AIRLINES

I've flown a lot. So much I lost count over the years. I understand traveling can be a headache, and that airline employees are people too and it can be a tough job. But do they understand the passengers are people too? I had the absolute worst experience flying a certain airline over the weekend. I was traveling with my 3 year old son Jack to New Jersey and the trip back on Monday was unbelievable. I stood there and watched a ticket counter clerk literally scream and berate a passenger simply because he didn't know the process. There are self-serve touch-pad computer screens for check-in but then if you're checking luggage you still have to see a clerk. A line had formed because a lot of people don't fly often and they didn't know what to do. This jackass starts admonishing the entire line, "Whaddya all in a line for?! It's self serve!! There's no need to be in a line. You!" He singles out this one poor guy, an inexperienced traveler flying alone. "Where you going!?" He answers him. "Then what the hell are ya standin' there for!!?" I'm talking major yelling here. No paying customer should ever be treated like this. The poor guy tried to explain that he was confused because he had to check luggage and he was waiting for a clerk, and in a way he was right in that he eventually did need one. This clerk went on to just rip him a new one, making fun of him in front of the whole crowd with his obnoxious condescending hollering. I swear to God, on that particular day, every single employee I had contact with from the front ticket counter to the gate to the plane was rude to the point of hostility. And the flight was delayed over three hours. And I had a three year old, who through it all somehow managed to be a better person than any airline employee we came across. I don't know what's going on with the airline industry that they are treating people this way. It seems to me because they get to operate under the protection of federal regulations, where if you simply raise your voice back to them to match their tone they can have you pulled by security and possibly arrested, they've lost all sense of appropriate behavior and business conduct. They are running their own private little dictatorship behind that counter and God help anyone who stands up to it.

ANOTHER HILLARY AND SOME OTHER STUFF

Check this out. Hillary's campaign won't stuff sending me stuff now. Here's the latest:


Dear Jeff, Together, you and I changed America forever. We touched so many lives over the course of this campaign, and I can't thank you enough for the support you showed me. I met so many wonderful people out on the trail, and I wanted to share some of those memories with you. I hope you'll take a moment to view our online album with some favorite photos from the campaign. Thank you so much -- I'll be in touch soon.

Sincerely,

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Boy, one hate email and somehow I'm her friend forever, lol. I've changed America! LOL.

Hey by the way I haven't posted anything for awhile mostly because I had no power from last Sunday at 5pm until late Thursday night. Then I was busy trying to catch up on some things like laundry and food (it all spoiled, hundreds of dollars worth) on Friday, then Friday at 6pm it went out AGAIN until the next afternoon. Then I was tied up with family gathering, Father's Day stuff. So yeah, I need a generator. Since I moved to this neighborhood two years ago we've lost count of how often we've lost power. The spoiled food thing is such a drag. We had JUST stocked up on a lot of stuff when the outage hit. Then we lost a little more two days ago with the second round. They say your homeowner's insurance may cover this but I'm told only if you have a receipt for your food and only the perishable items of course so it has to be an itemized receipt. I don't know about you but food is not something I normally hang on to the receipt for.

I feel a little bad for DTE. I've heard so many people are complaining to state regulators about how long it took for restoration. Seems to me they did their best though. You can have a few hundred thousand customers out because of 50 problems or because of 2,000 separate little breaks, and we've all read how these storms caused the latter. I want to believe they did their best under difficult circumstances.

Father's Day was cool. I spent the morning with my son. Jack took me to see Kung Fu Panda then to Steak n Shake for lunch. Then I spent the afternoon with my daughter. Mina took me to the store, then to the playground, then out for ice cream. In the evening the kids took Stacee and me to a restaurant for dinner. They even bought me two beers. What great kids!

HILLARY

This is funny. After her hubris on June 3rd, when she implored people to write to her with 'their thoughts' of what she should do next (and this was clearly her trolling for a large number of people to urge her to take this fight right to the convention which of course didn't work), I went to her website and sent the following email:

Please formally concede. You're an embarrassment. Your mean politics and half-truths are relics. Your speech the evening of June 3rd was unnecessarily arrogant. Please, formally concede.

Sincerely,
Jeff Deminski

The funny part is the form email her campaign sent me on June the 6th in response. Here it is:


Dear Jeff,
I have been honored and privileged to work with so many dedicated people on Hillary's historic campaign. Your enthusiastic commitment to her campaign through the primaries has been inspirational. As you know, Hillary will be holding an event tomorrow in Washington D.C. to thank all of her supporters, to express her support for Senator Obama, and to talk about the issues that have been at the core of her public service, the issues she will continue fighting for. Hillary wanted to make sure her online supporters were a part of this special event, just as you have been a part of her campaign from the very beginning. So, we will be streaming it live over the website at HillaryClinton.com. We invite you to visit our website tomorrow, Saturday June 7, at 12 p.m. EDT to watch Hillary speak live. Thank you for everything you have done for our campaign.
Sincerely,
Maggie Williams
Campaign Manager
Hillary Clinton for President

MY ENTHUSIASTIC COMMITMENT??? THANKS FOR EVERYTHING I'VE DONE???

Oh well, it's all over now anyway, including the form emails.

CHAMPIONS

Congratulations Detroit Red Wings signs are all over metro Detroit. Even losers are congratulating the winners (cough * cough * KWAME* cough* cough*cough). Temperatures were high. Spirits higher. Mike Ilitch even got choked up thinking about what a win like this does for the heart and soul of a region so used to losing lately. So get this...after today's parade both Jay the Cable Guy and Pat the Weirdo were partying at Cheli's Chili. Who walks in but Osgood himself with the Stanley Cup. According to the guys, Osgood jumps up on the bar (or a table, not sure which) and starts filling the Stanley Cup with rounds of beer and letting the fans drink out of the cup. Jay and Weirdo both got to have a drink straight out of the Stanley Cup. How completely cool is that!? And Rudy hasn't even drank from the fuzzy cup yet. HAHAHA. Sorry Rudy.

HEY PITTSBURGH...

GO HOME AND GET YOUR F'ING SHINE BOX!
Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings!!!
What a killer finish. Down to the wire, puck flirting near the goal line dancing right by Osgood as the clock expires, but it wasn't Pittsburgh's year. It was Detroit's. And how about that weird 3rd goal for the Red Wings which to me looked like it was kicked in off Fleury's left ass cheek. How funny is that? Your own ass cheek dooms your team from bringing it into overtime. After three years of playoff disappointment for the Pistons and a terrible year so far for the Tigers it's nice to see Detroit win another championship. Way to go guys!

CHECKING IN

I was in Houston, TX the last few days. What an incredible city. Cool blend of old and new buildings, lots to do, great people and of course the weather kicks ass. It was 93 about every day I was there. So what I really wanted to mention was Wednesday night's Red Wings game. Didn't want to watch it in my room alone so I asked around about sports bars but I figured even that would be a long shot. Houston has no NHL team, and the interest level in hockey in places outside Detroit isn't even lukewarm for the most part. But they told me of a place called The Maple Leaf. Owner came down from Canada to open this bar in Houston, TX. I walk in to see at least 8 people sitting at the bar wearing Red Wings jerseys. More still at the tables. The rest of the idiots were Pittsburgh fans but whaddya gonna do? It was a good friendly rivalry inside the place. Unfortunately that was the night they lost but it was a great down to the wire game. One Wings fan I met was a guy named Kirt who up until 18 months ago lived in Lansing. Moved to Houston to take a better job. He talked about how much better the economy is there, how friendly the people are, how much better the weather is, and how badly he misses Michigan. Don't we all feel that way? Maybe your home could use new carpet and the gutters leak but it's your home, ya know?

NATHANIEL ABRAHAM

Back in 99 we were brand new to Detroit when this punk's trial happened. He was 11 when he was arrested for the murder. As I said then, he should be doing life in prison. He took a man's life. On purpose. This wasn't stealing a candy bar or selling weed or even joy riding in a stolen car. This was murder. You'll remember Nathaniel Abraham being released from prison at 21 last year and was walking around wearing the pimp suit. Didn't we all see the writing on the wall at that point? So he's been arrested for selling drugs in Pontiac. A Wayne County Circuit Judge Craig Strong who had supported Abraham said, "There are a lot of people out there who wanted something like this to happen." Don't speak for me your honor. I didn't WANT it to happen; I just felt like it would. After all the bullshit excuses and bullshit fairy tales of how he's going to make something of himself his thug nature couldn't be suppressed. Told you so. Just lock him up before he kills someone again. Please.

OBAMA VS. CLINTON

The DNC compromise still leaves Obama far ahead of Clinton. By the equivalent of 174 votes according to CNN. I've also read it was 178. Whatever. I'm too tired to do that math, lol. The compromise was Florida and Michigan, the rogue states who pushed early primaries, will seat delegates but get only half votes. Even if they were given full votes they say Clinton still could not have overtaken Obama's lead. Seems to me Clinton's been hoping for this change in the popular votes count in order to persuade super delegates back to her side and hijack the whole thing at the convention. But popular vote is not the rule by which a candidate is nominated. Not anymore than popular vote elects a president (cough*cough*AL GORE*cough). Funny thing in that Michigan primary. Hillary was the only name on the ballot. The other choice was uncommitted. So that's her bragging right? That's how Saddam Hussein would have won an election too. And the vote broke down 55% Clinton, 44% uncommitted. So it was that close race against what appeared to be nobody? Weak argument Hillary, very weak.

RED WINGS AGAIN

Awesome win last night. If you have tickets for Monday, enjoy the hell out of the game you lucky bastard! I'll be watching from my living room. GO WINGS!