Ice Sage - Don't defeat the feet!

We saw Happy Feet at the IMAX theatre. That's the way to see it, but I really recommend it even on a normal sized screen. Not only is it absolutely delightful, funny, very well-done, has Robin Williams in it, and visually beautiful -- it's leftist propaganda. haven't you heard?

Wingnuttery:
[Youtube]
[Media Matters: CNN's Beck and Fox's Cavuto]
[Google search]

Oh yes, and it manages to makes penguins even cuter than they are. Hard to believe, I know. Hell has frozen over and the ice caps are melting.

Tags: Happy Feet

Will this never end?

Poor Santa there has got "a case of the The Mondays"*

If you're slogging through the pre-holiday doldrums, here's a groove for you, a rare capture of local blues-jazz-fusion guitarist Dave Sebree live. Outstanding! I don't know Dave beyond the "Hi, how ya doing" level, but I love his playing. It's in the water, I'm tellin you.

*a quote from "Office Space" made by local film maker Mike Judge (better known for his cartoons Beavis & Butthead and King of the Hill). It is a must-see for anyone who has ever had a job.

Tags: Music - Austin - Texas - Texas Music

A Bazaar Day

This is the kind of weather we've been having. Nice. Very nice. In spite of that we attempted to escape to the Antarctic for an IMAX viewing of Happy Feet, but have to settle for Sunday on that -- sold out, and the next one was too!


We found our way over to the Blue Genie Art Bazaar, which I highly recommend! All local artists, some fantastic stuff that we couldn't really afford this month, but I found this great t-shirt for only $7!! I love it! Also picked up a truly weird lightswitch cover cheap... AND... it was free to get in... AND there was free booze! I had a couple of glasses of wine... AND no, I didn't need the wine to be persuaded to get this shirt. They had a DJ which I thought was more conducive to shopping than live music, a little Nancy Sinatra in the mix and my boots are made for walkin'.


We'd already planned to go to the Armadillo Christmas Bazaar, which is a very established annual tradition in this town. We usually end up going every year, mainly for the live music acts. It's $5 to get in, and this year we saw our friend Van Wilks, who was absolutely sensational! Yes, he's an excellent guitar player. He teaches guitar at the Austin School of Music, and also at "Guitarland" which is his own operation, and he had invited some of his younger students to show up at the gig and play for the crowd. Cutesters with their guitars and Santa hats. Anyway, the music is the best reason to go to this bazaar I think. It has the same shops every year, the same vendors, and many are not local. Also, no bargains. If it weren't for the bands I wouldn't even go. If you're visiting here in December it's worth doing. Year after year I would call it b-o-r-i-n-g unless you're loaded with money, except for the music. Just my opinion.

Tags: Music - Austin - Texas - Texas Music

123 Tagged!

Nick has tagged me!

Here are the rules:
Find the nearest book.
Name the book
The author
Turn to page 123
Go to the fifth sentence on the page
Copy out the next three sentences and post to your blog. Tag three more folks.

The nearest book, OK, it's not the book I'm currently reading but it's a fairly recently read one.

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
author: John Perkins

I had breakfasted early that morning, and the maitre d' gave me an odd look. I glanced around. Graham Greene sat alone at a table near the wall.

This is a work of non-fiction even though the 3 sentences make it sound like a novel, especially a spy-novel or something, but this book is unfortunately the real thing. A description of an ugly reality that exists in this world today, and the author was part of it before his retirement. The book has a website here, and this is the a brief description of the book there:

In this shocking memoir, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, John Perkins tells of his own inner journey from willing servant of empire to impassioned advocate for the rights of oppressed people. Covertly recruited by the United States National Security Agency and on the payroll of an international consulting firm, he traveled the world—to Indonesia, Panama, Ecuador, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Iran and other strategically important countries. His job was to implement policies that promoted the interests of the U.S. corporatocracy (a coalition of government, banks, and corporations) while professing to alleviate poverty—policies that alienated many nations and ultimately led to September 11 and growing anti-Americanism.

I learned about this book at our UU Church, where Rev. Davidson Loehr talked about it extensively in a sermon. That's one reason I love that man. Here's an interview with John Perkins on the Democracy Now! website.

tagged: Nava, Undeniable Liberal, Hill Country Gal

Things That Hallmark Cards Don't Say

My friend sent me these today. Many of us have been card-shopping lately, and doesn't it get frustrating sending cards to people with insincere greetings on them?

Heard your wife left you,
How upset you must be.
But don't fret about it...
She moved in with me.

---

Looking back over the years
that we've been together,
I can't help but wonder...
"What the hell was I thinking?"

---

Congratulations on your wedding day!
Too bad no one likes your husband.

---

How could two people as beautiful as you
Have such an ugly baby?

---

I've always wanted to have
someone to hold,
someone to love.
After having met you...
I've changed my mind.

---

I must admit, you brought Religion into my life.
I never believed in Hell until I met you.

---

As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am...
That you're not here to ruin it for me.

---

Congratulations on your promotion.
Before you go...

Would you like to take this knife out of my back?

You'll probably need it again.

---

Happy Birthday, Uncle Dad!
(Available only in Tennessee, Kentucky & West Virginia)
(ed. BS, that should be available in more places, believe me)

---

Happy birthday! You look great for your age.
Almost Lifelike!

---

When we were together,
you always said you'd die for me.

Now that we've broken up,

I think it's time you kept your promise.

---

We have been friends for a very long time ...
let's say we stop?

---

I'm so miserable without you
it's almost like you're here.

---

Congratulations on your new bundle of joy.
Did you ever find out who the father was?

---

Your friends and I wanted to do
something special for your birthday.

So we're having you put to sleep.

---

So your daughter's a hooker,
and it spoiled your day.

Look at the bright side,

it's really good pay.

Food for Thought

There's a research study out now that suggests that kids with high IQs are more likely to be adult vegetarians [HealthDay] [British Medical Journal]. hmmm. Wow! I would love it if I really believed this, and I wish it were true. (I disagree more with the assumptions made in the HealthDay article than the conclusions drawn by the study itself.)

First of all, 33.6% of the self-reported vegetarians in the study admitted eating fish and chicken. ummm... those aren't vegetables. When I started down this veggie road, I did it slowly, starting by giving up beef, then pork, then chicken... continued to eat fish for about the first 5 years of it and called myself a "fish-eating vegetarian", but you know what? That's an oxymoron. It doesn't exist. You can be "almost vegetarian" or an "evolving vegetarian" but not a "fish-eating vegetarian". So, their data are skewed by 33.6% not being what they are claiming that they are, although they've stated that the correlation is there nonetheless.

Second, I have known lots of really smart people either through friendship or association. Not only am I a member of Mensa* but I have many years under my belt working with scientists (as a support person). What the study suggests, in my humble opinion, is not borne out by the reality I've lived in. All I'm saying is that I'm a bit skeptical and would really like to see this same study conducted in the USA and other cultures as this one was done in the UK.

I now think of myself as an "evolving vegan". Not sure if I'll ever actually get there all the way.

Image from Lettuce Ladies.

*Please note that I am not bragging. I qualified and joined, that's all. If you qualify for something or win something, do you keep it a secret? Is there any reason to do that? It's not a big deal, and it's also not a secret. I'm just sayin'.

EDIT 12/16: This post is starting to eat comments. If you've left a comment and it didn't show up, or showed up and disappeared later, it's probably Blogger's fault. My apologies on behalf of Blogger (I hoped beta would make this not happen anymore! I've seen it happen a couple of times before)

Tags: vegetarian - IQ

Friday Cats - lining up for the vet

Almost the whole gang went to the vet Thursday! 3 cat carriers, kind of a crazy way to do things, for sure. Jax is fine and just needed vaccinations.

Alex needed a checkup. He is recovered from the overdosing but still has major tummy troubles. He's still losing weight, is down to 6.5 lbs. and holding him is like hugging a little bone. Poor little guy. There he is, right in the middle of the stack.

Duncan needed a checkup, some more blood work, and another x-ray after his lung collapsed last week. The lung is functioning again now which is good, but he gave us a scare last Saturday late. He started walking funny like his back legs weren't working, and we were warned that something like that might mean a blood clot so we rushed him to the emergency vet. It turned out alright though, he started walking normally right away, but we were braced for the worst (and still are).

We've had beautiful weather all week, near 80 degrees, so everybody got to enjoy some open window time. Here's Duncan cozying up to Henry, and you can see the big patch that they shaved last week.



Henry has been acting a little pouty and maybe even grumpy, because he's feeling slighted. He knows that Alex and Duncan are getting canned food, and they have to eat it alone... mostly because Henry would just scarf it all down! And he's already what you might call "robust", maybe "hefty", OK, he's fat. He doesn't have a waistline, but he has a pretty face.


Here's Jax soaking up some sunshine and fresh air. We need a wider ledge, it's obvious.

And here's Duncan again, trying to look artistic in his photo.


Tags and links: Friday Ark - Carnival of the Cats - This week's carnival is at House of Chaos, and we can sure relate to that "house of chaos" thing here - Cats - Catblogging

What's in that recipe?

Some recent Engrish.com gems:

[LINK] (Fava beans... serve with a nice Chianti)

[LINK] (Can we send these to Dubya?)

Yes, poking fun at Japanese typos. Not even commenting on how bad my attempt at Japanese would be.

Angels are badass

Where did angels get the reputation for being all sweet and goody-two-shoes? First of all, they seem to be all men... not chubby babies or cutesy-pie girly-girls. Second, back in Ye Olde Testemente earth girls were instructed to cover their hair so they wouldn't be tempting the angel boys. Third, you do NOT want to piss these guys off, they were scary. Everybody who saw angels were terrified, or at least stunned into acting respectable and doing what they were told.

So what are angels? If people ever saw them, what were they seeing? Space Aliens? An ancient Uber-Race? I love mythology. The old faerie stories from Ireland, and Tolkien's fabricated mythology in Silmarillion and other works describe a really fascinating creature of the type that many people through history have believed in.

Pierce Bush and the Queen of Austin

I saw this video over on Undeniable Liberalism, but it was created by Patriot Boy (Jesus General). It has a familiar... um... ass in it... and one not named "Bush":

The "sailor" there with Pierce, is none other than Austin icon, homeless cross-dresser, often Mayoral candidate, Leslie Cochran (who is famous enough here to not need a last name). Leslie [WIKI] [MySpace] can be found anywhere that big fun community stuff is happening, whether it's a festival or just walking up and down Sixth Street with everybody else.

As I commented on UL's blog, l'il Pierce has performed the sole positive and redeeming feat out of the whole family resume covered in the vid by posing for a pic with Leslie!

ps: who would name their kid "Pierce Bush"? What were they thinking? Even if he just uses the first initial with bush, it sounds funny.

Tags: Bush - Austin

Artist making house calls

This print was given to us on Saturday by the artist. He traded it for an agave plant. I believe his name (if I read the sig correctly) is [commented out, but you can read it on the scan of the art]. He's the bug guy, working for Chem-Free, which is a pest control service that uses environmentally-friendly substances. He had his portfolio with him, original paintings and everything! That's a real artist, never really separated from your creations. He was an excellent painter too. Beautiful stuff, lots of animal imagery. Paints murals too. And he enjoyed calling our "Rover Ants" by the name "Rove Ants" intentionally. Something you really want to get rid of!

No View to a Kill

Bill would allow legally blind Texans to hunt

Rep. Edmund Kuempel, a Seguin Republican, has filed a bill for the 2007 legislative session that would allow legally blind hunters to use a laser sight, or lighted pointing instrument. The devices are forbidden for sighted hunters.

Blind hunters would also have to have a sighted hunter along with them, but they could hunt any game that sighted people can hunt in the same seasons and using the same weapons.

"This opens up the fun of hunting to additional people, and I think that's great," Kuempel said.

Visually impaired people are able to shoot with the aid of a sighted person, he said.

"I've seen this on TV before, when they're taking target practice," Kuempel said. "When they aim the gun the guide tells them, aim two inches higher or two inches lower and you're on the target, and you're off and running."

ding ding ding.... RANT ALERT!!

The fun of hunting. I've heard of this but never really understood it. People say stuff like, "well, it's just nice getting out there in nature", and OK, I get that. I've done that myself more than a few times. Camping, hiking, floating down the river, taking some pictures, sketching.

The part I don't get is the enjoyment of killing the other animal. Where's the fun in that? Is it watching the animal spray blood or flip over from the impact of the bullets? Is it the fun of asserting your superiority over a "lowly animal" by killing it with sophisticated weapons? Or even unsophisticated ones? If you just like to shoot guns, why not just shoot at cans or bottles or even watermelons?

Now, assuming it's fun to spy your prey, and know who and what you're killing because you've seen it, how big it is, the way it moves, how beautiful it is, what the teeth look like as they snarled at you (death sentence!!!! this'll teach you to snarl at me you snarly bastard!!!).... what will be the "fun" part for a blind person? If it's just getting out in nature and shooting a gun at a target and hitting it, a tin can makes an impressive noise when hit. Is there fun in stroking the dead animal and feeling and smelling the blood and knowing you were the killing victor? And is there some sport in being told, "Ok over, now up, now pull the trigger"? You never even saw the creature whose life you've taken.

All these questions are rhetorical and sarcastic. I don't need anyone to actually try and explain what they think is fun about all this, unless you are trying to make me sick. I think hunting for "fun" is disgusting and revolting. Killing in self-defense or for food is defensible, but I get my hot-buttons pushed when someone suggests that killing other creatures is "fun".

(note: the picture does not show a blind person.)
(I changed the name of this post to break a link from a pro-gun blog. sheesh.)

Tags: Texas - blind

Diamonds, Blood, Rush and Rhinestones

We went and saw "Blood Diamond" over the weekend. That's not a still from the movie that I have posted. It's an actual picture of a 17 year old whose hands were cut off with machetes by the Sierra Leone rebels. Source this page. I think that most people were not aware of the way that the diamond industry was being fueled by these horrible practices, and vice-versa (see links at bottom of post). I certainly was not aware of it until very recently, and now this new film is making awareness more widespread (and sending the diamond industry into a tailspin of reactive PR).

Gasbag Rush Limbaugh has launched a rant on the topic of conflict-free diamonds, and stop the tape indeed, I actually agree with him on one point. I really don't see how a certification can possibly guarantee that the diamonds you are buying are conflict-free. Bribery, smuggling, and undercover and unregulated corporate dealings are still very much in place. And whoaaa, hold the horses again, because he points out that there is no terror-free oil. I agree with that too. Oil is not something that I am living independant of, I wish I were. I wish we all were. But diamonds, at least as jewelry (as the issue is being discussed here) are very much a NON-necessity. Maybe I'm fortunate (or maybe UNfortunate in a sour grapes sort of way) but I've never liked diamonds. I've never understood why they were more valuable than rhinestones... maybe a little more valuable, but the pricing is outrageous. I was brought up to dislike snootiness, and it must have stuck. There is a scene in the movie (and not meaning to spoil anything... don't think I am) where they show how the diamond company stores its largest and most valuable diamonds... locked in a vault/drawer, not even displayed. I don't know if that's really the case, but it's plausible, isn't it?

If you think that diamonds signify eternal love, then you've obviously never pawned an old wedding set after a divorce. I was talked into a scratchy rock that stood up off my finger in a previous life (when I really wanted just a plain band -- but future mothers-in-law rule sometimes), and the thought of that jewelry set being melted down and recycled into something to symbolize eternal love for someone else bothered me not one iota.

As a movie, we really thought it was good, and that DiCaprio hit another one out of the park. Between this and his role in "The Departed" I think he's got a great chance at a Best Actor Oscar. He has really developed into a fine actor. Also, it's a great action movie even if you are more into that than the particular plot details... and there's a love story in it... hope that's not a spoiler... so something for everyone.

Links: Amnesty Int'l Conflict Diamonds and Human Rights
SPROL, article includes Google satellite maps and more references
Film Review Flick filosopher

Tags: Blood Diamond - DiCaprio - diamonds