Thursday Thrash-Out

• The Twin Falls Zion bank robber remains at large.
• Are quality security cameras not considered a smart investment?
• I've seen higher quality images from a convenient store.
• Here's yesterday's "quick catch the bad guy post" with grainy pictures.
• Maybe they didn't want to release the higher quality pictures for whatever reason.

• Finally, some progress towards some form of closure for the victim's families of the Fort Hood shootings in Killeen, Tx.  Jury selection began Tuesday and proceedings will start no earlier than August 6th. (no earlier? Translation - more delays ahead)
• Last I heard, they couldn't proceed with the trial due to him refusing to shave his beard to meet military standards. They couldn't force him to shave it since he claimed it was for religious beliefs.

• What? Fish oil is now bad for me?  What about all of those weekend AM radio shows I heard telling me how good it was?  A study that started in 2011 has now been replicated in Seattle with the same results: 43% increase in risk of prostate cancer and 71% increase in a "most likely to be fatal" type of prostate cancer.  - Seattle Times  What will they say will kill me next..

• Unless you want your house to always be in renovation mode and not living mode, block HGTV.  They show the designing phase, then fast forward to the end result, leaving out a crucial part of any renovation, the work.  This gives people a misconception that either renovations are always simple and easy, or they already have it figured out who's doing the fast forwarded part of the show.

• Yes, we're removing an interior wall (for an "open concept") and we have a 6 month old who likes his naps.

• Someone broke the first and second rules of Fight Club, "You do not talk about Fight Club".
• From Times-News: That someone would be William Greener of Shoshone, ID.  In a Greener vs. Blue Hadden, Greener was victorious by KO.  Hadden came to, left, then was discovered laid out on the ground bleeding.  
• It was Hadden who wanted to fight someone, he got what he asked for.  Then again he's only 19 and wasn't raised with the best role models (look up his mom, Traci Hadden), maybe he anticipated a different outcome, maybe not.

• Boston bomber pleaded not guilty to all charges yesterday. -AP
• He had a shootout with the cops, seems pretty cut and dry.  Unless he didn't?
• He was carrying a backpack in the surveillance footage, that's not illegal.
• He was laying in a boat when they found him, bam - trespassing. Liar.
• Lied to the judge - perjury - that comes with a fine at least, was he under oath then?
• Why would he still be all bruised up from the police pursuit?  
• Jack Bauer.

• Another reason to have a dog - to wake me up if my house catches on fire.  To quote Ron White, the dog was saying, "I don't have any ******* thumbs!".  I'd like to think I would wake up before the fire got to me.  Local News8 story here.

• The one year mark till the May 2014 primaries has passed and now Congressman Mike Simpson and Bryan Smith must each reveal their money card. (story from Post Register (Subscribers only) by Christina Lords)

• *Best announcers voice*
• Round 1: Simpson lays down a $50K, Smith matches.     50/50
• Round 2: Simpson scans through his hand, TWO $50Ks!  Smith's eyes briefly open wide and lips separate.  Smith slides TWO cards out, one $50K down!  Smith spins the second card between his fingers methodically.  He tosses the card across the table, Simpon tries to stop it but NOohh.. off the table it goes.  Simpson retrieves from the floor and Smith heads out the back. Smith's final card is a 188KQ! Ouch. He knew Qs were against regulation - but he had no other option.
• In the game of Ks, Qs are not permissible.
• Too Far Man..

Wednesday Whims

• Yesterday I was at Sportsman Park and saw some guy non-nonchalantly emerge out of the water in scuba gear, climb up the rocks and walk to his car.  I don't know the law on that but can we just hop in the river there and go for a dive?  My guess is no.

• Anytime a wife or girlfriend is about to show their man a picture of a pregnancy test with a faint line, there needs to be some preparatory words prior to.  For example: "Hey look what such and such just sent me", or "I didn't take this picture but guess what about such and such".  Unless the goal is to give your man a heart attack.

• The US Navy's X-47B unmanned aircraft will attempt the first landing on an aircraft carrier by a drone today off the coast of Virginia. This isn't the average drone though, it receives it's instructions from an onboard computer program that is programmed before flight.  Of course, something this expensive ($1.4 billion) does have a manual override if necessary.

• Per an e-mail circulating: Arizona has received a lot of media attention for their laws against illegal immigrants, why not Missouri?  In the show me state illegals can't receive food stamps, health care, or financial aid for college.  With every arrest made, police are required to verify immigration status and inform the feds.

• I haven’t watched Congressman Simpson in action before today, he’s got some zing!  “In contrary to what the gentleman from Michigan just said, I do understand the issue and frankly, understanding it is why I am opposed to it”.  Who was the gentleman from Michigan with his hand over his face?

• Why is the Zimmerman case such a big deal? Not to be insensitive to a murder, but what makes this one so special?  There's plenty of other murders around the country involving a Caucasian/Hispanic and an African American.

• Who benefits from making this trial news?
• News agencies (ratings, substance, $)
• Racially fueled politicians (have something to talk about, strife)
• Involved lawyers would (depending on who wins)
• Local city and police forces ($)

• Limbaugh is saying the DOJ is helping organize protests/rallies.

• 11 days until I see my family in Texas!

• Why can't I add widgets with this new template? Come on Google, get with 'your own' program already.

• Meanwhile.. in Delaware (Wayne's World), a man is arrested for throwing "bodily fluid" on a girls leg.  What possesses someone to do this?  Maybe he lost a bet.  He crazy, and you can't fix crazy.

Tuesday Twist-Off

• I watched the "viral" DUI checkpoint video last night via facebook. There's a separate video that came out a long time ago that tells you what you can do based on your rights. This kid must have seen the same video and thought he'd give it a go.  He wasn't rude, he was just asking questions and standing his ground, trying to get a straight answer from the cop.  The cop, probably not used to being challenged, responds with anger and amazement at the end.

• The GOP's fate will not be determined by the immigration reform bill. It will always be around. Next election may be determined by who produces the most favored female candidate. Depending on the expediency of 

• Splinter (Edward Snowden ), supposedly has chosen Venezuela as his landing spot (publicly?). Surely he's not actually going there. This has got to be a distraction, or book closing (hey US, look for me in Venezuela).

• A "No man's land" in an airport baffles me.  What if it was Bin Laden in there?

• $l.02 Billion (with a B) spent annually in Idaho on hunting and fishing.

• No more immunizations until age 1! What a nightmare those days and nights are.

• Maybe I'm more sensitive to the ads after the pre-fireworks drowning of Lloyd N. Westbrook II and they have always been as frequent. But in the 20 minutes of listening to the radio I've heard, "Life jackets float, you don't" from Army Corps of Engineers and multiple advertisements for lifeflight.org advertising for memberships ($60/year).  

• Is there still a goose roaming around the Greenbelt with a dart in his/her neck? 

• Picking out toys with/for a 6 month old at Toys R Us was fun. The employee there reminded me of used car salesmen.  They must be under a lot of pressure to sell happy birthday phone calls (recording) from Jeffrey the giraffe.  This little lady on YouTube looks so happy to hear his voice..

• Greek yogurt is delicious, but how many school kids will (on their own) choose yogurt over a sloppy joe or a vending machine lunch?  A better question is how to convince a kid to eat healthy in the first place, there are no immediate effects unless you count sugar highs and not being hungry anymore.

• Proposed event center looks classy.  I do see it more fitting for acts such as Ron White, instead of a High School auditorium.  I know he didn't care but it is a bit embarrassing none the less.

Monday Mash

Reasons for Jeff Thompson being behind a trailer full of cheerleaders:

1. It just happened that way?
2. His wife works for that school?
3. Color coordination: Red and black?
4. He sponsored Hillcrest High School's float?
5. Jeff Thompson (from Texas) has an MBA. He's just that smart.

• Immigration: If you haven't read Senator Crapo's personal news release on immigration, do yourself a favor and read it here.

• Cafe Sabor ('Sah-borr') is set to officially open (ribbon cutting ceremony) the Friday after next (July 12th). Currently they have locations in Logan and Garden City, UT. Their new location is where Sol Rio used to be.

• Growing up closer to Mexico (North Texas (not as close as Jeff was)), I was spoiled when it came to Mexican food. After eating at Sabor's Logan location, I'm confident this place will be/have the next "Best Mexican food in Idaho Falls" title. I tried eating there yesterday but no dice, closed Sundays.

• If you drink the last cup of coffee, make more.

• Everyone's seen the new SpeedConnect ISP billboards around town. I don't know if their internet connection is any good but I can tell you they have a strong connection with their lawyers.

• I'm no lawyer but from Judge Winmill's memo, here's what I got out of it:
1.  IFWP (IF Wireless Partnership) leased wireless space to DigitalBridge.
2. SpeedConnect purchased wireless space from DigitalBridge.
3. IFWP says hey you can't do that without taking the other portion of the space, per our agreement with DigitalBridge.
4. SpeedConnect says hey, talk to DigitalBridge, they sold it to us.
5. IFWP sends letter to SpeedConnect mentioning further action.
6. SpeedConnect (being speedy) jumps ahead and involves the Idaho courts wanting a declaratory ruling (?) that SpeedConnect didn't do anything wrong.
7. IFWP adds their complaints to SpeedConnect's filing and consequently removes all chances for a dismissal.
8. If IFWP would have filed separately dismissal would have been possible.
• SpeedConnect vs. IFWP - IFWP's motion to dismiss: Denied

• If you missed the fireworks like me, here's the grand finale. Thanks to John Parsons for uploading it to YouTube.

Thursday Thrash Out

Happy 4th of July everyone. I hope you had an opportunity to thank a veteran, or at least had thoughts of them. Of course celebrate our independence as well.

No matter where I went today, this sign was directly infront of me.

• We opted out of watching the Greenbelt fireworks show in favor of grilling steaks.

• The 6 month old cried after one of the parade's vehicles blasted their horn (one that sounded like a train horn inparticularly), no way he would have enjoyed 17k booms. Next year it is. A hotel room on the river perhaps.

• As many babies as I saw, they should have a horn free / baby friendly zone of the parade for 100 yards or so.

• The winning time for the Firecracker 5K (3.1 miles), was 16 minutes! That means someone kept a 5 minute 8 second per mile pace.. for 3 miles! Wow.

• The announcer asked if there was a doctor in the house. A guy wearing fire department clothing stepped forward then took off at a rescue pace. May have been dehydration or heat exhaustion since the announcer reminded everyone to keep hydrated.

• Is using a propane torch to light the charcoal grill considered cheating?

Wednesday Whims

• It seems I was ahead of the curve on this one. Yesterday, when I asked about the poo cleaning schedule, it appears I was not alone. The lady mentioned that "they" were trying to do something about the geese problem.

• This morning, I see the front page of the Post Register:

Post Register

• I like the geese, they aren't hostile and it's amazing how comfortable they are in close proximity to humans (inches). 

• If you want to feed the geese at the Greenbelt, then plan on doing that sooner than later (after the Friday cleaning would be ideal).

• Local News 8 reported this on May 15th, but the Post Register has the latest. They spoke to the Parks and Recreation Director, Greg Weitzel and commissioner, John Parsons. Weitzel is for the removal of all birds -50, (how he came up with that number I don't know) and says, "You can't even walk around down there". On the other side of.. the.. poo? is Parsons. To pull a quote from the Post Register's article beautifully written by Christina Lords, Parson's says "We moved to this city, in part for the greenbelt and the geese..". 

• Firecracker 5k is tomorrow morning.

Tuesday Twist-Off (late)

• Looking through the past posts I realized this one said draft next to it.  Upon further inspection, it didn't post.

• Parks & Rec does clean the poo path.. or path of poo! Every Friday the path gets cleaned with a sweeper machine. Their shifts start at 7:30 AM so depending on where they start and where you start, you can figure out your poo free running / cycling start time.

• Wakeboarding without a wake? Maybe they should come up with a different name for it. Cableboarding? This still sounds fun but after 2 hours I would be exhausted. 2 hours is the minimum amount of time offered for $20 and if you don't have a wakeboard then it's an extra $10. How many people that live in as cold a climate as we do, own a wakeboard? My guess.. not very many. $30/ 2 hours. See their site here.

• Of course the 13 year old lasted the full 2 hours. Way to get your money's worth.

• I saw a pile of what appeared to be beach sand near the boat launching bays near the greenbelt. 

• Called Parks & Recreation for cleaning schedule.. no answer but I did leave a message. We'll see.

• I have always celebrated the 4th of July, and stayed awake on New Years Eve (party poopers). Days when an abnormal amount of people are doing the same thing makes it special, makes it american when it's the 4th of July.

• Melaleuca has an ever so exciting countdown timer on their website here. As of now 1 day, 14 hours, 54 minutes and 50 seconds until 17,261 fireworks are crammed into 31 minutes. Be there (and be in aaaahh.. ) or be eewww. (TF). Shows starts at 10 PM.

• High of 96! These temps feel like Texas weather.

Mashed Monday

Mmmm..  jerky jobs!

Nothing quite like chewing on flavored dried up animal flesh.. then spending the next hour or so trying to dig it all out of your teeth (I really do love jerky).  I haven't tried Golden Valley's jerky yet but after watching their video, I now believe that when I eat their jerky I'll be teleported to the back of a wagon heading west.

• Golden Valley Natural's new processing plant in Shelley will be ready in August.
• 300 jobs (plus or minus 100) will need to be filled
• The majority of these will probably require a High School diploma
• Which is good news since 62% of their pop. over 25 have High School diplomas.
• 6.4% unemployment (city-data.com)
• "200-400 jobs"? That's quite the range, couldn't be any more precise?

full story here from local news 8.

• This blog took longer than I anticipated to prepare everything and get to posting. Still more changes to make, "widgets" to add, tweak formatting, fun stuff though.

• Snowden : I refer to him as Snow Splinter, not only for being the huge rat that he is but a pain in the US's backside as well (double points). If you are entrusted by anyone (especially your government) to keep secrets, KEEP the secret.. secret. Were these really that big of secrets? What did everyone think Cyber-Warfare meant? If your email can be used against you in court, then there has to be a log kept right? If you want to keep a secret, keep it off the internet, that's nothing new.

• Reason for Request of Asylum: I ratted on my country. Who's defense budget is around $689 Billion. I scared! 

• After being a new dad for 6 months:
• I can pour 6 ounces of water in a bottle by sound.
• I can open a bottle of water with one hand (holding my son in the other).
• Lacking a third arm, I use my toes more and more like fingers (don't worry I clean them daily, and not just stand in the soapy water).

• I ran yesterday along the beautiful Greenbelt. One thing though, there's only so many places to step without landing in poo! Eventhough I have to knock the dog/geese fecies off my shoes afterwards, it is still worth it (too far?). Going to find out the cleaning schedule there so I can time my next run.

• BS is out for the week, being alone (with my son) in the house is calming.

• If Wikileaks is working with Splinter, and leaky head Julian Assange's whereabouts are known, can't we just call in Jack Bauer? Next we'll hear that anonymous is helping him out too.

• Speaking of which, the New York Times says he is! Too bad it's not starting until May of next year though. I loved that show. If you're into "intense" action and cliffhangers.. and can wait a week between shows, then jump in. Otherwise wait till it's over and watch it all at once.

• Encampment was quite the experience for the 13 year old in the house. Let's just say there were certain expectations from the other kids and adults that were far from met.

• 68-32 vote on immigration reform bill, Crapo voted no. Illegals will have to learn English to return, I like that part but how well will they have to know it? I want to see the test.

• How would the Democratic party benefit from making 10.8 million illegals, legal? Hmmm..

Test: Post about a post

Introduction

Since this is my first post on Too far man.. too far. I feel there needs to be at least some sort of an introduction to provide some insight into who it is that is saying all of this. I was raised in a small town in Texas, went to college, joined the Navy as a CTT (Cryptologic Technician (Technician), moved to Idaho, lucky enough to meet the woman of my dreams, married in Vegas, no there were not any Elvis impersonators involved.

     I'm sarcastic a smidgen and seldom will I hold back what my thoughts are. I was raised by the most wonderful Republican/Independent (come on Ross Perot had vision) voters in the world. Even though I grew up in a R household, you may be the judge as to where I lie if you feel so inclined to put me in a box. I enjoy keeping up with politics and news but do not always enjoy how they are presented or how they are forgotten. My goal here is to present each news story and spark a discussion that leads to learning and ideally some form of resolve although not always a feasible task for all involved. Over time we have the potential to grow and become influential within, at the minimum, in our county.

This blog will be about local news and issues within the Idaho Falls and surrounding areas and news within the US with some world news as well.  Since I am still learning about the Blogger features, setting up and how to do everything, this is a test/learning post to see how everything should be laid out.  Any and all input is encouraged. Enjoy.


Here's the first and entirely too close to even be considered news to anyone but myself (end of my driveway) news post.. about a post.. that had a box attached to it.

Ohhh the devastation!

This is the result of buying a classy (Home Depot) mailbox in the Summer, completely forgetting about the huge amounts of snow (occasionally, not much the past 2 years), and lacking the foresight to think 'how would this mail box stand up against a snow plow?'.

• I'm sure that's a common Texan transplant mistake, right? There's hardly any snow there and I've never seen a snowplow there.

I read Road & Bridge's policy on 'mailbox death by snowplow' after my brother in-law (Basement Squatter - BS) happily informed me of its demise and found something along the lines of - Any damage to your mailbox is not our responsibility.

• So much for calling to complain or get reimbursed, I suppose I could have complained but what good would that have done, none. It may have even backfired on me if my mailbox didn't meet their specifications.

Analysis:

Thinking of it as the crime scene that it was (as any normal person or CSI fan would), I documented it thoroughly.

• Do not contaminate the crime scene until forensics comes through and photographs everything. (Forensics team: me, myself, I and Daniel)

Who: Bonneville County Employee/Contractor - Plowman
What: Snowplow + snow + moving
Victim: Impulse buy, Cheap and Ez receptacle that meets USPS standards.
Result: The snowplow sheared that expensive plastic right off, mailbox didn't stand a chance. BS wanting to prove his worth jumps to the rescue and throws on two 2x4s, and throws out any chance of class. (picture of mailbox now next post)
Lesson: Always be aware of any threat your belongings may be subjected to and take the necessary precautions to deal with that threat in a timely manner before this happens to you.