We all knew it was coming...the SF Chronicle Home and Garden section trumpets:
Don't look now but the French are invading San Francisco.
Well...well...well. We certainly have the politicans for it. Does this not tell you how out of touch the Bay Area elite are with the rest of the country? (that would be *rich SUV-driving elites* for those of you in Fly-over country)
The Chron waxes on, unware of the irony:
To be sure, our city has long lived up to its nickname "the Paris of the West," particularly when it comes to food and wine, and, oh yes -- design. No need to wing off to Charles de Gaulle. You can quench your thirst with a Francophile sojourn right here.
(warning: you may need to throw up after the next graf)
"The French are about style. If they're nothing else, they are about style, " says Joan Osburn, peering through her decidedly late 1800s-style temple spectacles. "Let's face it: America is not about style. But those Americans who are are attracted to France."
Yep... from my perch above the unstylish side of the Bay the prevailing attitude ...SF's elite and the Dems siding with France and Germany...was predictable. Perhaps the "Paris of the West", waggishly immortalized as Baghdad-by-the-Bay for it's opulent hedonism by the Chron's beloved columnist Herb Caen, has far more in common with Vichy.
So many nutjobs, so little time to laugh at them all...didja catch Lynxx Pherrett's fisking of Malcom Street's little rave job in the SMH...you should, it's delicious, low fat too.
If you feel compelled to say, "I am not a crank," you probably are. Tim Blair points out a Malcolm Street article in the Sydney Morning Herald that contends British and Australian support for a US war against Iraq is so they can get their hands on US anti-gravity technology.
humppity, hump, hump...slouching toward the weekend. SOTU delivered. Check. Dems outmanuvered. Check. Axis of Weasels defanged. Check. Saddam scheduled. Check. Sarandon's career toasted. Check.
So far not a bad week's work.
'Cloned cows 'can make own cheese'
Hamilton, New Zealand: January 27, 2003: Scientists in New Zealand have cloned a herd of cows with prehensile thumbs designed to enable dairy cows to operate milking and cheese making equipment.
The news was poorly received in France. French cheese industry spokesperson Leon Topithecue claimed "Zee cheeze will not be allowed into France unteel suche tiame as zit es sanctioned by zee EU and appropriatee rules drawn to govern qualitee and productione." French farmers threaten to riot in the streets of Paris if a total ban on New Zealand cheese is not enacted immediately. Hoping to avoid a cheese war, EU inspectors have been dispatched to Hamilton to observe and catalog production methods.
EU Chief Farm Inspector Zander Foote was grim faced as he expressed his concern over "Kiwi cowboys" in the New Zealand and Australian dairy industry controlling world dairy prices. That a strict inspection regime may be the only way to avoid a cheese crisis. “Let’s give inspections a try before we speak of more serious measures” Foote said as he boarded a flight to Auckland.
Dairy farmer Norm Pettigrew owner of the farm where the experiment took place could not be reached for comment. However, his wife Pauline was seen moving an industrial grade blender to the milk shed under the cover of night. There is much speculation that smoothies may also be a by-product of the experiment as Kiwifruit genes were rumored to have been spliced into the bovine embryos.
Unionists entered into 'constructive talks' with the herd leadership. Jerrold Wanker, farm labor steward for the Hamilton area remarked, "The Local steering committee is currently drafting new rules to cover worker amenities such as barn safety, bag balm and sweet hay. We expect a vote on the contract next week."
Decreasing the labor required could produce big savings for cheese makers, however basic sanitary conditions governing food production may be endangered for the sake of corporate profits, scientists agree.
The American Dairy Board declined interviews pending the outcome of research into the ability of genetically altered, cloned cows to produce individually wrapped cheese slices.
An Iraqi man stands behind the main gate of the Mother of War Battles in Baghdad, Iraq, on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2003. Baghdad has a growing list of landmarks dedicated to Iraq's eight-year war with Iran, its war against a U.S.-led coalition in the 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait or symbolizing the country's support for Palestinians against Israel. (AP Photo/Ali Haider)
Maybe these funds would be better used buying food, medicine and building hospitals for living Iraqi children? Odd that Iraq's keen support for the Palestinian cause seems to post date 1991. Why is our media so determined to embrace Saddam's delusional viewpoint?
This photo is anti-American/anti-war propaganda...the subtext is so blatant as to be laughable.
it's been a slaw day and Juan's on a roll. Just go there.
Decided to make a few Valentine's Day CD's...the slow dancin' kind. Those of you under forty are gonna roll your eyes, groan and piss...so move right along...nothing to see here but fogey stuff.
Got out the Van Morrison collection. Now if you haven't slow danced to Van's classics like "Have I told you Lately", "If You Loved Me"or "It's All in the Game" ...what can I say?
Did I mention I been Morrison fan since "Astral Weeks"? Well, nevermind. The Morrison in heavy rotation at the moment are "Days Like This", "The Healing Game" and "Irish Heartbeat".
Making artsy-fartsy CD labels is part of the mix & burn buzz...sometimes I print a label and sometimes I just tatoo the CD with Sharpies...this is sooo much more fun than vinyl. Oh... I buy the original CDs and custom mixes are for my own use...so the music police can move along too.
• A puppy is akin to a loaded handgun...you have to know where it is 100% of the time or there is potential for trouble and a BIG mess.
• The Super Bowl was boring, but the commercials were worse.
• Will Michele begin her own blog award: the Uppie ...repleat with a brass middle finger mounted on a handsome plaque suitable for framing. (oh please, oh please...do.)
• When will the ground war begin? Why all the nancying around about Blix, the U.N. and other non-essentials...when the media really wants to know when they can expect the first body bags.
• Are we really sure Bianca and Mick are two different people?
• Is Hillary!/Al (Sharpton) the Dems 2004 dream team...think about it.
• The Brits and Germans are at it again...loved this pull quote from the NY Post:
'Sorry, Herr Schroeder, but you don't rule Britain . . . at least, not yet,'
• "I'm a blonde bimbo in a fantasy world/Dress me up, make it tight, I'm your dolly."
No...no...that wasn't sung by the Supremes... it was Aqua.
to be continued....maybe.
Eggs, coffee, butter, oranges, bread, salad fixings, paper towels, shampoo. Meat.
I am standing front of the supermarket meat cases totally clueless. This is unusual as I am one of those people who almost always knows exactly what they want to eat.
Not today. After a week of grey skies the warm sunshine has addlepated my senses.
Meat. I poked the chickens...no...even though I spent a small fortune learning to disembowel and prepare them in a dozen exotic ways. Pork chops sent out their siren call...weeeell, maybe. Sauteed with fresh salsa and wrapped in a hot corn totilla. Been there, done that last week.
Beef. It's not what's for dinner today. Yawn.
Then I spied the lamb shanks.
Oh baby, oh baby!
Slowly braised lamb (recipe here) in mushroom sauce served with wedged roast taters and chunks of rough country bread. A nice Merlot...and big fat strawberries for dessert.
Pretty much sums up my day. Life is good. Go forth and eat well.
The Davis Administration announced today, amid concerns of the State's deepening budget crisis, that two major state agencies will be combined to reduce administrative costs. Effective February 1st, 2003, the California Highway Patrol and the California Department of Fish & Gamewill be merged to form ... the new California Department of Fish and CHIPs.
I have deliberated for some time if I should to post this or not. The few friends I have told were astonished. This story and a comment related by Michele made me realize that I had to sit down and write this piece. Now.
I work with a group of young techs...émigrés from various states of the Soviet Union. The youngest is a young woman whom I will call Irina.
Irina is an only child, her parents hold advanced degrees, one a metallurgist the other an engineer. They are Jewish. Her parents were refused better living quarters and advancement because of their faith. Life was not luxurious, food and goods were often difficult to procure, they persevered, determined to migrate to the US one day.
As the Soviet Union began to crumble her parents applied to immigrate to Israel, they only escape route open to Russian Jews. By the mid-90's they were allowed to exit. They went to work in Israel and applied for US immigration status. Irena completed high school, learned Arabic, Hebrew and English. After five years their number was drawn and they migrated to the SF Bay Area where there is a thriving community of Russian and Slavic immigrants, Jewish and gentile.
Irina's parents are free to pursue opportunities in their professions. They recently bought a small house and are moving into the middle class. They will become citizens. Irina works 20 hours a week, commutes 2 hours a day and attends college full time...majoring in math and engineering, maintaining a 4.0. Irina applied for transfer to UC Berkeley for her third year. Having the Cal computer science lab on her resume was one of her goals. She was accepted for the Fall 2002 term.
This happened last spring when well-publicized anti-Semitic incidents occurred at SFSU and Cal. Irina was visiting the Cal campus to meet friends for lunch the day a noontime rally went out of control. A group of Palestinian-Americans attacked a group of Jewish-American students and the melee spread quickly. Irina and her friends were just hanging out on the quad, they were not part of the rally or even paying attention to it. The campus police refused to respond to their 911 calls for help. The university did not wish to become “involved”. The Berkeley police escorted the Jewish students off campus as the mob chanted "Kill the Jews, Kill the Jews."
Irina looks Jewish and that makes her afraid, too afraid to walk from the train station to campus. She is right to be afraid, other students who appeared to be Jewish (some were not) have been beaten, Swastikas painted on dorm room doors, cars defaced with hateful epithets. It is very ugly at the nation's most tolerant campus. Irina attends another university, she has moved on, refuses let it get to her...but I see the disappointment in her eyes. How could we do this. Americans.
Imagine living under a repressive regime, denied opportunities because of your religion or ethnicity, ever fearful of the knock on the door in the night. Unable to leave or change your status. Finally you come to America only to be fearful once more, of your peers and neighbors.
This makes me very angry and ashamed. How about you? Still think anti-Semitism does not really exist in America? That it doesn't harm decent people going about their daily lives? That it isn't your concern?
Side note:I discovered the blogosphere when I sought more information online and found Meryl's cogent thoughts on the SFSU incident. So I have come full circle in relating Irena's story on my own blog...but you know what? Irina is still fearful and that sucks. Big time.
Last night I was deep into the newly posted CotV (a shameless plug for Meryl's ass-o-rama) when I noticed the dog bed and Harley were not in the room. Out in the hall a large green dog bed was buffeting from wall to wall.
"Arrrr grrrr nnnh arrrfff squeak! squeak! squeak! arrrrrggg."
"Harley!"
The bed froze then slowly crept away from the direction of my voice...like a demented faux suede turtle it banged down the hall, took a left into the guest room...snagged to a stop on a chair leg. The culprit bounded out...spun around... pulling a neat half gainer landing flat on his back in the bed...squeaky toy in mouth. Pure pup joy. That was funny enough. Then I saw Zoe and Moll peering over the top of the stairs...eyes as wide as plates. I lost it...when I stopped laughing I grabbed the camera.
My fragmented friend Fred opened a floodgate of memories tonight with this posting. A writing assignment:
Is there a food or dish that you detested as a child that you like as an adult? Can you pinpoint the moment when you gave that food a second chance? How, in general, has your sense of taste changed? Think about the kinds of words that we use to describe taste -- sweet, sour, tangy, spicy.
My contribution:
Brussel Spouts.
Tried to hide them under the mashed potatoes...but it just ruined the potatoes. Dropped them into my milk glass...but that fouled the milk. Slid them down my sleeves, tucked them into the cuffs of my jeans (Yes Virginia, we cuffed our jeans back in ought-six)pushed them between the cracks in the seat cushions. Nothing fooled my Gran. It all came out in the wash.
Peppy, my faithful cocker, sensible creature that he was, refused to participate in the charade. Oh, he could be bought off, but not with sprouts. Liver was his vice.
I was stuck...hung out to dry with the Sproutage.
"Eat your sprouts, don't fiddle with your food." Gran said.
"But I don't like them" I whined, sliding my elbow to splay myself across the table looking utterly pathetic...projecting my best shot:How can I be expected to eat Brussel sprouts when you can see I am in such mental anguish!
"Sit up, don't whine, eat your sprouts, they are good for you. Some day you will thank me for making you eat vegetables." She replied as she tidied up the kitchen. Then she played her ace-in-the-hole: "You will not be excused from the table until your plate is clean."
EGADS! that meant no TV...soon I would miss my alloted half hour of TV time. NO!
I squenched up my eyes (ever notice how things appear less theatening when seen through slitted eyelids)... stabbing the loathsome globules with a fork. There! Take that! Sprout of Brussels!! I stuffed them into my cheeks, washed them down with a river of milk, still they came...sprout after sprout..a neverending green army of sprouts marching across my plate. (I was very taken with the Sorcerer's Apprentice at the time)
I gagged. I turned. I twisted. I capitulated, throwing myself on her mercy. "Please Gran, I can't, they taste awful...I'll do extra chores, eat two slices of liver next time...Oh Pahleeeze!"
"E-yeah...suppose they aren't so tasty when you let them get cold. Maybe next time we won't have so much drama and they will be eaten when they are served. Eat. Your. Sprouts." She was unbending.
Gah! I ate them...all. I did not watch TV. I was sent to bed for being a pill.
I don't know exactly when the conversion occurred...perhaps we aren't meant to recall certain events too clearly. I adore Brussel sprouts. I revel in Brussel Sprouts. I would sing the praises of a well steamed Brussel sprout, glistening with sweet cream butter and a grind of black pepper...if I could carry a tune.
Oh, yeah.
Thanks Gran.
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It's very grey and drab today...here's a little bit of last summer's color to warm us up. I pruned and planted roses over the weekend and am looking forward to the new climbing rose varieties. The planting of roses is such a leap of faith...blossoms tumble from the pages of a catalog, bare gnarled stems arrive in the mail to be stuck into winter soil. The lush growth and riot of color that ensues is indeed a miracle. I did a major garden overhaul and refurbish in mid-summer...it was hell of a lot of work. I painted the fence a dark English garden green...it is very calming. We may enjoy the rewards this spring and summer...if Harley doesn't rip it all to bits. He is climbing through pots, beds everywhere he can reach. Why is it I got a pup again? Oh...that right..cuz they're cute. Right.
The above photo reminds me that Zoe was such a good kitten...toes right up to the open door but no farther. We have a 40% cat fatality rate going since we moved to the hill...so Zoe and Molly are inside cats. Molly is not happy about it as you can see by her glare...she toasted the window screen in retaliation.
In the summer, the Bay Area has cold foggy miserable mornings and evenings until September when the valley thermals shift and the coastal fog dissipates. We have the most stunning sunsets over the Bay in Sept-Oct. One no longer needs a parka to enjoy evening walks. Neighbors drift out to their decks and balconies...adult beverage in hand...snippets of music float over the canyon...the tip of Sather Tower peeks over the ridge as the bells softly strike the hour. It's a nice finish to the day. The sun sets behind Mt. Tam for a week or so creating a Mt. Doom-like tableaux...Marin is as close to Mordor as I want to come.
update: I swapped out a couple of the images from my archives.
Meryl posts a very funny FOTR link...a must read for LOTR fans. Hard to decided if it is a put-on or a huge misunderstanding of English and the storyline.
Seems I also am not clear on a few things...the MLK letter is a hoax. Gees, do I feel dumb. A very good lesson in doing one's own research. Can't get back into the work groove this morning...sort of laid in bed and took inventory...seeing if anything might be noteworthy of a sick day. Nope. Of course being the first workday of the week a wet storm moved in and dumped our morning commute. Grand.
Yikes! it's already afternoon and I just returned to the entry screen where my morning posting sits unfinished....got sidetracked with um, work! Okay so now it's a apres lunch posting. Which BTW was very nice smoked salmon caught right outside the Gate.
Sassy's Worldwide DogBite Service. Inc. is a spin-off of a web designer's site. You have to go there if you love dogs or know someone who needs a good ass biting.
While you're there have a look at their Web Developers Journal too. Lots of info and some wacky stuff to try.
We're back on air...I am not happy about my hosting company's new "unhelpful desk".
Actually they might have done me a favor. I didn't dwell on the lunatic fringe protests ...others covered it really well... Right Thinking in SF and Pet Bunny in D.C. and I had nothing to add by the time the site was back up...que sera, sera. In fact I abandonded the ole cockpit for the day.
The day began with predawn walkies...Harley and I had a splendid time. Highly scented mounds of rosemary and lavender cover the hillside...Harley manage to bound through as much as I would allow. We sat on a memorial bench in one of the many outlooks scattered around the hill (this was the area the '91 firestorm began and had the greatest loss of life) sipping coffee (me) and munching puppy cookies (him) in the warm morning sunshine. Birds were spotted, pointed and yapped at... a family of deer popped up beside the orange wire "deer fence" installed in a futile attempt to prevent erosion of the fire trail...eyeballing us as Harley dove behind my legs for shelter. Unperturbed, they sauntered on their way to snack on someone's carefully tended rose bushes. Wonder why we tolerate the ugly fencing and the lack of mature trees on the hill? This is what the backside of our hill looked like half an hour after the firestorm leaped from a backyard into the news cycle.
(Lieberman is stuttering and backfilling his previous positions over minority set asides and quotas with Russert...the man has no shame...recanting his entire career to serve his presidential ambition...what a twit.)
When we arrived home Harley and I went out for walkies...the moon was rising in a haze of Tule fog.
Yes, I know wrong play/fool...but Dogberry is one of the most broadly drawn and thus the most fun fools in Will's repertoire and it just sort of fits my mood today. A new header and a little color change to brighten things up. What think?
As you can see Harley is growing...he will be three months tomorrow...almost twice the size as in his initial photos. We had a scare a few days ago. Harley developed a very high fever and it looked like the dread Parvo virus...how could fate be so cruel? Tests were done and nothing conclusive found. Most likely an intestinal irritation from something he ingested. Meds cleared it up and he has rebounded with twice the energy. Whew! It was a tense depressing three days at the old manse.
Click the image for a larger version
Glenn Reynolds lands a big media spot. About damned time too.
The question is which is the true Borg? The Internet or the Media?
Heh.
The more I listen to Senator Daschle the more I am convinced that he believes the Dems will not take back the Senate in 2004. Why else would he refuse to follow Senate committee rules that his party wielded over the minority for more than forty years? This is a bell they may wish they hadn't rung.
What happened to the Democrat party? Once they addressed big issues with big ideas. The New Deal, The Great Society, The Civil Rights Act, The Peace Corps, The moon landing. When did they get so small as to be reduced to hanging onto power by race baiting, fighting over offices and committee seats? What next the cloakroom toilets?
Maybe the Vietnam War was their undoing but they should have regained their moral footing long ago. There have been many successes. Minorities have made tremendous gains in the past thirty years as African-Americans attended college, started businesses and moved into the mainstream middle and upper middle class. Hispanics are poised to follow the pattern. More children attend college than ever before. The most egregious environmental concerns addressed. Woman's rights secured. Of course they also had failures, the worst of which was their inability to see that welfare programs were destroying minority families. They embraced more than a few dubious Pols along the way. All things considered the past sixty years has been a success for the country and the Democrats...so why their decline? They barely cling to a majority electorate.
That the 24x7 cable news maw and instant fact checking of the Internet pared away their control over the media message hasn't been helpful. The Dems have not policed their own very effectively, too many scandals in leadership has eroded their moral authority. Look at the dwarves now elbowing each other for the presidential nomination. Have we heard one new idea that will actually change your life or mine for the better? No. They are too timid, too fearful of having an unpopular opinion. Too focus grouped.
We need a vigorous two-party system. Our body politic exists from election-to-election. No time to address the big issues...just get oneself re-elected. Perhaps this muddle-in-the-middle is a product of the information age...a normal progression as the electorate becomes more involved in policy, after all no one has sustained this Democracy thing before...we will get it right...eventually.
Hoo-boy...this one doesn't pass the horse laugh test.
$2 million gift for poverty study
Feinstein's husband seeks to help the world's poorest people
Sounds great until you read down a little further in the article.
.."Blum's gift to the Brookings Institution will fund research aimed at influencing the debate in Washington over America's foreign aid spending. President Bush has called for creating a Millennium Challenge Account that expands foreign aid by $10 billion over the next three years, but that idea faces a tough path as budget deficits widen and the public and Congress question overseas spending."
Hmmm...isn't that lobbying an issue that may appear before his wife? but it gets better...
.."Brookings, whose president is former Clinton administration undersecretary of state Strobe Talbott, will use the $2 million to finance research into how the proposed Millennium Challenge Account should be organized, how public support for foreign aid can be increased, how loss of aid dollars through corruption in recipient countries can be minimized and how small-scale programs can become a major focus of U.S. aid. "
In other words, not a single child will be fed or clothed, not a well dug or an oxen purchased. Tassle loafers, limos and all the perks Brookings Fellows are accustomed to will be had, of that you can be assured. The pity of this is that Dick Blum has done some very good works in Nepal (he is an avid climber). Wonder why he is handing over money to fat cats (the rich)...maybe DiFi's ratings need a little boost back home...or her stock at the DNC could use a polishing?
Maybe I am too cynical. Nah.
The SF Chronicle claims to be a fair and balanced newspaper. Here is an example of their polling:
Who has the right idea about taxes?
• Governor Davis: Let the rich pay more
• President Bush: Cutting taxes will help economy
• Ask me on April 15
Click here for surprising poll results...not even Yellow Dog Dems are this easily lead.
Seems the Dems just can't get past the idea that $120k per year for a two income family in California and other metro areas of the country is not rich. In the Greater Bay Area that income level wouldn't qualify a couple to purchase a starter home.
Funny how the Gov didn't see this coming. On October 31, 2002 the Chron reported "Foreclosures leap 21% in Bay Area State economic woes take toll on homeowners." Wonder how many "rich" couples barely making ends met on 120-130k a year in the country's most expensive cost of living area will fare when their taxes increase in 2003?
Those of you in fly-over country better reserve a U-Haul if you need one soon...cuz they are all gonna be in California as folks head out.
Been a little scarce on the ole blog...a busy few days with Harley and life in general. Plus my fooking DSL provider went toes up.
Big storm looming over the bay this afternoon...God is waiting for the Raiders to kick some ass before he kicks ours. The Goodyear blimp careens across the view ever so often. What is it about blimps? I love winter storm colors...the way the bay changes from deep, crisp Pacific blue to the pale muddy green of the Delta.
The top shot is from the Oakland hills looking south over downtown Oakland, Lake merrit and the Alameda Estuary, across the Bay to the SF Peninsula and SFO. Click for a large image. You will better see an aircraft on approach and the gorgeous colors of the sky over the pacific beginning to pick up the peach hues of late afternoon heading into sunset.
I love this shot towards Mt. Tam...looking all the world like Mt. Doom with a swarm of clouds. Angel Island sits mid bay. Sausalito to the left and Tiburon/San Quentin to the right. Another one of life's weird juxpositions...the most exclusive housing area on the Marin Headlands shares a craggy point of land with one of the state's most notorious prisons. The Berkeley Marina and the old fishing pier are in the foreground. Click for a larger image of this vista.
When I look out on the bay I can never quite decide which is my favorite time of the year or time of the day. It's all good.
A story at Fragments reminds me of the first words I learned to spell: Big Ben
Tony's tale reminded me of our daughter, who was precocious in some things, but potty training was not one of them. She spent countless hours waiting for the Big Event. So much so, that the first word she learned to spell was U N A T T E N D E D.
The label on the arm of the little blue seat warned DO NOT LEAVE CHILD... UNATTENDED.
My Gran never doled out punishment when she was angry or upset over the offense. The Perp was set in front of a huge Westclox Big Ben alarm clock and told she would be back in 15 minutes to discuss punishment.
TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK-TICK-TOCK!
Learned to tell time too.
There's somethin' happening here,
What it is ain't exactly clear.
There's a woman with a plan over there,
Tellin' me I gotta share.
I think it's time we shop,
Hey, what's that sound,
Everybody look what's going down.
Hey, hey what's that sound,
Something futile is going down...
The Donks economic plan is Deja Vu all over again.
Busy at work, Harley walking and such. No time to read blogs or the papers today...they went right onto the kitchen floor ( the papers, not the blogs)...who sez the Chronicle is worthless!
As soon as I went downstairs, Zoe, our youngest cat made a them into a tent that would do Dersu Uzala proud. Zoe is having a blast with the puppy...lots of leaping, running and tumbling. The large version of the above image shows her peering into Harley's crate in my office, wondering how to get the tennis ball. Zoe has a deft touch with a tennis ball...dribbles it soccer style...up on her tiptoes...Harley trailing behind her...funniest damn thing you've ever seen.
After two sleepless nights everyone at our house is pretty much knackered, including the troublemaker himself. Crate training is a bitch.
The emotional heart is amazingly resilient. Just a few days ago our house was plunged into deep despair. Today an undercurrent of joy and excitement surges as the Spousal Unit motors down the Interstate to meet a breeder. A careful inspection will be made, potential assessed, love meter red-lined, cash exchanged and maybe we will be in the house breaking bidness by nightfall.
A bargain was struck and a pup fetched. Meet Harley, as in Earl, not Davidson. His first photo and bath in the kitchen sink.
Tallest tower in the world planned for the Outback
So this is the earth friendly alternate energy source we hear so much about from the likes of Viggo Mortensen. This has to be a hoax. A structure almost 4000 ft tall, 300 ft wide, with a dish 4 miles in diameter to produce a paltry 200 MW?
California ISO sez that we used 29,088 MW today. You do the math.
Lileks makes a very good point today about freebies, spyware and Opt In/Out. This has been bugging me for a while too. Why not let us have a taste before slamming down the disclaimer and Opt in/out notice...it seems very counter intuative to hit a prospective client with a wall of negative legalese and expect a positive response and possibly a lust to buy. My response is probably typical:
Whoa! Delete/Escape/Click off.
Just as I hit the "Top Menu" button as soon as the DVD spins up, I never read the legal disclaimer and Option pages on a "gimme" download or CD up front. Why should I waste my time? The industry needs to get a handle on this issue before some blow-dry empty suit in Congress thinks they should intercede and really screws up our freedom to set/use cookies.
I don't care if a faceless number-crunching market drone totes up my web stats and feeds it to a focus group on a platter...AFTER I enjoy their gimme and opt in. Their heavy handeded approach is off putting...why aren't focus groups telling them so?
My heart isn't into blogging, Ben, our English Springer Spaniel died yesterday, he was a fine dog.
