What word can be made plural by adding an "s" and then the letters can be
separated in one place to form 2 words that are the singular for the plural word?
Ohhhhh, this is a tuffie - can anyone come up with the answer?
Thursday, January 13, 2011
The 5 and Dime - Halt and Lame's Big Excursion
Halt and Lame are heading out for their big day on the town. We have waited and waited for this special day and the morning has finally arrived. We cleaned up and put on fresh clothes (well some of us did while others of us seem to think wearing the same clothes for a week is just fine and dandy). We decided a picture of our starting out was in order so here is how that worked.
Lame says: "Hey that is a good picture of me so lets use it." Halt replies: "No, no, there is too large a frow in my brow.
I want to use the other picture."
Finally we have arrived at our new favorite store. Yes, yes it is Wal-Mart and for all of you highfalutin people who are putting your noses in the air about our store - all I can say is you try coming to stay out in the boonies with Halt and Lame for several days and see what you think then!!!! I guarantee you everything you once knew as being good is all bad and everything all bad is now good. Your whole idea about everything is G-O-N-E!!! Lost forever. So lets get on to the excursion.
Look at the sheer joy in Lame's eyes as she steps inside this big, beautifully stocked store. There is so much to see and do. There are even other people around to talk to - ohhhh, life really was made much sweeter when Wal-Mart came to town. Praise you Wal-Mart and promise never ever to leave us.
Meet our new friend in the fabric section - Olivia. She hails from Covington and she misses her mother sooo much as she died several years ago. She thinks it is wonderful that Halt and Lame came to buy fabric so they can make matching, polar fleece scarves. Ahhhh, isn't she just a sweetie, I wonder if she will come home with us???
Lame has never been able to go down the stationery aisle without fondling everything. Perhaps she should have been a teacher, they get to buy all of those notebooks, pencils, stars, red pens .......
Success at last. We have tons of great things ie. wine, veggies, wine, photo album, wine, table mats, wine ........
Life is so wonderful with a Wal-Mart store, lets head home.
Hey Lame, get ready it is time to begin our YOGA practice.
I want to use the other picture."Lame looks over this one and declares she looks old. Halt thinks it is better of her because it isn't up so close. I can see this is going to be a long morning out but off we go.
Finally we have arrived at our new favorite store. Yes, yes it is Wal-Mart and for all of you highfalutin people who are putting your noses in the air about our store - all I can say is you try coming to stay out in the boonies with Halt and Lame for several days and see what you think then!!!! I guarantee you everything you once knew as being good is all bad and everything all bad is now good. Your whole idea about everything is G-O-N-E!!! Lost forever. So lets get on to the excursion.
Look at the sheer joy in Lame's eyes as she steps inside this big, beautifully stocked store. There is so much to see and do. There are even other people around to talk to - ohhhh, life really was made much sweeter when Wal-Mart came to town. Praise you Wal-Mart and promise never ever to leave us.
Meet our new friend in the fabric section - Olivia. She hails from Covington and she misses her mother sooo much as she died several years ago. She thinks it is wonderful that Halt and Lame came to buy fabric so they can make matching, polar fleece scarves. Ahhhh, isn't she just a sweetie, I wonder if she will come home with us???
Lame has never been able to go down the stationery aisle without fondling everything. Perhaps she should have been a teacher, they get to buy all of those notebooks, pencils, stars, red pens .......
Success at last. We have tons of great things ie. wine, veggies, wine, photo album, wine, table mats, wine ........
Life is so wonderful with a Wal-Mart store, lets head home.
Hey Lame, get ready it is time to begin our YOGA practice.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
The 5 and Dime - PG 35?
What I am about to show you is truly a scary sight and one that no young person should ever have to think about at their tender age, much less witness visually. It is for this reason I have rated it as questionably appropriate for folks 35 and older.
(I wonder who is the trainer and who is Lame?)
Breathing deep we only pray we won't get dizzy and fall over. OOOPS, that prayer wasn't answered.
That is downward facing dog in case you couldn't tell. Now the next move is to get up off the floor all by yourself. CLASS IS OVER, see ya around Lame!!!
The title is "Yoga with the Halt and the Lame". Halt is a 57 year old loony and Lame is an 85 year old woman who made Halt loony. See pix below -
(Man, I am not sure it gets any worse than this?????)
It has been difficult at best attempting to come up with ideas to keep Lame busy and active while Halt tries to maintain her sanity now that her daily routines are gone.. Halt has especially missed her varied exercise routines so to ease the loss she decided to practice her yoga
.
. (I wonder who is the trainer and who is Lame?)
Most of you know that Lame hates being alone so she decided to join in on the "fun". When you can't beat them you might as well join them. Now Halt and Lame plan their days around their 2 o'clock yoga class. All phones are turned off and no visitors are welcomed. (Of course no one ever goes out that far to see them but should they try they would not be received during class time.) The class period is 45 minutes so be warned - should you go to visit! Following this piece a few more pictures have been added for your viewing.
Breathing deep we only pray we won't get dizzy and fall over. OOOPS, that prayer wasn't answered.That is downward facing dog in case you couldn't tell. Now the next move is to get up off the floor all by yourself. CLASS IS OVER, see ya around Lame!!!Tuesday, January 11, 2011
REAL ESTATE - Frozen Real Estate
FROZEN REAL ESTATE
Last month, I arrived at the office and took my usual morning stroll through the parking lot to check on our rentals. It was one of those bitterly cold mornings,
so I was alarmed to see the garage door open in one of the units. This particular
rental was essentially vacant since the new tenant was about to move in and had been there the previous evening to measure for furniture. It's is a one bedroom unit on top of a double garage with the water heater, washer & dryer in the garage. That's a major concern, exposed pipes on a cold winter day. As I entered the garage it was apparent that the door had been open all night. Broken water lines were already visible as icicles hung from the cracks in the pipes. The next few hours were frantic, finding a plumber, shutting off the main water supply, thawing the pipes and trying to determine the extent of the damage. Repairs took 2 days before the tenant could finally move in but it was another reminder that that some folks just forget what can happen when winter comes.
One of my regular fall jobs is preparing houses for cold weather. It starts in October when I make the rounds to disconnect hoses and close crawl space vents (Tenants never do this). Then I try to remind every tenant to keep the hoses disconnected and keep the garage doors closed when the temperatures go down.
Probably the most important tip for tenants and homeowners is shutting off the water valve if you will be gone for more than a weekend. The main water valve is usually easy to find and close and it’s a small task to insure against a huge flood. No one wants to come home from vacation and find a house flooded from frozen pipes, a broken washer hose or leaky toilet.
Jim
Last month, I arrived at the office and took my usual morning stroll through the parking lot to check on our rentals. It was one of those bitterly cold mornings,
so I was alarmed to see the garage door open in one of the units. This particular
rental was essentially vacant since the new tenant was about to move in and had been there the previous evening to measure for furniture. It's is a one bedroom unit on top of a double garage with the water heater, washer & dryer in the garage. That's a major concern, exposed pipes on a cold winter day. As I entered the garage it was apparent that the door had been open all night. Broken water lines were already visible as icicles hung from the cracks in the pipes. The next few hours were frantic, finding a plumber, shutting off the main water supply, thawing the pipes and trying to determine the extent of the damage. Repairs took 2 days before the tenant could finally move in but it was another reminder that that some folks just forget what can happen when winter comes.
One of my regular fall jobs is preparing houses for cold weather. It starts in October when I make the rounds to disconnect hoses and close crawl space vents (Tenants never do this). Then I try to remind every tenant to keep the hoses disconnected and keep the garage doors closed when the temperatures go down.
Probably the most important tip for tenants and homeowners is shutting off the water valve if you will be gone for more than a weekend. The main water valve is usually easy to find and close and it’s a small task to insure against a huge flood. No one wants to come home from vacation and find a house flooded from frozen pipes, a broken washer hose or leaky toilet.
Jim
Monday, November 22, 2010
REAL ESTATE - Growth - Bah Humbug!
As a certified "Grumpy Old Man", I am legally required to complain about everything. If I am ever found to have a positive opinion on any issue, I could lose my Social Security benefits or be required to eat supper at 4:30 at the "WoodGrill Buffet". Now, in order to complete the requirements to qualify for my handicap license plates and big sunglasses, I want to complain about growth.
Harrisonburg was such a perfect town before it got big. No shopping centers, strip malls, traffic and all these people in the check out line at WalMart. For most of the year, I go out of my way to avoid driving on Reservoir Street or Port Road and that makes it almost impossible to get out of Costco on a Friday afternoon. Now, with all this traffic comes more stoplights. It take almost 20 minutes for me to get to the Heritage Oaks Golf Course and I pass at least 12 stoplights when going to the JMU Theater or a football game.
The most insidious effect of this unbridled growth has been on real estate values. In 1976, I bought a small home for $11,000 but, because of growth, the next buyer of that home had to pay $32,000. In 1979, I bought a home in Fairway Hills for $75,000 but the poisonous effect of this growth has probably quadrupled that value by now as homes become more unaffordable.
Why can't Harrisonburg be more like Covington? This idyllic rural town has found a way to control growth. First of all, they don't have some big annoying university around and most of the businesses have shut down. There largest employer is a paper mill and even though it has more layoffs every year, it doesn't smell as bad as it use to. They have even found a way to reduce traffic and probably have fewer stoplights than 20 years ago. Best of all, they have been able to curb the rising value of real estate so well that you can still find a large selection of nice homes for less than $100,000.
What was I complaining about? Remember, I'm old and sometimes forgetful. Is it 4:30 yet?
Jim
Harrisonburg was such a perfect town before it got big. No shopping centers, strip malls, traffic and all these people in the check out line at WalMart. For most of the year, I go out of my way to avoid driving on Reservoir Street or Port Road and that makes it almost impossible to get out of Costco on a Friday afternoon. Now, with all this traffic comes more stoplights. It take almost 20 minutes for me to get to the Heritage Oaks Golf Course and I pass at least 12 stoplights when going to the JMU Theater or a football game.
The most insidious effect of this unbridled growth has been on real estate values. In 1976, I bought a small home for $11,000 but, because of growth, the next buyer of that home had to pay $32,000. In 1979, I bought a home in Fairway Hills for $75,000 but the poisonous effect of this growth has probably quadrupled that value by now as homes become more unaffordable.
Why can't Harrisonburg be more like Covington? This idyllic rural town has found a way to control growth. First of all, they don't have some big annoying university around and most of the businesses have shut down. There largest employer is a paper mill and even though it has more layoffs every year, it doesn't smell as bad as it use to. They have even found a way to reduce traffic and probably have fewer stoplights than 20 years ago. Best of all, they have been able to curb the rising value of real estate so well that you can still find a large selection of nice homes for less than $100,000.
What was I complaining about? Remember, I'm old and sometimes forgetful. Is it 4:30 yet?
Jim
Monday, November 15, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
The 5 and Dime - Only Ourselves to Blame
Just over a week ago, Harrisonburg citizens relinquished one of our most valuable players in helping the city to accomplish the optimum goals for the majority of the people. On November 2nd approximately 15,000 voters had the opportunity to support Carolyn Frank by continuing her position on City Council for another term, but we chose not to do so. Some citizens abstained from voting and, perhaps equally disheartening, some voted strictly party lines.
I can not profess to understand the reasoning, or perhaps lack thereof, but I can categorically state that we have greatly hindered our chances of success by losing a common sense, not for sale, tireless, warrior of a woman on Council. Carolyn never concerned herself with big money or a title. If the plan did not enhance the quality of life for the majority of the people, she did not support it. She continually fought to be a good steward of taxpayers' money and she stood up for what was right even in the face of having to stand isolated from all.
I could go on and on about the myriad activities and number of incredible improvements Carolyn has brought to our wonderful city but I won't. Leave it to say, the only judicious, well-grounded advocate who fought for our voices to be heard is now extinct from council and I am immensely grieved. I loath being called a naysayer but I imagine in the years to come many more of us will also be grieving and we will only have ourselves to blame.
I can not profess to understand the reasoning, or perhaps lack thereof, but I can categorically state that we have greatly hindered our chances of success by losing a common sense, not for sale, tireless, warrior of a woman on Council. Carolyn never concerned herself with big money or a title. If the plan did not enhance the quality of life for the majority of the people, she did not support it. She continually fought to be a good steward of taxpayers' money and she stood up for what was right even in the face of having to stand isolated from all.
I could go on and on about the myriad activities and number of incredible improvements Carolyn has brought to our wonderful city but I won't. Leave it to say, the only judicious, well-grounded advocate who fought for our voices to be heard is now extinct from council and I am immensely grieved. I loath being called a naysayer but I imagine in the years to come many more of us will also be grieving and we will only have ourselves to blame.
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