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New Design

Well, what do you think?

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Well Hello, Dolly - And Good Bye Dolly

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, this wind wasn't called Mariah, it was called Dolly and though we were spared a Catagory 3, the Catagory 2 that Dolly was was bad enough.  Lots of trees down including this one in front of our townhome, some water blown in under the eaves, one picture knocked off the wall for some reason.  As I drove around town looking at some of the damage, I noticed brick fences down, 4x4 posts snapped in two, trees down all over the place, some houses with no shingles at all, some with a  missing shingles (thank goodness our roof is heavy concrete tile).  I noticed one "Hurricane Fence" down, don't know how that happened unless something slammed into it.  But despite everything blown down, I noticed that an awful lot of tall cactus plants still standing including the ones on my patio.  Trees down, branches broken, cacti still standing proud.  Amazing.

An awful lot of you sent prayers our way knowing Dolly was bearing down, and for that I thank you!

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Happy Trails To You, Until We Meet Again!

GM's Exit

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."

And why this blog has died, and other silly things.

It has been a great four years writing GM's Corner, from my very first blog entry on blogger to my own dot com and my last move to gmroper.mu.nu in The Kingdom of the Cow Puppies, Munuvia, mu.nu!

I thought that perhaps my blogging days were over when there was a toss up between the cost of bandwidth and chemotherapy and bandwidth lost out without a thought.  But my beloved friends Raven, Ogre, and Seth managed to get me into munuvia where I could continue to blog without the immediate threat of the dreaded "This Blog Has Exceeded Its Bandwidth" screen.  Thank each of you from the bottom of my heart.

I have been blessed to be a member of a number of blogging groups including The Wide Awakes (Cao, are you out there dear friend?) and the South Park Republicans, a jolly bunch of misfits if there ever was one.  I've made friends from the left to the right and all points in-between.  I've engaged in spats, cursed, been cursed at, had thank you's and hosannas tossed in my direction as well as more than a few spitballs.  And I've enjoyed every minute of it.  And now the time has come to close a chapter for now.  Well, maybe not forever, but for the nonce while I gather my forces, and think about where I want this blog to go and what I want it to look like.  I have a huge number of people that I especially want to thank.  Marc Cooper, my blog-father and though a lefty, one hell of a guy! To Fausta, she of the original Bad Hair Blog, a beloved friend who believed enough in me to propose me as a Pajamasmedia Correspondent. To the Puppy-Blender Glenn Reynolds who, despite his generally good taste, still managed to give me a number of instalaunches.  And to his beloved wife Dr. Helen Smith a terrific blogger and Psychologist.  To Dr. Pat Santy one of my first interviewees on WideAwakesRadio.  To Laurie Kendrik, Texas Fred an irrascible old fart if there ever was one and a royal pain in the ass...but who can send  prayer faster than almost anyone. and to Kender, that rogue scottsman who deals daily with health problems but who has more guts and grit then men 10 times his size (and even that is not very big).  (Just kidding Kender, don't be shovin' that dirk at me.)

To my friends a CALH an all the Chrisian Bloggers out there; especially The Anchoress, I could type all night and not be able to thank everyone who has given me of their time, their talent, their good wishes and their prayers, especially as I fought the cancer bastard down.

Too, I want to give a special thanks to the conservative world's favorite gatherer of things conservative from the world of blogging and who's such a treasure that all who know her call her either a saint, the marvelous or just the plain ole wonderful and indefatigueable Larwyn!  God Bless you Dear, Dear Lady. 

I want to thank also my very good blogging buddy Woody.  Woody was gracious enough to take the helm when my bride and I went on a cruise way back in '05.  I asked him to stay on and he had provided me with many a chuckle, a belly laugh and he has been a friend through the tough times, the cancer surgery and never once let me down.  Though he and I don't always agree on some things, a kinder more resolute friend cannot be found on this plane of existance.  Thank you Woody.

I don't know what the future holds, I'll occasionally post something here when the urge strikes me.  I'll continue to make an occasional political post or two at Reclaiming Conservatism the brainchild of The marvelous Jim Lynch and Doug Ross, I'll tell tales of Mustang N' Me - stories of my pal Mustang who is older than dirt and who though he is far, far older than I am, considers me to be his blog-pappy!

Perhaps, when this silly season is over and we have an elderly RINO President McCain or a President O'Bama (who is secretly NOT an African-American, but a lout of Black Irish extraction) I'll blog again about the stupidity of the left as exemplified by O'Bama and the Pseudo-left as exemplified by McCain.  Or perhaps, just maybe I'll end up a dirty old man in a nursing home picked out for me by my daughter in revenge for all the indignities I've inflicted on her over the years (just kidding honey... you just sit right down and keep working on that grandchild for me).

It has been a rip and I thank each and every reader I've ever had, and perhaps a few that I may garner in the future.

Oh, and just so you don't think I'm totally out of the game, I'll see some of you at Blogworld Expo in Las Vegas on my Birthday, September 20, 2008.

So, as Tigger would say TTFN or TaTa For Now!

 

 

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Exciting News

In January 2006 I was diagnosed with lung cancer.  Why me I thought, what in the world did I do?  Then later, when the emergency was over and it looked like I was going to make it, and now that I've survived for over 2 years cancer free the question was why did God pick me to survive?  Well, now I know.  I was meant to be here to spoil my first grand child.  Sometime likely in December, a delightful and bouncy baby for Christmas.

Thanks Jennifer and Mike, you have made me delightfully happy!

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Three Terrific Years

Damn The Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead, thus was the title of my first post on blogspot on November 7, 2004.  Whodathunk three years would have passed so quickly?  I first started to get the idea of blogging hanging around Michael Totten's blog and he referred me to Marc Cooper who is a progressive.  So, I had to go there to joust with the progressives and found a good friend in Marc.  After a couple of months of lurking I began to comment, then Marc asked me one day why I wasn't blogging, and here I am. 

It has been a tumultious three years, full of politics, humor, some photography, some gains and some losses.  Over 260,000 visitors, almost 2000 posts and 10,000 comments, meeting friends I would never have met had it not been for this medium, I was invited to the BlogWorldExpo by the CEO, Rick Calvert (and I would be there today if not for some health reasons).  Rick is only one of the many, many friends I've made through this medium.  I cherish several blog groups and info groups I'm in (you can see them on my sidebar) notably The Wide Awakes who invited me to join their group in the spring of 2005, Wide Awakes Radio (Kender are you still being an imp out there?), South Park Republicans, 911 Neo-cons, friends too numerous to mention though these pop into my head:  Commenters Dougf, Mavis Beacon, and Tad; Pests like Mark York and Thinking Meat, and sometimes pests.  Bloggers like Cao, Raven, Mustang, Seth, Michael, Fausta, Rick, Michael and Marc, DADvocate, Dr. Sanity, Siggy and Gaghdad Bob, Mark Alger and his alter ego Baby Troll;  Colonel Robert Nevelle, John Ray and Brendan from Down Under, Texas Fred and his friend Bubba, Always on Watch, and so many that have meant so much to me. Cinnamon Stillwell and Jeremayakovka, Yaacov bin Moshe, Lew, Loretta and so many others.  Larwyn, that wonderful woman who once included me in her posts that she sends out reviews to so many of my favorite bloggers, Ian, who though a lawyer is one terrific bald headed geek.  And Chrys, my beloved friend who has loaned her artistic talents to me so many times that I could never repay her if I tried.

Ogre, who likes to think he's gruff but is really a pussy cat with only the failure of liking the New York Yankees.  Beth, Maggie, Pamela, Kat who exemplifies the purpose driven life.  Glenn Reynolds who has highlighted a number of my posts, The Anchoress and a dear, dear friend the Assistant Village Idiot - David, you are one of a kind, long may your banner wave.

I have loved every minute of this blogging life!

There has been three years of joy as the Red Sox won in 2004 and again this year.  Periods of grief as blogging friends have passed from this scene to the next some from illness, some by accident, some because the muse of blogging no longer struck them.

Last year, I discovered that I had lung cancer, the big C.  Determined to fight back and not give in to the despair, I announced on my blog about the cancer and got hundreds of good wishes from people all over the world.  Well, something must have worked between all the marvelous prayers offered in my behalf and the Good Lord guiding the hands of the surgeon and oncologist because I'm still here, still fighting back! 

Two months after the surgery it looked like I would have to close the blog because of the expense of keeping a dot com going.  My friends in the blogosphere nominated me for the mu.nu blog world and the Munuvians took me in with open arms.  Pixy Misa, the owner and administrator, chief guru and executive cook and bottle washer has been a friend like you wouldn't believe.  We even share the same birthday, Sept. 20, even if I am two full decades older than he is. 

And then there is Woody, my friend, my co-blogger who two years ago graciously helped keep the blog going while the bride and I took a little jaunt to the caribbean.  Woody has proven himself time and time again as a friend.  When I was ill with the surgery and recovery and subsequent chemo-therapy, he stood up to the plate and knocked a home run in every time.  Thanks Woody, for everything.

And thanks to all of you, readers, lurkers, passers by in the night.  I appreciate you more than you will ever know.

So, Damn The Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead!

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Vote For Me!

I'm in the running,

I'm in the running, (with apologies to the Gold Diggers 1933), but, I am in the running for Best Blog Design! Uhhh, that would be this one, yeah, this one.  So treat your charming host (that would be moi) to a vote and lets get him some electronic votes.  Thanks!

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New Layout, New Design, New Beginings!

Well, here we are in our new clothing.  The Old will remain available to me to work on to make sure that everything transfers over, and that will take awhile.  In the meantime, please let me know what you think of our new design and ease in commenting.  Lastly, a great deal of thanks goes to Pixy Misa, administrator of the mu.nu (Munuvian) empire.  Thanks Pixy.

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Pushing Towards Number 250,000 Or Is That Number 500,000?

Got back from a little mini vacation yesterday and opened an email from my pal Woody. Seems we are getting close to our 250,000th visitor. But the Site meter doesn't tell the whole story so I'll put up a few Screen Shots courtesy of Snagit (which is a great program to have if you like grabbing screen shots). First, the Sitemeter stats:

As you can see, Sitemeter lists just short of 250,000 visits. This includes some from the old blogspot site, added to the old dot com site which is now this site where I moved my blog in early 2006. But Sitemeter, as good as it is doesn't measure everything, and you have to pay extra to get the big stuff listed.

With however, my mu.nu blog (see our guru Pixy Misa by clicking on the link) comes Awstats which is an even better stats program. here are the 2006 stats:

And the 2007 stats:

According to Awstats, I've had 79,643 unique visitors in 2006 for a total of 232,915 visits. In 2007, I had 66,894 unique visitors for a total of 235,104 visits. Now, together that would be 146,537 unique visitors for a total of 468,019 visits, or, pushing a half million visits in just over 17 months. Of course, I like Awstats numbers MUCH better. But, even if I didn't have all of that, I'd still have made an awful lot of friends via blogging that I'd not likely have made with out it, and I've enjoyed every moment of the almost three years of blogging.

On November 7th, this blog (including its previous iterations) will be 3 years old and I owe it all to you, my beloved readers and I am well aware that any blog sinks or swims by the readers that come and go. So, in preparation for my 250,000^th or my 500,000^th visitor thanks for all the fun.

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Gone Fishing

Hey everyone, I'm turning the blog over to Woodster while my beloved and I take a tour of beautiful Fredericksburg, Texas and the Hill country on a little mini-vacation. God speed to you all and I'll be back posting soon.

Old Town

The Museum in Fredericksburg

Texas Horned Mice - We Grow Them Big

And while you are at it, go on over to see the Carnival of the Insanities... Dr. Sanity has outdone herself.

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Meet Joe Harvey - A New Writer For GM's Corner

This started out as a solo blog, just me and my thoughts, urged on by my friend and political opposite Marc Cooper and GM's Corner will be three years old this coming November.

Two years ago I went on a vacation and asked Woody if he would be willing to fill in for me while I was gone. The Woodster picked up the ball and ran 99 yards to a touchdown and I asked him to stay on. Woody graciously assented and he has been with me ever since. This Month, Woody has been with me for two years, his first post (here) somehow, due to the move to mu.nu, got translated as having been written by me, but truth-The Woodster did it on May 13, 2005.

But, I digress. Joe Harvey is joining our little group and he may post frequently, or maybe infrequently as the mood strikes him. I have known Joe for a decade, and a finer person you won't find in the blogosphere. I've watched Joe in his interactions with other healthcare professionals and am always delighted to watch him in action, his care and concern, demeanor and honesty are a joy to watch as he pushes for the best in client care regardless of the "politics" of a situation or of a place.

Joe is, like me, a mental health professional, and a thouroughly nice guy. Joe is a Christian who actually practices all that he preaches. I was over to his place the other day and going in the kitchen to get a soft drink, noted a number of Bible verses scattered on the cabinet doors, the refrigerator, other places, and thought to myself how lucky I am to know this man. He is a father, the youngest of his brood of 5 is only a few months old and watching Joe hold his little one reminded me of the classic Hummel figure of the Madonna and child... except that the Madonna is far nicer looking.

But again, I digress. Joe is a solid conservative as am I, but don't expect to see us agree on everything (though I'm frequently delighted that we agree on so much about so many varried things). You, if you are conservative, may also disagree with Joe on some things, just as you disagree with me on somethings.

Be that as it may, Joe writes with compassion, conviction, and a sense of honor and honesty that you don't often find and it is not only my pleasure to know this gentleman, but to be able to introduce you to him. When you see his first post, and it may be in a day or two or in a week or two, welcome him and expect to find a friend, for he is that kind of guy.

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Chrys, Just, Well, You Know - THANK YOU!

Those of you who are perceptive, which of course are all of you, otherwise, you wouldn't be reading this blog, will have noticed a new banner at the top of the blog. Well, I have to brag on the very kind lady, and lady she truly is, who put it together for me. Her name is Chrys, and she is a member of a Google group that I belong to and is one heck of a delightful person. At any rate, I noticed her blog (Pettyfog, Jots & Tittles) some time ago and added it to my blogroll. We began chatting via email, and I discovered a new and valued friend. Click on the link to take you to her site and click on all of the petals, some terrific reading awaits you there.

As time would have it, she sent me an e-card with a design and hidden in the design was her name. Knowing what a smash up her blog is, I asked her about it and she acknowledged that she knew her way around a pixel or twelve and there you are, a new brand for GM's Corner.

Now, the old brand with the eagles and title was nice, after all, I designed and built it myself, but standing mine next to hers it should be obvious who the champion is; and it isn't me.

What I particularly like is the "old fashioned" look about it, the humor and well, just everything. I particularly like the sepia tone look, the photograph above my head (which is my beloved daughter) and the "therapist of old" appearance. And, yes, that face really is mine!

Most of you know I'm an older blogger (I'll not see 60 again) and this fits me to a tee. Chrys, thank you so kindly. In her emails, Chrys always signs off "Just - Chrys." and so, I'll sign off

Just - Thank you dear friend!

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Something New

One of my particular joy's in life is reading Chris Muir's Day By Bay cartoon. As I've learned more and more html and CSS I've been playing with the forms and format of the blog and only today figured out how to add Chris' cartoon to the blog. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

GM

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A New Look Is Coming

There will be a new look coming to this blog in the very near future. The blogging and comment system is by Pixy Misa at Ambiant Irony. If you would like to see how it will look go to Pixy's blog and look around. Drop him a line and let him know that I sent you.

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New Buttons For GM and Woody

Yessiree, we here at GM's Corner want you to have the latest and the best available. In accordance with our desire to have more people on the internet, and particularly this blog, we've added a couple of fun items for your fun an pleasure. Our first addition is The Diggit button at the bottom of each post. It looks something like this but without the big box:

all you have to do if you like a post is click on the button and Diggit will ask you to sign in... and yes boys and girls, it is FREE to register. That will help publicize GM's Corner which will encourage both Woody and I to write more stuff for your education, elucidation and just plain ole fun!

The second item added for your pleasure is of course the Weatherstreet over on the top of our sidebar. Click on that, add in your city or zipcode and you will get your weather forecast which, listening to the GWTB's (Global Warming True Believers) you already know the weather will be

Hot,

Hotter

and

HOTTER THAN HELL

Now, if it doesn't work out that way... (what do you mean that it's still winter, that it is snowing in Minnesota, Wisconson, Maine and Oregon... what are you... a global warming denier?.... ed!) AS I WAS SAYING... if that doesn't work out... I"m going to be selling long underwear for summer times in the coming Ice Age!!! Yes my friends, A new Ice Age is headed your way... why, there was a consensus of scientists only 30 years ago that forecast it... you wouldn't doubt a

CON-FRIGGIN-SENSUS OF SCIENTISTS

would you? I didn't think so!

And the last item which has been there for some time is something I'm really proud of... IT IS A DONATE TO THIS SITE BUTTON!!!! And what an idea is percolating through my head as I write this... why, we are going to raise money to decrease your

CARBON-FRIGGIN-FOOTPRINT

So, if your carbon-friggin-footprint is a size 47 and it ought to be a size 9, why all you have to do is donate a measly $100.00 bucks and either woody or I will plant an

OAK

TREE

and send you an 8x10 color photograph of your very own Oak Tree. You will be able to show it to your great grand-kids and tell them that they are alive because you thought ahead and saved the world. Don't let Al Gore be the only one to erase his size 47 carbon-friggin-footprint. Be the first on your block to have your very own

TREE

Named just for you and of course, your progeny. Click here to donate (and if it doesn't work, the one on the right does):

And Thanks from both GM and Woody!

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