On my birthday weekend, David took me to the Sixth Floor Museum.

For those of you who are not familiar, this museum is housed in the former Texas Schoolbook Depository, from which Lee Harvey Oswald shot President Kennedy from the sixth floor window on November 22, 1963.

Some conspiracy theorists believe that shots were also fired from this fence on the "Grassy Knoll". Through the fence slats, you can see the street on which JFK was traveling when he was shot.

People are always milling around this area. I missed the photo opportunity of a frat-type group of guys all laying down in the street on the Xs painted where Kennedy's limo was at the time of the shooting.

Conspiracy theorists hawk their wares from makeshift booths. We bought a book showing the "true" evidence that the government doesn't want you to see. Its photos are pretty gruesome.

The area has an odd feel to it. My brother visited the area late at night, and he said that even at midnight, people are wandering the area.

Even foreigners come to this place and leave grafitti on the Grassy Knoll.

It's a sobering experience.

I've been watching a lot of shows about cleaning and whatnot.

I also soak my feet quite a bit.

If you do these two things, you've probably heard of Tea Tree Oil.

I ordered a very large bottle of Tea Tree Oil on line.

"What are you going to do with it," David asked. "Is this a grocery item?"

I can honestly tell you that Tea Tree Oil is better than sliced bread. I've made a special foot bath. I've made a shower spray. I've made special age-reducing hand cream. I think I can reduce or reverse aging. A few drops in the tank can most likely up my gas mileage.

Remember "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"? The dad said to spray Windex on everything.

Well, Tea Tree Oil is the new Windex.

Discuss!

When I first got WeatherBug, a little application that lets you know your local weather right on your computer desktop, I really loved its chirping alert noises. Then something happened and I didn't hear the chirping noises anymore, just a "ding" noise.

I came across a link for feedback and let the good people at WeatherBug know that I prefer the chirp. Other people must like it too, because it's back. With a vengeance! Yay!

I got to thinking about it. When WeatherBug chirps, is it alerting us to a weather situation, or might it be a rival male WeatherBug encroaching on its turf? WeatherBugs may be like hummingbirds, very territorial.

They should clarify what the chirping means, don't you think? I'd hate to evacuate my home via rowboat over a WeatherBug love triangle.

David came into the kitchen, opened the fridge, opened the pantry, then sighed and left.

Soon, he was back. "I want something yummy," he said.

We looked into the open pantry together, and then I spied just the right snack.

"Why don't you put some of that Nutella on some Girl Scout cookies?"

We both jumped around in a "high five" kind of way.

I'm here to tell you that this was a very good idea! And Nutella has no calories, right?

Yes, everyone! It is the Tian Long Beater.

This article just begs for a title related to unruly children, but you'll need to go there yourself.

All the Brenners have one of these now, thanks to Uncle J.

The packaging says it all:

Electric Mosquito Bad. Is anyone else impressed that they spelled mosquito correctly, yet misspelled bat?

Tian long's step is always before others. This means:
a. Tian long has longer legs than everyone else
b. Tian long doesn't hold the door open like a true gentleman
c. Tian long didn't spend the money to have an English speaking bum off the street proofread this packaging

Is your best choice...Tian Long Really (to right and left of God clasping his hands around the world):
a. Yes
b. No
c. Maybe so

I've chased LD around the kitchen with this, she thinks it's pretty funny.

Uncle D doesn't think it's funny because he zapped himself with it on purpose and it really does hurt! Gzak!

Back in the 1980s, my dad started to dabble with computers. I wasn't too interested. Computers are for geeky people with nothing better to do, after all, right?

My dad really liked this little graphic he made of our (then) house. It was amazingly accurate. Go Dad! I think he actually used it for letterhead. 347 was our address, by the way, but I will not tell you what street or city because you may be a wiley and resourceful stalker.

Not long after Dad made this letterhead, a large dog got hit by a car in front of our house, the body coming to rest squarely in our driveway.

Citizen Dad appropriately called the L.A. County Department of Animal Control to request that someone remove the dog, he was assured that they would.

They didn't.
He called again.
They didn't.

It laid there for the better part of a week.

Dad was and is a stickler for detail...

And I am grateful that I inherited some of his sense of humor. And, I am grateful that I came across this the other day in a box of old stuff.

Well David does, for the business. It's a real big one too.

I haven't driven it (or any other truck, ever) nor have I even been a passenger yet, but I have a plan.

If I am going north towards Oklahoma territory, or want to go somewhere in my pajamas or in a cowboy hat, the truck will be my vehicle of choice. Also, if I ever want to buy a bale of hay.

If I am traveling south towards the big city of Dallas, I will choose the SUV.

It's a Toyota. I hope I don't get my ass kicked.

My sleep habits have been all wacky, so I've been watching a lot of The Brady Bunch at 3:00 a.m.

Has anyone else realized that Mr. Brady must have been making a boatload of money? How much do architects make now, I wonder? Dad Brady was a very good architect, methinks.

Consider this:

Mike Brady designed and built the sizeable (three bedrooms, family room, study, maid's quarters, formal dining and living areas, breakfast area, and indeterminate number of bathrooms greater than two) Brady house in an established and densely populated area of Southern California.

Mike Brady and his three boys already had a live-in servant (Alice) when he met Carol.

He married Carol, a homemaker with three young girls and no visible source of income, and retained the live-in housekeeper so that Carol wouldn't have to make six sandwiches alone.

They went on vacations to the Grand Canyon, ghost towns, Hawaii, etc. with the live-in housekeeper/nanny in tow.

The kids were always dressed in the most fashionable clothes of the day.

All the kids got the funding to take on whatever hobbies they wanted to (except Greg, who always had to earn his own money). In one episode alone, Marcia takes on the yoga, karate, drama and booster clubs all at once and has all the outfits as well.

In another episode, all nine of the Brady clan are fitted with square dancing clothes for a charity event. That takes bucks!

I think of all the Brady clan, Greg and Alice got the short end of the stick.

One day, back in 1978, my best friend Kim and I went to see the movie Grease at the local cinema.

We were 13 or 14, and Grease was PG. My dad was cool with it, but Kim lied to her mother, saying we were going to see The Muppet Movie.

Mrs. Kim's Mom figured us out.

From that point on, I was labeled The Instigator. Like I was out twisting Kim's arm to do stuff. Even when Kim had a car and I didn't, I was still to blame for everything. Like I held a gun to Kim's head and made her drive to Hollywood and drink alcohol and talk to boys or something.

For the next ten years, I was The Instigator.

I hope Mrs. Kim's Mom wised up down the road, since she had six kids, and you just can't blame it all on everyone else's kid.

Oh, wait! Come to think of it, yes you can.

How do you like the new look here at BrennerWorld?

This is the third look I've chosen tonight.

It's an interim look. I have a graphic that I want to add to the header, so if I figure that out before I go senile, the look will be changing yet again.

Just a head's up!