Kellogg's Rip Off

I asked my daughter to go to the store yesterday to get cereal, among other things. My list had "cereal-lrg BAG". She came back with two boxes. "They were on sale... two for $6" (snort. sale...yeah. But oh well... if you want something done a certain way you have to do it yourself. I didn't want to go to the store, so my bad.)

The cereal in question is Kellogg's frosted mini wheats. Blueberry and Strawberry. 16oz.

The boys each had a bowl yesterday and a bowl this morning and the box is now empty. Four bowls of cereal for $3. WTF? Granted, they were adult size bowls and they were very full... but still, four bowls? If they each had one bowl a morning, I would have to buy 15 boxes to last a month. 15 boxes of cereal at $3 each comes to $45.

Well, I won't be buying any more mini wheats. Let the boys eat eggs. I'll throw in some pine cones for the fiber.

And next time my daughter goes to the store with my money, I will be stressing BAG...BAG of cereal only!!

BOOOOO Con-way Freight Company!!

from a local news story:

"About 200 local workers will lose their jobs to mostly people in India as a local company prepares to ship their jobs overseas.

The freight company, Con-way in Northwest Portland, will be outsourcing IT and administrative positions."

Its always about the bottom line.... the profit margins.... to hell with them! Why don't they save a real bundle of money and outsource their CEO position. Outsource their CFO, their accounting jobs, everything. Ship it all over to India, damn it. Get the hell out! Soon there will be no need for a trucking business to ship products.... there's no one left to purchase anything!!

Tax the crap outta 'em!! Oh wait.... republicans don't want any taxes on businesses. We can't tax the crap out of them. They claim taxes costs jobs, but its really greed that costs jobs.

Con-way is no doubt owned by republicans and damn it, they want their profits!! Untaxed profits, thankyouverymuch. Apparently its the American way. (my apologies to Canada, Mexico, and Central and South America for using the term 'American way'.)

Any business operators reading this? No? Well, I'm gonna say it anyway. Let your contract with Con-way run out, move to a company that operates in the USA and then publicize it. Great PR!! Especially now days.

The arrogance of ignorance

Have you heard about the christian minister in Miami who is planning on burning the Quran on Sept. 11th? Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Center. I think Terry needs a reality check.

Apparently he doesn't care that publically burning the Quran would put our service people in harms way. Why should he care? He's here and they are on the other side of the world. What's he got to be concerned about? After all, he's special. He's a christian.

"Jones, author of a book called "Islam is of The Devil," told CNN's "American Morning" show that the burning was designed to send a message to radical Islam."

And what would that message be, Terry? That Americans are intolerant of others? That you in your wisdom know what's right for everyone else in the world? That you are one stupid piece of luggage? Or could this be more a matter of trying to sell your book so you can make a buck? Perhaps its all of the above.

If he does burn the Quran maybe that will end up reducing the number of ignorant people on this earth by one.

"But when he was asked about the views of Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, Jones said: "We are actually very, very concerned of course; we are taking the general's words serious. We are continuing to pray about the action on September 11. But we don't know, how long do we back down?" "

What the hell is HE backing down from? 'How long do we back down'... WTF? By burning a book you won't be backing down any more? I repeat.... WTF?

So Terry, have you even read the book? Do you even know what it says? Have you ever read ANY book? Have you even REALLY read the bible?

What a tool. Just what the world needs.

(full msn article here.)

Did I Just Get Spammed? A Qwest Response

(Added later...I think I might have just gotten spammed. Shit! Now they have my phone number and address. Time will tell. damnit, damnit, damnit!)

(2nd added comment.... maybe not. maybe not scammed. Hope a hope a hope. I'm so paranoid. It seems like we're living in a world of thieves, though. Sigh.)

In case you are like me and normally do not read blog comments I thought it only fair to point out that Qwest responded to my rant (see post below for rant.) Imagine my surprise to see a comment from Steph Lake, Manager of 'talk to us' dept. at Qwest. (I wonder if Steph is a real person or just a name used. Doesn't matter to me, though. I was just wondering.)

Great PR and marketing tool... that personal touch. And completely unexpected since its coming from a large corporation. It impressed the heck outta me!

Qwest as IPS

SUCKS!!!

I just spent 20 minutes trying to watch a 3 minute video. My attempt lasted 20 minutes because after that I gave up. gggrrrrrr

Residentual customers don't mean squat to the big giant asshole, aka qwest. But I'm not telling you anything new, now am I.

I just needed to GRRRRRRRRR. And remember... whenever you see one of their ads just remember that whatever its touting that its their poorest service. Its like AOL saying they have great customer service. BWAH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA. I crack me up sometimes!

Good ole Mel... its time to go!

That arrogant bastard, Mel Gibson, needs his ass beat with the baseball bat he threatened his girl friend with.... he needs his teeth knocked out, he needs to be humbled, and humbled good.

I'll never watch another movie, tv show, or commercial that has anything to do with that jerk.

The alcohol has eaten too many brain cells. Maybe he'll drown in his own alcohol induced vomit.

They've Done It Again

Congress. They've done it again. You know... the politicians who claim to be looking out for our good. They defeated the bill that would allow unemployment benefits to be extended, cause everyone knows you don't give money to poor people. They just waste it on food. Then they repealed the bill that reduced the fees doctors could charge patients and we all know how much doctors need money. After all, those malpractice insurance premiums cost a pretty penny. (No need to stop the malpractice and get rid of the incompetent doctors... just buy more insurance.)

And don't get me started on the Bush/Cheney war. We're in year nine, I believe, going on ten. Ten years of war. Mission accomplished.

Bing Crap

What's up with MSN and Bing? They must have a thing goin' on... or sumpin. I see a headline on MSN's home page that I'd like to read so I click on the link and what do I get? I get a damn Bing search result page. WTF is that about? If I wanted to search I would have personally put in a search key in a search engine of my choise. If I want to read something and I click on a hot link.... I DON'T EXPECT TO GO TO ANOTHER SEARCH PAGE!

Yes, I am sometimes ungrateful. Why do you ask?

Bottom line, I won't be doing much clicking on headlines on msn.com since it will, no doubt, take me to another search engine. I will go directly to a search engine of MY CHOICE and key in the search key. I don't need yet another level of advertising. In fact I think I'm going to change my homepage from msn.com to something else.

So there!

BravoTv Sucks

What a bunch of tease and for what?

I'm cranky today and BravoTV isn't helping. It was my understanding that one could watch their programs on their web site. Apparently that's not true. Gasp. Its not true? But they said!

I just went to watch the second episode of Work of Art but all they have up is the first episode. Well, Dove.... I won't be watching any of your ads because, you know, I've already seen the first episode. How much money did you pay to have your ads viewed?

And I almost felt like buying some Dove soap the next time I need some. Now I'm not so sure, because,...well, because I'm crusty and I'm cranky. Two bad combinations.

PS...I'm still cranky. I've just been to the site again and disappointment prevails. Even when I click on "watch the photos", only four show up. Example, watch Miles pick his junk 1 - 17 photos. It goes to four and stops. I may not be making sense and its probably just as well since I'm cranky. Not to worry. No more comments about Work of Art. Why, you may ask.... because I can't watch the show. If its not on their web site, then too bad for me. I'm shit out of luck.

Things That Make You Go HMMMMMMM

The media continues to scream cutbacks/increased taxing by various levels of government. What makes me go OHMYGAWD! is the thought that with a 10% unemployment rate our city and state government can't survive. Like, OMG.... was it so fragile it can't survive a 5% decrease in funding? What the hell is going on, any damn way?

Okay, I can hear the imaginary numbers people saying wait a minute. you said 10% unemployment rate but a 5% decrease in funding. Hey stupid. That doesn't add up. Well, my little chickadees, it does add up if you start with the "normal" unemployment rate of 5% which is fairly constant. That means the increased decrease in funding is 5%. (I've rounded up or down, as the case may be, to simplify things for me because I'm not a math/numbers person. And I'm spending way too much time, explaining myself.)

How much of this funding issue is due to mismanagement? Will all the incompetent people please step down. You know who you are. (This should pretty much empty the council room.)

While speaking of governments, let me babble on a little about our city government. Where the hell did these people come from? Is it a case of "oh gee, I can't seem to be able to do anything so I better go into politics to make a living."

We've managed to vote in a real winner for mayor. He's a proven liar and he has demonstrated his poor decision making skills by getting caught in a sex scandal. With an intern, no less. Talk about shitting where you eat. EEUUUU! (There's also a question of underaged sex, but it couldn't be verified.) How smart is that?! Zip up you're damn pants when you're on the job!

I think what has really pissed off the voters, though, is that this mayor took money from the water bureau to fund painting bike lanes around the city. Our sewer charges are out of sight as it is, and he's taking money from them like its his own personal bank account. And guess what we're facing now? Yup, another hike in our water/sewer rates. The mayor must have some more bike lanes to paint and maintain, the little trucker!

On to another commissioner... I was watching the news one evening. They were showing video of a large fire and who's standing on the roof with some of the firefighters? The damn commissioner who oversees the fire department. WTF? Apparently he use to be a firefighter, but that in no way makes it okay for him to get in the way of the REAL firefighters. They have to worry about his stupid ass instead of paying close attention to what they're doing. What a stupid juvenile thing to do... like, what the hell??!!

Although I'm stupid enough to become a politian, I'm at least smart enough to stay the hell away from politics. You know, except for voicing my opinion.

Soul suckers. The leeches are sucking me dry!

Do You Feel Outrage?

The police beating of the University of Maryland student after a basketball game, the beating that was caught on tape... do you feel outrage? I feel OUTRAGE!!!

(you can read about it here and see the video while the article is available online.)

I hope the student wins his lawsuit and wins BIG. Then I hope the officers involved lose their jobs immediately. And I also hope that those most guilty get thrown in jail or prison. Lets see how big and bad they are then, the dirty little thugs in uniform. Its outrageous. If they get away with this, then we need to just shut up and prepare to live in a police state.

Next on the list is the chief of police, the commissioner, followed by the mayor. Shit travels downhill. If this kind of conduct happens its because its condoned by the bosses.

I hope the other students who got beaten by the police (to set examples) also sue and win.

This kind of outrage has gone on forever, only now we have video cameras.... all over the place. Perhaps with more cameras, we'll get more of the truth.

Around my neck of the woods, cops have been doing a lot of killings lately. Based on my limited knowledge of what truly happens (relying on the media and we all know how accurate that is), a few of them seemed warranted for the safety of all in the area. The rest of them, not so much. If you are mentally ill, or you know someone who is, NEVER call the cops for help should there be a crisis of sort. If you do call them, start looking in the phone book for a funeral home because you are likely to need one. The cops shoot first and ask questions later. And there's no such thing as innocent until proven guilty. Unless, of course, you are a police officer. Then you're a god.

Be outraged! Be outraged and let your public "servants" know you are outraged.

I Don't Want To

I don't want to help you raise your kids, damn it. You got 'em, you deal. It was your choice. I had no say in it.

I don't want to be the solver of all your problems. You made the choices, you solve the problems. Don't come to me and try to dump it in my lap cause I'm standing up. And now your friends come to me to solve their problems?! F**k No!

If you don't have the money, then learn to do without. That's what I have to do. Are you so precious you think you are entitled to an easy ride? Life is not an easy ride.

I don't want to spend all day driving back and forth across the entire city five different times. All of a sudden your babysitter's problem is now my problem? I don't think so. Solve it yourself.

And I don't want to hear your angry stomping around because baby... you ain't heard any stomping yet. You do not want me to get started. I'll stomp all over your ass.

And, damn it, I am not going to feel guilty about it, either!!

Harmful Products

Does China make ANYTHING that won't kill you? Or maim you? Now its drywall making people sick and damaging metal (plumbing, computers, jewelry, etc.) What the hell is going on, anyway. Why are we still letting China products into the country without thorough testings first? oh... wait. It affects companies profit margins.

Huh?

The US has captured some pirates off the coast of Kenya. Upon reading the headlines I'm thinking good... a few less pirates on the seas for a while. But when I read the article all I could think was huh? Here's an excerpt:

The USS Nicholas was just west of the Seychelles in international waters Thursday when crew began taking fire from a suspected pirate skiff, NBC News reported. The Nicholas returned fire and disabled the pirate boat, then pursued the skiff until it finally broke down.

A few men in a tiny skiff fired shots at a US naval vessal... WTF? Did someone's nose just grow longer? Are these men that stupid? The naval ship is just sitting out there minding its own business when they were viciously attacked by a few men in a skiff. I repeat... WTF?

I think these details are suspicious. I can see the US ship spotting the pirates (or even tracking them down) and taking them out, but it looks like the navy is trying to play the nonaggressor role.

Sumpin doesn't seem right....

Our Gangs are more polite than your gangs....

We've had a lot of shootings going on around here and lately its picked up. Gang related. The following is from one of our local tv stations:

"The family of a man shot and killed in Portland last Friday said the killer called them to apologize.

Deangelo Oliver, 29, was killed in the shooting, near the intersection of SE 89th and Division and two other people were injured.

Police believe the shooting was gang-related.

Oliver’s aunt told the Oregonian that the shooter, who is still on the run, called the family to apologize. They said they know the shooter and don’t want to release his name.

Police said that kind of response was common when it comes to gang violence".

Well. How 'bout that. Such a good mannered young man, right? I think this screams volumes about the nature of the family involved.

Sometimes its so frustrating that I think okay...let them kill each other then. But that leaves all those random bullets searching for a place to explode. Those are the ones that kill bystanders so that's not an answer. Not an acceptable one.

I wonder if the young man/teen called to apologize because he doesn't want the family coming after him for retaliation. Gangland vengence. Well, good luck with that.

A Couple of Things

I'm so tired of people using my blog to make a couple of pennies. I'm talking about the people who leave comments on a blog post which are clearly meant to promote someone else's business. I'm being used and I don't like it. If I'm not making money from my blogs, I damn sure don't want other people to try to make money. I will delete every comment that even begins to smack of advertising. And puleeese... if your pc is set up to use the Chinese language how many people reading an English language blog will even be able to read your comments. STOP BEING SO FRIGGING LAZY AND GO GET A REGULAR JOB. If you can' work a regular job, then think of something else you can do BESIDES using other people. You stink!

And that Lohan chick. Get over yourself. Try growing up. Readers, did you think of Lindsey Lohan when you saw the e-trade commercial with the babies talking... the one that references Milk-holic Lindsey? She never once crossed my mind. How arrogant to think the world knows her by one name. Alcoholic dementia, no doubt. I hope whomever she is suing fights it to the end, even if it costs a fortune. She could end up having to pay for their legal fees. Cackle, snort.

The census... I found it interesting that the only things the government wants to know is if you are buying your home or renting and what race you are. Do you remember the previous census? I don't... I can't remember if they wanted to know if you have a mortage or not. I find it a little weird.

Seems like I should have a few more rants, but they escape me at the moment.

Special News Report

We are breaking into your regularly scheduled program to bring you this very important news.... Cheating man apologizes!

Whew... that was breaking news. A man cheated on his wife. wow. And now he apologizes for his behavior. That does constitute a breaking news report.

Woods is a golfer. A golfer, for gawdsake. And he's a man. DUH! Do you think Kobe's wife still thinks he no longer cheats on her? Do you think Clinton no longer fools around? Do you need a bridge? I've got one for sale if you're interested.

And good for Elin in not standing up to public exposure because of her f*cking husband. Pun intended.

Banking fees

oh. my. gawd.

I was just checking my bank account online and saw that fees were going up. I went to go see what they looked like, because afterall... I don't do banks. I'm a credit union person and they watch out for their members.

snort

That almost had me spewing coffee outta my nose!

I repeat... OH MY GAWD. They charge for everything! EVERY. THING. I bet if they could figure out a way of measuring it, they would charge me for breathing. Charge me for being alive. They even charge you if you close the account. WTF?! (okay, so its if you close it during the first 90 days, but still.)

I'm thinking the banking industry now ranks up there with car salesmen. (salesmen used as a generic term. Females can sell cars, too.) oops that should read 'down there'. Banks ranks down there with car sales people.

I'm beginning to think perhaps our economic system should have died the big one after all so we could start all over cause the greed is getting to be too much.

Get Yer Fluff Piece Here!

BWAH HA HA HA HA HA HA snort.

I guess what I've been hearing about Fox News is true. I don't watch it, so I can't say for myself, but news has it that they have signed Sarah Palin to present fluff reports. Inspirational stories, etc. Fluff. You know.

No bias there.

BWAH HA HA HA HA HA HA. Well good luck to her. Who knows. Maybe she'll become the conservatives' Oprah.

Notice (Addendum added)

This blog will be deleted in a few days.*

I find myself cringing a little each time I open it. I think its because its all negative... no balance. I've been known to praise technology on one day and then bitch about it on another. This blog would only contain the bitching. You know, out of balance.

I'm going to get a notebook and put all my bitching in it, then no one else needs to be exposed to it and every so often I can destroy the evidence. Cause you know. I'm such a sweet person.

*Addendum: I will be rethinking about keeping this blog going because of a couple of comments from people. What is more important? Being honest in my presentation or having people think I'm boring? I mean 'nice'. I guess the bottom line is that if people don't want to be exposed to bitching, they won't come here.

I don't plan on taking any action right now. I'll see how it goes. I know I enjoy reading blogs written by people who are real. Sigh. I don't know. I guess it stays for now.

I Want My Life Back, Damn it!

I'm tired of being a mother. A mother is someone you use when you're down on your luck or are just plain lazy. I want motherhood to stop. And lets not even talk about pretending to be a grandmother. I simply do not have it in me to be something I'm not... and I'm not a kids person. I've tried. I have sincerely tried, but its not gonna happen. I seem to expect a child to listen to adults and do what they are told to do........ snort. One of life's biggest jokes.

I want my life back. The life without live-ins, life without unruly rug rats. I want my car back. I want my bank account back. I want my apartment back. I WANT MY SANITY BACK!

And at this point, the odds of this happening are a gazillion to one against it.

oh yeah.... AND I'M TIRED OF WATCHING CARTOONS!! (However, my favorite is Jacob Two-two. I like the drawings. sigh.)

PS. I think two weeks is too long for school to be out... especially when there's continous rain so there's no playing outside. After winter break comes spring break, then summer break. crap.