Now I know that you are convinced of your own delusions but for a moment try to put yourself in the mind of this Minnesotan mother.  I challenge you to come up with something better more erudite or insightful into the present dilemma facing this country. I am not talking about some crap about how we work for a living and give it all away to those who just want to scab it off the rich.  Be real now, this is GREAT singing and from the heartland!  Does this challenge your assumptions about what it is to be genuine or what Middle America is about?

Listen to this video a couple of times and you will come away with me rejoicing in the wonder of what it is to be an American.  This has made my week!  Why is this mother from Minnesota, most likely a Republican, so adamant in her support for Barrack Obama?

In this time, a week before the national elections when we will choose the President of the United States, arguably the most powerful man in the World, listen and learn from America’s heartland.  America we hear you!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh9BmNuqeiQ

So If you don’t think that was simply incredible maybe you should go soak your head in a bucket of old rotten sour crout.  That was f#$king awesome! I think I will listen again.  I am still laughing.

One of the features with this new look is the rotating pictures in the headers which is really nice.  Every picture here at ‘The Average Man’ is from my camera.  Most of the stuff that you will see is from our recent trip to China and our travels around the Yellow Mountain district.

The addition of video capability is really slick.  It will have to be used judiciously but I am just loving it right now.  There are a lot of Pod Casts that are really cool and I would like to keep them on file.

In the process of upgrading the foundation of the web site here, I found several new features that will be evident in the coming posts.  I installed the plug-in Smart Youtube that will allow the easy addition of Youtube videos to the posts.  That is really SWEET!  Lets check it out, OK?  Also, the upgrade should add a measure of additional security to the web site and cut down on the spam.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_NMZv6Vfh8

So how did that go, did it work and were you as impressed as I was with the statements of Collin Powell.  I am floored by the wisdom of the statements that this REPUBLICAN PARTY member made. The Republican Party, of which it is a ashame to admit I am a member, is now in total disarray.  I switched political parties back when we had the recall election of then Governor Gray Davis here in 2003.  California was a total mess and it was expedient to be a Republican Party member so that I could vote for Arnold Schwarzenegger a Republican.

The two major factions of the GOP, the religious right and the fiscal conservative business types, have hit a dividing wall.  The policy makers within the upper ranks of the Republican Party are at odds with one another and the road forward for the conservative movement is not clear.  I just subscribed to the periodical, The Atlantic, which describes these in-fighting’s in detail.  Great Rag with lots of good WORDS, highly recommended.

So if you have not seen these gentlemen, Mr’s Obama and McKane, discussing their campaigns and policies I strongly advise you do so before election day. Make up your own mind. I have based on what I see.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvdfO0lq4rQ

These political debates are vitally important and this third and final debate between these two candidates illustrate the statesmanship of Mr. Obama and the wonderful president he will be!

The campaign headquarters for Barack Obama needs your support and your VOTE.

So I will leave you with this latest Pod-Cast from The Atlantic which is wonderfully hilarious:

Today introduces the Web page of the Week Review.  Todays find is The Art Of Manliness.  I recommend that you check this hilarious web page out.  There are currently 20418 subscribers to the page with email updates on the latest is what is Manly and what is not.  My favorite section discusses “Is It Manly”.  Todays topic is whether a Stay-At-Home Dad is manly.  Its up to you to decide.  In making up the decision be sure to check out the web site, The Art Of Manliness.

When I look at the pictures I shutter. The outside of the old house and the terrible old roof is getting fixed thankfully. When it all comes together it will be nice. There are a lot of little details that need to be worked out during the construction project but Jimmy is very attentive to details and together I think the project will turn out SWEET!

Tankless water heater is the next additional thing that we will incorporate into our remodel. The idea of having a huge tank full of hot water always on does not seem to be energy efficient nor ecologically sound. The idea of only heating the water that you want to use when you need it makes a lot of sense. From what I have read and looked at around the web the tankless systems seem to do a good job. We will try it out.

As you may recall when Jennifer and I first purchased this Old House in Arcadia California the home of the Apaches, we replaced all of the plumbing from the street with copper piping. What I did at that time was to run a full inch and a half pipe directly to the back yard in future hope that we would be able to do something with the back yard space that was filled with a swimming pool at the time. That is an older story that was never told. Hmmmmm.

OK, so now we have our project going and today the plumbers came to “sweat” up some new copper outlets for the back yard and future sprinkler system. The picture above shows you the manly copper tubing poking out the the future master bedroom addition. I do not think that any new project will have any more water than is shown have. As a matter of fact none will except those that builders build for themselves. When the copper was sweated up we tested the line and filled up a bucket so fast everybody was laughing. These are the areas where skimping comes in big time for builders but not at this Old House project. We will have abundant water availability so long as the city and county allows us water use.

Jennifer and I have now been here in our “California Ranch house” built somewhere back in the stone ages of the 1950′s. Before we moved in we had all of the plumbing redone in copper. You have to love copper. Remember the line in the movie “Moonstruck” where the old man plummer is trying to impress his girl friend: shaking his hands in front of his face in that Italian way he says, “And then there is copper!” Great line from a great movie. The sentiment holds at least for me. Copper is the god of plumbing material. So we had all the plumbing replaced in copper before we moved in so we don’t die from poisoning in the first month in the house.

I get a tip from my friend “Wolfie” about an electrician guy that is from the Midwest and really does a good job with wires. We get him out to the house and 14 thousand dollars later we have new electrical service throughout the house and a bunch of new recessed lighting fixtures. The old electrical system was freekin scary – no grounding at any socket in the house and buried lighting ceiling fixtures under new popcorn. We got rid of all of the popcorn on the ceilings as well.

We had all of the wood floors resurfaced and a new kitchen put in with new appliances. Now we are comfortable. At least I am. Jennifer had other ideas. So now the real work begins with a designer and finding contractors and the like not to mention saying up all of our pennies for the new addition to the house.

This last week we finally got all of the plans approved by our conservative Arcadia City Hall inspectors. The demolition of the back of the house is done now and the foundation for the two new rooms are poured. Today we wait for the concrete to dry. Next week I think the framing starts. I am going to get into that a bit myself. All of this is really good stuff I think?

One of the things you discover in old houses when you tear down a couple of walls are all of the secret problems hidden in the walls. We have two that I can see now. One is termites that were not discovered during the inspection when we bought the house. The other is mold in the guest bath room wall behind the tile. Both of these problems will be solved. The termites damaged wood will be replace and eventually we will have to tent the house when the construction is completed. My real estate lady is working on this for us. The moldy wall will be torn down and the guest bathroom will be completely gutted. The only way to get rid of mold is to tear the wall away. The idiots that put the tile up in that bathroom did not install any barrier between the wall and the tile. Well of course the moister is going to seep through and mold will flurish. So This Old House project is in full tilt. You can see photos at flickr here.

Have you ever had your wallet stolen or lost. Ever wonder about credit card thief or worse yet identity theft.

Well this may help you out if the worst happens so here goes:

Read this and make a copy for your files in case you need to refer to it someday. Maybe we should all take some of his advice! A corporate Attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company.

1.. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put ‘PHOTO ID REQUIRED.’

2.. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card Accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the ‘For’ line. Instead, just put the last four numbers The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won’t have access to it.

3.. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home Phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address. Never have your SS# printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.

4.. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Copy both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call to cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. I also carry a photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or abroad. We’ve all heard horror stories about fraud that’s committed on us in stealing a name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

Unfortunately, I, an attorney, have firsthand knowledge because my wallet was stolen last month. Within a week, the thieve(s) ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and more. But here’s some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know:

5.. We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.

6.. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one)

But here’s what is perhaps most important of all: (I never even thought to do this.)

7.. Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and also call the Social Security fraud line number. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done. There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves’ purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert. Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them dead in their tracks.

Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your wallet, etc., has been stolen:

1.) Equifax: 800-525-6285

2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 888-397-3742

3.) TransUnion : 800-680 – 7289

4.) Social Security Administration (fraud line): 800-269-0271

So there you have it. Keep a copy somewhere saft so that if the day ever comes that you need this information it is handy. Thanks Karen.

If the mood strikes and you find yourself dressing up in combat archery warier outfits, take a tip from Wolfie and keep your tips sharp and your arrow shafts straight. One other tip from her is worth remembering, “Look up before the Cougar Pounces”. For laughing out loud Inga don’t give away all of the secrets of the big cat!

On a very happy note Nancy, who is Number 001 secret agent, and her husband Steve just had their baby boy Aiden. Another Pisces boy to attempt to rule the earth. The trouble with Pisces boys is that they first have to rule themselves with is quiet a challenge. Congrats to both of them and hope to see the little one soon.

Finally, its your hosts birthday today. Let the good times roll and I am keeping my head up Wolfie – looking down for lost little furry things- so keep a sharp eye out! So I end with a little poem writen for our hostess Little Wolfie in the words from the Gard:

True Thomas, the Bard of House Strongbow

Ah, if Inga were Queen….
All the fighters would wear armor made of rawhide
All the speargods would stand in a line
All our lamest shots, would get accepted just fine

Queen Inga, Queen Inga, The mighty Wolfie Queen
Queen Inga, Queen Inga, Behold the Lupine Dream

Everyone would be an archer, Puns would be outlawed
All the A&S competitions, would be won by tooth and claw
Brewers would be so exalted, and everyone carries a cup
In the hopes that the royal court, will fill every one of them up

Queen Inga, Queen Inga, The mighty Wolfie Queen
Queen Inga, Queen Inga, Behold the Lupine Dream

The sky is filled all her toys, flying again and again
Belly dancing at all the wars, would be full of manly men
Wolf coursing is all the rage, with Brun in a Bunny suit
I would have to flee on command, with her in happy pursuit (twang!)

Queen Inga, Queen Inga, The mighty Wolfie Queen
Queen Inga, Queen Inga, Behold the Lupine Dream

All of Strongbow would be armored cavalry,
Shooting from the royal golf carts…
We’ld borrow from Aten our favorite targets,
And give them a running head start!

Queen Inga, Queen Inga, The mighty Wolfie Queen
Queen Inga, Queen Inga, Behold the Lupine Dream

And all the folks would call me a lazy bastard,
Who uhm..sang.. his way to crown….
I will laugh, and call the Queens Champions
And point out which ones to pound

Queen Inga, Queen Inga, The mighty Wolfie Queen
Queen Inga, Queen Inga, Behold the Lupine Dream

Alas my dream has come to an end,
no archery in tourneys they say…
Still Inga will always be MY queen
Until read she this song today

Beef jerky boy-exit…stage left…….running from my deer hart….

Oh for the good old days when men were men and women were just women and not the CEO’s climbing the cooperate ladder. Of course I jest. Today is a different day.

On a more personal note.  Today was the fourth day in a row that I was able to go out in the sun and ride my bicycle.  In the past four days I have put in about 150 miles or so and started work on a nice summer tan.  The weather here in Arcadia and the San Gabriel Valley has been gorgeous this past week with Spring galloping in bringing sunny days and really warm weather.  Gone are the days of wearing arm warmers and leggings.  This morning I rode out the drive way with a sleeveless jersey and no undergarments.  By the time we got back to Monrovia after our tour down through the Rose Bowl the temps were 77 degrees (25 degree Centigrade) and sunny.  These past few days have been really gorgeous out after our relatively wet and cool winter season.

The new bike coming from Dean Cycles should be ready this month.  I ordered the El Diente titanium frame about five months ago.  This custom frame has the S&S couplers and will break down to fit into a suit case.  This will be the bike that I take with me to the Iowa RAGBRAI ride across Iowa and again in the fall when we travel to China.  That will be another story.