Fear and Loathing in Chaska

Well, folks, the funk continues. I'm mildly depressed and don't have much to say these days. Plus I recently stumbled upon the comments section of the OPINIONS page of my hometown's online newspaper, so now I'm bordering on angry. It's apparent the SoDak Public Broadcast System isn't being very well utilized. Then again, who needs a liberal bastion of fact-based news when opinion delivered in a way that only resembles actual news is so readily accessible on Fox News? Anyway, to make things worse, I was at the Chaska Community Center this morning to workout. And by "workout" I mean "half-assedly use the elliptical machine that faces the glass wall of the aerobics room so I can watch the Spandex-clad ladies in Step Class for 30 minutes before I head to Starbucks for a Venti Iced Mocha on my way back home to lie on the couch". So I'm walking down the corridor of the so-called "community center", and I stumbled upon a Wednesday Bible study taking place in a room adjacent to The Lodge - the privately-owned portion of the community center reserved for Active Older Adults (also known as the over 55 crowd). I was shocked! So shocked I snapped a photo of the meeting with my camera phone. I mean, how can they put a Bible study room inside a community center? This is supposed to be a place where residents are able to enjoy a swimming pool, two gymnasiums, a fitness center, an ice-skating rink, an indoor soccer field, a theater, a soup/sandwich deli, and a cultural art center. Okay, so the cultural art center is actually the hallway outside the theater where you can sometimes find works of art from local artisans, but still. And to make matters worse, the community center is located in the hallowed grounds of Downtown Chaska! Well, pretty close to downtown.  Actually it's about a mile north on Chestnut Drive then right on Engler Boulevard a couple blocks then left on Park Ridge Drive and - BOOM - you're right there! You can't actually see the community center from downtown, but it's still pretty damned close. Just where do these elderly people get off studying the Bible in MY community center? Yea, I know we have a Constitution that says some bullsh!t about freedom of religion, but I'm confused and scared so I just don't like it!  Hell, they might as well call it the "Downtown Chaska Church"! In fact, I think that's what I'll start calling it even though it's not really near downtown and only about 1/10th of one percent of the space is being used for religious purposes. You know something else? I wonder what our three candidates for Minnesota Governor think about this issue! Who cares about the state's $6B budget deficit or the unemployment rate or lack of adequate funding for early childhood education when more than half of our state's kids are not prepared for kindergarten?  All that stuff can wait - this Downtown Chaska Church issue is critical, and I need to know where each candidate stands! I wonder how it's going to affect the election? I can only hope the local media picks up on this and runs with it ad infinitum until November. I want others to be as confused by - and afraid of - old people studying the Bible as I am. Sure, it starts with a Wednesday Bible study, but where does it end? Old people have been hell bent on destroying America for as long as I can remember. Don't believe that bullsh!t about the elderly being a kindly group. I've known more than a few cranky old people in my day, therefore I can only assume ALL OLD PEOPLE ARE MEAN! It's scary to think about where this could lead, and it's best we put an end to it now before it's too late.

In other horse sh!t news, here's a picture of a pissed-off Claire riding a sad pony at the happy Carver County Fair. This photo was taken just moments before Claire's pony dropped a load. Good times...