FDL: Mutts Against Mitt

Kobe is a standard poodle and one of Jane Hamsher's children. Kobe has some interesting observations about, well, the dog stories and the selective attention of our media when it comes to candidates vs. sports figures. Part of Kobe's rant:

Okay let’s just get this out of the way up front. Nobody has peed on more bushes, sniffed more dog butt or chased more squirrels than me hollering “screw Michael Vick.” I don’t get the guy. Who gets off watching dogs tear each other apart, and then hangs them if they underperform? He’s got some serious problems.

But in light of the NAACP’s call today that after Michael Vick has paid his debt he ought to be allowed to return to football, I thought I would add my two cents. And I think the whole thing needs to be put in context.

Michael Vick is a football player. Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani are running for President. Mitt Romney blithely tortured his dog by tying it to the top of his car for 12 hours until it defecated down the back window under the stress, then thought of himself as a real smart feller because he grabbed a hose and washed it off. That particular incident of cruelty and callousness towards animals barely even charted with Our Elite Media.

Kobe nails it. Read it all here.
More later.
*

That Reader Survey

I find this hard to believe. By the results, one has to wonder how the five bookstores in my small town remain open. In the past year I haven't read as many books as in the previous year, but crisis, both health and life, were the culprits. I have read two of the three books I assigned myself for the summer and I've almost finished the third. I'm reading this one slowly, savoring every page.

And I wonder what "religious" books they're talking about here...would they be the wingnut "Left Behind" series, or the serious theological thought from the likes of Carter Hayward or Matthew Fox? I'm just sayin'.

AP: One in four adults say they read no books at all in the past year, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Tuesday. Of those who did read, women and seniors were most avid, and religious works and popular fiction were the top choices.

The survey reveals a nation whose book readers, on the whole, can hardly be called ravenous. The typical person claimed to have read four books in the last year -- half read more and half read fewer. Excluding those who hadn't read any, the usual number read was seven.

Read the whole thing here.
More later.
*

Former Friends - a Previous Life.

Off work today and had to run a few errands around town, including Laundromat, Home Depot, Supermarket, and post office and I wanted to get it all done before the beach-goers clogged the roadways in all directions. So, I left at 7:30.

No one was mad enough to be doing their laundry at 8 am on a Monday and I got to read one of the three books I’ve assigned myself for the summer for the two hours it took to wash, dry and fold my clothes.

While strolling the aisles of Home Depot I saw a person who was a “friend” in my previous life who, when he saw me, turned on his heels and bolted in the opposite direction. Hmmm. Odd.

At the supermarket, I almost literally ran into a couple of gals who used to pal around with my X and me. We had known them for about seven years. They said “hello” and made a giant sucking sound as they continued right passed me without making small talk, or asking how things were going. I thought about starting a conversation, but intuition said they wanted no part of me now.

A similar incident occurred in the drug store with two guys we had known socially from parties and fundraisers.

However, at the post office the person who recognized me waited as I exited the car to give me a hug and ask how life was going these days. I had known her from my previous church and she wanted to know where I was worshipping now. I told her and we had a nice chat before we had to go our separate ways. She gave me another hug as we parted. She headed for the boardwalk to meet a friend, and I did my thing at the post office and went on my way.

Driving back I thought about these incidents. I wondered why 3 of the 4 encounters were negative, distant, and even unfriendly. That’s 75%!!! Are these people simply uncomfortable because of the break up? Are they unwilling to be friends now that I am single? Am I now persona non grata? Stranger things have happened and people can be very bizarre and irrational in their thinking.

Interestingly, I suppose it takes a life-changing event to find out who really are your friends. It’s sad, really, but that’s where it is.

More later.

*

Who Won the ABC Debate?

Oh. My. God. Could this be true? While I love the results, could this be just a blip, or are folks finally "getting it?" Having watched a tape of the LOGO/HRC forum last week I thought that Kucinich did better than the others.

I wonder what this will mean for him financially, and if these results will generate more volunteers for his campaign. One can only hope.

More later.
*

Solutions

I saw this yesterday in the comments section of one of the NOLA blogs:

Solutions .......

Everyone concentrates on the problems we're having in this country lately; illegal immigration, hurricane recovery, wild animals attacking humans in Florida. Not me. I concentrate on solutions for the problems.

The result is a win-win-win situation.

Such as:

~ Dig a moat the length of the Mexican border.
~ Send the dirt to New Orleans to raise the level of the levees.
~ Put the Florida alligators in the moat along the Mexican border.


Are there any other problems you would like for me to solve today?

More later.
*

Summer Storms

Friday morning at about 3 am, I had a wake up call from Mother Nature herself. She didn't arrive at that hour to tuck me in, but to throw me out of bed. Thunderstorms hit the area with great force; enough to shake one out of bed, rattle windows and force one to sit up and take notice.

The lightening was intense and almost strobe-like at times and the rain was swept by the wind in waves. I couldn’t sleep and as the house shook decided to put on clothes and prepare for the possibility of having to evacuate the area.

Remember, I live on the marshes – wetlands – that can flood and retreat in the natural cycle, but this was no natural cycle. These were potentially destructive storms. They had moved through Virginia earlier in the night flooding areas and knocking out power as they moved through.

I was afraid but I noted the beauty and majesty of the lightening and thunder and that we have little power to fend them off. I watched the spectacle through my large window as if it was a film shot in Cinerama with a broad picture and sound coming from seemingly everywhere. I stood there mesmerized. It was all over by the time I left for work.

Yesterday I learned that there were more than 20, 000 lightening strikes locally associated with the storms. Power was out for many residents, and the roadways were partially closed to morning travelers due to downed power lines. Amazing.

More later.

*

Katrina Ice Being Melted

Finally! Been hearing about this for the past week. Heck-of-a job, Brownie.

Thousands of pounds of ice originally sent to hurricane Katrina relief efforts are being melted after being stored in Gloucester for two years.

A federal emergency management agency spokeswoman told the Gloucester daily times that the ice held at Americold Logistics and at 22 similar facilities nationwide is being melted to dispose of it for health reasons. The cost of storing the ice at all the facilities since Katrina is $12.5 million. - boston.com

Accountability and Exploding Heads

I've been given the royal finger. Oh, but not from someone on high, but someone really low. Small, in fact, very small. Let me explain...

On Saturday, June 23^rd at 5:30 a.m. I left my rented room to help my (then) landlord set up for a community yard sale. Something he had been looking forward to for months.

When I reached the garage and asked what I could do to help set up he began hyperventilating and said, “I don’t know how to put this, but…” and then proceeded to rip me a new one saying that I had betrayed some confidentiality and ordered me to vacate the premises as soon as possible. So much for integrity and the gentlemen’s agreement to allow 30 days if things didn’t work out.

First thing that bothered me was that “one of his friends” read something on this blog, and while too rattled to process that info at the time, later I asked myself if I knew any of his friends, if any of them knew about this blog, and why they would be so inclined. NO, was the answer. Why would any of his friends read an anonymous blog about a subject in which they had no vested interest?

And then, at least for me, it all fell into place. I won’t dignify the troll with an identity, but this one lurks everywhere, and I know, still on this blog. Whatever the reason, it is an unhealthy one. But, that’s what this troll is all about.

Anyway.

On July 2 this note was taped to my monitor:

“W,
please be all moved out by July 15^th and I will leave a check for the remainder of the month’s rent.

I wish you well.

Take care, Thank you,”

“I wish you well”??? – “Take Care”???

You decipher that part. I haven’t the energy nor will to do so. My first impression was – you wish no such thing. You can’t make this up and I still have the original paper note, so don’t call me on this, or I will scan it and send it to you.

You know, I actually believed him. In fact, my things were out by July 12^th and, while he was at the house when I left the key and a forwarding address, he cowered behind his closed bedroom door and didn’t want to face me or produce a check; and as of this date I haven’t received one by mail, nor an explanation as to why it has not been forthcoming.

Is he acting (reacting?) like a spiteful 16 year-old girl? I think that’s part of it. He did remain true to his promise, when during the head-exploding incident he said he would never speak to me or look at me again. Not. One. Word. And that was quite bizarre to live through. Creepy, even. There is a pattern of behavior, and I’m just sayin’.

I won’t dignify his pettiness with a phone call, since he doesn’t answer his phone and never responded to, nor answered voicemail questions regarding any issue I addressed. I felt bad for him and sorry that he got into such a difficult and precarious situation, but you see, that’s just it…and it took me a while to admit this to myself…HE got HIMSELF into his current situation, through poor choices, or bad planning and there is no one else to blame.

Whether I see the money again or not, as a friend’s grandmother used to say; “it’s on his soul.”

More Later.

*

Two Years, and Counting...

Our National Shame Continues. This from BagNewsNotes:

I'm all alone -- down here in this depression. I can only imagine (and now, can't stop obsessing about) what's coming from the other side. It's blue, but maybe it's starting to cloud over. Is it? Or are my eyes playing tricks on me?

And while I'm waiting, waiting for the catastrophe, I'm thinking just how pathetic this is. Pathetic. Pathetic. How often do you see that on a news cover?

They ransacked the landscape and killed the coast. And now we are going to pay -- again. Interesting, there is not a New Orleanian in sight, but put this picture in front of me, stick me way down here, and suddenly I'm feeling like one. I've got to get up. I've got to get over that wall and get some handle on the issue.

(image: Kadir Van Lohuizen. TIME. August 13, 2007)

FEMA $$ for MS, but not LA

Marine debris removed with FEMA money in Mississippi, but not in Louisiana. Two years on and this is still a major issue, at least to some. I guess FEMA money is available for states with Republican Governors, not so much for those with a Democrat in the governor's mansion.

From the Times Picayune:

At the eastern edge of Lake Pontchartrain, a half-mile out from Chef Menteur Highway, a half-dozen white buoys mark an unseen hazard resting on the mud bottom.

It's a pickup truck, fishers say, catapulted into the lake by Hurricane Katrina's 15-foot surges. The mast of a 42-foot sailboat pokes out of the murky waters a mile away. A marooned shrimp trawler, rusted and covered in barnacles, rises from the 30-foot-deep Chef Pass channel.

Nearly two years after Katrina and Hurricane Rita, scattered bits of houses, boats, cars and appliances still lurk in the marshes and lakes of coastal Louisiana.

With state officials and FEMA still haggling over reimbursement for the cleanup, no comprehensive program is in place to remove the underwater debris. Meanwhile, since last fall, crews in Mississippi have been using FEMA money to pick up marine debris and are set to finish the project by the end of the year.

Enbelievable. Read the whole thing HERE

More later.
*

Collectors: Another “AHA!” Moment.

Walking back to the car the other evening I felt the warmth of the huge orange sun on my neck as it was setting slowly in the western sky. Although it is a warm night the heat of the sun felt strangely welcome and I felt alive as I have not in a long time.

I played volunteer bartender for a preview evening of the upcoming Antiques Show and Sale and it was quite a party. The huge crowd consumed catered foods from various restaurants in town and top-shelf booze in copious amounts. They sure kept us bar folks hopping. Antiques lovers can really knock back the gin, vodka, and scotch, not to mention white wine.

There were more gay folks there than you could count and yes, even quite a few lesbians. Collectors all.

It was interesting – as I am in the process of pondering the future my “collection of things” - to observe the items on display and how they were coveted and drooled over by collectors. A few years ago, I would have been one of them. Not anymore. While beautiful, curious, and interesting, I prefer to enjoy them in someone else’s home. The evening proved to be another one of the many “aha!” moments I’ve experienced in the past few weeks.

A very good feeling.

It is rumored that I will have phone service this weekend. We’ll see. I’ll believe it when I hear a dial tone.

More later.

*

Update:Same Old, Same Old!

Still no phone at home, so no way to get online there. I spent another 2 hours with the phone company customer service, repair, and billing departments yesterday. The line was suppose to be opened by Verizon by yesterday, at least that's what they claimed. So, I took a phone out to the box and connected it to see if there was indeed a live line outside that only needed to be run into the building. Nothing. Dead!

So, I will spend another hour or more on the phone with the damned company again today. Just what I need on a Friday. Three weeks of dealing with their mistakes, attitude, and stupidity is really getting old.

ALSO, To those of you who have asked; No, I have not yet received the half month's rent check promised by my previous landlord when I moved out by the 15th of July. (Actually, I was out by the 12th, but no matter.) More on this subject when I get connected again.

More later.
*
Update on the Update: Spent another two hours on the phone with the crazies and after copious amounts of stupid was offered in the way of excuses the clod had the nerve to ask if I would like to upgrade to DSL. I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes. I asked if he was kidding. They haven't been able to supply simple telephone service in over three weeks and they think I would give them another order for an additional service? Unfortunately, he was completely serious. These people couldn't locate their ass with two hands and a map of directions. Jebus!
You just can't make this stuff up.
*