First District Detective Jonathan "AJ" Schroeder, Badge #2191, was killed in the line of duty last evening while serving an arrest warrant at a home near West 98th Street and Madison Avenue. The subject of the warrant was wanted for an Aggravated Burglary and Rape which occurred in our city on August 25th. As Detective Schroeder and other Officers approached the front door, the suspect opened fire, striking Detective Schroeder above his bulletproof vest. He was pronounced dead minutes later at Metrohealth Medical Center. The suspect, who yields a very long criminal history, was captured and is being held at city jail, and several charges including the Aggravated Murder of Detective Schroeder and the Attempted Murder of the other officers are expected within days.
Detective Schroeder was a 10 year veteran of the Department, and he leaves behind a wife and infant son. He was a native of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area and a graduate of Penn Hills High School and Kent State University.
The Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association would like to thank the Doctors and Nurses of the Metrohealth Medical Center, the citizens and businesses of Greater Cleveland, the media outlets , and the police departments of Penn Hills, PA, the Pennsylvania State Police, The Ohio State Highway Patrol, and our Cuyahoga County suburbs for their heroics, professionalism, prayers and assistance during this tragedy.
A fund has been set up to assist the family. Donations may be dropped off or delivered to:

The Jonathan Schroeder Memorial Fund
c/o The Cleveland Police Credit Union
2301 Payne Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44114
(216) 861-3535

The Two Faces Of Cleveland

So today is the second day that the site selection team from the Republican National Convention is in Cleveland to evaluate it as a potential site.

Everywhere you look, every electronic media report, every publication in town is touting the attributes of this fair city. Some have gone so far as to promote; “Hug a Republican Day”.

I hope that all the effort produces the desired results. The RNC 2008 convention would no doubt bring dramatic opportunities to Cleveland. Further, Cleveland has demonstrated on multiple occasions just how “friendly” it can be as a host.

Here is what bothers me…

Traditionally, while the balance of the state votes Republican, the good people of the City of Cleveland do NOT support Republican candidates.

The major daily; The Plain Dealer is so far left they are backed up against the margin.

The same politicians who are now asking everyone to “Hug A Republican” are the same individuals who normally “Mug a Republican”. But now for the sake of the regions' economics are “putting aside party differences”.

Excuse me, but the basis for virtually every point of disagreement between the parties is economics.

I am reminded of the Bush tax refund from W’s first term. There were many shouting that it wasn’t enough to make a difference. Others were bemoaning that those funds should have been used to fund humanitarian needs in the cities. What confounded me is that none of those critics gave the money back to the IRS or even offered to.

As the song from the Broadway show Cabaret says; “Money makes the world go ‘round”. To prove it, today even the Democrats in Cleveland are thinking like Republicans.

Good luck Cleveland, you need a break like this.

My son, Tim gave me the dvd of "Neil Young, Heart Of Gold" for my birthday. Whether or not you think you are a Neil Young fan, do yourself a favor and see this movie! For a preview, click on this link: http://www.neilyoung.com/prairiewind.html

Killer Frogs

OK...so the picture below is not really the frog in our pond... We did however watch a large frog consume a mouse a few nights ago...Yeah, I know we couldn't believe it either, but there it was right in front of us. This frog about the size of a softball, stalked, caught, drowned, and ate a mouse. We immediately went on line and did a search for "frog diet". We found no mention of frogs eating mice. Evidently as we always thought they are supposed to eat insects, spiders, worms, etc. but no mention of mice. So evidently, our little water garden is inhabited by mutant killer frogs... Stay tuned. This could result in a new movie; "Frogs on a Plane."

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you already know that we went to considerable length to build a water garden last summer. It has become its own ecosystem. We have several fish including an 18" catfish that feeds at the surface. The most surprising development however was the discovery of a killer frog.

There are a million stories in the city...

Listening to my police radio this evening... the big call in our crime ridden city:

"5455 please respond to North Star. Complainant advises the ice cream truck is playing its music too loud."

My comments are too numerous to print.

I'm Looking for Someone To Sue

This past Weds. evening I went for an early evening swim in our pool. While in the pool I noticed that our inflatable lobster that normally floats around in there, was missing. Since I keep it tied to the filter return line, I knew it couldn't have gone far. Suspecting that the wind had blown it over the edge of the pool, I boosted myself over the edge and found it languishing in the stones around the sidewall.

I leaned over and grabbed on to the errant bottom feeder and as I brought it back into the pool a swarm of yellow jackets that had evidently built a nest under the edge of the pool, came after me.

The first strike hit me on the left bicep. The second shot was to my right eyebrow, then a third to my stomach and a fourth to my back as I dove under the water. When I resurfaced, the swarm was still buzzing around so I went back under. Luckily 3 of the 4 attackers drowned immediately, but the first one was still biting me on the arm. I gave him a good smack and he dropped lifelessly into the wash with the rest of them.

Despite the pain, I went immediately to my backyard shed and retrieved the wasp and hornet spray. Ignoring my potentially fatal wounds ( I am allergic to bee stings ), I went back to the scene of the attack, located their encampment, and destroyed every last one of them.

Robin went to the drug store and purchased some sort of medication to calm the pain. It worked pretty well on the eyebrow, stomach and back wounds. The bicep however is another story. It's been 4 days and my left bicep still is swollen and itchy.

The upside is that I have a left bicep like a power lifter. ( I'm thinking about trapping a yellow jacket and getting my right arm done. )

So anyhow, in this world of litigation, there ought to be someone I can hold responsible; The manufacturer of the inflatable lobster, because it should have a warning on it that says;" Lobster may get blown out of pool and land near a yellow jacket nest". Perhaps I could go after the pool manufacturer for not putting a warning on the pool; " Yellow jackets may nest near your pool, be careful when retrieving inflatable lobsters." I'm thinking that somehow my neighbors must be liable because they should have noticed this nest while I was on vacation and warned me about it when I returned home. The other possibility is that since allergies are somehow passed through genetics, my parents should be responsible for this tragedy.There is also a local high school football team that has as their mascot a large yellow jacket. It seems to me that by humanizing the yellow jacket in this fashion, they have masked the danger of these beings. Consequently, I and most likely others have become complacent of this hazard.

So, if anyone knows the name and number of the attorney who handled the McDonalds Hot Coffee lawsuit, please pass it on to me.

Finally, someone has done some real research and published a valid report on a vital issue...

Finally... Research I can believe in...

Ok... so I know I am very critical of the media, and I am very skeptical and critical of so-called research studies. Basically, I believe that all of these reports are biased to prove a point, and that in today's world you can report anything as long as you attach the words; "research has shown".

Salt Fork State Park, Ohio

A Summer Camping Vacation Epilogue

Epilogue

We arrived back home Weds. at 12:30pm. Our oldest daughter came over with lunch and spent the day with us. We swam in our pool, grilled dinner on our deck, ate dinner in our central air, and swam some more at night. We even built a campfire in our fire ring on the deck. Then we sat together and looked up at the stars and held hands.

A Summer Camping Vacation Part IV

Day 3. I awaken to more heat. I make my way to the restroom, look in the mirror and discover a sunburn on my nose that makes me look like one of those street winos with the alcoholic bulging nose. Vacation doesn’t get any better than this… We are going home. Sorry, can’t take it anymore. The weather people are saying it will be hotter today than it has been. I don’t need to prove anything anymore. I have been beaten by the elements. The only question is; “How fast can I break camp?” I don’t even mind the heat now. The end is in sight. Once the trailer is back on the truck, I can rip off my sweat soaked shirt, put on a clean dry one, and climb into the breeze…

We didn’t even think about taking pictures. It would have been too much effort. We did take one photo. On the way home, we were looking down the road and asking… What is that? Looks like some sort of tanker truck…What is it? It’s an enormous cow on the back of a truck…the heat must have finally fried our brains we are both hallucinating… but wait… we can’t be having the same hallucination… so here it is…

The highlight of our camping vacation 2006

A Summer Camping Vacation Part III

Day 2

It actually felt a little chilly around 3am. But without the box fan it would have probably been uncomfortable. Robin only got up 4 times last night. At least Chloe slept. The raccoons got into our garbage, but that was our fault.

Robin made eggs and bacon for breakfast. We didn’t have a toaster so we buttered some bread and put it into a fry pan. We are so adaptable.

Then despite the 94 degrees we went for a walk in the woods. It was one of the most serene places I have ever seen. There wasn’t another soul around. We walked on a deer path deep into the woods where we could hear nothing except the sound of the trees. Chloe was in heaven with all the new scents and sounds. We didn’t notice that our hike was primarily down hill, until we turned around to go back. Damn it is hot.

On to the lake… Damn their no pets rule. Chloe is going swimming with us.

It is amazing how warm the lake is. It literally feels like bath water. It doesn’t cool you down at all. I am up to my neck in water and still sweating. I am really trying to be a sport and not complain, but I can’t think of anything except our swimming pool and air conditioning back home. So we leave the lake about 5pm and return to our site. If it is anything like last night, we have survived the day and can look forward to a pleasant evening.

Yeah right…the temperature and humidity are going up! AND there is no breeze. We make a half-hearted attempt to cook and eat dinner. Robin is such a trooper. I have stopped dreaming about my swimming pool and the A/C. I am now asking Jesus to take me home.

At 9:00 it is still over 90 degrees. So we go out for ice cream. Anything to get into the air-conditioned Ranger. I would have agreed to go to a cock-fight if it meant 2 minutes in the breeze. The ice cream run was worth it. By the time we got back, the temperature had fallen to 88.

A campfire is mandatory. Right? So I spent about an hour competing with the thick damp air to get a fire started. Finally, at 10:10pm success. The fire is started. The heat however has taken its toll on all of us. Everyone falls asleep. Including the fire.

Finally, we move into the trailer around midnight. Thank you God for the gift of box fans.

A Summer Camping Vacation Part II

So, even though it is already in the low 90’s, there is a nice breeze and the online reservation service said our site is in “full shade”…

Site G-24… I backed that trailer into the spot in one try. Like a seasoned trucker. I remembered everything Tim told me about set up. In about 15 minutes we had the camper set up and the truck unloaded. Ok, so we forgot to fill the propane tanks, and left the garden hose for water hook up at home. We have a butane burner… we just have to find butane canisters and purchase a garden hose. How hard can that be?

4:00pm: The box fan we brought is keeping the trailer fairly cool as we venture back out in the truck to purchase our butane canisters and garden hose.

REPORT: No butane canisters available. ANYWHERE.
No problem, we’ll purchase a new camp stove that runs on propane. Walmart comes through with a $20 stove.

5:00pm: Went swimming at the beach. They have signs posted that pets are not allowed on the beach. I can understand that. Who wants to be running barefeet in the sand and then find something that resembles and Italian cigar squished between your toes. This would be a fine rule and a logical one at that…IF THEY DIDN’T HAVE SUCH A GOOSE PROBLEM!. Our little dog couldn’t have competed with either the size or the amount of crap that the Geese left on the beach. Hopefully the campsite beach will be cleaner.

Returning to the campsite we noticed that “full shade” has become “partial shade” with the sun coming in directly from the west. No problem…the temperature is starting to go down. Time to hook up the water supply…

“Has Tim ever tested this?” Robin asked. “Of course he has. No son of mine would go camping without knowing the full capabilities of his equipment.” Said I.

So where is all the water coming from? So much for indoor water supply.

8:30pm Dinner is over, Chloe is entangled around the trailer but soon, the sun is down, the fire is lit… a little warmer than planned, but holding hands, and gazing at the stars.

This is exactly like Tim's pop-up camper. Except it doesn't have an air conditioner. But who needs A/C when you are camping?

It's a Summer Camping Vacation Part I

We attempted to take a camping vacation.

Our son recently purchased a pop-up camper. It is a really nice unit that he purchased far under value. So when he brought it home last spring, our recollections of cool summer evenings by the campfire, gazing at the starlit skies, and holding hands under the moonlight caused us to make a reservation at Salt Fork State Park. Of course the day we made the reservation it was a perfect 78 degree day with about 35% humidity. It was the kind of day that doesn't last in NE Ohio.

The last few weeks have brought some really nasty weather patterns. We have had unbelievable downpours resulting in massive flooding throughout the area. We have had several days of 90+ degree days and 90+% humidity.

So as we got closer to our departure day, we joked that we would be faced with either torrential rain, or record breaking heat...

As I loaded firewood into the truck last Sunday night, the sweat poured off of me. I kept thinking...we have central air in our house.

Then, I loaded the bbq grill on to the truck, and packed the charcoal and lighter fuel and thought...Cooking outdoors without the benefit of eating indoors can be a buggy, hot, muggy nightmare...but Robin is really excited about this. Put on a sweatband Jim.

Tim, took me out and showed me how to set up the camper and make everything work. Then he told me that the trailer lights were out because the connection had dragged on the highway all the way home from Marblehead the night before. That's ok I thought, "I can work on that first thing in the morning... while it is still relatively cool out".

9:00am Temperature is already 85 degreees. Wow... the pool sure looks nice.

We planned to leave at 11am. We would have made it too, if the trailer hitch would have opened properly and locked on to the ball. Ten or fifteen minutes of jumping up and down on the hitch like the gorilla in the old Samsonite commercial, finally got it locked up...One last shower and we were on our way...to the gas station to put air in the trailer tires.

11:35am We are finally on the road. The Ranger is doing a pretty good job of pulling the trailer except for a some acceleration challenges on the highway ramps.

12:30pm We're both getting hungry already. So, a stop at Wendy's was in order. Beside, Chloe had to pee. ( oh yeah, we brought the puppy ). So while Robin went in to get food, I took Chloe out to drain. Not being accustomed to travel, she developed "public urination anxiety" and chose instead to bark and whine incessantly in the general direction she last saw Robin.

12:50pm Back on the road. Gretta the GPS lady says we'll be there by 1:37pm. Although she keeps updating her predictions based on my speed. We were picturing the GPS lady sitting at a desk with maps and calculators spread out in front of her...I named her Gretta. Robin doesn't like that name so if you can think of something better send me a comment. Until then I will continue to call her Gretta. )

1:38pm Arrival at Salt Fork State Park...

End Part I

Road Apples

It was reported this morning that 36% of the American public believes that the US Government either planned and executed the 9/11 terrorist attacks, or at least sat by an allowed them to happen.

The news report goes on to explain that there were 1010 people interviewed to determine these results. In other words, the poll takers were able to locate 364 morons who were capable of nodding in agreement to a jaded question.

What else is wrong with this picture? Let's see, how many people are there in the U.S.? What exactly was the criteria for who was interviewed? Are these the same people that listen to late night radio and also believe that the Japanese Mob has control over global weather? Are they 364 leftist liberals who merely believe that our current national leadership is responsible for every societal ill. Did they interview kindergarten students? Did they interview nursing home altzheimer patients? Did they interview sports legends, washed up actors, you, me?

There is no doubt in my mind that there are idiots who believe that 9/11 was a government plot. The media would like us to believe the numbers are 36% of the U.S. or greater. They somehow believe that "perception is reality" even if the perception is created. If however this statistic is correct, we should be able to go outside and speak to our neighbors on either side and find that one of the households share in this ridiculous notion. Again... one in three!

I have news for the news. Perception is NOT reality. Especially when perception is created by ill-conceived malice. Perception may be some persons reality but it is NOT truth.

Give me a university sponsored grant and I gurantee I can interview 1010 people and develop a report stating that 36% of the country believes that the earth is flat.

Just try actually finding those people.