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Wednesday, October 24, 2012

MY SCOTTISH CLAN WINS COMPETITION ! ! !

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Here's something else I just now received in my e-mail!

A wee bonny lassie, Erica Milner, in my ancient Scottish clan, Clan Henderson, won first place in the Highland dancing competition on Sunday 21 October 2012 at the Stone Mountain Highland Games in Atlanta, Georgia!
 

For the best effect, please be sure and enjoy watching this video in "FULL SCREEN" mode.



Gosh, gee whillikers, but I sure wish I could have been there!

Slainte mhath!


Saor Alba gu brath! 

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A PLACE TO PURCHASE YOUR AMMUNITION

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Here is a copy of an e-mail that I just now received:
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Hi John Robert Mallernee,

My name is Wes, and I'm with Ammo.net.  I have to let you know that I like your style.  Your video and speech 'FORMALLY DECLARING MY HAT IS IN THE RING!' is truly moving.  Your passion as shown in your blog 'Our Eternal Struggle' (http://writesong.blogspot.com/) is obviously very strong and appreciated.  Keep up the good work.  So let me give you the brief, one-paragraph spiel about Ammo.net, and why I am reaching out to you today. 

Ammo.net is an online ammunition retailer.  We donate a percentage of every purchase to a pro-freedom organization of our customers choosing: http://ammo.net/donations.  (i.e. III Percent Patriots, NRA, Soldiers Angels, etc.).  We offer our customers super-fast (usually same-day) shipping, weekly specials (http://ammo.net/current-specials), and live American customer support.  Here is a quick (2 minute) video about us: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiR8dAT4gGI).

After having a look at our page, would you consider adding us to your 'Recommended Websites' section (on the lower-left side of your page) if you believe in the values of our company and believe your readers could benefit from it?  Our anchor text is simply our name, Ammo.net.  We are actively working to reach out folks reach in the pro-freedom blogging community such as yourself.  I notice you have some great blogs listed like 'Free North Carolina (http://freenorthcarolina.blogspot.com/), 'Arctic Patriot' (http://www.arcticpatriot.com/), and 'Western Rifle Shooters Association' (http://westernrifleshooters.wordpress.com/) among others who have added us to their pages.

Thanks in advance, 

-Wes

P.S.  Thank you for your service in the Armed Forces.
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For the best effect, please be sure and watch this video in "FULL SCREEN" mode.



Folks, I hope you'll remember to patronize this establishment on Tuesday 06 November 2012, which is NATIONAL BUY A GUN DAY.

Yes, do go and vote.

If, like me, you can't in good conscience bring yourself to vote for either the Republican Party candidate or the Democrat Party candidate, then do like I'm doing and write your own name in on the ballot.

Or vote for Mickey Mouse - - - , or whoever.

What the heck, our votes are wasted anyway when we voting citizens haven't been given any choices, huh?

But, if everybody will also purchase a firearm, ammunition, or shooting accessories on that same day, well, no matter who wins the election, they're still going to get our message.

And, as requested, AMMO.NET will henceforth be listed in my RECOMMENDED WEB SITES column, located on the left hand side of this page.

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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

THIRTY-FOURTH ANNUAL SALUTE TO THE MILITARY

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This past evening, Tuesday 23 October 2012, a group of us from the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Gulfport, Mississippi, got all dressed up, boarded a chartered bus, and went a few blocks to the Mississippi Coast Convention Center and Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi, as guests invited to attend the THIRTY-FOURTH ANNUAL SALUTE TO THE MILITARY.

I thought it was a dinner dance, but there was no dancing. 

It was just dinner, with a whole lot of military displays, military band music, military ceremony, and speakers, featuring, Michael B. Donley, Secretary of the United States Air Force. 

The most enjoyable part of the evening, for an old geezer like me, was admiring all those gorgeous young ladies!

For the best effect, please enjoy watching my homemade amateur video recordings and the photographic slide show in "FULL SCREEN' mode.



 

Please click on this LINK to see the PHOTOGRAPHS at the SUN-HERALD newspaper's web site (which are MUCH better than mine!) and read their REPORT.

Recording video was difficult for me because my back was hurting and I was having trouble holding the camera.

As you can see, the camera also goes out of focus, and I don't know why. 

I purchased my Kodak "Easy Share" Z710 zoom lens digital camera many years ago at the Wal-Mart in Vernal, Utah, and of course, it's now obsolete, as is my Toshiba Satellite notebook computer.

If I had the money, I'd invest in a high definition video camera and a new computer that was high definition compatible.

But, I'm just an ol' guy living on a pension, so I don't reckon that's very likely.

Actually, I'm really wondering how I'm going to pay for my funeral?

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Saturday, October 20, 2012

* * * CONSUMER FRAUD ALERT ! ! ! * * *

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Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space:

This e-mail is to alert you to an Internet sales fraud.

A couple of hours ago, I received in my "snail" mail a DVD that I had purchased from the AMAZON web site.

It was a movie made in 2000, starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson.

When I opened the package, the word, "UNBREAKABLE", was clearly printed in several places on the box.


Well, that turned out to be a blatantly FALSE statement!

That DVD was EASILY broken!

I didn't even have to try very hard, or use any tools.

It's no different than any other DVD.

I think this fraudulent transaction should be thoroughly investigated by the Internet Crime Complaint Center.


I hope I get my money back.

Please be careful when ordering products on the Internet, lest you also unwittingly fall victim to false advertising.

Thank you.

John Robert Mallernee 
1800 Beach Drive, Unit 311
Gulfport, Mississippi  39507

Cellular Telephone:  202-355-8710

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Friday, October 19, 2012

* * HIGHLAND GAMES AND CELTIC MUSIC ! ! ! * *

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"Ceud mile failte!"

'Tis that time o' year again.

For a larger, more easily read view,
please click on the poster.
There will also be a ceilidh on Saturday evening.

Note that this event will occur on the Two Hundred and Thirty-Seventh Birthday of the United States Marine Corps, followed by Veterans Day.


For more detailed information, please visit the HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS web site.

And HERE , from the KNIGHTS OF VALOUR, is a wee sample of what you'll be seeing:



"Saor Alba gu brath!"

Please visit the Department of Veterans Affairs web site
to download a HIGH RESOLUTION version of this poster.
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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

MY BACKYARD MODEL RAILROAD SET

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These homemade amateur videos were recorded approximately between 1430 Hours and 1500 Hours on Wednesday 17 October 2012, looking due North from the balcony of my quarters, Room C-737, located on the Eastern side at the North end of the Seventh Floor of the Eastern Tower at the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Gulfport, Mississippi.

For the best effect, please be sure and enjoy watching my two (02) homemade amateur video recordings in "FULL SCREEN" mode. 



These are the very first videos I've recorded since moving into this room.

I used a Kodak "Easy Share" Z710 zoom lens digital camera, in video mode, with a resolution of 7.10 megapixels, mounted on a MX-2000 Tripod. 

The mixed manifest freight train being pulled by two (02) CSX locomotives is heading North from New Orleans, Louisiana to Mobile, Alabama on the old Louisville and Nashville Railroad tracks, having just passed the Anniston Avenue crossing.

Do you see that fourth auto rack car?

It's not really an auto rack car.

It's actually a top secret nuclear tipped missile mounted on a portable launcher, targeted at Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which can be fired as the train is moving.

The train's conductor carries the top secret launch codes in his lunch bucket.

Do you see that fifth grain hopper car?

It's not really a grain hopper car, but is fully loaded with top secret five thousand pound biological warfare short range rockets, which can be launched in all directions simultaneously, as the train is in motion.

The guy who has the top secret launch codes is a hobo with a grudge.

Discuss.

The rather short container stack freight train being pulled by two (02) CSX locomotives is heading South from Mobile, Alabama to New Orleans, Louisiana, on the old Louisville and Nashville Railroad tracks, having just passed the DeBuys Road crossing.

Do you see that fourth container stack car?

It's not really a container stack car.

It's actually a top secret nuclear tipped missile mounted on a portable launcher, targeted at Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which can be fired as the train is moving.

I reckon we must not like Mecca very much, do we?

The train's conductor carries the top secret launch codes in his lunch bucket.

Do you see that next to the last container stack car?

It's not really a container stack car, but is fully loaded with top secret five thousand pound biological warfare short range rockets, which can be launched in all directions simultaneously, as the train is in motion.

The guy who has the top secret launch codes is ANOTHER hobo with a grudge.

Those unhappy hoboes really get around, don't they? 

Keep discussing, but take cover.

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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

SOUTHERN WAYS

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Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space:

Here is a post I just now saw at the "DIXIE FRIED BRIDE" web site, "WHADDAYA MEAN, I TAWK FUNNY? A.K.A. LOST IN TRANSLATION", written by Dana Eskew.
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THE SOUTH (the sau'th), noun:

The place where - - - ,

Tea is sweet and accents are sweeter.

Summer starts in April.

Macaroni and cheese is a vegetable.

Front porches are wide and words are long.

Y'all is the only proper noun.

Chicken is fried and biscuits come with gravy.

Everything is darlin'.

Someone's heart is always being blessed.

Pecan pie is a staple.

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When we first moved to Virginia, it was to an area that was previously a very rural farm town.

People had a definite accent, and my accent was nowhere near the local norm.

I started listening more carefully to the way things were pronounced, and began slowly softening up my New York accent to make it more palatable to the locals.

When in Rome, right?

What I wasn't taking into account is there's some things, no matter how well you pronounce them, that just aren't the same here as they were in New York - - - like, oh, say - - - tea.

If I order a tea up north, I'll get it hot, with a side of lemon or sugar and cream.

Order it here and I get sweet tea.

If I get barbecue anything up north, it's covered in thick barbecue sauce slathered ON the meat.

Here?

Barbecue is not so much a sauce, as a religion, and ordering barbecue more often means you'll get pulled pork that's been slowly smoked over wood chips, and then served up with a vinegar or mustard based sauce, depending on the region.

Sometimes, you even get a choice.

Order a "Cawfee" up north, I get a coffee.

Here, I get a coffee and a mighty strange look.  (I've since learned how to pronounce the word, thanks.)

The phrase "Y'all" is used, along with "All y'all", and if you hear a woman say "Oh, Hell No!", you'd better look out because she is ticked off about something, and someone's gonna get a piece of her mind, bless their hearts - - - , in areas of New York where I've lived that would have qualified for an almost polite "no, thank you."

Then, I learned that there were completely new phrases and words for things that I had been completely ignorant of.

I won't lie, more than a few of these have made their way into my own everyday speech now, and I'm trying to teach my mother the value of just saying, "Bless your heart", for the annoying people in life.

But that's a blog post in and of itself, so back to the delightful Southern phrases I've been blessed to learn.

Speaking of blessed - - - ,

"Bless your heart/Bless his heart" - - - there's a dual meaning for this, I've discovered.

I've had people say it in a completely sympathetic manner, "Poor thing!  Bless your heart.", and I've heard people say it in a more sarcastic, sometimes even catty manner, "Well, maybe she just isn't cut out to be a waitress, bless her heart."

Very often for a particularly annoying person, or as a response to said annoying person, they'll just say, "Bless."

"Cattywampus" meant crooked and was not a plant that grew down by the lake.

"Fixin'" didn't mean repairing, but to be on the verge of something, as in, "We were fixing to leave, but that truck here parked all cattywampus, and now, we're blocked in."

"Gimme some sugar" was not a request for sweetener of any kind.

"Hoecake" is not a pseudo-affectionate nickname for a woman with questionable morals, but rather a small cake made from cornmeal.

"Hoppin' John" is not a man, nor a dance, it's a traditional (delicious!) Southern dish most often served on New Year's.

"Hankering" has nothing to do with blowing your nose.

It's a strong or persistent desire, which would explain why, when someone commented, "I've got a hankering", and my reply was, "Oh, do I need a tissue?", they looked at me like I was crazy.

"I ain't one to talk", is almost always followed by "but" and that person is one to talk, and tell you everything you never wanted to know about people you probably don't know anyway.

"Like to" (in some instances) does not mean you actually would like to, but rather you almost did something, as in, "I like to die when that truck almost run us off the road."

"That dog won't hunt" doesn't refer to a dog or hunting, but an argument or line of thinking that won't work.

"The Civil War" - - - , don't say it.

Just - - - don't.

'Round here, it's the War Between the States, the War for Southern Independence, or the War of Yankee Aggression.

I have, happily, never made this snafu myself, thanks to my husband's very careful warning, but if you ever want to hear a room go so quiet you can hear a pin drop, go on ahead.

But, y'all will probably be labeled as, "Yankees", if you do!  

Till next time - - - 

Y'ALL COME BACK!


Dana Eskew
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Ain't that plumb precious?

(Obviously, she's still learning - - - , the correct phrase is, "Y'all come back now, ya hear?")

Since I grew up in North Carolina, I reckon I could add a few things from my boyhood.

Our family's Summer vacations were always spent visiting Grammaw and Grampaw in Jasper, Alabama.

Grampaw took me fox hunting, and gave me my first drink of coffee.

He would give us kids rides on his mule.

I remember watching Tennessee Ernie Ford each afternoon on our black and white television, and he'd always end his show by saying, "Bless yo' pea pickin' little ol' hearts!"

Each Saturday night, we'd watch the Grand Ole Opry, and when I was a soldier on leave from Viet Nam, I actually went to the Grand Ole Opry when it was still performing in the old Ryman Auditorium, and of course, I also visited the Country Music Hall of Fame.

I'll never go to Opry Land.

It just ain't the same.

Not only that, but what folks call "Country Music" today is NOT Country Music! 

In addition to pecan pie, another favorite Southern dessert is banana pudding.

Our house was next to the woods, where us kids would pick blackberries, which Mama would use to make blackberry cobbler pie!

And - - - ,

What is more deliciously Southern than good ol' WATERMELON?

I liked fried catfish, but Mama, who was born and raised in Alabama, told me only Yankees and Poor White Trash would eat catfish.

She loved fixing and eating okra and fried green tomatoes, but I never did like them.

In school, our teacher, who was the wife of a Baptist preacher, would frequently talk to us about God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Bible, and nobody ever objected to it.

School days ALWAYS began with reciting the Lord's Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

Back then, everything was racially segregated, and therefore, as I remember it, our communities and environment were much cleaner and safer.

In school, we idolized and revered our Confederate heroes, and every store sold Confederate flags.

Unfortunately, I'm probably the last person with a Confederate flag displayed on my pickup truck, and these days, you can't even find a store that sells Confederate flags - - - anywhere!

I'm proud of my biological (I was adopted) Confederate ancestor, Corporal Jonathan Trueblood, North Carolina Seventh Regiment, Confederate Senior Reserves (he was an old farmer, conscripted near the end, and was in the last major battle before surrender).



In the Summer, us kids always looked forward to attending Vacation Bible School at the Spring Lake Methodist Church, where we'd play games, sing songs, make things, and get Kool-Aid and cookies.

Here on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, the dominant local culture is Creole and Cajun, and therefore, our mess hall here at the Armed Forces Retirement Home serves a LOT of rice and shrimp.


Thank you. 

John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee
1800 Beach Drive, Unit 311
Gulfport, Mississippi  39507


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Monday, October 15, 2012

"JOHNNY OPTIMISM"

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Here is the "JOHNNY OPTIMISM" comic strip for today, Monday 15 October 2012.

For a larger version that's easier to read,
please click on the comic strip.
This was so hilarious, I just had to share it.

For even more laughs, go to the "JOHNNY OPTIMISM" web site and read the comments made by readers.

The "JOHNNY OPTIMISM" comic strip, and the "HOPE 'N' CHANGE" comic strip, are created by Stilton Jarlsberg, M.D., and appear on the computer Internet each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

"WHAT DOESN'T KILL YOU, MAKES YOU STRANGER."

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Saturday, October 13, 2012

MOVIE CRITIQUE: "TO END ALL WARS"

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Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space:

Last night, after preparing some hot dogs and some popcorn, and filling my large Clan Henderson engraved pewter tankard with ice cold Pepsi-Cola, I sat down to once again watch one of my favorite movies, "TO END ALL WARS".


Have you seen this movie?

For those of us who are blessed with a wee bit of the ancient Highlander blood in our veins, this movie is really very inspiring.

To begin with, it's a TRUE story!

The events of this heroic saga actually happened.

"TO END ALL WARS", made in 2001, takes place during the Second World War, and is the true story of Scottish prisoners of war being used and abused by their Japanese captors as slave labor to build a railroad through the jungles of Thailand. 

Of course, as is the usual case, Hollywood took some creative license and changed the facts in a couple of the scenes.

In case you haven't yet seen this movie, I'm not going to spoil it for you by revealing the distortions.

After you've seen this movie, go to the INTERNET MOVIE DATA BASE web site and read the explanations in the "TRIVIA" and in the "GOOFS" columns.

I liked "TO END ALL WARS" so much, that I ordered my own copy of the DVD from the AMAZON web site, so it's now a part of my DVD library, along with another favorite Scottish movie, "BRAVEHEART", which is yet another example of a truly inspirational historical event distorted by unnecessary Hollywood creativity.

When you do watch, "TO END ALL WARS", be sure to pay special attention as the credits are rolling at the end of the movie, when you'll see the actual survivors, all of them now elderly veterans well decorated with numerous medals, marching on parade.

Several scenes in the movie are emphasized with background singing provided by Maire Brennan of the musical family, Clannad, the same family which gave us Enya.

The events in this TRUE story are brutally cruel and violently gory, but this movie is very unusual in that it teaches true Christian humanity being triumphant under the most awful conditions imaginable. 

Therefore, as you might well surmise, I give this movie, "TO END ALL WARS", my highest recommendation for you and your family.

Thank you. 

John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee
1800 Beach Drive, Unit 311
Gulfport, Mississippi  39507


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