I was going to title this as another in the “Driving Me Crazy” series, but that was only a small part of the day.

Started out with the alarm bright and early this morning, the plan was to get up and do a three-mile bike sprint while TMBWitW got ready for work, then wake the little darling (MEG) and get going on the day.

Friday, after The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, we went to the chiropractor, went back home, I dropped off TMBWitW, MEG, and Logan, and headed for Mesa. I stopped at the church first to pick up my cargo trailer and arrived out at the rental place to pick up the twelve round tables, twelve round table clothes, three oblong table clothes, and the two eight foot tall roman pillars for the wedding on Saturday. I got the stuff to the church (not my church, a different church. long story) and when I pulled up there were tons and tons of no one there to help me unload. Or get into the church.

After leaving a message on the groom’s phone (he’s the one that arranged to meet me there at that time to unload the tables and stuff), I sat in the parking lot. I couldn’t leave for the next scheduled activity, since the trailer has a lock on it and only two people have the key - neither one of them is the groom. It was about 1130 and I needed to drop the trailer, hightail it to the house (twenty minutes) transfer to the other car (twenty minutes - we’re talking getting girls ready to travel here) and then head back over to the Mesa area (forty five minutes if traffic is it’s usual turtle pace at several choke points) for a 1300 appointment. I sat in the SUV, with the motor running (for the AC - it was over 110° at the time) until - the bride! The bride came ambling out of the church. I quickly backed into position (not knowing which door was going to be opened, i had no idea where to back in) and started running stuff into the church. After the two columns and the tablecloths were inside, the groom pulled up. With his mom, the bride’s mom, and the bride’s two sisters.

(where the heck were all the guys? i was under the impression that the guys would be there to help unload…)

Well - the two sisters and I got the tables rolled inside as quick as possible, and I parked the trailer in a remote corner of the lot. Then, I had to tear off to get home. It si very difficult to get home any faster than twenty minutes from that church, since I try to obey the speed limit at all times. It was about 1205, and time was getting shorter. TMBWitW was ready to go, but MEG had decided to nap out. Had to gently ease her into the car seat and then haul butt for the East Valley. Traffic was flowing pretty well, and I was right at the speed limit all the way there. We made it to the appointment in time, and then it was time to get back home, I had to switch vehicles again, TMBWitW and MEG had to head over for the rehearsal, and I needed to get to downtown Phoenix for a handyman job that I finally managed to get scheduled.

Whew!

I got the job finished, and headed for the church in time for rehearsal dinner. Swapped the tools into TMBWitW’s car, left the SUV parked at the church, and headed home.

Saturday was the wedding, but first a couple of females in my life needed to get their hair done. They had an appointment, but the hairstylist was running late. Good thing we took our good clothes with us. We changed at the church, and were ready in time for pictures.

I told you all of that so I could tell you this: I returned the tables this morning. People in the East Valley don’t know how to drive. They also don’t know what a turn signal is, either to use one or when someone else uses one. Can’t tell you the number of times I was cut off by those who don’t know how to use them, or forced to maneuver at the last minute because no one recognized the turn signal on the trailer as a legitimate expression of my intent. I am especially impressed by those bozos who consiously decide to speed up when they see a turn signal on a vehicle trying to get out of the “exit only” lanes on the 202 west bound.

So - how was your morning?

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Time, Inc. is a bunch of weasels, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Wearing the RED to show the TROOPS that I truly do SUPPORT them!

So, did you listen to The O Word this morning? Or, like a couple of squids (whom I really do respect) were you just not able to get up in time?

(gentle digs at Gawfer and Doug. i really do respect these two. no, really, i do.)

Hope you have a good weekend - I’m off for wedding activities (a friend is getting married and since I have the enclosed trailer, I get to pick up the rental items) and other Friday tasks.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Time, Inc. is a bunch of weasels, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

First - a quick reminder that The O Word will be on the air at 0700 Mountain Standard Time tomorrow morning, as usual, but only 30 minutes long. Be sure to join the chatroom or call in the listener line at (347) 838-9573.

It’s been a while since I’ve done an Update for my blogroll friends, so here goes:

First up is Blackfive, where the ethics videos for certain government entities have been procured and posted.

Richard is making good use of his new camera.

Good old GuyK woke up this morning with a list of aches and pains. He shares his morning with you…

Our Sovereign Joy has a series going on about sinners being restored from their trespasses. I’m going to mark this as a required reading entry.

Texas Fred has a couple of articles up about the recent SCOTUS decision about child rapists … and their “right” to not be executed. Nope, nothing controversial there… (update - latest entry is about the 2nd amendment)

On One Loon’s Tales, Loon herself is also carrying the story of the SCOTUS miscue decision.

Political Pistachio, back on after a brief blip, talks about the SCOTUS too - but this time, about the 2nd Amendment case involving handguns in our Nation’s Capitol.

I’m sensing a trend here - Samantha has a view on the SCOTUS dropped ball also.

Rogue wants to know who took his country. Good question. I’m bettin’ the DemocRATs had something to do with it.

Right Turn has her view on the Henderson KY shooting.

According to Jenn’s latest post, the “think” tank in San Fransissyco has determined that an appropriate memorial for our current president would be renaming a public works building. I think it’s a crappy idea.

American and Proud of It joins the ranks of the bloggers posting on the SCOTUS’ collective cranial collapse.

ablur has some information on the Obamassiah you might want to read.

Mary has a book review about Stormie. (good to see you in action, Mary!)

Akinoluna has a story about triplets who are joining the Marine Corps - together! Instant family tradition, anyone?

Got a few minutes? Make that a bit longer - as is the case anytime you want to peruse Dumb Looks Still Free - as he delves deeply into the respective plans (not policies!) of the presumptive candidates. A good read, worth the thought and effort of getting all the way through it.

cookiecrumbexpress shows off the last part of the trip home, and shares a little bit about certain members of the Obama Nation being “removed” from the public eye…

Third Wave Dave highlights the effort to send the largest care package shipment to our troops in history.

Old Soldier has two questions for you, one regarding the legal standing of the primates, and another concerning voting. Two separate entries, please take the time to view both.

Cube takes a look at the Microsoft team - then and now. All I have to say is, thank God the seventies ended when they did.

My Point shares Doctor Blogstein’s search for a fatwa. Oh. My.

Just John has a reminder from the Japanese park authority about your dog.

Bloviating Zeppelin has a must-read on the so-called “Fairness Doctrine” that should be used as a reference while you contact your representatives.

Supporting the Troops has the Wednesday Hero up - go check out (Army) SSGT Voss…

And last (but certainly not the least) of the recently updated (according to blogrolling.com, anyway) is my good friend Gawfer, with his thoughts on Obama, McCain, and the American Dream.

Be sure to check out the rest of the people on my blogroll. Tell ‘em I sent ya.

My Bad: I am most disgusted with myself for forgetting to mention the latest member of my blogroll, Amboy Times. Another good read. GO! Enjoy!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Time, Inc. is a bunch of weasels, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

TMBWitW is working from home today - and I’m not on line today.

Just wanted to let you know that I have to cut my Friday shows to thirty minutes, instead of the full hour.

It’s an economics thing.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

If you are a Marine, please take the time to read and comment. If you are not a Marine, then it’s up to you whether you read this or not. The issue was brought to my attention by Akinoluna. She blogged about the trend of the term “Devil Dog” to be looked on as a curse more than a point of pride.

Personally, I find this trend disturbing. I am very proud of the nickname “Devil Dog” and find it odd that the younger Marines of today would be bothered by it. However, I will take to task those of higher rank that use it only when getting ready to issue a correction or reprimand - of course it would become associated with bad behavior. The idea behind using it, as stated in the article:

“I think the backlash against ‘Devil Dog’ does begin with the leadership. [Noncommissioned officers] (myself included) use the following phrase, ‘HEY, DEVIL DOG!’ to initiate a ‘correction’ when we don’t know exactly who the Marine may be. Thusly, hearing the phrase Devil Dog creates a negative Pavlovian response in Marines. As they come up in the Corps, the response stays,” one Marine wrote.

(emphasis mine) (yes, I know the article appeared back in April. sue me.)

Now, when I was serving, if you didn’t know who the Marine was, you would use the term “Marine” to get their attention. “Devil Dog” was reserved for when you knew who were motivating - and it was used as motivation: “Come on, you Devil Dogs! Let’s take that hill!”

Corrections or reprimands would start out with you, the corrector or reprimandor, spotting a goldbricker slouching across the parade deck (for example) and hollering out, “Hey, MARINE!” This would get their attention and allow you to quickly determine the rank of the offender.

You would then issue the correction based on their rank: if the Marine in question was of lower rank, then “boot” or “maggot” was used to get your point across: “Hey, maggot - quit dragging your heels whilst strolling across my parade deck - step to smartly, and make it look like you know where you’re going!”

If the Marine was of the same rank, then a more comradely term would be used: “You know, corporal, by dragging your heels while walking across the parade deck some boot might think that was the way to do it. Let’s try stepping a little more lively to impress the newbies.”

If the Marine was of higher rank, then a whole new attitude would have to surround the conversation: “Good morning, Second Lieutenant Wetbehindtheears, here on the hallowed grounds of the Third Battalion, we have a tradition of either circumventing the parade deck or stepping off in a smart manner in order to impart the respect we have for those who have passed before.”

Using “Devil Dog” as a jumping-off point for corrections is setting a bad example - and chewing up the traditions of the Corps. Shame on the Marine who helps tear this fabric. Let’s show some respect for those who HAVE passed before!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

I had to borrow the wording for the title of this piece from my good friend Gawfer.

I was curious about a certain candidate’s constant chant of “hope” and thought I would look it up to see if that might give me a clue as to what he was talking about, since the candidate in question (*coughobamacough*) is kinda light on the details about the “hope” he has.

So, let’s go to Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (I’ve always liked it, although since the revisionists have gotten hold of it there seems to be some changes that don’t jive with me):

Hope
Hope\, n.

1. A desire of some good, accompanied with an expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable; an expectation of something which is thought to be desirable; confidence; pleasing expectancy.

2. One who, or that which, gives hope, furnishes ground of expectation, or promises desired good.

3. That which is hoped for; an object of hope.

So, “hope” is a wish or desire for something, accompanied by expectation of its fulfillment.

Therein lies the problem.

This campaign is not about race, no matter how much the supporters of a particular candidate want to make it so. This campaign is not about age, no matter how much the supporters of the same candidate want to make it so. It’s not even about experience, no matter how much the supporters of either candidate do or do not want to make it so.

It is about perception. The perception of what is expected. With the RepubliCAN’Ts offering, the voters know that they cannot “hope” to see anything different, so the voters will be getting what they see (and, in a way, deserve, since they allowed the MSM to guide their voting in the primaries - but that’s another topic). With the DemocRAT’s offering, their supporters are claiming that their candidate offers “hope” but cannot express what exactly is being “hope”d for.

The demographics of the supporters of the candidate with “hope” would indicate that since they have a shorter attention span, they don’t stick around to find out what the “hope” is for, so they cannot possibly be expected to be able to tell you what the “hope” is for. On the other hand, those of us with more *ahem* experience in life have the second part in the forefront of our mind when we hear “hope” - that is, we have an expectation of its fulfillment, and we don’t see that forthcoming based on the “hope”ful candidate’s track record.

Thursday, I may take a look at the “change” part of the equation.

Or not.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Hard to believe that it’s been that long, and so much has changed.

I started out blogging on Blogspot just to put my family history in electronic form - that project is still in the works, as evidenced by the lack of progress behind the tab marked “The Wisconsin Cartters” at the top of this page.

Then I started a personal blog to take my rants off the family page. That led me to meet a wonderful bunch of people - most of them still hanging out on my blogroll, some of them having signed off, one or two having shed this mortal coil - but all of them worth reading and chatting with when I get the chance. Oh, sure - like any family, there are going to be instances where some members of my blog-family aren’t going to be getting along with other members, and that’s fine, we’re all human, and if we all got along all the time it would be downright boring.

I started out with two blogs, and ended up with this one when I merged them in April of 2008. Having my own domain and full control over the blog is a comfort to me, being the semi-control freak that I am, and I have to thank Texas Fred and Robert for their help with getting this site set up.

I don’t remember who the first batch of contacts I made was, perhaps the gang over at The Notebored, a writer’s workshop headed up by Dee and her wonderful circle of fellow writers. I tried my hand at some writing projects over there, but there was something - I don’t know, missing? - and I just never really fully clicked. They are very welcoming there on The Notebored, but I don’t think I was ready for primetime. I do know that once I ran into Gawfer I ran into the best bunch of people I could call friends and a great variety of “conservatives” - from absolute white hat to situational conservatives, you can find a bunch of them on the blogroll now. Like I said, we don’t all get along all of the time, but we always have a great conversation.

I found Bill Whittle, a former liberal who started reading and thinking for himself (proof, by the way, that it can happen) and then using his talents as a writer to put our thoughts to “paper” and let us all read it and realize that “Yes, by thunder, that is EXACTLY what I was trying to say!” I still read him, when he publishes in between his super-glam life on the west coast and the movie deals and the screenplays… In fact, one of my personal favorite entries for I’m Thinking of the “O” Word was inspired greatly by Bill’s writing; specifically, my entry titled The Sheep, The Sheepdogs, and the Wolves was written after I had read his entry titled Tribes. I think it’s still relevant.

My wife, whom I refer to as TMBWitW, gave birth to our child, MEG, on December 30, 2006. I ran a babypool of sorts, and Paul at prying1 came in second while Just John (who, at the time, was going by Gunny John) came the closest in guessing the day and time for the momentous occasion. MEG is growing and running around and keeping the dogs on their toes now - the cats are not sure what to make of this little rosy-cheeked beauty that wants to pet them all…

And then in January of 2007 I read this entry on Jenn’s blog, and it just didn’t sit right with me. I started my campaign. Without funding. Trying to get a groundswell of support and momentum for a run at the White House. Trying, and failing. My feelings haven’t changed, especially now that we are guaranteed a liberal in the Oval Office, and I am seeing more and more signs of a revolution brewing to take this country back into the conservative hands of We The People. I do, however, plan to take another run at it in 2012, when the people of this country should be good and fed up with the liberal actions of the president and want to get back to being a sovereign country with absolute borders and absolute laws.

Now I have a BlogTalkRadio show called, appropriately enough, The O Word. Be sure to tune in on Friday mornings at 0700 Mountain Standard Time.

One thing about having a blog, and meeting (on line, of course, except in rare instances where you actually get to meet the fine people you blog with in person) other blog-owners - you will never run out of people to meet, and people who you want to link to, and people who may want to link back to you. Of course, having all these links is one thing, but being able to keep the connection going is another. I don’t always get to read all my links every day, but I sure try to stop in at least once a week or so.

Most recently, I was asked to join the gang over at Reject the UN and help spread that word. I don’t know how often I will be able to contribute, but I will be doing what I can when I can.

One thing that hasn’t wavered since I’ve discovered it: Wear Red on Fridays. I’ve got some way cool shirts that help spread the word, and I know that when service members see my red shirt they know they are being supported, prayed for, worried about, and generally appreciated for what they are doing.

A lot has changed in three years. I am so happy to have met all of you, and hope that you feel the same about me. We may not see eye to eye, but unless you break my commenting rules and totally disregard common courtesy, you will be welcome here. I know that there are a lot more people out there who deserve to be mentioned, and I will, on this Friday’s show. I’m sorry if I didn’t specifically mention you, but know that I think of each one of you often. Either to wonder what you are up to, or why you haven’t written anything lately, or to berate myself for not getting over to your site and leaving a comment. Tell you what - would you do me a favor, and just click on the “All Blogrolls Here” tab up there, and read through everyone who is making a difference in the blogosphere? Stop in and tell them I said hi, and I’ll be by later to chat.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Maybe this will help get past all the issues:

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

TMBWitW and I were working on cleaning up the “office” here in the house. Earlier, it looked like a war zone. There was a play pen stuffed with toys, there are two desks (one for the computer, one for the peripherals), there is a set of storage shelves built out of 2×4’s and 3/4″ plywood, and there are the remnants/beginnings of an HO scale model railroad stacked here and there. All in a room that is 11×13. The whole thing was supposed to be the railroad room, but that got sidetracked. (get it? railroad? sidetracked? i kill me … )

Anyway - I got distracted while glancing through the e-mail. Good discussion over at Texas Fred’s place and at Bushie’s place. Jump in the discussions, I think it’s going to be a long comment session.

I also got invited to become a member of the editorial staff of Reject the UN. I accepted.

So, the office is in disarray, about to be taken off-line for rearranging and a general cleaning, the play pen has been stored, and I’m tired. TMBWitW and MEG are both napping - I probably should, too.

In fact, I think I will.

Have a good weekend!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

You know what to do. Are you wearing a red shirt today?

Don’t forget to join me on The O Word at 0700 Mountain Standard Time. Call in number is (347) 838-9573 or join in the chat room!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!