tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90305812009-12-04T08:16:47.468-07:00An occasional dose of anarchy keeps the bastards honest.Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.comBlogger1121125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-6993849734047024792009-12-01T20:20:00.002-07:002009-12-01T20:32:47.099-07:00

Forget everything you think you know about torture. Waterboarding? Ha! Child's play.If you want to the world's most heinous terrorists to give it up, lock them in a building with Christmas music blaring all damn day. If we could figure out how to pipe Jose Feliciano singing Feliz Navidad into Bin Laden's cave, he would crawl on hands and kness to turn himself in.It has only been 1 day and I'm

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-41662385432841863132009-11-29T18:04:00.004-07:002009-11-29T19:42:41.911-07:00

You might not expect the day after Thanksgiving to be a big sales day at a hardware store, but it is. I'm told that about 15 people were waiting for the store to open Friday morning.Tools are a very popular Christmas gift around here and we had some good deals. Of course, like most years we got a product that we have no chance of selling. This year it is an aeroponic garden.An aeroponic

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-7089635002613326302009-11-25T07:40:00.003-07:002009-11-25T08:09:54.582-07:00

As longtime readers know Merle Wayne Sneed is often mystified by the things other people do. Having a intimate conversation on a cell phone in a hardware store springs to mind. Using an "outside" voice while conversing, is doubly bad.This picture is from the car wash that I frequent and hangs over their express line. Express means that you ride in the car while it is washed. All you get is the

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-19080513112041302722009-11-23T11:00:00.004-07:002009-11-24T06:47:59.887-07:00

We have the perfect weather for growing citrus. A bit of sandy soil, regular watering and a bit of fertilizer twice a year and you can't go wrong. Since it doesn't really freeze here much, they do just fine. This is a lemon tree (I think) that is in a container at the car wash.How do you explain evolution to a six-year-old? For that matter, how do you explain it to people who think the world is

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-38560934695622878612009-11-22T11:25:00.002-07:002009-11-22T11:34:09.994-07:00

Yesterday was Miss Riley's 1st birthday. It hardly seems possible that she is a year old.She hopes to master the art of the stroller. She will be an old hand by tomorrow.Mom made this huge cupcake for the celebration and a good time was had by all.Things in this blog represented to be fact, may or may not actually be true. The writer is frequently wrong, sometimes just full of it, but always

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-16105989446137211172009-11-19T15:57:00.003-07:002009-11-20T06:46:07.213-07:00

I went to a funeral today. It was for an elderly woman, whose death was neither out of the blue nor unexpected. She had been dying for sometime.In fact, if you think about it, we have all been dying for sometime. It is just that in some cases it is more noticeable than in others.I'm reminded of the death of a prominent person some years ago. Actually, I can't remember the name of the prominent

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-20430673545384302042009-11-18T21:43:00.004-07:002009-11-19T06:58:19.622-07:00

(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)The price of a box of Eggo frozen waffles hit $172 on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange earlier today, on fears of further disruption in the nation's frozen waffle supply.Skip Kenderson, a waffle futures trader for the securties firm, Blanche, Kenderson and Wallie, noted that cuts in production at two of Kellogg's four Eggo bakeries

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-81065639158188615212009-11-17T19:08:00.003-07:002009-11-17T20:38:10.495-07:00

When I woke up this morning, I discovered that our internet service was on the Fritz. How did we ever survive without the internet? My god, I had to read the analog newspaper.Oh, and by the way, the Hell with health care reform, we have bigger fish to fry.Specifically, I need some kid of federal, state or local regulation making it illegal for Some Guy Named Bob to own a cellphone, or at least

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-164322981977597382009-11-16T08:53:00.002-07:002009-11-16T16:56:04.352-07:00

I'm sure that I read a variation on this idea somewhere, but let's pretend that I thought it up on my own.We organize into families, so that we don't have to fight with strangers.Things in this blog represented to be fact, may or may not actually be true. The writer is frequently wrong, sometimes just full of it, but always judgmental and cranky

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-45889586553373478192009-11-12T17:03:00.003-07:002009-11-12T22:23:35.075-07:00

"There's no such thing as a free lunch.:--Milton Friedman (maybe).Ever think about the ways in which we try to get a free lunch, or at least a metaphorical free lunch?I know people who have attended high-pressure sales pitches for timeshares in order to get some free stuff. Three hours in hell for a few bucks, go figure. Not to mention that about half the people I've ever known who attended

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-73068748589194307212009-11-07T17:28:00.003-07:002009-11-08T13:45:17.395-07:00

When you work retail you meet a lots of jerks. Merle Wayne Sneed's first rule of jerks is that if you think you've met the biggest jerk alive, you're wrong. Case in point.I'm sorry if this post seems arrogant, because I'm not an arrogant guy. I just don't suffer fools easily.Bright and early this morning, I got a call over to the radio at work to assist a customer in finding some screws. Sure

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-4657543588570447682009-11-05T20:22:00.003-07:002009-11-05T21:30:05.602-07:00

"God give us grace, to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things that should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other."--Reinhold Niebuhr"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can change, And wisdom to know the difference.--Reinhold Niebuhrmore common versionMerle Wayne

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-87632239707655002712009-11-03T19:19:00.003-07:002009-11-03T19:43:48.757-07:00

As promised the much-awaited Halloween pix. A word of warning first. My head is the size of China. I can't help it. Clicking to enlarge my picture may make your computer screen bulge out. Do it at your own peril.This is me and my hippy old lady.Here she is again, this time without my giant noggin casting a shadow.Andy Warhol, I presume?Andy along with Marilyn (It is really Aiden and his

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-72346567952574557742009-11-02T17:15:00.003-07:002009-11-02T21:50:49.012-07:00

Many people wonder if the Sneed family got many trick or treaters this year? I personally couldn't tell you because we weren't home.Our son and daughter-in-law threw a big Halloween bash, which was actually a cover for a dual surprise birthday party for Daughter-in-Law Sneed's parents, who both turned 60 around now.So, trick or treaters, if any, were met with a darken door at Casa Sneed. No

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-11637553926691662462009-10-30T20:24:00.002-07:002009-10-30T20:55:10.816-07:00

People are wondering how this no Saturday at the hardware store is working out? Well, it worked beautifully for two weeks. Then, just when I was getting used to it, the kid who absolutely couldn't live with his hours being cut and wanted mine, asked for the next two Saturday's off. So, I have to work for him. I suspect that this is going to be the pattern for the near term. I get some

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-5604068764492162102009-10-29T18:52:00.002-07:002009-10-29T19:26:50.317-07:00

The usual suspects and I got to play golf at one of the very fine golf resorts here in Hooterville. And better yet, we got to play for free.The owner of the hardware store made some sort of donation to a fundraiser and in exchange he got free golf at this joint. He isn't a golfer, but he heard I am, so he gave the freebie to me.We have been putting off using the pass because the resort is way

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-72983933390963203632009-10-28T07:51:00.004-07:002009-10-29T08:15:47.880-07:00

I just paid off my house. Why do I feel like I am trading a house payment for a health insurance payment?--A Tedious Systems RetireeNovember, that time of year when we get to make those important decisions about our health insurance. You know, like deciding whether we dare just drop it and hope for the best? A a minimum what do we sacrifice to be able to pay the increased premium?I just got my

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-55244351600515238912009-10-26T17:38:00.002-07:002009-10-26T22:44:49.582-07:00

Always tell the truth. That way, you don't have to remember what you said.--Mark Twain.Anyone interested in getting on a commercial airliner with a couple of pilots who forget they are flying a plane? Not me.The latest version of "the truth" from the two wayward aviators who took an airliner full of passengers on an unscheduled aerial tour of Wisconsin, while trying to find Minneapolis, is that

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-74610738410740587042009-10-23T18:39:00.003-07:002009-10-24T07:08:27.261-07:00

I'm not your friend anymore.You're not my friend, you're my cousin.Okay, I'm not your cousin anymore.You can't quit being my cousin, you'll always be my cousin.--Noah and Aiden having an argument.Bella Rum commented that I should write a snappy letter to the editor, seeing as how I have so many great opinions and all. Or maybe she just figured it would keep me from blogging about my complaints.I

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-81864087846399749252009-10-21T07:30:00.002-07:002009-10-21T08:17:47.472-07:00

“The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants, and it provides the further advantage of giving the servants of tyranny a good conscience”--Albert Camus If you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear. How many times have we heard that repeated or even said it ourselves?What if we add a bit to it? If you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear,

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-39872060649351882762009-10-19T19:52:00.004-07:002009-10-21T07:29:41.389-07:00

Forty is the old age of youth; fifty the youth of old age. -~Victor HugoThe desert southwest at sunset from 33,000 ft.We took a short trip over the weekend to celebrate Mrs. Sneed's birthday. And not just any birthday, mind you, one of the big ones. You know, the ones that are a multiple of ten.If Abe Lincoln was alive and could give the keynote for Mrs. Sneed's birthday celebration, he would

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-77643686163798151442009-10-15T19:16:00.004-07:002009-10-15T20:03:36.146-07:00

This image was lifted from the internet. It was taken from a source that didn't have it tagged as a copy-protected photo, therefore I'm assuming it is in the public domain.Today's post is about line etiquette. Americans have a long standing respect for the rules of the line.Longtime readers may recall that Merle Wayne Sneed once famously got into a screaming match with a guy who was trying to

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-63925939268054077842009-10-13T19:07:00.002-07:002009-10-13T19:51:30.470-07:00

Mrs. Sneed and I are permanent mail-in voters. Maybe if you live in a progressive city, town or village, this is no big deal. Here in the sticks it is very cool and the latest and greatest in voting.Perhaps you are wondering what are the burning issues in the November elections here in Hooterville, AZ?Well, we have several of our city council members up for reelection, as well as measures to

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-83781653221092532012009-10-11T19:21:00.002-07:002009-10-11T21:07:36.124-07:00

History is little else than a picture of human crimes and misfortunes.Voltaire You may have heard that tomorrow is Columbus Day. At least among those segments of the population that still celebrate the arrival of the explorer in the New World. That would be the public sector workers and old-time Catholics. Most of the rest of us have long ago stopped honoring Columbus as anything but a guy who

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9030581.post-28611417415375537892009-10-10T18:53:00.003-07:002009-10-10T21:01:58.887-07:00

My hope of getting Saturdays off, is waning. And I blame the flu, or at least people who are claiming to have the flu.One of my coworkers called in sick for the third straight day today. Plus, two of the cashiers have been absent due to sickness parts of this week. This means that the guy whose hours were cut has been called in for three straight days. He can't work my Saturdays if the other

Merle Sneedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01228809667893921954noreply@blogger.com4