I have noticed that a new speech habit is creeping into general use. The "latest thing" seems to be the clipped and hurried utterance of the last syllable in a sentence followed by a rushed inhalation and the beginning of a new sentence. It gives the listener the impression that the speaker is in a hurry. This affectation is only that, a current fad. The morning weatherman (not Steve) on Fox and Friends has adopted this habit and there are others doing it, as well.

Another habit is the constant interjection of verbal garbage. Utterances like "uh" and "um" pepper the speech of some. One would think that professional radio announcers and other educated authorities on various topics could formulate a though or idea, and express it without interjecting a string of "uh"s into each sentence.

The big and perhaps only public culprit is Public Radio both National and Wisconsin. Not all announcers have fallen victim to this habit, but those that have, and the academics and authors they interview who do it, provide an unfortunate example for the listening public.

 

I want to wish all the dads on this site a Happy Father's Day. Moreover, I want to take the opportunity to remember my dad, his dad, and all the dads who went before. They are each part of what I have become.
 

June is "Adopt-a Cat" month. I enjoy two cat-related web sites. The first is http://www.purebredcatrescue.org/ Once you are there, click on the available for adoption page. This is a page of cats available for adoption in the greater Milwaukee/Chicago area. You local animal shelter has many cats and kittens needing homes. If you adopt a kitten, adopt two.

The other fun site is http://www.meowmixhouse.com This is a twenty-four hour, four-camera view of the activity in a kitty house. Meow Mix sponsors it in an effort to encourage adoption of cats and kittens from your humane society.

 

I'm going to try to make this entry more fun than yesterday's. I recently read a blog entry written by Barb Bartlein, the People Pro. She offered a number of observations about life that I found humorous. I share some of them here.

 We all think we look younger than our age. I know I do.
 A job, no matter how great, is still a job. That's why they have to pay you to do it.
 Mark Twain said, "Common sense is not all that common." He said a mouthful.
 The things I like the best are not good for me.
 No matter how hard I try, I cannot drink ten glasses of water a day.
 Life is like a toilet paper roll. The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes.
 If my summer clothes feel loose in the spring, it is because the elastic has given out.

 

June is Dairy Month here in Wisconsin. The greater Marshfield area is one of many hubs for agribusiness in Wisconsin. The focus of that business is the dairy industry. The face of this enterprise has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. Cozy barns that house a herd of a dozen or so milk cows are outdated. Single-family dairy farms now milk an average of fifty or sixty cattle, twice or three times daily. Corporate farms currently dot the landscape.

These mega-farms sport multiple large open barns that house hundreds, even thousands of milk cows. These animals are routed through a modern milking parlor where sixteen or more cows are milked at a time. This operation runs non-stop around the clock and can strip two to six thousand cows twice daily.

Several large milk-tanker trucks are nosed up to the side of the milking parlor to collect the white elixir and, when full, are moved directly to a local dairy. Admission to the cattle areas is carefully limited to the staff to preclude the introduction of any disease. No cow sees a pasture. All available land is planted to grow the feed needed to maintain a healthy herd. It is a highly automated system, the output of each cow is weighed, and the information stored on computers.

The herdsman culls poor producers and they are sent to the stockyard. Animals that are ill are quarantined and treated. Those that are ready are marked and bred utilizing the most modern artificial insemination with genetic material selected to improve the herd production. These are milk factories.

 

Several days ago, I told you about the two lovely quilted coverlets that Mrs. Emma Miller made for me. I have taken some pictures of them and am sharing those here. Quilts have been made in many cultures for several thousand years. They were in use in early Egypt, Europe, and America. There is an informative article about quilts and their history at http://www.emporia.edu/cgps/tales/quilte~1.htm The title of the article is "History of Quilting."









 

My two kitties have a new fun toy. It's called Deluxe Pop Open Cat Play Cube. I found it at Wal-Mart. It is available in the cat toy section. This is a lightweight nylon mini-tent for cats. The built in flexi frame pops open in seconds and stays open during play.

Each cube is 15" square and has three solid sides, and three sides that each has a cat size door. It is easy to arrange consecutive cubes, door to door to form a tunnel, or L-shape tent. Velcro strips to attach the cubes in any configuration are supplied. Each cube comes with play tassels stitched on the inside of the cube.

(Barbs jumping up and down over first successful pic in blog.)
These cubes are purchased individually. One is fun but more are better. I have put a set of five together and it's been two weeks now and they still play with it daily. They cost 3 dollars 88 each. Jupiter gives them a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

 

I have stolen this from Lexi Ashen Married John Ashen who stole it from Raine . Go to the Wikipedia website and type in your birth date. You will get a list of events, other births, and deaths all of which occurred on that date in history. My birthday is September 23. On that day in:

1806 Lewis and Clark returned from their exploration of the Pacific Northwest
1846 The planet Neptune was discovered
1980 Bob Marley's last concert

63BC Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar was born
1920 Mickey Rooney was born
1930 Ray Charles was born

1939 Sigmund Freud died

Astrologically, September 23 is usually the first day of the sun sign, Libra
In Latvia, it is the second day of Mikeli.

Thank you Lexi, Raine, and Wikipedia!

 

I was up at 4am this morning padding around, doing laundry, and working on my 'puter. Jupiter likes to stretch out full length on my desk while I work and he keeps me company. Every now and again, he climbs onto my chest to have a love session and we were doing that about 4:30 when I glanced out the dining room window to the east.

Up the road at the neighbor's farm, there was a major commotion. His drive was busy with cars coming and going, there were multiple flashing red lights, and I could see people moving around. His place is a bit more than a half mile away so I could not really make out what the problem was. I didn't see any smoke from where I was sitting so I assumed that it was an ambulance call and I hoped that nothing serious had happened.

With the light of day, I saw the water tankers from the volunteer fire department shuttling back and forth. There was smoke billowing from the south end of one of his pole sheds. It is a sickening sight to see a building on fire. We drove past today and the whole thing is totaled. I suppose there was machinery damaged, too. At least no one was hurt and the barn and the livestock are all OK. I feel physically sick when I think of it.

 

TEN THINGS TO KEEP IN THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT OF YOUR CAR:

1. Car registration
2. Proof of insurance
3. Driver's License (if it's not in your wallet)
4. Disposable Camera (to document any damage in case of an accident)
5. Flashlight (hand crank to avoid dead batteries, www.smarthome.com )
6. Notepad and pen to exchange driver information in case of accident
7. First-aid kit
8. Cell-phone charger cable
9. Phone number of your insurance agent and a good towing service
10. Help sign.