Wednesday, May 31, 2006

F P & L - HERE TO SERVE YOU

That's Florida Power & Light (or as we call it, Plunder & Loot). They've come up with a new program to help hurricane victims; those without power. Now, updated 4 times a day they will have updates on their website as to when they think power will be restored to areas of their service region without power.

What a great idea...if you had power to be able to use your computer...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD

Of course, he won't see this, not having a computer, but anyway:
89 years old today, congratulations Dad! I hope I live as long (but not if I get Alzheimer's).

Famous people born on this date:
Walt Whitman(1819), Don Ameche(1908),Dad(he's famous to me)(1917), Prince Rainier of Monaco(1923), Clint Eastwood(1930), Peter Yarrow(1938), Joe Namath(1943), Tom Berenger(1958), Chris Elliot(1960)-no relation-haha, Lea Thompson(1961),& Brooke Shields(1965).

Notable events from this date in history:
1962:Israel hanged Adolf Eichmann for war crimes.
1902:Peace treaty signed ending the Boer War in South Africa.
1889:Johnstown,PA flood kills more than 2,200 people.
1790:George Washington signs bill creating first U.S. copyright law.

And my personal favorite:
1678:Lady Godiva makes her famous naked ride through Coventry, England...

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

LIONS & TIGERS & DEER, OH MY!

Apparently, we've been scared of the wrong animals all this time. Lately, we've had a slew of gator attacks here in sunny Florida, and a few years back it was a rash of shark attacks. But it seems that the real killer animal is the deer. Yup, Bambi's mom & dad, and probably Bambi himself are the creatures to watch out for(but not while swimming).
According to top secret data (why else wouldn't you already know this?) from the International Shark Attack File at the Florida Museum of Natural History, in the 1990s there was an average of 1 shark attack & 1 gator attack per year.
However...the annual rate of fatal(to humans) deer/motor vehicle collisions is 130!!

So, no more crying when Bambi's mother dies...yeah, I mean you...

Friday, May 26, 2006

SAVE A 'ODONTOGLOSSUM ROSSI'...

...Kill a tree?

In the 5/15/06 New York Observer, there is an ad honoring the Rainforest Alliance.
'Signed' by over 170 species, many of them plants,who have been 'saved' by the Rainforest Alliance, the thank-you is actually an ad for the 16th annual gala of said organization.

Now, I've got nothing against saving species and the such, but...

The ad is a FULL page ad, begging the question:
How many trees died to print this ad?

Hmmmmm.....

Thursday, May 25, 2006

LAST 6 BOOKS READ

1)Void Moon by Michael Connelly: Criminal activity in Vegas,double/triple cross-death & destruction. Not as good as The Lincoln Lawyer, but still good.

2)The Italian Secretary by Caleb Carr: Sherlock Holmes, Queen Mary of Scotland,the murdered David Rizzio (who was the Italian Secretary). But way to much talking, Conan Doyle would have done it in less pages.

3)Papa John by John Phillips: The story of sex,drugs,& rock n roll as told by the head Papa. No holds barred in this one.

4)Coldheart Canyon by Clive Barker: This one's really weird,even for Barker. Katya Lupe,old-time movie star, still looks young, has a room that's really the big outdoors(but not in Hollywood),has sex with ghosts of dead movie stars (names you'll recognize here) and all sorts of demented shit (even for Barker).

5)Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs: For those of you who watch TV, yup, this is the Bones lady. The character in this book is Temperance Brennan, but nothing like the one on the TV show, except for being very good at her job. Which is what makes this sorta hard to read, you keep looking for the other characters from the TV show, none of who are here. In fact, the book takes place in Montreal Canada!
But, once you get past all that, it's quite a good thriller. I have another one at home in the TBR pile, so we'll have to see how it holds up (someday-it's quite a large pile!-just ask Phyllis) against this one, which was her first book.

6)Tough Calls by Dick Irwin: A change of pace here. A book about hockey, but told from the viewpoints of the referees & linesmen. The author profiles quite a few of both, and then lets them tell stories of on-ice excitement; fights, penalties, missed calls, etc. Quite an interesting book, and a switch to hear the officials side of the story.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

SO...WHAT'S THE POINT?

In the paper today(Tampa Tribune)Anheuser-Busch is coming out
with a Budweiser Barbecue sauce.

But - they're taking out the alcohol.

So, since Budweiser is not a real flavorful beer, there
won't be a lot of taste to it, unless they add flavor to
it; and then,since it won't have alcohol, and won't taste
like Budweiser...

What's the point?

(Besides $$$$ of course)

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

DAD

Dad's in the old folks home Alzheimer's section now, finally moved in this past Friday. Which is a sorta good thing, because he was getting too much for Mom too handle at age 86. They really should have moved down here from B.C. years ago. But they like their 'National Health', though I don't know why. One has to wait forever to see a doctor, or have a non-life threatening operation; and apparently you still have to pay money, and they don't pay for things they don't want to; even Alzheimer drugs. So where does the national healthcare part come in?? I guess they treat everyone equally crappy, eh?
So anyway, now he's there, and Mom's waiting to get a room there also.
But a funny side to this...
Mom called and told us that when she visited Dad the other day he told here he was
ready to come home know because "There's so many silly people here".

It's funny, but it's sad too if you knew my Dad...when he was still who he used to be...

Monday, May 22, 2006

RIP: FREDDIE GARRITY

11/14/40-5/19/06 Yes, another (minor) icon of my youth passed away. Apparently he died on May 19th of this year, though I've seen nothing in the local papers about it. For those
who don't know, he was the leader of Freddie & the Dreamers, one of the British Invasion bands of the mid 60s. Biggest hit here was probably "I'm Telling You Now", and he was also known for his goofy dance "The Freddie".

So come on everbody...one last time...DO THE FREDDIE!!

SUNBURN (WHAT YOU GET FOR NOT LISTENING!)

Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!!!
And that's what you get when the wife tells you to put on lotion and you don't.
All the way from the tops of the feet to the belly - and it's a big belly. And the tops of the arms (the bottom were already tan.) Not too bad on the face since I wore my Gilligan hat. But floating on the 'lazy river' at Cypress Gardens Adv.Park is just too much fun, who wants to get out and keep putting lotion on...not me. So I'll suffer in silence and not sleep on my stomach `til the burn goes away.

And next time?...well, to tell the truth, I probably still won't put on the lotion...

DaVINCI CODE...OVERCODED??

Well, this past weekend was the opening weekend for The DaVinci Code, and the churches sure were in an uproar. Which of course, makes great publicity for the movie, if nothing else. All sorts of churches around here were advertising sermons that had something to do with DaVinci and his 'code'.

The first question is...did any of these people notice that it is sold in the Fiction section of the book store, not the Religion?

The second question is...did any of these people actually read the book?

The third question is...are these the same people that think the "Left Behind" series is the God's honest truth? Why aren't the moderate Christians,et.al. complaining about those books? Or does everyone really expect to float up to heaven (because they ALL think that they're the chosen ones)?

So that's my take on The DaVinci Code, which I have read (and also the "Left Behind" series). But I actually liked Dan Brown's Angels And Demons better.

And remember, no matter what else he may or may not have been, Jesus was a Capricorn...(and John was a Baptist!)

Friday, May 19, 2006

FROM THE BOOK: "AWOL..." (POINTS TO PONDER)

By Kathy Roth-Douquet & Frank Schaeffer - A Marine Wife & A Marine Father.

3 Interesting Excerpts



While our elites pay lip service to the “important job” enlisted men are doing, they never imagine their own children joining them. “If present statistical trends continue, we are fast approaching the day when no one in Congress … will have served or have any children serving.”

Prior to Vietnam, many if not most members of the upper middle class served in the military. “In 1956, 400 out of 750 in Princeton’s graduating class went into the military …. [I]n 2004, 9 members of Princeton’s graduating class entered the services, and they led the Ivy League in numbers!” Today, it’s hard to find policymakers whose children serve; once, it was the rule rather than the exception.

The all-volunteer force is not serving our country well. It is allowing the most privileged Americans to do in our country what Europeans have been accused by Americans of doing for the last fifty years: hiding behind the American military while profiting from it, yet contributing little to our common defense...

Thursday, May 18, 2006

VOLCANOS

Today being the 26th anniversary of Mt St Helens, I thought I'd tell a volcano story or two...
1) In 1961 we were coming home from the Philippines after our 3 year stay there, we took the scenic route - by ship. I think the ship was the SS Frankfurt, but I could be wrong. We went through the Suez Canal, I remember a guy on a camel chasing alongside the ship. Eventually we neared Italy, where we were going to leave the ship. Somewhere along the way, we passed the volcanic island of Stromboli, which looked like this...


As we sailed closer, there was actually a ribbon of lava straming down the side of it. Needless to say, the ship changed course and sailed a wide way round Stromboli!

2)When we were in the Philippines, we used to drive up to the mountains outside of Manila. We used to go to Tagaytay, where Mobil Oil had a house that execs and their families could stay. Not far away was the Taal volcano, which had a cone inside a lake which was actually a the cone of a larger volcano. Very pretty, as you can see...



Turns out,quite a few years ago, possibly mid 1970s, the volcano actually erupted for the first time in a long time. Glad we weren't there for that...

That would have been a pain in the ash!!

TOYOTA ECHO...RIP



So this is the car I currently drive (well, not THIS one, but one similar).
Probably one of the greatest cars I've driven. Not only is it peppy and
comfortable, but it gets great gas mileage. But know I see on the Toyota website
that they will no longer be selling them in the U.S. Too bad, because they had a great niche market that I don't think they fully realized. Surprisingly for a small car, the seats sit very high,(and yet still has a high inside roof)therefore making it easy for older people, people with bad knees, and other handicapped people to get in and out of. You actually don't feel like you're pulling yourself out of a pit when you get out.

So perhaps with better marketing the Echo would still be among us...

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

SEPTEMBER 11th SECURITY FEE

September 11th Security Fee: A September 11th Security Fee
of $2.50 USD applies per flight segment (maximum charge per
trip--$5.00 USD one-way, $10.00 USD round-trip). A flight
segment is defined as one takeoff and one landing.


Verbatim from the Travelzoo newsletter - a standard charge in this day and age.

The question is: If your plane is hijacked, do they refund your $2.50??

U.S. TROOPS TO GUARD THE BORDER

Well, Dubya strikes again. So now he's going to send troops
to guard the border between the U.S. & Mexico. Gotta keep the
tourists out of Mexico, now that they may decriminalize marijuana
and other mood altering drugs.

Oh, wait, they're supposed to be there to keep Mexicans out?!

Oh, that's right...of course he was going to build a wall to do it...

Until he realized that by awarding the contract to the lowest bidder the actual workmen building the wall would most likely be Mexicans!

BUSY WEEKEND,PT.2

So we got up Sunday for Mother's Day, and went back to Orlando to
visit Crystal. Had lunch at Sweet Tomatoes (great muffins - but what happened to
the clam chowder??), and then to the Sanford Flea Market. There's one guy there
that sell bootleg cds (but they're not out in the open, you have to ask), and know
there's a lady in the next aisle who also sells them. So I picked up bootlegs from
Bad Company,Sheryl Crow,Los Lobos,Alice Cooper,Rolling Stones,& The Pretty Things.
Very sucessful shopping trip...

So after the flea market, took Crystal home (she got a Tori bootleg) and then
drove to Lakeland (past where we live)to visit Corey & Jami. Corey made a really
great chicken dish (thanks Chef Brockett!) and then Phyl played pool while I drank
beer. What could be more fun than that?

So we finally made it home in time for bed, but only got 3 hours sleep because of my feet - but that's another story...

Monday, May 15, 2006

FROM THE BOOK MONKEYLUV BY ROBERT M SAPOLSKY

So the Martians finally come to Earth and they turn out to be great folks. Earthlings and Martians hit it off, sit around for days talking about politics, the weather on Mars and Earth, sports, what really happened with Elvis....Eventually, both the earthlings and Martians feel comfortable enough to work up the nerve and ask the other folks what they're really curious about -- "So how do you guys reproduce?"

It's decided to have a demonstration. The Martians go first. Four of them stand on top of each other, make whirring mechanical sounds, lights go off on their foreheads, smoke and bells, and...suddenly, a new Martian pops out.

"Fabulous, just fabulous, love the concept," say the earthlings. Then it's our turn. A suitable volunteer couple has been found, a bed cleared, and the couple goes at it while the Martians stand around taking souvenir photos. The pair finishes in a sweaty heap.

"Great, that was terrific, very novel," enthuse the Martians, "but one thing...er...where's the new earthling?"

"Oh, that," they are answered. "That happens nine months from now."

And the Martians ask, "So why were they in such a rush at the end?"

BUSY WEEKEND,PT.1

Yes, it was. Saturday went to the WMMO concert (free) in downtown Orlando. Opening band were local boys The Chronics; lots of 60s rock & soul. not bad at all. The next band was someone you've probably not heard of, yet you've probably heard them if you listen to classic rock radio. The band: Gator Country. Who are they really? Well, in reality they're Molly Hatchet without the name. 2 of the guitarists and the drummer are from the original lineup of Molly Hatchet, the singer is the second vocalist after Danny Joe Brown left the band, and the bass player was from a slightly later version of the band. Only the 3rd guitarist was never in Molly Hatchet. So they put on a kick-ass show, too bad there weren't more people there to see `em.
Most people showed up later to se the headliners, .38 Special. The band still has Donnie Van Zant, and Don Barnes, so they still sound like the .38 special you used to hear on the radio & MTV. They just released a new album, and I picked up an autographed copy at the booth.

So, a fun night was had by all...especially the people who could afford to drink too many $5 beers!!!

Thursday, May 11, 2006

"INVASION" (OF THE CHEESY DIALOGUE)

Well, for starters, I do like the show; it's an interesting look at an alien invasion interspersed with post-hurricane scenes of destruction. And except for
the thunder & lightning that seems to accompany both hurricanes (which I can't say I've see/heard through any of the hurricanes I've been through in the last few years) it seems fairly authentic. After all, this is only TV.
But, last night's show had what is probably the dumbest dialogue I've heard outside of a 'B' movie (or a Lifetime movie).

Kira, Sheriff Underlay's teenage daughter escapes from the holding building where the hybrids are holding the humans. She is chased by one of the bad guys, and just as he catches up to her, he gets hit in the face with a 2x4 wielded by her Dad, the sheriff (who's actually a hybrid). Dialogue ensues:

Kira: "Dad -you're here!"
Dad: "And so are you."

What the hell kinda dialogue is that supposed to be??

The cheesy dialogue censor musta been asleep for that one...

And remember...I'm heathcliff13...and you're not!

JOHN WAYNE GACY,5/10/94

Yep, the "Killer Clown" himself; executed on yesterday's date 12 years
ago. But that's NOT the most interesting fact about him...

Did you know...

On June 23,1965 Gacy was a small time music promoter. After
a concert, he drove the members of the band to his house. In the
words of a band member:
"He was a fat greasy little man, he plied us with all these drinks
and it was quite apparent that he was after Dave.
We could see Dave getting under the influence, but we thought,Nah,
this one doesn't taste right, so we grabbed our stuff,said Thank you
very much and left."

The band involved...

The Kinks, only 5 days after their U.S. debut in New York City.

Dave Davies, you're a lucky man...

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

BIRD FLU - CA-CAW! CA-CAW!

So they had this TV movie on last night; Fatal Contact:Bird Flu In America.
Nothing like trying to scare the crap out of people, especially since they made a point of having a disclaimer both before and after the movie. So, basically, if it comes, WE'RE ALL FUCKED! So that sucks. What they did, after the flu had killed 20,000,000 people world-wide and people were struggling back to normalcy, it mutated to a different form that was 100% fatal.
Hey, thanks for that...

But the good news is...when it happens, you might as well max out your credit
cards & party like it's 1999 (even though Y2K didn't happen either).

Monday, May 08, 2006

10 MORE AUTOGRAPHED CDs

'Human Nature by America; by Gerry Beckley & Dewey Bunnell autographed a few years ago at a show in Orlando.

'I'm Hearing Things' by Henry Gross; autographed at a show in St. Pete. He was originally in Sha Na Na, and later went solo, had a big hit in the 70s with a song I can't remember.

'Unfinished Bidness' by Johnny G Lyon & Tommy Duncan. Bought this from Johnny's website, he was kind enough to sign it, and have Tommy sign it also. Tommy does most of the vocals for JGLB when they play live - and they kick ass live!

'June To November' by Urbane Cowboys; autogrpahed by Mik & Camran. Local Tampa Bay band who opened for Mark Farner at a show in Brandon. They did a very rock cover of Britney Spears' "Baby Hit Me One More Time".

'Live!!NrG' by Mark Farner. Great band he has kno, friendly guy too, always happy to sign, makes sure eveyone gets one, no matter how many people there are waiting.

'The Mirror' by Spooky Tooth; autographed by Gary Wright during a solo show in Orlando.

'Box Of Frogs' by Jim McCarty & Chris Dreja. Their follow-up band after the Yardbirds broke up.

'Play Dum' by Dum; autographed by Peppi Marchello of the Good Rats; his other current band with his 2 sons. Actually wrote a lengthy note on the cover.

'Serious Fun' by The Knack; autographed by Doug Fieger, Berton Averre, & Prescott Niles, from a show at Epcot in 2002.

'Slow Ride' by Foghat; autographed by Roger Earl in the late 90s/early 00s at a St.Pete show.

Thursday, May 04, 2006

ROME: NOT THE PLACE TO BUY A BEER...

He had heard Rome was expensive but nothing prepared the Hong Kong tourist for a 990 euro ($1,251) beer.

The unwary visitor received the bumper bar bill for a drink sipped near Rome's most famous street, Via Veneto, where beers usually cost as much as 10 euros, Rome mayor's office said.

The tourist, who was traveling alone, was invited to the bar by a tout who served him a beer and then said it would cost him 990 euros. He bartered it down to 490 euros, but the bar owner ended up taking 990 euros off his credit card anyway.

"When the bill arrived I thought it was safer to pay it. I was scared something could happen to me if I didn't," the man, whose name was withdrawn, told Rome mayor's office that is investigating the crime.

The tourist, who is from Hong Kong but lives in Germany and has a British passport, tried to report the fraud to the police but said he could not make himself understood because no one spoke English.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

On this date in history in the year 1494 Christopher Columbus discovered the island of Jamaica...

Shortly after, he invented the concept of 'munchies', but of course was unable to buy any, since there weren't any in 1494.

Bummer, man, bummer...

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

HASBRO DUMPING ATLANTIC CITY

As if losing the Miss America competition wasn't bad enough,I saw in the paper the other day where the toymaker is no longer going to use Atlantic City for it's flagship edition of Monopoly. What kind of commie crap is that?? The game we all grew up with, and most of us own; it's an icon in it's own right. Who cares if Atlantic City may be run down and crappy; how many people have actually been there compared to how many live vicariously in green houses or red hotels? You may even have one of the 'your name here'opoly games, but I'll bet you still started out with the original. Hopefully, people won't be fooled by the 'New Monopoly' the way we weren't fooled by 'New Coke'.
Hey, maybe if this does go over big, we can do a new version of Scrabble where only some of the letters are English; maybe we can mix in Aramaic, Chinese, & Sanskrit letters too! Wouldn't that be fun!

And speaking of games, does anyone remember The Big Board? It was a Monopoly wannabe where you bought stocks as you went around the board. The stock were variations of real stocks; the one I remember in particular was Scars & Rowboat for Sears & Roebuck. Pretty funny...

Monday, May 01, 2006

NEW CAMPBELL'S SOUP VARIETY

Hahahahahaha!!!...sometimes it's just too damn easy...