A bit of geography:  This blog had a reader in Zaventem, Belgium this morning.  Wonder if it was someone waiting for a plane?  Zaventem, for those of you who don't know, is home to Brussels airport.

I watched MICHAEL PHELPS swim his first qualifying race and nearly wet my pants.  A win by .07 seconds is too scary for me!

YOU KNOW YOU'RE A REDNECK WHEN.......

You take your dog for a walk and you both use the same tree.

You can entertain yourself for more than 15 minutes with a fly swatter.

You offer to give someone the shirt off your back and they don't want it.

You come back from the dump with more than you took.

You keep a can of Raid on the kitchen table.
You keep flea and tick soap in the shower.
You know how many bales of hay your car will hold.
You can spit without opening your mouth.

Your lifetime goal is to own a fireworks stand.
You have a complete set of salad bowls and they all say 'Cool Whip' on the side.

The biggest city you've ever been to is WalMart.

Your working TV sits on top of your non-working TV

You've used your ironing board as a buffet table

A tornado hits your neighborhood and does $100,000 worth of improvements

You've used a toilet brush to scratch your back

EVEN I HAVE NEVER LOST MONEY THIS FAST:

According to FORBES Facebook big guy ZUKERBERG had a net worth of $17.5 billion in March.  Today he's worth about $12.1 billion.  I'll bet he had a hell of a lot more fun making it than he's having losing it.  Lotsa problems at Facebook.

The sun setting on Mayo Clinic (La Crosse) was really pretty last night.

The nations blood supply is the lowest it's been in 15 years.  If you can give, please do.  I would, if I could!

TODAY IS

WORLD HEPATITIS DAY

LEIDEL'S APPLE ORCHARD opens, for the season, today.  There's an interesting story about the 100 year old orchard in the LA CROSSE TRIBUNE this morning.

Today will be WARMER THAN YESTERDAY and by Wednesday we'll be back up around 95.  I think this is the first time, ever, that I'm looking forward to fall.

The Doll House, a strip club in Tampa, is all ready for the G. O. P. convention.  They'll be serving red, white and blue vodka.

INTERNET STOCKS are really taking a beating these days.  There's an interesting article about why this is happening in THE NEW YORK TIMES

Did you catch Stephen Colbert's suggestion to farmers concerning the drought?  He says they should "switch to a crop that can withstand the heat like sun-dried tomatoes or raisins."

I wasn't nearly as excited by the opening ceremonies at the OLYMPICS as I was about winning a game of SOLITAIRE yesterday......but that's just me.  I didn't make it through to the end of the ceremonies.  I don't stay up for anyone or anything past sundown.

I read in the papers, this morning, that Jesse Jackson Jr. is being treated for depression at Mayo Clinic in Rochester.  I know, first hand, what he's going through and I wish him the very best.

I just won a game of SOLITARE!

  I think the last time I won a game of Solitare I was about 19 years old and we all know that was a very long time ago....almost into the era of "Once upon a time".

All is well with YAHOO! MAIL again.  Couldn't send or receive any Yahoo! mail for quite a while today.  The problem has been fixed, however, so we're back to normal.  Of course, I was still able to stay connected with Google G-Mail.  Best to have a back-up.

Every country in the world will dip its flag when their team passes the Olympic host country, Great Britian, EXCEPT the UNITED STATES.  Want to know why?  READ THE STORY AT MENTAL FLOSS

Pictures from the opening ceremonies of the SUMMER OLYMPICS are showing up all over the Internet and it looks pretty spectacular.  Can't wait to watch it.

STARBUCKS stocks took a terrible nosedive today.  The worst loss in years.  I knew this would happen now that Donnie has found a new coffee spot closer to home.

Here's something I know you all need.  CHEESE FACTORIES ALONG THE GREAT RIVER ROAD.

A pleasant surprise when I walked out this morning.  That COLD FRONT that came through, overnight, was Mother Nature's first reminder that Old Man Winter is just itching to make his return.

It was a cool, brisk north wind and a grey sky that everybody was talking about.  It seem's like we all agreed that a cooler day and open windows is a welcomed relief from the heat.

I just read that there have been only 15 TORNADOES reported in the USA this month.  That's a much lower number than usual for July.  Why?  The drought.

You need thunderstorms to get tornadoes.  During a drought there are fewer thunderstorms.  Fewer thunderstorms mean fewer tornadoes and the 15 reported this month is the fewest July tornadoes ever reported since record keeping began.

The Olympics are opening on PEGGY FLEMING'S BIRTHDAY.  She won the gold medal in figure skating at the 1968 games in Grenoble.  Peggy is 64 today.

A woman knows all about her children.  She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.

A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

The week is almost shot and so is July.  Looking ahead,  Anne and Morgan celebrate their anniversary on Tuesday.  Next Thursday is Angela's birthday and the Wisconsin State Fair opens.

EATING OUT:  When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20.00, even though it's only for $32.50.  None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.

When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.

I just got word that my good Rapid City friend, Gary Peterson, is retiring.  I remember Gary coming to work, at the radio station, as a smart mouthed high school kid, watched him grow up and get married to my travel agent, Jeannie, while I stood by him as his best man.  Now, he's a grandpa and retiring from the rat race.

That's the thing about a South Dakota friend.  Once you get one, you can't get rid of them.

A few words from Willard
"I see, per your "bloggie", you are improving.  No more sympathy from me.

Also see Donnie is passing through Mt. Pleasant.  When I lived in Dallas I had a friend who lived in Mt. Pleasant and I would go their on weekends.  Nice little town."

LONELY PLANET has some great tips for taking better pictures whether at home or on the road.

The British are doing something right.  A BBC report says Britain's teenagers are turning their backs on alcohol, cigarettes and drugs.

$$$

There's a story in USA TODAY that says, with this years drought, food prices are sure to go up next year.

FAMILY

Rita and Roger wrote, "Terrel and Tara with their new Lab pup."

FOOTBALL

THE PACKERS TRAINING CAMP starts tomorrow and here's the PACKERS 2012 training camp dope sheet.

TRAVEL

DONNIE AND LINDA are on their way to ARKANSAS today to visit her family.  They'll be back home Monday.

WORDS

How many ways are there to describe the hot summer we've been having?  If you're running out of ways to say "it's hotter than hell", here are some great phrases from around the country as reported by MENTAL FLOSS 

WEATHER

It's even too hot in Greenland.  Check out this story from the BBC

MISERABLE

I know you don't want to hear about my aches and pains but it's my blog so deal with it.

I slept really good for a few hours but then I woke up, coughing, with a tickle in my throat.  My nose was so stuffed up I couldn't breath and my eyes were watering.  No more sleeping.  I had to get up and blow and dab and breath through my mouth.

Which reminds me of a joke.

Ole and Sven met each other on the street and Ole noticed that Sven had a terrible cold.

Ole: Have you seen a doctor about that cold?
Sven: No, but I probably should.  Do you know a good doctor?

Ole gave him the name of his own doctor and assured him that he'd be in good hands.  They met, again, about a week later.

Ole: Did you see my doctor?
Sven: Oh, yea.  He was a really nice guy.
Ole: Did he give you something to help your cold?

Sven: He sure did.  He told me to drink a big glass of fresh orange juice after a hot bath.

Ole: Did it help?

Sven: I don't know.  I haven't finished drinking the bath yet.

DEATH

Another great one gone.  SHERMAN HEMSLEY passed away at his home in El Paso, Texas.  He was 74.  He was the perfect George Jefferson.

$$$

I just saw this YAHOO! page on how to save money on your electric bill.

CRUELTY

Another story of animal cruelty in the LA CROSSE TRIBUNE this morning.  I'm seeing more and more stories, like this, in the news these days.

You know what?  We really are becoming a very, very ugly country.

There was one bright note, actually two, to this story.

Bright note #1: The kitty is going to be alright.

Bright note #2: It was a TERPSTRA who saved the day!!

COLD UPDATE

I may enter my nose in the Olympics.  It's running faster than I can keep up with.

How long does a cold last?

FUNNIES

TODAY'S CONTRIBUTION FROM CARL

"And God promised men that good and obedient wives would be found in all corners of the earth.

Then He made the world round....and laughed and laughed and laughed......"



RITA

RITA TO THE RESCUE

You can count on Rita!!  She just called and wanted to know if I needed anything.  She's on her way into town, later today, and is going to pick up a couple of things I need.  GOODY.  That means I won't have to go out in the rain which is probably the last thing I should do with a cold.

FOOD

I wonder if Eric, Bert or anyone else in the family has been to SOLLY'S GRILLE in Milwaukee.  I just read an article about their Butter Burgers in CHICAGO NOW where Joe Grace says they're better than Culvers!

TRAVEL

If you, or any of your friends, are traveling to England, the folks there advise you to BRING PLENTY OF CASH.  With the Olympics about to start the lines at ATM are already starting to get longer and they'll get a LOT longer before the games are over.

DONNIE SAYS:

Mark Twain said “If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything.”

These days, though, I'd have to reverse it, and hope not remembering anything means I'm telling the truth.

RIP: SALLY RIDE

So sorry to hear of the death of SALLY RIDE, the first U. S. woman to make the trip into space.  Dead at 61 from pancreatic cancer.

SOUP

Just fired up the crock pot with CHICKEN SOUP.  Nothing goes better with a cold than chicken soup.  I just discovered I'm out of crackers, however, so I'll have to make a run over to Co-op and get some while the soup bubbles in the pot.

SNEEZE

Just had a sneezing fit, nose and eyes are running.  Ears are clogged up.

Thunder rumbling in the distance, light rain falling.

Miserable damn day.

I may go back to bed.

DONNIE

Donnie and birthday cake.
He doesn't look all that happy to be 65.

CATS

GOOD TO THE LAST DROP



HEALTH

It started coming on yesterday and, overnight, it has blossomed into a full blown head cold.  Stuffed up head and ears.  Scratchy throat.  All over yukky feeling.  This is last thing I need.  Can't remember the last time I had a cold but it's been years.

STORMS

Thunder (not the cat kind, the weather kind, woke me overnight.  Sounded like it was south of us.  We got some light rain around here.

The forecast calls for highs in the 80's today, 90's again tomorrow.  We need a "heat break".

I hate to think we still have all of August to go through.  That's usually the hottest month of the year.

OUCH!

Airlines fares up, again, as much as $10.00 a ticket.  Before long it won't be that much more to charter a private jet.  OK.  It will still be a LOT more to charter a private jet but wouldn't it be nice, if you could afford the $2,000 per hour, to avoid paying for the "cattle car" experience?

LOOKING WEST

OVER LA CROSSE

HERE'S A GREAT OLD MEMORY!

There's a great 1940 photo and article in the LA CROSSE TRIBUNE this morning.  Look at that great old riverboat and check out the prices for a ride to Winona with a 12 piece band on board.  Was life really better in the old days?  Sure was!!!

Under fire in La Crosse.

Two seperate shooting incidents in La Crosse over the weekend.  One person was injured.  We don't need any foreign terrorists to worry about.  We have enough terrorists right here in the good old USA.  When was it that we traded in our good old "apple pie" America for "armed and ready to shoot" America?

Donnie adds:
"In 2010, 16 people were killed in the USA by individuals who might be defined as terrorists. That same year, 17 people were killed by falling televisions. True. Will a house full of assault weapons protect us from falling TVs? Our fear of terrorists has bankrupted the nation and its leaders. And all along we should have been afraid of television."

Ron sent this.

 An old cowboy was riding his trusty horse followed by his faithful dog along an unfamiliar road. The cowboy was enjoying the new scenery, when he suddenly remembered dying, and realized the dog beside him had been dead for years, as had his horse. Confused, he wondered what was happening, and where the trail was leading them.
After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall that looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch topped by a golden letter "H" that glowed in the sunlight.
Standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like gold.
He rode toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. Parched and tired out by his journey, he called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'
'This is Heaven, sir,' the man answered.
'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?' the man asked.
'Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up.'
As the gate began to open, the cowboy asked, 'Can I bring my partners, too?'
'I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets.'
The cowboy thought for a moment, then turned back to the road and continued riding, his dog trotting by his side.
After another long ride, at the top of another hill, he came to a dirt road leading through a ranch gate that looked as if it had never been closed. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. 'Excuse me,' he called to the man. 'Do you have any water?'
'Sure, there's a pump right over there. Help yourself.'
'How about my friends here?' the traveler gestured to the dog and his horse.
'Of course! They look thirsty, too,' said the man.
The trio went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with buckets beside it. The traveler filled a cup and the buckets with wonderfully cool water and took a long drink, as did his horse and dog.
When they were full, he walked back to the man who was still standing by the tree. 'What do you call this place?' the traveler asked.
'This is Heaven,' he answered.
'That's confusing,' the traveler said. 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'
'Oh, you mean the place with the glitzy, gold street and fake pearly gates? That's hell.'
'Doesn't it make you angry when they use your name like that?'
'Not at all. Actually, we're happy they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.' 

Here's another reason to love your pets.

A new study finds that babies who have a dog or cat in the house during their first twelve months of life have fewer respiratory diseases.  There's a story and more information on the MEDICAL NEWS TODAY website.

WE'VE GOT A NEW LOOK

HOPE YOU LIKE IT

Why buy that crap in the jar?

The FOOD CHANNEL has a web page featuring Paula Deen's recipe for home made salsa that I know Carl and Willard would like and, maybe, some of you other folks.

A quote from Paul Harvey:

"In times like these, it helps to recall that there have always been times like these."

A senior moment.

When I looked at my face in the mirror, this morning, I found 2 wrinkles that weren't there yesterday.

Duane says:

"Rained during the night.  A soaker.  The decks are wet.  I won't need to water this morning."

DONNIE SAYS:

Physicists tell us that time and motion are inversely related: the faster you move, the slower time moves; the slower you move, the faster time moves. This may explain why grade school days seemed never to end, and as teens we thought life went on forever...and now we hardly get out of bed before it's time to get back into it.

I suppose 40-65 constitutes middle age,

and I am this morning officially a senior

citizen. Perhaps at least my sense of

"crisis" will pass. We will be home all

day. I will work in yard early, to beat

the heat (you report Austin among top 5

hot spots, so true).

Guess who else is 65 today.

Don Henley was a member of one of my favorite groups, The Eagles.  A couple of my all time favorites they recorded were "Take it Easy" and "Hotel California".

The funniest TWEET I've seen, so far, today.

It goes right along with Donnie turning 65.

Phil Derner Jr. said, "I wanna get a senior citizen as a pet.  Is that wrong?"

The new community theater is really beginning to take shape in downtown La Crosse.

There's a great article and photos in the La Tribune this morning.  SEE IT HERE.

Thoughts on hitting 65.

In case you're not aware of it.  This birthday is a milestone in Donnie's life.

This is the day he hits 65.  Those of us who have been there, done that, know that it's the beginning of the end.  Now is when everything really starts going to hell.

There isn't a day that goes by that you don't notice that something, on your perfect body, isn't working quite as good today as it did yesterday.

If you start to plan anything more than a month ahead, you'll find yourself prefacing it with, "if I'm still around".

Pretty soon the biggest part of your day will be discovering a new pain in a part of your body you had totally forgotten you even had.

65 is when you, really, realize that old age is nothing to laugh at.  Old age is only funny to young people.  To old people, the funny part is that those young people (if they're still around) will face this day sooner than they think.  They'll realize they didn't save the world and they were'nt all that important to the grand scheme of things, after all.

That's when us, even, older people will be able to laugh at the look on their faces when they realize that, yes, THEY have become that old person THEY used to laugh at.....if us even older people are still around.


A comment from Donnie:
"That goofy straw hat, which you captured atop my head on a visit several years ago, went into the trash bin just today.  (And there's still more room in the bin for me.)"

I'm almost dreaming of a white Christmas.

I never thought I'd see a summer I didn't like but I'm beginning to think I've found such a summer.  They say old folks can't take the heat.  I'm beginning to believe they're right.  Too hot.  Too dry.  Too much.

I dont see any relief this week.  Thunderstorms are possible this afternoon and evening.  There could be some damaging winds.

More thunderstorms are possible from tomorrow night through the rest of the week.

And, the awful heat will continue with heat indicies at 100 degrees, or more, tomorrow.

By the way, would you like to know what the 5 hottest cities in the USA are?  These are the top five cities with the most days, over 99, during the year.

1. Phoenix (107 days over 100)
2. Las Vegas (70)
3. Riverside, California (24)
4. Dallas (17)
5. Austin, Texas (16)

This is what I call Great Graffiti.

BY STREET ARTIST SAINER

Big week ahead.

Three birthdays; Donnie today, Nick and Daniel tomorrow, Cousins Day on Tuesday and the opening of the Summer Olympics on Friday.  Did I miss anything?

Drought continues across the USA.

BUDDIES