Friday, February 29, 2008
THE FEAR BOMB
Last night, the Clintons released the "3AM" commercial.
Point made that Hillary's experience would protect your sleeping children from god knows what in the middle of the night.
Fear mongering.
Less than 24 hours later, a response ad from the Obamas. And a pretty good one too.
If this is how he works in the general, then McCain and the slime machine better get ready for such counter attacks.
Labels: obama
TIME LAPSE
So I got up this morning and looked at my watch to see the quadrennial "FEB 29".
And the watch read "MAR 1".
Fuck.
What is up here?
I got a watch that is not smart enough to lay out the 0229.
Pissed.
It is a Casio G-Shock.
Low mentality chip.
I have had Casio G-Shock watches for ages. Maybe 5 or 6 of them.
Did they all skip the 29th?
I don't think so.
This one is a light weight version of the genré. Maybe that is it.
I got it because it was on sale.
Maybe that is the deal.
They ran a whole bunch and realized too late that they had let the 29th out.
Whatever it is I am not amused.
Cheated out of my 'experience' of seeing the date roll over.
But I am over it. I am moving on with my life.
I can tell you that there will be another watch in my life in 2012. And I know what to check out before I buy.
Labels: technology
Thursday, February 28, 2008
MISSED SOME FUN
This is the dental office where I got my gums jammed yesterday.
Three injured after vehicle crashes into dental practiceI left at 10AM. No danger.A Nissan Altima crashed into Desert Dental Alternatives at Ramon and Victor roads about 4:45 p.m., Cathedral City Fire Capt. Bryant Phillips said.
Palm Desert resident Tana Mokuiki was in the waiting room when the crash occurred but she was not injured.
"It was a loud noise and the building shook," she said.
Shattered glass from a window hit a patient who was sitting in a dental chair.
He suffered injuries to his face and had to be guided outside the building by paramedics.
The victim was taken to Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage for treatment of moderate injuries, Phillips said.
A female victim was also taken to Desert Regional Medical Center for treatment of moderate injuries, officials said.
It wasn't immediately clear if she was inside the vehicle or the office at the time of the collision.
A third person - a dental worker - suffered minor injuries but did not need to be taken to a hospital, officials said.
All the patient work is done in rooms which look out at the highway maybe 75 feet away.
One is aware of traffic while getting the teeth worked on but this is extreme awareness.
Talk about your dental stress.
Labels: dentist
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
MORE EXCITEMENT
What started in Texas will end in Texas
I think that they mean their least favorite son GWB. Do you think?
The other nugget of news today is that early voting in Texas is off the charts. In many counties, it is ten times the vote that was early in 2004.
Many of these are new voters.
The other thing is that Obama's organization in Texas on the ground is incredible.
Clinton has very little in comparison.
Labels: obama
CHEWING GUMS
I went for my scaling, planing and lasering of the lower quadrants of, what? My dentals? My teeth?
The whole bottom set of choppers.
It took 2 and 1/2 hours.
It wasn't bad. They numbed me and if it hurt at all they gave me more juice.
I had the same technician that I had the first time. The one I sort of fought with. Or against.
Today went better. We even got along. Most of the time.
I just quit fighting back. When she said to floss, rather than tell her that I don't and won't, I remained silent.
She knows that I am not a flosser already.
That is probably why I had to have the scaling.
The planing.
The laser.
The thing is that when I argued back, she simply tried all the harder to convince me.
So I shut up and let her do her work.
Michelle.
It is a tedious procedure. First they scale with the sonic cleaning thing, then they plane with tools. Each tooth.
A laser is used to cut away diseased gum tissue.
Then she x-rays it to see if she got it all and then goes back again for the dregs.
She is thorough. I have to give her that.
There is no after pain if I take Advil.
No solids to eat today.
I bought some Slim-Fast.
I suppose I could eat yogurt and stuff like that. I will do that tomorrow.
The word is that it will actually take weeks for the lasered stuff to heal. Slowly but surely.
I can eat normally by tomorrow evening. Just no hard stuff.
And I won't have to have it all done again.
If there are any trouble pockets, then they will just do those.
Like all things of this nature, worrying about it before hand is far worse than the actual event.
This completes Step Two of my dental rehab program.
Next is a crown in the lower right. I will wait for April.
Cash flow.
Labels: dentist
MR. CONSERVATIVE
It might surprise the reader of this blog to know that I have long admired William F. Buckley who died today at 82.
William F. Buckley Jr. Is Dead at 82
He could make me crazy with his conservative stuff and make me laugh at the same time.
He is in the grand tradition of the old conservatism. A fellow of Barry Goldwater in that respect.
His prime was twenty years ago.
His wit and sharp tongue, to say nothing of his sly smile, were charming and infuriating at the same time.
Another paradox.
He used to be on the talk shows and made a great splash when talk shows mattered.
He had great feuds with the likes of Gore Vidal, another intolerable charmer in his mid years.
I rarely missed his own show, The Firing Line.
His intellect fueled my own thinking life. Separate directions notwithstanding.
A great man, in his way. An independent thinker.
A mover and shaker.
Goodbye Bill.
Labels: heroes
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
DEBUNK
I watched the debate last night on video streaming. Or streaming video.
Well, I saw part of it. I missed the parts that were interrupted or stopped by the buffering and I quit when I had enough.
This technology is not ready for prime time.
I won't be interested in downloading movies on stream at all.
Where was I?
The debate.
Let's start with Tim Russert who is an extreme asshole.
I will admit that he is an equal opportunity asshole. He did it to both candidates. Immaterial, accusatory, petty, and misleading.
Brian Williams is a non-entity. An empty suit.
The candidates?
I don't think that she laid a glove on him.
She is getting shrill and petty.
No that is not sexist.
The other guy after the broadcast, Tweety, is shrill and petty. Chris Matthews.
Ron Paul is shrill and petty. Dennis Kucinich.
We expect it from the fringe.
Nader is just whining.
There was some substance to the debate.
There were issues.
There was meat.
And I don't think that anything was necessarily changed by it all.
I am glad that it is that last one in the primary cycle.
I have had enough.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama, politics
MOCKERY
I was watching the last frames of the DVD yesterday.
The sound of a lock went click and, in the same instant, a bird started to sing.
Loudly.
And kept singing.
At first I thought it was on the soundtrack. It would sort of fit. But no.
The slider was open and outside, the mocking birds were back.
I actually don't think that they go away.
It is just that, in the winter months, they are relatively quiet.
But it is spring and it is time to make little mocking birds.
The males compete for 'best song'.
I can do a pretty good job of mocking the mocking bird. They will go along with it for awhile and then, when it gets too complex for me to keep up, they know they have an amateur in the house and they give up on it.
It is good to have them back. They will dominate the sound scene all summer. During the peak of their mating they will sing all night.
Labels: nature
LIME LITE
I am watching the new lime tree.
It lost all its leaves and started a few new ones.
Then it got cold and cloudy and it has gone into a bit of a funk.
Now, there are new buds again.
It is warm all this week.
Or expected to be so.
I will stand and give good vibes.
Remember when they had us talking to plants and playing music for them?
You have to be of a certain age.
It was one of those urban legends that everyone 'believed in'.
These limes will be 'key limes' or (out here) mexican limes.
They don't look like much but they sure are good.
Labels: horticulture
WARM UP
Finally, the weather we deserve. All week.
In the 80's.
Why we moved here.
This has been a cold winter. Wet too.
But there is a payoff.
The hills are very green and there are desert flowers underfoot wherever you go off the pavement into the sand.
These are small, teeny ones. Yellow. Pink. Purple. White.
There are big ones too. The desert scarlet, the desert sunflower. These are bush flowers.
Soon, we will be getting the medium ones that only show up when it has been wet, wet.
Everyone will go out to see them. Usually in the high desert is best.
Down here in the valley, we will have the sand verbena which grows in purple carpets in any undisturbed plot.
If you go up high the valley is patchwork.
Labels: weather
Monday, February 25, 2008
CLIMBING DOWN
Today's NYTimes Best 1176 Film was Sydney Lumet's
This is a military prison picture with a few embellishments. Tense. Difficult.
A punishment hill that is a killer. Literally.
I did need the subtitles. There is a lot of noise going on and it is hard to get all the words with the accents and all.
It is a good solid piece of work but somehow doesn't hit in the gut as much as it should.
A bit contrived.
It was good to see the military drill get kicked in the ass at the end.
The best thing in the film is Harry Andrews who I remember from many British films. He is a tough looking Scot who, in this case, is a flawed villain. He can't quite bring off the sadism. Ineffective. Breaks down. In fact the whole cadré sort of loses it.
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: best films
Sunday, February 24, 2008
WELL DESERVED
It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
Blogger, Sans Pajamas, Rakes Muck and a Prize
It is funny. The Times can't talk about blogging without a snide swipe.
Nevertheless, I have been reading Josh Marshall since his blog was a pup and it is wonderful to see him get this recognition.
You might want to try Talking Points Memo.
I also read the two sub-blogs Election Central and Muckraker.
Labels: blog
BLACK HAT
You have to do a lot of silly things when you campaign but this really looks so cool.
Labels: obama
NICE FUCKED UP PEOPLE
Today's movie was Judd Apatow's
This is the third Apatow film that I have seen this week.
I most like that he keeps a very human side to the films. These are nice people. The personal values are good. And in this one, the love interest is not messed up by either party being an asshole. Two people fall in love and it all works out.
Steve Carell is great. It also has Catherine Keener who I do not really like but, in here, she is pretty good. Seth Rogen rules. And, my fave, Paul Rudd. This is the Apatow stock company.
The Aquarius ending is wonderful.
There is one complaint.
This is not the film that was in theaters by about 17 minutes.
And that is about how much too long it is.
This is the Netflix shipped disc which is 'unrated' meaning that they left in the parts that would get them an X or whatever they give to the 'bad' films. NC17?
You can tell what parts they are. They are actually less funny.
I liked the film and not as much as the others.
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
ANALOGY THEFT
Frank Rich stole my point about Hillary's blowout. The similarity between her campaign's inability to do a Plan B and Bush's same failure in Iraq.
Only he is harder hitting. Ouch.
He takes it a bit further and links her Iraq vote with her implosion in the campaign.
Hubris anyone?
Labels: Democrats, hillary, politics
GREEN
Boston Has High Hopes Now That The Dig is Done
We left just about the time that the Big Dig was getting started.
I am not sorry to say that we missed all the fun.
But I have to admit to a bit of nostalgia when I see the clear air between the North End and the rest of the City.
It is nice to see that the siege is over and that there will be a bit of a reward for all the pain.
It is hard for me to compute that saving 15 minutes in going through the City was worth it though.
The biggest project ever. I almost typed boondoggle. But all's well that ends well I suppose.
Oh. That is the model in the photo.
The Rose Kennedy Fitzgerald Greenbelt is so new that it doesn't appear on Google Earth or, for that matter, in the Google images.
Labels: environment, nostalgia
Saturday, February 23, 2008
TWILIGHT?
In tomorrow's NYT:
Soldiering On, but Somber as the Horizon Darkens
It is a sad moment. Of course, we do not know how it will turn out.
Perhaps she can make a comeback. But I don't think so.
It would have to be some major external that would cause it.
Here is an extract from what seems to be a thoughtful article drawn from 15 inside interviews.
Over take-out meals and late-night drinks, some regrets and recriminations have set in, and top aides have begun to face up to the campaign’s possible end after the Texas and Ohio primaries on March 4. Engaging in hindsight, several advisers have now concluded that they were not smart to use former President Bill Clinton as much as they did, that “his presence, aura and legacy caused national fatigue with the Clintons,” in the words of one senior adviser who spoke on condition of anonymity to assess the campaign candidly.The campaign’s chief strategist, Mark Penn, and its communications director, Howard Wolfson, have expressed frustration with the difficulty of “running against a phenomenon” in Senator Barack Obama; their attacks have not stopped Mr. Obama from winning the last 11 contests. Some aides said Mr. Penn and the former campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, had conceived and executed a terribly flawed campaign, something Ms. Solis Doyle disputes. Both she and Mr. Penn have been especially criticized as not planning a political strategy to compete in the primaries after Feb. 5.
I felt the use of Bill was a big mistake from the get-go.
And when he was set loose he was out of campaign control.
Many people do not want to go backwards and to be reminded of the old Billary thing was not good.
And then there is the issue of independence. If she was the President would we want Bill running around like a loose cannon? Would they let him? Would he do it? I think we got a taste of it and it tasted sour.
I think that the second para is telling.
On a small scale it is like the bushies not being prepared for what happened next in Iraq.
She couldn't see beyond the ego and the coronation assumption.
Too bad.
That would make another stubborn short sighted administration and no one in this country wants that except the 30 % or so faithful. Actually, as of the other day, 19%. But McCain will have a lot more than that.
I do not think that it will be an easy win for either of the Dems.
We are in for a tough General election.
FOOT SOLDIERS
Today's NYTimes 1176 Best Film was the Maysle's Brother's documentary
This gritty round of door to door bible sales calls by four veteran salesmen is a view into a world that we do not see and perhaps will not see in the future.
I am sure that there are still door to door salesmen. They come to my door.
I have had the magazine guys and the all purpose cleaner guys in just the last year.
I do not even talk to them.
I have had a few that we let into the house and we almost always succumbed to their blandishments. None of these were cold calls however. They were people who had a warm-up from phone solicitation.
I don't talk to phone sales people either. Actually, we are on the don't call list and so that is over for us. We get no calls anymore.
But once we sit down with these people, we are sure marks; dependable victims to this kind of stuff.
I would not go for a bible or a Catholic encyclopedia but maybe—the pictures looked nice. I can feel the technique working on me even when I see it on the screen.
One of the guys is not making it and to watch him soldier it out is particularly painful as he is the most attractive of the bunch somehow.
Equally interesting are the buyers. Poor people mostly who cannot afford this.
It is a good film but a tough film to watch.
I had some trouble with it because we know that the cameras are there and so must the people. Certainly the salesmen do.
I have heard that the cameraperson becomes invisible in these deals but as far as the audience is concerned this is never the case.
Somehow it gets in the way for me.
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: best films
READABILITY
Every so often, I like to do a Readability Test on the blog.
Today, it would seem, this blog is very readable.
Maybe too much so.
The Gunning Fog Index is 8.4. That means an 8th grader could read it with ease. When I was writing for manager training materials we tried to stay under 10th grade.
Typical Fog Index ScoresMy Flesch Kincaid score is 74%. They say we should aim for 50-70.
6—TV guides, The Bible, Mark Twain
8—Reader's Digest
8 - 10—Most popular novels
10—Time, Newsweek
11—Wall Street Journal
14—The Times, The Guardian
15 - 20—Academic papers
Over 20—Only government sites can get away with this, because you can't ignore them.
Over 30—The government is covering something up
Maybe the print is too big.
I feel fine about all this.
It is pretty much what I aim to be doing.
Labels: blog
BILLS DUE
I am still an admirer of Bill Richardson.
I enjoyed this post-campaign update in today's NYT.
No Longer in the Race, Richardson is a Man Pursued
He has a quiet dignity and grace which I really admire.
So, it turned out that he was not presidential timbre (timber? remember that discussion?) but that is what primaries are for. Only one person can win.
On the other hand, that makes him an extraordinary asset for the person who does win.
He is knowledgeable, articulate, kind, caring, compassionate, and he has been around the course.
I really believe that he has no axes to grind other than what is best for the country.
I also like the way he says the candidates have dealt with him.
Very nice.
Proud to be a Democrat.
I bet that he will have a plum job in either a Clinton or an Obama administration.
Labels: Democrats, politics, Richardson
Friday, February 22, 2008
CHANGING SIDES
A basic rule of politics. Play with the winning side.
AP Survey: Superdelegates Jump to Obama
The key is to move to that side before you are seen as a blatant opportunist.
Second rule. Timing is everything.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama, politics
DEAR DIARY
Today's NYTimes Best 1176 Film was Eric Roehmer's
This film is like a documentary or a home made film. In a good way.
It shows the days in the life of a lonely young woman as she tries to find a way to spend her vacation.
It is all natural light. Handheld.
The scenes or diary pages are short but the emotions of loneliness are long.
It is beautifully done although, in the beginning, it is a bit unsettling as we do not know where we are going or even where we have been in a conventional sense.
The plot is nonexistent.
It is captivating.
A big part of the ideas in the film have to do with signs and chance.
Part of this involves the elusive 'green flash' that I have seen in the Caribbean several times.
It is fun to see Roehmer play with this on-again off-again phenomenon.
Irritating that the French title is not translated for the American run. The green ray. How hard is that?
Summer means nothing.
I liked it a lot.
A 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: best films
Thursday, February 21, 2008
MANAGEMENT
Ready to go on day one but not able to manage her own money.
Clinton Donors Worried by Campaign’s Spending
The Clintons (and the Democrats) have always hired the most expensive, least competent consultants and have not managed their money well; either personal or campaign.
With the Foundation and all, Bill seems to have reigned it in but, apparently, not Hillary.
So this is no surprise though sobering to anyone who buys into the "I am a better manager" meme.
After all, the former wastrel chairman of the Democratic Party "Checkbook" Terry McAuliffe is her campaign treasurer.
GOOD QUESTION
Good discussion.
Obama is the Nominee. Will Clinton Scorch the Earth or Be a Leader?
Obama won the expat vote today.
I didn't even know that there was one.
FRIENDSHIP
Today's movie was
This is from the Judd Apatow fun factory which, based on this film and yesterday's Knocked Up has become a dependable brand for mature immature humor.
I liked the film a lot because it never strays from the theme of friendship, particularly male friendship, and it never lets us down.
Even the cops are a model of male bonding although less admirable on the sociopathic scale.
The kids are great.
I smiled almost constantly and laughed out loud quite a number of times.
Not an easy response when one is watching a comedy film alone.
I will give it a 4 out of Netflix5 just for the last scenes which bring us all down to earth in a very nice, genuine way.
WIND POWER
More high winds yesterday.
Lost power three times.
I have to reset about 6 clocks and the computer.
Enough already.
This will also probably fuck up the cable service for days as well. Blown substations and all. Rebooting. Whatever it is.
MOONGLOW
We saw the full eclipse of the moon last night.
I think it was only visible in California but maybe not.
No.
It would have to be visible elsewhere. Just different times.
Yes?
Anyway, there it was. Full at 7PM.
We had been cloudy for much of the day but the skies opened and there it was.
Saturn too; a bonus.
WINKING AT YOU
I used to use the semicolon a lot; in the blog.
But somewhere along the line, I got that it was sort of unfashionable to do so and then I quit.
Maybe I will start putting it back.
Celebrating the Semicolon in a Most Unlikely Location
I think one of the reasons I quit is that I started writing shorter sentences in the blog.
Another is that I am not entirely sure of what the rules are.
When to use a semicolon:Brevity and uncertainty are a potent combination for dropping something.Between Clauses: The semicolon can be used between two independent clauses, and it takes the place of a period or conjunction. (I like to play guitar; it is my favorite hobby). To Separate Items: The semicolon is used to separate a series of items that already contains commas. (I had to pack jeans, shorts, and t-shirts; sandals, clogs, and heels; and books, CD's, and cards). With Conjunctive Adverbs
Semicolons are used with conjunctive adverbs. (I didn't eat my packed lunch; instead I ate cafeteria food).
I will take a look at it; stay tuned.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
A LITTLE BIT PREGNANT
Today's movie was Judd Apatow's
The NYT review at the link says that it is an instant classic and I think that they are right.
I had misgivings. I have seen enough of these boys with potty mouths who can't become men stories before and they are often unbearable.
This, on the other hand, is quite sweet, very funny, nicely paced and wonderfully cast.
There is the potty mouth stuff but it is smart and actually funny and requires a brain to process it correctly.
Seth Rogan is a revelation. He has all the looks of a slug but the brain is on high and the voice and demeanor is full bore disciplined.
He is a Jack Black with a heart. And he can throw a significant change in mood (meaning that he can act rather then just do his number).
Katherine Hiegl is the mom and is totally convincing as the beauty that falls in love with the beast.
Hilariously.
And Paul Rudd. I love Paul Rudd.
I liked that Harold Ramis plays Rogen's dad.
Ramis is the king of movie comedy. Writer, producer, director.
A homage.
I will give it a 5 out of Netflix5 and maybe I will go see the other Apatow films.
ROVIAN TACTICS
Karl Rove's old strategy was to attack the strengths of the opponent directly and undermine his or her claims.
Clinton (and McCain) are going right to that play book in trying to attack Obama or being eloquent.
This seems pretty stupid to me.
It might work for some level of character but not in some obvious area where it is apparent to one and all that the attack is petty, besides the point, whiny and mean.
Who the fuck does she think she is? Well, I am afraid we are getting to find out.
I was amused to see that immediately after her attack about words versus deeds he gave a 45 minute stemwinder in Houston.
Which they cut to right away from Hillary's speech in Ohio.
This is a version of "the rich get richer" in that winners rule on teevee time. She gets cut to go to him.
He is cutting deeply into her demographic. This is bad news for the Clintons.
And the fact that I think of her as 'them' is bad news for us.
We couldn't handle a dual presidency and they have made some mistakes that have tipped us off about this possibility.
Maybe it really is Billary for President.
De ja vu all over again.
That dog won't hunt. It might in Arkansas but not out here.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
TROUNCED
So, in Wisconsin, Obama beat Clinton by the same margin that McCain beat the Huckster. 58/41 Obama, 55/37 McCain.
I hate to put Hillary at the same level of Huckabee but it was not a good night for the old Arkansas crowd, was it?
SLIPPING AWAY
Today's movie was
It is the Alzheimer's movie with Julie Christie who is wonderful.
There are a lot of dangers in making and watching a film like this.
It can get too clinical. It can be too scary. It could be melodrama.
It seems to me that Sarah Polley, who made the film, avoids all three.
Yet it is a hard picture to watch.
At my age, one cannot help but project personal fears onto the film as well as the realization that separation will come for one of the coupled for whatever reason.
One will go "away from" him or her.
There is no humor in this film. The tension is broken with a lot of cutting away and playing with time.
Also, there is no rush.
Time is given to see what is happening and to comprehend it emotionally—for the people in the film and the audience to adjust to inevitability.
It is a simple story based on a short story by Alice Munroe.
I liked it but not in an 'enjoying it' way.
I will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.
Monday, February 18, 2008
INEPTITUDE TOO?
I have always heard about the juggernaut Clinton machine and its powerful generation of both strategy and tactics.
It is hard to believe they would be so inept to misunderstand Texas delegate allocation.
I just read this morning about how she has deep roots in Texas.
Maybe so.
But the deep roots could lead to being naive about the details or even getting through the denial that loss is possible for a juggernaut machine.
Hillary Camp Only Recently Learned About Texas Delegate Rules
This, coupled with the continuing "loser to McCain matchups" undermines one of my main reasons to vote for Hillary.
That is, her expertise at politics, and her electability against a GOoPer.
Well, talk about denial and misinterpretation.
Change the headline to read
"esrose Only Recently Learned About Clinton fallibility"
POLL DANCING
More and more polls appearing with McCain matchups for Obama and Clinton.
I have yet to see one where Clinton does better than Obama against the 'maverick' and she almost always loses to him.
Obama always wins.
I know it is early but this is impressive stuff.
THE FIRST LADY?
On my bike at the gym.
CNN doing a piece on candidate relatives.
Michelle Obama.
Force of nature.
And the sound was off.
Talking about how the No Child Left Behind program is a failure, choking the air out of our educational system with testing.
They showed her in lot of venues.
This is the first time that I have seen her on for any length of time.
I like Bill but she is formidable.
His secret weapon in the coming days?
UPDATE: More on Michelle O.
Labels: obama
MAIL CALL
We have quit putting our outgoing mail in the mailbox for our mail lady to pick up.
A couple of weeks ago, I put a Netflix disc in the box and on a trip to see if the mail had come, the disc was gone.
But no incoming mail. There is never a day that we do not get some mail. Ever. I mean it. Usually 5-10 pieces.
Then the mail lady came and she had not taken it on a drive by. The only possibility.
That was it.
I had been mildly concerned over neighbors' stories about lost mail and have read about stolen checks and all.
Now, the mail goes in one of those big blue boxes out at Smoke Tree Mall.
I do the drop on the way to the gym.
I am not one of those who subscribe to the view that the world is going to hell but, when the mail box is no longer safe, I think that we might just be starting a move in that direction.
I am just saying.
In this city many, many people use the private box companies mostly because they are not full time residents but also because they do not even feel secure about getting incoming mail 'out there' a hundred feet in the old fashioned mail box.
I am not there yet.
It is a bit queasy though.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
HERE HE COMES
Gallup Daily: Tracking Election
Obama's first statistically significant lead.
Rasmussen still shows it tight at Obama 47 Clinton 44.
Labels: obama
GOOGLING FREE
I didn't know that I had Google Preferences until today.
I found that they had me filtered (medium) for sexually explicit material.
Shit!
I have been missing the fucking good stuff! Cocksuckers.
Maybe you have that filter on as well, unbeknownst of course, and so you are not reading this as a result of googling.
Do they get upper case still or is it generic lower case googled.
The other thing I learned is that the first page is limited to ten items.
Not enough.
At least for the kind of things that I put into the search. (My own name, my new neighbor, the guy I haven't heard from since 1973 who I would like to know what happened to. (?)
I set mine to 50 a page.
And another thing I heard. Advanced Search is better.
I don't understand why.
I took a look at it. Too complex for me.
I only want to type in the name of that guy.
Labels: internet
DOUBLE JOINTED
I sent in my tax preparation stuff today.
I don't do my own returns. Not since maybe 1970 or something. Maybe not then either.
I get all dizzy and nauseous when I do them.
Fear mostly.
I do not want an audit. I do not want to be wrong, either way. I do not want to make mistakes.
This makes me very accident prone when it comes to tax returns.
I can hardly do my quarterly payments without 'whiteout' to correct the errors.
I don't think that I have made a mailing without opening up the sealed envelope to study whether I have fucked up.
At least once.
This is a momentous year. Even more fraught than usual.
It is the first year that Certified Domestic Partners can file joint returns in the Republic/State of California.
I think that this is some kind of milestone in gay rights although a dubious one in the area of fiscal affairs.
I am not sure whether there will be an advantage to us or not.
I don't want to delve into the reasons but I think not.
So we might actually file separately.
It is up to my tax guy.
With all the precaution and care over the years I have only been audited once.
In the 70s, an auditor came for a surprise full audit of our company and one of us had to undergo a personal audit.
I drew the short straw.
Actually, I volunteered. Hysterical fear response. Go into the fire without thinking.
We got one of the few 'no change audits' that the guy had over the years.
Scrupulous pays off.
So, they have not bothered me since then although I do not have many red flags.
I flew a couple a few years ago and nothing came of it in the normal three year period.
I think that they are looking for bigger fish than me. Repeaters. Serial cheaters.
I am the guy who pays not one penny more or one penny less than my due.
I also consider it a privilege to pay taxes despite how they spend it and I am one of the people who would gladly pay more to reduce the national debt and to fund the proper social initiatives that we must have for this country to survive.
OK.
Off the soap box.
Into the mail and await the results.
Labels: gay marriage, gay rights, life
BOYNTON
I can almost remember when I first saw a Boynton card.
I know that I have sent many over the years.
I have always wondered who and where s/he is.
Now I know.
Don't miss the B.B.King side on the third page.
It's a stunner.
Labels: culture
Saturday, February 16, 2008
TRENDY
I read Rasmussen daily polling of national preference.
Look at the last six days:
02/16/08And prior to the 11th, Clinton had been ahead of Obama consistently throughout the primaries.
43% Clinton
47% Obama
02/15/08
40% Clinton
48% Obama
02/14/08
37% Clinton
49% Obama
02/13/08
41% Clinton
46% Obama
02/12/08
44% Obama
42% Clinton
02/11/08
41% Obama
46% Clinton
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama, polls
HUMMING LOVE
The hummingbirds are mating.
Even in normal times it is all you can do to avoid getting hit by a fly by.
Now it is even more hazardous. They come in pairs.
Actually, I am not sure whether what I am seeing is the mating or the prenuptial dueling between the males.
It is pretty hard to detect hummingbird gender. They won't sit still for me to look and the markings are not that different. They all glow.
They are wild creatures. Heedless of obstructions. They dodge and dart and make passes at each other.
Maybe this is where the term 'made a pass at' comes from.
I am not sure when or where the actual consummation takes place.
I hope somewhere nice and peaceful.
But that would be against the hummingbird grain.
Quiet meditation does not seem to be their thing.
The only times I ever see them at rest is at the water fountain where they sit and bathe and flutter and shake. A drink or two and then off they go.
They are great creatures.
We do not feed them. They are here because they want to be. We have lots of flowers to suck on.
I have been a long adherent to the belief that a fed bird is a dead bird.
I know that is disputed in the northeast where people rationalize their bird watching on the basis that there is no food available for them otherwise.
That is OK. Just don't be delusional.
Here there is no such excuse. Nor is one needed.
I like it to be natural wherever it can be.
Don't mess with Mother Nature.
Labels: nature
Friday, February 15, 2008
PRUNE FACE
Today we are getting all of the trees pruned.
Well, tomorrow also.
This is an essential in desert gardening.
Everything grows so fast that it needs to be pruned before nature does it for you. Pruning without consent.
We already lost half a pepper tree for exactly that reason.
We have two lovely huge carob trees in the front that give us shade (and Franklin a lot of carob pods to eat).
There is an olive tree on the side that will have olives (underfoot) unless you cut it back early in the spring. You can spray the blossoms later on but this is chemical gardening and also unreliable.
Out back there are banana trees and woody palm trees that need to be trimmed because the lower leaves are brown and ugly.
The tangerine tree needs to be trimmed back because this is a bearing year and it will get so loaded with fruit that limbs will break if we do not reduce its size.
And on the north side, we have California oleanders that are now growing over the roof as they shade that side of the house.
The orchid tree out front is out of control growing straight up, all gawky like. It just got reduced to a nice umbrella shape again.
This is a bi-annual exercise.
Two guys do it. One prunes. One cleans behind the other.
They are very methodical. Quiet. Deliberate. Somehow peaceful.
It is great to have them around.
Even Franklin is happy to have them there and does not try to 'help'.
For a while, we will have a lot of light into the house. But it is amazing how quickly the small branches will return.
By the time the heat arrives we will have a welcomed shade again.
Labels: desert, horticulture
RAILROAD CROSSING
Today's film was the Coen brother's
It is the only one of their's that I have not seen.
This is their 30's gangster movie and it is rich in reference and homage to the cliché's of the genré. The whole thing is a lot of fun to say nothing of suspenseful and a bit scary.
More people get railroaded and double crossed than you can imagine. Some even get triple and quadruple crossed.
I think that I followed it all.
Gabriel Byrne is great as the laconic right hand man of the boss, Albert Finney.
All the rest of the cast plays really well into the complex web of betrayals that thread the tapestry of this generous film.
I liked it a lot and will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
SLIPPING
Today another inch closer.
I have belonged to MoveOn.org since 2004 and the Dean campaign.
Not so long ago, the MoveOn membership voted to endorse Obama.
That is OK. I voted. Obama won.
Today, I got a request to sign a petition to Democratic superdelegates to recognize the popular vote and not 'broker' the convention with their own machine or endorsement votes.
I guess that is a thinly veiled action on Obama's behalf against the Clinton campaign who is already dicking with the supers and trying to get Florida and Michigan's primaries recognized against previous agreements.
Pisses me off.
So I signed and immediately got bumped to a page where I could donate to get the petition published in USAToday.
So I gave $25.
Now, I am not only signing a petition but giving money on Obama's behalf.
Does that make me an Obama supporter?
Hmmmm.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
TURNING POINT
I just took the sticker off the Jeep.
Like I said, it doesn't mean anything.
I think that a lot of people are in the same position that I am.
I like the Clintons and appreciate what they did for us but I am having some trouble with their current behavior in the campaign particularly with the business of adding Florida and Michigan delegates.
I also think super-delegates should be proportional to the vote but that is another issue.
But if I lean over the edge any further, I am likely to fall in.
Look, they are both good.
It is just that some are gooder than others when it comes to getting the job done.
WONK TIME
I know this is a bit arcane but not if it means that Obama is the Democratic nominee.
Obama Voters Impact McCain Too
The gist is that so many independents are moving toward Obama in the last cycle of primaries that it leaves the GOoPers with only the conservative base which is very nervous about McCain which would drive him to turn right to get their vote rather than have them sit on their hands.
It is actually a quite persuasive argument for supporting Obama.
I have always supported Hillary because I felt that she had the base to get elected.
Now that base is eroding.
My affection for Bill does not really extend to his wife.
My support of her side has been basically practical. Entirely platonic.
I am thinking about scraping the "I MISS BILL" sticker off the Jeep.
I don't want anyone to misunderstand.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama, polls
SWITCHEROO
I read the Rasmussen national daily poll every day and today is the first day that Obama is ahead of Clinton.
Take a look at the trends.
This could be a blip. Or not.
If it is a blip it is a big one.
Stay tuned.
I started using Rasmussen, a more or less GOP centric poll, in the last election. They are pretty good at what they do on these day to day runs.
On specific contests, not so much. Ranked 19 for primary state contests at Political Animal.
But this one. OK.
YOUR HUDDLED MASSES
Today's film was Emanuele Crialese’s
Nuovomondo / The Golden Door (2007)
This is the immigrant story from the other side.
I love these films. I need a feel of what happened with my people when they came and this film does a better job than most in showing the powerful tug of a new life.
The obstacles are formidable.
These are dramatized in an unsentimental way that keeps us from repressing the deep fear and pain that the journey to this country entailed.
It is also not cruel in shoving our faces into the situation. We are at a nice distance where we can feel it all out and at the same time observe many things that we would not have otherwise imagined were true for these people. Our people.
There is magic in this film; the old world magic and the new. We get to see how things might have been imagined from the other side along with the reality.
It is a beautiful film.
There are some real surprises in it.
I loved it.
I will give it a 5 out of Netflix5.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
TWO STRIKING WRITERS WALKED INTO A BAR
Today the LAT op-ed has a series of small pieces by some now back-to-work writers.
Most of them are hilarious and all of them are interesting to read.
Just a bit of SoCal culture here.
INCOMPETENCE AMOK?
Evidently, all has not been well in HillaryLand.
The incompetence thing makes me grit my teeth.
This is not the first time that I have heard about Clinton's inability to admit error to the point of continuing a bad strategy or relationship.
Like the man says, we have had enough of that for 8 years.
I am wavering again.
Evidently like a lot of other people.
Pres '08 (D)--Feb 12 Gallup--Clinton 45%, Obama 44%
She does seem to have a big lead in Ohio and Texas for March 4th.
We shall see.
We live in interesting times.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, politics, polls
SUN SPOTS
Today's film was Danny Boyle's
This is one of those movies that came and went so fast no one really caught it.
It is a combination sci-fi, mechano/electro suspense, with a nod to horror.
It is relentless. And the film effects are spectacularly beautiful even when the shit is hitting the fan.
I mostly wanted to see it because the 28 Days guys did it and also to see Cillian Murphy who is so, well, seeable.
It is one damn thing after another with a lot of the onus on the viewer to watch what is happening. The characters don't have a clue most of the time so we have to see it to get it.
I liked it a lot and was at the edge of my seat.
The end is quite satisfying. I hope that doesn't spoil anything but, really, a satisfying end is pretty much required in this sort of thing.
I have the feeling that they made this with not a lot of money and that a great deal of the look of it is from the editing and camera work. A lot is made of time lapse, slow motion, funny mirror shots and so on. At very high speed.
You don't get a chance to check out the sets and consider how they are doing what. The pace will not allow it.
I will give it a very solid 3 out of Netflix5. It is not high art but it is sure practically effective in every way.
Monday, February 11, 2008
OOOMPH RETURNS
I am pretty much back up on full internet power.
We have had three days of low energy on the cable.
Slow. Recalcitrant.
Today. I talked to my neighbor who also has TimeWarner Cable and happens to be a computer tutor. He says he had the same thing and so did many of his clients.
He explains that it is the result of the extreme weather that we have had here for two weeks.
Wind, sand, a lot of water.
The TimeWarner equipment is built for urban temperate environments.
The long periods of heat break down the system slowly and continually.
Then, when the rain comes and the sand gets into the system everything goes to hell.
The phone company is the same.
Not only do they put 'normal' equipment in an abnormal environment, the installers figure that no rain means no caulking or sealant. Careless work.
Then comes the deluge and we are out all over.
The other factor to consider is that when the electrical power goes off everything about cable gets fucked up.
It has to reboot itself and when it gets dirty and wet that becomes even more difficult.
He said that the TimeWarner modem is notorious for reboot problems after power failure.
A hint about what to do when we get a blackout. Pull the cable on the modem and let it sit for 20 minutes. Then reboot.
I am skeptical about this latter idea. It is an extension of the notion that letting an appliance rest will help it repair itself.
The computer fixer I used and has now moved to Mexico was a big fan of turning things off and letting them sit.
There is some merit to this if there is a static charge that needs to work its way out but I don't really think that is an issue any more.
So that is the theory but I don't believe that either. But I do let the machines rest when I turn them off or restart them. Who knows? There are a lot of things I have not believed that turned out to be true.
Labels: internet, technology
MORE ABOUT MCCAIN TO THINK ABOUT
QUOTE OF THE DAY
{Posted in Quote of the Day on February 10th, 2008 by Scott--Bill in Exile Blog }
"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno."...........John McCain speaking at a GOP dinner in 1998.
A joke about a child and about lesbians.
And this senile fucking war mongering clown wants to be our president.
I don't want anyone to think that McCain is OK. Just because I said he was better than a lot of the other candidates who could have ended up as the GOoPer nominee.
He is the best because he is easy to beat.
This kind of stuff is just the beginning.
Of course it does play to a certain kind of mentality but we are used to that after the last 8 years.
Labels: McCain, republican whack jobs
COMPARE
The original. Millions of hits.
The new one.
More millions?
I think this is just the beginning of the end of John McCain.
GREAT AD
This hits the center of the target.
Every day I find that he has more of what I think it will take to beat those bastards.
Labels: obama
CARDED
My Valentine is a prolific sender.
I, on the other hand, am a bit late in the card category this year. I got started on the second day of the week preceding.
The cards fly back and forth.
We have always been a card-centric couple.
When I was on the road, we would exchange a card a night. I would get a deck in my bag and leave a deck on the bed.
I still have many of those cards. There are a lot of them. I was on the road a lot of nights.
In fact, this year, in attempt to be green and also avoid having to go out shopping, I decided that my cards to him would use the archived valentine cards of the past, each with a new message.
Oddly, or perhaps not, given our longevity as a couple, it turns out that we are both sending "memory lane" cards.
He is sending me new cards with old themes.
One, a bare foot drawing a heart in the sand, reminds us of the many beaches on which one or the other of us did the same thing.
The first memorable such event was a huge sand heart drawn on such a scale that it was only readable from our second story rented deck over the beach in Provincetown.
It was also perspective-corrected. Hey I married an architect.
Another card celebrates our three-some life today. The history is that, in the old days, I was a frequent three-some promoter. The three-some in question today involves Franklin. I got what I wanted, in general, if not specifically. A permanent menage a trois.
This morning, I sent him a card that has one yellow rose on it (next to a nice young man) reminding us of the many yellow rose bouquets that were tossed from one to the other over our 33 years together.
Yellow roses were the old 'secret' symbol of gay relationships. It is said that, for years, there was a yellow rose on the grave of J. Edgar Hoover until Clyde Tolson, his reputed lover, died. Like that kind of closet symbol.
Our lives have been lived in the open.
Something to celebrate fully.
We have not had a secret moment as far as I know. We even fought the closet when they tried to build one around us.
We were the ones who demanded to have a single room with a double bed as we travelled the United Kingdom long before they removed the law that required two beds for two men. Really. They had such a law. What a fuss we would make if the issue was raised.
I am not bragging. I am just saying.
Not to say that most of our lives up to the time we met were not secretive.
But when we met, the wraps were off. This was an unspoken agreement from the beginning.
We had nothing to hide and everything to celebrate openly and joyously. Our love for each other.
Hence all the cards over the years. Hence the cards today.
We have been a boon to the gay card industry. They should put us on a commemorative issue.
Above all, it has been fun to have the constant celebration that the cards represent.
Traditions arise from momentous events. Our meeting and our life together qualify this tradition nicely.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
OBAMA SURGES
He has the organization. No doubt.
And that is meritorious and worthy of consideration in choosing him as the nominee.
That same organization would shove the other side harder than they are able to shove Clinton.
I see that she has fired her campaign manager.
SOP if you are feeling frail in the middle of a campaign but not a good sign at all.
This may be a fatal falter.
Frank Rich wrote a really nasty anti-Hillary piece in the NYT today. It pissed me off so much that I will not link it.
This is an indication that she is gaining more enemies on the Democratic side.
I have never understood the animus around the Clintons but there is no doubt that it is there.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer, Ohio's biggest paper endorsed Obama for just this reason. That the Clintons will resurrect all the old shit stirring that went on the last time and we cannot afford to have that happen again.
This is very unfair of course. But true. And politics is not about fair anyway.
A great vulnerability for her, I am sorry to say.
MCCAIN FLOUNDERS
It is hard not to see Huckabee's wins yesterday as a rebuke of the presumptive candidate.
McCain got trounced roundly.
It shows a great weakness I think.
You can say that the know-nothing, evangelical block is big in Louisiana and Kansas, but Washington? The state?
This cannot be good news for the GOoPers. McCain is supposed to be the boss but when the preacher man can stick his finger in John's eye three times, there is something very wrong.
I wonder what the Huckster has in mind? Not the VP I hope. Scant chance.
I think that he is just a spoiler for the man who insulted 'the base'.
It is a mystery.
I think (and hope) that this is bad tidings for them.
Labels: McCain, republican whack jobs
Saturday, February 09, 2008
AND ANOTHER THING
On my walk with Franklin I figured out that today's film was a metaphor or analogy (I never know which—it wasn't an allegory).........where was I?
Oh.
Today's film was a metaphor or analogy for Nazi germany and the nazification of the german people. What gets capitalized in that last sentence?
The dog gets trained to his violent side by his third owner.
A kid. Interested in the Nazis.
I shouldn't have needed a bigger 'look here' sign than that.
I guess that I was too into the doggie and the other stuff that was happening.
Over my head at the time.
I don't really think that the reviewer got it either.
Oh well.
Labels: best films
DOG DAYS
Today's NYTimes Best 1176 Films was Jerome Boivin's
Petite bourgeoisie life through the eyes of a dog.
It is very dark humor and very tough to watch at times.
The dog 'chooses' new masters (it is not as literal as that, actually, although it appears that way to him).
I liked the film up to the last part then it got a little too black for me.
Baxter is not your warm fuzzy dog but he is not evil.
It seems that the point is about how people fuck themselves up (as well as their dogs) with suppressed stuff.
Boivin only made a few films. Maybe he was too dark.
In any case, I am glad that I saw it and I will be giving it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: best films
ONE MORE FOR THE MITT
I love Gail Collins.
Here she aims one more at the RomBot.
And the rest of those lackluster 'tards that tried to get the nomination from Honest John McCain.
Collins wins my award for most consistently accurate and funny political columnist.
Don't skim this. Or if you do, skip to the end.
Labels: politics, republican whack jobs
WHAT I HAVE BEEN SAYING
It is obvious by inspection that the biofuel thing is a boondoggle.
Now, some facts demonstrate the truth of what intuition has indicated.
Biofuels Deemed a Greenhouse Threat
We can already see collateral damage to the economy from the ethanol thing. Food costs are up. Land is being plowed under. Speculation is rampant.
Now we see that the green takes more green than the ungreen.
OK.
Back to the drawing board. What was that about nuclear energy again?
Out here we have the wind and solar going pretty good.
And do we really need to drive the car that far to go shopping?
Labels: environment, global warming
MUSCLING IN
No one has asked how my new gym routine is doing.
But if they did I would tell them that it and I are doing great together.
I am now in my 6th week or something.
It is a routine now. Not something that I have to think every move out about.
I get up, I do my morning stuff (read a bit, meditate, gear up, eat a fruit/yogurt mix or apple sauce) and then I am off.
It's a 12 minute drive to the gym. Out of the Jeep and into the gym and onto the bike (two days a week) or treadmill (3 days) for half an hour.
Then I go do my programmed weight work for the day (GymAmerica) (4 days) which is gradually programmed to increase the range of difficulty.
I can see and feel results of the weight work already but you probably can't.
The half hour cardio is OK. I was worried I would bore out. But we have CNN with closed caption (so lame) and music videos which do change. When I first went there I thought they were on the same routine week after week. No.
Some more guys have shown up that I know. I even like some of them.
The best thing that has happened is that a close friend joins me for the cardio part three days a week.
He is a cab dispatcher on the night shift and can do it from the treadmill.
A little weird to have him stop talking to me and answering the phone on his ear but it is good to have the company.
I am incorporating stretches now. I was beginning with the old shin-splint thing—a warning sign.
So I am happy in the new regimen. It takes about the same time as the old outdoor biking did.
Oddly, I do not miss the bike rides as I thought I would.
I remember that when I stopped running, I ached to get back to it. Even now, when I see a runner I can get all into the mental condition of it. I sort of enter their body for a moment.
Not so with biking.
I was ready to drop out of it. And I did.
Something quite as good now and mostly interesting.
Friday, February 08, 2008
LOSS OF OOOMPH
Since late yesterday afternoon, I have been having trouble with the 'net.
I did the usual shit. I shut it all down and rebooted.
Then at 330 AM the thing worked great.
Throughout this entire period I was able to get mail (some without its html) which told me that the problem was capacity.
You know the famous Sen. Ted Stevens story about the internet 'pipes'. I decided they had a leak.
But back from the gym and ready to go back on line, I was in the slows again.
I called Road Runner (TimeWarnerCable) and had them trouble shoot my modem.(They can look right down the pipe and see it!)
I knew there wasn't any trouble with it but you do what you need to do whether you believe it will reveal something or not. The reason is that every net head will ask you if you tried restart, then rebooting, and then checking the modem with the vendor.
If you have not followed these steps, they will not really talk to you.
After some fruitless discussion with a 'level 2' guy at RoadRunner who knew less than the 1st level guy, I was booted up to earthlink.
Aaaaargh! Telephone hell. They were shut down with phone calls. So I went for the automated diagnosis. Then to the net (I actually got through) for a 'chat'. Back to phone hell when the chat didn't work.
The automated trouble shooter sent me back to Road Runner.
A closed loop. Familiar territory on the 'net and in phone-service. Kafka.
By this time, I had figured that it is the router or earthlink.net is having trouble.
I swung to the latter because from time to time the portals would open and I would be able to go across the net in my usual speed of light way.
Then, I would lapse into a slow motion dribble of bits which were often so long in completing that my computer would time out.
I was open to the router idea and was about to connect my machine to the cable directly.
But, then, there was a sudden resurgence and it has stayed hot wired since about 11 AM.
Pain in the ass. But, as John said, it is not a threat to our comfort.
I hate to admit that it still freaks me out though.
Do you think that I am net-dependent?
Labels: internet
Thursday, February 07, 2008
IN PASSING
I don't want to rain on anyone's parade but when you are found dead with a wide variety of drugs in your body, drugs that should not be there together or perhaps not be there at all, it is not 'accidental death'.
It may be that the user did not intend to die. But it was not accidental.
Some paper, the LATimes I think, did actually use the quote from Heath Ledger's autopsy that used the term 'drug abuse'.
Which is suicide in slow motion.
Anyone knows that these drugs are potentially killers.
The great untold story today is about prescription drug addiction.
Of course, big Pharma does not want us to think about that.
I know.
Ledger took the pills. They didn't ram them down his throat.
But some doctor somewhere did not ask Heath to bring in all his pills so they could see what he was taking before they prescribed another one.
But then, if addicted, he would lie.
I am just speculating.
But I think that in respect to his family and his memory, the facts have been finessed.
The actor Heath Ledger died accidentally “from the abuse of prescription medications” — specifically, six kinds of painkillers, sleeping pills and anti-anxiety drugs — a spokeswoman for the New York City medical examiner said on Wednesday.There is no question that it is all a tragedy.(snip)
Among the drugs found in Mr. Ledger’s system were two widely prescribed narcotics: oxycodone, the main ingredient in the prescription drug OxyContin, and hydrocodone, the principal pain reliever in the prescription drug Vicodin.
Also in Mr. Ledger’s system were three anti-anxiety medications: diazepam, the generic name for Valium; alprazolam, commonly known as Xanax; and temazepam, which is sold under the brand name Restoril and is often prescribed as a sleep medication.
The drug doxylamine was also found in his system. It is an ingredient in some over-the-counter sleeping pills, and is also marketed in some nonprescription cold medicines that contain decongestants.
But it ain't because someone was just walking down the road and got hit by an asteroid or something.
Labels: culture
SWEET AIR
We are finally getting the weather that we deserve!
I just got back from the afternoon walk with Franklin and we were actually warm and the air is just so sweet.
Spring.
It has been a hard winter.
Yeh. I know.
For you who are still shoveling and all, that may sound pretty lame.
But it is true.
It is the coldest winter we have had since we moved here 11 years ago.
I know because the electric bill last month broke records. We have a heat pump for backup heat. We don't use it much. We did this winter.
Another sign.
By this time other years we were ready to have people visit and swim in the pool. Well, people who are used to water on Cape Cod anyway.
By President's day we would have it up in the high 70's.
No chance of that now. 70 at best.
Fortunately no guests are scheduled. Well, what there are are SoCal people who, like us, would not think of the pool until maybe mid or late May.
Everyone was out today, in their yards or walking.
It is that kind of day.
And the winds swept everything clean.
In come cases, a little too clean. Thirty trees in Sunrise Park just a mile or so away from us.
But these are all trees that would not normally grow in this desert.
Even though they are big, they relied on higher water so the root systems did not go deep.
You can't screw with Mother Nature.
Well not for long.
ONE CLASSY GUY
So we won't have Mitt to kick around any more.
But let me give him one more shot.
And he left in the kind of bullshit shower that only Romney has been able to patent.
must now stand aside, for our party and our country. If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and make it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win."And in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror.
Terror?
And he would be better at fighting terror than.......well just name anyone.
Who is more alienated from real life than the Mitter?
What an asshole.
He forgot the part where he was a master panderer, a whiter than white bread prissy boy and a severely disadvantaged people person and that no one except stupid country club republicans took him seriously at all. And of course the other Mormons.
What else can I say?
It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
Labels: republican whack jobs
LOOK WHO'S WINNING
Well, I would like to know. So would a lot of people. But we are not going to be able to find out.
First, the votes are not even counted for many states and locations.
They say we have 2 million to go in California alone.
And our delegates are apportioned.
So that won't work.
Then there is the money.
Obama raised 7 or more million, in one day, after the election.
Hillary had to loan 5 million of her own to her campaign.
Does this mean Obama is winning?
Then there is the matter of the polls.
Unaccountably, Gallup started showing Hillary on a national upswing starting Sunday!
Three days before the Primary!
And Obama going down.
What is up with that?
It would seem that we all like our candidates a lot. So we are into the fine points.
That is OK as long as the candidates behave well and do not start working identity politics too hard.
What about the GOoPers? Well, it looks like McCain but the base is not happy. At all.
They do not like him one bit. There are a lot of long held hard feelings.
So he may be winning but he is not winning with the base.
This has to be one of the most interesting elections I have ever seen.
It is great stuff.
Oh.
I forgot.
How good is it to see Romney getting swamped?
Labels: Democrats, election, hillary, obama, republican whack jobs
PERFIDY
Look it up
There is no end to the bushshit.
Waterboarding is Legal White House Says
We have seen them denying then dodging then stonewalling for years.
Now, they come out and say that they were doing it (waterboarding) and, what is more, they would do it again.
Now we all know that they did it.
We all know that, sometime in the future, it is going to get done again.
But Congress passed two laws to say that it is illegal.
In direct contradiction, the bushies say that it is NOT illegal and that they will do it if they want to and, I presume, fuck you.
And there we have the theory of the unitary executive. A slick phrase for despotism or dictatorship or whatever you choose.
I think that this is a desperate ploy to get the issue off the table. But with the usual bushie ham-handed incompetence, they have instead, inflamed the issue.
The way to get past shit is to admit it. We know that although few of us are able to do it until admission hurts less than the guilt or shame.
But these guys have no shame. They can't admit anything even when they fake it.
So they admit the obvious, the rumored, the all but completely confirmed fact and then, in a typical show of their almost reflexive arrogance and insincerity, they say they will go on doing it.
And, oh yes. Fuck you.
Details here: Today's Must Read
There are all kinds of words for this behavior but let's keep it simple and just say 'evil'.
This is a very good film on the subject.
The demo of waterboarding starts at about two minutes. This is more realistic than many of the demos you might see.
The guy is in good shape, he is tough. He lasts 24 minutes.
Some say they would tell all at 2 minutes.
Don't worry. They don't make you watch all 24 minutes. Just enough to get that it would definitely kick your ass.
Labels: bush. bushies, criminal morons
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
FISH STORY
Today's movie was
I wanted to see it so I could say that I had seen all the Pixar films.
It is good and not as good as the later ones but they keep raising the bar so.............
It was good to hear Albert Brooks who is an old favorite. Perfect type casting as the hovering father.
It moves along and there are a few laugh out louds. Ellen DeGeneris is good. I liked Willem Defore as the father substitute/mentor.
But this identification of stars is one of the problems with these films.
I actually prefer the more anonymous voices. They are less personality driven. This seems to be too much like a review or sitcom to me.
Beautiful art.
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
NO DECISION
But I didn't expect one.
I am happy because the maelstrom will keep turning for awhile.
I haven't been happy with the early finishes of past years.
I won't even mind if both of them go to conventions.
The Democrats, I mean.
Now as to the Republicans, Mitt's smile is very forced today. The huckster pulled in enough yokels to deny him a strong second place.
With the booboise in his camp, Huckabee will cause no end of trouble for the GOoPeRs.
He is their Dixiecrat. The bigots who plagued the Demos for so many years.
On to the next states!
Labels: Democrats, politics, republican whack jobs
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
RUSSIAN ROULETTE
Today's film was David Cronenberg's
with Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts.
This is a very tightly woven thriller that explores unknown (to me) territory—the Russian mafia in Great Britain (or anywhere else).
The performances are first rate and Mortensen does another total transformation in his role as the good gang soldier.
He is a force unto himself.
Up for an Oscar.
This is one of those films that requires limited discussion. It is best seen with no preconceptions.
There are many twists and turns which are very well constructed. You just don't have time to figure them all out before they happen.
So I won't spoil it.
I was into it and will give it a rare 5 out of Netflix5.
IMPROV
I didn't mention that the people who did the freezing at Grand Central (see Monday below) did the shirts off action at Abercrombie and Fitch.
See all their activities here.
Labels: fun
RESULTS
Now we have to wait all day to find out the results of Super Tuesday.
I won't know California until morning but I will know a lot of the other states before I go to bed at 8PM.
That is the big advantage of being on this coast.
Not the only one, actually.
I am OK on all of it.
The ones that I could not stomach are not in the race. The ones that I like will end up friendly.
The party will not be split.
I am sure that McCain is going to be the GOoPer guy.
He is more bush than bush in many ways.
And don't believe a word of the Romney ads.
McCain is not a liberal.
He is a down and dyed in the wool hawk.
He is ambiguous about gay rights.
He will appoint right wing judges because he will have to.
He is probably not temperamentally suited to the job. This is the concern of many of his Senate colleagues, even republicans.
He is old.
Keeeerist!
He is older than me!
Another Bob Dole.
Prop him up, send him out, get through this election and rebuild the party. They better rebuild it.
McCain can go on and do the Viagra ads just like Bob did.
I watched Romney this morning in CNN and he looked like he was nauseous. His eyes stared into the headlights.
He had a pissing contest with Huckabee yesterday. He lost. His pant leg is still wet. And that is all they wanted to talk about with him. He repeated that McCain is a liberal.
Old stuff.
The hair was in place though.
Labels: election
AT LAST!!
So I finally got to express my opinion directly.
I voted this morning almost as soon as the polls opened.
I was wavering until the last moment.
Some of those near and dear to me have wavered over the line in the last days and that gave me some pause.
I finally remembered something I read about Obama.
He could be the Democrat's Reagan or their Carter.
Given his style and positions that is an apt observation.
So I wavered.
But I went into the poll and there was some new business.
I told you that we are out of the electronic voting. It is back to the pen.
You join two arrows with one line. Not a thick line. Not an X. Not a wavy line or a dot. A straight line. In the middle.
How fucking complicated can you make a manual vote, huh?
So I was a bit distracted.
I opened the ballot. It is as big as a place mat for the table. Flop.
My hand took the pen and the body-mind took over. Right to the spot. No hesitation. No doubt. No regrets.
It is done.
Don't worry folks. It doesn't matter if you know who I voted for or not.
I always end up voting for the one who loses.
I left the booth, got my "I voted" with a flag, sticker and left the building.
Done.
Until November when I can tell you now that I will vote as early and as often as I can for the Democrat no matter who s/he is.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama, politics
Monday, February 04, 2008
LET'S KICK IT OFF
Meaning let's start in on McCain.
Love that hug at the beginning. I wonder how many times we will see that picture.
He does shoot his mouth off doesn't he?
Dig the background music. "Deutschland, Deutschland über alles......................"
It's almost as catchy as "bom bom bom iran".
Labels: McCain, politics, republican whack jobs
Sunday, February 03, 2008
GUSTS
They say that we had wind gusts up to 55 mph this afternooon for about half an hour.
Whoooosh!!
Labels: weather
WINDAGAIN
We really got our asses kicked today with winds.
Again.
And the power went out.
Again.
Which is good because I confirmed that I can get along OK without it for awhile.
We were going to have pizza. No oven controls. So I went out in the freezer and got some left over stew. I can use the top burners with a fireplace lighter.
Franklin and I went out in it. It was scary for both of us.
He does much better outside than in.
Somehow, being in it gives him a feeling of control. He bites at the wind and jumps into the air.
I am the other way. I am better inside. I don't like the sand blowing and a neighbor got hit with a tree limb once so I am sort of ready for that. But I do get a thrill. I don't jump and bite the air but I do like the adrenalin.
Fundamentally we had a good time together.
John was away and when he came back we took a ride in it to look at stuff.
It is dramatic.
We get microbursts and wind shears.
They do a lot in a small place.
I think we may have lost the small lemon tree. It snapped its roots about half way down the root ball.
We will see.
Otherwise, we are just full of air trash, limbs, leaves and palm bark.
Funny. Or not. The power went out just as the Super Bowl was starting for folks (not us) and came back at about the half.
I am watching the scores. I am not totally out of it.
Pats 7-3 or something. In the third I think.
Well. No one is reading this blog for info on the game.
Labels: weather
RACING TO THE FINISH
So you think that the Patriots/Giant thing is a big deal?
Look at the Obama/Clinton race in California.
Maria Shriver (Schwarzenegger) endorsed Obama this morning.
What will Ahnold say?
He backs McCain.
Not that he should say anything but he will and it will keep the press going into tomorrow.
And the Field Poll which is never wrong in California now says, as does Zogby, that it is neck and neck.
Hillary had a lead and it may be going away.
But a lot of people here vote absentee. They have either wasted their votes (Edwards, et.al) or have voted prior to the latest Obamentum (if any) and so we shall see what we shall see.
We will just wait until Tuesday. The real poll.
This, incidentally is one reason that I will not vote absentee unless I am really, honestly absent.
Issues change. People change.
It is potentially a wasted vote.
The other reason is that I like to go down to the poll and pull the lever or push the screen or, as we will be doing this time, making the mark on paper with a pencil. The old fashioned way.
The California Secretary of State has thrown all the electronic equipment out.
They have all been shown to be hackable and they do not want any taint.
Good for them.
Our county, Riverside, was a trailblazer. I don't think that I have ever voted on paper here.
But even those machines have been warehoused.
This means that the vote counting will be slow, slow, slow.
Especially with the absentees.
Especially if it is close.
They have to match up the absentee ballot with the registration and that takes time.
It will be a circus.
I think that the whole thing will be a spectacle going down to the convention.
The last time that happened we got Hubert Humphrey and you know about that. The Chicago riots. Nixon elected.
1968.
Now that was a time. Talk about your circuses.
Humphrey did not win the primary votes incidentally. His candidacy was decided on the floor with competitors humping their votes to him. A lot of smoke filled rooms.
MALE BONDING
Today's film was the much praised
Sorry I can't join the praise.
It is old wine in a new bottle.
There is no question that the bottle is rather elegant and up to date but it is still the same cheap stuff inside.
Daniel Craig is sexy and tough and sure beats all the Bonds since the first guy, that Scot.
They have also gotten rid of the awful garish colors that were the Bond film trademark. And the music is muted. Good. Thanks for that.
I was really OK with the first two thirds but it was way too long.
The whole romance thing and the finale in Venice was way over the top.
I did like the little homage to the great Nicolas Roeg film Don't Look Now with Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland (chasing the red dress, the bridge of sighs)
The rationale for his coldness (this was a prequel) was bullshit.
And so on.
The villain was the guy in the great film we saw this summer After The Wedding, Mads Mikkelson. That was nice to see. His dark side.
So, it wasn't bad, it wasn't good. It just was.
A 3 out of a Netflix5.
SETTLED
I had been wavering but now am firmly entrenched in Hillary's camp again.
I had a brief flirtation with Barack.
When a friend told me that he was convinced after the SC speech, I went and watched it.
I was not bowled over.
And speeches do not a leader make.
Sorry.
I am very happy with both of them.
I wish Obama well. I will be very happy to have him join the ticket as VEEP.
I will be happy if he wins the nomination and I will work for him enthusiastically.
But right now, I am with the Clinton 'machine' and happy to be so.
Labels: Democrats, hillary, obama
Saturday, February 02, 2008
SLOWLY BUT SURELY
Another victory.
Ruling Allows Legal Status for Partners of Same Sex
A neighboring state!
This year. for the first time, the Domestic Partner law in California allows registered gay or straight couples to file joint tax returns to the state.
A dubious advantage perhaps, but still, a major move forward.
I believe that now clutches in all the law's provisions which were sort of splayed out over time.
We have been CDP since July 8 2003.
We don't celebrate it as an anniversary but we have the certificate up on the wall.
Labels: gay marriage, gay rights
THE MAN
He is in his glory:
Kennedy Revels in Limelight as He Stumps for Obama
Keep reading. It is all very touching and funny.
it gets to me and I wasn't even a great Teddy admirer in the past, when he was my Senator.
It is all very exciting.
BAGGY
This is what we gotta do.
Motivated by a Tax, Irish Spurn Plastic Bags
I just ordered my second set of resuables.
This time I am getting the heavy canvas kind.
Ecobags. See image.
The ones I got from my market are fine enough but they are already getting a big beaten up.
I am going to phase them out and put them in the cars for other places than the grocers.
This plastic bag thing is one of the worst environmental dangers.
They blow, they scatter, they will not ever deteriorate.
They get into the oceans.
They are killers.
Props to the Irish.
LACKING INITIATIVE
We are the 'proposition' state.
We get props to vote on no matter what else is going on.
This year is no exception.
There are four big ones that would seal a deal the gov made with the gambling tribes.
Sorry, I will not call it 'gaming'.
No PR brush will whiten that dirty racket.
Of course, I will vote NO for all four.
We are also being asked to endorse a new term limits plan which is actually pretty good. Our present law is very restrictive and cuts people off mid-learning curve. I will probably vote YES. It is not doing well in the polls though.
There is a gas tax distribution initiative which even its backers now disavow. NO.
And finally a local bond funding, money distribution formality for local schools. YES.
But that is it.
Not a lot more out here this year.
We can save all the juice up for the big one.
No not that big one. We are still waiting for the shake.
I mean Super Tuesday. The first step towards the new Democratic administration.
Of course we could get both the same day.
MOVIN' ON
So MoveOn.org has moved on by endorsing Obama.
Their rules say they won't endorse without 60% of a vote. He got a whopping 70%!
It is a big deal for me to see this.
Normally, I am not influenced about what others' think.
But the Kennedy endorsement and now, the MoveOn vote has me getting caught in some of the side effects of what is appearing as a landslide movement.
I have been writing to a friend about it. He is caught.
In a good way.
I think that I will wait it out.
I have a few days.
This is the most engaging, interesting, and compelling election that I have been in for decades.
I will tell you one thing though.
I was deeply moved by the film of the debate the other night.
They were great together.
The semi-hug at the end was quite a thing to see.
Compare that to the nastiness of the McCain Romney relationship.
I suppose that I am susceptible too to the 'dream ticket' and somehow having both Obama and Clinton on the same slate.
Labels: Democrats, gay politics, hillary, obama
