Monday, March 17, 2008
As we look toward our future and the coming season of matriculation, may I extend the suggestion to those who might even currently be crafting their commencement speeches:
Do not under any circumstance talk about how the graduates are "stepping into their futures" or "on the precipice of their futures" or any other such maudlin cliched claptrap. Hey Bubba. I'm 44 and I'm on the precipice of my future. Two minutes from now is my future. So is tomorrow morning. And by the time I finish spell checking this my future will have come and gone. So really, really, if you're up there, the assumption is that you have something to say and enough brains to come up with it. TRY HARDER.
Also, don't quote Eminem. And if you must, don't be strident about it.
Just lookin' to the future here.
Do not under any circumstance talk about how the graduates are "stepping into their futures" or "on the precipice of their futures" or any other such maudlin cliched claptrap. Hey Bubba. I'm 44 and I'm on the precipice of my future. Two minutes from now is my future. So is tomorrow morning. And by the time I finish spell checking this my future will have come and gone. So really, really, if you're up there, the assumption is that you have something to say and enough brains to come up with it. TRY HARDER.
Also, don't quote Eminem. And if you must, don't be strident about it.
Just lookin' to the future here.
Labels: opinion
Friday, March 30, 2007
This is a quote from the sheriff of Hackensack, New Jersey talking about the current wave of home foreclosures in the subprime market which is now spreading to other levels of market loans:
My problem is that, when we were pre-approved for a loan and we began talking with realtors, we were strongly encouraged to buy a home that cost at least what the dollar amount of our pre-approval offered us. Every time we said "No. We might be able to get a loan for that amount, but we can't pay that much in a monthly mortgage," we got pushed harder. We pushed back.
The Husband and I had carefully studied our current and projected finances in a conservative manner. We decided what monthly payment we could afford and figured in taxes and insurance. We set that amount and looked for houses in that range. We refused to budge. Now, seven years later, we are building good equity and we have a modest home that we are very happy to be buying. We take good care of our home and property and plan to live here for many years, or until we win the lottery and can buy and obscene amount of land in the middle of the mountains in West Texas where we will become eccentric hermits who post rude and threatening no trespassing signs on the borders of our own little citadel. Which means we will probably die here in our west Houston home. And that's OK. This is the American dream. But we didn't let it become an American fantasy. We were approved to buy a home that cost half again what our home cost. We could have done it. But it would not have been a responsible choice.
I am a big believer in personal responsibility. I just don't see how bankers are responsible for people who either chose to be unrealistic in their own financial choices, or who chose to speculate on real estate (I've got a bridge in Arizona to sell you!). That's like saying that if someone chooses to snort cocaine it is their dealer's fault. It was your choice pick up that razor blade and cut up the pretty little white rock, and it was your choice to over extend yourself financially (HGTV says I Can Flip This House!) and disregard the Golden Rule: If it is too good to be true, it probably is.
Don't blame the banker. You're the one who put your John Hancock on that 2 foot tall stack of papers. Over and over and over again.
Sheriff McGuire calls the process "one of the most distasteful parts of my position." He places most of the blame on bankers who allowed questionable lending practices. "This might not have happened if not for these new type of loans."Sorry guys but I have a real problem with this type of sentiment that I am hearing quoted on TV and radio over and over when talking about the folks who are loosing their homes after taking out subprime, ARM, no money down, and other types of non-tradition home loans. It's not that I don't feel for anyone who loses their home. I am blessed to be in debt probably for the rest of my life to a bank for the privilege of "owning" my own home. I am deeply grateful that my husband and I were able to secure a traditional 30 year mortgage at a good interest rate seven years ago. We pay extra money towards the principle often to cut down on that 30 years.
My problem is that, when we were pre-approved for a loan and we began talking with realtors, we were strongly encouraged to buy a home that cost at least what the dollar amount of our pre-approval offered us. Every time we said "No. We might be able to get a loan for that amount, but we can't pay that much in a monthly mortgage," we got pushed harder. We pushed back.
The Husband and I had carefully studied our current and projected finances in a conservative manner. We decided what monthly payment we could afford and figured in taxes and insurance. We set that amount and looked for houses in that range. We refused to budge. Now, seven years later, we are building good equity and we have a modest home that we are very happy to be buying. We take good care of our home and property and plan to live here for many years, or until we win the lottery and can buy and obscene amount of land in the middle of the mountains in West Texas where we will become eccentric hermits who post rude and threatening no trespassing signs on the borders of our own little citadel. Which means we will probably die here in our west Houston home. And that's OK. This is the American dream. But we didn't let it become an American fantasy. We were approved to buy a home that cost half again what our home cost. We could have done it. But it would not have been a responsible choice.
I am a big believer in personal responsibility. I just don't see how bankers are responsible for people who either chose to be unrealistic in their own financial choices, or who chose to speculate on real estate (I've got a bridge in Arizona to sell you!). That's like saying that if someone chooses to snort cocaine it is their dealer's fault. It was your choice pick up that razor blade and cut up the pretty little white rock, and it was your choice to over extend yourself financially (HGTV says I Can Flip This House!) and disregard the Golden Rule: If it is too good to be true, it probably is.
Don't blame the banker. You're the one who put your John Hancock on that 2 foot tall stack of papers. Over and over and over again.
Labels: opinion
Thursday, March 22, 2007
You know that Quizno's commercial for their prime rib sub where they have that lovely young woman holding a sub in her hand saying "that's what real women need - more meat!" and then laughing the laugh that all men with dirty minds who understand the double entendre of her statement find so irresistible?
Well lemme tell ya, I agree. Meat is good food. Give me a rib-eye. I love some fajitas. Grilled chicken? I'll take two, please. So before I tell you about what I'm here to tell you about I wanted to make that perfectly clear. Meat = Food = GOOD STUFF. And that means somebody has to kill it. OK here we go.
The headline today is from Wisconsin, where a 20 year old man was found guilty of having "sexual contact" with a dead deer. He will most likely be branded as a sex offender (a title we usually reserve for rapists and sick pukes who diddle with children) and will definitely be required to undergo psychiatric treatment at a hard core crazy coop.
Let us first establish that banging a dead deer is just sick. Icky, yucky, too twisted to be a made up story, who the hell could ever think this was a good idea sick, or as my Cult Leader said: "EEEEYYYYeeeeeew". Now that that is clear let's go on.
This guy fucked a dead dear. Now he's a sex offender.
Guys go out into the woods every year, stalk deer, kill them, bleed them, chop them up, and stick the body parts in their home freezers while salivating at the thought of eating them in the future.
Theoretically, how is fucking a dead deer worse than that??? If we substitute the word "human" for "deer" all we have is a necrophiliac in the first instance. But c'mon folks! The second instance? What could be more Jeffey Dahmer?
Not that I would want to live next door to either I must say I would take Necro Boy before Dahmer any day of the week. It's all in your perspective.
Well lemme tell ya, I agree. Meat is good food. Give me a rib-eye. I love some fajitas. Grilled chicken? I'll take two, please. So before I tell you about what I'm here to tell you about I wanted to make that perfectly clear. Meat = Food = GOOD STUFF. And that means somebody has to kill it. OK here we go.
The headline today is from Wisconsin, where a 20 year old man was found guilty of having "sexual contact" with a dead deer. He will most likely be branded as a sex offender (a title we usually reserve for rapists and sick pukes who diddle with children) and will definitely be required to undergo psychiatric treatment at a hard core crazy coop.
Let us first establish that banging a dead deer is just sick. Icky, yucky, too twisted to be a made up story, who the hell could ever think this was a good idea sick, or as my Cult Leader said: "EEEEYYYYeeeeeew". Now that that is clear let's go on.
This guy fucked a dead dear. Now he's a sex offender.
Guys go out into the woods every year, stalk deer, kill them, bleed them, chop them up, and stick the body parts in their home freezers while salivating at the thought of eating them in the future.
Theoretically, how is fucking a dead deer worse than that??? If we substitute the word "human" for "deer" all we have is a necrophiliac in the first instance. But c'mon folks! The second instance? What could be more Jeffey Dahmer?
Not that I would want to live next door to either I must say I would take Necro Boy before Dahmer any day of the week. It's all in your perspective.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
For anyone who thinks a single payer system (AKA The US Government administering YOUR healthcare) would somehow be any better than what we have now.
Make your choice. Decide how you would want your healthcare dollars spent:
Cause you know, this system has worked so well in Canada, eh?
(Don't read Kevin MD unless you want to often end up ranting and raving in anger.)
Make your choice. Decide how you would want your healthcare dollars spent:
Rationing a theraputic medical procedure, thus leading to cutting out a sick bladder and stick a urine sack on a person's belly for life?
Slicing open and tucking in a healthy penis?
Cause you know, this system has worked so well in Canada, eh?
(Don't read Kevin MD unless you want to often end up ranting and raving in anger.)
Labels: medicine, opinion, video
Thursday, January 18, 2007
The following is reprinted from a "Letters to the Editor" column in Douglas County, Oregon. I don't think I could say it better myself.
I have a question not only for Douglas County, but for the entire state of Oregon. Like a lot of other folks in this state, I have a job. I work, they pay me. I pay my taxes and the government distributes my taxes as they see fit. In order for me to get that paycheck I am required to pass a random urine test, which I have no problem with.I am always delighted when I hear something that is a new idea that makes so damned much sense. You know, I was in Oregon about ten years ago and I really liked it. Hello, Austin. Are you listening? Yeah. Right.
What I do have a problem with is the distribution of my taxes to people who don't have to pass a urine test. Shouldn't one have to pass a urine test to get a welfare check because I have to pass one to earn it for them?
Please understand I have nothing against helping people get back on their feet. I do, on the other hand, have a problem helping someone sit on their butt. Could you imagine how much money the state could save if people had to pass a urine test to get a public assistance check?
-Leonard Wilson
Riddle, Oregon
Labels: headlines, opinion, texas
Monday, November 06, 2006
It's that time of year again, boys and girls. If your town is anything like mine, the Christmas season started before Halloween this year (my local Walgreens started putting up Christmas trees Oct. 1). While your local news will probably do stories about being safe in mall parking lots and how Wal-Mart is dropping its prices on HUNDREDS of items, the story I want to talk about is charitable giving.
First, DO IT. If you are fortunate enough to be reading this blog (Ha. HAHA.) you probably have enough money to own a computer. Which means you probably have enough money to pay your electric bill to power your computer. Which means you probably have enough money to pay for a roof over your head. Which means you are more fortunate than a lot of people in this country, for whatever reason.
Second, DON'T DO IT. Unless you truly know to whom you are giving your hard earned dollars that you could otherwise be spending on upgrading your video card.
I give about 10% of my annual income to charity. I don't tithe to a religion so this equals me out is my thinking. I have a few hard and fast rules for my giving choices. I only give to charities that I have researched and personally care about. I never, never, never, did I say NEVER, give money to organizations that call me on the phone, knock on my door, or stand on street corners with buckets and pictures of starving children. Nor do I just hang up on these people or close the door in their faces. I ask three specific questions, and it always makes the solicitors go away.
I've worked in the non-profit world for about ten years. These are three questions that any reputable non-profit solicitor should be able to answer without hesitation. Here in Houston we have an organization that has a name that makes it sound like it helps support the families of fallen or wounded peace officers. They pay a for-profit call center to make cold call solicitations over the phone. Every time they call I ask these three questions. Sometimes the caller will know that the organization is a 501(c)3 - which it is. None of them know their administrative percentage, and I've had them actually hang up on me when I ask for an annual report. I happen to know that this particular organization gives only 10% of each dollar to support the families of these officers. They don't get a freaking penny from me. On the other hand, there is another local organization that actually DOES support these families as well as supports purchasing life protecting equipment and offering educational opportunities for officers. If you wish to give to a charity that supports peace officers, please contact your local police department and ask them what charity actually supports them. In Houston, I recommend The 100 Club. But be aware that even if you have 8 of those annual stickers on your car window, you're still going to get a ticket for running a red light.
My local BBB recommends that the administrative percentage be no more than 35%. I think that number should be closer to 15-20%. For example, my local United Way keeps that number right around 12%. Isn't that awesome? But be aware - all United Ways are local. Every United Way does business differently and your local UW may or may not be well operated. Please investigate before you write that check (and before you condemn all UW's for the story you hear about one where the president stole money to pay for a horse farm). I know that the local UW is very well run and totally financially transparent. The BBB is a great way to investigate any charity you are interested in supporting. Another great resource is Charity Navigator.
Some local charities that I personally believe in include:
First, DO IT. If you are fortunate enough to be reading this blog (Ha. HAHA.) you probably have enough money to own a computer. Which means you probably have enough money to pay your electric bill to power your computer. Which means you probably have enough money to pay for a roof over your head. Which means you are more fortunate than a lot of people in this country, for whatever reason.
Second, DON'T DO IT. Unless you truly know to whom you are giving your hard earned dollars that you could otherwise be spending on upgrading your video card.
I give about 10% of my annual income to charity. I don't tithe to a religion so this equals me out is my thinking. I have a few hard and fast rules for my giving choices. I only give to charities that I have researched and personally care about. I never, never, never, did I say NEVER, give money to organizations that call me on the phone, knock on my door, or stand on street corners with buckets and pictures of starving children. Nor do I just hang up on these people or close the door in their faces. I ask three specific questions, and it always makes the solicitors go away.
1. Are you a 501(c)3 organization? The solicitors almost never know the answer to this one.
2. What percent of each dollar your organization raises goes to administrative costs? I have NEVER had a solicitor be able to answer this question.
3. Will you send me your most current annual report? I have NEVER had one of these show up in my mail box.
I've worked in the non-profit world for about ten years. These are three questions that any reputable non-profit solicitor should be able to answer without hesitation. Here in Houston we have an organization that has a name that makes it sound like it helps support the families of fallen or wounded peace officers. They pay a for-profit call center to make cold call solicitations over the phone. Every time they call I ask these three questions. Sometimes the caller will know that the organization is a 501(c)3 - which it is. None of them know their administrative percentage, and I've had them actually hang up on me when I ask for an annual report. I happen to know that this particular organization gives only 10% of each dollar to support the families of these officers. They don't get a freaking penny from me. On the other hand, there is another local organization that actually DOES support these families as well as supports purchasing life protecting equipment and offering educational opportunities for officers. If you wish to give to a charity that supports peace officers, please contact your local police department and ask them what charity actually supports them. In Houston, I recommend The 100 Club. But be aware that even if you have 8 of those annual stickers on your car window, you're still going to get a ticket for running a red light.
My local BBB recommends that the administrative percentage be no more than 35%. I think that number should be closer to 15-20%. For example, my local United Way keeps that number right around 12%. Isn't that awesome? But be aware - all United Ways are local. Every United Way does business differently and your local UW may or may not be well operated. Please investigate before you write that check (and before you condemn all UW's for the story you hear about one where the president stole money to pay for a horse farm). I know that the local UW is very well run and totally financially transparent. The BBB is a great way to investigate any charity you are interested in supporting. Another great resource is Charity Navigator.
Some local charities that I personally believe in include:
Houston Area Women's Center Their mission is to provide shelter and support services to victims of domestic or sexual violence. I hope to never need them but am greatful that they're there.
Target Hunger They distribute 2 million pounds of food annually to more than 91,000 people. Again, hope to never need them but they do great work.
DePelchin Children's Center They offer adoption, foster care, counseling, and residential services for children and adolescents. Will never need them but have done some volunteer work there and you just fall in love with the kids - you can't help it.
Child Advocates They train volunteers and administer a program that assigns volunteers to children who are victims of abuse who get lost in the legal system. Have thought about volunteering with them but know I would end up emotionally crippled.
Montrose Counseling Center They provide outpatient mental health, chemical dependency, and case management services, education and research primarily for the GLBT population, people living with HIV, and their significant others. Got my first HIV test there twenty years ago. The only place I know of in Houston that offers anonymous HIV testing - and believe me there is a big difference between anonymous and confidential when you're talking HIV.
Lone Star Legal Aid They provide civil legal services for low income people including fair housing and family law services. When I was a child, my mother had it very tough after my parent's divorce. These folks helped her.
Crisis Intervention of Houston They service people in crisis by providing 24-hour telephone and web-based counseling, suicide prevention, intervention education, links to community resources, and community education. I have a friend who volunteered here for many years. They literally save lives one person at a time.
Texas Center for the Missing They provide support for families and volunteers searching for missing children, and they provide Child ID kits to help law enforcement if a child does go missing. They coordinate the various agencies that mobilize to search for these children, and they administer the local Amber Alert program. My friend Mel would kill me if I didn't include them on my list.
Locks of Love They provide hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under age 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss. This is a very cool organization because they don't just want your money or your time - they want your HAIR, which costs you nothing.
Citizens for Animal Protection They not only offer shelter, rescue, and placement for homeless animals, they also provide low cost spay and neutering services. We had our sheltie fixed there and it was a great experience - these people truly love what they do.
Labels: opinion
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
All you Northerners? Go right now and apply for that second home mortgage to pay your heating bill in February. Make sure your snow shovel is sharp. Get an extra space heater, and one of those electric blankets, too. Maybe three or four. Stock up on non-perishables, batteries, and fire-wood.
Why? Because the headline today is "US Government Predicts Mild Winter". This is the same government that predicted 16 hurricanes this summer along with about 6 "killlers". So I figure that means ice and death for the north.
Remember a few years ago when there was a horrific winter storm in Canada and people were left for multiple weeks with no power, no food deliveries, no cleared roads? Yeah, think about it. They're from the government, and they're here to help.
Brrrrrrrr.
Why? Because the headline today is "US Government Predicts Mild Winter". This is the same government that predicted 16 hurricanes this summer along with about 6 "killlers". So I figure that means ice and death for the north.
Remember a few years ago when there was a horrific winter storm in Canada and people were left for multiple weeks with no power, no food deliveries, no cleared roads? Yeah, think about it. They're from the government, and they're here to help.
Brrrrrrrr.
Friday, October 06, 2006
Listen. I'm not a girly girl. I own one lipstick. It's really only tint, in a tube like chapstick, bought in the health food market.
BUT. This fingernail polish? Looks like a manicure, huh? No brush marks, no globs of polish on my skin, no unattractive gooping at the cuticle line.
Guess what? Took me 6 minutes to apply, while I was reading email and having my morning diet coke. My secret? Well, I have to tell you a story.
My sister called me a couple of months ago and it went like this:
Her: Hi! Guess who's an Avon Lady?
Me: Who?
Her: Me!
Me: No really, who?
Her: Me!
Me: Ha HA HA HA!
This led to the ritual exchange of catalogs. Which led to me remembering how scanky all the Avon perfumes used to smell in the 1970's. And to my ongoing lack of ability to understand why people SWEAR by Skin So Soft.
And to the discover of (drumroll please) Instant Fingernail Polish!! I shit you not.
I had to try it. I have great nails, but I never wear polish because I am genetically incapable of applying it. I get about three nails in when I screw one up bad. I try to fix it but, like what happens in relationships, it just goes from bad to worse. So I go au natural.
Until now. I ordered 20 sets of these things (at my sister's super duper Avon Lady discount price) and am in the process of giving it to all my friends. It wears like regular polish, but better - stays shiny til you take it off. I've lasted 16 days in one color so far. I've had girlfriends call me and truly shriek at me over the phone: THIS IS AWESOME I NEED MORE, they say.
So yeah I'm all excited about this stuff. Last time I was this excited about a girly thing was when I was 13 and found out that regardless of what my mother had told me, you DO NOT have to be married to use tampons instead of pads.
Don't have an Avon Lady? Get one. Apparently they're everywhere.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
It seems like there is always an image that sticks with me that sort of distills a tragedy for me in my head.
I'll remember this obscenity from the news photo of an elderly Amish man standing by a building, looking up in the sky as a medical rescue helicopter took a little Amish girl away in one of the most intrusive ways possible, for the most noble and God sent reason.
I tried to imagine what he must have been thinking beyond the overall horror, to stand there and be assaulted by the sounds and winds and people and technology that came with that helicopter, to see this particular proof of the antithesis of simple, and to surely be praying that it would protect the child's life and be an instrument that might make her recovery possible.
I posted this as a comment on another blog. Decided to leave it here, too, since it is what I'm thinking about today as this Pennsylvanian community buries its dead.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
"You know I have no political experience whatsoever."
I can't think of a better resume for the next governer of Texas. Just look at what the hell has happened with all the pedigreed pukes we've put in charge of the pink limestone!
You can get your very own Kinky talking action figure.*
You can go find out Why The Hell Not.
And you can put your money where your ideals and honor are.
*Because boy dolls aren't called dolls.
I can't think of a better resume for the next governer of Texas. Just look at what the hell has happened with all the pedigreed pukes we've put in charge of the pink limestone!
You can get your very own Kinky talking action figure.*
You can go find out Why The Hell Not.
And you can put your money where your ideals and honor are.
*Because boy dolls aren't called dolls.
Labels: headlines, opinion, texas
Monday, May 29, 2006
We will begin this post with a disclaimer: I neither support nor fight against our current war. I don't believe I have enough information to make that decision because I have been lied to by so many "Officials" I can't decide what's right and what's wrong. With that, we'll return to our regularly scheduled post.
Disclaimer #2: After I finished my prior post this morning, what I intended to be my Memorial Day post, I went surfing to read the news. I came across the information that prompted this post. I think the news that prompted this post couldn't showcase the feelings I expressing in my prior post more perfectly.
What the FUCK??
The President of The United States today appeared in his role as the leader of THE FREE WORLD today at Arlington National Cemetery. He stood there (as a draft dodger) and placed a wreath on the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier.
Then he went home and signed a new bill, the "Respect for America's Fallen Heroes Act".
Remember: LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD
Signing: LEGISLATION THAT REMOVES YET ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE FREEDOMS.
If your government is afraid of what you have to say, and your government enacts laws taking away your freedom to stand in the open air and say what you believe when you want to, then your government isn't YOURS anymore.
What a FUCKING HYPOCRITE! Maybe that protester does respect the lives of those dead soldiers, and believes that maybe they shouldn't have died, and is expressing that respect by standing up and saying so. Being president does not give George Bush the right to decide who is a good American and who isn't based upon their opinion of HIM and his policies.
FIRST, he created "ZONES" for political protesters at conventions - round them up, lock them in a controlled area away from the media and the observers and the participants. Let them rant and rave all they want as long as no one can see or hear them.
NOW, even if it's your dead soldier brother they're burying at Arlington, you do not have the right as a American citizen to stand at his funeral and shout out NO HE SHOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO DIE.
Honestly, honestly, honestly, how does taking away a freedom enjoyed by Americans for 200 years PROTECT MY FREEDOM?
Disclaimer #2: After I finished my prior post this morning, what I intended to be my Memorial Day post, I went surfing to read the news. I came across the information that prompted this post. I think the news that prompted this post couldn't showcase the feelings I expressing in my prior post more perfectly.
What the FUCK??
The President of The United States today appeared in his role as the leader of THE FREE WORLD today at Arlington National Cemetery. He stood there (as a draft dodger) and placed a wreath on the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier.
Then he went home and signed a new bill, the "Respect for America's Fallen Heroes Act".
Remember: LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD
Signing: LEGISLATION THAT REMOVES YET ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE FREEDOMS.
If your government is afraid of what you have to say, and your government enacts laws taking away your freedom to stand in the open air and say what you believe when you want to, then your government isn't YOURS anymore.
What a FUCKING HYPOCRITE! Maybe that protester does respect the lives of those dead soldiers, and believes that maybe they shouldn't have died, and is expressing that respect by standing up and saying so. Being president does not give George Bush the right to decide who is a good American and who isn't based upon their opinion of HIM and his policies.
FIRST, he created "ZONES" for political protesters at conventions - round them up, lock them in a controlled area away from the media and the observers and the participants. Let them rant and rave all they want as long as no one can see or hear them.
NOW, even if it's your dead soldier brother they're burying at Arlington, you do not have the right as a American citizen to stand at his funeral and shout out NO HE SHOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO DIE.
Honestly, honestly, honestly, how does taking away a freedom enjoyed by Americans for 200 years PROTECT MY FREEDOM?
Mine is the first generation in my family that has not hefted a big green (or grey) duffle bag over a shoulder and marched off to war.
My father was in the Pacific for WWII. His father was in Europe for WWI. His father's father was in the South for The War of Northern Aggression.
Mine is also the first generation to sit and watch our president be more excited about his gall bladder surgical scar than he was about Hugh Downs announcing the daily body count from Viet Nam.
I was in 3rd grade when I watched Tricky Dick's jowls proclaim him to be "not a crook". I was a teenager as I watched Georgia's favorite son age a million years in three. Then I watched Nancy spend more money on new china for the White House than my family would earn in a decade. And not too long after that, I watched Bill redefine for an entire world the definition of "sexual relations" as he embodied the concept of "no moral compass", all at the same time.
This is my government. I do not believe. I do not trust. I assume that if it is sound coming from a government leader's mouth that it is a lying sound.
And then there are the soldiers. The men and women who are able to look past all the lies, abuse, neglect, self enrichment, unsavory compromises, power plays, and criminal activity. These are people who can see the greater picture, the future beyond today's politicos, the belief that this country is bigger than its leaders, and greater than its current liars.
Thank you to all of the carriers of green duffle bags and wearers of combat boots. Thank you for holding onto your faith and hope when I appear to not have any.
Any Soldier
My father was in the Pacific for WWII. His father was in Europe for WWI. His father's father was in the South for The War of Northern Aggression.
Mine is also the first generation to sit and watch our president be more excited about his gall bladder surgical scar than he was about Hugh Downs announcing the daily body count from Viet Nam.
I was in 3rd grade when I watched Tricky Dick's jowls proclaim him to be "not a crook". I was a teenager as I watched Georgia's favorite son age a million years in three. Then I watched Nancy spend more money on new china for the White House than my family would earn in a decade. And not too long after that, I watched Bill redefine for an entire world the definition of "sexual relations" as he embodied the concept of "no moral compass", all at the same time.
This is my government. I do not believe. I do not trust. I assume that if it is sound coming from a government leader's mouth that it is a lying sound.
And then there are the soldiers. The men and women who are able to look past all the lies, abuse, neglect, self enrichment, unsavory compromises, power plays, and criminal activity. These are people who can see the greater picture, the future beyond today's politicos, the belief that this country is bigger than its leaders, and greater than its current liars.
Thank you to all of the carriers of green duffle bags and wearers of combat boots. Thank you for holding onto your faith and hope when I appear to not have any.
Any Soldier
Labels: opinion
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Sunday, January 15, 2006
File this one in the "No, THAT'S not hypocracy!" pile.
There's this new show on the tube called the Book of Daniel. Maybe you saw it. My sister recorded it for me and I watched it. I was exhausted at the end. Every character is dysfunctional. Drug addiction. Drug selling. Alcohol abuse. Sexual hyperactivity. Sexual dysfunction. Alzheimer's. And on and on. There is no family pet because they couldn't figure out what kind of mental illness to give it.
Big deal. Oh, wait. It IS a big deal. Because the whole thing is set in a Christian frame: the lead of the show is a preacher (and a codeine fiend).
So, America being the land of the free and the home of the protesters, many Upright Christians have protested the show, saying it BLASPHEMES! I'm ok with all that. It's tradition in this country that if you say anything about Christians that doesn't being with Jesus Is My Savior and end with Amen you're a sinner and yer goin' to hell.
What gets me is Arkansas. The station carrying the show in this one little podunk town (I know that's a little redundant: podunk, Arkansas - hey I've BEEN THERE.) bowed to the rantings of their local cult (look up the definition - all organized religions are cults, doesn't matter if they serve Kool-Aid or not) and dropped the show. So another station picked it up. AND THEN CAME THE DEATH THREATS!!!
This is a brand of Christianity at its most oxymoronic. Cancel this show that offends my God or I will kill you to defend my God!
Sheesh...go take a Vicodin.
There's this new show on the tube called the Book of Daniel. Maybe you saw it. My sister recorded it for me and I watched it. I was exhausted at the end. Every character is dysfunctional. Drug addiction. Drug selling. Alcohol abuse. Sexual hyperactivity. Sexual dysfunction. Alzheimer's. And on and on. There is no family pet because they couldn't figure out what kind of mental illness to give it.
Big deal. Oh, wait. It IS a big deal. Because the whole thing is set in a Christian frame: the lead of the show is a preacher (and a codeine fiend).
So, America being the land of the free and the home of the protesters, many Upright Christians have protested the show, saying it BLASPHEMES! I'm ok with all that. It's tradition in this country that if you say anything about Christians that doesn't being with Jesus Is My Savior and end with Amen you're a sinner and yer goin' to hell.
What gets me is Arkansas. The station carrying the show in this one little podunk town (I know that's a little redundant: podunk, Arkansas - hey I've BEEN THERE.) bowed to the rantings of their local cult (look up the definition - all organized religions are cults, doesn't matter if they serve Kool-Aid or not) and dropped the show. So another station picked it up. AND THEN CAME THE DEATH THREATS!!!
This is a brand of Christianity at its most oxymoronic. Cancel this show that offends my God or I will kill you to defend my God!
Sheesh...go take a Vicodin.
Friday, December 09, 2005
OUTRAGEOUS AND VILE.
To buy the "Morning After Pill" in Canada a woman must pay not only for the pill - that's fair of course I have to buy my own NyQuil even though it isn't so good anymore after they took out all the booze - but also $20Canadian for a "Counseling Fee". The "counseling" consists of the woman being required to fill out this form and hand it back to the pharmacist.
Questions include:
When was the first day of your last menstrual period (dd/mm/yy)
Are your menstrual cycles regular (one menstrual period every month)? Yes No
Was your last menstrual period normal? Yes No
When did you most recently have unprotected sexual intercourse (i.e., the act of intercourse for which you are seeking emergency contraception)? Date_____________________ Time_____________________
Since your last menstrual period, have you had any other episodes of unprotected sex that might put you at risk of pregnancy?
Yes No
Date_____________________ Time_________________
Date_____________________ Time_________________
To buy the "Morning After Pill" in Canada a woman must pay not only for the pill - that's fair of course I have to buy my own NyQuil even though it isn't so good anymore after they took out all the booze - but also $20Canadian for a "Counseling Fee". The "counseling" consists of the woman being required to fill out this form and hand it back to the pharmacist.
Questions include:
When was the first day of your last menstrual period (dd/mm/yy)
Are your menstrual cycles regular (one menstrual period every month)? Yes No
Was your last menstrual period normal? Yes No
When did you most recently have unprotected sexual intercourse (i.e., the act of intercourse for which you are seeking emergency contraception)? Date_____________________ Time_____________________
Since your last menstrual period, have you had any other episodes of unprotected sex that might put you at risk of pregnancy?
Yes No
Date_____________________ Time_________________
Date_____________________ Time_________________
Saturday, October 29, 2005
She undertook in the 1990s to dissect a series of female cadavers and document, layer by layer, the anatomy of the clitoris.
Well, it's about time, don't you think?
Via Kevin, M.D.
Well, it's about time, don't you think?
Via Kevin, M.D.
Labels: headlines, medicine, opinion
# posted by Carol : 1:19 AM
Sunday, July 24, 2005
I'm in the car last week with a girlfriend on the way to lunch. She tells me she is enrolling her daughter in ballet classes as sort of a remedial thing - the child is beautiful but she's as big of a clutz as I am. Since she's only three they think there may be hope for her. I suggested that she should send her seven year old son, also. She was speechless! I explained to her that I spent at least one night every month of my teen and twenty decades sitting third row center at the Houston Ballet watching those glorious men in their tights and it was really very nice.
So then we had to have a long scientific discussion about the best male physique out there and the final decisions made us really distracted from eating lunch.
Actually, there was a tie:
Upper Body: SWIMMERS!!
Lower Body: BALLET DANCERS!!
There. Now, aren't you glad we've seen to all the big issues of the world? You may now return to your regularly scheduled internets.
So then we had to have a long scientific discussion about the best male physique out there and the final decisions made us really distracted from eating lunch.
Actually, there was a tie:
Upper Body: SWIMMERS!!
Lower Body: BALLET DANCERS!!
There. Now, aren't you glad we've seen to all the big issues of the world? You may now return to your regularly scheduled internets.
Labels: opinion, personal urban drama
Monday, June 06, 2005
OK. If "President Jeb" scared you, this one should make you pee your pants. If not, you scare ME!
Go read here about the technology being used in Germany and being prepared for implementation in Great Britain.
The deal is, the GOVERNMENT uses satellites to TRACK EVERY MILE YOU DRIVE and charge you a fee based upon congestion and locality. That's right - you pay the government money for driving on a per mile basis. And it's not self reported by any means.
Think about it: they're saying this system is already in use in Germany for trucks. They're looking at 10 years for full implementation in GB. So it just can't be long before they're scheming and rubbing their greedy little hands together in Washington.
First, be DEEPLY OFFENDED at the incredible money grab considering the obscene waste of tax dollars by governments.
Next, be TERRIFIED at the thought that there will be a device in your car that the government will use to track every mile you drive and when you drive it. Oh sure they might say the information won't be used for any other reason. But if you believe that I guess you're probably comfortable using Gmail, and you've never heard of Orwell.
Go read here about the technology being used in Germany and being prepared for implementation in Great Britain.
The deal is, the GOVERNMENT uses satellites to TRACK EVERY MILE YOU DRIVE and charge you a fee based upon congestion and locality. That's right - you pay the government money for driving on a per mile basis. And it's not self reported by any means.
Think about it: they're saying this system is already in use in Germany for trucks. They're looking at 10 years for full implementation in GB. So it just can't be long before they're scheming and rubbing their greedy little hands together in Washington.
First, be DEEPLY OFFENDED at the incredible money grab considering the obscene waste of tax dollars by governments.
Next, be TERRIFIED at the thought that there will be a device in your car that the government will use to track every mile you drive and when you drive it. Oh sure they might say the information won't be used for any other reason. But if you believe that I guess you're probably comfortable using Gmail, and you've never heard of Orwell.
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
Holy Mother of God, did I HEAR that right? Did I actually hear the words "President Jeb" today???
NOW are you people scared? What does it TAKE?
NOW are you people scared? What does it TAKE?
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
She looks pissed to me. Hell, I'd be pissed if someone pinned a dead bird to my head.
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
I'm not going to really comment on the cartoon I'm posting below. If I did comment on it then I'd have to talk about certain Europeans and then I might think about how a few of them are actually suing the US government (NOAA) about the tsunami and then I might think about the UN (ten floors too many?) and then I might go all the way back to how they're a bunch of ungrateful fucks who would all still be killing Jews if it weren't for the USA and then I might have to go see my doctor for some high blood pressure medication. So I'll leave the political commentary and ranting and raving and foaming at the mouth to my husband and I'll just post the cartoon.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
Question: What the hell is wrong with this man?
Answer:
1. He is Karl Lagerfeld
2. He is wearing a big assed skirt
3. He looks like a fool
4. He looks like a really big fool
5. He looks like a really big fool wearing a big assed skirt
6. All of the above
Ding ding ding ding ding! You're right if you chose 6!
Answer:
1. He is Karl Lagerfeld
2. He is wearing a big assed skirt
3. He looks like a fool
4. He looks like a really big fool
5. He looks like a really big fool wearing a big assed skirt
6. All of the above
Ding ding ding ding ding! You're right if you chose 6!
Friday, December 31, 2004
"You've got to get obsessed and stay obsessed. You've got to keep passing the open windows." - John Irving
Labels: opinion
Monday, December 27, 2004
When was the last time you did something nice for someone else?
Someone you didn't know, and would probably never know?
Someone whos life is in danger because they joined a branch of the United States Military?
OK maybe they joined to defend democracy. Maybe they joined so they could afford to go to college. Maybe they joined because it's pretty easy for a Marine to get laid.
You don't have to agree with what our military does, but if you're not a complete and total shit, you do have to have a big place in your heart for the men and women who put on the uniforms of the US Army, Air Force, Navy or Marines.
Go here if you're like me and have strong feelings about these people and want to support them but don't know any of them personally and don't really know what you can to do let them know we think about them as we sit in our nice clean homes with our nice clean freedom. You'll be glad you did.
Someone you didn't know, and would probably never know?
Someone whos life is in danger because they joined a branch of the United States Military?
OK maybe they joined to defend democracy. Maybe they joined so they could afford to go to college. Maybe they joined because it's pretty easy for a Marine to get laid.
You don't have to agree with what our military does, but if you're not a complete and total shit, you do have to have a big place in your heart for the men and women who put on the uniforms of the US Army, Air Force, Navy or Marines.
Go here if you're like me and have strong feelings about these people and want to support them but don't know any of them personally and don't really know what you can to do let them know we think about them as we sit in our nice clean homes with our nice clean freedom. You'll be glad you did.
Labels: opinion, personal urban drama
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Today, Husband and I came home and checked the mail. We found the usual bills and trash. Also we had a really adorable birth announcement for Drew The Magical Baby (Good work, Mari - it's perfect!). AND we had a holiday card. From our electricity provider. With a note inside talking about the huge assed charitable contribution they had made "in honor of" their customers. Well I would appreciate it if they would honor my desire to have lower energy costs instead of hijacking my money through the P.U.C. In Texas the P.U.C. (Public Utility Commission) or (Putrid Upchucking Cruds) say when a utility can have a rate increase. In Texas the P.U.C. says they can have a rate increase whenever they ask nice and say "Simon Says". So I wrote a note inside the holiday card and I'm going to mail it back to the president of Reliant on Monday. And I sent it to the Letters to the Editor section at the Chronicle, too, just because it made me feel good.
An Open Letter to Reliant Energy:
In response to the holiday card you mailed to my home this week telling me about a $500,000 donation Reliant had recently made to M.D. Anderson. We, the Rate Paying Public, would prefer to choose where our charitable dollars go personally instead of having them extracted from our wallets by Reliant Energy in the form of annually higher rates and then pooled into corporate giving so that you can look like a 'Good Corporate Citizen'. It isn't true charity unless it is YOUR money you're giving. If you have HALF A MILLION DOLLARS you can just give away then you are CHARGING ME TOO MUCH. AND you spent even more of MY MONEY to print the card that brags about how you spent my money and then even more to pay for postage. OBNOXIOUS.
P.S. I am a huge supporter of M.D. Anderson - my father was a patient there for 11 years - 11 years during which he would have been dead if not for the doctors there. Woo Hoo M.D. Anderson. HINT HINT: If you ever get cancer and don't go to M.D. Anderson you're not making the best choice available. I don't begrudge them the money. I begrude Reliant pretending like it's theirs to give.
An Open Letter to Reliant Energy:
In response to the holiday card you mailed to my home this week telling me about a $500,000 donation Reliant had recently made to M.D. Anderson. We, the Rate Paying Public, would prefer to choose where our charitable dollars go personally instead of having them extracted from our wallets by Reliant Energy in the form of annually higher rates and then pooled into corporate giving so that you can look like a 'Good Corporate Citizen'. It isn't true charity unless it is YOUR money you're giving. If you have HALF A MILLION DOLLARS you can just give away then you are CHARGING ME TOO MUCH. AND you spent even more of MY MONEY to print the card that brags about how you spent my money and then even more to pay for postage. OBNOXIOUS.
P.S. I am a huge supporter of M.D. Anderson - my father was a patient there for 11 years - 11 years during which he would have been dead if not for the doctors there. Woo Hoo M.D. Anderson. HINT HINT: If you ever get cancer and don't go to M.D. Anderson you're not making the best choice available. I don't begrudge them the money. I begrude Reliant pretending like it's theirs to give.
Labels: medicine, opinion, personal urban drama
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Funny. Funny. FUNNY! And I say that as a good Southern girl who was one of the 14,000 who voted neither Blue NOR Red. Yeah that's right, sheep - there was a candidate who wasn't Bush OR Kerry.
Warning: Don't be drinking any liquid when you read this lest you spit it all over your unsuspecting monitor screen.
Fuck the South. Fuck 'em. We should have let them go when they wanted to leave. But no, we had to kill half a million people so they'd stay part of our special Union. Fighting for the right to keep slaves - yeah, those are states we want to keep...And the next time Florida gets hit by a hurricane you can come crying to us if you want to, but you're the ones who built on a fucking swamp. "Let the Spanish keep it, it’s a shithole," we said, but you had to have your fucking orange juice.
Warning: Don't be drinking any liquid when you read this lest you spit it all over your unsuspecting monitor screen.
Fuck the South. Fuck 'em. We should have let them go when they wanted to leave. But no, we had to kill half a million people so they'd stay part of our special Union. Fighting for the right to keep slaves - yeah, those are states we want to keep...And the next time Florida gets hit by a hurricane you can come crying to us if you want to, but you're the ones who built on a fucking swamp. "Let the Spanish keep it, it’s a shithole," we said, but you had to have your fucking orange juice.
Labels: headlines, opinion, personal urban drama
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
I try not to get all out crazy political here because my husband has a blog and that's what HE does...but.
Can ANYONE explain to me the mentality of a group of people who think that CHOPPING OFF ANOTHER HUMAN BEING'S HEAD is justified in response to a few pictures of the cruel and tasteless humiliation of a few prisoners? I don't want this to sound like I don't think those pictures were not a big deal - I do - but COME ON!! CHOPPING OFF A PERSON'S HEAD???? We have some SERIOUS cultural differences going on here, people. Like: HUMAN -v- ANIMAL.
Can ANYONE explain to me the mentality of a group of people who think that CHOPPING OFF ANOTHER HUMAN BEING'S HEAD is justified in response to a few pictures of the cruel and tasteless humiliation of a few prisoners? I don't want this to sound like I don't think those pictures were not a big deal - I do - but COME ON!! CHOPPING OFF A PERSON'S HEAD???? We have some SERIOUS cultural differences going on here, people. Like: HUMAN -v- ANIMAL.
Saturday, March 06, 2004
Calvin and Hobbes Quotes:
Hobbes: There's more to this world than just people, you know.
Calvin: Why should I have to WORK for everything? It's like saying I don't deserve it!
Cavlin: I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul.
Cavlin: You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help.
Calvin: I'd hate to have a kid like me.
Hobbes: I like to say "quark"! Quark, quark, quark, quark!
Hobbes: Van Gogh would've sold more than one painting if he'd put tigers in them.
Calvin: It's psychosomatic. You need a lobotomy. I'll get a saw.
Calvin: I like maxims that don't encourage behaviour modification.
Calvin: The strength to change what I can, the inability to accept what I can't and the incapacity to tell the difference.
Calvin: Life overall should be more glamorous, thrill-packed and filled with applause, don't you think?
Hobbes: What fun is it being cool if you can't wear a sombrero?
Calvin: Where do we keep our chainsaws, Mom?
Calvin: I wish I was a tiger.
Hobbes: A common lament.
Hobbes: Well, being a tiger is more than just stripes, you realize.
Calvin: Kind of a Zen thing, huh?
Calvin: Happiness is being famous for your financial ability to indulge in every kind of excess. (Are you listening, Paris Hilton? Suuuure you are.)
Hobbes: If you don't get a good night kiss, you get Kafka dreams.
Hobbes: I had resolved to be less offended by human nature, but I think I blew it already.
Hobbes: There's more to this world than just people, you know.
Calvin: Why should I have to WORK for everything? It's like saying I don't deserve it!
Cavlin: I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul.
Cavlin: You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help.
Calvin: I'd hate to have a kid like me.
Hobbes: I like to say "quark"! Quark, quark, quark, quark!
Hobbes: Van Gogh would've sold more than one painting if he'd put tigers in them.
Calvin: It's psychosomatic. You need a lobotomy. I'll get a saw.
Calvin: I like maxims that don't encourage behaviour modification.
Calvin: The strength to change what I can, the inability to accept what I can't and the incapacity to tell the difference.
Calvin: Life overall should be more glamorous, thrill-packed and filled with applause, don't you think?
Hobbes: What fun is it being cool if you can't wear a sombrero?
Calvin: Where do we keep our chainsaws, Mom?
Calvin: I wish I was a tiger.
Hobbes: A common lament.
Hobbes: Well, being a tiger is more than just stripes, you realize.
Calvin: Kind of a Zen thing, huh?
Calvin: Happiness is being famous for your financial ability to indulge in every kind of excess. (Are you listening, Paris Hilton? Suuuure you are.)
Hobbes: If you don't get a good night kiss, you get Kafka dreams.
Hobbes: I had resolved to be less offended by human nature, but I think I blew it already.
Sunday, January 18, 2004
Overheard while in a dressing room this afternoon:
Younger sister (maybe 7 years old): Do you know what a tomboy is?
Older sister (maybe 14 years old): What?
Younger sister: It's a girl who wants to be a boy.
Older sister: No - that's called 'butch'. And if it's a boy who wants to be a girl, that's called a 'transvestite'.
Younger sister (maybe 7 years old): Do you know what a tomboy is?
Older sister (maybe 14 years old): What?
Younger sister: It's a girl who wants to be a boy.
Older sister: No - that's called 'butch'. And if it's a boy who wants to be a girl, that's called a 'transvestite'.
Labels: opinion
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
OK, so there's this tragedy - a baby is killed with an overdose of Benadryl. Tragic. No doubt about it. Maybe even criminal.
But lemme get this straight - the mother of the woman is suing:
1. The baby sitter who gave her daughter a fatal dose.
2. Pfizer Inc., the New York-based maker of Benadryl.
3. The Perrigo Co., which makes generic versions of the medicine.
4. Eckerd Corp., which owns the pharmacy that sold the medicine.
5. Polk County, Florida.
6. The Polk County Health Department.
7. The Florida State Department of Children & Families.
The one important fact here is that the baby sitter ran an unlicensed day care center out of her home. I think that all the people the mother is suing should sue HER for being negligent and leaving her child in a unlicensed facility.
I swear - we should ALL be able to sue her for being stupid enough to sue all those other groups!!! How is it Eckerd's fault or Pfizer's fault or Perrigo's fault that this baby sitter poisoned this woman's baby????? This stuff makes me nuts.
CNN article
But lemme get this straight - the mother of the woman is suing:
1. The baby sitter who gave her daughter a fatal dose.
2. Pfizer Inc., the New York-based maker of Benadryl.
3. The Perrigo Co., which makes generic versions of the medicine.
4. Eckerd Corp., which owns the pharmacy that sold the medicine.
5. Polk County, Florida.
6. The Polk County Health Department.
7. The Florida State Department of Children & Families.
The one important fact here is that the baby sitter ran an unlicensed day care center out of her home. I think that all the people the mother is suing should sue HER for being negligent and leaving her child in a unlicensed facility.
I swear - we should ALL be able to sue her for being stupid enough to sue all those other groups!!! How is it Eckerd's fault or Pfizer's fault or Perrigo's fault that this baby sitter poisoned this woman's baby????? This stuff makes me nuts.
CNN article
Monday, October 27, 2003
Do you all RenFest where you are? People RenFest with a vengeance down here in Houston. I haven't RenFested in about 20 years, but I did two weekends ago. The biggest thing I got out of it? The knowledge that one should RenFest once about every 20 years, just so you'll remember why you don't RenFest.
The Best Things About the Houston RenFest:
1. It doesn't take place in Houston! You have to drive about an hour north of town, out to a strip of land owned by a bunch of monks who lease the land to the RenFest people. The site is really nice, with lots of trees and fresh air. If you're lucky like we were and don't go after a rain, it's not even very muddy.
2. It doesn't take place in Houston! Which means that the insane traffic jams that it creates don't contribute to the insane traffic jams that Houston creates.
3. (ONLY VALID FOR MEN AND LESBIANS) Women in chain-mail bikinis.
The Worst Things About the Houston RenFest:
1. It doesn't take place in Houston! Which means that in order to pay $21 for the right to wander around in a field surrounded by pseudo-17th century shops, you actually have to drive an hour out of town!
2. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy imported carvings from Malaysia and Korea.
3. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy imported jewelry of the type you see idiots buying on eBay all the time.
4. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy local -ha! gotcha!- leather goods with a total of about 6 designs repeated ad nauseum with dye that looks like it would rub off the first time your hands got sweaty.
5. The pseudo-17th century shops selling the same crappy imported carvings from Malaysia and Korea, the same crappy imported jewelry of the type you see idiots buying on eBay all the time, and the same crappy local leather goods with a total of about 6 designs with dye that looks like it would rub off the first time your hand got sweaty - and selling all this crap over and over and over again in a bunch of pseudo-different shops but they're all actually the same with the exact same merchandise!
6. Did I mention the pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy reproductions of crappy pastel fantasy art? Lots of dragons and large breasted but hardly covered women with wind in their hair. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
The Best Things About the Houston RenFest:
1. It doesn't take place in Houston! You have to drive about an hour north of town, out to a strip of land owned by a bunch of monks who lease the land to the RenFest people. The site is really nice, with lots of trees and fresh air. If you're lucky like we were and don't go after a rain, it's not even very muddy.
2. It doesn't take place in Houston! Which means that the insane traffic jams that it creates don't contribute to the insane traffic jams that Houston creates.
3. (ONLY VALID FOR MEN AND LESBIANS) Women in chain-mail bikinis.
The Worst Things About the Houston RenFest:
1. It doesn't take place in Houston! Which means that in order to pay $21 for the right to wander around in a field surrounded by pseudo-17th century shops, you actually have to drive an hour out of town!
2. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy imported carvings from Malaysia and Korea.
3. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy imported jewelry of the type you see idiots buying on eBay all the time.
4. The pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy local -ha! gotcha!- leather goods with a total of about 6 designs repeated ad nauseum with dye that looks like it would rub off the first time your hands got sweaty.
5. The pseudo-17th century shops selling the same crappy imported carvings from Malaysia and Korea, the same crappy imported jewelry of the type you see idiots buying on eBay all the time, and the same crappy local leather goods with a total of about 6 designs with dye that looks like it would rub off the first time your hand got sweaty - and selling all this crap over and over and over again in a bunch of pseudo-different shops but they're all actually the same with the exact same merchandise!
6. Did I mention the pseudo-17th century shops selling crappy reproductions of crappy pastel fantasy art? Lots of dragons and large breasted but hardly covered women with wind in their hair. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Thursday, September 18, 2003
Hey! You people on the East Coast! Get over it! It's a measly category 2 storm! Try being on the Gulf Coast, OK? Try a freaking tropical storm that brings the 4th largest city in the nation to it's bloody KNEES!
What is it with the national media? Houston was devastated two years ago by Allison and we rated two days worth of small stories. Even now, two years later, there are people who haven't recovered. There are still old women living in rv's in the front yards of their ruined houses.
The East coast is getting a hurricane (the kind that somewhere on the Gulf Coast gets just about every year) and it's The Sky Is Falling The Sky Is Falling! It's just not that big of a storm. It was a week ago - out in the damned ocean, away from all the people who are NOW freaking out - but today it was only sustaining 90 mile an hour winds.
The U.S. government called Allison "The Worst Natural Disaster Ever" in the U.S. in terms of people displaced and dollars expended, but this Isabel is totally freaking out anyone with a microphone and access to a TV camera.
Look - I'm glad that the national media forgets we're here most of the time - I like to think it keeps us off the international terrorist's radar a little bit - but this is nuts! All Isabel all the time. Gimme a break.
What is it with the national media? Houston was devastated two years ago by Allison and we rated two days worth of small stories. Even now, two years later, there are people who haven't recovered. There are still old women living in rv's in the front yards of their ruined houses.
The East coast is getting a hurricane (the kind that somewhere on the Gulf Coast gets just about every year) and it's The Sky Is Falling The Sky Is Falling! It's just not that big of a storm. It was a week ago - out in the damned ocean, away from all the people who are NOW freaking out - but today it was only sustaining 90 mile an hour winds.
The U.S. government called Allison "The Worst Natural Disaster Ever" in the U.S. in terms of people displaced and dollars expended, but this Isabel is totally freaking out anyone with a microphone and access to a TV camera.
Look - I'm glad that the national media forgets we're here most of the time - I like to think it keeps us off the international terrorist's radar a little bit - but this is nuts! All Isabel all the time. Gimme a break.
