DL/LL Digital Media Veteran’s Day 2015 Special Edition

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You find yourselves in the unfamiliar position of having to quietly sit talking among yourselves while waiting on Lethal who is rarely if ever late for the issue’s presentation. Even Diaman and Ginny seem to know nothing regarding the cause of the delay when queried.

This has given you time to note the many extra unfilled seats in areas of the room, patron’s and general seating. The staff and CyberLethals have been polite but insistent that the first two seats in every row remain empty in accord with their instructions from Lethal.

Suddenly the sounds of a band striking up a march enters the conference room, both from the hall and from the speakers about the room as the screens become live showing a long shot of the empty hallway leading to the conference room. Now in addition to the band you hear an upwell of voices, male and female united as one calling out loud and proud in a cadence:

The Warrior Song

 

As the cadence starts you see an honor guard followed by flags begin to appear from a side hall 3 flags flank each side to the Stars & Stripes, one each for the 5 Branches of the armed services and the black and white flag honoring our POW/MIAs. Directly behind them leading a host of Veterans 4 abreast each proudly marching to the best of is ability and/or disability are two grizzled but somehow vaguely familiar figures, one a Marine Officer, one an Air Force NCO.

As the color guard enters the room the Air Force NCO barks out the order, “Color Guard! Wheel Right…WHEEL!” The right side man marks time in place turning slight with each step and the left side man slowly begin a swing to the right. Once they are in prefect line abreast again they flawlessly still in synchronized step once again begin moving forward. This repeats with precision as each set of flags enters the room followed by the the Officer and NCO who after making his turn calls out again in a loud voice “COLUMN! Right Wheel Turn… WHEEL!” The same flawless execution is performed by the Veteran’s whom you see are dressed in all manner of garb.

Some wear khakis, white shirts and ties appropriate to their branch of service along with blue blazers and overseas caps denoting them as members of a specific post of the VFW. Others wear their dress uniforms to various degrees, some are simply in slacks and sport coats whose lapels bear American Flags and the Insignia of their Service Branch. Other wear the BDU of activity duty service men and women. There are more than a smattering of medals worn on uniforms, ribbons about necks or small depictions pinned to lapels on these people.

Finally there are those veterans of a different breed. These are dressed in denim, heavy boots, T-shirts of various Patriotic messages or in support/reminding us of our POW and MIAs over which  vests are worn. Many of these grizzled vets sport long hair and/or beards, Tattoos with the names of unpronounceable locations and dates from the 60s & 70s many of their vest announce their affiliation with motorcycle groups, some even the Patriot Guard. Most of these men have one thing in common, a haunted look in their eyes speaking to some unknown horror they have witnessed and will never stop seeing in their minds, the look their brothers call ‘the thousand yard stare.’

As you have been taking all this in the Color Guard has marched to its position in front of the stage now flanked to either side by the Honor Guard, As the first of the Column of Veterans arrive at the head of the seating area the Air Force NCO (whom you begin to suspect of having eyes in the back of his head) again bellows out a rapid fire set of orders which are instantly obeyed: “DETAIL! HALT!…Detail- ATTEN-SION! REN-DER HON-ORS!” Crisp salutes are snapped and held while tears mist in some of the Vets eyes and a few throats are cleared as all the service flags and the POW/MIA flag dip in honor of the American flag before the NCO again speaks “Two! DETAIL! PUH-RAID REST!” Moving as one and sound as one giant boot. the vets assume a more relaxed posture, feet shoulder with apart, hands crossed at the small of their back.

The Officer and NCO now salute each other then split heading for the stairs at each end of the stage and momentarily disappear behind the curtains at either side of the stage. However instead of reappearing at the podium it is the familiar figures of Lethal Leprechaun and Impish Dragon who emerge seconds later from behind the curtains to stand at the podium. They both gaze proudly our from the stage misty eyed each issuing nods of recognition to certain individuals as eyes meet before Impish calls out “AT EASE! Be seated”

Lethal steps to the podium and begins:

Ladies & Gentleman of the readership, my brothers and sisters in arms,

The term ‘Ex-soldier’ is a gross misnomer we have been led to buy into by our Government and especially the liberals who would have us all caged behind a sign reading “Break Glass Only in Case of War.  Well I stand here to tell you that:

There is no such thing as an ‘Ex-soldier’.

That title and our ranks are EARNED by us, never just given to us and what you earn is yours FOREVER. Our government knows this but prefers we didn’t or at least didn’t believe in it and the oath we took for it so deeply. THAT is why they fear us, want us disarmed using any feint that can come up with, and why under the ‘Napolitano Doctrine of Homeland Security’ they label us ‘Potential Homegrown Domestic Terrorists.

However we soldiers took a sacred oath. We swore to protect and defend the United States of America against ALL enemies, foreign AND DOMESTIC. While today is about honoring and supporting those who served and those who presently serve, it is also a chance for Veterans to come together to remind our Government that they only Govern us at the sufferance of WE THE PEOPLE, that their might is in actual fact OUR might. That our Founding Fathers INTENDED that the Government fear us, to prevent the sort of Big Brother Tyranny we slide presently closer to with each day.

It is about sending them the message that we answered a call to arms once and we can again if they make it necessary for us to do so to keep our sacred oaths.

Ladies and gentleman of the readership, I ask you to stand and join with me in applauding these Veterans and thanking them for their Sacrifice and Service. God Bless them and keep them safe from harm and God Bless the United States so that they may never have the cause to keep their oaths domestically.

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Ladies and Gentleman- Please put down your mugs and stand for our National Anthem, that for which our Veterans have stood for, stood by and stand for, sung by a Veteran.

National Anthem, Full Version! Four Verses, Lewis Shaeffer

 

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This is one of the very few times a year that you will see anything in one of my issues come before coffee. That alone should demonstrate the level of  reverence for  and depth of love I hold for  our country.

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Yesterday marked the 240th Birthday of the United State Marine Corps

 

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smile.amazon.com – Wounded warrior support

AmazonSmile

What is AmazonSmile?

AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support your favorite charitable organization every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to your favorite charitable organization. You can choose from nearly one million organizations to support.

 

How do I shop at AmazonSmile?

To shop at AmazonSmile simply go to smile.amazon.com from the web browser on your computer or mobile device. You may also want to add a bookmark to smile.amazon.com to make it even easier to return and start your shopping at AmazonSmile.

 

Which products on AmazonSmile are eligible for charitable donations?

Tens of millions of products on AmazonSmile are eligible for donations. You will see eligible products marked “Eligible for AmazonSmile donation” on their product detail pages. Recurring Subscribe-and-Save purchases and subscription renewals are not currently eligible.

 

Can I use my existing Amazon.com account on AmazonSmile?

Yes, you use the same account on Amazon.com and AmazonSmile. Your shopping cart, Wish List, wedding or baby registry, and other account settings are also the same.

 

How do I select a charitable organization to support when shopping on AmazonSmile?

On your first visit to AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), you need to select a charitable organization to receive donations from eligible purchases before you begin shopping. We will remember your selection, and then every eligible purchase you make at smile.amazon.com will result in a donation.

 

Can I change my charity?

Yes, you can change your charity any time. Your AmazonSmile purchases after the change count towards your newly selected charity. To change your charity, sign in to smile.amazon.com on your desktop or mobile phone browser and simply select “Change your Charity” in “Your Account.”

What charities can I choose from?

You can choose from almost one million eligible 501(c)(3) public charitable organizations.

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Get it straight: The difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day

(CNN)We are here to make sure you don’t embarrass yourself.

Inevitably, someone says something demonstrating confusion over the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day. Allow us to explain it to you.

Memorial Day: Celebrated the last Monday in May, Memorial Day is the holiday set aside to pay tribute to those who died serving in the military.

The website for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs recounts the start of Memorial Day this way:

“Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.”

The passage of the National Holiday Act of 1971 by Congress made it an official holiday.

    Veterans Day: This federal holiday falls on November 11 and is designated as a day to honor all who have served in the military. According to Military.com, Veterans Day began as Armistice Day to honor the end of World War I, which officially took place on November 11, 1918.

    “In 1954, after having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress — at the urging of the veterans service organizations — amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word “Armistice” and inserting the word “Veterans,” the site says. “With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.”

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    A joint service color guard sets the POW/MIA table during Eglin’s POW/MIA remembrance ceremony

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    For those who cannot read the print on the graphic:

    This table is our way of symbolizing that members of our profession of arms are missing
    from our midst. They are commonly call POW’s or MIA’s We call them brothers.
    They are unable to be with us and so we remember them.

  • This table set for one is small… it symbolizes the frailty of one prisoner against his oppressors.
  • The table cloth is white… it symbolizes the purity of their intentions to respond to their country’s
    call to arms.
  • The single rose displayed in a vase reminds us of the families and loved ones of our comrades
    in arms who keep faith awaiting their return.
  • The red ribbon tied so prominently on the
    vase is reminiscent of the red ribbon worn on the lapel and breasts of
    thousands who bear witness to their unyielding determination to demand
    a proper accounting for our missing.
  • A slice of lemon is on the bread plate…to remind us of their bitter fate.
  • There is salt upon the bread plate… symbolic of the family’s tears as they wait.
  • The glass is inverted… they cannot toast with us tonight.
  • The chair is empty… they are not here. Remember… all of you who served with them and called them comrades, who depended on their might and aid, and relied on them…
    for surely… they have not forsaken you.

     

    240 years of Army uniforms in 2 minutes

     

    Military Scholarships for Spouses and Children | Folds of Honor

    https://www.foldsofhonor.org/

     

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    The iconic 93-foot-high (28 m) lighthouse-like Massachusetts Veterans War Memorial Tower.

    Massachusetts Veterans War Memorial Tower. Mt. Greylock

    The Veterans War Memorial Tower was approved by the state legislature in October 1930, supported by Senator Theodore Plunkett of Adams and Governor Frank G. Allen. A war memorial had been proposed as early as 1918 for Boston’s Charles River Basin; other proposed locations included Beacon Hill and Copley Square. After more than a decade of debate, Mount Greylock was selected as the site for the monument. It was designed by Boston-based architects Maginnis & Walsh, and built by contractors J.G. Roy & Son of Springfield in 1931-32 at a cost of $200,000. It takes the form of a perpetually lighted beacon to honor the state’s dead from World War I (and subsequent conflicts). The light was at the time the strongest beacon in Massachusetts, with a nighttime visible range of up to 70 miles.

    The architectural design of the tower, a 93-foot (28 m) tall shaft with eight frieze-framed observation openings, was intended to have no suggestion of Utilitarianism but instead to display classic austerity. It includes some minor Art Deco details such as the decorative eagle on the base which were designed in part by John Bizzozero of Quincy, Massachusetts [Bizzozero also designed details on the Vermont Capitol building]. Inside it is a domed chamber for a reverential shine that was intended to store tablets and war relicts from wartime units in the state’s history.

    Although local legislators and residents advocated for local stone to be used, it was ultimately quarried from Quincy Granite. In part, it bears the inscription “they were faithful even unto death.” One of the inscriptions inside the monument is, “Of those immortal dead who live again in the minds made better by their presence”, which is a line from a poem by George Eliot. The translucent globe of light on top, originally illuminated by twelve 1,500 watt lights (now six), is said to be visible at night for 70 mi (110 km). The formal dedication ceremony on June 30, 1933 by Governor Joseph B. Ely was attended by about 1,500 and broadcast nationally over NBC radio.

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    ‘Til the Last Shot’s Fired – Trace Adkins

     

    New law ensures no Military working dog will be left behind. Ever

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    More than 2,000 dogs currently serve in the U.S. Military. Each military dog saves the lives of countless servicemen and women while overseas. In the not too distant past, military working dogs were left on foreign soil, never to be reunited with their human partners or home itself. As a result, many still believe that such practices are common, though that’s not the case.

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    Technically speaking, if dogs are retired overseas, they become civilians and are no longer qualified to travel home on military vehicles. Fortunately, it’s not common practice to retire dogs overseas.

     

     

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    To prevent such unreformed policy from ever presenting such problems to military pups, Congress drafted some new legislation. On Oct. 7, the National Defense Authorization Act passed the House and Senate. This bill includes language supported by the American Humane Association mandating military working dogs be returned to U.S. soil upon retirement. Even further, the dogs’ handlers and families will have the first right of adoption.

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    Thousands of veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress when coming home from war, and the dogs aren’t excluded from this.

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    Keeping military dogs with their handlers allows them to help each other heal.

     

     

     

     

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    The bill now awaits the president’s signature and we are certain this bill will become law, because we all want every single one of our veterans, including the furry kind, to be brought home to love, respect and admiration.

     

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    Greenlight A Vet

    Green is the color of hope, renewal and well-being. “Greenlight” is also a term commonly used to activate forward movement. The simple action of changing one light to green is intended to spark a national conversation regarding the recognition of veterans, and “greenlight” them forward as valued members of our communities.

     

    http://www.greenlightavet.com/

     

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    Honoring and Understanding Our Veterans

    In the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, more than 2.5 million U.S. men and women have been deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. Over 7,000 have lost their lives. Those who have returned pay other costs. They struggle to process their wartime experience, recover from profound losses, and reintegrate into civilian life.

    War Ink emerged out of a need to recognize veterans’ service and sacrifices and to bridge the divide between the veterans and civilian communities. This is both exhibit and forum, using tattoos as a springboard for California veterans to share their stories. Stark, beautiful, disturbing, and often darkly humorous, these tattoos are visual expression of memories and emotions that can be difficult to discuss openly.

    http://www.warink.org/

    Ronald Reagan A Soldiers Pledge – Listen Learn Remember

     

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    The only problem I have with this is that its not just limited to the Vietnam. It’s true of every war we’ve fought from at least the First World War on if not before.

    Not-everyone-in-60s-wore-love-beads_

     

    Sgt. Glenn Fleming, USAF (Ret.)

    Frank Cento’s third documentary for the Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes centers around Sgt. Glenn Fleming. After reaching his lifelong goal of being a helicopter gunner in the Air Force, he proceeded to fly over 120 successful missions for the global war on terrorism without injury. He also married Jamie and the future looked bright. Then life took a drastic turn when he was diagnosed with PTSD and had to stop flying and leave the military. Both were jobless and close to bankruptcy when the recession hit. A friend told them about the Coalition and they reached out for a helping hand .

     

    Some of you might recognize Sgt. Glenn Fleming from his stint on the reality TV show Sons of a Gun about Red Jacket Firearms where he was employed as a Gunsmith and Welder.

  • Thanks to Ginny for sending me this.

     

    The Lyrics:

    We sing songs about our freedom
    We always keep them in our prayers
    We wave our flags and bow our heads
    Support our Soldiers over there
    But all across this nation
    Probably right in your home town
    There’s a group of weary Soldiers
    With their world turned upside down
    We asked them for their lives and they agreed
    Now their asking for the benefits
    That they thought were guaranteed
    We sent them off to fight on foreign shores
    But now they’re casualties of a bureaucratic war
    With every flag draped procession
    With every tear and every prayer
    We remember those who gave their lives
    For every battle we declare
    But all across our nation
    Probably right in your hometown
    There’s a group of broken Heroes
    Because their country let them down
    We asked them for their lives and they agreed
    Now their asking for the benefits
    That they thought were guaranteed
    We sent them off to fight on foreign shores
    But now they’re casualties of a bureaucratic war
    We sent them off to fight on foreign shores
    Hey America
    Let’s give our Veterans something more.

     

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    Well OK- sometimes we wear ponchos and those are a little like capes

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    We honor those people that serve and protect our country, and we know that without the men and women who watch out for us, we would not have any of the luxuries we do. We are the land of the free because of the brave and we salute you!

     

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    Vietnam Wall

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    First click on a state.  When it opens, scroll down to the city and the names will appear.  Then click on their names.  It should show you a picture of the person, or at least their bio and medals.

    This really is an amazing web site.  Someone spent a lot of time and effort to create it.

    I hope that everyone who receives this appreciates what those who served in Vietnam sacrificed for our country.

    The link below is a virtual wall of all those lost during the Vietnam war with the names, bio’s and other information on our lost heroes.  Those who remember that time frame, or perhaps lost friends or family can look them up on this site.  Pass the link on to others, as many knew wonderful people whose names are listed.

    http://www.virtualwall.org/iStates.htm

     

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    This was sent to me last week and given the timing I couldn’t help including it here.

    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1173959689286577&set=a.167490413266848.47578.100000176705472&type=3

    While “Cleaning of the Stones” at the National Cemetery in Holly. I noticed a quarter placed on one of the stones. Later I also noticed a nickel placed on another,stone, I was so touched with this that I took pictures. (sorry the nickel did not turn out) I Goggled about the coins, and found this out. I am very proud to share this.

    A coin left on a headstone lets the deceased soldiers family know that somebody stopped by to pay their respect. Leaving a penny means you visited.

    A nickel means that you and the deceased soldier trained at boot camp together. If you served with the soldier, you leave a dime. A quarter is very significant because it means that you were there when that soldier died.

    I AM VERY PROUD TO SHARE THIS.

    I’m sorry whom ever originally wrote this bit of fiction was proud to share it because frankly he’s proud of his lie.

    From Snopes [ http://www.snopes.com/military/coins.asp ]:

    Regarding the ‘tradition’ of soldiers leaving on the headstones of fallen comrades varying denominations of coins to denote their relationship with the deceased, the earliest reference to this practice we’ve found so far dates only to June 2009, when it appeared as a web site post. The version now commonly circulated in e-mail appears to have been drawn from it, albeit some changes have slipped in, such as “A buddy who served in the same outfit, or was with the deceased when he died, might leave a quarter” becoming “By leaving a quarter at the grave, you are telling the family that you were with the soldier when he was killed.”

    Despite the claim of this tradition’s dating back to the days of the Roman Empire, there’s no reason to suppose that it does. A coin might be placed in the mouth of a fallen Roman soldier (to get him across the River Styx), but his comrades wouldn’t be leaving their money on his grave, but rather expending it on a funeral banquet in his honor.

    Given the lack of evidence that anyone anywhere is following this ‘tradition,’ it is perhaps best regarded not as an actual practice, but instead as someone’s idea of what should be.

    Yet military folk do sometimes leave very special remembrances at the graves of deceased servicemen: challenge coins. These tokens identify their bearers as members of particular units and are prized and cherished by those to whom they have been given; thus any challenge coins found at gravesites were almost certainly left there by comrades-in-arms of the deceased.

     

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    Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue – Toby Keith

     

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    Ode of Remembrance

    The “Ode of Remembrance” is an ode taken from Laurence Binyon’s poem, “For the Fallen“, which was first published in The Times in September 1914.

    For the Fallen was specifically composed in honor of the casualties of the British Expeditionary Force, which by then already suffered severely at the Battle of Mons and the Battle of the Marne in the opening phase of the war on the Western Front. Over time, the third and fourth stanzas of the poem (usually nowadays just the fourth) have been claimed as a tribute to all casualties of war, regardless of state, and it is this selection of For the Fallen to which the term “Ode of Remembrance” usually refers.

    The “Ode of Remembrance” is regularly recited at memorial services held on days commemorating World War I, such as ANZAC Day, Remembrance Day, and Remembrance Sunday. In Australia’s Returned and Services Leagues, and in New Zealand’s numerous RSAs, it is read out nightly at 7 p.m., followed by a minute’s silence. In Australia and New Zealand it is also part of the Dawn service at 4.28 a.m. Recitations of the “Ode of Remembrance” are often followed by a playing of the “Last Post”. In Canadian remembrance services, a French translation[4] is often used along with or instead of the English ode.

    The line Lest we forget, taken from Kipling’s poem “Recessional” (which incidentally has nothing to do with remembering the fallen in war), is often added as if were part of the ode and repeated in response by those listening, especially in Australia. In the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, the final line of the ode, “We will remember them”, is repeated in response. In Canada, the second stanza of the above extract has become known as the Act of Remembrance, and the final line is also repeated

    The ode is also read at the Menin Gate, every evening at 8 p.m., after the first part of the “Last Post”. It is mostly read by a British serviceman. The recital is followed by a minute of silence

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    Ronald Reagan A Soldiers Pledge Listen Learn Remember

    A very inspirational speech by Ronald Reagan. This is what a President is supposed to sound like. Listen, learn and remember who we are!

     

    The Eerie Forest of Lost Soldiers

    In the forests surrounding the Neva Bridgehead area in Russia the trees carry a deep scar of history. All through the forests are the remnants of war.

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    Quite literally, the trees in this forest grew around in the war. From 1941 to 1944 the nearby city of Leningrad was under siege and the Neva Bridgehead was the staging ground for many of the assaults on the city. leaving behind weapons, bombs, and equipment from both sides.

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    The saplings on the ground grew up and found there way up, around, and through the things that were left behind.

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    You’ll Feel Proud to Be an American After You Listen to This Soldier Choir

     

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    Homeless Veterans: Stand Down

    Some veterans returning from Iraq or Afghanistan  are finding themselves homeless. Scott Pelley reports on an annual encampment in San Diego where veterans can find hope, help and services.

    It might be a long watch but its probably the most important thing in this entire issue. Remember these are all 2010 figures. PLEASE watch listen, think and help.

     

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    We are here today honoring in part those who fought and are fighting to prevent this from happening by terrorism and external threats. Don’t let our government and  those who demand we follow their laws in our land make it happen from the inside.

    We used to ‘Kill A Commie For Mommy,’ now we should ‘Feed An Islami Some Hammy For Uncle Sammy’!

     

     

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    Posted in Uncategorized | 17 Comments

    Dragon Laffs #1460

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    Good Morning Campers

    Lots and lots of stuff in today’s issue.  Stuff to make you laugh, stuff to make you say hmm, stuff to amaze and entertain you.

    I’m working very LONG shifts this weekend, so I don’t have a lot of time to stay here in the campground and talk.  I’ll let you guys get right to it!

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    Now, before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s tune in to where we left off with our winged hero.  As you may recall, he was just notified of something untoward happening back at headquarters.

    As Impish winged his way toward DL/LL HQ his thought process worked almost as furiously as his slowly beating wings. The Gunny had said FPCON CHARLIE so that meant the attack was imminent or in progress.  And since he mentioned fatalities, it meant that upon receipt of the message the attack had already started, it didn’t sound like things had gone well for them, and after this much time had passed, it could now even be over. That meant Lethal was likely to be in a horrendously foul and seething mood as he tended to view and take such events as personal affronts. He was already mad over the miniature green whoopee cushion with his likeness and the words ‘little green fart’ on them that Impish had managed to obtain from that novelty items sales guy he had run into just before he had left on vacation.
    That was bad enough on top of this but now Impish was faced with admitting to Lethal that he had been sand bagged into taking a meeting with those Disney Movie Execs about playing a dragon in an upcoming remake of one of their movies.
    As the twin mountains loomed in the distance he mused briefly about the possibility of somehow getting Lethal into the protection circle inside one of those Magical Containment Chambers before he told him about it. He needed to find out more about those and if they’d help shield him from his sure to be angry Leprechaun Agent. His ponderings of this tactic were suddenly interrupted by a voice in his head…
     
    WARNING! Multiple ground based air defense radars detected. In range of strongest in 10 miles.”
     
    “Huh? What? Who are you?”
     
    Warning! Short Range surface to air missile lock!  3 miles to missile release. Take evasive action now!”
     
    As Impish folds his wings and dives for tree top level A sudden sharp tingling in both his earlobes causes him to remember his nearly forgotten D.R.A.G.O.N. earrings.
     
    “Ahhh…Activate Communications DL/LL HQ frequency?”
     
    A brief bust of static is followed by an angry voice. “Unknown air contact bearing 2-4-0 at 8 miles you have entered an NOTAMS posted restricted area! Reverse your course immediately and remain a minimum of 20 miles radial from these mountains or identify yourself for clearance. This is your final warning.”
     
    “Uhhh… DL-LL Control from Dragon One, sorry about that I was in such a hurry I forgot proper procedure for Condition Charlie. On approach at 8 miles request vector to my office terrace?”
     
    “Contact bearing 2-4-0 at 8 miles Dragon Control: Turn right 9-0 degrees and hold relative position for identity verification.”
     
    “Look, I’m late my phone was dead, I need to see what’s going on ASAP I don’t have time for…”
     
    “Turn right 9-0 degrees and hold immediately or you run the risk of severe health implications Turn now.”
     
    As Impish starts a slow bank to comply he retorts “I’m a Dragon who is thinking about biting you’re head off literally, human how severe can your ‘health implications possibly be to me.”
     
    “Try terminal spent uranium poisoning on for size wise guy. BREAK! Security, I have an uncooperative contact bearing 230 designating as Hostile One.”
     
    As Impish is about to rip off a retort his ear lobes tingle briefly and the familiar voice of No-name is in his head. “ KNOCK IT OFF-KNOCK IT OFF-KNOCK IT OFF! All defense units stand down! Contact ID confirmed. New designation VIP- Dragon One Actual. Dragon One- possible damage to your preferred primary landing area from attack. Suggest you vector two one niner and maintain your present altitude for guest helipad landing. You will be met by Shamrock Actual. Dragon One Acknowledge.”
     
    “Dragon One has clear copy on all. Changing course to two-one-niner and descending to tree top level.” Impish feels a tingle in one earlobe and turns away from it until it stops and switches to the other. Correcting for his over steer now both are silent. Shortly he starts to sees signs of the attack. Snapped off trees, gore and fabric filled branches. One particular tall pine seems to be adorned with an Old fashioned Red Bellman’s Cap trimmed in gold braid. Here and there in to forest wisps of foul smelling smoke curl up.
     
    As he makes ready to land  his senses are assaulted by his first look at their Corporate HQ. In spots, small intense fires still burn while crews work diligently to put them out. The Mountain itself is riddled with scorched pockmarks and there are craters where he thinks several of Lethal’s defensive emplacements might have been. Emplacements that he no longer considers testaments to the Leprechaun’s paranoia but now instead to his foresight and cautiousness. The parking area is littered with burnt and still smoldering vehicles. Opaque white plastic sheets cover many small objects as men in Hazmat and/or fire suits seem to be executing CBRNE protocols on what is under them. Finally just before he flairs out for his landing in the helipad’s circle he catches sight of two orange body bags, one adult sized and one child size off to one side that appear to be under guard.
     
    Impish changes into Mini Blue as soon as he lands. Once he does, Terrance runs out to him with a cigar, a cup of coffee, his back up cellphone and a Bluetooth headset. Accepting these things with a wordless nod of thanks as he surveys the scene, he allows himself to be lead by Terrance surrounded in the company of 4 DL/LL Security in Body Armor and carrying Riot shields to where Lethal stands outside a mobile command trailer he last saw in his Campground the morning he returned and all this started. Before he can even say anything Lethal turns to the trailer and calls out “Brighid he’s here, is it ready?”
     
    From inside the trailer he hears a faint but lyrically musical ‘Yes mo grouch beag glas! Beidh mé ceart amach leis é.” A split second later the same voice that warned him of the missile lock is in his head again translating what he heard to Yes my little green grouch! I’ll be right out with it’
     
    Impish almost drowns in his own drool before he remembers to swallow as a long-legged, curvaceous, very fit vixen dressed in leather, side laced to the waist pants, which offered proof of her being commando under them, a leather halter vest, bracers covering most of her forearms and knee high boots with 4″ heels, steps out of the trailer. Her thick, vibrant, Auburn hair is worn in a single braid doubled back and tied up at the base of her neck. On her back she wears a quiver to which is fastened a very large long bow. Over her other shoulder appears to be Impish’s Secret Agent 44-DD mission vest. She tosses it as though it were made of paper to him.
     
    Lethal directs him some what worriedly to hurry up put it on.
     
    “Are you kidding this is meant for Big Blue I’ll swim in it!”
     
    Brighid scowls at him and grunts out three words in English that hit him with the the force of thunder “You. On. Now!”
     
    As Impish scrambles to get it on, a smirking Lethal continues conversationally, “Everything good now with Mrs. D?”
     
    From with in the pile of material Impish can be distantly heard “Yup worked just like you said it would. Having that conversation before we got Izzy and our fake ‘I’ll handle my women butt out’ spate had the exact effect you said it would. I think she smelled your hand in it but five minutes after she got Izzy aside and pumped her for information, she believed the entire thing. I got to hand it to you- the entire explanation was so short so simple and so believable that I didn’t even have to try to sell it I just offered it up and it sold itself. I can’t believe you came up with the whole thing on the fly and pulled it off in under an hour. Guess all that stuff they say about the Blarney Stone and the gift of gab is true.”
     
    Lethal addresses Impish now visible through the neck of the vest head. “Didn’t have much of a choice. I got you into that spot so I had to get you out. Failing at doing so wasn’t an option for me.”
     
    Impish starts to respond but is suddenly startled as the vest begins shrinking and adjusting to fit his (somewhat) diminutive Lil Blue size. “Hey! I thought this was dry clean only! Who stuck it in hot water?”
     
    “It’s had a couple upgrades thanks to Wizard Dresden and Brighid. There is an extra inside layer of protection against most spells now and because its been re-stitched with magical thread as well, it will adjust automatically to fit any of your forms. From now on you don’t leave home or your office with out it! For any reason! Period!”
     
    “Why does that make me think I’m still not up to speed here?”
    That seems like a good place to leave off….for now….maybe we can get a little more in before the end of today’s issue.

    1628

    Later in the issue, we will have some “cartoons” that demonstrate and poke fun at our current administrations ability to govern properly.  But, before we get to that, I have to share this article with you that Jean sent into us.

    7 Mind-blowing technologies the US government has made illegal

    As a child, I was always told by my parents that somewhere, somehow there were evil companies that were secretly suppressing technology that would make life better. Hidden in a vault in some corporate HQ were pieces of paper containing things like the cure to cancer, cars that ran on water and Little Debbies that instantly made people skinny with just a few bites.

    As a much more cynical teenager, I decided that it would be impossible in a free society for companies, no matter how large, to suppress powerful technology – especially when you have many companies in the same field dealing with the same technology. Heck, millions of dollars were spent by companies to keep pizzas hot while they delivered them to you.

    Then, as an adult, I discovered the real truth – there are plenty of amazing things that are out there that can’t be brought to the market due to simple government over-regulation. Just like MTV killed rock ‘n roll, federal regulations are doing a good job of killing ingenuity.

    Give up, just quit, because in this life, you can’t win. Yeah, you can try, but in the end you’re just gonna lose, big time, because the world is run by the Man. The Man, oh, you don’t know the Man. He’s everywhere. In the White House… down the hall… Ms. Mullins, she’s the Man. And the Man ruined the ozone, he’s burning down the Amazon, and he kidnapped Shamu and put her in a chlorine tank! And there used to be a way to stick it to the Man. It was called rock ‘n roll, but guess what, oh no, the Man ruined that, too, with a little thing called MTV! So don’t waste your time trying to make anything cool or pure or awesome ’cause the Man is just gonna call you a fat washed up loser and crush your soul.
    Jack Black – School of Rock

    So, here is our list of 7amazing technologies that are illegal right here in the U.S.

    #7 – Fuel-Efficient Cars

    “Oh, come on now, we have fuel efficient cars! My Focus gets 38 miles per gallon!”

    That will be the first angry email or comment I get from this entire article. I’ve been told this line by many people about their Focus, Prius or Insight.

    FORD-FIESTA-ECONETIC-02 (Small)Yet somehow, for the most part the United States has seemingly gone backwards in terms of fuel economy for vehicles. Back in the 80s and early 90s, it was possible to find a vehicle that would produce nearly 50mpg in real-world performance. Vehicles like the Metro, Sprinter and CRX. Up until recently, VW still put out a few vehicles that would get over 50mpg, but since the EPA has changed laws against diesel, VW no longer has much interest in producing fuel-efficient diesels here in the US.

    The proof of fuel efficient cars built in other countries isn’t too hard to find. VW Makes the Passat 1.6 TDI which blows any US made car out of the water with an average of 76 miles per gallon utilizing the UK’s version of fuel efficiency testing. If this vehicle would be brought to the US and driven, MPG ratings would likely be much higher. The method used in England uses primarily urban driving without any miles given to long distance highways, the kind that 60% of Americans utilize every day. Using some simple fuel saving methods and longer roadway usage, the TDI could get up to 80 or even 90 miles per imperial gallon when in use on this side of the pond.

    It isn’t just European automakers. America’s own Ford produces the ECOnetic,which is a variation of the Fiesta for the European market. It boasts a combined MPG rating of 74 to 76 miles per gallon. It, however can not be produced – or even imported to the United States due to strict “environmental laws” (For some reason, using one petroleum distillate like diesel is barbaric, while gasoline somehow is much better).

    So, as it stands now, we’re stuck with underwhelming performers like the Prius and other hybrid abominations until someone does something to overturn EPA rules on diesel, or NHTSA rules regarding smaller, light weight cars. Maybe while we’re at it, we could finally let companies use advanced composites to build cars and replace mandated steel.

    #6 – Outer Space

    We LOVE space (hence the website name). However, as it stands right now, there are absolutely monumental restrictions for private individuals as well as companies to go to space.

    Recently, many videos have been appearing on Youtube where people send different things “To Space” by way of hydrogen balloon lifting a cooler. Some examples are here, here and here. They are great examples of the ingenuity of Americans who want to send things to the upper atmosphere and claim some fame.maxresdefault

    The sad thing is…Every one of these cases that we can find is illegal. In order to send a cooler to space, you need clearance from the FAA to go above a certain altitude. There are also MANY restrictions on things such as radio wave emission, altitude and many other things. In reality, the vast majority of these civilian balloon ‘space shots’ are illegal. Thankfully the FAA hasn’t fined anyone…Yet, but eventually it will happen, ending everyone’s fun. One great example of someone getting fined by the FAA for this very thing was the man who attached balloons to a chair and flew up to 15,000 feet – Larry Walters. Poor Larry was fined $4,000 for not having the proper permits. Far more than his 15 minutes of fame gained him.

    It gets worse though. Not only are civilians not allowed to send things like an Iphone or beer to space, but private space companies are becoming the target of overwhelmingly tough legislation.

    The worst example is SpaceX. The company that is in the forefront of commercial space development is coming under more scrutiny by the US government. In the forefront is the odd requirements to “Human Rate” equipment. Based on some recent statements by NASA, they want SpaceX capsules (like the Dragon)  to be 100 to 200 times more reliable than the absolute best space vehicles that NASA can produce. This is quite absurd, and if things don’t change will make it much harder for space to be commercialized. Can you imagine the federal government mandating that all new cars be 100 times safer? It’s practically impossible, and therefore essentially makes such a thing illegal.

    #5 – Cheap, Reliable Meltdown Proof Nuclear Reactors

    Imagine that some day, the world no longer has a need for additional electricity generation. No more brownouts or blackouts, electricity has become immensely cheap to produce. This energy is produced by something extremely clean and abundant, in fact the United States has the capacity to power the world for the next thousand years.

    Now , imagine that this technology was almost perfected in the late 1960s and 1970s but put on the shelf due to government regulations.

    Unlike a typical nuclear power plant that Utilizes enriched Uranium as its primary fuel source. LFTRs produce almost no hazardous waste and are meltdown proof. Not only do they not produce significant amounts of radioactive waste, they can actually burn the waste generated from current nuclear power plants as the source.  The little amount of waste that is produced has a phenomenally short half life – 30.7 years. This compared to the half life of U-238 which is 24,000 years is an amazing thing. As an added bonus, there is some economic value to the byproducts of LFTRs (Cesium 137 and Strontium 90) that virtually no waste would need to be buried or otherwise disposed of, it could be used for beneficial purposes.420px-PressurizedWaterReactor

    Finally, the most important thing is that thorium is cheap and readily available in the United States. In fact, we’ve got enough to power the world for a very long time. Thorium is so cheap that you can find it at your local WalMart or Harbor Freight. They currently use it as wicking for camp stoves and for welding. The alpha particles it emits are almost harmless (That is unless you readily eat the stuff) so you don’t have to worry about some sort of cancer from exposure.

    While LFTRs aren’t completely illegal to build (yet) the government has made them for all purposes impossible to build. Right now, anyone wanting to develop one is likely to spend $10 billion dollars in planning, permits and pre-construction costs before even being approved by the government. Let’s be serious, who would spend that kind of money for a ‘Maybe’ from the federal government?

    One article reader provided some great thoughts on the PRISM reactor which is a bit different than the LFTR. Instead of being a thorium-based reactor, it is something called a Integral Fast Reactor. The Clinton administration canceled the IFR project that was underway and left it for “Private companies to accomplish”. Sadly, even though Hitachi has developed a IFR for use in the United States. The NRC is overly dragging their feat on it. Requiring massive, and almost unattainable expenses to build it.

    It seems the UK will be deploying one in the near future, but there is no plan to deploy one at any time in the future. From current estimates, the UK reactor will be able to provide 600mw of continual output for OVER 500 years. Running on nothing but nuclear waste.

    #4 – Long Range WiFi

    Ever get tired of dropped wifi coverage? How about the fact that your wifi router can barely make it through a few walls before the signal is almost useless.

    Interestingly enough, with a quick firmware upgrade of most wireless routers, this can be fixed. By increasing power by a reasonable amount, you can get quite a bit more range from your personal wifi router.

    Unfortunately, this is quite illegal.

    Sadly, WiFi routers in the USA are limited to a total of 1 watt of effective radiated power (ERP).

    Sure, it’s important to be safe with microwave energy (which is what all wifi routers emit) however 1 watt ERP is almost nothing. With a $25 amateur radio license, magically the government seems to think that a person is capable of handling 200 times this output.

    In some cases, off the shelf, highly effective antennas make a run of the mill router highly illegal. I don’t know about you, but I figure it would be nice if it was legal to have a router that could make it through two or three walls before becoming completely impotent.

    #3 – Cheap Drugs That Don’t Kill People

    We really don’t want to put on a hemp sweater, wear patchouli cologne or live on a organic farm, but let’s be serious for a minute about drugs in the US.
    There are MANY types of medicinal herbs that are illegal in the US that have amazingly great uses that they shouldn’t be ignored. However the government has decided to make as many as illegal as possible.

    The number one of course is marijuana.

    Naturally occurring, extraordinarily easy to grow marijuana can replace over 150 various prescription drugs.

    We could post the whole list here, but the two BIGGEST things ailments that this weed can treat are : Autism and Migraines

     

    180px-Cannabis_PlantYes, autism can be treated with good ‘ol pot. Maybe Cheech and Chong were on to something, but more and more reports are coming in about the amazing effects of treating severe autism cases with this naturally occurring weed. Take for instance one a well known autism advocate, Mieko Hester-Perez. Her child was near death from severe autism. At age 10, her son was  down to a mere 46 pounds. She had tried every single prescription drug that was available, at a extreme financial cost. Then she tried something radical – marijuana.

    She started to feed her child small doses of  marijuana in things like cookies and brownies. Suddenly her severely autistic child started to act normal. Something that no drug on the market (or in trial for that matter) could do. He started to gain weight and started to show amazing intellect. Free of tics and other things that would normally scar a child afflicted with autism.  After a while, her ‘dealer’ was arrested, and her supply of pot dried up. The child quickly went back to severe ticks, becoming completely uncontrollable. The severe proof was there – A few milligrams of pot every 2 to 3 days did more than a bouquet of drugs multiple times per day.

    In addition to marijuana, there are several other naturally organic plants that have medicinal value, that are also highly illegal. Some Psychedelic mushrooms can treat OCD and Cluster headaches. Coca extract is a extremely effective Topical Anesthetic as well as a laxative and also treats motion sickness.

    To further prove a point about the absurdity of regulations against plants. Another case and point would be the FDA’s attempt to regulate walnuts.

    Yes, that’s right, walnuts.

    A company called Diamond recently ran a advertising campaign on the health benefits of walnuts. The FDA wasn’t too happy about this and decided that it wanted to regulate walnuts as a drug. If they would have went through with the plan, walnuts would have been highly regulated, requiring permits to sell and made it difficult to buy.

    In the end, through massive public outrage, the FDA settled and did not regulate walnuts, instead settling for a massive lawsuit against Diamond which resulted in them being unable to say that “Walnuts are healthy”.

    So, why are naturally occurring weeds that could improve life for many people at phenomenally cheap prices illegal? We don’t know, but they are.

     

    #2 – Converting nuclear waste to energy

    One of the most regular arguments I see by individuals who hate nuclear energy is “What do we do with the waste!” Common knowledge seems to dictate that all nuclear reactors generate mountains of highly radioactive waste each year, all of which is impossible to deal with and will be toxic for tens of thousands of years.

    220px-LaufwellenreaktorThe thing about this statement is if you truly think about the problem, you’d likely come to a different conclusion than the standard ‘common knowledge’ about nuclear power. If nuclear power plants use enriched, highly radioactive nuclear fuel to make energy, then why is the nuclear waste which is still radioactive not used?

    Well, the answer is pretty simple – In the US it’s actually illegal to do anything with nuclear waste other than to bury it. (Thanks Jimmy Carter).

    Outside of the US, it isn’t true. France has repeatedly asked for the US to sell them our nuclear fuel. Yes, that’s right, the fuel we’re literally spending billions of dollars on to bury in the ground could be sold to another country. France has much nicer, newer reactors as compared to what the US has, and many of their reactors can use lower quality fuel (The stuff our reactors put out as waste). This results in extraordinarily minimal waste in the nuclear process.

    To take it a step further, a company in the US called TerraPower is building something called a traveling-wave reactor. This kind of reactor not only would burn virtually all radioactive waste and convert it to electricity, but it also can take completely un-enriched uranium and plutonium and convert it to power. A truly mindblowing technology when they complete their project. As a side note, Bill Gates is one of their biggest investors as he feels it could supply poor countries with extraordinarily cheap, clean electricity.

    There’s just one problem with the wave reactor too. It’s illegal in the US because it could burn the waste too!

    #1 – Carbon Nanotubes

    Out of all these technologies listed, none would impact every single human being. Not everyone drives a car, not everyone uses wifi and not every person needs access to pot.

    CNTs , or Carbon Nano Tubes would radically alter the life of every human being on earth.
    What are carbon nano-tubes? They are exactly what the name suggests – Small tubes made of carbon. These little things have a amazingly long laundry list of feats. They can produce batteries that almost never run out, body armor that would never break, 
    real life powered armor (like the kind Ripley used in Aliens) and ships that could never sink. Car bodies that can not be damaged from wrecks, clothes that never wear out and buildings that can be built to any height.

    In the forefront of the uses though is the immense ability of CNTs to be utilized to produce batteries. In some early testing, batteries produced by CNTs are so energy dense, that a small 1 cubic foot block battery would store enough energy for a car to drive over TWO THOUSAND MILES on a single charge (Source #1, Source #2,Source #3). On top of that, the batteries can be charged near instantly, taking as much power as can be provided to the batteries.Kohlenstoffnanoroehre_Animation

    CNTs would make any renewable technology like wind or solar instantly viable as energy storage is one of the largest hurdles with such technologies.

    Sadly, the viability window for CNTs is already 10 to 20 years away. They can be produced, but are immensely expensive (About 20 million dollars for a vehicle battery). However costs every few years decrease by half. In the early 90s, such a battery would have cost nearly 1 billion dollars.

    Now, with carbon nano tubes on the horizon, our own EPA is worried that there’s a chance that they could cause cancer (Source #2).

    So, before anyone has heard of this world-altering technology, the government is already researching ways that they could make it illegal. Some government bureaucrats want to put it in the same risk category as PCBs and asbestos!

     

    In the end, we’re not against all governmental regulation. We do however feel that the limitations are becoming increasingly absurd and is stifling human growth. To add to this, the United States isn’t the only country who is actively regulating ground breaking technologies or making obscure laws. Recently the EU stated that it is illegal to claim that water can cure dehydration. They have also effectively outlawed incandescent lighting, and the facebook “Like” button.

    1629

     

    Okay, I know for a FACT, that our Baileigh knows each and every one of these:

    Mind Games for Dogs…

    1.  After your humans give you a bath, DON’T LET THEM TOWEL DRY YOU!

     Instead, run to their bed, jump up and dry yourself off on the sheets. This is especially good if it’s right before your human’s bedtime.

     2.  Act like a convicted criminal. When the humans come home, put your ears back, tail between your legs, chin down and act as if you have done something really bad. Then, watch as the humans frantically search the house for the damage they think you have caused.  (Note: This only works when you have done absolutely nothing wrong.)

     3.  Let the humans teach you a brand new trick. Learn it perfectly. Then the humans try to demonstrate it to someone else, stare blankly back at the humans. Pretend you have no idea what they’re talking about.

     4.  Draw attention to the human. When out for a walk always pick the busiest, most visible spot to go ‘poo’.  Take your time and make sure everyone watches. This works particularly well if your humans have forgotten to bring a plastic bag.

     5.  When out for a walk, alternate between choking and coughing every time a strange human walks by.

     6.  Make your own rules. Don’t always bring back the stick when playing fetch with the humans. Make them go and chase it once in a while.

     7.  Hide from your humans. When your humans come home, don’t greet them at the door. Instead, hide from them, and make them think something terrible has happened to you. (Don’t reappear until one of your humans is panic-stricken and close to tears).

     8.  When your human calls you to come back in, always take your time. Walk as slowly as possible back to the door.

     

    1630

     

    coollogo_com-83606855

    red-dragon

    This is a multi-benefit exercise program.  Our security personnel, obviously, get really good exercise by not allowing themselves to be eaten, while the dragon learns patience and to pace himself.  We really don’t want the dragons to eat our security people, but the security people don’t need to know that.

     

    Shame on you

     

    6x

    6w

     

    6b

    Amen! 

     

    6d

    6e

    Ted is sounding more and more presidential every time I hear or read about him.

    1631

     

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    There  I was sitting at the bar staring at my drink when  a large, trouble-making biker steps up next to   me,  grabs my drink and gulps it down in one  swig.  

     “Well, what are you gonna do  about it?” he says,menacingly, as I burst into  tears.

     “Come on, man,” the biker  says, “I didn’t think you’d CRY. I can’t stand to  see a man crying.”

     “This is the worst day of my  life,” I say. “I’m a complete failure. I was late to a meeting and my boss fired me.

     When I went to the parking lot, I found my car had been stolen and I don’t have any insurance. I left my wallet in the cab I took home. I found my wife with another man… and then my dog bit me.  

     “So I came to this bar to work up the courage to put an end to it all.  I buy a drink, I drop a capsule in and sit here watching the poison dissolve; and then you show up and drink the whole damn thing!”

     But, hell, enough about me.  

     How are you doing?”

     

    1635

     

    I couldn’t help but overhear two guys in their mid-twenties while sitting at the bar last night.

    One of the guys says to his buddy:  “Man you look tired.”

    His buddy says , “Man I’m exhausted. My girlfriend and I have sex all the time.  She’s after me 3 and 4 times a day,​I just don’t know what to do.”

    A fellow about my age (70+), sitting a couple of stools down, also overheard the conversation.  He looked over at the two young men and with the wisdom of years says:

    “Marry her. That’ll put a stop to that shit.”

    1636

     

    Getting rid of a man without hurting his masculinity is a problem. “Get
     out” and “I never want to see you again” might sound like a challenge. If
     you want to get rid of a man, I suggest saying, “I love you… I want to
     marry you… I want to have your children.” Sometimes they leave skid
     marks.

    1637

     

    Men are self-confident because they grow up identifying with super-heroes.
     Women have bad self-images because they grow up identifying with Barbie.

     

    1638

     

    7aFiremen and police from all over joined in a “team effort” to rescue a young girl stuck in a steel fence.

    Firemen from all over, attended the scene and in all 12 vehicles & forty five emergency personnel were involved.
    It took several hours to extract her from her predicament.  ‘This was a pretty tricky rescue, it took us quite a while to come up with a plan to safely extract her from the steel fence.’
     
    Though painful, the girl’s entrapment was never life threatening, it did take a great deal of careful planning & a lot of gentle handling to safely extract her.
     
    She was taken to the local hospital where she was examined and later released bruised but unharmed.
     
    Poor little thing, this picture just about broke my heart …….
    God bless those police & firemen. Heroes, every one of them!
     
    We seldom give our public servants enough credit for the job they do!

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    7

     

    Male menopause is a lot more fun than female menopause. With female
     menopause you gain weight and get hot flashes. Male menopause – you get
     to date young girls and drive motorcycles.

     

    1639

    Ginny has blessed us with a great list of things that men are like.  Now, some of these I agree wholeheartedly with, and some of the others….well….not so much.  But, I leave it up to you to figure out which are which.  So, here we go…

    Men Are Like…
    Men are like…Bank Accounts. Without a lot of money, they don’t generate
    much interest.
    *
    Men are like…Bike helmets. Handy in an emergency, but otherwise they just
    look silly.
    *
    Men are like…Blenders. You need one, but you’re not quite sure why.
    *
    Men are like…Commercials. You can’t believe a word they say.
    *
    Men are like…Computers. Hard to figure out and never have enough memory.
    *
    Men are like…Coolers. Load them with beer and you can take them anywhere.
    *
    Men are like…Government bonds. They take so long to mature.
    *
    Men are like…High heels. They’re easy to walk on once you get the hang of it.
    *
    Men are like…Horoscopes. They always tell you what to do and are usually
    wrong.
    *
    Men are like…Lava lamps. Fun to look at, but not all that bright.
    *
    Men are like…Mascara. They usually run at the first sign of emotion.
    *
    Men are like…Plungers. They spend most of their lives in a hardware store
    or the bathroom.
    *
    Men are like…Used Cars. Both are easy-to-get, cheap, and unreliable.
    *
    Men are like…Weather. Nothing can be done to change either one of them

     

    1640

     

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    Be Mindful

    Blow Dry

    Fetishes

    Hostage

    hotel pool

     

    6v

    And that, sadly, is the absolute truth!

     

    RULES OF BEDROOM GOLF

    1. Each player shall furnish his own equipment for play.

    2. Play must be permitted by the owner of the hole.

    3. Unlike outdoor golf, the object is to get the club in the hole and keep the balls out.

    4. For most effective play, the club should have a firm shaft. Course owners are permitted to check shaft stiffness before play begins.

    5. Course owners reserve the right to restrict club length to avoid damage to the hole.

    6. The object of the game is to take as many strokes as necessary until the course owner is satisfied that play is completed. Failure to do so may result in being denied permission to play the course again.

    7. It is considered bad form to begin playing the hole immediately upon arrival at the course. The experienced player will normally take time to admire the entire course with special attention to well-formed bunkers.

    8. Players are cautioned not to mention other courses they have played, or are currently playing, to the owner of the course being played. Angry course owners have been known to damage players’ equipment for this reason.

    9. Players are encouraged to bring proper rain gear for their own protection.

    10. Players should ensure that the match has been properly scheduled, particularly when a new course is being played for the first time. Previous players have been known to become irate if they discover someone else playing on what they considered to be a private course.

    11. Players should not assume a course is in shape for play at all times. Some players may be embarrassed if they find the course to be temporarily under repair. Players are advised to be extremely tactful in this situation. More advanced players will find alternative means of play when this is the case.

    12. The course owner is responsible for manicuring and pruning any bush around the hole to allow for improved viewing of alignment with, and approach to the hole.

    13. Players are advised to obtain the course owner’s permission before attempting to play the back nine.

    14. Slow play is encouraged. However, players should be prepared to proceed at a quicker pace, at least temporarily, at the course owner’s request.

    15. It is considered outstanding performance, time permitting, to play the same hole several times in one match.

     

    6u

    So now, let’s continue our story….
    “Because apparently the Leprechaun is right. He said not to let the goofy look on your face and easily distracted attitude fool me that you were smarter than you appeared.” Impish hears after the translator does its job
     
    Now just look here sister! I’ll not stand for some leather biker.b…OOW! Lethal! Stop jumping up and down on my toes! What the hell is wrong with you?”
     
    (In a very officious tone) “Draconian Ambassador Impish Dragon, may I present Brighid, one of the Tuatha Dé Danann and daughter of the Dagda High King of the Tuatha De Danann. Also, some Irish Catholics believe she is also Saint Brigid. Brighid of the Tuatha Dé Danann, I present The Draconian Realm’s Ambassador to the Mundane World and trusted advisor to Queen Tiamat on all things Mundane, Impish Dragon.”
     
    Official manners are made and the Diplomatic niceties observed on both sides for several minutes.
     
    Lethal clears his throat just as the signs Impish is readying himself to go into his ‘lounge lizard pick up mode’ start to appear. He is rewarded in his attempt to have his friends life spared when both return their attention to him. “Impish you’re quite right you are not up to date and we’ve little time to get you so thanks to your phone being dead..again. Last night being Devil’s Night and down right foul and stormy the Eryl King thought it an excellent night to let loose the Wyld Hunt for a bit of exercise and excitement. I was invited to go along as was Brighid. Kringle- who sends his regards by the by, and Herne the Hunter rounded out our party. We’d not been out yet quite 2 hours when I got news we were under attack and that the attackers were inside the inner perimeter assaulting our close in defenses. When I broke off to leave Brighid & Herne offered their aid which I gratefully accepted. Kringle and the Eryl King started turning the Wyld Hunt around to come at the attackers from the rear. Largely thanks to the four of them and the intervention of someone I’ve not heard of or from since we temporally shut down a certain other endeavor who I found here somehow upon my arrival we were not only successful in defending the mountains but giving them a severe and I hope costly drubbing in the process.”
     
    Brighid chuckles “Most fun at target practice I’ve had in a century or more!  Herne was having so much fun he was actually laughing out loud while on the hunt. We both would dearly love a rematch against your mysterious friend in the..night camo I think its called as well. Impressive shooting skills that one and cool as the North Sea under fire was he. You really should learn who was behind the cowardly attack and taunt them to try again. What is that ritual phrase they say in this day? “Come at me bro?” Yes, you should really invite them to come at you again Leprechaun, so there a can be more fun. Your legend as a host will grow greatly, not that it is a small thing now but in truth this tops anything in the last 50 years you’ve done.”
     
    Impish mouth slightly agape as he looks around briefly wondering worriedly what the Tuatha Dé Danann would consider an all out rollicking, bring the house down, epic time. “I heard something about fatalities?” He gestures towards the body bags. “Those ours? Is that all of them?”
     
    “Fatalities there were yes. As to those being ours, that one is still to be decided in one case, no in the other and our once certain fatality is…” He spares the largest of the fires still being fought, “apparently irrecoverable.”
     
    Impish looks where Lethal stares sadly, “Who?’
     
    “Gregorvich the Grim, a Gnome. He was manning a chain gun battery when it got hit from three sides with incendiaries. Burnt right through the armor and hit the magazine before he could even get to the fire suppression or ejections switches. Not that fire suppression would have done any good, I saw it cook off about 2 minutes after it happened and it didn’t even phase the fire.”
     
    As Lethal has been speaking he’d been walking towards the body bags with Impish and Brighid silently in tow surrounded by a phalanx of CyberLethals with Riot Shields. Lethal reaches down to the child size bag and begins to unzip it as Impish steels him self for the sight of a dead child only to be shocked and relieved when the first thing he sees is a long bushy beard come into view.
     
    “A dwarf? Aren’t they usually part of the inside security forces? What’s he doing way out here? Better yet who is he? He sort of looks familiar, not that he has much of a face left but I’m sure he’s not one of ours. What’s with the weird harness and those funny epaulets he’s wearing?”
     
    “The harness was apparently something he contrived as part of his exfiltration plan. We think part of the reason for the attack was to provide cover for his retrieval. He looks familiar because you have seen him before. Several weeks ago on a Saturday morning. In the mine? Probably at or near the hydraulics for the stage lift? This is our phantom fire starting dwarf. Our mysterious guest made from, what I’m told was, a standing position 200 meter head shot on a flying target in the dark in the rain which passed through the dwarf’s skull and took out his mythical ride as well.”
     
    “Who the hell do we know that shoots like that, much less goes around attired in Urban Camo? Uhhh wait…this guy….is he a friend of that Mr. Grey guy?  Real hard ass?”
     
    Lethal nods and he works his way around to the other body bag, “His name is Mr. Shade. As to his unflappability under fire, it’s rumored when they need to give him a transfusion they have to use run off from a glacier to chill the blood so his body will take it. They claim his heart is the temp of artic ice, though many say this is impossible since he’s the worlds only living heart donor.
     
    Either way he’s one cool customer under fire and not someone I ever want angry at me and behind a scope. Man is an artist with an M-14 and a vest full of loaded 15 round clips for it. I’d have to guess at least a third of the other bodies bare the mark of a 30 cal’s kiss in the head or center mass.”
     
    At this Brighid scowls, spits and grumbles “It wasn’t a fair contest, both Herne and I ran out of arrows before he ran out of bullets.” She shivers and blushes slightly before continuing, “Still there is something very attractive about a mortal with that level of battle prowess. I look forward to making his acquaintance again…soon.”
     
    With that Lethal unzips the other body bag. To his horror Impish recognizes this one. “That’s Vivica with the Velvet Touch. She was one of my virgins and also my masseuse. Oh the poor thing! How’d she die?” Lethal unzips the bag further and Impish sees the unmistakable wound from a shotgun slug in her chest.
     
    “Vivica was our mole Impish. She is the reason the air attack was able to get so close before any alarm could be sounded. When No-name’s brother No-Body made it to the security room she’d just finished using a straight razor on the on duty man after he stopped responding to the ministrations of her Velvet Touch. She had stuffed it half way down his throat to keep him from crying out while he bled out. She got No-body twice good before he was able to fend her off and grab the shotgun to put her down.”
     
    The look in Impish’s eyes can only be described as sorrowful and sick. ”Thhh…th…this is all on me then isn’t it? You spent a lot of time and money on protecting us and I undid it all for a lousy backrub.”
     
    “DUDE! Pity party of one your reservation is canceled.” He gestures to Brighid who is closer to the teary-eyed Impish who promptly and smartly whacks Impish in the back of the head hard enough to send his cigar flying a good five feet making even Lethal wince in sympathy. “This isn’t on anyone. It is what it is. Trust me when I say that what we got attacked by was no place in the contingency plans of those 6 binders in my office. No place. Never even discussed in jest. Come here and see for yourself.”
     
    Lethal walks over to the nearest sheet and pulls it back. The first thing Impish sees is the tips of a pair of bat wings, the back of a brown furred head and pointed ears. “I thought we had a contingency for giant bats- both Vampire and Shrieking versions?”
    Lethal says nothing, and continues to walk down the length of the body pulling the sheet after him as he goes. Impish next sees a red velvet bellman’s jacket which it tailored to all for the wings and cut to waist length to accommodate…a tail? He kicks at the body to roll it over after a glance at Lethal to make sure its safe to do so. Once rolled over Impish is presented with the remains what appears to be a giant spider monkey on steroids sporting a small, likely .30 caliber hole pretty close to where its heart should be.
     
    “Flying monkeys? We were attacked by a flock of flying monkeys?! Did OZ declare war on us? Lethal I SWEAR I’ve never been anywhere even NEAR OZ!”
     
    Lethal nods, “I know you haven’t, I checked.” He smiles grimly, sort of puts that last image we saw right before the crystal ball blew up in an entirely new light though doesn’t it?”
     
    Impish’s eyes widen at the implication of Lethal’s observation. Suddenly he spins around and marches to the nearest Hazmat suited CBRNE worker looks at the clip board the guy is holding asks a couple questions then swiftly returns to where Lethal stands. “So this, all of this incendiary damage…it’s organically based?”
     
    Lethal nods “Magically assisted or enhanced, which ever you prefer, but yes its starts out as a purely organic waste byproduct.’
     
    “You mean we were attacked by….with what…?”
     

    Lethal nods. “Yup.  We got attacked with Flying Flaming Monkey Feces on Devil’s Night. You do sort of have to give her begrudging props for going with a reinvented form of a classic prank”

    6

    And that’s where we’ll leave off for today.

    Wednesday is Veteran’s Day, so do not expect a continuation of our story line until next Saturday.  And until then, be well, be happy and be safe.

    1a

    Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

    Leprechaun Laughs #323 For Wednesday Nov 4th

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    Good morning all-

    As many of you know we here in Texas suffered some serious weather for the second weekend in a row last weekend. While we didn’t get near the amount of rain we did the week before the fact we did get copious amounts the previous weekend made what we did receive extremely problematic as the water table was so high in many places it couldn’t simply couldn’t hold anymore. That my friends is when the fun of widespread flooding starts. Doppler radar and automated rain gauges indicated that over 12 hours (roughly 10 PM Friday to 10 Am Saturday) 6 to 10 inches of rainfall had fallen over portions of eastern Harris County/N.W. Houston where I live.

    As if that wouldn’t be enough fun as it is, the area had moderate to high winds, a few tornados, one about 80 miles from us with a sense of humor apparently:

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    That folks is the remnants of a house trailer picked up at a nearby trailer park and deposited on the roof of the Holiday Inn where the former residents of the trailer, probably in the short term, now reside. As you can see it wasn’t nearly as capricious and whimsical elsewhere in the town it hit:

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    Here at Casa del Cascarrabias (House of the Curmudgeon) fortunately we only had several small short lived Dust Devils come down the alley right outside my home office window. A Dust Devil for you who have never seen one is “a small whirlwind or air vortex over land, visible as a column of dust and debris.” These were between 2 & 4 foot in diameter and 8 to 12 feet tall. While the first brought mostly pine needles from the Lodge Pole Pines all around me. The second one battered my new windows with some large twigs from them as you can see here:

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    The second twig is partially hidden under the pine needles since that area tends to pond up. Needless to say while not in the tornado category, suddenly having such objects suddenly and repeatedly bounced off your windows for about 15 to 20 seconds then deposited in front of it while you’re hard at work less than 5 feet away (I took that photo from my desk) is a bit surprising and unnerving. Even Ninja Kitty Clan Mistress SC, who had been keeping watch out that particular window on the insidious leaves, birds and squirrels who threaten her fiefdom found it necessary and wise to immediately relocate to a safer window to keep watch.

    We got our last hurrah Sunday night around 5 PM when it started raining again fairly steadily for about an hour before going full on fire hose for about twenty minutes then slowly tapering off to a stop. From this we picked up roughly another quarter inch of rain making out weekend total somewhere around six inches according to the recording sight at Bush Intercontinental Airport.

    Now tomorrow the cycle is slated to start all over, our 3 weekend in a row of heavy rain events. We’re expected to receive another one to three inches between Thursday afternoon and Saturday evening.

    OK enough chitchat, lets get to it shall we?

    Opening Logo 16

    !cid_ED099B0D-89C8-434A-8119-B140052B37C5

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    My old mug was a gift from one of Molly’s Aunts who was touched at the lengths I went to to save Clan Mistress SC who was a pregnant stray when I found her, even though it was Molly who first made friends with her was well as the devotion of the cat we had at the time to me.

    It’s served me well for almost 10 years of near constant daily use (I’ll admit to switching to a thermal mug during the coldest part of the year) and hold a leprechaun’s thirst sized amount of coffee.  As you can see its showing serious signs of wear along the rim and bottom where the glazing was worn away. I’d have kept using it but lately when I fill it I get a slight soapy taste despite Molly’s vagarious rinsing after washing.  I’ve also heard a click/pop/snap/ting sort of sound several times, once when I was lifting it off the counter post refill and felt it in the handle 16oz of hot coffee sweetener and half & half all over the floor or carpet I don’t need so it’s getting retired and relegated to pen & pencil duty on my desk.

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    Meet my new daily use cup which arrived Friday. While it doesn’t hold quite what the old one did (about 4 oz. less) its much heavier. One of the major drawbacks with the old one was that it was very thin and didn’t posses enough thermal mass in relation to the amount of liquid it held to keep it warm until all the coffee was consumed. Even when the cup was preheated/warmed the last third of the cup was always ice cold.

    I use a coffee maker with a 12 cup thermal carafe. To keep my Joe hot I first run 6 to 8 cups of water though the coffee maker to preheat the thermal carafe. I let this sit while I load the coffee maker then I fill my cup with hot water from the carafe before emptying the rest and making my coffee. This insures I have hot coffee for at least 8 hours post brew and usually more like 10.

    Test have already shown that this cup will keep the coffee piping hot through out the whole cup when doing this. Additionally the smaller size will force me to get up more frequently and walk out to get a refill, something that I’m encouraged to do for my legs.

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    While I made a couple tests cups/runs with it, I didn’t fully deploy it until Saturday evening during the 4th quarter of the Notre Dame – Temple game when it looked like they might loose. image

    I’m happy to report my wearing of my Notre Dame Hat and drinking of Diet Pepsi out of the cup along with some rather inventive Irish invectives uttered after several plays turned the game around and we did narrowly win.

    Now if you’ll excuse me, new cup is empty and I need a refill desperately.

     

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    Ode to Coffee (sung to the tune “Ode to Joy”)

    Coffee, coffee, we adore thee!
    Java glory, java love.
    Brains awake like flowers before thee.
    Raise our mugs to God above.

    Melt the fog of sleepy stumbling;
    drive the dark of night away.
    Giver of immortal gladness,
    caffeinate us for the day!

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    [The following took place last Saturday  at 10 AM in the Dragon Residence as I understand it. I was not there but managed to piece this together from separate recounts and debriefings after the fact –L.L.]

    Impish, exhausted from his nonstop Disney adventure and very happy to be back home in his own bed, has been face down busily sawing pillow wood since Tuesday night when he returned. He’s been vaguely aware of the passage of some days when he feels someone shaking him in an ill advised attempt to disturb his beauty sleep for which he has marked off the remainder of the week on his personal calendar.

    “Dad! Dad wake up! There are people outside!”

    (groaning and pulling a pillow over his head) “Go away! And tell my adoring fans to go away too. I’m not here, I’m not me and I’m not back to work officially until Saturday morning when I present the issue. Today and tomorrow were officially canceled due to a lack of visual. I’ll get back to everyone about Friday later when I roll over.”

    “‘A lack of visual?’ Dad what does that even mean? Can’t you see?!”

    “What I can’t see is myself getting out of this bed before dinner time Friday and then only for dinner time. If whoever they are won’t go the hell away you have my permission to try out your Ninja skills on them. Just don’t tell Mom, get caught or arrested.”

    “Uh Dad…it IS Saturday. Don’t worry about the issue, Uncle Lethal did most of the hard work for you and set it up to auto post in the conference room since it was raining and your field was muddy. There people outside, they have Body Armor, Guns and them silver clubs like Uncle Lapthal’s.”

    A bleary bloodshot eye snaps opens and regards the dragonette momentarily. “If this is some ruse to get me up to drive you and your friends someplace, so help me Izzy…you kids just don’t know when to quit while you’re ahead do you?”

    “Seriously Dad I’m scared! They wouldn’t let me out of the house even to get the paper! Please? I brought coffee, see?” She gestures to a large igloo style drink cooler with the spigot replaced with a gate valve and hose a top a rolling stool.

    Impish grunts rolls on his side and opens his maw. Izzy inserts about 2 feet of hose then opens the gate valve. Rapid glugging noises are heard then begin to slow. Then the bloody shot eyeball reopens it looks a little more with it and stares at the cooler.

    Getting the message Izzy loosens the top to relieve the vacuum that is forming and slowing Impish’s emergency coffee delivery system down. The rapid glugging sound resumes with a happy sighing. A few minutes later the glugging stops and Izzy removes the hose. A minute after that Impish groans, sits upright and scrubs his face with his hands before regard a bottom lip chewing Dragonette who knows full well the price she’ll pay for waking her Dad needlessly if that turns out to be the case- a full month of litter box duty at the office as well as in the yard at home picking up after her dog Bailey.

    Impish regards her thoughtfully for a moment before asking, “Got any pictures of these dudes with the body armor and dangerous toys?” Izzy still chewing her bottom lip simply nods and proffers her cellphone for Impish to examine the photos she snapped. Impish scrolls through several before softly muttering ‘Aw Crap’ under his breath, handing Izzy back her phone and picking his up to examine it and uttering a second more emphatic ‘Aw Crap!’ when it fails to come to life due to a dead battery from his being too tired to remember to plug it in once the issue was completed.

    As he stands up slipping his feet into his slippers Izzy dashes for his bathrobe which he dons and starts shuffling to the front door. When he gets there he opens the door just briefly gesturing out the door with his thumb towards the garage. Before closing and relocking it then navigating his way through the house to the garage door off the kitchen.

    He opens the door but remains in the house . Reaching outside the door he feels around for the garage door button and presses it leaving his hand on it . After the door has risen about 3 feet someone and four very fleet of foot somethings duck under it. Impish  immediately presses the button again. The door reverse direction and closes. Then Impish steps into the garage, closing the door behind him. When the visitor makes to start speaking Impish stops him with a hand which he then cups to his ear, followed by jerking his thumb at the house. The visitor’s eyebrows go up and he nods. Impish crosses to a shelf with a radio on it and turns it on fairly loud and positions himself to watch the window in the house door for Padawan Ninja signs. He sees two Ninja cats he doesn’t recognize, one the hood and roof of the car as a third prowls about the kitchen door sniffing. Car roof cat seems to have it’s unblinking attention fixated on Impish’s visitor.

    The Visitor and Impish stand close and speak into each others ears as Impish absent mindedly scratches the ears of Brutus who leaped from the top of the car into his arms to sit regarding the visitor with a surprising amount of naked hostility as evidence by the emphatic tail swatting Impish is getting.

    “Sorry to have disturbed you sir. We were set by Mr. Leprechaun to provide perimeter security. Our orders were to let you sleep as long as it didn’t interfere with ensuring you and your family’s safety. I didn’t realize that not allowing your daughter to retrieve the paper would upset her to the point of her waking you.”

    “Sergeant I don’t recognize you or your men. I’m unable to contact Lethal Leprechaun at the moment entirely due to my own fault so why don’t you tell me something that makes me not want to flame broil you like a giant breakfast sausage to have with my eggs and then why it was necessary for Lethal to assign my family a security detail in the first place.”

    [I’ll have more on this later, right now I’m sure most of you would like the get on with the issue already. L.L.]

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    A teacher asked her third grade class to name things that ended with “tor” and that also ate things.

    The first little boy said, “Alligator.

    “Very good James, that’s a big word.”

    The second boy said, “Predator.”

    “Yes, that’s another big word Alan. Very well done.”

    Little Johnny says, “Vibrator.”

    After nearly falling off her chair, the teacher says, “That is a big word Johnny, but it doesn’t eat anything.”

    “Well my mother has one and she says it eats fxxxing batteries like there’s no tomorrow!”

     

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    Answer Pet trivia for a great cause!

    Purina® will donate up to $40,000* to Dogs on Deployment, a non-profit group that helps find loving foster homes for our military’s pets.

    Many of or troops have to give up or find someone to care for their pets when they are deployed, They have enough to worry about let’s help alleviate this one worry for them. It’s just 4 easy questions/day and takes about a minute after you register to play.

    Help give back to our troops pets- click here

    Dogs On Deployment

    [It’s not just for dogs but all pets]

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    The Top 5 Reasons a Drug Costs $750 a Pill

    A company called Turing Pharmaceuticals raised the price of a prescription drug called Daraprim that treats a life threatening parasitic infection from $13.50 to $750 a pill.

    5. Because now these bad boys taste like BACON!!!

    4. It comes with personal delivery by George Clooney, straight to your esophagus.

    3. It costs that much to print all the side effects on the bottle.

    2. This is so much safer than staging a raid on Ft. Knox.

    And the Number One Reason a Drug Costs $750 a Pill…

    1. Depending on your choice of news source, it’s the fault of either a Democratic or a Republican.

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    Fred Thompson, Former Senator, Actor and Presidential Candidate, Dies at 73

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    Fred D. Thompson, a former United States senator, actor and Republican presidential candidate, died on Sunday in Nashville. He was 73.

    The cause was a recurrence of lymphoma, his family said in a statement.

    Mr. Thompson had an unusual career, moving back and forth between national politics and mass-market entertainment. He left a regular role on the hit NBC drama “Law & Order” to run for president in 2008.

    On television and on movie screens, Mr. Thompson was known for playing authoritative characters, but he was sometimes ambivalent in his political aspirations. While he brought gravitas to his on-screen characters, he often struggled on the campaign trail, especially during his unsuccessful run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.

    Mr. Thompson compiled a solidly conservative voting record in the Senate, though aides said he showed little enthusiasm for divisive battles over abortion and other issues that motivated the religious right. In a 2007 interview, he told The New York Times that he had always felt that the Senate “was never meant to be the place where I would stay for my entire career.”

    “You are either going to do the right thing, or you’re not,” he said. “If you are politically tacking all the time, it makes life too long and too complicated.”

    Mr. Thompson, a lawyer, began his life in public service at the age of 30 with a lucky break when his mentor, Senator Howard H. Baker Jr., chose him over more experienced candidates to serve as Republican counsel on the Senate Watergate Committee.

    His tough questioning of Alexander Butterfield, a former aide to President Richard M. Nixon, led to the revelation of recording devices in the Oval Office, a turning point in the investigation that ended in the president’s resignation. After the committee concluded its work, Mr. Thompson embarked on a lucrative legal and lobbying career.

    He began acting when he was tapped to play himself in the 1985 movie “Marie.” The film, starring Sissy Spacek, was based on the life of Marie Ragghianti, the head of the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles and a whistleblower, who revealed a clemency-selling scandal that brought down the Tennessee governor, Leonard Ray Blanton. Mr. Thompson had been Ms. Ragghianti’s lawyer.

    By the time Mr. Baker talked him into running in a 1994 special election to fill the Senate seat from Tennessee vacated by Vice President Al Gore, Mr. Thompson had 18 movie credits, including “No Way Out,” “Days of Thunder” and “In the Line of Fire.”

    On Election Day, he swept aside his Democratic opponent, Representative Jim Cooper, with 60 percent of the vote. In 1996, he just as easily won a full six-year term.

    Mr. Gore issued a statement Sunday evening in which he praised Mr. Thompson for his dedication to public service.

    “At a moment of history’s choosing, Fred’s extraordinary integrity while working with Senator Howard Baker on the Watergate Committee helped our nation find its way,” Mr. Gore said. “I was deeply inspired by his matter-of-fact, no-nonsense moral courage in that crucible. Tennessee and our nation owe a great debt to Fred Thompson.”

    Mr. Thompson served eight years in the Senate before leaving his seat in 2002 for a role on “Law & Order.” He played Arthur Branch, a Manhattan district attorney.

    Mr. Thompson believed his biggest role was yet to come, however, and in 2007 he asked the producers of “Law & Order” to release him from his contract so he could explore a bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

    His supporters hoped that his on-screen charisma and small-town roots could make him into a modern-day Ronald Reagan, another conservative actor turned politician, but it was not to be. Mr. Thompson’s campaign was often languid and failed to attract significant support in the primaries, and he withdrew from the race in January 2008.

    <truncated for brevity>

    In April 2007, Mr. Thompson disclosed that he had been diagnosed three years earlier with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the immune system. He said at the time that the cancer was in remission and that he had no symptoms.

    In a statement on Sunday, his family said that growing up in a small town in Tennessee “formed the prism through which he viewed the world and shaped the way he dealt with life” and reinforced for him the values of hard work and a belief in American exceptionalism.

    “Fred was the same man on the floor of the Senate, the movie studio, or the town square of Lawrenceburg,” his family said.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/02/us/politics/fred-thompson-former-senator-actor-and-presidential-candidate-dies-at-73.html?mwrsm=Email&_r=0

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    He was a shining example of what America once was and should return to and despite his failure early on the the Republican Presidential Primary race I was proud to wear my ‘I’m With Fred’ hat and still would be just as proud today.

    TTT-1

    Your Portal To The Best Free Online Tools

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    The web is full of amazingly useful sites that allow you to do just about anything for free, with no need to download or install software on your PC. Whether you’re searching for an online dictionary or thesaurus, an image or video editor, financial data, language translation, tools to help you play Scrabble or solve a crossword clue, or just about anything else, it’s out there. Trouble is, it can be hard to find the best site for the job.

    Which is why I’m rather taken by a site called iTools, which is a single-page portal to hundreds of sites. The headline of iTools is “Use the best tools for the job”, and that sums it up pretty accurately. I’m sure it’s also no coincidence that the site color theme is yellow, as this single page of links is as useful than any Yellow Pages I’ve ever used.

    You can check it out at www.itools.com and you’ll need nothing more than a web browser in order to do so.

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    OK, I am reasonably well informed, that despite my inability to comprehend it, a phenomena exists where some people post Halloween are scratching their heads and searching for something to do with their left over candy. This has never been a problem in any of my households. Thanksgiving/Christmas leftovers, or excess Easter eggs being a problem requiring inventive uses recipes I can understand, but not Halloween candy.  In our house this allegedly problematic leftover candy is known as ‘Molly’s Haul’ and I have to beg, fight for and sometimes even steal and hide some to get any.

    However since for some of you this might be a problem here’s a solution to (I can’t believe I’m actually typing this!)  get you family to eat the leftover Halloween candy without complaining.

    Chocolate Candy Pie

    This versatile pie can morph to fit many moods. Freeze it for an icy delight, or just refrigerate instead if you’re looking for something a little softer (or you run out of time). Or leave out the candy all together for something a little less rich. You decide

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    Total Time: 4 hr. 20 min
    Prep: 10 min
    Inactive: 4 hr.
    Cook: 10 min
    Yield: 1 pie (12 servings)
    Level: Intermediate

     

     

    Ingredients

    1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    1/4 cup cornstarch
    1/4 cup sugar
    1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
    1 3/4 cups milk
    3 large egg yolks
    1 tablespoon unsalted butter
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    1 1/2 cups chopped assorted chocolate-covered candy, plus additional candy, for garnish
    1 1/4 cups heavy cream
    One 6-ounce chocolate or regular graham cracker crumb pie crust

    Directions

    Whisk together the cocoa powder, cornstarch, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in the milk in a slow stream. Whisk in the egg yolks.
    Place the mixture over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until it just begins to boil, 6 to 7 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and cook, whisking, until thick, about 1 minute.

    Remove from the heat and transfer to a large bowl. Whisk in the butter and vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing directly onto the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming. Cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.

    Fold the chopped candy into the pudding. Whip 3/4 cup of the cream with an electric mixer just until stiff peaks form. Fold a third of the whipped cream into the pudding to lighten it, and then fold in the other two-thirds until no streaks remain. Transfer to the pie crust and freeze until firm but not frozen solid, about 3 hours.
    Whip the remaining 1/2 cup cream just until soft peaks form. Spread over the pie and garnish decoratively with sliced or chopped candy.

    Cook’s Note: The pie can be frozen overnight and thawed at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing; it can also be refrigerated instead of frozen.
    Use the plastic insert of the pie crust, flipped upside down, as a lid to cover the pie while freezing.

    As for the rest of us who are already out of Halloween Candy, here are a couple sweet treats sure to put a smile on your face and a happy in your tummy.

     

    Knock-You-Naked Brownies

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    Total Time: 3 hr. 50 min
    Prep: 15 min
    Inactive: 3 hr.
    Cook: 35 min
    Yield: 6 servings
    Level: Easy

     

     

     

     

    Ingredients

    1 stick butter, melted, plus more for greasing
    All-purpose flour, for dusting
    1/3 plus 1/2 cup evaporated milk
    One 18.5-ounce box German chocolate cake mix (I use Duncan Hines)
    1 cup finely chopped pecans
    60 caramels, unwrapped
    1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
    1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted

    Directions

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9-by-9-inch baking pan.
    Begin by pouring 1/3 cup evaporated milk into a bowl with the cake mix. Add the melted butter and the chopped pecans. Mix the ingredients together; it’ll be pretty thick!
    Divide the dough in half down the middle. Press half of it into the bottom of the prepared pan to make the first brownie layer. Bake until slightly set, 8 to 10 minutes. Then remove from the oven and set aside.

    While the brownie layer is baking, in a double boiler (or glass bowl set over a bowl of simmering water) combine the caramels and the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk. Stir occasionally until the caramels are totally melted and the mixture is smooth. Pour the caramel mixture over the first baked layer, spreading so it’s evenly distributed. Sprinkle the chocolate chips all over the top.

    Next, on a clean surface or a sheet of waxed paper, press the remaining dough into a square shape slightly smaller than the baking pan. Carefully set it on top of the chocolate chips. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let the brownies cool to room temperature. Cover the pan and refrigerate the brownies for several hours to allow them to set.

    When you’re ready to serve them (or give them to someone you love!) sprinkle generously with the powdered sugar and cut them into large rectangles before removing from the pan. These are absolutely killer.

    Autumn in a Pan: Pumpkin Caramel Skillet Cake with Maple Glaze

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    Pumpkin Cake

    2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1 teaspoon baking powder
    2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
    1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened but not melted
    1 cup pure pumpkin filling (not pumpkin pie filling)
    1 large egg
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    Easy Caramel Sauce [recipe follows]

    Maple Glaze

    1/2 cup pure maple syrup
    2 tablespoons butter
    1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar

    Directions

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

    Prepare caramel sauce. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
    To make the cake, prepare 12-inch skillet by rubbing bottom and sides with about 1 tablespoon of butter or generously spraying with nonstick spray.
    In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture, then add in sugar, butter, pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract.

    Mix by hand until fully incorporated. Mixture will be thick. Once it’s combined, press half of the mixture into the bottom of a prepared 12-inch skillet. Make sure the pumpkin cake batter goes halfway up the sides of the skillet. Pour cooled caramel over pumpkin cake batter. Drop remaining pumpkin cake batter over the caramel by the spoonful. Try to cover the caramel as well as you can.

    Bake for 22 to 28 minutes or until edges are firm and golden.
    While cake is baking, prepare maple glaze.

    Bring maple syrup and butter to a low boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly (about 2 minutes).
    Remove from heat; gradually whisk in confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Whisk for about 1 minute or until mixture begins to thicken and cool slightly.

    Remove cake from oven and allow to cool in skillet for 5 minutes. Pour maple glaze over cake and serve immediately.

    Easy Caramel Sauce

    Total Time: 30 min | Prep: 10 min | Inactive: 10 min | Cook: 10 min | Yield: 1 1/2 cups

    Ingredients

    1 packed cup brown sugar
    1/2 cup half-and-half
    4 tablespoons butter
    Pinch salt
    1 tablespoon vanilla extract

    Directions

    Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.

    image

     

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    Verified No BS

    Believe it or not, this story is true and not an urban legend or joke:
    http://www.snopes.com/medical/asylum/fbipizza.asp

    FBI agents conducted a “search and seizure” at the Southwood
    Psychiatric Hospital in San Diego, which was under investigation for
    medical insurance fraud. After hours of poring over many rooms of
    financial records, some sixty FBI agents worked up quite an appetite.

    The case agent in charge of the investigation called a local pizza
    parlor with delivery service to order a quick dinner for his colleagues.

    The following telephone conversation took place:
    Agent: Hello. I would like to order nineteen large pizzas and sixty-
    seven cans of soda.

    Pizza man: And where would you like them delivered?

    Agent: To the Southwood Psychiatric Hospital.

    Pizza man: To the psychiatric hospital?

    Agent: That’s right. I’m an FBI agent.

    Pizza man: You’re an FBI agent?

    Agent: That’s correct. Just about everybody here is.

    Pizza man: And you’re at the psychiatric hospital?

    Agent: That’s correct. And make sure you don’t go through the front
    doors. We have them locked. You’ll have to go around to the back to
    the service entrance to deliver the pizzas.

    Pizza man: And you say you’re all FBI agents?

    Agent: That’s right. How soon can you have them here?

    Pizza man: And you’re over at Southwood?

    Agent: That’s right. How soon can you have them here?

    Pizza man: And everyone at Southwood is an FBI agent?

    Agent: That’s right. We’ve been here all day and we’re starving.

    Pizza man: How are you going to pay for this?

    Agent: I have my check book right here.

    Pizza man: And you are all FBI agents?

    Agent: That’s right, everyone here is an FBI agent. Can you remember
    to bring the pizzas and sodas to the service entrance in the rear? We
    have the front doors locked.

    Pizza man: I don’t think so.
                   -— Click -—

    image

    So THAT’S what Mrs. Dragon meant when she said they’d never find his scaly hide! I’ll just bet there’s matching shoes and luggage too.

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    Student Who Saw Cop Slam Black Girl Reveals Massive Detail Media Refuses to Report

    An anonymous Spring Valley High School student brought liberal race-baiters to their knees this week when he argued that the unidentified black girl who was seen being ripped from her seat and dragged across the floor by Richland County Deputy Ben Fields was as much to blame as him.

    “In the video it was very shocking to see how that was happening, but I honestly think that it was a two-way thing and the officer was wrong, but also the girl was wrong,” the student told WLTX. “They are a higher power, the least you could do is respect them and follow orders.”

    The incident began Monday in Columbia, South Carolina, after the black girl refused to turn over to a teacher a cellphone she was using in class and then refused to leave the classroom. Fields was called in to assist, and after the girl refused to comply with his orders, he took action.

    Two videos of the incident soon flooded social media, leading liberal race-baiters to scream “racism” and Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott to fire Fields.

    But then this same anonymous student uploaded a third video of the incident to Instagram, and this one showed the girl hitting Officer Fields, not that this mattered to either liberals or Sheriff Lott.

    According to this student, the whole incident could have been prevented if his female classmate would have simply followed orders.

    “She was even told by the students to leave when the administrator came in,” he explained. “We tried to put our input in just to help her.”

    He added, “Fields was really trying to do his job.”

    And yet because of the type of racial grievance mongering made popular by President Barack Hussein Obama, Fields was apparently fired for doing just that — his job.

    image

    Oh man! Where to start with all this Liberal touchy-feely media courting the black ‘Police are bad” vote BULLSHIT!

    1.) The liberal progressive thinking ‘You-can’t-spank-your-child-for-misbehaving-because that’s-child-abuse!’ education experts have allowed/caused things to become so bad within our schools that we have to have Police Officers patrolling the hallways to maintain discipline and order. NOT of course that they will admit it, they are firmly rooted in their circular logic of illogic and comforted by their blanket denial and hiding behind a cloak of protection they try to pass off a confidentiality for the kids,“oh those are RESOURCE officers we don’t effectively have a police substation in each school” (coughing into fist) Liberal Bullshit!

    2.) Now that you’ve mismanaged their education and stripped the parents of their right to corporal discipline to arrive at a point where the teachers themselves are routinely attacked and you have to have guards in the school. You want to attack the guards when they are called in to deal with a situation you are unable or unwilling to deal with yourself!

    You blithering brain dead idiots! OF COURSE they are going to put the kid down cuff him and drag him out of there! YOU and the kid left him NO OTHER OPTION! You brought him in to deal with a kid who’s levels of disobedience and hostility towards authority figures was escalating. Failing to resolve the issue in a fast and authoritative manner was his only option if he expected to keep doing his job effectively. You want touchy feely get the school shrink or a guidance councilor not a cop.

    3.) She escalated things even further by committing the ultimate no-no when dealing with the police, she resisted being taken into custody by physically assaulting the officer. Once you cross that Rubicon all bets are off. The officer has to take you down hard fast and non gently. That’s called instilling respect for the consequences of failing to heed the commands of a police officer. The student is actually quite lucky that because of the roomful of other students mace was not used and that he , likely in deference to her age didn’t respond by tasering the student for assaulting him.

    4.) Is you don’t like what he had to do to get his hands on her and control her STOP USING DESKS AND CHAIRS THAT ARE ALL IN ONE UNITS! She was clearly using that fact to attempt to make it difficult for the officer to remove her. He simply did what he had to in order to negate the advantage the desk/chair all in one unit gave her.

    5.) Why aren’t the parents being blamed for any of this. Are that not responsible for the kids behavior? I’ll tell you why.

    a.) The media loves the whole  ‘Black live matter / Police are bad’  social unrest bullshit. If the were fair and honest about their reporting the story might go away. BOOM! Nothing for talking heads to talk out their asses about anymore.

    b.) The media knows the truth, the student behaves that way both in class and to the police because its behavior learned form her parent[s]. Plain and simple. It’s an attitude fostered at home and practiced by he parents.

    IF you ask me Richland County Deputy Ben Fields, needs to be reinstated, apologized publicly to by the school, the teacher, the student, her parents, paid his back pay AND the pay for being a teacher for a day for teaching that class a life lesson graphically. Namely- “Either you respect the police, do what they say and don’t try to resist paying for your crimes by attacking the police or the ‘po-po’ gonna to drop a shit ton of hurt on yo sorry azz beeyotch! Den you just be going to jail, hurtin,  for a lot longer and makin your mouth piece’s job a lot harder and well as raisin yo bail dogg.

    image

    This just in from Ima ‘Diva’ Dwarf who keeps tabs on Hollyweird, the entertainment industry and the Celebrity/Political Gossip for us:

    What major movie company just released it planned movie releases for the next for years while a certain dragon was seen vacationing there?

    10194223_8_600_450

    That’s right Disney did.

    Now here’s another question for you. Is it just a coincidence that the list is released the same time a certain well known to us Dragon is vacationing there and on that list is a remake of a very famous movie co-staring a dragon?

    image

    Next summer will also include a reboot of Pete’s Dragon, starring Bryce Dallas Howard. The 1977 Disney original follows a young orphan seeking the help of a giant dragon. Other stars involved are Wes Bentley, Robert Redford and Karl Urban. It will be released Aug 12th, 2016.

    No word as yet on who will star as the Dragon, but given the timing of the announcement that  the project will go forward one has to wonder. One also has to wonder why this was news to his agent a certain well known Leprechaun when I asked him for a comment. This reporter smells a freeze out. Hope the Leprechaun has some warm clothes and some more loyal clients because its sudden feeling a little frosty here!

    I’d be interested to a good answer to that last question too Diva and you’re right it IS starting to feel a wee frosty. For more on the up coming movies click the following links. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to go see a certain weasel in a dragon suit client about playing a dragon in a movie I know nothing about.

    IMPISH! A word about your trip please!

    Disney Just Announced an Incredible Lineup of Films for the Next Two Years

    Disney Announces Release Dates for ‘Incredibles 2,’ ‘Cars 3’

    image

    A couple gratuitous Fall Foliage Photo from near my home town in Connecticut. One of the few things I miss about living in Texas, Mother Nature’s living landscape paintings of New England in Fall. 

    image

    News of the Weird

    Nunchuk-wielding shampoo thief charged in bus-based sword attack

    Seattle woman accused of chasing man with sword after chance clash on downtown bus

    by Seattlepi.com reporter Levi Pulkkinen

    A Seattle woman fresh from jail after a nunchuk attack is now accused of chasing a stranger off a King County Metro bus – with a sword.

    Facing her third assault-related charge of the year, Sharnika Joy Armstead is accused of dashing after a man who jostled her aboard a downtown bus. Armstead, a recently homeless West Seattle resident, is accused of waving a sheathed short sword at the object of her ire.

    Armstead, 26, had been released from King County Jail six weeks before the Sept. 14 incident. She served a 74-day stint after bashing a two men with nunchuks during a shampoo theft from a North Seattle supermarket.

    Charged Tuesday in the bus incident, Armstead is also accused of brutally beating another woman at a Belltown women’s shelter on Aug. 19. Prosecutors claim Armstead, in a “vicious and unprovoked assault,” punched the other woman repeatedly in the head to steal her makeup bag.

    Armstead’s current spate of legal troubles began May 18, when she beat up two men at a Grocery Outlet store in Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood.

    Armed with homemade nunchuks, Armstead attacked the store owner after she was caught stealing a bottle of shampoo from the discount grocery. Armstead bit a store employee during the fight.

    Armstead was arrested at the scene and ultimately sentenced to three months in jail for the assaults. She was released July 31.

    She is alleged to have seriously hurt another woman at Angeline’s Center for Homeless Women two weeks later. According to charging papers, Armstead punched the woman repeatedly in the face while stealing her makeup bag.

    Armstead remained free until Sept. 14, when she is alleged to have accosted a man on a Metro Transit D Line bus.

    At 2:30 p.m. that day, Armstead was sleeping on Ballard-bound bus as it approached Bell Street on Third Avenue. Another passenger apparently bumped Armstead as he sat down next to her.

    Awake and upset, Armstead slapped the man in the face, according to charging papers. The man called 911 and stepped off the bus. Armstead followed.

    Armstead drew what witnesses initially thought was a “stick-like object” that had been tucked down the back of her hooded sweatshirt, a King County Sheriff’s Office detective said in charging papers. Investigators claim it was actually a sheathed, 18-inch sword.

    When deputies arrived to arrest her, Armstead had tucked the sword back into its hiding spot along her spine, the detective continued. Deputies reported that Armstead struggled with them during her arrest, kicking one in the chest.

    Armstead has been charged with attempted second-degree assault in the bus incident. She also faces a first-degree robbery charge in the August incident at the women’s shelter. She remains jailed on $155,000 bail.

    image

    Daylight Saving Time: Keep it year round

    By Scott C. Yates http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/30/opinions/yates-daylight-saving-time-keep-it-year-round/index.html?eref=rss_us

    (CNN) On Sunday, November 1, it will again be the end of Daylight Saving Time. Many of us will be muttering to ourselves as we wander around resetting all of our various clocks — on the thermostat, clock radio and stove, among other places.

    Sure, you’ll get an extra hour of sleep by turning back the clock by an hour in the fall. But if you have a regular day job, you’ll be commuting home in the dark instead of in daylight come the following day.

      Why do we do this every fall? And why do we dial forward the clock by an hour every spring?

      Daylight Saving Time was around for a good part of the 20th century, but there’s no really good reason why we should continue with the status quo.

      The U.S. government started moving into and out of “Daylight Saving Time” during World War I to copy the Germans, who said they were doing it to save fuel. When the war ended, the U.S. government wisely repealed the law since it proved unpopular.

      During WWII, it came back — again with the notion that it would somehow conserve resources. After the second war, the U.S. converted factories from making bombs to making cars and consumer products. The GIs came home. But Daylight Saving Time just stuck around.

      Numerous polls show that people want to stay in Daylight Saving Time year round, or at least just stick with either Standard or Daylight time and stop switching clocks around. Two states, Arizona and Hawaii, already keep their clocks the same all year long.

      We may have reached a tipping point to end the clock-changing madness.

      First, the U.S. Department of Energy issued a report in 2008 that examined the impact of extended Daylight Saving Time. A four-week extension (allegedly- there are of course reports that refute this as well- L.L.) would save approximately 0.5% of electricity per day for the country. Put in perspective, it’s enough energy to power 100,000 households for a year.

      The second strong case for staying in Daylight Saving Time year round is that we can save lives. A recent study shows the switching of clocks in the spring causes a 25% jump in heart attacks in the few days following the switch, confirming earlier research that point out the shift in time can disrupt the quality of sleep and biological rhythms.

      Taking away an hour of sleep and jolting you awake in the predawn darkness is simply bad for your health, especially if you are elderly or have a heart condition, researchers noted.

      So here’s the question: If you have a chance to save lives and save electricity, would you do it?

      Sure you would, right? But you haven’t, and neither have I. Why? Maybe because we’re all a little too sleep deprived and discombobulated to do something after all that clock-changing.

      In 2013, a member of the Missouri legislature proposed moving the state to permanent Daylight Saving Time if 19 other states would join its effort. The state House voted to approve the measure, HB340, but it didn’t go anywhere in the Senate.

      The idea is smart and worth revisiting. The hard part is how to get this more traction. Here’s an alternative proposal: Legislatures pass a bill whereby if at least 31 other states pass similar bills, their state will then switch to permanent Daylight Saving Time. With Arizona and Hawaii already in, that adds up to two-thirds, or 33, states. Thirty-three is the number of states needed to pass a constitutional amendment, and while this is not a constitutional issue, it seems like a good standard to meet.

      So how can we convince all these local governments to take on this initiative?

      We need help from students, who can create interdisciplinary projects combining science, math, social studies and government, to show why we need to get rid of this outdated concept. If we all pitch in a little, we’ll be able to save energy and lives.

      In short, it’s about time.

      image

      The Sergeant swallows audibly, then snaps to and salutes. “Gunnery Sergeant Axel Timber sir. Formerly USMC now part of the Dire Wolves. We’re a…’unique skill set military style security company….”

      “You mean you’re mercenaries, hired guns loyal to the pay day” Impish interrupts.

      The Gunny flashes a surprisingly long toothed smile at Impish and responds “Oh we’re so much more sir…most of us have served under or worked with Mr. Leprechaun in the past. In fact it was his suggestion and bank roll that got us started. Additionally we’re all lycanthropes.” As if to demonstrate the validity of his statement he extends a single finger which sprouts a claw suddenly and points it in the direction of Brutus who instantly seems to double in size and being hissing and spitting at the Sergeant while exposing his legendary and sizable sharps.

      Impish pats and restrains the Ninja kitty. “Easy pal, he’d be well done before he even changed and got free of all that stuff he’s wearing.” Brutus looks Impish in the eye a moment then resumes his original position but doesn’t seem the least bit mollified by Impish’s confident assertion

      “That an explanation of who and what you are, but so far I haven’t heard anything proving Lethal sent you or that you are even needed and seeing as I’ve ben asleep for 3 solid days plus a bit I am getting hungry. Can we hurry this along please?” Impish’s request is punctuated by a loud rumble of his belly

      “Sir with regard to that I was briefed by Mr. Leprechaun that once I saw activity in the house I was to dispatch men to the local Subway shop right away to obtain your favorite breakfast sandwich in quantity for you. Namely an Italian BMT with Eggs and Sriracha hot sauce between 2 flat bread with melted cheese- provolone and double meat of course hold the veg.  I expect them to arrive at any moment now.”

      At this Impish raises a speculative eyebrow then glances down at Brutus who expresses his opinion with a lion sized sneeze followed by industriously licking his paw and cleaning his face. “And my family…”

      “Doesn’t like Subway’s idea of breakfast. They’ll receive McDonalds full breakfasts with a request for extra syrup for your daughter and Apple not orange juice. I was told you’d prefer your own coffee.”

      “Ok. So much for your bonafides, you’re apparently legit but those infernal magical dancing shillelagh pretty much told me that. Now why are you here? What’s happened that Lethal felt compelled to hire outside help I’ve never heard of before to protect me? What has our own security so tied up?”

      “Sir it is my duty to inform you that DL/LL HQ is currently FPCON CHARLIE status. There was an attack last night during Devil’s Night sir. I’m not authorized to give you the details, not that I even have a clear understanding of what went on. We were hired at Zero One Hundred, briefed on board the most tricked out, fastest plane I have even seen in my life at O-One Thirty, equipped and in position here by O-Three Hundred. Frankly sir I think my tail might be some place back in Syria still.”

      “Lethal went to all this length over some TP’s of our Corporate Offices? Hardly sounds like him. Frankly I’m surprised he wasn’t out TPing some Liberal Stronghold himself known that rascal.”

      “Sir as I said I don’t know specifics but from what little I heard in the background while we were being briefed, well its quite a bit more serious than that. I believe there were fatalities and I think I heard the phrase ‘airborne delivered target specific improvised  incendiary ordinance’. Does that phrase mean anything to you sir? I’ve never heard of such an ordinance load.”

      Gunnery Sergeant Axel Timber finds himself bowled aside as Impish drops the bathrobe, unceremoniously dumps Brutus on the car’s roof, reaches for the emergency garage door disconnect and starts transforming into Big Blue, practically all at the same time. The last thing he hears as Impish unfurls his wings and leaps skyward are the directions and  admonishment “Let the Ninja cats in the house then lock the garage door. Tell Izzy she and my wife are to remain inside until they hear from me or Lethal. Watch out for my headstrong daughter, she harbors the illusion she’s already a full trained ninja and chaffs at authority as only a teenager can.” His voice starts to go faint but the Gunny’s augmented wolf hearing clearly catches a phrase he wished he missed, “…and if anything happens to my family you’re whole team is going to wish I had just flame broiled you like a bunch of brown and serve sausages when I first laid eyes on you!”

      More on Saturday. Enjoy the rest of your week. – L.L.

      !cid_341520A1-0E7B-439D-ACFD-76E47EAF2710

      Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

      Dragon Laffs #1459

      halloween

      Good Morning Campers,

      Lots of information to impart and very little time to do it.  It is very late Friday night and due to our family vacation, this is very last minute.  But, no worries, it will be a full issue, and since we are all still at the Halloween Party, not many of you are going to be in shape tomorrow morning to get much out of it anyway.

      Well, the issue is jam packed full of Halloween humor, a lot of it thanks to Lethal Leprechaun, who, as usual, had my six the whole time I was gone and worked diligently to help me out.

      First of all, a reminder…
      !cid_47CD13C005D247F5976ADFC47B05DEB5@LaptopJeff

      Tis Daylight Savings Time’s end for another year.  You get an extra hour of sleep Sunday.  You’ll find several more reminders throughout the issue, just to remind you.

      Okay, so one quick picture of the Dragon Family on vacation and we’ll move on…
      101

      So, I was only kidding.  Here’s a real one:

      MK_MSGAZETT_7496797154

      Yup, that’s almost the whole family.  The only ones missing are Papa Dragon and his lovely wife.  So, sorry.  Can’t show anymore.  No time.  Gotta get back to the party.

      so…

      coollogo_com-545347

      Let’s start out with a great site sent to me by Lethal Leprechaun…

      Meet Donald Trumpkin and more famous Pumpkins
      http://www.click2houston.com/lifestyle/meet-donald-trumpkin-and-more-famous-pumpkins/36082424

       

      Police work can be entertaining as well as dangerous:

      Recently, a female sheriff’s deputy arrested Patrick Lawrence, a 22 year old white male, who was fornicating with a pumpkin in the middle of a field at night.

      The next day, at the Gwinnet County, Georgia courthouse, Lawrence was charged with lewd and lascivious behavior, public indecency and public intoxication.

      The suspect explained that he was passing a pumpkin patch on his way home from a drinking session when he decided to stop. He explained: ‘As there was no one around for miles, or at least I thought there was no one around,’ he stated. Lawrence went on to say that he pulled over to the side of the road, picked out a pumpkin  that he felt was appropriate to his purpose, cut a hole in  it, and proceeded to satisfy his pressing need.

      “Guess I was really into it, y’know?” he commented with evident embarrassment.

      In the process of doing the deed, Lawrence failed to notice an approaching sheriff’s car and was unaware of his audience until Deputy Brenda Taylor approached him.

      ‘It was an unusual situation, that’s for sure;’ said Deputy Taylor, ‘I walked up to Lawrence and he’s just humping away at this pumpkin’.

      Deputy Taylor went on to describe what happened when she approached Lawrence. ‘I said: “Excuse me sir, but do you realize that you’re having sex with a pumpkin?”

      He froze and was clearly very surprised that I was there, and then he looked me straight in the face and said: “A pumpkin? Shit . . . is it midnight already?”

      The court (and the judge) could not contain their laughter. Lawrence was found guilty only of public intoxication, fined $10.00 and sent on his way.

      The Washington Post wrote an article describing this as “The best come-back line ever.”

      .facebook_1413682649890

       

      !cid_5263EEDE8E5540308CC805EE8B6D370C@LaptopJeff

       

      And here’s another one from LL…pumpkin carving ideas

       

      .facebook_1413842167373

       

      When I see a rich snooty looking woman in the grocery store, I pretend that I’m looking for something and I go up to her and say, “Excuse me.  Do you work here?
      Just to knock her down a couple of notches.

       

      .facebook_1414026244488

       

      coollogo_com-1180920 (2)

      70f9151c5e6ce331b0c20608f3e0edc9

      Yup, it’s me.  I’m painted green for Halloween and my horde is, of course, candy. 

       

      .facebook_1414026635789

       

      A couple has a dog that snores.
       
      Annoyed because she can’t sleep, the wife goes to the vet to see if he can
        help.
       
      The vet tells the woman to tie a ribbon around the dog’s testicles,
        and he will stop snoring..
       
      ‘Yea ………… Right!’ She says.
       
      The wife tosses and turns, unable to sleep.
       
      Muttering to herself, she goes to the closet and grabs a piece of red ribbon
        and ties it carefully around the dog’s testicles..
       
      Sure enough, the dog stops snoring.
       
      The woman is amazed.
       
      Later that night, her husband returns home drunk from being out drinking
        with his buddies.
       
      He climbs into bed, falls asleep and immediately begins snoring loudly.
       
      The woman decides maybe the ribbon might work on him.
       
      So, she goes to the closet again, grabs a piece of blue ribbon and
        ties it around her husband’s testicles.
       
      Amazingly, it also works on him!
       
      The woman sleeps soundly.
       
      The husband wakes from his drunken stupor and stumbles into the
        bathroom.
       
      As he stands in front of the toilet, he glances in the mirror and
        sees a blue ribbon attached to his privates.
       
      He is very confused, and as he walks back into the bedroom, he sees
        the red ribbon attached to his dog’s testicles.
       
      He shakes his head and looks at the dog and
        whispers,
       
      ‘I don’t know where we were or what we did last night, but by God we
        took FIRST and SECOND place!’
      !cid_AC36548DC13E4110905D41D618C60DBD@LaptopJeff
      .facebook_1414182357931

       

       

      A businessman met a beautiful girl and agreed to spend the night with her for $500. They did their thing, and, before he left, he told her that he did
      not have any cash with him, but he would have his secretary write a check and mail it to her, calling the payment ‘RENT FOR APARTMENT.’

      On the way to the office, he regretted what he had done, realizing that the whole event had not been worth the price. So he had his secretary send a
      check for $250 and enclose the following typed note:

      ‘Dear Madam:
      Enclosed find a check for $250 for rent of your apartment . I am not sending the amount agreed upon, because when I rented the place, I was under the impression that:
      #1 – it had never been occupied;
      #2 – there was plenty of heat; and
      #3 – it was small enough to make me feel cosy and at home.

      However, I found out that:
      #1 – it had been previously occupied,
      #2 – there wasn’t any heat, and
      #3 – it was entirely too large.’

      Upon receipt of the note, the girl immediately returned the check for $250 with the following note:

      ‘Dear Sir:
      #1 – I cannot understand how you could expect a beautiful apartment to remain unoccupied indefinitely.
      #2 – As for the heat, there is plenty of it, if you know how to turn it on.
      #3 – Regarding the space, the apartment is indeed of regular size, but if you don’t have enough furniture to fill it, please do not blame the management.
             So, Please send the rent in full or we will be forced to contact your present landlady…

       

      .facebook_1414255640472

       

      ITALIAN LEGAL SYSTEM – DIVORCE CASE HEARING…
      A man and his wife were getting a divorce at a local court in Italy, but the custody of their children posed a problem. The mother jumped to her feet and protested to the judge that since she had brought the children into this world, she should retain custody of them. The man also wanted custody of his children, so the judge asked for his side of the story. After a long moment of silence, the man rose from his chair and replied: “Your Honor, when I put a coin into a vending machine, and a Coke comes out, does the Coke belong to me or to the machine?”
       
      Don’t laugh. He won!

       

      .facebook_1414256126162

       

      My wife was curious when she found an old negative at the bottom of a drawer, and had it made into a print.
      I guess she was pleasantly surprised to see that it was of her at a MUCH younger, much slimmer time, taken many years ago on one of her first dates with me. When she showed me the photos, my face lit up.  “Wow, look at that!” I said with appreciation.
      This brought a smile from her.  I continued my thought,
      “That’s my old Peugeot 504!  I loved that car!”

       

       

      !cid_D29CC349940F4CDB9F0826EFD76CD9A5@LaptopJeff

       

      4b0a9735b65cae1b02004bab5b44885c1a2a256175f99ebc145553ba183f370a_1

       

      I just spent an hour watching this video, then the next one in line and the next one in line and the next…, you get the idea.  People really are awesome!!!!

       

      5a57ca4e80e98788d80daee95c0801280f61aeb44d63c5c68f4fe7d2944bfadd_1

      What an absolute classic!!!

       

      Here’s another great video to watch….If you’re gonna be dumb…
      https://vimeo.com/81908488

       

      7

       

       

      coollogo_com-64781197

      9

      It’s all about magic.  But, isn’t that true throughout the multi-verse?  Magic in the plants that grow, the people you meet, the air we breath?  Magic is everywhere.  And for us to think that what we see, what we can imagine, is all that there is out there…when then aren’t we arrogant…
      206

      5a

      ALL THE TIME!!!  Or a podcast pair, or a morning radio show team or….geez, Lethal and I could do ANY of those things.  And yet we’ve decided to entertain you guys.
      Well, and ourselves.  Man, if all of you were privy to all the conversations and interactions that go on between the two of us, you’d have starved to death by now, because you wouldn’t have stopped laughing long enough to eat or drink anything.
      So, by all means, feel very special that we’re entertaining you!

       

      8

       

      Daylightsavingstime2

      I so want to try this…..I truly do!
      5a1

      Although NOT with the Ninja Kitties!!!!  I have a wicked sense of humor, but I’m not STUPID!!!

       

      10

       

      COSTELLO :  I want to talk about the unemployment rate in America.

      ABBOTT : Good Subject.  Terrible Times.  It’s 5.6%.

      COSTELLO :  That many people are out of work?

      ABBOTT : No, that’s 23%.

      COSTELLO : You just said 5.6%.

      ABBOTT :  5.6% Unemployed.

      COSTELLO :  Right 5.6% out of work.

      ABBOTT : No, that’s 23%.

      COSTELLO : Okay, so it’s  23% unemployed.

      ABBOTT : No, that’s 5.6%.

      COSTELLO :  WAIT A MINUTE. Is it 5.6% or 23%?

      ABBOTT : 5.6% are unemployed.  23% are out of work.

      COSTELLO : If you are out of work you are unemployed.

      ABBOTT :  No, Congress said you can’t count the “Out of Work” as the unemployed.  You have to look for work to be unemployed.

      COSTELLO : BUT THEY ARE OUT OF WORK!!!

      ABBOTT : No, you miss his point.

      COSTELLO :  What point?

      ABBOTT :  Someone who doesn’t look for work can’t be counted with those who look for work. It wouldn’t be fair.

      COSTELLO : To whom?

      ABBOTT : The unemployed.

      COSTELLO : But ALL of them are out of work.

      ABBOTT :  No, the unemployed are actively looking for work. Those who are out of work gave up looking and if you give up, you are no longer in the ranks of the unemployed.

      COSTELLO : So if you’re off the unemployment roles that would count as less unemployment?

      ABBOTT : Unemployment would go down. Absolutely!

      COSTELLO :  The unemployment just goes down because you don’t look for work?

      ABBOTT :  Absolutely it goes  down. That’s how it gets to 5.6%. Otherwise it would be 23%.

      COSTELLO : Wait, I got a question for you. That means there are two ways to bring down the unemployment number?

      ABBOTT : Two ways is correct.

      COSTELLO : Unemployment can go down if someone gets a job?

      ABBOTT : Correct.

      COSTELLO : And unemployment can also go down if you stop looking for a job?

      ABBOTT : Bingo.

      COSTELLO: So there are two ways to bring unemployment down, and the easier of the two is to have people stop looking for work.

      ABBOTT: Now you’re thinking like an Economist.

      COSTELLO:  I don’t even know what the hell I just said!

      ABBOTT: Now you’re thinking like a Liberal.

       

      11

       

      coollogo_com-1764840 (2)

      a29

      a30

      a31

      a32

      a33

      Dang!  That happens every single time I get stopped if I’m with Lethal Leprechaun.

       

      Okay, this next one is really funny…and also quite sad.  Because it’s so true.

      12

      GOP presidential candidate Jeb Bush ripped Donald Trump’s proposal to deport all the illegal aliens living in the United States and send them home, insisting to a group of Iowans on Friday that it’s impractical to move twelve million people to another country. That’s not true. Mexico did it.

       

      13

       

      Here’s a great story:

      When I worked at the BMP, the Head of Television commuted in from Brighton every day.

      He started reading The Exorcist on the train.  He said he thought it was the most evil book he’d ever read.  In fact, he said it was so evil he couldn’t finish it.  So, at the weekend, he went to the end of Brighton pier and threw it as far as he could into the water.

      So, I went to the bookshop and I bought another copy.  Then I ran it under the tap until it was soaking wet.  I then left it in his desk drawer for him to find.

      What a perfect prank!

       

      !cid_X_MA1_1445696405@aol

       

      This guy’s in the rear of a full elevator and he speaks out, “Ballroom, please.”
      A lady standing in front of him turns around.  She replies,
      “I’m sorry, sir.  I didn’t realize I was crowding you.”

       

       

      !cid_X_MA4_1446237466@aol

       

      coollogo_com-5575837

      Halloween

      Halloween2

      Halloween3

      Halloween3a

      Halloween4

      Halloween5

       

      14

       

       

      Stare deeply into my eyes…..

      100

       

       

      41

      Better, or Worse5 (2)

       

      Well, I’m sure you all are wondering what happened between Impish and his beautiful wife, who is currently a banshee trapped in a Ghost Buster’s ghost trap…so, let’s finish off today’s issue with the story as we know it so far.

      Special thanks goes to Lethal Leprechaun for writing this part for me, since I was so late in getting started on today’s issue.

      As far as timelines go…this all took place last week:

      Lethal turns to Impish as they arrive at a heavy door which is unusual in the feature that it is double barred from the outside and inlayed with a complex design in what appears to be precious metals. Even the brackets for the cross beams, the beams themselves, as well as the door’s frame work all have inlayed designs upon them. A careful study of the designs would show a web like pattern worked into the vine design in which magical symbols and glyphs had carefully and discretely been worked. At Lethal’s gesture to rotate the cross beams to permit opening the door Impish jaw drops open.
       
      “In there? Seriously? You want me to have a conversation with my already gone to Banshee wife in THERE?! You think THAT is going to calm her down?” He regards Lethal’s mysteriously full again coffee cup speculatively, “It’s pretty early in the day even for an Irishman and I’ve never known you to drink while we were under the gun before.”
       
      “I’m as sober as I’d taken the Tippler’s Oath, here I’ll prove it” he hand the mug to Dragonette Izzy and gestures for her to examine it. She sniffs cautiously, smiles and before she can be stopped, takes a gulp that does her Dragon heritage a full measure of justice. After swallowing, a profound look of disappointment shows on her face and she willingly hands the mug back to Lethal while addressing her Dragon Dad, “Only Bailey’s creamer not even artificial sweetener.”
       
      “Too bloody right! Now, as I was was about to say before I was slanderously accused of being a lush by my best “friend”,” he air quotes the word friend as he pauses to glower at Impish briefly, “can you think of a better place to do it? And to answer your second question, nae its not to clam her down, you said YOU were going to deal with your…err lovely wife. Doing it here simply insures you remain safe enough for long enough to do so…or until she tires herself  and reverts to her mundane form, 0which ever first comes to pass…which I will be making book on, by the by, to finance any damages incurred as that room was bloody expensive to create.”
       
      “I don’t understand. What’s the big deal about the room? So it has an ugly fancy door and locks from…the outside…OMG! DAD! You’re putting Mom in PRISON because she’s mad about all your side action?! NO WAY!”
       
      Impish scowls at his whelp as smoke wisps start to seep from his nose and again he quickly reviews the Pros vs. Cons of eating his young before opening his mouth to answer. However he’s beaten to a response by Lethal.
       
      “Nae lass ’tis not a prison cell, what it IS is a magical containment cell for dealing with difficult, out of control or uninvited magical guests. I assure you our Security Detention Center is in a far less friendly setting and a far more secure and hard to reach location. In fact I can arrange for you to spend sometime getting a feel for the difference, I know its a favorite place of  Hell Boys,  if you continue to insist on breaking you word to you Dad to be seen, not heard and show the proper respect for the betters and elders.” He makes a deliberate show of reaching for his PDA while raising an eyebrow.
       
      The dragonette swallows audibly while she knows she can push her boundaries with her parents and in particularly her father she knows that Uncle Lethal isn’t subject to the same flexibility. If the day thus far is anything to judge by, he has her out-anticipated and outsmarted on his home ground. She also now realizes he’s in less mood than usual to put up with her testing him and therefore not likely to be engaging in idle bluffs. “Can I at least ask what a magical containment cell is if its not a prison cell…you know, for my magical education?”
       
      Lethal gestures to the now open very thick door which she notices has the same pattern carved into the edge of both the door and door frame. As she stops for a closer look he winks at Impish and suddenly a tail slap sends her into the room with an indignant squeal of surprise.
       
      Impish (grinning back at Lethal) scowls at the Dragonette. “Izzy!  You said ask about not tour! Get out of there right now!” The dragonette ninja glares ruefully at her father and attempts to step out of the room only to find her attempt invisibly rebuffed and the walls as well as the open door way and the door all glowing brightly with runes and glyphs. Her brow furrows, she steps back and leads this time with her shoulder in a bull rush only to find her self on her butt back several feet from the door way. Impish chuckles at this.
       
      “I can’t get out. You trapped me in here. I was right this is a jail!”
       
      Lethal chuckles. “I’ll make a note of the fact NK Clan Mistress SC needs to seriously up your patience training and Chai need to spend less time sleeping in your lap while being petted and more on your problem analysis skills. Stop scowling at us, close your eyes, take several deep breaths and picture the last time you held a purring Ninja Kitty. Latch on to that feeling that makes you feel- the one where you couldn’t stay mad if you tried. Then holding that walk towards the door.” 
       
      Izzy seems to have a sharp retort at the ready when Impish cuts her off. “Always  the shallow learning curve and smart mouth on this one unless its something she wants. This could take a while. You know we missed lunch and I’m hungry, wanna leave her here and go grab a bite? I smell Cheese steaks.”
       
      The Dragonette would-be ninja sighs heavily, rolls her eyes for forms sake, scrunches up her face in either concentration or anticipation of hitting the barrier with her eyes closed and does as she was told. Suddenly she runs into a slightly outstretched wing. Much to her surprise she finds herself back between her father and Uncle. She looks at the two of them mouth open unable to ask the questions going thru her head.
       
      Lethal relents and explains “I told you its not a jail cell or a prison. It is a Magical Containment Cell, sort of an involuntary time out room if you will. Anyone can enter but only those who are calm and composed can exit the room. The glyphs and runes prevent any form of exiting physical, magical or incorporeal. The protection circle inlaid in the center of the room allows us to release angry entities like your Mom is right now to speak to and reason with but protects the negotiator from any harm they might be in danger of.”
       
      Simultaneously and in near perfect sync both father & daughter dragon moan “Oh man! I wish we had one of these in our house, life would be so much easier!” Then laugh at each other.
       
      Lethal chuckles then turns serious as he addresses Impish. “Right, in you go then, I don’t know what the time passage perception is like inside of a ghost trap and its been nearly half and hour already. You remember how to invoke the circle’s protection right?” Impish nods apprehensively.
       
      “Ahh..your not coming with..?”
       
      “Nope! A certain irate dragon a short while ago told me to shut my gob and that they would be dealing with their Banshee of a wife when the time came. Well, time has bloody come boy-o.” Lethal hands him something that looks like a car remote. “There’s the remote for the ghost trap. The Orange button with the ‘V’ opens and closes the trap. The arrow button changes the traps polarity to let things out or pull them in. If the arrow is green the trap is set to capture. If its red its set to release. Select the direction before opening the trap and wait for the light on the trap to start blinking indicating ready before you open it. Best o’ luck pal!” Lethal turns away from Impish and heads towards Izzy before suddenly spinning about on his heels and walking back. “One more ting…” he reaches into the side pocket of his coat and pulls out a small ornate tin. “Your requested suicide pill. Lethal shakes his hand again saying “Best o’ luck mate.”, then places a guiding hand on Izzy’s shoulder. “Come niece ’tis best if we give your parents some privacy. Besides that idea already percolating about in your head of ditching me and circling back to listen at the door won’t work. The magic plus the thickness of the doors and walls make the room sound proof.” Izzy’s looks shocked at her Uncles apparent mind reading skills and then her shoulder slump.
       
      “Did you really just give my Dad a suicide pill?! Izzy exclaims craning her neck to look back at her Dad
       
      Lethal delays his answer and makes a shooing motion at Impish who swallows visibly then squares his shoulder and enters the room. Two steps past where Izzy was the door swings shut suddenly with a resounding boom and the crossbars rotate into place. A light goes on displaying an ‘IN USE’ legend above the door.
      “Of course not! he retorts, I was just messing with him, I gave him my breath mints because his breath was horrible. He’ll realize in in about 5 minutes.”
       
      “So what now, we go to your office and do boring paperwork until Mom and Dad are done fighting?”
       
      Lethal steps up to a small chalk board on the wall just below a pull style bell both which had gone unnoticed by our would be Dragon ninja until now. The frame of the chalk board displays the word “When Bell Rings Please Notify:”. Beneath this Lethal has written  ‘L.L.- will be in bistro. Thanks’
       
      “No my dear, your Dad was quite right when he said we missed lunch and I’d hazard a guess from what I saw in the kitchen so did you because you got stubborn and talked back to Red am I right?” Ruefully she nods. “Well then I too smell Cheese steaks. What do you say to a couple cheese steaks, French fries to catch all the cheese wiz that leaks out and a couple of my famous Blarney floats?”
       
      Izzy swallows hungrily “Can I get a chocolate shake too and what’s in a Blarney float?”
       
      Lethal chuckles as he directs her in the direction they need to go to reach the bistro. “Sure you can have a shake too. I hope your stomach is more dragon than the rest of you is at the moment, I have a feeling you’ll need it. As for the float, its two large scoops of  Bailey’s flavored ice cream with dark chocolate flecks in a pint of my micro-brewed cream soda, topped off, of course, with whipped cream and a cherry.” He steadies the young dragonette as she nearly stumbles and her stomach growls loudly. Chuckling he says “That’s just about what I thought you’d say about it. Come on girl, pick up the pace, I’m hungry as a dragon.”
       
      About 45 minutes later as Lethal enjoys his espresso over Bailey’s ice cream and Izzy decided to admit defeat and not finish her Blarney float. His phone screen flashes and notice of a text message appears. Izzy stares expectantly as Lethal reads the text, grunts to himself and responds. He looks at a tote board on the wall, smirks and as he makes a fast call says to Izzy, “Not bad kid you know your parents well, you get to split the proceeds of the pool with one other person. Hey Red! Yeah you win the pool along with Izzy. Huh? Ahh, nope sorry I need her she’s not available for dish duty or jalapeno chopping, sorry. Yeah half. Should hit your account in about half an hour. OK. Later”
       
      Motioning her just a minute with his finger he makes another fast call. All he says is “Magical & Mythical medical teams to Containment Chamber 4 please stat. Possible patients are Dragon and Banshee. Present conditions are unknown. Negotiations duration roughly 45 minutes.”
       
      Izzy immediately wishes that she hadn’t eaten so much as her stomach is suddenly threatening to rebel at the thought of her betting money on how long her parents would go at it while her parents might have really been fighting to the point of requiring medical assistance. Her anger begins to build when she remembers that the entire thing is apparently a result of something Lethal let slip about her Dad’s other women friends and she begins to plot an attack on Lethal uncle or no.
       
      Lethal looks up at her folds his hands on the table and leans forward to address her confidentially and in a fatherly, or at least unclely manner. “The medical team is simply a precaution and part of the release protocol that’s all. There are a multitude of reason that they might be needed aside from the obvious one that is running through your mind. I apologize for not explaining what happens post bell ringing earlier.” His voice lowers and hardens to ice as he continues, “As to that other thought I saw flash through your mind, you might be my god-niece but believe me when I say the Ninja Cats Clan Mistress SC and her Black Paw Chai’s first loyalty is to me, and that means ALL the Ninja Cats are loyal to me. So even assuming you get in a lucky hit, you’re screwed. Additionally, your Dad and I have gone toe to toe with him in ‘Big Blue’ form multiple times. He’s always come out slightly worse for wear, and I’ve always survived, abet occasionally in need fresh trousers.
      You.
      Are.
      NOT.
      In.
      Your.
      Dad’s.
      League.
      Not by a long shot, at least not yet. Act on what I saw and I’ll have no mercy and no compunction about defeating you, playing the drum solo from Led Zepplin’s Moby Dick on your bare backside (see video at end of story for reference~Ed) and introducing you to a security detention cell so deep in the mountain that when light finally reaches it it’s half a day old already. We clear?”
       
      Izzy swallows and nods, finding Lethal’s icy stare, sans any of the warmth and mirth that had been there through their surprisingly enjoyable lunch, a shocking and unsetting change. Instantly Lethal’s eyes revert, the merry and mischievous twinkle returns and Izzy silently breathes a breath of relief.
       
      “Good. Let’s go then as undoubtedly your parents are impatiently waiting to be let out. I’m interested if they can both make it out on their own on their first attempt. Too bad I didn’t think of setting up a book on that too.”
       
      As short while later when the door is opened Izzy is greeted by the sight of her Dad, with her mother thrown over his shoulder ,stepping out of the Containment Room. Her impressions rapidly shift from horror that her mother is unconscious, to concern because she seems to be shaking and thrashing about as if in seizure, to disbelief when she realized her mother is uncontrollably laughing and fighting to get free because her Dad is tickling her. Impish reaches out with his free arm for her which she dashes into. The last thing she remembers hearing before wings enfold all three of them for a private moment is her father addressing her Uncle. “Lethal you’ll have to make due without me for a few days. I’m taking my family to Disney World like you told them I had promised to.”
      Which brings us up to date, since we’ve just returned from said trip to Disney World.
      So, until we meet again next week….
      Cheers!
      *As promised

      !cid_X_MA1_1446226569@aol

      Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

      Leprechaun Laughs #322 Samhain- All Hallows Eve- Dia De Los Muretos Special Issue

       image

      As you make your way into the annual Halloween party in your costume (you saw a few people refused admittance without one) you spot the promised band ‘Frankie Stein and the Four Shrouds tuning up in one corner of the stage. Lethal and Impish are standing near by in their costumes for Diaman to take a photo of. Lethal is dressed in a New England Patriots uniform, cowboy boots and spurs, while Impish wear that of the Indianapolis Colts…with one curious addition, a saddle on his back. This puzzles you until Lethal leaps into it yelling something about putting the spurs to Impish the same way the Pats did the Colts 2 weeks ago. Impish grumbles something about deflating Lethal’s balls under his breath but is cut off when they notice the arrival of the last of the guests.

      Lethal makes to start his opening remarks when suddenly Impish busts out in guffaws at what ever the security guard who had been approaching them showed him. At Lethal’s raised eyebrow and perturbed body language Impish gestures for the guard to show Lethal what ever it is that has rendered him speechless due to laughter.

      Lethal steps down from the podium and you can hear over the live mic the faint mummer of a hasty conversation from the security guard and then Lethal’s responding “Show me” just before the sound of Irish laughter intermingled with the words,”BEGORRAH! I don’t bloody well care who you are, that’s funny right there, but HELLS NO! he doesn’t get in dressed like that! I don’t care if he is one of the original DragonLaffs readers from way back. That’s not a costume, it IS funnier than shit, but not a costume.”

      Lethal resumes is position at the podium, “Sorry about that folks, as Impish warned you on Saturday there is a strict mandatory costume policy for this celebration and while we’ve allowed a great deal of leeway and creative interpretation this just does make the cut:”

      image

      His name is apparently ‘Bob’ and he claims to be a founding reader of DragonLaffs from back when Impish managed the issues via his email program.

      Allegedly he came as ‘Impish Dragon’, the hat constituting his ‘dragon wings’ and the cigar representing the smoke curling out a dragons nose was well as the fiery breath aspect. I’m not entirely sure but I think the legend on the hat is some sort of subtle message or commentary on something or other.

      Apparently he claims he would have worn his blue T-shirt to complete the outfit but that it was currently stained with Pizza sauce and wanted to be cut slack for that.

      You ask me, the blue T-shirt pizza sauce and all would have lent a heck of a lot of credibility to his costume because of the pizza sauce, something which Impish is frequently seen wearing in large quantity!

      Just two foot notes before we commence the celebrating:

      1.) Party ends Sundown on Saturday, which is Halloween. Halloween in a magical place like DL/LL Digital Media HQ can be extremely hazardous for you mundanes. You have been forewarned and please note we will NOT be responsible for anything you experience or any mysterious disappearances of readers after Sundown Saturday.

      2.) Because if I attempt to stuff anything further into this issue it may quite literally explode, our recounting of events concerning Impish and myself will resume on Saturday with Impish’s issue once again. Tune in Saturday to see what happens when Mrs. Dragon gets out of the ghostbusters trap and if I can talk Impish out of the mess I put him in in the first place.

      OK enough talking! Eat, Drink, Put the make on Ginny err that is Make Mary and generally Party Hardy- but only to excess!

      Let's Roll 23

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      Study: Psychopaths take their coffee black

      People who like bitter foods such as black coffee, radishes more likely to possess antisocial traits, study says.

      People who take their coffee black are more likely to possess antisocial and psychotic personality traits, according to a study published in the journal Appetite.

      The University of Innsbruck in Austria study included around 1,000 people and found that subjects who preferred bitter notes in their food and beverages scored higher on questionnaires that assessed “Machiavellianism,” a word used in psychology to describe people with psychopathic, narcissistic and sadistic personality traits, reports the Huffington Post.

      The data was was self-reported, which is an unreliable metric, but researchers hope their study will prompt further investigation into links between eating habits and psychological traits, reports the Huffington Post.

       

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      HALLOWEEN SCARE PRANK – DEVIL’S DAUGHTER

      The gates of hell have begun to lift open as we get closer to Halloween. Devil’s Daughter has traveled to our world.

       

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      Halloween by the numbers

      • Consumers will spend $6.9 billion this Halloween, according to the National Retail Federation
      • 64: Percent of Americans who plan to celebrate Halloween this year
      • 41.2 million: Potential trick-or-treaters ages 5-14 according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
      • $74.34: The average amount Americans will spend on candy, costumes, and decorations.
      • $2.1 billion: Projected spending on Halloween candy in the U.S. in 2015.
      • “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” premiered 49 years ago
      • 49.5 million: Acres of pumpkins harvested in the U.S. in 2014.
      • 12.9: Percent of owners who plan to dress up their pets this year. For scary cats and dogs, the costume to beat is a pumpkin.
      • 11: Years in a row that a witch has been the number one adult Halloween costume in the U.S.
      • $255 million: U.S. Box office earnings of horror movies in 2014.

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      Famous ghosts the world has no idea how to explain

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      Child at the Railroad Crossing

      Several children were killed at a railroad crossing located in San Antonia, Texas. Locals will tell you that their ghosts still linger at the spot, and will push idle cars across the track – even though the path is uphill.

       

       

       

      http-wp-prod-02-distractify-com-wp-content-uploads-2015-10-hampton-ghost

      The Grey Lady of Hampton Court

      A ghostly figure was caught on surveillance slamming doors near one of King Henry the VIII’s favorite spots. Some say it’s Henry’s 5th wife, Catherine Howard, who was dragged out screaming after being accused of adultery.

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      The Madonna of Bachelor’s Grove

      Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery, located in Illinois, is considered to be one of the most haunted places in the world. This picture depicts a lady resting on a bench, but there wasn’t anyone else in the cemetery at the time.

       

       

       

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      Back Seat Driver

      This famous ghost photograph was taken in 1959 by Mable Chinnery. After visiting the grave of her mother, Mable turned and took a picture of her husband, who was waiting for her in the car.

       

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      Lord of the Chair

      Lord Combermere was killed by a horse drawn carriage back in 1891. While waiting for the family to return from the funeral, the photographer snapped this photo of Combermere’s favorite chair.

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      The Ghost of Boothill Graveyard

      Terry Clanton snapped a photo of his friend dressed as a cowboy in a famous Arizona graveyard. When he had the photos developed, he was shocked to see a man dressed as a cowboy in the background. “I know there was no other person in this photograph when I shot it,” Clanton insists.

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      Disney’s Haunted Mansion Ghost

      A 2009 YouTube video — presumably of Disneyland surveillance footage — shows a grim grinning ghost cruising around Diseyland’s Haunted Mansion and Rivers of America areas after hours. The Park was totally empty, giving him plenty of space to roam around the sidewalks and grass. He even walks on water near the end of the tape.

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      The Ghost of Grandpas Past

      Denise Russell snapped a photo of her grandmother and claims she inadvertently captured her deceased grandfather in the background.

       

       

       

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      Amityville Horror Ghost

      Not everyone realizes that the movie was inspired by real events that happened to a family on Long Island. This picture was discovered among evidence taken by actual demonologists [Ed & Elizabeth Warren – L.L.] who investigated the house in 1976. No children were present in the house at the time.

       

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      I can see why the adult witch costume is so heavily favored these last 11 years given the trend toward smaller costumes can’t you?  Also tells me why Hillary is always in such a foul mood… she must look like hell in her costume!

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      All Hallow’s Eve, which later became known as Halloween, is celebrated on the night before All Saints’ Day, November 1. Use this simple prayer service in conjunction with Halloween festivities to mark the Christian roots of this festival.

      Halloween or Hallowe’en (/ˌhæləˈwiːn, -oʊˈiːn, ˌhɑːl-/; a contraction of “All Hallows’ Evening”), also known as Allhalloween, All Hallows’ Eve, or All Saints’ Eve, is a yearly celebration observed in a number of countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day. It initiates the triduum of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed believers. Within Allhallowtide, the traditional focus of All Hallows’ Eve revolves around the theme of using “humor and ridicule to confront the power of death.”

      According to many scholars, All Hallows’ Eve is a Christianized feast initially influenced by Celtic harvest festivals, with possible pagan roots, particularly the Gaelic Samhain. Other scholars maintain that it originated independently of Samhain and has solely Christian roots.

      Typical festive Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (or the related “guising”), attending costume parties, decorating, carving pumpkins into jack-o’-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories and watching horror films. In many parts of the world, the Christian religious observances of All Hallows’ Eve, including attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead, remain popular, although in other locations, these solemn customs are less pronounced in favor of a more commercialized and secularized celebration. Because many Western Christian denominations encourage, although most no longer require, abstinence from meat on All Hallows’ Eve, the tradition of eating certain vegetarian foods for this vigil day developed, including the consumption of apples, colcannon, cider, potato pancakes, and soul cakes.

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      Well THAT certainly goes a long way to explaining Ginny, Diaman, Mrs. Dragon and Molly’s love of Halloween then!

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      The Top 5 Rejected Morals for Aesop’s Fables

      5. Never trust a farmer who shows you his ass.

      4. A fool and his money are usually running for president.

      3. A man is known by the company he bankrupts.

      2.. Bros before hoes.

      And the Number One Rejected Moral for an Aesop’s Fable…

      1. He who bets on Patriots will soon have his hopes deflated.

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      We hang the petty thieves AND appoint the great ones to public office ~Aesop~

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      Ut-oh! Hillary is trying to intimidate her way into the White House residence again!

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      Me too Maxine, me too!

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      Better Than Sex Cake

      Diabetically and/or dietetically friendly this cake isn’t. It has 531 cal. & 46g of Sugar per serving which is 1/12th the cake or a 3” x 3” square. It also just might (for some) live up to it’s name.

      Ingredients

        • 10 1/4 ounces German chocolate cake mix
        • 1 1/4 cups water
        • 1/3 cup oil
        • 3 eggs
        • 1 (14 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
        • 1 (16 ounce) jars caramel topping ( OR butterscotch topping)
        • 8 ounces Cool Whip
        • 1 (8 ounce) bags toffee pieces ( or bits)

      Directions

      1. Pre-heat oven to 350.
      2. Make and bake cake as directed on package in a 9 x 13 pan.
      3. Poke top of warm cake every 1/2″ with handle of wooden spoon.
      4. Drizzle sweetened condensed milk evenly over cake and let stand until milk has absorbed into cake.
      5. Drizzle with caramel or butterscotch topping.
      6. Run knife around sides of pan to loosen cake.
      7. Cover and refrigerate about 2 hours or until cake has chilled.
      8. Spread cool whip over top of cake.
      9. Sprinkle with toffee chips.
      10. Store cake covered, in the refrigerator.

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      Día De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and by Mexican-Americans across the U.S.

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      According to Mexican folklore, the gates of heaven open at midnight on Nov. 1 and the spirits of all deceased children (angelitos) are allowed to reunite with their families for 24 hours. 

      imageThe next day, the spirits of the adults come down to enjoy what has been prepared for them.

       

      Day of the DeadThe timeline is not strictly adhered to, however, and many begin celebrating on Oct. 31.

       

       

       

       

       

       

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      Sugar skulls are made and used for decorating altars. Often, the name of the deceased is painted on the forehead.

       

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      Some people combine Halloween and Día de los Muertos.

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      For practitioners, Día de los Muertos is a very happy and festive holiday that celebrates the lives of people they love who have gone on.

       

       

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      Samhain 

      In Modern Irish the name is Samhain [ˈsˠaunʲ], (pronounced /ˈsɑːwɪn/ SAH-win or /ˈsaʊ.ɪn/ SOW-in[1] Irish pronunciation: [sˠaunʲ]) in Scottish Gaelic Samhainn/Samhuinn [ˈsaũ.iɲ], and in Manx Gaelic Sauin. These are also the names of November in each language, shortened from Mí na Samhna (Irish), Mì na Samhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Mee Houney (Manx). The night of 31 October (Halloween) is Oíche Shamhna (Irish), Oidhche Shamhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Oie Houney (Manx), all meaning “Samhain night”. 1 November, or the whole festival, may be called Lá Samhna (Irish), Là Samhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Laa Houney (Manx), all meaning “Samhain day”. It is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the “darker half” of the year.

      Traditionally, Samhain is celebrated from sunset on 31 October to sunset on 1 November, which is about halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Similar festivals are held at the same time of year in other Celtic lands; for example the Brythonic Calan Gaeaf (in Wales), Kalan Gwav (in Cornwall), and Kalan Goañv (in Brittany).

      Samhain is believed to have pagan origins and there is evidence it has been an important date since ancient times. The Mound of the Hostages, a Neolithic passage tomb at the Hill of Tara, is aligned with the Samhain sunrise. It is mentioned in some of the earliest Irish literature and many important events in Irish mythology happen or begin on Samhain. It was the time when cattle were brought back down from the summer pastures and when livestock were slaughtered for the winter. As at Beltane, special bonfires were lit. These were deemed to have protective and cleansing powers and there were rituals involving them.[3] Samhain (like Beltane) was seen as a liminal time, when the spirits or fairies (the Aos Sí) could more easily come into our world. Most scholars see the Aos Sí as remnants of the pagan gods and nature spirits. It was believed that the Aos Sí needed to be propitiated to ensure that the people and their livestock survived the winter. Offerings of food and drink were left for them. The souls of the dead were also thought to revisit their homes. Feasts were had, at which the souls of dead kin were beckoned to attend and a place set at the table for them. Mumming and guising were part of the festival, and involved people going door-to-door in costume (or in disguise), often reciting verses in exchange for food. The costumes may have been a way of imitating, or disguising oneself from, the Aos Sí. Divination rituals were also a big part of the festival and often involved nuts and apples. In the late 19th century, Sir John Rhys and Sir James Frazer suggested that it was the “Celtic New Year”, and this view has been repeated by some other scholars.

      In the 9th century AD, the Early Church shifted the date of All Saints’ Day to 1 November, while 2 November later became All Souls’ Day. Over time, Samhain and All Saints’/All Souls’ merged to create the modern Halloween. Historians have used the name ‘Samhain’ to refer to Gaelic ‘Halloween’ customs up until the 19th century.

      Since the latter 20th century, Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have observed Samhain, or something based on it, as a religious holiday. Neopagans in the Southern Hemisphere often celebrate Samhain at the other end of the year (about 1 May).

       

       

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      13 Halloween Superstitions & Traditions Explained

      Halloween may seem like it’s all about costumes and candy, but the holiday — which is relatively new to America, having only become popular in the early 1900s — has its roots in pagan beliefs. Dating back about 2,000 years, Halloween marked the Celtic New Year and was originally called Samhain, which translates to “summer’s end” in Gaelic.

      Some Halloween traditions, such as carving Jack-o’-lanterns, are based on Irish folklore and have been carried on throughout the centuries, while others, such as candy corn, are more modern Halloween additions. Read on to find out the meaning behind 13 spooky Halloween staples, including spiders, witches and trick-or-treating.

      Black Cats

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      Often used as symbols of bad luck, black cats grace many Halloween decorations. The black cat’s bad reputation dates back to the Dark Ages, when witch hunts were commonplace. Elderly, solitary women were often accused of witchcraft, and their pet cats were said to be their “familiars,” or demonic animals that had been given to them by the devil.

      Another medieval myth told that Satan turned himself into a cat when socializing with witches. But nowadays, black cats aren’t synonymous with bad luck and mischief everywhere — in Ireland, Scotland and England, it’s considered good luck for a black cat to cross your path.

      Carving pumpkins

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      A fun fall activity, carving Jack-o’-lanterns actually has its roots in a sinister, tragic fable. Celtic folklore tells the tale of a drunken farmer named Jack who tricked the devil, but his trickery resulted in him being turned away from both the gates of heaven and hell after he died. Having no choice but to wander around the darkness of purgatory, Jack made a lantern from a turnip and a burning lump of coal that the devil had tossed him from hell.

      Jack, the story goes, used the lantern to guide his lost soul; as such, the Celts believed that placing Jack-o’-lanterns outside would help guide lost spirits home when they wander the streets on Halloween. Originally made using a hollowed-out turnip with a small candle inside, Jack-o’-lanterns’ frightening carved faces also served to scare evil spirits away. When the Irish potato famine of 1846 forced Irish families to flee to North America, the tradition came with them. Since turnips were hard to come by in the states at the time, pumpkins were used as a substitute.

      Bats

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      Medieval folklore also described bats as witches’ familiars, and seeing a bat on Halloween was considered to be quite an ominous sign. One myth was that if a bat was spotted flying around one’s house three times, it meant that someone in that house would soon die. Another myth was that if a bat flew into your house on Halloween, it was a sign that your house was haunted because ghosts had let the bat in.

      Spiders

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      A common source of fear, spiders make for creepy, crawly Halloween staples. They join the ranks of bats and black cats in folklore as being evil companions of witches during medieval times. One superstition held that if a spider falls into a candle-lit lamp and is consumed by the flame, witches are nearby. And if you spot a spider on Halloween, goes another superstition, it means that the spirit of a deceased loved one is watching over you.

      Witches

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      The stereotypical image of the haggard witch with a pointy black hat and warty nose stirring a magical potion in her cauldron actually stems from a pagan goddess known as “the crone,” who was honored during Samhain. The crone was also known as “the old one” and the “Earth mother,” who symbolized wisdom, change, and the turning of the seasons. Today, the kind, all-knowing old crone has morphed into the menacing, cackling witch.

      Cauldrons

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      The pagan Celts believed that after death, all souls went into the crone’s cauldron, which symbolized the Earth mother’s womb. There, the souls awaited reincarnation, as the goddess’ stirring allowed for new souls to enter the cauldron and old souls to be reborn. That image of the cauldron of life has now been replaced by the steaming, bubbling, ominous brew.

       

      Brooms

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      The witch’s broomstick is another superstition that has its roots in medieval myths. The elderly, introverted women that were accused of witchcraft were often poor and could not afford horses, so they navigated through the woods on foot with the help of walking sticks, which were sometimes substituted by brooms.

      English folklore tells that during night-time ceremonies, witches rubbed a “flying” potion on their bodies, closed their eyes and felt as though they were flying. The hallucinogenic ointment, which caused numbness, rapid heartbeat and confusion, gave them the illusion that they were soaring through the sky.

      Costumes

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      In olden times, it was believed that during Samhain, the veil between our world and the spirit world was thinnest, and that the ghosts of the deceased could mingle with the living. The superstition was that the visiting ghosts could disguise themselves in human form, such as a beggar, and knock on your door during Samhain asking for money or food. If you turned them away empty-handed, you risked receiving the wrath of the spirit and being cursed or haunted.

      Another Celtic myth was that dressing up as a ghoul would fool the evil spirits into thinking that you were one of them so that they would not try to take your soul. In the U.S., trick-or-treating became a customary Halloween tradition around the late 1950s, after it was brought over by Irish immigrants in the early 1900s.

      Colors Orange & Black

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      The traditional Halloween colors of orange and black actually stem from the pagan celebration of autumn and the harvest, with orange symbolizing the colors of the crops and turning leaves, while black marks the “death” of summer and the changing season. Over time, green, purple and yellow have also been introduced into the color scheme of Halloween decorations.

       

      Mischief

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      Many have the idea that Halloween is a night of trickery and pranks. The ancient Celts celebrated Samhain with bonfires and jokes, but by the 20s and 30s, the celebrations got more rowdy. Acts of vandalism, possibly due to the tension of the Great Depression, became more and more common. Adults began to hand out candy to curb the trouble, reigniting the forgotten tradition of trick-or-treating. This successfully replaced most of the mischief, so now October 30th is the official night to wreak havoc.

      Candy Apples

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      Candy apples are popular Halloween treats, and the sugary fruit on a stick was handed out during the early days of trick-or-treating in North America — before concerns over unwrapped candy became an issue. Today, candy apples can be covered in caramel or chocolate with nuts, as well as in the classic, shiny red syrup.

      The fusion of Celtic and Roman traditions is behind Halloween’s candy-apple staple. Samhain was around the time of the Roman festival honoring Pamona, the goddess of fruit trees. The goddess is often symbolized by an apple, so the fruit became synonymous with Samhain celebrations of the harvest.

      Bobbing for Apples

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      In ancient times, the apple was viewed as a sacred fruit that could be used to predict the future. Bobbing for apples is one of the traditional games used for fortune-telling on Halloween night. It was believed that the first person to pluck an apple from the water-filled bucket without using their hands would be the first to marry.

      If the bobber lucked out and caught an apple on the first try, it meant that they would experience true love, while those who got an apple after many tries would be fickle in their romantic endeavors. Another myth was that if a girl put her bobbed apple under her pillow on Halloween night, she would dream about her future husband.

      Scarecrows

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      Most people believe that the scarecrow was invented to keep birds away from the field’s crops, but some scholars believe that the idea originated in ancient times when a man was sacrificed to appease the gods and insure a great harvest. The man was believed to have been hung up over the fields. Yikes.

       

       

       

       

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      16 MYSTERIOUS Photos That Should Not Exist

      The truth is stranger than fiction. Some things just can’t be explained. It’s like when you see it, you end up thinking that there must be a tear in the fabric of reality, something that shouldn’t even be possible in the first place.

      The whole question of ‘what if?’ comes up whenever we see something that probably should not have existed at all, and it’s strange and unsettling, and exciting at the same time.

      These photos of unexplained events and mysteries, while they do exist, knowing the circumstances of what’s in there, they shouldn’t be.

      Prepare to be mind blown.

      1. The Hinterkaifeck Murders

      1. the hinterkaifeck murdersIn 1922, what became one of the most mysterious murders that have remained a cold case until today, happened in the farmstead of Hinterkaifeck, which was in between the towns of Ingolstadt and Schrobenhausen in Bavaria. On March 31, the six occupants of the house were killed with a mattock. Since the incident, a hundred people were questioned, but, unfortunately, no one was arrested. It wasn’t because it was a brutal murder that it was, it was because how it happened was so strange.

      2. The Skunk Ape

      2. the skunk ape
      Sometimes, it’s so amazing how many more creatures remain undiscovered. In 2000, the Sarasota County Florida Sheriff’s Department received two photographs from an unknown woman of what seemed to be a skunk ape along with a letter saying that she found it in her backyard, and thought that it was an orangutan that escaped.

      3. The Phoenix Lights

      3. the phoenix lightsAnd the theme from the X-Files starts playing in our heads as we look at this photo. On March 13, 1997, people from Arizona, Nevada, and in Senora, Mexico suddenly witnessed a series of strange lights in the skies, coming from unidentified flying objects. It was said that it happened twice on different occasions, one being a set of lights that formed a triangle that passed over in the skies. However, the US Air Force clarified that the triangular formation of lights were flares that were fired by the aircraft that was doing a training exercise over at the Barry Goldwater Ranch in Arizona. The first formation of lights remains unknown. Get any chills yet?

      4. The Madonna With St. Giovannino

      4. the madonna with st giovannino
      Looks like questioning the existence of life outside of earth goes way back to the 15th century, when this painting was made. If you look closely, there is a detail above Mary’s right shoulder, that looks like an object that is shaped like a disc. And below the disc is a man looking up, and next to him would be his dog. This looks like something from an episode of Doctor Who.

       

       

      5. The Battle Of LA

      5. the battle of la
      On February 26, 1942, a photo that was said to show some extra-terrestrial life forms visiting Earth was published in the LA Times, that those lights were search lights that were fixed upon an alien spacecraft. But, apparently the photo had already been edited by a photo retoucher before it was published. The question still stands, nevertheless, on whether or not it was real.

      6. A Fifth Thumb

      6. a fifth thumbWhen you see it, you’ll want to look away. Four kids are posing for a photo, and there seemed to be another hand in a thumbs up behind the head of the kid wearing black. What makes it creepy is that the person who took the photo said that no one else was there when they took the picture. The person also said that there was a chance that the fifth thumb belonged to a kid who died months before and who was supposedly friends with the kids.

      7. A Time Traveler

      7. a time travelerThis photo was taken in 1941, during a reopening of the South Forks Bridge in Canada. Among all the faces in the crowd, there seems to be one person that seems to stick out like a sore thumb. A man in sunglasses and what seems to be wearing a cardigan over a shirt. While some say that the person was a hipster who knew how to travel through time, there are also some claims that the man in the photo was John Turner, who was really a time traveler. Or perhaps he was a companion of The Doctor?

      8. The Newby Church Ghost

      8. the newby church ghost
      A figure that looks like a dementor is seen in this photo that was taken by Rev. KF Lord of Newby Church in North Yorkshire, England back in 1963. While some are skeptical that maybe it’s only edited and a result of double exposure, there’s always that chance that it might be real.

       

       

      9. Martian Spirals

      9. martian spiralsWhile we’ve all recently discovered that there is water on the red planet, back in 2004, we weren’t so sure. There were tiny formations that were shaped like blueberries in the planet’s soil. At the latter part of 2012, another photo was taken, showing the spirals in bigger numbers, which back then, showed the possibility of water being present. But we really can’t be sure, can we?

      10. The Babushka Lady

      10. the babushka ladyDuring the assassination of JFK back in 1963, there was a woman standing in the crowd with a camera. She was then referred to as the Babushka Lady. She was standing by and was supposedly taking photos of the tragic incident. Even in the footages of the assassination, she was also seen, holding a camera. Unfortunately, she never spoke up and turned what she found in, nor were the FBI able to track her down.

      11. The Hook Island Sea Monster

      11. the hook island sea monster
      Sometimes, we get so preoccupied with what could be up in the sky that we tend to forget that there are also stranger creatures that may be living under the sea. The wife of a man named Le Serrec discovered a strange creature that was shaped like a tadpole under the water in the lagoon back on December 12, 1964. It was said to measure up to 30 feet long, and the more photos they took and the more chances they got to take a closer look, they decided to film it. The creature turned out to be bigger than they thought it would be, measuring up to 75 feet long. It was never seen again since that day.

       

       

       

      12. The Black Knight

      12. the black knight
      It seems like something that could be seen from a sci-fi movie. The Black Knight was a satellite that was also the first ever man-made satellite back in the 60’s that reported unidentified objects and the polar orbit. Neither the US nor the Soviet Union was able to do something like it at that time. The Black Knight satellite was reported to appear and disappear from time to time ever since. This strange object, however, remained unidentified and was said to only be a piece of scrap. However, during the 1930’s, astronomers reported unknown radio signals that may be probably coming from The Black Knight.

      13. Another Time Traveler

      13. another time travelerAnd this time, the supposed time traveler has a cellphone. Charlie Chaplin’s film, “The Circus” premiered in 1928, however, like in a photo we mentioned previously, this may serve as another piece of evidence that time travel may be possible. The DVD extras of the film included some more short films and photos from the premiere. One photo, in particular, showed a woman who seemed to be talking on a mobile phone. Although some claimed that the woman was using an ear trumpet, it doesn’t make sense as the woman was also laughing and talking into it.

      14. The Baltic Anomaly

      14. the baltic anomalyAnother one of the most famous unsolved mysteries in the world would be this giant anomaly at the bottom of the Baltic sea. Some divers found an unidentified 60-foot disc back in 2012. A lot of speculations came up, some saying it was a UFO spacecraft, broken down submarine used by the Nazis, or even a plug that led to the underworld.

      15. A Pyramid On The Moon

      15. a pyramid on the moonPhotographs can sometimes trick our eyes into seeing something else. However, there’s no denying that what can be found there is there. The Apollo 17 managed to capture some photographs on the moon on its last flight, and apart from issues with light exposure as well as noise, there are pyramid-like structures that could be seen.

      16. Solway Firth Spaceman

      16. solway firth spaceman

      Another creepy photo showing what shouldn’t be there despite being very visible. On May 23, 1964, a firefighter named Jim Templeton thought of taking photos of his five-year-old daughter during their day trip. Keep in mind that the only other people that around were old ladies sitting at the car at the far end. Back in 2002, Jim Templeton sent a letter to the Daily Mail, saying that he took three photos of his daughter Elizabeth posing the same way and was surprised when after he had the pictures developed, he saw the middle photo, showing what looked like a spaceman in the background. Jim actually never saw the figure until after he had them developed. To make it stranger, the people in Kodak said it was a genuine photo.

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      The Annual Halloween Costume Party is in full swing. The range, imagination, interpretation creativity as well as amount of effort that has gone into some of the costumes is nothing short of mind boggling. The average Cos Play convention has nothing on this party. A good time appears to being had by all. Even Impish has gotten over his grump about Lethal’s insistence on their costume for the party and admits he did wager choice of the costume on the football game.

      Suddenly one of the windows bursts open and in flies a half dozen of the largest fairies you have ever seen. Their leader dressed in what appears to be armor fashioned from discarded water bottles must stand nearly a foot tall. The others are similarly attired and roughly 6 to 8 inches high. It’s hard to get a clear look because they are flitting around nervously. The big one is calling out “Fairiefather! Fairiefather!” while zipping back and forth among the revelers.

      Lethal nudges Impish and says “A wee lift if you please, the page is for me and if those fairies hit the serving line we’ll be out of eats for hours.”

      “What from those 6? And what’s this ‘Fairiefather’ thing about?”

      “No those 6 are the command vanguard for about six thousand of their brethren, Dresden bought his Fairie Army with him incase we had more trouble. As for the ‘Fairiefather’ thing, ‘tis a long story but will suffice to say for the moment you should view it as something akin to Marlon Brando’s Godfather…in all its connotations.”

      By now Lethal is astride the saddle on Impish’s back and has removed his helmet, conveniently hanging it off one of Impish’s horns by the face mask. He raises himself in the stirrups, his hand over his head and shouts out the strangest thing you’ve ever heard “Long life to the Za Lord!”

      Instantly all the fairies spin around, locate Lethal, form up and zip towards him in formation breaking it at the last minute to begin orbiting Lethal and Impish. The largest one snaps to attention in midair saluting sharply before addressing Lethal. “Fairiefather! I have a report from“…sniff…sniff The fairy suddenly quivers all over and slow drifts closer to Impish and lower continuing to sniff all the while. Suddenly he flits in and back having wiped a finger through a stain on Impish’s costume.

      The sniffs his finger suspiciously before popping it in his mouth only to begin quivering even more and moaning in apparent pleasure. “Mmm! Heirloom tomatoes, fire roasted, organic garlic, oregano and basil…that’s homemade pizza sauce! There’s pizza here? Fairiefather! You didn’t say there was pizza! Pizza is like the bestest thing ever!” He raises a small battered bugle to his lips preparing to blow it.

      Lethal suddenly snaps out “Major General Toot-toot! You’re at attention!”

      The fairie suddenly shakes himself and snaps too saluting again. “Yes sir! Sorry sir..I was distracted by…” Lethal cuts him off “Report!”

      “Yes sir..ahh” He glances at the stain on Impish’s costume, shudders then squares his shoulder and stands a little straighter. “The Za Lord sir! He sent me to find you. He said to tell you his scrying-spying has paid off and that you’ll want to see this right away sir!”

      “Very good Major General Toot-toot, you and your team lead the way.”

      “But…but…Fairiefather!…THERE’S PIZZA!” Toot-toot whines plaintively wringing his hands.

      “Huh? Oh! Quite right. You there darlin’ “ He points to one of Impish’s now disguised as catering waitresses virgins, “hand me up that Dragon size 4 cheese pizza there. No not a slice I mean the whole pizza, I’ve an army to feed. Thank You. You may proceed Toot-toot. Rest assured your pizza is safe with me and will be available the moment you complete your mission.”

      Toot-toot hastily confers with two of the smaller fairies in his group who split off and zoom back out the window before the others form up around him and he shrilly cries out “Official business of the ZA Lord! Make way for the Fairefather! Make way for the pizza!”

      Once on the elevator which will take them up to the tower chamber the Wizard mortals know as Harry Dresden is currently using to scry-spy on those who would see our heroes dead… or worse. Toot-toot decides his mission is nearly done and forms his men around the pizza to protect it, having seem Impish try to lick it several times already.

      Once the elevator opens Lethal climbs down carefully, abet with a great deal of ‘assistance’ from the fairies. He places the tray with the pizza on a stool opens a window and then ducks down to practically duck walk himself clear of the arriving hoard of pizza crazed fairies.

      He motions a fascinated at the devastation the fairies are wrecking on the pizza and at what speed to the point of immobility Impish to join him as he opens the only door. Inside at a pedestal holding an open book and a large crystal orb to which he is peering intently stands the Wizard Harry Dresden wearing a grey cloak over his black leather duster, a pentacle on a chain about his neck glowing slightly blue. Impish can easily see lines of fatigue in the wizards face. Clearly he’s been at it for quite sometime. He can also smell remnants of Lethal’s Brown Gold and Pastrami about the room, as well as Lethal’s Meatball, Sausage & Peppers. On a toasted loaf of garlic bread with provolone cheese melting over it, it might well be the only thing to surpass Lethal’s pastrami. Clearly the wizard is being well taken care of while he performs his duties.

      Lethal addresses the wizard formally, surprising Impish, as he was under the impression the wizard had been hired by Lethal. “Warden Dresden, you summoned us?”

      The wizard looks up from the crystal ball fatigue evident in every line in his face. “I finally found a way through her wards and got a brief peek before I was discovered and blocked again. I’ve been trying to get back in but I’ve had no luck. You’re not going to like what I saw.” He gestures for Impish and Lethal to step closer to the crystal ball which Lethal does but Impish elects to remain where he is and just crane his neck a bit closer.

      Feeling slightly guilty Impish glances ruefully at the wizard, who nods at Impish which he takes as approval of his wariness, then places both his hands on the table and chants under his breath. The crystal fogs slightly and indistinct figures seem to be moving backwards. This is further evidenced by what appears to be voices speaking backwards. Suddenly the images freeze, the fog lifts showing a clear picture and everything starts playing normally:

       !cid_7C23BF130BDC43E781061AD79814C635@LaptopJeff 

      Round about the cauldron go;
      In the circular logic throw.
      John Boehner, with career so cold.
      Mitch McConnell like Yurtle of old
      You undocumented Aliens Obama got,
      Boil thou first i’ the socialist pot.

      Double, double toil and trouble;
      Personal emails do I burn to make my cauldron bubble.

      Reputation of a Media fake,
      In the cauldron boil and bake;
      Newt of Gringrich his name profane,
      Wool from the brain of John McCain,
      With Jon Stewart’s humorous sting,
      Bill’s third leg and Billy O’Reily’s right wing,
      For a charm of powerful trouble,
      Like Partisan Politics boil and bubble.

      Double, double toil and trouble;
      Personal emails do I burn to make my cauldron bubble.

      Scale of dragon, Leprechaun’s gold,
      Palin’s ambition, dead and cold
      Terrorism gives us gun control,
      Bengazi truth kept in covered bowl,
      Liver of blaspheming Beck,
      Gall and chutzpah, by the peck
      Sliver’d in moon’s waning light,
      Ted Kennedy, drunken nose at Chappaquiddick’s site
      Stem Cells of aborted babes
      Political promises vague as maybes,
      Make the party platform thick and slick.
      Add pledge to do more for those on WICK,
      All these the ingredients of our cauldron.

      Double, double toil and trouble;
      Personal emails do I burn to make my cauldron bubble.

      Cool it with a Dragon’s blood,
      Then the charm is firm and good.
      As fast as Bill when Monica sucked his dick,
      My Party’s nomination should now come as quick.

      As the replay concludes, there is silence for a moment as Lethal and the Wizard each evaluate what he’s just seen and Impish evaluates the chance there’s any pizza left outside the door. Lethal sighs heavily “This is even worse than we thought. I suspected minor hedge witchery, the playing hard ball with those whom she can’t frighten off and the spies. But this, this frankly takes things to a whole ‘nother level that we’re not prepared for entirely…”

      Lethal is interrupted by a huge flash of flame and light from the crystal ball followed by maniacal cackling and the image of Hillary with a message:

      image

      The fire continues to roil and boil with in the crystal ball as the wizard chants and draws a chalk double circle around it completing a complex knot just before the crystal ball splits with a tremendous clap of thunder. Impish who managed to grab Lethal by the back of the jersey before ducking his head inside the dubious protection of his wings as Lethal dangled from his teeth is the first to respond. WHAT in the ever loving HELL was THAT?!”

      “Raw Mojo I’d be guessing. A serious butt load of raw mojo directed at our spying effort until it was destroyed.” Lethal examines the table where the chalk double circle is now burnt into the table top and still exudes tiny tendrils of smoke. “If I’m right it was supposed to incinerate us as well and would have too were it not for Warden Dresden’s fast actions. Is that not so wizard?” The weary wizard nods his agreement heavily.

      Lethal continues in a softer reflective tone “Well there is naught more to be done here, until the place is properly cleaned, physically and magically and we get a new crystal ball. Seems to me Harry you’re about due for a drink, a bit of a sup and some undisturbed rack time.” The wizard too weary for words just nods while leaning heavily on his staff.

      Lethal gestures at Impish to open the door and he goes to the exhausted wizard to guide him out of the room as he grumbles under his breath, “Mean time I’m going to go spank the arse off a certain Jersey girl for starting that whole ‘little green fart’ thing until the only place she can comfortably sit in in a tub of bobbing apples. Little green fart indeed!”

      image

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