I've been paranoid for the last several years that a big crash was coming. I've had a little voice in the back of my head saying "you should really get a garden going... can vegetables... learn to hunt and dress different animals..." Basically preparing for the collapse of civilization. Having not done any of that, I console myself with the thought that if civilization collapses, the resulting anarchy would probably result in our deaths anyway - look at the bloodshed already taking place in New Orleans.
So I'm lying here, listening to my "calm & soothing" playlist on iTunes, and seeing how many things I can find in Graeme Base's Animalia. My old friend Rebecca introduced me to him with his Eleventh Hour mystery book, which I absolutely adored. I was going to get all geeky and start a list, but I'm falling asleep, so I think I'm going to get some rest. Good night, all.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Hrm, this should be interesting...
Have been at Uncle Khang's house since noon, making a lane cake. I'd not heard of it before he asked me if I could make him one, but the recipe looks pretty good. I gotta say, tho, it's damn near impossible to find candied cherries in this town in August. *sigh* Hopefully it'll work the way we've done it.
The kids have relaxed enough to run amok, which is good, I guess. ;) Right now we're watching the DVDs of The Muppet Show - childhood memories!! It's time to start the music....
We close on the house in two weeks. I'm trying not to think about it, honestly.
Back to baking...
The kids have relaxed enough to run amok, which is good, I guess. ;) Right now we're watching the DVDs of The Muppet Show - childhood memories!! It's time to start the music....
We close on the house in two weeks. I'm trying not to think about it, honestly.
Back to baking...
I'm just full of great ideas...
To fix the hole in the levy at New Orleans - string two relatively fine mesh nets across the hole on both sides, extending plenty far on either side of the hole. Then dump a whole hell of a lot of that stuff that turns into a gel when mixed with water. That should hopefully slow the water down enough for them to get a functioning fix.
To fix both our dependence on foreign oil for energy, the obesity problem, and increase the number of jobs in our country - start building large rooms full of stationary bicycles that are attached to generators. Make time on the bicycle something that every american HAS to do, like paying taxes (without all the loopholes) - but like jury duty, you get paid some for the time. People who want to spend more than their mandated time on the bike are more than welcome to. Schoolchildren, who will be attending year round school, will have shorter days, and will get some daily exercise in not only their Phys Ed classes, but on stationary bike rooms set up in the schools - they will help power their own school. People who want to create some sort of power generating thing in their own house - whether it be a stationary bike, solar panels, or a waterwheel from a nearby stream (or maybe built in waterwheels that are turned by sewage flushing into the system...) would be given tax breaks to encourage such things, and any power that they created over and above what was needed for their own homes would be fed back to the grid. We know more about building green, energy efficient homes, with lots of recycled materials, that are safer to live in than standard construction - let's make the building codes a lot stronger, and if you want to build a standard construction home, then you'll have to pay more in insurance, energy costs, etc. We need to change our power structure - rather than having AC power, consider DC power and more local power generating places; that eliminates the energy wasted in transforming DC to AC (or do I have that backwards? Argh. Gotta check that.)
If 293,027,571 people spend ten hours a week on a bicycle that creates 150 to 200 watts at 12 to 20 volts DC an hour, that's 439,541,356,500 watts of power a week. (That's 439541357 kilowatts.) An average US household uses about 10000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity each year (or 192kWh a week). (A kWh is the expenditure of one kilowatt of power for one hour. A toaster running for an hour will use about this much energy.) So, I THINK (altho it's been a long time since I've tried to do these kind of conversions in my head) that the entire population of the US could create enough power for 84,527,184,038 households? That can't be right. I'm running late, however, and have to run get in the shower. I have a cheesecake to buy & deliver and a cake to bake & ice & a kid to pick up and it's already almost 11.
To fix both our dependence on foreign oil for energy, the obesity problem, and increase the number of jobs in our country - start building large rooms full of stationary bicycles that are attached to generators. Make time on the bicycle something that every american HAS to do, like paying taxes (without all the loopholes) - but like jury duty, you get paid some for the time. People who want to spend more than their mandated time on the bike are more than welcome to. Schoolchildren, who will be attending year round school, will have shorter days, and will get some daily exercise in not only their Phys Ed classes, but on stationary bike rooms set up in the schools - they will help power their own school. People who want to create some sort of power generating thing in their own house - whether it be a stationary bike, solar panels, or a waterwheel from a nearby stream (or maybe built in waterwheels that are turned by sewage flushing into the system...) would be given tax breaks to encourage such things, and any power that they created over and above what was needed for their own homes would be fed back to the grid. We know more about building green, energy efficient homes, with lots of recycled materials, that are safer to live in than standard construction - let's make the building codes a lot stronger, and if you want to build a standard construction home, then you'll have to pay more in insurance, energy costs, etc. We need to change our power structure - rather than having AC power, consider DC power and more local power generating places; that eliminates the energy wasted in transforming DC to AC (or do I have that backwards? Argh. Gotta check that.)
If 293,027,571 people spend ten hours a week on a bicycle that creates 150 to 200 watts at 12 to 20 volts DC an hour, that's 439,541,356,500 watts of power a week. (That's 439541357 kilowatts.) An average US household uses about 10000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity each year (or 192kWh a week). (A kWh is the expenditure of one kilowatt of power for one hour. A toaster running for an hour will use about this much energy.) So, I THINK (altho it's been a long time since I've tried to do these kind of conversions in my head) that the entire population of the US could create enough power for 84,527,184,038 households? That can't be right. I'm running late, however, and have to run get in the shower. I have a cheesecake to buy & deliver and a cake to bake & ice & a kid to pick up and it's already almost 11.
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
About gas...
Let's get a little perspective here, shall we?
Yes, we're going to try to sell our Ford Explorer. We bought it when we thought we were going to be travelling a dirt road daily - but we're not, and the gas mileage sucks. I would love to own an electric car, or a hybrid, or a diesel that has been converted to burn vegetable oil. (As public transportation in this city was the pits last time I checked - I'll look again, but I hold out little hope. However, I'm not going to school and work full time anymore, so my schedule is much less tight - so I could probably deal with a less than abundant bus schedule...)
That being said, I read an article in the Washington Post that brings up an excellent point.
Gas - currently about $3/gallon in the states (has been higher elsewhere for a while, people, and for a good discussion of prices elsewhere, go here.)
Average prices of other popular liquids:
Coca-Cola $1.87
Milk $3.00
Evian water $4.52
Orange juice $5.98
Snapple $6.36
Perrier sparkling water $7.83
Lemon oil $9.31
Crisco oil $10.36
Scope mouthwash $19.98
Sunflower oil $23.12
Olive oil $31.53
Real maple syrup $42.56
Sesame oil $60.37
Jack Daniel’s bourbon $98.41
Visine eye drops $766.72
Flonase prescription nasal spray $5,669.84
(Now, I can't imagine buying Flonase by the gallon, but you see my point here.)
That being said, gasoline is a different animal. When you add in the cost (to people in the United States) of the oil subsidies to Iraq, the war in Iraq, the original Gulf War, etc... we're paying a hell of a lot more for gasoline than the price we see at the pump. If anybody can track down how much of our tax dollars goes to subsidize petroleum in some form, I'd be thrilled. I'll update this post if I can find any info myself.
Yes, we're going to try to sell our Ford Explorer. We bought it when we thought we were going to be travelling a dirt road daily - but we're not, and the gas mileage sucks. I would love to own an electric car, or a hybrid, or a diesel that has been converted to burn vegetable oil. (As public transportation in this city was the pits last time I checked - I'll look again, but I hold out little hope. However, I'm not going to school and work full time anymore, so my schedule is much less tight - so I could probably deal with a less than abundant bus schedule...)
That being said, I read an article in the Washington Post that brings up an excellent point.
Gas - currently about $3/gallon in the states (has been higher elsewhere for a while, people, and for a good discussion of prices elsewhere, go here.)
Average prices of other popular liquids:
Coca-Cola $1.87
Milk $3.00
Evian water $4.52
Orange juice $5.98
Snapple $6.36
Perrier sparkling water $7.83
Lemon oil $9.31
Crisco oil $10.36
Scope mouthwash $19.98
Sunflower oil $23.12
Olive oil $31.53
Real maple syrup $42.56
Sesame oil $60.37
Jack Daniel’s bourbon $98.41
Visine eye drops $766.72
Flonase prescription nasal spray $5,669.84
(Now, I can't imagine buying Flonase by the gallon, but you see my point here.)
That being said, gasoline is a different animal. When you add in the cost (to people in the United States) of the oil subsidies to Iraq, the war in Iraq, the original Gulf War, etc... we're paying a hell of a lot more for gasoline than the price we see at the pump. If anybody can track down how much of our tax dollars goes to subsidize petroleum in some form, I'd be thrilled. I'll update this post if I can find any info myself.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Dante's Inferno needs updating
What circle of hell do spammers go to?
Word verification comment posting now activated.
Wonder how long it will be before they figure out a way around that?
Word verification comment posting now activated.
Wonder how long it will be before they figure out a way around that?
a few memes for fun
More Emotional
You have:
70% SCIENTIFIC INTUITION and
77% EMOTIONAL INTUITION The graph represents your place in Intuition 2-Space. As you can see, you scored well above average on emotional intuition and above average on scientific intuition. Your emotional intuition is stronger than your scientific intuition.
Your Emotional Intuition score is a measure of how well you understand people, especially their unspoken needs and sympathies. A high score score usually indicates social grace and persuasiveness. A low score usually means you're good at Quake.
Your Scientific Intuition score tells you how in tune you are with the world around you; how well you understand your physical and intellectual environment. People with high scores here are apt to succeed in business and, of course, the sciences.
Try my other test!
The 3 Variable Funny Test
It rules.
My test tracked 2 variables. How you compared to other people your age and gender:
You scored higher than 71% on Scientific
You scored higher than 80% on Interpersonal
The 2-Variable Intuition Test written by jason_bateman
Yeah, I know I'm very intelligent and very empathetic. I've gotten less empathetic over the last few years because I was so empathetic I was having trouble functioning. I kinda wish when the test was finished they'd have shown us what the correct answers were, though - I'm curious. The other thing that occurs to me is this: does anybody that takes this test and gets a result somewhere in the "stupid" circle actually post their results?
Test Results
Extroversion |||||||||||||| 56%
Emotional Stability |||||| 30%
Orderliness |||||||||| 33%
Accommodation |||||||||||||||| 63%
Inquisitiveness |||||||||||||||||| 73%
Your sloan type is SLUAI
Your primary type is Inquisitive
You are moderately social, moody, unstructured, accommodating, and intellectual, and may prefer a city which matches those traits.
The largest representation of your personality type can be found in the these U.S. cities: New Orleans, Albuquerque/Santa Fe, Greensboro, Memphis, Providence, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Orlando, Salt Lake City, Portland/Salem, St. Louis and these international countries/regions Puerto Rico, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Turkey, Ireland, Ukraine, England, South Africa, Greece, Wales, Brazil, Switzerland, South Korea
Well, New Orleans may be wiped off the face of the map after this hurricane. I had wished that J & I had had time to go back there again, so we had more happy memories of the place - but in looking through our pictures last night, I realized that there were a lot of happy memories to be had, and that they were only tainted if my memory let them be - so I'll erase that picture of a hummingbird I took for her while we were there, and in time my memory will probably only cover what the photographs cover, which will be nice.
J's dad just called - he's been holding off on our birthday presents to see if we got the house, and now that everything is official, he's going to get J a lawnmower (how sexist!) and me one of those big portable gazebo things that are screened in, so the kids & I can play outside without getting eaten alive. Eeeeeeeee! I'm so excited! Joan is going to help us decorate and paint and everything - I can't wait; I finally get to say "you know, I think I'd like this room to be green" and I CAN DO IT! WOOHOO!!
Okay, must stay focused. Lot of packing and sorting still to do. J & I spent many hours in the garage yesterday, sorting out keep/trash/garage sale, but there's still a lot to do. Dad brought down a bag full of newspaper, so I'm starting to pack the china and crystal. Mom has more boxes for me to pick up at school today. M woke up eeeaaaarly this morning, and was very excited about going to school, and C is in a GREAT mood, I keep playing kissy monster with him because he's so adorable and cheerful I just want to eat him up! He did the COOLEST thing last night. I was on the bed reading, and he came and laid down next to me on his stomach, and looked into my face, and put his hand back to touch his bottom and said "di?" Sure enough, he needed a clean diaper! How I managed to get such amazingly awesome kids I still don't know, but they're a blast.
Off to pack and clean and do laundry and play with C until it's time to go pick up big sister - I hope everybody's summer is going as well as ours is right now!
You have:
70% SCIENTIFIC INTUITION and
77% EMOTIONAL INTUITION The graph represents your place in Intuition 2-Space. As you can see, you scored well above average on emotional intuition and above average on scientific intuition. Your emotional intuition is stronger than your scientific intuition.
Your Emotional Intuition score is a measure of how well you understand people, especially their unspoken needs and sympathies. A high score score usually indicates social grace and persuasiveness. A low score usually means you're good at Quake.
Your Scientific Intuition score tells you how in tune you are with the world around you; how well you understand your physical and intellectual environment. People with high scores here are apt to succeed in business and, of course, the sciences.
The 3 Variable Funny Test
It rules.
My test tracked 2 variables. How you compared to other people your age and gender:
You scored higher than 71% on Scientific
You scored higher than 80% on Interpersonal
The 2-Variable Intuition Test written by jason_bateman
Yeah, I know I'm very intelligent and very empathetic. I've gotten less empathetic over the last few years because I was so empathetic I was having trouble functioning. I kinda wish when the test was finished they'd have shown us what the correct answers were, though - I'm curious. The other thing that occurs to me is this: does anybody that takes this test and gets a result somewhere in the "stupid" circle actually post their results?
Test Results
Extroversion |||||||||||||| 56%
Emotional Stability |||||| 30%
Orderliness |||||||||| 33%
Accommodation |||||||||||||||| 63%
Inquisitiveness |||||||||||||||||| 73%
Your sloan type is SLUAI
Your primary type is Inquisitive
You are moderately social, moody, unstructured, accommodating, and intellectual, and may prefer a city which matches those traits.
The largest representation of your personality type can be found in the these U.S. cities: New Orleans, Albuquerque/Santa Fe, Greensboro, Memphis, Providence, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Orlando, Salt Lake City, Portland/Salem, St. Louis and these international countries/regions Puerto Rico, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Turkey, Ireland, Ukraine, England, South Africa, Greece, Wales, Brazil, Switzerland, South Korea
Well, New Orleans may be wiped off the face of the map after this hurricane. I had wished that J & I had had time to go back there again, so we had more happy memories of the place - but in looking through our pictures last night, I realized that there were a lot of happy memories to be had, and that they were only tainted if my memory let them be - so I'll erase that picture of a hummingbird I took for her while we were there, and in time my memory will probably only cover what the photographs cover, which will be nice.
J's dad just called - he's been holding off on our birthday presents to see if we got the house, and now that everything is official, he's going to get J a lawnmower (how sexist!) and me one of those big portable gazebo things that are screened in, so the kids & I can play outside without getting eaten alive. Eeeeeeeee! I'm so excited! Joan is going to help us decorate and paint and everything - I can't wait; I finally get to say "you know, I think I'd like this room to be green" and I CAN DO IT! WOOHOO!!
Okay, must stay focused. Lot of packing and sorting still to do. J & I spent many hours in the garage yesterday, sorting out keep/trash/garage sale, but there's still a lot to do. Dad brought down a bag full of newspaper, so I'm starting to pack the china and crystal. Mom has more boxes for me to pick up at school today. M woke up eeeaaaarly this morning, and was very excited about going to school, and C is in a GREAT mood, I keep playing kissy monster with him because he's so adorable and cheerful I just want to eat him up! He did the COOLEST thing last night. I was on the bed reading, and he came and laid down next to me on his stomach, and looked into my face, and put his hand back to touch his bottom and said "di?" Sure enough, he needed a clean diaper! How I managed to get such amazingly awesome kids I still don't know, but they're a blast.
Off to pack and clean and do laundry and play with C until it's time to go pick up big sister - I hope everybody's summer is going as well as ours is right now!
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Man, some people are such LIARS!
Okay, so my parents and I decided to sell the four acres I grew up on that we've held on to all these years. For years I'd planned on at some point moving back there and building a house... but my life is totally different now, and my desires are different. It's not that I don't still love the land - I do, ticks, giant spiders and all... but I'm not particularly fond of the neighbors.
Anyway, so, love my parents though I do, they're not very good at breaking personal inertia (I can sympathize) so I introduced them to my realtor (If anybody wants to buy or sell a house around here, I gotta say Kathy Reardon has MORE than earned her commission with the house we're buying - she's a great sweetie) and basically held their hands through most of the proceedings... and there were interested buyers willing to pay full price. Woohoo! So they had an inspector go up to check on the well and septic tank that's already out there.
Let me tell you the history on this well. When my parents first moved to this land, they couldn't afford to have a well drilled. Mom was 7 months pregnant at the time. Their neighbors said that when THEY moved in, they had a similar problem, and THEIR neighbors let them run a hose to the house until they could save up to dig their own well, and that they were willing to pass it forward, so to speak. My parents very gratefully said thank you, and took them up on their offer. However, when I was about 4 months old, right before christmas, the water suddenly stopped. When dad went over to check to see what was wrong, he discovered that the couple had evidently been having marital problems, and one or the other or both of them had left, and nobody had paid the electricity bill for a while - so, no power, no water from an electric well. So I'm 4 months old; mom's doing cloth diapers, it's almost Christmas, and they have no water - she starts going down the list of well drillers in the phone book. Everybody says "Sure, we can do it.. in six months." When mom calls Mr. Cox, he took pity on her, and said that they were planning on taking christmas week off, but that they could come out and get a well drilled for my parents. He and his 19 year old son came out during their vacation... so dad cashed in his army life insurance policy, and the family had a well. (Best tasting water ever, too. I miss that water.)
So this well was put in 30 years ago this Christmas. After hurricane Kate knocked 3 trees down on the trailer up there in 85, we moved into town, and the place has been vacant ever since. J & I had been up a few times, and we'd checked the well - still worked, amazingly enough. Well, whomever the buyers had go out there to look at the well said that it had collapsed in, and quoted them $10,500 to take off the old tank & pump and get them a new well. So I called Mr. Cox's son, who was now running his father's business (his father having passed away). Not only did he remember us, he said he'd be more than happy to come out the next day and take a look at it. He explained that the reason for the high estimate was because to close up the old well, they'd have to pull out the pump, and then pump concrete down the hole to seal it off, etc (new regulation) and that most well drillers now use a rotary drill, like they do for oil drilling, only slightly modified. They charge a flat rate down to 150 ft or so, and then $12 each additional foot. Because oil drills were designed to seal off surface water above oil pockets, rotary drills for water frequently don't register any shallow water that they find, and frequently have to go as deep as 350 ft. He said they go fast; they can do that much in a day, but the way he does wells - by punching - that distance would take him 4 or 5 days. However, because of the way he punches wells, he's aware of what's happening inch by inch, and frequently doesn't have to go as deep. My parents' well was only 165 ft deep, for example.
This morning we met Mr. Cox out at the property. I think it was kind of an emotional reunion for mom, so I was glad she was there. I wish dad hadn't been feeling so poorly, I think it would have made his day too. Mr. Cox fiddled with the wires a bit, and within about 5 minutes had water gushing out. (Caved in well my aunt patootie.) He said that the wiring needed to be redone, and that the pump MIGHT need to be replaced, particularly with a slightly more powerful one, but that the well looked fine otherwise. WOOHOO! I can't wait to send his written report to the guy that the buyers had run out there & check - I think his name is Mills. He's either incompetent or dishonest - he said that he'd checked this well 4 years ago. I told the realtor that the guy was on crack or the wrong road, because nobody's been living there for forever, and certainly nobody asked to have the well checked 4 years ago! Mom joked that we should tell them if they actually WERE out there checking the well 4 years ago that she'll have them arrested for trespassing.
Anyway, so, love my parents though I do, they're not very good at breaking personal inertia (I can sympathize) so I introduced them to my realtor (If anybody wants to buy or sell a house around here, I gotta say Kathy Reardon has MORE than earned her commission with the house we're buying - she's a great sweetie) and basically held their hands through most of the proceedings... and there were interested buyers willing to pay full price. Woohoo! So they had an inspector go up to check on the well and septic tank that's already out there.
Let me tell you the history on this well. When my parents first moved to this land, they couldn't afford to have a well drilled. Mom was 7 months pregnant at the time. Their neighbors said that when THEY moved in, they had a similar problem, and THEIR neighbors let them run a hose to the house until they could save up to dig their own well, and that they were willing to pass it forward, so to speak. My parents very gratefully said thank you, and took them up on their offer. However, when I was about 4 months old, right before christmas, the water suddenly stopped. When dad went over to check to see what was wrong, he discovered that the couple had evidently been having marital problems, and one or the other or both of them had left, and nobody had paid the electricity bill for a while - so, no power, no water from an electric well. So I'm 4 months old; mom's doing cloth diapers, it's almost Christmas, and they have no water - she starts going down the list of well drillers in the phone book. Everybody says "Sure, we can do it.. in six months." When mom calls Mr. Cox, he took pity on her, and said that they were planning on taking christmas week off, but that they could come out and get a well drilled for my parents. He and his 19 year old son came out during their vacation... so dad cashed in his army life insurance policy, and the family had a well. (Best tasting water ever, too. I miss that water.)
So this well was put in 30 years ago this Christmas. After hurricane Kate knocked 3 trees down on the trailer up there in 85, we moved into town, and the place has been vacant ever since. J & I had been up a few times, and we'd checked the well - still worked, amazingly enough. Well, whomever the buyers had go out there to look at the well said that it had collapsed in, and quoted them $10,500 to take off the old tank & pump and get them a new well. So I called Mr. Cox's son, who was now running his father's business (his father having passed away). Not only did he remember us, he said he'd be more than happy to come out the next day and take a look at it. He explained that the reason for the high estimate was because to close up the old well, they'd have to pull out the pump, and then pump concrete down the hole to seal it off, etc (new regulation) and that most well drillers now use a rotary drill, like they do for oil drilling, only slightly modified. They charge a flat rate down to 150 ft or so, and then $12 each additional foot. Because oil drills were designed to seal off surface water above oil pockets, rotary drills for water frequently don't register any shallow water that they find, and frequently have to go as deep as 350 ft. He said they go fast; they can do that much in a day, but the way he does wells - by punching - that distance would take him 4 or 5 days. However, because of the way he punches wells, he's aware of what's happening inch by inch, and frequently doesn't have to go as deep. My parents' well was only 165 ft deep, for example.
This morning we met Mr. Cox out at the property. I think it was kind of an emotional reunion for mom, so I was glad she was there. I wish dad hadn't been feeling so poorly, I think it would have made his day too. Mr. Cox fiddled with the wires a bit, and within about 5 minutes had water gushing out. (Caved in well my aunt patootie.) He said that the wiring needed to be redone, and that the pump MIGHT need to be replaced, particularly with a slightly more powerful one, but that the well looked fine otherwise. WOOHOO! I can't wait to send his written report to the guy that the buyers had run out there & check - I think his name is Mills. He's either incompetent or dishonest - he said that he'd checked this well 4 years ago. I told the realtor that the guy was on crack or the wrong road, because nobody's been living there for forever, and certainly nobody asked to have the well checked 4 years ago! Mom joked that we should tell them if they actually WERE out there checking the well 4 years ago that she'll have them arrested for trespassing.
Friday, August 26, 2005
I'M SO GLAD IT'S FRIDAY!!!
{bounces about happily}
This has been one of the longest two weeks of my life - but it's actually been wonderful, and just about everything is looking up! I've felt so close to J lately; even through all the stress - it's been really great to have my best friend, my partner, right here. We even came up with the same idea for dinner independently yesterday, which was kinda creepy but cool at the same time. (And it was REALLY yummy.)
Gotta go - it hasn't slowed down yet.
This has been one of the longest two weeks of my life - but it's actually been wonderful, and just about everything is looking up! I've felt so close to J lately; even through all the stress - it's been really great to have my best friend, my partner, right here. We even came up with the same idea for dinner independently yesterday, which was kinda creepy but cool at the same time. (And it was REALLY yummy.)
Gotta go - it hasn't slowed down yet.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Who Will Say 'No More'?
By Gary Hart
Wednesday, August 24, 2005; Page A15
"Waist deep in the Big Muddy and the big fool said to push on," warned an anti-Vietnam war song those many years ago. The McGovern presidential campaign, in those days, which I know something about, is widely viewed as a cause for the decline of the Democratic Party, a gateway through which a new conservative era entered.
Like the cat that jumped on a hot stove and thereafter wouldn't jump on any stove, hot or cold, today's Democratic leaders didn't want to make that mistake again. Many supported the Iraq war resolution and -- as the Big Muddy is rising yet again -- now find themselves tongue-tied or trying to trump a war president by calling for deployment of more troops. Thus does good money follow bad and bad politics get even worse.
History will deal with George W. Bush and the neoconservatives who misled a mighty nation into a flawed war that is draining the finest military in the world, diverting Guard and reserve forces that should be on the front line of homeland defense, shredding international alliances that prevailed in two world wars and the Cold War, accumulating staggering deficits, misdirecting revenue from education to rebuilding Iraqi buildings we've blown up, and weakening America's national security.
But what will history say about an opposition party that stands silent while all this goes on? My generation of Democrats jumped on the hot stove of Vietnam and now, with its members in positions of responsibility, it is afraid of jumping on any political stove. In their leaders, the American people look for strength, determination and self-confidence, but they also look for courage, wisdom, judgment and, in times of moral crisis, the willingness to say: "I was wrong."
To stay silent during such a crisis, and particularly to harbor the thought that the administration's misfortune is the Democrats' fortune, is cowardly. In 2008 I want a leader who is willing now to say: "I made a mistake, and for my mistake I am going to Iraq and accompanying the next planeload of flag-draped coffins back to Dover Air Force Base. And I am going to ask forgiveness for my mistake from every parent who will talk to me."
Further, this leader should say: "I am now going to give a series of speeches across the country documenting how the administration did not tell the American people the truth, why this war is making our country more vulnerable and less secure, how we can drive a wedge between Iraqi insurgents and outside jihadists and leave Iraq for the Iraqis to govern, how we can repair the damage done to our military, what we and our allies can do to dry up the jihadists' swamp, and what dramatic steps we must take to become energy-secure and prevent Gulf Wars III, IV and so on."
At stake is not just the leadership of the Democratic Party and the nation but our nation's honor, our nobility and our principles. Franklin D. Roosevelt established a national community based on social justice. Harry Truman created international networks that repaired the damage of World War II and defeated communism. John F. Kennedy recaptured the ideal of the republic and the sense of civic duty. To expect to enter this pantheon, the next Democratic leader must now undertake all three tasks.
But this cannot be done while the water is rising in the Big Muddy of the Middle East. No Democrat, especially one now silent, should expect election by default. The public trust must be earned, and speaking clearly, candidly and forcefully now about the mess in Iraq is the place to begin.
The real defeatists today are not those protesting the war. The real defeatists are those in power and their silent supporters in the opposition party who are reduced to repeating "Stay the course" even when the course, whatever it now is, is light years away from the one originally undertaken. The truth is we're way off course. We've stumbled into a hornet's nest. We've weakened ourselves at home and in the world. We are less secure today than before this war began.
Who now has the courage to say this?
The writer is a former Democratic senator from Colorado.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005; Page A15
"Waist deep in the Big Muddy and the big fool said to push on," warned an anti-Vietnam war song those many years ago. The McGovern presidential campaign, in those days, which I know something about, is widely viewed as a cause for the decline of the Democratic Party, a gateway through which a new conservative era entered.
Like the cat that jumped on a hot stove and thereafter wouldn't jump on any stove, hot or cold, today's Democratic leaders didn't want to make that mistake again. Many supported the Iraq war resolution and -- as the Big Muddy is rising yet again -- now find themselves tongue-tied or trying to trump a war president by calling for deployment of more troops. Thus does good money follow bad and bad politics get even worse.
History will deal with George W. Bush and the neoconservatives who misled a mighty nation into a flawed war that is draining the finest military in the world, diverting Guard and reserve forces that should be on the front line of homeland defense, shredding international alliances that prevailed in two world wars and the Cold War, accumulating staggering deficits, misdirecting revenue from education to rebuilding Iraqi buildings we've blown up, and weakening America's national security.
But what will history say about an opposition party that stands silent while all this goes on? My generation of Democrats jumped on the hot stove of Vietnam and now, with its members in positions of responsibility, it is afraid of jumping on any political stove. In their leaders, the American people look for strength, determination and self-confidence, but they also look for courage, wisdom, judgment and, in times of moral crisis, the willingness to say: "I was wrong."
To stay silent during such a crisis, and particularly to harbor the thought that the administration's misfortune is the Democrats' fortune, is cowardly. In 2008 I want a leader who is willing now to say: "I made a mistake, and for my mistake I am going to Iraq and accompanying the next planeload of flag-draped coffins back to Dover Air Force Base. And I am going to ask forgiveness for my mistake from every parent who will talk to me."
Further, this leader should say: "I am now going to give a series of speeches across the country documenting how the administration did not tell the American people the truth, why this war is making our country more vulnerable and less secure, how we can drive a wedge between Iraqi insurgents and outside jihadists and leave Iraq for the Iraqis to govern, how we can repair the damage done to our military, what we and our allies can do to dry up the jihadists' swamp, and what dramatic steps we must take to become energy-secure and prevent Gulf Wars III, IV and so on."
At stake is not just the leadership of the Democratic Party and the nation but our nation's honor, our nobility and our principles. Franklin D. Roosevelt established a national community based on social justice. Harry Truman created international networks that repaired the damage of World War II and defeated communism. John F. Kennedy recaptured the ideal of the republic and the sense of civic duty. To expect to enter this pantheon, the next Democratic leader must now undertake all three tasks.
But this cannot be done while the water is rising in the Big Muddy of the Middle East. No Democrat, especially one now silent, should expect election by default. The public trust must be earned, and speaking clearly, candidly and forcefully now about the mess in Iraq is the place to begin.
The real defeatists today are not those protesting the war. The real defeatists are those in power and their silent supporters in the opposition party who are reduced to repeating "Stay the course" even when the course, whatever it now is, is light years away from the one originally undertaken. The truth is we're way off course. We've stumbled into a hornet's nest. We've weakened ourselves at home and in the world. We are less secure today than before this war began.
Who now has the courage to say this?
The writer is a former Democratic senator from Colorado.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
I hate summer
I've never dealt well with heat. Today the heat index was up to 105 - and we went downtown to see the caribbean festival. I wonder how many people got medical attention for heat stroke... needless to say, we didn't stay very long. I've been feeling weird for a week or two now anyway - J thinks I've developed IBS from the stress. I think I'm hormonal. Or something. It's weird, I have days (or parts of days) where I'm on top of everything; organized, with it, on time - and then days like today when my brain just doesn't seem quite connected to the rest of the planet, and my emotions are either absent or very well buried.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Happy Birthday to us!
For our birthdays this year, J & I decided to give each other a house.
Not too shabby, eh? So we're moving again. But probably for the last time in a loooong time.
Not too shabby, eh? So we're moving again. But probably for the last time in a loooong time.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Haupt, casero, à la maison, domestico, 家, 가정, 家庭, fàrdach, dachaidh, oayll, thie
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like it, no matter what you call it.
WOOHOO!
WOOHOO!
Saturday, August 13, 2005
What a day
I have to agree with Khang, I think I like this one best as well. Having a kick-ass camera pays off!
I love The Straight Dope. Threadspotting is always good, and this thread sounds like a conversation my friends and I would have. Or have had, come to think of it. I remember J & Bill comparing the Hundred Acre Woods characters to WWII countries/leaders. Very entertaining; it's things like that that make me miss Bill. I have an anniversary card to send him - they got married sometime in August, I don't know when. I'll have to do that tomorrow.
Uncle Patrick took both J & I out to dinner tonight - we had a WONDERFUL time. The food at Clusters & Hops is divine - I'd never eaten there before; had always just bought cheese or wine or somesuch. Mom watched the kids for us, which was really nice of her, especially since it had just been the first day of school and she was tired. I'm not going to tell her that I'm planning on going to Mass this weekend; I don't feel like getting into an involved conversation with her right now.
We put the contract in on the house today. Our realtor called us an hour or so later and said "You won't believe this... somebody put in a contract on the house last night." Months of no action, then bam! out of the blue. So, we're hoping that they decide they don't want it, but we know the likelihood is slim and are continuing to look for a house to buy. All the ones I've seen so far & called about have been "sale pending."
Today was the orientation at Moira's school - I think she's going to really enjoy it. Miss Elizabeth, her teacher, seems really sweet.
And I am really tired and am going to go to sleep.
I love The Straight Dope. Threadspotting is always good, and this thread sounds like a conversation my friends and I would have. Or have had, come to think of it. I remember J & Bill comparing the Hundred Acre Woods characters to WWII countries/leaders. Very entertaining; it's things like that that make me miss Bill. I have an anniversary card to send him - they got married sometime in August, I don't know when. I'll have to do that tomorrow.
Uncle Patrick took both J & I out to dinner tonight - we had a WONDERFUL time. The food at Clusters & Hops is divine - I'd never eaten there before; had always just bought cheese or wine or somesuch. Mom watched the kids for us, which was really nice of her, especially since it had just been the first day of school and she was tired. I'm not going to tell her that I'm planning on going to Mass this weekend; I don't feel like getting into an involved conversation with her right now.
We put the contract in on the house today. Our realtor called us an hour or so later and said "You won't believe this... somebody put in a contract on the house last night." Months of no action, then bam! out of the blue. So, we're hoping that they decide they don't want it, but we know the likelihood is slim and are continuing to look for a house to buy. All the ones I've seen so far & called about have been "sale pending."
Today was the orientation at Moira's school - I think she's going to really enjoy it. Miss Elizabeth, her teacher, seems really sweet.
And I am really tired and am going to go to sleep.
Friday, August 12, 2005
wow I'm tired
We didn't get back from Tampa until 3am - but Tori was wonderful. I got to hear Hey Jupiter live, and during her "Tori's Piano Bar" time (where she plays requests people have sent in to the website) she played Burning Ring of Fire - I couldn't stop laughing, but it was really well done. Then she played I'm On Fire (by Springsteen) and I cracked up again. Khang got some really good pictures, it looked like (we've got our sneaking-the-camera-routine down pat now. heehee) and I can't wait to see them. I've gotta lose some weight; I was looking at what she was wearing and thinking "hrm, that looks comfy and like something I'd like to wear...' but if I tried to wear it now, I'd look like a lumpy pillow that got caught in a wheat thresher.
We were behind the cutest gay couple (actually, we were pretty much surrounded by gay couples); these two guys were really sweet. Khang & I skipped the opening acts to have dinner - thai food! Yummm. He was nice enough to help me look up Alessi bakery - my mom grew up in Tampa and said their cuban bread was amazing - but they were already closed, so I couldn't bring her back a loaf.
Logan was sweet enough to watch the kids for me from 3 until J got off work yesterday; we made really good time on the trip down, thank goodness.
We were behind the cutest gay couple (actually, we were pretty much surrounded by gay couples); these two guys were really sweet. Khang & I skipped the opening acts to have dinner - thai food! Yummm. He was nice enough to help me look up Alessi bakery - my mom grew up in Tampa and said their cuban bread was amazing - but they were already closed, so I couldn't bring her back a loaf.
Logan was sweet enough to watch the kids for me from 3 until J got off work yesterday; we made really good time on the trip down, thank goodness.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
I forgot my mantra
Hopefully it'll come to me.
WTF is up with MSN's popup ad thing blocking what I'm trying to read about the Today show? No, I'm not going to download your stinking MSN popup blocking toolbar crap; I don't have Windoze and I don't use that POS Internet Explorer... once I've clicked on it once, you should darn well remove the stupid thing! {grumble grumble} I wonder if firefox would do something different than safari does...
Wrote a long post and then deleted it. Rationality wins for the night.
WTF is up with MSN's popup ad thing blocking what I'm trying to read about the Today show? No, I'm not going to download your stinking MSN popup blocking toolbar crap; I don't have Windoze and I don't use that POS Internet Explorer... once I've clicked on it once, you should darn well remove the stupid thing! {grumble grumble} I wonder if firefox would do something different than safari does...
Wrote a long post and then deleted it. Rationality wins for the night.
Saturday, August 06, 2005
Maybe it's a sign...
I have a little quote-a-day flipbook thing that I usually forget for a week or two at a time. I happened to see it as I was walking past today, and went ahead to flip it to the correct day - and the quote for yesterday caught my eye:
"To thee I'll return, over-burdened with care;
The heart's dearest solace will smile on me there;
No more from that cottage again will I roam;
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home!"
- John Howard Payne
Yesterday we went and saw a house that we're going to make an offer on. I'm very excited.
Today's quote? "Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln
Oh, and if the world gets any nuttier or I can't stand our government any more, I've decided to start saving up money to move. It's not nearly as expensive as I thought it would be...
"To thee I'll return, over-burdened with care;
The heart's dearest solace will smile on me there;
No more from that cottage again will I roam;
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home!"
- John Howard Payne
Yesterday we went and saw a house that we're going to make an offer on. I'm very excited.
Today's quote? "Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln
Oh, and if the world gets any nuttier or I can't stand our government any more, I've decided to start saving up money to move. It's not nearly as expensive as I thought it would be...
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
But no, that would have been TOO EASY...
Well, fudge. A week or so ago, our landlord called and informed us that they were selling off all their single-family properties, and we had first dibs on the one we're in. After discussing it, J & I decided that yes, it was about damn time we became homeowners and stopped throwing money down the rent hole, and went forward, doing research, etc. We had a market analysis done by a realtor that told us we should pay about $150,000 for the house. The landlord, when he had called, had said that he'd not had an appraisal done, but that he guessed the house would go for about $160,000. He wanted to get J & I on a conference call to discuss who was going to do what. When I called him back with a good time for J to be in on the call, he changed it so that we were coming by their office. The next time I talked to him, he mentioned our meeting at the office and signing a "letter of intent" to purchase. I told J about this new development, and we researched letters of intent, and were on our way to the meeting when the landlord's secretary called us; he'd had some emergency come up and couldn't meet us, and was going to be out of town this weekend, could we meet Monday? Sure. We called Monday morning and asked what time we were meeting, and then asked if we could do it Tuesday instead. Sure. So last night we go over there. I've looked up the 2004 Market Value of every house on our street, and what they last sold for... one house on our cul-de-sac with the exact same square footage sold 3 months ago for $115,000. So we walk in, and the landlord opens up his file folder with stuff printed out, and right on top of one side of the pile is a printed up "contract of sale" - J & I never said anything about it to the landlord, but I was pretty pissed. We'd gone from a phone call, to an office visit, to a letter of intent, to a contract of sale, and the bastard hadn't even gotten an appraisal done. We could tell that he was less than pleased that we'd been so diligent about our research, and told us that HIS market analysis came out at $169,900, and that they were willing to give us $5000 off of the closing or appraisal value, whichever we preferred. The jerk said he would not pay for an appraisal unless he had a contract of sale. J & I discussed it afterwards, and decided no WAY were we going to sign some stupid contract for the house when there hadn't even been an appraisal yet. *sigh*
So we doubt they're going to come down on their price, and so we're probably moving again. I'm house-hunting. Anybody know of a 3br in a nice neighborhood for sale that's not too expensive?
And I need boxes again. *groan* At least I can have a big garage sale and get rid of a bunch of CRAP before moving this time.
And I still don't have my laptop back! WAAAAA! Thank goodness my husband is so sweet as to set up a computer in the office that I can log in to... The painter's house usually gets painted last, but he's been doing a really great job of keeping our network up and happy.
Is it Friday yet?
So we doubt they're going to come down on their price, and so we're probably moving again. I'm house-hunting. Anybody know of a 3br in a nice neighborhood for sale that's not too expensive?
And I need boxes again. *groan* At least I can have a big garage sale and get rid of a bunch of CRAP before moving this time.
And I still don't have my laptop back! WAAAAA! Thank goodness my husband is so sweet as to set up a computer in the office that I can log in to... The painter's house usually gets painted last, but he's been doing a really great job of keeping our network up and happy.
Is it Friday yet?
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