Ode to George

He was crude, lude and rude but he sure will be missed...

A World Not Worth Living In...

While we focus our attention on rising gas prices, the "Presidential Election" and Heidi Klum being given a "Peabody Award" Link, it's only natural that a little thing like the extinction of Frogs and Bats might slip under the national radar. Both populations have been declining from loss of habitat but now they both have a fungal disease which is threatening their very existence. And of course the fungal disease is being attributed to the rise in global temperature. Even if you never really liked frogs and/or bats I bet that you like the fact that they eat more than their body weight in bugs everyday.

But I for one like frogs and bats, God Dammit!!! I used to catch (and release) frogs as a boy and I've always felt ever-so-grateful to the bats flying around my head because I knew that I wouldn't be attacked by mobs of mosquitoes. So even if you don't like those creepy frogs and spooky bats could you please do me a personal favor so I might want to continue to live on this planet? Could you please not drive to the store in a Hummer while you pass a bus full of people using mass transit? When you produce a product could you do it responsibly? Could you not have a family of three live in a 4000sq. ft. house? Maybe you could build your house in the city rather than woods or wetlands? And, ironically, when you go to visit our remaining natural wilderness could you please not drive a fucking 8-mpg Winnebago to get there? What's it going to take for some of you to get on the fucking bandwagon and help the cause?!? The extinction of dogs, maybe? Or how about horses? Birds? Man? Do you honestly want to see your children or grand children live in a world where they will never get goose pimples from a bat flying outside their window or hear the chorus of frogs on a warm, spring night?

Maybe you don't give a shit about that. If that's the case then at least do it for yourself. With warmer temperatures and more insects in the air that means Malaria will be coming around soon. It's already spreading in America's south. Maybe West Nile Virus, I heard that's pretty fun to contract. And don't forget that Ebola, Impetigo, Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever like it when it's hot out.

We are Americans. And as Americans we produce 25% of the world's pollution even though we account for 5% of the human population. We have to do something or at least try to do something for bats, frogs, our kids, ourselves, our planet and our future as a species. And if you still don't care about the world we may live in then I leave your heart with one more bit of information for it to ponder. The Koala Bear is on it's way out the door as well...

John F Kennedy

The assassination of President John F Kennedy. We have all seen the grizzly video of him being shot to death. So much so that we forget sometimes that he was a human being who was murdered and not just our president being assassinated. Most of us have accepted the Warren Commission's finding that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone and was solely responsible for the murder of JFK. "Conspiracy Theorists", a label given to people that disagree with the Warren Commission's report, have rightly said that we should not trust the report as it was basically a government report which was written by a government trying to protect itself. Now the internet is providing the public with more information, or clues, as to what really happened. Below are two YouTube videos that have put me into the "Conspiracy Theorists" camp.
The first video video has been referd to as, "The Speech that got JFK Assassinated":

Eerie, huh? Who exactly was he warning us of? It makes you suspect of some of the things that are going on today...

The second video raises questions about the governments handling of his security:


So here's another question: where have these audio and video tapes been?

The Sorrow of India

As if the world's food supply wasn't precarious enough, there is a ghastly epidemic of suicides among India's farmers. By one estimation, over 160,000 Indian farmers have committed suicide since 1997 although the official estimate is an average of 10,000 per year since the early 1990s. Crop failures, free trade policies, indebtedness, little irrigation and lack of governmental support have led a seemingly hopeless situation for the farmers. To compound the situation, most of the suicides have taken place in only four states which has psychologically devastated India's agricultural region.
Here is a link if you would like to learn more.

America Waves...

This LINK will take you to my very own internet radio station! Well, it's more of an internet playlist, actually, of musical artists on KIAC. The site allows you to check out artists of all styles and compose your own listening page. It's a great way for up-and-coming artists (even Willie Nelson!) to get some exposure for a nominal fee. But if you just want to listen and maybe set up your own page it's absolutely free! Check it out!

P.S. My personal favorite is "America Waves" by Emile Millar. He wrote the song after watching a documentary covering a family's coping with the death of their son in the Iraq war.

Public Urination

I was perusing my local Craig's List for musical instruments when I came across an ad for an electronic keyboard. The price for the 3 year-old keyboard was absurdly high, higher than if you purchased it new, but that's not what sparked my ire. The ignition came when I saw the attached photo diplaying the keyboard leaning against an outdoor storage unit. I decided to pseudo-inquire about the keyboard and learned that it has been stored inside the locker, "for the past year or two". That means that the ELECTRONIC keyboard had been subject to temperature extremes ranging from -20 degrees to say 110 degrees along with gooey humidity. This kind of alarmed me since we have had two computers die on us after storing them for only a few months in our basement. The best part was that the seller said that she had lost the power adapter so I wouldn't be able to turn it on in order to test it(?????) unless I went out and purchased my OWN adapter.
That really pissed me off so I placed my own Craig's List ad warning others about the pitfalls of an over-priced electronic keyboard that had been subjected to humidity and dizzying temperature extremes. One Craig's Lister replied and thanked me for the observation as he was considering purchasing it. But another was not so thankful and let me know it. Here is her reply...

from:jean nel(deleted)@sistermoonglo@(deleted)

"Oh for Chrissake, not EVERYONE is a price specialist like you morons.

Most people on CL don't do extensive price checks.

Cut the person a break, so what??

Go to hell you loser CL police..."

Needless to say, I was crushed. I try to do Jean a favor and this is what she gives me! So I then poured myself a Diet Pepsi, sat back and responded to her in that warm, fuzzy way that I am so noted for...

"Hi Jean and thanks for answering my Craig's List ad. I also appreciate your summer-traveling advice recommending that I go to hell. But I must say, Jean, that I have no intention of visiting the state of OHIO anytime in the near future especially with gas prices being what they are!
However, you completely missed the BIG PICTURE concerning the criticism of the CL post. The ELECTRONIC keyboard (which is a fairly delicate ELECTRONIC gizmo), had been stored for months in an OUTSIDE storage unit thus subjecting it to sub-zero temperatures, humidity and extreme temperature variations. Would YOU recommend buying it?
As for the price--Don't you think people should check things out before they post or buy? All you have to do is GOOGLE it and you have results in seconds. Try it now, you might learn something. I'm not a "PRICE SPECIALIST" but I do know what a fair asking price is and I don't want to see people (who are not internet savvy enough to use google) get ripped-off. People have every right to sell an item for whatever they want but others have the right to call them out on it if they are trying to price gouge, sell potentially defective/dangerous merchandise or are some con artists out of Nigeria. But I guess I should just keep my mouth shut and let people lose their money because it upsets your fascist principle of "anything for a dollar".
So please, Jean (or sistermoonglo or whatever the hell you call yourself), go piss up a rope and try thinking about things before you have another one of your spastic/knee-jerk reaction fits. Remember, Jean, we are only here to help you.

Sincerely,
OOOCLA
(The Official Observers and Overseers of Craig's List Acquisitions)"


I guess I don't know what to think about this whole stupid experience. Craig's List is a great tool for us common folk but some of the stuff that goes on can be disheartening whether it be Nigerian scam rackets, sexual predators or a person just trying to sell you complete junk. My only advice is to research any product for sale and only deal locally. Oh, and if you have any rope you'd like to sell, please post it on Craig's List so Jean has something to urinate up.

Verdict? Jean sucks!

There's Improv Everwhere!

Improv Everywhere causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places and that's all I'm going to say about it. Just watch the videos below...

Every boys dream...


Poking fun at "The Man"...


Mesmerizing...


Improv Everywhere performers are unpaid, uncorporated, and unwashed volunteers. I'm a member and you can be one too! Sign up and join a local chapter today!
Click here: Improv Everywhere

Verdict? Improv Everywhere Rocks!

Charity Begins at Home

A local news station recently featured the St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores in our town. The spokesman for "St. Vinny" said that because of the sluggish economy, donations were less than usual and that contributions of household goods like would be greatly appreciated. This call-to-arms led me to a day of closet/basement rummaging where unworn clothes were washed, unused items were located and dust bunnies were dusted. "Hot Damn!"--altruism and spring cleaning in one karmic bundle!

So I make the call to the donations office and a very nice lady asks me what kind of items I would like to donate. I rattle off the list--bed frame, new speaker stands, clothes, vacuum cleaner, computer monitor etc. She then tells me that all these items were acceptable and asks if a Wednesday pick-up would be good for me. I said it was and asked for a time. "Well we can't give you a time", the nice lady tells me. "If you can't be there then leave the items in your driveway or porch before 8:30am and they'll pick it up between then and 5pm". Hmmm, so I have to go "redneck" for a day and leave all the stuff in my driveway even with this April showers thing going on. But it's for charity, right?
So I agree to have it picked up and spend a good chunk of time Tuesday night hauling the items up from the basement and covering everything in plastic for the next days pickup. I'm then in and out of the house Wednesday and notice that the items are still there and I start to become a little anxious considering we are supposed to receive an inch of rain the next day. At 3:30 I call the nice lady and she assures me that the items will be picked up by 5pm and not to worry. Well, it gets to be 4:45 and I start to worry. I decide to call the nice lady again but I get an automated recording that says that their office closes at 5pm and won't I please call some other time? Ahhh! The nice lady cut-out of the office early!
The time is now 5:20 and I call again only this time I leave a message basically asking what's going on with my pickup and should I leave it out again tomorrow even though the April shower thing will be in full swing. As soon as I hang up the phone the truck pulls into the driveway. Hurray! Relieved that I won't have to blog St. Vincent, I start to get that altruistic glow all over again...
But what's this? The driver pulls away and leaves most of the stuff in the driveway!!! He takes the clothes and the vacuum but leaves all the other items! I then start to over think the situation. Maybe his truck is full and he has to come back? Did he not the think the other items were for pickup? I leave the nice lady another message asking why the man left me with all the stuff that I am trying to get rid of and do NOT want to haul into the basement again. Oh, the horror...
While I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what to do with this stuff I notice some papers sticking out of our mailbox. One of the papers was a rejection letter that the driver filled out. There were several boxes on the form that he COULD have checked (unrepairable items, needs cleaning, weather damaged, etc..) but he checks-off the "Items Not in Demand" box. But attached to this paper is a donor/tax deduction receipt that the nice lady printed off which lists, "4 bags of misc, 1 bed frame and two-speaker stands" as my donated items. WTF? They originally tell me that they need these items but now they say they don't!
So I guess that the driver felt that people do not need a bed frame to sleep on, a stand to put their speakers on, a computer monitor to see what they're typing or a printer to print what they've typed. Either that or it was the end of the day and the driver felt that the light weight items were more in demand than the heavy ones. No demand for the bed frame, huh? I guess that's why I CARRIED that thing for a half mile to my house when I found it so that my mattress wouldn't be on the floor. And don't they use those twin-bed frames at their homeless shelters for people to sleep on? No one could use a 20" computer monitor, right? I guess that's why I bought a monitor similar to it from St. Vincent when I first moved to town. Yet when I was in St. Vincent this past weekend I saw the same jig-saw puzzles, porcelain figurines and tea sets that have been sitting on the shelves for the past three years. But then again knick knacks are a little easier to load onto a truck...
So the gist of the story is that even a charitable institution/business is more than capable of not following through on a deal. Even though they depend on people like me for free merchandise they have no problem with sifting through the donation and leaving the rest of it in your driveway even after they agree to collect it. I try to give to them and this is what they give me!

By the way, if you are the type of person who likes to have your mattress on a frame or your speakers on a stand then please email me for my address. It's all still sitting in my driveway...