Happy Mother’s Day to all you mothers. Here, the weather has taken a turn for the worse, with highs today only expected to be in the 50s, and it looks kinda windy out there. It’s not the worst weather we’ve even had on Mother’s Day, though. I recall one year when we got eight inches of snow.

There hasn’t been much new going on around here. Yesterday was Fritzi’s turn to go to the vet for a checkup and a lepto shot. Poor guy was very nervous, but we managed to get through it all, and he’s in good shape. Another $64 down the money sink hole. My other big accomplishment yesterday was cutting the grass, which had gotten quite high since last week. One of the nice things about the tractor is that it could be over my head, and I’d still be able to go right through it. Now that spring seems to be fully kicked in, I have some serious weed whacking to do. I’m really tired of farting around with my 2-stroke gas weed eaters. To go trim stuff out near the road usually involves about an hour of trying to get one or the other to start and stay running, and then ten seconds of actually whacking (the weeds). Of course, I’m lucky if I can actually walk all the way to the road at this point, but that’s another story. Plus the damn things are noisy and spew nasty shit into the air. So yesterday I ordered a cordless one that gets good reviews. It should be fine for the bulk of what I do, and at least it’ll be quiet. It only comes with one battery, but I figure my foot will give out before I have to recharge it, so that should work out OK.

My goal for today is to do the rear brakes on my car. Normally, this wouldn’t be a big deal, but since something almost always goes wrong (or at least pops up to complicate things), I’m not overly optimistic. Looks like a good day for garage work, at any rate.

Those of you with mothers out there be sure and do something nice for your ma today. And for one day a year, can you just do what she tells you to without an argument for once?

It was an expectantly pleasant ride into work this morning, thanks to the fact that NPR was having an issue with its satellite feed of Morning Edition. This led to my local NPR station switching over to the BBC World feed, which meant I didn’t have to hear Cokie Roberts (assuming she was on, as she is most Mondays). Things rapidly deteriorated from there, though, as I arrived at work and had to abandon yet another gorgeous day (the weather’s been amazing – everybody in Central New York is sunburned today) to go and sit in my dark cave of an office.

We opened the pool on Saturday. Well, we took the cover off. Calling it “open” is a bit ambitious, as the water was pea soup green. I really need to figure out why that is – I dumped a lot of chemicals in there at the end of last year in order to prevent that. 10 gallons of sodium hypochlorite seems to have killed off the algae, but the water’s quite cloudy. And a little on the chilly side. Hopefully things will be cleared (and warmed) up by Memorial Day. On the bright side, the new pump motor is so quite it’s amazing. I kept thinking it shut off for some reason.

All the walking up and down stairs and carrying shit and squatting really set my foot off, though. Yesterday was kind of a waste, as all I managed to do was cut the grass. I could have used another day off, and am really looking to getting the hell out of here.

But then, what else is new?

So, don’t forget that the new IFC show “Maron” starts tonight at 10:00 (the first show isn’t the “possum” episode that Vernon posted the other day, so this will be one most of us haven’t seen). And of course his new book, “Attempting Normal” is also out now, too. In support if these two endeavors, Marc has been out there all over the place lately, including appearances on “Fresh Air“, CNET’s “404” Podcast/Vidcast, and on the Howard Stern show. Suddenly (well, maybe not so suddenly) the man is everywhere. Yes, it’s the beginning of a new Maron Era.

And to think, it seems like just yesterday he was getting bumped off the air in favor of LA Clippers’ basketball games and having to secretly use Stephanie Miller’s 800 number to take non-local calls. Hard to believe that was, what, like seven years ago? My how things have changed.

Other things haven’t changed much at all. For instance, I just had to listen to John McCain explain how we need to go to war with Syria now because they (maybe) have used chemical weapons (actually he doesn’t really give a shit about that – he just wants him some regime change). He says we can take out their “air assets” with long-range cruise missiles, and then enforce a “no-fly” zone (now that the weather’s warm I’d like to establish a no-fly – especially black fly – zone in my back yard).

Never mind that nobody (except the military industrial complex) wants us involved in yet another war.

You no what question they didn’t ask old Johnny? “How much?” Yeah, how much is his plan to liberate Syria gonna cost? Aren’t we all kinds of worried about deficits (as long as they don’t interfere with air travel)? A single tomahawk missile costs $1.4 million (back in 2011, anyway). How many of them are we gonna need to take out Syria’s Air assets? Back during Bush Jr’s Iraq war, they were planning on using 800 in the first two days (and Iraq was already pretty well devastated after daddy’s war, so they were a lot easier to deal with) of “shock and awe.” That’d be, what? About $1.1 trillion?

Seems like that would put a nice dent in the deficit.

I’m officially putting amputation on the table when it comes to my foot. By the end of the day yesterday, it was so swollen and painful, I could only laugh as I hobbled out to my car. I’m the sort of person who really hates to draw attention to myself, so I felt particularly ridiculous (not that anybody else would give a shit, I’m sure). This was only made worse by my decision to go get a new set of tires for the car after work (the thought of waiting ’til the weekend, driving 40 miles round trip per day on the really crappy ones I had was just too scary a thought – and I don’t generally scare all that easy; I must be getting old).

I was able to get an “appointment” for five o’clock, but what with it being the last day of the month and everybody apparently trying to get their last minute NY State inspections in, I wound up sitting there (on a beautiful warm and sunny day) for an hour and 45 minutes before I could finally start my 35 minute drive home. All the while, I could feel my foot swelling up more and more. And I couldn’t even go walk around outside, ‘cuz my foot hurt so bad. So instead I sat there and watched the same half-hour lo-cal news three and a half times. Pretty sucky.

On the bright side, it’s nice to know I have four good tires again – though I’d just as soon have been able to use the money for something “fun.” Or at least on a vet bill (been racking them up pretty good lately).

So, being horizontal for a few hours helped the foot some (slightly less swollen, but it still feel like somebody is jamming an ice pick in it whenever I bend my big toe up or down – which makes it hurt to drive, let alone walk). And I can feel it swelling up in my shoe as I sit here at my desk in this dark cave of an office.

To make matters worse, this is stupid meeting day, and as the last couple were cancelled, I’m not holding out hope that we won’t have one today. So that’ll be a thrill.

On the bright side, I got a really good night’s sleep last night. One of the best I’ve had in quite a while (by my standards, at least; I long for the days when I could sleep a whole night through – though I suppose I’ll be entering the eternal sleep soon enough, so I ought to make the most of my awake time while I have it).

Except for work, which I wish I could just sleep through.

Because I did a little bit over the weekend, I’m now paying the price. My foot hurt yesterday, was killing me all night long last night, and hurts so bad I can barely walk this morning. So I’m sitting here trying to figure out how to keep ice on it while still functioning. This should make taking the dog to the vet this morning even more fun that I thought it would be. I guess I’ll just have to hobble through.

Marc Maron will be on Fresh Air today talking about his upcoming show and book, and of course his WTF podcast. If you can’t catch it live, the audio will be up later on in the day.

Oh well, I guess I’d better try and get some work done before I head to the vet.

With all the conflicting information and rampant speculation about the Boston Bomber Dudes, it’s hard to really get a handle on just what the hell the deal with them is. Except for one thing I think we can all agree on. As with most messed up people, the blame clearly falls on the mother. Damns mothers, right? And if you don’t believe me, then just ask Texas Republican Michael McCaul (who I never heard of, but I suppose I should have since he apparently chairs the House Committee on Fatherland Security).

“I think she played a very strong role in his radicalization process,” McCaul said on “Fox News Sunday.” “I believe she is a person of interest, if not a subject (sic). I do believe that if she does come into the United States that she will be detained for questioning. So I think there is a connection.”

Great going, Mike. As if that outstanding warrant for shoplifting wasn’t enough, now we’ll never get her to come back here. Though I wouldn’t be surprised if she got disappeared to some Russian Gulag camp in the middle of the night.

So you probably heard that the Boy Scouts have changed their policy on gays in their paramilitary organization. It’s OK to be a gay boy scout now, but it’s not OK to be a gay den mother or pack leader or whatever the hell they call it (sorry, but one of the may things I definitely have never been is a boy scout). So you can be gay but you can’t grow up to run your own club. On the bright side, you can now grow up and join the real military if you’re into that sort of thing. Thankfully, the Mormons have given their approval to the new policy, because if there’s one group whose opinions I care about, it’s the Mormons. Well, and the Scientologists, too.

In other news, apparently Obama was a big hit last night at the White House Correspondents Dinner (which I keep seeing abbreviated as WHCD, and I keep thinking their talking about a radio station – which, by way, I looked up and there isn’t one). I haven’t seen any of it, though I couldn’t avoid hearing a couple of audio clips as I drove to make my weekly (actually now that I get to work from home two days a week, it’s become bi-weekly) trip for vittles and gas. I don’t know if he did any jokes about poor people getting screwed over by the sequester as he signed the “make or flights run on time” bill into law. That’s something the folks at that dinner would probably really yuck it up over.

Oh well, another nice sunny day here. Time to get out and not do much.

Yesterday was a beautiful day here. The temperature was in the low sixties, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, no wind – just perfect. So perfect that I wound up sitting outside until way past my bedtime with a fire going. Being outside in the sun (and later star and moon) shine really makes me appreciate sitting here in my windowless coffin of an office. Yeah. Screw that fresh air and sunshine shit.

Today is supposed to be even warmer – up into the 70s, but of course they’re predicting rain for the early evening. Hopefully I’ll beat it home and at least get the dogs out for a while.

So, Max Baucus isn’t running in 2014. What a shame – he’ll be missed (by the insurance industry, the NRA, Wall Street, etc.). Sounds like Brian Schweitzer could be running to take his place, which sounds good to me, ‘cuz I always liked him. He may not be perfect, but, hey no commie pinko liberal is gonna win in Montana.

So, what is it with these Republican idiots that think the Boston Bomber dude should be hauled off to Gitmo without a trial or any rights? I mean, fer chrissakes, not only did this happen in the US of A (where we have that whole Constitution thing that actually consists of more than the part that says you’re allowed to own machine guns and whatever other weapons you want), but the kid is a US Citizen.

I mean, do we really want to become a place where they can just take you off the street and make you disappear for any reason they decide they want to? I mean, we kinda already are, but at least it isn’t “legal.” I will grudgingly give credit to Rand Paul on this one.

What if they just plain happen to be wrong about somebody. Like, say the Elvis impersonator who, whatever else he is, is apparently NOT the ricin letter guy. What if Li’l Lindsey Graham got his way with this guy and they renditioned him to some hole in the ground somewhere so Lindsey could break out the whips and chains on him?

Of course the non-ricin guy has a regular American-sounding name, so I guess you’d have to treat him fairly.

Big breakthrough in the world of science. A new study shows – are you ready for this? – that chocolate may trigger acne. Gosh, that’s astonishing. Not like I could have told them that when I was, like 13.

Oh well, I suppose I’d better get back to work.

Another weekend in the books. Saturday was pretty crappy. Cold, windy, snowy. When it wasn’t snowing, it was dark and brooding (and did I mention windy? Like, really windy). So it wasn’t conducive to getting much accomplished. I did manage to pound the rest of my fence posts into the ground, but that was about it.

Sunday was much better. After a start in the mid-twenties it got, well, not exactly warm (I don’t think it hit 50), but it was sunny and not very windy, and it felt pretty warm in the sun. So I managed to finally finish up the last 200 feet of fence so the varmints can go out in the back yard again. They haven’t been there in quite a while, so they had a great time exploring and smelling everything they haven’t smelled in a while.

I didn’t manage to take off my snow tires, though. Too cold on Saturday, and I need the “middle bay” in my garage to have room enough to mess with it. But that’s where my wife parks, and by the time I was done with the fence she was back. Not that I was actually contemplating doing them at that point. I was too tired (and sore; that my back hurt me was no surprise, but my hands are killing me too). But I spent most of the day outside and thus avoided having to hear about the Boston bomber kid, and got to catch up on my backlog of Star Talk and This American Life podcasts.

I also didn’t get around to putting the mower on the tractor, which I’ll probably need to do soon. Seems like once the grass starts growing, it pops up all at once.

Back to work today, but at least I’m at home and get to look out the window. And listen to NPRs “Boston” coverage (did you know that white hat dude can’t yet talk but he’s passing notes?).

Have a good one, and go out and do something nice for the planet.

Chechens? Gotta say, I didn’t see that coming. Quite a bit of excitement over there in Massachusetts. Probably not a good idea to rob a 7-Eleven if you’ve had your photo spread across the world. On the bright side, if you live in Boston, it sounds like your weekend is starting early this week. What the hell would drive a couple of young kids to do something like this is beyond me – and we may never know, if the second one goes the way of his brother. Though apparently there’s a third guy who may or may not have something to do with all this.

I mean, is this a political thing? Do they want Massachusetts to separate from Russia? Maybe they played too much Grand Theft Auto. Is it a Muslim thing? Or are they just a couple of fucked-up kids who happen to be from Chechnya? Thank goodness they were apparently here legally, or we’d never hear the end of it.

One more warm day here, and then things turn to shit for the weekend.

I was pretty surprised yesterday to hear they’d arrested a suspect in the Boston Massacre case so quickly. I guess my surprise was justified. That’s what I get for paying attention to anything CNN has to say. Not that I was alone in my gullibility. All the “serious” news folks dutifully repeated whatever CNN had to say – AP, BBC, CBC, you name it. Not being a serious news person, I’m not sure how shit like this happens.

I tried to see what CNN had to say about it, but they’ve more or less scrubbed the incident from their website as far as I can tell (not that I spent a lot of time looking). Near as I can tell some law enforcement officer (or “LEO” as we hip crime show watchers refer to them – as in “alert the local LEOs that we have a serial killer on the loose”) was referring to the “Lord and Taylor” surveillance video and said, “we got him.”

This went from “they’ve identified a suspect” to “an arrest is imminent” to “they have a suspect in custody” to “an arrest has been made” in about ten minutes. Now, based on my years of watching “Lou Grant” on teevee, I could swear that there used to be some kind of unwritten rule about getting something they used to call “confirmation.” Like, verify the information with at least 2 independent sources or something like that. I’m assuming it was an unwritten rule, because if it was written down, maybe they’d still be fucking following it.

But never mind confirmation. How about clarification. As in asking, “when you say ‘we go him’ do you mean you know who he is, have obtained corroborating evidence, and have arrested him? Or do you just mean you saw some guy with a bag in the video so now you’re gonna go look for him?”

I would think that would be important to know – but as I said, I don’t work for a major news organization or anything.

I know it’s all about ratings these days and being “first,” but didn’t there used to be a certain amount of pride in actually being “correct?” Well, whatever.

So, congrats to the NRA today, as they managed to pay off a large enough minority of US Senators to prevent universal background checks for buying guns. Yet another proud moment in American history. And a proud moment for Republicans, as well. No matter what the issue, figure out what’s the least you can do, and then do less.

A rather impressive explosion down there in West, TX. “Fire at the fertilizer plant” are not the words you want to hear if you’re a volunteer firefighter. Or if you live (or should I say, “used to live”) nearby. It’s not gonna be a pretty sight when the sun comes up this morning, I don’t think. Hopefully there won’t be too many people killed by it.

If only those firefighters had guns. Oh, wait. It’s Texas. They probably did have guns.