From the East Wing, With Quantum Mechanics, Ice Saints, Sophia In Arizona, Laboratory Frogs & PLayboy Mansions

Greetings to all, and welcome new friends to the East Wing.

Quantum Mechanics, did ya ever hear of such things as Quantum Mechanics? Well it’s talking ‘bout how little things work, I mean really, really little things, things ya can’t even see, how those things work. It turns out that even little things we can’t see, they have a particular way of doing business in nature. It’s the way the universe works. It’s the reason the universe works.

Last week I had an opportunity to talk ‘bout Quantum Mechanics with a friend of mine. We neither one fully understand Quantum Mechanics, but we sounded like we did, unless ya knew more ‘bout Quantum Mechanics than we do. It has to do with energy and matter and time and how they all work with each other, and especially the really little bits and pieces that make up that matter part. Kinda cool stuff, that Quantum Mechanics. Can ya just imagine all the matter in the universe condensed to a size of a baseball? Me neither.

We didn’t talk ‘bout that too much when I was a kid in Toto. We just talked ‘bout other things and never got around to that Quantum Mechanics. But I’m sure there were a lot of people in Toto at that time that knew all ‘bout it. Especially the Toto Volunteers, we knew ‘bout a lot of stuff. But I’m not sure if we knew ‘bout Quantum Mechanics then or not. We may have, but not all of us.

It was fun to talk ‘bout photons and electrons, and things even smaller than those, had not done so in a long time, a long time, and it was time to do so again. It was fun, talking ‘bout Quantum Mechanics. Little stuff, really, really little stuff, those protons and electrons. Ya can’t see ‘em but I know ‘bout ‘em, ‘cause they’re everywhere. Everywhere I look, kinda like hillbillies in Starke County.

Did ya feel the chill of winter last Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday Morning? Could’ve been the Ice Saints. Ice Saints? Oh sure, Mamertus, Pancras, and Gervais , these are the names of three Saints of the Catholic Church. Their Saint Days are May 11, 12 13th , and ya know what, almost every year these three or four days are a cold period. Saint Boniface’s Saint Day is May 14th, and he’s also associated with the cold snap of the Ice Saints.

It used to be that farmers wouldn’t plant until after the frost of the Ice Saints had pasted. In Germany this time was known as the Icemen Days. Blackthorn Winds are sometimes associated with the Ice Saints. A few days near mid May when the wind blows cold, almost every year, the Ice Saints cometh.

Oh, the month of May! Named after Maia, the Roman Goddess of spring and growth. May used to be the third month, then somebody jerked around with the calendar and May ended up the fifth month, go figure.

I think it was Jules Cesar, or one of those Caesars’ that jerked around and May ended up fifth. it’s hard to tell with those Caesars’ ‘cause they all look alike. Did ya ever see pictures of those Caesars? They wore bed sheets, even in the day time, which is kinda cool. Sounds like something they still do in San Francisco. Oh there’s some pretty boys out there for sure, bed sheets and all. That San Francisco crowd, Nancy Pelosi’s hometown.

When May comes to Indiana, the world turns green. The cold of winter’s gone and the heat of summer’s not yet come. Stuff starts to grow in May. In fact, it’s hard to keep stuff from not growing in May. The world turns into one Giant Green Thumb when May Days come by.

Grass grows, flowers bloom, trees blossom, forsythia, dogwood, violets, lilacs, jack-in-the-box, lily of the valley, along with that pretty little springtime friend of mine, that pretty little dandelion. Wow! That list could go on and on. Birds are setting on their eggs tucked inside their warm nest come May. Baby birds are just a few days away. My outside cats are looking forward to the baby birds.

May is an important month in the Catholic Church. The month of May is devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. Gentle Woman, Mother of God. We can all learn from gentle women.

Kentucky Derby, Cisco De Moy, Mothers Day, BobbyRay’s Birthday, Indianapolis 500, Memorial Day, are some of the biggies in the month of May. Now there’re some lesser know but just as important special days in May, such things as International Respect for Chickens Month, National Skin Care Awareness Month Better Hearing and Speech Month (Think I could use both of those) National Duckling Month.

I think there should be an National Hillbilly Awareness Month, but I don’t know any Hillbillies to be aware of. Yeah, right.

Now I don’t know ‘bout you but that International Respect for Chickens Month is not real popular with most people I know. I guess it’s just hard to demonstrate a lot of respect for chickens. Especially if ya go to Richards of Toto on Sunday for a Chicken Dinner, like my mama does every Sunday. I don’t eat much chicken, my mama eats enough for both of us. But I do collect ‘em.

Got ‘bout 15 or 20 ceramic chickens, both inside and outside. Some big, some little, Pretty chickens all. More boy chickens than girl chickens, but just enough to keep everybody happy. And everybody knows that a happy chicken is like starting your day in the sunshine. Almost forgot, I got a couple stone chickens. Think ‘bout it, ya want to see something funny, “a stoned chicken. A stoned chicken is that gift that keeps on giving.

Last Thursday Sophia got back from Arizona, been out there in support of their new law on illegal aliens.
She said that over 75% of the people in Arizona support the law, the other 25% are the illegal aliens. They’re against it. DUH !

Heard an interesting exchange the other day on C-Span, the Attorney General was before a subcommittee, and when he was asked if he had read the Arizona Law which he had criticized on national television a few days back. He said no, he had not, he had concluded his opinion from the news media coverage which he took to accurately reflect the law in question. It turns out that even those most vocal in opposition haven’t read the law. The President didn’t and he criticized the law. The Attorney General of the United States didn’t. It seems hardly anybody has read the law, just jumped on the band wagon. Lemmings marching to the sea, wow, wonder who’s the piper?

The people of Arizona read the law, and loved it. I read the law. It’s less than a dozen pages, simple and very straight forward, easy to understand. One thing I found interesting was with all the volumes of opposition to that law, there were no links in any of the opposition statements on the internet allowing a simple click and read and let we the people decide and make up our minds on the issue.

Ya gotta go to the Arizona Government Web Site to find a copy of the law. It ya read it ya may be surprised. I was. I do expect to see many more states enact a very similar law. I wonder if there’s some sort of racial profiling going on in Washington DC. Is the Federal Government in Washington profiling the citizens of the State of Arizona? Is the state of California racially profiling the citizens of Arizona.? I wonder if the State of California has any problems with illegal aliens. Maybe they should ask those bed sheet people in San Francisco ‘bout illegal aliens in California. Didn’t the Governor out there used to be an alien? That’s probably why they don’t have any illegal alien problem in California.

Can’t figure out why we have so many laws that are never enforced, ever. And when someone insists that current law be enforced, everybody’s in an uproar. I’m not comfortable with anybody trying to tell me how to think, be it Rush Limbaugh or that joke of a Senator from Minnesota.

Thinking’s free and I know a whole lot of men and women who’re risking their lives the very minute you read these words, just so I’m free to do that sorta thing, that thinking part, and what’s so neat ‘bout the deal, everybody’s included all at the same time. Yes, thinking’s free. And so easy to do even when we’re wrong.

Not only are we free to think, but we’re free to shout our thoughts from the proverbial roof tops should we choose to do so, and many times we do choose to do so, right or wrong. It doesn’t matter when we choose to do so. For some people it seems that thinking just another word for nothing else to do.

Springtime nighttime sounds in the darkness fill my soul. Not having heard such in so long, I’m still enjoying my newly refound sounds of springtime nighttimes. The Bells of Spring, those little boy frogs.

Did I ever tell ya ‘bout the time I used frogs in a Medical Laboratory? Was a while back, when black & white TV dominated the air ways. I operated a Clinical Laboratory on the near North Side of Chicago, 1150 North State St. for those knowing that city, right down the street from the Playboy Mansion for you sinners that know Chicago, on the North side.

We provided laboratory analysis on various type samples taken from human bodies, I’ll not get into gory detail ‘bout some of that stuff, but it’s ok to talk ‘bout the frogs. We used the frogs to perform pregnancy test, using urine samples. Done a lot of ‘em, ‘bout 175 tests per day, 5 days a week. We used 2 frogs for each test. Now that’s a lot of frogs, do the math.

Got my frogs delivered every other day by UPS. 144 dozen frogs every week, delivered by UPS. Summer frogs came from upper Michigan and Wisconsin. Winter frogs came from South Africa. A long way for a frog to go to get a job, but there’s always been high unemployment is South Africa, even in the frog communities. Ya just do what ya gotta do, when it comes to work. They were called African Clawed Frogs.

And oh yeah, they’re all boys. Ya could only use boy frogs for the pregnancy test. It didn’t work with girl frogs, had to be boy frogs. Did anybody ever tell ye how to tell boy frogs from girl frogs? NO! not that way, shame on you, there is a better way. Boy frogs have thumbs, girl frogs don’t. That holds true cross the whole species of frogs, over 5000 species and all the boys have thumbs. Girl frogs from boy frogs, and another one of those little East Wing Jewels popped out into the world.

“Bout the Playboy Mansion, I used to have to go over there twice a month on a Monday morning to draw a fasting blood sample from one of the ladies who took care of the girls. Didn’t ever see anything though. But unlike most I can truly say I’ve been to the Playboy Mansion many, many time, too many to count. Didn’t ever see anything though. The 1wife was not too excited ‘bout me going to the Playboy Mansion. Invited her to go along, but she declined, I’m glad, ‘cause I’d have been really embarrassed to have to take my wife to work when I went to the Playboy Mansion. But I didn’t see anything though.

One of my management styles while I operated Medical Laboratories was to never assign work to a lab tech that I would not do myself. That management style served me well in dealing with the professional staff. They all knew I could and would do their work assignments. It was just that management style that required me to assign myself the job of the sample collection at the Playboy Mansion. I had some techs who offered to switch jobs with me but I didn’t want to impose on ‘em, so I just went ahead and done the job. But I didn’t see anything though. I did see Hugh Heffner one time.

It’s kinda neat that when ya see somebody famous, ya remember ‘em forever. I don’t think Hugh Heffner remembers BobbyRay. I shook hands with Richard Nixon one time, I don’t think he remembered me either, and I’m not even gona tell ye the story ‘bout me and Elvis when he appeared live at The Ohio State University when I was a graduate student back in 1974. Me and Elvis, it was such a time.

I’m forever amazed as to the extent people will go to state their opposition to our President. Late Friday Evening I received the following email. I can only conclude that the sender does not agree with the political agenda of the current President of the United States.

The email stated: “Just wanted to let you know - today I received my stimulus package for 2010. It contained two watermelon seeds, cornbread mix, and 10 coupons to KFC. The directions were in Spanish.”

One short email that offends black people (watermelon seeds) hillbillies (cornbread) my mama (KFC) and those illegal aliens in both Arizona as well as San Francisco. Not to mention the illegal aliens in Logansport Indiana or Starke County for that matter.

I couldn’t help but wonder if that cornbread mix was the kind with sugar, I hate that kind with sugar. It’s a hillbilly thing, hating that sweet cornbread.

That is one of the milder emails I get on a routine basis. Some of these things I would never print in mixed reading. One of the good things ‘bout writing from the East Wing is half think I am, and the other half thing I'm not. And guess what? They’re both right.

As the shades of evening are just starting to get ready to start to close, thank you for stopping by early this beautiful Spring Sunday, this middle of May.

Stay safe in Iraq and Afghanistan
From the East Wing, With Quantum Mechanics, Ice Saints, Sophia In Arizona, Laboratory Frogs & Playboy Mansions

I wish you well,
BobbyRay