Drumpf admits he lies

From DailyKos

“Throughout Donald Trump’s campaign for president he has taken numerous positions on fundamental issues that directly contradict his prior statements on the same issues. For example, in years past he has said that he is pro-choice, that he supported a ban on assault weapons, and that he favored universal healthcare. Today he holds the exact opposite positions on each of those issues. It’s impossible to know precisely where Trump stands because either his opinions are so malleable they can shift with a stiff breeze, or he is outright lying to pander to voters.”

I think what we have here is a polite way of saying Drumpf lies, about everything.

In a Bloomberg article it was reported that, Concerning Social Security, Drumpf told the RNC,

“From a moral standpoint, I believe in it*,” Trump told Ryan. “But you also have to get elected. And there’s no way a Republican is going to beat a Democrat when the Republican is saying, ‘We’re going to cut your Social Security’ and the Democrat is saying, ‘We’re going to keep it and give you more.'”

*Meaning he really believes in cutting and/or privatizing Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid
Social Security is the most popular, and most successful, government program in the history of the United States. Drumpf, knows he has to lie about his stance on Social Security. Or, are you willing to take a chance that he’s lying to the RNC and telling us the truth?

Is Donald Drumpf out of money?

It seems so, according to an article by By JOEL GEHRKE (@JOELMENTUM) in the Washington Examiner.

“Donald Trump’s campaign has alerted Senate Republicans that he won’t have much money to spend fending off attacks from Hillary Clinton over the next couple months.”
It seems Mr Drumpf is no longer willing to ‘self fund’ his campaign. Of course, considering the prominent ‘donate’ buttons on his campaign web page, he never was willing to self fund the campaign.
“The notice came when Paul Manafort, Trump’s senior advisor, met with a group of Senate Republican chiefs of staff for lunch last week, sources familiar with the meeting told the Washington Examiner. The admission suggests that Trump will be far more dependent on the GOP brass for money than he has led voters to believe, but it’s consistent with his reliance on the Republican National Committee to provide a ground game in battleground states.”
What? Didn’t Drumpf claim he was going to be helping the RNC with money, not the other way around? If it looks like Malumregnat. Drumpf is having a problem beating Hillary the RNC will cut off the funds and use it to try to save down ticket candidates.  So much for being the ‘great outsider’, but then Drumpf has always been the ultimate epitome of the insider.

I’m never going back to Strings

Strings’ spiral into total tastelessness
I used to really enjoy eating at the Strings Italian Cafe in Stockton Ca. Over the last few years it has closed and reopened a couple of times. It seems the food got worse with each cycle. We went in tonight for dinner. I should have known there was a problem when the restaurant was almost entirely empty at seven PM on a Saturday evening.

I’ll start at the beginning. I paid extra for the seafood bisque. What I got was a barely warm bowel of what taste like Campbell’s tomato soup with not a trace of seafood in it. To their credit it did have a couple of small croutons floating in it. Next came the spaghetti with meat sauce and sausage. I could find no trace of meat in the meat sauce. It seemed to be just unseasoned tomato sauce with pieces of tomato here and there. Balanced on top of this was a whole sausage that had obviously spent too much time in the microwave. Both ends were shriveled, dried up and hard. The middle would have been perfect, if it had any detectable taste.  
Bland and tasteless seemed to be the theme of the evening.

First Project After Recovery

My first project in almost two years and after going through shoulder surgery and rehab. My sister wanted hair sticks to hold her hair in a bun and be short enough to wear a hat over them. One day after she had been out walking I was given a stick and a request to make some for her.

My sister’s ‘Under Your Hat’ hair pins after debarking and cutting to the proper length.

After initial sanding and stock removal.

My sister’s completed ‘Under Your Hat’ hair sticks, finished with Danish Oil.

Definitions

Definitions

Cane:
The basic cane is a wood stick with one end bent into a crook. The main purpose of a cane is to support and stabilize the person using it when they walk. The crook can be replaced with more decorative ‘handles’ as long as the main purpose of the cane is not compromised. If you need support and stability when you walk, then a cane is what you are looking for.

My personal cane, pictured here, is more finished than the usual ‘rustic’ cane. It is made from an oak branch and, while the curve of the branch may not make it appear so, the handle aligns over the shaft end and supplies great support.

Walking Stick:
A walking stick is a cane with a decorative ball or ‘knob’ on the end instead of the crook or ‘hand grip’ found on the more utilitarian cane. Walking sticks are intended to be for style and decoration more than for utility.

Staff:
Staves are usually associated with hikers and wizards. A ‘full’ staff should come up to your eye level and be held well below the top end. A ‘short’ staff only needs to be long enough to be gripped as a staff. The advantage of a short staff is portability. It’s easy to keep a short staff in the car for those impromptu explorations during a road trip. A long staff is better if you are planning several days of hiking and camping. It’s length supplies more leverage and reach for the obstacles that might be found on the trail.

I further divide all four categories into ‘carved’ and ‘rustic’.

Carved canes, walking sticks, and staves are, well, carved. They may, or may not, also be utilitarian. Highly carved items, especially staves, are more likely to be considered display pieces only meant for light use. The “Dance Styx” featured in the header, and the “Church Styx” shown in it’s own post are good examples of carved staves.

Rustic canes, walking sticks, and staves are made from natural saplings and branches with minimal finishing work. The area intended for holding is always well finished and comfortable, the rest is less finished. Knots are usually smoothed and rounded but not finished flush with the shaft. They are, generally, heavier and meant for more robust use.

Example of a rustic short staff. This one can be used by anyone up to about
5’8” in height.

Third RSCDS Spring Ball Staff

The RSCDS Sacramento Branch’s 2011 Spring Ball will be on Saturday May 21, 2011. For this staff I started with this oak branch that was given to me by the grounds keeper where I work.

Since the branch (oak) was already the length I wanted, I covered the exposed ends with silicone sealer to keep them from cracking during the year it has been drying. Today I debarked and sanded the staff to be.

Third RSCDS Spring Ball Staff

2010 marked our thirtieth birthday as an RSCDS Branch. This staff was created more to highlight the grain of the wood than to display carving. I chose to use a wood burner to add the ball information. One of my sisters won this staff and gave it back to me.

Secound RSCDS Ball Staff

Following the rave reviews my DanceStyx (see photo in blog header) received at the RSCDS (Royal Scottish Dance Society) Sacramento Branch 2008 Spring Ball and Workshop I did the TravelerStyx for our 2009 Spring Ball and Workshop. Since this ball was held at the third different location in three years, it was called the “Traveler’s Ball”. The short staff is made from a ‘twisted’ oak ( a tree that has grown with a vine wrapped around it). I carved the ball information and ‘hobo’ symbols between the twists.

Workbench

Since that long ago day when my last post to this blog was uploaded I have not been totally inactive. I have had my nephew-in-law build this nice covered workbench on my back deck.

Dragon Styx

The first picture is of the entire ‘staff’. I put staff in single quotes since this piece is far too big to be used as a hiking staff. It will be a display piece only. It is about six feet tall and weighs 14 pounds. It was harvested in Kentucky and is an oak sapling that grew with a vine wrapped around it. I have debarked the portions between the twists. I plan to carve it into mother and daughter dragons chasing down the staff.

Looking at the first picture you can see the top two thirds of the staff contains what will be the mother dragon and the bottom third will be the daughter dragon.