My Travels So Far

visited 14 states (6.22%)
Create your own visited map of The World

Basically, if I had a layover there, I was there. I've had a couple of 16 hour layovers in Frankfurt, where I got to go out and enjoy the city or nap in a hotel room. The layover in Heathrow was during the day, so I got to hang out in their mall. I was only in Argentina overnight. I leave for Peru today.


visited 16 states (32%)
Create your own visited map of The United States

I tried to include only the states where I have spent a night, but I've spent enough time in Covington, KY to consider it for the map. I also did visit the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, so I include that one.

MicroBlogging on the Subject of the Television Series Lost

I do not care about this show.

Heydays of the Adirondacks

by M. DeSormo

Mother's in the kitchen
Washing out the jugs,
Judy's in the pantry
Bottling the suds.
Father's in the cellar
Mixing up the hops,
Johnny's on the front porch
Watching for the cops

The Giant #&$%up is Revealed!

Yes, in day two of testimony before the publicly elected leaders of our government, the leaders of huge private companies - and indeed the rest of the world - learned more about the platform explosion that will significantly* #&$% up our Gulf Coast.

This morning, I heard that yesterday, the executives played a little game. Transocean said that this was actually caused by the bad cement job done by Halliburton, and Haliburton puts this right back in the hands of the main company at hand, BP. BP, of course, goes back to Transocean, since it was their equipment.

Apparently, it was shoddy workmanship all around. Someone cut corners, several someones cut corners, and the world pays. The executives didn't have many mea culpas, which is really in their best interest, and they may be equally to blame, after all.

Today, Transocean said that if a certain battery was dead (which it was), their sensors would have told them, but [oops] they were lost in the wreck.

One of our publicly elected leaders responded with

"The American people expect you to have a response comparable to the Apollo project, not 'Project Runway,'" -- Washington Post article by Steven Mufson and David A. Fahrenthold

My take is that we reached the limit of our ability to drill for oil under the ocean. Setting the record ain't all its cracked up to be.

*Well, depending on which state governor you hear. Crist and Jindal are shitting their pants, but, the Mississippi state governor isn't worried at all.

Little Things

Driving down 880 - well, I was going North, so up, but whatever - reminds me that Oakland is not just a place with a bunch of houses and facilities named after famous African Americans, it is often a big craphole.

Driving my Taurus makes me feel like a little old lady, and reminds me of how well we normalize bad situations. After being in my shiny new toy that runs on sunshine and farts, the green car is just that much worse.

I also cannot figure out magnets yet, cuz the only people that ever tell me about them are scientists, and those m^$*@%#&%*ers make me pissed.

Government is Us

I like the meaning of the statements I am reading and hearing. I do wish that the great quotes were grammatically better, or, at least not passive sentences. Short, simple words, spoken in an active tone make for amazing lines.

... the only thing we have to fear is fear itself...

... ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.

Still, many of Obama's lines inspired me, as I hope they can inspire the rest of my fellow citizens.

"We can't expect to solve our problems by tearing each other down."

"...this kind of vilification and over-the-top rhetoric closes the door to the possibility of compromise."

"It may make your blood boil. Your mind may not be changed. But the practice of listening to opposing views is essential for effective citizenship."

"When our government is spoken of as some menacing, threatening foreign entity, it ignores the fact that in our democracy, government is us."

-AP News Story via Yahoo

This is our country, and in our country, we elect representatives to use our collective ability to make our country a great place to be.

Nothing Not to Like

After a nice dinner at the Green Papaya, we saw this:

I may swing by after hiking to see if I really can earn $20 AND protest with kitties. I guess my participation will depend on what they are protesting.