Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 580 202.4 miles warming up
120 recordings of 29 types.
Today was a lot better day with Gareth. He was clapping along with some music on "Yo Gabba Gabba." After breakfast I changed his clothes and he went right to the door, all ready to go to the park. At the park I cleaned the mirror at the slide (which he'd licked (ICK!!) yesterday) and of course, he didn't lick it again. I apparently took all the flavor off with the dirt and the germs. You know, I don't freak out on dirt, as I believe in the peck of dirt in one's lifetime, but this was definitely beyond that. At least the mirror was cleaner, though a lot of my wiping probably just moved the dirt around. I cleaned the front windshield, anyway, which made a huge difference.
I wasn't sure if Bernadette had bought him a ball (she did), so we went to Walmart. He liked going on the escalator (I was carrying him), especially up. He wasn't all that interested in the ball, and once I found out that he now has one at home, I know why. That's OK, no harm keeping a ball here. We played in the playroom after his nap, and he has in the Fisher-Price Little People line, 2 farms, 2 circus trains, 1 zoo, and 1 playground. OK, that pretty well sets it, especially as another one will be along soon, I just have to get rid of the old FP stuff I have. Where? I don't know.
Lunch was especially interesting. Bernadette had posited that the little sign he makes with both hands, kind of a backwards wave ("bring it on" might describe it) was a "change the subject" "all through" signal. The kid seemed really hungry today. I warmed up some chicken and pasta and he ate about 2/3 of it, then gave me the "done" sign. I said OK, you're done with this and asked if he wanted some yogurt. I showed him the package and he grinned ear to ear. So he's communicating, though I've only heard him say "dog" (or "duh") and "kee" for "kitty" as actual words, and maybe "mama" and sometimes "nana."
I've been dropped by a FB friend. This guy was one of the "Sarah Palin is the devil" types who will NOT believe in death panels. Since I never argued with him directly, he apparently just didn't like my links. I only know he's dropped me because of an article he wrote linked by another liberal FB friend. It was about the good things Ted Kennedy did, and I was amused by one paragraph. I note No Child Left Behind is one of the worst things Bush ever did. It's one of the great things Kennedy did.
The Anchoress: "It’s entirely possible that what Kennedy’s death will really do is bring into stark relief the fact that under Obamacare, this overweight 77 year-old man with liking for the drink would probably have faced treatment rationing and an offer for “physician aid-in-dying”. Kennedy’s death will emphasize yet again that our elected “public servants” enjoy one of the best health insurance plans in the world, while they are trying to force something much less comprehensive (and life-affirming) onto their constituents."
Baseball Crank: "Kennedy's career could have been a cautionary tale for our current president, who might not have found himself in quite the fix he is in at the moment if he'd followed Ted's example, bided his years, spent more time in the trenches doing the unglamorous work of legislating and taking the hard punches that must be taken to sell the product to the public, learning how the system works, why it works and who makes it work. Most of the changes Ted Kennedy made in this nation over his career were change for the worst - but he did, over time, make real change because he worked at it instead of just saying the word "change" and hoping it would be so."
Apparently Obama and his accomplices decided to distract their liberal base from the fiery Hindenburg crash of socialized medicine, by offering them a relaxing cruise on the Titanic of leftist foreign policy. As with everything else the current Administration does, it’s a remarkably foolish move: dangerous for America, and self-destructive as a strategy. ... Obama should understand that he was elected in spite of his childish posturing as a messiah and redeemer, not because of them. ... A few weeks ago, Eric Holder saw nothing wrong with Black Panthers using billy clubs to intimidate voters. Today, he thinks intimidating terrorists with cigars is a crime. Holder is the one who should be answering tough questions under oath.
and
The contestants on your average Japanese game show go through more intense ordeals.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 580 202.1 miles warming up
115 recordings of 28 types.
Gareth was pretty sleepy today, but couldn't get to sleep. He'd dragged his lovey through the mud at the park, so I looked for a substitute diaper rag and couldn't find one. I handed him something else and washed the lovey, so that was probably why he couldn't sleep. Finally I held him and his eyes fluttered asleep. At last.
I didn't dare move, so my book was away. As was a drink. Rich was out, so I couldn't get him to fetch this stuff, so there I sat with a finally-sleeping baby on my lap. Then Pharaoh started nudging me. He had to go OUT, he had to go RIGHT NOW, he wouldn't take Not Now for an answer, he wouldn't go Lie Down... I carefully heaved up out of the chair and went to the door but it wasn't careful enough. Gareth woke and cried and cried and then there was no calming him down. He wanted his Mommy, obviously. Fortunately she got back early so all was well.
Scott Ott: "As you marvel at the mystery of how Sarah Palin has hoodwinked America, defeating politicians and pundits alike, consider the possibility that she persuades because she’s smarter than you in ways that matter most."
Heh. Michael Goldfarb suggests 0bama should do the interrogations himself.
The Duggers say the US Capitol is like the Arkansas State Capitol. Not so much.
Ha! Beck: Boycott this. "Beck: 2,810,000 viewers. That is more than twice as many viewers than CNN, MSNBC and CNBC — combined. Those Munchkins combined could not get even half the viewers that Beck garnered."
Mikey NTH Adds: "August 25th, 2009 at 8:53 pm The Unicorn One is flaming out, and he has the glide angle of a brick."
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 580 201.8 miles another beautiful day
114 recordings of 27 types.
Bernadette had good news for me, involving a rather unusual birthday present for herself. I initially thought this was related to our overnight babysitting, but apparently not. *bounce*!
Jennifer Rubin: "The candidate with the superior temperament has devolved into a peevish president exasperated that mere citizens would question his wisdom or stand in his way."
The report also notes that six years ago, the incidents it describes were referred to the Department of Justice for possible prosecution, and DOJ determined that there was nothing there that merited prosecution. For Barack Obama and Eric Holder to reverse that decision six years later, in hopes of political gain, is deeply contemptible.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 201.8 miles much cooler: 70s, partly cloudy
116 recordings of 32 types.
Father had a Baptism during Mass today. It wasn't the big spectacle Father H. would provide, but it was beautiful, simple, moving, and nice. AND quick! Mass still ended after an hour.
He's reinstating the St. Vincent de Paul collection on the 5th Sunday, and the school collection on the 2nd Sunday. I was wondering how the school was faring without help from the church. Next week, Father says he's bringing in a suggestion box. And I have a suggestion, a prayer intention book visitors could write in. It's sure different from the autocratic fiats that we've been having!
Such a beautiful day, it would have been perfect for our trip to the State Fair. However, Bernadette works today. I just hope it's not a hundred degrees when we do go.
I've begun to get Torchwood discs from Netflix. I didn't realize it was a Dr. Who spinoff. I was also interested in the setting, Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff. It's got a very "Great Glass Elevator" feel to it after all.
If Obama were the CEO of a private company, he would have already been “asked to leave the room” by the shareholders, and he’d be driving home in tears, listening to voice mail messages from the company lawyers. Unfortunately, it’s not so easy to dispose of corrupt and incompetent elected officials… which is why they should be provided with the smallest possible operating budget, watched like hawks, and kept out of everything that isn’t their explicit Constitutional duty.
It seems odd that an attractive non-entity from one of the most distant of the 57 states should cause a Presidential candidate to give 'flatfooted' responses during his campaign, while this same non-entity later reappears to post a short statement on a Facebook page and cause weeks of consternation among the triumvirate constituting our national rulers. So much consternation, in fact, that this non-entity may have evenhandedly upset the Socialist cart bearing the US National Health-Care Program.
A short but insightful statement confutes months of political blather. simply amazing!
Something interesting to change the subject tomorrow or Tuesday? Instapundit suggests "Dick Cheney collaborated with extradimensional aliens, gave them nuclear weapons? No, that’s already been done."
MATT WELCH: The Real Reason Americans Are Angry: It’s The Big Government, Stupid!
Everywhere one looks these days, the intolerance of self-avowed liberals is on display. Especially since Mr. Obama came to power. ... To call these people hypocrites would be a grave insult to those who fail to live up to their own standards. Liberalism has never been about establishing a universal standard. Liberalism is simply intellectual cover for those wanting to gain political power and increase the size of the state.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 201.8 miles 95 degrees
118 recordings of 36 types.
Rich's harvest so far: 123 pounds of tomatoes, 12 pounds of cherry tomatoes. 39 cucumbers, 31 pounds. 40 bell peppers, 9 pounds. 46 zucchini, 43 pounds. (that's a LOT of zukes!) 51 pounds of peaches, 15 of strawberries, 3 cantelope, 7 pounds. That was before he harvested today!
News: 3 to 4.3 Billion Barrels of Technically Recoverable Oil Assessed in North Dakota and Montana’s Bakken Formation—25 Times More Than 1995 Estimate— (like They will let us do anything about it.)
Allahpundit: "I can’t decide which part I like best. The ode to “vigorous debate” from a guy who wanted a bill rammed through Congress before the recess? The tut-tutting about divisive rhetoric from the leader of a party that’s spent the past month demagoguing its opponents as evil-mongering political terrorists? Or the demand from Captain Deficit that we stop putting off until tomorrow the big problems that need solving today?"
Matt Welch : "The liberal commentariat keeps telling us that we need to have a "serious debate" about reforming our dysfunctional health care system. Well, love 'em or hate 'em, Mackey came up with eight tangible ideas to do just that, and this is the reaction he gets."
0bama's twisted faith: "This shallow, venal man is too lazy to guide the reform through Congress and has left the heavy-lifting to the likes of Pelosi and Reid. I doubt that he has any real clue as to what is in (or not in) the document. But he more than ready to mis-represent what is not yet finalized to gain a point politically."
The Squeeze Inn suit was dropped. They had a pro bono lawyer, and the dirtbags who brought the lawsuit aren't talking. The restaurant will move anyway. We should probably go back one more time to the tiny one, for the fun of it.
Glenn Reynolds: "POST-PARTISAN, POST RACIAL? Voight: Is Obama creating a civil war in America? We’re a long way from that, but he’s certainly been the most divisive President since Nixon."
Victor Davis Hanson : "Already, at eight months, the president is at a Clinton 1995 gut-check moment, but seems to have preferred instead the self-righteous, contrite, and hectoring Jimmy Carter solution."
In the Great Depression, the government paid to destroy crops in order to prop up farm prices — about as dumb a policy as can be imagined.
Today the government pays to destroy cars in order to ... frankly, I don't know why.
"Cash for Clunkers" appears to be a bizarre combination of the "broken windows fallacy," the desire to change the climate of the planet, and staggering administrative incompetence. In other words, "Cash for Clunkers" hits the trifecta: bad economics, bad science, and bad government.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 201.8 miles high 80s
118 recordings of 34 types.
I slept in till 7! And today I've felt really good.
Rich spied an owl with a broken wing at the Softball Complex but the people at Raptor care didn't answer the call. In the afternoon we went over to Just Guns (which has replaced an earlier gun show and isn't as big) to sign a petition against the newest gun-control attempt by the Legislature.
The last Music Circus show was Cats. I really wasn't all that eager to go, having seen it many times. The first one was in San Francisco with my friend Dennis and his mother. Rich was really reluctant. We were going to have me go with Bernadette but then remembered that B. was going to be with Monica and her girls, first at Leatherby's then showing off their new house. So we sort of dragged off. I said goodbye to the ticket taker who's been there 50 years. Sweet old guy: since he started at 42, I want to know why he missed 10 years! (*grin*)
Anyway, the show was terrific! I was smiling all through it. I liked it better than Bev did. At the beginning the cats came down the aisle with big green glowing eyes, and scared the lady at the end of our row. "Eeek!" she says and I couldn't stop laughing. Monkustrap, the cat who sort of narrates, is played by the same guy who was the Baker in Into the Woods, and so good. And then there was Rum Tum Tugger, which is my favorite poem/song, and the cat was fantastic. Lots of energy, lots of action, really good.
I should have remembered my meds today. I was working on a headache all day, palpitations, the works.
I watched "Septem8er Tapes." What an idiot! And I feel for the cameraman. It turns out not to be a documentary, exactly, which makes it even stranger. (Going to Afghanistan in 2002 looking for bin Laden.)
Scott Ott says 'Funny: When the mainstream media rave about the president, it's good journalism. When some start to question his policies or mention the slip in his popularity, there's "a lot of nonsense out there" that "we're going to have to cut through."'
Scott Ott notes: The president says folks in D.C. are all "wee weed up." Don't worry. Thanks to taxpayer cash, they're already pampered. (A commenter adds: "That's the kind of 'change' we've come to expect.")
President Obama has a 78-seat majority in the House. A filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. The support of every major corporation that is not named News Corp. The AARP. The AMA. Big Pharma. The AFL-CIO.
Yes, I see, a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and a whopping 78-seat majority in the House are not enough. As long as one Republican survives, Democrats cannot get a thing done.
.... (comment from Old School Conservative) Moral justification? WTF? How moral is it to degrade the lives of the 85% who have good coverage in order to cover the other 15%, who get care at our expense anyway? How moral is it to ration care for those who have given the most to society, the elderly? How moral is it to lie and deceive to accomplish one’s ideological goals? How moral is it to paint the vast majority who disagree as unpatriotic and selfish?
There are people in Canada and Britain who spend months and years in excruciating pain and crippled because they have to wait for knees and hips that are done in weeks here. How moral is that, Krugman, you phony s.o.b.? .... (and from Neo) What Obama failed to realize is that a Rorschach test no longer works when you give the painting a name.
The president has borrowed more money to spend to less effect than anybody on the planet. ...Of course, the president retains his formidable political skills, artfully distracting attention from his stimulus debacle with his health care debacle. But there are diminishing returns to his serial thousand-page, trillion-dollar boondoggles. They may be too long for your representatives to bother reading before passing into law, but, whatever the intricacies of Section 417(a) xii on page 938, people are beginning to spot what all this stuff has in common: He's spending your future. And by "future" I don't mean 2070, 2060, 2040, but the day after tomorrow.
...After all, says the president, "Medicare is a government program that works really well," and if "we're able to get something right like Medicare," we should have more "confidence" about being able to do it for everyone.
On the other hand, says the president, Medicare is "unsustainable" and "running out of money."
By the way, unlike your run-of-the-mill politician's contradictory statements, these weren't made a year or even a week apart, but during the same presidential speech in Portsmouth, N.H.
...Obama's leviathan sends a consistent message to business and consumers alike: When he's spending this crazy, maybe the smart thing for you to do is hunker down until the dust's settled, and you get a better sense of just how broke he's going to make you.
Reading: Rousseau and Revolution, What If? edited by Robert Cowley, the Bible (Sophonia), Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg, Don Quixote, Any Place I Hang My Hat, Susan Isaacs, Miseducation: Preschoolers at Risk, David Elkind, Low-Carb Dieting for Dummies, Katherine B. Chauncey.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 201.8 miles high 80s
117 recordings of 36 types.
I'm .1 pound up and my blood pressure is way high.
Last night we hopped in the car as soon as Bernadette took the baby and drove up to Yuba City, through Wheatland (the long way.) In Wheatland we stopped at our 6000th cache and picked up our geocoin, since it's only been discovered twice in the last 4 months, and hasn't moved at all. At the event in Yuba City we gave the coin to a couple we know from Oregon and asked them to please move it along. We pigged out on pizza (only .1 pound up? It's a miracle!) and chatted with the few people there, and won a cute little elephant and a geocache container. And on the way home we found the puzzle cache in Wheatland that we missed on in April, so it's all good.
Oh, shucks, we missed the tomato festival, it was last weekend.
Today I was just really really tired. Gareth was not, though. He has taken to crying when Mommy leaves, though it's just for a minute. He sat on his little chair (which we sent to their house but he was using it as a stepstool) all the way through Yo Gabba Gabba.
He really likes the nice little tiny room just his size, the closet. Currently he has a lot of bruises, though since we found some new-to-him shoes, he hasn't had new falls.
We went to the local school park. Gareth was fascinated by the wind. I remember his Mom at about his age in Lodi when she discovered wind. He found a narrow gate and went into the trail along the creek. A walk in the woods, and up and down the slope, which was a mountain to him.
Back at home we played in the playroom quite a bit. He is putting the Megablox together! I dug out the Fisher-Price nativity set and got it boxed up and put away.
Finally, it was almost time for Bernadette and I was SO tired. I took him outside to sit on my lap. He's good at pointing but not at following a point, so he never saw the airplane I was trying to show him. He did see some trucks. And then Mommy!!! He was all aglow. Me, too, now I can sleep in!
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 200.3 miles high 80s
110 recordings of 32 types.
I planned to take Gareth to Cowan Park today, but they had chopped down a tree and were busy cleaning it up right at the gate. Danger, not to mention the noise, so we went to Mission Oaks instead. It has sand, which I managed to keep him out of. He was actually willing to go on the swing and enjoyed it, and he climbed all 4 steps to get to the top of the slide, where I helped him sit down and slide. He did that about 6 or 8 times.
There were a couple of very strange little girls there who seemed to thing that staring at the baby and talking funny were how you played with him. I finally decided it was time to go home.
There's a piano at home, with the "trouble keys" (Bernadette's words) where he can reach them. And a little room just his size which he loves. I went into the kitchen for a minute, and when I came back to the living room I couldn't see him. He was playing hide-and-seek in the closet. *giggle giggle.* We went into the playroom and he didn't cry, but played with all the wonderful toys. Meanwhile, I rearranged the boxes in the closet to make it safer. Much less likely to drop a paper box on him now.
After lunch and his nap, we took him to Petsmart, where he saw kitties, and a couple of dogs, and fish (fascinating) and birds. And he got to hold on to one of the toys we brought Pharaoh. The dog has learned how to destroy these toys immediately. Gareth likes to play with him, taking a bone away and then letting the dog take it back. Pharaoh is very very good and gentle. He knows who's boss there.
Roger L. Simon: "I think this man is flying blind. Not surprising, really. All he ever did was run for office. No wonder he has had no time to formulate policy."
GMAC should require permission from actual taxpayers before it’s allowed to engage in a silly boycott that could damage its profitability, and devalue our five billion dollar investment.) ... The rest of Beck’s comment, asserting that Obama has “deep-seated hatred for white people of the white culture,” should be easy for the President’s defenders to disprove. All they have to do is cite one positive thing Obama has said or written about white culture. Anywhere. Ever. ... Our political discourse is heated because the stakes are so high. Obama has wasted trillions of dollars in taxpayer money, threatened the economy with permanent recession through his cap-and-trade bill, and tried to ram through a federal takeover of health insurance without debate. The Administration openly asserts that certain Americans “shouldn’t do a whole lot of talking,” and labels dissent from its agenda un-patriotic.
ROFL! It would seem there are unintended consequences to the boycott.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 200.0 miles high 80s
114 recordings of 29 types.
Yesterday I went to see the oral surgeon for a consultation. I had a gazillion things to fill out, waited and waited, then got my x-rays (interesting machine) then waited some more, with a 7 minute film that told all the awful side effects that could happen with the removal of a troublesome wisdom tooth. It was almost enough to send me screaming from the room. Meeting the dentist (avuncular tall older guy who exudes competence) wasn't much better, he came up with a few more things that could happen that the film didn't mention. However, I need to get this thing out, so my surgery is scheduled for September 15.
Then last night we went to Father Half-Pastor's party, a fundraiser by the restaurant owners. Bishop Quinn was there. He told a lame joke when he saw my "instant human" t-shirt. Gareth made a big hit and he was just wonderful, till about 7:30 when he suddenly turned off.
I babysat today. I took him to the park near the YMCA, which was not the right place. For one thing, my timing was bad: the Y camp was having recess. The kids were good around him, but I had to keep an eye out. There's oleander lining the park and I spied toadstools in the grass. To compound the problems, there's sand. I won't be going back to this park with Gareth while he's still so little!
At home we put a towel on the floor and a dishpan, and gave him a quick bath, mostly to get the sand out of his hair.
In the afternoon we were going to take him to the science center. This is, unfortunately, the beginning of a two week hiatus when they're closed to change exhibits. There were three other families there who had hoped to get in, too. We walked around the pond, and Gareth saw a squirrel.
Reading: Rousseau and Revolution, What If? edited by Robert Cowley, the Bible (Sophonia), Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg, Don Quixote, Saving Fish from Drowning, Amy Tan, Miseducation: Preschoolers at Risk, David Elkind, Low-Carb Dieting for Dummies, Katherine B. Chauncey.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 199.7 miles high 80s
115 recordings of 29 types.
SUPPOSEDLY if you've seen over 94 films, you have no life. Mark the ones you've seen. There are 239 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own facebook account, paste this as a note. Then, put x's next to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number, and click post at the bottom. Have fun.
( ) Rocky Horror Picture Show ( ) Grease (x) Pirates of the Caribbean (x) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest ( ) Boondock Saints ( ) Fight Club ( ) Starsky and Hutch (X) Neverending Story ( ) Blazing Saddles (X) Airplane Total: 3
(X) The Princess Bride ( ) Anchorman ( ) Napoleon Dynamite (X) Labyrinth ( ) Saw ( ) Saw II ( ) White Noise ( ) White Oleander ( ) Anger Management ( ) 50 First Dates (x) The Princess Diaries ( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement Total so far: 5
( ) Scream ( ) Scream 2 ( ) Scream 3 ( ) Scary Movie ( ) Scary Movie 2 ( ) Scary Movie 3 ( ) Scary Movie 4 ( ) American Pie ( ) American Pie 2 ( ) American Wedding ( ) American Pie Band Camp Total so far: 5
(X) Harry Potter 1 (x) Harry Potter 2 (x) Harry Potter 3 (x) Harry Potter 4 ( ) Resident Evil 1 ( ) Resident Evil 2 (x) The Wedding Singer ( ) Little Black Book ( ) The Village (x) Lilo & Stitch Total so far: 11
(x) Finding Nemo (x) Finding Neverland ( ) Signs (x) The Grinch ( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre ( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning ( ) White Chicks ( ) Butterfly Effect ( ) 13 Going on 30 ( ) I, Robot ( ) Robots Total so far: 14
( ) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story ( ) Universal Soldier (x) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events ( ) Along Came Polly ( ) Deep Impact ( ) KingPin ( ) Never Been Kissed (x) Meet The Parents ( ) Meet the Fockers ( ) Eight Crazy Nights ( ) Joe Dirt (x) KING KONG < for me, this would be the original version Total so far: 17
(x) A Cinderella Story (x) The Terminal ( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie ( ) Passport to Paris ( ) Dumb & Dumber ( ) Dumber & Dumberer ( ) Final Destination ( ) Final Destination 2 ( ) Final Destination 3 ( ) Halloween ( ) The Ring ( ) The Ring 2 ( ) Surviving X-MAS (X) Flubber <-- again, for me this would be the original Total so far: 20
( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle ( ) Practical Magic (x) Chicago ( ) Ghost Ship ( ) From Hell ( ) Hellboy ( ) Secret Window ( ) I Am Sam ( ) The Whole Nine Yards ( ) The Whole Ten Yards Total so far: 21
( ) The Day After Tomorrow ( ) Child's Play ( ) Seed of Chucky ( ) Bride of Chucky ( ) Ten Things I Hate About You ( ) Just Married (x) Gothika ( ) Nightmare on Elm Street (x) Sixteen Candles ( ) Remember the Titans (x) Coach Carter ( ) The Grudge ( ) The Grudge 2 (X) The Mask ( ) Son Of The Mask Total so far: 24
( ) Bad Boys ( ) Bad Boys 2 ( ) Joy Ride ( ) Lucky Number Slevin (x) Ocean's Eleven (x) Ocean's Twelve ( ) Bourne Identity ( ) Bourne Supremecy ( ) Lone Star ( ) Bedazzled ( ) Predator I ( ) Predator II ( ) The Fog (X) Ice Age ( ) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown ( ) Curious George Total so far: 27
(x) Independence Day ( ) Cujo ( ) A Bronx Tale ( ) Darkness Falls (X) Christine (x) ET (x) Children of the Corn ( ) My Boss's Daughter ( ) Maid in Manhattan ( ) War of the Worlds ( ) Rush Hour ( ) Rush Hour 2 Total so far: 28
( ) Best Bet ( ) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days ( ) She's All That (x) Calendar Girls (X) Sideways ( ) Mars Attacks ( ) Event Horizon ( ) Ever After (x) Wizard of Oz (x) Forrest Gump ( ) Big Trouble in Little China ( ) The Terminator ( ) The Terminator 2 ( ) The Terminator 3 Total so far: 32
( ) X-Men ( ) X-2 ( ) X-3 (x) Spider-Man ( ) Spider-Man 2 ( ) Sky High ( ) Jeepers Creepers ( ) Jeepers Creepers 2 ( ) Catch Me If You Can (x) The Little Mermaid (x) Freaky Friday (the original) ( ) Reign of Fire ( ) The Skulls ( ) Cruel Intentions ( ) Cruel Intentions 2 ( ) The Hot Chick (x) Shrek (x) Shrek 2 Total so far: 37
( ) Swimfan (x) Miracle on 34th street <-- the original ( ) Old School (x) The Notebook ( ) K-Pax ( ) Krippendorf's Tribe ( ) A Walk to Remember ( ) Ice Castles ( ) Boogeyman ( ) The 40-year-old Virgin Total so far: 39
(x) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring (x) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers (x) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King (X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (x) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Total so far: 45
( ) Baseketball ( ) Hostel ( ) Waiting for Guffman ( ) House of 1000 Corpses ( ) Devils Rejects (x) Elf ( ) Highlander ( ) Mothman Prophecies ( ) American History ( ) Three Total so Far: 46
( ) The Jacket ( ) Kung Fu Hustle ( ) Shaolin Soccer ( ) Night Watch (x) Monsters Inc. (x) Titanic (x) Monty Python and the Holy Grail ( ) Shaun Of the Dead ( ) Willard Total so far: 49
( ) High Tension ( ) Club Dread ( ) Hulk ( ) Dawn Of the Dead (X) Hook (x) Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe ( ) 28 days later ( ) Orgazmo ( ) Phantasm ( ) Waterworld Total so far: 51
( ) Kill Bill vol 1 ( ) Kill Bill vol 2 ( ) Mortal Kombat ( ) Wolf Creek ( ) Kingdom of Heaven ( ) the Hills Have Eyes ( ) I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman ( ) The Last House on the Left ( ) Re-Animator ( ) Army of Darkness Total so far: 51
(x) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace (x) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones (x) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith (x) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope (X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back (X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi ( ) Ewoks Caravan Of Courage ( ) Ewoks The Battle For Endor Total so far: 57
( ) The Matrix ( ) The Matrix Reloaded ( ) The Matrix Revolutions ( ) Animatrix ( ) Evil Dead ( ) Evil Dead 2 ( ) Team America: World Police ( ) Red Dragon ( ) Silence of the Lambs (but I was riveted to the book!) ( ) Hannibal Total: 57
What an odd assortment of movies! It's thin on the chick flicks and the Brit flicks, where my strength is.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 199.7 miles high 80s
117 recordings of 27 types.
The "Ack!" is because we have a ding on the car. Rich discovered it this afternoon: a tiny (but ack!!!) parking lot dent on the driver's door. I guess this means we can relax now.
Father Half-Pastor will have his kidney surgery on the 25th. His twin sisters (who knew?) will be going to Phoenix to help for the 3 month convalescence he will have. There are also a couple of other friends helping. They, along with the donor and wife, are flying to Phoenix next Sunday. We all clapped for this news.
Father Eduino again told us how he expects us to behave in Church. He doesn't like the hand-holding for the Our Father. OK, I can adjust.
We stopped at Whole Foods for the onion and mushrooms I needed. I also got some baby snacks. I'd never been there before. It's a fun place to browse. I also helped a short little old lady get some things she wanted... apparently they shelve all her favorites on the top shelf! I liked the Clover (I missed a billboard on Wednesday) individual milks... "fiddler on the hoof."
I am all for freedom of speech. Mr. Mackey had every right to express his views on health care in the WSJ, even as anathema as those views might be to progressives. Similarly, we progressives have every right to decide whether or not we want to spend our food dollars in a store whose CEO clearly doesn’t support the most important progressive cause of the moment.
Fair enough. Of course, Obama’s plan — and Big Government in general — is all about ensuring that we don’t have the right to decide how to spend our dollars but should instead let somebody else take them at gunpoint and decide how they’re spent. If the health care “reform” passes, you won’t have the option of directing your health care dollars where you think they should go (and I’m not so sure about your food dollars, either . . . )
I just Wish they'd make up their minds, dressed down or too well dressed!!! JKB: "What she [Robin Givhan] fails to understand is that many of the town hall attendees have to get the kid to little league after or stop by Walmart on the way home. Having to go deal with an errant employee who has taken it upon themselves to go against their voters’ self interest is an annoyance. Kind of like a toilet backing up, it has to be dealt with but isn’t what you had planned for the day."
The problem with government health systems is not that they pull the plug on Grandma. It’s that Grandma has a hell of a time getting plugged in in the first place. The only way to “control costs” is to restrict access to treatment, and the easiest people to deny treatment to are the oldsters. Don’t worry, it’s all very scientific. In Britain, they use a “Quality-Adjusted Life Year” formula to decide that you don’t really need that new knee because you’re gonna die in a year or two, maybe a decade-and-a-half tops. So it’s in the national interest for you to go around hobbling in pain rather than divert “finite resources” away from productive members of society to a useless old geezer like you. And you’d be surprised how quickly geezerdom kicks in: A couple of years back, some Quebec facilities were attributing death from hospital-contracted infection of anyone over 55 to “old age.” Well, he had a good innings. He was 57.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 199.7 miles high 80s
Roni and R.J. have been married 10 years. I was going to put some pictures on Facebook, but they don't appear to be on this computer. Oh, well. I did call to offer the guilt-a-la-divorced-dad money for their babysitter, but Roni said it was OK, and they'll have us babysit some other time. We've done so much, she said. (That'd be true if it hadn't been my idea to begin with. Oh, well.) She also said next time they go for a long trip, maybe we could come stay at the house, like I was thinking the other day.
119 recordings of 30 types.
We went to Mass this morning because it's the Feast of the Assumption. On the way home we stopped at a couple of garage sales. I picked up a couple of things at a nearby one, not anything I needed. I was tempted by the Trikke, but feel the need to try one first, and I didn't have the proper footwear on. This lady never got the hang of it.
Then I thought we would be cocooning in all day, but there was a phone call from a widow friend who had grapes for us if we wanted them. Heck, if she'd offered zucchini, which I'm actually tiring of, I'd have said yes, because she's likely lonesome. We took her a zuke and some tomatoes and figs.
I went to the Whale Wars forum and I see I'm not the only person who doesn't think the Sea Shepherd folk are wonderful. Not that I root for the Japanese whalers, either. A pox on both their houses. They say:
SSCS in general, and Watson in particular, have moved from misguided incompetents to abject failures. ... We may very well look back at Watson agreeing to do this show as one of the biggest mistakes ever made by the environemntal movement.
Astonishing. A tea party protest in San Francisco!!
Rasmussen: "By a two-to-one margin, voters believe that no matter how bad things are Congress could always make it worse."
So if Sarah Palin was wrong, why did they give in? "...why didn't Democrats argue their side? Why did they back down? I suspect it's because they really did hope to save money by substituting painkillers for curative treatments for the old and disabled."
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 199.7 miles high 80s
119 recordings of 31 types.
Today Gareth was just tired. I took him over to the park, put him down to walk, and he immediately put his hands up to be carried. Most unlike him! I took him over to a bench to sit with me. A lady with a puppy came in and he did get down to play with the puppy. The puppy, a big one, was thrilled to see the human puppy and wanted to lick. Then he danced around "come and play, come and play!" on his leash. Once the puppy moved on, though, Gareth wanted back up, and I brought him home.
He pointed to a cat in a picture when I asked him (and hasn't done it since) but mostly he was just tired and spent time in the playpen watching Yo Gabba Gabba and other Noggin shows. He had an early lunch and took a loooooong nap.
A couple of other things... he had a lot of fun playing with the wonderful toys I gave him, two toilet paper rolls. And he took a shoe and tried to put it on. He's definitely growing and learning, but today was a quiet day. If I babysat like this every time, she'd fire me.
0bama's on TV *again*. I heard someone suggest yesterday that the 0bama legacy will be his ubiquitousness.
As a journalist for 30 years, I know the story is not about him; it is about those brave citizens who are standing up for their rightsand who are exercising their God-given right to free speech. ... After 6 months, his honeymoon is over and Barack Obama is whining because the press is now treating him like any other president.
This is conduct unbecoming for a world leader.
He’s acting more and more like Nixon. If this whining keeps up, he will need waterproof mascara.
I guess it's time to visit Whole Foods! The CEO has some good ideas and therefore gotten the netroots' panties in a wad.
The Music Circus show was Man of La Mancha. Not one of my favorites, though the production was fine. After the title song (which is the first one) I was ready to go home. Guess Gareth wasn't the only tired one!
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 196.2 miles 80s
I'm 1.8 pounds down (new scale, but I'm going from the "set weight" on it) and my blood pressure low. To my surprise. I'm further behind in all my projects.
119 recordings of 32 types.
So on Facebook I was still feeling guilty about Roni so posted "Jan Yarnot is an idiot." A FB friend, who used to be a BBS friend, said something to the effect of "what, you've begun to realize that you Republicans are wrong?"
I wrote an explanation of why I'm an idiot, then a final sentence, "Paul, I'm not a Republican." (Which would have been crystal clear on my profile page anyway.)
He launched into a long screed, where he asked "an anti-democrat? Or just an anti-black president?"
Ooooooooooh.
I said "That "anti-black President" comment was a low blow." and waited for a response. When none came: .... "I really resent the racist accusation, so I've got one less FB friend now."
He then sent a friend request with a question of did I mean to do it. I kept the request open while I explained, to see if I got an apology. "I resented being called a racist, yes."
then I didn't get an apology, what I got was that he didn't call me one, he asked if I was one. Like that's better? I didn't respond to that one, then 10 minutes later came a long mail with this in it: "Perhaps, when a friend questions, a look inside should be done...or perhaps a clearer understanding (by all of us) should be reached on just what the *bleep* you are posting..."
OK, so it's all my fault? I don't need a friend like that. *plonk*!
The weekend after the stimulus package passed Congress was the weekend the Obama administration began to fail. Having created hysteria sufficient to cause Congress to pass a trillion-dollar, thousand-page bill without reading or understanding its contents because to delay even a moment further could lead to catastrophic consequences, Obama took the weekend off. And Monday.
IMAO_Anyone who didn't see John Edwards as the biggest phony in politics should be disqualified from ever voting again Donald L Files JrBarack Obama is acting like the head of the "Jimmy Carter legacy improvement campaign."
My thought for Lexi's (the other child formerly known as Alex) birthday was to visit Safari West. Initially I thought about staying overnight, but after the big road trip, I didn't think I could talk Rich into it. Heck, I wasn't sure I could talk myself into it! So we settled for a 3-hour safari instead.
We were to pick her up at home at 10. Naturally, we were a little early, and got out of the house a tish before 10. And the drive up, in which we'd allowed for complications and getting lost, went smoothly. We picked up a geocache right outside the gate.
Well, we were there just before 11 for a 1 o'clock tour. Hmmm. We walked around and looked at everything. And checked out the gift shop. And had a sandwich from the deli. And Lexi made sure she was big enough to ride on top, and really hoped to do so. And then, finally, it was time!
Our tour guide was Jim, and he started by walking us past a lot of the animals that we'd already seen. Jim is very knowledgable and told us a lot of facts about the animals. We had been by the cheetahs' cage but hadn't seen them. He pointed them out. Apparently they don't like each other, but also apparently they're beginning to adjust to company. Sometimes a guinea fowl, who roam the park freely, will blunder into the cheetah's cage, and provide a little unplanned extra protein. Darwin at work.
Then it was time to head off! We got to go up on top first. Rich wasn't going to, but then the grouping went so that he could, and he decided he could climb up there. He was glad he did. The view up there is incredible. We didn't have a giraffe leaning into our laps, like in this picture but we did have great views and got a real good look at how the tongue works.
After a bit more than an hour, even though he usually stopped in the shade, I was ready to trade off. There was a 12-year-old drama queen, but I repeat myself, who wanted to ride on top so after we had admired the black rhinos, we got down. Lexi had run out of battery power on her camera so I made extra sure to take lots of pictures. We saw some really shy antelope and some elands engaging in courtship behavior. The zebras were great! They were near the road a few years ago and I saw them and was astounded: I'd never heard of Safari West at that time. Some lay down in the road right in front of us. At one point we were going right along a cliff, just as well we weren't on top there! Also it's just as well Rich wasn't on the outside. On either side, since we came back the same way!
My water bottle blew out of my lap at one point and Jim stopped the bus to pick it up. How embarrassing. But at least the breeze kept the day from being too hot. Rich can't imagine taking this tour in the winter on muddy roads.
Jim is very knowledgable and told us a lot more about the animals than I could ever remember. We saw a lot more than we might have going to Kenya (something I've always wanted to do!) The tour ended about 4:15 or so, and I'd have been happy to stay another hour on it! What a beautiful place!
We had ice cream, picked up some "rhino droppings" for Teddy (chocolate covered peanuts), stopped at the gift store, and got back to Roni's house about 5:40.
And there I discovered I've really blown it. It had been my idea to babysit so they could do something exciting on their 10th anniversary, but then our various trips intervened, and she didn't say anything (I thought. She says she talked about it on the 4th of July, but I don't remember this at all.) I thought with R.J.'s hurt knee, it hadn't worked out. Till Roni said, "so you are coming Saturday?" Oh, ARGH!
They've got the guest room all nicely set up. I would like to come, not to babysit, but just to sit on the lower deck and contemplate. It's as good as the retreat house. But oh, I feel guilty. Roni says they can get a sitter for their dinner, and can cancel the motel. I'm reminded of OUR 10th anniversary. My Mom had gone back to Wyoming to sell her house and move in with us, but wasn't back yet, so we ended up taking the 4 kids to Sambo's. Whoopie.
Guilt guilt guilt.
The weekend Sacramento Bee had a story about Safari West.
Babysitting today. We went over to Cowan Park and Gareth walked around for almost an hour, but he finally tripped over himself and landed face first on the ground and the fence, bruising his forehead. He didn't cry much, but it was time to come home.
Instapundit: 'Also, the market doesn’t deny you a hip replacement or a pacemaker because someone in government thinks your political views are “un-American.” Given the cronyism and thuggery we’ve seen with the bailouts, etc., I’m not confident this would hold true under a government health program. And I’m absolutely certain there would be a special track for insiders and favorites.'
Reason.com: 'If Obama has his way, his health care plan will be funded by his treasury chief who did not pay his taxes, overseen by his surgeon general who is obese, signed by a president who smokes, and financed by a country that is just about broke.'
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 196.4 miles 80s.
115 recordings of 27 types.
Today was the day the Arcade Library had its monthly baby-and-toddlers day. Bernadette came over with Gareth and we went. They had some neat toys: a Fisher-Price wagon with some nifty blocks, and a mirror, a riding toy, books... and a big blue ball. Gareth picked up the ball and toddled around for almost the whole time with it. He took it away from another child at one point, but the other child wasn't upset, so we let him do it. He handed it to me, I handed it back. I rolled it to him. He really really loved that big blue ball.
0. is travelling again. And on TV, of course, again.
The President protects critics right to speak? Check it out.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 196.1 miles 90s.
115 recordings of 30 types.
Father Eduino was gone today, so the kneeling was odd. Some people stood, some knelt. Daily Mass is back at 8, and Mass intentions are in the bulletin again. It's apparent we're undoing Fr. H. damage as fast as is feasible.
Apart from making more pasta sauce, I didn't do much today. Two more bricks. There are more Romas, and I drained off a pitcherful of tomato juice. After it's cooked for awhile, it's quite tasty.
What the town-hall meetings represent is a feeling of rebellion, an uprising against change they do not believe in. And the Democratic response has been stunningly crude and aggressive. It has been to attack. ... in an odd way he sometimes seems not to have fully absorbed the awesome stature of his office. You really, if you’re president, can’t call an individual American stupid, if for no other reason than that you’re too big. You cannot allow your allies to call people protesting a health-care plan “extremists” and “right wing,” or bought, or Nazi-like, either. They’re citizens. They’re concerned. They deserve respect.
Comment at Don Surber's page: "If you mean united against Obama, then you may well be right. Instead of being all things to all people, he seems to be doing his level best to be nothing to anybody."
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 196.1 miles 90s.
113 recordings of 26 types.
We missed seeing the 1000-mile mark on the new car's odometer, but today we saw 1111.1. We started the day with a geocaching brunch in Elk Grove. There should be a splinter group of RCGDS members with Escapes... the RCGDS Escapers?... there were two others there this morning.
We won a couple of State Fair shirts on the raffle. And Pharaoh behaved himself just fine till the very end when he jumped atop the picnic table again.
We looked for some caches before and after and got 5 or so. Then we came home, and went out again to Members' night at the Zoo.
We didn't do much but walk around and check out everything. I especially liked the new carousel with all the animals. There's a praying mantis and a dung beetle (you can't ride on the dung beetle, but you supposedly can on the ladybug. It's too round, though.) My tigers didn't come out, but the anteaters did. The orangs were given treats, as well.
We decided not to eat there so came back to our neighborhood to La Rosa Blanca.
Inconvenient Truths about Death Panels. On Facebook I had a couple of liberal FB friends absolutely foaming at the mouth, how horrible Sarah Palin is, etc. But pay attention to Ezekial Emmanuel, who believes babies are human after a few years and who recommends a "quality-adjusted life year" metric. Listen when President 0bama suggests that instead of an operation, maybe the old folks should take a pain pill.
In WWII, the Jews in the ghetto didn't believe there were death camps, either. No one would be that evil. And yet, people were.
When the President himself speaks out against half of the country he is supposed to lead, what the hell have we got? A President who believes in free speech but only for those who agree with his agenda? A President who is so thin-skinned that he cannot handle anyone speaking out against his policies? The President is supposed to lead by example. What example is he giving to Congress when they are calling people Nazis and brown shirts? Who really are the Nazis and brown shirts in this scenario? Certainly not the American people. Many disagree with how Bush ran the country but at least he believed in the 1st Amendment for ALL Americans.
The Chutzpah of the Town Hall. "Sally Zelikovsky is the Founder of Bay Area Patriots and the Coordinator of the San Francisco Tea Party. She thanks President Obama for rushing through legislation inimical to liberty, forcing millions from all walks of life to wake out of their complacency and work together on issues that bind them, showing the world what true nonpartisanship is."
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 195.6 miles 90s. Heating up. Darn.
118 recordings of 28 types. I'm looking forward to adding Rachael Ray, Cash Cab, and Jeopardy again. Plus more Food Network, more History, more Discovery.
Not much going on today, just Music Circus tonight. The last time I saw Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, it was in the old tent. I went with Bernadette on a night that was not our regular one, so we had seats right next to the orchestra. She reminds me it was 105 degrees and we could see sweat showering off the dancers. They did the big dance number and I saw something I've never seen before, a standing ovation in the middle of the show.
The show tonight was also very exciting although there wasn't a standing ovation there. It was a long ovation, however. Great dancing, a good show. The tent was closest to full I've seen it.
RSMcCain: "The great thing about being a Democrat is that no one can accuse you of not having standards. Two of them, in fact!"
Meet the Mob: My family members did not shed blood for this country so that their elected officials could silence them into shame if they dared to speak out and voice their concerns.
Driver Anderson: How about an apology about unleashing Union Thugs on Citizens at town Hall meetings!
In Britain, the National Health is the third largest employer in world (1.4 million people) after Red Army and Indian National Railways.
5-yr prostate cancer survival rate: US = 100%. In Canada it's 91% and in the UK 77%.
SOMEbody should shut up. John Hinderaker comments: Barack Obama is an arrogant would-be machine boss who fundamentally fails to understand representative democracy, perhaps because of his below-average knowledge of history, which we've noted on a number of occasions. Fortunately, "shut up" is not yet a winning political argument. Not in the United States of America, anyway.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 195.2 miles weather! (Clouds, wind)
121 recordings of 30 types. My weight is the same, blood pressure high.
Last night I watched the final of "I Survived a Japanese Game Show" --- hilarious. They aren't laughing with the American contestants, they are definitely laughing AT them. They made the final three dress up in ridiculous outfits and go out on the streets of Tokyo and get people to do strange things, like put lipstick on them and then take a kiss, or make a chorus line. I was laughing at them, too.
Today I was determined to just stay home. Then Rich said he was going to IKEA to look for light fixtures for the closet, and how could I resist? We started at Fry's where we got new batteries for the camera and I got a phone holster so I can stop scratching up this phone. We looked at flat-top stoves, too, and at refrigerators.
Then to IKEA. Lots of good ideas. Besides the LED spotlights for the closet (and one day for the china closet, too) I got a feeding set, frogs, for Gareth.
Then the fun began. A few months back we got stuck in terrible traffic as we were heading toward Davis. Someone told us about a detour which cut off some of it, so we went looking today. First we looked the obvious direction, west toward Davis, but there's nothing but dead-end streets in that direction. I suggested we go east instead, around IKEA, which should go under the bypass.
That is the right route, all right. Somehow, though, Rich got turned around and was convinced we were heading toward home. Yelling ensued. When we finally got to the entrance to the highway, going toward Davis, he was so busy trying to reconstruct what he thought we did with what we actually did that he didn't look the five times or so that I pointed out that we could get on the freeway headed toward home from there. When he made a U-turn instead, a lot more yelling ensued. Note to self: if he gets in one of these moods, just let him do his thing. Maybe when we end up in Davis, he'll stop and listen to the navigator.
Ed Morrissey on Peloser's latest: "if this is all a big ‘turf op orchestrated by the GOP, why on earth would Republicans be sending people out carrying signs with swastikas? There’s no faster way to delegitimize yourself as a crank, even if the swastika on the sign is meant as a derogatory symbol for the Democrats’ socialist aspirations. It’s Godwin’s law in action. Which means Pelosi’s theory is that the GOP has organized a massive covert PR campaign … aimed at discrediting itself? This is the steel-trap mind that’s helping to plan your medical coverage in the decades ahead."
Atlas takes on the snitch list. I immediately flagged myself, but have got to remember to pass on all the web pages that are "fishy" when I read them. (Somehow, even though they know about it and ask for it, it seems WRONG to snitch on other Americans.)
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 195.4 miles 85
119 recordings of 30 types.
Today was way early again. We've established a bit of a routine, though. I took him back to the nearer park without the sand, though, especially after I had to pour sand out of his shoes. He walked through a spider web and didn't even notice, but I got the sticky remnants. I was going to let him go as long as he would go, but I finally got too bored and brought him home after an hour. We saw someone with a dog something like Pharaoh and a toddler named Garrett.
Back at home, he spent about 1/2 hour, with me, in the torture room. I really don't know why he's so against the place. Once in, he settles in and plays. Maybe it's because he can't walk around as much in there as he can in the living room.
I gave him a spoon while I'm feeding him so he can pound on the tray and play feeding himself.
I got my baby Counting Sheep. So #13 and #29 had baby #1/16! Heh.
Gibbs backpedals, and Boxer comments. I have never heard her complain about MoveOn.org! Allahpundit: 'No need for outrage, though. Instead, celebrate the fact that even with a Democratic president, a filibuster-proof Congress, and the lure of “free” ice cream in the form of socialized medicine, the left’s somehow managed to turn ObamaCare into a clusterfark of such epic proportions that their health-care message has now actually been reduced to “Don’t listen to the Republicans — they’re crazy.” '
Bless me Father Obama, for I have sinned. I posted negative comments about health care reform on Facebook and emailed my Congressman to tell him to vote against the bill. The exercise of my 1st Amendment rights and right to the redress of grievances are a danger to the Administration's and the Congressional majority's attempt to impose socialism on all Americans.
Of course, what you are doing is most likely unlawful. According to 5 U.S.C.A. § 552a, United States agencies, including the Executive Office of the President shall, “maintain no record describing how any individual exercises rights guaranteed by the First Amendment unless expressly authorized by statute or by the individual about whom the record is maintained or unless pertinent to and within the scope of an authorized law enforcement activity.”
So lock me up, if you dare.
Someone questions how Congress could try to force the takeover of the American health-care industry in roughly a fifth of the time it took Barack Obama to pick out a dog for his kids.
My mind is clearer now. At last all too well I can see where we all soon will be. If you strip away The myth from the man, You will see where we all soon will be. Obama!
You’ve started to believe The things they say of you. You really do believe This talk of God is true. And all the good you’ve done Will soon get swept away. You’ve begun to matter more Than the things you say.
Listen Barry I don’t like what I see. All I ask is that you listen to me. And remember, I’ve been your right hand man all along. You have set them all on fire. They think they’ve found the new Messiah. And they’ll hurt you when they find they’re wrong.
I remember when this whole thing began. No talk of God then, we called you a man. And believe me, my admiration for you hasn’t died. But every word you say today Gets twisted ’round some other way. And they’ll hurt you if they think you’ve lied.
I am frightened by the crowd. For we are getting much too loud. And they’ll crush us if we go too far. If they go too far….
Listen, Barry, to the warning I give. Please remember that I want us to live. But it’s sad to see our chances weakening with every hour.
All your followers are blind. Too much Utopia on their minds. It was beautiful, but now it’s sour. Yes it’s all gone sour.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 194.4 miles 89
117 recordings of 29 types.
Bernadette had to be at work by 6:30 today, and thought she'd be by around 5:30. I woke up at 4 and came out to the living room to finish sleeping, because I was afraid I'd oversleep. She actually didn't arrive till 6ish. The baby was sleepy and stunned. We went through the same routine as yesterday. I took him to Mission Park this time, where he climbed a step on the slide and played in the sand. If you hold a handful of sand up it falls out of your hand in a fascinating manner. It also ends up in your diaper, in all your clothes, in Nana's house...
He was crabby at the park. He complained about everything. When we got back, he had an early nap. He was also crabby playing. His day was just at 6s and 7s.
Apparently I'm a member of a Mob. Or would be, if Doris Matsui actually dared to have a Town Hall meeting. It's actually called "democracy."
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 195.3 miles 80s
120 recordings of 33 types.
I forgot to mention that last night we went to hear a concert done by a girl we've seen grow up in church and our choir. She sang for a bit over an hour, and she's great. Rich wondered why, and I think it's because she went to college 800 miles away, and this is a way to show family and friends what she's learned. It was really nice.
Today was babysitting again. This was one of the high priority days for Bernadette. The baby was a little sleepy, so I stuck him in the playpen for an hour and he played quietly and watched Yo Gabba Gabba, then I fed him and took him to the park. One of the things he did today was walk up ramps. He's climbing mountains. I remember when I was under three, seeing this big horse and a huge lake, or a pony and a mud puddle. I measured my steps and did the equivalent of 1.3 miles!
That's Baby Borscht, not a mole, on his lip.
Then back here where he played, watched more Yo Gabba Gabba (I know, but it sure helps) and then lunch and a nap and Mommy! got back earlier than expected.
It's 1984 in England. I saw a movie that featured CCTV in Scotland. Scary stuff.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 194.0 miles 90s
115 recordings of 33 types.
I saw "Into the Wild" last night. That's a really disturbing movie.
John Stossel: "if you pay for it yourself, like plastic surgery or Lasik eye surgery, prices come down, and quality goes up.
"you don't shop around if someone else is paying."
In Exodus ch. 16, the Israelites are griping, they're hungry. So God sends them quails and manna. And soon they're complaining because they're tired of quails and manna. The first welfare state? See how well that worked out. Soon enough they were worshipping a golden calf.
Father Eduino says he's getting a lot of complaints about Mass times, and soon he'll have a vote. If 75% vote for a change, he'll change the time. I suspect 7:30 Mass, which Father H. autocratically changed to 7:00 last year, will be back. I think since the 9:00 has been there since at least 1977, it will probably stay. I could tolerate 9:15 or 9:30, but no later.
The more I think about Father H., the more I wonder if the Bishop didn't nudge him to retire early. (He's old enough, but most of the priests hang on, and he wanted our parish so badly you'd think he'd want to stay.) I wonder if his political pronouncements didn't anger a lot more people than just us. Like 0bama, he's further left than his congregation.
I spent the afternoon making pasta sauce. I had to buy an onion and some mushrooms, but the tomatoes and peppers and herbs are homegrown. It simmered all day. Then since I don't seem to have any plastic containers that size any more, I froze it in plastic bags using loaf pans as "brick forms." This batch is a little sweet, but I can always add vinegar when I cook it up.
This is a very odd list going the rounds in Facebook...
Things you have done during your lifetime: ( ) Gone on a blind date. Actually, no, I was stood up. (X) Donated Blood (X) Skipped school (X) Watched someone die. That would be my mother. And found a dead person, too. (X) Been to Canada (X) Been to Mexico (X) Been to Florida (X) Been to Hawaii (X) Been on a plane ( ) Been on a helicopter ( ) Been lost. Only in some classes. "Lost" being we took a wrong turn, yes, but we could find our way back. (X) Gone to Washington, DC (X) Hugged a homeless person. A child. (X) Swam in the ocean ( ) Swam with Stingrays ( ) Been sailing on the ocean (X) Cried yourself to sleep (X) Played cops and robbers. And cowboys and Indians. ( ) Recently colored with crayons ( ) Ran a marathon ( ) Sang Karaoke (X) Volunteered at a soup kitchen ( ) Paid for a meal with coins only (X) Been to the top of the St. Louis Arch (X) Seen the Northern Lights ( ) Been Parasailing ( ) Been on TV (X) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't ( ) Made prank phone calls (X) Been down Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Off-season with the family in the early afternoon. Whooptidoo. ( ) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose (X) Fed an elephant (X) Caught a snowflake on your tongue (X) Fired a gun (X) Danced in the rain ( ) Been to the Opera (X) Written a letter to Santa Claus (X) Serenaded someone (X) Seen a U.S.President in person (X) Been kissed under the mistletoe (X) Watched the sunrise with someone ( ) Driven a race car (X) Been to a National Museum (X) Been to a Wax Museum (X) Eaten caviar (X) Blown bubbles (X) Gone ice-skating (X) Gone to the movies ( ) Been deep sea fishing (X) Driven across the United States (not in one trip, but say LA to New Mexico, New Mexico to Illinois, Illinois to Florida through Washington DC in the course of one year should count. (X) Been in a hot air balloon ( ) Been sky diving ( ) Gone snowmobiling (X) Lived in more than one country (X) Lay down outside at night and admired the stars while listening to the crickets (X) Seen a falling star and made a wish (X) Enjoyed the beauty of Old Faithful Geyser (X) Seen the Grand Canyon (X) Seen the Statue of Liberty (X) Gone to the top of Seattle Space Needle ( ) Been on a cruise (I wish.) (X) Traveled by train ( ) Traveled by motorcycle (X) Been horse back riding (X) Ridden on a San Francisco cable car (X) Been to Disneyland OR Disney World (or both.) (X) Truly believe in the power of prayer (X) Been in a rain forest (X) Seen whales in the ocean (X) Been to Niagara Falls ( ) Ridden on an elephant ( ) Swam with dolphins ( ) Been to the Olympics ( ) Walked on the Great Wall of China (Would like to!) ( ) Saw and heard a glacier calve ( ) Been spinnaker flying ( ) Been water-skiing ( ) Been snow-skiing (X) Been to Westminster Abbey (X) Been to the Louvre ( ) Swam in the Mediterranean (X) Been to a Major League Baseball game (X) Been to a National Football League game ( ) Swam with sharks ( ) Been White Water Rafting. Nope, just lazy rafting down the River. ( ) Written a book or screen play
I would add seen a volcano up close, which would definitely be on my bucket list.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 194.0 miles 90s
117 recordings of 37 types. The month of free Showtime was bad. I took off all the Without a Traces.
Miles
Bike
Cans
Bottles
Lead
Golfballs
Softballs
$
July
43.3
173.7
202
111
16
20
102
$ 7.02
August
261.8
768.8
650
416
112
99
556
$42.32
5 baseballs, whiffle baseball, rubber baseball, silver chain, plastic cheerleader, swimming flipper pendant, pen, 40 beads, leather bracelet, white towel, white face cloth, letter "b" charm, toy wheel, Sony Walkman, two cell phone chargers, Spongebob squarepants figure, small plastic figure speaker, plastic action leg, butterfly barette, dog collar, plastic hook, token, folding chair, "?" action figure, belt clip, two small glass bottles, doll size frisbee, can holder, plastic jumping frog, can of Pepsi, six sockets, driver bit, box of boxcutter blades, four lug nuts, three tire stem caps, allen wrench, ball bearing, drill bit.
For me, 11.6 miles (OUCH!) in July, 4 pounds up (really 2 since I didn't believe the anomalous low weight July 1) with low borderline blood pressure, 30 pages, 3 books, 1 movie, 6 plays, 8 Masses.
We found 21 caches (OUCH!) (total 6347). We're 158th in the world, and 11th locally.
I'm in 856th (out of 26,059 proofers) place in the first proofing round, with 858 pages proofed (10 in July), 12th (out of 2995) in P2 with 23495 pages, (1 last month), 435th of 740 in P3 with 469 (0 added) pages, and formatting 442nd place (2422) with 1020 pages, (0 last month).
And in Flickr stats, there are about 73,028 views of my photostream.
I'm further behind in Flickr and in proofing and I almost caught up with the journal till the 28th, when it went bad. Facebook has a game, Farmville, which has captured my attention. In Netflix, I watched Burn Notice Season 1: Discs 3 and 4, and Season 2; Discs 1,2, and 3, and Red Road.
Today we took Pharoah and went to an event north of Oroville. I met a guy going to Gonzaga, who was at the Bald Rock Trailhead for a different reason (going to be a counsellor at a cancer camp) but who geocaches. After breakfast, we couldn't climb the rock. It was hot, miserable, and we yelled at each other. No fun at all. We found 3 other caches down the road, then went back to Sacramento for the Fair Oaks Harvest Festival. We just made it in time before it closed, and we got some foam water drops.
Tonight we went to Into the Woods. It was great! I especially liked Little Red Riding Hood. The last time I saw this, GoE had just died, and when they got to "Sometimes people leave you, halfway through the woods" I fell apart. This time I could enjoy it more.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 193.4 miles hot
112 recordings of 31 types.
I'm one pound up, but I didn't believe last week's weigh-in anyway. Today the mirror tells me the weight is more accurate. My Blood Pressure is high borderline.
At 0715 I got a call from Travis at the Social Security office. I answered the phone with "NOW what?" Once he established I was the person he was calling, he asked why I said that. Why wouldn't I? And, of course, there's a problem. I turned in the marriage certificate but somehow the file ended up in the wrong place, but here comes Travis to save the day! He just mailed a form to Rich so he could affirm we are still married. And why didn't they take care of this earlier, hmmm? He could have come into the office with me and affirmed it right there, if anyone had actually suggested that. Oh, yes, these are the people I want in charge of my health care!
Cash for Clunkers junked. Now, our new *SUV* is a Ford. AND Edgar will still be driving around, because it's not a clunker. What a stupid program. And these are the people I want in charge of my health care?
Today, because Bernadette had a dental appointment, I was babysitting at her place. Gareth was a bundle of energy. At one point I turned my back for an instant and he opened the gate (which apparently I hadn't shut completely) and was at the front door. Tricky child! He's playing with the puzzle I gave him, especially likes the airplane. I lined up the fabric blocks so they showed a clothesline and told him the name of everything on the line. He giggled. He paused to look, then he bashed the blocks across the room.
Once that was over, Rich and I went to Divine Savior church in Orangevale. They had a huge rummage sale starting today. Lo and behold, there was a baby gate!! Yay! That means I can move the old one that's begun to slip back to be at the kitchen when I need it, and put the new one on the playroom. It fits a little better. I also got some books and toys (more Megablocks) because lord knows, the kid doesn't have enough.
Then we went to see Harry Potter. It's good, but I think it's the weakest movie so far. There was so much more in the book, and of course they couldn't do it all, but it felt sparse. Oh, well.
On Facebook, I discovered my cousin's getting divorced and is on welfare. And some friends from church, their long-hoped-for grandchild, will have Downs syndrome. Mom is all over the place emotionally.
"Teachable Moment." This is a video. SOMEBODY should have learned something.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 193.4 miles hot
112 recordings of 33 types.
We had a visit from the Iranian man who likes our figs. He brought us some of his plums. Huge Santa Rosas. Yum. We also found out that our neighbor the widower had heart bypass surgery recently. He's off the walker now, and looking good. The girl friend was living there helping.
So today I babysat Gareth. I gave him oatmeal and squished plum for breakfast then went to the nearby school park from 8:10 to 8:50. He walks and walks and walks and for a break, he walks. He picks up sticks and I follow behind and pull them out of his hand. He also likes pine needles.
Back at home in the playroom for awhile. He doesn't like it in there, I don't know why. I go in with him and play with him, it's not like he's abandoned in there. Then back into the living room. I gave him an early lunch of Tokyo Tum-Tum and yogurt, and he drank 2 ounces of milk. He sat in my lap for a little while, then I put him into the playpen for a nap. He was tired, but didn't sleep. I changed his diaper at 1:30 and tried some more milk, no way no how. He finally slept. He woke at 3:15 and Mommy came here at 3:35.
I swear I heard him say "bowwowwow" to the dog. He doesn't speak English, he speaks Canine. Here he's checking out Bail Bonds in the phone book. I just hope it's not in preparation for his future!
Rich got a heavily stitched dog toy for Pharoah and he broke into it within an hour. Such a waste!
I got an AARP letter which I sent back in the postage-paid envelope with a note that tells them I'd never belong to a group that was so selfish, sponsoring 0bamacare at the expense of the next generations. Liar! Robert Robinson: "Under Obamulus, AARP stands for Ancient American Roundup Program....it will be easy. We can't move that fast."
Glenn Beck's first suggestion of what to do: "Consult with a spiritual advisor." What if your spiritual advisor is an 0bamabot?
Axis of Evil. On the other hand, says purpleheartpark Jul 24, 2009 1:17:47 PM "In our Country we just take the Mentally Challenged and elect them to Congress."
Congresswoman Matsui Admits to Calling White House About IG Walpin! I sure hope someone runs against her this next year.
Very important but 12-minute video from Bill Whittle.
At Facebook: "Vince Yarnot knows he has forgotten his Sacramento upbringing because he can no longer take 100 degree weather. Here it is called 'Heat wave 2009", back home it was called Tuesday."
We got a card from the graduate, thanking us for the money which he will use, he says, to "further his education." Uh-huh. He'll use it for a video game, I betcha.
I was almost all caught up, but then I started to write the priest thing, and at the same time life has been busy, so I only finished it last night. So now I have about a week's worth to catch up with again. I'll try to do it real soon now.
Durant's Rousseau and Revolution, p. 577 192.8 miles over 104
109 recordings of 28 types.
St. John Vianney was a priest, who had to struggle to attain the priesthood (not the right class, and had trouble studying.) People loved him, went to confession to him, flocked to his church. He's the patron saint of priests. His feast day is August 4, so this is the time for a novena.
I've had some wonderful priests. At St. Laurence O'Toole in Laramie, the priest was Monsignor McDevitt. I was scared of him, though in retrospect I realize he was probably a very sweet man. Those were the days when a Catholic couldn't go to a Protestant church without permission, so I had to go ask whenever the Girl Scouts did something in church and when my high school bacchalaureate was in the Presbyterian church. He always was very nice to it. I thought my sister would want me as a bridesmaid for her wedding and asked permission for that, but then she didn't think I would go at all and I wasn't even invited. (sulk.) Monsignor was unfailingly nice to us.
When he died, we had Father Meyer. He buried my grandfather and was a family friend. He counselled Mom when my cousins gave her trouble, and he was good about writing us. His letters were church bulletin with notes on them.
Father Taylor was the priest at Newman Center, and I got to know him in college. One of the special ones. He had daily Mass, wore cowboy boots with the vestments, took the Newmanites on picnics and to get wood for the winter and on mission trips, and really got the college scene moving. He's the priest who married us and who renewed our vows (all except for the vow bit, actually!) in 2005. He always makes we want to be better than I am.
While I was in college I went on a "Newman Mission" to Montana, to Rocky Boy Indian Reservation, where I met Father Nyquist, who has retired earlier this month. He taught me about prayer, about a "holy hour" which we were supposed to do every day, and about trust in God. I think he's probably the holiest man I've ever met. I did think when he met Mother Theresa that there were two saints in that room.
I went back the next summer to visit and to make a pre-wedding general confession. We've kept in touch, sort of, and he and his dad visited us 30 years ago when Father was going to a post-Vatican II conference. I would really like to see him again, maybe on the 2011 road trip.
After we got married, we got to know Father Stevens in New Mexico. (He wrote for the Catholic Register for awhile and is now in Wyoming.) I had him to dinner, poor man, and served overcooked pork chops. *blush*. We went with him to a Mass at the Mescalero Apache reservation, where some altar boys were getting blessed. Heh. Funny Mass, where I realized God has to love us, we try so hard and make so many mistakes.
The priest in Rantoul kept calling on us to be godparents. I wonder what happened to all these kids? The priest in England mostly wanted us to get him American cigarettes. (The people in the village commune wanted us to buy stuff at the base for them... no thank you.)
In Arkansas we got to know Father Maus. He kept bees. He liked history and was interested in Santorini. And one summer he drove an ambulance to deliver it to California, then spent his vacation in Ensenada. A nice man.
Here our pastor was Father O'Dea. We got along right away with the Leprechaun. He was known for "hospitality." At one of the parish fundraisers he was dealing blackjack... with a pinochle deck. Heh. I had to sweet talk him for a Girl Scout Mass because I wanted the altar servers to be girls. It took some doing, but then the next year he pretty well thought it was his idea. I was teaching CCD and helping with the children's dismissal, as well as, later, helping with the Baptism program, and he paid for conferences and such because any education I got would help the parish. He always seemed to think I was doing better with my Mom than I thought I was. We were heartbroken when he died.
Then we had Monsignor Nolan. Father H. had been the parochial vicar, which is the current term for the assistant priests, and he thought he should get the parish, and he threw a huge tantrum about it. He'd done a lot for the church, improved the liturgy, took the eighth grade to San Francisco, took the youth group camping (I was along for those), hiked at Angel Island. A lot of people were disappointed that he wasn't the pastor, and I suppose they were happy when he was recently back. After he left, I visited him a couple of times, in Berkeley and Vallejo, and saw him a few times around town. My disappointments I've pretty well written up. I definitely preferred him 25 years ago. (I still *like* the man, but not as my parish priest!)
Anyway, Monsignor, whom I knew from one of the conferences, started off cold. He wasn't very friendly and at one point at a party he said something mean to Rich, and I told him I didn't like it. (I've told two priests off: Father H. for his tantrum and Monsignor for this.) Shortly after that he began to warm up and be friendlier, not just to us, to every one. I often thought he might have stopped drinking around then sometime. (Just a thought, I don't know that he had a problem or that he didn't drink any more.) He was there 15 years and we grew to like him very much.
For associates, we had Fathers Tom and Tim and Phil and Leon and Terry and Brian and Father Egege. (I enjoyed him. He's from Africa and his sermons were from that tradition. If he'd stayed much longer we'd have been saying "hallelujah" and dancing in the aisles, I'm sure.)
After Monsignor retired, we had Monsignor Church. I didn't know him well. He talks like Captain Kirk, and I think he's shy. In any case, while he'd wanted the parish, he also wanted out. The diocese came by to see what we'd want in a pastor. Everyone wanted him to be supportive of Sharing God's Bounty, and to be friendly to the children. So we got Father Hannan. Again, I knew him from before, from Marriage Encounter. He's a very nice man but a micromanager, and he pissed everyone off. When he retired we got Father Pastor. I love him, but someone in Oregon doesn't. I don't believe the allegations for a number of reasons. Then came Father H. He was only here three years. He got to be the official pastor last year and then announced his retirement this year. Did he jump or was he pushed? The parish is more conservative than he is, mostly, and he is very autocratic. I suspect the Bishop got complaints about his 0bama-love, too.
So now we have Father Eduino. So far so good.
At the other parishes, Father Half-pastor, Father Andreij, and Father David are some I've gotten to know a little.
God bless them all. I've never had a bad priest, maybe ones who aren't as good, but not bad, because I don't believe the allegations about Father Pastor.
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