DISCLAIMER:
In no way would I ever take a stab at anybody that is sincerely worshiping - in whatever religion they choose, and however they choose. I will, however, occasionally pick up a stick and poke somebody who disrupts a church or any other service, and their sole reason for do so is purely to gain attention, which has nothing to do with worshiping - and nothing to do with religion, as far as that goes.
"RePUKE the DEEEEEE-VVVVV-IIIII-LLLLL !!!!"
Those kitties look EXACTLY like the two 20-year old cats we had until 3 years ago (they both died within a month of each other).
Further proof that you only THOUGHT you had Chiari malformation. Actually, your diagnosis is much easier than that.
You simply had an old war would from having your head snapped back like a damned PEZ dispenser for so many years!
Now, I am going to be forced to put on my hand-made wooden clogs from The Netherlands and re-enact a V.D. original.
I'll never forget that volatile, half-cocked, but fully crazed woman.
We always knew when a fit was brewing (an unsuspecting visitor walked into the church and sat on the back pew.)
Then....oh, then..... when the moment was 'right' for her, we would always hear that low bass-filled suction "Swoosh" as her butt left the pew - ready to begin the 'First Act'. That sound is all-too familiar, and it reminds me of the sound you hear when you are watching a fireworks show, and a large shell has just left the barge, but not yet exploded.
Phase II begins when the first clod-hopper heel hit that hollow wooden floor with a familiar, loud, "POP!" (like the large fireworks shell's explosion after it reaches the apex of it's flight into the Heavens.)
The stage is set for the Main Act: In a flurry, the heels predictably explode into a rapid succession of fire-cracker pops, and the entire carcass gets into the act:
The head starts going from side to side - in a dramatic attempt to shake down the intentionally loosely styled hair, arm and hands are twisting over her head, as if she is frantically 'dialing Tokyo' on a giant, imaginary radio just out of reach over her head, and her boobs take on an independent life of their own, eventually picking up the pace to be magically synchronized with the large, voluptuous pounding hips!
To quote "Shelangela" from RuPaul's Drag Race (on the LOGO channel),
"HALL-LAY-LOO!"
But.....I have news for ole V.D. When I put these things on, she won't have shit on me! he he
- Michael
I face the same thing when I go to a new doctor.
I tell them:
"What do you want me to do to make myself look sick enough or gimpy enough? Should I take my teeth out, wear my big thick glasses, wear rags, and never groom myself? Just because I'm not sitting in a wheel chair (all the time!), I might not have my brace on my leg at this very moment, nor do I have on my big, thick, crooked, dirty glasses - and neither am I slobbering all over myself. If that's what it takes to make you believe my pain, I can either go home and make a quick change, or you can get over yourself and your stereotypes. Maybe this IS Burger King, and you might be able to 'have it your way', after all. Which do you choose?"
The ensuing big eyes and agape mouths are priceless.
I have had to change doctors - a couple times - because I am an Essence / Medicare patient, and they accustomed to seeing old people in their waiting rooms, rather than somebody hip and fairly young.
I am experiencing this same type of grief even as we speak with a new rheumatologist. Just a couple days ago, he blew me off because I looked more 'hip' than the amount of damage in my neck (cervical spine) that showed up on X-rays.
When his nurse called me at home with "We see some "mild degenerative changes" (translated: arthritis) in your neck, but he doesn't want to do....... "
I cut her off, and told her that I take muscle relaxers, use a TENS unit, and I use a cervical traction unit, I am currently in physical therapy, I take Meloxicam AND over 3,000 mg of ibuprophen a day and all that crap barely scratches the surface. If Dr. Don (Irl Don - that's his real name!) can't OR won't help me, tell him to please put me in contact with a doctor who can and will!"
She called me back (Actually, they called the wrong number, and left the message on Mark's voice mail - because his phone number is just one number different from mine!), telling me that he ordered Prednisone for 10 days and I have an MRI scheduled for Wednesday.
I'm far from 'out of the woods'. With Psoratic Arthritis, there never is an "out of the woods', but the Prednisone calmed down this particular flare-up. Now, I'm begging them to call Essence to have them 'bump me up' from Meloxicam to Celebrex. With insurance, a month's supply of Celebrex is $35. WITHOUT insurance, my out-of-pocket expense is $550 a month.
I'm a nurse. I'm on the inside. And with the lone exception of my primary care provider, I HATE THESE DAMNED STEREOTYPICAL DOCTORS!
- Michael
I'll never forget that self-righteous bitch (Linda Marsten Grohman) that I had to nix because she was crying, "I am praying for our country!" when Obama said that he supports gay marriage.
I told her first and foremost that it has been STRAIGHT PEOPLE that have been screwing up marriage for thousands of years, and if anybody had anything to do with the demise of the "sanctity of marriage", that perhaps, she should look in her own closets before she shoves the blame in ours.
(She was a preacher's wife from Hannibal, MO - currently residing in St. Charles, MO, BTW).... Before I kicked her ass back to her bigoted curb, I told her that now, she REALLY needs to get down on her hands and knees, and perhaps pound the ground as she prays more fervently "for this country" because 2 more states legalized gay marriage.
I also suggested that she not be so self-centered in praying for just THIS country, and that she should also consider praying for :
Argentina
Belgium
Canada
Denmark
Iceland
Netherlands
Norway
Portugal
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
because long ago, they have also let those who love each other marry each other without somebody else thinking it's their damned business, and that they have the right or the authority to tell others who they should love, and who they should marry.
While we were on the subject of prayer, I told her to STOP using God / Jesus as a weapon of hate and bigotry, because #1) that is a gross use of religion, and that was not a religion's original intent (to spread hate and bigotry), and #2) it is people like HER that are giving religion a bad name, in general.
- Michael
C'mon! Vogue!
This thread was posted on Madonna's FB page:
Troy Compas :
I had tickets and the heifer cancelled! Waited seven months for that!!! So not forgiving her as of now!!
Stephanie Gordon Feekes:
If you can't say anything nice/positive keep it to yourself!
Michael J Keller:I have been a big fan of Madonna's music since she first hit the stage over 30 years ago. But being a big fan of her behavior towards her fans: Not so much!
What about ACTING nice. Does that count, too?
Making your fans wait 2 - 21/2 hours past a concert's start time is just plain rude, disrespectful, and arrogant, and that is the same everywhere and for everybody. I don't care what part of the woods you just stumbled out of, or which turnip truck you just fell off.
The next time she is late taking the stage, I wish EVERY paying customer would walk back out the door, and en masse, demand their money back. With a 100% guarantee, I assure you that she would take the stage precisely on time at the next concert!
Ya think?
Tina Prince:
Geez people- she has an opening act and when it is over it takes 45 minutes to set the stage for her concert. It's gonna start 1030ish- it is known and should be expected.
Michael J Keller:
There is a **HUGE** difference between:
1) a 45 minute set-up time, where SOMETHING active is happening on stage, and her paying customers can see that progress - in one form or another - is being made...
and
2) Being late, rude and arrogant because one thinks they own the damned world.
Never forget: The paying customers that are waiting on her put her where she is. If it wasn't for THOSE PEOPLE, she would be as much of a 'nobody' as the next person. Those paying customers also have normal lives that take place on the weekdays that she schedules shows. They have paid and promised a baby sitter that they would be back home at a certain time. They have to work a normal job early the next morning. Time is a very non-renewable resource. Once your time is gone - IT'S GONE! I firmly believe that there is a special place in Hell for those who have no regard for wasting another person's time.
A good example of being grateful and courteous to your fans is Barry Manilow. He was asked during an interview if he ever gets tired of singing ""Copacabana". He quickly answered, "No! Why should I?" (be tired of singing 'Copacabana'). He follows that with:
"I will gladly sing that song - and happily sing it loudly at every concert. Why? Because the people that paid for that song is the reason that I live in a $5 million home!"
Barry Manilow is a great example of a performer who exhibits good qualities, which include gratitude and gratefulness.
Previous to this last flurry of ill behavior, I had no beef with Madonna. She was the reigning Queen. Both my mind AND my eyes are always wide open. Once I learn a fact that puts a person in an entirely different light, I am capable of 'doing a 180'.
Rude and insensitive is still rude and insensitive, I don't care what color your filters are. She's not doing it to 'be controversial'. Take off your blinders and take another gander in her general direction.
Rude, disrespectful and ungrateful is is still rude, disrespectful and ungrateful. Period.
My message to Madonna would be:
Of ALL people, I would think that you would know better than to resort to such bad behavior and atrocious maneuvers to remain in the limelight. If you can't 'hold court' like any good queen should, while upholding and maintaining good standards and ethics, then perhaps it is time to step aside, and join the other court jesters (Charlie Sheen, etc.)
REMEMBER:
We are not in England, and you are not a real queen. We do not have 'heir apparents'. Indeed, you earned your honorary title, and in this realm, once you assume the throne, it is not guaranteed for life.
That crown must also be maintained.
- Michael
Note to others:
"Just when you thought that no other living being could be more full of themselves than I am, Conrad easily and effortlessly trumps me."
Note to self: "Don't ask Conrad stupid questions!"
I was making my lunch in the kitchen and Conrad is in his cage in the living room. He's in there talking up a storm to him, so I ask him:
"Do you love me?"
The answer to that question is USUALLY a simple "Yeah!" but today, he decided to change it up a bit with:
"Shit, yeah! You're my favorite whore!"
Any person out of Conrad's circle would freak out if they heard that response, but remember: "Whore" is a catch-all noun that Conrad uses for ANY living being. (A few weeks ago, our 2 biggest dogs walked by his cage, and Conrad yells, "Michael!!! Are these 2 about the same whore?" meaning "Are these 2 about the same (dog) ?"
My laughter to his new response is followed by his own amused chuckle, then he responds with, "See me! I'm gorgeous!"
Then...in his next several sentences, he substitutes "whore" for EVERY noun. (Think: Tourettes !")
He finishes this little episode by calling Sherman, the bulldog - but in a very different way. Greys are easily bored, and they are constantly 'changing it up'. Instead of "Sherman!", which he knows very well, he yells:
"Sherm-Asshole! come here! "
I wonder if Petsmart sells a tiny bar of soap to wash out his little potty bill?
- Michael
A quick test:
Question #1)
You are viewing popular over-posted (FaceBook, etc) photographs of 2012's monster storm, Hurricane Sandy, with The Statue of Liberty in the forefront?
A) True
B) False
_______________________________________________
Since I am blind in my left eye (and viewing Magic Eye Puzzles requires binocular instead of monocular vision), I have to use my mind's little eye(s) to views such photographs in the same manner as a person with normal vision would see these puzzles.
I center and relax myself, and I let my mind look at the picture as a whole, instead of it's parts. Then.... the image becomes amazingly clear!
This is the view from my perspective:
1) Good photo altering software is cheap these days. (Blender and GIMP are both powerful and free downloads.)
2) There are still a FEW talented folk out there.
3) HOWEVER..... In the past few decades, the scale has tipped, and we now have far more lazy, attention-seeking people than talented, harworking people.
4) I am very familiar with computer generated graphics software (Photoshop, the free GIMP, free Blender, etc) and I can use them with a certain degree of success.
It can take hours, days or weeks to achieve a successfully rendered, believable image, - depending on the degree of difficulty and the amount of work to be done.
(Remember the 'Laziness' and attention-seeking "FB like-whore" factors.....)
In the end, the clear image that my mind's eye sees is the fact that these images are movie stills. 'Instant Gratification', attention-seeking people are just too damned lazy to put forth the hours of work required to hand-render such images.
When considering the internet:
"Without first consulting several independent sources, believe none of which you see and only half of which you hear."
______________________________________________
For those who would like to expend their energy doing something THEMSELVES that is creative and worth-while:
Please visit my blog entry, detailing GIMP, Blender, Sketch-up, and a few more free, downloadable 2D and 3D computer graphics programs.
**ALL** of these programs have their own learning curves. Think of it this way: It is was 'that easy', EVERYBODY WOULD BE DOING IT. Learning these programs is worth the work involved. Trust me when I tell you that your brain will thank you for putting forth the effort.
For details about GIMP, Blender, Sketch-up, etc, please visit:http://mrtoadslivingoutloud.blogspot.com/2011/04/reality-is-just-figment-of-your.html
- Michael
Yesterday morning, we went shopping at St. Louis' Johnnie Brock's Halloween and Party Superstore (I-44 & Jefferson Ave.).
This store is huge, and they expanded it to twice the size that it was last year. The store management brings in an outside security company to staff this VERY busy store during this season.
I do believe that in order to pull off an authentic, believable look, you should use several sources and items ranging from store bought to custom made. HOWEVER.... if you can't find most of the items you need for a specific costume or look in this store, you probably don't need it! :)
Johnnie Brock's has separate, large departments for make-up, whoochies, make-up, wigs, shoes, rentals, and individual departments for each type of accessory. They even have a SteamPunk department.
Mark and I was standing in the hat department while he was choosing (the hat in our pictures).
While trying on hats, a security guard walked by me and said:
"Hey! That hat looks good on you!" I had to laugh at his comment.
He thought the hat on my head came from the store's selection of costume hats!
I laughed and told him, "No.... This hat and the rest of my look is a very real, everyday look for me!"
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the other people within earshot of our conversation slowly turn and look. he he he
For more info, please visit:http://www.johnniebrocks.com/
- Michael
