Today is a sad day for the Bull Dog Nation

University of Georgia mascot Uga VI died of congestive heart failure Friday night in Savannah. He will be buried in a marble vault in the southwest corner of the stadium alongside his five predecessors, according to a UGA news release.

Uga VI was the Georgia winningest mascot with an 87-27 football record during his tenure which began in 1999. He also presided over the 2002 and 2005 SEC Championships and winning six of eight bowl games. Uga was a good old dog. He was over 70 in people years.

One of Uga's sons will be named as the successor later.

AFI the American Film Institute named their “Top Ten” films.

The winners were chosen by actors filmmakers, critics and others in Hollywood from ballots that included 50 nominees in each genre

They listed the 10 most voted on films in several genres.

Here are some of the winners for each category.

Mystery: "Vertigo." -
Western: "The Searchers"
Sports Tales: "Raging Bull"
Courtroom Drama: "To Kill a Mockingbird"
Animation: "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"
Fantasy: "The Wizard of Oz,"
Science Fiction: "2001: A Space Odyssey,"
Romantic Comedy: Chaplin's "City Lights"
Gangster Flicks: "The Godfather"
Epics: "Lawrence of Arabia”

What would be your winners?

Now that’s hungry.

A couple weeks ago a local lake was making the news. But it’s not the type of publicity that draws a lot of tourist. Several people have spotted an alligator. It now appears that there is more than one lurking in the waters of Broadway Lake. Not that unusual in the far southern coastal areas of South Carolina, but unheard of here in the foothills area of the upstate.

Residences of the area are concerned. “I mean the water’s dangerous enough without a gator,” said one mother. Children and pets play in and around the water, especially in the cooler evening hours. Just about the times when the gators ranging from 3 to 5 feet long have been sighted. But are there bigger ones?
It gets better or worse depending on your view point ( and distance inland from the shoreline. )

A couple nights after the gators were first sighted a custom-designed boat dock has mysteriously disappeared.

It’s not known if there is a connection but the $2,500 structure could not be found even after searching the entire lake.

Maybe the gator ate it.

One thing for sure Old Wally Gator is going to get bigger either way.

Park Rangers will be attempting to trap the alligators.

The worried mom is quoted as saying, “…sounds like a good plan to her”
So far, after a week long search neither gator nor dock has been found

Must be one big gator


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I almost missed it. Last week the Hula Hoop celebrated its 50th birthday.
I had one as a kid. So did my sister. She was something of an expert, winning contest galore while I could kinda make it work. My favorite thing was to throw it with a backspin and catch it on the return. I’m easily amused.

The exact origins of the hula hoop are unknown, but kids have played with hoops of some kind throughout history.

A real Hula Hoop measures 28 inches in diameter and have exact weights. The Wham-O Toy Company makes them from plastic tubing and places a ball bearing inside to provide that classic "shoop - shoop" sound.

Introduced in 1958, Wham-O sold 25 million in the first four months and over 100 million in its first year. There are now World Hula Hoop Championships in over 2,000 cities world wide. Competitors were judged on their performance of compulsory maneuvers. Me? I just like throwing them watching them return. Like I said. I am easy to amuse. Mine is 25 plus years old and a bright lime green. Tell me about yours.

I just discovered a taste of heaven on earth

Chased by

Always strive to give 100%

Even during the Audit

There have been a lot of extra hours at work for Kristie over the past few weeks. Her audit starts in full swing this week which made this past weekend the calm before the storm. It was nice to have the whole time together with no scheduled events other than church.

Friday night we planned a rare weekend date night. Normally our weekends stay pretty filled, and we enjoy our nights out more when the crowds are thinner. But tonight was wonderful. We had a great dinner at a fairly new place on this side of town. Dockside on Pearman Dairy Road.

There is no way I can fully describe the meal. I ordered a burger plate. Not any old burger but an amazing hand patted, charcoal grilled one and a half pound serious burger. And what appeared to be a full bag of fries. I didn't even eat half. Hurray for doggy bags. I've eaten there twice before. We were prepared with a small ice chest. Seriously !

After the meal it was off to the movies. I liked the old TV series and have really been looking forward to "Get Smart" the movie. It's been four days and my sides are still sore from laughing. Great movie. I am heading back to see it again today. Look for a review.

After the movie we headed back to Dockside to share a massive blueberry cobbler with ice cream. The staff remembered us from earlier and seemed both pleased and amused to see us back for more. They brought out the dessert order you would not believe the size. I kid you not when I say the bowl was the size of a hubcap. It was filled with fantastic cobbler and topped with six scoops of ice cream. Though it was near three hours and neither of us ate even half of our dinner, we ALMOST could not finish it all. I said almost. It's not good to eat until you are sick, but someone had to do it. I think of mom's admonishment when I was a child. To clean my plate. I did, but driving straight home to crash on the couch seemed the best idea.

Yummmy

4-21-2008

Indio California is truly an oasis town in the desert. Kris and I had traveled through the high deserts on our last trip between Barstow and Las Vegas. But other than a visit to Palm Springs she had never seen the low desert. And a true stereo typical desert it is too. Complete with bad lands, dry gulches and even few sand dunes tossed in for good measure.

Indio hosts the massive Riverside County Fair each year in conjunction with the Date Festival. That’s Dates as in food from a palm tree not a social mixer for guys and girls. The festival was an event we never missed both as a family and with our school band.
I thought it would be fun to see the city again, and revisit the festival site. Then have a quick bite of lunch then head out to the Salton Sea. The Salton Sea is a large inland salt water lake. It also boasts one the lowest elevations in the country, second only to Death Valley which is just 5 feet lower.
We wrapped up our visit stopping in Banning, California which is the closest town at the base of the mountain. We met my friend Ron and his wife again for dinner. As before the evening went by too fast.


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It's audit time at Anderson University. Kristie is once again working insane hours getting things ready.

Here is a photo of her hard at work this morning. Her Audit Face!

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Just Asking:

Do Chinese people have American Fire Drills ?

A Chinese fire drill is a pejorative expression usually referring to a prank performed when a car is stopped at a red traffic light, at which point all of the car's occupants get out, run around the car, and return to their own (or go to other) seats. People have reported this phenomenon as early as the 1940s.





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4-20-07

The first professional Major league baseball game I ever went to was the California Angels at Angel Stadium in Anaheim California. I was just a kid but I remember it just like it was last week. They played the Oakland A’s and won the game 4 to 3. I remember Brooks Robinson hitting not one but two solo home runs.

I attended a lot more games in the next few years. Even saw Nolan Ryan pitch a no-hitter until ninth. Angel Stadium holds a lot of memories. Our Hotel was only a couple blocks from the ball-park so naturally Kristie and I wanted to attend.

The Braves at Turner Field in Atlanta and the Angels in Anaheim within 15 days.

After the game we were off to Saddleback church again. This time we were not so rushed and had plenty of time to explore the campus and enjoy the whole experience.

FAST FACT:

The moon's official astronomical name is............Moon.

Here is the full moon, the near side on the left and the far side on the right

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Tonight is once again a full moon.

It’s going to be a clear night here at my home. So go outside and look at it. Does it seem unusually large? It's NOT! It’s an illusion.

Our minds have been tricked because tonight is the "solstice moon". Coming just two days before the beginning of summer is the reason. The moon and the sun are like a see-saw. In the summer (two days) the sun is at its highest and because of that the moon will be at it’s lowest. This horizon-hugging moon gives us a low, strong, long-lasting version of the illusion.

If you are doubtful try this. Go out at around 9pm and hold up your thumb. Note the relative size of the moon. Go out again around midnight try it again and compare the sizes. It doesn’t actually change.

Btw tonight’s moon is called — Full Strawberry Moon:

Named by Native American. Europeans called it the Rose Moon.

My email has a spam filter. It seeks junk mail and trashes it right away. Works perfect about 99% of the time. So I seldom double check it. Which may explain why I never replied to a few things.
For some reason I checked it when I logged in this morning. WOW was I bombed last night. It caught over 100 spam postings.

I learned I can improve my life, myself, my love life, my body, my health and so on.

Here is a run down on SOME of the wonderful things that are happening JUST for me.

• I just won a free Dell Laptop, and a Wii. Cool send them in baby blue please

• I can magically erase my debt. Great now I can charge that Learjet and erase the bill

• Drop twenty lbs overnight. So why isn't everyone skinny?

• Find a spouse. I don't think my wife would like this one

• Get a free Airline ticket on SouthWest. They don't serve an airport near me

• I can buy meds at 1/2 price from Canada but only on line. (See next item below)

• Detoxify myself. from all those cheap Canadian drugs

• Have a clean Colon. Eew !!!! not going there
  

• Free school, including college and a Bachelor's degree. I'm too busy with the colon thingy

• Learn to cook like a great chief I could go for this one

• Become a nurse, court reporter and a CPA, study to become a cop and a physiologist WOW I can save lives, do taxes, fight crime, take notes and understand the crooks all at the same time. Can't you just imagine my business card?
  

• I get free coffee and apparently a free coffee maker to go with it. JAVA JAVA YES!

• I can work as an actor Me as the new Indiana Jones ...look out Johnny Depp

• Get a free HD TV and Dish Network I don't watch TV much now I can eh?

• Make over $225 an hour filling out surveys. I am quitting my job. I will have to be squeezing by on this 1/2 a million $$$$ a year.

And these are just a few of the fabulous offers.


A better life delivered to your In-Box

What a country



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Quick Quiz

No cheating

What is/are eructations, stenutations, and pandiculations?

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

the answers are: a Burp, a Sneeze, and a Yawn in that order

We traveled to Georgia over the weekend to attend Matt and Ambers wedding. It was a nice traditional ceremony but with a few new ideas. The one I liked the most was in place of the lighting of the unity candle, Matt and Amber each poured colored sand together in a jar. Symbolizing the mixing of two lives into one. We had a nice time at the wedding and the reception that followed. Amber's Grandfather Reverend Jerry Chitwood preformed the service.

Sunday was fathers day and we spent the day visiting our families. Being at my dad's required us to attend the early service at NewSpring. Kristie and I used to always go to the early one. I don't remember it coming so early in the morning.

Ed Young Jr. was the featured speaker today, via the video link from Fellowship Church in Dallas. This was the second week of the One Prayer series where more than 1400 churches world wide of various denominations come together at the same time with the same message.
Get the gospel out and unite in prayer. We are excited about this mission effort at NewSpring, and that our pastor is one of four that will be preaching.

Dinner at Mom and Dad's was fun. We had a ham and three kinds of beans. There was a communication mix-up and every one made beans. When the bowls were placed on the table we all burst out with laughter. It was a hoot.

Kristie felt like her dad would rather eat out so we pretended to be hungry and went out to Fletcher's, a nice local place for his turn. After two big meals within 3 hours I thought I would explode.

After we ate we had to go to the funeral home. Kristie's great Aunt passed away on Saturday. She was 87 and had been very sick a long time. There is shouting in heaven right now. Eva has come home.

It was a long travel filled weekend.

JOHN WETTON You Rock

Do you suffer from Triskaidekaphobia?

Fear of the number 13.

If you do then today must really be tough. It’s estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States have a fear of Friday the thirteenth. So many the symptom even has a name Paraskavedekatriaphobia.

Some people are so paralyzed by fear that they avoid doing business, taking flights or even getting out of bed. What is really strange is that most of the people can offer no explanation at all, logical or illogical. They just have a fear for its own sake.

The superstition does have deep roots that may explain why the fear is so widespread today.

The number thirteen and Friday both have been considered unlucky:

In some places the number twelve is considered a good number.
• as in the twelve months of the year, • the twelve tribes of Israel • twelve Apostles of Jesus • twelve hours in a day, twelve hours of night

But the number thirteen is considered a bad number.

• At the Last Supper, thirteen people were seated at the table. The 13th was a traitor. And Friday is considered the day on which Jesus Christ was crucified, which is viewed as both good and bad by Christians

Are you afraid of Friday the 13th? Are you taking any extra precautions? Or is it just another amusing day for you?

In any rate be careful especially with mirrors and whatever you do please and watch out for back cats open umbrellas and ladders.
Disclaimer: No I don’t believe in any luck good or bad other than the luck you make.

More local Dumb Crook News

A few months ago I posted a story about a local dumb crook.

Sadly he is not alone. Here are two of his local rivals for dumb crook of the year.

First:

Riding a cab to the hotel where he lived on the seedier side of town a man realized he didn’t have his wallet. He asked the cabbie and his “lady friend” to wait he searched his room with no success. In frustration he called the police himself, to help him search.

The police arrived, went inside his room and found the wallet. But they also found on a table in plain sight a quantity of crack cocaine

Only in Anderson would you invite the police to help you find your money, then leave drugs on the table where they could see them.

Second:

In court Wednesday, in a completely separate case (though it sounds like they might be brothers dumb & dumber) a man was asked by the judge to describe his work history.

He told Judge Ken Mattison that he works two jobs. “One I can't mention, because it is illegal. My other one is cutting grass,” he stated
Leaning forward in interest and pondering for a moment the implication of the admission, the Judge stated, “I could write this down, but no one would believe it.” He set the bond at $1,270 and scheduled a court date, leaving police officers smiling.

The man’s original crime? Driving with a suspended license.

Yeah just tell the Judge everything. This falls into the too much info category.

I read where a Louisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D) is requesting $250 BILLION dollars to rebuild New Orleans. Two Hundred Fifty Billion Dollars

How much is a Billion? Think about this:

A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was walking with his disciples on Earth
C. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes; at the rate our government is spending it.

If the $250 billion were placed end to end they would stretch from coast to coast more than 1,029 times.

Does that put into perspective?

Think about this:

A. Every one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, child), will get $516,528.

B. Every one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans gets $1,329,787 for repairs.

C. Or assuming they are a family of four, they actually get $2,066,112.

Two MILLION in house repairs

That’ll buy a lot of fixing up. Remember it’s your tax money I agree some families need help but $2,000,000.00 worth? Remember it’s your tax money

Today is Election Day where I live. By the shear volume of roadside signs and the hundreds of fliers in my mail you would think it was a long issue filled Ballot. It took me longer to get in the parking lot than it did to vote. Four whole boxes to check.

I wish they had a NONE of the above box.