Guilty or Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity

     I am puzzled by the verdict not guilty by reason of insanity.  Many times a person known to be guilty pleads, not guilty by reason of insanity, but wouldn’t the plea be more accurate if it was guilty but with special medical considerations.  It seems like the insanity plea is over used.  Has the insanity plea become a crutch for everyone who does something violently stupid and is trying to minimize his or her punishment?  I am fully aware that a malfunctioning brain will allow you do things that you may not normally do but that doesn't qualify you as being not guilty but guilty with extenuating circumstances.  It’s insulting to the American public when a known mass murderer pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.  

     I do not believe that every person that commits a stupid criminal act should be allowed to use the insanity plea.  The defense will have their expert and the prosecution will have their expert and of course both experts will disagree with the other, siding with whoever is paying their fee, Surprise! 

      Lately the pleas by defendants have become more creative than not guilty by reason of insanity.  We now have cases where the defendant uses Auto-brewery syndrome defense (this is where a persons body brews their own alcohol), Zombie defense (your fear of Zombies is so real that you are not responsible for your criminal actions) & Affluenza defense (you were raised in a privileged environment and have no understanding right and wrong).  All these defenses are geared to show that you are not responsible for your actions and should be given lenience.

     Maybe it's time for the courts to establish a stupidity plea.  The defendant could choose to opt for the stupidity plea and receive a reduced sentence for their honesty.  On the other hand if you choose the insanity plea or one of the other creative pleas and are found not to be an insane drunk zombie raised by irresponsible parents but just stupid, then extra time would be tacked on to your sentence for lying.


     This might seem ridiculous and I agree but we need to start thinking out of the box like the defense lawyers.  “Just Saying….”

The Economical Art of Smoking Meat

Many people are in to turning back the clock to do things the old way, which I guess releases stress, therefore relaxing.  My wife and kids bought a Weber Smoker for my birthday (a few years ago) so I could enjoy the relaxing pleasures of smoking a chicken or pork butt.  I never had this on my bucket list but it was a well-intentioned gift so who am I to question the reason for their choice.  Later my wife told me she thought about renting a high powered exotic car (Vroom) that I could drive for a couple of hours but she settled on the smoker instead, What?  She said the car ride would be over in a couple of hours and the smoker would bring joy to my life for years, Really?  Now I regularly use a propane grill, I can throw some burgers, chicken or steak on the grill and have a finished product in a reasonable amount of time, very low stress. 

Using a smoker harkens back to a simpler time when the modern advantages of propane and electric starters were not available.  Well as I previously said many people are looking for a piece of that simpler lifestyle.  You have to ask yourself what is the definition of simple, my thoughts lean to something that’s easy to do.

I was told that smoking a chicken was the easiest way to start so with this advice I bought a whole chicken for my 1^st smoking adventure.  The Internet can provide useful information to guide you through a process but they are all opinions which vary greatly so who do you believe.  What charcoal works best, briquettes or lump well the Internet gurus had strong opinions but 180 degrees different from each other.  So this was of no help.  I decided the best charcoal to use was the cheapest, either lump, briquettes or a combination, really how important can it be, it all burns.  One thing the Internet gurus did agree on was do not buy charcoal that is impregnated with lighter fluid.  Apparently it gives the meat a bad taste, but why is it acceptable to use in your regular grill?  I can only guess that people that use grills are not as refined as those that use smokers and cannot recognize bad tasting meat.

After putting the Weber smoker together I used the charcoal chimney to get the charcoal started which was by far the easiest part of this whole task.  Roll some newspaper up and place it in the bottom of the chimney then put the charcoal in the top, light the paper and a few minutes later you have hot flaming coals.  Based on this first step I was feeling pretty confident, I got this, no big deal.  Next I poured the hot coals into the bottom of the smoker, then I put the middle section on, carefully lowered the water pan in, put the top grate on and finally the lid.  I let it heat up before I put the pre-seasoned chicken on the top grill.  I was instructed to use the top grill if I was only cooking one item.  That seemed to make sense so I didn’t bother to ask why.

Once I felt the grill was reasonably hot I put the chicken on and hoped for the best. I went inside to relax when I suddenly realized I didn’t add the wood chips to the fire so I rushed out to load some hickory chips in the fire through the side door of the smoker.  How many wood chips do throw on the coals, I had no idea, so I just shoveled some in until it felt right.  This should have been done immediately after I put the coals in the smoker, but que sera sera . 

The temperature gauge on the smoker showed the smoking range to be 200 to 250 degrees and various Internet sites either agreed or disagreed so again not a lot of help.  Since Weber made the grill and installed the temperature gauge I decided I would use their range.  The instructions I received with the smoker told me a 5lb chicken should take about 6 hours so I proceeded to wait.  During this waiting period I found myself running out constantly to check the temperature and adjust the vents to keep it in the smoking range.  I found I was getting a better cardio workout than at the gym.

I had been using a propane fired grill for many years and not used to restocking the coals to keep the fire going.  So to my surprise I noticed the temperature going down so I would adjust the vents trying to bring the temperature back up which didn’t seem to work.  I then realized that the coals were ashes, so I threw some new charcoal in the smoker hoping there was enough burning embers to start the new coals but No.  So I had to restart the charcoal with the chimney starter and then shovel them into the smoker.  What a pain?

Eventually I was able to keep the temperature in the recommended smoking range and after about 7 hours  (to account for the temperature fluctuation) I removed the chicken and checked the internal temperature, it was done.  To my surprise it was juicy and good but so are the smoked chickens you buy at the grocery stores for about $6.95 however I would have missed the joy of smoking my own chicken. 

Now I needed to clean the chicken juice out of the water pan, that’s pretty disgusting and me carrying a pan full of chicken juice in the kitchen to dump in the sink is a disaster I don’t want to discuss, so I threw the chicken juice in the yard.  I don’t know if that is against code like throwing used oil down the sewer, but that’s what I did.

Next I’m trying a pork butt (Vroom, Vroom) but I decided I would get one of those electronic thermometers to make life easier.

San Francisco and Alcatraz

     A few years ago we decided to take a trip to San Francisco with our friends (John & Cindy).  They had been there before and had a great time.  Our hotel was very nice and located about a block from the trolley car turnaround, very convenient.  We had a number of sites that we wanted to see, the first being Alcatraz.

     While John and I were getting the rooms, Mimi and Cindy struck up a conversation with a guy from Australia; Virgil who made frequent visits to San Francisco.  Virgil was a computer guy with purple hair and a purple business card.  It seemed like an odd color choice for a guy that was about 6' 3" and weighed about 300 lbs but remember this is San Francisco.  He claimed to be very familiar with the area so we asked him how long it would take to walk to the wharf.  He told us about 10 minutes, we later found out Virgil couldn't have been more wrong (he was off by about 50 minutes).

     We had reservations for a night tour of Alcatraz on our first day so we decided to walk to restaurant nearby so we wouldn't be late for the tour.  We did not have a recommendation for this restaurant (I don't remember the name) it was just a random choice.  The moment we walked in the place we noticed a distinctly unpleasant smell, like dog crap.  What the hell!  We stayed despite the smell, to this day I'm not sure why we didn't immediately turn and walk out. The food was all right but we couldn't get over the smell.  For some reason we stayed on to order dessert, apple pie, must be something wrong with us.  Dessert was good better than the main meal but I wouldn't have been surprised if the check came with a doggie treat instead of a mint.

     That night we boarded the boat for our night tour of Alcatraz.  It was an interesting tour and a little eerie at night but that's what we were expecting.  We also had a beautiful very of San Francisco at night from the rock.  Well worth the money.

     There are many things to do in Frisco (I can say that now that I've been there).  We rode the trolley car down to Fisherman’s Wharf, checked out the seals hanging out at pier 39 (it was a few years later they left), took in the Ghirardelli Chocolate tour (Yum), actually went through the line a couple of times.  We did a lot of walking around the streets, had some excellent meals and found a small little fortune cookie factory in Chinatown.  It was in a back alley and the boss man was very friendly.  We felt a little sorry for the ladies pulling the cookies off the hot cookie presses; their fingers were probably numb.  We took some pictures and bought some cookies and headed back to the hotel.

     We had plans to go to Napa Valley so we rented a car but before leaving Frisco we wanted to drive down Lombard Street like Steve McQueen, well maybe not exactly like the scene in the movie (Bullitt).  The houses and gardens on Lombard are beautiful but I'm sure the traffic is a real drag for the people who actually live there.

     The next day we were off to see Sausalito and Muir Woods then Napa Valley the day after.  San Francisco is a great place to visit with some great restaurants, I would go back again but I'd advise skipping any restaurant that smells like dog crap.

It Matters

     What you say, what you do and how you act matters.  Your life is important to not only yourself but to others as well.  We interact with people daily, some are casual connections like people you see at the coffee shop, deli and gas station or even at a stoplight.  The connections you have with family, friends and co-workers are closer and have a greater impact but all your interactions matter.

     I have noticed that without trying we give a positive or negative vibe even before we speak, it's true.  Walk in to a store with a smile and watch others smile back at you.  A simple thing like a smile or a kind word can make someone’s day.  Start a conversation with a stranger; I do it all the time.  It's not the topic that's important but the connection to others, even strangers because it's these connections that makes life interesting.  Laughter eases the tension and helps people open up to a dialog with someone.

     Have you been to Trader Joes, they get this?  The people there are always in a good mood and you feel better when you leave the store even if you were down when you walked in.  Others treat you better if you expose your inner happiness.  Sure stores like Trader Joes train their employees to have fun positive attitudes but they also pick potential employees with an upbeat attitude.

     Your life matters and every minute is important so make the best of it, smile your way into the future.  Do your best to look at the bright side of life, the more you do it the easier it gets.  You may have heard someone say, “That person never met a stranger”, Be that person.  "Just Saying...."

Inspiration and Motivation

     It might seem that the definition of these two words are the same but in fact there are subtle differences.  To me motivation has to do with a desire to acquire something (promotion, new car, exotic vacation, etc.) whereas inspiration is usually a result of someone else's achievements.  You may be inspired to take action in your life when you read about someone that has overcome significant challenges and improved their life in some way.  That's not to say that inspiration only comes from observing others, music and movies can be inspirational but their inspiration is rooted in the personal stories of people dealing with life struggles, so in that way it is still about observing people.

     I view both motivation and inspiration as positive.  We need both but not an excess of one over the other.  Having things are important rewards to give yourself for working hard and achieving goals.  Being inspired to live a better life is important for your inner spirit.

     To put it into simple terms we are motivated to acquire things but inspired by people’s achievements.  “Just Saying….”

Sissy’s Story (My Mom)

     I've learned that we all have quirks, which lead to interesting stories and parents are no exception.  My Mom, Sissy as everyone knew her had many quirks as I'm sure anyone living to the age of 90 may have.

     Mom would frequently miss-pronounce words or names but she was consistently wrong in that she would miss-pronounce it wrong the same way every time.  We initially tried to correct her but eventually we just laughed and used her pronunciation when we spoke to her.  Ruby Tuesdays in Mom's world was Judy Tuesdays, Chick-fil-a became Chick-a-lick, which we still use today, Styrofoam became Styfoam.

     She liked to bake and she made great pies, apple & lemon merengue were my favorites.  We would often tell her to make my slice small but she would always cut a the pie in no more than 5 pieces because you needed to eat your quota.  What quota?  Well, we never knew because she would always say, "You didn't eat your quota", so apparently no one ever ate his or her quota.

     Although Mom was a good baker the rest of her cooking skills were less impressive.  Almost everything was fried so not the healthiest option but that was what most families ate.  Some fried foods can be overlooked and dried out which was true of some of my Mom's dishes but I remember a couple of breakfast items that I looked forward to eating.  One was pan-fried cornmeal mush in butter and then drizzled with syrup and the other was fried puff wheat, which was also in butter but sprinkled with sugar.  We recently tried the fried mush and were pleasantly surprised, it was really tasty and pretty healthy considering it is fried.  We have not tried the fried puff wheat yet but we will.

     Mom's recipes were in her head, nothing was written down so if you would ask for a recipe she would say, “I don’t know the exact amount just put some in until it’s right”. Helpful, not!  Funny, yes!

     She loved Perry Como, dogs & angel stories, she liked to dance and shop.  She hated baseball thought it was boring but loved bowling.  She didn’t like that we put the alley bumpers up when we had an 80^th bowling birthday party for her.  She loved touching soft things in stores but she never put them away because she said gives them a job to put them back.

     When her grandkids would go over to see her she would always seemed surprised when she answered the door saying “ooooo’ every time even though she knew you were coming over.  She was hard of hearing so she would miss out on some conversation so when the kids would be talking to her and she didn’t hear she would ask them to repeat what they said but they would frequently say “Never mind”.  She would say I don’t like “Never mind”.  She didn’t want to miss out on the story.

     Our daughter Maureen went to visit her and rang the doorbell but she never answered so she left. Mom heard her but thought it was the answering machine so the next day she told Rose (my sister) that Maureen left a message on the telephone recorder, telling Rose “Maureen’s in there, how do I get her out.” 

     Sissy loved playing board games (Risk) and cards but she had her own set of rules that you needed to learn are you would be subjected to her funny sarcastic humor, which we all enjoyed and learned to give it right back.

     Her favorite TV shows were Days of our lives and Wheel of Fortune.  Mom loved strong coffee, cream but no sugar and she would drink it all day long, percolating from morning to night, which made it stronger and stronger.

     So here's saluting all Mom's with their funny and interesting quirks, it wouldn't have been the same without you.