blogs
vacation 2002
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007

11.30.03 sunday:
~ Thanks Al for sending me this piece of work:

11.28.03 friday:
~ Had a great Thanksgiving. Ate turkey. Watched football. Drank beer. Visited with family.

11.20.03 thursday:
~ you have to see the "star wars kid" in action:

found at: www.jedimaster.net

11.14.03 friday:
~ Thanks Brian, for sending this hilarious link: http://members.cox.net/impunity/endofworld.swf.

11.10.03 monday:
~ Just got back from Nebraska. Had a great visit. Saw everybody. Gutted a duck. Had a great early Thanksgiving visit with the family.

11.03.03 monday:
~ This weekend we went to see Rob and Kara, and their new baby and their new house. Nice all around. Beautiful baby, beautiful house.

10.29.03 wednesday:
~ I haven't updated this page in a long time, but all I have for you is this lousy link.

10.12.03 sunday:
~ Wow! what a game! KC vs. Green Bay in overtime. Whoa!
~ So what have I been up to lately. Working mostly, haven't had time to write much.

THE STRANGE BEEPING NOISE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

I had recently picked up this toy Palm Pilot for Savannah, so I went downstairs and tried to figure out how to turn the sound off. It was sitting on the television in the family room. I was trying to figure it out when I heard the beep again, coming from the kitchen.

So I'm in the kitchen, looking around, but the thing only beeps every five minutes, so I have to wait around for five minutes waiting for this think to beep. Finally it does. It's the phone hanging on the wall over the counter. I unplug it and go back to bed.

BEEP BEEP, five minutes later.

With a groan I go downstairs again. It's four in the morning. I see the offending item: A small white plastic box with a speaker in it, the kind of thing they put in dolls and toys so they make noise. It has a tiny screw holding it together. I sit there at the table, looking at the thing, waiting my five minutes so I can be sure that I've found the right thing.

BEEP BEEP!

It's not the little white plastic box. I look around. Directly under the phone is a basket Deb keeps her junk in, you know, the junk drawer? I paw through that and find her cell phone, it says "LOW BATTERY".

With the mystery solved, I went back to sleep. Deb thought it was so damn funny when I told her.

10.03.03 friday:
~ Mysteries revealed: The lyrics to "Louie Louie", written by Richard Berry in 1956:

10.01.03 wednesday:
~ today I wrote my own paycheck, took it to the bank, and deposited it. Not as much as before, but more than unemployment. My business is growing (a little) and I already have a couple of companies calling me back for work. I apologize to all of my millions of loyal readers that I haven't made any entries to this site, so here is today's entry:

I don't give a rat's ass about acid-reflux "disease".

So there it is, today's web-journal entry by dan "small business owner" manning.

09.29.03 monday:
~ Not much is new. Work is going well, I'm seeing customers almost every day now. I'm still waiting for my tax ID so I can be a reseller for some of these parts. I'm starting my new bestseller and editing my last one again. I gave up on my tenth short story cause it wasy crappy.

09.20.03 saturday:
~ 9:12 PM: Sorry I haven't updated for awhile, but I've been launching my new multi-million dollar company: A-1 Computer Service & Repair. Business is already picking up. My client base is growing by the day.

09.15.03 monday:
~ 9:39 PM: So I'm watching MNF, and they have this commercial, and they refer to the late John Ritter a "legend." I don't think so. Johnny Cash, sure. John Ritter? No friggin' way. He's dead. That doesn't make him a legend.

09.14.03 sunday:
~ 10:27 PM: I got the last frozen "fun sized" Snicker's bar from the freezer. Ha ha ha.

09.12.03 friday:
~ Johnny Cash and John Ritter died on the same day. Weird.
~ why is Montel still on television? Somebody tell me why. Please?
~ found my new job. I start tomorrow.

09.10.03 wednesday:
~ day 3: why is there a "reheat" button on the microwave? How is that different from the "start" button?

09.09.03 tuesday:
~ day 2: drinking beer, sprawled out on the couch all day with orange Cheetos stains down the front of my tee-shirt: this unemployment thing isn't so bad. Watching Opera, Judge Joe Brown, and soaps. I could get used to this real quick! I don't know what I was so worried about.

09.08.03 monday:
~ day 1: 8:01 AM: Holy Crap! I'm late for work. No, wait a minute. No I'm not. Whew!

09.06.03 saturday:
~ Today, Savannah, Deb and I rode 8 miles on the White Pine trail to Rockford, where they had an art festival going on. My buttocks was hurting from the bike seat. I need one of those old-man padded bike seats with the springs under them for extra buttock padding.
~Savannah had a soccer clinic this morning. She did really well moving the ball around, and stopping the other kids from making goals. We got her some cleats and shin-pads and a soccer ball.
~I have a couple of job leads I'm going to check out Monday. I should be working by Wednesday. (Yeah, right Dan) or whenever.

09.05.03 friday:
~ Today I decided on a career change! Well, I had a little help, but now that the decision's been made, I'm job-hunting like nobody's job-hunted before. It's satisfying work. The pay isn't that good, but I hope it's only temporary.

09.04.03 thursday:
~ got a haircut today. Ya!

09.02.03 tuesday:
~ The !@#$% cat woke me up at 4:30 this morning. I am not in a good mood. Fatigued. I'm fatigued people. Cranky. Next time, the cat gets it. (Like a shoe thrown at it or something.)

09.01.03 monday:
~ I got the day off!
~ I'm rewriting one of my stories. Wrote a song about it, here goes:

~Otherwise, I'm up to a whole lot of nothing. Reading Ray Bradbury now. Only took me what, thirty-six years to discover Ray Bradbury? I'm a friggin' genius.
~ whoa.

08.28.03 thursday:
~ yet again, another fantabulous day.

08.26.03 tuesday:
~ The girls started school again today. they love it almost as much as we do.
~ Started story #10 yesterday.
~ Started exercising again for the one millionth time.

08.25.03 monday:
~ welovearnold.com <--funny
~ atom films star wars spoofs.<--funnier. at least watch the top film.

08.24.03 sunday:
~ Finished story #9. One more and I start my next bestselling novel!
~ I got nothing else going on. Yup. I'm drawing a blank. Tune in next time for another thrilling installment of: danmanning.com!

08.20.03 wednesday:
~ wanna see something scary?

08.19.03 tuesday:
~ it's tuesday! where does the time go? what can i say about today? nothing! that's right, i had an uneventful day at work, i worked, and then i came home! how many people do you know who can say that? not many, i'm sure. yup, i lead an extraordinary and interesting life. no doubt about it. whoo-ee! i'm living on the edge baby!

08.16.03 saturday:
~ took the family downtown. we ate at bistro bella vita. I suggest the roast asparagus for appetizer. Damn that was good!
~big surprise for the day: the movie ghost ship didn't suck. In fact, it wasn't half bad. I was expecting a train wreck like that aweful 13 ghosts, which sucked nads.

08.14.03 thursday:
~ I really panicked today. I thought my Soundgarden CD was missing. I found it after a few minutes of looking. I was really stressed out there for a minute.
~ The biggest electrical outage in US history hit the NE part of the nation today, but it didn't hit here, so everything's going to be okay.

08.13.03 wednesday:
~You're not going to believe what I did: I ran the dishwasher, and it was only half full! Don't tell the wife, or I'll be in deep trouble. I'm living on the edge baby. Yea!

08.09.03 saturday:
~Took the Kids to the beach today.

~There was an annoying lady silting at the picnic tables. She had a grating, loud voice, and when she was explaining things to her two grandchildren, she'd end with an annoying and condensending "Hello?!" Like that guy on Back to the Future "Hello McFly?" Why would a grandmother tack that on to the end of every third sentence?

~Then this fat kid flogged the spring-teeter-totter with his big, fat ass. The poor springs were completly compressed and the seat was bottoming out. That kid was so obese. It was disturbing to watch.

08.08.03 friday:
~ worked.
~ took the girls bowling.
~ shot an air rifle.
~ begged to get into a dollar store at closing time. denied.

08.06.03 wednesday:
~ I mowed the lawn, learned about Microsoft MIIS (say it now: GEEK!), worked, got another reject letter, and that's about it.
~ I hate weeds. I have weeds infesting my lawn. I like to pull the little bastards out, I like to hear their little roots pull out of the ground. I hate crabgrass and spurge and pigweed and all the other weeds out there. I think I'd kill my whole lawn just to get rid of them. A scorched earth policy. Does that make me crazy? I don't know.
~ I saw Kobe Bryant walk through a courthouse hallway today, over and over and over again. Can't feel too sorry for anybody who'd cheat on his wife. What a dumb ass.

08.05.03 tuesday:
~ worked.
~ took the kids to see Spy Kids 3D. It was better than I expected. it was "3-D"ish!
~ got a call from PEAVEY MAN!. Haven't heard from Jim in at least 4 years. I told him if he went to the reunion, so would I.

08.04.03 monday:
~ worked.
~ mowed a section of the lawn. not all of it.
~ edited another story. got to start another one tonight.

08.03.03 sunday:
~ Dropped the the family off at the airport Saturday. Gonna miss them. We had a great visit.
~ Today I did a whole lot of nothing. Replaced a door knob. Thought about mowing the lawn. Got a haircut.

07.31.03 thursday:
~ look for me on television. We'll be at the Buick Open.

07.30.03 wednesday:
~ going to Michigan Adventure.

07.28.03 monday:
~ note to self: You are not cut out to teach golf.
~ dad, corrie, seth and maddie are visiting from Kansas. Having a great time.
~ saw a Whitecaps game last night.

07.23.03 wednesday:
~ worked, golfed.

07.22.03 tuesday:
~ wrote.

07.21.03 monday:
~ 7:39 PM: ran out of bean dip.

07.20.03 sunday:
~ read.

07.19.03 saturday:
~ went for a hike at the Provin Trails Park, went to the apple orchard, went to the mall, and came home. We were supposed to clean that house today, but it never happened. Oh well.

07.17.03 thursday:
~ walked to the library today. that's a lot healthier than sitting in the bar huh?
~ um, can you tell by the line above this one that there's not a lot to report right now? Tune in next time, for: Dan's really dull life!

07.15.03 tuesday:
~ watched half of "gangs of new york," it was kind of slow. Want to borrow the DVD? You're welcome to it. This movie dragged.

07.14.03 monday:
~ took the girls to the beach.
~ worked on another story.
~ sister sent me a message: it was 114 in Wichita. I sent her a message back: 83 degrees.

07.13.03 sunday:
~ mowed the lawn, which took all day cause I was reading a book and I kept stopping to read the book. Otherwise, didn't do much at all.

07.12.03 saturday:
~ Took Savannah golfing. We played best ball. Didn't do to bad. Savannah hit some good ones, and believe it or not, we actually used her ball twice. Because I suck ass at golf.
~ We got some nice patio furniture.

07.11.03 friday:
~ These guys are based in Grand Rapids:schmidttech.com

07.09.03 wednesday:
~ bla.
~ i have a library card.
~ i thought buddy hacket was already dead.
~ ths sntnc hs n vwls.
~ the preceding sentence has no vowels.
~ did i wash the car yesterday? yes. i answered my own question.

07.07.03 monday:
~ bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla

07.04.03 friday:
~ last night we went out walking, because every 3rd of July, they shoot fireworks over the lake at the end of the block. So I pull the girls in the wagon and deb and I walk to the lake. It's about ten. We go to the lake, and nobody is there, but we spread out a blanket, and somebody shoots off a few fireworks, you know, the professional kind. The people on the lake have a little money. We're in the public park. Some dude who looks like the unabomber walks up and asks if he can sit down. "Sure." He's not too strange or anything, except he gets up twice to splash his face in the lake water, which is pretty strange. THen he leaves, saying he has to catch the eleven o-clock news.

So after awhile, with no fireworks, we head back to the house. Of course, as soon as we do, the fireworks start going off at the lake. We've searched the papers to find out when these fireworks are supposed to be set off and who's setting them off, but we can never find anything. So we see as few fireworks on the way back, through the trees.

So when we get home, it turns out some hillbillies are at the school directly behind the house shooting off some pretty amazing fireworks. This one guy lays out a string of fireworks that had to be twenty feet long, and shot off the entire pack. They had roman candles and some mid-grade fireworks, and we had a great show.

But this morning, a firetruck pulled up at the school. Didn't burn the building down or anything, but there was a bench built completly around this tree, and it was ashes. Two firemen got out and hosed the ashes down. The bark was scorched. I don't think the hillbillies did it on purpose, but I know they must have done it. The hillbillies are going to be back tonight to light off more fireworks. I think I'll hose off my roof and yard before they start. Of course, it looks like rain.

07.03.03 thursday:
~ in a moment of weakness this weekend, I agreed we could get a dog. A LITTLE dog, one that poops little turds. I hate picking up dog-shit. There, I said it. Is that so wrong?

07.02.03 wednesday:
~ what to write, what to write? deb made kabob's on the grill this evening. Savannah tied a blanket around her neck and pretended it was a cape. She ran around the yard saving the world. I have five stories out there in front of editors, and I imagine they will promptly send me five reject slips. It's okay. My writing improves with every story. Don't think that what you find here is an example of my work. No, this is just a webpage.

07.01.03 tuesday:
~ yea.
~ if I hit my driver like I hit the nine iron, it goes far and straight. On the driving range that is. It doesn't translate over to the actual golf course.

06.30.03 monday:
~ My email changed. it's now: danmanning@comcast.net
~ cat's love tuna, just like in the cartoons.

06.27.03 friday:
~ BREAKING NEWS! HE'S BACK!

06.26.03 thursday:
~ I went golfing yesterday. That's about it. My life's a total bore right now. Check back later when I've done something.

06.21.03 saturday:
~ 1210 AM: Savannah and I got the new Harry Potter book.
~ Today: Fore!

06.20.03 friday:
~ took deb out for dinner last night and I had some fish that was fantastic. Yesterday was her birthday. Otherwise, nothing new.
~ the girls are camping in the backyard. Of course, I'm on the couch in the living room, with the slider open, keeping an eye on em.

06.17.03 tuesday:
~ worked, wrote, had dinner at cheer's, pulled some weeds, sent in another story, gave savannah a harmonica, savannah has discovered the word "jinxlock." I have to go now, because I have to close the garage. Goodbye.

06.14.03 saturday:
~ put together my new desk . . . until 3:30 this morning!

06.13.03 friday:

06.12.03 thursday:
~ we have two ice-cream scoopers. Why?

06.11.03 wednesday:
~ this is Savannah's last day of school. I ironed my shirt, ate cornflakes, operated a three-hole punch, bought some tea, and worked.

06.10.03 tuesday:
~ worked, bought car, played uno( W1 L2), ate cookie, printed out book to send out, picked up pine-cones, found the cat.

06.09.03 monday:
~um, yardwork, work, writing, saw bruce-almighty movie, graduation open-house at the neighbor's, killed a mole, babysat friends' kids, got wireless internet for the house, made some margaritas, mowed lawn, have gas, car's stalling, rained a lot, bookstore, flew kite with daughter, wrote some more, got reject letter from MFSF, and that's about it.

06.06.03 friday:
~ I went to Savannah's school for their "fun" day, and I must admit, it was fun. She did the sack race, the water-balloon-toss, the relay race, frisbee toss and all that hoo-ha, and I was there to witness it all. I finally got rid of the branches from the april '03 ice storm, and planted some grass seed in the lawn.
~ other than yard-work and work, there's nothing going on. I talked to a Vietnam vet who was "there" and he went through some serious shit. This was at the Frog.
~ I'm working on my ten short-story collection. I'm almost finished with the fourth one.

06.02.03 monday:
~ we went to comstock park, where the girls rode their bikes and Deb and I got in a long walk. We had a good time.

06.01.03 sunday:
~ Yesterday I went into some kind of yardwork trance. I started mowing the lawn at about ten, and after that I did some yardwork, and the next thing I knew, Deb brought out a plateful of dinner. I asked her what time it was, and she told me it was six. I got a lot done, but I didn't think I had worked that long.

05.31.03 saturday:
~ thanks for checking in, but I got nada, zilch, zero going on. If anything remotely interesting happens, you'll be the first to know.

05.27.03 tuesday:
~ stressed out?

05.25.03 sunday:
~ today I put together this swing set for the kids. it took me a good couple hours.
~ check out this picture of earth and Jupiter from Mars. Scroll down after the picture loads. If your browser has "automatic image resizing" enabled, turn it off. There's more of an explanation at national geographic

05.23.03 friday:
~ bought the swingset today. they deliver it Sunday, and then I get to put it together. wonder how that will turn out.

05.21.03 wednesday:
~ Today I assaulted a pile of wood with an axe, a saws-all, a wedge, and a hammer. I'm clearing out the woodpile to put in a swing set for the kiddies. Unfortunately, I'm plum out of muscle relaxers the doctor prescribed to me for my bad back. Dern.

05.20.03 tuesday:
~ The grammar checker in Microsoft Word doesn’t understand my genius.

05.18.03 sunday:
~ let's see, what did I do this weekend?
~ friday:\went and saw "The Matrix Reloaded". The special effects kicked ass, but the story sucked. The first movie is too good for a sequal, but there is money to be made. I'll rent the third one on DVD.
~ saturday:\burned brush all day.
~ sunday:\mowed the lawn.

05.15.03 thursday:
~ scored a fantastic 59 on nine holes at Grand Rapids Golf Club. Yes, I was stinking up the place.
~ put bicycle together for Alex's fifth birthday. the big 0-5. wow.

05.14.03 wednesday:
~ "dust buggys"

05.11.03 sunday:
~ dodged a bullet by not having to take the kids to see the Lizzy McGuire movie. Deb took them.
~ made Deb breakfast in bed for Mother's day.
~ mowed the lawn.

05.08.03 thursday:
~ zero, zilch, nada. my book got rejected again, but they want to see anything else I have. they said it was too much like all the other stuff they've already published. i'm trying to write ten short stories to peddle around. got any idears?

05.07.03 wednesday:
~ now that my second bestseller is finished, I'm writing ten short stories. got to think of some stuff first.

05.04.03 sunday:
~ burned brush all afternoon.
~ finished my second literary masterpiece: THE CUBICLES of MADNESS. Read the first chapter.

05.03.03 saturday:
~ went and saw X-Men 2. Good flick. There was a fire in the neighborhood next to ours, and a big plume of smoke. There are cars crawling all over the neighborhood, trying to see the fire. We got in the car to see it too, but the roads leading to it were packed. Other people's misery is entertainment. It's been true forever.
~ We bought an above-stove microwave.

05.02.03 friday:
~ moved my site here so i won't get hacked.
~ used a good portion of a bottle of Roundup on my yard. I got dandilions like crazy in the backyard. I hate weeds.
~ rented Road to Perdition. Good flick.

05.01.03 thursday:
~ hard drive crashed the other day.

04.24.03 thursday:
~ still nothing going on. sorry.

04.21.03 monday:
~ I have had the worst gas lately. Jeez! There, I just ripped another one. It's too bad this website isn't scratch-n-sniff, cause I just let a doozy. Damn.
~ In other news, we visited Joanne for Easter and had a wonderful time, as usual. It rained a half the way there, and it poured on the way back.
~ I put down some grass seed in the backyard, and finally made a ladder so the girls can play in the treehouse.

04.19.03 saturday:
~ I got a whalin' headache right now.
~ the ladies are coloring Easter eggs. They made some funky looking ones. Used a sponge to dab the color on. Much nicer than the dipped ones.
~ today I raked some more brush from the yard. It rained this evening.
~ my book is coming along fine, but it's kind of, well, boring. that can't be good.

04.18.03 friday:
~ Well, something happened finally. The tie-rod on my car broke on the highway. Had to call a tow truck. Luckily, I didn't crash into anybody.

04.17.03 thursday:
~ um, still nothing to report. sorry.

04.16.03 wednesday:
~ whole lotta nuthin' going on here. tune in tomorrow, maybe something interesting will happen. Just working on my crap novel and watching it get cold outside.

04.15.03 tuesday:
~ Tax day! Mine's already spent.
~ last night was Josh's going-away party . Got to pay my respects to the nearly departed. He ships out for the Air Force this month. Good on 'em.
~ yesterday I golfed a 18 over par at the Grand Island front 9.
~war's over, so there's nothing going on really.

04.14.03 monday:
~ welovetheiraqiinformationminister.com. His greatest hits. See article here for more details. The site is probably overworked right now.

04.12.03 saturday:
~ Today I golfed a hefty 27 over par at the Grand Island Golf Course. Like a loser, I was golfing alone. Thank God I didn't get a hole in one. No one would have been there to attest to it.

04.11.03 friday:
~ I'm back from vacation, but I'm still to relaxed to actually type anything about it here.

04.03.03 thursday:
~ vacation! we're headed to Tennessee. Plan on stopping at the mammoth caves if we have time.

04.01.03 tuesday:
~ no april fools entry today. I lost a ~$60.00 computer book that doesn't belong to me at the park.
~ I'm putting bug poison down because I hate bugs.
~ war still on. Good guys still winning.
~ bought a replacement computer book. ouch. expensive trip to the park eh?
~ thanks Curt, for sending me this, and this.
~ Aunt Edna for sending this:

>After
the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, which killed six and injured >1,000;
President Clinton promised that those responsible would be >hunted
down and punished. After the 1995 bombing in Saudi Arabia, which >killed
five U.S.military and punished. >After
the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia, which killed 19 >and
injured 200 U.S. military personnel; Clinton promised that those >responsible
would be hunted down and punished. >After
the 1998 bombing of U.S. embassies in Africa, which killed 224 and >injured
5,000; Clinton promised that those responsible! Would be hunted >down
and punished. >After
the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole, which killed 17 and injured 39 >U.S.
sailors; Clinton promised that those responsible would be hunted >down
and punished. >York
and Washington, D.C. that are now dead would be alive today. >And,
now that Bush is taking action to bring these people to justice, we >have
opponents charging him with being a war monger... >AN
INTERESTING QUESTION: >This
question was raised on a Philly radio call-in show. >Without
casting stones, it is a legitimate question. >There
are two men, both extremely wealthy. One develops relatively cheap >software
and gives billions of dollars to charity. >The
other sponsors terrorism. That being the case, why was it that the >Clinton
Administration spent more money chasing down Bill Gates over the >past
eight years than Osama bin Laden? >THINK
ABOUT IT! >It
is a strange turn of events. >Hillary
gets $8 Million for her forthcoming memoir. >Bill
gets about $12 Million for his memoir yet to be written. >This
from two people who have spent the past 8 years being unable to >recall
anything about past events while under oath! >Sincerely,
Cmdr Hamilton McWhorter USN(ret) >P.
S. Please forward this to as many people as you can! We don't want >this
woman to even THINK of running for President. >Remember:
>The
Alamo.... Pearl Harbor....9-11-01.... >The
Clinton Years.... All Truly American Disasters !! >

03.28.03 saturday:
~ mother nature is a be-AAATch. it's @#$!ing snowing today.
~ i have a terrible secret to reveal to you today. every saturday, when i add my entry here on my pathetic little website, i secretly have to sing that ancient tune by the Bay City Rollers in order to spell the word "saturday." S-A-TUR-DAY NIGHT! S-A-TUR-DAY NIGHT! It's sad but true. It's the only way I'd ever be able to spell the word. I still have trouble with "wednesday."

03.28.03 friday:
~ ha ha ha ! look at this! thanks jay.

03.27.03 thursday:
~ Waging war overseas: $75,000,000,000.00
~ Being a civilian during the war: Priceless
~ Had the Orkin man to the house today. We got ants. He's gonna kill them.
~ God Bless America.

03.26.03 wednesday:
~ My buddy Jay found the funniest picture on the Internet. Too bad he put it up on his site, first, so I can't steal it. See it at jasoncarmer.net

~ War Blogs:

blogsofwar.com / sgtstryker.com /  lt-smash.us / rooba.net/will 

03.25.03 tuesday:
~ not much going on. beautiful day. war still on.
: ) took Alex to the park. Did escavation to fill pooled water under swings with faded wood chips. Played soccer. (Alex 3 , Dan 0).

03.23.03 sunday:
~ Frenche's mustard distances self from French.

03.22.03 saturday:
~ Gonzaga / Arizona double overtime! Oh Baby!
~ Savannah got he ears pierced at the mall. After that, we did the NASCAR simulator at NASCAR Silicon Motor Speedway. That was fun. I only had a horrendous wreck once. I was 11th, and Deb was 28th.
~ war still on.
~ while we were out, Bell (our cat) knocked finster's (gerbil) cage over. when we came home, bell was chasing finster across the living room. when I grabbed finster, I got bit. I'm sprouting a tail.
~ God Bless America.

03.21.03 friday:
~ been glued to the TV, watching things unfold overseas.
~ had a sliding glass door put in yesterday.
~ Let's hear it for Josh, who ships out next month for the Air Force. We're all proud of you buddy. Don't drop the soap! ha ha.

03.19.03 wednesday:
~ Hey, let's all boycott the fucking french! click here!
~ A very special message from the Navy

03.18.03 tuesday:
~ yesterday was beautiful. raked in the front yard. grilled out. wore sandals. by the way, never rake wearing sandals. raking across the toes hurts.
~ found out the sold the frog. some things aren't supposed to change.
~ unless you've been living under a rock, you already know we're about to go to war.

03.15.03 sunday:
~ looks like the shit hits the fan this week. i bought an new American flag and hung it out front. let's hope this is a short war, and hope the best for the troops, and all the women and children over there in Iraq.

03.14.03 saturday:
~ spent most of the morning watching the snow melt off my roof. It's FIFTY-TWO DEGREES outside. I'm so relieved. Now that spring is here, all the problems of the world will solve themselves. Right? Even if they don't, at least I can sit in a lawn chair in my driveway and feel the sun, the amazingly really bright sun, shining down on my little patch of ground while the snow melts off my roof.

03.13.03 friday:
~ home sick with highly contagious illness.
~ oh god! i just had to pick up cat poo. Jesus! I'm wretching!

03.13.03 thursday:
~ we're quaranteened! Alex has strep and scarlet fever, whatever that is, but it's highly contagious. No work for me tomorrow, unfortunatly. I was so looking forward to getting some things done! Boo hoo.

03.12.03 wednesday:
~ noticed the tiniest buds on the tree in front of our building today. spring might actually come this year.
~ found out I could neither make a "quadrillion dollars" or control the NASDAQ with a phone call.

03.11.03 tuesday:
~ cat knocked gerbil cage off of television. no injuries to report.
~ took alex to mcdonalds.
~ studied code.

03.10.03 monday:
~ it's snowing! wow.
~ was tempted to start a "start of war" office pool. when do you think the war will start?
~ today i'm "goal oriented."
~ I don't know about y'all, but I'm checking the news like, every hour to see if we're at war yet. It's driving me kind of batty. - 1827

03.09.03 sunday:
~ last night we watched the matrix.
~ today i sat on the couch all day and didn't do a damn thing.

03.08.03 saturday:
~ tonight both girls are staying at friends' houses.
~ bought the matrix and the terminator on DVD.
~ changed the oil in the van.

03.07.03 friday:
~ oh, I'm sorry, I have nothing interesting to write again because my life if boring. More later!

03.05.03 wednesday:
~ I really can't think of anything interesting to write. I went half and hour on the exercize machine, that's something I guess. It snowed overnight, but by this afternoon, the sun was out and the roads were clear. I'm still working on another book, although this one is stalled somehow. I spoke to my friend Barry yesterday evening. He was hauling 18 thousand pounds of rollerblades one way, and 38,000 lbs. of frozen pizzas the other, between New Jersey and Kansas.

03.04.03 tuesday:
~ today we ordered the new sliding glass door. now deb is happy.
~ snowstorm in forcast.
~ are we at war yet?

03.03.03 monday:
~ bla.

03.02.03 sunday:
~ yesterday we went and saw the Daredevil movie. It sucked.
~ it's snowing out.
~ (later) it's not snowing out anymore.

03.01.03 saturday:
~ Hey now! It's saturday!
~ Last night I bought a DVD player for the kids. I'm sick of watching Grease! for the umpteenth time already. Alex loves that movie.

02.28.03 friday:
~ Hey Kids! Download your threat level indicator for you computer today! Never again will you have to worry about what the threat level is. Handy threat-level icon in your system tray! A must have!

02.27.03 thursday:
~ bought the Norah Jones CD, I had to know what 5+ Grammy awards sounds like, and I have to admit, it sounds pretty good.

02.26.03 wednesday:
~ yea, i don't really have anything for you today either. It's Wednesday, it's cold, and that's about it. David Letterman got an eye infection, and Bruce Willis, who was supposed to be a guest, had to host for him at the last minute. Bruce looked scared. Really scared. Since I'm describing something I saw on television, you know it's been a slow day here at the manning estate. see ya!

02.25.03 tuesday:
~ um, okay, enough with this "cold" already. I fell into some money recently, and I'm paying down the damn credit card with a vengence! then I can waste me money on other crap. There is nothing whatsoever going on, so I guess that's it for now.

02.23.03 sunday:
~ Well, yesterday we got out and did something. I had this fabulous idea to rent a room in a hotel with an atrium, you know, indoor pool, games, hot-tub, exercise area, the works. That way the kids could swim, and we'd be out of the house for a day, like a mini-vacation. So I call all the fancy places downtown, but they're all booked. So I end up getting a room at the Best Western on 28th street. They had an indoor pool, hot-tub, trees growing indoors, all that. Well, the kids loved it. They swam for hours. However . . .

It seems they rent the courtyard out for birthday parties, and when we got there, there were like, three million kids in the pool. There were groups camped out at the tables in the courtyard, so there was nowhere to sit.

To avoid having my kids killed by bigger kids in the shallow end, I ended up treading water for three hours while my kids played (with floats on their arms) in the deep end; appearantly none of the three million kids in the shallow end could swim. I played lifeguard while my two kids jumped into the deep end over and over again. I'm really, really sore. But I needed the workout, because earlier, when I had put on my swimming trunks, my white, flabby belly about made me want to puke. I got to go on a diet/exersize routine before I become a complete fat-ass.

One high point in the evening: I was at my usual spot, treading water in the deep end of the pool, when suddenly, one of the "security guards" at the hotel walks up to the hot-tub, and everyone in there (the hot-tub was overcrowded as well) jumps out of the hot tub. It seems someone floated one in the hot-tub. I'm talking baby-ruth. A turd. Somebody shat in the hot-tub. That was funny enough, but then they put crime scene tape, yes, yellow crime scene tape around the hot-tub so no one would get in.

So what did I learn? Call ahead, pay a little extra and go to a pricier place. I guess this mini-vacation idea isn't unique. This morning, as we were leaving, some guy with a laundry basket full of cereal and plastic plates and cups and all this other crap just camped out at one of the tables in the courtyard. It was like the Beverly Hillbillies down there.

. . . and in other news:

Webmaster: Please forward this to the genius "doctor" who killed that Mexican girl:

02.22.03 saturday:
~ today we're getting out of the house and doing something. Don't know what yet, but we're going anyway.

02.20.03 thursday:
~ Today I walked out to the mailbox BAREFOOTED!!! It was 45 degrees out; it was like Florida. Of course this is just a tease, mother nature will be a bitch again in a few days, but today I walked around the block without a coat (I did wear shoes, it's not THAT warm out).

~ Somebody at work (I won't say who, but his name begins with J and he sits next to me) suggested that I don't have much of a chance to make it as a writer. Of course, he's right as usual, but I'll have to make about a billion dollars writing and I'll call him on a gold-plated phone from some tropical island. "Ha ha I'm calling you from my fancy-pants island. I have a drink with an umbrella in it!" And hang up. I'll call him in the middle of winter, just to rub it in.

~ Broadband users! Be sure to view this important instructional video in case the North Koreans nuke the shit out of us!

~Peace in Middle Earth in Our Time

02.18.03 tuesday:
~ finally, a story about people using their heads . . . and their legs.

02.17.03 monday:
-Okay, I admit it, I watched the final episode of Joe Millionair. I cheat on these reality series. I don't watch any of it, except the last episode. It keeps me from wasting too much time.
~ I did get a lot of writing done, even after wasting an hour watching television. I try to keep it down to a low roar, the television. It saps the mind a little.
~ We're in for a heat wave this week. It's supposed to be in the high thirties. That's a major heat wave.
~ Otherwise, it's been another Monday, and I'm ready to hit the sack.

02.15.03 saturday:
-we got a new cat today. The girls named it Bell (it's a girl cat).
-took the girls to the mall, but it was wicked-crowded.
-watched a movie called Scottland, PA. It was a remake of MacBeth set in the seventies.

02.14.03 friday:
-Agh! Virginia house! ceiling collapsed. Insurance will cover it!
-furnace was making funny noise. Found paper instruction had pealed off the inside cover, and was rubbing against the fan.
-delivered the goods: chocolate, champagne, 12 roses, card.
-opened a savings account.

02.13.03 thursday:
-I worked.
-I cleaned the bathtub.
-My Michigan tax returns came back.
-North Korea has nukes that could reach the U.S.
-The Arabs still hate us.
-Tomorrow is Valentines Day.
-The sun was out this afternoon.
-I think I might have to do my front brake pads on the taurus.
-I wrote.

02.12.03 wednesday:
-Ow! My back hurts from shoveling snow! We got like, twenty feet of snow in two hours last night. I had to shovel once last night, once this morning, and once after the snowplows put all the snow from the street back on my driveway.
-We went to the humane society to get a replacement cat; Sheena's not dead yet, but that one-eyed cat (did I mention Sheena had an eye removed?) that one-eyed cat can't live forever.

02.11.03 tuesday:
-Um, not much going on here. So go ahead and click this link.

02.10.03 monday:
-savannah had her singing recital this evening. She did good, and she had some lines to read in front of everybody in front of the microphones, and she did her lines perfect. We took the girls out for hot chocolate afterwards. Nice evening.

02.09.03 sunday:
-yesterday: took the family to pietro's and to the arcade. painted the office.
-today: took the girls sledding. shopped for a light for the kitchen. watched the count of monte cristo on DVD.

02.07.03 friday:
-my book was REJECTED! but never fear, I've already sent out another letter to another agent. I will HOUND the literary world into submission! HA HAHAHAHA!

02.06.03 thursday:
-having a good day at work. can't find a book i want to read. otherwise, more of the same.

02.05.03 wednesday:
-Today's rating: OR
I just filled the van up with gas today, and I say: Bomb IRAQ or stop talking about it already. (or make peace, I don't care) Take their oil! But please, no more hearings, no more speeches, and please, no more uttering the phrase "Weapons of Mass Destruction!" damn! We all know it's about oil, so stop talking around it. Cheap oil for all. At a buck-eighty-nine a gallon, it's time to shit or get off the pot. When world events begin affecting my wallet, it's time for world leaders to take action!

02.04.03 tuesday:
-Today's rating:
-Thanks Jay for figuring out that server thing.
-Jesus Christ! I'm sick of all this shuttle news coverage! Enough!

02.03.03 monday:
-Today's rating: only because work kind of sucked ass.
-Okay, okay already, the space shuttle blew up. Big fucking deal. I don't care. There, I said it, and I'm not ashamed!
-A window guy came by and gave us an estimate on new windows. Great windows, but I didn't realize they cost so much. We got to save up for them, cause I'm paying cash! No credit, and no financing allowed.

02.02.03 sunday:
-man, sad news yesterday. seven people dead. Seven teenagers were killed in an avalanch in Canada yesterday. I didn't see anything about it on television. The networks must have thought something more important happened?? You can read about it by clicking here. I wonder why they didn't see fit to mention it yesterday?

02.01.03 saturday:
-today we sled.
-stumbled across this little site whilst surfing the web. check it out. fly all the way up after you fly around while.

01.31.03 friday:
-took a vacation day.
-it's thirty degrees out! it's a heat wave.
-well, i'm really from michigan now. i washed the van today in the driveway while it was snowing, it didn't even feel cold out.
-i went to the bookstore today and got my book pretty much completely outlined. what will i do with my millions of dollars??

01.28.03 tuesday:
-got some studying done, got some writing done
-talked to a guy who saw smog rise.

01.27.03 monday:
-i won $50 yesterday, and then today, I won $25 in a drawing. so i bought a couple of lottery tickets. I'll let you know how that goes.
-jay beat me at chess again!
-it's a thousand degrees below zero.
-but the best thing to happen all day is: THEY FIRED MARTY MORNHINWEG!

01.26.03 superbowl sunday:
-today is truly the most holy of holy days.
-didn't do much, just hung out waiting for the superbowl to start. I avoided all pre-game blather.

01.25.03 saturday:
-deb and i went to the lamp store looking for lights for the dining room. we didn't find any we liked. We went to the bookstore after that, and then it snowed all day.
-watched the movie barbershop, and it was pretty funny.

01.24.03 friday:
-i slept really good last night!
-more updates later.

01.22.03 wednesday:
-worked.
-went to Goodwill, dropped off some clothes, bought three books.
-Tonight, on an very special danmanning.com: after accidently taking too many "male sexual enhancement" pills, dan is forced to lay face down in the snow for an hour in order to get the swelling to go down. Will dan find the terrible secret behind his special powers? Find out in an all new danmanning.com
-one line of this entry is fiction. can you guess which one it is?

01.20.03 monday:
-both of the teams i picked to go to the superbowl are going. ha ha! now if only tampa can beat the raiders, my insidious plot for free breakfast will become a reality! ha ha ha
-i'm still planning my new bestseller. i've got some case issues (present or past) and some plot issues (haven't got one yet) but otherwise, it's coming along great.

01.19.03 sunday:
-Yesterday I hid out a few hours at a coffee place on Plainfield and outlined my new bestseller, Cubicles of Madness. I got ten hand-written pages of ideas and notes.
-It was hela-snowy yesterday.
-today is NFL playoff day. I'll be on the couch watching football if anyone needs me.

01.17.03 friday:
-I finally got some good feedback on one of my stories: I got a response back from one of the magazines I sent a story to, and it went like this:

". . . This story is indeed good; were we monthly (or even bimonthly) we'd probably buy it. Since we're not, and the story's not completely irresistible, we have to pass -- this time. May we see your next one?"

01.15.03 wednesday:
-i'm living in a winter f**king wonderland! Oh yea!
-mom called last night, nice talking to her.
-working on the synopsis for my new book. I'll try to get it sent out Friday. And then I'll take a one-day break, and start another one.
-check out my new chat room! smiley faces for everyone, except jay!

01.14.03 tuesday:
-I woke up at four-thirty this morning, and i'm pooped.
-barry called last night, he's driving a truck again, he called from virginia. it was good to hear from him. -and that's about it.

01.12.03 sunday:
-saw some good football yesterday.
-went to the DeltaPlex flea market. I felt like I was in some kind of gigantic double-wide trailer. It wasn't too much fun.
-so we rented "MIB II" and it wasn't too bad. It had a talking dog in it. Yesterday I sat through an entire movie with a talking dog in it.

01.11.03 saturday: it's finally finished
-i finally finished my book: of course, it's really never finished. i could read through it AGAIN and probably find more stuff, but i'm not going to. I've had it!

01.09.03 thursday: i think i'm coming down with something
-like maybe the flu.
-everybody at work was in training today, except me, and i was bored silly
-played two games of chutes and ladders.
-bought some old old D & D stuff off ebay. (yES,i am a geek. so what?)
-my book is almost finished, and good thing, cause i'm sick of looking at the damn thing every night.

01.08.03 wednesday: this computer sux
-my website keeps screwing up. if you read this, it's a miracle!

01.07.03 tuesday:Footage of Man Trampled by Buffalo
-"Oh my God! There it is!"
-This morning I hit the snooze button three times.
-my computer is acting weird.

01.06.03 monday:
-worked
-damn, that's about it. what do you expect? it's monday.
-wrote

01.05.03 sunday:
-bought some jeans
-went to the bookstore
-stripped wallpaper from office wall
-it's snowing

01.04.03 saturday:
-Um, that sucked. had to reformat my hard-drive last night. I was up until two, but everything's running again. what a way to spend an evening.

01.03.03 friday:
-hard-drive crashed AGAIN! Luckily, all the good stuff got backed up every night. Unfortunatly, many of the rich features you've come to expect from danmanning.com will be unavailable, since this website is now sitting on a Dell Latitude XPi from the mid-90s.
-otherwise, it's been a good day. I like this no-snow thing we got going on!

01.02.03 thursday:
-worked.
-was pretty cold today. had to explain to some old man how to air up his tire at the gas station this morning.
-deb's working tonight.
-paid the bills

01.01.03 wednesday:
-Welcome to the new year. No more little plus and minus signs.
-Last night was pretty tame. Drank a little champagne, watched a little television, and went to bed before twelve-thirty.
-Today, if I can keep the kids from pestering me constantly, I'm going to get some writing done.
-um, have you heard about this company? clonaid.com Yikes!