Well it's Friday and the weather forecast is for cold and rainy. I suppose that is good because the next time we have good weather on a weekend, I have to work on my patio and that involves digging in red Alabama clay.
Pray for lots of rain on the weekends.
posted by Larry at 9:14 AM
Another day, another dollar or something like that. My most recent count is that we are waiting on an even half dozen contracts to be announced. I really do want to win our first contract competitively awarded contract.
Until now, we have worked as a subcontractor on already awarded contracts and I don't think we will be firmly established until we win a direct award.
This is so much fun!
posted by Larry at 1:05 PM
I believe the "ports" controversey is the result of an underlying uneasiness with the way we have approached the "war on terror" or the "long war" as the Pentagon has now decided to call it. The average simple America looks back on 9/11 and sees an attack on our counrty carried out by folks from several Arab nations but primarily from Saudi Arabia and the UAE. But that's not who we are at war with.
There appears to be ample evidence that Bin Laden received and continues to receive financial support from our "allies". I remember that the Saudi ambassador's wife had sent money to at least one of the hijackers. The whole thing stinks to high heaven when looked at from an old country boy's point of view.
But the President spoke on TV a few days after the attacks and made it clear that we are not at war with Islam. That is not at all clear to the simple Americans I talk with. Aside from the ones such as my brother who refer to Bush as "your President", most of the people I know really want to support the President and to believe what he tell them. Unfortunately, they also see Moslems rioting over cartoons and killing Christians merely for being Christians. The Moslem world is not playing to the average American's concerns.
Then along come the ports story and it doesn't make sense. Even if you aren't concerned by an Arab nation running the ports, you should ask why hasn't the administration been on the phone hourly with Congressional leaders explaining the deal. How could they be so obtuse as to not see this coming.
I think the President takes too much pride in "not following the polls" or he would have known that although he may trust certain Islamic nations, the average American does not.
Ironically, the Republicans may lose the House this Fall because of this. My guess is Frist's and Hastert's phones, email and fax machines are smoking from the reaction to this and they see the Democrats getting to their right on the most important issue we have as a nation. To have a Republican Congressman say he has a veto proof vote on the one issue a Republican President says he will veto in six years is astounding indicates either total tone deafness or extreme arrogance---or both.
Mr. Cheney has made it clear that he believes the President is the first among equals in the three branches of government.
He may just find that not to be true.
I predict that this Fall, the American people will decide that a split government is not a bad thing.
posted by Larry at 10:19 AM
Well, I have a new heat pump. It is a tiny unit about 1/4th the volume of the old one. This one seems to work.
Got a call from my daughter around noon today. Her Mother-in-law is not expected to live through the night. She has liver, pancreatic and several other cancers and apparently, her kidneys have shut down.
If I am missing for a few days, I'll be in Colorado.
posted by Larry at 2:25 PM
It seems that every time it get really cold, (20 degrees for all y'all farther North) I have trouble with one of my heating units. The people who built my house and who originally lived here, put in two smaller units, one for downstairs and one for up. The upper unit is a split unit which means there are several feet of pipes going from the compressor to the in-house portion and I think it leaks the refrigerant. Each time this happens, I vow to have it checked regularily and then I don't.
I thinkI'll have Lee put it on her calendar. Nothing on that calendar ever gets skipped.
Addenda: Bad compressor! Oh well, so much for saving money this month. The old retirement program takes another step back.
posted by Larry at 12:22 PM
