There's a NEW Mexico?

[edited] Happy Statehood Day to New Mexico, which became a state on this day in 1912. It's the Land of Enchantment, the land of unfortunate aliens. I mean, if you were to crash ANYWHERE in the galaxy, would you pick someplace exactly halfway between El Paso and Lubbock? There are some people who don't seem to realize that New Mexico is part of the United States. Oh well, Americans don't generally excel in geography.

I've lived there a couple of times. My dad was transferred there, and a whole bunch of relatives followed us there from the midwest and never left! They love that place! It's a fine place and pretty enough but they can keep it, I never cared for it. Sprol featured the Albuquerque nukes recently on their "Worst Places in the World": Kirkland Underground Munitions Storage Complex (KUMSC) feature.

If Albuquerque were to secede from the union, it would immediately become our planet's third largest nuclear power. Certainly this, paired with the location of Sandia National Laboratories in close proximity to the world's largest nuclear weapons depot near the runways of the Sunport, paints a huge bull's eye over Albuquerque for anyone who is angry with our country.

Google sightseeing! Gotta love it! The title of this post is a quote from Montgomery Burns of the Simpsons.

Some new favorites!

Just wanted to mention some new blog links over on the sidebar that I've added in the past week. All well worth reading, I'm not going to try and categorize, just check 'em out yourself. There's The DrewL Bucket, Cerulean Blue (even though I used to paint in oils, that phrase will forever remind me of the X-Files), Pam's House Blend, and Spicy Cauldron (Jeen Lilly, I recommend this to you!). Godless Mom in the Bible Belt says she is going on blogging hiatus and will take the whole thing down soon, so you might want to check hers out while it's still there.

Friday Cat Togetherness

Not much going on in the world of Duncan and Henry this week, as you can see! So much time, so little to do!

I found a really fun flickr slideshow via Me and the Cat called Airborne Cats, and these are some wild and crazy cats! A lot more energetic than our two who have only managed enough energy to cram into the same bed.

And in a heroic cat story this week, a cat dials 911 and saves his human.

Love those small motor skills!


- Friday Ark - Carnival of the Cats - This week's carnival is at pages turned on Sunday - Cats - Catblogging -

Can grass get a parking ticket?

Now it can! My husband sent me a link to what I think is a pretty weird product. It's called "Park(ing)", a temporary urban park. You roll out the sod, bring in the tree(s) and bench, then feed the meter. Instant greenspace! Well... close to instant. I've thrown sod before (and never will again).

Not sure why someone would want this. Maybe just "because".

Finally catching a breather here, off the wheel, and planning on taking the whole evening off!! Going to veg, watch TV and be generally worthless and non-productive. I will pay for this offence later, I'm sure. The guilt is already setting in. The wheel starts turning agin at 5:00 AM and, by gawd I'd better be walkin' on it! I think I might be overworked.

It's a hamster week.

Man, I am working like Jelly again (Garden State reference), can't seem to figure a way off this wheel. It's a miracle I've been able to waste ANY time! ;-)

Hopefully there will be something to show for it someday, something positive.

No admittance except on party business!

This is the birthday of J. R. R. Tolkien, who would have been eleventy-four today, January 3rd!

- Tolkien -

Counting the seconds.

I've got a new little countdown thingy on my sidebar showing the number of days, hours, minutes and seconds remaining in Bush's prez time (which I found through People's Republic of Seabrook). Then I thought, well what if he's impeached? New code would have to written for it. Sounds like a great thing, and I'm all for it, but then who have we got? President Cheney? And if Cheney dies or is impeached, then who? Sheeesh!

How in the hell did this happen?

Here we go again!

Intelligence indications and warnings abound as Bush administration finalizes military attack on Iran 2006-01-03
Intelligence and military sources in the United States and abroad are reporting on various factors that indicate a U.S. military hit on Iranian nuclear and military installations, that may involve tactical nuclear weapons, is in the final stages of preparation. -- Plausible Futures

This one could very well give us an up-close and and personal look at some real WMDs if this happens, and maybe not just over there. Does anyone doubt the real likelihood of the US going after Iran? Is fake intelligence already prepared? With BushCo dropping in the ratings, I wonder if they think a fresh enemy would help their cause... not that Iran is all that *fresh*.
- Iran - nukes - WMD -

Blonde joke

This blonde joke is really pretty funny!

What City Limits?

Looks like Austin City Limits has definitely left the area. Here's the lineup for Season 31 now in progress and it's a really great lineup for an excellent music program, but I only see one Austin Act on the list of new broadcasts: Spoon. I suppose you could count Sheryl Crow who is here for Lance (and not exactly working her butt off in the club scene)... but anyway... I'm just sayin'...

Michael McDonald followed by Joss Stone, Elvis Costello, Coldplay, Blues Traveler followed by Café Tacuba, Ryan Adams followed by Tift Merritt, Widespread Panic, Gretchen Wilson followed by Miranda Lambert, Death Cab for Cutie followed by My Morning Jacket, John Fogerty, Sheryl Crow, Wilco followed by Bright Eyes, Modest Mouse followed by Guided By Voices, The Flaming Lips followed by The Shins, Trey Anastasio, Jack Johnson followed by Rilo Kiley, Alison Krauss and Union Station followed by Kathleen Edwards, Etta James, Ben Folds followed by Ray LaMontagne, The Killers followed by Spoon, John Prine followed by Amos Lee, Franz Ferdinand followed by What Made Milwaukee Famous

I think it's a little sad.

- Music - Austin -

His Darwin Award was nearly ready!

Not a good choice for a pet!

via Fark.

This kind of thing really pisses me off!

FEMA throws away a million cans of donated water.

There are just so many things wrong with that! At least they recycled the cans. I wish we could recycle FEMA.

- FEMA - Waste - Katrina - Rita -

You don't know what you've got until it's gone.

This December 30th show at the Continental Club was more important than all the New Year's Eve shows in Austin. Dale Watson is moving to Baltimore to drive a UPS truck and spend more time with his kids. Read about it in the Austin Chronicle, and click title bar for his website. Dale is a Texas country music legend with a very devoted following all over the world, and people showed up for this little show from lots of states. It was as much a party as a show, as Dale was doing plenty of chatting and storytelling, talking to the audience, opening and sharing gifts (the pic shows a nice little Texas-shaped cake from the waitress), and drinking plenty of toasts as shots were provided in liberal amounts. More pics from the show are here. Opening was Jon Dee Graham, and Dale's guests were Guy Forsyth (Mr. Ukulele if you have one of Jon Dee's Naked calendars) and Gordy 'Grady" Johnson.

It was a sad goodbye, but a musician's life is not all that family-friendly. The compromises that need to be made are hard on the career and it's tough to find a balance that works out for everybody.

Dale and his devils are the subject of an upcoming documentary called "Crazy Again" and later a full-length feature called "Austin Angel", both from Zalman King (9-1/2 Weeks, Red Shoe Diaries).

Dale plays real country music, and not that plastic cardboard-cutout cowboy crap that Nashville churns out to make the awards shows look pretty. Music without integrity ain't worth listening to.


- Music - Austin - Texas - Texas Music -