On Their Way

Well, the Raiders ruined their perfect record and actually won a game. I'm cetain with the way my luck runs, that they are going to win just enough games that they'll screw up their position in the draft.

The Bears had a bye, so the games yesterday didn't mean to much, although the Giants-Cowboys game tonight should be fun with both teams at 3-2.

Silly

This is just silly, but it got me laughing...and don't think the German's (I believe this is German) don't have a sense of humor. This is a slow loader at the home site, so it may take a bit.

I Thought It Might Of Been Me

For most of the game last night, I was afraid that I was going to have the whole town of Chicago trying to hunt me down and kill me.

It almost seemed like I had brought a curse on the Bears by picking them as the team I will root for to bet the the Super Bowl. I know the Cardinals aren't as bad as their record, but I never would have dreamed that the game could have gone like it did. I was just about ready to shut the TV off and go to bed when the Bears had their rally.

Anyway, I feel safe for another two weeks, as Chicago has a bye next week, then have to play the 2-4 49ers at home.

Raiders Maintain Their Perfect Record

The only thing wrong is they've got the numbers on the wrong sides of the hyphen. 0-5. God, how things have changed in a few years. Ever since the playoff game against the Patriots in 2001. I felt then that that was going to be the last Super Bowl chance for a while for the Raiders, they were old and weren't likely to be able to hold it together for another year.

A rebuilding was due, but because of that loss, they tried to stick it out longer by bringing in more old players to fit into the system quckly. It didn't work and I'm paying for it now.

I'm resigned to one of those periods like the Packers went through from their glory days in the '60's till they aquired Farve and bult a team around him in the mid '90's.

Here's hoping I'm not going to be in my 80's when the Raiders field a winning team again.

Oh, and congrats to GuyK and his Bucs for winning one.

Military Capability

I've been hearing a lot over the weekend about the military capability of the United States. The consensus has been that we do not have enough to handle the problems that are facing us.

The fact that everyone overlooks is that we could handle all the problems, simultaneously, in any way we choose. We can pursue peace, or we could just make you not a problem.

The small detail that we could wipe out the entire planet and still have military capability left over seems to be dropped from the equation of what is going on.

If we really wanted Mid-east oil to fuel our military industrial complex and to keep the sheeple happy, we could take it today, and nobody could stop us.

However, the world would rather listen to the "dignitaries" from the NKPR or Iran about our country dreaming of an empire.

Our culture may be taking over the world, but that is a choice, but we have not added one square foot of territory to the United States by hook or crook, so you can just bite my ass about the "Imperilalistic American Agenda".

If I was you, I would pray we wanted your country, which we don't, cause, if we really did, you would be gone by now.

Floriduh!

I know, with where I live I shouldn't be besmirching other states...but, why does it seem that just about every nutso news story nowadays seem to be emanating from the Sunshine State? All the sensless murders, car chases and whatever has outpaced California and, if this keeps up, will make us look like a run of the mill state.

You know what, you guys are welcome to it. If we can just get rid of the 9th Curcuit (although that encompasses more than California), we could drop off the news altogether.

On Being republican in California

I registered Republican in '79. I have never received anything from the GOP in the mail outside of a few mailers from some of the local races.

My son just registered as Republican and has received nothing from the GOP.

My wife who is Democrat, and hadn't registered to vote until she was in her 40's (sorry, the ragging about her opinion didn't count cause she didn't vote backfired on me) gets at least 2 mailers or letters per day.

We can elect a Repub governor, but "my" party is so convinced that this state is a lost cause that they will not invest any money is trying to get their message out, even to those of us that could help them bring sanity to this state. They are so convinced that Feinstein and Boxer cannot be challenged on their respective dismal records, that there is no use in even trying to do battle with their socialist platforms.

I wonder why I even bother to vote for the Statewide positions. If the GOP has given up on California, why should I bother to fight for it?

I will continue the fight, but it sure would be nice tho have alittle backing of the party.

I Feel a Burst coming On

After a week of hell on my graveyard shift, I have a few things stored up. Get ready for some rapid fire posts that have been building up.

Switching Teams

Well, I've finally gotten over my depression regarding the Raiders season. It took me an extra day after I heard one of the after game analysts say that the Raiders had to be that worst team in sports, not just football, all sports, and I had to agree.

How they can come out a play a good game for the first half, then go in at half time, make adjustments and come out so inept in the second half is sickening.

I'll still watch any Raider game on TV and root for them, but this is another of those years where breaking .500 is a victory, and I'll be amazed if they make that.

So the team that I'm going to support for the Super Bowl is the Chicago Bears. What I've seen of them this year, they have the tools, a defense that won't let anything go unchallenged and an offense that can put lots of points on the board.

Another reason is I have two friends, one a Viking fan and the other a die-hard Packer fan and this will give me a good chance to needle them without mercy, being they'll each have to play Chicago twice.

PO'd

I haven't been here in a while because I was working days. My company was supposedly going to start production, but that's off. My job over the last week was to haul solidified chunks of rotarty mud out of the cellar (16 steps), I've got weak knees and multiple trips up and down these stairs are wearing. By the time I get on-line and visit my regular sites, I'm just to burned out to care about posting.

I've written before that the production site I work at has been down for quit a while now. We have gotten the okay to start up the site again, with some limits, once we get an injection well operating. I've still got all my vacation time and was told to use some of it before we started up, so I put in for weeks worth.

Turns out the time I put in for coincided with the go ahead date given us by the State. My vacation was cancelled, and due to not getting the work done on the well that we need to inject our production water, we haven't started up either. Now I can't take vacation because the foreman is taking his vacation, and probably won't be able to take mine because when he gets back, we are into the holiday season and off time is restricted.

On top of this, last night, when I got to work I was informed that I was to go to our other site (23ed) and work there. I was originally hired to operate that site and worked there for about four months, but because of some politics, I got sent to the site I work now (Broadway). I didn't really care outside of the first site had just been gone through and had all updated equipment and the site I ended up at had by-passed just about every piece of automated equipment.

In the three years since I last worked at 23ed, the guys working there have abused all the equipment and the place is a mess. Equipment is bypassed, tanks have been run over (and were running over when I showed up last night) and equipment and procedures have been changed.

At 9:30 PM, I'm getting a tour and rundown on what has to be done. It's dark and not incredibly well lit, so I'm trying to figure out how everything ties together without being able to trace the piping from one vessel to another. On top of this I'm being told that some alarms may go off, but if it's this or that, don't worry, it isn't important.

I'll be honest and state that retirement is my goal. I love to work, but I would rather do it on my schedule, what I want done, when I want to do it. On my last job, I didn't mind the 12 to 16 hour days, because I thought the owners were serious about trying to keep the company going, turns out I was wrong, but I loved the job and I was willing to put in the effort.

The company I work for now seems to have no plan. Work on a well, hit a problem, stop and go to another well, hit a problem, repeat. Nothing gets fixed and no long range planning. We've had 8 months to fix (from what I'm learning now) anywhere from 5 to 18 years of neglect, I don't expect it all to be done right now, but the owner seems to be thrashing about trying to find the easiest way to get back to production, and it ain't working. We are no closer to starting up now than we were five months ago.

I'm pissed and I'm tired. Usually going to a new site would invigorate me with a challege, but this time I'm just fed up.