Bits & Pieces-4th Edition

1. Just returned from a two week trip to Florida. A long, long time to do pretty much nothing but read and roast in the Florida sun but nevertheless enjoyable. Now it's back to reality-long grass, tons of chores around the house (till, mulch, plant, powerwash, windows, paint, etc). Still, it's good to be home.
2. And now a word about the gas prices. I'm thinking back to the '70s when not only was gas expensive but you had to wait in long lines for a very long time to get it. Extreme efforts to conserve is what turned that around and it will be the same thing now. As soon as the driving public 'gets it' & starts conserving, then we'll see relief.
3. On a related note, Mr. Bush recently announced his failure to convince the Saudis to produce more oil. He's puzzled. Geee, Junior. Let's think about this. You and Cheney spend the last seven years flipping off the world and now you wonder why you're not getting any cooperation!!! Eight months to go. Let's hope it's not a rerun of the last 7 years.
4. I mentioned above that I read a lot. One of the books I read was John Grisham's latest effort 'The Appeal'. Typical Grisham fare but very disturbing because of its proximity to reality. Without spoiling it for you, it's generally about how money interests work to elect a State Supreme Court Justice in order to influence rulings. As explained in an afterword by the author, the book is fictional but the idea is very much a reality. Read it.
5. And now on a lighter note: My good friend 'The Work Bench Blogger' recently wrote about his struggles with his lawn in general and moss in particular. On the same subject, I recently read an article from some expert who was trying to explain how to get rid of moss. Well, here's the thing. I like moss. In fact I encourage its growth in my yard. Consider this: it's green; it doesn't need to be mowed; it's soft and felvity to the touch; and when you fall on it you don't get grass stains on your clothes. What could be wrong with that??