On an abandoned building next to our local KFC is a sign that says, “Kabob Master, coming soon”. Of course, the sign had been there for a long time and there doesn’t seem to be any activity so I doubt that it is going to happen.

I wonder if they have a business plan?

The other weekend, Kathy was out working in the yard, when a large dog (lab?) came trotting into our yard. Since the dog had an electronic collar along with a red bandanna, we conclude that she must have escaped.

When I opened the sliding door to talk to Kathy about our new guest, the dog came over and stuck her nose in to sniff the cat. The cat, of course, was having a fit over the dog while the dog just wanted to be friends.

All of a sudden, the dog just pushed her way through the door and entered the house. The cat went ballistic and started howling and spiting at the dog. This, in turn, scared the dog who then took refuge on the sofa.

In an effort to calm the situation, I dispatched the cat to another room as she was only inflaming the situation. At this point in time, the dog decided to make a break for it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t for the open door. Instead, she decided to explore the house.

Of course Kathy, with her infinite ability to state the obvious, was instructing me to get the dog out of the house. No duh! The dog, however, had found that the chicken flavored cat food was pretty good stuff. And, in spite of the best efforts of myself and the cat, the dog wasn’t leaving.

Once the food was gone, the dog was ready to leave. With a gentle tug on her collar, and a few well placed spits from the cat, the dog left.

The dog hung around for a while playing in the creek but after about a half hour, she moved on. She was a very nice dog but way too active for our household.

The other day when I turned on my new PC, a warning banner from McAfee popped up on my screen telling me that my PC was in danger of a virus infection. It even went so far as to list some recent websites that I had visited. But, for $39.95, I could be protected.

Now, over the Christmas holidays, I received a similar invitation, which portrayed itself as a good guy, on a different PC. Unfortunately, it wasn’t and it wasn’t going to release my PC until I payed $49.95. After several days of work, I finally managed to get rid of it.

So, I had to decide; was this just an ad or was it malware? I tired to close the banner but there was no close button, only a “next”. I started to get a sinking feeling in my stomach. Next, I tried closing the tab. Success!!! I guess it was just an ad from McAfee trying to sell me “protection”.

First of all, I don’t appreciate McAfees sales tactics. If they want to use a pop up banner to sell me an upgrade, at least give me a button that says “no thanks”. While I was able to quickly figure out a solution, I am sure that there were others who paid the $39.95 just to get their PC back.

Second, I don’t appreciate McAfee spying on me. I make a special effort to eliminate all spyware as it really slows down my PCs. So, it irritates me to find out that my virus protection is spying on me.

The McAfee program came with my new PC. Once the free trial ends, I will be loading a different virus protection program on the machine.

Michigan, like many states, is being over run with feral hogs. The feral hog population is estimated to be around 12,000 and causes millions of dollars worth of damage each year to crops and farm land. And given that a pair of hogs can have 8 to 12 litters per year, they could easily over run the state in the next few years.

Well, the Governor of Michigan has just made it legal to shoot feral hogs. Now, farmers and sportsmen alike can harvest these beasts.

Of course, I doubt that most farmers considered it illegal to shoot feral hogs in the first place. After all, these pigs are not indigenous to the state so they shouldn’t fall under the jurisdiction of the state’s wild life and fisheries. Plus, any farmer whos crops are being destroyed by these hog would probably feel justified in shooting the buggers, law or no law.

And, lets not forget the myriads of deer hunters who thought that those porkers would be very tasty. I am sure that they didn’t think twice about bagging one.

All and all, I am glad that it is now legal to shoot the feral hogs. I just hope that the state doesn’t decide to declare hog hunting a sport and regulate it.

The restrooms at the office where I work are on opposites sides of the hallway. And while they are clearly marked on the side of the door way, women occasionally mistakenly walk into the mens restroom.

Invariably these women are talking on their cell phones or talking with other women. With their focus diverted, they don’t pay any attention to which door they are actually entering. Thus, they find themselves standing in the middle of the mens restroom with a bewildered look on their faces.

Well, apparently, there was one too many incursions into the mens restroom for the liking of one individual. He wrote “MEN” in big letters on a piece of printer paper and taped it to the door.

I don’t think that the sign was necessary. Them women are pretty fast at figuring things out.  Personally, I don’t care.  If women want to watch me use a urinal, more power to them.

The other day, I received a meeting request from a Senior Executive Management Assistant. Now, I had never heard of a Senior Executive Management Assistant. And, I was impressed with the title until I got to the “assistant” part.

First, there was the “Senior”. This was no “junior”, this was a “Senior”. Following that was “Executive”. Wow! This person person is an “Executive” no wait, a “Senior Executive”! Not only a “mover and shaker” but a Senior “mover and shaker”. Obviously, some one who has been around for a while and is in the “know”.

Following the “Senior Executive” was “Management”. “Management”!! Double WOW!! Definitely a leader! This is someone who is controlling the fate of the state, maybe even the nation!

Then there is the “assistant”. Assistant!? Wait, is this person then the “Senior Assistant” to the “Executive Management” or the “Assistant” to the “Senior Executive Management?”

Either way, at the meeting, this person was serving coffee. Titles are cheap.

We have our first “peeper” on our glass slider. Usually, we don’t see peeper until the end of May.

Peepers are tree toads. They show up on our glass slider, because they are after the bugs that the lights attract at night.

Last year, we didn’t see any. So, I am elated to see one.

I don’t get out much.

Last week, we had our first morel mushroom feast! We have lived here for 25 years and have only found 2-3 morels. Well, last week, we found eight of them growing in our flower garden in front of the house.

I don’t know why they were growing there, but they were tasty!

One of the women that I work with is going on a cruise. In her excitement she announced that next week she would be floating in the ocean. I replied that I hoped it was face up.

The Governor of Michigan appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show today and signed a bill banning ” texting while driving”. While I fully support the bill, I didn’t think that she needed to do it on a TV show.

If she had appeared on the show after signing the bill, that would have been different. But, to sign the bill on TV just wreaked of theatrics. After all, this is the kind of theatrics that Doctor Death, aka Jack Kavorkian, would have done.

As a potential Supreme Court Justice you would think that she would be more image conscious. Oprah? What’s next, The View?