I don't get sick often. When I do, I tend to do a very good job of it. Almost time for a little more non-computer work action - like maybe cleaning up my room or something. I actually need to take some time today and list everything on eBay that there is to sell. That would be an effective use of my sick time.
Also, there's the car, which needs to be detailed, the garage, which needs to be put together, the gas grill, which needs to be checked out and cleaned or put out for trash .. an endless stream of things that could be accomplished.
How many of them will actually BE accomplished? That's the question.
I'm feeling a lot better, just a little fever-y and cough-y.
No replies from my several pings to the universe today about gathering sticks and twigs. Shit.
More are required, sticks and twigs
DJHJD
Monday, April 30, 2007
Friday, April 27, 2007
Yesterday, John and I were talking about car payments, obligations, that sort of thing, and he mentioned that the Danes were the happiest people on the planet. It seems that the Danes have a lower expectation of how life should be than do other people (we in the USAmerica ranked 34th) and they have far more support that they can count in in the way of education, opportunity, public health, retirement and public services.
And, their tax rate is about 60% of their gross income, all things considered.
Rather than bitching about how they are overtaxed, they have an expectation that the government will do a good job of providing transit, health care, retirement, elder care, disability, public health and cleanliness. In their world, the common defense doesn't have aircraft carriers; it has clean streets and bathrooms.
It is very clear that the cause for unhappiness is the disparity between expectation and reality.
In our country, we focus on having unreasonable expectations, and then beating ourselves up to satisfy them.
I think, frequently, that people get their panties in a twist about things that don't really affect their lives to distract them from their dissatisfaction with their own lives.
For instance, I had this email today:
So, this isn't exactly how I wish to spend my morning - reading this sort of bombast, so I replied to the sender:
Apparently, that wasn't the patriotic thing to do, as I got this as a reply:
Now, wasn't it nice of me NOT to rip her a new one? I merely replied:
She merely replied: Acknowledged.
I really don't understand people getting their panties in a knot about immigration.
I really don't.
Today, I have to accomplish a damned miracle. A big one. And, it will happen, somehow.
And, their tax rate is about 60% of their gross income, all things considered.
Rather than bitching about how they are overtaxed, they have an expectation that the government will do a good job of providing transit, health care, retirement, elder care, disability, public health and cleanliness. In their world, the common defense doesn't have aircraft carriers; it has clean streets and bathrooms.
It is very clear that the cause for unhappiness is the disparity between expectation and reality.
In our country, we focus on having unreasonable expectations, and then beating ourselves up to satisfy them.
I think, frequently, that people get their panties in a twist about things that don't really affect their lives to distract them from their dissatisfaction with their own lives.
For instance, I had this email today:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land
is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear
down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being
treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports
of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people
like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind
of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas
of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and
stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get
down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to
uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They
made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and
some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children
a new life and did everything in their power to help their children
assimilate into one culture.
Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor
laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they
had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their
children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along
side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy ,
France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any
thought about what country their parents had come from. They were
Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan . They were
defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated
France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or
the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only
Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one
of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another
country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have
been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here.
These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred
the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the
same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a
different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a
guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not
what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who
landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for
all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to
create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a
better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an
example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty ,
it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration
bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just
yet.
(signed) Rosemary LaBonte
P. S. Pass this on to everyone you know!!!
KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING!!
So, this isn't exactly how I wish to spend my morning - reading this sort of bombast, so I replied to the sender:
Please do not send me such spam in the future. Thanks!
Apparently, that wasn't the patriotic thing to do, as I got this as a reply:
Acknowledged. I'm sorry you don't seem to care.
Now, wasn't it nice of me NOT to rip her a new one? I merely replied:
I do care, I just don't agree with your position. Please respect that there are other ways to interpret things in the world. Just because I've already reviewed and considered this issue, or any issue, and choose not to review non-factually based communications that are designed only to inflame and not inform does not make me an uncaring person.
She merely replied: Acknowledged.
I really don't understand people getting their panties in a knot about immigration.
I really don't.
Today, I have to accomplish a damned miracle. A big one. And, it will happen, somehow.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
"You can hear a pin drop"
"You can hear a pin drop"
Mostly because you're no longer on the phone.
So, I spent my entire drive home talking on the phone to Sprint. Disconnected once. Routed back to the main customer service queue once by an advanced tech support person.
So far today, I've spent two hours with them on the phone (which I will NEVER get back,) been disconnected thrice, been promised that they'd fix my problem repeatedly (promises as empty as those of the current administration) aggressively worked to refrain from screaming or cursing, cried twice, and accomplished probably squat. I'm to go to the Sprint store tomorrow morning, to ask for service.
They are going to a.) offer to replace my phone if I pay the $50 shipping fee, whence I will receive yet another remanufactured Treo 650, which won't work, b.) treat me as being worth lower than dirt ('cause that's how Sprint is in their retail stores,) and c.) accomplish nothing.
You see, the most demeaning and de-humanzing retail experience that there is on the planet is to have to go to a Sprint store (at least one in Houston, although I have experience at Sprint stores in Fort Myers and Dallas, and they were no better, only less heavily trafficked.)
You go into a Sprint store, and some heavily coiffed and gelled person is standing at a podium near the door. They insist that you must sign in. The make a great show of signing you in, and the person who walked in right behind you.
Then, the coiffed person has to run and talk to someone - usually another co-worker. Maybe a necessary break is required. Perhaps a donut. At which point, the podium is untended. For five minutes, maybe ten.
During this time, twenty-two new people come in the door. Unimpeded by the sign-in process, they blaze past your patient waiting self and approach a representative directly, frequently interrupting said representative who's mid-client.
Your wait time, if you allow yourself to be wrangled by the podium hair gel, is increased by at least a half hour.
Then, you wait for the person who's pulled up your name in the podium queue on the in-store computer network (which they don't pay attention to when a blazer is knocking on their terminal.) You have 2.9 seconds to arise from your patient seating position and RUN like your ass was on fire over there before they cancel you out and call the next name.
If your device requires service, then you're given a repair tag and invited to come back "in about 90 minutes," which means next Thursday, week.
They won't explain service plans to you in any meaningful way, and the published materials reveal nothing of the restrictions or requirements.
They can't explain anything to you, only look at their Windows 2000 environment, bitch to the other representatives that all the computer terminals are again locked out, and they can tell you to please wait while they try to figure out what to do. Then, they tell you to call customer service.
When you call customer service, you wait. You wait until your eyes dry out. Each representative you speak to requires that you explain the entire problem to them again, and then, even if there is a history of concerns expressed, you are required to patiently wait while they go through the identical traps that the other six representatives before them (whom you would have had a complete conversation with had Sprint's shitty network not dropped the call, ending your association with the representative you've just invested some 20 minutes cultivating.)
Then, they'll "transfer" you to someone else, who requires that you go through the whole story again. Or, who just transfers you back to the begining of the customer service queue.
Which will then disconnect you.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Mostly because you're no longer on the phone.
So, I spent my entire drive home talking on the phone to Sprint. Disconnected once. Routed back to the main customer service queue once by an advanced tech support person.
So far today, I've spent two hours with them on the phone (which I will NEVER get back,) been disconnected thrice, been promised that they'd fix my problem repeatedly (promises as empty as those of the current administration) aggressively worked to refrain from screaming or cursing, cried twice, and accomplished probably squat. I'm to go to the Sprint store tomorrow morning, to ask for service.
They are going to a.) offer to replace my phone if I pay the $50 shipping fee, whence I will receive yet another remanufactured Treo 650, which won't work, b.) treat me as being worth lower than dirt ('cause that's how Sprint is in their retail stores,) and c.) accomplish nothing.
You see, the most demeaning and de-humanzing retail experience that there is on the planet is to have to go to a Sprint store (at least one in Houston, although I have experience at Sprint stores in Fort Myers and Dallas, and they were no better, only less heavily trafficked.)
You go into a Sprint store, and some heavily coiffed and gelled person is standing at a podium near the door. They insist that you must sign in. The make a great show of signing you in, and the person who walked in right behind you.
Then, the coiffed person has to run and talk to someone - usually another co-worker. Maybe a necessary break is required. Perhaps a donut. At which point, the podium is untended. For five minutes, maybe ten.
During this time, twenty-two new people come in the door. Unimpeded by the sign-in process, they blaze past your patient waiting self and approach a representative directly, frequently interrupting said representative who's mid-client.
Your wait time, if you allow yourself to be wrangled by the podium hair gel, is increased by at least a half hour.
Then, you wait for the person who's pulled up your name in the podium queue on the in-store computer network (which they don't pay attention to when a blazer is knocking on their terminal.) You have 2.9 seconds to arise from your patient seating position and RUN like your ass was on fire over there before they cancel you out and call the next name.
If your device requires service, then you're given a repair tag and invited to come back "in about 90 minutes," which means next Thursday, week.
They won't explain service plans to you in any meaningful way, and the published materials reveal nothing of the restrictions or requirements.
They can't explain anything to you, only look at their Windows 2000 environment, bitch to the other representatives that all the computer terminals are again locked out, and they can tell you to please wait while they try to figure out what to do. Then, they tell you to call customer service.
When you call customer service, you wait. You wait until your eyes dry out. Each representative you speak to requires that you explain the entire problem to them again, and then, even if there is a history of concerns expressed, you are required to patiently wait while they go through the identical traps that the other six representatives before them (whom you would have had a complete conversation with had Sprint's shitty network not dropped the call, ending your association with the representative you've just invested some 20 minutes cultivating.)
Then, they'll "transfer" you to someone else, who requires that you go through the whole story again. Or, who just transfers you back to the begining of the customer service queue.
Which will then disconnect you.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Greenetic Fury
So, scientists have discovered a new chemical substance in Serbia that has the same formulation as does Kryptonite. It's not radioactive, though, and it's not green.
I'm trying to think green(ly) though. Especially since I spent $50 on gas yesterday, $40 on gas Sunday morning, $45 on Friday last, and $43 on the Monday before that. Holy crap, Batman! (wrong super hero, I know, but ..)
So, how to get back and forth to the things I do without having to burn through $3.00 gas to do it? Aside from the occasional jaunt to the store or the dry cleaner, I generally only drive down to church and back and forth to the office. I read an auto blog today (why is everything a blog? It used to be an article) that suggested we'd have $4.00 gas (which for me here in Houston means $3.50 gas) by mid-summer.
Obviously, there are few choices available when thinking about getting back and forth to the church. It's 43 miles each way, and three bucks in tolls each way - no way around it.
However, to work - there are buses. And, it turns out, the 53 bus picks up on the corner by my house and runs straight over to Louisiana, a block from the office. For a dollar.
Which (round trip) is exactly one half of what I'm paying in tolls to get to and from the office, saving the gas. A net benefit of about $10/day. Call it $40/week, and $160/month by taking the bus instead of driving.
That would offset the cable bill, for instance.
And, it would reduce my carbon footprint by .. 72 gallons of gas a month.
I have been working away today; didn't get my website edits started, and I really need to do that. I also need to work on my flyer presentations for the several real estate projects that we're trying to support. And, work on my website. And find some business to work on that will actually pay money.
I suppose I'd be well served by going through what I learned this weekend and seeing if I can apply it somehow.
I'm trying to think green(ly) though. Especially since I spent $50 on gas yesterday, $40 on gas Sunday morning, $45 on Friday last, and $43 on the Monday before that. Holy crap, Batman! (wrong super hero, I know, but ..)
So, how to get back and forth to the things I do without having to burn through $3.00 gas to do it? Aside from the occasional jaunt to the store or the dry cleaner, I generally only drive down to church and back and forth to the office. I read an auto blog today (why is everything a blog? It used to be an article) that suggested we'd have $4.00 gas (which for me here in Houston means $3.50 gas) by mid-summer.
Obviously, there are few choices available when thinking about getting back and forth to the church. It's 43 miles each way, and three bucks in tolls each way - no way around it.
However, to work - there are buses. And, it turns out, the 53 bus picks up on the corner by my house and runs straight over to Louisiana, a block from the office. For a dollar.
Which (round trip) is exactly one half of what I'm paying in tolls to get to and from the office, saving the gas. A net benefit of about $10/day. Call it $40/week, and $160/month by taking the bus instead of driving.
That would offset the cable bill, for instance.
And, it would reduce my carbon footprint by .. 72 gallons of gas a month.
I have been working away today; didn't get my website edits started, and I really need to do that. I also need to work on my flyer presentations for the several real estate projects that we're trying to support. And, work on my website. And find some business to work on that will actually pay money.
I suppose I'd be well served by going through what I learned this weekend and seeing if I can apply it somehow.
Phaeton Phantasy
I lifted this from a new post on the VWVortex forum... so, it's not mine. I just like it a lot.
I know this may be a little indulgent, but there are so many fantastic little nuggets of trivia associated with the Phaeton I was wondering whether we could put as many of them together as possible (so as to keep passengers entertained for... ooooh... at least 100 miles )
Just add any bits that haven't already been mentioned!
1) Has a chassis so stiff (35,000nm/degree) that you could, in theory, bolt a Golf GTi on to a 3m long metal pole, bolt the pole on the Phaeton and the body would flex by one degree.
2) Was designed to cruise at 186mph with an outside temperature of 50 degrees centrigrade whilst keeping the interior at 22 degrees centrigrade. (W12)
3) The German Chancellor, the Pope and Kim Jong Il are all driven aroung in Phaetons.
4) 100 patents were filed during its design.
5) The air conditioning tracks the position and intensity of the sun.
6) Provides the underpinnings of the Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur (just with extra cow and tree)
7) The air conditioning was specifically designed not to upset Dr Piech's asthma.
8) Was the first car in the world with 4-zone air conditioning.
9) It's the only car in its market segment that is hand-built.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
In fewer than 24 hours, I'll be in Dallas, awaiting the start of the Psych-K conference. I'm very clear what I'm taking up there to be revealed and unraveled; I just hope that the discussion and environment is adequate to the task. I'm going to focus tonight on what it is that I intend to accomplish while there, and how much of it hinges on how I see myself, how I treat myself, and how I invite others to treat me.
There are several major groups of how this all relates:
Being ditched by my family at the age of five when we moved (which was my interpretation at the time based on what happened; I wasn't actually abandoned)
Being thrown out of the family from 1988 to 2004
Being thrown out of Landmark Education in 1997
Being thrown out of the Country Playhouse in 2002
Being thrown out of UCRS two weeks ago
And
Falling for str8, especially married men over and over
Only having an interest in unavailable men
Having a succession of broken boys that I have hosted in my home since 1982
And
Since law school, only working in industries in which I can end up earning nothing when a file or matter falls apart through no direct fault of my own
Only working on projects that, although well thought out and conceived, don't make any money or are ill-timed
And
Never taking care of myself, physically or .. well, physically, since I left law school
All of this circles back around to my fundamental complaint I raised in my first practitioner session back in 1997 - "nothing works out for me."
"Nothing works out for me," as in "it falls apart through circumstances out of my control."
I know that I have to focus on other things, other enthusiasms, other elements of life to accomplish what I think is the only acceptable level of performance for myself. The change may end up being only subtle, or it may end up being huge. I can't say.
The path that I have walked since 1982 doesn't work anymore. It doesn't even work for a few days or weeks now. The time is neigh to have it all be different, and that starts with my definition of self.
I was only called on to express that definition of self a few weeks ago in a conversation I had with JPO. It was horrible; I couldn't lie to him and tell him some answer that was false. I had to say what I really thought, and it was .. awful. I tried, even, to run away and not answer.
That's what has to be addressed and changed. I hope that I can manage it., or this will end up being a wasted life.
There are several major groups of how this all relates:
Being ditched by my family at the age of five when we moved (which was my interpretation at the time based on what happened; I wasn't actually abandoned)
Being thrown out of the family from 1988 to 2004
Being thrown out of Landmark Education in 1997
Being thrown out of the Country Playhouse in 2002
Being thrown out of UCRS two weeks ago
And
Falling for str8, especially married men over and over
Only having an interest in unavailable men
Having a succession of broken boys that I have hosted in my home since 1982
And
Since law school, only working in industries in which I can end up earning nothing when a file or matter falls apart through no direct fault of my own
Only working on projects that, although well thought out and conceived, don't make any money or are ill-timed
And
Never taking care of myself, physically or .. well, physically, since I left law school
All of this circles back around to my fundamental complaint I raised in my first practitioner session back in 1997 - "nothing works out for me."
"Nothing works out for me," as in "it falls apart through circumstances out of my control."
I know that I have to focus on other things, other enthusiasms, other elements of life to accomplish what I think is the only acceptable level of performance for myself. The change may end up being only subtle, or it may end up being huge. I can't say.
The path that I have walked since 1982 doesn't work anymore. It doesn't even work for a few days or weeks now. The time is neigh to have it all be different, and that starts with my definition of self.
I was only called on to express that definition of self a few weeks ago in a conversation I had with JPO. It was horrible; I couldn't lie to him and tell him some answer that was false. I had to say what I really thought, and it was .. awful. I tried, even, to run away and not answer.
That's what has to be addressed and changed. I hope that I can manage it., or this will end up being a wasted life.
Phaeton Phrenzy
So, last night I spent a few quality hours phiddling with the German Phaeton website, and looking at pictures of the 08 mildly re-styled Phaeton from the Geneva auto show. Holy crap! Now, I want to move to Berlin and live there so I can drive one of these Phaetons all the time.
The 2008 Phaeton. It's HOT. And it's not available here.
First, there's this amazing piano black wood trim that one can order in Germany (and other, more advanced countries) that's the same thing one can get in a Bentley Continental (which, if you recall, is the same car, built in the same factory as the Phaeton.)
They've also added a dash more dashing chrome trim...
The taillights are just a bit more dramatic - designed to look deeper and richer, although the shape hasn't changed. Yes, I'm a Phaeton Phreak, I can tell the difference..
The headlights are more Star Trekky with double projector beam bi-xenon lamps and the turn signal incorporated into the inboard projector housing, which is different from the long strip that used to run along the bottom of the headlight structure..
More of the chrome increase, a view of the amazing, $4,000 "piano black" paint job and new wheels that are VERY COOL...
This year, a DVD navigation system (which, from the screen prints still isn't quite as zippy as more updated systems, but at least everything's on a single disc with faster data access.
Anyway, I "configured" a German 08 Phaeton last night - 146,000 Euros. Now, let's do some math. A Euro is $1.35. $197,600. The same price as a Bentley Continental GT (for the same car, frankly.)
They sold for about 60% of that here, and still didn't have any takers. No wonder they pulled out of the market.
Speaking of REALLY expensive, the Andersen window people were here last night giving me an estimate - $8600 for six windows. Yurg. "We finance."
The 2008 Phaeton. It's HOT. And it's not available here.
First, there's this amazing piano black wood trim that one can order in Germany (and other, more advanced countries) that's the same thing one can get in a Bentley Continental (which, if you recall, is the same car, built in the same factory as the Phaeton.)
They've also added a dash more dashing chrome trim...
The taillights are just a bit more dramatic - designed to look deeper and richer, although the shape hasn't changed. Yes, I'm a Phaeton Phreak, I can tell the difference..
The headlights are more Star Trekky with double projector beam bi-xenon lamps and the turn signal incorporated into the inboard projector housing, which is different from the long strip that used to run along the bottom of the headlight structure..
More of the chrome increase, a view of the amazing, $4,000 "piano black" paint job and new wheels that are VERY COOL...
This year, a DVD navigation system (which, from the screen prints still isn't quite as zippy as more updated systems, but at least everything's on a single disc with faster data access.
Anyway, I "configured" a German 08 Phaeton last night - 146,000 Euros. Now, let's do some math. A Euro is $1.35. $197,600. The same price as a Bentley Continental GT (for the same car, frankly.)
They sold for about 60% of that here, and still didn't have any takers. No wonder they pulled out of the market.
Speaking of REALLY expensive, the Andersen window people were here last night giving me an estimate - $8600 for six windows. Yurg. "We finance."
Sunday, April 15, 2007
What's with this freezing cold crap?
Fortunately, the big piece of loose tin on the roof stopped banging, or I was so tired that it just didn't matter. I slept anyway.
I love my room now that the giant, upended black sofa is gone from it. It looks smaller now (the room,) which is curious given that an 82" black monster is no longer occupying one whole corner. I've been thinking that I wanted to have a red club chair in that corner, but now I think instead I'd put in a tv stand that was very .. unusual or something. And put a TV on it.
Last night, Ann was suggesting a jewel toned teal color for the bedroom, which is interesting. I love the idea of the purple I had in my apartment bedroom, but .. teal in a similar shade may be a good compromise and provide a good color for the art on the walls.
Much discussion over what to do with the patio - which most people called a courtyard, probably because it's fully enclosed and not open to any walk up. The two schools of thought are to leave it a courtyard open to the sky or to build a weather proof roof over the courtyard and make it into a solarium - skylights, ceiling fans, and still with plants, outdoorsy furniture, etc. A place where people could sit and socialize without the home theater, whether it be raining or whatnot.
The question was repeatedly asked "would you go outside?" Uh, no. It's hotter than anything in the summer? Solarium it is. I think it's cheaper to build, anyway. And, it would reduce the solar heat transfer into the family room. Uh, Chad? Bring your tools.
Now I have to get it designed and paid for.
Last night while surfing around (and thinking about Secret Agent Man,) I discovered his position on a HPD org chart. I was absolutely right that he's in law enforcement. And, an executive therein. Amazing.
I've been having people tell me of late that I look like I'm losing weight again. That makes me happy. I haven't been focusing on it like I was over at the big house, but .. yurg. Without someone's social support, it's just not something I seem to be able to do on my own. There's always something that needs dusting, reading, calculating, or preparation which takes me away from any faint commitment that I have for physical exercise.
The sun has finally caught up with the daylight savings time. Thank God. It's so hard to get up and be motivated when it's still dark as pitch outside. Plus, the snails are still everywhere when it's still twilight.
And I hate stepping on snails. I feel guilty about snuffing their lives out, and feel inattentive.
As I was driving home from the office yesterday, I heard a creaking sound from the front end of my car. 28,000 miles and creaking? Are you kidding me? I hit eBay last night shopping for a lightly used STS-V. Since it's one of the only cars that I'd like and Brian approves of, it seems a good choice. I like the sharkskin color with red and black interior. Looks unusual enough to suit me.
Before everyone came over yesterday (and before I realized that I had sold the big sofa) I broke down most of the boxes in the garage expecting that the sofa would have to go in there. The garbage cans are FULL, but having more order in the garage is a nice thing. I am thinking about just slinging the two remaining boxes out with the trash in the morning and seeing if they pick them up. Then, I'd only have the boxes in which the rest of the garage stuff is packed, the grill, which remains uncertain as to its usefulness, and .. not much else in there.
I just have to get on top of listing all of this stuff on eBay and selling it off. Not only is it annoying having the closet full to the brim, but I need the cash.
People were making fun yesterday that I was going to need room for more tschtokes - and I said "uh, no. I'm done with accumulating worthless visual objects." They didn't believe me. We'll just see. I'm gearing up for another big unloading of crap (meaning, useless visual objects that are antagonizing me due to their need for constant dusting and otherwise lack of function.)
Speaking of useless crap, I'm over it with ick. More unreliable than an early 70's Chrysler, full of drama, I'm just not again initiating communication there.
I need to eat my oatmeal and hit the shower. Have to leave for church in an hour. Board meeting after church, and then I have to hit the grocery store, the gas station (which is again feeling more and more like a cocaine habit) and come home to hang up a bunch of pictures and get ready for company.
I love my room now that the giant, upended black sofa is gone from it. It looks smaller now (the room,) which is curious given that an 82" black monster is no longer occupying one whole corner. I've been thinking that I wanted to have a red club chair in that corner, but now I think instead I'd put in a tv stand that was very .. unusual or something. And put a TV on it.
Last night, Ann was suggesting a jewel toned teal color for the bedroom, which is interesting. I love the idea of the purple I had in my apartment bedroom, but .. teal in a similar shade may be a good compromise and provide a good color for the art on the walls.
Much discussion over what to do with the patio - which most people called a courtyard, probably because it's fully enclosed and not open to any walk up. The two schools of thought are to leave it a courtyard open to the sky or to build a weather proof roof over the courtyard and make it into a solarium - skylights, ceiling fans, and still with plants, outdoorsy furniture, etc. A place where people could sit and socialize without the home theater, whether it be raining or whatnot.
The question was repeatedly asked "would you go outside?" Uh, no. It's hotter than anything in the summer? Solarium it is. I think it's cheaper to build, anyway. And, it would reduce the solar heat transfer into the family room. Uh, Chad? Bring your tools.
Now I have to get it designed and paid for.
Last night while surfing around (and thinking about Secret Agent Man,) I discovered his position on a HPD org chart. I was absolutely right that he's in law enforcement. And, an executive therein. Amazing.
I've been having people tell me of late that I look like I'm losing weight again. That makes me happy. I haven't been focusing on it like I was over at the big house, but .. yurg. Without someone's social support, it's just not something I seem to be able to do on my own. There's always something that needs dusting, reading, calculating, or preparation which takes me away from any faint commitment that I have for physical exercise.
The sun has finally caught up with the daylight savings time. Thank God. It's so hard to get up and be motivated when it's still dark as pitch outside. Plus, the snails are still everywhere when it's still twilight.
And I hate stepping on snails. I feel guilty about snuffing their lives out, and feel inattentive.
As I was driving home from the office yesterday, I heard a creaking sound from the front end of my car. 28,000 miles and creaking? Are you kidding me? I hit eBay last night shopping for a lightly used STS-V. Since it's one of the only cars that I'd like and Brian approves of, it seems a good choice. I like the sharkskin color with red and black interior. Looks unusual enough to suit me.
Before everyone came over yesterday (and before I realized that I had sold the big sofa) I broke down most of the boxes in the garage expecting that the sofa would have to go in there. The garbage cans are FULL, but having more order in the garage is a nice thing. I am thinking about just slinging the two remaining boxes out with the trash in the morning and seeing if they pick them up. Then, I'd only have the boxes in which the rest of the garage stuff is packed, the grill, which remains uncertain as to its usefulness, and .. not much else in there.
I just have to get on top of listing all of this stuff on eBay and selling it off. Not only is it annoying having the closet full to the brim, but I need the cash.
People were making fun yesterday that I was going to need room for more tschtokes - and I said "uh, no. I'm done with accumulating worthless visual objects." They didn't believe me. We'll just see. I'm gearing up for another big unloading of crap (meaning, useless visual objects that are antagonizing me due to their need for constant dusting and otherwise lack of function.)
Speaking of useless crap, I'm over it with ick. More unreliable than an early 70's Chrysler, full of drama, I'm just not again initiating communication there.
I need to eat my oatmeal and hit the shower. Have to leave for church in an hour. Board meeting after church, and then I have to hit the grocery store, the gas station (which is again feeling more and more like a cocaine habit) and come home to hang up a bunch of pictures and get ready for company.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Happy Death and Ressurection of Jesus (observed) weekend!
Drinking coffee, and thinking about how to reorganize the kitchen cabinets. I know that I want to make them more functional, and utilize the space over the washer/dryer for stuff that does get used but with less frequency, but .. where to put it all? I think that I'd be well served to check first with how to pull everything out of the cabinets over the washer/dryer and go from there.
Pulled the stereo equipment out yesterday afternoon and put it all back in. I still have the annoying hum from the cable box. The HD cable is AMAZING. Of course, there are like 12 HD channels that don't cost extra money. HBO, for instance, has two of its eight channels also in HD.
Okay, it's nearly 0800, and I need to make a move.
Drinking coffee, and thinking about how to reorganize the kitchen cabinets. I know that I want to make them more functional, and utilize the space over the washer/dryer for stuff that does get used but with less frequency, but .. where to put it all? I think that I'd be well served to check first with how to pull everything out of the cabinets over the washer/dryer and go from there.
Pulled the stereo equipment out yesterday afternoon and put it all back in. I still have the annoying hum from the cable box. The HD cable is AMAZING. Of course, there are like 12 HD channels that don't cost extra money. HBO, for instance, has two of its eight channels also in HD.
Okay, it's nearly 0800, and I need to make a move.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Late-night snark builds healthy bones:
"Hillary Clinton is running for president. She set a fundraising record---she's already raised 26 million dollars. That's a lot of money. To put that in perspective, that is more money than President Bush lost in all the years he was a businessman."
---Jimmy Kimmel
"Republican candidates are announcing their first quarter fundraising totals so far. Mitt Romney announced he's raised $23 million, Rudy Giuliani said he's raised $15 million, and Congressman Tom Tancredo announced he's raised two children."
---Conan O'Brien
"Bush visited Walter Reed today. When you've got a problem like Walter Reed that needs solving, what better sight than to see George Bush walk through the door? He's created so many disasters, I'm not sure he knows which is which anymore. He walked into Walter Reed and he said he wanted to have it ready for next year's Mardi Gras."
---Bill Maher
"Actor and former U.S. Senator Fred Thompson---the guy from Law and Order---is thinking of running. He's only been married twice. By Republican standards, that would make him the family values candidate."
---Jay Leno
Grab your bongs and don your thongs---a west coast-friendly edition of Cheers and Jeers starts in There's Moreville... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
"Hillary Clinton is running for president. She set a fundraising record---she's already raised 26 million dollars. That's a lot of money. To put that in perspective, that is more money than President Bush lost in all the years he was a businessman."
---Jimmy Kimmel
"Republican candidates are announcing their first quarter fundraising totals so far. Mitt Romney announced he's raised $23 million, Rudy Giuliani said he's raised $15 million, and Congressman Tom Tancredo announced he's raised two children."
---Conan O'Brien
"Bush visited Walter Reed today. When you've got a problem like Walter Reed that needs solving, what better sight than to see George Bush walk through the door? He's created so many disasters, I'm not sure he knows which is which anymore. He walked into Walter Reed and he said he wanted to have it ready for next year's Mardi Gras."
---Bill Maher
"Actor and former U.S. Senator Fred Thompson---the guy from Law and Order---is thinking of running. He's only been married twice. By Republican standards, that would make him the family values candidate."
---Jay Leno
Grab your bongs and don your thongs---a west coast-friendly edition of Cheers and Jeers starts in There's Moreville... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
I'm running late already because I slept in a little bit and then didn't get immediately on task but rather paused to read a little bit. Ah, well. I have a short day today and much to accomplish.
And, last night, I spent some time researching how to breed and raise honeybees. It's scary how reliant we are on a SINGLE species of insect for our entire organized society and how this has been coming on since the LATE 1980s WITHOUT ANY ATTENTION . (grumbles.) Okay, I'll move back to Brittney Spear's ass crack.
And it's too challenging to raise bees for a hobby. And, I'm not sure what benefit there would be (punny) from it here in the middle of the city.
Oh, and there's a resistant strain of a fungus that attacks wheat crops too. Yeah. Fire, flood and famine. I thought that the Four Horse(wo)Men of the Apocalypse only came together when my family had a reunion.
Maybe I'll stick with figuring out how to reorganize the kitchen cabinets and re-wiring the stereo rack, which are my afternoon projects.
And, last night, I spent some time researching how to breed and raise honeybees. It's scary how reliant we are on a SINGLE species of insect for our entire organized society and how this has been coming on since the LATE 1980s WITHOUT ANY ATTENTION . (grumbles.) Okay, I'll move back to Brittney Spear's ass crack.
And it's too challenging to raise bees for a hobby. And, I'm not sure what benefit there would be (punny) from it here in the middle of the city.
Oh, and there's a resistant strain of a fungus that attacks wheat crops too. Yeah. Fire, flood and famine. I thought that the Four Horse(wo)Men of the Apocalypse only came together when my family had a reunion.
Maybe I'll stick with figuring out how to reorganize the kitchen cabinets and re-wiring the stereo rack, which are my afternoon projects.
Just in case you really still think that things haven't changed
So, you think that Fox News is onto something, that the fundamental values of this American nation are intact, and that the government and the corporate structure of this country really are inclusive, rather than operated solely for the benefit of the wealthy, white people.
Here's a little nugget for you that may open the door a crack in your dim little perspective:
Yep. Karl Rove goes to speak at a university in the United States, and students are OUTSIDE protesting, and this is what they get - threatened with a weapon by an agent of the Federal Government, who is then supported (as is Rove and the rest of the gummint structure) by the "Liberal" media who suggests that the STUDENTS were aggressors.
I have a question for you - why the FUCK was the Secret Service at an event protecting Karl Rove, who's not an elected official? They don't protect CONGRESSMEN unless they're running for President. Have they become the SS of our new society?
The next person who hints at the concept of a "Liberal Media" is going to be packed up in a straight jacket and shipped off to Argentina to live in THAT society for a few years. Then, you can come back up here and tell me what you think about our cow-like population and the sycophants in the "media" who live only to support those wealthy white people that they so aspire to be part of.
In a nation where they burn the buses if the government tries to raise the bus fares, where they take over the factories from the wealthy owners when they try to outsource those jobs to Malaysia and operate the factories for the benefit of the workers, and where the newspapers are more likely to report scandal than the rise of Brittney Spear's jeans, you have some public interaction with the machine of society.
Stuff your nonsense headlines you gained from Fox News and the Heart organization without doing any research on your own. You and Bill O'Reilly all deserve a special place in Hell.
Here's a little nugget for you that may open the door a crack in your dim little perspective:
In the comments of the diary yesterday, I posted about a man who brandished a gun during the protest and about how AU Public Safety would not confirm who he was. As you will see in the testimonies, the man was threatening to arrest students and intimidating them with his firearm. Well, yesterday the Director of Public Safety on campus confirmed that the man with the gun was indeed a Secret Service agent. Let me reiterate: a Secret Service agent came to my school and pulled a gun on a group of peaceful protesters and threatened them with violence, and the media is framing the students as the aggressors.
Yep. Karl Rove goes to speak at a university in the United States, and students are OUTSIDE protesting, and this is what they get - threatened with a weapon by an agent of the Federal Government, who is then supported (as is Rove and the rest of the gummint structure) by the "Liberal" media who suggests that the STUDENTS were aggressors.
I have a question for you - why the FUCK was the Secret Service at an event protecting Karl Rove, who's not an elected official? They don't protect CONGRESSMEN unless they're running for President. Have they become the SS of our new society?
The next person who hints at the concept of a "Liberal Media" is going to be packed up in a straight jacket and shipped off to Argentina to live in THAT society for a few years. Then, you can come back up here and tell me what you think about our cow-like population and the sycophants in the "media" who live only to support those wealthy white people that they so aspire to be part of.
In a nation where they burn the buses if the government tries to raise the bus fares, where they take over the factories from the wealthy owners when they try to outsource those jobs to Malaysia and operate the factories for the benefit of the workers, and where the newspapers are more likely to report scandal than the rise of Brittney Spear's jeans, you have some public interaction with the machine of society.
Stuff your nonsense headlines you gained from Fox News and the Heart organization without doing any research on your own. You and Bill O'Reilly all deserve a special place in Hell.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
This one, though is my favorite - it shows a German auto journalist who's driving a W12 Phaeton .. at night. The controls and interior lighting - how FABULOUS...
Did I mention that he's driving this Phaeton at 170 miles per hour? 280 km/hr. ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY? Or are my math skills weak this morning? At night? Hell, my night vision isn't what it used to be - plus, there's the risk of someone driving their kids around in a Suburban hauling into your lane without looking at sixty.
Maybe a trip to Germany..
Did I mention that he's driving this Phaeton at 170 miles per hour? 280 km/hr. ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY? Or are my math skills weak this morning? At night? Hell, my night vision isn't what it used to be - plus, there's the risk of someone driving their kids around in a Suburban hauling into your lane without looking at sixty.
Maybe a trip to Germany..
Donna sent me this European VW commercial the other day. Now, I'm all horny for a Phaeton again.
The one in Minnie is still for sale.
Speaking of things still for sale, the big house on Warwickshire is STILL for sale, and they're down to $220,000 - which is only $10,000 more than what I offered them last.
Poseidon POS Redeaux
I'm watching the Hallmark Made for TV "Poseidon Adventure" from 2005. Everyone who hasn't had a job in twenty years seems to be in it. They're following the structure of the book more closely, although the rollover is caused by a terrorists' bomb instead of a tidal wave. It's just not .. um .. that great.
Last night, i was watching "Mother, Jugs & Speed," the 1976 Bill Cosby/Raquel Welch movie. A hoot. Oh, my. I have the soundtrack on vinyl. John's away for the evening and Bram's working until .. next week, I guess.
Tomorrow's Good Friday. I need to work on my Easter Sunday service - not that it's going to be all that well attended.
Bram told me last night he thinks he's sticking around for a good long while. That makes me happy. I like him enormously, and I love having him here. I love both of my boys, and I like having them here with me.
I've been talking to this guy on gay.com that I've been wanting to meet for more than two years. He's a big muscle boy/personal trainer. He always talks so tough and aggressively, but now that we're actually talking, he's a pussycat. I think he's really shy. He doesn't have a boyfriend, hasn't had one in forever, and works a Bram-like schedule.
I talked to him about the cruise; he was like .. "um, me? On that cruise? Why me?"
Well, you'll look great in a tuxedo, and you'll do.
One of the guys at the office has reduced 35 pounds in four months. FOUR MONTHS! With that kind of diligence, I could probably meet or exceed that result.
Which would have me down to what I weighed before 1990.
John's working on a food program for us; this is going to involve a weekly cook night, where I make up about 24 chicken breasts at a time and package up a huge cooker of brown rice, and package everything up for use all week long. Then, eating every three hours (a little something per the schedule) keeps my glucose levels stable, which keeps the insulin production in check AND causes the body to consume its fat stores.
Plus, exercise, of course.
Last night, i was watching "Mother, Jugs & Speed," the 1976 Bill Cosby/Raquel Welch movie. A hoot. Oh, my. I have the soundtrack on vinyl. John's away for the evening and Bram's working until .. next week, I guess.
Tomorrow's Good Friday. I need to work on my Easter Sunday service - not that it's going to be all that well attended.
Bram told me last night he thinks he's sticking around for a good long while. That makes me happy. I like him enormously, and I love having him here. I love both of my boys, and I like having them here with me.
I've been talking to this guy on gay.com that I've been wanting to meet for more than two years. He's a big muscle boy/personal trainer. He always talks so tough and aggressively, but now that we're actually talking, he's a pussycat. I think he's really shy. He doesn't have a boyfriend, hasn't had one in forever, and works a Bram-like schedule.
I talked to him about the cruise; he was like .. "um, me? On that cruise? Why me?"
Well, you'll look great in a tuxedo, and you'll do.
One of the guys at the office has reduced 35 pounds in four months. FOUR MONTHS! With that kind of diligence, I could probably meet or exceed that result.
Which would have me down to what I weighed before 1990.
John's working on a food program for us; this is going to involve a weekly cook night, where I make up about 24 chicken breasts at a time and package up a huge cooker of brown rice, and package everything up for use all week long. Then, eating every three hours (a little something per the schedule) keeps my glucose levels stable, which keeps the insulin production in check AND causes the body to consume its fat stores.
Plus, exercise, of course.
I'm loving having this cool new office..
Now, I need some business flow to go with it.
I have some tax work to finish today, and then I have to work on web marketing with Tom.
Houston is now larger than the Miami/Ft.Lauderdale/Palm Beach MSA. Houston's now the 6th largest MSA in the USAmerica. What about THEM apples? When I moved here 26 years ago, Houston was the 12th largest MSA. Who's bigger? New York, of course, followed by Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Philadelphia and then Houston. Houston doesn't need to haul in cities from across the Trinity River, or down in Orange County. We're just one sprawling carbuncle.
Rather explains why we're getting so much international air carrier attention, but hardly explains the crappy auto show.
It's just so damned peaceful here in my little corner. I want some masonry picture hangers today so that I can finish hanging pictures - I thought I was done, and then I opened the drawer back here and found .. yet more.
Today would normally be my Rick day. However, with recurrent cancellations, and an hour's drive each way, I'm over it. So, no more atlas adjustments. More's the pity, 'cause it was really wonderful.
I have some tax work to finish today, and then I have to work on web marketing with Tom.
Houston is now larger than the Miami/Ft.Lauderdale/Palm Beach MSA. Houston's now the 6th largest MSA in the USAmerica. What about THEM apples? When I moved here 26 years ago, Houston was the 12th largest MSA. Who's bigger? New York, of course, followed by Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Philadelphia and then Houston. Houston doesn't need to haul in cities from across the Trinity River, or down in Orange County. We're just one sprawling carbuncle.
Rather explains why we're getting so much international air carrier attention, but hardly explains the crappy auto show.
It's just so damned peaceful here in my little corner. I want some masonry picture hangers today so that I can finish hanging pictures - I thought I was done, and then I opened the drawer back here and found .. yet more.
Today would normally be my Rick day. However, with recurrent cancellations, and an hour's drive each way, I'm over it. So, no more atlas adjustments. More's the pity, 'cause it was really wonderful.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
So, it's not just me
Honey bees, Sean Michael DuBose and holy crap, but things are just getting weirder.
So, I sent Sean a text message over the weekend and he didn't reply, which was very strange. Then, I sent him a MySpace message, and he still didn't reply, which wasn't very strange. But, it sent me back over to his MySpace profile, where I found a friend of his who had as his profile headline "RIP Sean DuBose."
I shot that boy a message. He replies "he was killled." Apparently, education in Oklahoma is to a higher standard. However, I got that message back tonight, and thought "well, hell, if Sean was killed here in Houston, surely the Chronicle would have something about it - his mother's all about that sort of obituary thing."
And, there it was. He was killed sitting in his car at 04:30 a.m. last Wednesday; his car caught fire, he was in it, it burned up with him in it.
Amazing. Judy's now had her husband die of a heart attack, her first son die in a little hazing incident, and now this.
And, what if it just doesn't matter? My thoughts about honey bees are not silly, wildly out of hand or anything. Check this out (which I've hauled off of an email subscription I get from John Maudlin...)
Honey Bees and Food Supply
By Shannara Johnson
"If the bee disappears off the surface of the globe, then man would have four years left to live," said Albert Einstein. "No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man."
The question many beekeepers and scientists are asking themselves these days is, are we there already?
Recently, there's been a great media buzz about the mysterious disappearance of hundreds of millions of honey bees in the United States. Beekeepers have helplessly stood by while up to 95% of their bees vanished into thin air. One Midwestern beekeeper lost 11,000 of his 13,000 hives, others in 24 states face losses of 60% to 80% on average. Internationally, the same phenomenon--to a lesser degree--has surfaced in Canada, Poland, Spain, Germany, and other European countries.
What's the cause of the "colony collapse syndrome," as it is now called? No one knows for sure, though there are plenty of theories.
Award-winning TV producer, investigative reporter and editor of Earthfiles.com Linda Moulton-Howe talked to various scientists about the bee bane. "Penn State entomologist Diana Cox-Foster, Ph.D., analyzed some bees found in deserted hives," reports Moulton-Howe. "Dr. Cox-Foster has seen as many as five different viruses and unidentified fungi in the bees. She says that is two times more pathogens than she's ever seen before in honey bees."
Something is compromising the bees' immune systems, other scientists agree; among the suspected culprits are modern pesticides and GM crops. And while no one agent might be solely responsible for the bees' disease, Moulton-Howe wonders "what happens when farmers spray herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and rodenticides on land that has also genetically modified crops with pesticides built in?"
As an example, Monsanto's "Round-up Ready" crops, which are modified to withstand the spraying of herbicides, are widely used in the U.S. Recently, though, weeds have developed a Round-up resistance--resulting in frustrated farmers spraying more and more of the weed killer, in combination with others, on their fields.
Eric Mussen, an entomologist and Extension Apiculturist at UC-Davis, also found that some fungicides approved by the EPA for bee safety, while not killing adult bees, are fatal for bee larvae and young bees.
How did the EPA react to his warnings?
"Well, they said they wanted to see some evidence or some data," Mussen told Earthfiles.com. "So, I sent them the evidence. And I cannot see that anything has changed since then and that was a couple of years ago."
Another hypothesis is that nicotine-based pesticides, which have emerged in the last six years, might be messing with the memory of the honey bees, rendering them incapable of finding their way back to the hive.
"The interesting thing [...] is that bees are leaving the colony and not coming back," states Jerry Hayes, chief of the Apiary section at Florida's Department of Agriculture, "which is highly unusual for a social insect to leave a queen and its brood or young behind. They are seemingly going out and can't find their way back home.
"Imidachloprid [the most common nicotine-based pesticide], when it is used to control termites, does exactly the same thing. One of the methods it uses to kill termites is that the termites feed on this material and then go out to feed and can't remember how to get home."
It also causes their immune systems to collapse, says Hayes, adding that imidachloprid has recently evolved from a mere seed treatment to a foliage spray, often combined with fungicides to increase its efficacy.
Mounting stress for the bees might be another factor, suggested a February 23 article in the New York Times. There are fewer and fewer beekeepers in the U.S., who are trucking their hives on 18-wheelers around the country to serve increasing demand from their customers.
"Bees are being raised to survive a shorter off-season, to be ready to pollinate once the almond bloom begins in February. This has most likely lowered their immunity to viruses."
But it's not just viruses. Mites are also a big problem, "and the insecticides used to try to kill mites are harming the ability of queen bees to spawn as many worker bees. The queens are living half as long as they did just a few years ago."
But how dire is our situation due to the loss of honey bees?
Honey bees pollinate fruit and nut trees, melons and vegetables in the U.S., a $14.5 billion industry. A 2006 study by an international research team found that pollinators affect more than one-third of the world's crop production, increasing the output of 87 of the leading food crops worldwide.
"Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honey bee to pollinate that food," according to Zac Browning, vice president of the American Beekeeping Federation. And Paul Wenger, VP of the California Farm Bureau Federation, said that with fewer bees, "you'll see lower pollination, lower yields, lower crop production."
So, could we face a national food crisis soon?
It's possible, says Jerry Hayes, wondering if honey bees are the canary in the coal mine. "What are honey bees trying to tell us that we humans should be paying more attention to?"
He thinks having to import more food could be a dilemma in itself: "How much of our food production do we want to turn over to other countries that might be friendly now and not friendly in the future? [...] Then the question is: who fills the gap? And do we become reliant on them? I think I read a figure from the USDA that they project by 2015 that 40% of our vegetables would be coming from China."
Given the, to say it mildly, less-than-perfect environmental track record of the Chinese, we wonder what agents our veggies may be laced with in the future. (Case in point: according to ABC News, it is now suspected that the recent pet food poisoning, which caused renal failure in hundreds of cats, may have been caused by melamine, a toxic fertilizer component found in wheat gluten from China that went into U.S. pet food.)
And as to Hayes' question what honey bees are trying to tell us, it seems pretty clear to us: in the long run, you can't mess around with Mother Nature without facing the consequences.
So, I sent Sean a text message over the weekend and he didn't reply, which was very strange. Then, I sent him a MySpace message, and he still didn't reply, which wasn't very strange. But, it sent me back over to his MySpace profile, where I found a friend of his who had as his profile headline "RIP Sean DuBose."
I shot that boy a message. He replies "he was killled." Apparently, education in Oklahoma is to a higher standard. However, I got that message back tonight, and thought "well, hell, if Sean was killed here in Houston, surely the Chronicle would have something about it - his mother's all about that sort of obituary thing."
And, there it was. He was killed sitting in his car at 04:30 a.m. last Wednesday; his car caught fire, he was in it, it burned up with him in it.
Amazing. Judy's now had her husband die of a heart attack, her first son die in a little hazing incident, and now this.
And, what if it just doesn't matter? My thoughts about honey bees are not silly, wildly out of hand or anything. Check this out (which I've hauled off of an email subscription I get from John Maudlin...)
Honey Bees and Food Supply
By Shannara Johnson
"If the bee disappears off the surface of the globe, then man would have four years left to live," said Albert Einstein. "No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man."
The question many beekeepers and scientists are asking themselves these days is, are we there already?
Recently, there's been a great media buzz about the mysterious disappearance of hundreds of millions of honey bees in the United States. Beekeepers have helplessly stood by while up to 95% of their bees vanished into thin air. One Midwestern beekeeper lost 11,000 of his 13,000 hives, others in 24 states face losses of 60% to 80% on average. Internationally, the same phenomenon--to a lesser degree--has surfaced in Canada, Poland, Spain, Germany, and other European countries.
What's the cause of the "colony collapse syndrome," as it is now called? No one knows for sure, though there are plenty of theories.
Award-winning TV producer, investigative reporter and editor of Earthfiles.com Linda Moulton-Howe talked to various scientists about the bee bane. "Penn State entomologist Diana Cox-Foster, Ph.D., analyzed some bees found in deserted hives," reports Moulton-Howe. "Dr. Cox-Foster has seen as many as five different viruses and unidentified fungi in the bees. She says that is two times more pathogens than she's ever seen before in honey bees."
Something is compromising the bees' immune systems, other scientists agree; among the suspected culprits are modern pesticides and GM crops. And while no one agent might be solely responsible for the bees' disease, Moulton-Howe wonders "what happens when farmers spray herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and rodenticides on land that has also genetically modified crops with pesticides built in?"
As an example, Monsanto's "Round-up Ready" crops, which are modified to withstand the spraying of herbicides, are widely used in the U.S. Recently, though, weeds have developed a Round-up resistance--resulting in frustrated farmers spraying more and more of the weed killer, in combination with others, on their fields.
Eric Mussen, an entomologist and Extension Apiculturist at UC-Davis, also found that some fungicides approved by the EPA for bee safety, while not killing adult bees, are fatal for bee larvae and young bees.
How did the EPA react to his warnings?
"Well, they said they wanted to see some evidence or some data," Mussen told Earthfiles.com. "So, I sent them the evidence. And I cannot see that anything has changed since then and that was a couple of years ago."
Another hypothesis is that nicotine-based pesticides, which have emerged in the last six years, might be messing with the memory of the honey bees, rendering them incapable of finding their way back to the hive.
"The interesting thing [...] is that bees are leaving the colony and not coming back," states Jerry Hayes, chief of the Apiary section at Florida's Department of Agriculture, "which is highly unusual for a social insect to leave a queen and its brood or young behind. They are seemingly going out and can't find their way back home.
"Imidachloprid [the most common nicotine-based pesticide], when it is used to control termites, does exactly the same thing. One of the methods it uses to kill termites is that the termites feed on this material and then go out to feed and can't remember how to get home."
It also causes their immune systems to collapse, says Hayes, adding that imidachloprid has recently evolved from a mere seed treatment to a foliage spray, often combined with fungicides to increase its efficacy.
Mounting stress for the bees might be another factor, suggested a February 23 article in the New York Times. There are fewer and fewer beekeepers in the U.S., who are trucking their hives on 18-wheelers around the country to serve increasing demand from their customers.
"Bees are being raised to survive a shorter off-season, to be ready to pollinate once the almond bloom begins in February. This has most likely lowered their immunity to viruses."
But it's not just viruses. Mites are also a big problem, "and the insecticides used to try to kill mites are harming the ability of queen bees to spawn as many worker bees. The queens are living half as long as they did just a few years ago."
But how dire is our situation due to the loss of honey bees?
Honey bees pollinate fruit and nut trees, melons and vegetables in the U.S., a $14.5 billion industry. A 2006 study by an international research team found that pollinators affect more than one-third of the world's crop production, increasing the output of 87 of the leading food crops worldwide.
"Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honey bee to pollinate that food," according to Zac Browning, vice president of the American Beekeeping Federation. And Paul Wenger, VP of the California Farm Bureau Federation, said that with fewer bees, "you'll see lower pollination, lower yields, lower crop production."
So, could we face a national food crisis soon?
It's possible, says Jerry Hayes, wondering if honey bees are the canary in the coal mine. "What are honey bees trying to tell us that we humans should be paying more attention to?"
He thinks having to import more food could be a dilemma in itself: "How much of our food production do we want to turn over to other countries that might be friendly now and not friendly in the future? [...] Then the question is: who fills the gap? And do we become reliant on them? I think I read a figure from the USDA that they project by 2015 that 40% of our vegetables would be coming from China."
Given the, to say it mildly, less-than-perfect environmental track record of the Chinese, we wonder what agents our veggies may be laced with in the future. (Case in point: according to ABC News, it is now suspected that the recent pet food poisoning, which caused renal failure in hundreds of cats, may have been caused by melamine, a toxic fertilizer component found in wheat gluten from China that went into U.S. pet food.)
And as to Hayes' question what honey bees are trying to tell us, it seems pretty clear to us: in the long run, you can't mess around with Mother Nature without facing the consequences.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Flubber
This is what it feels like operating on just over two hours' sleep.
Was I worrying about the honeybees? No, but it's worrisome. Very worrisome.
Tens of millions of commercial honeybees, gone. All gone. Not dead, not somewhere else. Gone. Like the scientologists were right, but only for bees.
That garage remodeling project just got kicked upstairs. Good thing I got that Costco membership card last week.
I've mostly moved into the new office, but have to move files and the computer and hanging stuff. And clean up the floor and shelves. Dusty. What is it about straight men and their ability to tolerate dirt accumulation?
Was I worrying about the honeybees? No, but it's worrisome. Very worrisome.
Tens of millions of commercial honeybees, gone. All gone. Not dead, not somewhere else. Gone. Like the scientologists were right, but only for bees.
That garage remodeling project just got kicked upstairs. Good thing I got that Costco membership card last week.
I've mostly moved into the new office, but have to move files and the computer and hanging stuff. And clean up the floor and shelves. Dusty. What is it about straight men and their ability to tolerate dirt accumulation?
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