USMB Coffee Shop IV

[Ernie S.]

70 with a few high wispy clouds in a deep blue sky. We're looking at a high of 75 today with under a 10% chance of rain until next Tuesday.
Poker tonight. Hopefully my good fortune will last a bit longer.

 

[Big Black Dog]

Have to go pick up my new eyeglasses later this afternoon. Eyeglasses sure are expensive these days! They cost me nearly $400.00. I think that's a bit much myself but what are you going to do? For the lack of anything better to say, I'd like to say "I can't see it!". A poor attempt at a play on words but it's the best I can come up with today.

 

[Foxfyre]

Have to go pick up my new eyeglasses later this afternoon. Eyeglasses sure are expensive these days! They cost me nearly $400.00. I think that's a bit much myself but what are you going to do? For the lack of anything better to say, I'd like to say "I can't see it!". A poor attempt at a play on words but it's the best I can come up with today.

Hombre had to get new eyeglasses this past week too and yes, they are expensive. His will only be something over $250 though because our healthcare plan provides some help with that. Otherwise his would have cost us as much as yours.

 

[Foxfyre]

I think it is time for another history lesson.

On this day in history, October 20, in 1802, the Senate ratified the Louisiana Purchase Treaty by a vote of 24 to 7. We agreed to pay France $15 million or roughly 4 cents per acre for a huge territory that doubled the size of the USA and enabled the country to expand into the west.

Spain had held this territory for about 38 or so years but had governed loosely allowing the USA free access to the port at New Orleans. When Spain signed the Treaty of San Ildefonso with Napoleon Bonaparte ceding the territory to France in 1800, President Thomas Jefferson feared that Americans would lose access to the port. He advised France that the USA would consider French expansion and control of the port a hostile action. Napoleon had already suffered a devastating military defeat in Santo Domingo (now Haiti) and was about to go to war with England. He could ill afford a war with the USA. He chose on the side of prudence and decided to take the cash and vacate the North American continent. And the rest is, as they say, history.

I'll have to say that I thought I was really up on my American history and geography, but when I was researching this today, I learned that the Louisiana Purchase even included a chunk of northeast New Mexico. Maybe I knew that once, but I had certainly forgotten it. The Orleans Territory shown on the map is also part of the Louisiana Purchase but it is significant in that it was afforded pretty much the same recognition and privileges as a state before it actually became one.

.

 

[Ernie S.]

Have to go pick up my new eyeglasses later this afternoon. Eyeglasses sure are expensive these days! They cost me nearly $400.00. I think that's a bit much myself but what are you going to do? For the lack of anything better to say, I'd like to say "I can't see it!". A poor attempt at a play on words but it's the best I can come up with today.

About a year ago, I went for an exam and the doc decided I needed specs. I typically wear reading glasses for close up stuff, so I went for transition lenses. I ride a motorcycly and carrying 2 pairs of glasses would be expensive and a hassle, I went for photograys. What the hell! I'm buying glasses for MY eyes... I went for the titanium frames and super scratch guard and no glare coatings.
Mrs. S. decided it was time for new glasses herself and since the 2nd pair was half price, she went all out too. $1,200 later, she had glasses that she rarely uses because the transition for the bifocal is too high and I would get doubled vision with bright lights that would come on about 30 minutes after putting the glasses on and not go away for a couple hours after taking them off. They made driving at night damned near impossible.
I returned them and the optician tested and found a small error. They remade the lenses and of course, they were great in the store, but that night, same old story.
I went to another eye doctor that did all kinds of tests and found an astigmatism, but said it would only be exacerbated by corrective lenses and that I really didn't need glasses except for reading.

Went back to the first place and got my money back, well, 1/3 of it. I'm pretty tough on glasses. I lose them and drop them, so I now wear cheap readers from Walmart 3 pairs for $10.

 

[Montrovant]

Have to go pick up my new eyeglasses later this afternoon. Eyeglasses sure are expensive these days! They cost me nearly $400.00. I think that's a bit much myself but what are you going to do? For the lack of anything better to say, I'd like to say "I can't see it!". A poor attempt at a play on words but it's the best I can come up with today.

The last time I got new glasses, a few years back, it cost around $350. It was quite a bit more than I was expecting.

 

[Ringel05]

I think it is time for another history lesson.

On this day in history, October 20, in 1802, the Senate ratified the Louisiana Purchase Treaty by a vote of 24 to 7. We agreed to pay France $15 million or roughly 4 cents per acre for a huge territory that doubled the size of the USA and enabled the country to expand into the west.

Spain had held this territory for about 38 or so years but had governed loosely allowing the USA free access to the port at New Orleans. When Spain signed the Treaty of San Ildefonso with Napoleon Bonaparte ceding the territory to France in 1800, President Thomas Jefferson feared that Americans would lose access to the port. He advised France that the USA would consider French expansion and control of the port a hostile action. Napoleon had already suffered a devastating military defeat in Santo Domingo (now Haiti) and was about to go to war with England. He could ill afford a war with the USA. He chose on the side of prudence and decided to take the cash and vacate the North American continent. And the rest is, as they say, history.

I'll have to say that I thought I was really up on my American history and geography, but when I was researching this today, I learned that the Louisiana Purchase even included a chunk of northeast New Mexico. Maybe I knew that once, but I had certainly forgotten it. The Orleans Territory shown on the map is also part of the Louisiana Purchase but it is significant in that it was afforded pretty much the same recognition and privileges as a state before it actually became one.

.

One of the conditions for Spain ceding some of the territory to France was an agreement to allow Spain to have the first option to purchase it back which included all of the Louisiana Territory. Spain was not at all happy with the sale to the US and refused to recognize it as legitimate and as a result "closed" off their boarders to Americans and American trade. Not that they were all that welcoming to Americans in the first place.
Americans entering the territory who were caught by the Spanish were imprisoned, Zebulon Pike was one of those, he inadvertently entered (undisputed) Spanish territory, erected a defensive stockade against hostile indians and raised the American flag. The Spanish even sent out troops to try and intercept Luis and Clark after being informed of the expedition by Gen. James Wilkinson (Revolutionary War hero) who had helped set it up under orders of the President. Wilkinson had been a high level spy for the Spanish since attempting and failing to make Kentucky an independent country allied with Spain.

 

[Gracie]

I'm sorry Stat.

 

[Derideo_Te]

I like stories about the afterlife and read one recently about scientists researching the possibility. I know some people simply have blind faith or they just believe but it's nice to see science has been looking into it.

German Scientists Prove There is Life After Death

Too bad they can't answer the age old question about whether there will be dogs, cats, and horses in heaven. I have to sympathise with those who say that if there aren't, they don't want to go.

If there is a heaven then pets will be there because what would heaven be like without our beloved pets?

 

[Gracie]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

 

[bodecea]

I like stories about the afterlife and read one recently about scientists researching the possibility. I know some people simply have blind faith or they just believe but it's nice to see science has been looking into it.

German Scientists Prove There is Life After Death

Too bad they can't answer the age old question about whether there will be dogs, cats, and horses in heaven. I have to sympathise with those who say that if there aren't, they don't want to go.

If there is a heaven then pets will be there because what would heaven be like without our beloved pets?

I hope my Nigel is there.....It's been many years since he passed and I still miss him horribly.

 

[Statistikhengst]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

I ran my business today and then I cleaned house. Been a long, sad, weird day.

Gesendet von meinem GT-I9515 mit Tapatalk

 

[peach174]

I like stories about the afterlife and read one recently about scientists researching the possibility. I know some people simply have blind faith or they just believe but it's nice to see science has been looking into it.

German Scientists Prove There is Life After Death

Too bad they can't answer the age old question about whether there will be dogs, cats, and horses in heaven. I have to sympathise with those who say that if there aren't, they don't want to go.

If there is a heaven then pets will be there because what would heaven be like without our beloved pets?

It does say that they will be in heaven in the Bible

 

[Gracie]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

I ran my business today and then I cleaned house. Been a long, sad, weird day.

Gesendet von meinem GT-I9515 mit Tapatalk

I did that when Gracie died. Cleaned the hell out of the house. Kept my mind busy. Today I kept thinking of Klia and you, so I took Karma to the beach today to play in the surf. Gracie haunts me every day. I hate being alone without her. But I still have karma, although she is haunted too.

After some time..maybe you and Little Statalina can go find a puppy together.

 

[Statistikhengst]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

I ran my business today and then I cleaned house. Been a long, sad, weird day.

Gesendet von meinem GT-I9515 mit Tapatalk

I did that when Gracie died. Cleaned the hell out of the house. Kept my mind busy. Today I kept thinking of Klia and you, so I took Karma to the beach today to play in the surf. Gracie haunts me every day. I hate being alone without her. But I still have karma, although she is haunted too.

After some time..maybe you and Little Statalina can go find a puppy together.

The day has had a totally unreal quality about it. From one moment I am cleaning up after a sick dog whom I love very much, in the next minute I am taking my child to school and just two hours later watching my dog fall asleep, never to awake again, and then it's like - well, the day is here, I still have to work for a living. But once my last appointment was done today and I scrubbed for 3 hours, I had just enough strength to crawl into bed and just stare at the ceiling, with the laptop in, amazingly, my lap. Which is where I am, right now, whisky glass at the ready for a toast in about 15 minutes.

I keep saying that Klia would be my last dog, but I am already wavering. The place is extremely empty without her. I was going to give away her line and food bowls, but have now decided to clean and box all of that stuff up, just in case.

I don't even need to tell you how much I miss her - you already know and understand this, but when I replay what absolute misery she was in at the end, putting her to sleep was the right decision. Friends from all over the world have been calling and mailing me today to let me know that they are thinking of us (me and my daughter). That really IS wonderful.

 

[Foxfyre]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

I ran my business today and then I cleaned house. Been a long, sad, weird day.

Gesendet von meinem GT-I9515 mit Tapatalk

I did that when Gracie died. Cleaned the hell out of the house. Kept my mind busy. Today I kept thinking of Klia and you, so I took Karma to the beach today to play in the surf. Gracie haunts me every day. I hate being alone without her. But I still have karma, although she is haunted too.

After some time..maybe you and Little Statalina can go find a puppy together.

The day has had a totally unreal quality about it. From one moment I am cleaning up after a sick dog whom I love very much, in the next minute I am taking my child to school and just two hours later watching my dog fall asleep, never to awake again, and then it's like - well, the day is here, I still have to work for a living. But once my last appointment was done today and I scrubbed for 3 hours, I had just enough strength to crawl into bed and just stare at the ceiling, with the laptop in, amazingly, my lap. Which is where I am, right now, whisky glass at the ready for a toast in about 15 minutes.

I keep saying that Klia would be my last dog, but I am already wavering. The place is extremely empty without her. I was going to give away her line and food bowls, but have now decided to clean and box all of that stuff up, just in case.

I don't even need to tell you how much I miss her - you already know and understand this, but when I replay what absolute misery she was in at the end, putting her to sleep was the right decision. Friends from all over the world have been calling and mailing me today to let me know that they are thinking of us (me and my daughter). That really IS wonderful.

For sure. Only when you experience grief can you understand how important those are who can do nothing to help but care. And the caring does support and strengthen us and gets us through it. I know you can feel the prayers and strengthening thoughts across many miles, nations, oceans, because I have felt them.

 

[Statistikhengst]

You are not alone today are you Stat? I am sad thinking you are alone in that house until Little Stat is there again.

I ran my business today and then I cleaned house. Been a long, sad, weird day.

Gesendet von meinem GT-I9515 mit Tapatalk

I did that when Gracie died. Cleaned the hell out of the house. Kept my mind busy. Today I kept thinking of Klia and you, so I took Karma to the beach today to play in the surf. Gracie haunts me every day. I hate being alone without her. But I still have karma, although she is haunted too.

After some time..maybe you and Little Statalina can go find a puppy together.

The day has had a totally unreal quality about it. From one moment I am cleaning up after a sick dog whom I love very much, in the next minute I am taking my child to school and just two hours later watching my dog fall asleep, never to awake again, and then it's like - well, the day is here, I still have to work for a living. But once my last appointment was done today and I scrubbed for 3 hours, I had just enough strength to crawl into bed and just stare at the ceiling, with the laptop in, amazingly, my lap. Which is where I am, right now, whisky glass at the ready for a toast in about 15 minutes.

I keep saying that Klia would be my last dog, but I am already wavering. The place is extremely empty without her. I was going to give away her line and food bowls, but have now decided to clean and box all of that stuff up, just in case.

I don't even need to tell you how much I miss her - you already know and understand this, but when I replay what absolute misery she was in at the end, putting her to sleep was the right decision. Friends from all over the world have been calling and mailing me today to let me know that they are thinking of us (me and my daughter). That really IS wonderful.

For sure. Only when you experience grief can you understand how important those are who can do nothing to help but care. And the caring does support and strengthen us and gets us through it. I know you can feel the prayers and strengthening thoughts across many miles, nations, oceans, because I have felt them.

I agree with your very beautifully written thoughts.

 

[Big Black Dog]

Sorry for your loss, Stat. The loss of a pet is just as traumatic as the loss of a human companion. Bless you in your time of sorrow.

 

[Big Black Dog]

Picked up my new eyeglasses this afternoon and they are absolutely fantastic! They are so good I can see an ant 250 yards away and I am able to tell you what color his tennis shoe strings are!!! Got back home and looked at Mrs. BBD and was completely shocked to see just how beautiful she really is!

 

[Statistikhengst]

Sorry for your loss, Stat. The loss of a pet is just as traumatic as the loss of a human companion. Bless you in your time of sorrow.

Thanks, BDD. I just toasted to her and hope she is happily chasing frisbees in doggy heaven.