 The Shaffer Journal
Volume 9 † Issue 6 † June 2003
[Internet Stuff] [Hockey Puck] [The Mountains of Ao]
[Poetry Corner] [The Dull Stuff] [Guest Articles] [In The Keys]
Kitty Talk
These journals are dedicated to Kitty GreyCat's spirit. She is at RainBow Bridge now along with her human friend, Leo. We all loved you, Kitty! Click the cat graphic to visit her Memorial page. Kitty born June 6, 1982. Died July 9, 1997. Please fill out our email form below to tell us how we are doing or make suggestions. >^..^<  Ebony: Meow, everybody. I got one question this month. Why do peoples like that yogurt stuffers? Why it smell something like the dog throwed up. Yuck. Cat food delicious tho.>^..^<
Abby: I don't care none about your useless ruminating. I not ever gonna get soft nummies ever again. I think that is awful, it is. And it all cause of my teethers. I was happy and then human bean picked me up and went ewwww. He sawed one of my fangs leaning the wrong way. And before I knew it I was off to that awful vet place. I not deserve that, I not!>^..^<
Ebony: Mew, Ab, I am so very glad you went to the vet bean and not me. I not like shots and stuffers.>^..^<
Abby: I don't think it fair you not go with me. It took two big human vet beans to hold me down and open my mouth. They finally got tired of trying see inside at my teethers. So they talked my bean into letting them put me to sleep to check out my teethers. I got blood work done first. And that hurt. I not like it, I don't.>^..^<
Ebony: I can't believe your rotten teethers lost us soft chicken nummies. I was getting used to them too. When you got some, I would push you aside gently and eat some for myself until you growled at me to leaf.>^..^<
Abby: I wish you stop interrupting my story, Eb. So, anymeow, my blood work came back good. The evil vet bean stuck a needle in me and I was lights out so quick, I not remember. That when they find some yucky periodontal diseases. I got medicine that have to be squirted into my mouth twice a day for two weeks. When bean try to squirt that awful stuff inside my mouth, I spit it right back out. Bean kept trying though, I give him that.>^..^<
Ebony: I laugh at you, Ab, when you come home. Your eyes were so big and crosseyed. You bumping into stuffers and wobbly on your paws. You were so funny when you were so doped up by them vet beans. Catnip better.>^..^<
Abby: I really wished you stop butting in, you nasty sister cat. Any old way, after all them indignities, bean chased me all over and caught me. I thoughts I was going back to the vet again! But it was only bean trimming the sharp tips offing my claws. I don't know why. Bean say something about me tearing up his carpets. I thought they were to be clawwed and stuffers. You nose, human beans can complain about the most dumbest things, I meow.>^..^<
Ebony: Use not nose what to complain about, Ab. I was left out in the rain for a few minutes. That was more to complain about than nasty old yucky rotten teethers. I got a little wet and the wind ruffled me up too.>^..^<
Abby: Yes, Eb, I always knew you were touched in the head. You done crazier every day, you are. I did go crazy when bean wave a rubber band at me. I like rubber bands so much. They are so fun. I want to eat them too.>^..^<
Ebony: I liked the big boxes bean left for us to play in. He also put catnip inside them too. I liked that catnip so much that I make the box shake and shiver while I played inside that little itty bitty space inside the box.>^..^<
Abby: I not nose what you meowing about. Cheez puffs. I pay Eb back when she caught a big, fat lizard. I go outside and take it from Eb. I let Eb eat it later tho. Them lizards fings are nasty tasting. Only Ebony could eat one of them fings. Ebony got her birthday walk later. I got a half hour's worth of peace finally. The only fing that disturbed my peace the rest of the evening was the big, booming noises outside. Nobody noses what it was, but I fink it was the Easter bunny, I do. Them bunnies are big, bushy and wild-eyed terrors they are. Meow.>^..^<
Internet Stuff
The DVD films from http://www.NetFlix.com are packed with extras and full of good entertainment. The Ninth Gate was a good horror movie by Roman Polanski. I watched the fantastic Stuart Little film again. Those kinds of movies always appeal to me. I guess I will never grow up and no one can make me either. A funny movie was Analyze That, the second movie about a mobster and his shrink. The film was funnier and better than the first too. Price of Glory was a great flick about a boxing family. Jacob's Ladder explored the meaning and nature of life's end, that nanosecond between life and death. Paulie was an excellent movie starring a sassy bird, of course. Several websites were useful this month. Ever wondered what those cryptically named programs like dtmonix.exe mean? Go to http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_content.htm and find out. You get information of whether you want to keep that program around too or stop it from doing whatever the application does. One of our favorite places to shop is changing their Internet address to http://www.SpeedoUSA.com. Another favorite shopping venue is at http://www.tribalectic.com. We were able to get our telephone fixed at http://www.bellsouth.com without ever having a technician coming to our home. In The Keys
In a continuing series on Gulfstream Trailer Park & Marina situated in the City of Marathon, Florida Keys, I submit the following editorial paragraph: I live in paradise, but not all is well in our perfect world. The owners of our community have sold out to people who want to destroy our homes, bulldoze our community, and run us out of the Florida Keys. We formed a homeowners association and fought back. We got the media, politicians, and lawyers involved. Of course, we will do whatever it takes, for however long it takes to save our homes. If you would like to help in any manner or form, please click the email link at the bottom of this web page. Thanks. I've been way too busy for paradise. I still get out to the swimming pool, while my boat is down for a motor. I also have studied land development regulations, the City of Marathon's proposed comprehensive plan, and the visioning master plan. I write the association newsletters. I attend city council meetings as well as court hearings. I suppose I would rather be busy than bored. On a different note, I took Abby to the vet. She is better now, but I couldn't believe how emotional I got over my little, white cat. It is hell to love, but that is what makes us so special in this universe. I did have time to steam clean my carpets. That is not a momentous event, but one that was accomplished nonetheless. I still have time to play poker every Wednesday at the park's tiki hut. I am still way too busy though. I would like one day to do absolutely nothing for no reason at all. It is hell to dream, huh? Miscellany: We got a lot of action at work, Boot Key Bridge Tender Hut. A horde of flying, lady termites clogged up our hut inside and out. We had to resort to chemical spraying to take back our work place. I made my lab appointment in Key West recently. Afterwards, I visited Boyd's Campground. The place is actually quite nice. I also got my vehicle, security sticker from the US Navy at the air station just outside Key West. Lastly, the Gallery at Kona Kai features original artwork. The gallery is open daily from 10 AM to 7 PM and located at mile marker 97.8, bayside, in beautiful Key Largo. The telephone number is (305) 852-7200 or fax at 852-4629. Their email address is konakai@aol.com, and their website is found at http://www.g-k-k.com. That's it this month! Poetry Corner
“Infinity” 10.01.00
by L. E. Shaffer © 2003 L. E. Shaffer Ancient times past memory
Rocks older than creation
Hills to lowlands
To mountains and peaks
Life again
Warms the plains
The never-ending cycle
Plays out among the stars
The center of it all
Upon ancient rocks
At the peaks
Of holy mountains
Guarded by eons
Creatures there
At the very beginning
Of existence
Of creation
Birth and death
And then again
Beyond and more
Infinite journey
Through the stars
Among galaxies
Forever universe
Now we stand
Where we were
Before it all began
And after it ends © 2003 L. E. Shaffer Hockey Puck
In the NHL, the Stanley Cup plays out between the surprise team, the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, and the old standby, the New Jersey Devils. So far, the series is lopsided toward the Devils. In the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers were spurred, the San Antonio Spurs that is. The finals will be the New Jersey Nets against the San Antonio Spurs. A woman played very well in the PGA; way to go, Anna! Funny Cide won two legs of the Triple Crown. The Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 were too great races, although NASCAR is way more entertaining the the Indy Racing League. MLB, or pro baseball, is still full of yuck and boredom. I guess we have to wait for the World Series to even generate a little interest. The NFL camps are starting up, and the season is coming soon. Guest Articles
We have various guests this journal. As always everything is copyright of the author. Aerials http://www.wingoverphoto.com/index.html is a very well done website highlighting scenic landscape photographs from the eastern United States Aerials by Wingover Photo featuring Boston area photographers specializing in Aerials, Architecture Pets, Portraits, and Landscapes. You can find this special artwork at http://www.wingoverphoto.com/index.html. © 2003 C. Goodband Westpac Liberty It was a warm humid typical October day in 1984. We had just pulled into SUBIC Bay the night before and some of us had had the duty and were anxious to get ashore as soon as the duty section was relieved. In my case, it had been over three years since my last Subic liberty as a result of intervening shore duty. I couldn't wait to embark on my next mission over S*&t river bridge. There was only one problem, rumors of a typhoon and possible sortie. Well shipmates, the way I looked at it was if I got off the ship on liberty and out the gate, I was head'n straight for the "Barrio" and a three day division party at the "Boobie Trap". I was lucky for a change and got out the gate and nearly ran all the way to the Victory Liner Station and hopped the first jeepney to Subic City/Barrio Barretto. The party was well underway when I arrived and I immediately helped myself to a nice ice cold San Migooooo! The party proceeded and we were all enjoying ourselves when someone said "Hey Chief" come out back and look! As I stepped out to the rear I observed the OLY standing out to sea going passed Grande Island. Of Course we all reported back to Base (a little later) and were informed that there was insufficient berthing so we were on our own except to check in once a day to see if the ship had pulled back in. It turned out that we were in good company because besides us, our Command Master Chief was also left behind and the Midway had left a good number to. Well a couple of days later, the OLY came back and we all straggled back in. Captain "S" was not amused but we never heard anymore about it.
Anonymous ex DD-972 Westpac Liberty Hound © 2003 J. Andresen More Westpac We were in the midst of a WestPAC in 1980 and were in Hong Kong for a four day stopover. We were forced to anchor out in the harbor because of our nuclear capabilities. Therefore, we had to take liberty boats back and forth. I remember all of the junkboats and the people living in them. In fact, I have pictures of elderly men and women painting the hull of our ship from their junkboats for simple necessities such as toilet paper, rope, etc. They would work from sun up to sun down and they soon became the Boatswains Mate's best friends!!!
Anyway, I remember on the last liberty call before deployment, several of us HT's and EN's went out to make a lasting impression on Hong Kong. Several of us got tattoos at Pinky's and Ricky's. We partied all night long and I can remember many fond memories that night that shall not be mentioned here!!! LOL. Well, the night soon disappeared into daylight very quickly but we were still going strong even though we all knew that the Oly was ready to steam to Subic at 0800. After we got breakfast and hitting a few more stops, we could see the ocean going tugs hooking up to Oly ready to pull her out to sea. Only then did we realize that we were about to become permanent residents of Hong Kong!!! We hopped the closest liberty boat and tipped the driver heavily to speed boat us back to the ship. As we drew closer, we could see HT1 Hawthorne and HT1 Matlock leaning against the rail and Hawthorne's face was so red with anger that I thought he would soon go ballistic. Apparently, they had held the ship up on our account and we had hell to pay all the way to Subic.
No matter what anyone says, it was well worth it!!!
Gary © 2003 G. Syzek The Unavailable Number Oh great, my cell phone’s ringing and it’s all the way over there. I’m in no mood to be interrupted from my mild entertainment. Let me see who it is anyway. Strange, the number is unavailable. I’m not going to pick it up. It could be long distance and it’s not past nine yet. I don’t want to be charged extra for any unnecessary calls. Besides, if it’s important they’ll call me back. Back to my mild entertainment. The phone starts ringing again. Who could it be now? The number is still unavailable. I’m still not going to pick it up. Ignore. Hmm, thirst. What’s in the fridge? There should still be some soda from last night. Oh yeah. Time to get my laziness back on. I’m way behind. “The USA Patriot Act II is a threat to American’s rights.” This looks like an interesting read. What now? Oh, it’s the phone again. It’s beeping. Must be a voicemail message. Okay, I’ll listen. Funny… the message is blank. I’m about to get pissed here. Silent mode. Back to the article. Flash all you want light. I ain’t picking you up. “You have one new message.” Lucky me, an e-mail. Whoop tee do. What will they try to sell me now? Oh, apparently nothing. The e-mail is anonymous and the subject is blank. Delete. Now what? Why the fuck have the lights gone out? Nice… very nice. The one day I decide to take my computer’s backup battery to get fixed is the day that the electricity has decided to go out. And who the hell is calling me now? Wait a minute… I put you in silent mode. Why are you ringing? How could you be ringing? Ignore. Ignore. Ignore! Why are you still ringing? Why won’t you be ignored? Maybe if I cover you with a pillow. You’ll be quiet now, won’t you? Yes, quiet… quiet. What now? Who could be calling me at my home phone? No one ever calls me at my home number. Hold on… how can a cordless phone be ringing without any electricity? Just what the hell is going on here? Just… what the hell is going on here…? Yeah well if I rip the phone line out of the wall it definitely can’t ring! Silence… I wonder what caused the lights to go out. Maybe I should call the… never mind, I’m not going near any phones. Having said, I mean, thought that, what to do now. Did the lights go out on the rest of this block or just here? Ah, the window. Looks dark outside. Well, at least the lamp posts are on. At least it hasn’t gone out all over. Hey look at that guy just standing there. He looks like he could be in one of those old school detective movies, with his trench coat and hat. It’s getting a bit stuffy in here, let me open this window. My, it’s a nice night out. What day is today? Wednesday, I wonder what’s on TV tonight… duh, you can’t watch TV, the lights are out all over. That guy down there must be in a fanta, he’s smoking a cigarette right by that phone booth over there. Look at the way he looks around before using the phone. Yeah, he could definitely be in a detective movie. Or maybe a… horror movie… is that here? It couldn’t be. It has to be. What is he telling me? “Pick it up.” No… no. The noise! Where are they all coming from? Phones ringing, more ringing, more ringing in my head, all around, bells, more bells, in my ears, in my head, all around, ring, ring, ring, not here, in my head, not around, not in my head, ring, not around, not him, not here, ring, in my head, ring, bells, all around, not from here, not inside, more ringing all around, more ringing and more pounding… Silence. They’re gone. No more ringing. No more bells. No more pounding. Get up off the floor. The lights are back. No missed calls. No new voicemail. No unread messages. I need a fix. Television. Tune in. Chill out. No. The phone. Answer it. Face your fear. Pick it up and answer it. “Hi. Is Joey there?” “No. Joey’s not here. This is Dave.” “Oh, I’m sorry to bother then. Bye.” © 2003 Jose A. Troche The Mountains of Ao
Book One Tears from Ao and three poetry collections, Pages of Life, Visions of Life, and Moments of Life are available electronically at http://RunesofAo.com/aobp/. The Runes of Ao project, Book Two The Mountains of Ao novel currently in final edit, Book Three Twins of the Dark Star novel in early stages, and The Book of Kalian Mysticism poetry collection are works in progress. Also a collaboration with K. Young on a novella called Dragon Embers is now published on the fan site known as Runes of Ao.com. The Dull Stuff
All opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of this magazine, company, or its advertisers. Inputs, email, suggestions, and letters to this journal are subject to approval by Ebony and Abby. Submittals may be edited for content and length and become the creative property for the one-time nonexclusive publication of: Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company
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www.RunesofAo.com/abby/ Publication date: May 28, 2003
Author: L. E. Shaffer
Company: Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company &
Shaffer Internet Publishing Company
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