How long has it been?  I'll answer it myself, a real long time.  DFRESH is back and I'm warning you right now, I'm not going to be politically correct.  I'm going to say what I mean and mean what I say.  I went too long worrying how I said things so I wouldn't put myself in a bad light. .......BORING!  Dude, you may not like what I say, but respect that I am going to say what I mean.  Stay tuned, this could get interesting.  Remember when I got down on the homeless?  People responded and I felt kind of guilty for feeling the way I did.  NO MAS, Muchachos.  The gloves are coming off.

I can't tell you how many times I watch the Pawtucket City Council meetings on Local Access and am amazed that nobody has ever thought of awarding the prestigious "Horses Ass Award" to any of the council members.  There are 9 City Council members, four of whom could easily qualify for the award.  That being said, one stands alone as the biggest horses ass.  Councilman Paul Wildenhaim.  If you get a chance to watch the replay of the June 11th meeting, by all means, catch it.  Here's the scenario in a nut shell.  Courtesy Hyundai had requested a license transfer from Division St. to Newport Ave.  I saw the notice in the Pawtucket Times which plainly advertised a public hearing on June 11th.  Stupid me, evidently, a public hearing is not meant to be a forum for the public to state it's opposition to something that will be moving to their neighborhood.  Just as the entire council was about to grant John Martin, owner of Courtesy Hyundai, his transfer request, Council President Mary Bray noticed two gentlemen who were in opposition to the plan.  These two guys live on Vine St. and are close enough to effected by the daily happenings of this business.  In fact, they had a list of things that ranged from lights from the parking lot that shine in one of their living rooms all night to an intercom system that blares out messages throughout the day and weekends.  Not unreasonable requests in the least.  They even had a petition which looked to have a few pages of neighborhood resident signatures.  All this only managed to infuriate Councilman Wildenhaim.  He shouted at the two constituents that they should have called him prior to the meeting to discuss their concerns.  Look, I guess I have to admit that I know what he's saying.  When they became aware that these issues may have a negative impact on their quality of life, they should have picked up the phone and called their local council representative.  I mean it makes sense.  My issue is that like these two area residents, I wouldn't think that I would need to call my councilman.  I would think that I could just show up to the public hearing and voice my concerns.  If that wasn't the proper procedure, I certainly wouldn't think that my neighborhood representative to the council would scold me.  Dude, Wildenhaim was really upset about this!  At one point, President Bray was begging him to calm down.  It was finally agreed that the two residents would go to conference with Wildenhaim, Martin, and his lawyer, Michael Horan.  But not before Wildenhaim threatened to push the transfer through despite the neighbor's objections.  Cooler heads prevailed and the transfer was finally granted, hopefully to everyone's satisfaction.  Wildenhaim latter attempted to stiff the Police Union out of their pensions and made his usual lame attempts at humor, all of which earned Councilman Paul Wildenhaim the winner of the "Horses Ass".      

Last night I found myself in front of the television set watching the PBS documentary on the series Frontline called "Storm Over Everest".  In case you are not familiar, the show is about the tragic Everest climbing season of 1996.  I believe seven climbers lost their lives when a snow storm hit the mountain as the climbers were just about to descend.  This documentary was written and produced by David Breashears, a noted climber in his own right, who aided in the rescue.  I must admit, I'm fascinated by these Everest expeditions.  Why would anyone want to do this is beyond me.  I know that life today, especially in the United States is too easy in some people's mind.  People don't face any discomfort what so ever.  I get that!  But watch this documentary and see some of these people who are left with just stumps where their hands used to be.  Lost toes, severe disfiguring due to frost bite.  It's incredible!  In an interview with Taiwanese climber Makalu Gau, he said that looking back at his losing his hands and toes during the climb would make him think now that the risk wasn't worth it.  YOU THINK!   I just don't understand why people feel the need to risk death as a form of recreation.  

Every once in a while, a horse enters the scene that lives up to the hype.  Every year, it seems, a horse wins the Kentucky Derby and catapults himself into the public eye as the next Secretariat.  Some even win the Preakness and really heat up the Triple Crown talk.  Invariably, it ends in disappointment when the horse losses the Belmont.  Make no mistake, these three races are a test!  the Kentucky Derby is like a normal distance race against very good competition.  The Preakness is a sprint in comparison.  Sometimes, very good horses are beaten by a fast horse that has a big day.  This is all followed by the 1 1/2 mile Belmont Stakes, the true test.  Usually, a horse cannot win this race for a variety of reasons.  Either he can't get the distance, he bounces, or he gets into trouble.  Well, I guarantee you right now that Big Brown will win the Belmont and the Triple Crown.  First, he's bred to get the distance, he won the Preakness with a hand ride, and he's just plain too good to get into trouble.  I never fell into the hype with any of the previous Triple Crown contenders.  I knew it was a difficult task.  But this is different.  We're witnessing history.  This horse may be better than, I can't believe I'm going to say it, better than Secretariat.