CrabAppleLane Blog II

If you're keeping score, today is 21212.

The New York Times headline says:

I just don't see any way out. Certainly, there is fraud, abuse, excess, and waste in the "safety net". Even if we could remove all of it, it wouldn't be enough. We're going to have to pay more and accept less. It will be unpleasant in any form it takes.

RIP, Whitney Houston. You were not my cup of tea musically but 48 is entirely too young.

For what it's worth, the Saints' Sean Payton is already the most aggressive, least conservative, least predictable coach in the NFL. Still, it's tantalizing to wonder what his offense could do with even just a few more chances. If they make even minor improvement on defense, I say go for it from his 40 on out every time.

Hard to believe some players are reporting for spring training camp today in Oakland and Seattle. Baseball is just around the corner. The LSU Tigers open baseball season this Friday night at Alex Box Stadium versus The Air Force Academy.

About today's QOTD: Some people call those "trash fees". That is the extreme G-rated version of what I call them. Costs the bank the exact same amount of money whether I initiate the transfer or whether the computer does it and that is NOTHING, ZIP, NADA, ZERO ...

I offer a divergence of opinions from the CrabAppleLane backyard. The fig tree is convinced it's Spring and the lemon tree is still bundled up for Winter. The corners of the image are rounded off because the dummy photographer forgot to remove the clear filter. We had a hard freeze here at CrabAppleLane last night and are expecting one tonight. The fig tree is on its own.

CrabAppleLane Fig Tree - February 12, 2012

CrabAppleLane Lemon Tree - February 12, 2012

5 song iTunes shuffle:

1. Welcome to the Machine - Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
2. Day Of The Eagle - Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs
3. You Don't Have To Say You Love Me - Dusty Springfield - AM Gold 1966
4. Boys Wanna Fight - Garbage - Bleed Like Me
5. Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby - Gillian Welch, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris - Oh Brother, Where Art Thou

Quote of the Day

If you do not advance the money yourself, the Handyline will automatically advance the money for you. There will be a $10 overdraft transfer fee assessed to your checking account for each day that funds are automatically advanced. Remember, if you initiate the advance yourself, there is no fee.

Bank Newsletter

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "High wire acts aren’t as common as they once were, and that’s really too bad. Those of you fortunate enough to have ever seen one live may recall the crowd-wide gasps when the performer would seemingly make a misstep while negotiating the chasm between platforms."

From the We-Contributed-To-The-417-Million-Views Department: It's Patsy's favorite YouTube video.

From the That's-The-Coolest-Ever-Experiment-Involving-Knitting-Needles Department: I offer the International Space Station.

From the Attempt-To-Return-To-Relevancy Department: I offer Chad Johnson-Ochocinco-Johnson. He'll probably get a contract to play somewhere this season but you won't find him on my fantasy football team ever again. He's washed up.

From the Well, Duh Department: Eliminating pain that was keeping people from participating in various activities will result in their resumption of those activities.

From the Wisdom-Can-Sometimes-Come-From-The-Most-Unlikely-Places Department: Today's QOTD.

5 song iTunes shuffle:

1. Next Time I'm In Town - Chet Atkins, Emmylou Harris, Garrison Keillor & Mark Knopfler - A Prairie Home Companion: Duets
2. Run, Run, Run - Jo Jo Gunne - Big Chain
3. Boulevard of Broken Dreams (feat. John Gallagher Jr., Rebecca Naomi Jones, Stark Sands & Company) - Green Day - American Idiot (The Original Broadway Cast Recording)
4. Pigs On The Wing (Part Two) - Pink Floyd - Animals
5. Throw Down The Sword - Wishbone Ash - Argus

Quote of the Day

Media and expectations have changed everything. Everyone’s afraid of it because if you miss a shot, if you miss a play, that overshadows the whole series, your whole career. So guys just want a ring, but they don’t want to risk losing. If you don’t want to risk losing, you shouldn’t even be playing.

Charles Barkley

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Why my Pilot Study and then Clinical Trial? As part of these studies, I must show how the product will be harvested and prepared so that FDA can make certain appropriate steps are being taken to help assure the product’s safety, purity and potency."

Scratched MRI off of the list of things I hadn't done before. It was in that far right column of things I didn't care if I ever did. I had it done on my elbow Tuesday morning and Wednesday afternoon. Couldn't hold my arm in the necessary position for the duration of the test Tuesday and I felt like a total wuss. It was completed yesterday. When my orthopedist asked if I would mind having an MRI, I thought he was asking me if I was concerned with the expense. I was willing but only if the insurance company assisted. My elbow issue is minor. Our insurance covered it 100% but I now know he may also have been asking if I minded holding my arm in an unnatural and uncomfortable position for 45 minutes. That was, by far, the hardest part. One other thing: I'm glad I'm not claustrophobic.

5 song iTunes shuffle:

1. I Gotta Go - Robert Earl Keen - I Gotta Go
2. Shine On - Humble Pie - A&M Records Classics Vol. 14
3. Midnight Confessions - The Grass Roots - 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of The Grass Roots
4. Badge - Cream - The Cream Of Clapton
5. Home In My Hand - Foghat - Live

Quote of the Day

The Mayans cancelled the end of the world after they were invited to the 2013 Mardi Gras.

Anonymous

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "We started with one of the MUST HAVES, Pork Buns. These are sweet and savory and I have it on good authority they are laced with crack."

I'm an NFC man and an Eli Manning fan so I'll be rooting for the Giants today but only slightly. I don't care much for the Giants, their fans, or their alumni. I expect both teams to start fast. The Pats are slightly better offensively and the Giants are slightly better defensively. Overall, the teams are pretty even so it will come down to turnovers. Says here:

As usual, bet any house you have to lose.

Next year's Super Bowl is in New Orleans and, if the Saints have a good season, I expect to hear about the unfairness of it all season. Looking forward to it. :)

I offer one from the yard on this spectacular CrabAppleLane Sunday.

CrabAppleLane Spring - February 5, 2012

5 song iTunes shuffle:

1. Burning Bridges - Chris Pureka - Driving North
2. Suo Gan - John Williams - Empire of the Sun (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
3. Someone Like You - ADELE - 21
4. Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2 - War
5. Poor, Poor Pitiful Me - Linda Ronstadt - Simple Dreams

Quote of the Day

I obviously take a lot of pride in what I do on the football field, because that has the ability to influence a lot of people. That puts smiles on people's faces. That gives people a pep in their step on Monday morning when they go back to work. That does so much for the city. We have the greatest fans in the world. There's no doubt about that. I think each and every day I think about what can I do to make my team better, make my city better, that's my mentality.

Drew Brees

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Wall Street Journal will be live blogging the commercials and Madonna’s halftime show at today’s Super Bowl XLVI between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots."