Location...Location...Location

Good afternoon all;

It is Friday, and an early close day and I am here just in time to write a few short thoughts.

We went to the farm again today to milk the goats and feed the alpacas, less than 3 miles from the city line, in the middle of suburbia, no less...now there are 3 chickens added to the menagerie. We took the neighbor's kid with us, she is 5 1/2 and just got home from Shepard Pratt...it is heart rending to see a child who does not know the term "suicide" express thought about not wanting to be alive and of self loathing. The doctors cannot pinpoint the specific problem/disease/disorder yet and cannot seem to find a stabilizing dosage and/or medication. The episodes or "meltdowns" as they are being referred to seem to come on with no early warning symptoms, as if a switch was flipped on, and it is extremely difficult to differentiate between medical/emotional/psychological/and straight behavioral issues. she is such a sweet kid and Rachel loves to play with her and her twin sister ( who has a completely separate set of issues ). She was fine at the farm but back at the house it was as if she became 'possessed', now I am not a believer in exorcisms, in the religious sense...but I can now understand how someone of a different religious mindset could, Rachel was scared and confused, and I cannot (well actually I think I can, in all seriousness) imagine how ***** felt.........In reference to last nights post..again the concepts of perspective and gratitude appear.

The restaurant business is known to be one of "here today....gone tomorrow" openings and closings. Economics, changing tastes in cuisine, and quality and service all contribute to this factor. But the buzzword has always been location, in terms of traffic, availability, accessibility, and visibility.

Now in the world of the Garbage Gourmet and the Dumpster Diner, it is becoming harder and harder to find High Quality Take-out Trash, the same restaurants and groceries that will not donate because of corporate crapola, are now sometimes making sure that the homeless cannot STEAL their discarded food. One fast food place where I could get the leftover fried chicken stopped allowing that last year, SO...they bagged or boxed it in a clean manner then threw it in the dumpster, it does not sound like it but it was very reasonably sanitary when I got to it as soon as I saw the employee leave the walled enclosure where the dumpster resides. And on the occasions when I felt unsure or it was obviously contaminated..I left it!..Well NOW as soon as it is dumped..the compacter is turned on and the 30 to 40 pounds of chicken that is discarded on a regular basis is ruined. The second example is a major food store chain that recently changed to a "closed container system" with no access. Another food store moved a dumpster to a location where anyone trying to get to it could be charged with trespassing. Yet another store deliberately pours certain inedible/non edible substances over any possibly edible foods, packaged (which frequently are pierced or ripped open) or produce. ( 99% Ninety-Nine Percent of all poultry, meat, seafood and dairy items are excluded from this accounting ). Many places have locks on their dumpsters to prevent foraging/scavenging. I can appreciate the need in a situation where people have messed up and trashed an area, making it a draw for rats, roaches and the like, and/or created an eyesore or an unsanitary parking lot, and I fully agree with the tactic.

But in locations where there has been no trace of any problem, it is just mean spirited, unjustified, and unnecessary............I'm out time ...back Saturday....Dave

P.S........I did find a new donut supply by accident last night though...let's see how long this lasts.. I am keeping both very clean...and...a secret!!.........dbc