an adventure with a little boy.

Colby died about seven hours after seeing the film.

With her daughter’s vigil planned for Friday, Lisa Curtin reflected about how grateful she is that Pixar – and "Up" – were a part of her only child’s last day.

“When I watched it, I had really no idea about the content of the theme of the movie,” said Curtin, 46. “I just know that word ‘Up’ and all of the balloons and I swear to you, for me it meant that (Colby) was going to go up. Up to heaven.”

Pixar officials declined to comment on the story or name the employees involved.

Colby was diagnosed with vascular cancer on Dec. 23, 2005 after doctors found a tumor in her liver. At the time of her death, her stomach was about 94 inches around, swollen with fluids the cancer wouldn’t let her body properly digest. The rest of her body probably weighed about 45 pounds, family friend Carole Lynch said.

Colby had gone to Newport Elementary School and was known for making others laugh, family friend Terrell Orum-Moore said. Colby loved to dance, sing, swim and seemed to have a more mature understanding of the world than other children her age, Orum-Moore said.

On April 28, Colby went to see the Dream Works 3-D movie "Monsters Vs. Aliens" but was impressed by the previews to "Up."

“It was from then on, she said, ‘I have to see that movie. It is so cool,’” Lynch said.

Colby was a movie fan, Lisa Curtin said, and she latched onto Pixar’s movies because she loved animals.

Two days later Colby’s health began to worsen. On June 4 her mother asked a hospice company to bring a wheelchair for Colby so she could visit a theater to see "Up." However, the weekend went by and the wheelchair was not delivered, Lisa Curtin said.

By June 9, Colby could no longer be transported to a theater and her family feared she would die without having seen the movie.

At that point, Orum-Moore, who desperately wanted Colby to get her last wish, began to cold-call Pixar and Disney to see if someone could help.

Pixar has an automated telephone answering system, Orum-Moore said, and unless she had a name of a specific person she wanted to speak to, she could not get through. Orum-Moore guessed a name and the computer system transferred her to someone who could help, she said.

Pixar officials listened to Colby’s story and agreed to send someone to Colby’s house the next day with a DVD of "Up," Orum-Moore recalled.

She immediately called Lisa Curtin, who told Colby.

“Do you think you can hang on?” Colby’s mother said.

“I’m ready (to die), but I’m going to wait for the movie,” the girl replied.


At about 12:30 p.m. the Pixar employee came to the Curtins’ home with the DVD.

He had a bag of stuffed animals of characters in the movie and a movie poster. He shared some quirky background details of the movie and the group settled in to watch Up.

Colby couldn't see the screen because the pain kept her eyes closed so her mother gave her a play-by-play of the film.

At the end of the film, the mother asked if her daughter enjoyed the movie and Colby nodded yes, Lisa Curtin said.

The employee left after the movie, taking the DVD with him, Lynch said.

“He couldn’t have been nicer,” said Lynch who watched the movie with the family. “His eyes were just welled up.”

After the movie, Colby’s dad, Michael Curtin, who is divorced from Lisa Curtin, came to visit.

Colby died with her mom and dad nearby at 9:20 p.m.

Among the Up memorabilia the employee gave Colby was an “adventure book” – a scrap book the main character’s wife used to chronicle her journeys.

“I’ll have to fill those adventures in for her,” Lisa Curtin said.


Wow! Listen to the THUD!!!

Don't..

If you have little kids. Don't ever watch Benjamin Button.

Damn...

I like this

Happy Negative Christmasfrom Dilbert.com Blog

I just invented a new holiday. It's called Negative Christmas. On this day, rather than giving gifts, you can force a family member or friend to discard one item that he or she already owns. The selected item might be a hideous shirt that you consider an abomination, or that pair of bedroom slippers that are an insult to all footwear. The idea is that the unrecipient should be better off without the item you ungift.

For example, let's say you have a single friend who has a collection of Star Wars memorabilia and also complains that he can't get a woman to stay the night. You could help by making him give away the full-sized wookie that he keeps next to his dresser. When the next Negative Christmas rolls around you could go after the collection of light sabers he keeps over his mantle. It might take you a few years to make any difference in his love life, but think of it as a project.

For real Christmas, people often give gifts of clothing or accessories so the recipient will look attractive. For Negative Christmas you could pay a crazy guy with tattoos to punch your friend in his soft tissue every time he eats a Big Mac or skips going to the gym. In the long run it will help your friend more than a new necktie.

During Negative Christmas there will be no need for vacuous greeting cards or festive salutations. For the entire month leading up to Negative Christmas you are expected to avoid eye contact and mumble insults about everyone you encounter. Ask yourself what would make you happier: 1. Getting a cheap greeting card or, 2. Calling someone a trout-faced bastard under your breath.

Negative Christmas would be every June 25th, on the opposite side of the calendar from Christmas. You would celebrate by planting a tree instead of killing one, and saving your money for yourself instead of blowing it on worthless crap for others.

Who's with me?

After a party...

This is a pic of my 4 year old's bedroom after a party. The party was a screaming success but I had to clean her room with a snow shovel.

New Pictures posted !!! !! !

I finally moved the pix from my phone to my PC and thought I'd share them. At the top of the right column is the slideshow. Click on it for a look. Included are various family, friends and trips (Oregon, etc.)

One for the LittleFish and one for the LittleMan...


Hmmm...

The Google – Youtube – Conundrum


You have a video that you want to post on the web. It may be just for you. It could be for friends. It could be for family. It could be for a company or a political campaign. It could a video that you want seen by as many people as possible. Regardless of your audience expectations, do you have any expectation of paying for that video to be hosted ? Of course you don’t. Neither does anyone else.
The reality is that all of us have the expectation of being able to post any and every video on sites like Youtube for free, with no limitation on audience size or location. We have reached the point where Youtube in particular, Google specifically is subsidizing the majority of user generated content on the web. 20gbs PER MINUTE upload and who knows how much for viewing
Which leads to the question, what happens if they stopped subsidizing the cost of bandwidth for user uploaded video ?
What would happen to internet video ? What would happen to social media ? What would happen to the future of entertainment ? What would happen to the future of politics ? How would it change how we use the internet ? The list of questions is a mile long. Would it be the best thing to ever happen to traditional media ? Hence the conundrum.
The next question of course is “why would Google stop subsidizing the uploading , hosting and presentation of 80pct of the user generated online videos (excluding commercial sites) viewed in the US ?”
The answer of course is : Because they had to.
There are two certainties for the technology business in the US. The first is that every leader falls out of the lead at some point. The 2nd is that every leader falling out of the lead gets torched by Wall Street and places a premium on stock price over free services and their users.
Google has already established itself as a hall of famer. But nothing lasts forever in techland. Particularly subsidies. What happens to the internet and how we use it when those subsidies end is a country song that will eventually be written.

from blog maverick by markcuban

Married her...



In case you hadn't gone through the fun family pix (that I need to update) this lovely lady is my wonderful wife - Cris.

She is beautiful, funny and smart as hell. She plays and teaches piano, flute, guitar and voice has a degree in Computer Science.

She rides her own motorcycle, is a dead shot with her Walther and cooks like no one else I know.

Damn! I'm a lucky guy.

Now back off you animals - she's mine!!! Get your own.

Gotta get me one of these...


When super car brands are brought up, Volvo doesn't usually come to mind. That might change thanks to Koenigsegg engineer Mattias Vöx and his re-imagined, 600HP, V8-powered modern Volvo P1800.
Don't get us wrong, the two Swedish companies won't officially be working together to build the new Volvo P1800, but their engineering know-how will be in full effect. Vöx has approached Swedish design firm Vizualtech to handle the styling elements of the newly proposed one-off car which, as you can see above, is fairly faithful to the original 1960s design. When viewed next to a classic P1800, you'll first notice that Vizualtech has designed in larger wheel openings to accommodate larger wheels and they've also added 70mm to the front of the car to help fit the proposed powertrain.
Taking cues from his previous 1967 Volvo Amazon station wagon SEMA build, Vöx will supply the new P1800 with a tuned and turbocharged 600-horsepower V8 lifted from a Volvo XC90 SUV mated to a six-speed manual transmission.
We're excited to see this project come to fruition and desperately hope that it isn't just some Swedish meatball pipe dream as so many of these types of projects turn out to be. [autoblog.nl via motorauthority]