#6268 Reading old scandy stories, dirty fast food, got paid $20 for under 1 min’s work.

Ok, finally got Joyce to be good and to put finalization on my PT appointments… First regular visit is tomorrow. Landlord called my place, following up on all of his phone calls, ad he still claims that Frankie the Mooch will be out of here in the next day or two… again, I’ll believe it when I see it.

Dark skies and soft rains outside made it the perfect time to read a *lot* about runes and folk-history today. Brushing up on old sagas… got to love project Gutenberg! I think that I like the Icelandic better than the Swedish stuff, though. Classic viking tales are a hoot, wherever they may be found, written by the folks themselves.

I got confirmed payment on my links today, so went on a little shopping visit, and bought some loot at Amazon… it’s nice to treat myself and others!


Unsanitary fast food chains – Listed info by State

top ten offending chains saved for posterity.

#6268 Reading old scandy stories, dirty fast food, got paid $20 for under 1 min's work.

Ok, finally got Joyce to be good and to put finalization on my PT appointments… First regular visit is tomorrow. Landlord called my place, following up on all of his phone calls, ad he still claims that Frankie the Mooch will be out of here in the next day or two… again, I’ll believe it when I see it.

Dark skies and soft rains outside made it the perfect time to read a *lot* about runes and folk-history today. Brushing up on old sagas… got to love project Gutenberg! I think that I like the Icelandic better than the Swedish stuff, though. Classic viking tales are a hoot, wherever they may be found, written by the folks themselves.

I got confirmed payment on my links today, so went on a little shopping visit, and bought some loot at Amazon… it’s nice to treat myself and others!


Unsanitary fast food chains – Listed info by State

top ten offending chains saved for posterity.

#6266 Current vibe, The Spectre, Wynonna, Book and record sets, and so on.

Not feeling my best today, probably because of a lack of sleep… Playing around with assorted code to pass the time. Before that I wrote a little bit, did some research, dabbled in my current popcorn book, and fooled a bit with my web page, played with the Newtster, and did just about everything but go outside or take a nap. I looked on kazaa for last nights Justice League, but no luck yet. It’ll be out there within a week… I’ve already picked up the eclipso episode and a few others that had fallen through the cracks.

Just finished a case of a missing disabled woman… some parts of Ohio are just amazingly spread out. I dropped a blanket about five miles in width and height over her region, and only about 300 names popped up. She was on a bicycle, and missing since 9am, so I may have to do some “followup chasing” if I get any trail information on her. It’s frightening.. getting cold out there, and the woman’s in her thirties, but mentally still a youngster. With the region spread out like that, chances of witnesses are going to be difficult, but hopefully someone noticed something.


Here’s a reason to be glad if you’re a villain and just got beaten up by Batman or Spidey. It could be worse…. a whole lot worse.At least you didn’t come up against the Spectre, who’s a great deal less forgiving than the most frightening vigilante. (Doesn’t waste any time, either… I hope the butler was guilty of murder or something, rather than badly arranging the little soaps in the guest bathroom.)

The butler did it... time to call a temp agency.


Radio Heroes… classic comic book and record sets. I had this Superman and the Deadly Rains as a kid, and yes, I thought it was horribly bad even as a six year old. The commentary goes from very funny to really lame, but the biggest draw for me is just seeing all of these things again. Very Nostalgic.


Wynonna Judd Mug shot.


Eyewitness Quiz, D’oh, I got one wrong.


Good commentary heard recently – “Robert, you are so wrong, philosophers weep at the sound of your voice.” (via comic_getfuzzy)Site Meter

[update: having a heck of a time getting the client to post this entry. I tried about 10 times before giving up and using the web.]

#6265 Justice League is getting really good, archives

Ok, I called up the landlord today and gave him the lowdown on what happened last night with Frankie, and he confirmed that the place is being sold… and that he’s not evicting Frankie for some reason, but is instead moving him to another property of his. The mooch will never be able to honestly say folks didn’t give him another chance. He’s had more chances with the landlord and police than seems fair or just.

In other news, I feel hungrier lately… is it because winter is approaching? Is my body hearkening back to a storage phase? I notice I’m sleeping a bit longer lately, too, but I chalk that up to my healing phase.. my body always gets a bit more sleepy when it’s undergoing repairs. Perhaps the body’s craving more food as building material, too?

The archive link below reminded me that they’re currently reworking the galleria mall… the middle is gutted, and they’re redoing the facades out front a little at a time. It looks like a bomb hit it in the middle, but the outskirt-stores are still open and take customers.

Dr. Fate on Justice League… pretty keen. Teaming up with Aquaman and Solomon Grundy to banish Cthulhu. Not too shabby a job on Inza Nelson, either. I’m really impressed with the quality of writing and storylines with the run so far. It was a good message about faith, too. Something fairly strange… they really amped up Hawkgirl, and apparently Thanagarians get a lot of their energies (as well as agriculture and mathematics) from Cthulhu.. Up until now, I thought she was just the “Angry Warrior Gal” on the show… Hopefully they’ll play up her detective skills and other abilities over time later. It’s nice to see Grundy as a rampaging beast and sympathetic monster seeking the return of his soul, too. The closure there was well treated, too.

I’ve always had a real soft spot for Solomon Grundy. What’s not to like? He’s a reanimated corpse… strength and persistence a force of nature with the mind of a child. In the 60’s “Earth 2.1” game, we cured ol’ Cyrus, reuniting his soul to his body. The Dr. Mid-Nite / Green Lantern “Brave and the Bold” issues were certainly my favorite ones of that run.


The NRA wants to stop the police form tracking pawned guns? Continue reading #6265 Justice League is getting really good, archives →

#6263 Latest drama, now with a Frankie the mooch timeline!

Holy crap on a crap cracker. Looks like ol’ Frankie the Mooch has been sponging off of the wrong people.

Just a wee bit past midnight, I was just half asleep,watching SNL and I hear raised voices. Just two doors down, yells and pleadings to the tune of “I’ll get it, I’ll get it!” and then the sound of a man being beaten up. After taking a second to I called 911, because I’m certainly not up to stepping outside and breaking things up. After calling the police, I called the landlord, and notified him of the latest shenanigans in apartment #1. LL assured me that Frankie’s going to be out in a few days… hardee har har. I’d like to hope so, but I’ll only believe that when I see it.

A pair of policemen have since come by, and I gave my name and approximation as to what happened. The combatants have since left, and mooch-boy isn’t answering his door, so there’s little else I can do but keep an ear open and be ready to call again, if need be.

I really can’t help but think that Frankie brought this onto himself, but I still feel pity. He’s a pathetic, sad creature, for all of his moochy, creepy ways… and doesn’t deserve a punch in the mouth for being a toad.

Let’s see… Searching for Frankie in past entries – numerous mooches and attempted mooches left out.

  • 5/11/03 – first mooch
  • 5/14/03 – first chastising
  • 7/7/03 – spinach roll
  • 8/15/03 – knockers (maybe the same guy(s) as tonight?
  • 8/27/03 – phone mooch
  • 9/8/03 – “fix my wank machine?”
  • 9/11/03 – begs for money/food. I foolishly give.
  • 9/13/03 – last feeding time
  • 9/14/03 – he’s got cigs and beer, breaks my sleep, tries to mooch more
  • 9/21/03 – mooch, use being on call to deny phone
  • 10/15/03 – Sammy and Frankie have an argument
  • 10/27/03 – Frankie Served notice, supposedly evicted within 5 days.
  • 10/31/03 – 5 days later, He’s still here.
  • 11/08/03 – attempted mooching
  • 11/10/03 – Mailbox Mess
  • 11/16/03 – Today.
  • 11/19/03 – Moved out by LL?

[update – 1:32am – more fighting outside. I called the police back, waiting for arrival. 1:35-same cops as before swung by and Frankie’s not coming out, though his light is on now. I got a glimpse of the other guy, though, a skinny Spanish guy, mustache, white t-shirt, dark shorts, red backpack. Apparently in the scuffle, a pair of sunglasses dropped and a can of beer were spilled in the courtyard. I suspect Frankie’s not coming to the door because he’s fearing either eviction or being jailed by the cops.]Site Meter

[update2 – 1:51am – raised voices again, and glass breaking. This is my third call to the police. I hope they get here before they disperse and run off again.]

[update3 – 2:48am – Cops just finished interrogating Frankie, and I’m amazed that they didn’t take him to jail. They found it was his window that had been broken, and he opened the door after a long knocking session…they saw him and movement inside, and so persisted. Once they got him outside, he claimed to have no identification, and gave the name “Stephen” or “Steve”, and a birthday in September of ’65… and didn’t remember his social security number. They immediately figured he was full of it because I referred to him as Frankie earlier and that’s the name on the mailbox.

While he was talking to the Policemen, he tried a few times to head back into the house…. It was at that point that one of the cops looked more closely inside, and saw a crack pipe on the table beside his TV remote. They pressured him some more, and it turns out that he gave his brother’s name. He eventually admitted to his real name of Francis, and suddenly could remember his social and birthday in January of ’63. The police gave him moderate hell for being a liar… he claimed that there was a girl over, and that the crack and paraphernalia was hers. (That’s *very unlikely*… the cops said as much. “Why should we believe some guy that lied to us about his name, his social and his window breaking?” Frankie then claimed that he lied because he was worried about his “new boss” getting wind of it…. they went in circles back and forth up and down for about an hour… I’m *amazed* that the resolution was that after three calls out, admitted lies, and possession of drugs… they let him off. They had him destroy the pipe, stomp on it, and throw the remainder on the roof… but when he asked if he should destroy the drugs, the dark haired cop told him to keep it… that he can hang on to that small amount of pleasure because his life is pretty much in the toilet, now. They did say that if they got a fourth call, for whatever reason, that they’d give him a break of a different sort, because they were far too tired of the time wasted already (three hours, off and on).

What kind of cops allow a con like Frankie to stay at home after all of that stuff? My only guess is that they didn’t want to have to deal with the paperwork… I heard via the police radio that he had priors of petty theft but no drug charges, so that might’ve been a factor… but what I see is that they let a drug-using guy with a criminal record stay home from jail time, even though he gave false identification, obstructed justice, was in possession of drug paraphernalia and the drugs to be used inside. I suspect that they let him keep the crack because they couldn’t take it with them without having to deal with some sort of paperwork as well.

Tomorrow morning, I’ll be calling the landlord back, and fill him in on the details above. It’s a pity, I think that all parties involved (including Frankie) would be better off with Mr Crackhead – Broken Window – Lies to the Cops – Would Rather Incriminate His Own Brother To Cover His Ass – Has Dubious Fights – Supposedly Being Evicted – Mooch – Dumbass Bad Neighbor in the clink, negotiating with cigarettes on the best way to avoid frequent anal rape. He needs to be off of the street… not for rehabilitation… I don’t believe that’s an option.. but instead to protect society before he gets bolder than stealing stuff and smoking up with his ill-gotten gain.] Other Note… the non-Frankie hoodlums left before the cops came back. I suspect the police would have been angry with me, if there wasn’t a broken window for them to investigate.

#6261 Hooray for adhesives!

The little journey was a fruitful one. Wandered over to Twistyland again, then went to Waldenbooks. I picked up the issue of Popular Science… better than I’d hoped for. I got a Full name credit and a link to my livejournal….I wonder how much it’ll change my hit trends?

I also picked up the Essential Tomb of Dracula for a bathroom book (and placed an order for the essential Howard the Duck). Man, you can’t go wrong with stuff like this. $12 for almost 600 pages of classic comics, bound for the bookshelf. Plus, no missing issues to contend with.

After getting my bookstore bounty, I stopped off at the Japanese Market for some veggie sushi and to replenish my ever-dwindling supply of strawberry and Men’s pocky. It’s my sweet-tooth balm of choice. Only cow tales can dare to compete, but they’re a strong contender.. ( the cost locally is about 2/3 of what the net is charging, too.)

It occurs to me that I bought a lot of things stuck to other things today.

Ink stuck to paper.

Paper Glued to cardboard.

Veggies stuck to especially sticky rice inside a seaweed wrap stuck to itself, holding it all together.

Fudge of some sort stuck to cookie wafers.

Cookie items had boxes held together with glue, price tags glued on to the boxes, and were put plastic bags with more colorful ink stuck to the outside of that.

Friday Five meme

#6260 pt went well, Bollywood LPs, Tolkien soundtracks.

PT went well, the measured flexibility, sensation, etc, and Jeff seems to be on top of what he needs to do. Now, I hope that Liberty Mutual is able to keep abreast of what’s needed, paperwork-wise. I start 3x a week for 4 weeks, starting Tuesday, if everyone gets the act together. I’ll add a helping push this afternoon to help with the schedule.

I think I’ll take a little jaunt down to the beach today, and just take in some sea air. Today is cool and inviting… can’t resist the wanderlust.

Until later, dear journal.


Bollywood Vinyl / LP covers gallery


File this under “I had no idea until seeing it on a History Channel show”: Jet trucks.


There should only have been one. A 5th Highlander movie? Who keeps funding these?


Want to listen to the soundtrack to “The Return of the King“? Here you go. Nice commentary, too. There are similar essays on the first two movies, too: Fellowship and Two Towers


via scheino

The Florida Grand Opera Society is sponsoring the local NPR station, advertising La Traviata by talking about how it’s a classic, and the fact that there’s English subtitles above the stage.

But the biggest selling point? “Come see the opera Richard Gere took Julia Roberts to in Pretty Woman.”

Uh… wha?

#6259 workies / Bro visit for a moment/ screenplay generator

Got a runaway call at 11pm… a twelve year old girl that high-tailed it because her grades were bad. I put the system in motion, and right as I was getting ready to hit the approve key for launch, Miami police called back on the other line and let me know that she was found, safe at her dad’s place. (She’s in custody of her mom and stepfather.) I asked if friends and family were notified, but I guess they didn’t think to call the kid’s birth-father right away. ah well… That saves me from maybe waking up about 960 folks if they go to bed before 11pm. (They would’ve gone knocking door-to-door if the child wasn’t found by 11:45, so there’d not been much sleep for anyone in that neighborhood, even with unlisted numbers.)


Sweet Sakes, these wasabe peas are the hottest things I’ve ever had. Are they just wasabe rolled in a ball? are there no peas?


Bro stopped by and dropped over a “prize” he “won” from a nearby car show. I smell BS, because he was evasive and unclear as to how he got it. I suspect the prize (a stereo/tool battery-charger) is something that fell off of the back of a truck. His chin looks fine, the stitches are barely noticeable.


Make a movie out of any given webpage (thanks ldy!)

For example, my journal produces – Continue reading #6259 workies / Bro visit for a moment/ screenplay generator →

#6258 back on call, now.

Going back on call for ACIM tonight. Not taking any painkillers, so I’m legal and clear to do phone work. I never did get out to pick up the magazine today, and now I’m tethered in for the night o heading out now isn’t in the cards. Tomorrow after PT looks like a more likely time.

In weather news, the winds have died down this evening, but the air is cool and fresh… the day is quiet, now that the sky is dark and the air is still.


Coolest inventions in 2003 chosen by Time Magazine.


Oh, I really like this feature.

“Coming soon…

Friends page via POP3
This isn’t available yet, but soon paid members will be able to check their friends pages via POP3. That’s right: you’ll just have to add LiveJournal as an incoming mail server in your mail client, and let it check for friends updates in the background. All the details aren’t worked out, but it’s looking good so far.”

#6256 Butterflies, Christ, Wind and Dexterity

Just hung out this morning, thinking pleasant thoughts of my sweetheart, enjoying the sounds of heavy winds outside against the chimes. Contemplating where the day will take me today. I see a little journey out and about midday, perhaps. Playing with the new “voice-blog” thingum, and look forward to seeing how it turns out.

Random Scotto factoid – I had a huge crush on Melanie Chartoff in the early 80s, when she was on the SNL copy called Fridays. (I was about 12 at the time, but knew a cutie when I saw one, still do, in fact.)


Turns out that climate changes may just be causing the common Monarch butterfly to be endangered Continue reading #6256 Butterflies, Christ, Wind and Dexterity →

#6255 out and about

Called up the Gray Pumpkin… I was glad to hear that he was just offline and hanging with D’Moody the last week or so. (Pam visits at Thanksgiving-time these years) I got a chance to speak with Mrs.Pumpkin, but missed a chance to really gab and make up… I was surprised…I figured she’d be at work, and was taken a little aback. So I just asked to talk to GP, before I realized I could make small talk and be friendly with her. Ah well. Next time, maybe. There was a time when she was a good buddy, too, not just Mrs.P. Anyhow, I had a really nice gab with GP about this that and the other… mostly monster movies, old gaming, mental leaps, mutual acquaintances, and so on. It was a good time, and I’m glad I rang him up. (I’m even happier that I remembered that his long distance is free, and that he could call me back at no cost.) Man, if I went a week or two without checking my email… I’d be buried. I can only imagine the wading he has in front of him.

Bro called up… he wants to start a not-for-profit surf group. Could be interesting, but I wonder if he’s up to the meaty part of the task. He’d like me to set him up with an email address and website, which can be easy enough for his needs. I’m not laying out any cash, though.

Swung by Twistyland and Archives (the used bookstore) this afternoon. The game store is sparse, but clean and sharp, with a lot of well-lit and clean tables in the back for miniatures/RPG/card gaming. The prices seem right, but the comic supply is better at the super-uber-humongous Borders a few blocks over. It looks like Tate’s wins for now, but it might be a fun place to go with Dan to play heroclix over lunch sometime. They do sell a fine selection of overpriced pocky. I’ll sooner get dark chocolate “Men’s Pocky” at the market up the street. Archives had a lot of tempting books, and I picked up a couple of inexpensive novels there. I’ll review ’em over time.

It looks like the landlord is officially selling the building here; a landscaper came by earlier today, to evaluate changes and work out what needs to be done to clean up the place by order of the new owner. I wonder if Frankie will become the new guy’s problem after the place changes hands, and how long it’ll take to change over ownership. Now that my back is better, it’s time to start thinking more seriously about a condo now, just as a preparation for the future. I’ll talk to the LL and see what things are planned.


A feature which purports to explore “120 of the greatest cultural, spiritual and physical pursuits in the world.” (This issue, East Africa and the Masai)

#6254 Ad income back, bro good luck, thanksgiving poll, magnetic snails

Bro won a cruise last night at his telemarketing job. Not too shabby, but his fortune has always spiked remarkably high and low. I hope that his good luck continues. Free food and Vegas shows, and fortunately, gambling isn’t a vice of his.

Hippies just sort of plopped off for a half minute to say hi… it was nice to get a blink with Dave for a sec… he says that he’ll have more time in the next couple of weeks to come.

It’s not very rainy outside, but the wind is really churning right now. spinning the clouds, and making the sky a pale gray.

Natalie wrote me last night and is offering me $20 a month again for two text links on my homepage. Looks like I’ll be getting more play paypal cash again soon. Payments started about this time last year, come to think of it. I’m all for text links with no pop ups, properly denoted as paid advertisers.

Random Scotto factoid – I’m really overcautious when it comes to handling hot objects. Toner/fusers cartridges, reaching into the oven, whatever. I’m almost a scaredy cat when it comes to retrieving / handling hot things… I’m not sure why. It could be because no gloves ever really fit properly, my wrists stick out or mitts are too big to get into a running laser printer.


As always, feel free to post in comments for detail or if you can’t do polls.


If you’ve ever had occasion to say, “Man, I really think the world would be improved if there were snails that had magnetic scales instead of those soft underbellies,” you’re in luck after all. Continue reading #6254 Ad income back, bro good luck, thanksgiving poll, magnetic snails →

Welcome to my wall scrawls.