Dayum…

Posted on by November 9, 2024

I originally thought this was another ‘conspiracy theory’…

But it appears it is real!!!

A federal disaster relief official ordered workers to bypass the homes of Donald Trump’s supporters as they surveyed damage caused by Hurricane Milton in Florida, according to internal correspondence obtained by The Daily Wire and confirmed by multiple federal employees. 

A FEMA supervisor told workers in a message to “avoid homes advertising Trump” as they canvassed Lake Placid, Florida to identify residents who could qualify for federal aid, internal messages viewed by The Daily Wire reveal. The supervisor, Marn’i Washington, relayed this message both verbally and in a group chat used by the relief team, multiple government employees told The Daily Wire. 

Full article HERE from the Daily Wire.

And this ‘seems’ to correlate it…

This is just beyond the pale! This is politics taken to a whole new level that DIRECTLY impacts peoples lives!

And that is not good, on so many levels. Have the gloves truly come off? Is that what we are seeing, or, as FEMA said, just one wildcard pushing her authority for all it was worth? Of note, she apparently has NOT been fired (and why not)!

And this guy is apparently a ‘road warrior’ coming with all he needs to steal power from the local power company, wherever he is…

Personally, ‘I’ don’t think I’d be quite that open about it, but that’s just me…

Book promo…

Posted on by November 8, 2024

First up is Larry Correia’s fifth novel in the Forgotten Warrior series- Graveyard of Demons

As always, click the cover for the Amazon link!

The blurb-

Hero of the people Ashok Vadal lives! Now, he must face down enemies on all sides if he and the Sons of the Black Sword are to have any hope of destroying the evil Capitol in a new entry in NYT best-selling author Larry Correia’s Saga of the Forgotten Warrior epic fantasy series.

In a land where the Age of Law reigns supreme and the casteless are condemned to live as untouchables, rebellion brews, and the forgotten gods whisper of a hero’s return.

THE BATTLE RAGES

Once a Protector enforcing the Capitol’s strict laws with an iron fist, Ashok Vadal discovers his entire life is built on lies. The ancient black steel sword chose him not for his bloodline but for his spirit, thrusting him into a destiny fraught with peril and glory. The Capitol is in chaos, teetering on the brink of collapse as the Great Extermination spreads its dark shadow across the land. The casteless, descendants of the once-great kings, are hunted to extinction. Their only hope lies in Ashok Vadal, now a fugitive, and Thera, the prophet of the forgotten gods.

Thera’s visions and unyielding spirit rally the Sons of the Black Sword, fierce warriors sworn to overthrow the tyrannical Capitol and restore balance. As Ashok traverses deserts, battles sea demons, and navigates political treachery, he grapples with his identity and the heavy burden of his newfound purpose. Alongside him are allies old and new: Jagdish, the strategic commander of the Sons; Gutch, a resourceful criminal-turned-ally; and Devedas, his former brother-in-arms now caught in the Capitol’s ruthless power struggles.

Meanwhile, Grand Inquisitor Omand Vokkan, a master manipulator with his own dark agenda, strikes a secret pact with ancient demons, promising them the annihilation of the casteless in exchange for godlike power. As the demonic invasion begins, Ashok and his companions must unite to combat threats both human and supernatural. Lines between friend and foe blur, battles rage, and the fate of Lok hangs in the balance.

Ashok Vadal may desire redemption and vengeance, but in a world where gods and demons once walked, a warrior’s heart and a black steel sword turns out to be mankind’s last hope.

Next up is Raconteur Press with two more anthologies- Giant Stomping Robots

The blurb-

You like your mecha with a side of alien invasions? It’s in here. Illicit gangs trying to fix heavy mecha demolition derbies? Done. Brave pilots standing between shrieking chaos and everything they hold dear? Good reader, if there was a Heroism Buffet, this anthology would be the restaurant your friends were rolling you out of every weekend. So plop yourself down at your favorite table, pour yourself a stiff one of sake (or soda if you’re the same age as the plucky teenage hero with bright hair) and prepare to be entertained by Giant…Stompin’…Robots! 

And last but not least- Coffee Capers

The blurb-

The invigorating beverage we all know and love wasn’t an easy thing to get at first, growing far away from the people who wanted it. Finally, there were breakthroughs and now it is grown all over the world, every region producing different coffees that brought new flavors to the table. It was an exciting moment in the progress of civilization, celebrated by kings and presidents. Everyone wanted coffee! Problem was, there was still more ground to be gained, and adventurers the galaxy over were in search of it. Some of the stories herein talk about the level of fanaticism, er, commitment there is to finding a better bean.

Today, you get to kick back, choose to ice it down, hot it up, add cream, sweetener, kafe hawaij if you like that spiciness in your life, and then lean back and enjoy reading this book while you savor your coffee. I think you’ll find this one quirky, with hints of the surreal, and an afternote of thoughtful satisfaction when you’ve finished each story.

Get ’em and read them and PLEASE leave an actual review. Us authors live or die on the basis of those reviews!

Grrrr…

Posted on by November 7, 2024

Sniffle, cough, hack…

well, I’ve officially got a damn cold! On top of everything else this is not going to be a lot of fun. Well this new Antacid I’m taking, And the requirements for not being able to eat or drink for two hours after taking it it screws up my breakfast time, my lunchtime, and my suppertime.

And I’ve got the sinus headache to go with it! So not spending any time on the computer, matter fact, I’m writing this using voice to text on my phone just to get something down on paper so to speak…

I slept most of Thursday, between hacking a cough and a little bit of fever, at least I took aspirin. And that helped the headache just a little bit. I usually always get a cold in the fall, and I’m betting I caught this one at the hospital on Sunday night In the ER.

The librarian anthology is coming together and Cedar is working on the cover now. I will get with Amie as soon as I feel better and get it uploaded to Amazon. And speaking of Amazon Raconteur press Has a new book coming out Today. So go pick it up, enjoy the anthology, and please give them a good review! 🙂

Oh yeah, and go read the folks on the sidebar, they definitely are writing better than I am right now! 🙁

There is a new sheriff…

Posted on by November 6, 2024

In town!

Scott Pinkster nailed it in one sentence… This election was won by French fries, garbage, an assassin’s bullet & a dead squirrel. 

And the economy, stupid. It’s ALWAYS the economy!!!

Arizona and Nevada can fiddle the vote totals all they want, but it will make no difference for anything other than local politics.

I was actually surprised to wake up yesterday morning and find we had a winner, because I’d gone to be by 7pm, choosing to not play the doom and gloom game.
Trump also won the popular vote, the first time since W in 2004, I think. And yes, the electoral college IS important, because that keeps NY, CA, OR, WA, and PA from controlling nationwide elections!
Kamala didn’t ‘concede’ so much as vow to continue the fight in her public speech from Howard Univ. So, I guess we’re back to the lawfare of 2016-2020 again… sigh
But at least this time the Pubs have the senate firmly in hand, and while we won’t know for a while, the house is still in ‘play’, if you will.The next 2.5 months could be really interesting, but I truly hope not!

We’re not going to know…

Posted on by November 5, 2024

For days who actually won…

So stop obsessing and go do something productive!

h/t Tina for the graphic.

Stop following the doom and gloom predictors out there! Turn off the TV, the Intarwebz, and go read a book! We have a lot of options for you!

Sigh…

 

Taking the day off…

Posted on by November 4, 2024

More medical tests today, and I REALLY need a good night’s sleep!

Go read the folks on the sidebar, they rite gud! 😉

Well…

Posted on by November 4, 2024

I didn’t have spending 6 hours in the ER last night on my plan for the day…

Severe stomach pain finally drove me to go in. CAT scan with contrast (damn, talk about needing to go pee), two doses of morphine to get the pain down to a manageable level, and sitting/lying down, shifting around to ‘try’ to get comfortable…

But finally got the reading back, Diverticulosis, cyst on a kidney, and a prescription for a strong antacid. And a grump about old veterans that wait until the last minute to come to the hospital.

But they finally let me go, and Lawdog was gracious enough to come drag my ass home.

And yes I’m writing this at one in the morning, because now I can’t get to sleep… sigh

Team effort…

Posted on by November 2, 2024

For the win!!!

We have a confluence of folks this weekend and last night’s supper was one of those…times…

It was Cedar’s turn to cook, but we were looking at between 18 and 20 people showing up, so her house wasn’t big enough (frankly, neither is mine, but we can shove ’em in)…

Country food for the win!

Smoked/broiled chickens, taters, stuffing, and corn with bacon! Plus gravy, rolls, etc… And yes, we ate off plastic, with plastic knives and forks because I only have 12 place settings… sigh… But nobody complained! Yay!!!

And people… OMG, people! We ended up with, I think, 19 for supper! Writers, artists, aspiring (all of the above), and others, plus a few guests from out of town. So we had the big table, the ladies table (yes, they chose it because the chairs are shorter), and the outcast (we ate in the kitchen, BONUS, we were closer to the food)…

And there were appetizers, and cakes for dessert, so nobody went hungry, and those who couldn’t make it got take out. The few leftovers were grabbed (for some reason I see chicken soups in the future).

As usual, the conversations ran the gamut of writing, cooking, guns, plotting, scheming, and lord knows what else… The women got off by themselves, and ‘I’ went in the other direction!

We’ve also planned the next North Texas Troublemakers supper, and I’ll be making reservations for it, planning on the last Saturday in January. More to follow on that.

Thanks to those who helped clean up, and it was off to bed early after a FULL day, and getting outshot at the range by a gurl…LOL

But I did let a couple of younger guys have a go with the Colt Python and they were squeeing like a couple of teenagers…LOL. At least they didn’t try to buy it!

Old dog…

Posted on by November 1, 2024

With a new trick…

Voyager 1 continues to amaze. After 47 years, having crossed together with its twin into interstellar space, you’d think the spacecraft would stop surprising us. No chance. The probe had another glitch in the last few weeks that caused a loss of communication, but it managed to find a fix all by itself using hardware that had not been used since 1981.

Full article HERE, h/t Stretch.

The funny part is, this was done by Voyager on it’s own!

After all this time, that it and its twin are still working at all is a testament to not only the programmers, but also the builders who put the crafts together.

And this was done basically by slipstick and manual calculations and engineering, as computers were just coming into their own. So elegant math, possibly hand drawn blueprints, and no CNC machined parts.

THAT is a tribute to the old school types that designed them, built them, tested them, and sent them on their way…

I’m not sure, even with the technology available today, these feats could be duplicated. It seems much of the ‘math’ today is brute forced by the scientists/engineers with multiple iterations on massive computers, CNC machined parts, assembled by techs who have no loyalty to their companies, and everyone in the entire process looking for the next pay raise.

Sigh…

Sometimes…

Posted on by October 31, 2024

You’ve just got to have a bit of humor…

October 31 is an important holiday. No, I’m not talking about Halloween, although any holiday that involves eating candy is worth celebrating. Instead, I’m talking about Reformation Day.

On Oct. 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his famous 95 Theses to the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany. It was the culmination of years of wrestling with theology for the law student turned Augustinian monk. That act eventually led to Luther’s excommunication and a new path for believers to worship and pursue theology as they saw fit.

Luther saw a Catholic Church that was desperately in need of reform. The authority of the clergy had taken precedence over scripture, and church leaders kept the Bible out of the language of the people, thus making them dependent on priests to learn what God’s Word said. But the most egregious abuse of power he saw was in the system of indulgences.

Full article, HERE.

Martin Luther effectively ‘saved’ the church in many folks opinions, but at least one wag had a little fun with it, considering that it was Halloween…

And the pumpkin with Luther’s face for those who didn’t ‘get’ it is a nice touch!

I’m also betting the homeowner was not home, which is why they did it… LOL

And speaking of fun… an ‘interesting’ photoshop, make of it what you will…