Hey folks -

First of all, check this out:

You’re welcome.

Now, I don’t know if it’s getting older, or having a kid, or general sissification, or what, but I can’t take sad like I used to.  Last night, I watched most of “3 Days in September.”  It was a documentary (narrated by Julia Roberts, who sure does look just like a gelfling)  about the Beslan School Massacre.  Couple that with flipping back and forth between this and the Sox losing their second straight at the Devil Rays (EFF YOU, new name), and I was a sobbing, blubbery mess.
Seriously, though, the cruelty that was inflicted on these people in Beslan - mainly Children, and one man who lost his wife, daughter, sister, and neices, and I was gone baby gone. It hurt me in the heart.  And the tear ducts, apparently.  I used to be able to not get too upset by anything.  Something broke in me around the time I saw United 93.  I think I had been expecting a macho “let’s Roll” retelling of “Fallen American Heroes,” and was jaded and ready to roll my eyes walking in.  Instead, it was a gripping and absolutely terrifying reenactment, and it was impossible to shut off the emotion.  Now, I can’t do it.

Maybe the sox need to start winning again.  That should help.

Ah, poor George Carlin.  While recent years had him out of sorts and out of funny, he sure did a lot to shape my sense of humor in my formative years.   I remember being a late preteen/early teen and “graduating” from Bill Cosby’s “I Started Out as a Child” to George Carlin’s particular brands of blasphemy, and wow did it open my eyes.  He wasn’t so relevant any more, but comedy and free speech owe him many debts.

In unrelated news, John McCain proposed a $300 Million prize for an American who develops a better auto battery.  In addition, he is proposing incentives for more domestic alcohol-based fuels such as ethanol.

While I am all in favor of a government financial incentive to promote inventiveness - especially when it comes to reducing hyrdocarbon consumption, there are a number of questions here.  First - is this funding that would go to an automaker if the company develops the battery?  If so, does the automaker retain the patent to the battery, making sales and manufacturing profit-driven?  Personally, I think for $300 Million, the government would do well to purchase the patent and handle manufacturing without the need for profitability.  Would the battery developed be mandated by government and available to all automakers?  Or will it be limited to exclusively the developer - therefore substantially reducing its effectiveness?

Also, the ethanol thing.  There’s still this world food crisis going on, and grain prices are a major if not the main culprit.  I fail to see how increasing ethanol is going to help anything.
The era of government deregulation of business has led to the problems we are currently facing, and substantial reregulation of major infrastructure businesses - including nationalization, if necessary - is the only way I see out of this mess.  ExxonMobil is not and will never be looking out for the nation or its citizens.  It will only be looking out for the wallets of its shareholders.  Until this is corrected, until accountability to a greater authority than the dollar is established for these industrial behemoths, the climate, energy, food, and security crises will not be solved.

Gah.  Frustrating.

Morning, Conquistadors of the Internet!

I guest blogged over at Funky Carter this morning.  There are a slew of us who graduated from High School in Manchester, NH 15 years ago this week, and we are reminiscing a bit over there.  It’s hard to believe that I’ve been out of school longer than I was in it, but there it is.

Lots of internet rumors abound regarding Chuck Hagel as Obama’s VP pick.  I sure hope they’re not true.  Hagel is right about the war, but wrong about *everything* else, I think.  Oh well.  We shall see what we shall see.

I’m kind of feeling like I want to theme this blog a bit, but I’m unsure where to go with it.  Hence the sporadic posting.  No, I am not going to be a blogpologist, and I promise to be regular.  I’m just not sure about what.

Hey kids,

Sorry, again, for the disappearing act.  There has been so much stuff happening in my life, it’s difficult to find time/energy to blog.

That said, I hope you are having good early summer.  The offspring officially finished kindergarten last week, and on the same day she lost her first tooth.  She was at the other house when the lost the tooth, so I did not get to see it.   We had the Tooth Fairy come Sunday night, and Emma was distraught that she didn’t have the tooth, so I told her to just write a note.  it read “Dear Tooth Fairy,  I do not have my tooth.  I left it in a bag.  Love, Emma.”

She also wrote me a note while I was here at work yesterday that said “Dear Daddy,  I love you.  I am glad you got to see the hole in my mouth.  Love Emma.”

I sure do have a swell kid.

Hi Folks -
Well, I’m making one last push for donors, and reminding you that anyone who donates to the American Cancer Society Relay for Life by clicking the link over on the right side will be entered in to win a great piece of art from Stiletto Heights!

I really appreciate all the donations I have already received, and any amount at all you can give will really go a long way.

Thanks!

Hey kids,
Sorry for the delay in posting.  I’ve had some personal stuff happening, and I’ve get me a bit of a sinus infection that has resulted in early nights.

That said, we did something amazing as a nation last night:  we nominated a black man to be a major party’s nominee for President of the United States.  This has been and will be touted all over the world ad infinitum, but I wanted to add my voice to the chorus.

While I am angry at what our nation has become, and am angry at our government for many of the things it does, and am angry at our populace for its penchant for homogenization, there are times I think I might be wrong.  Today is one of those times.

It’s a good day.

Hey Hey Hey, it’s Fat Beej!

Happy Friday, friends.  First off, just wanted to let you know that I am the guest blogger over at Funky Carter today. For some reason, Aaron entrusted me with Admin status over there in his absence, and I’m happier than a Hannah Montana in the nude.

Got the rose bush planted last night.  It might not look like much now, but it’s drinking milk (well, compost and bone meal, but whatevs).  I’ll try and get some pics up this weekend.

As a lot of you know, my daughter Emma is unable to speak due to a massive tumor she had as an infant.  She hears and understands everything, but is mechanically unable to vocalize.  This has required an interpreter for her to have most conversations, unless the person with whom she is conversing is fluent in signed english. Well, that’s about to be a thing of the past.

Emma received last night an adaptive communication device.  This thing is super-cool.  It is basically a small touchscreen that will allow her to speak a la Stephen Hawking (albeit with a more gender and age appropriate synthesized voice).  Seeing her with this thing for just two minutes, I could tell it was going to be life-changing.  She was able to “speak” without an interpreter.  I got a little teary.  Don’t worry, though.  I’m still tough.

I hope you all have good long weekends.  Memorialize some cheeseburgers, ok?

Morning, Crystal Skulls.

I moved into the apartment in which I currently reside about a year ago.  The previous tenants did nothing but destroy the interior, which I have done substantial work on to make it livable.  Ace can attest to the befores and the afters.  Also, the landlord really did not much of anything to upkeep the property - landscaping and the like.

After living through the  summer last year and realizing that there really was never going to be anyone coming to mow the lawn or trim the hedges or the like, I made a deal with the landlord:  if he would pay for materials, I would do the labor to do some improvements to the landscaping.
Now, I am no professional, by any stretch of the imagination.  I’m not even a competent amateur - but I am invested in improving the place in which I live.  I’ve in the past few weeks removed at least 10 bags of yard waste from the yard, and probably have another 10 to go.  I’ve got a container garden going, with tomatoes, strawberries, peppers, and zucchini along with some window box flowers.  I’ve got about 10 bags of mulch to spread, and I’ve got a small decorative fence I’ve put in the front yard.

First, though, Emma and I are planting a rose bush tonight. She is excited but scared of all the thorns.  I am scared of digging the hole and giving my fat meatless self a heart attack. Still - I love doing these things with her.  She really, really enjoys the act of planting something and watching it transform.  I really, really enjoy watching her enjoy it.

By the middle of summer, I’ll have lots of fresh foods and hopefully a nicer lawn.  We’ll see!

Hey all -

So remember last week when I begged you for money?  Well, I promised that a random contributor from the blog would win a piece of artwork from Jenn at Stiletto Heights. Well, the piece has been selected and it’s a beauty:

Isn’t that a beauty?  It’s titled “When Memories Begin to Darken with Age.” It measures 5″x5″ and is on stretched canvas. All you need to do is click the link at the top of the right sidebar, right over there, and you could be on your way to owning it.  Regardless, you should buy some of Jenn’s art, it’s great.

I’ve been a big fat stressball this week, but hopefully things will soon be quieting down.   The offspring has not been feeling perfect, but I think she is doing better.  I am *seriously* looking forward to some quality time with Mr. Indiana Jones in the next few days.  If anyone gives me any spoilers, I’ll cry.

Howdy all.

Stephen Colbert was right:  Bears are the greatest threat to our Nation’s (and specifically my) security.  At least, that is what you would have thought had you seen me running and screaming Saturday night.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Flash Backward - it’s Saturday morning, and K and I are headed to Lunenberg.  It’s somewhere out past Hicksville and Country Bumpkin Lane.  K’s got some time slotted in the studio run by one of her bandmates, and right after we are to have a BBQ.   I spent the afternoon with a friend of K’s being furiously swarmed by ticks (well, one tick in particular.  I’m pretty sure I am now dying of lyme disease.  Woe is me.) but otherwise having a dandy time. At the appointed hour we took our many foodstuffs and beerstuffs and headed to the BBQ.

Dinner and drinking was had, as well as some listening to the great stuff laid down by the band.  After dinner, sated by pounds of food and booze, we were sitting in the backyard, not 12 feet from the treeline.

Crack.

Rustle.

Sounds of threatening movement - as K said “The kind of noise you hear when you’re camping and say to yourself over and over again “it’s ok it’s ok it’s ok” - emanate from the woods.  “It’s a bear,” I joke, being pretty sure it was a squirrel or a dog.

The studio/homeowner grabs a flashlight to investigate - only to find it has nearly dead batteries.  Now, anyone who has ever seen a single movie will know that dead batteries = people about to be eaten by a bear.   From my seat in the corner, I spot the beast - it appears to be a black seated shadow silhouetted against a nearly black tree.  “It’s dog-shaped” I say, and the anemic yellow beam of the dying flashlight did nothing to confirm or deny my statement.

Four of us stalk along the house-edge of the backyard, trying to catch a glimpse of the creature.    I was in the rear of the line, when from the head of the line I hear someone say “It’s a bear!”  One glimpse to the woods and I, too, saw it.

I’m certain you have seen the looney toons cartoons where a character - struck terrified by some cruel hoax played on them - spins its legs to unreadable blurs, and runs off so fast it crashes through the wall leaving a perfect impression of itself.  That was me - sparing the wall-hole only by virtue of the fact that the door was already open.  I screamed and ran faster than my fatman legs have ever ran before.

The shame only set in when I turned around in terror and saw K still outside, waiting to get in.

Still, after realizing that the bear had not eaten anyone, nor made any attempt to do so, we went back outside to observe.  It was pretty amazing.  The thing was huge - a full-grown black bear, who just looked at us.  It licked its lips in a  gesture I chose to believe was not due to its envisioning eating me, and its tongue was enormous.  After a time, the bear just lumbered away into the woods, but it had been around for about 20 minutes.

It’s a pretty rare thing to see bears, and when you to, it’s extremely rare to see them for an extended period of time.  The other couple of times I had seen them in the woods were for just seconds as the bears ran away.  It was something special, this.