YO! Big Bro is Watching You!

As if wasting $8.4 million of Detroit Taxpayers money wasn’t enough, the embattled Mayor of Detroit has created his own version of the Ministry of Truth from the novel 1984.

The Kwame Kilpatrick administration, or as they refer to themselves, “Team Kilpatrick”, complete with matching green jackets, has hired a Media Watch company to patrol television news reports, radio stations, print media and the internet for any “biased” reporting on Kilpatrick’s perjury, obstruction of justice conspiracy and conduct unbecoming of a public official.

George Orwell is spinning in his grave.

So since this media watch company searches by key words and full names, let me just say this:

Kwame Kilpatrick, you are a fool and a crook. Resign now you big dummy!

Team Kilpatrick’s Ministry of Truth is headed up by his hired PR person, “Minister of Truth” Denise Tolliver who has already admonished a Florida TV station for reporting a 20 second story on the Mayors crooked deeds. Apparently reporting the truth is “biased”.

Seems like Kilpatrick can’t spend this taxpayer’s money fast enough, huh?

Michigan’s economy is bad enough as it is and we would hate for Minister Tolliver to lose her job, so I will be featuring a Team Kilpatrick Minute in each of my blogs. As long I use his complete name, I’ll be sure that Team Kilpatrick is reading this and keeping Tolliver busy. Since I pay taxes, but am not allowed a voice on Council or a vote (Taxation without Representation), this may be my only way to voice my discontent with the crooks and cronies running the City of Detroit.

Meanwhile, the City Clouncil is doing its best to make Detroit the butt of jokes.

After shouts of “You’re not my Daddy, don’t disrespect me! and Do it Baby! Do it!” Detroit Clowncilwoman Monica Conyers degraded the City of Detroit further by calling Clouncil President Cockrel “Shrek”. I don’t know about you, but Shrek was pretty lovable.

See the verbal exchange here:



Maybe Monica Conyers sees herself as Donkey. Donkey was pretty annoying, but also lovable and there is nothing lovable about Conyers. Regardless, she’s certainly making a “Donkey” of herself if you get my drift.

Monica Conyers: this week’s Hippos Ass Award Recipient.

Heart Update: I have an appointment with my surgeon for May 6th to discuss next steps. That's the first available slot, but I'm on a wait list if there is an opening.

Crossroads

There is a Philip K. Dick story about a man who wakes to find that terrorists placed a bomb in his chest. At any moment he could explode.

A month and a half ago I was ok. I was healthy. Plans for the summer were being made. There was a vacation with my wife to Lake Cumberland in May. We were going to rent a houseboat for a week. This year’s Spring Fishing Trip with my buddies was going to be up at the Pere Marquette River in Michigan. It was time to pull the old Glassmaster boat out of the garage and get it ready for walleye fishing on the Detroit River. The garden needed tilling.

But I wasn’t healthy. I wasn’t ok. I was inching closer and closer to a massive coronary heart attack and didn’t even know it. I was on the way to being one of those people you hear about: “He seemed perfectly healthy then one day, boom, heart attack, at such a young age.”

Back to the bomb in my chest. Damn Terrorists. I’m more conscious about my heart beat. I can FEEL it beating now more than ever. Right now I have a 50% chance of having a heart attack in the next two years.

When my cardiologist told me it wasn’t a good idea to go fishing and to put a limit on what I do, it finally hit home. No Fishing Trip. No vacation with my wife. No getting the boat ready. No gardening. No exercising. No excessive climbing of stairs. No heavy lifting, no stress etc, etc, etc…And this is just BEFORE my operation.

Although something is different, I’m still the same person. But I have different plans now to deal with.

I’d hate to put the pressure on my wife and my friends, having something happen to me in the middle of the woods, with little cell phone coverage, more than 30 minutes away from any major health facility. So, on the advice of my doctor, I’m going to put off many of my plans.

A little inconvience now ensures that I have many more chances to enjoy vacations with my wife and family, fishing trips with my friends, and many more chances to see my garden in bloom.


I don't want this blog to be a Whoa is me Blog. I just wanted to get this out there. But I promise to keep you updated as things progress. And should you be going through the same thing, drop me a line...I'd love to hear your story.

Especially if you really DO have a bomb in your chest.

Since I can't go fishing, I guess I'll try frying some bigger fish.

Next Time: Team Kilpatrick’s Ministry of Truth, or Yo! Big Bro Got the Peeps on You!

Aortic Stenosis: 12th Cylon?

According to Wikipedia, Aortic Stenosis is a valvular heart disease caused by the incomplete opening of the aortic valve.

Major causes and predisposing conditions of aortic stenosis include acute rheumatic fever and bicuspid aortic valve. As individuals age, calcification of the aortic valve may occur and result in stenosis. This is especially likely to occur in people with a bicuspid aortic valve, but also occurs in the setting of perfectly normal valves as a result of age-induced 'wear and tear'.

Wikipedia is the best thing ever. Anyone in the world can write anything they want about any subject, so you know you are getting the best possible information.

Michael Scott The Office

Apparently I had a mild form of rheumatic fever when I was younger. The fevers were attributed to tonsillitis and stopped when my tonsils were removed.

I also have a mild regurgitation. Dave had regurgitation once, but that was due to small woodland creatures. Mine is basically backwash in my heart chamber.

I hate backwash. When I was younger, my brother Dean would purposely backwash into a bottle of pop just so that he could claim the rest of the pop for himself. Little bits of food floating to the top would gross me out.

There is also a Battlestar Galactica wiki here: http://en.battlestarwiki.org/wiki/Main_Page

The 12th Cylon (WARNING: HERE THERE BE SPOILERS)

The first Hybrid gives a monologue about his knowledge of the Final Five in the extended version of "Razor". It states that "...the fifth is still is in shadow, drawn toward the light, hungering for redemption, that will only come in the howl of terrible suffering."
I think the key word here is redemption.

My guess: Tom Zarek. He is also portrayed by actor Richard Hatch, who portrayed the original Apollo in the Original Series. “…this has happened before and will happen again.”

Next Time…Finding Out You Are a Toaster, or Why I Can’t Go Fishing.

You Can't Spell HEART Without the HA

We can Rebuild him...We have the Technology...Better...Stronger...Faster.

My first real experience with blogging was when I wrote to a newspaper in response to the cancellation of the Six Million Dollar Man. Back then there weren't any blogs or entertainment sites on the Internet to give us an update that a show was gone. It just disappeared from the TV. Honestly, I thought the original Battlestar Galactica was on for three years. It only had 21 episodes. (We won't talk about Galactica 1980. Ever.)

I even had the Six Million Dollar Man action figure. There was even the space capsule that turned into an operating table. The action figure had a telescopic eye, the skin peeled back on one of the arms to reveal circuitry.

Don't know whatever happened to that figure. Probably sold it at a garage sale for $1. Its worth about $100 now.

In a few short weeks (probably), I'll be on my way to becoming the bionic man. However, I'm not getting the cool eye or super strong legs.

I'm getting an artificial heart valve.

Without it, I may be dead in five years.

I've used this space in the past to poke fun at members of the Blue Hippo Fantasy Football League. But now, I'm going to use this blog to talk about my experience with Heart Valve Replacement, you know...fun stuff.

Imagine being 39 years old and finding out that your heart is defective and has been your entire life. Go into the Doctors office for a routine physical, come out needing to have your chest cracked open and some doctor putting a fake valve in your heart.

Right at the start of Fishing Season. Yeah....Frakkin A it sucks.

But I imagine there are others out that may benefit from my experience. So, I hope this helps you in some way. If it does, drop me a line.

Tomorrow...Aortic Stenosis, Medical Condition or the 12th Cylon

STAND BYE