Naked Brunch: Of puppies, their naming, consequences, and other unrelated matters

I worked for  a whopping two days last week, between my Xmas vacation and New Year's vacation.  I accomplished next to nothing at work, except for one tiny little licking, squirming, cuter-than-hell thing (see left below with Oz in the background thru the glass door).  

I brought home a little girl puppy this past Monday who had been on her own enough time to be a mess and near starving.  She was dropped off at our office by a woman who found her and couldn't find a no kill shelter for her and begged us to place her.  She had found her three days previous, but had made no attempt to clean her up, but did feed her.  

I went immediately to the groomer for cleansing and de-lousing.  Then the vet for a checkup and shots.  Along the way, during her time in the wilds, she picked up an intestinal amoeba and worms, all of which have been taken care of.  Poor little mite.

As some of you may know, I live at the parents house.  This was NOT a pleasant surprise to my father, who started yelling at me, at the top of his lungs, red-faced and fuckin' furious.  He's managed to settle down a bit since, like 6 days later, he is actually conversing with me again.  He'll end up loving this pup as much as I have begun to do.  

My dogs are furious as well, although not until after the first greeting of the pup and their own natural curiousity.  It went downhill shortly thereafter, when they figured out she was going to stay as well as their jealousy for my attention, which I have yet to stint them.  The puppy's unwavering cuteness and showing off, rolling over, and antics, have hard pressed them to be mean to her, although they continue to growl on occassion.  This little girl will go to the bathroom on demand, sleeps through the night (in bed with me) or as long as I do, and takes a bunch of naps beside, allowing me to type right at the moment.  She is a vigorous little vocal bundle, who has seemingly doubled in size within a week!  

Here's the thing, I can not decide on a name.  My other dogs have been named, Nike (after the Greek Goddess of strength, speed and victory), Sadie (as in "sexy Sadie" after the Beatle's tune), Cleo (after Cleopatra), Oz (after Ozymandias who was Ramses II of Egypt), and Luna (The Moon, since it was my very first view of her at a bare 4 weeks old, mooning me).  All but Oz and Luna are deceased now, and every one of them were amazing companions and friends in their own unique way and each with a very special personality.  I have loved them all dearly.  Most recently, I lost my Cleo in February 2008.  Oz will be 14 this year and Luna 11.  It's a little late to introduce a puppy to them, but they will eventually find an accommodation with each other, as dogs always will. 

I always allow a dog to name themselves, but this dog, doesn't perk up on any name.  She responds very well to Potty, but I'll not name her that!  She'll think I am constantly asking her to go to the bathroom.  So, I need help.  With other names, or to pear down this list.  I have already peared it down from 75 or so.

Here are my and the pups (I think) favorites so far, in no particular order:

• Juno (Roman Goddess, special counselor and protector of state)
• Abbey (after the Beatle's Abbey Road)
• Poppy (too close to Potty)
• Bella (cuz I like it)
• Ariel (from The Little Mermaid)
• Cira (after the star)
• India (guess)
• Zoe (from a character in an old TV show)
• Lela (song by Derek and the Dominoes, aka Eric Clapton)
• Maia (greek name meaning great or mother)
• Serefina (Sera for short) (character from the Golden Compass)
• Synne (from Geoffery Chaucer, "Goddes synne of worldly sorwe...")
• Zaida (Zaida of Seville, an 11th Century exile Muslim princess who was the mistress (or, by some theories, the wife and queen) of King Alfonso VI of Castile)

I'm sick of calling her pup and hey!  So, give me some consensus here or suggest something else.  I need some help!

From my friends on the web:

Check this out at P!  Cripes.  This is sickening.  Part II and Part III.

More on the same BS in Gaza from my friend Tas. 

Some hearty (Bush-enabled) amusement from my Zen Comix friend over at Pushing Rope:  19 and 20, 18 

My friend Rip seems to be MIA since the 20th or so.... damnit, just like those folks from Providence.

My friend, the psychotic painter, Robert Dowling has been in hospital for 10-days for a physical ailment that has been plaguing him and is not in good shape.  Please send him your well wishes for a speedy recovery - he needs it.  You can also help him out by buying a lovely print of one of his Dowling originals.  I"ll be buying an original, hopefully soon.  Be well my friend and check your e-mail.  

Ruins of Empire has the best interview ever:  Dr. Who!!!! ( I am addicted - all over again!)

Jesus' General has a press release from Lois Capps.  (I do love that inner Frenchman.)

Josh Marshall on the J Street bunch, who deserve kudos as well as to Josh for a great pickup.

Al Franken - thank goodness.

Rod the Idiot:  Reid called Blagojevich

Chris Floyd "because we're the altruistic stabilizers..." 

John Cole's Balloon Juice on Goldfarb's apparent psychosis.

Acephalous wacked monologues, (which I love), on big versus the little ..... screen.

And, thus ends another episode of Naked Brunch.  (Yes, I'm naked and brunch was on me.)

Naked Brunch: 4th Annual Holiday Recipe Exchange

Well, the weather is frightful today again, but in the extreme opposite direction.  It's windy and 28 degrees...brrrrr.

You must read this, especially during this time of year when you are non-religious:  Agnostics Guide to Survival in the Bible Belt

I can't believe I missed this.  I was rolling down to sign in to post this morning on Being Qua (formerly Sinequanon's Journal) and noticed my hit counter.  Oh My Gosh!  I finally hit 1/2 million hits on this blog since May 2005.  I can hardly believe it.  Not that I have done anything this past year to keep my stats up much less readership.  I've misplaced a whole bunch of people that used to dwell in the mind of yours truly.  I'll have to do something about that.

In the ongoing tradition of this site, we are moved to continue our annual holiday recipe exchange.  So, here goes it:  The Fourth Annual Holiday Recipe Exchange (WooHaa)  

The 2005-2007 recipes are stored here:  Recipe Exchange

Pretzel Kiss (Guys...even you can do this one)

1 bag of Snyder's Pretzel Squares

1 lg bag of Milk Chocolate Hersheys Kisses (I use small bags of milk chocolate, cherry cordial, and white chocolate peppermint stick)

1 small bag M&Ms 

1. Turn on oven to 350 degrees.  Using a small cookie pan or whatever you have, line up pretzels in the bottom of the pan, lining them up, touching each other.  Unwrap kisses and place one on top of the pretzel.


2. Stick in heated oven for about 3-5 minutes tops.  Watch them closely after minute two.  Push down on a kiss tip to see if it is melting and collapsing inward.  When it does this, remove from oven.  Have the M&Ms ready and quickly place an M&M n top of each kiss, pushing in slightly.  You must do this fast of they will cool off.  It's good if you have someone who does one end of the pan wile you do the other.  After completion, stick the cooled pan in the freezer for 30 minutes so everything melds.

(My favorite is the peppermint white chocolate!)

Cracker Candy

Saltine crackers

Med pkg milk chocolate chips

Med pkg peanut butter chips

2 sticks butter

1 cup sugar

1. Turn oven on to 400 degrees.


2. Spread saltine crackers side to side covering the bottom of a large cookie tray.  Melt butter, add sugar.  Bring to a boil and then cook over medium heat for 3 minutes.  Pout mixture over crackers.  Bake for 5 minutes.


3. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate and peanut butter chips evenly over surface of cracker layer.  Allow to melt and then swirl and spread throughout this layer.  When cool, place in freezer until it will pop out of the cookie sheet in one piece.  Break or cut.  Save the crumbs, they are great.

Orgasmic Fromage Cassoulet

3 quart casserole

Spray oil

8 tbsp butter +

6-10 slices french or sourdough bread, crumbled and torn/cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces 

5-1/2 cups of whole milk

1/2 cup flour

2 tsp salt, plus more for water

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground white pepper

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp ceyenne pepper

4-1/2 cups grated sharp white Cheddar cheese

2 cups grated Swiss or Gruyere cheese

2 cups grated Pecorino Romano or Asiago cheese

1 lb shell macaroni

1. Use spray oil on all interior surfaces of the casserole pan; set aside.  


2. Place bread in a small bowl, Pour 2 tbsp melted butter over crumbs and toss; set aside. 


3. Warm milk in a saucepan over medium heat.  Melt remaining butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat.  When butter bubbles, add flour.  Cook, whisking for 1 minute.  While continuing to whisk, add milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth.  Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until mixture bubbles and thickens, 8 to 12 minutes. 


4. Remove pan from heat.  Stir in salt, nutmeg and peppers.  Add, 3 cups or cheddar and all other cheeses.  Stir to melt and set aside.


5. In a large pot, boil water with salt.  Add shell macaroni.  When water begins to boil again, reduce heat to medium.  Cook until slightly underdone.  Transfer to a colander, rinse with water and drain well.  


6. Stir shells into the fromage (cheese) sauce.


7. Pour mixture into the prepared casserole dish.


8. Sprinkle remaining Cheddar and bread crumbs over top.


9. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

Serves 12.

In yet another holiday tradition related to our Annual Holiday Recipe "EXCHANGE" - I name the following people to come up with a holiday type recipe - even if it's a beverage, alcohol preferably recipe:

Ripley, Michael, TAS, Litbrit, ZenComix, NTodd

Instructions:  

Post one recipe at your site, link to this original post at Being Qua as a linkback (http://www.beingqua.com/journal/2008/12/21/naked-brunch-one-half-million-and-4th-annual-holiday-recipe.html), then pick six people to do the same. Copy and paste these instructions into your post.

I hope you participate.  I will continue adding recipes of my own to this post as updates.

This concludes todays Naked Brunch.  Ya'll be careful out there.

PS:  Michael, I just got the Eddie Vedder "Into the Wild" tunes.  It is damned fine.  Wow!

Naked Brunch: Flock of Seagulls

It's taken me almost a week to tread the path of the pundits opinions in the aftermath of the stunning victory of President-Elect Barack Obama.  I'm extremely pleased about the first and not so much about the pundits, as follows.  I am, however, interested in Obama's picks for his cabinet.  

Some of the offers out there for posts to Obama's cabinet and their specialties.  Quite a list of names in that menu.  At this point, Rahm Emanuel has accepted Obama's offer for White House Chief of Staff.  I am not sure whether I would prefer him there or in position as Speaker of the House where he would be extremely useful to Obama in accomplishing his goals.  However, this suppositioning really is unnecessary and ticks me off, bt American Prospect does a good job of discrediting the idea.

I am thrilled beyond measure that one of Obama's first issues is to review and reverse Bush's executive orders.  There are a lot of them and most are reprehensible.  More on Obama's intentions to reverse these executive orders:

Transition advisers to President-elect Barack Obama have compiled a list of about 200 Bush administration actions and executive orders that could be swiftly undone to reverse White House policies on climate change, stem cell research, reproductive rights and other issues, according to congressional Democrats, campaign aides and experts working with the transition team.

A team of four dozen advisers, working for months in virtual solitude, set out to identify regulatory and policy changes Obama could implement soon after his inauguration. The team is now consulting with liberal advocacy groups, Capitol Hill staffers and potential agency chiefs to prioritize those they regard as the most onerous or ideologically offensive, said a top transition official who was not permitted to speak on the record about the inner workings of the transition....

More on Obama's fist steps.

Saxby Chambliss is such a pig, which must make McCain and Palin alike in their support. 

This is an awesome synopsis of what Obama's next steps entail. 

Jonathan Chait asks:  "What part of "overwhelming electoral defeat" does the GOP not understand?"

Damn, I'm getting hungry.  I wonder what's for brunch?

On Obama's reception throughout the world.  I agree, show me the money!

I love this:  Obama a two-term President of the USA and tte folks jostling to create a relationship with him.  A more negative attitude from the Boston Globe.

The New Yorker details "How Obama Won."

Naked Brunch Music:  Amos Lee (Get them at my place)

Naked Brunch:  Lusty French Toast, thick smoky bacon, tangy tangerines, and java.  Yum! 

And, just because it will aggravate Michael's musical taste:

Ta Ta!

:: Naked Brunch: 9 shopping days left ::

HA! I am finished shopping! Did all but one of my gifts via web-shopping and even did some of the parents shopping that way. Then took Friday off and marathon shopped Friday and Saturday. Only two left for them and they can manage that themselves. Thank goodness. It”s insane out there. Seriously. People are freaking nuts. I thought I was going to lose it yesterday and beat the crap out of some rude son of a bitch…but, I was good, and withheld.

So, the holiday party I organized for all my clients, etc. was a glowing success. I am so glad that is over. Even my bosses were impressed. Next year? Casino Royale in a tent on the lawn….it will be soooo cool! BTW, the jazz band I hired for the party was HOT!

Robert Dowling is (basically) leaving eBay for smashingly greener pastures. I can’t release what has happened, but it’s BIG, exclusive, and exciting. I am so damned happy for him, and seriously proud of his achievements. Unfortunately, for you and me, access to his paintings through this venue is finished as of December 31, so, if you want an original, you better hotfoot it over there and bid like there is no tomorrow (since there isn’t) and because all you will see on eBay from now on will be prints and Giclee reproductions (not that there is anything wrong with that). It may be all I can afford from now on anyway. Check Rob’s website for the big announcement, coming soon.

In the meantime, I have a seriously large hankering for this dark and moody bit of melodrama Rob has ensorcelled me with, entitled: Before I Say Goodbye

This 30” x 40” oil & acyclic canvas is full of mystery and change and brooding. I love it. It appeals to me on that level automatically. Happpy shit makes me want to puke. Change, mystery, longing, depth, brooding, power, darkness, … all these things and more, do it for me. I always want to know, to see, what’s on the other side of that. The whimsy in these paintings also get to me. Sometimes, seeminly innocent, that change instanteously to “other.” A varying background of breasts in profile, nipples extended. The softening foregorund with buried and unrevealed mysteries. The puzzle and that house, always imminently on the edge of demise. The longing of the woman, and the watching of many eyes. The blackness, and purity of the sky, that very mysterious and deep, deep sky…. I want it.

Another Dowling original up for auction is Trying to Find My Way Home, bring back the baby boy of more recent painting this past year. Who this child is, is a puzzle. However, this particular painting reminds me of the first painting I ever purchased from Rob, over three years ago. In that painting, you see a very lonely and angst-rideen setting of a figure in the background, walking along the rise of land, and fenceline, forelorn, and seemingly deep in thought, lost, but, metaphorically rather than literally. This paintings setting is more literal, I think. Yet, metaphorically challenging as to who the child is or will become. I think we know, Rob. I think I know. I also know how far you have come, from that painting to this one. No more guessing… for now.

From art to hell. Pure hell. Inside the CIA’s Nortorious Black Op Sites: a first-person, indepth account of inside these hideous prisons.

Dec. 14, 2007 | WASHINGTON — The CIA held Mohamed Farag Ahmad Bashmilah in several different cells when he was incarcerated in its network of secret prisons known as “black sites.” But the small cells were all pretty similar, maybe 7 feet wide and 10 feet long. He was sometimes naked, and sometimes handcuffed for weeks at a time. In one cell his ankle was chained to a bolt in the floor. There was a small toilet. In another cell there was just a bucket. Video cameras recorded his every move. The lights always stayed on — there was no day or night. A speaker blasted him with continuous white noise, or rap music, 24 hours a day.

The guards wore black masks and black clothes. They would not utter a word as they extracted Bashmilah from his cell for interrogation — one of his few interactions with other human beings during his entire 19 months of imprisonment. Nobody told him where he was, or if he would ever be freed.

It was enough to drive anyone crazy. Bashmilah finally tried to slash his wrists with a small piece of metal, smearing the words “I am innocent” in blood on the walls of his cell. But the CIA patched him up.

So Bashmilah stopped eating. But after his weight dropped to 90 pounds, he was dragged into an interrogation room, where they rammed a tube down his nose and into his stomach. Liquid was pumped in. The CIA would not let him die…..(more)

I have no words…. but, more US Sponsored Terrorism…. aren’t we sweet. And, then there is the relentless and illegal domestic spying, on us.

For Eric the Grinch… teehee!

And speaking of Grinches, this bastard takes ‘em all. Have a very Cornyn Xmas

THE SHOW THAT DARE NOT SPEAK IT'S NAME: You can go have a listen to Ripley and Scooter go commando, yabbering last weekend. I missed it due to short notice, so I’m having a listen now. They are so very amusing…. “hello?” (Personally, I’d just listen to hear “The Voice.”)

Check out the Rude Pundit on the Bush Xmamis Video.

Monica Crowley says Hillary is SATAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Run, run for you life you believers!

Austin Cline does a number on Rape & Pillage.

The Anonymous Liberal on Huck n Hurl.

NTodd and I need strength to endure this kind of bullshit.

Well, I gotta go. The Parents have things for me to do, put up the damned infernal tree, write the freakin Xima letter and print the damned thing for them, wrap all those freakin’ gifts to others, pack and mail the blasted things (didn’t I tell them to buy and ship online?????) and who knows what else. The horrendous baking has yet to begin.

Maybe before that, I’ll go for a bike ride.

tag: xmas, christmas, cornyn, huckabee, ripley, subliminal radio, robert dowling studios, robert dowling, painting, creative, surrealism, abstract, shopping, hell, stupid people, CIA, black ops, prisons, torture, black sites, US sponsored terrorism, domestic spying, grinch, bush christmas video, hillary, satan, rape and pillag

:: Naked Brunch: Of Impeachment & Snowmen ::

When Snowmen Go Bad by R. Dowling
Rob Dowling has begun the second year of his snowman series, entitled "The Snowman Chronicles." The first is simply a hoot! I have several of these from last year and I love them. In fact, I am bidding on #1 in the series right now named, "When Snowmen Go Bad." The bidding is open on the first in this series until November 16th. Keep an eye out for more in the series by checking my sidebar under Robert Dowling. The bidding was wild on these paintings last year, so bid soon, bid often and bid to win. I plan to.

Tori Amos will be in town at the Majestic on Monday, November 26th. I wish I could find a decent ticket. Until then, here are some of my favorite renditions of "Leather," "Crucify" (live from Paris), and "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Amos is a powerful performer. Which is why I won't reduce myself to rotten tickets. I want in the first 5 rows. Maybe, I'll just go to Paris. I've been considering flying to Scotland to see Ray LaMontagne (Abbey Road: go to Footage, select LaMontagne), anyway. BTW, don't forget, you can check out some of my all time favorite music videos and cool movies at Live Digital.

The battle waged in the House over the impeachment of Dicklesshead Cheney, as pressed by Dennis Kucinich is impressive. Go Dennis! And, those so-called leadership Dems that don't agree....go fuck yourselves, you weakminded assholes. Not the time? When is the time? When we go to war with Iran based on fabricated BS again? The Raw Story has the letter Kucinich wrote to the Judiciary Committee Chair, John Conyers regarding H. Res. 799, the Articles of Impeachment against VP Cheney.

Who the hell is Hannah Montana and why the hell should anyone give a shit? Absurd!

Mukasey doesn't know that Kings and Waterboarding are bad for Democracy:

"Are we just going to have another attorney general that's just going to kowtow to the king -- the president. I'm sorry I get those terms kinda confused here when I'm talking about Bush; I don't know if he's king or president," Harkin told his colleagues from the Senate floor Thursday.

Port-a-John

I've been out of town again for the past week and returned Friday night. The whole week was basically a mini-nightmare travel misadventure. That should be it for a while anyway for my traveling, workwise. Whew. At least I came back to good news that the little town I live in of a whopping 6,000 people were smart enough to pass the charter granting the City Home Rule Authority rather than General Law City.

WHY???? (Stupid)

1,300 Tons of Hell (Not Cool)

Clinton Plants Q's (Not Cool)

55-Cancri in the constellation Cancer (Cool!)

DRM-free music .... yahoo! (Get the latest iTunes and you too can have DRM-free MP3 downloaded music.) (Most Excellently Cool!)

Community-associated methicillin-resistant staph infections (Absolutely Uncool!)

The Golden Compass: (Very Cool!)

Gossip
Title: Insanity
Its been quite amazing to see people get worked up about these books in recent weeks. Before I read them, I had never once heard of them, but no a lot of people are in a stir. Truth be told, my thoughts about the "anti-religion" theme to the series is that it is only secondary, and really the books are just about an amazing adventure. If parents are so concerned with their kids becoming atheist after reading or watching the movie, then maybe they should be more apt to discuss the difference between their reality and fiction with their kids.

I agree. Here's the teaser:

Weird Plant Growth

On Vibrator Smuggling....and more!

Little known Vibrator facts:

The treatment wasn't generally thought of as sexual, but rather as ho-hum therapy. Not surprisingly, it was a cash cow for the medical profession. Women had to return week after week, year after year. But doing it by hand was exhausting, tedious work; some women had to be massaged for an hour before they reached paroxysm.

The use of vulvular massage as a therapy for "hysterical" patients dates back to Hippocrates. During the 19^th century, it caught on as a treatment for the rampantly diagnosed afflictions hysteria and neurasthenia. The doctor of Alice James, the sickly sister of the famous Henry and William, probably brought her routinely to "hysterical paroxysm."

Thus, entrepreneurial doctors experimented with mechanizing the process. Hydrotherapy—the shooting of water directly at the patient's reproductive region—proved effective and became quite fashionable. It had its drawbacks, though: It was messy, expensive, and not easily portable.

Wow. My doctor never did this for me before...
I'm gonna go have me some hydrotherapy now. Good day.

tag: snowman, dowling, art, painting, creativity, tori amos, music, ray lamontagne, live digital, music video, live music, house of representative, congress, cheney, impeachment, king bush, kucinich, democratic leadership, iran, john conyers, judiciary committee, hr 799, hannah montana, mukasey, harkin, port-a-john, travel, home rule, general law, women fighters, 1300 ton oil spill, clinton plants questions, 55-cancri, drm-free music, itunes, resistant staph infestions, the golden compas, bible thumpers, gossip, weird news, plants, smuggling, vibrator, drugs, vuvular massage, hydrotheraphy, sex, orgasm, hysterical paroxysm

:: Naked Brunch: Live Music Sunday ::

I've been buying music and concert/venue tickets this weekend. (Yes, I have diverse musical taste and this doesn't cover 1% of it.)

Tonight, it's Lyle Lovett at the Majestic. On short notice, I managed to get a seat in the Orchestra center stage, about 10 rows back. Damn good seat. Anyway, here is a little sample of Lyle and His Large Band live last month. (By the way, I went to university with Lyle. I'm positive he has zero recollection.)

In two weeks, I'll be in Austin at Stubb's for the outdoor performance of Collective Soul. I just purchased their latest and greatest and Ed Roland is smashing. I have always liked them, with a special fondness for Ed. (Seriously drool-worthly, in more ways than one.) Below, are a variety of music videos by Collective Soul, from their newly released CD entitled "Afterwords" thru those on their others, such as the self-entitled "Collective Soul," "Dosage," "From the Ground Up," "Youth," "Blender" and more. I have always liked Collective Soul for their hard, rocking harshness to their sweetest, soulful ballad. I highly recommend their latest efforts in "Afterwords." I've listened to it about 5 times in a row now and I'm hooked. Ofcourse, I'm still hooked on their self-entitled "Collective Soul" album as well, and have been since it was released in the 1990s. You can listen to the tunes on their new CD by visiting the Collective Soul link above.

November 4th, I'll be back at the Majestic for Ben Harper. Hot Damn! Here's his "Fight Outta You." I really like Ben. You can listen to more at his MySpace site link above.

Then, well, I bought tickets for the The TenTenors on November 27th and am using my mom as an excuse. Quit laughing! I like Opera and shit, so I thought I would like to hear a mix of Opera trained Aussies singing some contemporary tunes, among others. Here is one of my favorite Freddy Mercury songs (Queen), "Bohemian Rhapsody."

And, just for comparison sake, here is Queen's Freddy Mercury singing "Bohemian Rhapsody." Somehow, I think Amadeus would have approved. It's a cryin' shame either one of them is dead now.

I figure the more events I plan for myself, the less time I work! I'm forcing myself into a new schedule so I won't work 80-hour weeks anymore. It's a hard habit to break.

tag: music, concerts, lylw lovett, majestic theatre, san antonio, austin, stubbs, collective soul, afterwords, ed roland, ben harper, the ten tenors, freddy mercury, queen, bohemian rhapsody, music video, live music

Naked Brunch: 3-Day Weekends

Thank goodness it's a three-day weekend. Columbus Day or some such nonsense.

In as much as Columbus didn't actually "discover" North America, but some islands south and east of North America, I'd say any holiday in North America is just perpetuating a historical lie. Regardless, the land was discovered by other than its' native inhabitants much earlier. Columbus actually discovered San Salvador (The Bahamas) in 1492:

Columbus called the island (in what is now The Bahamas) San Salvador, although the natives called it Guanahani. Exactly which island in the Bahamas this corresponds to is an unresolved topic; prime candidates are Samana Cay, Plana Cays, or San Salvador Island (named San Salvador in 1925 in the belief that it was Columbus's San Salvador). The indigenous people he encountered, the Lucayan, Taíno or Arawak, were peaceful and friendly. In his journal he wrote of them, "It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion." He also wrote of them, two days after landing, "I could conquer the whole of them with 50 men, and govern them as I pleased."

Nice guy. Now, maybe you can understand what the protesting is all about. It all sounds so........familiar.

About 75 protesters, including American Indian activist Russell Means, were arrested on Saturday after blocking Denver's downtown parade honoring the Italian-born discoverer Christopher Columbus, an event they denounced as "a celebration of genocide."

Life:

I need the time off but do not intend to celebrate the conquering of a native nation much less the discovery of some island by Columbus. I'm actually making time to go to a movie this afternoon starring Tommy Lee Jones, Susan Sarandon, Jason Patric and Cherlize Theron called In the Valley of Elah (trailer). (Frankly, I could have used a comedy.)

Since the Naked Brunch two weeks ago, it' seems my life has been surrounded by a heart trauma ward. My friend and assistant at work collapsed 2 weeks ago in her office with a heart event. She is fine now and on medication. I'm glad I understood the difference between men and women's heart attack symptoms. Whew! It took five minutes for me to get someone to call an ambulance, and it was a client waiting for me in the lobby that did it, 5-minutes after I asked a co-worker to do it. Then everyone left me alone in her office with her. And, one of the first things I wanted to do was stick an Aspirin under her tongue and had none at hand and no one to get me one. Stupid asses. I already told the boss we needed some serious emergency training around that place. Top it all off, I flew to Dallas for 4-days the next morning, came home Friday night, and went back Sunday morning and returned again this past Monday afternoon. Not a good time to be out of town.

My dad's best friend, a man I have know since I was 5, had a live or die heart procedure the next Friday by a heart surgeon flown in from the Cleveland Clinic. He survived it and is doing remarkably well for a 90-year old. And, we are still awaiting results of my Dad's tests. He has good and bad days. Good news is, although I quit smoking easily on Chantrix, I started again this summer due to the incredible stress load. But, my assistant at work smokes and it was such a wakeup call to everyone that we all decided to quit with her. Everybody is going on Chantrix and quitting at the same time, as a Xmas present to our families and friends, and especially ourselves. This is good, since we will all have a built-in support group!

I finally got around to logging on my personal computer yesterday to find a couple of friends in need. I hope both of you the best and you know I will do what I can to help out. All the best to you in your efforts.

It is amazing how many flippin' updates a computer requires after two weeks. I finally got through them all this morning. I also discovered that the battery to my laptop was dead as a doornail. The battery in my last laptop lasted well over 2.5 years. This one barely made it to 1.5 years and I rarely use it on battery mode. I ordered another plus 2GB of memory! I can't wait for the memory. If it would have let me, I would of added 4GB of memory. I also remembered what my Mother wanted for her birthday and ordered her some wireless TV headphones. Poor woman is about dead as a stone, even with $3,000 in brand new hearing aids. So, let me tell ya, that TV is LOUD! I can't wait. It is more of a present to me then her. Dad's birthday is coming up as well, and I found a replacement for his travel bar case, which was difficult as hell to find, unless used or vintage. But, it is nicer than what he lost on his last road trip, so I hope he likes it.

I also won a scholarship for certification in Economic Development. Pretty cool and expensive. This costs more than a semester at a university carrying 18-hours credit. Fortunately, it isn't right away.

Off to brunch, back in a flash. Yum......thick French Toast and hand-cut bacon.

Cool news: My niece is working for a producer now with Lionsgate Films vetting scripts, among many other things. Very cool! She also co-produced the Texas version of the PBS series on WWII with was shown in the past two weeks based on Ken Burns' PBS World War II documentary, "The War." My parents are in the Texas version and my mom is in the ad they play on PBS announcing the show. They even show a telegram my mother sent to my father when she hadn't heard from him and was worried.

I need to share some extraordinary photographs of sidewalk art that are so good, that even I can't quite believe it. These are actually drawings on the sidewalk itself, not 3-D objects placed on the sidewalk. Julian Beever has some serious perspective talent (Julian Beever's Website). Click image to enlarge in a seperate window.

Watch how the "Pavement Picasso" does it:

So, what's happening in the blogosphere, you ask? Let's find out who is ruling over adversity this past week and knocking down (sitting on?) the obstacles in their path:

Ripley of Zen Cabin found employment!!!!!!! Ya Freakin' Hoo! Congrats hot stuff! Rip's buyin'! BTW, he's a QUITTER, too!

HA! The Rude One asks the President three questions. Seriously. Congrats on 5 years of running hilarity and rudeness.

B-sides, I like the Music Slut's rareties.

Carpetbagger has a Jonah-Limbaugh Limp Dick Theory

The American Street spys the Cult of Phonyism

Reason Magazine must read: The Week Everything Changed Edition

Pushing Rope on Love Story: Remake

Norwegianity campaigns to Stop Hillary

Jesus' General loves Larry Craig (and, so can you!)

James Walcott's tooth and consequences

Dohiyi Mir ..... and lookin' cuz....well, do you have Skype? (check out the beautiful photographs throughout as well)

Blog Meridian on A stretch of river XLIII: Wind and Wallace Stevens

Atlantic Free Press' Paul Balles on Quackery from the Podium

Acephlaous' revisions: Big-Tooth belongs to the Folk (with musical accompaniment)

Gotta go jump in the shower folks and get to that movie. Have a fabulous day and tell me more of what's going on in the comments section. Really, I need to know.

tag: columbus, columbus day, native indian, north america, bahamas, san salvador, indigenous people, celebration of genocide, colubus protests, the valley of elah, heart attack, men, women, aspirin, birthdays, presents, friends, computer updates, computer memory, computer battery, schlolarship, niece, lionsgate films, the war, ken burns, julian beever, pavement picasso, adversity obstacles, employment, job, president, bush, anniversaries, b-sides, music, jonah, limbaugh, cult, hillary, larry craig, computer sex, walkin the dog, quacks, theory, movie, comments

:: Naked Brunch: Austin City Limits Edition ::

This past summer has managed to wreck my website traffic by reducing it to about 15% of what I had managed to build up since May of 2005. I even missed my two-year anniversary. Those of you that have stuck, you are demi-gods and goddesses. (Either that or you have been too lazy to remove me from your feed reader.) I appreciate your loyalty/constancy.

Even though I did not receive any help whatsoever at my job as a result of the hell of this past summer, I haven't quit my job. I am either a complete and utter masochist and/or I have some loyalties there that are difficult to break. I suspect both are true. Shit.... they need me. Even if I get slapped around for my efforts.

I love the fall and it's coming my way in Texas, even if the weather isn't exactly cooperating. The coffee shops are beginning to serve all those wondrous spicy confections and warm beverages that just warm my heart and soul. I even found a pumpkin spice coffee creamer at the grocer last week. Yum. In October/November, it's going to be time for a camping trip to Lost Maples. I just purchased K10D Pentax Digital camera with convertible lens capability. I can use any Pentax lens I want with this gorgeous and amazing camera, right off the shelf of some used camera equipment store. I can get a Pentax DA 50-200mm f/4-5.6 ED Lens for about $180 bucks. It comes without a lens or with a standard 15-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. Right now the price at Amazon is $705 with the 15-55mm lens. I paid more and this is on sale, down from over $1,500. In this scenario, I recommend buying the 15-55mm lens with the Amazon price since the difference without the lens is a mere $17. If you need a camera, I highly recommend this one. It is a beautiful camera. I can not imagine ever needing another one. However, this isn't a camera for the pocket camera enthusiast. It is also pricey and similar to my 20-year old 35mm Pentax in size and weight. I consider this is a semi-professional camera. With some lense upgrades.....? Anyways, I am planning on a weekend in Lost Maples, me and my camera, the little tent and my youngest dog in a month or so, when the fall weather puts a cold scent up my nose.

Austin City Limits Music Festival is live this weekend and you can watch it online via the AT&T Blue room!!! The last day of the festival begins at 12:45 PM CST. The following is today's schedule:

• 12:45, Willy Mason - bio
• 1:30, The National - bio
• 2:30, Robert Earl Keen - bio
• 3:30, DeVotchKa - bio
• 4:30, Lucinda Williams - bio
• 5:30, Regina Spektor - bio
• 6:30, Ben Kweller - bio
• 7:30, Nicole Atkins & The Sea - bio
• 7:45, Ghostland Observatory - bio
• 8:30, Bloc Party - bio
• 9:30, THE ARCADE FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The White Stripes bailed as the finale for this event according to what I have read - due to a nervous breakdown. On Friday, The Arcade Fire was taped at the ACL studios and they will be replacing the White Stripes. Works for me.........bigtime!
  

Get a FREE 2007 ACL Festival 10-pack download via iTunes. Get it before it's too late. I downloaded mine this morning and recommend Heartless Bastards, Tokoyo Police Club, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Art Brut, Bloc Party, The Cribs, and Indigo Girls.

After dealing with intense local politics and intrigue for the last four months, none of which I can write about, I pretty much turned off the news, outside of those rare moments when I thought I could deal with just a little more. Since things have calmed down for me on the local front, I'm little by little leaping back into the fray. To say I would have any depth of knowledge of National politics at this time much less National and World news would be a serious understatement. I know nothing. And, I'm so blind, I had to buy new glasses. At lease the new frames are Italian design and awesome. (Aging sucks. Yes, if you have any mental acuity whatsoever, you gain knowledge and hopefully wisdom, but the failures of your body parts starts to mount up. Fuck it. I want a replacement program. Especially when someone I haven't seen in 6-months tells me I look ragged and worn out.)

So, let's see what everyone else knows and maybe I can catch up a bit.

Greenwald ala Michael Mukasey (or, is it the other way around - I nominate Glenn!), our next Attorney General? (Alberto's resignation was such a blip on my radar....)

Bush ala Obsidian Wings ... Priceless... Like necromancy, or fucking the dead, yet more disgusting, even for Bush.

The U.S. Military ala The Carpetbagger Report .... it's about fuckin' time. Hmmm.....Ripley has this picture of Cheney and the Marines. Maybe that explains it a bit. You know, it just dawned on me. I've been virtually out of sync and pocket for over 4 months, and not much has changed except some of the details. It's like watching a freakin' soap opera. You can't ever miss too much, because it's always the same....one way or the other.

Frankly, I'm sickened by the constant 9/11 rhetoric, which is why I rarely refer my readers to anything resembling such. However, one non-such article was published by the Washington Post on the 9/11 anniversary. Thank you for this: 5 Myths About Terrorism

On Culture ala Talk Show Hosts....may most of them rot in their own exclusive hell. What is the deal with self-aggrandizing awards shows? Personally, I can't stand them any more than I can the Miss America contest. World Peace my ass. You ever see one of those bitches risk their precious beautiful ass to bring about World Peace?

Playing Chicken ala The Presdent ... stupid dangerous insane sonofabitch. And, I wasn't talking about Iran. As far as my opinion matters, Bush/Cheney are the terrorists.

Acephalous ala The Best Of, Part Deus ... I love this guy. Read the melody and humor of his written word and you will as well. Eric and the Jaws of Life is particularly hilarious!!! Believe me, I just read it again and I almost dropped my laptop computer on the floor whilst laughin' my ass off. And, near and dear to my heart in more ways than one: Leonard Cohen's "How to Speak Poetry," How He Spoke Poetry, and How Poetry Shouldn't Be Spoken Eric of Straight White Guy would appreciate this one. Besides he seems to be obsessed with Squirrel Sex (and it isn't the first time either) appears to need distraction. {smilin'} Gotta love a solid obsession.

Dohiyi Mir protests! I particularly like Peace Bitch....but check them all out. (Ahem....well....how about a same sex public toilet.....nudge me....) Well, maybe Jesus' General has it figured out.

Chris Floyd leaves us with some tunes while he embraces some history and companionship for a few daze.

I must say, The National is playing right now at the ACL Fest and they certainly have a song or two that sound like a little band called Arcade Fire. Have a listen and tell me what you think. I think the singer is also a huge early days David Byrne fan among some other I could name. I rather like them and their Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!! Rude Pundit ala Bush Trying to Get Us Off!

Sugar Land is Dreaming about fucking monkeys and Russian sustainability

You Ain't No Picasso has some songs from the performers at ACL Fest.

Check these music blogs for ACL Fest info, music and reviews: Spinner.com and Stereogum

Brunch: French Toast and Pumpkin Spice-laced java.

Naked: In about ten minutes, me, my shower wand and a bit of rosemary-mint bath oil in the only part of my bathroom left in working order - the bathtub (remodeling). Self-love. Ain't it grand. Have a good one yourself.

tag: ACL, Austin City Limits Festival, Arcade Fire, loyalty, masochism, fall, Lost Maples, Pentax K10D, life, aging, Greenwald, Mukasey, Bush, Marines, Cheney, Military poll, 5 myths about terrorism, culture, talk show hosts, bush plays chicken with Iran, Acephalous, Squirrel sex, Dohiyi Mir, war protest, peace bitch, Jesus' General, Chris Floyd, The National, Rude Pundit, Sugar Land is Dreaming, Zen Cabin, monkeys, sustainability, You Ain't No Picasso, Spinner, Stereogum, self-love