Time to start Blogging again, and I decided to move to WordPress, so here we are!
Most of the images are missing, but I have backups of most, and will be replacing them soon enough!
Hello world!
January 22, 2010 by DooleyFrogo is FroGONE
September 25, 2009 by Dooley
So, this store opened up some time last year. I drove by, and saw their new store selling frozen yogurt, and decided to stop in and check it out.
I parked my car in front, but I did not have change for the parking meter. Now, this is Santa Monica. The meter police have this keen sense of smell, and they can sniff out when a meter is expired, and pounce before you can blink!
So, I run into the store, and ask for change of a dollar.
They refused. Sorry, we can’t give you change.
“But I want to buy, but I can’t leave my car out there”
“Find another spot, there’s parking in the back” (Note: There was no sign indicating parking in the back) so again I reasoned with them, that I did not want to move my car, I’m already parked. I don’t want them to pay for my parking, just take my dollar and give me four quarters, so I would be able to put one in the meter!
Again they refused, and I hastily told them, “Well if that’s how you treat customers, good luck with your business” and I left.
Now here it is, less than a year later.
And they’re closed.
They weren’t even in business long enough to take down their “Grand Opening” signage, and now they’re gone.
It just goes to show you. If you treat your customers poorly, you won’t have customers. And they were not very nice to their customers.
Did I mention that they’re closed, out of business? Even before the honeymoon was over?
I hate to say it, but….
I told you so!
An Audition followed by a Geocache
July 28, 2009 by DooleyOkay, it's been a while since my last Blog entry, but its time to start Blogging again, and I will start with a story from today…
I came down to So, So, So, And, So, So, I I added my own, and also signed "The All Access Karaoke Crew" Now the cameras were off, and we walked back to the production office, and I left. One thing for sure…. They will NOT forget my audition! Thanks for a fun cache, a VERY unique hide, and a great story to go home with. This is what Geocaching is all about. Oh, and here's what the show is all about if you're interested: All Access Karaoke
Escondido for an audition. I was auditioning to be the host of a new TV
show coming out this fall, "All Access Karaoke"
as I usually do when I'm traveling, I pull up Geocache Navigator on my
blackberry, and as I go in for my audition, I notice there's a cache
1/10 of a mile away. Cool, I'll get this after the audition.
during the interview, before I did my lines, the producers asked me
about myself, so I mention my hobbies, including Geocaching. And of
course, the inevitable "What is that?" Well, I go into an explanation,
and they are fascinated about it. I told them that there's even one
right near their production office, less than 600 feet away.
on with the audition (I was nervous, and it showed, so we'll see how it
pans out, but I had fun doing it. Maybe I'm being too critical, and it
wasn't bad.. We'll see if I get a callback)
since I was the last audition of the night, they asked me if I was
going to look for that cache, and I told them of course! So, they asked
if they could tag along and tape it.
off we go! I pop the coords into my Garmin (I much prefer to use the
navigation on the Garmin if I have it, rather than the blackberry) and
off we go…. The producers, cameraman and PA… And now I'm in *MY*
natural environment, talking up a storm about geocaching…. I show
them the lamppost we pass on the way, and show them that many caches
are under the "lamp skirt" and show them how it lifts….. Then I read
the difficulty and see it's a D-3, and it's at night no less!!! How
embarrassing would it be if I don't find this cache????? And to top it
off, the last cacher logged a DNF…. Let's look at more logs… Phew!
It was found just over a week ago.
the flashlight going, and more eyes looking, I notice something that
was, to put it best, something that should be there, but maybe not.
Without spoiling the cache for the rest, let's just suffice it to say
that BINGO! I found the cache. "Got it!!"
unrolled the log (which by the way needs a new plastic baggie – it's
all ripped but the log is in good shape) and I showed it to the
cameraman, who Wow'ed at how many people signed it….. Then I flipped
it over to show the REST of the signatures. 
And here's a link to the Cache page: Tower of Power
Buying allergy pills can cause Identity Theft
November 20, 2008 by DooleySo, in order to buy my allergy medication (Zyrtec-D) I had to give up all the information necessary for identity theft.
They punched in my name, address, date of birth, Driver License number, and expiration date. Everything except my Social Security number, which someone who stole this information could get it.
How secure is this database? Will I be receiving yet ANOTHER one of those “We lost our data backup tapes, but here’s three free months of privacy guard” letters?
Shaun White Snowboarding – Release Party
November 12, 2008 by DooleySo, I went to the release party for the videogame Shaun White Snowboarding.
It was held at Boulevard3 in Hollywood. A nice place, and we’ve had two of our MTV holiday parties there in the past.. No party this year. But at least I went to this release event.
Big place, lots of drinks, dance music, and a “VIP” section.
What I didn’t get is, why were so many people crammed in the VIP section (There was nothing there except a bar, which there were plenty of in the “non-vip” area) and it was so crowded, the rest of the place was more fun to hang out in. I guess its because you need a VIP pass to get in that “section,” it makes you “cooler.”
I don’t know anything about snowboarding, and I don’t know who Shaun White is, other than his name is perfect for the color of snow.
Actually, that’s what I thought it was for – I thought it was “White Snowboarding” (and all the “artificial snow” they had in the place was for that purpose)
Anyway, I got to play the xbox version of the game, and it was okay… Not exactly my type of game, but interesting nonetheless.
And lots of really hot women dancing. It was an interesting night.
Long day at the pools!!!
November 4, 2008 by DooleyIt’s been a while, hasn’t it? Well, things have been pretty hectic lately.
So, today was a nice long day. I did my civic duty today, as I have done for the last six elections in this state… I worked at the polls, as a precinct inspector.
Five o’clock in the morning… Alarm goes off. Wake up, take a quick shower, get dressed, and make sure the updated roster, ballots, and everything else is in my car.
Take off, pick up a coffee at 7-11 on the way, and head over to the polling place.
5:45… Arrive on scene, and there are already people starting to line up to vote. Perhaps they mistook today for “Black Friday” at Best Buy. Sorry, there are no Wii’s for sale here today.
So, with my clerks arriving at 6:00 am, we start to get the place set up for polling. I stopped by the night before to set up the voting booths, but there are items I cannot leave, such as the ballots, the ballot box, the inka-a-vote plus machine, and the ballot machines. All the things needed to create an election must be with me until election day. You know, just in case the custodian is late and doesn’t open the doors for the polling place by 7:00 am, we can “set up shop” outside and take votes. The main rule is simple: The Voting Never Stops.
So, now that we’re set up, 7:00 arrives, and the magic words are spoken: “The Polls Are Now Open”
What a madhouse.
We had a line going around the block. My first position assingments failed miserably. You see, we have two precincts sharing a single polling place – a green table, and an orange table. I was the Orange table. The Green line was moving fast, but the Orange line was moving along slowly. People were getting upset, and complaining.
I found the bottleneck, and moved her to a better suited postion, and the lines started moving again. So much so, that by 10:30, the tables have turned – our line was the shorter of the two lines.
Funny thing — All the people who made a mad dash to vote in the morning… made for a lot less people at the end of the day.
I could continue the timeline, but I am so tired after working a 16-hour day, that I am going to bed.
But I will say once again…. What a way to end the night…. 666 voters. (That doesn’t count the 63 “provisional” ballots and the 33 “mail-in ballot dropoffs” we received.)
yawn
You know you live in L.A. when…
September 26, 2008 by DooleyOkay, it's 3:30 in the morning and I'm up… Maybe I'll get back to sleep for another couple of hours, but here I am on the computer, so I'm hand-picking my favories from the "You know you live in LA" list….
You know you live in L.A. when…
- You're driving on the 101 and see a clear cut definition of where the smog begins and ends
- Getting anywhere from point A to point B, no matter what the distance, takes about "twenty minutes".
- In the "winter", you can go to the beach and ski at Big Bear on the same day.
- You know what "sigalert", "PCH", and "the five" mean.
- You've ever bought oranges, flowers, cherries or peanuts on a freeway off-ramp.
- You think "Venice" is a beach
- You think "Manhattan" is a beach
- You eat pineapple on Pizza
- Driving along, you see a high-speed police chase approaching in your rear view mirror. You don't panic or even flinch. Instead, you call your friends on your car phone and tell them you're on TV.
- It is not unusual for your waitress at a restaurant to have blue streaked hair, a dragon tattoo and tongue piercing.
- You are awakened in the middle of the night by a moderate earthquake. Your reply: "That ain't even a 5-pointer" and go back to sleep.
- The guy at 8:30 in the morning at Starbucks wearing the baseball cap and sunglasses who looks like George Clooney IS George Clooney.
- Any invitation comes with, "Starts at 8pm or as soon as you can get through traffic."
- You know what In N Out is and feel bad for all the other states because they don't have any.
Hidden Arrow?
September 24, 2008 by Dooley
Okay, I never noticed this before, until it was pointed out to me yesterday.
Someone asked if I saw an arrow on the Fedex truck. After looking closely for several seconds, I excalimed “Holy crap, there IS an arrow!”
And now, it will haunt me forever.
Can you see it?
Can you see the hidden arrow?
Hint: It’s in the name.
And once you find it, it will be STUCK in your head FOREVER!
Enjoy.
What’s Up?
September 22, 2008 by Dooley
There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and that word is "UP."
It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP?
At a meeting, why does a topic come UP? Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report?
We call UP our friends and we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver, we warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the house and some guys fix UP the old car.
In sports, the score is tied at 11 UP and if you’re busy, you are all tied UP.
At other times the little word has real special meaning. People stir up trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses.
To be dressed is one thing but to be dressed UP is special. And this up is confusing:
A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP.
We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night. We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP !
To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary.
In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4 of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions
If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more.
When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP. When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP. When it rains, it wets UP the earth.
When it doesn't! rain for awhile, things dry UP.
One could go on & on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now my time is UP, so ….
Time to shut UP…… and put this BLOG UP.
And if you don’t like it, well.. UP Yours!
Oh…one more thing:
What is the first thing you do in the morning & the last thing you do at night?
U. P.
The Great Gig In The Sky…
September 16, 2008 by Dooley"I am not frightened of dying.
Any time will do, I don't mind.
Why should I be frightened of dying?
There's no reason for it, you've gotta go sometime."
(Pink Floyd, The Great Gig In The Sky, 1973)
Today, I will be thinking about Richard William Wright, one of the founding members of Pink Floyd, who passed away yesterday.
Rick Wright was a prominent member of Pink Floyd, right from the early days when Syd Barrett was still part of the band. Although Rick wrote and sang in several songs in the early part of Pink Floyd's career, he later went on to compose very intense instrumentals, such as those heard in songs such as "Interstellar Overdrive," "A Saucerful Of Secrets," "Careful With That Axe, Eugene," "One Of These Days," "Atom Heart Mother," "Echoes" (18 minutes!!!), and of course The Great Gig In The Sky, which is still an instrumental, even though parts of the instrumental are played with a very strong female voice, it is still an instrumental since she is belting out notes, not words. And yet still conveys emotion.
Pink Floyd is, by far, one of my two favorite bands of all time, tied with The Beatles. Although quite different in styles, both of these bands have a very special place in my life, and both are equally important, and are part of a definition of who I am. I would not be the same person today, and I consider music to be an important part of my life. I do not play an instrument (Does "Rock Band" on the Xbox count?) but I sure enjoy listening to music.
Pink Floyd is the type of music that crosses a fine line (at times) between Rock&Roll and Classical. There are definitely Classical elements in Pink Floyd, although they got their inspiration (and name) from Jazz. You can hear the influences, if you listen to their music. It is also the type of music that has a "double entendre" in that you can listen to it "straight" or "on drugs," and get two completely different meanings and experiences form their music. Most of their early songs are of a quite psychedelic quality.
Rick Wright, you and your band played a great part in my youth, and continue to do so today. May you always be remembered as you now play your Great Gig in the Sky.
"I never said I was frightened of dying."
(Pink Floyd, The Great Gig In The Sky, 1973)
