3 - 2 - 1...It's Here...2009

PEACE....

IT'S BEGINING TO LOOK ALOT...

Christmas Wallpapers at Minty White

THE BUS STOP...RETRO

When posting links, I came across this. Was worthy of its own post.

A whole different Era than the Present day Debacle were in.

THE BUS STOP...

I am starting another new category under the label of "THE BUS STOP". This label will include all bus conversion related material pertaining to my life as a BUSNUT. In my experiences of living Full Time in our bus my path has crossed topics of new ideas, dreams, other busnuts, & the pros as well as the cons of living in a converted bus also known as a Motorcoach. They come in all shapes and sizes, age, value, and are used for many different purposes. I hope you enjoy all my BUS STOP posts. You will be able to single them all out by clicking on the BUS STOP label in the side bar.

This is a picture of BLUE. BLUE is a 1971 Bluebird that was originally a Arizona State University basketball team bus that 5 guys originally converted into a hunting bus in Phoenix to take them to the White Mountains on their hunting excursions. We bought this faithful companion in 1991, while living in Sedona where I was working as a Pastry Chef. We took the bunks out, redesigned the interior to fit our needs and have been living in Blue since. Blue has been as far east as Indiana, as far north as Jasper in Canada, as far south as Tijuana, and criss crossed mainly the Western United States with semi permanent stops in Whitefish MT., Breckenridge CO., Park City UT., Lakeshore CA., St. George UT., Quartzite AZ., and presently located in Prescott AZ. as I continue my Career as a Chef. BLUE is 30 ft. long, powered by a front gas 391 Ford big block hooked to a 6 speed Allison automatic Transmission. The thing will climb a tree, awesome clearance, but has a limited high end speed. Gets 6 miles per gallon...Ka Ching$$!!

Introducing JIM C. JIM C is our newest endeavor. JIM C is a 1958 GMC PD 4104 (hence JIM C). JIM C is 35 ft in length, powered by a Detroit Diesel inline 6-71 two stroke power house hooked to the old 4 speed spice tranny. JIM C is a work in progress. Rebuilt motor, new brakes, fuel lines, wheel bearings, reskined, painted, insulated & ready for the interior. Time, money, (and more money) and commitment is the key to this project and is possibly a topic for another post in THE BUS STOP. He rides on a air suspension system that can be used to level out the rig on uneven terrain, power steering, a great ride and gets 10 miles per gallon if I take the lead out of my shoes. The 4104 was the 1st Air conditioned bus on the American highways and was developed around the same time as our Freeway Systems. It is constructed of mostly aluminum, put together in the same process as a commercial jet liner with cold rivets, etc. They don't build em like this anymore.

ANY QUESTIONS? ANY COMMENTS? ANY OBSERVATIONS?
Comment below and I will get back to you...otherwise tune back in
for the next installment of "THE BUS STOP"

Click JIM C's picture in the side bar for a trip to...
Bus Conversion Magazine

ARIZONA MOON

COMMON SENSE...( The pilot )

In the quest to upgrade my blog here at Big Sky Chef, I am going to start a continuing theme topic that will push me to write more about "whats out there" with opinions that will encompass not only my Chef background, but the numerous everyday visceral feelings of our globe and beyond. They will all be labeled Common Sense to track them in a group.

The most crucial thing to remember here is that I have no common sense. If this was the case I would be in a entirely different place than where I am now. Hindsight is nosight and it seems that this is true across the board with many trendy topics out there. It is a matter of learning from our cumulative experiences and not making the same mistake twice, and to make better decisions in the future.

COMMON SENSE tells me that we are on a rocky road in our vision of what the future holds for our civilization, and what the issues of change in the wind may bring to how we live our daily lives. There has not been a Chef or cooking job in the paper now for 3 weeks, something that I have not observed in the 10 years I have been here. The City has put a hiring freeze into effect as tax revenue is down, and the restaurants are stressing with high food prices, and diminishing customer visits. Now that the powers that be are finally admitting we are in a recession maybe we can get out of denial and take the appropriate steps to get on track.

Tying all the adverse cause and effects together with a broad based solution will be our challenge. Far be it from me to come up with a vision here in the Big Sky Chef blog, but I can sure as h*#l point out what I see and feel and relate this to my readers. STAY TUNED...

WHAT DO YOU THINK????

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!...

WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY THANKSGIVING.

THE CIRCUS IS IN TOWN...

SETTING UP AT THE ARENA FOR THE WEEKEND.
5 SEMI TRUCKS, 60 ROADIES
QUITE IMPRESSIVE

A SALUTE TO OUR VETS...

HONORING OUR MEN & WOMEN IN UNIFORM PAST AND PRESENT.

For stories about our military go HERE

NEW FIRST FAMILY

HISTORY HAS BEEN MADE

TIME TO PICK A PUPPY

OBAMA PREDICTION

Its looking very promising for BO as it nears the end.  What will be known as the longest campaign in history has been amazing even if Obama doesn't become the new President.   
The swing states and the un-polled young cell phone users will decide the winner.  By the looks of the lines and the early voting numbers it seems that people are finally taking charge of their country.  Then see if they follow through and demand the changes they voted for.

"JANE THE PLUMBER"....

Again I apologize for my devious nature. This is actually photo shopped (obviously) thanks to driftglass yet I couldn't help myself and post this image. It goes back to the mask that one can wear. I guess if you want to dwell on Joe the plumber, you should look like Joe the plumber.
Tomorrow is a big day in our History and should not be taken lightly. We will have to live with our decisions (unless the voter machines break down, Bush goes to war with the war powers act, a national catastrophic phenomenon interrupts, or aliens take over) no matter what happens tomorrow.

TIME IS MY ROOM

TRICK (AND/OR) TREAT...

Just "hanging out" here in the AM on Halloween morn still waking up early from my nocturnal stint in the pastry kitchen. This may turn out to be a long post (for me) as I have been caught up with posting a image here and a image there with not much to say. I find myself in a unique place right now, unemployed except for my part time Sous Chef

job at the the Arena in P.V. It's a different experience, kinda reminds me of the fast food outlets I managed at Snoqualmie Pass with the full service side of the VIP lounge by the sky boxes that line the 2nd floor of the Arena. Problem is, it is all scheduled around the events (Hockey, Concerts, Basketball, Home shows, etc.) with too much time in between each event to provide a steady income.
Times are kinda scary right now with the economy being a unknown, massive layoffs nationwide, the wars in the Middle East, the housing foreclosure debacle, and the question of who our next President will be. I am hoping that we all end up united and not divided with the upcoming change. Time of course will tell. Any opinions out there "my friends"?

The hope here is that the American ingenuity and creative freedom we have been globally known and stand for pulls us through these hard times. I think it comes down to each individual and the way we treat our neighbor and fellow citizens. It really is as simple as using your

signal when changing lanes or turning a corner. I am reminded of Orly, my faithful companion of 17 years, that offered his unconditional love & forgiveness, regardless of any mistakes I made in our relationship. When we carve away the outer layers of
our personalities many things may appear, some good & some evil. We can only be honest with ourselves and face our problems with the understanding that none of us are exempt. As a human being my worst trait is being defensive. I try and live a common sense approach to things, but I think we, or at least I am hard wired this way. It could be that we are living Halloween every day of our lives, wearing the masks of who we pretend to be, hiding the true self. Its OK you know to admit fault, it sometimes relieves the burden of pressure that builds up inside.

On a lighter note, hey it's Halloween,the one day where you can wear the mask of a politician, or a Super Hero. No matter who you are inside you can be someone else.

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

SPOOKY...

COOL WALLPAPERS AND OTHER SPOOKY GOODIES
THANKS TO mintywhite.com

GOTTA STOP... WORD CLOUD

CREATE YOUR OWN WORD CLOUD HERE

PICTURE OF THE DAY

FALL IS IN THE AIR

ALONG THE DIVIDE

COMPLIMENTS OF:
http://outtherewithtom.blogspot.com/

QUOTE OF THE DAY

An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today.

Laurence J. Peter

FEDS DEAL ALASKAN POKER

FEDS ARE PLAYING ALASKAN POKER WIYH OUR TAX MONEY

PICTURES FROM SUNDAY ACF COMP

PICASA ALBUM

PARTYTIME PREDICTION...

PREDICT TODAY IS THE DAY
Somewhere around 2:00 p.m. west coast time Obama will disclose his V.P. choice. In time for the evening news, to late for Rush Limbaugh.

THEN ITS PARTYTIME

PICASA PIC BLEND

This is my newest experiment... Take 2 pics from picasa, superimpose them in collage mode, save, and send to blogger as a picture post. It looks good on my desktop... I hope it looks good here too...Let me know what you think...HIT THE COMMENT TAG BELOW!!!

ACF COMPETITION 08

ACF COMPETITION 08

8-8-2008 OLYMPIC DRUMMERS

AWESOME SHOW...WHAT DO YOU THINK?

LIVE LONG & PROSPER

SATIRE?

YOU MAKE A COMMENT...

HIGH SPEED CONNECTION

I just came home from work to a wireless high speed connection (compared to my "SLOW" connection of my net zero dial up I'm in heaven) I think it may have something to do with cloud cover as my neighbors wireless signal is coming in STRONG. The monsoon season is here in the great southwest, with a chance of storms running about 65% every day ...for now. What this means is that I can upload pictures and stuff to this post in about 1/16 the time as with my dialup connection. So if there are any spelling mistakes, it's only because I'm typing really fast & furious before I lose this connection. President Clinton is talking on c-span right trying to re-connect with the mass's after he made a fool of himself during Hillary's run for the white house. ? WHY DO THEY CALL IT THE WHITE HOUSE? Food for thought ...Maybe they ran out of colored paint. If B.O. gets elected (Barack Obama) he could always paint it, but first he has to get past the "MAVERICK".

HEY AT LEAST HE JUST WANTS TO FIGHT#*!#*
[if you don"t watch the news you missed that one...]
So Fanny & Freddie are in the news last couple of days ( Iran's probably laughing their ass's off while blasting off big bottle rockets) {{ Rockets Red Glare}} [[[ CAN YOU DOUBLE PARENTHESIZE... IS THAT LEGAL?]]] it seems that somehow the powers that be over looked another cluster f_ck! You would think they would have learned from the mistakes of the past.....

( IE. ENRON, BEAR STEARNS, IRAQ, SAVINGS & LOAN SHUTDOWN )

I SAY WE SEND IN THE HEAVY HITTER

The news of the energy crisis... high gas prices... effecting our food prices at home as well as our food service industry is really coming to a head. Now I am no genius but if you use the flood damaged corn to fuel bio fuel through subsidies to our farmers, the cold hard facts of supply & demand are blatant. Can we make bio fuel from HEMP OR SWITCH GRASS... Oh no...can't do that. Our farmers only know how to grow corn. O.K. Lets drill... We don't know where we will refine this oil, but we need to drill. ALASKA...Ya that,s the place... the furthest place from our refinery's. Hell we already export 70% of the oil from the pipeline to Japan as it is. How bout keeping that oil in country and using that to wean ourselves off foreign oil. I know...let's nationalize oil production, compete with the big corps, incorporate alternative energy and give them a run for their money. We'll still need a Chuck Norris to keep them in line but hell I'll take that job. It's got to pay more than a buck ten ninety four.

Gotta go for now... lost my connection twice while I was conversing... If you want to donate to the high speed connection fund e-mail TOM @ motf57@gmail.com LOVE YOU GUYS

HAPPY 4th

LOOKS JUST LIKE ME... HOPE YOU HAD A GREAT FOURTH!!

LIFE...THE MOVIE

RELIGIOUS INSPIRATION

A LITTLE HELP FROM ABOVE

Two school friends ran into each other after many years. One man was extremely wealthy, while the other only made a modest living. The poorer friend asked, How did you become so wealthy?"
Well," he replied, One day I opened the Bible and pointed randomly at a word. It was oil. The next day I invested in oil and made a fortune. So I decided to try my luck again. The second time, I pointed at the word ‘gold.' Again, the stocks I bought soared."
After a few more minutes of catching up, the poorer friend rushed home and pulled out his Bible. He closed his eyes, opened the Bible and pointed at the page. He was dismayed to see that his finger was pointing at the words Chapter Eleven."

POLITICS AS USUAL?

O.K.... THE DECISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE.THE THREE STOOGES HAVE MADE THEIR CASE AND ONLY TWO PREVAIL.

Hillary gave it her best shot, but fell short of the mark. She hung in there like a trooper hoping the super delegates would put her over the top. In my mind she was a little over confident from the beginning, and she should have left Bill at home. The Clinton Machine had a new type of hurdle to jump with the sexist/racist factor new to the American public. I think they had too many enemies from their time in the white house, and alot of the old timers just didn't want to deal with their style. Now she can divorce Bill and move on. V.P.? Nada...she won't want it, and it defies "change we can count on". She may be making a deal for Sec. of State, but she may have to duck sniper fire, or lining herself up for a Supreme Court Judge position.

Labeled as a socialist, a Muslum, politically inexperienced, and religious fanatic, BO..Barrack Obama is one thing, a survivor. He has survived the onslaught of all the powers that be to become the choice to run against the "old school". His Internet fund raising techniques will be a model for the future and his ability to draw a crowd, astounding. His oratory delivery has been Kennedy like, and his vision for the common man is inspiring. We will see (if elected) if he is able to bring about the end result he envisions. Is the President really the decision maker, or is the position just a pawn in the chess game.
Pedict Biden will be V.P.
Here's Johnny...This is a classic set up...the rebel of the Republican party, not conservative enough for most on the red team, but he's been flip flopping their way in some areas. Strong on "staying the course" touting his fiscal strengths on earmarks, and needless spending. Financed by the lobbyists, affiliated with the Keating 5, and probably funnels his kickbacks thru Cindie's accounts tied to liquor distributors from the Hensley family, said to be Mafia driven. Who else can you buy a Budweiser from? Known to have a temper, a partying history, and wrecked 5 planes while in service. But he is a Hero. A hero of another failed war. I think this could go either way, my hunch is that they will try to put down Obama with whatever it takes, and his cool common sense approach will expose their negativity and the people will decide. If they can't control the dysfunctional electoral college, and if the race factor doesn't decide the outcome, I don't think Mcain has a chance. Feel free to comment about what you feel. Click the comments at the bottom of the post, you can remain anonymous if you like.

MEMORIAL DAY...

A DAY TO REMEMBER THOSE WHO HAVE FALLEN FOR US WITH THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE.

CLICK THE BLOG TITLE FOR
LINKS

FATE OF OUR FUTURE

If Man is to survive, he will have learned to take delight in the essential difference between people and cultures. He will learn that differences in ideas and attitudes are a part of life's exciting variety, not something to fear.

TAKE BACK AMERICA, (or it may be to late)

Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler Corporation from it's death throes? He's now 82 years old and has a new book, and here are some excerpts...Lee Iacocca Says: "Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, "Stay the course" Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned "Titanic". I'll give you a sound bite: "Throw all the bums out!" You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore. The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom -poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the " America " my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you? I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The Biggest "C" is Crisis! (Iacocca elaborates on nine Cs of leadership, crisis being the first.) Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk th eory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down. On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A Hell of a Mess So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the country. We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our schools are in trouble. Our borders are like sieves. The middle class is being squeezed every which way! These are times that cry out for leadership. But when you look around, you've got to ask:"Where have all the leaders gone?" Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point. Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo? We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened. Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm. Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again. Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time. Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when "The Big Three" referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it? Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem.The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry. I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity.What is everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change? Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope! I believe in America . In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through some of America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: the "Great Depression", "World War II", the "Korean War", the "Kennedy Assassination", the "Vietnam War", the 1970s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11. If I've learned one thing, it's this: "You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. "That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a call to "Action" for people who, like me, believe in America It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let's shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had "enough." Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care about. It's our country, folks; and it's our future. Our future is at stake!

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