Thursday, March 4, 2010 by Dana.

As a youth baseball coach for the past 16 years, this crime really bothers me.  Good umpires for youth baseball are hard to find, and nearly all of them take more crap from parents eager to relieve their glory years through their boys.  You never hear a parent yell to their son, “be a good sport and accept the call that was made”.

http://www.azfamily.com/news/Payson-couple-accused-of-pocketing-money-paid-for-Little-League-umpires-86294562.html

So you have these underpaid umpires that range from high school kids to out of work parents to retirees, and they agree to be heckled and harassed for $25-$30 per game… to later be cheated out of their money by a couple of greedy scumbags.  Based on the mug shots showing the extra chins, they must have been using the money to dine out at the waffle house way too much.

What are your thoughts?

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Saturday, January 30, 2010 by Dana.

News bulletin… college kids are rowdy, and ASU is more rowdy than most.  Wait… that isn’t really news, is it?  On a particular slow news day, writers form the local PHX Metro rag took a few crime reports related to egg throwing (not cool) and wild parties (the norm?) to make it sound like there was something news-worthy to report… Here is the link, but you will want your 3 minutes back after you read it.

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Wednesday, January 20, 2010 by Dana.

The other day, the lives of PHX area strippers were threatened by a patron upset over the refusal to provide sex as part of the service. Read more about it here.

This led me to think about what jobs are most dangerous here in Disturbia.  A little research will lead to a list of dangerous jobs such as coal miner, logger, crab fisherman, steel worker, etc.; however, people in those jobs know the work is dangerous.  I believe that routine jobs that should be safe are really more dangerous.   The workers have no idea of the dangers, and they aren’t taking any precautions to limit the dangers.

Here is my list of most dangerous jobs in AZ Disturbia (aka the PHX Metro area):

Posted in Crime, Weapons, Drugs, Suburbia, Disturbed | Print | 2 Comments »

Friday, January 15, 2010 by Dana.

Local news… more white collar crime by idiots.  In this case, a couple embezzles from a charter school.  A note in the article states they are looking for the husband in this case.  I’m just wondering if he is running from the law or if his wife’s scary mug shot is motivating his flight.

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Friday, January 1, 2010 by Dana.

Happy New Year! I’m awake at 7am on 1/1/2010 to make predictions.

1. My 1st nap of 2010 will occur today (1/1/2010).
2. My dogs will boycott making resolutions to behave better.
3. My car will get stolen forcing me to get a newer one that doesn’t need shocks, breaks, or general maintenance.  Wait… no… I sense that is just wishful thinking on my part.
4. I will put away Holiday decorations with a vow to get better ones for outside next year.  I will end up putting up the same crappy decorations after Thanksgiving, except 2 more strands of lights will quit working.
5. Based on straight party line voting, we will get a national health care system. Due to all the compromises, it will be so watered-down and confusing, that people will complain about it well into 2011. Republicans will still do nothing to reverse the damages caused by 8 years of the Bush administration.
6. My discontent for suburbia will make me search for a rural home with no neighbors within 300 yards. The kids will beg us to not move to the middle of nowhere, so I will still be blogging about Disturbia into 2011.
7. My middle child will hit a growth spurt around his 13th birthday in March and will be as tall as me by 2011.

Ok… Now for some real predictions

1. The Tempe woman that showed up in Miami without her 8-month old that was last seen in San Antonio will confess to killing her child after her boy is discovered in her abandoned vehicle.
2. A major earthquake will create a giant sinkhole in Mexico south of Yuma, AZ.  It will create a beautiful spring-filled lake that turns Yuma, AZ into a major tourist town.
3. Android-based phones will outnumber iPhones. Apple products will revert to a minor cult status for a few years until they wow us again with a new system using a holographic projection display and thought recognition for system input.

Posted in Crime, Desert, Technology, Holidays, kids, Suburbia, Pets, Neighbors, Disturbed | Print | No Comments »

Friday, December 4, 2009 by Dana.

This morning in the beautiful Disturbia of Ahwatukee, a man was arrested for terrorizing his neighbors with small explosives and pellet guns.  Remember the good old days when you would just let the air out your neighbors tires or leave him a flaming bag of dog pooh on his porch?  It’s a crazy, crazy world when you have to worry about a neighbor pipe bombing your SUV because your kid left a skateboard in his yard!  So come on people… even if you hate your neighbor, settle it with pranks not life threatening violence!  Be civilized, if it you have to be juvenile.

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Friday, November 27, 2009 by Dana.

Like any normal set of siblings, they fight.  We have 3 boys, ages 9, 12 & 15.  Sometimes they get into heated arguments, and maybe a punch or 2 is thrown.  But the fights seldom last long.  When it comes to fighting with “friends”, those fights are usually short and mostly just shoving and verbal assaults.So when you see a news article like this one in AZ Central, you have to wonder what parental meltdown is going on here for things to escalate out of control.  We all need to teach kids how to have a thicker skin and stick to spreading bad rumors instead of stabbing the person that just kicked your ass in Guitar Hero.  Oh… and keep the alcohol and sharp objects away from your teen!

Posted in Weapons, Crime, Alcohol, parents, Suburbia, kids, Disturbed | Print | No Comments »

Tuesday, November 3, 2009 by Dana.

Today I read an in AZ Central about an enterprising couple that has been stealing bags from the PHX Airportand then selling the stolen items in yard sales.   I do not advocate crime as a way of life, but I am curious if there are other ways to make a living in Disturbia without a job.  I’m also going to think twice before I make a purchase at a yard sale or flea market.

 Funny side comment… I bet they have some good stories about crazy stuff found in luggage.

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Tuesday, July 28, 2009 by Dana.

So these people (5 different homes) were dumb enough to let strangers into their house… do they deserve to be ripped off?

http://www.azcentral.com/community/ahwatukee/articles/2009/07/27/20090727tr-thefts0729.html

I grew up in a rural part of Ohio.  They keys were left in the cars, and we never locked the house when we left.  But this is not rural Ohio.  It is the 5th largest metro area in the country, with one of the highest unemployment rates in the country.  Don’t be so damn stupid to think desperate people won’t rob you blind when you turn your head.

Posted in Crime, Neighbors, Suburbia, Disturbed | Print | No Comments »