I thought about where I was 11 years ago today...

as I finally went for a walk.  I limited myself to 20 minutes, ten out and ten back.  But the ten back became 12, as my pace was slowed by my legs saying "ow", "ooh" "that's stiff" "that muscle is cramping" and "you should have rested another day".  I walked a bit slower, but otherwise didn't really listen.  The lessons of 9/11 should never be forgotten and the heroes of that day who risked, or actually gave their lives trying to rescue the victims must be a part of the equation.  So it was good news to hear yesterday that even though the link between the toxic dust cloud from the twin towers and cancer is tenuous, 50 different types of cancers have just been added to the list of conditions that will be covered, treated and paid for by a 9/11 medical fund.

There were 17 other students in yesterday's income tax class all of whom want to become employees of H&R Block after graduating from the course.  Based on past patterns, two or three of them will drop out before the end of the second week.  One or two won't pass the course with the required grade percentage needed to obtain the "card" one gets from the California Tax Education Council (CTEC) that you need to be paid to prepare tax returns in California.  As the group introduced itself, the number of people who are there because they were laid off and are seeking a career change was daunting.

That's because even though H&R Block remains the #1 tax preparation firm in the U.S. (and Canada), its market share had been dropping rapidly for a long time until they gained market share back last year.  With the advent of free e-filing, the growing confidence individuals have in doing their taxes themselves with Turbo Tax or H&R's own tax software that can be bought in a store, how the company will continue to try to grow its market share is a challenge.  But there are opportunities there, for those who can acquire high levels of skill in preparing returns.  With the right instructors, that is possible.  The quality of instruction at H&R is so much better than at its two main competitors, Jackson Hewitt and Liberty, mostly because those companies are almost entirely franchise operations.

Our instructor has been a tax pro for four years and been instructing for three.  That goes against one of my personal beliefs, that one should have at least two and preferrably three years of experience as a tax pro before you begin instructing.  It isn't just about tax knowledge.  You have to have significant understanding of how to manage the client experience and interview because teaching that is part of the course that isn't in the curriculum. 

New York City mayor Bloomberg wants to stop people who get food stamps from buying unhealthy "sugar-added" drinks with taxpayer funds.  I don't know if I agree with that idea or not.  I like the idea that if taxpayers are providing funds for people to get food through "food stamps", the food should ideally be healthy food.  But that someone is receiving public assistance shouldn't force them to have no freedom of choice at all.  Maybe the answer is limits on how much of one's food stamps can be spent on things considered "unhealthy"?  I dunno.

So the economy is in the toilet?  Tell that to the dozens of people who walks the street of Harbor Boulevard between Disneyland and their hotels, patronizing the countless restaurants and shops that are intertwined between all of those hotels that line the boulevard.  They're out there at 4 p.m. and 9 p.m., in large crowds.  They are all going to Disneyland, where the price of admission for one day is closing in on $100 per day.  A one day pass for just Disneyland for someone aged 10 and older is now $87.  You can buy an annual pass that's good on 215 selected days throughout the upcoming year, for only four times that amount, $329.00.  You'll need to take out a second mortgage to buy a pass good all 365 days of the year though.

More stuff I saw.  A woman whose entire chest that was visible above the neckline of her lowcut blouse was covered by a huge tattoo.  A tattoo that clearly covered a lot of the skin that was covered by the blouse.  I like small tattoos on women, in certain places, but goodness knows they shouldn't be considering my likes and dislikes in choosing how and what to ink.  I just mention my preferences.

I saw someone try to cut off another driver while trying to make an illegal lane change, and when the person wouldn't let them in, they just kept inching closer and closer until the other person finally had to give way or have an accident.  Very strange.

I went to the restroom and when I walked in, there was a guy washing his hands.  Four or five minutes later, after I finished my 'business', he was still standing there, washing his hands.  Now I don't think there was a surgical suite in the sports bar, but he sure was scrubbing his hands furiously, as though he was about to do surgery.

Speaking of restrooms, let me pontificate on the differences between men and women for a moment, a thought I pondered today while walking.  Picture four male/female couples out for a nice dinner, at an upscale restaurant.  All are dressed nicely and they are having a good time.  As you look around at the eight people seated at the table, the chances that one is wearing an item or items of clothing and/or accessory belonging to another is orders of magnitude higher for the women than the men.  None of those four men are wearing a shirt owned by another.  Or a tie.  Or shoes.  On the other hand, while it isn't a certainty that any of the four women are wearing things that belong to another, there's no question that women do share such things far more often than men do.  After all, when two men move in together, they have two thoughts.  "Son of a bitch better pay his half of the rent on time, and never take my last beer".  Conversely, two women moving in together in a platonic situation will think "okay, my wardrobe is yours, but my man is mine!"

Then think about this.  At some point during dinner, one of the four women will say "I'm going to the ladies room" and the other threee will insist on going with her.  Well, maybe insist is the wrong word, but they will be going.  If one of the four men stood up and said "I'm gonna go take a dump", he won't be getting any company.  The most any of the other three guys might say would be "mention my name and you might get a seat above the water".

When you consider that women always go in packs to the restrooms, and the fact that women almost never eat much of anything in front of their men, the conclusion is obvious.  There are buffet lines in the ladies rooms at good restaurants, and the women duck in there to eat without doing so in front of the men. 

Do you know who Erskine Bowles is?  He was President Clinton's White House Chief of Staff for an extended period.  I'm sick and tired of listening to Larry Elder play a quote of Bowles extolling the virtures of the math and budget abilities of Paul Ryan.  He played it three times yesterday and after the third I finally changed the channel.  Maybe most of his audience needs to hear stuff repeated over and over, day in and out until it sinks in.  Then again, maybe he's assuming his audience is dumber than it actually is.

Once again I'm going to have to go battle the VA system today, thanks to the incompetence of the medical techs at this place. I'm down to my last two tablets of one drug and they didn't tell me only three were left until yesterday.  Since it takes ten days to get a refill using the phone/mail system, I have to go sit and wait to get it filled in person since I can't go without it.  I'm this close (holding two fingers mere milimeters apart) to taking over taking my own meds.  I'm going early to avoid crowds and parking problems.