Storm Clouds Looming.......

Hi Everybody....
Do you know this guy ? His name was William C. Durant.
Billy Durant....
Around the turn of the 20th Century, he owned a thriving company in Flint Michigan called The Durant Carriage Works. He later gained control of a fledgeling automobile co. called Buick. This was in 1908. Later that year he aquired Oldsmobile, Cadillac, and Oakland (later Pontiac). And General Motors was founded.
In 1909, he aquired the Rapid Motor truck company, and the Reliance motor co., these were the predessors to GMC truck. Durant lost control of GM in 1910 to a bank trust because he owed so much money (One Million...hahaha) in obtaining those companies.
Durant left the firm and co-founded The Chevrolet Motor Company in 1911, with Louis Chevrolet. After a brilliant stock buy back campaign, he regained control of GM in 1916, and in 1917 Chevrolet joined GM.
GMs Headquarters remained in Flint until the mid-20's, when it moved to Detroit..
In the 40's, and 50's, and 60's, ANYONE could move to Flint from any depressed area in the country and get a job 'In The Shop'. Flint was a wonderful place to grow up. A very progressive school system, Top Notch hospitalization, Colleges, Culture, and all in a beautiful Winter-Water Wonderland!!!
10 years ago GM stock was 75 Bucks a share...Friday it closed at .75 Cents!!!
Monday they are supposed to file for Bancruptcy protection.
"It was beautiful but now it's sour"......

Friday Flash 55.....

"Jethro, the protection provided by this Betula Papyrifera from the Sun's thermonuclear emanations whilst angling, is magnificent! And consuming our bounty of Ictalurus Nebulosus and Lepomus Macrochirus will be ambrosial"!!
...
'Yeah Reginald, fishing under the shade of a Birch tree, WITH a stringer full of Catfish and Bluegills, is Heavenly'...
( Musing to himself...Pompous Hemorrhoid!!!)

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If you or anyone you know has written a Friday Flash 55,
Please come tell The G-Man!!
I will visit, read, enjoy, comment...Then BOOK!!!
So from the most gracious host from coast to coast...
Have a Great Week-End!!!!
Peace...!!!


(Please be patient with my commenting early Friday, I have a few appts. Thanks Everyone, I Promise to answer ALL)

Thursday Portrait.......

Got caught in the rain...TWICE!

This shot should get me last place in a wet T-Shirt contest eh?

Start thinking about your Friday 55 Kiddies...I Am!

Peace...!!!

Retro Wednesday.....

Geez, it was a great day, I can't believe the crappy pic....
Anyway, Nowadays almost ALL golf clubs consist of a fiberglass shaft, and a titanium head. These clubs were once the 'class' of it's day. An aluminum shaft, and the best wood for quality clubs...Persimmon!!
They were good enough for Ben Hogan. In fact, these ARE Hogans!!
I have a Driver..3 Wood...5 Wood...7 Wood. Alex has my 3 Wood now.
They are from the 60's and are flawless.
I'm sure you all enjoyed this post...hahahahaha
Peace...!!!

Summer Kick-Off.......

Hi Everybody....

What a GLORIOUS Holiday week-end eh?
I had lots of friends and family over today, and as always, I fed them well!
First I had lots of salmon filets that my brother-in-law caught and brought over.
I put them in a 'pocket' of foil sprinkled with some smoked sea salt 'Slap Yo Mama' spicy Jamaican seasoning, drizzled with Michigan Home Made Maple Syrup, and topped with real butter. I grilled these for about 10 minutes, then put them on the upper rack. I then had some shrimp kabobs made up with mushrooms, summer squash, and orange and yellow bell peppers. Me and our friend Lynne are both allergic to shrimp (Grrrrrrrr), so I made up some smoked sausage kabobs for us. By the time all the kabobs were cooked, the salmon was PERFECT!
So with some beautiful fresh asparagas, a great greek salad, cucumbers in sour cream, grilled nan bread, we feasted very healthy!!
Topped off with some Key-Lime Pie Cheese Cake, Miller MGD, and "some" Fireworks... hehehehe, It was a Grand and relaxing day....
Have a Great Week....
Peace...!!!

A Loooong Week-End...Finally!

Happy Holiday Everybody!!!

I love having Saturdays off! For the last 30 years or so if I have been in town, I get up early and go to The Farmers Mkt. It is only open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Up until a few weeks ago, the outside pavillion booths were pretty vacant. But now with the herb and flower flats, southern produce coming in, and fresh Michigan Asparagus, It Was Rockin yesterday!!!
The inside is hoppin year round with farm fresh eggs, chicken, a home cured meat mkt, a most excellent cheese stand, and even a gourmet wine shop, amongst the usual crafts and bakery items. I bought lots of good stuff for tomorrows Memorial Day Extravaganza....Which of course I'll share with you all...TOMORROW!

On a more sad and sobering note...The last shot is yesterday (SATURDAY) at exactly High Noon, of the main drag of Flint!!! WHAT A GHOST TOWN!!!
When I was a kid, "downtown" on Saturday was very exciting. All adult men and women wore hats, kids dressed up, busses and cars were bumper to bumper, every store-front was filled and busy. This is what the Birthplace of General Motors looks like now, an empty shell of what was once a thriving, inovative example of The American Dream....gone very sour!

Enjoy the long Week-End...

Peace...!!!

Friday Flash 55.....

"But Holmes...How can you be sure"?

"Elementary Watson..The thief targeted the most exotic item.
Obviously knowledgeable!!!
The lingering smell of motorcycle leather, fine Arabica Coffee,
garlic and curry, Gorgonzola Cheese, and Vidalia Onion Dip, leaves little doubt!
A Knowitall...Biker...Gourmand"...

"Holmes....MORIORITY"?

"No my dear Watson... The G-Man stole the KISHKA"!!!

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If you or anyone you know has written a Friday Flash 55,
please come tell The G-Man.
I will visit, read, enjoy, comment...Then BOOK!!!
So from the most gracious host from coast to coast...
Have a Great Week-End.
Peace...!!!

Thursday Portrait.....

Hi everybody...

What a glorious evening for a Ride!! So how about a Helmet Head pic? I'm so relaxed now that I can barely think about Friday's Flash 55, but I am!!
Peace...!!!

Retro-Wednesday.....

I've shown old radios before, but this is my Baby!
The German Co. Telefunken started in 1903.
This is one of the very first FM Stereo Receivers, it dates to the Mid-Fifties, I bought it from my late Father-In-Law in the eighties.
It is in PRISTINE condition, and it works just fine!
It is solid wood NOT a veneer, and has a short wave band as well.
Sorry about the poor quality...
Peace...!!!

Preparation Ouch........

Hi everybody...
I would like to thank all of your words of safety and concern in regards to my impending fireworks extravaganza. Rest assured I have been doing this a long long time, and I take the utmost of care when it involves leaving the ground and having a REPORT!
It's safe to say that this vid can NEVER happen under my watch..
But enjoy...It's quite funny.
Peace...!!!

Wassup Boomer?........

Hi Everybody...
First of all I would like to thank all the folks that helped make last Fridays Flash 55, the best turn-out to date.!! What really makes it special is that there were probably 10-15 people that have contributed in the past, that were too busy to think about it..You All Rock!!!

Remember my daughter Mandy? She is getting married on Saturday June 19th. The nice young man she is marrying, has parents with a vacation cottage on the beautiful Northern Michigan Fife Lake. Our friend and Mandy's God-Mother Lynne, is an 'ordained' internet minister that can legally marry people. She and Sean are getting married on the dock about sunset, and she wanted a Pyro-Tecnics display to cap things off...

Well.....hehehehehe, Thats right up mine and my Pyro son Reese's alley. So today Reese and myself took a little road trip to Toledo Ohio to my FAVORITE store in the world...Phantom Fireworks!!!
Last week they sent me a catalogue with 2 unbelievable 'Early Bird' coupons inside. So to make a long story short...The last pic is about $1250.00 Dollars worth of Rockets, Morters, and Grand Finale displays, that actually only cost me $359.00 out of pocket...YAY!!!!!

Nobody...But NOBODY, Out-Booms The G-Man...Whether it be at home, OR in the pristine North!!...Have a Great Week.
Peace...!!!

Friday Flash 55........

....................HISTERIA....................

"A psychoneurotic disorder involving intense emotionalism,

with various psychic and physical disturbances. It's often

a result from repressed inner conflicts, and occurs most

frequently in women"...

That was the accepted definition around the turn of the

20th Century. Thank goodness that Sears and other companies,

have made "Histerical Women" a thing of the past!!!!!

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If you or anyone you know has written a Friday Flash 55, please come tell the
G-Man. I will visit, read, enjoy, comment...Then BOOK!!!!
So from the most gracious host from coast to coast....
Have a GREAT WEEK-END!!!!

Peace...!!!

Thursday Portrait......

I've been told that I don't smile very much lately.

Lets see, I'm working on my day off.

Bike Nite got rained out.

I'm down to $1.72 until Friday.

But on the bright side, in the morning an X-Tra large coffee with double cream, is only $1.57 at Tim Horton's, WITH my senior discount!!!!!

Start thinking about your Friday 55 kiddies...

Peace...!!!

Retro-Wednesday......

Remember Iodine..?
No, NOT Little Iodine!
The stuff that STUNG like a MoFo when your Mom applied it to a cut or bruise.
"Back in the day" before Neosporin, this is what every household in America used to stave off infection. If you were lucky, your Mom may have had some Methiolade or Mercurochrome on hand, it did the trick, but wasn't as poisonous and didn't sting half as much. As you can see, The G-Man still has a couple of bottles on hand!!
I tilted the one bottle on it's side, so that you can still see the glass tube inside that was attached to the handle... that acted as an applicator.
The next best less painful antiseptic was Bactine, but that came along well after Iodine. All I can say is, kids today don't know how lucky they have it.

Peace...!!!

Rear-Ended........But, I'm OK!!!

About a month ago, I needed to have some scrips renewed, and I had some bloodwork done. This last Friday I had more bloodwork to see if my meds was working properly. So today I had my yearly physical, and the doctor went over the results with me..
Hemoglobin A1C came down..
I lost 1 1/2 pounds
My triglicerides came down 60 points
My cholesterol dropped 40 points
My PSA's were perfect
Thyroid perfect
EKG..Perfect!
Blood-Pressure 128/78....

PROSTATE....YEEEOOOOOW!!!!...Perfect!!!

See you tomorrow Peace...!!!

I Love Spring.....

Hi everybody...
I hope you all had a great week-end.
I had to work Saturday, so Sunday was my only day off.
That gave me time to clean and dust..
Mow the lawn...
Go get a Tim Horton's coffee..
Prepare Brunch (BLT's )..
And while my son treated my wife to the New Star Trek movie..
Marinate chicken and ribs for a late afternoon dinner for about 8 people..
I decided not to put a wet sauce on the grilled meat, and it went just great with my 'Killer' Gargozola/Pecan/Romaine/Red Onion/Roma Tomato/Raspberry Vinaigrette dinner salad, and I also made Curry/Marsala Jasmine rice!!
Topped off with a cold refreshing Molson Canadian...
What could be better?
Have a Great Week.....
Peace...!!!

Friday Flash 55 ....Redux

Tonight I'm reposting a 55 from December of 07.
Some of you may remember that my friend Ned, died at age 54 of a stroke. We were lifelong friends and college fraternity brothers. The one year anniversary of his memorial was last week, and at that service I was asked to ride Ned's Harley in the procession. His favorite niece Carry wanted to ride on Uncle Nedly's bike one last time, and it was one of the Great Honors of my life to do this for his family, and my friend. Ned's sister E-Mailed this pic yesterday, and I felt I needed to post this 55 one more time......To Ned.

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We had great fun Nedly
My long and loyal friend
We thought that we were immortal
That the party would never end
But the years catch up to you
Time is NEVER on your side
So buckle-up, and rev it up.
For that long final ride
Soon enough brother....
We'll be riding side by side.

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If you or anyone you know has written a Friday Flash 55, please come tell The G-Man.
I will visit, read, enjoy, comment...Then BOOK!!!
So from the most gracious host from coast to coast.
Have a Great Week-End..!
Peace...!!!

Thursday Portrait.....

Well....Delilah did it again!!

I feel so week... Hehehehe
But not week enough to forget about Fridays Flash 55.
Now don't YOU forget kiddies...

Peace...!!!

Retro-Wednesday.....

Hi Everybody...Ready for some Un-Creativity?

They say everything OLD becomes NEW again, at sometime or another.

This yellow beauty rolled off the truck today for some lucky owner.

Based on the 1968 Camaro,( top pic )this baby stickers out at $35,000!

The V-6 Model starts at about $25,000.

It may be a tad late to save GM completely, but we're giving it a shot!

Peace...!!!

Change of Pace.....

OK.....I'm tired of 'Gooberville', hows about some easy reading Ramblings?

Tonights Antiques Road Show is from Grand Rapids Michigan.

In 1587, Virginia Dare was the First white child born in the Colonies. On August 18th on what is now Roanoke Island North Carolina.

I hit a deer today with my car. I hit it on it's rear haunch going about 25 mph. It rolled twice, got up and took off, darted back across the road, and I almost hit it again. My front bumper is a bit dented..They are like RATS!!!

In 1980, there were wild and/or feral pigs in only 13 states. Today there are Wild Hogs in 40 states!!!( Mark my words...This WILL be a future problem )

In 1921, Margaret Gorman became the 1st Miss America. She was 16 and 30-25-32!

I had a fellow blogger tell me a few weeks back, that Blogging and Posting are becoming obsolete. Twitter and FaceBook are now whats happenin'. I claimed that there is not a whole lot of creativity in just Twittering. I was then told that taking pics of my junk..er Treasures, isn't really all that creative either. Well that may be so, but I put a lot of effort into making Friday's fun and creative around here. And more than one recipe' has been shared on Posts. I find that much more fun and gratifying than hearing about shit on Twitter..."Oh, I just took a shower"!! or "I hate Wednesday TV"! or "I'm so bored and hungry"..Boo Fucking Hoo!!!!
Any thoughts?
Anyway, see ya tomorrow with yet another very UN-creative post.

Peace...!!!

Howdy.............

Hi everybody...

I sure hope y'all had a fine Week-End. We had such a great time with Friday's Flash 55 theme, that I thought that you would like to see the video that it came from.
It has also come to my attention that a few of my friends in Blogdom, are being over-run with Rednecks. At work and at home!! So this video, and some words of cheer, are for you...(wink)

WHATS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A REDNECK WEDDING, AND A REDNECK FUNERAL?
Theres one less drunk at the funeral!

HOW CAN YOU TELL WHO THE BRIDE IS AT A REDNECK WEDDING?
She has the cleanest shirt on!

A REPORTER ASKED THE REDNECK WHAT HE THOUGHT OF The PRESIDENTS CIVIL RIGHTS BILL?
He answered.."Iffin he owes it, I reckon he oughtta pay it"!

WHAT DOES A 13 YEAR GIRL FROM THE HOLLER SAY AFTER HAVING SEX?
"Git offa me daddy...Yer crushin my cigarettes"!

Yall have a Great Week now....Hear?

Peace...!!!