This was NOT an AHA moment.....

My almost 11 year old granddaughter came for a several day visit. I planned out a bunch of things to do that I thought would be fun cause I'm a trendy, modern grandma. Yeah, sure I am.

We have always approved of video games for the kids as long as they are played in moderation and are age appropriate. We have found that it promotes good reading and comprehension skills as well as focusing on the tasks at hand and carrying them out correctly. This means PAYING ATTENTION.

She brought her Xbox and a video game to play that had belonged to her older brother. The storyline of this game was great and soon I found myself immersed in the plot....as she played the game.  A few times I noticed that "hell" was used....like "get the hell out of here" but I let that slide. They hear worse on regular prime time TV now. You could chose male or female as the main character and we, of course, chose female. We were really getting a kick out of the fantastic feats our heroine was able to do.

I was beginning to feel a bit sleepy last night as she continued to play. As we were in my bedroom, playing in the TV in there, I was all comfy in bed watching her. I was just beginning to nod off when she asked me a question that caused my eyes to pop open....."grandma, what's a c0nd0m?"  Ahem....cough, cough....sorry, honey, what did you say?  She repeated it and it was what I thought she said the first time.  Oh brother!!!

Why do you ask I inquired sweetly.  She said....lookit....see here....it's for sale at the store in the game...it's the only thing I have enough gold to buy......as she clicks on it and purchases it.  Then she asked me again.

Now let me say right here that we have never been a family who have raised kids with fairy stories when it comes to the facts of life. None of this 'under the leaves in the cabbage patch' garbage.  We figure if a kid is old enough to ASK the question, they deserve an answer.....an accurate answer. We never go further though....just answer exactly what they ask and nothing more until they ask for more....which may be years away.  You never know.  So I felt compelled to tell her the truth yet I really didn't want to. This was supposed to be her mother's job.  RATS!!

Family tradition won out and I told her briefly what they were for. In the next frame of the video game THEY told almost word for word my own explanation. If she would have waited a few seconds, the GAME would have told her and she wouldn't have had to ask me. We are being replaced by video games!

But what I can't believe is that video game has a store in it .....era 1600 or thereabouts.....that sells c0nd0ms.  Another 20 minutes or so into the game and one of the characters talks, in passing conversation, about wanting to find some c0ncubines for sale. OMG.....thankfully granddaughter was talking and missed it.  This is a game that is supposedly suitable for PG13.  I'm not quite sure if I should be miffed that a game has such adult tones to it or should I be thankful that the creators are promoting safe sex.  Hmmmmm did they even HAVE such things in the 1600's?

Anyway we had a nice time together and grandma learned a thing or two.  sigh.

And every year they come.....

I heard them quite a while before they passed my place. They come every year, just like the migratory  birds. They pass my house in waves of probably 30 bikes to start, most with a double rider, each wave around a minute apart. There were more this year.....about 6 waves of them, the last waves more sparsely numbered. The rumbling from their powerful engines vibrate the floors of your home and you can shut your eyes and almost picture a gigantic herd of wildebeest thundering through your neighborhood.  Anything that numbers over a hundred can be quite intimating, no matter what it is.

They go to a gathering at a house halfway around the lake from me.  I've been here for forty years and they come every single year....for Memorial Day weekend. During this ceremony they honor their fallen comrades, among other things. I've gone past the house before when everyone had arrived and the event was in full swing. I honestly don't know where they put everyone as the house is just a regular house on a double lot.....but they manage.  And they never cause any problems. I suspect any troublemakers are handled within the club....privately and quietly.

There is a lot of fear that goes with motorcycles and their riders but the stories you hear are not always fact. These group of people can be very compassionate and generous to a good cause. My ex and I had road bikes (albeit much smaller than these huge hogs) and we rode for a couple years but were never into any gang other than friends and relatives who also enjoyed riding. He later opted for motocross racing and that was just too much for me so I chose the role of spectator.  We met a lot of biker people who are absolutely wonderful.  Yes, you have your bad apples no matter what.....but they aren't ALL bad.

Isn't that true of most everything.

And getting off topic here a bit.....as I left work on Friday I could hear calls of "Happy Memorial Day" being said to each other from the employees.  On the ride home I got to thinking.....HAPPY?  This is an oxymoron if ever there was one. I've NEVER had a HAPPY Memorial Day.  It's always been a day of sadness for me.....missing people who I loved and are no longer living. Maybe there is something wrong with my thinking......but like I told you before, my mind races in many directions.

Have a SAFE holiday.

Good grief.....I'm almost obsolete

Today at work one of our police officers (a baby) who has been with us for about four years came into my office to report that the cable back in the police department was no longer working.  I said maybe the company was having a problem as the fire department was out  as well.  I added that the cable in my office has never worked well. I said it was like viewing a TV that had reception from rabbit ears and all it's set on is the news..

Him:  I've never seen a TV with rabbit ears.
Me:   Well, the picture is all snowy and distorted.
Him:   oh....well, I guess I'm lucky then. LOL  I've only known cable.
Me:    Yep, once TV was free.....and really, the programs were pretty darn good.
Him:    Oh yeah.....I've heard about those old black and whites....like Mayberry.
Me:   Hmmmmm..... Ever played an 8 track tape?
Him;   nope
Me:   how about an LP record.
Him:   no
Me:   45?
Him:  gun?
Me:   No....a record.
Him:  ah, no  Well, I've got to get going, I've got warrants to swear to and get signed.
Me:   Ok, I'll make sure they hear about the cable.  In the meantime, Lord help me find some Geritol, I suddenly feel very old.
Him:   Geri.....what?
Me:    Oh nevermind.....go to court!

sigh

.

One thing after another.....

Call me a pessimist but I'm the type of person who never rejoices when things are going right. To me, it's like thumbing your nose at the Fates.....daring them to screw you up. So my life seems to be always waiting for that "other shoe to fall"....even when things are going right.

And things were going along pretty good for a while. I dared not let myself think about it. Then one morning I went out to start my car and noticed a humming noise. I thought it might be the radio but it wasn't. So I backed out of my driveway, went one and a half miles to a busy intersection and when the light turned and I attempted to turn.....I could barely turn the wheel.  My power steering was gone!  Well, crap!

So I drove to work.....6 miles from that point and figured that I was low on fluid.....but then wondered why and so I figured I must have a leak. Well, one thing led to another and when it was checked, it was a leak all right but not as simple as a hose. It was leaking down by the rack and pinion.....I think those are the right words. But nevertheless, it means a major repair, taking some time to do it.  My car has been at a friend's house for over a week while he looked for parts and then found time to work on it. He says I may have it back by Tuesday.....I certainly hope so.

Then my computer started acting up on me. Shockwave keeps crashing and I have NO idea why. I just have to reboot, which is a pain in the patootie.

Then yesterday it finally did warm up into the high eighties. It felt good, but was also humid, so I flipped on the central air. It is not working.  I wasn't even surprised.

Sigh.

I guess I watch too many movies.....

I got up this morning and did this and that....let the dog out in the back yard and made note of what a beautiful day it was going to be. I had my coffee, watched a little TV and then happened to glance out my front window. There was a pickup truck backed into my driveway......and as far as I could tell, there was no one in it.

This is not a picture of the actual truck or of my driveway either....I'm just using it to help you visualize.

Now my first thought was that it was my yard guy, but his truck is white. I looked outside anyway but didn't see a soul.  I went to the back deck and the same was true back there.  Hmmmmm

Now my imagination started up. What if it was stolen? Worse yet, what if there was a body inside?  Hmmmmm.  Maybe it was a drunk that couldn't make it home so he parked it.  But it's backed in....pretty good driving for a drunk. I tried to call my son and have him come over and investigate, but couldn't reach him. Twenty years ago I would have grabbed my gun and gone out there to check it out myself. But now, I'm not so spry anymore. I paced my living room and thought. Then decided that I'd wait for a little bit and see what happens.  I made another cup of coffee.

Then got to thinking again. It could have been there all night for all I knew....this was the first I'd noticed it, but that didn't mean that it hadn't been parked there for a long time.  So I called my neighbor who is a retired cop.  He came over with his phone in hand and we talked while he checked. He said no signs of anything weird inside. He didn't think it had been stolen as there was a GPS in it. No keys though.  He told me to call the local cops and have them check it out.

Now I'll have to say here that this vehicle was totally blocking me in. If I would have had to leave, there would have been no way I could get past this truck. So I waited about 10 more minutes, then called. They were pretty prompt and just as he was going to run the plate, a guy came running from straight across the street, saying it was his truck. He got in it, started it up and left post haste.

God, I hate wasting a cop's time like that.

Seems as though my neighbor had some mowers for sale and this guy just pulls into my driveway so he can check them out. Why he didn't pull into the guy's driveway who is selling the mowers is beyond me. Now, I felt kinda bad calling the law on the guy and now I've probably got a reputation as the neighborhood bitch..Then I figured....screw him...he could have told me he going to park there and it would have been fine and it wouldn't have freaked me out. But I guess he didn't care that he blocked me in while he perused the guy's mowers way behind his house......not to mention having me thinking there were 19 dead bodies in there to boot.

This is an example of how people are now. They think only one step at a time and don't stop to consider the consequences of their actions. A-hole.