Guess what job was the most dangerous one last year? It's those who work in the ground crews at airports. That would include the ground crew, mechanics and flight crew. They had an amazing rate of 5.5 accidents per 100 employees. In most of those accidents the cause was from lifting too much, a common injury situation for all the jobs listed on this year's most dangerous list.
According to the Bureau of Labor these were the other most "dangerous jobs in last years top ten. last year.
* Urban Transit jobs- This includes bus, commuter rail and other mass transit. The accident rate per hundred was 5.4
* Seafood Product, Preparation and packaging- those workers had 4.6 accidents per 100 workers.
* Hog and Pig Farming- Oh my...those pigs can be pushy and difficult. There were 4.4 per hundred accidents in that field.
* Other Animal Production- this category includes pet and horse breeding. There were 4.2 accidents per hundred in this occupational group.
* Couriers- those delivery service guys who always seem to be hit by autos or trucks and knocked off their bikes or scooters. They has 4.2 accidents per hundred.
* Beer, Wine, and Alcohol Beverage Wholesalers- They are probably so drunk on their products....they don't notice being injured. But 4 out of 100 were last year.
* Support For Water Transportation- this includes all port operations. The rate is 3.8 for that occupation
* Coal Mining- Not unexpected. I would have thought this dwindling occupation would have been at the top of the list. But the injury total for miners was 3.6 per 100.
* Waste Collection- garbage collectors were injured 3.6 per 100. Most of those were from being hit by cars who ignored the garbage trucks and barreled through anyway.
The commonality of all these jobs is that they are low paying and require less education. So the yelling from mom to study hard on school to "get a good job to make more money" should also include the refrain "and you'll be safer too". Another thing that I notice about the list is that workers in industries that might seem far less dangerous to the average person stand an even greater risk of being injured in the job. I would have expected occupations like- military soldier, race car driver and construction worker the be there too.
Whatever..just don't strain your eyes reading my blog. I don't want to make the list for causing injury..I know if I did my "occupation would be "Writes Stupid blogs".
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Airport Times
Something I read about an airport the other day reminded me of some of the airport experiences I have had, or rather, some of the more unusual things I observed there. It's a good thing this isn't a TV because after seeing that lien you would probably turn me off...lighten up a little and I'll make this short. perhaps you can tell me an unusual airport story too.
I remember once in the early 90's a Moscow Airport, that when the passengers changed planes they were walked, not to a shuttle bus, but to the actual airport tarmac where we waited...standing up...about 20 minutes for the bald tire aircraft to stagger to a spot on the tarmac to where we then were told to walk. I didn't have jet lag after that flight. I had foot lag from the constant walking on an airport tarmac. of course that airport was the same one in which a Russian soldier (they had armed soldiers in the Moscow Airport at the time) motioned to me an in broken English said, "You want sell pants".
Since I was in an open airport at the time I decided not to get naked and sell the poor fellow my fashionable pants...Not that I don't have an absolutely beautiful butt for the other airport passengers to see. I just declined any impulse to excite everybody there that day and in the process probably prevented an international embarrassment for for country.
Really, it was nothing to what happened when I got to Kiev on the next flight. there, I and the other Americans were practically held ransom while a small time airport supervisor decided to fleece us all by demanding we pay $50 for a visa that we already had with us, and that we had paid for prior to the trip. We were being held ransom when some of the Americans chattered on about "their rights" and so forth. I informed them that we had no rights when being kidnapped and ransomed in the soviet Union, tourists or not, and that it was worth $50 to me to get out of that abysmal airport. I told them I was going to give little Stalin his $50 and grab a cab into Kiev. Like pack of lambs they all decided to follow me and escape Stalin...uh...minus $50 each.
Then there was the time I was in that Singapore airport. It is gorgeous, beautiful on the outside, but like so many drab Singaporean people, has little flash or appeal once you see it. That airport is the kind that has the shops that sell those awful crescent shaped foam pillows that are supposed to replace the dirty airline pillow we all want when we board a long flight. Anyway, in that airport I saw an incident which was the microcosm of the national character of the people of Singapore.
A young male passenger from a flight entering into Singapore was walking in the airport. He apparently understood no spoken or written English because many signs in the airport say NO SMOKING (In Singapore the national pastime ss trying to come up with even more NO this or that. They are quite a negative and over disciplined crowd) and because one of those pretty Singapore airport ladies (They scurry about and do every imaginable thing to please the tourists) frantically yelled "No smoking" to him. he ignored her until she bolted( with another airport beauty coming to her assistance) toward that guy at break net speed.
Seeing that charging lion he dumped the cigarette in a trash can and ran from the lion and her assistant. No doubt, had he have been apprehended he would have been flogged, shot, and the boiled in order. They seem, to do that a lot in Singapore.
The most eerie sight I saw was when in the jakarta airport in 1998. That one is a beautiful facility, but what was odd then was I had just arrived one month after the bloody anti Chinese riots in the country, a time when no sane (As you already know, I am not sane) foreigner would travel to Jakarta. I practically had the entire airport concourse to myself that time. Unfortunately, the various con artists who offer tourists everything from "pretty girl" to rides into Jakarta to cheap accommodations, swarmed all over me as I exited the airport.
I thought perhaps I had started the second 98 riot. Oh then there was Detroit airport I settled into at 1 am. I was stuck there and prepared fro the 7 hour layover , but little did I know it was practically closed. When I deplaned (I love that word) I entered into an airport where NOTHING was open, there were no maintenance people on duty, no security people, no shops or food outlets opening, no escalators or sky trains working....nothing but me and a few other aimless souls, some of whom were sleeping on several padded chairs.
I was tired, bored and hunger, but the first outlet to open, a McDonald's (When I die, either in heaven or hell, I am certain the first thing I will see is a McDonald's) didn't until 6 a.m. By 6:30 a.m. it seemed half of Detroit was suddenly in the airport, as if a switch had been turned on and it filled.
Last September when we put Jane on a plane to Toronto to escape the hurricane mess here at home, I saw managing parade of sadness and shock at the Baton Rouge Airport. There were thousands of refugees from New Orleans , those who had been rescued from rooftops and attics in their flooded homes. They were all being herded by little men with megaphones to spots in the airport with signs like "Houston", Atlanta", "Salt Lake City" the destinations for those groups of about 150 each. The little men were in effect telling them where they were going to be sent, and in some cases the refugees were not overjoyed by it. I saw a young girl in her pajamas holding a dirt stuffed animal,. probably the only thing she took from her demolished home, doctors and nurses in medical wear, the more fortunate who had grabbed whatever they could carry in small plastic grocery bags when being rescued by the boats or helicopters that treaded through the flood waters to save them.
Each person had a face and wore clothes that told a thousand stories, and the stories were always tragic ones. I saw tears, fears and heard jeers from some of the refuges. It was the most surreal sight of my life, human tragedy on display in a tiny Louisiana airport. I felt so lucky that Jane wasn't in such a group that instead she was going to safety with relatives. I do think if I had stayed in that airport that day, and just observed, i could have written the human story of the hurricane.
Ok..I am rambling, You can come up for air now.
From the "Oh, no! Is my daddy in there" department come the news that Christopher Killion, 31, of Tulsa, Oklahoma has a rather small show that has gotten him into a pickle. He was arrested the other day at a Tulsa strip joint after police say his 4 year old toddler son wandered from an unlocked car into the club and saw sights not seen on the Cartoon channel or at Sesame Street. Christopher was arrested on a complaint of "encouraging a minor child to be in the need of supervision", whatever that means (They should have filed "stupidity" charges against Christopher instead).
He posted a $500 bond and was released (probably heading to another strip club). Christopher has an unusual parenting style. I think we might call it the "monster school of supervision. That's because Christopher told his little boy to stay in the car, and that if he left it "monsters would eat him".... Oh, my. I wander if those strip girls would be my monster and attack me instead. Uh, never mind. Forget my fanatsy....The little boy has been put in the car in the parking lot of the club in near freezing temperatures and with rain pouring down. After the child entered the club (with saucer sized eyes, no doubt), the club manager called the police that a child was looking for his dad among the strippers. Christopher seemed no to even notice his little boy was in the club. Evidently his eyes were focused on other things............
I remember once in the early 90's a Moscow Airport, that when the passengers changed planes they were walked, not to a shuttle bus, but to the actual airport tarmac where we waited...standing up...about 20 minutes for the bald tire aircraft to stagger to a spot on the tarmac to where we then were told to walk. I didn't have jet lag after that flight. I had foot lag from the constant walking on an airport tarmac. of course that airport was the same one in which a Russian soldier (they had armed soldiers in the Moscow Airport at the time) motioned to me an in broken English said, "You want sell pants".
Since I was in an open airport at the time I decided not to get naked and sell the poor fellow my fashionable pants...Not that I don't have an absolutely beautiful butt for the other airport passengers to see. I just declined any impulse to excite everybody there that day and in the process probably prevented an international embarrassment for for country.
Really, it was nothing to what happened when I got to Kiev on the next flight. there, I and the other Americans were practically held ransom while a small time airport supervisor decided to fleece us all by demanding we pay $50 for a visa that we already had with us, and that we had paid for prior to the trip. We were being held ransom when some of the Americans chattered on about "their rights" and so forth. I informed them that we had no rights when being kidnapped and ransomed in the soviet Union, tourists or not, and that it was worth $50 to me to get out of that abysmal airport. I told them I was going to give little Stalin his $50 and grab a cab into Kiev. Like pack of lambs they all decided to follow me and escape Stalin...uh...minus $50 each.
Then there was the time I was in that Singapore airport. It is gorgeous, beautiful on the outside, but like so many drab Singaporean people, has little flash or appeal once you see it. That airport is the kind that has the shops that sell those awful crescent shaped foam pillows that are supposed to replace the dirty airline pillow we all want when we board a long flight. Anyway, in that airport I saw an incident which was the microcosm of the national character of the people of Singapore.
A young male passenger from a flight entering into Singapore was walking in the airport. He apparently understood no spoken or written English because many signs in the airport say NO SMOKING (In Singapore the national pastime ss trying to come up with even more NO this or that. They are quite a negative and over disciplined crowd) and because one of those pretty Singapore airport ladies (They scurry about and do every imaginable thing to please the tourists) frantically yelled "No smoking" to him. he ignored her until she bolted( with another airport beauty coming to her assistance) toward that guy at break net speed.
Seeing that charging lion he dumped the cigarette in a trash can and ran from the lion and her assistant. No doubt, had he have been apprehended he would have been flogged, shot, and the boiled in order. They seem, to do that a lot in Singapore.
The most eerie sight I saw was when in the jakarta airport in 1998. That one is a beautiful facility, but what was odd then was I had just arrived one month after the bloody anti Chinese riots in the country, a time when no sane (As you already know, I am not sane) foreigner would travel to Jakarta. I practically had the entire airport concourse to myself that time. Unfortunately, the various con artists who offer tourists everything from "pretty girl" to rides into Jakarta to cheap accommodations, swarmed all over me as I exited the airport.
I thought perhaps I had started the second 98 riot. Oh then there was Detroit airport I settled into at 1 am. I was stuck there and prepared fro the 7 hour layover , but little did I know it was practically closed. When I deplaned (I love that word) I entered into an airport where NOTHING was open, there were no maintenance people on duty, no security people, no shops or food outlets opening, no escalators or sky trains working....nothing but me and a few other aimless souls, some of whom were sleeping on several padded chairs.
I was tired, bored and hunger, but the first outlet to open, a McDonald's (When I die, either in heaven or hell, I am certain the first thing I will see is a McDonald's) didn't until 6 a.m. By 6:30 a.m. it seemed half of Detroit was suddenly in the airport, as if a switch had been turned on and it filled.
Last September when we put Jane on a plane to Toronto to escape the hurricane mess here at home, I saw managing parade of sadness and shock at the Baton Rouge Airport. There were thousands of refugees from New Orleans , those who had been rescued from rooftops and attics in their flooded homes. They were all being herded by little men with megaphones to spots in the airport with signs like "Houston", Atlanta", "Salt Lake City" the destinations for those groups of about 150 each. The little men were in effect telling them where they were going to be sent, and in some cases the refugees were not overjoyed by it. I saw a young girl in her pajamas holding a dirt stuffed animal,. probably the only thing she took from her demolished home, doctors and nurses in medical wear, the more fortunate who had grabbed whatever they could carry in small plastic grocery bags when being rescued by the boats or helicopters that treaded through the flood waters to save them.
Each person had a face and wore clothes that told a thousand stories, and the stories were always tragic ones. I saw tears, fears and heard jeers from some of the refuges. It was the most surreal sight of my life, human tragedy on display in a tiny Louisiana airport. I felt so lucky that Jane wasn't in such a group that instead she was going to safety with relatives. I do think if I had stayed in that airport that day, and just observed, i could have written the human story of the hurricane.
Ok..I am rambling, You can come up for air now.
From the "Oh, no! Is my daddy in there" department come the news that Christopher Killion, 31, of Tulsa, Oklahoma has a rather small show that has gotten him into a pickle. He was arrested the other day at a Tulsa strip joint after police say his 4 year old toddler son wandered from an unlocked car into the club and saw sights not seen on the Cartoon channel or at Sesame Street. Christopher was arrested on a complaint of "encouraging a minor child to be in the need of supervision", whatever that means (They should have filed "stupidity" charges against Christopher instead).
He posted a $500 bond and was released (probably heading to another strip club). Christopher has an unusual parenting style. I think we might call it the "monster school of supervision. That's because Christopher told his little boy to stay in the car, and that if he left it "monsters would eat him".... Oh, my. I wander if those strip girls would be my monster and attack me instead. Uh, never mind. Forget my fanatsy....The little boy has been put in the car in the parking lot of the club in near freezing temperatures and with rain pouring down. After the child entered the club (with saucer sized eyes, no doubt), the club manager called the police that a child was looking for his dad among the strippers. Christopher seemed no to even notice his little boy was in the club. Evidently his eyes were focused on other things............
Attacking Free Speech
Bush was back in New Orleans for another political photo opportunity, as he made more promises of financial help for New orleans. But of course, Bush said "Congress should allocate" money for rebuilding here, and gave no indication he would lobby his party members in Congress to do it. Bush has made repeated promises for help here and honored few of them. That is his usual method of government- promise at the time of an incident and hope the people will either forget the promise or not pay attention to whether it is honored. We expect virtually nothing from Bush, and we get that.
There is a proposal in my state's legislature to do a very undemocratic thing- ban protests in front of funerals. This is weird proposal on first glance, yet four other state sin the U.S. have already passed this law. It simply makes it a crime to picket or demonstrate at funerals, a reaction to protests by crazy right wing Christian groups who show up at military funerals across the U.S. and claim the war in Iraq and the death of Americans is the result of "the nation's tolerance of gays and lesbians.
Too, the protesters say that hurricanes and mine disasters are "divine retribution for the nation's stance on gays". Clearly, the proposal attacks a small groups of crazies, who if left to their own devices would soon self distruct. yet, those at funeral s who have been affected have lobbied for this law. The question brought about by such an undemocratic law is, Can free speech be halted because it offends others? In this country it should not. Thus far the law has not been adjudicated in those 4 states that have it, but the idea that anyone would attack free speech (even if it is crazy free speech) is a reflection of the deterioration of freedoms and dissent here since George Bush was elected in 2000.
In time the law will be challenged in court, and probably ruled unconstitutional. Yet I find it frightening that we have such laws here. Pre Bush it would have been unthinkable. It's not as if protesters are showing up ay Uncle Harry's funeral. They appear at military funerals.
When is a person robbing a bank and when not? That was the question of the day in Williston, North Dakota after a man wearing a ski mask walked into a bank and demanded money, then told the tellers "just kidding". Ryan Wright, 20, isn't laughing now, and has surrendered to police. He now awaits charges that could put him in a jail cell for 5 years. The Judge who set bail for Ryan set his bail at $1000 given that he is more a jokester robber than a menacing one. Judge David Nelson also ordered Ryan to stay away from alcohol and bars (Yep! They think he was drunk when he made his almost robbery attempt).
The tellers at the bank that Ryan "maybe" attempted to rob say that Ryan was good-natured and had no weapon. In fact, he went about his banking business after his remark about robbery, oblivious to the fright he caused the tellers in the bank. This does seem to me to be a case of the booze doing the joking, and I do think Ryan will avoid jail. Seems to me someone ought to tell Ryan to do his robbery at the bars he frequents.
They will probably be as drunk as he and won't pay much attention anyway.
There is a proposal in my state's legislature to do a very undemocratic thing- ban protests in front of funerals. This is weird proposal on first glance, yet four other state sin the U.S. have already passed this law. It simply makes it a crime to picket or demonstrate at funerals, a reaction to protests by crazy right wing Christian groups who show up at military funerals across the U.S. and claim the war in Iraq and the death of Americans is the result of "the nation's tolerance of gays and lesbians.
Too, the protesters say that hurricanes and mine disasters are "divine retribution for the nation's stance on gays". Clearly, the proposal attacks a small groups of crazies, who if left to their own devices would soon self distruct. yet, those at funeral s who have been affected have lobbied for this law. The question brought about by such an undemocratic law is, Can free speech be halted because it offends others? In this country it should not. Thus far the law has not been adjudicated in those 4 states that have it, but the idea that anyone would attack free speech (even if it is crazy free speech) is a reflection of the deterioration of freedoms and dissent here since George Bush was elected in 2000.
In time the law will be challenged in court, and probably ruled unconstitutional. Yet I find it frightening that we have such laws here. Pre Bush it would have been unthinkable. It's not as if protesters are showing up ay Uncle Harry's funeral. They appear at military funerals.
When is a person robbing a bank and when not? That was the question of the day in Williston, North Dakota after a man wearing a ski mask walked into a bank and demanded money, then told the tellers "just kidding". Ryan Wright, 20, isn't laughing now, and has surrendered to police. He now awaits charges that could put him in a jail cell for 5 years. The Judge who set bail for Ryan set his bail at $1000 given that he is more a jokester robber than a menacing one. Judge David Nelson also ordered Ryan to stay away from alcohol and bars (Yep! They think he was drunk when he made his almost robbery attempt).
The tellers at the bank that Ryan "maybe" attempted to rob say that Ryan was good-natured and had no weapon. In fact, he went about his banking business after his remark about robbery, oblivious to the fright he caused the tellers in the bank. This does seem to me to be a case of the booze doing the joking, and I do think Ryan will avoid jail. Seems to me someone ought to tell Ryan to do his robbery at the bars he frequents.
They will probably be as drunk as he and won't pay much attention anyway.
Fat Business
Fat mail today.... The fattening of America is becoming more and more apparent to me every day. No, no..not just seeing the fat people wandering in public, but even in products being sold to consumers here. There is definitely a fattier range of choices for American consumers today. From car seats for fat little babies to huge triple wide caskets for the obese to rest in peace., I am noticing more and more fat related products at malls and other retail outlets.
For instance, even in mainstream stores the xx-large sizes of yesterday now are expanded to extra-extra-extra-extra large pants and other clothes for fat men, and sizes ranging above size 30 for the fat ladies of America. (Don't ask me what size I wear..) It's because next to the obese Germans, Americans are the fattest people on earth.
Estimates are than about 65% of American adults are overweight and about 30% of the kids are too fat. If you go to nay on-line search engine and enter "fat sizes" or "fat consumer products" there won't be a shortage of links to view. There are extra wide doors, chairs, and beds on sale. There are vacation resorts that cater to the obese and promise privacy for the fatties who stay there, comfort with extra sturdy equipment and no skinnies to stare at the vacationers. It foes on and on... Why even the fast food restaurants here will "super size" your food order, a not uncommon practice for patrons there. Before I leave you and head of the all you can eat buffet (just kidding!)
I want to defend the fatties son one count. It is hard for them to function in society at their weight. Surely they face ridicule, discrimination, discomfort and unhappiness. I know few fat people who want to be obese. In some cases it really isn't their fault. As for the fat consumer who is fat of his or her own accord, I think it is a double edge sword for business to a cater to their "disease".
Should we reward fat people with products that hide their fatness? If we do, they may have a shorter and less rewarding life span as a result. Or should society scorn and embarrass fatty to motivate weight loss? What do you think? Uh... you really should put down that triple scoop ice cream cone so you can answer....
The world's "unsexiest man" has been chosen and i can breathe a sigh of relief in not being chosen the winner. According to the Boston Phoenix newspaper, I'll have to be even less appealing to overtake the winner- comedian Gilbert Gottfried, the parrot voiced, pickle faced voice of many of Disney cartoon villians.
In second place is New York Yankee baseball pitcher Randy Johnson, with TV critic Roger Ebert third....and actor Brad Pitt made the list at number 100, supposedly because the selectors said he lacks proper hygiene and often "smells bad". Oh...everybody's least favorite excuse for a human, Osama bin Laden finished at number eight.
I am thankful for the Gotfired and bin Laden's of the world, for they mean I would not be the last chosen (maybe) for a date by a pretty lady. Other notables on the list were Michael Jackson (Is he a male? I am not sure what sex he is...but I guess Michael isn't sure either) and Beastie By ugly Mike Diamond. Ok, having written this, tell me what you think makes a man attractive to you? Apart from the physical ones, what qualities do the sexy men have that the unsexy don't .
For instance, even in mainstream stores the xx-large sizes of yesterday now are expanded to extra-extra-extra-extra large pants and other clothes for fat men, and sizes ranging above size 30 for the fat ladies of America. (Don't ask me what size I wear..) It's because next to the obese Germans, Americans are the fattest people on earth.
Estimates are than about 65% of American adults are overweight and about 30% of the kids are too fat. If you go to nay on-line search engine and enter "fat sizes" or "fat consumer products" there won't be a shortage of links to view. There are extra wide doors, chairs, and beds on sale. There are vacation resorts that cater to the obese and promise privacy for the fatties who stay there, comfort with extra sturdy equipment and no skinnies to stare at the vacationers. It foes on and on... Why even the fast food restaurants here will "super size" your food order, a not uncommon practice for patrons there. Before I leave you and head of the all you can eat buffet (just kidding!)
I want to defend the fatties son one count. It is hard for them to function in society at their weight. Surely they face ridicule, discrimination, discomfort and unhappiness. I know few fat people who want to be obese. In some cases it really isn't their fault. As for the fat consumer who is fat of his or her own accord, I think it is a double edge sword for business to a cater to their "disease".
Should we reward fat people with products that hide their fatness? If we do, they may have a shorter and less rewarding life span as a result. Or should society scorn and embarrass fatty to motivate weight loss? What do you think? Uh... you really should put down that triple scoop ice cream cone so you can answer....
The world's "unsexiest man" has been chosen and i can breathe a sigh of relief in not being chosen the winner. According to the Boston Phoenix newspaper, I'll have to be even less appealing to overtake the winner- comedian Gilbert Gottfried, the parrot voiced, pickle faced voice of many of Disney cartoon villians.
In second place is New York Yankee baseball pitcher Randy Johnson, with TV critic Roger Ebert third....and actor Brad Pitt made the list at number 100, supposedly because the selectors said he lacks proper hygiene and often "smells bad". Oh...everybody's least favorite excuse for a human, Osama bin Laden finished at number eight.
I am thankful for the Gotfired and bin Laden's of the world, for they mean I would not be the last chosen (maybe) for a date by a pretty lady. Other notables on the list were Michael Jackson (Is he a male? I am not sure what sex he is...but I guess Michael isn't sure either) and Beastie By ugly Mike Diamond. Ok, having written this, tell me what you think makes a man attractive to you? Apart from the physical ones, what qualities do the sexy men have that the unsexy don't .
Extra Work
I went to wardrobe today for my role as an extra in a film, called PRD. They fitted me with two nerdy 70's outfits that mismatch even worse than my normal mismatched clothes! It will nice to be in style May 8 and 9 (the days I will show up for the film work) when I am out of style. Sigh..Ordinarily, I dress out of style when I am supposed to be in style. Does that make sense? Never mind.
This film is to star Terrance Howard (had role in the film "Ray") and comedian actor Bernie Mac. PDR stands for Philadelphia Department of Recreation and is based on the true story of someone named Jim Ellis, a swim coach. Ellis coached a group of inner city, poor minority children, making them a champion swim team when few thought the kids could barely function, much less swim competitively. That's about all I know of the project other than the casting crew needs plenty of people like me for crowd scenes and other non speaking parts.
In depopulated New Orleans there isn't a big pool from which to draft extras but my state long ago gave Hollywood huge tax breaks to film movies here, and despite the hurricane we have had many films (One with Denzel Washington closed the Mississippi River bridge last night) coming here. Too, some of the films have come to use the destruction of the city as a background if it is germane to their film to see such sights.
This crew seems well organized. At wardrobe things were run well and I was fitted quickly (though the clothes are too tight). The other three people with me at the same time and I were given literature explaining the process. plus told that the film will call us the night before to give us the set sight and time to report. Most of the time, everyone on a films sits and waits, and I can understand why those actors and actresses become fidgety and bored. But for extras the concept of working a film is interesting, in seeing how putting together a film works. I have been in several other films here as extras and will enjoy the experience. The pay isn't exactly extravagant, being $15.00 per hour for extras. (I was paid for showing up at wardrobe today). Having written all of this, I still think Hollywood film making is crude and the products produced are geared for the 12 to 18 year old market. In a word most Hollywood films are "Unintelligent"..Hmmmmmmmmm That's a wrap (as they say on the film sets).
Everyone knows that China is changing rapidly. But it might be bad for people who snore. That's right! Snorers have been targeted by the Chinese People's Liberation Army and are no longer being accepted as officer material. No drug users, not tattoos and no snores allowed! That's what the new recruitment guidelines for officers say.
It is curious as to how the army will identify the snorers who want to go to officer candidate school, for the new requirements that order psychological and drug tests on the candidates may not catch the snorers. And only traditional tattoos of the ethnic minorities will be allowed, provided those are not too obvious to the naked eye.
It's all because army health official Li Chunming says that "tattoos will tarnish the military image, even the scars of removed tattoos. The policy changes allegedly have been implemented because of a huge drug problem among young men in China.
Hmmmmmm But I wonder if the candidates who take drugs to silence their snores will be booted out too.
This film is to star Terrance Howard (had role in the film "Ray") and comedian actor Bernie Mac. PDR stands for Philadelphia Department of Recreation and is based on the true story of someone named Jim Ellis, a swim coach. Ellis coached a group of inner city, poor minority children, making them a champion swim team when few thought the kids could barely function, much less swim competitively. That's about all I know of the project other than the casting crew needs plenty of people like me for crowd scenes and other non speaking parts.
In depopulated New Orleans there isn't a big pool from which to draft extras but my state long ago gave Hollywood huge tax breaks to film movies here, and despite the hurricane we have had many films (One with Denzel Washington closed the Mississippi River bridge last night) coming here. Too, some of the films have come to use the destruction of the city as a background if it is germane to their film to see such sights.
This crew seems well organized. At wardrobe things were run well and I was fitted quickly (though the clothes are too tight). The other three people with me at the same time and I were given literature explaining the process. plus told that the film will call us the night before to give us the set sight and time to report. Most of the time, everyone on a films sits and waits, and I can understand why those actors and actresses become fidgety and bored. But for extras the concept of working a film is interesting, in seeing how putting together a film works. I have been in several other films here as extras and will enjoy the experience. The pay isn't exactly extravagant, being $15.00 per hour for extras. (I was paid for showing up at wardrobe today). Having written all of this, I still think Hollywood film making is crude and the products produced are geared for the 12 to 18 year old market. In a word most Hollywood films are "Unintelligent"..Hmmmmmmmmm That's a wrap (as they say on the film sets).
Everyone knows that China is changing rapidly. But it might be bad for people who snore. That's right! Snorers have been targeted by the Chinese People's Liberation Army and are no longer being accepted as officer material. No drug users, not tattoos and no snores allowed! That's what the new recruitment guidelines for officers say.
It is curious as to how the army will identify the snorers who want to go to officer candidate school, for the new requirements that order psychological and drug tests on the candidates may not catch the snorers. And only traditional tattoos of the ethnic minorities will be allowed, provided those are not too obvious to the naked eye.
It's all because army health official Li Chunming says that "tattoos will tarnish the military image, even the scars of removed tattoos. The policy changes allegedly have been implemented because of a huge drug problem among young men in China.
Hmmmmmm But I wonder if the candidates who take drugs to silence their snores will be booted out too.
Election Results
I am going to vent about politics for a minute. This is my therapy after a frustrating election process in New Orleans has me scratching my head in disbelief. New Orleans had it's city elections Saturday and it was a disappointment for many. Most of the incumbents were re elected, despite much rhetoric from nearly everyone here about making a cleaner sweep of the mess (political mess, in this case) than did the hurricane that wiped away much of the city last August.
It's distressing to see a continuance of the same old mentality we have had here, that the voters acknowledge we have incompetent, corrupt and destructive elected officials, but that they keep putting them in office because MY politician is the only good one among them and I will vote for him. In a sense this election was a portent or perhaps an affirmation that the city will never recover fully from that storm, nor will it ever change the corrupt mindset in politics that the citizens here have long supported.
I think the reason for this abstinence and refusal to vote for qualified candidates instead of good ole boys is the city's tradition of poor quality public schools and, as a result of those inferior schools, our large pool of poor and badly educated populace. Since this hurricane we have been told repeatedly that the storm was a wake-up call and that no longer would people in the city tolerate inferior education and lack of good employment opportunity for their kids, nor would the citizens any longer laugh at and wink at corrupt and incompetent politicians.
Well, the election proves that New Orleanians still fell the same way about their politics. They still don't understand that elections are serious affairs, particularly after a crisis of the magnitude of that hurricane. Strike one! New Orleanians missed on that account. And as for the schools.....Ha! Hardly any have even reopened since the hurricane flooded them. The arguments by the politicians about their new form and function have kept most of them closed. And now the voters have re elected those same politicians, the ones who have neither the will nor ability to reopen and improve education for the large mass of poorer people in the city that need assistance.
Strike Two! Strike three and we are out... unless another hurricane either finishes off the city or wakes up the residents to what their responsibilities.
From the "Honest Criminals Are The Best Criminals" department comes three reasons why we all love the goofier style of criminal. Call number one the "It tastes better this way". It seems that the Kuwaiti Times has written that food inspectors shut down the Hawally bakery in Kuwait City after finding dough stored in a toilet. The owner explained to inspectors that humidity in a toilet makes my dough moist and delicious".
Ugh! I don't want to know what that bakery puts in its icings. Number two might be called "I see better this way". In this case, restaurant manager Kenneth Holmes. 26. of Bradenton, Florida was caught by police with his emergency lights on in his car and impersonating a police officer. Kenneth said he did it "to get home quicker" and because the flashing lights were "cool" and a "fantastic time-saver" that enabled him to zip right through red lights.
Hmmmmmm maybe the judge will save Kenneth time by locking him up for awhile. And finally I should call number three the "I feel better this way" honest criminal admission. According to police in Arizona, an 18 year old student was arrested ad the University library for masturbating openly while watching Internet porn. His explanation was the best of all three criminals. "To be honest, the Internet connection at my dorm isn't good enough". Uh.......no.........I don't want to hear about your internet connection.
It's distressing to see a continuance of the same old mentality we have had here, that the voters acknowledge we have incompetent, corrupt and destructive elected officials, but that they keep putting them in office because MY politician is the only good one among them and I will vote for him. In a sense this election was a portent or perhaps an affirmation that the city will never recover fully from that storm, nor will it ever change the corrupt mindset in politics that the citizens here have long supported.
I think the reason for this abstinence and refusal to vote for qualified candidates instead of good ole boys is the city's tradition of poor quality public schools and, as a result of those inferior schools, our large pool of poor and badly educated populace. Since this hurricane we have been told repeatedly that the storm was a wake-up call and that no longer would people in the city tolerate inferior education and lack of good employment opportunity for their kids, nor would the citizens any longer laugh at and wink at corrupt and incompetent politicians.
Well, the election proves that New Orleanians still fell the same way about their politics. They still don't understand that elections are serious affairs, particularly after a crisis of the magnitude of that hurricane. Strike one! New Orleanians missed on that account. And as for the schools.....Ha! Hardly any have even reopened since the hurricane flooded them. The arguments by the politicians about their new form and function have kept most of them closed. And now the voters have re elected those same politicians, the ones who have neither the will nor ability to reopen and improve education for the large mass of poorer people in the city that need assistance.
Strike Two! Strike three and we are out... unless another hurricane either finishes off the city or wakes up the residents to what their responsibilities.
From the "Honest Criminals Are The Best Criminals" department comes three reasons why we all love the goofier style of criminal. Call number one the "It tastes better this way". It seems that the Kuwaiti Times has written that food inspectors shut down the Hawally bakery in Kuwait City after finding dough stored in a toilet. The owner explained to inspectors that humidity in a toilet makes my dough moist and delicious".
Ugh! I don't want to know what that bakery puts in its icings. Number two might be called "I see better this way". In this case, restaurant manager Kenneth Holmes. 26. of Bradenton, Florida was caught by police with his emergency lights on in his car and impersonating a police officer. Kenneth said he did it "to get home quicker" and because the flashing lights were "cool" and a "fantastic time-saver" that enabled him to zip right through red lights.
Hmmmmmm maybe the judge will save Kenneth time by locking him up for awhile. And finally I should call number three the "I feel better this way" honest criminal admission. According to police in Arizona, an 18 year old student was arrested ad the University library for masturbating openly while watching Internet porn. His explanation was the best of all three criminals. "To be honest, the Internet connection at my dorm isn't good enough". Uh.......no.........I don't want to hear about your internet connection.
Debating Our Future
Interesting programming on national TV last night. A debate for an election in New Orleans, for mayor of the city, was shown live to the entire country on MS NBC. That a big cable V network would show our local election debate is unusual, but not at second glance. There were two reasons for doing this.
First, several hundred thousand New Orleanians who were forced to evacuate the city last August and have no homes left to return to in New Orleans after the devastation of the flooding, still remain in their evacuated residences (they are scattered in all 50 states). Those votes are eligible to vote by mail, as absentee voters or to come back to the city in person to cast their ballot, so showing the debate to the whole nation helped them glean information about the candidates.
Secondly, the nation has been asked to pay for rebuilding the city, and with our reputation for corrupt politics, the debate gives citizens not associated with this city a chance to see and hear the candidates. It is the hope that after seeing them perform in the debate, they will feel sympathetic toward our efforts to rebuild New Orleans, and will support that rebuilding (something they do not do now). A great irony of the telecast and debate is that the very day it was shown, yet another body was pulled from the massive debris that covers 2/3 of the city. Eight months after the storm, bodies are still being found. This is surely a testimony to the lack of effort and competence in so much as clearing the wrecked homes, cars and other structures that in some cases look just as they did eight months ago, the day after the storm.
Sadly, the performance by the candidates were largely light breezes, not strong winds. I think few outsiders would take anything from the debate other than chagrin at the disorganized, disingenuous and devious performances of the candidates. With their comments, the candidates not only won few votes from the electorate, they lost the opportunity to present a clear case for keeping New Orleans alive. This illegal immigration invasion of the U.S. is a mess, in more ways than one... a sin a toilet mess....
It seems that a principal trying to prevent walkouts during immigration rallies inadvertently introduced a lock down so strict that children weren't allowed to go to the bathroom, and instead had to use buckets in the classroom, an official at Worthington Elementary School said the other day.
Principal Angie Marquez imposed the lock down March 27 as nearly 40,000 students across Southern California left classes that morning to attend "immigrants' rights demonstrations". The lock down continued into the following morning (Oh my....even illegals need toilets). Principal Angie "No Pee" Marquez apparently misread the district handbook and ordered a lock down designed for nuclear attacks. Haha I think the toilet lock down might have gone nuclear had that stupid principal lengthened the ban. Tim Brown, the district's director of operations, confirmed some students used buckets but said the principal's order to impose the most severe type of lock down was an "honest mistake." The principal "followed procedure. She made a decision to follow the handbook. She just misread it."
Hmmmmmmmmm This principal may not be as dumb as I thought. If we lock all the toilets the illegal immigrants will have no place to go....except back to Mexico where toilets may seem like "milk and honey" and the U.S a messy place to avoid.
First, several hundred thousand New Orleanians who were forced to evacuate the city last August and have no homes left to return to in New Orleans after the devastation of the flooding, still remain in their evacuated residences (they are scattered in all 50 states). Those votes are eligible to vote by mail, as absentee voters or to come back to the city in person to cast their ballot, so showing the debate to the whole nation helped them glean information about the candidates.
Secondly, the nation has been asked to pay for rebuilding the city, and with our reputation for corrupt politics, the debate gives citizens not associated with this city a chance to see and hear the candidates. It is the hope that after seeing them perform in the debate, they will feel sympathetic toward our efforts to rebuild New Orleans, and will support that rebuilding (something they do not do now). A great irony of the telecast and debate is that the very day it was shown, yet another body was pulled from the massive debris that covers 2/3 of the city. Eight months after the storm, bodies are still being found. This is surely a testimony to the lack of effort and competence in so much as clearing the wrecked homes, cars and other structures that in some cases look just as they did eight months ago, the day after the storm.
Sadly, the performance by the candidates were largely light breezes, not strong winds. I think few outsiders would take anything from the debate other than chagrin at the disorganized, disingenuous and devious performances of the candidates. With their comments, the candidates not only won few votes from the electorate, they lost the opportunity to present a clear case for keeping New Orleans alive. This illegal immigration invasion of the U.S. is a mess, in more ways than one... a sin a toilet mess....
It seems that a principal trying to prevent walkouts during immigration rallies inadvertently introduced a lock down so strict that children weren't allowed to go to the bathroom, and instead had to use buckets in the classroom, an official at Worthington Elementary School said the other day.
Principal Angie Marquez imposed the lock down March 27 as nearly 40,000 students across Southern California left classes that morning to attend "immigrants' rights demonstrations". The lock down continued into the following morning (Oh my....even illegals need toilets). Principal Angie "No Pee" Marquez apparently misread the district handbook and ordered a lock down designed for nuclear attacks. Haha I think the toilet lock down might have gone nuclear had that stupid principal lengthened the ban. Tim Brown, the district's director of operations, confirmed some students used buckets but said the principal's order to impose the most severe type of lock down was an "honest mistake." The principal "followed procedure. She made a decision to follow the handbook. She just misread it."
Hmmmmmmmmm This principal may not be as dumb as I thought. If we lock all the toilets the illegal immigrants will have no place to go....except back to Mexico where toilets may seem like "milk and honey" and the U.S a messy place to avoid.
Women Rulers
There is something in the wind these days, and it seems to be a growing phenomenon as we begin yet another assault on tradition. A couple of months ago Liberia became the first African nation with a female president. The Germans elected Angela Merkel as their first female chancellor. Then there is that lady from Chile (I can't remember her name) who is going to take office as Chilean president. Ahhhhhhhhh...my point is that women are starting to take over as head of state in many countries. And I think this is for the better!
I read recently that since 1990 there have been more than 30 women elected or appointed as head of state. And more. In many governments women fill the seats of parliament. George Bush's "new Iraq" has about 1/4 of it's recently elected parliament with women. Even reactionary Afghanistan has a high portion of women in government. Too, some countries have quotas requiring a certain percent of elected officials be female.
So I ask you, is a female in power better than a male, or does it even matter? Many people, myself included, think women make better leaders than men, and that if we had only female heads of state we would have far fewer problems between and among nations. But why do I think so? Well, women seem more compassionate and more focused on improving health care, education and social welfare. And they are less interested in the great curse of mankind- a strong and aggressive military force. Is in not true too, that women are perceived as being less corrupt..no..corruptable than we men?
Would a world run by women follow a different, more civilized code of behavior and rules? I think so. Well, at least until the new power they obtain made them as corrupt and aggressive as men. No matter. We will soon find out as the trend to having more women in power grows. As for me, I am ready to follow the ladies!
The awards for 2005 keep coming in. You, the "best of". Well in North Carolina they are taking a different approach to that when it comes to naming the "Best Business In Orange County, North Carolina" award. You see this year the winner "arouses" suspicion, because it is is a sex toy and video mail order business. Yep, the same company PHE Inc., the parent company of Adam and Eve, is the winner for 2005. That's the same one that was picked by ministers and searched by postal investigators in 2005.
Being a major taxpayer there and helping with the local animal shelter and family violence prevention center in Orange County seems to have "nailed" ..uh..no "put them on top"..no, no, that phrase is naughty too..this year. Said Orange County Chamber of Business President, Robin Taylor-Hall, "We didn't have a problem giving them the award. We don't look at some of the items they sell." The company product line includes sex videos and even flavored sugar-free sex lubricants.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm Robin said she doesn't look at "some" of the items PHE sells. I think it's ok if she send me the rest. I'll study them for her.
I read recently that since 1990 there have been more than 30 women elected or appointed as head of state. And more. In many governments women fill the seats of parliament. George Bush's "new Iraq" has about 1/4 of it's recently elected parliament with women. Even reactionary Afghanistan has a high portion of women in government. Too, some countries have quotas requiring a certain percent of elected officials be female.
So I ask you, is a female in power better than a male, or does it even matter? Many people, myself included, think women make better leaders than men, and that if we had only female heads of state we would have far fewer problems between and among nations. But why do I think so? Well, women seem more compassionate and more focused on improving health care, education and social welfare. And they are less interested in the great curse of mankind- a strong and aggressive military force. Is in not true too, that women are perceived as being less corrupt..no..corruptable than we men?
Would a world run by women follow a different, more civilized code of behavior and rules? I think so. Well, at least until the new power they obtain made them as corrupt and aggressive as men. No matter. We will soon find out as the trend to having more women in power grows. As for me, I am ready to follow the ladies!
The awards for 2005 keep coming in. You, the "best of". Well in North Carolina they are taking a different approach to that when it comes to naming the "Best Business In Orange County, North Carolina" award. You see this year the winner "arouses" suspicion, because it is is a sex toy and video mail order business. Yep, the same company PHE Inc., the parent company of Adam and Eve, is the winner for 2005. That's the same one that was picked by ministers and searched by postal investigators in 2005.
Being a major taxpayer there and helping with the local animal shelter and family violence prevention center in Orange County seems to have "nailed" ..uh..no "put them on top"..no, no, that phrase is naughty too..this year. Said Orange County Chamber of Business President, Robin Taylor-Hall, "We didn't have a problem giving them the award. We don't look at some of the items they sell." The company product line includes sex videos and even flavored sugar-free sex lubricants.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm Robin said she doesn't look at "some" of the items PHE sells. I think it's ok if she send me the rest. I'll study them for her.
Famous Or Educated
What's more important to you, to be rich and famous or educated and aware? You have to choose one or the other, so what would it be? Since I am neither, I guess I can't lose when I choose. Hehe But you are well educated already. Would you rather be dumb and famous like Jessica Simpson or just about any of those ignorant rappers that are rolling in money as they able incoherent hate that teens seem to adore.
I asked this because a recent survey in England did the same. One would think that most people would not give up an educated life for the transience of fame or the shallowness of money without awareness. And most did. Only about 1 in 10 young Britain's said they would drop out of school to become a tabloid star, according to research from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). That's not bad for a country obsessed with celebrities.
In fact it is heartening to hear. Given that the LSC plots odds at being rich and famous enough to be a celebrity at 30 million to 1 (of course there are shortcuts, as in Hollywood where every performer or behind the scenes Hollywood celeb puts his or her children in front of the cameras) it's also a realistic approach. But this shows that people understand that possessing knowledge makes life not only easier to understand, but allows more capable judgments as one shifts through life's difficulties.
And in this age of empty headed celebrity, celebrity for crazy reasons, and bad behaving celebrities...it is good.
Grab your TV and satellite dish and find Japanese TV, because the Naked News has premiered and is available for all news "nuts". Haha I know you have an inquiring mind. Naked News debuted this month with the slogan "The program with nothing to hide", as news anchors disrobe during newscasts and give their "facts" to gawking viewers. Naked News, originally started in Canada, of all places, is available either on those stupid cell phones that are driving me crazy or TV in Europe and Australia.
But the Naked News people think Japan is a particularly fertile market for their brand of "revealing" news. First the ladies will strip to news about the Mid East and Asian flu, then males will show their assets as they point to the assets one gained or lost in the stock markets that day. Well, would you watch if it becomes available on your TV?
I asked this because a recent survey in England did the same. One would think that most people would not give up an educated life for the transience of fame or the shallowness of money without awareness. And most did. Only about 1 in 10 young Britain's said they would drop out of school to become a tabloid star, according to research from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). That's not bad for a country obsessed with celebrities.
In fact it is heartening to hear. Given that the LSC plots odds at being rich and famous enough to be a celebrity at 30 million to 1 (of course there are shortcuts, as in Hollywood where every performer or behind the scenes Hollywood celeb puts his or her children in front of the cameras) it's also a realistic approach. But this shows that people understand that possessing knowledge makes life not only easier to understand, but allows more capable judgments as one shifts through life's difficulties.
And in this age of empty headed celebrity, celebrity for crazy reasons, and bad behaving celebrities...it is good.
Grab your TV and satellite dish and find Japanese TV, because the Naked News has premiered and is available for all news "nuts". Haha I know you have an inquiring mind. Naked News debuted this month with the slogan "The program with nothing to hide", as news anchors disrobe during newscasts and give their "facts" to gawking viewers. Naked News, originally started in Canada, of all places, is available either on those stupid cell phones that are driving me crazy or TV in Europe and Australia.
But the Naked News people think Japan is a particularly fertile market for their brand of "revealing" news. First the ladies will strip to news about the Mid East and Asian flu, then males will show their assets as they point to the assets one gained or lost in the stock markets that day. Well, would you watch if it becomes available on your TV?
Organic Foods
I notice when I shop at the standard grocery stores that more and more "organic" products are for sale. The organic food sale has become the latest in trend here to sell groceries to the more affluent market, the one which is willing to pay extra for "organic" products. The public is under the impression that things that are "organic" are better for them, environment friendly or safer to eat. But this is not always so.
The labeling of the organic products is a bit odd. According to the U.S Food and Drug Administration rules, few of the grocery foods or other products labeled as being a organic are truly that. To be organic in origin the label must say "100% Organic". That is the item must contain only organic products (except water and salt). rarely have I seen that label. The second level of organic is labeled "organic". these foods must have 95% organic ingredients (excluding water and salt). Then there is a third category that says "made with organic ingredients" that has 70% organic. that is the one I see most often, and I wonder if buyers realize it really isn't an organic product.
Perhaps they don't care because many organic buyers do it because it is fashionable to buy those goods. Having written that, I think organic will be more and more popular here. Wal Mart, which is the world's biggest retailer, has decided to jump into the organic selling market. I have seen many products there labeled as organic- veggies, fish, even cotton baby clothes. And all are overpriced. But the customers love them and pay whatever is asked. For Wal Mart, selling that stuff is good marketing and builds a good reputation among its customers, so it is a self sustaining thing.
I wonder if this is a good thing for consumers. Maybe I should send you to my "organic"blog, blog that makes sense. Haha It is impossible, I think. I am too polluted to ever be organic.
Another crazy lawsuit to report today. One Alice Alyse, a dancer in a Miami show called "Moving Out", is suing the owners of the show for 100 million dollars in "damages" on the grounds that she was emotionally abused and fired after her breasts grew too large for her costumes. Apparently, when Alice grew from a C to a D cup after gaining a little weight following an injury to her toe. Alice said her breasts grew "naturally" and that the costumes fit everywhere except in the breasts.
Thus, her lawsuit lists wrongful termination, breach of contract, defamation, sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional stress. And that is the alleged reason Alice needs $100 million dollars. Ha! What a travesty that suit it. If I were the sitting judge in the case I would tell Alice to forget the 100 million and either have a breast reduction of find another job.
The labeling of the organic products is a bit odd. According to the U.S Food and Drug Administration rules, few of the grocery foods or other products labeled as being a organic are truly that. To be organic in origin the label must say "100% Organic". That is the item must contain only organic products (except water and salt). rarely have I seen that label. The second level of organic is labeled "organic". these foods must have 95% organic ingredients (excluding water and salt). Then there is a third category that says "made with organic ingredients" that has 70% organic. that is the one I see most often, and I wonder if buyers realize it really isn't an organic product.
Perhaps they don't care because many organic buyers do it because it is fashionable to buy those goods. Having written that, I think organic will be more and more popular here. Wal Mart, which is the world's biggest retailer, has decided to jump into the organic selling market. I have seen many products there labeled as organic- veggies, fish, even cotton baby clothes. And all are overpriced. But the customers love them and pay whatever is asked. For Wal Mart, selling that stuff is good marketing and builds a good reputation among its customers, so it is a self sustaining thing.
I wonder if this is a good thing for consumers. Maybe I should send you to my "organic"blog, blog that makes sense. Haha It is impossible, I think. I am too polluted to ever be organic.
Another crazy lawsuit to report today. One Alice Alyse, a dancer in a Miami show called "Moving Out", is suing the owners of the show for 100 million dollars in "damages" on the grounds that she was emotionally abused and fired after her breasts grew too large for her costumes. Apparently, when Alice grew from a C to a D cup after gaining a little weight following an injury to her toe. Alice said her breasts grew "naturally" and that the costumes fit everywhere except in the breasts.
Thus, her lawsuit lists wrongful termination, breach of contract, defamation, sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional stress. And that is the alleged reason Alice needs $100 million dollars. Ha! What a travesty that suit it. If I were the sitting judge in the case I would tell Alice to forget the 100 million and either have a breast reduction of find another job.
Good And Bad Friday
Today is "good Friday". I always do a double take when hearing that term for this day. It is most odd to call a day that marks the anniversary of a crucifixion of Christ a "good" Friday. I understand the concept, that allegedly the crucifixion of Christ was "good for humans because he redeemed them by the act". Yet the term is over the edge.
To be good something should not have any negative connotation. The brutality of a crucifixion doesn't fit that definition. And Good Friday for Catholics is a day of mourning. Is that good? And if there is a "Good Friday" there must be a "Bad Friday". What day would that be? And would people celebrate Bad Friday or just behave badly on it (or perhaps for a novelty, behave well). I think religions play loose with language anyway. How about he most bizarre nickname for a book called the Bible.
I mean the nickname "The Good Book". Ha! "The Good book" has to be one of the greatest euphemisms ever coined by humans, for it is a book filled with a history of evil as well as good. Why, the obscene stories, cruelty, sanctioning of slavery and most other venial habits of people is almost a testimony to bad as to good. Maybe it is the "Half Good Book", for the other parts do proscribe the best in people as well as the other half displays the worst. But who would call a book the "Half Good Book".? It would never sell. Maybe that's why the church propagandized the term "Good Book". It might just have been one of the more clever marketing techniques of the ages.
Oh, back to the name "Good Friday". Did you know that originally in Greece the day was nicknamed "Grate Friday". Now that makes sense to me, as the events day was a great influence on the history of the world, yet it was surely not a "good day". I do not know when and who changed Great Friday to Good Friday but it was not a "great move" to do it. Maybe that person should be crucified for making the change.
It wasn't a "good" Friday or any day for that matter for Mary McCann of Union town , Pennsylvania. For poor Mary got into an argument with her live in boyfriend, Walter Fordyce and didn't live to tell about it. Walter threw a microwave at Mary, then fatally beat her after she refused to heat up sandwiches for him. After throwing Mary on the floor, Walter threw his microwave oven onto Mary's chest, then stomped on her repeatedly and banged her head to the floor until she lost consciousness.
Wow! Walter needs not only anger management control, but cooking lessons. But the odd part of that brutal murder is that Walter swears "It was an accident. I didn't do it on purpose." And not only that. after initially running to another neighbor's house for help and to call 911, Walter returned home had a beer and then leisurely strolled to another neighbor's house to call 911. Gee, I hope the prison Walter will inhabit after his murder conviction doesn't have any microwaves.
To be good something should not have any negative connotation. The brutality of a crucifixion doesn't fit that definition. And Good Friday for Catholics is a day of mourning. Is that good? And if there is a "Good Friday" there must be a "Bad Friday". What day would that be? And would people celebrate Bad Friday or just behave badly on it (or perhaps for a novelty, behave well). I think religions play loose with language anyway. How about he most bizarre nickname for a book called the Bible.
I mean the nickname "The Good Book". Ha! "The Good book" has to be one of the greatest euphemisms ever coined by humans, for it is a book filled with a history of evil as well as good. Why, the obscene stories, cruelty, sanctioning of slavery and most other venial habits of people is almost a testimony to bad as to good. Maybe it is the "Half Good Book", for the other parts do proscribe the best in people as well as the other half displays the worst. But who would call a book the "Half Good Book".? It would never sell. Maybe that's why the church propagandized the term "Good Book". It might just have been one of the more clever marketing techniques of the ages.
Oh, back to the name "Good Friday". Did you know that originally in Greece the day was nicknamed "Grate Friday". Now that makes sense to me, as the events day was a great influence on the history of the world, yet it was surely not a "good day". I do not know when and who changed Great Friday to Good Friday but it was not a "great move" to do it. Maybe that person should be crucified for making the change.
It wasn't a "good" Friday or any day for that matter for Mary McCann of Union town , Pennsylvania. For poor Mary got into an argument with her live in boyfriend, Walter Fordyce and didn't live to tell about it. Walter threw a microwave at Mary, then fatally beat her after she refused to heat up sandwiches for him. After throwing Mary on the floor, Walter threw his microwave oven onto Mary's chest, then stomped on her repeatedly and banged her head to the floor until she lost consciousness.
Wow! Walter needs not only anger management control, but cooking lessons. But the odd part of that brutal murder is that Walter swears "It was an accident. I didn't do it on purpose." And not only that. after initially running to another neighbor's house for help and to call 911, Walter returned home had a beer and then leisurely strolled to another neighbor's house to call 911. Gee, I hope the prison Walter will inhabit after his murder conviction doesn't have any microwaves.
Uncommon Divorce
You think non Muslims will ever understand the theory and practices of that religion? Sigh....An illustration from the news recently may show why the answer is "non". Believe it or not, A Muslim couple in India has been told by local Islamic leaders they must separate after the husband "divorced" his wife in his sleep, the Press Trust of India reported. One Sohela Ansari told friends that her husband Aftab had uttered the word "talaq,"or divorce, three times in his sleep, according to the report published in newspapers.
When local Islamic leaders got to hear, they said Aftab's words constituted a divorce under an Islamic procedure known as "triple talaq." Haha It is a bizarre reality for that couple and perhaps a dream for many unhappily married non Muslims everywhere else. But how can a religion's doctrine be so rigid as to blind adherents to common sense. Well, in some Muslims sects that is the rule rather than the exception.
The Absari's have been married for 11 years and has three children. They... uh.. were told by their fundamentalist clerics they had to split, and they ruled that if the couple wanted to remarry they would have to wait at least 100 days. Sohela would also have to spend a night with another man and be divorced by him in turn. Wow! I wonder if they are taking volunteers....Never mind that remark...
The couple, who live in the eastern state of West Bengal, have the sense their religion seems not to and have refused to obey the order. Thus, the issue has been referred to a local family counseling center. India's minority Muslim population is governed by Islamic personal laws on issues such as marriage, divorce and property inheritance. Lucky them. Haha "This is a totally unnecessary controversy and the local 'community leaders' or whosoever has said it are totally ignorant of Islamic law," said Zafarul-Islam Khan, an Islamic scholar and editor of The Milli Gazette, a popular Muslim newspaper.
But how often do we hear Muslims claim their religious leaders "misinterpret Muslim law? Maybe the rigidity and intolerance is systemic rather than just a misinterpretation. "The law clearly says any action under compulsion or in a state of intoxication has no effect. The case of someone uttering something while asleep falls under this category and will have no impact whatsoever," Khan said.
Sigh.... It is a shame that an entire religion is forced to see itself abused this way. Muslims say they want outsiders (infidels) to show them respect. But maybe if the Islamic leaders would first learn to respect their followers, non Muslims would respect the Muslim religion After hearing about this latest Muslim mess I suggest the crazy ones all lie down, think about their religion and then 'sleep on" figuring how to avoid more of these fiascoes.
When local Islamic leaders got to hear, they said Aftab's words constituted a divorce under an Islamic procedure known as "triple talaq." Haha It is a bizarre reality for that couple and perhaps a dream for many unhappily married non Muslims everywhere else. But how can a religion's doctrine be so rigid as to blind adherents to common sense. Well, in some Muslims sects that is the rule rather than the exception.
The Absari's have been married for 11 years and has three children. They... uh.. were told by their fundamentalist clerics they had to split, and they ruled that if the couple wanted to remarry they would have to wait at least 100 days. Sohela would also have to spend a night with another man and be divorced by him in turn. Wow! I wonder if they are taking volunteers....Never mind that remark...
The couple, who live in the eastern state of West Bengal, have the sense their religion seems not to and have refused to obey the order. Thus, the issue has been referred to a local family counseling center. India's minority Muslim population is governed by Islamic personal laws on issues such as marriage, divorce and property inheritance. Lucky them. Haha "This is a totally unnecessary controversy and the local 'community leaders' or whosoever has said it are totally ignorant of Islamic law," said Zafarul-Islam Khan, an Islamic scholar and editor of The Milli Gazette, a popular Muslim newspaper.
But how often do we hear Muslims claim their religious leaders "misinterpret Muslim law? Maybe the rigidity and intolerance is systemic rather than just a misinterpretation. "The law clearly says any action under compulsion or in a state of intoxication has no effect. The case of someone uttering something while asleep falls under this category and will have no impact whatsoever," Khan said.
Sigh.... It is a shame that an entire religion is forced to see itself abused this way. Muslims say they want outsiders (infidels) to show them respect. But maybe if the Islamic leaders would first learn to respect their followers, non Muslims would respect the Muslim religion After hearing about this latest Muslim mess I suggest the crazy ones all lie down, think about their religion and then 'sleep on" figuring how to avoid more of these fiascoes.
To Be Free Or Not To Be Free
I clicked on one of those "Free" links. It just so happened that my browser had a link for one of those free services. It was a free legal form link. I don't need any legal forms now, but was curious to see if any were available as a resource in case they are needed.
Well, as I expected, the link was nothing more than an advertisement for a pay site. This is an all too frequent case theses days, and a change form more distant times when one could obtain free services easily. I think the internet has become commercialized far more than ever. When first available, the Internet used to be a portal open to every imaginable offering, many free services for the user.
But as the usage of the Internet has grown it has become more commercialized and fewer services can be acquired without pay. So, in a sense, the Internet is becoming more and more like the rest of the mediums available. This is an unfortunate evolution, for formerly the Internet was a more innocent and fun place to be.
Next I went to a search engine and typed in 'free services' to see how many links there would provide truly free services. Well, as you might guess, almost none offered anything free that was of much use. Some had a few things that one might want, but all had links for their pay offerings. Thus the "free" in the search was mostly an advertisement to lure the unsuspecting customer. Since the Internet has no regulation on these advertisements, there is a greater chance for misrepresentation of the services offered by the links. And of course, there is greater chance of fraud if using the links. But I suppose we both already knew that...
Time for the "Stupid Cell Phone User" award, and the winner comes from the motherland of cell phones, South Korea. The unidentified man put himself into critical condition after setting himself on fire in a courtroom where he was sentenced to a $300 for disturbing the peace...yes...you guessed it...after an incident with his cell phone.
It seems the court near Seoul had upheld an earlier court ruling of the fine the man was given after he caused a disturbance at a cell phone store outlet where the man demanded a new cell phone number. Like all cell phone addicts, that guy was out of control, hypnotized by his toy (the phone). The man walked out of the courtroom after hearing the verdict to uphold the fine, not to chat on his dumb phone, but to douse himself with heating oil.
He then came back into the courtroom and in protest of anyone daring to interfere with his obnoxious cell phone behavior, he set himself on fire. Court employees doused the flaming cell nut, and no one else was injured.
No....I don't know if his cell phone burned. But it would be fortuitous for him if it did.
Well, as I expected, the link was nothing more than an advertisement for a pay site. This is an all too frequent case theses days, and a change form more distant times when one could obtain free services easily. I think the internet has become commercialized far more than ever. When first available, the Internet used to be a portal open to every imaginable offering, many free services for the user.
But as the usage of the Internet has grown it has become more commercialized and fewer services can be acquired without pay. So, in a sense, the Internet is becoming more and more like the rest of the mediums available. This is an unfortunate evolution, for formerly the Internet was a more innocent and fun place to be.
Next I went to a search engine and typed in 'free services' to see how many links there would provide truly free services. Well, as you might guess, almost none offered anything free that was of much use. Some had a few things that one might want, but all had links for their pay offerings. Thus the "free" in the search was mostly an advertisement to lure the unsuspecting customer. Since the Internet has no regulation on these advertisements, there is a greater chance for misrepresentation of the services offered by the links. And of course, there is greater chance of fraud if using the links. But I suppose we both already knew that...
Time for the "Stupid Cell Phone User" award, and the winner comes from the motherland of cell phones, South Korea. The unidentified man put himself into critical condition after setting himself on fire in a courtroom where he was sentenced to a $300 for disturbing the peace...yes...you guessed it...after an incident with his cell phone.
It seems the court near Seoul had upheld an earlier court ruling of the fine the man was given after he caused a disturbance at a cell phone store outlet where the man demanded a new cell phone number. Like all cell phone addicts, that guy was out of control, hypnotized by his toy (the phone). The man walked out of the courtroom after hearing the verdict to uphold the fine, not to chat on his dumb phone, but to douse himself with heating oil.
He then came back into the courtroom and in protest of anyone daring to interfere with his obnoxious cell phone behavior, he set himself on fire. Court employees doused the flaming cell nut, and no one else was injured.
No....I don't know if his cell phone burned. But it would be fortuitous for him if it did.
Still Stormy Effects
I rode down a bike path that intersects my old neighborhood, the one I moved from about 2 1/2 years ago and that is adjacent to where I now live. Ha! It looks like a trailer park now. Almost 8 months after Hurricane Katrina, about 1/2 the homes there still an un-repaired. About 80% of New Orleans flooded enough to require replacement of sheet rock, floors walls etc, or completely demolished homes. Only about 50% of my suburban parish had the same after. Yet, the neighborhood in which I live had about 80% damage.
My former home had water enough to cover the floors, carpet and baseboard s in the house, I presume the kitchen cabinets, doors and anything else warped by flood water would have to be removed. It is a pity. Of course, I am in the lucky 20% that did not have flooding from rising water ( just one room was wet from roof damage and a few others had water spots on the ceiling).
Given that the area where my home is upper middle class to wealthy, to se so many trailers and so many property in disarray tells the story of why New Orleans itself is so thoroughly un repaired. There are still neighborhoods and even one entire parish that are s deserted, filed with homes that have cars on roofs or trees, houses sitting in the middle of streets, debris stacked to the sky etc. One wonders what would happen if another storm hits here next hurricane season. the season starts in two months. The trailers and debris would surely become flying missiles to damage what property has been repaired.
Every day I read stories about unethical contractors who steal residents down payments and leave them with unlivable, rather than repaired homes, Illegal immigrants who come here allegedly to work, but instead loot abandoned homes of whatever possessions that are sellable, people being on waiting lists for repairs that are as much a one year long, the Bush administration and Congressional indifference to New Orleans. It is unbelievable.
I sometimes think the events happening after the storm are more destructive than the hurricane itself was. But at least we here in New Orleans aren't suffering like Aric Mcleown, 26, of New Port, Minnesota. Poor Aric has subjected himself to a greater menace than even the world's great hurricane.
He is allowing people to vote on his web site to determine which TV shows he'll watch Monday through Friday from 7 to 9 pm. So far Aric has gotten about 100 votes per TV time slot on his web site. www.make me watchtv.com And some of the shows they picked for his sound brutal- "Gilmore Girls", "House", "Veronica Mars", "Supernanny", "America's Funniest Home Movies" and "Mash"...Ok, I have never heard of or seen any of those except one. And that one, "Mash", is an inane and vapid show to watch. A few minutes of Mash, mashed my brain so much that I never had a desire to watch any other episodes of it.
According to Aric, the worst shows he has been asked to watch are "Gilmore Girl", "Prison Break" and "7th Heaven". "My brain cells wee fighting back when I was watching '7th Heaven', " he said. "They were screaming at me to stop it now! At least it's clear they're still functioning. Not so fast, Aric! Keep watching American TV and you will soon become a mindless survivor or other reality show fan. And Aric says that he found one show that he likes, something called "24".
So why does Aric torture himself with the popular and mindless modern TV programming of the voters choice? He says that he wants to get a better view of society and that by doing the experiment he will be able to answer some basic questions about it. "Do people really enjoy those kinds of TV shows or are they just watching them because they are the only shows on to watch? Why do some shows succeed and why do others fail?
My God! Just 1 minute of most of the American TV shows is enough to make me scream for mercy and turn off the set. But to think of letting mindless TV addicts select shows that I must watch...No, I would rather be subjected to another killer hurricane. There are some disasters, "Gilmore Girls" being one, that are too tragic to watch.
My former home had water enough to cover the floors, carpet and baseboard s in the house, I presume the kitchen cabinets, doors and anything else warped by flood water would have to be removed. It is a pity. Of course, I am in the lucky 20% that did not have flooding from rising water ( just one room was wet from roof damage and a few others had water spots on the ceiling).
Given that the area where my home is upper middle class to wealthy, to se so many trailers and so many property in disarray tells the story of why New Orleans itself is so thoroughly un repaired. There are still neighborhoods and even one entire parish that are s deserted, filed with homes that have cars on roofs or trees, houses sitting in the middle of streets, debris stacked to the sky etc. One wonders what would happen if another storm hits here next hurricane season. the season starts in two months. The trailers and debris would surely become flying missiles to damage what property has been repaired.
Every day I read stories about unethical contractors who steal residents down payments and leave them with unlivable, rather than repaired homes, Illegal immigrants who come here allegedly to work, but instead loot abandoned homes of whatever possessions that are sellable, people being on waiting lists for repairs that are as much a one year long, the Bush administration and Congressional indifference to New Orleans. It is unbelievable.
I sometimes think the events happening after the storm are more destructive than the hurricane itself was. But at least we here in New Orleans aren't suffering like Aric Mcleown, 26, of New Port, Minnesota. Poor Aric has subjected himself to a greater menace than even the world's great hurricane.
He is allowing people to vote on his web site to determine which TV shows he'll watch Monday through Friday from 7 to 9 pm. So far Aric has gotten about 100 votes per TV time slot on his web site. www.make me watchtv.com And some of the shows they picked for his sound brutal- "Gilmore Girls", "House", "Veronica Mars", "Supernanny", "America's Funniest Home Movies" and "Mash"...Ok, I have never heard of or seen any of those except one. And that one, "Mash", is an inane and vapid show to watch. A few minutes of Mash, mashed my brain so much that I never had a desire to watch any other episodes of it.
According to Aric, the worst shows he has been asked to watch are "Gilmore Girl", "Prison Break" and "7th Heaven". "My brain cells wee fighting back when I was watching '7th Heaven', " he said. "They were screaming at me to stop it now! At least it's clear they're still functioning. Not so fast, Aric! Keep watching American TV and you will soon become a mindless survivor or other reality show fan. And Aric says that he found one show that he likes, something called "24".
So why does Aric torture himself with the popular and mindless modern TV programming of the voters choice? He says that he wants to get a better view of society and that by doing the experiment he will be able to answer some basic questions about it. "Do people really enjoy those kinds of TV shows or are they just watching them because they are the only shows on to watch? Why do some shows succeed and why do others fail?
My God! Just 1 minute of most of the American TV shows is enough to make me scream for mercy and turn off the set. But to think of letting mindless TV addicts select shows that I must watch...No, I would rather be subjected to another killer hurricane. There are some disasters, "Gilmore Girls" being one, that are too tragic to watch.
Sleepless Night
I went to bed early- 8:30 pm.... last night because I was feeling so exhausted. But I could not sleep. It's weird when one can't sleep, how thoughts from the subconscious came up to consciousness. I began thinking about my mom and dad, how much I miss them and remembering some endearing moments from my child hood when with them.
For instance, I remember my dad carrying me inside the house after we had gone to a Drive-In movie (in my youth, drive in theaters were popular. You drove the car to a big open air theater with huge screens that played various movies. The driver parked and attached a speaker on the drivers side so the movie could be watched). My dad would carry me inside the house when we arrived at home late at night after the movie.
My mom made us put on our pajamas during the shows because she knew (I was a wee little nut then, I can remember from about 6 or 7 years old of age) we would fall asleep before the show ended. My dad would carry me inside the house to bed after we got home. I remember waking up several times as he did that.
Why would I bring up that memory last night???? I am regressing mentally....even though I am already at stage one. One incident I thought about last night involving my mom was when she and I talked about incidentals. I was sitting in a chair and she on a couch in their home, and this incident was when I was an adult. I remember her telling me about one of her friends and her asking me an opinion about something, and of course her always worrying if I was happy and all right. My parents were quite loving and devoted to me, as I try to be to Jane. I also pondered such weird things as baseball cards!
Yep..you know those trading cards kids collect of baseball players. My brother and I collected them as kids and because I saw a TV auction show about selling antiques and valuables before I retired last night, that subject stuck in my small brain. The show had a piece about a woman who found hundreds of those card in her attic, unopened. can you believe the value of each unopened pack was $500-$1000 a piece? Haha My mom threw out all our cards when we grew up and lost interest.
Then I tried to remember the old Yankee teams I used to watch as a child. Mickey Mantle was my favorite baseball player, and I watched the Yankees every step when I was a child. Can you believe I could remember the entire Yankee starting line-up from so many years ago? That led to me trying to remember the famous players of my youth , and...Hehe, I am boring you. I did get finally to sleep about 4 am and awoke 3 hours later. Anyway, I feel pretty good at the moment.
Oh, I have chattered on enough about an inconsequential matter......
For instance, I remember my dad carrying me inside the house after we had gone to a Drive-In movie (in my youth, drive in theaters were popular. You drove the car to a big open air theater with huge screens that played various movies. The driver parked and attached a speaker on the drivers side so the movie could be watched). My dad would carry me inside the house when we arrived at home late at night after the movie.
My mom made us put on our pajamas during the shows because she knew (I was a wee little nut then, I can remember from about 6 or 7 years old of age) we would fall asleep before the show ended. My dad would carry me inside the house to bed after we got home. I remember waking up several times as he did that.
Why would I bring up that memory last night???? I am regressing mentally....even though I am already at stage one. One incident I thought about last night involving my mom was when she and I talked about incidentals. I was sitting in a chair and she on a couch in their home, and this incident was when I was an adult. I remember her telling me about one of her friends and her asking me an opinion about something, and of course her always worrying if I was happy and all right. My parents were quite loving and devoted to me, as I try to be to Jane. I also pondered such weird things as baseball cards!
Yep..you know those trading cards kids collect of baseball players. My brother and I collected them as kids and because I saw a TV auction show about selling antiques and valuables before I retired last night, that subject stuck in my small brain. The show had a piece about a woman who found hundreds of those card in her attic, unopened. can you believe the value of each unopened pack was $500-$1000 a piece? Haha My mom threw out all our cards when we grew up and lost interest.
Then I tried to remember the old Yankee teams I used to watch as a child. Mickey Mantle was my favorite baseball player, and I watched the Yankees every step when I was a child. Can you believe I could remember the entire Yankee starting line-up from so many years ago? That led to me trying to remember the famous players of my youth , and...Hehe, I am boring you. I did get finally to sleep about 4 am and awoke 3 hours later. Anyway, I feel pretty good at the moment.
Oh, I have chattered on enough about an inconsequential matter......
Slow Pace Of Housing Repairs
I may go shopping for a table and chairs tomorrow. The former one was ruined by the leaking in my ceiling in that room during the hurricane. It's hard to believe that more than 7 months after the storm I am still in the process of replacing furnishings and having work done to make repairs on the house. But with over 1 million people suffering damage, and too few stores open (for the furniture) or with furniture, and with so few contractors for all the work, it really isn't so unusual after all.
My home still need gutters and the siding beneath them that was blown off in the storm. I also have work to be done in my great room ceiling, screens to be redone, locks on new fence gates installed, and a shed door fixed. That's it. Everything else (I will spare you the list) has been fixed. It's about $25, 000 of work.
When I look in my neighborhood I still see much damage and in other areas that had more severe damage some homes look just as they did after the storm. The federal and local government made huge mistakes in recovery, in that they did not solicit thousands of contractors and workers to come here. I think instead of wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on giving people trailers to live in or in paying for hotels for months (months after the storm some people are still living in hotels paid for by the government), the government should have done the following to speed recovery and to get people back into their homes (where they prefer to be).
Uh...you may call this the Jim Recovery Plan, as I have not heard anyone else suggest it.
1) Send military construction crews to the city to fix public buildings. This would get those up and running and prevent private contractors who are needed for home construction, from being used for public building rehabilitation.
2) Actively recruit private contractors and construction workers to do work on homes here. I suggest that the government use the money it has wasted so far to pay contractors a $5000 a month bonus to come and workers an extra $1000 per month. This would have flooded the market with construction crews (the government would certify each eligible contractor and worker as competent based on state licenses and work history records) who would have finished repairing most or all homes by now.
These workers could stay in some of the verify expensive trailers the government has been giving private citizens. The cost to the government- far less than the current one. Anyway..no one asked me for any ideas. I'll be amazed if the people living in flimsy trailers (that can be easily blown over and apart by another hurricane) are out of the trailers before the start of the next, imminent, hurricane season.
Get ready to tune that radio of yours. News from Brazil is that the local prostitutes there are getting their own radio station. According to project coordinator Sandro Correia, The Association of Prostitutes of Bahai state, the hookers have won government permission for the station. "We are not going to apologize for prostitution but are going to struggle for the dignity of the profession," said Sandro. The idea is to feature programs about hookers and to discuss issues such as human rights, social questions, and sexual abuse. "Working girls" and professional broadcasters will staff the station.
Hmmmmmmm I wonder if the ladies will give out their numbers and free coupons....just a thought....not a request...
My home still need gutters and the siding beneath them that was blown off in the storm. I also have work to be done in my great room ceiling, screens to be redone, locks on new fence gates installed, and a shed door fixed. That's it. Everything else (I will spare you the list) has been fixed. It's about $25, 000 of work.
When I look in my neighborhood I still see much damage and in other areas that had more severe damage some homes look just as they did after the storm. The federal and local government made huge mistakes in recovery, in that they did not solicit thousands of contractors and workers to come here. I think instead of wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on giving people trailers to live in or in paying for hotels for months (months after the storm some people are still living in hotels paid for by the government), the government should have done the following to speed recovery and to get people back into their homes (where they prefer to be).
Uh...you may call this the Jim Recovery Plan, as I have not heard anyone else suggest it.
1) Send military construction crews to the city to fix public buildings. This would get those up and running and prevent private contractors who are needed for home construction, from being used for public building rehabilitation.
2) Actively recruit private contractors and construction workers to do work on homes here. I suggest that the government use the money it has wasted so far to pay contractors a $5000 a month bonus to come and workers an extra $1000 per month. This would have flooded the market with construction crews (the government would certify each eligible contractor and worker as competent based on state licenses and work history records) who would have finished repairing most or all homes by now.
These workers could stay in some of the verify expensive trailers the government has been giving private citizens. The cost to the government- far less than the current one. Anyway..no one asked me for any ideas. I'll be amazed if the people living in flimsy trailers (that can be easily blown over and apart by another hurricane) are out of the trailers before the start of the next, imminent, hurricane season.
Get ready to tune that radio of yours. News from Brazil is that the local prostitutes there are getting their own radio station. According to project coordinator Sandro Correia, The Association of Prostitutes of Bahai state, the hookers have won government permission for the station. "We are not going to apologize for prostitution but are going to struggle for the dignity of the profession," said Sandro. The idea is to feature programs about hookers and to discuss issues such as human rights, social questions, and sexual abuse. "Working girls" and professional broadcasters will staff the station.
Hmmmmmmm I wonder if the ladies will give out their numbers and free coupons....just a thought....not a request...
Smile, You're On Car Camera
Every time I look around when driving I see an out of state license plate. Most are on trucks, trucks that carry out of state construction crews her to fix damaged homes. Bit many cars are filled with workers too. One can't drive for more than a minute or so without seeing a different state license plate.
The problem is that many of those out of state cars and trucks (and some locals too) are running stop signs and red lights, ignoring them at peril to everyone. Since all of the workers have multiple jobs at high rates of compensation to do, they are in a hurry. With little police available since the storm it is impossible to enforce the law that requires stopping at stop signs or red lights.
Given that, the parish has announced that to save lives and prevent accidents it may install cameras at busy intersections to catch motorists in the act of bolting through red lights or stop signs. This is done other places, so despite some protests that it is an invasion of privacy to film a driver and then mail him a traffic ticket based on what the video shows, it is likely to happen here. Cameras seldom distort what happens and in other places few drivers contest those traffic tickets. They usually just pay the fine and avoid the cost to the state of holding court sessions for contesting the tickets. It sounds fair to me.
Speaking od road s distractions. How about sexy billboards announcing the sale of sex toys, lingerie and adult videos? Should those be allowed near busy highways? That question came up recently in Kansas City, Missouri. And according to the federal judge who heard sex store owner John Haltom's lawsuit against the state of Missouri that made the law prohibiting those ads near highways, the answer is "no".
John says the ban denies his right to "free commercial speech". The judge says that John can only advertise "non-adult items" in places where minors can not avoid seeing the sexy stuff. I guess the drivers in Kansas City will now just have to use their imagination when driving along that highway.
The problem is that many of those out of state cars and trucks (and some locals too) are running stop signs and red lights, ignoring them at peril to everyone. Since all of the workers have multiple jobs at high rates of compensation to do, they are in a hurry. With little police available since the storm it is impossible to enforce the law that requires stopping at stop signs or red lights.
Given that, the parish has announced that to save lives and prevent accidents it may install cameras at busy intersections to catch motorists in the act of bolting through red lights or stop signs. This is done other places, so despite some protests that it is an invasion of privacy to film a driver and then mail him a traffic ticket based on what the video shows, it is likely to happen here. Cameras seldom distort what happens and in other places few drivers contest those traffic tickets. They usually just pay the fine and avoid the cost to the state of holding court sessions for contesting the tickets. It sounds fair to me.
Speaking od road s distractions. How about sexy billboards announcing the sale of sex toys, lingerie and adult videos? Should those be allowed near busy highways? That question came up recently in Kansas City, Missouri. And according to the federal judge who heard sex store owner John Haltom's lawsuit against the state of Missouri that made the law prohibiting those ads near highways, the answer is "no".
John says the ban denies his right to "free commercial speech". The judge says that John can only advertise "non-adult items" in places where minors can not avoid seeing the sexy stuff. I guess the drivers in Kansas City will now just have to use their imagination when driving along that highway.
Chat Room Visit
I am writing this simultaneously to being in one of those chat rooms. This one is in Yahoo, and though I rarely enter a chat room I now have some time on my hands as repair crews are working on my home and I must sit here until they finish. So on a lark I decided to enter a chat room and wreck havoc there with some irreverence.
Upon logging on to yahoo I quickly decided to be a lady of a day- I entered a women's' only chat room and was a little surprised at what I found. I logged on with a remark that immediately stirred some of them. "Hello, ladies I am man sent here to monitor your chat." Haha They were a hornets nest after that. I was told to leave, threatened with computer destruction and called various names that mom used to wash your mouth out with soap when hearing you utter them. A few were not so clue less and appreciated the joke. They became my allies in the room. What surprised me was that that room (and I suppose many others) was the sanctuary of spam ads offering to let me "see my naked pictures" or "view my cam". I got those messages the whole time I was there, and one was sent as soon as I logged into the room. In effect, the porn spammers were running the room. This surprised me, given Yahoo was monitoring the rooms. Another thing I noticed is that people in that room rarely chatted as a group, even though it was supposed to be a group chatting site. This is odd, because there are so many IM venues at which people can message privately. I like those and use them.
But why would they go to a public chat room to message privately? I proceeded to, all at the same time depending on who read my comments- enrage, provoke, charm, humor and generally make myself a pest. Hmmmmmm I think my playfulness there made me the star of the room and the room came alive to some extent. They started chatting more as a group. Some factions wanted me out and some became my fans or protectors.
Being a newcomer there I was surprised how easily I could dominate the room. Hehe The whole time I made a point of not writing anything remotely profound or normal. I enjoy stirring that hornet's nest and can do it well. When some became upset that a man was in the room I offered to "sell or rent myself" to the highest bidder. Why would anyone want to buy me?
It was amusing for me for awhile. But I just can't fathom those rooms. they are chaotic, filled with porn advertisements, and some of the people there seem quite..uh...maladjusted, reveling in their problems and loving to discuss the most intimate of them. If you haven't tried one of those rooms, or if you enter any acting "normally', I suggest going to one and also 'stirring the hornet's nest". It can be fun.
I have found a teacher I want to nominate for "Teacher of the Year". Caroline Kolb of Louisville, Kentucky apparently does not like candy chewing in her classroom. She hates it so much she has been fired by her school system after being charged criminally with biting a 14 year old middle school student who would not spit out a piece of candy. Caroline has pleaded not guilty to the criminal s charges that were filed after her classroom brawl with the candy eater. The student's mom said that Catherine "No Candy" Kolb told her son to stand in the hallway after he disobeyed her order to get rid of the candy. hen he tried to get his books the scuffle broke out and he was left with a bite wound that required medical treatment. Poor Catherine seems to have such a bad temper.
School officials had previously warned her to not be physically abusive with students. But I must say, Catherine deserves the "Teacher of the Year Award" for her brilliant performance in aping student behavior. Too, at least she isn't having sex with the boys in her class as some other female teachers have been found guilty of. Give her the award for not "biting off more than she can chew".
Upon logging on to yahoo I quickly decided to be a lady of a day- I entered a women's' only chat room and was a little surprised at what I found. I logged on with a remark that immediately stirred some of them. "Hello, ladies I am man sent here to monitor your chat." Haha They were a hornets nest after that. I was told to leave, threatened with computer destruction and called various names that mom used to wash your mouth out with soap when hearing you utter them. A few were not so clue less and appreciated the joke. They became my allies in the room. What surprised me was that that room (and I suppose many others) was the sanctuary of spam ads offering to let me "see my naked pictures" or "view my cam". I got those messages the whole time I was there, and one was sent as soon as I logged into the room. In effect, the porn spammers were running the room. This surprised me, given Yahoo was monitoring the rooms. Another thing I noticed is that people in that room rarely chatted as a group, even though it was supposed to be a group chatting site. This is odd, because there are so many IM venues at which people can message privately. I like those and use them.
But why would they go to a public chat room to message privately? I proceeded to, all at the same time depending on who read my comments- enrage, provoke, charm, humor and generally make myself a pest. Hmmmmmm I think my playfulness there made me the star of the room and the room came alive to some extent. They started chatting more as a group. Some factions wanted me out and some became my fans or protectors.
Being a newcomer there I was surprised how easily I could dominate the room. Hehe The whole time I made a point of not writing anything remotely profound or normal. I enjoy stirring that hornet's nest and can do it well. When some became upset that a man was in the room I offered to "sell or rent myself" to the highest bidder. Why would anyone want to buy me?
It was amusing for me for awhile. But I just can't fathom those rooms. they are chaotic, filled with porn advertisements, and some of the people there seem quite..uh...maladjusted, reveling in their problems and loving to discuss the most intimate of them. If you haven't tried one of those rooms, or if you enter any acting "normally', I suggest going to one and also 'stirring the hornet's nest". It can be fun.
I have found a teacher I want to nominate for "Teacher of the Year". Caroline Kolb of Louisville, Kentucky apparently does not like candy chewing in her classroom. She hates it so much she has been fired by her school system after being charged criminally with biting a 14 year old middle school student who would not spit out a piece of candy. Caroline has pleaded not guilty to the criminal s charges that were filed after her classroom brawl with the candy eater. The student's mom said that Catherine "No Candy" Kolb told her son to stand in the hallway after he disobeyed her order to get rid of the candy. hen he tried to get his books the scuffle broke out and he was left with a bite wound that required medical treatment. Poor Catherine seems to have such a bad temper.
School officials had previously warned her to not be physically abusive with students. But I must say, Catherine deserves the "Teacher of the Year Award" for her brilliant performance in aping student behavior. Too, at least she isn't having sex with the boys in her class as some other female teachers have been found guilty of. Give her the award for not "biting off more than she can chew".
On Candy
While riding in the car with Jane the other night the subject of Candy came up, or it continued after a clerk in Walgreen's Drug Store chatted with us about some of the old time candy. Of course, I bombarded Jane with my reminiscences about the candy of my youth, some of which is no longer available. So you get the lecture today.
It's time for me to write about the changes in one of the world's favorite junk foods- candy. OK, having written that I know candy varies by country, even somewhat by region. You may not know the specific brands of candy I mention but you'll get the general idea of this- that Candy preferences have changed over the years. My theory is that people here in the U.S. and in most other countries have shifted preference sin the last,,,say..50 years from hard and novelty candy to chocolate.
Yes, chocolate rules today and is the number one candy preference among most buyers. The manufacturers seem to introduce new variation of chocolate candies every time a product introduction is to be brought out. Let's dived candy into two arbitrary time phases- the 50's, 60's and 70's would the the first. The 80's, 90's and 2000 plus the second. Candy changed quite a bit from the first to second era.
In the first era both kids and adults who eat candy wanted less chocolate. Favorites included Wax lips (I cringe when I see that written because that wax taste has never left my mouth, even though it has many years since eaten), those wax bottles filled with sweet flavored syrup (most of the kids in my neighborhood drank the syrup and threw away the wax bottles), Candy Cigarettes (politically incorrect today!), Chicklets (That tiny hard coated gum that we all swallowed..maybe the Chicklets are still in my stomach account for my weirdness?) Kits (My favorite, a kind of taffy chunk in 4 flavors. Everyone always ante the strawberry), Sugar Babies (Round globs of sugar that were, yes, sugar coated with a hard glaze), Red Hots ( I couldn't eat those spicy bits of red pepper), Necco Wafers (round sugar wafers in several flavors I still buy those at Valentine's Day because Necco makes their "Sweetheart" candy out of those wafers), Lemon heads (a sour version of lemon hard candy), Gum balls (Every teacher's nightmare), Root Beer Barrels (Tiny root beer flavored hard candy shaped in the form of barrels), Bonomo's Turkish Taffy (Bonomo was an Italian American candy company that made "Turkish Taffy". It does not follow..but it tasted wonderful), Jaw Breakers (These things were usually banned by any right thinking mom, They were round balls that were as hard as concrete. The trick for we kids was to break the breaker without disintegrating the teeth.), Juicy Fruits (A favorite of mine. They were the precursor of gummy bears, but had a much deeper more intense flavor), Smarties (Yes.......I should have eaten this one. It might have helped raise my low IQ), Licorice Sticks (Oh, I hate licorice, but my mother, an infrequent candy eater, loved those things), Life Savers ( The preferred hard candy fro kids of that generation), and Chuckles (Those super sweet and sugar coated globs of flavored "something". It was also favorite of mine).
Ok, you get the idea. The commonality to all those candies is that few still exist today and that they were all non chocolate candy. The candy of the second and current era is mostly milk chocolate based. I won't list them all because there are so many, and you probably already know enough of them or of similar milk chocolate candy sold in your own city. The candy experts now say dark chocolate (I prefer dark to milk chocolate) will be the next rage of the chocolate candy sellers.
It's always been around, and people who like dark chocolate swear by it. But recent medical studies on chocolate say that dark chocolate is "healthy", in that it can lower cholesterol levels. Candy companies are already gearing up for "Healthy Dark Chocolate" offerings . the question is whether enough milk chocolate lovers will abandon their favorite in the name of more "healthy " chocolate. I guess I have written enough about this, enough to make your stomach ache more than all that candy would. You better go have a candy bar and forget this stupidity.
One thing I can't imagine eating is what a German farmer has just confessed to feeding his pigs. No, it wasn't Bonomo Taffy ot Lemon Heads, it was the corpse of an elderly family friend who died suddenly in the farmer's yard last February. Initially, the farmer put the corpse in his freezer and told people in the town (Frizlar-Haddamar) that the dead man was in a nursing home.
Police said the farmer decided to let the corpse thaw, dismembered it and fed it to the pigs. He put the body parts the pigs did not eat into a sack and buried it...all so he could draw money from the dead man's account in order to pay his farm debts. Police ruled out murder charges and have charged the farmer with "improper burial and fraud".
It's time for me to write about the changes in one of the world's favorite junk foods- candy. OK, having written that I know candy varies by country, even somewhat by region. You may not know the specific brands of candy I mention but you'll get the general idea of this- that Candy preferences have changed over the years. My theory is that people here in the U.S. and in most other countries have shifted preference sin the last,,,say..50 years from hard and novelty candy to chocolate.
Yes, chocolate rules today and is the number one candy preference among most buyers. The manufacturers seem to introduce new variation of chocolate candies every time a product introduction is to be brought out. Let's dived candy into two arbitrary time phases- the 50's, 60's and 70's would the the first. The 80's, 90's and 2000 plus the second. Candy changed quite a bit from the first to second era.
In the first era both kids and adults who eat candy wanted less chocolate. Favorites included Wax lips (I cringe when I see that written because that wax taste has never left my mouth, even though it has many years since eaten), those wax bottles filled with sweet flavored syrup (most of the kids in my neighborhood drank the syrup and threw away the wax bottles), Candy Cigarettes (politically incorrect today!), Chicklets (That tiny hard coated gum that we all swallowed..maybe the Chicklets are still in my stomach account for my weirdness?) Kits (My favorite, a kind of taffy chunk in 4 flavors. Everyone always ante the strawberry), Sugar Babies (Round globs of sugar that were, yes, sugar coated with a hard glaze), Red Hots ( I couldn't eat those spicy bits of red pepper), Necco Wafers (round sugar wafers in several flavors I still buy those at Valentine's Day because Necco makes their "Sweetheart" candy out of those wafers), Lemon heads (a sour version of lemon hard candy), Gum balls (Every teacher's nightmare), Root Beer Barrels (Tiny root beer flavored hard candy shaped in the form of barrels), Bonomo's Turkish Taffy (Bonomo was an Italian American candy company that made "Turkish Taffy". It does not follow..but it tasted wonderful), Jaw Breakers (These things were usually banned by any right thinking mom, They were round balls that were as hard as concrete. The trick for we kids was to break the breaker without disintegrating the teeth.), Juicy Fruits (A favorite of mine. They were the precursor of gummy bears, but had a much deeper more intense flavor), Smarties (Yes.......I should have eaten this one. It might have helped raise my low IQ), Licorice Sticks (Oh, I hate licorice, but my mother, an infrequent candy eater, loved those things), Life Savers ( The preferred hard candy fro kids of that generation), and Chuckles (Those super sweet and sugar coated globs of flavored "something". It was also favorite of mine).
Ok, you get the idea. The commonality to all those candies is that few still exist today and that they were all non chocolate candy. The candy of the second and current era is mostly milk chocolate based. I won't list them all because there are so many, and you probably already know enough of them or of similar milk chocolate candy sold in your own city. The candy experts now say dark chocolate (I prefer dark to milk chocolate) will be the next rage of the chocolate candy sellers.
It's always been around, and people who like dark chocolate swear by it. But recent medical studies on chocolate say that dark chocolate is "healthy", in that it can lower cholesterol levels. Candy companies are already gearing up for "Healthy Dark Chocolate" offerings . the question is whether enough milk chocolate lovers will abandon their favorite in the name of more "healthy " chocolate. I guess I have written enough about this, enough to make your stomach ache more than all that candy would. You better go have a candy bar and forget this stupidity.
One thing I can't imagine eating is what a German farmer has just confessed to feeding his pigs. No, it wasn't Bonomo Taffy ot Lemon Heads, it was the corpse of an elderly family friend who died suddenly in the farmer's yard last February. Initially, the farmer put the corpse in his freezer and told people in the town (Frizlar-Haddamar) that the dead man was in a nursing home.
Police said the farmer decided to let the corpse thaw, dismembered it and fed it to the pigs. He put the body parts the pigs did not eat into a sack and buried it...all so he could draw money from the dead man's account in order to pay his farm debts. Police ruled out murder charges and have charged the farmer with "improper burial and fraud".
No Filming Allowed
I was reading about video cameras being used in hospitals, so you get my rhetoric on that today... I know I am a little strange, but is filming the birth of your baby really so bad? You see, when Jane was born, my ex wife and I did what many couples did, we decided to bring in our video camera and film after her birth, when Jane emerged into the world.
This was not a filming of the birth, a messy and painful experience, but a joyous recording of Jane entering into the world. The hospital was used to that practice and the anesthesiologist even offered to film for me so I could be in the picture as well. We have that tape and Jane has seen it many times. It is a wondrous view of her birth, something she can have to share with her own children.
If I ever become a parent again (Hehe.. I hear you laughing!) it is something I would suggest to my new spouse. But time is running out (both for me being a new dad and for this filming thing) for that option. I am reading quite a few reports in the media that most hospitals in the U.S no longer allow a video camera in the delivery room. It is a shame. The "official reasons" for the ban are safety and privacy concerns. But the real reason is more likely the fear that hospitals have of the tapes being used as evidence in malpractice suits.
Yep! The crazy suing mentality in the United States has apparently defeated the beauty of a filmed birth (Hmmmmmm If I were the hospital and wanted to make some easy money I might offer to film it for a fee, from a permanent camera mounted in the delivery room) , the most scared of moments for many parents. Hospitals think that, though the camera might not show any malpractice by the nurses, doctors or hospital, it still might be used as a weapon in manipulating one of those phony "pain and suffering" lawsuits that so often wind up as a big pay out to the suing party.
Some hospitals also say that bringing dirty cameras into the delivery room is in itself a possible danger to the birth baby, and that filming can distract personnel from their duties in the room. I doubt either of those two are sincere reasons, as there is no evidence that either has actually happened in a filmed birth episode. But what about overzealous dads? Suppose dad thinks he is a Hollywood director and gets carried away with the filming? (Hehe Imagine, "Wait, Doctor..I want to get shot of her uterus in the") .
Indeed, the first responsibility of the dad in the delivery room is to be with his spouse and to comfort and re assure her. But there is no real reason filming should interfere with that. Maybe the hospital should allow filming if doctors and other personnel agree to it, and to having the parents sign a waiver giving the hospital property rights to the film (In case of a tragedy happening in the birth process) .
Any opinion of whether to allow filming or not allow it? Would you do it?
This was not a filming of the birth, a messy and painful experience, but a joyous recording of Jane entering into the world. The hospital was used to that practice and the anesthesiologist even offered to film for me so I could be in the picture as well. We have that tape and Jane has seen it many times. It is a wondrous view of her birth, something she can have to share with her own children.
If I ever become a parent again (Hehe.. I hear you laughing!) it is something I would suggest to my new spouse. But time is running out (both for me being a new dad and for this filming thing) for that option. I am reading quite a few reports in the media that most hospitals in the U.S no longer allow a video camera in the delivery room. It is a shame. The "official reasons" for the ban are safety and privacy concerns. But the real reason is more likely the fear that hospitals have of the tapes being used as evidence in malpractice suits.
Yep! The crazy suing mentality in the United States has apparently defeated the beauty of a filmed birth (Hmmmmmm If I were the hospital and wanted to make some easy money I might offer to film it for a fee, from a permanent camera mounted in the delivery room) , the most scared of moments for many parents. Hospitals think that, though the camera might not show any malpractice by the nurses, doctors or hospital, it still might be used as a weapon in manipulating one of those phony "pain and suffering" lawsuits that so often wind up as a big pay out to the suing party.
Some hospitals also say that bringing dirty cameras into the delivery room is in itself a possible danger to the birth baby, and that filming can distract personnel from their duties in the room. I doubt either of those two are sincere reasons, as there is no evidence that either has actually happened in a filmed birth episode. But what about overzealous dads? Suppose dad thinks he is a Hollywood director and gets carried away with the filming? (Hehe Imagine, "Wait, Doctor..I want to get shot of her uterus in the") .
Indeed, the first responsibility of the dad in the delivery room is to be with his spouse and to comfort and re assure her. But there is no real reason filming should interfere with that. Maybe the hospital should allow filming if doctors and other personnel agree to it, and to having the parents sign a waiver giving the hospital property rights to the film (In case of a tragedy happening in the birth process) .
Any opinion of whether to allow filming or not allow it? Would you do it?
Memory Games
I was in an electronics store a couple of days ago and saw some portable external hard drives. Since a very good one was on sale I bought it. No more flash drives for me. I got a 60 G hard drive that will store anything fro my computer and do it just as quickly as a flash drive. I think those portable hard drives use the same basic technology as flash drives because they work exactly the same way. When I replace this computer I will be able to transfer to the new one l my data, pictures and music, everything except programs (which won't work when moved) How is your memory? I mean, in relation to what it has been before.
We all have different abilities to remember things, some do it astoundingly well. Well, we how have trouble locating are car keys or forgetting to turn out lights should back away and watch the experts...like the contestants at the recent U.S. Memory Championships.
Take the case of the winner of that contest, a 23 year old science writer named Joshua Fore. Jonathan defeated the others by showing superior memory in six areas, including memorizing decks of playing cards, lines of unrecognizable poetry, and the names and faces of strangers printed in sheets of paper. Jonathan says he won the contest because he used something called the loci method, a visualization technique that has been around since the days of ancient Greece. The information is linked to familiar memories in order to remember the new. Jonathan says that an example of this loci method in the playing card memorization event would be to imagine the jack of diamonds, five of spades and six of diamonds as a friend who is kicking the pope. Jonathan actually named the order of every single card from a shuffled deck after studying it for less than two minutes. The world memory championship is scheduled for Malaysia next September, but Jonathan says he doesn't have a chance to win.
It seems that a man from England, world champ Ben Pridmore, can memorize a deck in. only 32 seconds. Ha! It takes me that long just to remember to zip up my pants before leaving the bathroom.
The only country that reportedly has more fat people than the U.S. is Germany. All those sausages, the beer, strudel and bread. It's no wonder. Well, one German hotel owner in Norde, Germany says it's time to slim down the men and women of Germany. Guests to Juergen Heckrodt's hotel have to jump on the scales to be weighed before signing it.
That's because Juergen is charging guests room rates based on their weight. At $.61 per kilogram it pays to be skinny. "I had many guests who were really huge, and I told them to slim down," said Juergen. "When they came back the year after and had lost a lot of weight they asked me what are you gonna do for me now?" That's when Juergen got the idea to inspiring Germans to become leaner by charging based on weight. but the fatties can relax. There is a basic 39 Euro price room rate price ceiling for the sausage lovers who need a room.
We all have different abilities to remember things, some do it astoundingly well. Well, we how have trouble locating are car keys or forgetting to turn out lights should back away and watch the experts...like the contestants at the recent U.S. Memory Championships.
Take the case of the winner of that contest, a 23 year old science writer named Joshua Fore. Jonathan defeated the others by showing superior memory in six areas, including memorizing decks of playing cards, lines of unrecognizable poetry, and the names and faces of strangers printed in sheets of paper. Jonathan says he won the contest because he used something called the loci method, a visualization technique that has been around since the days of ancient Greece. The information is linked to familiar memories in order to remember the new. Jonathan says that an example of this loci method in the playing card memorization event would be to imagine the jack of diamonds, five of spades and six of diamonds as a friend who is kicking the pope. Jonathan actually named the order of every single card from a shuffled deck after studying it for less than two minutes. The world memory championship is scheduled for Malaysia next September, but Jonathan says he doesn't have a chance to win.
It seems that a man from England, world champ Ben Pridmore, can memorize a deck in. only 32 seconds. Ha! It takes me that long just to remember to zip up my pants before leaving the bathroom.
The only country that reportedly has more fat people than the U.S. is Germany. All those sausages, the beer, strudel and bread. It's no wonder. Well, one German hotel owner in Norde, Germany says it's time to slim down the men and women of Germany. Guests to Juergen Heckrodt's hotel have to jump on the scales to be weighed before signing it.
That's because Juergen is charging guests room rates based on their weight. At $.61 per kilogram it pays to be skinny. "I had many guests who were really huge, and I told them to slim down," said Juergen. "When they came back the year after and had lost a lot of weight they asked me what are you gonna do for me now?" That's when Juergen got the idea to inspiring Germans to become leaner by charging based on weight. but the fatties can relax. There is a basic 39 Euro price room rate price ceiling for the sausage lovers who need a room.
Lips Were Made For Smoking
Yesterday's excursion to Thibodeaux, Louisiana was a successful one. Jane went with some of the students from her school as a part of the Science Olympiad team that represents the school. This was a regional and the team barely made it out and into the state competition by finishing 4th. the top four teams from each region advance. Because the team has 6th through 9th graders, the 6th graders like Jane are mostly on the fringe, entered in only two of the 15 events. Every school has to allow the 6th graders to be in at least two areas of competition. Jane's were building a small replica suspension bridge of wood, as light and string as possible, and some type of miniature propulsion care. She and her two partners did not win any medals for those two projects.
Anyway, she enjoyed the experience and benefited from it. I stayed home and voted in the big election today, bit may go to the state competition when it is held.
How addictive is smoking cigarettes? It has to rank with cocaine addiction, food addiction and many others. But the latest evidence of how cigarettes can take control of a person comes from the surgeons in France who did a face transplant, new nose, chin and lips from a brain-dead donor after being mauled by her dog last spring, on an unidentified 38 year old woman last November.
You guessed it! That woman has resumed her smoking habit, new lips and all. This inanity comes after the face transplant has been one struggle after another in trying to fight against rejection problems, and with the fact that after surgery smoking impairs circulation to tissue, which raises the risk of rejection. Surely, the woman must be psychologically ill as well as addicted to her smoking. But her smoking even now makes one who doesn't smoke (me , for instance) very thankful not to be controlled by nicotine.
What does a parent of a misbehaving, failing teen student do to improve her daughter's grades? In most cases it is to find some positive reinforcement or to see that the failing teen studies more and receives tutoring in whatever subjects are most difficult. But the there are negative punishments too. Some parents, the ones with little control over their kids, seem to need to be overtly harsh and controlling before their little ones will behave and act responsibly in school. Take the case of Tasha Henderson of Edmond, Oklahoma. Tasha got tired of her 14 year old daughter's poor grades, her chronic lateness to classes and her surly and disrespectful words to her teachers, so she took extreme measures to teach daughter Coretta a lesson. Tasha made Coretta stand at a busy Oklahoma City intersection with a cardboard sign that read: " I don't do my homework and I act up in school, so my parents are preparing me for my future. Will work for food."
Haha I think mom Tasha probably missed a few classes in her day too. What a cruel and disgraceful punishment that was. Tasha told reporters that she knows it ",may not work", but that "I felt I owed it to my child to at least try." My goodness! It's fortunate she didn't feel she owed it to Tasha to publicly flog her. I think Tasha must believe she lives in Singapore. After about an hour of holding the sign, police arrived (one motorist called and complained of Coretta being "psychologically abused") and told the mom and daughter to leave.
But wait! Tasha says Coretta has improved greatly in both attitude and grades since the public humiliation. But the punishment has engendered many letters and calls to radio stations and newspapers, some in praise and others blasting her for her cruelty to her daughter. I know what you are thinking.."I should make and hold up my own sign for writing such stupidity in this blog.
Anyway, she enjoyed the experience and benefited from it. I stayed home and voted in the big election today, bit may go to the state competition when it is held.
How addictive is smoking cigarettes? It has to rank with cocaine addiction, food addiction and many others. But the latest evidence of how cigarettes can take control of a person comes from the surgeons in France who did a face transplant, new nose, chin and lips from a brain-dead donor after being mauled by her dog last spring, on an unidentified 38 year old woman last November.
You guessed it! That woman has resumed her smoking habit, new lips and all. This inanity comes after the face transplant has been one struggle after another in trying to fight against rejection problems, and with the fact that after surgery smoking impairs circulation to tissue, which raises the risk of rejection. Surely, the woman must be psychologically ill as well as addicted to her smoking. But her smoking even now makes one who doesn't smoke (me , for instance) very thankful not to be controlled by nicotine.
What does a parent of a misbehaving, failing teen student do to improve her daughter's grades? In most cases it is to find some positive reinforcement or to see that the failing teen studies more and receives tutoring in whatever subjects are most difficult. But the there are negative punishments too. Some parents, the ones with little control over their kids, seem to need to be overtly harsh and controlling before their little ones will behave and act responsibly in school. Take the case of Tasha Henderson of Edmond, Oklahoma. Tasha got tired of her 14 year old daughter's poor grades, her chronic lateness to classes and her surly and disrespectful words to her teachers, so she took extreme measures to teach daughter Coretta a lesson. Tasha made Coretta stand at a busy Oklahoma City intersection with a cardboard sign that read: " I don't do my homework and I act up in school, so my parents are preparing me for my future. Will work for food."
Haha I think mom Tasha probably missed a few classes in her day too. What a cruel and disgraceful punishment that was. Tasha told reporters that she knows it ",may not work", but that "I felt I owed it to my child to at least try." My goodness! It's fortunate she didn't feel she owed it to Tasha to publicly flog her. I think Tasha must believe she lives in Singapore. After about an hour of holding the sign, police arrived (one motorist called and complained of Coretta being "psychologically abused") and told the mom and daughter to leave.
But wait! Tasha says Coretta has improved greatly in both attitude and grades since the public humiliation. But the punishment has engendered many letters and calls to radio stations and newspapers, some in praise and others blasting her for her cruelty to her daughter. I know what you are thinking.."I should make and hold up my own sign for writing such stupidity in this blog.
Kid Technology
How much technology equipment is suitable for a child"? You probably know that outside of a computer, I have little interest in or knowledge about high tech devices. I think that Jane has far more than I, and does have a Game Boy (her mom bought it for Jane) and a Play Station (a friend gave her that as a Christmas gift several years ago) device, some kind of music "thing" of which I am unfamiliar, and advice that has a screen on which she has a virtual pet. Though she hasn't asked for any technology (She knows I would never give her..or anyone..one of those "awful cell phones".
I rant about so much) this year, what if she does? What is appropriate for an 11 year old? In this time of high tech parents are more used to knowing when to buy that first bike, or let them pierce their ears than knowing what is an appropriate high tech "toy" for their kids. As we see by the rude behavior of cell phone users, even many adults seem not ready for those. Kids bug their parents for those gadgets, but we parents are leery about giving them.
Most experts say that the parents should keep an eye on his or her child to see how they are spending their time. If little Johnny, for example, is already devoting too much time to technology, he doesn't need more. There is no magic age when children can handle or want electronic devices. I think the parents should first determine whether he or she can afford the gifts, if the child is mature enough to handle it (unlike those babbling cell phone adults who abuses others with their loud public chat) , whether the kid wants the device or whether it is just feeling peer or advertising pressure to get it that makes that little one beg for the ipod or new computer.
In my culture I think the media drives most of that demand. the child is brainwashed by TV commercials to think he has to have those electronic toys. We have all heard of those kids that are so "connected" to their electronics that they don't even recognize the child sitting next to them in school. But then that's a case of parent neglect, for not monitoring time spent with those gadgets. Oh well....I wonder if parents really have the choice of eliminating those kinds of gifts. Maybe the best strategy is to limit them and to closely monitor their use. But one thing is certain! Jane will NEVER get a cell phone from me.
When is a person fat, when he thinks he is or when the scale shows it? No, no...I am not asking for myself. I know I need to lose a few pounds. But I pose the question because of a study of New York fat people. According to the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene almost 1 million New Yorkers (about 20% of the population) are obese, but nearly 2 out of 3 of them don't think they are.
It figures. the study said that only 44 % of New Yorkers are at a healthy weight and that 75% never exercise. What does this study lead me to conclude! I should move to New York so I can be considered lean and mean. Well.....I least I won't starve there.
I rant about so much) this year, what if she does? What is appropriate for an 11 year old? In this time of high tech parents are more used to knowing when to buy that first bike, or let them pierce their ears than knowing what is an appropriate high tech "toy" for their kids. As we see by the rude behavior of cell phone users, even many adults seem not ready for those. Kids bug their parents for those gadgets, but we parents are leery about giving them.
Most experts say that the parents should keep an eye on his or her child to see how they are spending their time. If little Johnny, for example, is already devoting too much time to technology, he doesn't need more. There is no magic age when children can handle or want electronic devices. I think the parents should first determine whether he or she can afford the gifts, if the child is mature enough to handle it (unlike those babbling cell phone adults who abuses others with their loud public chat) , whether the kid wants the device or whether it is just feeling peer or advertising pressure to get it that makes that little one beg for the ipod or new computer.
In my culture I think the media drives most of that demand. the child is brainwashed by TV commercials to think he has to have those electronic toys. We have all heard of those kids that are so "connected" to their electronics that they don't even recognize the child sitting next to them in school. But then that's a case of parent neglect, for not monitoring time spent with those gadgets. Oh well....I wonder if parents really have the choice of eliminating those kinds of gifts. Maybe the best strategy is to limit them and to closely monitor their use. But one thing is certain! Jane will NEVER get a cell phone from me.
When is a person fat, when he thinks he is or when the scale shows it? No, no...I am not asking for myself. I know I need to lose a few pounds. But I pose the question because of a study of New York fat people. According to the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene almost 1 million New Yorkers (about 20% of the population) are obese, but nearly 2 out of 3 of them don't think they are.
It figures. the study said that only 44 % of New Yorkers are at a healthy weight and that 75% never exercise. What does this study lead me to conclude! I should move to New York so I can be considered lean and mean. Well.....I least I won't starve there.
Are Crime Shows A Crime
Do you watch those crime/court TV shows? I don't, so I tread lightly when writing about a closely related subject. It is the influence of TV shows on real court room juries. It seems that judges and lawyers are complaining all over the U.S. that the fiction jurors see on TV court shows is so convincing to them that they are sometimes basing their decisions on some of the fantasy they learn from the programs.
Two shows (that I have never personally seen) called "CSI" and "Law & Order" are most often cited as the culprits. There influence is so heavy that lawyers ask would-be jurors whether they watch the shows and then change strategies depending on their answers. The big problem is the TV fantasies set standards for evidence that prosecutors can not possibly meet. The jurors expect high tech (sometimes technology they see on TV that does not exists in the real world), indisputable forensic evidence before they will vote "guilt" for anyone accused.
So juror expectations are elevated because they believe every prosecutor in every court in every city has the same gadgets that the jurors watch on those silly TV programs. Sigh...It is a kind of, "One moment for this commercial and we'll show you evidence of his or her guilt or "innocence" mentality. One might say that life is imitating art (If you consider those kinds of TV shows to be art).
Since most real cases have little forensic evidence (fingerprints, DNA evidence, etc.), and few jurors understand this, prosecutors now must explain this fact to the jury before presenting their case. They must convince the juror that there is other evidence that can be used besides that. So even eyewitness reports are sometimes excluded by the juries who have been trained by TV to accept only forensic evidence as "real".
It's just another example of how fiction in media is translated into the reality by the viewer. I think too many TV viewers are so saturated by their programs that they lose their ability to discriminate between reality and fiction. In the case of a person being tried for a crime, this is a serious mistake. Any opinion on this?
I think I want to be a student at Brooklyn High in Cleveland Ohio. And probably most other men would want to be also. Why this regression to teenage years? Well, it's because of the kinds of homework assignments given at that school. Take the case of the Internet Porn assignment....That's right! A teacher at Brooklyn High assigned a research project on Internet pornography the other day. The assignment, since quickly canceled after protests from the kids' parents, asked the students to "research pornography" on the Internet and list "eight facts about pornography".
Hmmmmm I should do that on my own. Who needs Brooklyn High! Er.....uh.........never mind my personal involvement with the assignment. The students were also asked to write their "personal views of pornography" and "any experience they had with it". Wow! Does that teacher think those kids are ignorant of porno? Well, regardless, the Superintendent of the school district declared that studying harmful effects of pornography is a heavy topic for 15 year olds better left to a college student. He agree with parents that it was an inappropriate assignment. He also said that the teacher though misguided, will not be subjected to any punishment. But rumors have it Brooklyn has been deluged with over aged applications for new student enrollment since the assignment was given.
Two shows (that I have never personally seen) called "CSI" and "Law & Order" are most often cited as the culprits. There influence is so heavy that lawyers ask would-be jurors whether they watch the shows and then change strategies depending on their answers. The big problem is the TV fantasies set standards for evidence that prosecutors can not possibly meet. The jurors expect high tech (sometimes technology they see on TV that does not exists in the real world), indisputable forensic evidence before they will vote "guilt" for anyone accused.
So juror expectations are elevated because they believe every prosecutor in every court in every city has the same gadgets that the jurors watch on those silly TV programs. Sigh...It is a kind of, "One moment for this commercial and we'll show you evidence of his or her guilt or "innocence" mentality. One might say that life is imitating art (If you consider those kinds of TV shows to be art).
Since most real cases have little forensic evidence (fingerprints, DNA evidence, etc.), and few jurors understand this, prosecutors now must explain this fact to the jury before presenting their case. They must convince the juror that there is other evidence that can be used besides that. So even eyewitness reports are sometimes excluded by the juries who have been trained by TV to accept only forensic evidence as "real".
It's just another example of how fiction in media is translated into the reality by the viewer. I think too many TV viewers are so saturated by their programs that they lose their ability to discriminate between reality and fiction. In the case of a person being tried for a crime, this is a serious mistake. Any opinion on this?
I think I want to be a student at Brooklyn High in Cleveland Ohio. And probably most other men would want to be also. Why this regression to teenage years? Well, it's because of the kinds of homework assignments given at that school. Take the case of the Internet Porn assignment....That's right! A teacher at Brooklyn High assigned a research project on Internet pornography the other day. The assignment, since quickly canceled after protests from the kids' parents, asked the students to "research pornography" on the Internet and list "eight facts about pornography".
Hmmmmm I should do that on my own. Who needs Brooklyn High! Er.....uh.........never mind my personal involvement with the assignment. The students were also asked to write their "personal views of pornography" and "any experience they had with it". Wow! Does that teacher think those kids are ignorant of porno? Well, regardless, the Superintendent of the school district declared that studying harmful effects of pornography is a heavy topic for 15 year olds better left to a college student. He agree with parents that it was an inappropriate assignment. He also said that the teacher though misguided, will not be subjected to any punishment. But rumors have it Brooklyn has been deluged with over aged applications for new student enrollment since the assignment was given.
April Fun
Wow! Yesterday I got news that I won the big million dollar lottery!! April Fool!! Haha Ok, If didn't win the lottery and it is not quite April 1st, but today I thought I would write about April Fool's Day. It is an odd tradition that most people do not truly understand. It may be the most popular "unofficial holiday" of all. By that I mean it's not really a holiday (no one gets off work or school, the banks and post office are open, there are not April Fool greeting cards sold at stores etc....), but people act as if it is.
They just love to play practical jokes on April 1st. I had to research the origin of April Fool's Day because I never had been educated about it before, and I never was curious about it enough to look for myself. But I did look before writing this blog and, in short, what I found is that it began in the humorless nation of France (they do like themselves too much to have a sense of humor about themselves) around 1853.
Apparently it came about because of a change in the calendar, from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Because communication at that time was bad or very slow, many people did not know of the change of calendars and still celebrated New Year's Day on April 1st. Thus, those unaware of the new calendar were labeled as "April Fools" and were sent on "fools errands" or made the butt of jokes.
Beware if some idiot (like me) tells you he won the lottery, or if he says your E mail came in blank or with naked pictures as the letter head. It's all harmless fun and most people like being the subject of the harmless jokes on April Fools Day. Even the media and big corporations sometimes play April Fool's jokes on us. Here are some examples of classic public April fools jokes.
1) The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest- In the 1950's a British newscast created a stir among the gullible viewers that April Fool's day when it reported that the spaghetti crop in Switzerland was huge because of the great weather and the eradication of the "spaghetti weevil".
2) Liberty Bell Sale- In 1996 the Taco Bell fast food chain said it had purchased the Liberty Bell from the U.S government and was renaming it the "Taco Liberty Bell" Outraged citizens stormed the national park where the bell is displayed to protest the sale.
3) Arm the Homeless- One Aril Fool's day the Phoenix, Arizona New Times published a false story announcing the formation of a new charity called 'The Arm the Homeless Coalition' that instead of feeding clothing and sheltering homeless people, would give them guns and ammunition.
4) Instant Color TV- This April Fool day prank goes back to the pre color TV days. In Sweden, a Tv technician specialist appeared on the stations to announce that all the viewers could easily and instantly convert their sets to color Tv. They merely had to pull a nylon stocking over their TV screen, and they would begin to see their shows in color Hehe He even "demonstrated" how to do it as he announced the discovery.
5) Alabama Gets Rid Of pi- Just a few years ago one Alabama newspaper said a legislator had introduced an April 1st resolution that the entire legislature passed outlawing pi. It changed pi in Alabama from the math constant of 3.14159 tot eh "Biblical value' of 3.0. Of course citizens read the story and believed it,. the news also got on the Internet and caused a fury everywhere in the world.
6) Left Handed Whopper- In 1998 Burger King took out an April 1st full page ad in the U.S. Today newspaper that announced the introduction of the "Left-Handed Whopper" hamburger sandwich. specially designed for the 30 million Americans who are left handed. You guessed it..not only did thousands of idiots go to Burger King to order the left-hander, many others demanded a right-handed burger be sold too
7) Planetary Alignment Gravity Decrease- Those clever Brits came up with a great one one April 1st in the 70's, A noted astronomer announced on BBC radio that at exactly 9:47 am a once-in-a-lifetime asr astronomical event was going to occur that listeners could experience themselves at home. He said that Pluto would pas behind Jupiter at that moment, temporarily suspending gravity. Further, if one was to jump in the air when the planets aligned , he would experience the floating sensation of a gravity absent environment. Believe it or not hundreds of people later called into BBC to describe how they floated at that moment. One woman even reported that she and 11 friends had risen from their chairs and floated around the room.....I suspect alcohol may have floated those ladies too.
Happy April Fool's Day!!
They just love to play practical jokes on April 1st. I had to research the origin of April Fool's Day because I never had been educated about it before, and I never was curious about it enough to look for myself. But I did look before writing this blog and, in short, what I found is that it began in the humorless nation of France (they do like themselves too much to have a sense of humor about themselves) around 1853.
Apparently it came about because of a change in the calendar, from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Because communication at that time was bad or very slow, many people did not know of the change of calendars and still celebrated New Year's Day on April 1st. Thus, those unaware of the new calendar were labeled as "April Fools" and were sent on "fools errands" or made the butt of jokes.
Beware if some idiot (like me) tells you he won the lottery, or if he says your E mail came in blank or with naked pictures as the letter head. It's all harmless fun and most people like being the subject of the harmless jokes on April Fools Day. Even the media and big corporations sometimes play April Fool's jokes on us. Here are some examples of classic public April fools jokes.
1) The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest- In the 1950's a British newscast created a stir among the gullible viewers that April Fool's day when it reported that the spaghetti crop in Switzerland was huge because of the great weather and the eradication of the "spaghetti weevil".
2) Liberty Bell Sale- In 1996 the Taco Bell fast food chain said it had purchased the Liberty Bell from the U.S government and was renaming it the "Taco Liberty Bell" Outraged citizens stormed the national park where the bell is displayed to protest the sale.
3) Arm the Homeless- One Aril Fool's day the Phoenix, Arizona New Times published a false story announcing the formation of a new charity called 'The Arm the Homeless Coalition' that instead of feeding clothing and sheltering homeless people, would give them guns and ammunition.
4) Instant Color TV- This April Fool day prank goes back to the pre color TV days. In Sweden, a Tv technician specialist appeared on the stations to announce that all the viewers could easily and instantly convert their sets to color Tv. They merely had to pull a nylon stocking over their TV screen, and they would begin to see their shows in color Hehe He even "demonstrated" how to do it as he announced the discovery.
5) Alabama Gets Rid Of pi- Just a few years ago one Alabama newspaper said a legislator had introduced an April 1st resolution that the entire legislature passed outlawing pi. It changed pi in Alabama from the math constant of 3.14159 tot eh "Biblical value' of 3.0. Of course citizens read the story and believed it,. the news also got on the Internet and caused a fury everywhere in the world.
6) Left Handed Whopper- In 1998 Burger King took out an April 1st full page ad in the U.S. Today newspaper that announced the introduction of the "Left-Handed Whopper" hamburger sandwich. specially designed for the 30 million Americans who are left handed. You guessed it..not only did thousands of idiots go to Burger King to order the left-hander, many others demanded a right-handed burger be sold too
7) Planetary Alignment Gravity Decrease- Those clever Brits came up with a great one one April 1st in the 70's, A noted astronomer announced on BBC radio that at exactly 9:47 am a once-in-a-lifetime asr astronomical event was going to occur that listeners could experience themselves at home. He said that Pluto would pas behind Jupiter at that moment, temporarily suspending gravity. Further, if one was to jump in the air when the planets aligned , he would experience the floating sensation of a gravity absent environment. Believe it or not hundreds of people later called into BBC to describe how they floated at that moment. One woman even reported that she and 11 friends had risen from their chairs and floated around the room.....I suspect alcohol may have floated those ladies too.
Happy April Fool's Day!!
Telling Time
If I asked you what time it was, how would you know? Probably one of many ways, a, clock, watch, cell phone, personal computer, auto dashboard, microwave, even a refrigerator magnet. And that's the point I will make. The time and true way of telling time, the wrist watch, seems to be leaving the scene for many theses days. Just 25 years ago a person told time by looking at a clock or his or her wrist watch. Not now.
I have never worn a watch, as I do not like or wear any jewelry, but I notice more and more people are joining the "no watch" movement, and it's because of all the gadgets that they carry that also tell time. So is this the end of the wrist watch? To paraphrase Shakespeare (Forgive me old great bard), "To wear a watch or not to wear a watch , that is the question."
The answer seems to be generation. That is, older people wear their watches because they always have, it seems natural and they are less reluctant to have the newer technology or to depend on it. Younger ones, particularly sub teens and teens, may have never worn a wrist watch and don't seem to have an interest in doing so. Why should they? They can find the time in any of the other mediums they are likely to carry.
It comes with the hardware. I have read that in Japan, there are no clocks in school rooms, because all the kids lay their cell phones on desktops, time flashing on each one. So is this the death of the wrist watch? No (I think). Wrist watches are still widely sold and still a fashion item, particularly for the person (more likely the male) who thinks an expensive one will impress others. And women are still likely to wear wrist watches as a fashion statement. Too, watches still are a common gift at Christmas, birthdays, as retirement gifts for anniversaries etc. So what do you think?
Is the watch domed to extinction or will it hold one and not be killed by the other technology that is starting to steal its thunder.
One person that needs a wristwatch or some element of time keeping is Vladimir and Zynaida Cherenenko, a Ukrainian couple that immigrated to the U.S. about 7 years ago. The need to know it is TIME to stop having babies! It seems they had their 17th child on December 7th, making them their family the largest in the U.S. "When we got married in the Ukraine, for six months we had no children and thought we wouldn't have any kids at all, " said Vladimir. "I never thought we would have such a family."
Forget the stories of huge bills, fights at the dinner table over food portions, exhausted parents etc. Those two say they may not be finished having kids. When asked if she would have another one, Zynaida shrugged and answered, "I can't say. I am grateful for all my children, my wonderful husband, my friends and my doctor' "Doctor".
Hmmmmmmm She must mean her psychiatrist. Anyone having 17 babies must be nuts! Wow! I have no text of yours to use to insult you...you'll have to use your imagination instead. Just imagine what I am thinking.
I have never worn a watch, as I do not like or wear any jewelry, but I notice more and more people are joining the "no watch" movement, and it's because of all the gadgets that they carry that also tell time. So is this the end of the wrist watch? To paraphrase Shakespeare (Forgive me old great bard), "To wear a watch or not to wear a watch , that is the question."
The answer seems to be generation. That is, older people wear their watches because they always have, it seems natural and they are less reluctant to have the newer technology or to depend on it. Younger ones, particularly sub teens and teens, may have never worn a wrist watch and don't seem to have an interest in doing so. Why should they? They can find the time in any of the other mediums they are likely to carry.
It comes with the hardware. I have read that in Japan, there are no clocks in school rooms, because all the kids lay their cell phones on desktops, time flashing on each one. So is this the death of the wrist watch? No (I think). Wrist watches are still widely sold and still a fashion item, particularly for the person (more likely the male) who thinks an expensive one will impress others. And women are still likely to wear wrist watches as a fashion statement. Too, watches still are a common gift at Christmas, birthdays, as retirement gifts for anniversaries etc. So what do you think?
Is the watch domed to extinction or will it hold one and not be killed by the other technology that is starting to steal its thunder.
One person that needs a wristwatch or some element of time keeping is Vladimir and Zynaida Cherenenko, a Ukrainian couple that immigrated to the U.S. about 7 years ago. The need to know it is TIME to stop having babies! It seems they had their 17th child on December 7th, making them their family the largest in the U.S. "When we got married in the Ukraine, for six months we had no children and thought we wouldn't have any kids at all, " said Vladimir. "I never thought we would have such a family."
Forget the stories of huge bills, fights at the dinner table over food portions, exhausted parents etc. Those two say they may not be finished having kids. When asked if she would have another one, Zynaida shrugged and answered, "I can't say. I am grateful for all my children, my wonderful husband, my friends and my doctor' "Doctor".
Hmmmmmmm She must mean her psychiatrist. Anyone having 17 babies must be nuts! Wow! I have no text of yours to use to insult you...you'll have to use your imagination instead. Just imagine what I am thinking.
Love That Spam
I got a funny spam today. Instead of describing it I have attached it for your own reading. Haha I am not buying that viagra, but I will give the creator of this spam an A+ for originality in her sales approach and for the humor of it.
Nancy Brown wrote:
You are still thinking of getting Vi-a-g-r-a for the best erection. Hurry up, your wife's lover already got them. With our Vi-a-g-r-a you can even have sex with your ex.
Click Here!
Get all the attention from gorgeous ladies! Check out Vi-a-g-r-a Be strong and passionate with Vi-a-g-r-a Your neighbors lost their alarm-clock. Don't worry, the sounds of your satisfaction from having sex with our new Soft Vi-a-g-r-a will make them wake up every morning or even have sleepless nights if you enlarge your dose.
Well, what do you think? Would the neighbors be restless if I purchased Nancy's Viagra? Haha How frustrating for some Americans is the lack of concern by the U.S. government about illegal immigration problem here? Take the case of two New Hampshire town police chiefs as an example.
The two, New Ipswich Chief Garrett Chamberlain and Hudsen, Hew hampshire Chief Richard Gendron are so upset with the Bush administration indifference toward illegal immigrants who openly enter and stay here, that they recently tried to enforce the immigration law that the federal government is charged with executing, but ignores. They arrested a group of illegals on state charges of "trespassing", after being stopped on traffic violations and they admitting they were in the U.S. illegally.
But alas! This attempt to apprehend the criminals that the federal officials have no desire to catch was thwarted by a local judge who ordered the illegal immigrants freed because the two chiefs "violated the U.S. Constitution by trying to enforce federal laws". That's right! The illegal immigrants were turned loose and remain free to this day, as federal immigration officers have declined to arrest the group and deport them as they should under U.S. immigration law. Though local law enforcement officials around the country who are besieged by the millions of illegal, mostly Mexican and central American immigrants who pour into the U.S. each year, cheered the novel way to boot out illegal aliens, apparently the judge ruling has again frustrated the hope here that someone, somewhere in our government will put an end to the invasion of illegal, largely poor and illiterate immigrants who flaunt immigration rules and cause massive social and economic problems after their arrival.
As New Ipswich Chief Chamberlain said after hearing of the judge ruling to allow the illegals to go free, "I feel, given the situation today, I did what I had to do to protect the citizens of my community. It's unfortunate that the U.S. federal government has allowed our immigration situation to get to this point."
There's another controversy in the news today that may even overshadow the gradual destruction of the U.S. by the influx of millions of illegals. Well...it's bigger news for the oldie crowd. You see, a Yokohama, Japan couple aged 104 and 103 plant to stake claim to what they feel is rightfully theirs, but what is in the hands of another couple in the U.S. It's the tittle to "World's Oldest Married Couple".
Yoichi and Kazono Gomi, married 72 years, want to claim the title over Philadelphia's Herbert and Magda Brown, 105 and 100 respectively, and currently listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's oldest. Well...207 years does top 205 years. And how did the Gomi's last so long together? Mr. Gomi said the secret of living so long while being married is simple. "You have to want ot be alive/" (most married couples seem not too..) "We enjoy spending time together". (At that age, just breathing is an enjoyment!).
But Mrs. Gomi is a contrariana nd shook her head "no"as her man reeled off the list for making it through al' those years. "You get bored just living such a long time. I don't enjoy anything any more," she said.
Hmmmmmm Looks like they are not only the oldest married couple but the one with the most disagreements too.
Nancy Brown wrote:
You are still thinking of getting Vi-a-g-r-a for the best erection. Hurry up, your wife's lover already got them. With our Vi-a-g-r-a you can even have sex with your ex.
Click Here!
Get all the attention from gorgeous ladies! Check out Vi-a-g-r-a Be strong and passionate with Vi-a-g-r-a Your neighbors lost their alarm-clock. Don't worry, the sounds of your satisfaction from having sex with our new Soft Vi-a-g-r-a will make them wake up every morning or even have sleepless nights if you enlarge your dose.
Well, what do you think? Would the neighbors be restless if I purchased Nancy's Viagra? Haha How frustrating for some Americans is the lack of concern by the U.S. government about illegal immigration problem here? Take the case of two New Hampshire town police chiefs as an example.
The two, New Ipswich Chief Garrett Chamberlain and Hudsen, Hew hampshire Chief Richard Gendron are so upset with the Bush administration indifference toward illegal immigrants who openly enter and stay here, that they recently tried to enforce the immigration law that the federal government is charged with executing, but ignores. They arrested a group of illegals on state charges of "trespassing", after being stopped on traffic violations and they admitting they were in the U.S. illegally.
But alas! This attempt to apprehend the criminals that the federal officials have no desire to catch was thwarted by a local judge who ordered the illegal immigrants freed because the two chiefs "violated the U.S. Constitution by trying to enforce federal laws". That's right! The illegal immigrants were turned loose and remain free to this day, as federal immigration officers have declined to arrest the group and deport them as they should under U.S. immigration law. Though local law enforcement officials around the country who are besieged by the millions of illegal, mostly Mexican and central American immigrants who pour into the U.S. each year, cheered the novel way to boot out illegal aliens, apparently the judge ruling has again frustrated the hope here that someone, somewhere in our government will put an end to the invasion of illegal, largely poor and illiterate immigrants who flaunt immigration rules and cause massive social and economic problems after their arrival.
As New Ipswich Chief Chamberlain said after hearing of the judge ruling to allow the illegals to go free, "I feel, given the situation today, I did what I had to do to protect the citizens of my community. It's unfortunate that the U.S. federal government has allowed our immigration situation to get to this point."
There's another controversy in the news today that may even overshadow the gradual destruction of the U.S. by the influx of millions of illegals. Well...it's bigger news for the oldie crowd. You see, a Yokohama, Japan couple aged 104 and 103 plant to stake claim to what they feel is rightfully theirs, but what is in the hands of another couple in the U.S. It's the tittle to "World's Oldest Married Couple".
Yoichi and Kazono Gomi, married 72 years, want to claim the title over Philadelphia's Herbert and Magda Brown, 105 and 100 respectively, and currently listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's oldest. Well...207 years does top 205 years. And how did the Gomi's last so long together? Mr. Gomi said the secret of living so long while being married is simple. "You have to want ot be alive/" (most married couples seem not too..) "We enjoy spending time together". (At that age, just breathing is an enjoyment!).
But Mrs. Gomi is a contrariana nd shook her head "no"as her man reeled off the list for making it through al' those years. "You get bored just living such a long time. I don't enjoy anything any more," she said.
Hmmmmmm Looks like they are not only the oldest married couple but the one with the most disagreements too.
World's Richest
I read the list of the Forbe's magazine 2005 world's 10 richest people list. It seems the rich keep expanding their number. In 2005 there were a record number of billionaires, 793 to be exact. This was up 102 from 2004. And even though nearly half of the world's billionaires are from the United States (No! I am not one of them), the billionaires can be found all over the globe. India now has 10 billionaires, second most to the U.S., and China has 8 of the 793 billionaires on the list.
By nationality, here is how the 10 ten billionaire list is dispersed. The U.S. has three of the ten, including number one on the list, Microsoft's Bill Gates (worth $50 billion dollars). Mexico, Switzerland, England, France, Saudi Arabia, Canada and China each have one of the ten spots. Having written about this I ask you a few questions? How much money do you think is "enough" for a person to control"? What do you think is the value of money? Have you ever dreamed about being super rich? Would being that wealthy change your behavior or attitude?
I have been told by a number of people in other countries that some of those Buddhist priests are a s frisky as the Catholic priest who seem to have a bent for sex with boys. In most cases the Buddhist priest have been caught with females, but the number of sex scandals involving them is rising. The latest comes from Hiroshima, Japan, where a Japanese Buddhist priest was arrested for having paid sex with a teenage girl.
Oh my...I guess that priest was giving a different kind of sacrament to that girl. Itushi Ehara, 73, is the chief priest of a prefecture in Hiroshima and the head of a nursery school there. After admitting to having paid the 15 year old girl $675 to have sex in a hotel in downtown Tokyo, Itusha said, "I could not resist my lust. A lot of stress built up from running the school." But wait! He is also believed to having paid for other girls from the same prostitute dispatch service where he met this one.
Well, it's not good to exploit a 15 year old girl that way, but I suspect that since news of this scandal broke applications for the position of Buddhist monk at that Hiroshima prefecture have become a flood.
By nationality, here is how the 10 ten billionaire list is dispersed. The U.S. has three of the ten, including number one on the list, Microsoft's Bill Gates (worth $50 billion dollars). Mexico, Switzerland, England, France, Saudi Arabia, Canada and China each have one of the ten spots. Having written about this I ask you a few questions? How much money do you think is "enough" for a person to control"? What do you think is the value of money? Have you ever dreamed about being super rich? Would being that wealthy change your behavior or attitude?
I have been told by a number of people in other countries that some of those Buddhist priests are a s frisky as the Catholic priest who seem to have a bent for sex with boys. In most cases the Buddhist priest have been caught with females, but the number of sex scandals involving them is rising. The latest comes from Hiroshima, Japan, where a Japanese Buddhist priest was arrested for having paid sex with a teenage girl.
Oh my...I guess that priest was giving a different kind of sacrament to that girl. Itushi Ehara, 73, is the chief priest of a prefecture in Hiroshima and the head of a nursery school there. After admitting to having paid the 15 year old girl $675 to have sex in a hotel in downtown Tokyo, Itusha said, "I could not resist my lust. A lot of stress built up from running the school." But wait! He is also believed to having paid for other girls from the same prostitute dispatch service where he met this one.
Well, it's not good to exploit a 15 year old girl that way, but I suspect that since news of this scandal broke applications for the position of Buddhist monk at that Hiroshima prefecture have become a flood.
We Missed The List!
The list of most fit and least fit Americans cities is out! The good news is that New Orleans is not the fattest, sloppiest city this year, according to Men's Fitness magazine...but probably only because there is virtually no New Orleans left after Hurricane Katrina. The bad news is that in the list of top 25 fittest New Orleans doesn't appear and wouldn't, even if it did exist! Ha! We will always be regarded as a bastion of fatness.
Baltimore was named the 2005 most fit city with Honolulu coming in second place. As for the fatties, Chicago, the home of greasy sausages and pizza, was number one this year. Houston, Texas, a city close to New Orleans which has stolen many of our fatty foods and restaurants, slipped from number one fatty to number two behind Chicago. Strangely, Baltimore has had a reputation for loving greasy, sugary foods. And Baltimore was only the 25th fittest in 2004.
Why the changes? It's because that poll is probably too subjective. In the case of Baltimore it has an increase in public park space, greater access to health care facilities this year, fewer fast food restaurants than other cities and the fact that Baltimore is considered a safer and more prosperous city, all have made Baltimore number one according to Men's Fitness magazine.
But wait! A rival magazine, Men's Health, has Baltimore ranked with an "F" for health and w quality of life an 93rd for "100 Best Cities for Men". Having said that, as a representative New Orleanian, I am outraged that we are not on the fatty list! And we should be re-instated as number one fatty (they knocked us from our Number One Fatty title in 03) , even though we have few people left after the storm.
It should be obvious we are the true fatty. Just put New Orleans into a search engine and you will see. What comes up is usually food, drinking and other excesses. The list will have restaurants, drinking holes, and neighborhood food finds prominently displayed. There isn't much of that in Baltimore. Sigh..first the Hurricane took our property, now Men's Fitness has taken our fat reputation! I should go eat a donut to lament this disgrace.
From the "They All Must Be Nuts" Department comes word that some people are now implanting computer chips into their warms..........so they don't have to remember their computer passwords.
That's right! Tiny radio frequency computer chips (RFID) have been surgically implanted into their hands. the chips are activated when they come in contact of a reader, which scans the data on the chips. RFID chips are very small, about the size of a grain of rice, and can last up to 100 years. Even a tattoo artist or a vegetarian can insert them into the hand, and the reader devices that work with them cost only about $50 apiece. But is that really necessary?
Is it the first step to control of humans by implanting computer chips? Would you have a RFD implanted? Not I!
Baltimore was named the 2005 most fit city with Honolulu coming in second place. As for the fatties, Chicago, the home of greasy sausages and pizza, was number one this year. Houston, Texas, a city close to New Orleans which has stolen many of our fatty foods and restaurants, slipped from number one fatty to number two behind Chicago. Strangely, Baltimore has had a reputation for loving greasy, sugary foods. And Baltimore was only the 25th fittest in 2004.
Why the changes? It's because that poll is probably too subjective. In the case of Baltimore it has an increase in public park space, greater access to health care facilities this year, fewer fast food restaurants than other cities and the fact that Baltimore is considered a safer and more prosperous city, all have made Baltimore number one according to Men's Fitness magazine.
But wait! A rival magazine, Men's Health, has Baltimore ranked with an "F" for health and w quality of life an 93rd for "100 Best Cities for Men". Having said that, as a representative New Orleanian, I am outraged that we are not on the fatty list! And we should be re-instated as number one fatty (they knocked us from our Number One Fatty title in 03) , even though we have few people left after the storm.
It should be obvious we are the true fatty. Just put New Orleans into a search engine and you will see. What comes up is usually food, drinking and other excesses. The list will have restaurants, drinking holes, and neighborhood food finds prominently displayed. There isn't much of that in Baltimore. Sigh..first the Hurricane took our property, now Men's Fitness has taken our fat reputation! I should go eat a donut to lament this disgrace.
From the "They All Must Be Nuts" Department comes word that some people are now implanting computer chips into their warms..........so they don't have to remember their computer passwords.
That's right! Tiny radio frequency computer chips (RFID) have been surgically implanted into their hands. the chips are activated when they come in contact of a reader, which scans the data on the chips. RFID chips are very small, about the size of a grain of rice, and can last up to 100 years. Even a tattoo artist or a vegetarian can insert them into the hand, and the reader devices that work with them cost only about $50 apiece. But is that really necessary?
Is it the first step to control of humans by implanting computer chips? Would you have a RFD implanted? Not I!
Walled Treasures
Even though it's been seven months since hurricane Katrina many homes still have not even been entered, much less gutted of their interior. But one resident who finally had her home cleaned out got quite a surprise. As a student volunteer from Georgia named Trista Wright was tearing out walls that were inundated with 10 feet of water last summer, she found something familiar..a picture of Ben Franklin , withered and moldy..but ..yes...the same picture found on U.S. currency. Trista then found more and more of the money as she tore into the wall, $30,000 worth in the end!
The money was turned over to police who eventually gave it to the happy homeowner for her to exchange with he U.S. Federal Reserve Banks (They print and issue U.S. money) for more updated money in better condition. The owner says she suspects the money was put into the wall during the great depression of the 30's by her father, who was wary of keeping his money in banks. It's a treasure the lady will need, as her home was flooded above the gutters and completely devastated by the rushing waters. No, home or contents left, and still waiting for her insurance settlement, the walled treasure will help her either demolish the home or continue to repair damages.
It's also a nice story that the student volunteer (there are many college students here, those who have given up spring break vacations to help gut or repair the endless numbers of destroyed housing in New Orleans) found the money and also immediately turned it over to authorities so it could be given to the owner. Unfortunately , the good stories like that one are rare here. Most of the time my morning newspaper is filled with abominations.
For example, on the same day that treasure was found U.S. immigration agents (finally) made an arrest of some of the thousands of illegal Hispanic (mostly Mexican) immigrants who have flooded the city after the storm (seeking work or to commit crimes), Immigration is notorious for pretending illegal immigrants don't exist, for sitting and watching as they flood into the U.S.
But this incident sparked a response because residents of the city complained about crimes in the area where they have been loitering. Forty illegals in that group were arrested and twelve had extensive criminal records, including violent and gang activity.
In keeping with the stupidity of U.S. Immigration the other 28 illegals were set free and are back on the streets today. The twelve criminals will have a deportation hearing next week. One of the released, who spoke English, was interviewed by local TV and remarked that "I don't care if they arrest me or even deport me. They will pay my ticket home and I will be back tomorrow." He laughed at the U.S. immigration policy, but most of New Orleans feel like crying.
It is estimated that fully 20% of the resident s of New Orleans today are illegal Hispanic immigrants. Most have little education, many are here setting up gangs or selling drugs, some commit crimes and even rob the few possessions still in houses that are ruined and open to anyone who walked into the windowless or door less structures. Even in my suburb I see hordes of Hispanics hanging around the area in groups where contractors in pickup trucks cruise, flashing a certain number of fingers out the windows to employ that number ion the spot.
As easily as building contractors find those workers, U.S. Immigration agents don't seem to notice. The "storm" of illegal immigrants here is often as intense as Hurricane Katrina itself. The latest outsourcing product, in which a good from America is sent abroad and then returned in an upgraded form. may surprise you.
Get ready for this...I am not kidding....it's sperm. That's right, they are now outsourcing sperm. In a program established by a Richmond, Virgina firm, a potential father's sperm is shipped to a lab in Bucharest Romania, to fertilize eggs of the local residents there. The result is an embryo that is frozen and returned to the United States for implanting into the mother, at about half the domestic price.
No, I am not going to make a cynical remark here....but I wouldn't mind it terribly if I were outsourced to meet some of those cute Romanian ladies...
The money was turned over to police who eventually gave it to the happy homeowner for her to exchange with he U.S. Federal Reserve Banks (They print and issue U.S. money) for more updated money in better condition. The owner says she suspects the money was put into the wall during the great depression of the 30's by her father, who was wary of keeping his money in banks. It's a treasure the lady will need, as her home was flooded above the gutters and completely devastated by the rushing waters. No, home or contents left, and still waiting for her insurance settlement, the walled treasure will help her either demolish the home or continue to repair damages.
It's also a nice story that the student volunteer (there are many college students here, those who have given up spring break vacations to help gut or repair the endless numbers of destroyed housing in New Orleans) found the money and also immediately turned it over to authorities so it could be given to the owner. Unfortunately , the good stories like that one are rare here. Most of the time my morning newspaper is filled with abominations.
For example, on the same day that treasure was found U.S. immigration agents (finally) made an arrest of some of the thousands of illegal Hispanic (mostly Mexican) immigrants who have flooded the city after the storm (seeking work or to commit crimes), Immigration is notorious for pretending illegal immigrants don't exist, for sitting and watching as they flood into the U.S.
But this incident sparked a response because residents of the city complained about crimes in the area where they have been loitering. Forty illegals in that group were arrested and twelve had extensive criminal records, including violent and gang activity.
In keeping with the stupidity of U.S. Immigration the other 28 illegals were set free and are back on the streets today. The twelve criminals will have a deportation hearing next week. One of the released, who spoke English, was interviewed by local TV and remarked that "I don't care if they arrest me or even deport me. They will pay my ticket home and I will be back tomorrow." He laughed at the U.S. immigration policy, but most of New Orleans feel like crying.
It is estimated that fully 20% of the resident s of New Orleans today are illegal Hispanic immigrants. Most have little education, many are here setting up gangs or selling drugs, some commit crimes and even rob the few possessions still in houses that are ruined and open to anyone who walked into the windowless or door less structures. Even in my suburb I see hordes of Hispanics hanging around the area in groups where contractors in pickup trucks cruise, flashing a certain number of fingers out the windows to employ that number ion the spot.
As easily as building contractors find those workers, U.S. Immigration agents don't seem to notice. The "storm" of illegal immigrants here is often as intense as Hurricane Katrina itself. The latest outsourcing product, in which a good from America is sent abroad and then returned in an upgraded form. may surprise you.
Get ready for this...I am not kidding....it's sperm. That's right, they are now outsourcing sperm. In a program established by a Richmond, Virgina firm, a potential father's sperm is shipped to a lab in Bucharest Romania, to fertilize eggs of the local residents there. The result is an embryo that is frozen and returned to the United States for implanting into the mother, at about half the domestic price.
No, I am not going to make a cynical remark here....but I wouldn't mind it terribly if I were outsourced to meet some of those cute Romanian ladies...
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