Greg's General Store

Ask anyone. Well maybe not anyone, but ask me and I will tell you. I’m the man! There isn’t anyone quite like me. I guess that’s a good thing. “I can bring home the bacon. Fry it up in a pan and never let my wife forget I’m the man. ” You may quote me on that. There are lots of things you can quote me on. There are too many to list them all here. My wife says I have an ego the size of Texas. What does she mean by that? “It isn’t bragging if you can back it up” I always say. That’s another one of my original quotes. Honestly though, I am very talented and there are lots of things I can do. Whenever something goes wrong at work, and they need someone to pin it on, I’m the man. Whenever there is a project that no one else wants, I’m the man. Whenever something around the house needs to be fixed, I am definitely the man. Last evening, I stopped on the way home and picked up a rotisserie chicken for supper. After we finished eating, I worked on my son’s car and then worked on the washi...

I got this from Wanda, so thank her. Did you ever plan the game of Scattergories? It's a lot of fun, and here is a way to play it on your blog. "SCATTERGORIES" ...It's harder than it looks! Copy and paste into your blog and try it! **Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following --they have to be real places, names, things ...nothing made up! You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question. What is your name....................Greg 4 Letter word........................Gold Vehicle..............................Go-cart City.................................Glasgow Boy Name.............................George Girl Name............................Glenda Alcoholic Drink......................Grappa Occupation...........................Gondolier Something you wear...................Glasses Celebrity............................Groucho Marks Food.................................Guacamole Something found in a bathroom........Grape flavored Tylenol Rea...

“We’re Caught in a Trap” My Sunday morning started out with a meeting at work to discuss the day’s schedule. Everyone was either in a good mood or kind of average (due to lack of sleep), engaging in light chit chat. Then one person came in late with a frown on his face and began complaining about this and that and before I knew it the whole room was in an uproar. Isn’t amazing how no one wants to jump on the happy bandwagon but everyone quickly gets on the downer train. Hatred, evil and violence really do breed the same. I truly believe that humanity is caught in a trap. There IS however a way out. Whenever someone around us gets down we need to try to pick them up instead of letting them bring us down to their level. When someone around us is violent, it is up to us to break that chain and stop the violence. It is up to us to push evil aside and stomp out hatred whenever we can. “Devil in Disguise” I have come to the realization that although these “sour” people are not the devil they...

Don't you hate it when those anouncers for for those Monster Truck rallies shout that at you. I prefer my Sundays to be queit and filled with peace, joy and harmony. No monster truck rallies for me. I am working this Sunday. Not really by choice. I was given the choice when I was first asked and I agreed to work. Then shortly after I left for the day, the plant manager made it clear to my boss that he wanted us to work today. So it worked out for the best. My boss was able to tell the plant manager that I was working and didn't have to mention that he gave me the option. I really wanted to take the day off to spend some time with my family but that little voice in my head told me to work today. That happens to me a lot. I listen to that voice even though it doesn't always agree with what I want to do but in the end I find I did the right thing. Everyone here is in a bad mood this morning. All it took was one person with a bad attitude to get the whole crowd arguing and in a...

Yea, it’s Friday. And do you know what that means? Only two more work days this week. Yes I may have to work all weekend but then for the first time since I started with this company, I will be getting paid well for it. So you won’t hear any complaining from me. One of the supervisors tried to get me all riled up about having to work these extra hours but his attempt failed and I just said “I will work how ever many hours my boss wants”. They hate my positive attitude. Strange virus: Something really strange happened yesterday. I work in an office with someone else and the room is divided with one of those “attractive” grey office partitions. We are building a maintenance schedule using a complicated scheduling program. As luck would have it, our company in its infinite wisdom decided to install an update to the program one week before our maintenance outage was to begin. We are having all kinds of problems now and have to reboot our computers several times a day. Yesterday, my cowo...

The service this past weekend left my son really worried. It wasn't a particularly scary sermon from the pages or Revelations. It was actually taken from the book of Luke and centered on Jesus speaking in Nazareth. He spoke about giving to the poor and even though it was a great speech, he was almost put to death for it; still that isn't what worried him. The part that worried him was thinking that I would come home and immediately start giving all the things we have away. Not to worry, that's not going to happen. The truth is I already give and give much more that most of the people I know, I just don't go around boasting about it so it isn't always obvious. Also in my humble opinion, compared to other poverty stricken countries most of the people in this country are pretty well off. Even the poorest in this country are better off than other some in other countries. God also wants us to have nice things as a testimony to his greatness. Not to be boastful or flashy ...

I woke up in a mood today. You know what mean. I woke up with something on my mind and I just knew I had to have it. I looked through the bathroom window and the moon was full and shining just above the trees. Maybe that is what caused my mood. Looking at the bright round yellow moon reminded me of what I wanted and needed. I have been depriving myself lately which made this need even stronger. You know how it is when you do without something. You start to think about it all the time and thinking turns to fantasy and pretty soon it is all you can dream about. I knew if I didn’t satisfy my desire it would consume my thoughts all day. So I set out to work early this morning, taking an alternate route. I drove down the dark streets with a purpose, looking for that beacon in the night. Imagine my disappointment when I got to my destination and saw that the “Hot N Now” sign was not lit. Oh nooooo The Krispy Kreme store was closed. I cruised silently through the drive in line only to discove...

1. I served in the United States Navy for 20 years during which time I operated nuclear power plants on submarines. My favorite memory was the time we were in the North Atlantic and a pod of whales was around us. For an entire night we could hear them talking to each other right through the hull. They were so close that you could actually feel the vibrations from the noise they were making. The scariest moment was when a fire broke out while we were 1000 feet down in the ocean. We got it out and no one was hurt thankfully but it really made me think about death. I got to travel when I was in the Navy. While I was in Naples Italy they were arranging a trip to some place called Pompeii. I had never heard of it so I opted not to go. I also went to Scotland but I only brought back a spoon. I hear they have good wool and china there. (So much for my geographical knowledge.} It was my worst subject. I did enjoy the food in both places. Food is my best subject. 2. I am deathly afraid of ...

My mother loved liver. She fixed it all the time and made us eat it. She said it was good for us. The truth of the matter is that it was really bad for us. These days if a parent did something like that it would be considered child abuse. These days with the help of a good lawyer, I would be very wealthy from being forced to eat it and the law suit that would follow. The real truth about Liver: I know you have heard the expression “you are what you eat”. Well I am here to tell you that expression is false. The expression should be “your liver is what you eat”. The reason being is that a liver is nothing more than a very efficient filter. It filters out all the bad stuff because the rest of your body can’t handle it. And it’s not just our livers that do this, it is all livers. This being said, I know there are some liver lovers out there and that is your choice. So let me tell you what to do with it. How to prepare liver: I fancy myself as a chef but I really don’t have a good recipe...

When I was young I used to envy my friends that were “only children”. For some reason most of them were well off so I figured it was because their parents only had one child. Now that I am older, I realize that wasn’t the case but back then it made sense. The way I saw it, if I were an only child, I would have it all. I know it was selfish but many children are that way when they are little. I never looked at the situation deep enough though. For instance all of “almost nothing” is still “almost nothing”. Instead of just one slice of pizza, I would have gotten 1/3 of it but knowing Dad, if there had only been one child he would have ordered a small pizza to save money. I also never took into account that along with all the “glory” would come all the bad things. I really don’t think that a single child could have survived in our house. Sometimes there is safety in numbers. When there are 5 kids in one house it is easy to pass the blame on to someone else. “Only children” don’t have that...

Have you ever had one of those days where everything you do seems to turn out wrong? Well that wasn’t the case for me this weekend. It was just the opposite. Everything that started to go wrong turned out good in the end. My routine was all wrong. My schedule was way out or control but I just let what “was to be” happen and God saw me through. I slept late on Friday wanting to get some extra rest before my trip. Because of that, I didn’t get to do my morning reading. Instead, I helped get the boys ready for school and then started getting ready for my trip. I managed to get the car packed just in time to go to the funeral that I spoke about. It was a nice service and the concluded with a communion service which was great since I knew I would be traveling on Sunday morning and would miss Church. It was just after two when I started out for Florida. Just as I hit the highway, the radio station that I was listening to went dead. Oh great I thought so I hit the scan button to find anoth...

Well I am off to sunny Florida this afternoon to visit my Daughter and her Family. I will be driving alone which will give me some time to think and also lets me stop or not stop whenever the urge hits me. (no pun intended) I will make one stop in Georgia for food and then stop for the night around Jacksonville. Normally I could make it without stopping but something came up and I can't leave until this afternoon. A dear friend of ours whom we consider family passed away this week. Beverly Kornahens died after a long battle but is now resting peacefully in Heaven. It was a rough year for her but now she is seated beside God and happy again. She is my brother in law's mother in law if that makes any sense. She was a wonderful person and treated my children like they were her own. At Christmas she would buy them presents and never expect more than a big hug in return. We will miss her but she is in a much better place now. No need for sorrow, she is without pain and suffering. Ha...

Do you have bars? I am not talking about the drinking establishments or those little things on your cell phone. I am talking about those bars that we all have that represent our goals or Ideals that we set for ourselves. They are those things that we strive for as compared to where we are right now. Some would say “I am exactly where I want to be” but I am sure if these people were honest with themselves, they would see that there is always room for improvement. Recently a certain President (I am not saying names here because I want to keep this non political) said that we are making headway in the war. In the perspective he used he was right. A few days later one of the candidates referred to that statement and said: That’s only compared to where we were last year. We have lowered the bar so low that any little progress is acceptable. I had to agree with that and it made me think about bars, and our little lines between right and wrong. Each of us has bars or goals that we strive f...

I just wanted to say thank you for all the wonderful comments that everyone has been leaving. I also wanted to say thanks to Kati and Shannon for giving me these awards. I think the last award I received was for perfect attendance in Grammer school. That's not true, I got a bunch of awards when I was in the Navy. I even got a letter signed by the President when I retired. I can't believe I have had over 5000 visits to this blog. I must be doing something right. One of my neighbors who reads my blog and is now refering to me as "The Preacher". Did I miss my calling? I am working on tomorrow's post today so yall come back now, ya hear. (that's southern for please visit again) Have a blessed Wednesday everyone. Greg Greg

The whole concept of Happy hour amazes me. First off, most of them are more than an hour long so it should be Happy Time or Happy Hours. And just why is it so happy? It is a time when you can get drinks for a reduced rate. Half price in some cases. Yes you can also get food and snacks for less sometimes but it is always centered on drinking. And you aren’t supposed to drink too much so is it because you are getting something for less that everyone is so happy? The timing is such that most people would go to a happy hour right after work. After a long hard day at the office, putting up with people you don’t particularly care for, you head to the local bar and meet the same people and somehow you are magically transported to “happy land”. I know the consumption of alcohol has nothing to do with it. Otherwise it would be illegal just like the smoking in bars is. Our government has our best interest at heart and would never let us do anything that was bad for us. Cough cough. Maybe th...

I had a great weekend. The weather was wonderful and I got a lot accomplished. I did however eat way too much and am feeling bloated and heavy this morning. Over doing it is never a good thing. I am starting a fast this morning though which should help me cleanse myself. I don't know how long it will last. My stomach is already growling but I know I need it. Wish me luck. I am already thinking about a Tuesday and Thursday post and I hope you enjoy them. They will both touch on the subject of overindulgence. Have a great Monday, Greg Oh By the way, is the spell check on blogger working for anyone? Mine no longer works.

There has been a shift in the way people view consent lately. It used to be that if someone wanted your approval on an issue you had to say "yes". These days it seems that silence on an issue indicates consent. So not saying No implies that you are saying Yes. The opposite is also true. Not saying Yes implies that you mean No. Silence is no longer golden. Even salesmen who come to see me at work are taking this approach. It used to be that if a salesman wanted to drop in to see me, they had to first gain my approval by calling me and asking if they could come in to the plant. Now they are taking a different approach. They simply call after hours when they know I won't be there and leave a message like this: "Hello Greg. Sorry I missed you. I am going to be in the area tomorrow and planned on stopping by to see you. If this is a problem, call me. Otherwise I will assume it is ok and stop in." They are using the system (the answering machine in this case) To gain ...