Keyboards, Shoes and Floppy Lips

I don't get it. I have to laugh about it, but I sure don't get it. Of all the crazy, half-insane, controversial stuff I've written since the beginning of the month, different sorts of search terms land people here on A Bumpy Path. I guess I'd better answer some of those burning questions that people come here for answers to, right? I will not disappoint my readers! So, here goes…

Omnitech Flexible Keyboard. I bought one awhile back. It was too cool of a product not to, and for only $10, who could resist? I love the concept of it! But, it's not a keyboard for a writer. The little table I'm using now for a desk (my BIG desk is in a different room) has two leafs, and even though they are in the up position right now, there are two seams in the tabletop. The flex keyboard had to lay across one seam or the other because of its length, and where that seam ran under the keyboard, the keys wouldn't exactly work reliably. My fault, not the keyboard's. The rest of the keys worked just fine -- as long as you consistently bang those puppies down hard. Like I said, it's not the optimal keyboard for someone who writes as much as I do. It's OK for a standby or portable, but not for everyday use.

Horse's floppy lower lip. It's pretty funny looking, isn't it? There are two things that get to flopping on a horse when its nice and comfy and relaxed, one more often than the other. Did you know that horses sleep standing up with their eyes open and their ears going every which way? The way to tell if they are awake or asleep is by that floppy lower lip. That will always relax and flop when the horse is asleep. On a male horse, you can guess which other part might be flopping, though it doesn't happen every time the horse sleeps, just sometimes. A-hem.

Psychology of a door greeter. Does there have to be a "psychology" behind the person standing at the door, charged with the task of greeting any and all people that come to Wal-Mart? The job itself is made very difficult because door greeters are not thought of in the same light as restaurant hostesses, though that is what they are. It is not the easiest thing in the world to stand there hour after hour on a hard concrete floor, trying to be cheerful and welcoming to people who won't even meet your eye, let alone return your greeting. I'd say it takes a pretty tough, secure type of person to subject yourself to that level of degradation on a daily basis, wouldn't you? There's more to this, and I talk about the untruth of it all here.

How to save an image. I was glad to see this, and that the seeker landed on the article I wrote about it. I must be a mind reader or something! Saving an image incorrectly severely effects download time and image quality, so for the best looking site or blog that won't make people cringe when they see it, read up on it. It's simple and worth the effort to do right.

EJ Shoes immigrants. This is part of the extensive history of Broome County, NY. Endicott-Johnson Shoe Manufacturing founded Endicott and Johnson City, two of the cities along with Binghamton that make up what is known as the Triple Cities. IBM started in Endicott as well, but ol' Watson only has a few streets named after him instead of whole cities. Some time after WWI, Endicott and Johnson would go to European countries and recruit people from Poland, Italy and Ireland to come to the United States to work in their shoe factory. As I talked about earlier, my grandfather and grandmother were two of those immigrants that spent their lives working off the debt to EJ Shoes for coming here.

A colt's first ride, a well trained horse and a horse backing into me. I wrote one synopsis of a clinic given by a professional reining trainer that illustrates a well trained horse. It was exciting and fun and just as fun to write up. It answered a lot of questions I had, and put things in a very clear and concise and easy-to-do-at-home-yourself kind of way. My next project is to start a blog about horses, horse care, horse training, and everything that goes with horse ownership. Until that happens, and to answer questions about horse bahavior, please read "Take a Moment, Listen to a Horse" and then keep on searching for more, ok? The more you learn, the safer you will be - and alive to come back here to visit!

See? You just never can tell what you can find here! Thanks for reading!