I Finally Got Started On The Pool

Yesterday, I got started on cleaning my pool. I know this is probably boring to some, but I have only drained my pool once before since we had it. I started to drain it on Monday and it took a day and a half to drain. I cleaned out all of the leaves that got into it and power washed it. I couldn't believe that amount of leaves that got into this pool. The pool is inground and is 20 x 40 with the deep end 10 feet. Somehow I thought it was only 8 feet on the deep end. Being drained I got a chance to stand in the bottom of the deep end to see how deep it really is.

Today I will give it a good scrubbing with chemicals to get out any stains and replace one of the 2 strainer covers that had been broken. I tried to replace that cover but couldn't because of the deep water. I will give it a good power wash again and start filling it with water. Good thing I have city water and not a well.

The pool has been a great asset to have. Once it is open, it is easy to maintain for the rest of the year until I close it. On those steamy hot summer days, jumping into the pool cools down your body and no matter how hot it is you are cooled down the rest of the day.

My son who lives in Tennessee and has the Blog " Left Of The Dial" will be here in July and I told him I would like to have a Blogtimore, Hon pool party on Saturday July 22nd if possible. He knows I like the Bloggers Happy Hours and since he couldn't attend, I would have it when he is in town. He can then put a face to some of the bloggers he has become to know. As I have mentioned before he was the one that introduced me to the Blogtimore, Hon bloggers.

If this goes down, and it should, being in July should be good pool weather. I know some of our bloggers have children and they are invited also. Jumping into the pool is optional.

Stay tuned.

Charm City (Baltimore) Have Really Tough Girls, I mean Women. They Are the Charm City Roller Girls

Last night I attended the Inaugural Bouts of the Charm City Roller Girls. I must admit it was quite an enjoyable evening. I arrived at the Putty Hill Skateland before 5 p.m. and before the doors opened. Even at that early time the parking was getting scarce and there was a line around the whole parking lot waiting to get in. Fool and ebill were in line waiting for the doors to open and I joined them. Getting inside and putting on our admission bracelets, we were surprised to see that we would have to be checked with a metal detector. This was unexpected, but it went very quickly and we were in. There were chairs lined up for the ticket holders that paid for them. You could also sit on the floor just inside the rink itself. I stood at one of the low walls and had a great view of what was to go on.

There were 4 teams, The Junkyard Dolls vs Speed Regime and the Mobtown Mods vs the Night Terrors. Each of the bouts had 2 periods then a half time. After half time the teams had a 3 rd period which would determine the winning 2 teams.

All of the girls were tough and took a beating through out the bouts. Between the blocking, the knocking down and the tripping, their bodies all were all over the floor. That didn't stop them, they would get up and get back into the pack to take any other abuse that came their way. Yes, there were fights as tempers flared and the refs had their hands full (no pun intended) separating them. The refs did an excellent job keeping order and keeping the score as the girls made points.

All of the practice hours these teams put in came into play last night. You could see the teamwork as they set up the pack for blocking and getting their jammers through to score points. The jammers were fast and got into and through the packs and left me wondering how they did it. The sweaty bodies would go round and round taking the other side out or would be knocked down themselves. They surely must have lost weight by the end of the evening. Every girl were up to the game and would sacrifice themselves to help score points. That is what it is all about.

We had two of our own bloggers in the bouts. One of the refs, Justice Feelsgood Marshall (Textureslut) and Frenzy Lohan (Team Moose And Squirrel) of the Night Terrors. They were good and I kept wondering where all of that energy was coming from. Damn, I forgot to get their autographs.

Oh, BTW it was a complete sell out. The patrons outside without tickets didn't get in. Security was tight and the crowd was good with no problems. If you want to have a good time and see something different, the next bout will be on May 19th at Skateland. Be there!

www.charmcityrollergirls.com

Do You Swear To Tell The Whole Truth? Ha

I Came across these and got a big kick from them. I don't usually post this kind of material, but it remined me of Fool' s Blog when she talks about what happens at her work. If you read them somewhere before, enjoy them again.


Do You Swear to Tell the Truth, the Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth? These are from a book called Disorder in the American Courts, and are things people actually said in court, word for word, taken down and now published by court reporters who had the torment of staying calm while these exchanges were actually taking place.

ATTORNEY: What is your date of birth?


WITNESS: July 18th.
ATTORNEY: What year?
WITNESS: Every year.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact?
WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: This myasthenia gravis, does it affect your memory at all?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And in what ways does it affect your memory?
WITNESS: I forget.
ATTORNEY: You forget? Can you give us an example of something you forgot?
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: How old is your son, the one living with you?
WITNESS: Thirty-eight or thirty-five, I can't remember which.
ATTORNEY: How long has he lived with you?
WITNESS: Forty-five years.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that morning?
WITNESS: He said, "Where am I, Cathy?"
ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you?
WITNESS: My name is Susan.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Do you know if your daughter has ever been involved in voodoo?
WITNESS: We both do.
ATTORNEY: Voodoo?
WITNESS: We do.
ATTORNEY: You do?
WITNESS: Yes, voodoo.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep, he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
___________________________________
ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: Uh, he's twenty-one.
________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Were you present when your picture was taken?
WITNESS: Would you repeat the question?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: Uh....
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death.
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard.
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?
WITNESS: No, this is how I dress when I go to work.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead people?
WITNESS: All my autopsies are performed on dead people.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go to?
WITNESS: Oral.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: No, he was sitting on the table wondering why I was doing an autopsy on him!
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Are you qualified to give a urine sample?
WITNESS: Huh?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.
ATTORNEY: But could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing LAW.

Back From A Day On The Water After Toothy Critters

I was on the water at Loch Raven this morning before 9 a.m. It was very overcast and the temps were in the low 50's. The weather forecasted this cloudiness, with the Sun to make a grand appearance later. Thank goodness the wind wasn't a factor, it was calm.

I was fishing for the Toothy Critters know as Northern Pike and its smaller cousin the Pickerel. They have teeth you wouldn't believe. Rows upon rows of tiny teeth that are razor sharp. My first fish I caught soon after being on the water was a Pickerel about 22" long. It put up a great fight. It was released so someone else could enjoy catching it when it is bigger. I practice catch and release with just about all the fish I catch.

The Sun was trying to peek out and you could feel the warmth. The wildlife was everywhere. Turtles were on every log sunning themselves. I watched a Beaver go swimming by, it must have come from the other side of the lake. It took a dive and you could see the wide flat tail as it went under. It came up near shore and swam down along the shoreline. There were patches of Geese along the shoreline or in large V formations as they flew overhead. A mother Mallard Duck with about 6 ducklings was in the same cove as me disappearing under the water looking for whatever they ate. They would surface and always surprise me, as I couldn't guess where they would come up. Lots of Hawks were circling overhead.

I usually see Deer along the woods, but this time I didn't see any. Nor did I see the Eagles on this day. What I did see swimming in the lake that you just don't see around these parts was a Loon. At first when I saw it I couldn't believe it was a Loon. Loons usually are paired for life and this Loon was by itself. I tried to get a better look and it would dive under and come up way ahead of me. I continued fishing and was having a good day catching. I even caught a nice Smallmouth Bass to round out today's catch. The fish turned on just after the Sun came out. I caught Northern Pike and lots of pickerel for the next couple of hours. The largest fish of the day was a rather large Northern Pike, I got it up to the boat when its teeth cut my line. You know how it is, the big ones get away. I was using a wire leader on my other fishing rods, but this Pike choose to hit this line that didn't have a wire leader.

The weather warmed up considerable and it was very pleasant being on the water. I was moving out of this cove to start back to the dock when I heard the Loon making its call. You can't mistake a Loon when it is sounding off. Off in the distance was a return call from another Loon. So now it was a pair of Loons on the Lake. That made me feel good knowing it had a mate and a happier ride back to the Dock.

This Time It's The Loch Raven Reservoir Not The Susquehanna

I have been fishing for Shad on the Susquehanna River the last few weeks. Tomorrow morning I will be out on Loch Raven in my boat to catch some of those Toothy Critters and Bass. I have been enjoying fishing and catching Shad on the Susky, but I wanted to get on Loch Raven before the hot weather appears. The Shad run on the Susky will be getting much better in the next few weeks. I will have time to catch plenty more before it peaks.

I really enjoy catching the Northern Pike and Pickerel (The Toothy Critters) and it will be a nice change. The Bass should be hitting also. The weather is suppose to be nice with the temps in the 60's with little or no wind. A good day to be on the water.

The Northern Pike grow big in Loch Raven and I know that the Maryland State Record for Northerns are there. I have seen very very large Pike in Loch Raven. The state record is 24 lbs. 12 ozs. caught on Deep Creek Lake in Western Maryland. They are bigger then that in Loch Raven.

I have caught Northern Pike that weighed 25 lbs in Canada on my yearly Toothy Critter trip. This time I would like to catch them in my own back yard. It doesn't matter what size I catch tomorrow, I will just enjoy being on the water. The Bass fishing is also very good this time of the year.

The Eagles that live by the lake should be out and about looking for food for their just hatched little ones. The Deer and Geese are always around to watch. It will be good to be on the lake.

Broadsheet's Birthday Happy Hour Tonight

Just a reminder for tonight. It's Happy Hour and Linda's Birthday at The Brewer's Art in the Grotto Bar around 6 ish. Located in Mt. Vernon at 1106 N. Charles St. Be there and meet your Blogger friends and celebrate a birthday with a real sweetheart. See Ya There!

It's Gotta Be Done I Better Get Started Soon

I usually open my pool sometime in April every year. I am not looking forward to it this year. During the winter it got filled with leaves and they sunk to the bottom and turned the water a liquor brown. Don't even ask how that happened, it's a sore spot for me. I have only had to drain the pool one other time in the years that we have had it. The good news is I will be able to replace a broken drain strainer that was a slight problem last year.

I am going to start draining soon and remove the leaves. Then I will power wash it and refill with clean clear water and and put in the necessary chemicals to keep it sparkling clear as it should be. It past years it only takes me a couple of days to get it up and running. This time an extra day or so and it will be good as new. It is a very nice pool and has given us much pleasure over the years.

My daughter Allie is always the first one in the pool every year. She dives in sometime in May and lays around catching some rays or reading a book. That is too damn early for me. I like it to warm up a little before I get in. Of course, some of those really hot days in early summer, jumping into the pool cools you down quick. We do sit around the pool dangling our legs and feet in the water while sipping on a drink when the water is still cool.

My house is made for entertaining. It has a great screened in porch with a counter top stove and a refrig. We eat out there all summer until it is too cold. It is always pleasant on the porch and seems to have a breeze most of the time. There is a couple of overhead fans to keep the air moving on the hottest days. We also have a open deck and a large patio. In the winter we have plenty of room for entertaining indoors.

I could call in a pool service to do the pool work, but I have been maintaining the pool for years and I really don't mind doing it when not under any time frame or hurry. It will get done before May and as usual Allie will be the first to dive in.