Don't Think This is Not Coming

 So, the Governor of Arkansas signed a bill in the last 48 hours that said that health care providers can deny medical care to people whose lifestyle they see as morally objective. 

So, this means that doctors don't have to treat people in the LGBT community.

Pharmacist don't have to fill prescriptions for birth control pills. Never mind birth control pills are not always prescribed for " Birth Control."

I know some former students( It is amazing what kids will tell you) prescribed birth control pills not so they could be " Open for Business" but for other female troubles they were having. 

I am wondering how long if will be before a bill is passed saying " We don't have to teach kids who live a lifestyle with are morally opposed to?" 

Man, I'd never even dream of doing that. 

Hell, I knew pretty much who was gay in high school. I really didn't care. 

The last year I was there the principal was approached about a LGBT Club being started. And the principal was afraid that whoever was the sponsor wouldn't ever find another job. 

I told him I'd do it. 

Hell, it was my last year, I was close to retiring and besides, whoever joined would probably get less flak if I was sponsor...But the school district didn't want to do it....Hell, it was afraid to do it......You know there would have been Buna Baptist Karen's lose their minds over it.   

But you know good and well, there are teachers who would not teach LGBT students, or those who had a child without the benefit of marriage, or those who might have done something else. 

You know, if you take a job, you need to work for everyone. Not just for whoever you think has enough "Morals" for you. 

Take that plank out of your own eye. I know you're not as pure as the driven snow. 

Couldn't Do It

 I do not think you know how glad I am to be retired. 

I literally could not do it today. It will be 10 years since I retired this May. 

I do not think with all of today's recording devices, I could make it a week. Someone would record something, take it out of context and there you go, I am fired. 

Heck, I couldn't have a cuss porch like the old days.....I doubt I could kick you into the hall without filing a report in triplicate. Online and a paper copy. 

You know, when I retired, I was asked if I wanted to be on the "Sub list." To which I laughed and said " No." 

That was one of the smartest things I have done. 

Other than being a " Visiting Professor" one day in World History to teach on Tudor-Stuart England/ The English Reformation, I have not darkened the doors of Buna High School. And that was in the old high school.

Heck, I have not been in the new high school.....Heck, I've never even driven by to look at it. ( I figure it is a sterile cookie cutter school like every other high school in America. Say what you want about the old high school, it was old, and worn, but it had character.) 

Every day I read about teachers, administrators getting into trouble and most of the time, they deserve what they get in return, but every once in a while, ( More and more it seems) I see teachers getting into trouble for doing or saying something that I might have done, and in truth, it wasn't that bad. 

You know, it is going to get to where people are not going to want to teach school, and in this environment, who can blame them.

Again Kirbyville ISD?

 It seems like just when the eyes were off of KISD with troubles being brought up at Buna High, KISD could not help themselves. 

It seems that kids in the athletic department have been "Over disciplined." 

And the kids were getting swats for either failing to lift a certain amount of weights, or were paddled for not lifting the weights in a correct manner. 

Whipped not for being bad, but for failing in an athletics related activity. 

Including according  KJAS radio "cell phone photo surfaced showing half-inch whelps and bruising on the buttocks of one of the athletes."( Other students, all male, had visible injuries.)

40 years ago if you left whelps or bruising, you got fired. I saw it happen at Dayton High. A teacher and an administrator both lost their jobs. And this involved only one kid. 

I don't know. I see people( plural) being fired. 

I see KISD writing checks. 

I even see people going to jail and losing their teacher's certificate. 

In the real world, you hit someone leaving whelps and bruising, you are charged with assault. 

And I am not against getting "licks" but you know, they're a fine line, especially if you are giving licks for you not achieving an athletic endeavor.  

 

Got to Thinking about Buna High This Morning

 Before I hit the floor and got up, I got to thinking about my time at Buna ISD.

And I've said this before, when David Hicks hired me I planned to be " One and done." 

It was just a stop gap position. 

Was " Outta here" at the end of the school year. 

Little did I know by the end of the year I decided to " Try one more year." 

By the end of my second year, I was a "lifer." 

You know, the Calvinists are right about some things. Some stuff is just "foreordained."  You know, I couldn't see myself anyplace else for most of my career. ( Besides, Government/Economic teaching jobs are "Plum Positions."  Look up the "Plum Book" for an explanation.)

Thanks for letting me teach y'all. It was an honor. 

 KDT

Working on This....Or Not?

 I've been working on a economics blog for a couple of days now, and I am trying to write it where you don't get lost, or worse, I get lost. ( The latter is a real possibility.)

I've been watching the Fed and am concerned about them establishing a digital currency and a cash based currency at the same time, then going into negative interest rates in an attempt to keep the economy from crashing.  

I am wondering how close we are to having UBI given to Americans and if the Fed will take this over somehow from the US Treasury? Putting it into a digital money regularly into a "wallet." and you having to spend that money within the wallet within a certain amount of time? 

Anyway, may put some algebraic equations in the blog. Just trying not to bore you when it finally gets done. 

What the Hell, You Need a Lesson Today

 Today is St. Patrick's Day, the man who is said to have brought Christianity to Ireland.....And drove the snakes out of the island.......Think back to the Book of Genesis...How did Satan first appear? As a serpent? Think about it....There you go, you've got it figured out. ( BTW, there are no snakes in Ireland.....Or New Zealand......Reason enough to move to both places. )

Ireland is called the Emerald Isle due to it's being green...But it's no greener than SETX during the Spring.

Today, American- Irish eat Corn-beef and cabbage......But in Ireland they do not eat Corn-beef and cabbage, it wasn't until the Irish moved to America in the 18th-19th Century that they started eating Corn-Beef. In Ireland they eat bacon with their cabbage....Bacon was too expensive so they substituted cheaper cuts of beef for the bacon in New York City and Boston. 

Corn-Beef is salted beef. The term "corn" comes from the corn sized piece of salt used to salt down the beef for preservation. 

For St. Patrick's they eat chicken and leek pie, lamb stew. 

The Irish never say " Top of the Morning."

In Ireland, Shepherd's pie is made with ground lamb. 

Cottage pie is made with ground beef. 

Yes, they love their potatoes. They even serve pizza with ' chips' ( French Fries.)

Every Irish pub has a fireplace. Go there, you'll understand why. 

Guinness  is not the best selling beer in Ireland. It is Smithwick's. 

Any county road in Jasper County is better than most highways in Ireland. Sure enough wider. 

 Whisky is divided among Protestant vs. Catholic. Drink Jamison, you are Catholic. Drink Bushmill, you are Protestant. I drink Bushmill, not because I am a Protestant, I prefer taste. I really like Tullimore Dew or Busker over any other whisky in Ireland. ( But it is higher dollar)

Have a great St. Patrick's!

 

 

 

 

 

He Didn't Even Cuss

 I wrote a lighthearted blog for today, and will post it later today.....

But the headlines on both the WAPO and Drudge( Red Headlines) talk about 8 people killed in Atlanta at  3 massage parlors.

Asian massage parlors. Korean specifically.

6 dead are Asian females, 2 White, one Latino male was wounded. 

The shooter, who was driving a Hyundai SUV, is one Robert Aaron Long. 

Long, who is 21, could( past tense) be traced on social media to the First Baptist Church of Crabtree, GA.

On the churches' website Long had his testimony, and his 'second' baptism video. Since the shooting, the church has taken down their website and all their links to social media. ( I checked this morning.)

Long's second baptism was linked to the idea that he had been like the Prodigal Son. ( Don't get me started on Baptist theology and doctrine. So much of it is driven by guilt.) 

A classmate of his from his graduating class in high school said the following. " He was innocent and sort of nerdy." " He didn't even cuss and was very religious." 

I am not going to lie, events like this scare me to death. 

It is now why my daughter-in-law carries a .380. It is now why my son carries a .40 S&W. 

I don't know what Long's goal here was, but I have my suspicions, and if that's the case, once again, you need to learn the difference between Koreans, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese.....

Then again, it could have been something like he didn't get a 'happy ending' the last time he was there, or decided to be a one man marshal and " clean up" the massage business. 

But I doubt it.

 

 

Now, We Know What You've Been Doing

 You know, I often wonder what the hell these " Think Tanks" and universities do with their "Gubmint" grant money....

Here is an example of money " used."

It seems there has been a study to see how often single people have been masturbating during the lock-down.....

It seems 37% of single people are "pulling the pud", "flicking the bean " at least 3 times a day. 

And of the remainder, the amount of masturbation has "risen. "

I'm glad some of you found a hobby. 

Heck it seems that during the pandemic, 25% of people have slept with a non-romantic roommate.( As the old Crosby, Stills, & Nash song said, " If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with.")

With all this  " Spanking the Monkey " and "Auditioning the Finger Puppets" some are saying that they've been able to give themselves " The best orgasm they ever had." 

And now that we are slowly coming out of  coming out of the shutdown, many of these people doing all this "Jackin' and Jillin' Off" are afraid they won't be able to " have regular sex."

Don't worry, it's just like "Riding a Bike."

IRS TREAS 310 - TAXEIP3- Check Your Bank Account

 IRS TREAS 310 - TAXEIP3

That is starting to show up last evening in some people's bank accounts. They are saying the money should show up in your account on March 17th....If you've been receiving you money via Direct Deposit. 

Those of us who still using 20th Century technology should be able on Monday to check and see when we will receive a paper check. “Get My Payment” tool.

So, you may want to check you account. You may already be lined up to get your money next. 

Limited Blog, For Limited People, That's Sort of Serious

 I have a number of you who have asked me to officiate your weddings, April-August. 

Three of you, your original date was changed Sept.-Dec. due to Covid and trust me, I understand. 

If you want me to officiate your wedding, go ahead and tell me again. my calendar, even for 2021, is a scratch out , pencil in mess and to be honest, I am confused who is doing what when?  

You can either post on Facebook, send a message so I can start a clean calendar. If you have my phone, send me a text.( I've had a couple change 6 times now their wedding, and none of the changes were their fault.)

So, if you're wanting me to be the officiant, let me know, just don't assume I will be there.....

I Wish Now I Wouldn't Have Taught You

 Yep, every damn one of you....

Actually, I couldn't have seen myself doing anything else. 

When I got my minor from Lamar a 100 years ago now, I was "suggested" by a professor at the university that you might want to get a minor in economics in case " You hate teaching high school." Texas didn't even have high school economics as a required course when I graduated from college.

I was shocked at the offer my daughter in law has received from Air B&B Financial Division for an internship. 

It is more more over a 12 week period of time than I made my highest paid year  at the Buna ISD. 

Hell, they are giving her a stipend for living expenses.......And she can do the internship from there in College Station, of course, online. 

Now I LOVED teaching school, I really did. I know I did not act like it, but hell, I had to show who was in charge of the classroom. 

Now whether she accepts a position with the company I do not know, and I know, they have the ability to work from home. But if she moves up in the company, well, the kids are off to San Francisco. 

Kerry and Deborah Thomas ain't moving to California. 

1. It's too expensive. 

2. It's fuckin' California. 

We'll take Southwest Airlines into SFO Airport, rent a car. And visit. We've done that before when we visited San Fransisco. 

Am I bitter? Hell, no, I KNEW I wasn't going to get rich teaching school, much less at Buna Schools who pay at the bottom of Region 5's pay scale. 

I'm proud as hell of my DIL.....

Besides, who else would you have wanted to teach you " gubmint?"

Dammit! Dammit!

 Again this weekend, we 'Spring Forward." 

I swear, I need to run for the Texas Legislature just so I can fix the damn Daylight Savings.....

Either set it one way or another. Then leave it the hell alone. 

Put it to a vote of the people of Texas, and let them decide. 

Anyway, this weekend set your clocks forward an hour.....

What a Year

 This is when we shut down last year.......About this time. ( I wish I could read in 50-100 years what historians will say about this year.)

Deb and I have missed our world travel we do every year, and I've barely made it to Llano to see my brother....and the kids in College Station for the holidays. 

For the most part, I have been " Holed Up" like a monk in St. Katherine's Monastery in the Sinai Desert of Egypt.   

I've had so little social interaction, I don't know if I can't interact with people once we are cleared here in the next few weeks, I am hoping I can hold a decent conversation with another human being I am not related to. 

And other than getting up at 4AM in the morning, every morning, like a monk to pray, mostly for y'all, I've not accomplished a thing.....

As I have posted on Facebook, I am ready to travel.  I am ready to go to restaurants and not get take-out. ( You've got to remember I am older than most readers and have some health problems.)

I am ready to be able to go to the stores again. 

I've had my shots, and many of you are lining up for yours. And I can't implore you enough to get a shot, we need to start making this look normal again. People like Hardin and Orange Counties have opened up vaccinations to everyone.

This crap has to end. The quicker most of you get vaccinated, the quicker this shit will end. 

I'm ready to go.....Someplace.....Anyplace.....

 

Come On You Do It Too

 And don't tell me you don't, or haven't done it. 

Last night on Oprah's interview there was talk about " How dark the child might be."

Hell, I am going to at some point have mixed-race grandchildren.

April and I had a long discussion about DNA that might " Pop Up" in their children. 

By the way, we have a standing bet on the kid's eye color. If it is blue or hazel .( April's hope)( I figure we'll both be wrong and they'll have brown eyes)

She's been told the red-haired gene might rear its head. Again, that Irish background.  ( I have cousins with "glow in the dark" red hair.)

But who am I kidding. The kid will look like an Eurasian. Leaning more Asian than Euro. 

And I'm okay with it......But I will wonder what the kid will look like before it born, just like whether it is going to be male or female. 

Its normal to wonder about what the kid is going to look like. 

But in the end, they got 10 fingers and 10 toes you're happy.....

Your NEXT Stimulus Check!

 So, the US Senate knocked and rolled over 24 hours, and the Senate passed the latest $1.9 trillion dollar stimulus package. ( Of course this bill goes back to the House for a second approval. There are some differences in the bills between the 2 houses of congress. I'm pretty sure the House will pass this bill from the Senate. )

Here is who is going to receive the $1400 check.

Individuals who earn as much as $75,000, or couples making $150,000, plus their children or adult dependents, qualify for the full $1,400 per person. Single parents with at least one dependent who earn $112,500 or less also get the full amount. Families in which some members have different citizenship and immigration classifications are also eligible for a payment, if at least one person has a Social Security number. The payments phase out much more quickly than in previous rounds: An individual with income of $80,000, or a couple with $160,000, get nothing. That’s the result of a last-minute compromise to maintain the support of moderate Democrats who wanted to more narrowly target the money.

How will I get this check?

The IRS hasn’t yet announced a timeline for releasing the payments. In the two previous rounds, the agency first sent direct deposit payments to those for whom it had bank account information on file, then mailed paper checks or pre-loaded debit cards to everybody else. In round one, last March, it took the IRS about two weeks to process the payments. In round two, in December, it took just a few days once the bill was signed into law.

What if I have not gotten the second check? 

The IRS has added an extra line -- line 30, “Recovery rebate credit” -- to this year’s individual tax return Form 1040 to claim any missing payments. If you are missing some or all of those payments you can claim the additional amount and it will be added onto your tax refund.

Are there any other tax changes in this bill?

The legislation expands the child tax credit for one year to $3,600 for children under 6, and to $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17. The current credit is $2,000 per child. The IRS will start sending the credit in advance to households in the form of monthly payments. The legislation would also make up to $10,200 of unemployment benefits tax-free for those in households earning no more than $150,000, a change that would save many people from facing surprise tax bills on jobless benefits. 

Not kidding here, I using my check to go to Europe. 

And as always you are all upset about your check, give it to me, while I'm in London, I'll go and get a suit on Savile Row. ( I wish, they start at about £5000)

 

 

 

Dr. Seuss, Mr. Tater Head, Bugs Bunny, Disney.....

 Ain't nobody happy anymore. 

We all are just looking for something to bitch about in this nation. 

I don't know. I am sure the the English language is next......And watch, there will be a movement in Texas to stop teaching English Literature in high school Senior English classes. Hell, it was the only English class I enjoyed in high school.....Hell, it was one of my favorite classes in college, British Lit taught by Dr. Jack Renfroe.........Then again, my grandkids will speak English....And Mandarin Chinese. 

I wonder what the hell it is going to look like in 20 years......However, in 20 years I will be on the cusp of 84 and either will no longer be with you, or not give a shit. 

I don't know, for years the Baptists tried to boycott stuff like Disney because they supported gay rights....Hell, I thought that was silly then. Then again, the older I get the sillier/hypocritical I see Baptists.

As an Irish-American I am going to start the movement to remove the leprechaun from the boxes of Lucky Charms. 

I've been all over Ireland, both Northern and the South......Galway, Dublin, Shannon, Derry, Cork, Limerick, Belfast,I didn't see anyone dressed like that. 

Nor did I see a leprechaun and we were in some rural out of the way places Americans don't visit.....Hell, one night I had enough Smithwick's Ale in the pub, I thought I'd see one...But I didn't. 

I don't know anymore.

Poll

 This of course is an nonscientific poll. 

My wife and I received the Pfizer vaccine.....That said, most people I have encountered have received the Moderna vaccination.  

If you have been vaccinated, have you received the Moderna or the Pfizer vaccine? 

Too Soon?

 I wonder how much politics is involved? I wonder how much this is being done to take people's minds off the disaster that the power and water utilities were during the cold/snow/ice/sleet storm we had a couple of weeks ago now? 

But Gov. Abbott has lifted the mask requirement and has opened up businesses 100% in Texas. 

I seriously wonder if I had not had the shot if I would go " hog wild" and start going to places with crowds. 

I know I planned to go to "Pat's of Henderson" in Lake Charles in the next couple of week because next Tuesday, our vaccines will fully efficient. That was until I discovered that 'Pat's" is closed due to hurricane damage and they are not sure when it will re-open. 

So, we will look at going to my second favorite seafood restaurant, the Schooner in Nederland. 

The Schooner is an old school restaurant and when we lived in Groves ( THE Groves for those of you from Mid-County) and I had first been hired at the Buna ISD as the 'gubmint' teacher. 

Not only did they have old school type booths, tables, waitresses, the fried food is wonderful.....plus, when we first started going, it was full of local politicos and  businessmen, itwas frequented by local government professors from LCPA  and Mid-County high school government teachers.  The high school government teacher world is a small world. Most high schools only have one "gubmint" teachers and while we don't socialize, we know who they are, and often are in inservice or AP training classes with them.

We are going...and even though we had the shots, we will wear the masks until we reach our booth( Always a booth at the Schooner.  Makes me feel " Old School.")

Not wearing a mask for us, wearing them because we might somehow be carriers.

I don't know about the state  re-opening. 

Yes, at some point we need to re-open. 

Yes, we need to get a lot more people vaccinated. 

But so many people are making whether you wear a mask or get vaccinated "political." 

We still have a large number of people who don't believe Covid is "real." 

We have people who think you wear a mask you are a Democrat, you don't wear one you're a Republican. 

In the comments section of the Houston Chronicle  yesterday on the story about the governor opening the state, there were people who were calling mask wearers, people who were getting the the vaccine either " Pussies" ( They have the vowels starred) or Marxists/Communists. And plenty of people liking those comments. 

It makes me wonder how much trouble we are in, in this country. 

Then again, I am amazed at how many people think that all teachers are Communists. And it wasn't always thought that way. 

I worry there will be a resurgence of Covid with everything open....If I was ugly, I wouldn't worry about it for certain people, saying " It is just Darwinian." But I can't. Not everyone has had access the vaccines and many who have not would take a shot(s) in a second. 

Maybe this was to be. 

Maybe it is just part of the restructuring of the world. 

Whether you carry to believe it or not, the world and its structure, world leadership changes.

Ugly, Ugly Ugly

 In the past 48 hours I have receive two ugly messages concerning the Covid vaccine.

One because I had taken the vaccine, my second one this past Tuesday,  and one message over my probably "going alone to the Middle East alone blog."

I am amazed at how mad those two people go because I had taken the vaccine( It's none of their business.) 

And the other all upset that I encouraged people to get vaccinated. 

This comes after I read this morning that in a University of Texas survey 44% of Texans either won't be vaccinated or are not sure if they'll be vaccinated.  

Heck, most clinics, hospitals etc. are having a hard time getting people to come back for their second shot. When I was at Baptist Hospital they had several people on the telephone trying to get people to come back for their second vaccine. They told me when I asked that many folks thought that " One should be enough." 

Once again, I wonder how long Covid will be with us with these numbers? 

I am serious that there will be a need for Covid boosters due to new strains of the virus, and I am willing to take vaccine. 

I know some of you are all upset because the vaccine has not been tested that long. I know some of you are especially worried about the long term effects.....Well, at my age, I don't have that long to worry about "Long Term Effects."

At my age and my health, it is worth me taking the vaccine. I Have had 2 friends die from Covid and both died horrible lingering deaths. 

Folks, I think the benefits outweigh the risks. 

That said, I got a bad feeling that with the attitude of some folks, Covid will be with us a long time.