Res Ipsa Loquitur

Friday Kitty Tales

Talked to my daughter earlier, and the tiny kitten former known as Mr. Kitty is fully recovered from his tummy troubles and is feeling fine. So fine that she's now named him "Jack-Jack"....she said because that's what he is. A Jack-Jack. Which I took to mean that he's a very lively little guy. At any rate, he's happy in his new home and doing very well. A happy ending.

In other kitty news, the heat is bothering our old cat this summer, so I've been making her stay inside. She is not happy about this. At all. The bitch unplugged my laptop yesterday when I wouldn't let her out. Which of course I didn't notice until the battery went dead.

And she did it again this afternoon. I know it was her because she was all up in my face complaining, and walking around the laptop trying to make me get up & open the door for her. I got up alright, I went into the living room & started watching tv. But I saw her giving me that look before she left. Later, I came back to look up something online and my laptop was unplugged and dead. Again.

This means war, of course.

Here We Go

I don't really have much of a dog in this fight, but....you know how I hate bullshit.*** A bit of background first. See, there's supposedly a Sam's Club that will be built on the outskirts of Fayetteville. They applied for a liquor license, which was denied. They may or may not appeal the denial. The local liquor store owners, as you might imagine, opposed the license.

Area liquor store owners said allowing Sam’s Club to sell alcohol could destroy their businesses.

Britt said he and other storeowners fear that Sam’s selling alcohol would be the start of a domino effect, where other businesses, including convenience stores, would also eventually be allowed to sell liquor.

I hate to break it to those boys, but the ABC board bases its decision on several factors. One is the population formula which calculates how many licenses an area can have. Another is any special considerations, like is the location too close to a school, church, etc. What really isn't a factor is whether the current license holders don't want any competition.

STANDARD DISCLAIMER: These are opinions based on my experience as a liquor store owner, not as an attorney. They are not, and should not be construed as a legal opinion.

Now let's look at their second claim, convenience stores selling alcohol. First, that's pretty funny since there's a convenience store AND a liquor store which share a parking lot just right up the street from the proposed Sam's location. Second, there's no reason why a convenience store couldn't sell alcohol now, if they wanted to pony up the money to meet ABC requirements to do so. A Sam's would actually make it less likely they would do so, because the competition would lower everyone's profit margins.

And that's what this is really all about. It's all about the Benjamins. The local stores have had a pretty sweet deal, a captive market you might say. And they don't want anyone spoiling it....especially the sales to private clubs, which is where the real money is.

So it's not about protecting the community or the small business owner. It's about protecting the little monopoly they've got here. And that little monopoly is why prices are so high here. (Why, I damn near had a heart attack the first time I bought some wine up here. We bought from the same distributors, you see. And I knew what that little bottle of wine actually cost.)

Bringing in a little competition would be good.

I don't particularly care one way or another if this gets built, since we're trying to move the hell away from Fayetteville.

Maybe Not So Jihadi

More details about the basis of the charges against Arwah J. Jaber came out in yesterday's hearing. Mr. Jaber's defense is that he wasn't serious about his statements, but rather was frustrated that he still wasn't going to be allowed to graduate from his doctoral program.

Jaber apparently believed Wilkins was intentionally keeping him from graduating because Jaber maintained high-tech lab equipment and performed integral research for Wilkins. Jaber was entering his sixth year in a program that should have taken three, Dawn Jaber said. He was also stressed by trying to defend his doctoral dissertation, she said.

Jaber had a teaching job lined up at American University in Kuwait, which would pay more if he completed the degree program, Dawn Jaber said. He was feeling better about the situation because he had talked with Collis Geren, dean of the UA graduate school, and had been assured that he could take the job and still complete his remaining work, she said.

Judge Jones has ordered him released into his wife's custody, pending the results of a mental evaluation. She cited the weak evidence against him as the basis for her ruling.

More details at the link.

Silly, Amazing and Downright Dumb

---I admit, in moments of desperation, threatening to do this to my kids.....until I figured out the little bastards thought it would be fun. Notice it says she "untied the rope holding the door shut and let them out." Somehow that doesn't surprise me.

--I've yet to see a fence that can keep Sassy in, but I don't think she could top this.

--Now that's taking Red v. Blue a bit too far.

--Did something get lost in translation here or what?

Why yes, I am rilly, rilly bored.

How could you tell?

Excellent Idea

Tigerhawk has an excellent idea:

Whatever the reason in the particular case, in a time of war an all-volunteer military is not going to get the manpower it needs from slick advertising or recruiters who could sell ice cubes to Eskimos (although both are necessary). Our political leaders need to lead, and in this case that means they need to persuade Americans that the military is an honorable calling that performs an essential function. Politicians on both sides claim they "support the troops." Well, just about the most important thing they can do to support the troops is to recruit new ones.

President Bush needs to get out in front of this effort, and then every Congressman and Senator should follow. His speech yesterday was a great start. He now needs to repeat this effort in every stump speech he makes, at every breakfast he addresses, and at every press conference he hosts. He needs to go into high schools and meet with recruits and put them on the evening news. And he needs to demand that members of his cabinet and the Congress do as well. You either believe in the volunteer army, or you don't. You either support the troops, or you don't.

I think this is an excellent idea we can all get behind. If you agree, help spread the word.

Someone needs to come up with a catchy slogan.

Local Importance

I'm so glad that the vicious Fayetteville/TGIF sign dispute appears to be settled so we can focus on more important things.

Residents of the Boardwalk subdivision off Crossover Road woke up this morning to the sights and sounds of chain saws and wood chippers. It was a rude awakening. "My husband had gone for a run and came back at 7:30 and said they`re chopping the trees down," said Kim Petrone. "You had oaks, maples, and pears just lining Crossover giving us a barrier for noise pollution, just the aesthetics of the neighborhood it was gorgeous, now its gone," added K.C. Pummill.

Oh no! SWEPCO's clearing the power lines again!

You bastards!

New and Improved

The revised WTC site design has been released this morning. A definite improvement but what's with the world's largest hypodermic on the top?

So Very Sad

Edloe, everyone's favorite Grumpus cat, has passed away.

She will be greatly missed by us all.

Best Evidence

I've been mildly following the Scrushy trial, since it's the first prosecution under Sarbanes-Oxley. I was a little surprised by the not-guilty verdict yesterday, as everything I'd read seemed to indicate the prosecutors had mountains of evidence. I've seen all kinds of explainations this morning for the verdict....everything from race to hometown advantage to the juror boredom factor. The latter is certainly a problem in any trial of this type. Testimony of financial experts about tons of documents isn't terribly exciting to anyone after a few days.

But the key to verdict, I think, is this:

Prosecutors were unable to provide any direct evidence linking Mr. Scrushy to the fraud. "One of the lessons to draw from cases like this is that corroboration in the form of documents, e-mails, tape recordings, is essential to the government's case," said Jason Brown, a former federal prosecutor now at Holland & Knight.

Like duh. You've a well-known, well-liked defendant on trial in his hometown, whose defense was his subordinates concealed their fraud from him, and you've little or no direct evidence disproving his claim? And you think you'll get a conviction? Not in the real world.

Now arguably, a CEO is responsible for knowing what is going on in his or her company. That's why he gets paid the big bucks. But the average juror also knows that fraud can be concealed from those who are supposed to know. Add to that mix a sympathetic defendant, no direct evidence of his wrongdoing, and the result is a case that's virtually unwinnable.

We in the legal profession have a fancy name for cases like that.

A 'real dog'.

Proud To Serve

I've been thinking a lot lately about the Goddess' post & commenter Brenda. Go read that first. I'll wait.

As most of you know, my son's a Navy medic. I'm very proud of him, and of his service to our country. So when I read ignorant remarks such as Brenda's "I will bet these people that say we belong over there, their children are not in the service" I can answer with some authority.

Brenda, you whining ingrate. Stuff a sock in it.

First, there's the issue of people who want all the benefits & advantages the military offers, but don't want the responsibilites & risks that accompany those benefits. That really pisses me off. This isn't some freebie government welfare handout. The military actually expects you to do the job for which they've trained you. What a concept....though apparently one that's hard to grasp for those who think the world owes them a living. Guess what? It doesn't owe you jack. You get paid to do a job, you should do your damn job. Even the parts you don't like. That's what responsible grown-ups do.

Second, while I don't think the military is for everyone, for many kids it's the opportunity of a lifetime. For poor or otherwise disadvantaged kids, it's an opportunity to better their lives. For ADHD kids like my son, it's one of the few professions which offer him the structure & discipline that he needs to achieve his full potential. So not only did I encourage him to join, I hope he stays in.

Do I worry about the risk of his being killed? Of course I do. But life's a risky business. Any parent who doesn't understand that each & every time your child walks out your door you may never see him again is either self-delusional or not much of a parent. Your child can be injured or killed anytime, any place. The military has no monopoly on that. You can't keep them completely safe ever. And at some point, you gotta wean 'em from the teat so they can live their own lives as a productive adult.

Then there's the issue of duty. As my son & I discussed before he signed up, this is an opportunity for him to repay a country that's given so much to him and his family. While our country is certainly not perfect, it's a helluva lot better than others I've seen. We've freedoms here that others can only dream of. And those freedoms have a cost, just like everything else.

Which brings me to my last point, the war on terrorism. Iraq's an integral part of that war, which is why I support it. When I see those who are searching for a way to appease the Islamofascists, I'm often reminded of those old sci-fi movies in which aliens land and start blowing up everything in sight. Then some egghead wants to meet with them to talk things over, discover what they want. The meeting occurs, and the egghead soon discovers exactly what the aliens want.

They want you dead.

Islamofascist terrorists aren't much different. Convert or die....preferrably the latter for all us infidels. Our choices right now are limited to fight or die. Not the way I want it. I'd much rather leave them alone to practice their religion or whatever, and have them leave me alone to practice mine.

Unfortunately, we don't have that choice. That's the cold, hard reality of this war. Contrary to what some might say, we didn't start this war. They're not fighting for 'freedom' or their 'rights'. They're fighting to destroy our way of life. Naturally I take exception to that.

And if my son, or daughter for that matter, can contribute to that effort I'm willing to make that sacrifice. I love each of them more than life itself. But there are some things more important than that....things like the freedoms and life we currently have. I believe those are worth fighting for.

And if you are so self-centered that you want to enjoy all the benefits while others pay the price, all I have to say is "Shame on you."

Tragic

We were saddened to learn of the tragic death of John Walton in an ultra-light plane crash yesterday in Wyoming. I had no idea he was a decorated Green Beret medic, though I knew Mr. Sam was always a big supporter of military personnel.

Our deepest sympathies to his family.

Speaking of Fashion

Real men do not dress like this.

Ever.

Local Yokels

Apparently someone at the WaPo thinks the locals in B-ville are aping our betters.

Every week or so a new retailer, restaurant or spa sprouts up amid the cow patches here to satisfy their every need and, seemingly overnight, a county synonymous with a purveyor of cheap socks, dolls and televisions is earning a reputation for something altogether different: luxurious living.

How about you kiss my highly-educated, cultured, lily-white hillbilly ass, you goddamn pretentious Yankee snob? Spas among the cow patches, my ass.

What this fool is talking about is the new ritzy development going on up at Pinnacle Point & Village on the Creeks in Rogers. Apparently one can actually purchase Versace items there. Woo. Hoo. It's even rumored that the new shopping center will host stores from such high fashion centers as Dallas and even....gasp....NEW YORK CITY!

Of course, being a rube, my excitement over these developments is somewhat underwhelming. I don't care for Versace. Or Manolo Blahnik. Or any of that other overpriced, cheaply made tacky designer crap worn by those with more money than sense.

I prefer Anne Klein or Donna Karin.

But I tell you, Carhartts are hard to beat....they'll last forever, and the more they're washed, the more comfortable they get.

And they're ever so much more practical for traipsing 'round the cow patch.***

BTW, it's 'cow pasture', not 'cow patch', ye damn ignorant Yankee. It's not like we plant cows in rows and grow them like watermelons, you know.

Pompous ass.

Clear As Mud

I haven't had a chance to read the opinions yet, but looks like today's Supreme Court ruling on 10 Commandment displays may be a bit confusing.

After the U.S. Supreme Court issued divided rulings Monday on whether the Ten Commandments can be displayed in courthouses and on public property, officials at an Oklahoma courthouse were watching the ruling closely.

The rulings are being closely watched in Stigler where a monument containing the Ten Commandments was erected outside the Haskell County Courthouse in November.

The Haskell Co. display also contains the Mayflower Compact, so it's not a stand-alone display like in the Kentucky case. Is is a permissable display in a historical context like in the Texas case? Maybe. Who knows?

It's ridiculous to prohibit the display of the 10 Commandments as a historical source of law. It is, after all, an early source of some of our society's major laws. Although I don't ever remember a sucessful prosecution for 'coveting thy neighbor's ass'. And most states no longer allow prosecutions for adultery. But the big 3: murder, stealing, lying....they're all there, as well as a few others. Pretending otherwise doesn't make it so.

One thing's for sure. You can bet your last dollar this issue will continue to be litigated after these rulings, if they are as unclear as they have been reported.

You know how lawyers are.

Boredom Strikes

In between loads of laundry,

Interesting, but not very.

Grand Old Flag

I've been following the 'ban flag burning amendment' debate this week. Frankly, I think such an amendment is absurd, and that it would be an unconstitutional ban on free speech. Jim has an excellent post on the potential ramifications of such an amendment. Like he says, once you ban one form of conduct-as-speech, it becomes much easier to ban another. And another. Think it wouldn't happen? Yeah, right. I'm sure the Framers never thought it would be possible for a governmental entity to seize private property to increase their tax base either. And we've all just seen how that's turned out.

So as insulting as flag descration is meant to be, I don't think it should be banned. Our flag, after all, is just a symbol of our value system. And if your value system is so fragile that it cannot withstand the occasional insult, maybe you should re-examine your value system. (See, e.g., the recent Gitmo/Koran nonsense)

I happen to believe that ours can withstand such actions. Easily.

So if some fool wants to burn a flag, I say let him. While it's intended as an insult, I think it's great to live in a country in which fools have the right to express themselves just like everyone else. In fact, the act itself ironically reaffirms one of the important values that makes our country great....free speech.

Burn all you want, fool. We'll make more.

Not So Public

I've just gotten a chance to read Kelo v. New London. You should read it if you haven't. A finer example of justices 'finding' precedent to support their personal social policies you'll not find. I'm sure there's much better analysis out there than anything I could come up with, but I have to just add to the general chorus denouncing the decision. This is not 'public use'.

Parcel 2 will be the site of approximately 80 new residences organized into an urban neighborhood and linked by public walkway to the remainder of the development, including the state park

Neither is this.

Parcel 3, which is located immediately north of the Pfizer facility, will contain at least 90,000 square feet of research and development office space.

And no amount of mixing a marina & public walkways or a museum in with the overall plan makes it so, especially in an area which all agree did not suffer from urban blight.

And the Court is wrong to extend the government's eminent domain power to include these types of governmental takings.

But let's look at the big picture. It is unlikely that the Court would've been able to rule this way if the state of Connecticut hadn't given them the opening.

According to the Associated Press, Connecticut is one of several states that either expressly allow a taking for private economic purposes or have not spoken clearly to the question.

Luckily, I live in one of the 8 states which expressly forbids this type of governmental redistribution of property except to combat urban blight. And even that is a bit of a stretch to fit within the 'public use' required by the Constitution for a government's use of its eminent domain power, IMHO.

The fallout from this controversial opinion will be interesting. I suspect, judging from the widespread condemnation of this opinion that I'm seeing, that there will be lots of legislation introduced around the nation to better define a government's eminent domain power. And I also suspect that it may've just gotten much easier to get less liberal judges confirmed to the bench. Unintended consequences to be sure, and not necessarily bad ones at that.

Sometimes there's value in allowing someone enough rope to hang themselves. And the liberal wing of the Court may've done just that this time.

Local Art Exhibit

Murphy's Jeweler's at Pinnacle Point, Rogers, is having a special art exhibit and sale this weekend....with a very special guest artist.

The great-grandson of French impressionist painter Auguste Renoir plans to attend an art exhibit this weekend in northwest Arkansas, featuring his works and the works of his famous relative.

Alexandre Renoir also will paint an original portrait during the exhibit at Murphy's Jewelers in Rogers. Featured paintings will include works by Picasso, Rembrandt, Chagall, Pissarro and other masters.

Public showings are Saturday 6-9 pm, and Sunday 1-3 pm.

Ol' Auguste is one of my favorites. We may have to drop by and see what they have.

Excellent.

Yuck!

I was just out walking Sollie, when I saw a small varmint sneaking up into the yard. I couldn't tell for sure what it was, so when it paused under a tree I decided to sneak a closer look. There was a constant stream of traffic disguising any sound, which is good because Sollie's so clueless he couldn't sneak up on a dead cow.

I got within about a foot of it. It was a rat. A big nasty brown rat....that judging from the direction from which it crept into the yard, came somewhere from around the graveyard across the street.

EEEWWWW!

That is sooooo disgusting!

It must die.

Mr. Kitty Blogging

Mr. Kitty had to go to the vet today. He is sick with the poopy-squats. He got lots of expensive medicine, and should be better in a couple of days. He didn't get to go home with his new mommy today because he can't be around other cats right now. Here at the kitty hotel, that is not a problem because the nasty other big kitty here stays as far away from him as possible.

Mr. Kitty does not like her either. She is very scary.

Here are some photos of Mr. Kitty.

It's a good thing Mr. Kitty is so cute. Mr. Kitty may be very small, but his voice is very loud. And it sounds just like a squeaky tree branch.

Mr. Kitty gets extremely annoying after a few hours.

Sad Passing

Fred Gaye, owner of Fred's Hickory Inn in Bentonville, has passed away. Although we didn't know him personally, his restaurant has long been a favorite lunch spot of ours. Going there is always just like a visit home, and you don't have to do the dishes.

Our deepest sympathies to his family.

Another One For the Crapper

Yesterday was sure one for the crapper. We were about halfway through the process of buying a house we'd found, in the location we wanted and at a price we could afford. The deal suddenly went south and we're exercising our option to run, not walk, away. I'd rather not say why, but you know, even though it's a strong seller's market around here.....I DIDN'T JUST FALL OFF THE GODDAMN TURNIP TRUCK YESTERDAY.

*ahem*

In happier news, my daughter is supposed to come by this morning to pick up the new kitty. Which is good, because we're getting attached to the little booger. And he has an affinity for laps & laptops. Poor little guy also has a bad case of missing his mommy....and a very loud voice that sounds a whole lot like a squeaky tree branch. Understandable, but after a while that got really annoying. Unable to find him a nice warm bowl of STFU, I spent most of the day with him in my lap, or on my shoulder.

He's finally started playing with Sollie, which has Sollie estactic. Our kitty, as expected, is absolutely livid that there's another cat in the house. And Sassy has pretty much ignored him, except for a few rounds of "Are you my mother?" Apparently, his mommy was also big, grey and fuzzy. Sassy was like "Hey, hey, HEY! I like you and all kid, but not like that."

All in all though, we've enjoyed having him around. My daughter is going to adore him, as he's definitely a snuggle kitty. And if she doesn't, we've always room for one more.

I'll try to put up some photos of him later. Probably much later.

Right now he's decided my wrist splint makes a terrific scratching post for kitties.

Rescue Me

It was a very hectic weekend full of rescues. First, neighbor BloodSpite was kind enough to get in touch & offer my daughter a little abandoned kitty that he & his wife had rescued. I'll be picking the little guy up later today.

He'll be spending a few days with us until my daughter's next day off, which should make Sollie very happy. My stepson & his terrific girlfriend had a Father's Day dinner with us yesterday, and brought along a little kitty they'd rescued from the pound that wasn't feeling very well. Said kitty curled up on my laptop and promptly went back to sleep. Sollie was very upset that it wouldn't play with him, and whined & looked everywhere for it after they left.

Which was much better than what Sassy did. For some reason, she took a wild streak & bolted out the door when my stepson & girlfriend came in.*** My stepson tried his best to grab her, but couldn't. And up the street she ran, with us in hot pursuit. Very bad dog.

She lead us on quite a chase in the woods behind the neighbors' houses....which after about 15 minutes while putting my sandal back on for the umpteenth time I discovered was carpeted with poison oak. Much swearing ensued.

She eventually disappeared from the woods, and Mike ran back to the house & took off in the car looking for her. Major panic. But he & my stepson finally found her, walking nonchalantly down the middle of Mission Blvd. while tons of traffic tried to avoid her.

And God Bless each and every one of all those the drivers.

She hopped right into the car, thank goodness, and they got her safely home. Needless to say, she was in big trouble.

So part of this week will be dedicated to re-training & reinforcing the idea that her going outside unaccompanied results in Very Bad Consequences for a Very Bad Dog. A rolled up newspaper should do the trick. She hates that.

Finally, I got up this morning & discovered that while I may've gotten the poison oak oils washed off in time, taking an oral B12 supplement yesterday was a fairly stupid idea. After my allergic reaction to the shot last week, my doctor insisted that I start taking B12 orally immediately. I'd held off until the allergic reaction had gone away, or so I thought.

Yeah. My face is swollen and beet red. Again. Dammit to hell.

At least BloodSpite shouldn't have any problems recognizing me when I go to relieve him of the kitty. I'll be the swollen, red-faced lady with a mechanical arm and a limp from chasing our stupid dog all over hell & gone.

Can't miss me.

There must've been something in the air yesterday. While searching, I met a neighbor from up the hill who was also searching for her dog, who'd gotten out about the same time.

Sadly, Curiousity Killed the Cat

My daughter had a little kitten, a tiny little thing that had appeared on a friend's doorstep one morning. I guesstimated its age was around 4 weeks at the time. It was a lively, sweet little thing, and my daughter had gotten quite attached to it.

Sadly, she came home from work yesterday morning to find that the poor little thing had somehow fallen into the toilet bowl and drowned. She never thought the tiny little thing could climb that high, and so hadn't closed the lid. She is, as you can imagine, broken hearted.

So, there's a lesson for us all. Kittens, like kids, can get into places you'd never dream possible.

You can't be too careful with either.

Foolish Young Man

As more details emerge about the UofA grad student turned jihadi, I began to wonder why. Why would an apparently bright and well-liked young man suddenly throw everything away and embrace a culture of death? Especially over such a relatively small thing as delayed graduation?

Here's my current theory, based on information from the criminal complaint and news articles. His family thought he'd graduated in May. He had apparently gotten a job offer and/or accepted a position with Kuwaiti University. All this was wrecked by the denial of his request for his dissertation defense. No defense, no PhD. No job. And he would have to tell his family of his 'failure'.

To him, I suspect, the only 'honorable' solution was to appear as if he'd embraced Islam and the Palestinian 'cause'. A foolish solution to be sure. But young men too often think foolish solutions are their only hope.

Yet he also made no secret of his plans....whether in a childish attempt to shift the blame onto the UofA (see what you made me do) or as a way of making sure he would not have to complete what appears to have been a suicidal mission.

IMHO, anyway, for what it's worth.

Whatever his motivation, it's such a shame....and such a waste of a promising life.

UofA Jihadi Update

Here's the criminal complaint (pdf format) filed June 16th against Arwah J. Jaber.

Curiouser and curiouser.

Old Buddies

I've previously posted about one of my undergrad/law school buddies, Paul Suskie, who I hope has made it safely back from Iraq by now. Anyway, I was messing around with Google and ran across his official website.

Now doesn't he just look like he should be our Governor?

Hey, he'd get my vote. He's a good kid.

Interesting

According to Google, ol' Arwah been bouncing around academia for a while. Apparently, he received his master's from Pittsburg State, Kansas in 1998. (Scroll down to page 8) Then he was at Georgetown (scroll down to photo) before coming to the UofA, where he applied for graduation as a PhD this summer. (Scroll down to page 3) Though apparently his application was turned down, since all the news articles are saying he wasn't going to graduate this summer.

Assuming of course, that all these are the same guy.

Now why would an almost PhD in chemistry want to join the Palestinian Islamic Jihad? Hmmm. I wonder.

New UofA Logo

Matt's got a shot of the new UofA logo, related to the post below. Go check it out before the UofA gets wind of it.

Heh.

Close To Home

A UofA grad student has been arrested on terrorism charges.

In an affidavit filed with an criminal complaint, FBI Special Agent Richard L. Blair said Jaber, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in the West Bank town of Yamoun, acknowledged to federal authorities Monday in an interview at his residence that he told his Ph. D. professor and others at the university that he was going to Palestine to "fight for freedom, peace and justice." "Arwah stated that he would rather die fighting for freedom against Israeli terrorists than stay another six months at UA trying to complete his Ph. D.," Blair said in the affidavit.

Allegedly, there's also e-mails from Jaber that state the same plans.

That deserves a nomination for Idiot of the Day, doesn't it?

One In A Million

Didja know that a few people are allergic to the preservatives in B12 injections? It's pretty rare, but it happens. Guess how I know?

That's right. I'm one of those rare people. Gee, I feel so....special. Actually, in a way I do. I had a relatively mild allergic reaction. 'Mild' meaning I didn't wake up dead this morning from anaphylactic shock. Instead I woke up in a great deal of pain, with a rash, itching and dizziness. And as the morning has progressed, a general feeling of oh god why doesn't someone shoot me now and put me out of my misery.

Not exactly Fun City, but it could've been much worse.

Soooo....I get to start my Prednisone today, as well as massive doses of Benadryl. Which I just took a little bit ago, and already I'm so goofy/sleepy I'm not sure whose boy I am. Girl I mean.

I'm going to bed.

Pricey Pie In the Sky

Several water associations around my home town are in the process of becoming a water wholesaler. Their plan is to pipe water from Bull Shoals lake to various communities in 4 counties, at an estimated cost of $49.5 million. I'm no engineer, but I do know the terrain around those parts and I think they'll be looking at some cost overruns. Building a 115 mile pipeline through that rocky, mountainous terrain is not going to be cheap or easy.

Even if they're able to bring it at cost, who will be able to afford the water?

[Engineer] Mays said the engineering study estimated a rate of about $2.70 per 1,000 gallons would be necessary to pay back the loans. "That’s what will make this project difficult — is getting the ability to pay it back," Mays said. "The income level is very low."

'Very low' is one way to put it. Dirt poor is a better description. According to 2000 Census figures, the median household income in Searcy County was $21,397. Per-capita income in 2002 was $16,633. The average person there can't afford to pay $2.70 per 1000 for water.....especially when there's so much naturally occurring water everywhere. Sure, a lot of it contains naturally occurring radium and other contaminates, but it's available and affordable.

Seems to me it's another case of the haves getting more, and the have nots getting screwed. A much more practical plan, for Searcy County at least, was proposed a couple of years ago. Dam one of the local creeks, and distribute the water from the resulting lake. But that plan has been pretty much shot down by the National Park Service....it might slightly impact the Buffalo River or some such nonsense.

Now I'm all for protecting the environment, I love that area as much or more than anyone else. But you know, people have to be able to make a living. A workable compromise between the two is essential. Lack of a reliable, adequate water supply is the major cause of the economically depressed conditions there. How can you attract businesses when there's no available public water systems?

You can't, which is why most people who live there commute out-of-county to work.....and why they'll stay poor until an affordable water system is developed.

I don't think this is it.

Today's Reading Assignment

Following a link from today's Lileks, I found an interesting article about the working class you should read: Poor, White and Pissed. While I disagree with his premise that working class should work with liberals to better their situation (I think liberals like having the working class right where they put them), he does many accurate observations about what the working class really thinks. Like this one:

But here in this particular heartland, once I step away from the fundamentalist, I am simply not seeing the homophobia so widely proclaimed by the liberal establishment. Hell, we've got three gay guys and at least one lesbian who hang out at my local redneck tavern and they all are right in there drinking and teasing and jiving with everyone else. As my hirsute 300-pound friend Pootie says: "Heck, I have a lot in common with lesbians!" (I would concede however, that homosexual marriage, however, was just a bit too much for some of the working class to accept in the 2004 elections. It was the visuals.

There's much more.

Go read.

Things Meme

I've been tagged by Andy to list the 5 things I miss from childhood. Like to hear it, here it goes:

5. Freedom to roam the woods all day once my chores were done.

4. My horse.

3. Spending hot days swimming in the creek or river, topped off by all the ice cold watermelon I could eat. Who needs air conditioning?

2. Catfishing on the Buffalo late at night with my dad, who would sometimes let me puff on a Swisher Sweet cigarillo to keep away the mosquitos.

1. My grandmother. I spent most of my early childhood with her. She was my sanctuary, the one person in the world who I knew would love me no matter what. She passed away a couple of years ago, and I miss her terribly.

Now let's see. I'm supposed to take his list of links, take off one and add one:

Sniffer of Cakes
April
Connie
Walls Come Tumbling Down
Res Ipsa Loquitur

And finally I get to pass it on. Hmmm, victims, victims:

Bogie
Da Goddess
David
BloodSpite
Jennifer

Share the pain, I always say.

Damn Their Eyes!

We've been having a problem with WildChild and lying. We'd been talking & talking with him about how it's very important to tell the truth, good boys always tell the truth and so on. Nothing had worked until we mentioned Pinocchio and his growing nose. WildChild was pretty impressed with the story about Pinocchio's nose grew longer and longer every time he told a lie.....so impressed that now I can ask him "Is that the truth Pinocchio?" and he will always answer truthfully. Followed quickly by an indignant "I not 'nocchio!"

We've been looking for either a Pinocchio storybook or movie to further emphasize that lying is bad, but haven't been able to find one. Today when I ran into the store for milk, I saw a Little Golden Book Pinocchio so I grabbed it without looking at it too closely.

I just now glanced at it, and realized it was the Disney version. So I read it just to make sure the basic story was still there.

No. It wasn't.

The part about his nose growing when he lies has been completely removed from the book.

I hate freaking Disney and the way they totally destroy every good children's story. I may burn the damn thing. What good is Pinocchio without the 'it's really bad to lie' part? And the worst part is that the way this version is written, the lesson kids learn is when you do things you're not supposed to, the Blue Fairy comes along and fixes everything. There are no consequences.

Not a lesson I want him to learn.

Life ain't like that.

Beginnings & Endings

I are graduated. Just got my diploma in the mail today. I'm so glad that's over. Now I can go back to work.

But first I have to mow the lawn.

Just think of it as my Moment of Zen. A moment I could use this afternoon, after spending the morning restraining myself from choking my doctor.....who in spite of my blood test results, tried to make me go for additional MRI's on my neck & back instead of trying medicating my lupus flare-up first.

He appeared really surprised when I said "I don't know so much about that." (Which is hillbilly code for "Are you f*cking nuts?") I gritted my teeth and patiently explained for the umpteenth time that I DO NOT HAVE NECK AND BACK PROBLEMS IN AN AREA WHICH WOULD CAUSE THIS. And that even if I did, they certainly wouldn't be causing the numbness & tingling in my freaking face, nor the random nerve pain that I'm now having ALL OVER MY BODY.

So. He gave me a choice. Prednisone or Plaquenil.....a choice much like the one between the devil and the deep blue sea. The latter, he said, can sometimes cause a little vision problem so I'd have to have a baseline eye exam and get my eyes checked regularly while I'm taking it.

"A little vision problem" my ass. That shit can make you go blind. I think I'll have to pass on that one. Prednisone I tolerate pretty well, except for that "little irritability" side effect he mentioned. High doses of prednisone tends to turn loose that monster I normally keep caged up inside....you know, the evil, sarcastic, bitchy just downright mean monster that'll rip off your head & crap down your neck just for looking at me the wrong way. Not always, but that's what usually happens.

Relax. I'm not starting the prednisone for another week or so on the off chance that the B12 shot I got this morning somehow miraculously cures the neuropathy. Like that'll happen.

Just remember though, you were warned.

Still Crazy After All These Years

I just spent 1 1/2 hrs. driving WildChild to my parents'. He'd gotten a SharkBoy figure at McDonald's before we left Fayetteville, which apparently impressed him so much that he couldn't stop talking about it. For the entire trip. "What does SharkBoy do?" "I don't know, I haven't seen the movie." 5 minutes later: "What does SharkBoy DO?" "I don't know, I haven't seen the movie."

After about an hour, I told him "Listen to me. I HAVE NOT SEEN THE SHARKBOY MOVIE. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT SHARKBOY DOES. DO NOT ASK ME THAT QUESTION AGAIN."

The remainder of the trip, he kept coming up with different ways to ask "What does SharkBoy do?" It was very tempting to say "SharkBoy flies out car windows. See? Watch this."

He's so much like his dad sometimes it's just scary.

And like his dad at that age, he believes everything I tell him....which sometimes I take advantage of to do something totally rotten. Example:

When we were driving to the Tulsa airport, we kept running in and out of little rain showers. He doesn't like rain because it keeps him from playing outside, so he was complaining about wanting it to stop. He was bored, I was bored. And my daughter kept falling asleep.

Dangerous combination.

I convinced him that every time my daughter feel asleep, it made the rain start. Coincidentally, by the time he would get her awake, we'd run out of the rain shower. By the time she fell back asleep, we'd run into another one. Over and over and over.

Heh. He still remembered that causal connection on the drive home from the airport. "WAKE UP! WAKE UP!! You're making it rain!" My daughter would yell "Leave me alone! I am not making it rain!" And I would just laugh & laugh.

Mike said I was evil.

The Not-So-Friendly Skies

It's good to be home. Traveling cross-country with a 4 yr. old is....very stressful. The Tulsa-Dallas flight went well. Since it was WildChild's first flight, he got the obligatory set of wings to pin on his shirt before boarding. Later, we could hear WildChild, who was seated with my daughter a couple of rows up, yelling "Woo-hoo! Wheee!" when the plane was taking off. After landing, he got to go into the cockpit and meet the pilot. Needless to say, he rilly, rilly lurves to fly now.

The flight from Dallas to San Diego was a different story. Not for him, he slept most of the way. But we discovered when we checked in at the gate that AA in its infinite wisdom, had way oversold the flight. And that Mike & I were on standby.

They wanted us to fly to St. Louis, then to San Diego, arriving about 5 hours later than my daughter & WC. Yikes! I don't think so.

It took some polite persistance, but they finally understood that we were traveling with my daughter & WC. And that we couldn't be separated. (If not for that, we would've jumped on first-class seating & $300 in AA dollars they were offering) So then they started trying to get us seats.

No one would volunteer to be bumped.

We were inches away from a major panic when right before the plane was due to leave, one of the AA supervisors authorized 2 involuntary bumps so we could all get on the same flight. Whew. That was a little too close for comfort.

The AA staff was very nice to us during the whole ordeal, once they understood what was happening. But I have to wonder WTF their superiors were thinking when we were picked to get bumped. I mean Hello? What was my daughter supposed to do with WC in the San Diego airport for 4-6 hours while waiting on us to arrive? Duh.

The flights back were relatively uneventful, except for the Dallas-Tulsa leg, which I dubbed the "Rude Flight". First, the lady next to me started complaining about having to sit in coach because she "usually flew first class. There's more perks up there." Wow. That made me really want to have a conversation with her. Not. Then she smugly said that there were certain benefits to traveling with her husband.

Now I know how that game is played. I'm supposed to ask who her husband is, so she can 'impress' me with her specialness. Like I gave a rat's ass. Resisting the temptation to tell her that apparently today there weren't ANY benefits to traveling with her husband or she wouldn't be stuck back in coach with us peasants, I just rolled my eyes and turned to talk to Mike. I ignored her for the rest of the flight. People like that bore me. So you sleep with someone 'important'. Big deal. So do a lot of other hookers.

Then there was this one stewardess with an attitude. She'd skipped a row that was two rows in front of us during the beverage service. One of the passengers finally chased her down & requested something to drink. Ms. Attitude said "You said you didn't want anything." The passenger said "No, I didn't." Ms. Attitude "Yes you did. Now that you've changed your mind, WHAT do you want? Fine, I'll bring it to you in just a minute. I'm busy."

A few minutes later, we watched her serve the seats across the aisle from us, the row behind us and then trolley on her merry way, skipping us entirely. We started trying to get her attention. She ignored us. Finally, Mike said in a loud tone that I'm sure they heard up in the cockpit "EXCUSE ME? WE'D LIKE SOMETHING TO DRINK UP HERE."

Ms. Attitude whirled around, marched up to our row and, ignoring us completely, asked the lady seated next to me if she would like anything since "apparently it's really important to this gentleman that he get something."

And she kept making little snide, smart-ass remarks the whole time. "We serve 500 people a day, so I'm SURE you can UNDERSTAND if we miss 3 people." Umm, yeah. You made a mistake and IT'S ALL OUR FAULT. What. Ever.

It wasn't just us, either. My daughter said the same stewardness grabbed her half-finished drink out of her hand and threw it away on her first pass to pick up trash.

I think someone needs to find a new profession. I think I'll help her along with that as soon as I get time to write an e-mail.

Cuz there's definitely something about good customer service that she doesn't understand. Like how to do it.

New Arrival!

There's a new blog baby in town, and as promised there's photos!

Best wishes and hearty congratulations to Craig and family!

Total California Experience

Just to complete our total California experience, we just had an earthquake. I was sitting here surfing the net for local beaches when the table started shaking. Then the entire building started shaking. Nothing major, but enough to wake everyone else up. Initial reports are putting the epicenter NNE of here, magnitude around 5.5.

Totally tubular, dudes.

500 Miles

That's about how far I feel like we've walked so far. Did Sea World Friday, the zoo yesterday. WildChild is having the time of his life. He has been just cracking us up. On the way to the zoo yesterday, he insisted that his dad's girlfriend sit with him, and his dad had to sit in the back with my daughter. Of course, those two had to start picking on each other as usual. Finally, WildChild told his dad's girlfriend sternly "Kaferine, tell your boyfriend to stop bugging my aunt." lol

But the best one so far was at the zoo yesterday. We were looking at the mandrills, and WC was just fascinated by the colorful male. All of the sudden he said "LOOK! That monkey just spread his butt cheeks with his hands like this and sat down!" and demonstrated exactly what the mandrill had done. Talk about monkey see, monkey do. He couldn't understand why we were all laughing so hard.

We also got to hang out with the exquisite Goddess and her handsome, smart son at the zoo. A big Thank You Very Much to them both! We had a great time with them, and WC just adored Little Dude. As did we all. He is such a sweetheart!

Today we're going to the beach, and just hang out....someplace where there's not much walking.

I hope not anyway.

Various Connections

Like our current wireless connection, which is spotty. It works for a while, then starts dropping in & out. IT IS DRIVING ME CRAZY!

A better connection was watching WildChild & my son last night. WC was cranked to the max, never ending chatter of "Daddy look at this! Daddy I flew on an airplane. I talked to the pilot. Read this book! We have a 'frigerator in our room. There's a freezer on the top & the 'frigerator on the bottom! And we have a stove!"

He was cracking us up. And the best thing was the way WC would pause every few minutes, pat his daddy on the face with both hands and say "I like you, Daddy."

Awww!

It was so cute.

Modern Quackery

Mark Souder, in today's WashTimes, compares medical marijuana to the Carbolic Smoke Ball Co.'s product of the late 1800's. (The Carbolic case, for my non-legal readers, involved what was probably one of the first instances of a consumer suing a company for its false advertising claims.) Interesting analogy.....and something I think is too often overlooked in the quest for increasing states' rights.

Medicinal use of marijuana is a myth. It's snake oil salesmanship (Cures *cough* hoarseness!) with an entirely different ultimate goal. The legalisation of marijuana use for everyone.

Consider this. Do you honestly think if there was some verifiable medical benefit from marijuana use, that there wouldn't be at least one of the big drug companies heavily lobbying for its legalization? Marijuana, from what I've seen, is a relatively easy, high-return crop to grow. So why isn't the farmers' lobby pushing for its legalization? There's money to be made there. Why aren't these groups supporting the efforts to overcome the 'social stigma' of marijuana use?

Because they don't have the hard science and medical evidence to back them up. That's why.

What they do have is smoke and mirrors, the happy sunshine smoke of those who really, really want the ability to legally smoke reefer. And an increasing number of states' rights supporters who should know better than to fall for their patter.

Did the majority in Raich contort the Commerce Clause almost beyond recognition to justify federal supremacy in the area? Duh. Sure it did. I mean, come on. Using Wickard as precedence? Even I find it hard to say that with a straight face.

Medical marijuana, at this point at least, has a minute effect on interstate commerce. But that doesn't mean that Congress doesn't have the superior power to regulate it under its general welfare powers, just like any other product. States have never had the exclusive power to regulate a consumer product, especially one with such a potential to be harmful.

You can't lose what you never had.

65 Bridge

I was delighted to find this photo of one of my old hangouts. I spent many hours at the swimming hole just down river from the bridge. Back in the spring of 1981 (I think), there was a huge flood in the county. We drove up to look at the bridge, the far end of which was about 3 feet underwater. I walked out on the near end of the bridge a few feet and noticed it was vibrating like a plucked guitar string. I put my hand on the concrete railing, and could feel repeated hard thumps as entire trees struck the bridge as they went under. I got the hell back to solid ground, let me tell you.

Then I watched in horror as someone did what has to be the absolutely most stupid thing I've ever seen. A trucker decided his load couldn't wait, so he forded the flooded end and slowly drove across the bridge. I expected any second to see the bridge collapse under the added weight & motion, but the fool made it across.

The flood washed away most all the new buildings and environmentally correct outhouses the Park Service had just spent $1+ million building upstream at Tyler Bend too. We all thought that was pretty funny. There was a reason no one had ever built on those old hayfields....they were in the floodplain. Duh.

In the late 1980's, a chicken truck wrecked about halfway across the old bridge. It didn't go completely off, but it dumped most of its load of live chickens in the river. Heh. There were some mighty fat catfish caught that summer. The local authorities kept it quiet because the area's so dependent on the tourist trade, but that was one year most of us locals stayed out of the river. Except for fishing, of course.

Now it's been replaced by a modern bridge upstream a ways. Much safer, but it's just not the same.

But then things never are.

Fly Me To The Moon

It's a good morning for Frankie....we're flying to San Diego tomorrow morning & I've a million things to do. It was a zillion, but I got a lot done yesterday. Wow, these B12 vitamins are great! Still feel like crap, and they do nothing for pain control but hey! I have lots of energy!

Well.

Time to cowboy up and dolaundrywashdishescleantheaquariumsmowthelawnfinishpacking
stopbythebankdosomeshoppingtakethedogstobeboarded......and pick up WildChild. I'm sure he'll go right to sleep after supper tonight too.

It's going to be a very long day.

You Know You're In NW Arkansas When......

....you see this in the local police report:

At 3:52 p.m. Saturday, Angela with the Siloam Springs Memorial Hospital emergency room reported a mule bit Austin Philpott, 57, on Raines Road near Siloam Springs.

I'm having a hard time imagining under what circumstances a mule bite should be reported to the police.

Good News

My uncle is doing better. Apparently it wasn't a stroke, but a blood clot on his brain. Still serious, but not as bad as it could've been. He's reportedly awake now & alert and moving around fairly well, but as of yesterday still unable to speak.

A big thanks to everyone for their well-wishes. They were much appreciated.

I was thinking about him yesterday, and have to share my favorite memory of him. He's always been the quiet type, but loves a good joke, and especially loves to prank people. One time I'd spent the night at my grandmother's when he & my aunt were visiting, and I was sleeping on the couch. My grandmother's one of those people who gets up before daylight....and when Granny got up, everyone else had to get up.*** I was a teenager at the time, and wasn't too excited about getting up with the sunrise just to eat breakfast. As you can imagine. While Granny was trying to make me get up, my uncle came in with a freshly drawn bucket of ice-cold well water. When he saw I wouldn't get up, he took a dipper of that almost freezing water & poured about half of it in my ear.

Let me tell you, I came up off that couch in a hurry. And the more I cussed him, the harder he laughed. I didn't think it was too funny at the time, but now I chuckle everytime I think about it. It was exactly what I deserved.

Granny had a unique (and annoying) way to wake everyone. She would walk through the house, shaking everyone hard, all the while yelling at the top of her lungs:

Get Up! Get Up!
The squirrels are jumping
The fish are biting
And the chocolate gravy's getting cold!

For such a little lady, Granny could yell as loud as any drill sargeant. We'd get up just to get her to shut up.

Not So Bad

Via Chris

I scored a 63.5. Not too shabby considering I didn't have access to MTV until we got satellite in 1993. Hard to imagine that these days, isn't it? I remember seeing MTV at a friend's house in the early 80's and saying "Wow! They play music videos all the time? That's pretty cool!"

Too bad they no longer do that.

Tasty Tidbits

--I usually don't comment about WalMart due to our vested interests, but those people who've been complaining that WM should be more like GM are just plain stupid. The business of business is business. Not socialistic economic redistribution.

--This is just wrong. Either they're both guilty of murder or neither are. A 'right' to abortion does not equal the right to beat your unborn baby to death.

--For that defense to work, you've got to be able to climb higher than the bear. Like duh.

--If you've a child in the military, and he/she ever wants to leave some uniforms with you because he/she "probably*** won't need them at this posting"....save yourself a big headache and tell him/her no. As in 'Hell No!' Trust me on that one. [Note to self: smack goofy son upside the head upon our arrival in San Diego this week]

Now. Back to work.

I know better than to believe my son when he says 'probably' about anything. It's one of his tells. He's either lying, or saying something he doesn't know whether it's true but he sure hopes it is.

Yet after almost 27 years, I still fall for it occasionally.

On the Dotted Line

Our banker & I were reviewing some documents yesterday morning, nothing particularly complex but there was quite the stack of papers to be signed. He was carefully highlighting each signature line as we went, and remarked he always did that just as a safe guard.

So do I, as well make copious use of "Sign here" sticky notes, but I'm constantly amazed at the number of people who are somehow insulted by that. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "Did you think I was too stupid to find the correct place to sign?" Sometimes the honest answer to that is "Yes", but I've always given the stock answer that I do that so I don't miss anything, not them. People who need attorneys (or bankers) often do so for emotionally charged reasons. It's easy to miss details when you're in that state. And part of my responsibility to you as a client is to make sure documents are executed correctly. It's (usually) nothing personal.

So if you've ever wondered, no. It's not all about you.

Just doing our jobs.

Sad News

Did you ever hear the phone ring and not want to answer it because you somehow know it's going to be bad news? I had two of those moments yesterday.

First, WildChild's mom called to let me know her little sister had lost her battle against cancer yesterday afternoon. A call I had been expecting, but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking. She was so young, and such a little sweetheart.

Second, my mom called around 9:30 last night to let me know that my favorite aunt's husband had apparently had a very bad stroke. Now Mom has a tendency to get things all mixed up, so I'm waiting to find out just how bad it is. But it doesn't sound good at this point. My aunt & I are very close, two heads in the same shirt you might say, and she's not in very good health either so I'm considerably worried.

Remember both families in your thoughts & prayers, will you?

HIPAA Limits?

The DOJ has recently issued a new opinion which apparently limits HIPAA prosecutions against individuals.

The criminal penalties, the department said, apply to insurers, doctors, hospitals and other providers - but not necessarily their employees or outsiders who steal personal health data.

In short, the department said, people who work for an entity covered by the federal privacy law are not automatically covered by that law and may not be subject to its criminal penalties, which include a $250,000 fine and 10 years in prison for the most serious violations.

Their reasoning? Individuals are not necessarily 'covered entities' under HIPAA.

The opinion has not been officially released yet, so I haven't been able to read it. But it strikes me as a very strange interpretation of HIPAA, one which violates the spirit, if not the letter, of HIPAA. And one I certainly wouldn't recommend my clients rely on, if I had any.

The word 'may' can be a tricky one when used in a legal sense, you know. Under Rita's Rules of Legal Reading, generally when you see the word 'may', you should interpret it as 'may or may not'. And phrases like "not necessarily" and "not automatically" are usually just legalese for "it depends on the circumstances". So I think, at least based on just this article, it would be a mistake to assume that the DOJ is saying it won't prosecute individuals for HIPAA violations.

A very costly mistake.

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Busy morning, so here's some photos I took over the weekend with the new camera that Mike couldn't resist buying. He did get a good deal on it, and since it's a combo digital video/digital photo thingy it will be much easier for me to carry and use***.

So far I like it a lot.

That was his justification for buying it, you see. "I" needed it. Now he's trying to convince me "I" need a new laptop because the new camera doesn't work well with Windows 2000.

He's so silly.

Damn Hippies!

The little squall line that moved through this morning while we were buying groceries knocked out our power, which stayed off for over 2 hours. No air conditioning, no fans, and worst of all, no internet access. It was brutal.

Damn those hippies and their damn trees in the power lines!

Interesting Times

Busy week ahead. We're taking WildChild out to San Diego later this week for a few days visit with his dad. WildChild is so excited he's about to burst. He called me yesterday all excited because one of his mom's friends had mentioned the zoo out there. He wants to go there, he said, because they have big turtles and he can SEE them! And big cwabs (crabs) that pinch ALL THE PEOPLE! I'm not sure where he got that idea, but it cracked me up. It'll be his first airplane ride too, so I'm sure we'll have all kinds of stories when we get back. Hopefully none of them will start with "After we got arrested by airport security...."

In other exciting news, the SIL got a gig as tour band drummer for Luke Stricklin. They're playing a concert in Tulsa June 25th, Dallas for July 4th and another one later in Oklahoma City. (I'm not sure about the date) They've also got a "Good Morning America" appearance in the works, and another on one of the other national morning talk shows.

He's pretty pumped about it, and we couldn't be happier for him. It's always exciting to see a good kid realize one of his life-long dreams, isn't it? I've been teasing him about getting his autograph now, and saving it as a retirement investment. And telling him not to be surprised when one day one of the band's security personnel comes up & tells him someone claiming to be his 'Ma' is outside demanding to be escorted backstage. lol

So if you get a chance, go see him perform. I don't know about the rest of the band, but he's pretty good.

His 'Ma' told you so.

Don't Know Jack

The top oldies station in the nation has changed its format.

The station's new format is called "Jack," an eclectic mix of hit music from the '70s to the present. The station's owner, Infinity Broadcasting, made the same format shift Friday at its Chicago oldies station, WJMK-FM, where classic Top 40 had aired for the past 21 years. In January, Infinity in like fashion said "hasta la vista" to the alternative-rock programming at Lanham-based WHFS-FM in favor of Spanish-language music.

One of our local stations also plays this format. 'Jack Shit' is what I call it. Let's face it, the 70's wasn't one of our better music eras. And if I didn't listen to those crappy songs when they first came out, why would I listen to them now?

Yet radio stations wonder why their ratings are dropping.

Duh.

If It Walks Like a Punk

There's a story in this morning's local newspaper about the arrest of a guy for ramming his truck into someone's house, allegedly because his girlfriend, during an argument, called him a 'punk'.

After police transported Nunn to the Fayetteville City Jail, he reportedly became very disruptive and disorderly and had to be placed into a cell. While he was in the cell, Nunn allegedly put a cup into the toilet, causing it to overflow and flood the cell. According to police, he also placed toilet paper in the cell drain, causing it to clog. The jail cell accumulated several inches of water before Nunn was placed in a second cell. Due to the large amount of water Nunn flooded his cell with and the toilet paper he placed into the drain to keep the water from draining, the second cell also began to flood. Jail staff were unable to unclog the cell drains and maintenance had to be requested, prompting Nunn to be charged with destruction of governmental property.

Ah, ze truth! She hurts, ne'st ce pas?

What If They Gave a Protest & Nobody Came?

Our good neighbor Matt has photos from the anti-WalMart protest yesterday....even the giant papier-mache puppet head. You know, it's not an official protest without one of those. According to what I saw on the local news last night, it wasn't much of a protest, 20-30 people. Woo. Hoo.

Matt, God love you son. You're a brave soul.

Take The Test

Via J-Lo

My scores:
EQ = 27
SQ = 56

Apparently, I am an autistic male-brained geek. But you already knew that. Actually, the EQ is prolly a bit skewed. I can tell what other people are feeling, I just don't usually care.

What's your score?

Throw 'Em a PorkChop

Baby got back....and baby gonna outlive all you skinny bitches.

Compared to the group of women with the smallest hip circumferences, women with the biggest were found to have an 87% reduction in deaths.

Previous studies have found both men and women with small hips are at an increased risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and gall bladder disease.

So ha! It's good to be me.

I think I'll celebrate by making a big pan of brownies.

Death of SOX?

First there was the reverse & remand of the conviction of Authur Andersen. Next came the President's nomination of the reportedly business-friendly Christopher Cox as head of the SEC. Now there's this:

Jurors in the trial of former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy said Friday they were deadlocked on all charges related to the company's $2.7 billion earnings overstatement.

Scrushy is the first CEO charged with violating the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the corporate reform law passed by Congress requiring, among other things, that chief executives certify the accuracy of their financial statements.

Sarbanes-Oxley may not be dead, but it sure isn't looking too well. It has not, so far, been the big stick to keep big business in line that Congress thought it would be.

Before all you accountants & IT security people start your great rejoicing, you might take note that Scrushy was facing a possible life sentence. Federal sentencing guidelines are still guiding the bench, it seems. And the potential penalties for SOX violations are rather harsh.

If the DOJ can ever get a conviction they would be.

Idiot Intolerance

Mike Straka comments that vacation seems to turn people into idiots.

Whenever people are "on vacation," they seem to turn into bigger Oblivions than they are when they're home. When did the word "vacation" become synonymous with "rude"?

I submit that people on vacation act much the same way they do at home. Let's face it. There's way too many people out there who obviously ain't had no raising, as we say down home. And I have an increasing intolerance for rude behavior. I don't care if your child does something stupid that will harm himself or you. But I'm not shy about setting the little bastard straight when his or her behavior affects me or mine.

Example:

The last night we were in Branson, the pool was pretty full. There were a couple of 10 yr. old or so boys in the shallow end where my daughter & I were supervising WildChild. The boys were pretty rowdy, splashing each other & screaming....and kept getting worse. A fact which apparently did not disturb the 'supervising' adults huddled at the edge of the pool. I ignored the occasional splashing until one of the little bastards stood about 3 ft. from WildChild, extended his arms & proceeding to spin like a windmill, splashing WildChild in the face with every pass. Deliberately. And laughed when WildChild started crying.

My daughter jumped in front of WildChild. I jumped for the boy. Grabbed him by the arm, gave him a good shaking and said in my best Mom/Drill Sgt. voice "You see that little boy? You. Do Not. Splash. Him. Again. You. Do Not. Splash. Us. Again. Do you understand me?" Wide-eyed, he nodded yes. "Now, you go play somewhere else," and I gave him a little push as I released his arm.

He immediately swam over to the herd and, judging from the looks I got, told his mom what I did. I'm looking at her & thinking shit, she outweighs me by a good 200 lbs. I won't be able to hold her under until she blubbers because, you know, fat floats. I guess I'll just have to smack her silly. They hadn't worked up the nerve to confront me before Mike joined us from the hot tub. I explained what had happened, Mike gave them The Look, and they all thundered ponderously to the other end of the pool. Where they stayed while their brats continued to tempt fate & Darwin by cannonballing & diving into a barely 6 ft. deep pool.

Which was just fine by me.

Tales From the WildChild

We had a great time at Silver Dollar City, though I think WildChild was more impressed with the hotel than the theme park. He now insists he wants to live in a hotel....in large part I suspect, because it had an indoor pool. We'd gotten him his first real life vest, and he quickly discovered he could 'swim' on his own. "Look at Me!" he squealed. "I swimming! All by myself!" Both nights we were there, he paddled around in the pool until his little arms & legs just couldn't move anymore.

He rode his first adult roller coaster, Thunderation, and got a big kick out of it...except the part where it went into a sharp downward spiral. We rode the train, the carousel, the boat ride through the shooting gallery and the balloon ride. He played in the enormous treehouse and sandboxes. He & I went to the petting zoo, where he chased goats, a huge rabbit and some chickens around for a while.

He & I sat in the observation area while my daughter & Mike rode the PowderKeg....an interminable wait of about 1 hour & 45 minutes. He's at that 'Why?' stage, so the first hour was spent with his inumerable questions and his loud and amusingly accurate observations about the people around us. Like "Why that lady spill her Coke? Look Ma! It's making a river. A Coke river. Now it's a lake. A Coke lake! Why that Coke make a lake?"

And the best one: An employee came by with a broom & dustpan, sweeping up trash. "Why that man look so grumpy? Why he grumpy Ma? What's he doing?" He did in fact look very grumpy....even more so after WildChild's remarks. I cracked up.

Then he got bored, and the 'I'm hungry. I'm thirsty. I want to leave now' started. He was working up a pretty good hissy fit until I finally convinced him to sit in my lap for a few minutes. He went soundly to sleep in about 5 seconds. He even slept through some freaking little kid tripping over my ankles. (Served the little bastard right. That was the 3rd time he'd stepped on me.)

The nap perked WildChild right up, and we continued to have a blast. On the way out, we stopped in one of the gift shops and he bought a harmonica....which he played and played. On the way home, he'd play a little riff then sing "1, 2, 3", another riff "4, 5, 6", another riff and then he'd start all over again.

Cracked me up.

New Book

Our very own Adam has his first book out, A Single Southerner Across America. It's available in hard copy or download.

Go check it out.

Update

Ok, I think everything's working now. *crosses fingers*

Comments should now be semi-moderated. The first time you comment, your comment will NOT appear until approved by me. Once you've been approved, your future comments will NOT be moderated and should appear as usual. (As always, if you behave like an ass, you will be banned.) That's the way it's supposed to work in theory at least.

If you have any problems, email me.

UPDATE: Ok, the TypeKey registration thing isn't working correctly, for me anyway. Yet. So comments will remain moderated temporarily until I can resolve the issue....or get so pissed off I just remove the stupid thing entirely.

Whichever comes first.

UPDATED UPDATE: TypeKey is working finally. You can login using that, and your comment will appear without moderation. Otherwise, your comment will have to wait until it's approved before it will show up. Unless that becomes too much of a hassle. Then we'll try something else.

Whew. I have a headache.