"A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always count on the support of Paul." - George Bernard Shaw

Definition of a no-win situation: Your mother-in-law sends you a friend request on Facebook. And she's 91.

We have something like 358 days per year with sunshine here in the Phoenix metro area. This weekend will probably fall into that number because at some point during the day the sun will shine. But Saturday is also supposed to include 1/4" of rain, and we're going to the dog show that's held outside. Bummer.
I'm counting on the usual degree of accuracy out of the weather forecasting department.

"...like you mean it."
That seems to be the current ad agency favorite phrase. Carl's Jr. is one of the businesses that's been using it for about a year - "Eat like you mean it." This morning I saw an ad for Orlando Resorts that said "Vacation like you mean it."
Who eats or vacations like they don't mean it?
How would someone do that?

I continue to learn from the book, "Whatever Happened to Penny Candy." I always assumed that a declining national debt was a good thing, and it is indeed better if the govt. owes less money. It never occurred to me (though it should have) that one way an administration can reduce the debt is by simply printing more money.
"Under our sound fiscal oversight the economy is adding jobs and reducing the national debt."
Unsaid: "Those jobs have come because we pumped freshly-printed money into the economy, thus creating the false impression things are looking up. This money allowed businesses to hire workers and build factories which we, of course, then taxed. With those new tax dollars plus more borrowed money (just at a slower rate) we could do even more stuff for citizens, thus further endearing ourselves to them. They love us! New jobs, new factories, reduced govt. borrowing.... And all we did was print more money."

I find myself wondering what sites like The Daily Beast and Slate would be writing if Christians in another part of the world had kidnapped or killed hundreds of Muslims. Their complete absence of any reporting on the reverse seems indicative.

And while we're in the "This seems a bit hypocritical" department, the President has blasted the House Republicans for inviting Benjamin Netanyahu to speak to Congress. So far I haven't heard him say anything about the invitation Senate Democrats gave him to address their caucus. (Netanyahu turned them down.)

This is what 10 tons of decorative gravel looks like when delivered at 9 a.m.







Add in a wheelbarrow, a pair of gloves, and a steel rake. When I quit at 4:30 p.m. it looked like this:

I should have put the shovel in this second pic, too, but I think that's between two and three tons sitting there. The rest is spread from the far corner of the "yard" toward this pile. I probably have another 2-3 hours of work left for tomorrow morning IF my body will move. Hands, back, arms, legs....

I saw Henry Winkler doing an ad for reverse mortgages.
"It's new. It's improved. And it may be the ideal way for you to live in your home."
The "improved" part means it can't be new. But hey, it's an ad. Truth and accuracy are irrelevant.

We're going out for our normally weekly dinner date tonight. Barro's Pizza, because they have a gluten free that's pretty good.
I don't know what Pam's going to have.