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ChasUFarley

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Posts posted by ChasUFarley

    Home grown catnip

    in Open

    Posted

    One of my favorite plants to grow for my cats is Cat Mint:

    Catmint.jpg

    It's super-easy to grow and it seems to do better when cats roll around on it (abuse it, basically), and I think it's beautiful!

    So how did you pick your handle?

    in Open

    Posted

    From the late 80's movie, Pump Up The Volume:

    Reporter #2: Is that box registered to a name?

    Postal Clerk: Yes, of course that box is registered to a name, but I can't give it out to you.

    Detective #1: [holds out his police badge] But you can to me.

    Postal Clerk: Yes, sir, I can get it for you... instantly. That box is registered to a Mr. Charles U. Farley, 112 Crescent.

    Reporter #2: But that's the address of the school!

    Detective #1: Heh, Chuck U. Farley!

    That's where my handle came from.

    It offended some folks when I first signed on at Waydale... some folks loved it.

    No matter, it fits my attitude about TWI at the time. It was my little piece of defiance after several years of being an "innie" and being shot to the curb.

    Now it's more about not taking myself or life too seriously... it's only life afterall, yeah.

    State of the Spot

    in Open

    Posted

    I probably wouldn't have met my husband, Mathman, if it hadn't been for Waydale. We announced our wedding and later the birth of our first child on that website. Later, after Waydale closed and GreaseSpot Cafe became our haunt, we announced the birth of our second child. We've been married 10 years now, have a 9 year old son, and a 5 year old son. Our family has grown, our attention has been on our boys and we've been here less and less as the years go by.

    GSC has served us well as a place to share, connect, and cope.

    We sincerely thank you, Pawtucket, for all you've done to keep it going.

    We also thank the Mods; knowing it's a thankless job you have, and you are keepers of the peace here.

    I'd always said I didn't want to be one of those people who spent more time on GSC than I did in TWI; this is a good time to close this chapter in life and move forward.

    Hugs to our fellow posters...

    LCM seen at Wal-Mart

    in About The Way

    Posted · Edited by ChasUFarley

    Nooooo, that's not him... but I bet anyone who was around in the 90's will remember those butt-ugly things. (The label is Coogi... same label worn by Bill Cosby on his show in the 90's.)

    It's like Disney puked in Techni-Color.... vomit-2086.gif

    Thank gawd for beer..

    in Open

    Posted · Edited by ChasUFarley

    I love the rich, dark, heavy, British beers. The stuff that's room temp and has little fizz. Bring it on. Love it. Guinness is the lightest I like to go... Bocks are also good - especially if they're triple or double bocks.... wonderful stuff, beer.

    Were your parents in the Great Depression?

    in Open

    Posted

    My dad was born in 1915, so he was coming of age at the start of the Great Depression. His dad had been killed in 1921 from lead poisoning (he was shot - it wasn't a hunting accident - he was caught with another man's wife.) So my dad had already been working on a farm since he was 7 years old. He was a farm hand and was going to school. So, Monday - Friday he'd wake up, feed and milk the cow, feed chickens and whatever else. He lived in a section of the barn that we'd now call a breezeway - it connected to the house. On Fridays when he got paid, he'd take the money home to his mom. He went to school up to his 10th grade year (Sophomore) and then dropped out to work full time. He was the oldest of five, so he pretty much raised/supported his siblings.

    His mom (my grandmother) was a baker - that woman could cook! Incidentally the hospital I work in now is the one where she cooked - and there's one staff member left who worked with her in the 1960's. Trippy, eh? But I digress...

    The farm he was working on sold, I think, and in 1934 he was 19 years old, he took a ship to Bermuda to work in the kitchen of The Princess Hotel. He made a lot of the sauces, gravies - a saucier, I guess was the name his position. He was there until 1938, when he returned to New Hampshire. When I asked him what Bermuda was like he said he only could see it when the sun went down and by then he was too tired to appreciate it much. He says he worked a lot and doesn't recall having but a handful of days off. He saved up his money and came home to New Hampshire to buy a farm and get married... he'd proposed to a girl before he left and she'd laughed at him.. turned him down and told him to go grow up. She married him in 1939 and they had seven boys together - my brothers. My oldest brother turned 70 this week.

    Some things I notice about that generation... they work hard and aren't as into retirement - my dad retired when he was 77 years old and died the next year. He knew how to fix and build things, too. Very self-sufficient. He'd worked as a chef, construction crew foreman, farm hand, brick layer, animal control officer, and was director of our town poor farm (it was called an infirmary) in the 1970's and '80. He always had ideas for businesses; always looking for a way to earn an extra buck or two (not that he did anything flashy with it...)

    That generation doesn't waste anything either - whether it's food, aluminum foil, etc. - we call it recycling but they called it "making the most of things". But they didn't consider going for a drive as a waste of gas - did you ever notice that?

    My dad could make the best meal out of salt pork, boiled potatoes, and white gravy. Sounds awful but that was one of my favorite meals as a kid - called it "Poor Man's Supper". I also ate a lot of liver and bacon, boiled potatoes, and farm grown veggies. In the late summer/early fall he'd can a ton of pickles, beans, tomatoes - you name it. He made all our jams, jellies and preserves. And did I mention that boiled potatoes came with almost every meal? The rule in the house was "if you put it on your plate, you'd better eat it!"

    And I don't know if this was true about his generation or if it was just "him" but he was a radio person - he didn't care for TV at all. I remember it used to bug him when my mom would watch TV at night - she usually fell asleep with it on each night. I'm not a TV person either - I don't care for it. He was fascinated by computers, tho... I remember him talking with me about the Tandy CoCo (64K) had bought for me for Christmas in 1982 (maybe it was 83... anyhow...) he didn't always get technology but he tried - take that back... the Atari really bugged the snot outta him... hee hee.

    Anyhow, that generation had a different mindset. They made the most of things and the social hight of the week was playing cards around the kitchen table and drinking coffee or sitting out under the trees with the neighbors (in the summer of course) and watching the cars drive by, shooting the breeze. Doesn't sounds bad, does it? :beer:

    Jeff & DiAnne Karas

    in Friend Tracker

    Posted

    They came to HQ on staff in the mid-2000s (maybe 04 or 05). All seemed well and then suddenly they got kicked off grounds, kicked off staff, and then a very short time later got divorced. She's in Sidney, Ohio, now, and Jeff is right around New Bremen or so. He was working at a golf course last time I talked to him.

    He's good friends with the WC Coordinator - no problem getting a good position on the inside ...

    Song of the moment

    in Open

    Posted

    <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKbPUzhWeeI&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKbPUzhWeeI&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKbPUzhWeeI&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

    <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F01aLeErvoU&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F01aLeErvoU&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F01aLeErvoU&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

    A couple of summers ago I had the privilege of seeing The Doors of the 21st Century, fronted by Ian Ashbury, and it was phenomenal... we had front row tix... amazing performance.

    <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="

    name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="
    type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

    Rock Star?

    in About The Way

    Posted

    There was a great thread on either this forum (but I think it was Waydale) that discussed famous people and TWI... some of it was urban legend... I'll try to dig that up, as time allows...

    Incentives for working on staff

    in About The Way

    Posted

    Let's see... what's the incentives (benefits) at TWI that are also at most employers....???

    WAGE:

    TWI: not based on education or skill level but decided by leadership after the employee completes a form citing his/her needs each month. Dispensed in a x2/month payment. No extra wage for working overtime or holidays.

    REAL WORLD: based on education, skill level, and market. Pay dispensed on a weekly, monthly, or bi-monthly basis. Overtime (usually time and a half) for hourly employees. Special pay arrangements for working holidays.

    HEALTH INSURANCE:

    TWI: Self-pay/reimbursed. AFTER leadership OK's expense for the visit/procedure/etc., then staffers can go to doctor or dentist. They have to say they are "self-pay" and are supposed to ask for a price break. They pay the bill and submit the receipt for reimbursement. (How this isn't a HIPPA violation is beyond me...)

    REAL WORLD: Employee signs up for plan and pays a percentage of it and the employer pays the rest. Coverage varies but the employer doesn't have a say in how much/little the insurance is used.

    RETIREMENT:

    TWI: It's not godly to retire.

    REAL WORLD: Various programs available, including paying into social security, 401K, and other programs.

    EDUCATION REIMBURSEMENT:

    TWI: Say what? You're an AC grad. What else do you need to know?

    REAL WORLD: Most corporations and even small companies and municipalities offer about $2K/year for approved courses. Educated employees = happy, loyal employees

    SICK DAYS/PERSONAL DAYS/EMERGENCY DAYS:

    TWI: None. You can take a sick day but you're still on grounds, still accessible, and really not allowed 'down time'.

    REAL WORLD: Usually a day/month for sick, emergency, personal days - depends on the company - but you aren't on grounds 24/7.

    HOLIDAYS:

    TWI: None.

    REAL WORLD: Usually Christmas, New Year's Day, Labor Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Dr. MLK Day, Presidents Day, and Thanksgiving.

    MILEAGE:

    TWI: Nada.

    REAL WORLD: Usually at the Federal Rate for mileage reimbursement

    LONG TERM DISABILITY:

    TWI: None. If you're sick for a while, you're DONE. Canned.

    REAL WORLD: You have to pay for coverage but it's a nominal amount each month and can be very handy...

    EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:

    TWI: Hahahahahhahahahaaa... Not even close.

    REAL WORLD: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the first federal law designed to protect most U.S. employees from employment discrimination based upon that employee's (or applicant's) race, color, religion, sex, or national origin (Public Law 88-352, July 2, 1964, 78 Stat. 253, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 2000e et. seq.)

    LONGEVITY STIPEND:

    TWI: Bahahahahahahahahahaha.

    REAL WORLD: Usually after 10, 20, etc. years you receive some token of recognition other than people clapping for you in a lunchroom or auditorium.

    SAVINGS PLAN

    TWI: Sure. You can save your money. In their credit union.

    REAL WORLD: Sometimes there will be matching savings plans or other incentive based plans

    I'm sure there's more...

    But when you talk about benefits and being on TWI Staff it's like asking for sex from a nun, isn't it? It just ain't happenin'.

    Song of the moment

    in Open

    Posted

    <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="

    name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="
    type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

    April Wine - Gypsy Queen

    • Upvote 1

    Ethics in church

    in Open

    Posted

    Why not go out with a bang? Expose him for what he is - a parasite. Write a letter to the local papers about him or tip off a report to tell the story - take your name out of it - and let the paper do an expose on elder abuse. Contact your state's omsbudmen program (usually a division of the department of health & human services for your state) and warn them about this. I wouldn't walk out without saying anything. No one should be duped and the elderly are especially venerable. Don't let this guy get away with it!!!!

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