It's Caturday!

Maybe so, but one can't help but wonder...

More later.
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Richard III Dig: Discuss Cities Claim to Bones

Richard III, causing trouble after 500 years!  And it isn't even his fault.  Then again...From the BBC:

A parliamentary debate has been held on where a skeleton that could be that of Richard III should be interred.

The bones were found in September by archaeologists digging beneath a car park in Leicester.
MPs from Leicester, Nottinghamshire and York discussed a permanent grave but officials said precedent meant Leicester cathedral was favourite.
DNA results on the bones are being compared to that of living descendants of the king, who was killed in 1485.
Richard died at the hands of forces of Henry Tudor near Market Bosworth, Leicestershire.

"To argue on the floor of [parliament] over these mortal remains is more like medieval cathedrals fighting over saints' relics” Hugh Bayley York Central MP

His grave, in the church of Greyfriars in Leicester, was lost during centuries of redevelopment.

However, the archaeologists from Leicester university have found a skeleton, which is consistent with the known details of his appearance and death.
Campaigners from both York and Leicester have said the remains, should they prove to be the king, ought to come to them.
In the debate, Labour MP John Mann, from Bassetlaw in Nottinghamshire offered Worksop as a halfway point between the two.
But Labour's Jon Ashworth, who represents Leicester South, said: "Given it was the Greyfriars who took the body of Richard and buried him at what was then the Greyfriars' church, a site which is today just a stone's throw from Leicester Cathedral, and he has been in Leicester for 500 years, it would be most appropriate that he is finally laid to rest at Leicester Cathedral."

'Nearest cathedral' York Central MP, Hugh Bayley, also from Labour said: "He is still very well-regarded in York. We have a museum to Richard III, we respect him enormously.
"But to argue on the floor of this place over his mortal remains is more like medieval cathedrals fighting over saints' relics.
"I don't think it's appropriate."
Tory MP Tony Baldry, answering questions for the Church Commissioners, admitted: "There is quite a lot of competition for this.
"If there is conclusive evidence that these are the remains of Richard III, the tradition is that they would be buried and reinterred at the nearest Christian cathedral, which happens to be Leicester Cathedral.
"In those circumstances, I would hope to arrange a meeting with the Dean of Leicester to see how that could happen."
But he emphasised no final decision had been taken.

 This news coming shortly after viewing the history of Britain, Scotland & Ireland is quite an interesting turn of events, I must say. Fascinated and Appalled at the same time.

And so it goes.
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Game On: Marriage Equality in the South

Great video.  Comin' at you in January 2013.  Make it happen.


We're not going back. The world only spins forward.  This is the future.  Deal with it.

And so it goes.
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Holiday Moods 1: Eartha & Friends

Thought I'd try to jump-start my holiday with a little music video or two. So, turn up the volume for this ultra-camp classic.



Yes, those are drag queans in the cutaways. Eartha always loved her fabulous gay fans.

And so it goes.
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A Very Spo Meme

Spo, (the dear) offered up the following meme and since for some reason, I cannot leave a comment at his site - something about my password being incorrect - I thought I'd post my answers here, instead.  Here goes:

An evening with friends …… is jolly good fun !  (fill in the blank)
Tea, wine, or champagne?  - All three, plus a good Gin.
How left handed are you? - so much so that I have trouble securing cufflink to the left sleeve.
The loudest item of clothing I have …………. my very own Spo shirt.  Butterflies!
The Best Friend: who is s/he? - No one anymore.
I’d rather eat rats in Tewkesbury than…… Lima Beans or Okra in New Orleans

How many of these have you done?:

1. Been to an opera - Yes. A few times at the NY Met.

2. Read a novel by Dickens - Yes, quite a few.

3. Drank Bourbon - Yes. Maker's Mark & Wild Turkey. No rubbish!

4. Been to Key West - No, but would love to visit someday.

5. Visited The Stratford Festival of Canada - No.

6. Spiders give you the heebie-jeebies. - Yes.  And many insects, too.

7. Been to Michigan - Yes.  Once. Many years ago.

8. Rolled down a grass hill. - Yes. Well, not a hill exactly, it was a levee on the Mississippi River. Again, many years ago.

9. Ate Synder Pretzels - Yes. They're the Best!

10. Used the word ‘rubbish” in the past 30 days. - Yes.  I use "rubbish" in polite company in place of "bullsh*t" which is my fave.

11. Worn a bow tie - Yes.  Only with my tuxedo, though.

12. Have a set of Viking horns - No.  Sadly, no.

Well, there you have it. Now you know more trivial bullsh*t about me.

And so it goes.
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6 Million Pounds Of Explosive Material Found

What the Hell do they mean "FOUND"? How could 6M tons not be hiding in plain sight?  It boggles the mind.  From the AP:

DOYLINE, La. (AP) — Weather could complicate the transfer of roughly 6 million pounds of explosives that were haphazardly stored at an industrial site in northwestern Louisiana and led to the evacuation of a small town, a state police spokeswoman said Monday.
If lightning is spotted within five miles of the site, authorities will suspend efforts that began on Saturday to move the artillery propellant, Lt. Julie Lewis said.
Light rain fell at midday in the vicinity of the site near the town of Doyline. No lightning was expected Monday, but thunderstorms were forecast for Tuesday.
Officials estimate that more than half of Doyline's 800 residents heeded police advice to evacuate in advance of the cleanup at the Explo Systems Inc. site. Col. Mike Edmondson, commander of Louisiana State Police, said the material is stable and would need an ignition source to explode. The precautions were taken because officials fear that any spark could set off a huge explosion of the material, which they said was stored improperly in a relatively small area.
One of several residents who relocated to a nearby state park expressed exasperation at the sheer volume of explosive material, which is more than authorities initially estimated.
"We got outside the evacuation area when they said there was a million pounds. Now it's six million," said Frank Peetz, 71, who was staying with his wife in a camper. "Maybe we ought to be up in Arkansas somewhere."
Edmondson was hesitant to estimate when it would be safe for Doyline residents to return home. He also said state police weren't sure how much damage an explosion of the material could cause, even after consulting with Department of Defense officials.

At least they eventually evacuated the town.  The rest is here

Northwestern Louisiana is not a hotbed of intelligence, to say the least. They voted for Willard last month.

And so it goes.
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It's Always Something...

Ain't that the truth, huh!

A long and tiring day yesterday, so I pretty much slipped out of the work drag and into a martini hoping the headache that came on about an hour before my shift ended, would take a hike and leave me in peace.  It was not to be.

Had another stellar dinner of left-overs, washed down with another martini, and sat down to peruse email and check out a few blogs. My eyes wouldn't stay open, so I turned everything off and went to bed.

After brushing teeth and making a coffee this morning, I turned on the PC and - - - no image on the monitor. The light was on, but the screen was dead. Following the usual procedures (dance of the seven veils) I concluded the poor old thing had bought the farm.

So, before work I scurried up to Staples to see what was on their new weekly flyer and what might be in stock.  Raced back to work to check out the holiday offerings and which would be good for a prime customer this week.  Many of the new monitor descriptions left me befuddled, so I asked a few tech-geeks at work to help me out - and they did.

Anyway, after work I shot up to Staples once again and purchased a 22" LED monitor; a special purchase, the ad said, and brought it home. The cost was $89.00.  The image above is a shot of the monitor I purchased.  Click to embiggen.

There was no paper instruction manual in the box - it is all on the accompanying CD - which I could not view since the old monitor was dead.

I did what I thought was right to get connected, hoped the existing video card was capable of handling the new screen, plugged everything in and turned on the PC.  It booted and the monitor worked OK, if a bit contrasty.  I inserted the CD and magical things began happening.  I opened the PDF file of the owner's manual and figured out how to change the contrast and luminescence.  So far all is well.

Although the monitor is equipped for HD using a DVI cable, my current PC has no DVI input, so the analog will have to do.  The image quality is incredible. The old 8-year-old monitor can't hold a candle to this baby.  Of course, when I bought that one, it was state of the art, too.

Now however, having crawled around unplugging and plugging all the cables my back is in bad shape. I am ready for a few olives and a bite to eat now.

Shower and bed are next on the list as tomorrow is another day...fiddle-de-dee.

And so it goes.
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World AIDS Day: Never Forget

So many friends.
And so it goes.
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Catechism Caturday

I think I'll skip this lesson.  It's been a very hectic week, but I'll post later today, if I can.

And so it goes.

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An Immersion of Historic Proportions

Putting it mildly...

Always a lover of history, I've been enthralled by watching the many BBC documentary series', including "A History of Britain" - "A History of Scotland" - and well, can't you guess, "A History of Ireland". These are all available at You Tube in their entirety. Of course, religion played a big part in all the wars, intrigues, manipulations, and fear-mongering.  So, what else is new?

At the suggestion of my wee Irish GM, I've also watched another BBC series titled "The Coast" presented by archaeologist, Neil Oliver. Breathtaking images of the coast of the British Isles with powerful snippets of history thrown in at various points along the journey.  Great fun to watch.

During all this time I have been captivated by "Tempest at Dawn" by James Best; a novel of the probable events leading to the American Constitutional Convention.  The book brings our founders to life with great writing, historic accuracy and amazing wit. What has amazed me most is how entangled these varied histories are on many levels. Yes, including America.
An overview of Tempest at Dawn:

The United States is on the brink of total collapse. The military has been reduced to near extinction, economic turmoil saps hope, and anarchy threatens as world powers hover like vultures, eager to devour the remains. In a desperate move, a few powerful men call a secret meeting to plot the overthrow of the government. Fifty-five men came to Philadelphia in May of 1787 with a congressional charter to revise the Articles of Confederation. Instead they founded the longest lasting republic in world history. "Tempest at Dawn" tells their story.

Here is a bit of a review of Tempest at Dawn:

Author James Best tackled a massive project when he undertook the writing of this book, which took 5 years to complete.  Tempest at Dawn is a novel about the events surrounding the Constitutional Convention.  While there is no particular mystery, sex, violence, or suspense, the book has plenty of tension.  Best takes characters that textbooks render as flat or one dimensional, and makes them multifaceted human beings.  The fictional vignettes in his story are wrapped around actual compromises and the horse trading that was constant between the delegates. He does not distort history and his surmises about the roles of the participants are entirely plausible and in fact likely.

Readers will find that Tempest at Dawn “matures” as it progresses, and so does the caliber of the writing. Within the first 50 pages the dialog becomes more and more sophisticated. The reader is alternately smiling, laughing or saddened by the poignancy that Best introduces into the telling.  He is especially successful in his portrayal of a realistic and very believable Washington who, Best contends, was the behind-the- scenes puppet master at the Convention.

Best is subtle about including facts throughout the story, successfully weaving in actual quotes, first hand accounts and observations of those who lived through this period. The author has done his research and any reader of history will appreciate these nice touches.  In one scene, Washington is attending a play and leaves his box to get refreshments. The stage manager waits until Washington returns to his seat before resuming the play, a courtesy not extended to just anyone. This vignette provides an example of how the patronage of this hero of the Revolution was sought.  Washington fans will also appreciate a horse race scene in which Washington triumphs, and another in which he visits a carriage maker.  All of these episodes provide insight into Washington’s character.  Best knows his history, but he doesn’t bludgeon the reader with a clumsy display of erudition.

Even though Washington is a key figure in the Convention and the book, he is sparingly used in Best’s tale.  Madison, however, is a pivotal character both in the actual Constitutional Convention and in Best’s story.  The reader gets a sense of a man driven by patriotism to build a “perfect” republic based on the leadership of an enlightened elite.  As the story progresses, he is forced by the stolid Roger Sherman to compromise some of his rigid beliefs and finally comes to realize the validity of the opposition’s argument. As the convention nears its conclusion, former combatants work together to bring their constituents into the fold with a series of machinations that would make Machiavelli proud.

The events of recent years in American Politics and the recent elections bring to mind that "everything old is new again" - "been there, done that, have all the tee-shirts", and then some.

And so it goes.
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Beyond Sea Witch, Sandy, and...I forget

We're at the end of the Thanksgiving holiday, and I just realized that I forgot to post photos from Sea Witch/Halloween weekend. In fact, I don't think I would have remembered Sea Witch at all if not for a customer today, asking about our costumes this year.

OK, that weekend and the weeks following were distracting thanks to Hurricane Sandy (remember Sandy?) followed a week later by a nasty nor'easter that battered our shore far worse than Sandy.  Then suddenly we were gearing up for Turkey weekend and all but out of breath.

Needless to say Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and today were big winners at the restaurant. Records were broken all three days and it isn't over yet. Of course, we're all pretty tired, but it's been great fun for our regular customers, as well as ourselves. After tomorrow, we're looking forward to a brief 10-day lull where we collectively catch our breath as we prepare for Chanukah, Christmas, and the New Year.

All that said, the images will be downloaded from the camera and posted within a few days.

Meanwhile, I smell olives.  Yes, there are priorities!

And so it goes.
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Cyber-Shopping Caturday

Sure beats the Black Friday hordes!  Plus FREE Shipping!!!

And so it goes.
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