The news is already several days old, Osama Bin Laden is dead. I am still in shock I guess, which explains why I didnt post this when it was REALLY news. America has hated him for so long, now that he’s not around to hate any longer, I feel a bit like a popped balloon. Not that I spent a lot of time really hating him, but the knowledge that he was still alive somewhere was a big daily slap in the face after 9/11. Ok, after several days of constant news coverage, I’ve gradually come to terms with it.
What’s really ODD to me, though, is the way the conservatives are trying to spin this–that somehow it was either illegal, or that George W. Bush deserves the credit for his death. Aside from the obvious (and laughable) tendency of conservatives to denigrate anything our current President does, it appears they are attempting to alter reality by giving credit to a man who deserves none. George W. Bush was NOT responsible for Osama’s death, that bumbler couldnt even read cue cards correctly. The amount of spin and propaganda that the right-wing is promoting is actually starting to be scary, because (sadly) there is a very large swath of intellectually uncurious Americans who swallow whole whatever the talking heads on Faux News spoon feed them. And that is sad, because we as a nation are now populated with a large block of non-thinkers, mindless sheep easily herded. They parted company with reality so long ago, they dont recognize it any more. So, like the good people of Emerald City, they believe in a fantasy, and care not that they are being manipulated.
Too bad Toto isnt around to move that curtain aside and expose these liars for what they are…
HONOLULU – Until this week, Hawaii officials said they wouldn’t release original birth records for anyone, under any circumstances. Even if it was President Barack Obama.
Then they heard from the president himself.
“I am writing to request two certified copies of my original certificate of live birth,” the president wrote on White House letterhead, dated April 22.
State officials then decided to make an exception to a 2001 policy that prohibited anyone from getting a photocopy of an original birth certificate. They usually hand out computer-generated versions.
Obama’s waiver was the first since 2001. Officials said it would be the last.
By Wednesday, Obama had his copies, releasing them to dispel questions from so-called “birthers” and some Republicans who believe he wasn’t born in the U.S. and therefore is ineligible to be president.
At a news conference, he pleaded for the long “sideshow” to end. Many of the skeptics suggest Obama was actually born in Kenya, his father’s home country, or Indonesia, where he spent a few years of his childhood.
Since Obama’s election, the state was inundated with up to 20 weekly requests for various birth records related to Obama, although that number has since dropped significantly.
It got to the point where legislators passed a law allowing state officials to ignore the repeated requests.
In recent days, potential Republican presidential candidate and reality TV star Donald Trump began questioning why Obama had not ensured the original be released.
On April 22, Obama and his personal attorney wrote letters to Health Director Loretta Fuddy.
In them, they argued that a waiver would allow Obama to make public his original birth certificate and relieve the state from the burdens that came with the repeated inquiries.
“We hope that issuing certified copies of the original certificate of live birth to President Obama will end the numerous inquiries related to his birth in Hawaii,” Fuddy said in a prepared statement Wednesday.
Fuddy said she viewed the records and that they “further prove the fact that he was born in Hawaii.”
After Fuddy approved the exception, Obama’s attorney, Judith L. Corley, picked up the documents in Hawaii and carried them back to Washington on a plane. The documents arrived around 5 p.m. Tuesday.
State law prohibits the release of birth records except to those with a “tangible interest,” such as the person named.
Only computer-generated birth certificates have been issued since May 2001. The 2001 policy was created to satisfy requests for certified copies and to comply with state laws restricting disclosure of some birth details.
Before then, photocopies of original birth records were provided.
Hawaii’s computer-generated birth certificates carry a raised state seal and a signature stamp from the state registrar. They’re valid documents for obtaining driver’s licenses and other government documents.
That’s the type of birth certificate the Obama campaign released in 2008. The computer-generated version does not include such details as the signatures of the mother and the delivering doctor.
Last Tuesday, the state attorney general’s office said there were “no circumstances” when the state would release original birth records.
Officials said Wednesday that the exception for Obama complied with the law, and they would continue to protect the confidentiality of vital statistics, such as birth records.
Obama paid $14 for the copies, said Donalyn Dela Cruz, a spokeswoman for Democratic Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who knew Obama’s parents and says he had laid eyes on a young Obama.
“Considering all the investigations that have been done and the information that has been provided, no rational person can question the president’s citizenship,” Abercrombie said in a prepared statement.
“We have found a way — once again — to confirm what we already knew.”
You may or may not know I am a Guv’ment flunkie. I administer Public Assistance benefits to the needy. I am expected to treat every client with courtesy, dignity, and respect, and to be pleasant, and compassionate. Ive always believed in that standard, and done my best to adhere to it, even during difficult interviews, with angry clients, with clients under the influence, stressed out, homeless in some cases, battered in others…but all as individuals with unique situations.
Yesterday, I got distracted upon coming to work, my boss asked me to step in and assist a co-worker by completing his appointments because he was out sick. I didnt get a chance to put my purse away, and didnt realize that it was missing for several hours. Also my keys, which were attached to my purse. I hurried out to the parking lot, thinking my car might also be stolen but it was still there thank goodness.
I called my car insurance company, and requested lockout assistance, hoping my purse might be actually locked inside, but it was not. It was then I realized, my purse had been stolen by one of the very people I was knocking myself out to help! And the real kicker was, I was informed I could not give a list of possible suspect names to the Police because we had a duty to protect confidentiality! Personally, I think that STINKS! Any job that puts customers ahead of its own employees, especially when the employee was the victim of a crime, is a CRAPPY job.
I notified the Sergeant on duty that my boss told me I couldnt give any names, and he said ‘well, we’ll just send an officer over to talk to your boss in person.’ HAH!
Im so mad right now, because I know that we do fraud investigations all the time, and there isnt that concern about confidentiality with the fraud investigator–who happens to work for the DA!
It just proves to me (AGAIN) that my job does not value me as an employee nor as a person. Well, we’ll see about THAT.
Well, its been a year since my Leprechaun alter ego last graced these pages, and I’ve gotta say, Ive missed the rascal! I think its his snappy fashion sense that keeps me fascinated, or perhaps his devilish grin (which probably means mischief for some other poor soul!)…but whatever the reason, he’s back, which means the REAL party can now commence!
Ive just been informed that a couple of his good friends–Hoops and YoYo–recorded their best effort of a classic Irish tune, So, without further ado–Hoops and YoYo Ladies and Gents!
I wish I could afford to upgrade to hosting video clips, alas this poor single mom aint made of dough! But if I were, I’d host THIS
Over in my neck of the woods, there is a very popular Irish group called the PUB SCOUTS. Im sure they’ll be playing at Duffy’s Tavern later, and if you’re in the vicinity of Chico, CA, stop in and enjoy their impromptu jam sessions!
May everyone have a blast today, listen to some Irish music, tell Irish jokes, eat some corned beef, and if you’re so inclined, a drop of the spirit! Wear some green and dont forget to KISS the IRISH!
In the merry month of May, from me home I started,
Left the girls of Tuam sad and broken hearted,
saluted father dear, kissed me darling mother,
drank a pint of beer my grief and sorrow to smother….
So begins one of the catchiest tunes to ever come out of the Emerald Isle: Rocky Road to Dublin. I love this song, my first exposure to it came on a CD that was a collaboration between the Chieftains and various famous musical performers of Irish descent. The name of the CD is Long Black Veil and it is frankly AWESOME! This particular song is performed by the Chieftains and The Rolling Stones, and it is just one big Hooley! At the end, a step dancer even chimes in to give a nice rhythmic percussion counterpoint.
Many folks prefer the Dubliners’ version, and I found a nice vocal version by the late Luke Kelly
and here are the lyrics in case you want to sing along:
While in the merry month of May from me home I started,
Left the girls of Tuam so sad and broken hearted,
Saluted father dear, kissed me darling mother,
Drank a pint of beer, me grief and tears to smother,
Then off to reap the corn, leave where I was born,
Cut a stout black thorn to banish ghosts and goblins;
Bought a pair of brogues rattling o’er the bogs
And fright’ning all the dogs on the rocky road to Dublin.
One, two, three four, five,
Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road
all the way to Dublin, Whack follol de rah !
In Mullingar that night I rested limbs so weary,
Started by daylight next morning blithe and early,
Took a drop of pure to keep me heartfrom sinking;
Thats a Paddy’s cure whenever he’s on drinking.
See the lassies smile, laughing all the while
At me curious style, ‘twould set your heart a bubblin’
Asked me was I hired, wages I required,
I was almost tired of the rocky road to Dublin.
One, two, three four, five,
Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road
all the way to Dublin, Whack follol de rah !
In Dublin next arrived, I thought it such a pity
To be soon deprived a view of that fine city.
So then I took a stroll, all among the quality;
Me bundle it was stole, all in a neat locality.
Something crossed me mind, when I looked behind,
No bundle could I find upon me stick a wobblin’
Enquiring for the rogue, they said me Connaught brogue
Wasn’t much in vogue on the rocky road to Dublin.
One, two, three four, five,
Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road
all the way to Dublin, Whack follol de rah !
From there I got away, me spirits never falling,
Landed on the quay, just as the ship was sailing.
The Captain at me roared, said that no room had he;
When I jumped aboard, a cabin found for Paddy.
Down among the pigs, played some hearty rigs,
Danced some hearty jigs, the water round me bubbling;
When off Holyhead I wished meself was dead,
Or better for instead on the rocky road to Dublin.
One, two, three four, five,
Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road
all the way to Dublin, Whack follol de rah !
Well the boys of Liverpool, when we safely landed,
Called meself a fool, I could no longer stand it.
Blood began to boil, temper I was losing;
Poor old Erin’s Isle they began abusing.
“Hurrah me soul” says I, me Shillelagh I let fly.
Some Galway boys were nigh and saw I was a hobblin’,
With a load “hurray !” joined in the affray.
We quickly cleared the way for the rocky road to Dublin.
One, two, three four, five,
Hunt the Hare and turn her down
the rocky road and all the way to Dublin,
Whack follol de rah !
I dont know about you, but Im really looking forward to St Patricks day this year!
As I write this, it is 2:18am Friday morning. The heater just shut off and the house is too quiet except for the sound of my Siamese, Shao Lin, calling to her ghost babies as she carries a sock throughout the house. Of all the cats Ive ever had, hers is the most cringe-worthy voice Ive ever heard from a cat. She sounds like she is being strangled. She cant drink water normally either, so perhaps she WAS strangled before she came to me. Thanks to the help of a local spay/neuter program in my town, I was able to get her fixed at little to no cost because I guaranteed I’d give her a forever home (she adopted me). Apparently she was in heat or pregnant when she was fixed, because she had milk after the operation, and she began carrying socks and underwear all over the house in the wee hours of the night. Which brings me back to the point of my post: it sucks being the only one awake (aside from a misguided maternal feline) in the wee hours of the night, every night.
Most times my brain wont shut down, no matter how many tricks I try to play on it…My mom tells me it runs in the family, she does it, my Grandma did it…all I can say is *yay* (sarcasm intended)
It’d be ok if I had the kind of job where I could telecommute or log in hours via internet (hell, I’d be rich!) but Im not that lucky. Instead, Im sitting in an uncomfortable chair, trying to keep my feet from being licked to death, watching my cat deposit dirty socks throughout the house, and watching the snow pile up outside. I wont be going to work tomorrow, my car isnt running right, and school will probably be closed. And yet….the power is still on, Im surrounded by a boy (and 5 animals) who love me, my bills are paid, there’s gas in the car and I can keep my pajamas on tomorrow if I want.
Maybe insomnia isnt all that bad after all, because even if I cant sleep like I’d like to, at least I can count my blessings while the house is (almost) quiet, and appreciate the little things that make life good. All this philosophizing has actually made my eyes a little droopy….gonna go road test that old pillow after all 🙂
The other day I was browsing through the applications still available via Apple Downloads (they now offer software via their App Store) when I found a neat application called iDeskCal by HashBang Industries. It synchronizes with the iCal (short for calendar) application by putting an event reminder page between your desktop and your wallpaper/screensaver. I’ve often wished I had a visible version of iCal without having to actually open it up, so I downloaded the application and played around with it and had some fun personalizing it and decided after about 15 minutes I would gladly pay the nominal shareware fee. Unfortunately for me, there was a glitch in the license code that was sent to me, the application kept rejecting the code. So, I contacted the developer, Dallas Brown. Several times. Apparently that may have been an issue because when Dallas got back to me he said my emails were in his spam folder for some reason. (Guess I contacted him too much?) At any rate, I was becoming more frustrated as time went by, nothing I was doing seemed to be working; I sent a final email saying ‘make this right or refund my money.’ It was then I realized I had gotten a response from Dallas, so I notified him about my issue. Dallas sent me another license code, and everything worked the way it was supposed to. I alerted Dallas that everything was working quite nicely and thanked him for making it right. Realizing that he had probably not gotten my last email, I warned him there was probably one message still outstanding from me, and to just disregard it.
To my embarrassment, he not only read it, but he actually refunded my money! I emailed him back and offered to re-pay, since the application was working the way it was supposed to, and he said no, it was more important to him to have a happy customer. I have to say, I was a bundle of conflicting emotions at that point: Guilt, Relief, Gratitude…and something else, Resolve. I decided that the least I could do would be to spread the word that this man, by virtue of his commitment to customer service, stood head and shoulders above others who live by the credo ‘what’s in it for me?’ I can vouch for this man, this company and this product. My only regret is that Im not able to use more of their applications (I dont have an iPhone, sadly, although I hope to someday).
Any iPhone or Mac users out there who are interested in seeing what this company has to offer can go HERE. Everyone else will just miss out. And thats a shame…
The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:
The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Fresher than ever.
Crunchy numbers
A helper monkey made this abstract painting, inspired by your stats.
A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 6,600 times in 2010. That’s about 16 full 747s.
In 2010, there were 15 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 192 posts. There were 9 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 167kb. That’s about a picture per month.
The busiest day of the year was December 2nd with 61 views. The most popular post that day was Yukon Cornelius! .
Where did they come from?
The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, sports.yahoo.com, search.aol.com, tips-tools-tutorials.com, and search.conduit.com.
Some visitors came searching, mostly for joker, yukon cornelius, captain underpants, hannibal lecter, and malcom reynolds.
Attractions in 2010
These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.
The other day I was shopping in a local grocery store and I heard a snippet of the song “The Man who shot Liberty Valance” playing on the store loudspeaker. I always loved this song as a kid, and hearing it was a nice treat. Of course, the song played in my head for the next few days since my head seems to think I like a constant stream of background music…
Several days later, I decided to look for the tune on YouTube, and found a nice video where the original song was paired with actual footage from the John Ford movie starring John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Lee Marvin as Liberty Valance. The basic plot for the movie is this: A Rancher, Tom Doniphon, (played by John Wayne) has the hots for local cutie named Hallie (played by Vera Miles), who falls for fancy pants lawyer by the name of Ransom Stoddard (played by Jimmy Stewart) who comes to town from back East somewhere. Local bad guy Liberty decides he doesnt like Ransom (on principle I guess) and humiliates him every chance he gets. Tom sees how pathetic Ransom is with a gun and attempts to teach him how to shoot. Liberty has a run in or two with Tom but recognizes Tom cant be bullied so that goes nowhere really. Eventually, Ransom is fed up with Liberty’s bullying and decides to face him man to man in a gunfight which he seems to win. Ransom goes on to more fame and fortune with Hallie by his side, and the last scene in the video shows Jimmy Stewart on a train with Hallie (who is now his wife), and the conductor of the train makes a comment about “nothing’s too good for the man who shot Liberty Valance!” (Liberty robbed his fair share of trains Im thinking). Ransom pauses while lighting his pipe and his wife Hallie looks ahead strangely stony faced.
Happy ending yes? NO. In another clip (removed by Paramount Pictures), you learn that there were 2 gunmen facing Liberty that night…the one you see (Ransom), and the one you didnt see (Tom). In a weird twist, Tom claims HE shot Liberty instead of Ransom. Now why would he do this? The movie would have us believe that Tom shot Liberty so that the lady he secretly loves (Hallie) can have the man SHE loves (Ransom)…but I have some reservations about this scenario: if Tom was so all-fired good with a gun, and he had a mind to shoot Liberty himself, why did he wait until Ransom faced him? Why hide in the shadows? And WHY, if he was going to shoot from the shadows, would he then claim to Ransom that it was HE who killed Liberty? For the traditional explanation, please visit this blog. This video by New York Times critic A.O. Scott pretty much echoes the foregoing explanation and I include it because it shows the two gunmen actually facing Liberty that night.
I maintain that Tom, while admittedly good with a gun was nonetheless cowardly because he shot in secret and claimed the credit in private, and in so doing emasculated his rival. Think about it. Ransom is about to leave town because he is ashamed of killing Liberty and doesnt want a career based on that killing. What better way to get the final dig at a rival than to claim to have been the actual means behind the death of a bully? Ransom’s openly brave gunfight is now tainted by the thought that he didnt actually succeed after all, and that someone else had to do it for him. That’s pretty diabolical if you ask me.
When you see the first clip it looks to me like Ransom DOES kill Liberty. The timing was right, the angle was right…Here’s what the Lyrics had to say:
Everyone heard two shots ring out, a shot made liberty fall
The man who shot liberty valance, he shot liberty valance
He was the bravest of them all.
Everyone heard 2 shots, right? So either Tom shot at exactly the same moment as Liberty –or–Tom shot at the same time as Ransom and took advantage of Ransom’s insecurities by claiming to have shot Liberty. Ive watched that 2nd clip over and over and at the key moment seems to show that Tom fired at the same moment as Ransom, which just seems a bit too pat to me. What would Tom have said if Liberty actually managed to hit Ransom? Would he come out of the shadows? There’s also the equally valid possibility that Tom MISSED Liberty and the only shot that killed him was Ransom’s. We never know the truth because no autopsy is mentioned so we dont know how many bullet wounds Liberty actually died from.
Personally, I think Ransom was ROBBED, because he was the only one there actually facing Liberty and putting his own life on the line. Either way, I hope Tom Doniphon died a lonely bitter old man.
Footnote: Unfortunately, due to the moronic studio practice of claiming copyrights to what should by now be public domain, the reader no longer has the luxury of the visual impact provided by the former video clips posted here. I apologize for that, and hope that one day these same studios can pull their collective heads out and allow them to be posted again. Until then, I wont be holding my breath….
My brother has been going to Burning Man for more years than I can keep track of now. I lost count after 5. Im sure its at least twice that many but anyway…
Going to Burning Man has almost taken on an aura akin to right of passage: you go, you get naked (and sunburned) you dance, you experience, and you are changed forever. You start planning next year’s trip before this year’s event is over. Ive seen the pictures, and I can understand why. Not since the 60’s has there been as freely expressed a philosophy as Burning Man. I think the concept has far outdistanced its original theme, but some things remain the same: you must not leave any trace of your presence on the Playa when you leave, and you must revel in the absolute abandon of artistic expression.
The highlight of the festival, of course, is the burning of the Man, a ginormous structure that can be seen anywhere on the Playa, and whether you choose to associate ancient Pagan Straw Man overtones or just enjoy the sight of something burning like an upright bonfire, the whole point is to enjoy yourself (while being ecologically responsible of course).
My brother recently retired, and was not sure how he’d fill his days…but according to my mom, the matter has been entirely resolved without his feedback. He has been working with the Flaming Lotus Girls, and more recently, he helped create the Syzygryd that was this year’s Burning Man attraction. My brother is a welder, and he’s a damn good one. He’s been certified for computer welding, and for other top end welding procedures. Im sure he never expected to see his skills utilized in quite this way:
Its ALL Blarney!! 
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