I believe I may have posted this touching video a while back, but a regular reader and commenter sent me the link today, and, I decided that, even if I had posted it before, it’s worth repeating. The video was created by Lizzie Palmer, who was fifteen years old at the time of its creation.

Watch this video of a horse and dog playing together. I guaranty that it will make you smile on the inside.

Bill Whittle explains why The One neither understands nor appreciates individual achievement through hard work.

The Question: According to census figures, how many small businesses have disappeared between 2008 and 2010?

It’s November or bust, folks.

My pal Denny is on a roll.

Yeah, I know. Mr. Blog has been neglected for a bit. The reason is that we, at the House by the Parkway, have been hosting two most excellent young ladies bonnie lassies from Scotland. They are close to the end of their ten-month odyssey, which has included places like Australia, New Zealand, Bali, Bangkok, and much of the U.S. They had spent some quality time with Eric and Mrs. Swg, then they did Washington, D.C. and Atlantic City before coming to the House by the Parkway.

Quite simply, it was wayyy more fun hanging with the two of them (one of whom was quite the guitar player), drinking beer, face-stuffing and watching the “telly,” than were any thoughts of blogging. Their being here also kept me away from the news, except for the horror in Colorado and the predictable “Ban all guns” baloney. However; even with only a paltry bit of news, I’m quite certain that Obama is still a piece of shit.

I look forward to someday seeing our new Scottish friends again, either here or there.

Paul Czekaj has posted his sequel to “My Home New Jersey.”

It’s a musical tour of the Garden State. You will note the absence of alligators. Yes!

Part I is here.

I know precious little about horses and even less about dressage, but one doesn’t need to know much about either to appreciate the amazing performance by this horse. It appears to have more rhythm than most peeps.

Thanks to Darlene

Dear Non-Taxpayer:

I have a rather simple question. What exactly do you think your fair share is?

That is all.

I suspect that many of you think fondly of how nice it will be when you don’t have to drag your ass out of bed in the morning, and go to work to put up with a day full of headaches retire. I know I did. Since I have retired, I have bumped into a few peeps who say things like, “I was so bored, I just had to go find a job.” To each his own, but for my part, no thanks.

Bored? Nope.

Do I feel a need to drag my ass out of bed in the morning, and go to work to put up with a day full of headaches? Nope.

There are, however, a few minor downsides to being retired. The one that is universally experienced is that you often forget what day of the week it is (Every day is “Saturday”). Having said that, I do try to remember that weekend errands (e.g. food shopping and shopping in general) are best left to those who need those to days to manage Life 101. I try to give the working peeps that space. I have become a “during-the-week is better” kinda guy. Besides, on a selfish note, there is less traffic during the week – especially in the summer.

The other downside that comes to mind is that you find yourself wondering how you managed to take care of Life 101 in the limited time available while you were dragging your ass out of bed in the morning, and going to work to put up with a day full of headaches working. Is that the same things take longer now, or have retired peeps reached the sublime state of “I’ll do it when I get to it.”?

For example, the following is a bit of my most recent “To Do” list:

Sort through a huge bucket of photographs taken over the past umpteenth decades (many of the photos being older than I);

Re-string one of the guitars;

Create a few more usable playlists in iTunes;

Get a slow leak in one of my tires fixed;

Write a blogpost that might be interesting or funny;

Return a few phone calls to people I want to or need to talk with;

Sort out some administrative stuff with a life insurance company;

Draft new Power-of-Attorney documents for me and Mrs. Parkway (The originals were somehow lost during the move, and the problem is that I need a notary to watch us sign the documents, and, although all lawyers in New Jersey are notaries, I can’t notarize my own signature.);

Buy a new cell phone (I’m thinking iPhone – have mercy.), and

Buy a new set of fairway woods.

The list is longer, but you get an idea, I hope.

So, how did it go with the list?

I accomplished none of the above. Instead, here are some of the things that “prevented” me from completing my To Do List:

Shot pool with the Billiard Club;

Did cocktails with the Wednesday Night Bad Guys;

Made several trips to the liquor store in order to keep the wine/beer/booze stock current;

Went swimming in pool;

Played golf (badly);

Went to Atlantic City to visit my money and to see Louis Prima, Jr. (excellent, btw);

Watched lots of stuff on TV about UFOs and aliens (Admission: I love that stuff);

Read several books, including the Stieg Larsson trilogy (I’m reading the third one now);

Went to several restaurants (retired peeps eat out a lot);

Enjoyed some excellent pipe tobacco, and

Cooked stuff on the grill.

The other day I was in the liquor store, and while a lady was in the process of getting some beer out of the cooler, she noticed that her cart was blocking my way. She started to hurry with her task, all the while apologizing for making me wait about ten seconds. I assured her that she should take her time, because I was not in a hurry.

It sure felt good to be in a position to be able to say that.