Sunday, November 30, 2008

the new yorker



ok, so......this is to be the next new yorker cover, according to those who know such things......i am amused......having spent the past several days going through my stacks of new yorkers, and cutting out articles and cartoons i cannot live without....i tried to focus on pre-2008.....and so it was a bit nostalgic to read 1-3 year old movie reviews.....and commentary prior to obama's nomination let alone election.....i have pared down our print media collection to the point that all books in public spaces are on shelves and all magazines are in bins.....this house lacks the shelf-space to adequately handle the volumes on site......but then, that is what i like so much about my family......

ok so this from the nytimes....A report from our Berlin correspondent on design and society.

Masks fascinate me, as does the woolly territory between fashion and art. So my favorite artist at the recent Berlin Preview art fair was 23 year-old Frenchman Stephan Goldrajch, who showed a series of crocheted balaclavas at the stand of the Tel Aviv gallery Dollinger Art Project.

The macabre, carnavalesque spirit of the Belgian expressionist painter James Ensor seems to have rubbed off on Goldrajch, possibly during his studies at the Brussels Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts. As in Ensor’s paintings, there’s something compellingly primitive and schizophrenic in the young artist’s clusters of grotesquely-stylized faces.

The 23 year-old artist Stephan Goldrajch uses crochet and beadwork to build his demonic, colorful masks.

Stretched over polystyrene display heads, the masks resemble wearable items of clothing; slightly too-funky winter hats or out-of-control balaclava ski masks, perhaps. You probably wouldn’t want to wear these on the street for fear of terrifying fellow citizens, but their potential to be clothes is part of the masks’ appeal. Unlike most clothes, which work around your existing face, these balaclavas propose a new one — plus a new, scary personality to go with it.

Goldrajch is inspired by fairy tales, and has even written a few of his own, including the Legend of Bryone, “the most beloved princess of all times,” who gets her throat slit by the king merely for investigating a “Magnificent World” in a forest beyond the castle walls. (I love the deranged Bryone Song which explains the legend in the style of a French Klaus Nomi.)

Don a mask to discover your inner “eudemonist”: a being dedicated to procuring happiness in himself and others.

The artist has also started a Bryone Community which currently has about sixty members in Portugal, Israel, Belgium and France. The group shares a “eudemonist” view of the world, distributes “heads of happiness” (simple putty masks bearing lucky inscriptions), and makes masked performances.

So what is eudemonism? In the words of confessed opium-eater Thomas de Quincey, “I am too much of a eudæmonist; I hanker too much after a state of happiness both for myself and others.”

Thursday, November 27, 2008

new people

ok, so....on the ride back from tennessee, my mother started talking about people i had never heard of before...of 2 men that my grandfather met while working for the w.p.a in the depression.....2 men that he worked with as a railroad crewline group that re-arranged track from cleveland to toledo and back......who knew?......

thanksgiving .....

ok, so.....i am thankful for the simple things this year.....$1.99 goat cheese at the aldi's, for the new puppy, for the replacement roof, for the notion to invest in drip hoses for my rose beds, for the opportunity to run the show as interim, for the courage to transfer our daughter to the cross-town school, for the upcoming/last tuition payment that will mark 2 sons through college debt-free, for the seafoam green cashmere sweater set i found at goodwill for $5.00, that i have no credit card debt to worry over in tough economic times, for the webcam that allows us to talk to our boy in austria in realtime, for the landslide election of barack obama- and while this is no small thing, my vote was counted in the losing column in this red state, for facebook wordtwist, which has allowed me to get to know extended family as far away as new zealand and be amused at the same time...last but not least i am thankful for my sweet spouse, and my dear sons and daughter......this is our first son-less thanksgiving, but we chatted with the new jersey-based child last evening, and have scheduled a webcam chat with the austria-based child at 9 (our time), which is some consolation. here is hoping that you and yours enjoy a day of thankful reflection as well as good food.....

spinach artichoke casserole

ok, so....over these past 27 years that i have spent with my extended family of in-laws at thanksgiving, i have managed to morph their original creamed spinach recipe into one a little less slimy:

3 packages (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed/squeezed
1 onion, chopped
1 stick butter at room temperature
2 (6 oz) jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained
1 cup Parmesan cheese
8 ounce package cream cheese at room temperature

Satue onion in 2 tbsp butter until soft. Arrange at the bottom of a casserole dish (i use the clay rabbit dish with fitted lid) Chop artichoke hearts coarsely and arrange on top of onions. Spread thawed and squeezed spinach on top of artichokes- the more squeezed the better, as the casserole can get soupy if the spinach is too wet. Combine butter, Parmesan and cream cheese ; spread over spinach. Dish may be covered and chilled overnight at this point. About 45 minutes before the meal, remove from the refrigerator; allow to warm to room temperature for 15 minutes, then bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

pecan tarts

ok, so.....i made these confections today...after the severe cold and cough drugs had kicked in....because i was home, rested, and bored.....

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsbp softened butter
1 tbsp vanilla
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1 egg
2 refrigerated pie crusts

Bring pie crusts to room temperature. Beat egg, and add remaining ingredients. Cut pie crust into rounds with biscuit cutter; rerolling crust as needed. Place crusts into miniature tart pan; press crust into place with spoon or round-bottomed wooden tool. Spoon filling into each shell 2/3 full. Bake 20 minutes at 325 degrees or until crust is browned. Makes 36 tarts.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

thera-flu

ok, so....a nice hot cup of thera-flu when one comes home from work miserable guarantees a 3 hour nap.....

Monday, November 24, 2008

three-day workweek...

ok, so.....a short workweek.....today will be like monday and wednesday rolled into one....

Sunday, November 23, 2008



ok, so this cartoon was on wonkette.....with a label about palin and the dinosaurs being on the planet at the same time.....

Saturday, November 22, 2008

new recipe

ok so, this is from the huffington post piece about recipes you will make this year for thanksgiving that you did not make last year...

Salt-and-Pepper Cheese Puffs (Gougeres)

1/2 C. Butter cut into chunks
1 1/2 C. All purpose flour
6 Large eggs, beaten to blend
1 1/4 C. Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (Aged white English, Irish, or Canadian recommended)
1 1/2 t. Fresh ground pepper
Course sea salt (Pretty, crunchy crystals such as imported Fleur de Sel)

1) In 3-4 qt. pan over high heat, bring 1 1/2 cups water and butter to full rolling boil. Remove from heat, add flour all at once and stir until mixture is a smooth thick paste--no lumps. Add quarter of the beaten eggs at a time stirring vigorously after each addition until dough is no longer slippery. Stir in cheese and pepper.

2) Spoon dough into large pastry bag fitted with plain 1/2" round tip. Pipe in 48 equal rounds on to 2 cooking parchment-lined or buttered 12"X15" baking sheets (or drop dough in rounded T. sized portions). Sprinkle each with a few grains of sea salt.

3) Bake in 400 degree oven until dry and well browned, about 30 minutes. Serve warm.

(Can be frozen: Reheat thawed puffs uncovered at 375 degrees until crisp and hot, about 5 minutes.)

brazil nut sticks

ok, so....i found whole brazil nuts in the freezer when i was searching for something to fix for supper....and so during the ohio state/michigan game i cracked enough nuts to make the following family favorite:

2 eggs
1 cup ground brazil nuts
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups brown sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Beat eggs with sugar until light. Combine dry ingredients, and beat in egg/sugar mixture. Chill dough. Take small pieces of dough and roll into sticks about 2-3 inches long and 1/2 inch thick. Place on ungreased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart- these cookies spread! Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Roll in confectioners sugar.

Friday, November 21, 2008

HHS rule to bite dust.....

ok, so this from crooks and liars..

Medicine should be religion free in America. Have you ever wondered why they don't ever target legislation that puts restrictions on men?

From a press release:

In light of reports that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is preparing to enact a rule that would undermine critical health care services for women and families, Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) and Patty Murray (D-WA) today introduced legislation that would prevent the HHS rule from going into effect. The proposed HHS rule would require any health care entity that receives federal financing to certify in writing that none of its employees are required to assist in any way with medical services they find objectionable. The proposed bill would keep HHS from moving forward with this rule.

"In the final days of his administration, the President is again putting ideology first and attempting to roll back health care protections for women and families. The fact that the EEOC was never consulted in the drafting of this rule further illustrates that this is purely a political ploy. This HHS rule will threaten patients' rights, stand in the way of health care professionals, and restrict access to critical health care services for those who need them most.

The House is also introducing legislation to fight this too.

under the weather

ok, so....in the past 48 hours i have somehow come down with a stuffy head, drippy nose and sore throat.....and i really, really want to go back to bed but i have things that must be done today.....and most of the folks i work with feel just as bad so i must drag myself to work to set the example for carrying on.....ah well.....

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

tech issues

ok, so.....we had the pc worked on ...it is faster....but the keyboard only types letters intermittently.......

Monday, November 17, 2008

french mass of remembrance

ok, so this from NPR weekend edition..about st eustache in paris.....all about the sausage makers.....

Sunday, November 16, 2008

thought for the day....

ok, so

Kurt Vonnegut

"Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before... He is full of murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by their ignorance the hard way."

Saturday, November 15, 2008



ok, so...

the last word from dick cavett

ok, so this from the nytimes.....

November 14, 2008, 10:00 pm
The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla
By Dick Cavett

Electronic devices dislike me. There is never a day when something isn’t ailing. Three out of these five implements — answering machine, fax machine, printer, phone and electric can-opener — all dropped dead on me in the past few days.

Now something has gone wrong with all three television sets. They will only get Sarah Palin.

I can play a kind of Alaskan roulette. Any random channel clicked on by the remote brings up that eager face, with its continuing assaults on the English Lang.

There she is with Larry and Matt and just about everyone else but Dr. Phil (so far). If she is not yet on “Judge Judy,” I suspect it can’t be for lack of trying.

What have we done to deserve this, this media blitz that the astute Andrea Mitchell has labeled “The Victory Tour”?

I suppose it will be recorded as among political history’s ironies that Palin was brought in to help John McCain. I can’t blame feminists who might draw amusement from the fact that a woman managed to both cripple the male she was supposed to help while gleaning an almost Elvis-sized following for herself. Mac loses, Sarah wins big-time was the gist of headlines.

I feel a little sorry for John. He aimed low and missed.

What will ambitious politicos learn from this? That frayed syntax, bungled grammar and run-on sentences that ramble on long after thought has given out completely are a candidate’s valuable traits?

And how much more of all that lies in our future if God points her to those open-a-crack doors she refers to? The ones she resolves to splinter and bulldoze her way through upon glimpsing the opportunities, revealed from on high.

What on earth are our underpaid teachers, laboring in the vineyards of education, supposed to tell students about the following sentence, committed by the syntax-serial-killer from Wasilla High and gleaned by my colleague Maureen Dowd for preservation for those who ask, “How was it she talked?”

My concern has been the atrocities there in Darfur and the relevance to me with that issue as we spoke about Africa and some of the countries there that were kind of the people succumbing to the dictators and the corruption of some collapsed governments on the continent, the relevance was Alaska’s investment in Darfur with some of our permanent fund dollars.

And, she concluded, “never, ever did I talk about, well, gee, is it a country or a continent, I just don’t know about this issue.”

It’s admittedly a rare gift to produce a paragraph in which whole clumps of words could be removed without noticeably affecting the sense, if any.

(A cynic might wonder if Wasilla High School’s English and geography departments are draped in black.)

(How many contradictory and lying answers about The Empress’s New Clothes have you collected? I’ve got, so far, only four. Your additional ones welcome.)

Matt Lauer asked her about her daughter’s pregnancy and what went into the decision about how to handle it. Her “answer” did not contain the words “daughter,” “pregnancy,” “what to do about it” or, in fact, any two consecutive words related to Lauer’s query.

I saw this as a brief clip, so I don’t know whether Lauer recovered sufficiently to follow up, or could only sit there, covered in disbelief. If it happens again, Matt, I bequeath you what I heard myself say once to an elusive guest who stiffed me that way: “Were you able to hear any part of my question?”

At the risk of offending, well, you, for example, I worry about just what it is her hollering fans see in her that makes her the ideal choice to deal with the world’s problems: collapsed economies, global warming, hostile enemies and our current and far-flung twin battlefronts, either of which may prove to be the world’s second “30 Years’ War.”

Has there been a poll to see if the Sarah-ites are numbered among that baffling 26 percent of our population who, despite everything, still maintain that President George has done a heckuva job?

A woman in one of Palin’s crowds praised her for being “a mom like me … who thinks the way I do” and added, for ill measure, “That’s what I want in the White House.” Fine, but in what capacity?

Do this lady’s like-minded folk wonder how, say, Jefferson, Lincoln, the Roosevelts, et al (add your own favorites) managed so well without being soccer moms? Without being whizzes in the kitchen, whipping up moose soufflés? Without executing and wounding wolves from the air and without promoting that sad, threadbare hoax — sexual abstinence — as the answer to the sizzling loins of the young?

(In passing, has anyone observed that hunting animals with high-powered guns could only be defined as sport if both sides were equally armed?)

I’d love to hear what you think has caused such an alarming number of our fellow Americans to fall into the Sarah Swoon.

Could the willingness to crown one who seems to have no first language have anything to do with the oft-lamented fact that we seem to be alone among nations in having made the word “intellectual” an insult? (And yet…and yet…we did elect Obama. Surely not despite his brains.)

Sorry about all of the foregoing, as if you didn’t get enough of the lady every day in every medium but smoke signals.

I do not wish her ill. But I also don’t wish us ill. I hope she continues to find happiness in Alaska.

May I confess that upon first seeing her, I liked her looks? With the sound off, she presents a not uncomely frontal appearance.

But now, as the Brits say, “I’ll be glad to see the back of her.”

**********

PS: Lagniappe for English mavens: A friend of mine has made you laugh greatly over the years. David Lloyd is a comic genius (I can hear you wince, David) who wrote for “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “Cheers,” “Taxi,” “Frasier,” Jack Paar, Johnny Carson and me, not necessarily in that order. As a language fan, he has preserved many gems for posterity in his prodigious memory bank. Here comes my favorite:

A Navy lecturer was talking about some directives on the blackboard that he said to do something about, “except for these here ones with the asteroids in back of.”

Even David couldn’t make that up.

Friday, November 14, 2008

broadside of a barn.....

ok, so...for the first time in the 26 years we have lived in kentucky, we were offered uk tickets...for the season home opener against vmi......lots of drama getting to the vicinity of rupp arena after both of us finished work, manged traffic, rain, and parking issues....and security and finding people in our seats.....we sat down within moments of the tip-off....and i ma here to tell you that i was reminded of the quiddich world cup scene as harry walks into the stadium....major mayhem.....fireworks, strobe lights......seating to the rafters.....and then vmi started hitting un-answered 3-point shots....and for most of the evening vmi was up by 20+ points......there was a brief rush...when uk managed to even the score at 95/95....or maybe it was 97/97.....clearly, neither team had a notion of how to run defense....final score was 108-101...maybe....both teams scored over 100 points and still uk could not manage a win.....they could not dribble, they could not hit the 3-point shot..these highly recruited full scholarship student athletes could not hit the broad-side of a barn...as my daddy used to say.......and yet they scored 100 points.....go figure.......

withdrawal

ok, so......facebook's wordtwist game is not functioning this morning, and it was not functioning last night......and i am unclear if i can get through the work day without my daily dose of this addicting word game.....

Thursday, November 13, 2008

rainy day.....

ok, so.....i really, really want to curl up under the covers with a book, and to skip work and class today......but i really, really have things that must be done today, so i must put that delicious notion out of my head.....

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

11/11

ok, so......i have been spending the past 5 veteran's day with my mom.....we shop a bit, eat at red lobster, and visit my dad's final resting place at camp nelson national cemetary......i scaled back our shopping stops yesterday, because the christmas gifts i seek are specialized to the point that i must find them on-line......and because i hoped to get back home in time to enjoy the rest of my day off cozily on the couch watching one of the agatha christie's miss marples i borrowed from the library......rainy days-off are meant to be enjoyed under an afghan, aren't they? there are few safe conversation topics available when i spend lengths of time with my mother....she single thread related to the election was meant with a rant about how sarah palin was overly scrutinized over those clothes that aren't even hers........and so i stuck to updates on obscure relations.....which is also frustrating, because she will remember only parts of the details...like so-and-so's son did go to college but she cannot remember where......the good news that she was able to recall was my aunt lola, who is feeling so much better after her knee replacements that she was up in trees picking apples at the family orchard during the season....my mother scoffed at the notion of lola climbing trees, but i took it as a good sign that she has not given up.....ah well.....as it is 11/12....and i do not have the luxury of spending this day under an afghan....must get dressed and get on to work...

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

just lovely



ok, so this from jezebel...A 2,000 year old gold earring was just found beneath a parking lot near Jerusalem's Old City. And it's nice: "A large pearl inlaid in gold with two drop pieces, each with an emerald and pearl set in gold," which would obviously have belonged to someone of status. Because Jerusalem was sacked so many times, and most precious metals were melted down or sold, such intact finds are rare — especially Roman ones. The piece is valuable not merely for its beauty but because it "brings attention to the life of women in antiquity."

from the urban dictionary

ok, so this was in today's daily kos.....

Palin

1. An applicant lacking even basic job skills

2. Someone supremely un-self-aware or lacking any relative sense of what he/she does or doesn't know.

HR sent me another Palin for the marketing manager job.

Palin v.

1. to abandon one's principles for short term gain

Tom, a devout vegan, palined when he consumed a happy meal solely to obtain the collectible toy it contained.

Palin n.

1. Pejorative term that refers to an incompetent, impractical, irrelevant or incapable person who has been appointed to a position of great importance.

2. A person who holds authority disproportionate to his or her requisite ethics and qualifications. Derived from John McCain's controversial 2008 Vice Presidential pick, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

John was recently made principal, but everybody thinks he's a Palin who can't do the job.

My new boss is such a Palin - he took my deserved place because the CEO is
his personal friend.

Sunday, November 09, 2008

hangover


ok, so this from the huffington post...

Saturday, November 08, 2008

worried to death....

ok, so.....ran did a bit of christmas browsing, stopped at the library, got my hair cut....and then completed my shopping at the aldi store.....and it was at the aldi's that i bumped into a woman who i know to be a staunch republican.....and the catch-up conversation turned to our mutual exhaustion over the election process, and while i concluded that i was optimistic and psyched.....this poor woman lamented that she is fearful for our safety after january 20....wtf?.......did she not get the part where the woman who would be a heart-beat away is clueless on so many things, including geography.....heck, if palin did get elected she would likely spend her first few months in office trying to get folks who opposed her fired...diplomacy would take a back seat to vengeance...or at least that is how she strikes me...ah well.....it was truly frightening to think that i know someone who cannot sleep at night for fear that obama's terrorist friends will come bashing through her door......

fabulous for $4

ok, so.....I really, really wish I lived near a Trader Joes...

Trader Joe’s Coastal Fume Blanc 2006

Price: $4
Maker: Trader Joe’s
Varietal: Fume Blanc
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, natural cork
Alcohol: 13.5%


I have enjoyed this wine on two occasions. I plan to try other wines from Trader Joes inexpensive selections, but as I have only dashed in and out of the store in Cincinnati I have never had time to really study the options.....

thought for the day....

ok, so this is my thought for this lovely saturday....

When one has much to put into them, a day has a hundred pockets.
Friedrich Nietzsche
German philosopher (1844 - 1900)

Friday, November 07, 2008



ok, so....

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

thanks to mamma's friend jane

ok, so......i credit the election, in part, to my friend jane, a lifelong republican living in ohio who opted to vote for obama in this critical election cycle....

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

amen, amen, and amen...

ok, so....president barak obama!!!...though much as i am thrilled for obama and his family, i am saddened that his grandma did not live to this this monumental day.....

Monday, November 03, 2008

yellow dog



ok, so.........i was just thinking of this sweet yellow dog as i contemplate my yellow dog democrat tendencies on this historic election eve....we hear from the neighbors aka base-camp 2 that he had a rough weekend, but we hope he can make it through tomorrow.....

last day

ok, so....i fear that mitch will prevail in kentucky...not because he deserved to be re-elected...but because his opponent is a scoundrel in his own right and couldn't sway enough democrats to vote for him.....maybe next time.....as for the remaining races i am watching from afar via political blogs, i am hopeful that kay hagan can successfully unseat liddy dole in north carolina in what has been a most un-lady-like battle.....i am hopeful that liddy's godless ad will blow up in her face.....yeah- that is not necessarily a christian comment.....but then i am not buying airtime touting my personal devotion......faith is private, and should never be tossed into the public arena to curry favor....

Sunday, November 02, 2008

ok, so...

Obama as Antichrist theory a revelation
Joel Pett
Herald-Leader Cartoonist

Wow. Forgive my pre-election excitement, but after months of assuming that the right-wing yak-radio crowd is as willfully ignorant and intellectually dishonest as is humanly possible, finally, I've met my first Kentuckian who believes — drum roll and triumphal angelic chorus, please — that Barack Obama is the Antichrist.

Now, lots of people have been feared to be the Antichrist, including Hitler, various popes, Osama bin Laden and Christian Laettner. The Bible is pretty vague on the subject, but I've always figured the AC would turn wine back into water (good news in dry counties), give lepers something even worse, (like AIDS or Bengals tickets) and generally mislead humankind into end times, probably with phony campaign ads and tricky credit-card offers.

I think the good book also says the AC can really "drain the 3," which would seem to implicate either Obama or Laettner, but not the set-shot-era Hitler or bin Laden, who is said to be more of a ruthless defensive stopper.

My Antichrist guy wasn't a scary cave-dweller, but a pleasant dude, a working stiff, a real-life Joe-the-TV-repairman, whose daily routines presumably bring him into contact with ideas, not just of biblical times, but of — another drum roll, please — the 21st century.

A little political chit-chat revealed that he had never voted (he is 28), that his wife's church had convinced him of the Antichrist theory and that, among other things, he objected to welfare and affirmative action.

I explained that Obama is more about individual responsibility than government handouts and, for good measure, mentioned that although Obama hasn't benefited from quotas, both John McCain and George Dubya got into their respective institutions of higher learning as legacies, the original affirmative action for connected white guys.

His response? "Why shouldn't they? Their families helped build this country." (True enough, and unlike the forebears of minorities, they got paid for it.)

It was enlightening to be in the presence of someone so profoundly unqualified to live in a democracy, much less vote in it, but I didn't debate him very hard because I had never considered the possibility that the Democratic nominee, outwardly a remarkable, inspirational, historic candidate might be moonlighting as Armageddon-master to the true believers.

I also needed my TV service restored in time for Sean Hannity, whom I believe to be a contender, if not for Antichrist, at least for some quasi-satanic underling status, like fetching the Antichrist's anti-slippers or emptying his anti-bedpan.

In retrospect, I do have a question or two.

Why, after all, would the Antichrist bother with the travails of an election campaign? You would think that if you were going to preside over the downfall and devastation of humanity and ride herd on the Rapture, you'd forego the freezing February town halls in New Hampshire, skip the Cedar Rapids socials and get right to the anti-to-do list.

And if Obama loses, well I guess that thwart's God's centuries-old master plan. Seems odd that the fate of the planet could be affected by an undecided Ohio voter's view on trade protectionism or Freddie Mac. Democracy works in mysterious ways.

Finally, it occurs to me that if Obama is the Anti-christ, but benefited unfairly from affirmative action, then there must be a better-qualified white Antichrist out there somewhere who got passed over for the gig and is no doubt plenty ticked off.

So watch out if someone hijacks your plane or tries to give you Bengals tickets.

Saturday, November 01, 2008

palin pranked...

ok, so.. a canadian radio show actually convinced palin's people that the president of france was on the line....

the goodwill

ok, so.....i dropped off a trunk-ful of clothes at the goodwill on my round of errands this day.....and i stifled my desire to go inside and look over the items that others have recently dropped off.....i had a list of things to accomplish, and goodwill-ing requires a leisurely agenda.....and so i found myself overly amused at the 150,000 dollars that was spent on sarah palin's behalf at luxury department stores.....she who has no time peruse the goodwill racks.....i have concluded that were I in her stilettos...i would have taken a day to shop for myself while an assistant talked foreign policy and constitution law as background noise.....i am certain that i could have assembled a decent wardrobe for less than $5000.....honestly...for less than $1000...and in a perfect world i'd have spent the remaining $149,000 on a vacation timeshare- not in paris because that is in a foreign country...maybe hawaii......i am just saying.....i am still aghast that a person could spend that kinda money on clothes.....

a respite from politics

ok, so.....i have just planted 125 bulbs in my expanded bed.....25 city of haarlem hyacinths....and 100 mixed red tulips...they will be a stunning mass come the spring.....when i will surely have recovered from digging 125 small holes....i am saddened to learn from our next-door-neighbor that the yellow dog we 'share' may be on his last legs....literally...the dog has gained so much weight from under-activity and overeating that he cannot get up to go outside and the neighbor called to ask our permission for treatment and/or euthanasia....the dog was outside on their stoop when i went to the grocery earlier today.....with the neighbor petting him, but i am unsure if he got to that part of the porch on his own or if she helped him.. so sign of him this afternoon......an odd death watch in that the neighbors do not acknowledge us in public or in private over this dog...that the appear to love dearly.....ah well.....the roofers have finished replacing our 20 year old shingles...in a mixed grey rather than black this time around.....i have great hopes of picking out the next shingle shade in 20 years.....the roofers were kind enough to reshingle the dog's new house, which we have placed on the brick walk about the spot where the red Adirondacks chairs stand during the summer...it is a sunny location and flat enough for the purpose.....now that the planting is done i am heading out to the deck to bask in the autumn sunshine while i plod through yet another book club selection that features a dysfunctional family.....
ok, so....here is the 1st amendment, in case sarah palin wants to check her facts...seems she thinks that the 1st amendment bars the press from criticizing her...

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.