I like swiss cheese but I usually only have it when I make an omelet. So, a package of swiss cheese lasts me a long time.

Today, as I was making an omelet, I got to thinking that I have had that package of swiss cheese for a long time. When I checked the expiration date on the package, I noted that it is over a year old and hasn’t spoiled. With our cheddar cheese, after a few weeks it starts growing mold. But the swiss seems to hold its own.

Given that the package is half gone, I suspect that I will get another years worth of omelets out of it.

My wife was in need of a band aid last night before bed. After she applied it, she was concerned that it might leak through on to the sheets. So, I suggested that she tape a gauze bandage over the top of it.

She got out the gauze bandage and the roll of tape only the discover that there was only about a two inch piece of tape left. Since we both knew that the piece of tape was not going to be enough to hold it in place, the only other option was duct tape.

The tape was crude but it did the job. The bandage stayed on until morning.

On our recent trip out east, we visited the Smithsonian Museum of American History. I was very disappointed.

We had visited the museum a few years back and were ecstatic about the place. In fact, we spent a whole day there. But this time, it was a half day at best.

I realize that museums change there displays from time to time but there was so much more to see in the old museum.  I guess they don’t want people to spend too much time there.

In the 20 some years that I have been driving to Lansing, I have seen my share of dead animals lying along side the expressway.  And, of course, the animals are pretty mangled, some to the point of no recognition.  That is, all except the raccoons.

For some reason, the raccoons seem to escape without being mangled.  They just lay along side the expressway perfectly intact, waiting to swell up like a football.  It is almost as if they get to the side of the expressway and then drop dead.

Maybe the expressway is like the elephant grave yard.  When the raccoon knows that it is going to die, it travels to the side of the expressway and then drops dead, like generations before him.

Or, maybe the carbon monoxide gets them.  After all, they are pretty low to the ground so they would get a good dose of the gas and not even know it.  They probably just start getting sleepy and then lay down for a little nap.  The next thing you know, they are gone.

Obviously, I have been making that drive for too many years.

My sister-in-law, Linda, sent over 3 large bags and one large box of stuff from my parents estate. And since my parents died over 10 years ago, this stuff has been sitting around for a while.

Most of the “stuff” are pictures and legal documents, which we are going through. But a part of the “stuff” was a fez. Apparently it from either my father or my uncle.

Anyway, I don’t know what to do with it. I know that my father was very proud of it so I guess I will just keep it and let my kids figure out what to do with it when we are gone.

It has been four weeks since the death of Micheal Jackson and he still hasn’t been buried!  Here is a clue folks, he isn’t getting better with age. In fact, he is probably starting to smell.  Pick a spot and get on with it.  It doesn’t really matter where you bury him, it will be turned into a shrine any way so just do it.

If you keep him much longer, he will look like one of the characters from “Thriller”.

When we recently checked into our motel, the room temperature was set to “warm”. Since the room was way too hot, we cranked the AC to the max and then left for several hours.

When we returned, the room was freezing! Of course!

When we set the temperature to “cold”, we don’t know just how cold it is going to get.  Nor do we know how long it will take to cool off the room so we just crank it to the max and hope for the best.

I understand that the temperature is turned up to save money, but if I crank the temp way too low, it is going to cost the motel money.

Since they know what room we are going to be staying in, maybe it would be cheaper to adjust our room temperature before we check in.  That way, we won’t be inclined to crank the AC.

It appears that the Fire Place Store has closed. When it first opened, it was selling fire places and hot tubs. Later, it took on a line of windows. Now, the place looks completely closed.

When the store first opened, I wonder just how successful it would be. After all, a fire place/hot tub store is not likely to fit well with Lowell. We even shopped there a few times but when they no longer carried what we needed, we started shopping on line.

It is sad to see another empty store in Lowell but if you don’t have a sound business plan, you are not going to make it.

As I was sorting through a box of “stuff” from my parents estate, I noticed what looked to be a pistol. I say “looked” because I wasn’t sure if it was real or a toy. It lacked a hammer so I suspected that it was not real. However, I soon discovered that there was an internal firing mechanism.

After further investigation, I found out that it was a 5 shot hammerless .38 made by the Iver Johnson Arms and Cycle Company. It was built between 1898 and 1909 which makes it an antique.

To my knowledge, my parents did not own a handgun so I was a bit confused as to where this thing came from. Then I happened to remember that the former owner of my parents business had a gun that she kept under the counter by the cash register. Given the age of the one that I found, it is, in all likely hood, that very gun. It must have been included in the sale of the business.

Along with the gun came a dixie cup full of .38 rounds. The rounds looked rather old and I think that they need to be disposed of.

I doubt that I will ever fire the gun since it has reached antique statue, but it is a conversation piece non the less.

BTW, the Iver Johnson company also made bicycles so I guess you had a choice between fight or flight.

The other day, as I was leaving work, I noticed an oxygen bottle standing upright in the middle of the lawn with no one attached to it. Now, this is the same type of oxygen bottle that the elderly pull behind them as they move from one slot machine to the next. I scanned the area quickly to see if there was anyone lying in the grass gasping for air but I saw no one. The next morning, it was gone so I don’t know if the owner reclaimed it or if someone stole it.