I have never seen Satan on Halloween.

Well another Halloween has come and gone and I for one am glad. When one has a young one the Halloween thing can get a little out of hand. How the hell does one carve a pumpkin to look like some character called "Vegeta?" I don't know and we did not try. Now I tend to think of Halloween as a harmless little demi holiday that is enjoyed mostly by children but there are those among us who read way too much into the whole thing and will be happy to tell you that it is a evening devoted to the worship of darkness. That sort of annoys me. I don't care what anyone believes in the religious context, (if one wants to handle snakes well knock yourself out), but I certainly have a problem when people get in your face with their various religious views.  I have noticed on more than one occasion that the more "way out" (and frankly ridiculous) some one's views are, the more likely they are to talk to you about them. I have a real problem with a little church broadcasting that Halloween is "evil" and "of the devil." It serves no purpose than to scare and confuse small children. I don't like that vato. I don't like that.

Rammstein - Ich Will Live at Nimes

Some more excellent rock n roll from Northern Europe. This particular band is Rammstein from Germany. They have been around for quite a while and are second to none in my humble opinion. They do not often tour the U.S. and that is a pity. They seem to be misunderstood here in the U.S. and some ignorant swine feel compelled to compare them to something unspeakable. That is ridiculous. They are not Landser after all. Don't know who Landser is? Look it up. These guys (Rammstein members) grew up in pre unification Eastern Germany and know a thing or two about totalitarianism. I believe that is true for all members of the band. At any rate, some of the most innovative rock music seems to come from this general area of Europe. It is interesting that the lead singer, Till Lindeman, was in his younger days, an Olympic hopeful (swimmer) for the now defunct GDR. On an interesting note; Michael Savage said that this was music to invade Iran with. I could not agree more.

Rock as was Intended

There is a forever it seems debate about the merits of the rock n roll of each generation. Of course it is common for many my age to say that real rock died around 1980 with the advent of "hair bands." I myself was never a huge fan of the hair bands, preferring skinny tie and punk at that time. However I have never jumped on the "our music was better" bandwagon. If one knows where to look and does a little bit of "research" one can find quality hard music from all eras. Behold "Children of Bodom," an excellent Northern European group that knows a bit about how to play rock n roll.

Singapore and "The Stick"

Well apparently there is another American that is in danger of getting spanked over there in Singapore for violating the law of the land. It has been reported that one Kamari Kenyada Charlton may get "caned" for overstaying a visa. I hope not. Caning seems to be a rather brutal practice but one must always remember to obey the law wherever they may be. Not every place is as "enlightened" as those of us in the West. Now if we in America spanked a few asses for violating immigration laws there might be a bit less of a problem here. Hmm perhaps they are onto something on that small island nation after all.

Poor Customer Service? I Will Call You On It!

I had been trying to get a printer delivered for days. Fedex left a note on my door showing that they had made a delivery attempt and that if I wanted the article left on my porch to just sign the said note. I did so and the next day no printer; just another note. Ok perhaps they did not see my signed ticket. Friday no note or ticket was left on the doorstep. No printer either. I checked their website and saw that a third delivery had been attempted. No so fast. I think that the Fedex person did not even stop by. Probably just entered the "third attempt/no delivery info" into their little hand held thingy and kept on trucking. Perhaps the driver was late for some afternoon delight or something. Who knows? I do know that no attempt was made. I was kinda annoyed to say the least. Ok so Saturday morning gave Fedex a call. There is a facility about 20 minutes away and I figured I would go pick it up. Well turns out that the printer was being held hostage at a facility approximately an hour drive away in Webster, TX, according to the Fedex website. I knew from the block number that this was not in Webster but in Houston almost in the little town of South Houston. Hell and gone from Webster. I figured the facility to be right across the street from Ellington Field which was hosting an airshow this weekend. I envisioned a traffic nightmare. This was about 11am and I could see watching college football playing second fiddle to going to pick up a printer that should have been delivered. Real annoyed now. In the car and off I went. Stopped by a Starbucks for a mocha to clear my head and continued my journey all the while fantasizing about what I was going to say to the poor clerk at the "depot." Finally made it about 1pm or so and the airshow was getting into full swing. Traffic sucked but not as bad a I thought it might. Went in to the little office and was greeted by a very very beautiful young African American woman who took my information and got the ball rolling. A couple of minutes later she came back and told me that it would be a bit; my printer was on a trailer. I wondered where the trailer may have been headed but I had to whizz so bad that I just asked if I could borrow the facilities instead. Besides by now I was enamored with this pretty lady especially when she bent over and I saw this cutesy tattoo on her lower back. Her bottom was a pretty site also I must say. Downright pretty. The song Black Metallic by Catherine Wheel began to play in my head. Have I gone too far here? Anyway by now another man had come into the little lobby with his wife in tow. As a student of human nature I kept an eye on the guy to see if he would notice how beautiful the Fedex lady was. Of course he tried not to glance but glance he did. I caught him red handed. His wife did not seem to notice. They were an older couple and probably she did not much care anyway. "Let the old fart steal his little glances" was probably her attitude about it. Or so I would guess. It was a pretty interesting little scenario. Well after about fifteen minutes someone arrived with my printer. I was rather content now and no longer in the mood to bitch about the poor service so much. Funny how you feel much better after a good whiz.  I certainly was not going to give that lovely lady a hard time. Especially after she let me in to pee in the employee restroom. Nope I just chalked it up to another one of life's little irritations and went on my way. I also got to watch a bit of the airshow from the parking lot of the facility without paying admission to the air field. That was cool. I must say that those powers that be in Iran still do not seem to know who they are jacking with. Some of the military equipment flying around there was downright amazing. Beautiful lethality is the phrase that crossed my mind.
Well I did miss some college ball I wanted to watch and did have to take a rather long drive but all in all the day was not a total wash out. I am still calling Fedex out for poor service however. They should correct the address on their website to at least read the right city and they should probably audit their drivers performance a bit more. I know damn good and well the lazy prick (or prickess) did not attempt to make a third delivery. I also must add that I never have had this type of issue with UPS. If I have a choice in the matter, I will not use Fedex again.

Nina Hagen - Ziggy Stardust [Live 1980]

This one brings back memories. I was introduced to Nina Hagen while in Guantanamo Bay for "RefTra" by a nameless German sailor from the FGS Rommel. This was in 82 or 83. I am a fan still. My ex wife hated her music. I got rid of her but kept Nina. It was the right choice. Who says you don't soak up a little culture in service to the nation?

Alleged Cab Drivers Killers Caught

I have just been informed by Mike at acopswatch.blogspot.com that two people have been apprehended in the slayings of Houston cabbies Blaize Uzoma Nwokenaka and Mohammed Nabiil Elsyayed.  I may perhaps have met Mohammed once. I attended a class with a guy that would be about his age. Not sure if it was the same person. I did not know Blaize. Blaize was apparently shot and then his cab set on fire while he was strapped in the driver seat. Mohammed was apparently shot and his body dumped in a ditch. Horrible. I myself don't drive near as much as I used to and for good reason. Shame. It is enjoyable work (to me)for the most part. The danger is there though. Thoughts and prayers to the families of Mohammed and Blaize. While it won't bring these men back home to those that love them, I must say that I hope that the alleged vermin, one Chaz Omar Blackshear and his female accomplice, a Danielle Rene Hudson, pay the ultimate price for their senseless brutality. Rest in Peace Blaize and Mohammed.