The getting up earlier experiment - Day 3

The experiment is successful so far in terms of productivity.

For some reason, I haven't slept through the night this week. I wake up between 3:00 and 4:00 am. My vision apparently is 20/20 at that time. I can see the time on the clock very clearly. I can also do mental arithmetic very quickly. I see the time and note the exact number of minutes until the alarm is set to go off. After all this I shut my eyes and go back to sleep. Clear vision and doing arithmetic in my head are not talents I possess when fully awake. Maybe it is some weird dream state.

I got a back rub this morning! I stayed in bed a bit longer but still made it out before 6:00 am.

I made it to work early!

Masey needs more toys. She spent a great deal of time whining and looking for something to play with.

She scared Salvador this morning. She stuck her head in his room, this caused Sal to try to fly in his cage, this made Sal even more interesting so Masey walked further into Sal's room, this made Sal attempt more in cage flight and scream thus making himself even more interesting to Masey so she came closer and this led to even more agitation on Sal's part. I came in and shooed Masey out and turned on the light and checked for fallen feathers.

Fortunately, he did not lose any flight feathers. Oops, using correct English on the internet! He did not loose any flight feathers. There is no excuse for flaunting the ability to use and retain the education I received. I do not want my fellow Americans to feel bad.

About the school shooting in Tennessee (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9970713/), authorities are seeking a motive. The motive is in the story:

On the school website Principal Gary Seale welcomed students with this statement:
“The next four years will be the best times of your life.”

I would have shot him.

Is it cruelty or senility that causes adults to say that to young people entering high school?

Day 2 of the wake up earlier experiment is more successful than Day 1. I accomplished several mundane tasks this morning and do not need a nap right now. This could be the caffeine and cake talking.

I have a weirdo co-worker that scrapes the pineapple and cherries off pineapple upside down cake. Oh well, more pineapple and cherries for me but why scrape off the stuff that makes it a pineapple upside down cake? After scraping it is just a plain yellow cake. Everyone has their quirks I guess but why does everyone else's quirks seem so much weirder than mine?

Freelance work is starting to come in. Hooray!

I set my alarm for 5:02 am on Saturday so that I can get up and start my Saturday run earlier. I wanted to finish in time to take a shower before a 9:30 am meeting. I arrived late to the meeting but the other people at the meeting appreciated me for taking a shower. Better late than stinking to high heaven.

I decided to keep my alarm set at 5:02 am. I hit the snooze button 3 times but got out of bed earlier. I'm going to try the earlier wake up time for a while and see how it works. I've read that this will increase my productivity and make me feel better.

This morning I did some stretching, cleared out some clutter in my inbox, folded some clothes, washed dishes, took a shower, planned the week's workouts, prepared lunch and ate breakfast and still made it to work on time.

I need a nap.

This week I ran/ cycled 33.4 miles, burned 2,567.4 calories and weigh 164.7 pounds.

Monday cycled 6 miles in 32:39
Wednesday cycled 8 miles in 41:06
Thursday ran 4 miles in 54:14
Saturday ran 14 miles in 2:44:50

If I can keep the same pace that I ran the 14 mile throughout a marathon then I'm on track for a 5 hour race.

Photos: I would have done this sooner but slow uploads and screwy formatting delayed me. I don't know why I'm so picky about the formatting in a blog.

From top to bottom:

1. The flaming chalice pumpkin in its freshly carved glory. Now it sits outside slowly imploding
2. Approaching the finish line at the Woodstock Howl-o-ween 5K.
3. Getting closer. Neither dog nor human is an albino. If I go out during a sunny summer afternoon I burst into flames if I don't use sunscreen.
4. Crossing the finish line in 36:39. That time included a water stop and a potty break (for the dog).
5. Masey, the tail-less wonder dog, and I submit our time.
6. A Newfoundland (Newfie) in a cheerleader outfit.

Masey is available for adoption via www.woodstocktexas.org. You can see her in person at PetCo in College Station, Texas Saturdays from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. She can run farther than 5K. She is pretty good on a leash but pulled (not too hard) during the race because of the excitement. Without distractions she stays at my side or slightly behind. If you are looking for a somewhat slow running companion (12:00 - 10:00 minute miles), Masey is a great dog.

My knee is fine. I ran slowly today without experiencing any pain. I felt much better after running.

My father-in-law has moved into his own place.

This week's book:

Perfect Planet and Other Stories

Last week I ran 17.13 miles, burned 2206.1 calories and weighed 164.5 pounds. So far this year I have ran 692.39 miles and burned 85,496 calories.

Monday: 3.3 miles in 40:00
Wednesday: 4 miles in 41:12
Friday: 5K in 31:25
Saturday: 3 miles in 36:00 and 5K in 36:39 (Not bad for a bum knee and an excited dog)

It is taking too long to upload pictures. I will try tomorrow.

Cycling on a stationary bike sucks! My ass hurt and I rode for 6 miles and burned under 200 calories. I even changed the resistance. Less than 200 calories! I barely broke a sweat.

I can't wait to start running again.

Because of the nasty weather last night we did not get too many trick or treaters. Consequently, we have a lot of left over candy. The possibility of left over candy factored in our choice of candy. Somebody has got to eat it. I would ship it to some starving children in a third world country but I don't have an address. No, I don't trust Sally Struthers to act as a courier.

I found the the nasty peanut butter things wrapped in black or orange wax paper that old ladies gave out when I was a kid. They were expensive ($5.99 a bag vs $1.99 for the good stuff). The expense prevented me from purchasing a bag. I wanted to give the nasty things out to uncostumed teenagers just trolling for free candy.

Then there is the left over candy dilemma. What would I do with the left over nasty peanut butter things? Nobody in my house would eat them and I certainly would not give them to anyone that I have one ounce of empathy for (about 5.9 billion humans and the animal/ plant population). I'm sure there is someone out there that likes these things and I would gladly give them my left over nasty peanut butter candy but would I want to meet much less interact with such a person?

My flaming chalice jack-o-lantern lasted all night.

I need to post pictures.

I messed up my knee Friday evening. I did not realize the extent of the injury until I attempted to run on Saturday. I ran 3 miles on it at a 12 minute mile. Then I ran in the Woodstock 5K and finished in 36:39.

Masey did okay running the 5K with me. She dragged me some of the time and I dragged her some of the time. That dog does not run out of energy.

My knee still hurts so I will be bike riding this week.

I'll post last week's workout summary later tonight.

Last night I took a sleeping pill and chased it with Chamamoille tea and Rolling Rock Light. I slept well.

I got some great candy to give out to the kids tonight.

I over-cuddled this morning. The country music station that I have set as my alarm starts their broadcast day with a different rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner". It was a female vocalist this morning. I'm usually awakened at the "dawn's early light" and hit the snooze before anyone can get to the "rocket's red glare".

I could not work the snooze button the second time around so I hit off (anything to stop the damn country music) and cuddled with Walter until after 7:00 am.

During that time I had a strange dream. In this dream I had a cold therefore could not go to work but was healthy enough to visit Walter's aunt, cousin and mother. We made it to someone's house and after my eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room I saw that my father and step-mother and my brother and his wife were there. We went to the kitchen and dining room - talked about mundane things and tried various remedies for my cold.

Then robots came and started destroying every man-made object in the house, when they finished the house they moved on to the rest of town. The run off from the destruction caused by the robots flowed toward the town library which had a bell tower. This caused the bell tower to launch like a rocket. The launch led to the destruction of the town. The bell tower rocket landed on top a NASA launch pad merging with the rocket that NASA had on the pad.

The merged rocket took off and landed over the horizon. When it landed it set off a chain reaction of explosions. The series of explosions worked their way toward the launch pad and burned everything - people, buildings, trees. All that was left was skeletons of buildings.

It was not too disturbing because it looked like a cartoon.

The robots dismantled themselves.

I woke up and wondered what is the connection between visiting relatives and robot induced apocalypse?

I hope my subconscious was successful at working out whatever it needed to work out. I don't need any of this intruding on to my conscious life.

I knew it!

You are Tater Tots. Go get your own!!


Which Napoleon Dynamite character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

80's music is popular. Retro rides, radio stations dedicated to the music of the 80's, weekend 80's music features but these things do not cover the entire decade. I've noticed that only 6 songs from the 80's get played in rotation.

Jesse's Girl by Rick Springfield
White Wedding by Billy Idol
Jenny by Tommy TuTone
Rebel Yell by Billy Idol
Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler
Pyromania by Def Lepard

10 years and this is all that gets played.

I hate radio.

I ran 3.3 miles with Masey. She did well and I think I will let her run with me during the 5K.

The court could not seat a jury because too many potential jurors were struck for cause. We were dismissed by 10:30 am.

Today is the first day of early voting on constitutional amendments in Texas and since I was at the courthouse already, I went to the polling place and cast my ballot.

A particularly stupid amendment is a so-called "anti-gay marriage" amendment. I voted against it because putting discrimination in the state constitution is not right. The amendment is so sloppily worded that it could be interpreted to ban all marriages in the state of Texas.

Language of the amendment:
"The constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibiting this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage."

Brief ExplanationHJR 6 would provide that marriage in Texas is solely the union of a man and woman, and that the state and its political subdivisions could not create or recognize any legal status identical to or similar to marriage, including such legal status relationships created outside of Texas.

Defines marriage then prohibits the state from creating or recognizing it. Or at least it could be interpreted that way.

Read the rest of the amendments here: http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/voter/2005novconsamend.shtml

The Texas state constitution is majorly FUBARed. Check out this constitutional amendment that I got to vote for or against:

"The constitutional amendment providing for the clearing of land titles by relinquishing and releasing any state claim to sovereign ownership or title to interest in certain land in Upshur County and in Smith County."

I live in Brazos County which is nowhere near Upshur or Smith County yet I have a voice in the clearing of land titles in certain land. I don't give a rat's ass was not an option on the ballot. I voted for it for no good reason other than the thrill of possessing the power to affect the fate of land in two Texas counties. Bwah-ha-ha!

I enjoyed the Ramadan dinner.

After dinner I realized why I don't like interacting with the progressive community in Brazos County. I agree with most of the causes but my interactions with the people have been less than positive. I cannot make a joke without a rant or recitation in response. I just want a laugh - that is all.

Maybe someone should tell them that their causes and intentions are good but many individuals are unpleasant to interact with. It could help advance their agenda if they would lighten up a bit. Work to improve things but be able to see the humor in it.

It could be my lot in life to only meet and interact with the unpleasant elements in the progressive community. Perhaps the pleasant elements don't get invited to the same events that I get invited to.

There is the possibility that my jokes are not funny. Most of these people listen to Garrison Kiellor for laughs.

I have to report for jury duty tomorrow.

I am also attending a Ramadan dinner tomorrow evening. An observance like Ramadan would do Americans a lot of good. Even a single day of fasting and reflection could work wonders for our national psyche. We would probably screw it up and commercialize it if such an observance became a national holiday.

This week's book:

Bat Boy Lives!: The Weekly

World News Guide to Politics, Culture, Celebrities, Alien Abductions, and the Mutant Freaks

that Shape Our World

I like the Weekly World News.

This week I ran 26.22 miles, burned 3,144.9 calories and weigh 163.3 pounds.

Monday ran 4 miles in 42:11
Wednesday ran 5.3 miles in 55:00
Thursday ran 4 miles in 41:12
Saturday ran 12 miles in 2:29:00

Next Saturday I run in the Woodstock Howl-o-ween 5K. 3.1 miles for the metric challenged. The distance marathon training run for next Saturday is 6 miles. I'll just do the 5K twice.

Masey chewed up her leash so I bought a chain leash for her.

I'm not sure if I'm going to let her run with me. She has very little experience on a leash but this would help her expend some energy. On the other hand I want to run my best and she might be a bit of a distraction.

You can check out Masey at http://www.woodstocktexas.org and you can see details about the 5K and an upcoming seminar.

I understand Bobo Bobobobo. The weirdness is not drug induced - it is the product of serious mental illness. This cartoon is an art therapy project for a Japanese mental patient. It all makes sense in that light.

I hope this patient get better.

I'm enjoying the insanity he/she seems to be suffering.

I have a new foster dog. Her name is Masey. She is a Pit Bull mix with a white coat, black nose, floppy ears, no tail and one brown eye and one blue eye. She is one year old. Still very much a puppy.

So far, she is a very different experience from Lola. Already had an accident. It was not her fault, I did not realize that whining meant "I need to go outside".

Masey can do an extended sit and will play fetch for a long time.

If I still have her, I'll take her to the 5K race. She might enjoy it.

It's official: I'm a deviant. This is quite an achievement in the age of the internet.

In the previous post I mentioned that I like looking at old men wearing Speedos - not necessarily for the aesthetics but for the attitude that these old men project. I prefer thinner old men who actually swim rather than fat old men just hanging around at the beach. I find the scars, wrinkles and other marks of living more interesting to look at than perfection.

Anyway, back to deviance. With over 6 billion people on this planet and 2 billion of them with internet access I assumed that I am not the only one that likes looking at old men wearing Speedos. Every other perversion has a website, news group or something.

I Googled old men wearing Speedos. I Googled with safe mode off. Nothing positive about old men in Speedos. Images yielded two blurry images, web yielded websites complaining about old men in Speedos, groups yielded more of the same.

Somebody tell me I'm not alone.

Some thoughts on cartoons:
Tom Goes to the Mayor sucks. It will not grow on me.
BoBo Bobobobo is an acid trip without the annoying side effects. I can feel synapses fusing together.
I'm looking forward to The Boondocks.
SeaLab 2021 - hilarious.
Squidbillies - the bits I've seen were quite amusing.
The Venture Brothers - I want more!
I'm glad to see Mission Hill and The Oblongs on USA. So many good cartoons on Adult Swim that another network was necessary to hold them all.
I want to sleep with Harvey Birdman, his wings would be nice and warm. Gary Cole is the coolest actor of all time.

I miss the old men in Speedos.

I like looking at old men in Speedos. There is no more vanity - they just want to swim - aesthetic sensibilities of others be damned. It is not the look that I find interesting, it is the attitude.

I'm told that the old men in Speedos are quite scary and uninhibited in the locker room. Fortunately, I'm a woman and am spared that horror.

Salvador is sitting on my shoulder looking at me sideways wondering why I'm typing instead of scratching his head. I don't really know what goes on inside his little bird brain. He does know I'll do anything to get him to shut up.

Spam Zen koans:
Love is Waiting
Get your supply to the demand.
Walk away from drugs and get your life back.
as flowing water.
Want something extra in bed?
Feel like you don't get out enough?
Dont loose your chance fresh

Salvador is biting my ear.

I took Lola to her new home.

Took the day off. My mind and body needed sleep. I slept until 11:00 am.

I hope I can get a decent night's sleep tonight.

This week's book:

Bone: Crown of Horns, Vol. 9

This week I ran 23.12 miles, burned 2,784.6 calories and weigh 163.8 pounds.

Monday ran 5K in 33:41
Wednesday ran 5 miles in 53:20
Friday ran 5K in 32:31
Saturday ran 11 miles in 2:16:00

Next week I'm going to try some new routines on my non-running days.

I paid for my entry for the Woodstock Howl-A-Ween 5K which will take place on October 29th.

Lola skipped adoption because she has an application for a great home and it looks like she will be in her forever home by next weekend.

Lola also participated in some painting. When I went to training she was covered in red and green paint. I took some pictures with my phone. I need to get a cable so that I can download the pictures that I have taken.

Goofy spam names:
Pansy Hooker
Queen Skinner
Accept U. Venuses
Mercy Schlapp
Dorthea H. Muscled

Spam Zen koans:
Be a fab master. Enjoy these exquisite watches.
Every man must have sex! MUST!!!
you can get your dream job
you can get money tomorrow
Meet someone tonight and someone else tomorrow
Companies that are hiring employees like you. (Nobody wants an employee like me.)
Linda, on a personal level
operant Vigilant Parcel, Wide-Reaching Posting. parks
Linda We can show you how
There she blows!
Shoot five times as much
Today can make a difference
Polls don't IMPEACH presidents; People do!
Laurentiu Shuffler Great position
NataIi and her daddy batavia
boat Extended medicinal selections satiate your needs. damsel
Dirt Hunter hunts down dirt where it hides Linda
It doesn't hurt to check Bill
how
Kindly Assist

I draw for therapeutic reasons.

Instead of a beating and a cell phone flushing a cartoon will be drawn. Yes, Mr. Leave My Cell Phone with an Annoying Country Song as a Ring Tone Unattended in the College Station Gold's Gym on Thursday, October 13th at Approximately 5:35 pm, a cartoon inspired by your inconsideration will appear on my site within the next four weeks. The magnitude of the annoyance you caused has inspired not a single panel cartoon but a multi-panel cartoon. You should be honored and relieved that I choose cartooning rather than beating to relieve the stress caused by morons like yourself.

'Til the Cows Come Home

I want this poster!

In this photo of a poster provided by Unicef on Tuesday Oct. 11, 2005, the cartoon Smurfs and their village are seen being bombed by airplanes. The recent advertising campaign by Unicef, both in print and on television, is intended to teach schoolchildren about the horrors of war. The title in French at left bottom reads 'Don't let war deystroy the world of children'. (AP Photo/Unicef/IMPS/Peyo)

Went to an interesting seminar. Found out about a group that I'm interested in getting involved in. It could actually enhance my career.

Spam Zen koans:
Stop being single today.
Steady Camera, Steady Pixels
Want people to worship the ground you walk on?
arid 100% best results! impressive
chip and chic

Wallace and Gromit was number one at the box office this weekend. Crackin' Toast, Gromit!

Spam Zen koans:
Get organized.
altruist Enriched medicinal inventories fulfill your requests. injurious
hypochlorous Click for secure link. must

This week's book:

Blizzards of Tweed

It was a glorious day. The weather was too beautiful to spend the day inside a church. We went to the Cameron Park Zoo in Waco. Walter took some great photos.

Pictures are posted at http://community.webshots.com/user/toonhead. Choose Cameron Park Zoo album. There are pictures of me with my new hair color.

We ate dinner at a restaurant on the Brazos River.

A great day.

This week I ran 24.69 miles, burned 2,786.6 calories and weigh 162.5 pounds.

Monday ran 5K in 34:18
Tuesday did 277 Hindu squats, 14 Hindu push-ups and held a back bridge for 60 seconds
Wednesday ran 5 miles in 54:16
Thursday ran 5K in 33:06
Friday did 139 Hindu squats, 13 Hindu push-ups and held a back bridge for 65 seconds. Rode a bike for 2.38 miles.
Saturday ran 10 miles in 2:05:00

Spam Zen koans:
Get the energy you've been waiting for (I don't have the energy to wait)
Be a trend leader. Shine with these exquisite watches.
shuck Truly the best! Lovely deals on quick cures. zucchini
razor Licensed Online Specialist. providential
seeing more hair in the shower?
I think you should
Please let me introduce myself to you as,
flying?
Is it time to replace your windows?
Praise God, wear a Heavenly T-shirt (That is what Jesus would do)
i hope in your assistance
hamilton Approved E Specialist. loathe
Are you Preoccupied?
Dare to meet someone new!
bracket Gain zero charge benefits & reasonably-priced antibiotics. lawbreaker
oxen Purchase effective capsulees here. orwellian
Assorted ranging of caliber replica.
We've come a long way since the barbed wire fence.

I'm taking the afternoon off to see Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Wererabbit at the movie theater. Walter and I will eat lunch and then go to the movie.

Received this from a friend:

25 SIGNS YOU HAVE GROWN UP :(

1. Your house plants are alive, and you can't smoke any of them. (I do not have any houseplants)
2. Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question. (I'm still flexible enough)
3. You keep more food than beer in the fridge.
4. 6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed. (Unless I'm having a bout of insomnia)
5. You hear your favorite song on an elevator.
6. You watch the Weather Channel.
7. Your friends marry and divorce instead of hook up and break up.
8. You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14. (My vacation in measured in hours and I have more than 14 days worth because I'm such a dedicated employee)
9. Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as "dressed up."
10. You're the one calling the police because those %&@ kids next door won't turn down the stereo. (The %&@! kids next door are actually the same age and the sound system in their vehicle also serves as the sound system for their house)
11. Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you. (I have to mentally brace myself when I receive an e-mail from my mother.)
12. You don't know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.
13. Your car insurance goes down and your car payments go up.
14. You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonald's leftovers.
15. Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.
16. You no longer take naps from noon to 6 PM! (I got a @#$%! job!)
17. Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.
18. Eating a basket of chicken wings at 3 AM now severely upsets, rather than settles, your stomach.
19. You go to the drug store for ibuprofen and antacid, not condoms and pregnancy tests.
20. A $4.00 bottle of wine is no longer "pretty good stuff."
21. You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time. (Does Fruit Loops and chocolate soy milk count as food?)
22. "I just can't drink the way I used to," replaces, "I'm never going to drink that much again."
23. 90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.
24. You drink at home to save money before going to a bar. (I don't go to bars)
25. You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that doesn't apply to you and can't find one to save your sorry old butt.

I'm wearing a Patrick watch that came from a cereal box. I'm so mature :P

All morning I've been experiencing physical signs of nervousness. My heart is beating faster than usual and I have to take a few minutes to take some deep breaths. There is no reason for this.

I did not sleep too well last night. Hot - remove blanket. Cold - add blanket. Hot - remove blanket and sheet. Cold - add sheet. Still cold - add blanket. Legs sweating and itching - remove blanket and sheet and scratch. Try to calm down. Snoring sounds. Poke Walter. Shoulders and arms cold - add sheet. Legs hot - remove sheet, wrap blanket around shoulders. Think calming thoughts. Calming thoughts interupted by snoring. Poke Walter again. Cold - add sheet. Damn alarm goes off. Hit snooze - cuddle next to Walter. Alarm goes off again - shut it off and sleep for another 20 minutes. Wake up - feed Lola - fix breakfast - watch Headline News - tell Walter that tropical storm Tammy's center of swirl is in Albany, Georgia.

Tammy is such a classic white trash name - a perfect name for a tropical storm hitting Georgia. Tammy is a great name for a storm that has a chance to hit the southern United States. Tammy will get reused since this year's Tammy is such a wimpy storm. Every hack comedian is salivating at the prospect of a storm named Tammy devastating the Gulf Coast. Despite living in the potential zone of destruction I can appreciate the humor. If Tammy is retired she should be replaced with Tanya.

Got dressed. Decided that I don't like my gray slacks - wear black slacks instead. Choose to wear the Patrick and SpongeBob watch.

Walter informed me that my body was radiating heat last night.

I still feel tired. My heart is not beating as fast but I still need to take breaks to breathe deeply.

Not every Tammy is a redneck. I know this. So do the non-redneck Tammys of the world. I enjoy some the music of Tammy Wynette and I think Tammy Faye Messner (formerly Baker) is one of the few public examples of a good Christian (seriously - I should elaborate some time).

Okay, maybe those are not the best examples of great Tammys of the world but I'm sure there is a Tammy out there researching a cure for a disease perhaps even synthesizing a vaccine for bird flu. God bless you, non-redneck, research scientist Tammy! I love you!

I need to get some sleep.

I like traveling back in time and correcting my mistakes.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Linda, can you flip a switch
no vuelva a quedarse sin plata
Movie about discovery crashing made by our software

It arrived! Star Trek Titan: The Red King has arrived and I have my copy. WooHoo! A third Star Trek Titan novel is scheduled for release in January 2006.

This week's book:

Penguin Brothers

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Fix your situation Ned
shuck Definitely breath taking! Coolest deals on our medicals. zucchini
Grieves R. Hydroponics

This week I ran 20.28 miles, burned 2,452.5 calories and weigh 164.3 pounds. I need to monitor what and how much I eat more closely. Perhaps reserve the sweets as a Sunday treat.

This year, so far, I've ran 601.23 miles and burned 75,573.8 calories.

Monday ran 5K in 34:57
Tuesday did 239 Hindu squats, 12 Hindu push-ups and held a Back bridge for 43 seconds
Wednesday ran 4 miles in 44:14
Thursday ran 5K in 33:41
Friday did 254 Hindu squats, 14 Hindu push-ups and held a Back bridge for 50 seconds
Saturday ran 9 miles in 1:49:00

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Indeed quick results!
Endeavour to read carefully
Green towers te regala Chevrolet nuevecito!!!
Reputable watches is low priced
Hot Cars Cool Prices Linda Causey slay
you gonna to paradise
if you are sick of your job, be a cop, it's fun
barstow Less costing drugg stoore. crucible
new car for even bad ccrreddiit
Don't expose your intimate life!
A satellite phone will keep you talking.
Why let people know about your intimate life? (Because it is great and it pisses off lonely people or people in loveless relationships)
Want Proof?
No trees were harmed in the making of this floor.
Did You Watch Desperate Housewives or Lost? (neither)
Your Dreams Are Trying to Tell You Something
counterpoise Pharrtmaceutical
Be a style master. Shine with these superb watches.
Only decicive people need to open!!! (Those of you who can spell decisive - go away!!!)
you wont find anything better Suzanne
Can you handle this project?
Ready to take a vacation? (Yes)
I crave your indulgence (Sir, I don't know you)
River have immediate release
There she blows!
Has anyone stolen your dreams (Jeez, I hope not)
loathsome Pharrnmaceutical
It doesn't hurt to check Summer (I've checked Summer - it's hot, damn hot and has overstayed past Autumn)
Isolde have immediate release
We post universally.
Cecilia have immediate release
Linda, thank you for your....
Mommy give Iessons seven inferno
It doesn't hurt to check Darren (I prefer Dick Sargent over Dick York)
Loose yet WIN with Hoodia!
Want the sex life to be like it used to? (No - I used to not have one)
Content lallygag
Reply with honesty
where is most of your casgh? (In my sock drawer)

Why does wet dog food stink up the whole house? Dogs have a better sense of smell than humans.

The Barnes and Noble website says Star Trek: Titan - The Red King is available. Why isn't it at my local store? I suppose I could order it off the website and wait for delivery but I want it now! I'll check the store this weekend.

This weekend I'll attempt to overcome one of my fears - quoting a price for my art. I will finally answer those e-mail inquiries regarding commercial use of my clip art.

I dislike placing a dollar value on my art. It is not the "art should not be contaminated by commerce" mentality that holds me back but rather a fear of rejection and/or ridicule. I'm afraid that the price I quote would prompt the prospective customer to say, "You want how much for this crap? No way!" Now the person did make an inquiry so I assume that they are willing to pay something for the use of the art. I hate guessing.

I need to overcome this if I want to make any kind of living as an artist.

I have looked at other clip art sites and checked on their prices.

I've been working on some ideas for marketing my art. I need to write them down and place a plan in motion. I'll talk to Walter about this. If I want to do something - I make the time. It is time for me to do something about my career.

According to Barnes and Noble's website, Star Trek Titan - The Red King is scheduled for release on September 27th. I went to my local Barnes and Noble yesterday and did not find it on the shelf. I will go again after work and before my meeting and see if it appears today. I should recheck the website to verify the release date.

You know it was damn hot in your city when CNN Headline News mentions it. Bryan reached 103 degrees F yesterday. Today it will be a bit cooler at 100. The weather service predicts a cold front coming in and lowering temperatures to the mid 80's.

I need to review my grammar and brush up on my writing skills. I know this is just a blog but I don't want to be a part of the decline in language. Bad enough that some poorly designed website use my clip art; I don't want to add poor writng to my cyber-sins. I feel compelled to keep more formal writing alive on the internet. Reader comprehension is a bonus.

The above text translated to 12 year old AOL user:
ACORDNG 2 BARNAS AND NOBLAS W3BSIET STAR TRAK TITAN - DA R3D KNG IS SCH3DULED FOR REL3AES ON SEPTEMBR 27TH!11! OMG WTF LOL I W3NT 2 MAH LOCAL BARNAS AND NOBL3 YASTERDAY AND DID NOT FIND IT ON DA SHELF1!1! OMG WTF LOL I WIL GO AGANE AFT3R WORK AND BFOR3 MAH METNG AND SE IF IT APAARS 2DAY!111!1!1 OMG LOL I SHUD RACHEK DA WABSIET 2 V3RIFY TEH RALAAES DAET1111 LOL U KNOW IT WAS DMN HOT IN UR CITY WHAN CN HEADLIEN NEWS MENTIONS IT1!1!11 WTF BRYAN REACHAD 103 D3GRES F YESTERDAY!!11! OMG LOL 2DAY IT WIL B A BIT COL3R AT 101!11! WTF TEH WEATH3R SARVIEC PRADICTS A COLD FRONT COMNG IN AND LOW3RNG TEMPERATURAS 2 DA MID 80S
I1111!1! OMG NED 2 R3VEIW MAH GRMMAR AND BRUSH UP ON MAH WRITNG SKILS111!!1!! OMG LOL I KNOW THIS IS JUST A BLOG BUT I DONT WANT 2 B A PART OF DA DACLIEN IN LANGUAEG!1111!!1 BAD 3NOUGH TAHT SOMA PORLY DASIGNED WEBSIET US3 MAH CLIP ART I DONT WANT 2 AD POR WRITNG 2 MAH CYBR-SINS1!1!1!1 WTF LOL I FEL COMP3L3D 2 KEP MOR3 FORMAL WRITNG ALIEV ON DA INTERNAT!11!!1 WTF R3AEDR COMPREHENSION IS A BONUS!!111 WTF LOL

Translator URL - http://ssshotaru.homestead.com/files/aolertranslator.html

Which Monty Python sketch character are you?

You are the Abuse Clerk! You dish out verbal (and
some physical!) abuse all day long...as long as
the customer keeps payin'! Aaah...such
satisfying work!


What Monty Python Sketch Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

This weekend I watched two DVD movies, A Shark Tale and Kung Pow: Enter the Fist. Both movies included Sir Mix-a-Lot's, "Baby Got Back". That song has really gotten around.

Sir Mix-a-Lot's song has an important message, whether black or white, gay or straight, male or female, we all like big butts.

This week I ran 19.26 miles, burned 2,337.5 calories and weigh 162.2 pounds. I ran 5K on Monday in 35:37, 4 miles on Wednesday in 45:04, 5K on Thursday in 34:18 and 8 miles on Friday in 1:33:00. Tuesday I did 228 Hindu Squats, 24 Hindu Push Ups and held a Back Bridge with hand support and my nose touching the mat for 33 seconds.

Goofy spam names and Zen Koans:
Grandfathered H. Christs
your willingness
Tea love dogs! Very love;)
A child waits for you
No trees were harmed in the making of this floor.
Original opposed to our genuine reeplica = the same.
Depo Yonetime ve Lojistik Egitim Seminerleri - Izmir
Welcoming good products web.
View cruel
Authentic Non-Authentic Zone.
breathtaking supplies. army
Completes range of famous repliica.
Truly healing results!
Desire Tudors? Eshop instantly.
top supply zone. nicholas
Wesley want to take the dog
Sara love horse! (in the ZOOFEVER exlusive) only! tutored
Sara love horse! (in the ZOOFEVER exlusive) only! mobster
Polka dots are okay on clowns, not curtains.
Sara love horse! (in the ZOOFEVER exlusive) only! illogical

None of my family's homes received any damage. My mother has power but no water. My aunt and uncle have water but no power, my father has no power and is staying with someone that does have power. My sister has no power.

I got in touch with almost everyone. I left a message with my dad. Everyone is fine. They are without power and there are a lot of downed limbs and trees.

My mother is going to check on her house. I'm a bit concerned about the debris from her neighbors damaging her house. The people across the street have the stereotypical redneck yard complete with a working vehicle and a two non-working vehicles of the same model that serve as parts cars. Last time I visited I thought about taking pictures and sending it to Blue Collar TV for their redneck yard photo contest. One of the cars was being protected by a discarded mattress.

We have clouds. No rain. A little bit of wind. A free three day weekend.

If my mom needs help cleaning up I'll take some time off and go down there.

My town has about 8,000 in shelters and another several thousand in homes and hotels. The city leaders are trying to manage the exodus.

A couple of links to a sad dog story:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1490472/posts
http://kctv.com/Global/category.asp?C=70755

Since everything I had to do got cancelled I'm having difficulty with the free time. I could use this time to draw or work on my clip art CD or clean up my e-mail box or answer some e-mails or do the dishes or laundry or clean the bird cage or clean the house or pull weeds from the flower beds or many other things that I now have time to do but I don't feel like doing anything.

Maybe a meal and a walk will get me out of my funk.

I'm glad that my family is okay so far.

My sister did not make it very far. She was on the road for 9 hours and only made it a distance that is usually covered in an hour or less. She turned back and will be riding it out at my dad's house.

On the current track my family may not get hit as hard as previously predicted but power most likely will be lost and there will be damaging winds, rains and tornadoes.

I'm being a bit of a lazy bum. I updated my website. For some reason I could not bring myself to do last night. Got caught up in watching MXC. I couldn't take any more Rita coverage.

I ran this morning - it was a great run and I felt really strong. For some parts of the run it felt like I was gliding.

Dog training and adoption has been cancelled for tomorrow. I'm going to arrange for Lola to meet a potential adopter sometime this weekend or next week.

After taking a nap this morning, I ate breakfast and watched more news. I still did not feel like doing much but decided that getting dressed would help motivate me.

I've been thinking about Objectivism a bit lately. I find it amusing how much the cold reality of natural disasters is bitch slapping the heck out of this philosophy. Objectivism is great on paper. I even thought it was the great thing that would help humanity achieve its potential but then I grew up. In my opinion advocating Objectivism after the age of 35 is a sign of either immaturity or employment at the Ayn Rand Institute. I wonder if self-interest is an acceptable reason not show up at work at the Ayn Rand Institute? Something tells me that the Ayn Rand Institute would be a lousy place to work. Salary and benefit negotiations would certainly be a bitch.

The flaw in Objectivism is that a substantial portion of the population is stupid and the invisible hand of the market cannot cull the stupid fast enough to prevent chaos.

I have a shallow understanding of Objectivism. I'm sure it would make more sense if I really studied Ayn Rand's works but I have a life and sleeping pills to take care of my occasional bouts of insomnia.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Lactose Intolerance: Who's at Risk? (tonight on Channel 13 News at 10:00)
Chagrin T. Swampier
savvings precise judicature
give your partner more pleasure
When it comes to refinancing, there really is no time like the present.
Activate your super human abilities without effort - new technology! (I don't know, what if my super human abilities are useless?)
Make talk a reality with a second mortgage quote.
Medical insurance helps you take care.
Unbelievable Mortgages for Americans (Believable Mortgages for Non-americans)
my white teeth
Guaranteed to Get You Up and Keep You Going (A kick in the butt in a bottle)
Help the UN cultivate peace; Free bracelet today (Wear a bracelet and a war lord or brutal dictator loses his weapons)
Amount Higher Than Expected
It's the perfect time to visit New England (It would be great if I could get a flight out)
Samuri stock Info (So that is what happened to the Samuri)
Fix your situation Kenneth
Discover Reality Dressing at Spiegel...a collection for every woman, every age
Flowers can say what words cannot express.
Hot chick, ready for you
Very Urgently
You will love this watch...
Buying American: Houses!
I am still waiting for your urgent response
It likely will be the last day the 50-year-old federal appeals court judge appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee -- and the last chance for Democrats to press him on a range of hot-button issues (This was the subject line of some spam promoting cheap Rolex watches - this person needs a beating. It would be in my self interest to beat this person.)

Actual Zen:
"Before enlightenment chopping wood, carrying water
After enlightenment chopping wood, carrying water."
Zen Proverb

My sister is headed to Dallas to stay with our brother. He's going to call me when he hears from her or when she arrives. It is a 5 hour trip under the most favorable conditions.

I've been trying to call and the lines have been busy.

Walter bought some supplies and will get some more later today. It is projected that we will get 75 mph winds.

I look out my office window and see blue sky and sunny weather. The high temperature is going to be 101F.

We will be moving computers to an interior office before leaving.

The buildings on campus are solid. The third floor will be covering their equipment because the roof leaks and the basement will move theirs to "higher ground"

The waiting is making me anxious.

Thanks to Rita, my workplace will be closed on Friday.

I'm suppossed to take in an additional foster dog from the Houston SPCA. I haven't heard anything yet. It is taking hours to get out of the Houston area.

I hope my sister and her boys decide to come up and crash at my place. According to the projected path my area will get some nasty weather but not nearly as nasty as the coast. At the very least, I'm sure she will go to our aunt's house. I'm expecting a call in the morning.

I hope my mother, aunt and uncle change their minds about riding Rita out. They are 70 miles inland but this is a category 5. In 1983 they got hit pretty hard by Alicia and she was a category 3. At least my mother will be at her sister's house rather than her mobile home.

It is the waiting that is bothering me.

Walter stocked up on some supplies and will get some more tomorrow.

I'm going to attempt an extremely early run on Friday morning. If I had to go to work Friday, I would not consider it but since Texas A&M will be closed, I can suck it up and then go home, shower and go back to bed. 5:00 AM! Whew!

To anyone who says this is yet another punishment from God, please shut up. Houston has a gay community but it also has Joel Osteen. This is going to hit the righteous and unrighteous.

Despite some of my doubts and jokes I do believe in the power of prayer and positive thoughts. Please send some to Texas.

Thank you.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
best goods families portray
Neal N. Church (funny!)
There's Nothing Like a Hot Oil Penny Stock
Realize total and absolute power and domination in bed with your partner (Once you achieve that then take on the world!)
complete stocks bodyguard
Damien H. Ash
To make textile product for you to save your cost. (Small Q'ty is OK)(all)
To make various parts for you to save your cost. (Small Q'ty is OK)(all)
The perfect companion for your digital camera. (Great now my stuff is receiving dating site spam!)
Morsel C. Elopements
Linda, Does a 6 Figure Income Scare You?
A wife drinking piss inn this movie from Bra
Virgin mantrap for serious people
Imagine your neighbor family having sex altogether in a quiet summer evening.
every one is going for this now chartreuse

Thanks to Cox I had to update this morning rather than last night.

A Dish Network salesman was cruising our neighborhood saying that Cox was going all digital and would not make equipment available to those with analog equipment to view the digital content.

Walter had more questions for the saleman and he wanted me there as well. The salesman said he would return. He never did. I guess the saleman did not feel like answering questions.

Salesmen hate Walter because he asks questions and can do math. The credit card telemarketers really hate him and his ability to do math.

On the other hand, I'm not as incredulous and can be too polite in turning people away. That is why the Jehovah's Witnesses keep coming back. The Watchtower makes a fine bird cage liner but there has to be a better way to obtain copies. The Watchtower is just the right size for Salvador's cage.

I do have a certain admiration for Jehovah's Witnesses. They persist in going door to door and are still nice to people who are not at their best. I've answered the door many times wearing droopy boxer shorts and a t-shirt and my hair a mess. Once, I noticed that I was scratching an itch located on a body part that I would not scratch in public. I was in my house - scratching in inappropriate places is one of the privileges of being in your own space. The JWs were on the porch, they were not yet in my space. They were only taking my time. The JW's just talked, smiled, offered to pray for me and resupplied Salvador with bird cage liner.

The JWs persist in this door to door thing despite some of the ruder tactics people use to get rid of them - perhaps it is not so much as service to their God but something they do for their own amusement. Maybe their worship services consist of sharing the funny things they saw and heard while canvassing neighborhoods.

Do Jehovah's Witnesses have some kind of JW radar? Has a Jehovah's Witness ever knocked on the door of another Jehovah's Witness? Do the Jehohavah's Witnesses ever knock on the door of Mormans or is there some kind of professional courtesy at work here?

Surely, Google can help me find the answers to these questions. Maybe even a JW with a sense of humor. I've met several JWs in a non-door to door context and they all have been quite nice and possess a sense of humor about their religion.

Being able to laugh at your own religion without condemnation is a hallmark of a "good" religion.

I look different. After church I was going to have the oil in my car changed and get a haircut. Maybe even do something about the gray. The oil change place was closed so I got a color and a cut.

Hair coloring is not as an exact science as I thought. My hair is now a dark coppery brown. It does not match the color sample the stylist showed me. The color sample that she claimed most closely matched my actual non-gray hair color. Perhaps the lighting was poor or she was color blind or both. My hair has never been a coppery dark brown. I have ample photographic evidence.

It will take some time getting used to it. Next time I should plan further ahead and bring a photo of myself with my natural hair color.

I did want to experiment with a darker tone when I was ready. I guess I'm ready now.

Walter reacted well to the color.

I need to post a picture.

This week's book:

Sugar Buzz: Your Ticket to Happiness

This week I ran 17.19 miles, burned 2,172.8 calories and weigh 163 pounds.

Monday I ran 5K in 37:01, Wednesday I ran 4 miles in 46:23, Thursday I ran 5K in 34:57 and Saturday I ran 6 miles in 1:19:00

Tuesday I did 100 Hindu Squats, 19 Hindu Push-ups and held a Back Bridge with hand support for 20 seonds. Friday I did 188 Hindu Squats, 19 Hindu Push-ups and held a Back Bridge with hand support for 40 seconds. Friday's workout I really got into a meditative zone. Moving the stretching before the calisthenics helped.

Lola ran with me on the 6 mile run. She did quite well. She rested for about 20 minutes in the car, while I took a shower at the gym then we went to training and she ran and played as if she had not run 6 miles. She runs slow but so do I. I need to work on a better watering method for her. She won't be accompanying me on too many more long runs because of the distance and time it takes me to run would conflict with dog training. I'll have Walter drop her off at training and the Woodstock folks can take her to adoption when the mileage increases to that point.

My right calf is sore. Maybe I can talk Walter into giving me a leg massage tonight.

Lola and I will sleep well tonight.

Boy, I'm getting things done early. I went to bed at 9:30 last night. It looks like I'll be doing the same tonight.

I woke up at midnight to pee, otherwise I got a good night's sleep.

Now, I need to learn not to hit the snooze button so many times. For the past two weeks I've hit it two times. This morning I hit the button three times. I'm trying to get it down to one hit. I need that nine minutes to transistion from sleep to awake so unless I'm on fire I will not get up immediately after the alarm goes off.

Spam Zen koans:
bentham
ursuline
chancy
follow

I've got my spine. I've got my Orange Crush.

Ha!

Walter cleaned the kitchen and washed the clothes. The kitchen looks great.

Spam Zen koans:
chew bran
found a better solution injudicious
equipotent

I got everything done and still can go to bed early!

Hooray Beer!

This week I ran 17.31 miles, burned 2,220.1 calories and weigh 163.3 pounds.

I started running with Gold's Gym Marathon training. This is in preparation for the Austin Marathon on February 19. Two days before my 37th birthday.

I ran 5K in 32:50, 5 miles in 51:48 and 59:00. I forgot to record my time for Monday's 5K.

I really need to pay more attention to what I eat.

Lola has achieved her Level One Manners Training. She can sit, lay down, shake and is housebroken and controllable on a leash. She also comes when called. If you live within an 1 hour drive of Bryan/ College Station, Lola can be adopted via woodstocktexas.org

This week's book:

The Book of Sick

I'm going to do the Sunday Crossword at the Houston Chronicle website then it is bedtime. I like living on the edge.

The team from church that drove the U-Haul to Baton Rouge arrived back in College Station yesterday safe and sound. The trip was longer than they anticipated because of road construction and police.

According to reports the collection point in Baton Rouge was very grateful for the items. They had a warehouse full of clothes and very little else. It took 8 people 2-1/2 hours to unload the truck. The supplies were going to a suburb south of Baton Rouge. A decent amount of cash was also left in Baton Rouge.

The truck was left at a Baton Rouge U-Haul facility per the instructions of U-Haul in College Station. The U-Haul in Louisiana was glad to take the truck. They have none.

I need to get the two-way radios that the team borrowed.

A screen shot of the Bush Administration disaster list (from The Daily Show):

For those with poor vision, the list:
Major Disasters of the Bush Administration
Abu Graib (check), Bin Laden (check), Chalabi (check), Deficit (check), Enron (check), Failure to find WMDs (check), Halliburton (check), Iraq (check), John Bolton (check), Katrina (check), Locusts, Mars attacks, North Korea, Osama and Jenna, Pregnancy: Osama and Jenna, Queer revolt, Rodents of unusual size, Syrian War, Tigers, Unicyclists - Nuclear, Voldemort, WWIII, X-Rated tape: Osama and Jenna, Yam shortage, Zero people left on Earth

This list is a parody of the list of hurricane names that the National Hurricane Center releases before each hurricane season. Here is the 2005 list (Atlantic):
Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Dennis, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harvey, Irene, Jose, Katrina, Lee, Maria, Nate, Ophelia, Philippe, Rita, Stan, Tammy, Vince, Wilma

Ophelia is spinning around off the east coast of the United States. Katrina will be retired.

For more information check out http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames.shtml

Walter could be used in 2010 (Atlantic) and Linda could be used for a Eastern North Pacific name in 2009.

I'm waiting for a hurricane Dakota, Destiny, Madison or Sheniqua. Jesse Jackson would get his panties in a bunch over that last one.

Yesterday afternoon, I volunteered at church to man the donation point for Katrina victims.

The truck is going to Baton Rouge. I don't feel like working right now because the logistics are kind of up in the air. This is distracting. Later this afternoon, I will be taking the truck to U-Haul to be checked out and see if it is worthy to drive 375 miles. There might be some extra unloading and reloading.

I'm actually taking the afternoon off but I'll be even busier between a meeting and dealing with this truck.

When I was a part-time retail slave I thought nothing about taking long road trips with minimal planning. Of course none of these road trips involved 2 tons of relief supplies. One road trip did involve me sleeping in the open bed of a pick up truck while it sped up Interstate 35. I was younger and felt much less mortal.

Walter met a couple from New Orleans, while he was at work. They are staying in some of the long-term housing. They said that they were overwhelmed by the generosity of the people of Texas. The couple are musicians and are looking to replace some equipment. This couple apparently is one of the better off people from New Orleans, they offered some money to the people providing the housing but it was refused.

Similar sentiments have been expressed about Texas' generosity and hospitality in the newspapers and other media.

Several refugees have decided to call Bryan/ College Station their new home.

One of the cool side effects of our church's work with the Salvation Army/ United Way is the mention of our church on mainstream radio and television. I was thrilled to hear the name of my church on a radio station that I actually listen to. There are many people who need to hear the Unitarian-Universalist message who do not listen to public/ community radio. They need to know we are here.

In my church when the subject of radio advertising comes up - it is always let's advertise on KAMU/ KEOS. Yeah, the cost is small and it targets the kind of people who might like our message but our church has preached to what we percieve as our choir but yet they don't come or they visit once and are never seen again. I say, lets spend some extra money and get our message out to more people. We need to stop making assumptions about who would enjoy our church and who wouldn't.

People in our church do feel a bit isolated from the rest of the community because their beliefs are a bit out of the mainstream of our community. We connect to each other but in a lot of ways we have isolated ourselves from the community at large. I'm hoping this Salvation Army/ United Way project will be the first of many events that connects us to the larger community and spreads goodwill about the Unitarian Universalist Church.

Update: a new team has been assembled to take the truck to Baton Rouge. Walter will provide them with two-way radios for the trip. Some members of the church has generously chipped in for gas.

Right now, I'm unusually tired. I went grocery shopping while tired, sweaty, crampy and hungry. I've dealt with 3/4 of the list. I'm going to bed early and will see the truck off in the morning.

The state of Texas has taken in nearly a 1/4 million Hurricane Katrina refugees. Our, Governor Rick Perry (Aggie and possessor of the finest head of hair among the governors of all 50 states, Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories) has declared that Texas shelters are near full capacity and has started airlifting people to other states.

Governor Perry (well-coifed Aggie) has busted the myth circulating among those opposed to population control that the entire world's population can live in the state of Texas.

Texas is nearly full. We cannot house the entire world's population. Use condoms.

In case, you are skeptical of the fineness of the locks of the Governor of Texas, take a gander at the photo I've posted. Do a Google image search and you will find that our Governor is always well-coifed regardless of the situation.

I challenge residents of other U.S. states, Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories to attempt to prove that the Governor of the great state of Texas is not the most well-coifed Governor from among the 50 states, Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories.

Texas may rank at the bottom in many respects but damn, our Governor has great hair.

This week I ran 20.25 miles, burned 2382.5 calories and weigh 163.2 pounds. So far this year, I have ran 527.19 miles and burned 65,390.5 calories.

Tomorrow afternoon, I'm volunteering at the Salvation Army's collection center that has been set up at church. There might be a road trip. I had no idea that being able to drive a standard transmission was such a valuable skill.

One of the TV stations talked about our collection on the 10:00 news. There was a brief clip of me talking about our mission and how this ties into it. I attempted to tie this to our first UU principle because that was the first thing that came to mind when asked. It came off well, I think.

I have a deep voice.

I'm tall, I have a deep voice and I'm married to a man named Walter. Holy crap! I'm Maude! Thankfully, my life is nothing like a Norman Lear sitcom. Otherwise, I would have to kill myself or others. I could not take all the shouting. I would do whatever was necessary to stop the shouting.

I'm an INFP (Meyers-Briggs personality type) and this type wants a kinder and gentler world and will kill if necessary to make that happen.

To close this entry - this week's book:


The Red King (Star Trek Titan Series), Vol. 2

I'm eagerly anticipating Sept. 27 - the day when this book hits the shelves.

To those who are claiming that Katrina is a message and/or punishment from God because of the sins of the Gulf Coast, kindly SHUT THE FUCK UP!

Do you think God, the creator of all things, is not capable of performing surgical strikes? Man has weapons capable of destroying my house without destroying my neighbors.

There is talk about a festival, that was going to take place this week in New Orleans, celebrating homosexuality and how God sent the hurricane to put a stop to it. I think God is capable of telling time. If He wanted to send a message I think He would have sent the hurricane during the actual festival. This week not last week. God works in mysterious ways, I guess.

Men have signed treaties against corporate punishment and retribution (i.e. punishing the whole population of a place for the actions of a few). Man has declared it a "war crime". Check the Geneva Convention. Do you believe that a compassionate God is a war criminal? In the Old Testament, when God destroyed places He spared the righteous.

Of course, God is above men and should not be judged by men's standards even if God, according to some of his believers, is not capable of doing things that his creation has mastered. I believe God is the best in us not the worst.

It is human nature to want an explanation for things but there is no reason that Katrina landed where it did. Just weather conditions and dumb luck. The suffering in the aftermath is man's fault.

So please STFU and help and uplift your fellow human and stop draining marshes. God put them there for a reason.

-------------------------------------

"Past the seeker as he prayed came the crippled and the beggar and the
beaten. And seeing them, he cried, 'Great God, how is it that a loving
creator can see such things and yet do nothing about them?' God said, I
did do something. I made you."
- Sufi Teaching

Walked 3,664 steps/ 2.74 kilometers.

Bryan - College Station is hosting a fair number of Katrina refugees. There are three shelters and several collection points. The Unitarian-Universalist Church will be one of the collection points Saturday - Monday.

Our schools, charities and social services are dealing with evacuees.

Here is an article I read about in another forum. It is a non-hysterical criticism of the handling of the situation in New Orleans.

http://www.slate.com/id/2125494/nav/tap2/

The Bush administration has been staggeringly ineffectual in its response to the rapidly deteriorating situation in New Orleans. Its failures are painful evidence of how far we have to go in developing the capability to respond rapidly to a mass-casualty disaster. The president's statement this afternoon set the tone. Rather than direct the U.S. military to immediately assist the thousands of people without food or water in the city center, Bush assured the nation that expected gasoline shortages would be temporary and that his father and former President Clinton were ready to pass the tin can to ensure private-sector support for rebuilding New Orleans. As people began dying around the Convention Center, and Mayor RayNagin resorted to issuing a pathetic SOS over CNN, Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff spoke empathetically of the suffering of the people in NewOrleans. But somehow he seemed proud that 72 hours after the hurricane hit, only 2,800 National Guardsmen had come to the city. The number is about to reach12,000 by tomorrow. That is awfully late for the people stranded there. Yet Lt.Gen. Russel Honoré, who is commanding the military component of Washington's response, pleaded for patience from the people of New Orleans, promising that the U.S. Army was "building the capability" to help them. Building the capability? How is it possible that with the fourth anniversary of 9/11 almost upon us, the federal government doesn't have in hand the capability to prepare for and then manage a large urban disaster, natural or man-made? Interms of the challenge to government, there is little difference between aterrorist attack that wounds many people and renders a significant portion of acity uninhabitable, and the fallout this week from the failure of one of NewOrleans' major levees. Indeed, a terrorist could have chosen a levee for histarget. Or a dirty-bomb attack in New Orleans could have caused the same sort offorced evacuation we are seeing and the widespread sickness that is likely to follow. Chertoff's Department of Homeland Security demonstrated today that it couldorganize an impressive press conference in Washington, lining up everyparticipating civilian or military service from the Coast Guard to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to promise its cooperation. But on the ground inLouisiana, where it counts, DHS is turning out to be the sum of its inefficient parts. The department looks like what its biggest critics predicted: a new level of bureaucracy grafted onto a collection of largely ineffectual under-agencies. What has DHS been doing if not readying itself and its subcomponents for a likely disaster? The collapse of a New Orleans levee has long led a list ofworst-case urban crisis scenarios. The dots had already been connected. Over the last century, New Orleans has sunk 3 feet deeper below sea level. With each inch, pressure grows along the levees. Meanwhile the loss of wetlands and the shrinking of the Gulf Coast's barrier islands have reduced the natural protection from hurricane winds. The weakness of the levees was underscored in a 2002 wide-ranging exploration of New Orleans' hurricane vulnerability by the New Orleans Times-Picayune, one of many grimly vindicated Cassandras. The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, which built the levees and continues to manage them, told the paper then that there was little threat of a levee's collapse. But the corps admitted that its estimates were 40 years old and that no one had bothered to update them. The response to Katrina thus far indicates two flaws in the Bush administration's thinking about homeland security. The federal government hasn't learned how to plan for a tragedy that demands putting a city on sustained life-support, as opposed to a one-moment-in-time attack that requires recovering the dead and injured from debris and then quickly rebuilding. And DHS appears unwilling to plan for the early use of the U.S. military to cope with a civilian tragedy. Presidential administrations have perennially underestimated the difficulty of the latter task. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy's top aide, Kenneth O'Donnell, thought it would be easy to deploy troops rapidly to defend James Meredith when he was attacked by segregationists while trying to enroll as the University of Mississippi's first black student. "If the President of theUnited States calls up and says, 'Get your ass down there,' " O'Donnell said, "I would think they'd be on a fucking plane in about five minutes." Kennedy made that call. But then, in spite of O'Donnell's prediction, he watched infrustration as the army dithered for hours before deploying to Oxford, Miss. The Kennedy administration thus learned that the army must be told in advance what to do. As a matter of law and preference, the military does little training for domestic missions. It balks and mutters about posse comitatus, the legal principle that prohibits the use of the army for law enforcement, and leaves the hard work for the National Guard and state and local authorities. This has made sense most of the time. But in an era when we are supposed to be better prepared for an urban disaster, the tradition of allowing local and state authorities to be overwhelmed before the federal government and military step in should have been rethought. Located only three hours from New Orleans is Fort Polk, home of the 4th Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division, a light infantry unit with about 3,000 soldiers. Also at Fort Polk is the Joint Readiness Training Center, which prepares military units to respond rapidly to crises abroad. The 4th Brigade has been training for duty in Afghanistan. Why was it also not ready to take on a local disaster scenario in hurricane season? Or at the least, once the National Hurricane Center predicted that the eye of Katrina would come close to NewOrleans, couldn't DHS have deployed the military to help shore up the levees? And in the event of a WMD attack, when there would likely be no warning at all, what is DHS's contingency plan for moving into position the army or the marines to restore order and sustain life? In the wake of Katrina and the breached levee, the answer seems to be not much of one. In the wake of 9/11, that is worse than incomprehensible. It is unforgivable.

Walked 5,881 steps/ 4.41 kilometers yesterday.

Moderated a rather lengthy meeting last night. It ended a bit earlier than scheduled. A lot of information was shared at this meeting. I hope the participants found it useful.

Finished a large copy job. I was feeling rather grumpy about the whole thing because it took three days and created a bit of frustration because of time and equipment malfunctions. Nothing is in optimal working order after running three hours straight.

Anyway, I count it as a blessing (not because I deserve it for any particular reason - just lucky) that I have a home and a job and a city. A natural disaster on the order of Katrina certainly puts things in perspective. My concerns are quite petty in comparison.

Here is a blog from a NO resident http://gutterboylive.livejournal.com/
I know him from a newsgroup that I spent too much time in.

The son and his family of a couple whose house I'm watching will be taking refuge in the house. They do not know if their home still exists.

I'm not sure how I would handle having my life disrupted for several weeks.

The fundies are blaming it on the gays. The anti-abortion people are blaming it on the number of abortion clinics in New Orleans and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is blaming Haley Barbour's role in convincing President Bush to not sign the Kyoto Protocol for the amount of damage Mississippi received.

This has been all over the internet: http://www.wonkette.com/politics//finding-versus-looting-123124.php
White people find, black people loot.

Thoughts and prayers to the people suffering through this.

Walked 9,619 steps/ 7.21 kilometers

Today was the first day of class. I got to work early because I thought there was an 8:00 am class in my classroom. There is brand new equipment in the classroom but it was not fully functioning until about 5:00 pm. The new equipment looks cool and I can't wait to try it out tomorrow.

It was a busy day.

I miscalculated my marathon training time. I am four weeks behind schedule. I'll be increasing my long runs a bit more quickly to compensate.

This week's book:

It's Science With Dr. Radium (Dr. Radium Collection Series)

I was reading the customer reviews of Star Trek Titan: Taking Wing at the Barnes and Noble website. There were two reviewers that objected to the presence of gay characters in the book. Actually, only one strongly objected the other one cannot spell very well or really believes that there is no place for "guy characters in Star Trek". Isn't homophobic Trekkie a bit of an oxymoron? How can anyone watch 5 different Star Trek TV series, 9 movies, read countless novels and comic books and miss the central point of tolerance and appreciation for those who are different?

Homophobic Trekkie - now that is irony.

This week I ran 17.63 miles, burned 2,187 calories and weigh 163.2 pounds. I think my father-in-law broke the scale. My increased consumption of Dairy Queen Blizzards have nothing to do with my weight gain.

Monday - 5K - 34:50
Wednesday - 4 miles - 48:43
Friday - 5K - 33:42
Saturday - 6.3 miles - 1:00:29. That time includes traffic stops.

I miscalulated distance and turned around at the wrong place. I was attempting to run 7 miles. I ran in the late morning again. It did not affect me like last week but my performance is extremely compromised by the heat. I will not run before 10:00 am until it becomes cooler. I had every intention of getting out of bed this morning and running but it did not work out. If I can't get my butt out of bed maybe I should wait until after 6:00pm to run. That would make things a bit difficult for the extremely long runs but hopefully the weather will be cooler by the time I get to those.

Friday I walked 9,380 steps/ 7.03 kilometers.

Lola was well behaved at adoption today. She is a great dog and is a great ambassador for all Pit Bulls. With some training she would make a great therapy dog.

I'm going to a church board retreat tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it.

Walked 4,713 steps/ 3.53 kilometers.

Had another short and efficient meeting.

TRANSPORTATION FUTURISTICS
What will transportation be like in the future? The
transportation galleries feature futuristic art, drawings
of inventions that could be the way that transportation
will go in, you guessed it, the future.
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/news_events/exhibits/futuristics/index.html

I like the "futuristic" art.

I want my flying car and personal jet pack!

Walked 11,924 steps/ 8.94 kilometers yesterday.

The meeting went well.

Walked 4,611 steps/ 3.45 kilometers.

Walked 11,254 steps/ 8.44 kilometers.

I have a very long meeting tomorrow. It is an exit interview. At least there will be pizza.

Spam Zen koans:
Get a natural advantage (as opposed to artificial?)
Unsecured loans are there when you need it (How about free money? Why isn't it there when I need it?)
roofing nails
Good for you (Thanks!)
We may be looking someone like you (What a waste of plastic surgery)
this is not a spam email or an advert its a request for help (If you have to say it is not spam, then it is spam)
Waiting for your responce and remain blessed.
No think it ban (No kill I)
Read carefully (Always good advice)

This week I ran 17.35 miles, burned 2,187.6 calories and weigh 160.8 pounds.
I ran 5K on Monday at 35:28 and on Friday at 34:15.

I ran 6 miles on Saturday in 1 hour and 20 minutes. It was early afternoon and hot. It was very stupid to run at that time. I got a sunburn on the base of my neck and a headache. I drank a lot of water and Gatorade but it must not have been enough to prevent the headache. I'll get my butt out of bed next Saturday and run in the morning.

A damn rash has flared up on my arms and legs again. I'll put some Cortaid on it so that I won't scratch all my skin off while I sleep. Ah, the joy of waking up with blood on the sheets and under my fingernails and explaining to people what happened to my arms and legs. People look at me funny when I say I did this in my sleep. I have self control when awake but sleeping is a different matter.

Yes, I'm a weirdo that scratches herself bloody while she sleeps.

It is too hot to wear long pants while running. Especially since this is a heat related rash.

This week's book:

Van Helsing's Night Off

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Relax, you're in the Bahamas (How did they know that is where my mind was?)
I need a good person (We all do.)
Become the man that women desire (Isn't Cary Grant dead? Why would I want to be Cary Grant?)
Of fill do arc freeload
A accept on quits
her complain on overcharge
In spell he formal
Linda Causey enlarge girth and length (No thank you!)
IT'S SO SIMPLE
Of lose on frigid
Assertive and strong
Rock solid

Walked 5,945 steps/ 4.45 kilometers.

Lola is coming back. The person who adopted her decided that she was not ready for a dog.

A very interesting site: http://postsecret.blogspot.com/
PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail-in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
On open is grizzle conceal
For say in lengthways yang

Walked 12,000 steps/ 9.00 kilometers.

I received my Matt Furey Inner Circle CDs and newsletter. It is a sample. I was sent two months of CDs instead of one. I can't wait to check them out.

My neck hurts when I move it a certain way.

So stop moving it that way.

But it is the way to be able to check for oncoming traffic.

Well then do like everyone else in this town. Drive by faith. Just pull out and trust God to handle the rest. What do you think all those fish emblems are for?

I once saw a bumper sticker that asked, "How would Jesus drive?" This led me to ask, "Why do people assume that Jesus would be a good driver?"

Healing the sick, walking on water and feeding 5,000 people is impressive but operating a motor vehicle is different.

Walked 4,265 steps/ 3.19 kilometers.

Lola made herself at home. She jumped on to her new owner's couch and got comfortable. It looks like she found a good home.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
It doesn't hurt to check Theodore
you study at concernedly blackthorn
on go at vindication guesswork

Walked 11,332 steps/ 8.49 kilometers.

My father-in-law starts his new job tomorrow.

Lola goes to her forever home tomorrow. She has been the best foster dog so far.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
casserole portend
sack defuse
No trees were harmed in the making of this floor.
on fill to inferential
on have of scrappy
The use to unshod

This week I ran 16.89 miles, burned 2,116.6 calories and weigh 161.7 pounds.

This week's book:

Nodwick Chronicles II: Of Gods and Henchmen

There are a lot of nerds at church.

Walked 9,944 steps/ 7.45 kilometers. Ran 5K in 34:50. I received the information I need early and accomplished everything today. Even made the copies early.

A nice relaxing evening for me.

Walked 4,114 steps/ 3.08 kilometers.

Salvador needs his own blog.

Walked 10,933 steps/ 8.19 kilometers.

I should not have eaten that second serving of taco pie.

Avoid the seconds and I might lose a couple of pounds.

Start where I am at.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Don't go round the bend
Summer time means no cellulite
was reply he bluecoat

Walked 5,013 steps/ 3.75 kilometers.

What am I running for?

Walked 11,103 steps/ 8.32 kilometers. Ran 5K in 36:10.

I will update the cartoon tonight. A thunderstorm came through while I was working on the newsletter. I got that out just in time.

Yes, I have surge protection and battery back-up but I still prefer to avoid the risks of a lightning strike.

Lola has been adopted but she will not be going to her forever home until the 20th.

I received a great e-mail that made me realize that my attempts at comedy are worth doing.

This week I ran 19.83 miles, burned 2,484.9 calories and weigh 160.8 pounds. So far this year I have ran 455.07 miles and burned 56,517.2 calories.

Lola is now completely clean. She smells nice too.

I have started training for the Miracle Match Marathon in Waco. It is on October 23rd. I think I will take advantage of the tax free weekend next week to purchase some new running shoes.

I posted a multi-panel cartoon. It has been two weeks since the last one. I don't have a story in mind so it is hard to draw the multi-panel toons. I need to put in some serious writing time.

I considered myself blessed to know some very amazing people. On the surface they seem quite ordinary but when faced with difficulties they are amazing.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
Being Alone must suck
plaintiff knox
Our God is able
second notification Bradley
your private invitation Lenora
chaucer
elmer
your private invitiation Alan
Is try of promote

I did not realize that I had so many identities.

I did not update last night because of an electrical storm. I've received a jolt through my keyboard once - that is enough for a lifetime. No rain - just lightning.

Lola overturned a container of old motor oil. Walter cleaned up the spill because he has expertise in that area. I cleaned up Lola. Some parts of her body are still discolored. I will clean her some more tonight. Hopefully, there will not be an electrical storm rushing things. Lola tolerates bathing very well. She is a very sweet and goofy dog.

Here is a column that portrays a ray of hope within the Republican party:

Who We Are
By Bob Herbert
The New York Times

You won't find many people willing to accuse John McCain, John Warner or Lindsey Graham of being soft on terrorism. But the three Republican senators are giving the White House fits with their attempt to get legislation approved that would expressly prohibit cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment of detainees in U.S. custody.

There was a dramatic encounter during the floor debate last week when Senator Jeff Sessions, a Republican from Alabama, spoke out against the legislation, saying there was no need for it because, as he put it, the detainees are not prisoners of war, "they are terrorists."

Senator McCain, of Arizona, argued that the debate "is not about who they are. It's about who we are." Americans, said Mr. McCain, "hold ourselves" to a higher standard.

The stakes in this confrontation are high. Senators McCain, Warner and Graham are all influential members of the Armed Services Committee (Senator Warner is the chairman), and
they have introduced the legislation in the form of amendments to the nearly half-trillion-dollar Pentagon authorization bill for fiscal 2006.

That such an initiative would come from high-ranking, hawkish Republicans is extraordinary, and the White House is not happy about it. In addition to prohibiting cruel and degrading treatment, the legislation would restrict military interrogation techniques to those authorized in a new Army field manual.

The senators seemed clearly to have been moved by the dismay expressed by current and former members of the military over the lack of uniform standards for the treatment of
detainees. Many have argued that the lack of standards and clear guidance from the highest levels of government have led inexorably to abuses.

Senator McCain has been the point person on the legislative amendments, and his office has released a letter from more than a dozen retired officers, including generals, admirals and former prisoners of war, offering support for his effort to establish standards designed to rein in the abusive treatment of prisoners.

The letter said, in part, "The abuse of prisoners hurts America's cause in the war on terror, endangers U.S. service members who might be captured by the enemy, and is anathema to the values Americans have held dear for generations." Senator Graham, who is from South Carolina, successfully sought the declassification and release of memos from current high-ranking military lawyers who were critical of the legal interpretations by the Bush administration that led to the harsh interrogation policy at Guantánamo. One of the memos, from Maj. Gen. Jack Rives, deputy judge advocate general of the Air Force, said, "Several of the more extreme interrogation techniques, on their face, amount to violations of domestic criminal law" as well as military law.

The White House has fought intensely, but so far unsuccessfully, against this revolt in the usually steadfast Republican ranks. Vice President Dick Cheney, in a meeting with Senators Warner, McCain and Graham, said the legislation would interfere with President Bush's ability to fight terrorism. He was not able to change their minds.

Unable to fend off the amendments, the Senate majority leader, Bill Frist, put off further consideration of the defense bill until September. Senator McCain and his allies will try to build further support for the amendments during that period. The White House has threatened to veto the defense bill if the amendments are approved.

We should take a moment, however this debate turns out, to applaud the effort by three Republican senators to stand up to the White House and insist that the United States not
just fight harder than its enemies, but also stand taller. No one should be surprised that these voices of reason are coming from men experienced in the ways of war. Senator McCain was a POW for five years in Vietnam. Senator Graham spent many years as an Air Force lawyer. And Senator Warner is a veteran of World War II and Korea.

A few days ago I spoke with John Hutson, a former admiral who is now president of the Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord, N.H. He was one of the signers of the letter to Senator McCain. He stressed that this is a very big issue for the country. If the United States fails to get its act
together with regard to the humane treatment of detainees, he said, we will "have changed the DNA of what it means to be an American."

---------------------------
The opposition is coming from those who claim to hold a "culture of life" sacred. I guess that proves that the "culture of life" is only for the unborn and vegetative white women. The rest of us can go to hell.

The first step in becoming a terrorist yourself is to no longer recognize the humanity of your perceived enemy. Once that is done suicide bombing, torture and other acts of brutality are no problem to perform.

I pray that when Senator Jeff Sessions prays to his God that his God will grant him the wisdom to understand that as Americans we should hold ourselves to a higher standard and strive to meet and at our very best exceed that standard.

Yes, the people being detained may be terrorists but they are also humans and we should treat them as such. Perhaps they do not deserve to be treated humanely but that is not a determination for us to make. We should do the right thing and give our soldiers the guidance necessary to do the right thing.

Confession time: I worked on Pat Robertson's presidential campaign in 1988.

The journey from Evangelical Christian to Unitarian - Universalist is not as interesting as it appears on the surface. I hold no malice toward Evangelicals but I think the rank and file Evangelical needs to speak up when one of the leaders does something very un-Christ-like. A loving brother or sister corrects another if they are straying from the path.

From: http://tinyurl.com/7aujx (Americans United for the Separation of Church and State)

TV Preacher Prays For More Vacancies On U.S. Supreme Court
Wednesday, August 3, 2005
Robertson Seems To View God As 'Divine Hit Man,' Says Americans United's Lynn

TV preacher Pat Robertson is so eager to see the Supreme Court overturn decisions upholding civil liberties that he’s praying for God to create more vacancies on the high court.
Speaking on his nationally broadcast “700 Club” program Aug. 2, Robertson blasted the court for “egregious decisions that have taken us far away from the Constitution.” Among the rulings under fire from Robertson were Roe v. Wade, rulings on the “the so-called separation of church and state,” decisions protecting the civil rights of gay people and the ruling barring the death penalty for juveniles.

The Virginia Beach-based televangelist later launched into a prayer asking God for swift confirmation of Bush nominee John G. Roberts and more vacancies on the high court so that new justice can “dramatically change” judicial policy.

The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, criticized Robertson’s actions.

“Robertson and other Religious Right leaders are so desperate to take over the Supreme Court that they’re trying to move heaven and earth,” Lynn said. “They’re even trying to enlist God in their nefarious court-packing scheme.

“Robertson seems to view God as a divine hit man, taking out justices or anyone else who gets in the way of the Religious Right agenda,” said Lynn. “I think most Americans don’t like to see God dragged into this kind of divisive and demagogic politics.”

In the “700 Club” broadcast, Robertson laid out a religious political agenda for controlling the high court. He urged viewers to participate in “Operation Supreme Court Freedom,” a month-long prayer project intended to beseech God to replace current justices with “righteous judges.”
“Well, the time has come for somebody who says we’re not going to legislate from the bench, we’re going to abide by the Constitution,” Robertson said. “So the president has put forth one person, but there needs to be a couple more.”

Robertson then prayed: “Father, Lord, the government is in your hand, the rulers are in your hand. This great and mighty nation, Lord, stands as a beacon of hope to so many oppressed people. But Lord, if our foundations are crumbling, then this great beacon won’t stand for long. And we pray, Lord, that this one key area of our government might be dramatically changed, that we might see people who respect the Constitution and who respect the fundamental law of the land.

“Lord, give us righteous judges who will not try to legislate and dominate this society,” he continued. “Take control, Lord! We ask for additional vacancies on the court, and we ask for additional fine people like John Roberts. Lord, speed this hearing process; may there be no rancor. May the Senate comport itself as it should, and may we see peace, harmony and a rapid confirmation process. Do miracles, Lord. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Lynn noted that Robertson has a history of controversial activity, whether it’s commanding hurricanes to go out to sea or smiting communities that incur his wrath. He once speculated that Orlando might be hit by a meteor for allowing gay flags to be flown on city streets.

------------------------------------

It would be sort of funny if God answered Rev. Robertson's prayer by killing Justices Scalia and Thomas. I suppose the additional vacancies can happen through retirement.

I took Monday off. I needed to rest.

Went shopping, bought some clothes. I don't enjoy clothes shopping. I enjoyed the company but not the shopping.

Goofy spam names and Zen koans:
The put of superior man
grace singlehanded

The sea of negativity is up to my ankles.