Archive for category JCC Snippets

The U.S. Constitution

Jan 13

Posted by J.Charles in JCC Snippets, Political | No Comments

I’m going to read our Constitution again. I saw the news segment of John Boehner’s statement but I didn’t catch the oversight pointed out by John Laird, editor of The Columbian newspaper of Vancouver, Washington. Here is the excerpt from the article by Laird:

The Constitution deserves our clear thinking. In November 2009 John Boehner — the man who last week became House Speaker — stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol and electrified a Tea Party rally. He brandished a booklet and exclaimed passionately: “This is my copy of the Constitution. And I’m going to stand here with our Founding Fathers who wrote in the Preamble, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident. …’” Oh, how his idolators’ hearts fluttered. Some nodded, some swooned, undeterred by the fact that Boehner was citing the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution.

Okay, I read the Constitution and the 27 amendments. See it here if you wish: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Constitution#The_Bill_of_Rights_.28Amendments_1_to_10.29

Cold Water Laundry Detergent Saves $140/year

Jan 4

Posted by J.Charles in JCC Snippets | No Comments

Check out this article which claims that using this special laundry detergent developed for use in cold water will save $140 per year. Here is the link:

http://www.chathamjournal.com/weekly/living/home/consumer-reports-top-laundry-detergent-picks-can-save-money-90604.shtml

Political Irony

Dec 29

Posted by J.Charles in JCC Snippets, Political | No Comments

Ironical that the warning spoken by the founder of Repubicanism went unheeded. 

“If the American people ever allow the banks to control the issuance of their currency, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property, until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

Dogs and Cats

Dec 28

Posted by J.Charles in JCC Snippets | No Comments

True Story:
 
We had a three pound female Chihuahua named Midge for 17 years beginning in January 1961 when we obtained her at about age two. She had a big ego and enjoyed chasing off the next door cat whenever it wandered into our yard. On a sunny and warm Spring day that year Bev and I were standing in our driveway talking to the neighbor couple with Midge near us. She wandered into the neighbors open garage and we heard that angry phssing sound cats make and the yelping of Midge who came running toward us with the cat attached to her back with sharp claws. Seems the cat had newly born kittens stored in the garage. Midge’s ego was crushed and she hung out under the kitchen table shaking for hours and wouldn’t go outside withot being forced out the door. 
 
Three or so years later we got Smokey as a barely weaned kitten whose mother was one-half Lynx. Midge’s ego had recovered and she would not let the tiny kitten drink milk from a saucer near her dog feeding bowl. Midge bullied Smokey and as a consequence the cat grew up fearing the little dog even though it outweighed Midge several times over and could have easily whipped her in a very short fight. However, Smokey had a couple of litters of kittens and  Midge would not go near her while she was with the kittens. Even little dogs have big memories!

Avoid Car Repair Ripoffs

Dec 27

Posted by J.Charles in Financial, JCC Snippets | No Comments

The information below is from www.yahoo.com

 CarMwD tool ($99; www.carmd.com). Just plug the hand-held device into your car (every model after 1996 has a standard connection port) and it reads the car’s computer codes. You can then plug it into your computer for a full report of what problem the codes indicate, the most likely fix, and what labor and parts for the repair cost in your area. The report also lists recalls for your vehicle and summaries of technical service bulletins (recall notices are also available at www.nhtsa.gov). You can also use the car-care guide at www.carcare.org to learn about typical repairs and questions to ask the mechanic.
www.repairpal.com  to find out whether your mechanic is quoting a fair price. Enter your car’s make, model and year, plus your zip code. You’ll see a price range for dozens of fixes at dealerships and shops in your area.

Want to Go to Mars?

Dec 23

Posted by J.Charles in JCC Snippets | No Comments

My grandson, Jason, telephoned me with the following information. Thanks for sharing, Jason. Love you.
  
Have you ever thought of going into space; maybe even to Mars. Well, today just might be your lucky day. Get suited up and go to the following launch site and then follow the instruction from NASA:

　 

 

http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/participate/index.cfm  

Scamming of Older Men

Dec 14

Posted by J.Charles in Humor, JCC Snippets | No Comments

WARNING: OLDER MEN SCAM

Women often receive warnings about protecting themselves at the mall and in dark
parking lots, etc. This is the first warning I have seen for men. I wanted to
pass it on in case you haven’t heard about it.

A ‘heads up’ for those men who may be regular customers at Lowe’s, Home Depot,
Costco, and even Wal-Mart. This one caught me totally by surprise. Over the last
month I became a victim of a clever scam while out shopping. Simply going out to
get supplies has turned out to be quite traumatic. Don’t be naive enough to
think it couldn’t happen to you or your friends.

Here’s how the scam works:

Two nice-looking, college-aged girls will come over to your car or truck as you
are packing your purchases into your vehicle. They both start wiping your
windshield with a rag and Windex, with their breasts almost falling out of their
skimpy T-shirts (It’s impossible not to look). When you thank them and offer
them a tip, they say ‘No’ but instead ask for a ride to McDonald’s. You agree
and they climb into the vehicle. On the way, they start undressing. Then one of
them starts crawling all over you, while the other one steals your wallet.

I had my wallet stolen September 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, 17th, 20th,
24th, & 29th. Also October 1st & 4th, twice on the 8th, 16th, 23rd, 26th & 27th,
and very likely again this upcoming weekend.

So tell your friends to be careful. What a horrible way to take advantage of us
older men. Warn your friends to be vigilant. Wal-Mart has wallets on sale for
$2.99 each. I found even cheaper ones for $.99 at the dollar store and bought
them out in three of their stores.

Also, you never get to eat at McDonald’s. I’ve already lost 11 pounds just
running back and forth from Lowe’s, to Home Depot, to Costco, Etc.

Old Fogie! Who? Me!

Nov 15

Posted by J.Charles in Humor, JCC Snippets, Uncategorized | No Comments

$5.37! That’s what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell said to me. 

I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Elmo hairdo said the harshest thing anyone has ever said to me. He said, “It’s OK. I’ll just give you the senior citizen discount.”
I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. 
“Only $4.68″ he said cheerfully. 

I stood there stupefied. I am 56 , not even 60 yet? A mere child! Senior citizen?

I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Elmo. Was he blind? As I  sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me?

I’ll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile.

Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted! 

What am I now? A toddler?

 ”Dude! Can’t get too far without your car keys, eh?” 

 I stared with utter disdain at the keys. 

 I began to rationalize in my mind. 

“Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly! 

It could happen to anyone!”

I turned and headed back to the truck.

I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn’t turn.

What now?

I checked my keys and tried another.

Still nothing.

That’s when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror. 

I had no purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror.

Then, a few other objects came into focus. The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread over the floorboard. A partially eaten doughnut on the dashboard.

Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle.

Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found.

I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time. 

There Elmo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, “What is the world coming to?”

All I could say was, “Did I leave my food and drink in here?” At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits.

Elmo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, “I think you left this in my truck by mistake.” I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized.

She offered these kind words: “It’s OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time.”

All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40. Yes, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius. 

And no, I told the officer, I’m not too old to be driving this fast.

As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blankey.

The good news was I had successfully found my way home.

News about Ole’

Nov 12

Posted by J.Charles in Humor, JCC Snippets | No Comments

My friend, Chuck H, passed this news along to me recently.

To those in North Dakota , Minnesota , and for that matter the rest of the country, including Canada , I must report the sad news that Ole was shot. He was up by the Canadian border on his 4-wheeler cutting some trees when some rangers looking for terrorists spotted him.
According to the news reports, the rangers shouted to him over a loudspeaker, “Who are you and what are you doing?”
Ole shouted back, “OLE…BIN LOGGIN’!”
Ole is survived by his wife Lena and Lena ‘s good friend Lars

VA Benefit for Assisted Living

Nov 12

Posted by J.Charles in Financial, JCC Snippets, Military | No Comments

The following was posted on a website hosting comments and information exchanges of Veterans.

Help for Veterans’ Assisted Living Costs

Posted by: “Frank Scott” frankpscott@gmail.com   frankpscott

Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:01 pm (PST)

Guys,

Many if not most of us probably won’t qualify for these benefits
because of financial reasons, but this is definitely worth
looking into if you might be eligible, or know someone who is or
will be – friend, family, widow of a deceased vet, etc.

http://bucks. blogs.nytimes. com/2010/ 11/11/help- for-veterans- assis\
ted-living-costs/ ?partner= rss&emc=rss
<http://bucks. blogs.nytimes. com/2010/ 11/11/help- for-veterans- assi\
sted-living- costs/?partner= rss&emc=rss>

With only a fraction of veterans using Veterans Affairs
benefits and health care services
<http://www.washingt onpost.com/ wp-dyn/content/ article/2010/ 10/11/\
AR2010101106320. html> , many senior veterans and their families
may not be aware of a benefit
<http://www.jensenes tatelaw.com/ articles/ elder-law/ 54-using- a-con\
sultant-to-obtain- the-veterans- aid-and-attendan ce-pension- benefit\
> that could cover some of the costs of living in an
assisted living community
<http://www.vba. va.gov/bln/ 21/pension/ vetpen.htm# 7> .

Here’s a reminder of that benefit, called the Aid and
Attendance benefit, which can cover nearly $2,000 a month
of such costs for qualifying veterans, depending on the
situation.

“Too many veterans and their families are unaware that they
may be entitled to substantial benefits that could help
offset the cost of living in a senior assisted living
community,” said Kelly Myers, senior vice president of
sales for Sunrise Senior Living
<http://www.sunrises eniorliving. com> , a company with more
than 300 assisted living communities. Sunrise recently
started a national campaign
<http://phx.corporat e-ir.net/ phoenix.zhtml? c=115860& p=irol-newsAr\
ticle&ID=1489673& highlight=> and it is planning information
sessions aimed at reminding veterans of the benefit
<http://sunrisesenio rliving.com/ veterans> .

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs Web site, the
benefit is paid in addition to monthly pension benefits
<http://www.vba. va.gov/bln/ 21/pension/ vetpen.htm2> . To qualify
for the aid benefit, the veteran must generally be 65
or older (if not permanently disabled), have served
during wartime <http://www.vba. va.gov/bln/ 21/pension/ wartime.htm>
and meet certain other income
<http://www.vba. va.gov/bln/ 21/Rates/ pen01.htm> and asset
requirements and medical requirements.

In particular, annual income for the veteran and his or her
spouse — not counting unreimbursed medical expenses —
must be below a certain level. As for medical requirements,
the veteran must require the aid of someone else to perform
everyday “personal functions,” be bedridden, live
in a nursing home because of a mental or physical
incapacity or be blind. The need for assistance must also
be certified by a physician.

The benefits are paid directly to the recipient. While married
veterans may qualify for a nearly $2,000 monthly benefit, single
veterans and surviving spouses may qualify for less. To learn
more about it, veterans and their families should contact
their local V.A. office
<http://www.vba. va.gov/bln/ 21/pension/ vetpen.htm# 7> . If you or
your family have had experience with this benefit, share
your experiences below.