Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Old Intertubes Is Out
Mark Begich(D) defeated convicted criminal Ted Stevens(R) in the Alaska race for the Senate. Old Intertubes is out. That can only be good. Even if he had won, he probably would have been expelled from the Senate, and Sarah Palin could have run for the seat. Besides, Mark is a lot better looking.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Odds And Ends Around The House
My new friend Georgianne, who lifted me to minor and short-lived celebrity status, labeled the room where we sat for our Huffington Post interview as my "cozy kitschy, kitchen". Or should I say "kozy, kitschy, kitchen"? I had thought of my decorating style as rather traditional and dated, but as I looked around at my house with new eyes, I saw variations on that theme.
In my living room I found the red and gold fringed footstool, which flips over to all gold, and the silk, tasseled and mirrored pillows from India. Not kitschy exactly, more late nineteenth century house of ill repute style, I'd say. What I was aiming for, I can't remember, but I liked them.
What to say of the arrangement on the dining room table? The bowl and contents, including brass pears and leaves, but excepting the grapes, cost about $8.00 at a moving sale at a local antique store. The grapes cost $15.00. They're made of marble, and are quite realistic, but they are the heaviest grapes I've ever held. The arrangement looks gay to me, but correct me if I'm wrong, my gay brothers.
The photograph of Rodin's "The Kiss", a sculpture which I love, came from the Rodin museum in Paris. I've loved that statue from the first time I saw a picture of it, and I was thrilled the first time I saw the real statue. To me, it's sensuous and innocent at the same time.
When my granddaughter was quite young, maybe four, she noted the picture and said, "They're naked." I said, "Yes. That's art." I didn't know what else to say.
The beaded lampshade is a mild example of house of ill repute, perhaps not worthy of the label, because of the smallness of the beads. Of more interest is the Princess phone on the table, a burgeoning antique. They last forever.
Finally, the beaded fruit in a quite conventional bowl. You can't hide it. I see your thought balloons: "20th century bad taste" - a thought which you may, or may not, apply to any or all of the above.
Here you have a rare ("House and Garden" or "HGTV" style) glimpse into the household of Mimi and Grandpère. I haven't shown you our many duck pictures, Grandpère's contributions to our decorating style. Those, along with his collection of old duck decoys, once led a visitor to look around and say, "What this place needs is some ducks!" I suspect that the house make-over folks from "HGTV" would love to get their hands on our house.
In my living room I found the red and gold fringed footstool, which flips over to all gold, and the silk, tasseled and mirrored pillows from India. Not kitschy exactly, more late nineteenth century house of ill repute style, I'd say. What I was aiming for, I can't remember, but I liked them.
What to say of the arrangement on the dining room table? The bowl and contents, including brass pears and leaves, but excepting the grapes, cost about $8.00 at a moving sale at a local antique store. The grapes cost $15.00. They're made of marble, and are quite realistic, but they are the heaviest grapes I've ever held. The arrangement looks gay to me, but correct me if I'm wrong, my gay brothers.
The photograph of Rodin's "The Kiss", a sculpture which I love, came from the Rodin museum in Paris. I've loved that statue from the first time I saw a picture of it, and I was thrilled the first time I saw the real statue. To me, it's sensuous and innocent at the same time.
When my granddaughter was quite young, maybe four, she noted the picture and said, "They're naked." I said, "Yes. That's art." I didn't know what else to say.
The beaded lampshade is a mild example of house of ill repute, perhaps not worthy of the label, because of the smallness of the beads. Of more interest is the Princess phone on the table, a burgeoning antique. They last forever.
Finally, the beaded fruit in a quite conventional bowl. You can't hide it. I see your thought balloons: "20th century bad taste" - a thought which you may, or may not, apply to any or all of the above.
Here you have a rare ("House and Garden" or "HGTV" style) glimpse into the household of Mimi and Grandpère. I haven't shown you our many duck pictures, Grandpère's contributions to our decorating style. Those, along with his collection of old duck decoys, once led a visitor to look around and say, "What this place needs is some ducks!" I suspect that the house make-over folks from "HGTV" would love to get their hands on our house.
Joe Won't Go
From TPM:
Senator Harry Reid just spoke to reporters after the private caucus meeting with Dems over Joe Lieberman's fate, and he confirmed it: Lieberman will not be stripped of his Homeland Security chairmanship, because the "vast majority" of the Democratic caucus wants him to stay.
"This was not a time for retribution," Reid said, quoting an unnamed Senator. We're "moving forward," Reid added.
Lieberman was removed from the Environment and Public Works Committee, a largely meaningless punishment, a committee where (unlike Homeland Security) he has no differences with Dems.
Asked about liberal "anger" towards Lieberman, Reid said: "I pretty well understand anger. I would defy anyone to be more angry than I was."
But he added: "If you will look at the problems that we face as a nation, is this a time we walk out of here saying boy did we get even?"
Sen. Reid, I was angry with Joe, very angry. To me, the Senate vote was not about getting even; it was about consequences for the vicious and stupid words he spoke about the Democratic candidate during the campaign. I expect the vote was secret because some of the senators are ashamed of their votes.
Democratic senators, this was wrong, just plain wrong. You still don't get it.
"No Comment"
I awoke this morning to a History Channel "retread" documentary on New Guinea informing me that there are or were communities on that island where the men and women speak completely different languages. No comment.
From Lapin.
From Lapin.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Still Not Blogging...
Last week, I went to our adult study group which meets between services at 9:15 AM. You're probably bored with hearing that I'm not a morning person and how I struggle to get anywhere before 11:00 AM. The class finished the Walter Bruggemann DVD series, and moved on to a series of lessons by Bishop N. T. Wright of the Anglican Diocese of Durham in the UK. I don't know the name of the series, but Bp. Wright's words are interspersed with scenes from a movie or video on the life of Jesus. The first lesson was on the scandal of Jesus.
One scene in the film showed Jesus dancing at the wedding of Cana, and I loved that. At Mary's request, he made more wine for folks who had already drunk up all the wine, although he was not yet ready to begin his miracle ministry. Bp. Wright pointed out other ways that Jesus scandalized the people of the time, such as spending time with all the wrong people of his day, the prostitutes, the tax collectors. He touched the unclean; he worked on the Sabbath.
All well and good. It seems to be a good series, but I will probably not be attending the classes, because of the 9:15 AM time. I made a heroic effort (for me) for Bruggemann, because I loved his teachings and because they stimulated such lively discussions afterward.
At Lambeth, Bp. Wright said this:
“George Bush said he was going to invade Iraq. Everyone told him not to because there would be consequences, but he did it anyway.
“The Americans floated the balloon in 2003 when they consecrated Gene Robinson as bishop of New Hampshire. They knew exactly what they were doing then and they know exactly what they are doing now. They knew it would be unacceptable to the majority of the Communion. They are doing exactly as they please.”
He continued: “Either the rest of the world caves in or someone has to stand up to them.”
That's quite a leap, isn't it? Bush - Iraq - consecration of Bp. Gene Robinson.
In addition, Bp. Wright was a principal contributor to the Windsor Report, which somehow morphed into rules that the entire Anglican Communion must live by.
As Bishop Martin Barahona, the primate of Central America, said, "The Windsor Report," he said. "It’s just a report. When did it become like The Bible?"
Exactly. I hope that it dies a peaceful death.
I'm told that Bp. Wright is a fine Scripture scholar, and perhaps he is, but as he talked of the scandal that Jesus was, I was thinking about his actions and his words, and that put me off the series and discouraged me from making the heroic effort to be at church at 9:15 AM.
One scene in the film showed Jesus dancing at the wedding of Cana, and I loved that. At Mary's request, he made more wine for folks who had already drunk up all the wine, although he was not yet ready to begin his miracle ministry. Bp. Wright pointed out other ways that Jesus scandalized the people of the time, such as spending time with all the wrong people of his day, the prostitutes, the tax collectors. He touched the unclean; he worked on the Sabbath.
All well and good. It seems to be a good series, but I will probably not be attending the classes, because of the 9:15 AM time. I made a heroic effort (for me) for Bruggemann, because I loved his teachings and because they stimulated such lively discussions afterward.
At Lambeth, Bp. Wright said this:
“George Bush said he was going to invade Iraq. Everyone told him not to because there would be consequences, but he did it anyway.
“The Americans floated the balloon in 2003 when they consecrated Gene Robinson as bishop of New Hampshire. They knew exactly what they were doing then and they know exactly what they are doing now. They knew it would be unacceptable to the majority of the Communion. They are doing exactly as they please.”
He continued: “Either the rest of the world caves in or someone has to stand up to them.”
That's quite a leap, isn't it? Bush - Iraq - consecration of Bp. Gene Robinson.
In addition, Bp. Wright was a principal contributor to the Windsor Report, which somehow morphed into rules that the entire Anglican Communion must live by.
As Bishop Martin Barahona, the primate of Central America, said, "The Windsor Report," he said. "It’s just a report. When did it become like The Bible?"
Exactly. I hope that it dies a peaceful death.
I'm told that Bp. Wright is a fine Scripture scholar, and perhaps he is, but as he talked of the scandal that Jesus was, I was thinking about his actions and his words, and that put me off the series and discouraged me from making the heroic effort to be at church at 9:15 AM.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
This Is Not Blogging, Either
Kirkepiscatoid has left a new comment on your post "Addicted Again!":
Mimi, it was the mere act of "giving yourself permission to take off" that did the trick. It reminds me of a funny story of my late grandmother....
Granny, when we took car trips on vacation, would INEVITABLY get constipated. I think she just had a thing about pooping in her own toilet instead of all the strange toilets who God-knew-who sat upon.
After a couple days of this, she would say, "I have to buy Ex-Lax." Ok, so we would find a Walgreens or something and she would buy some. But she NEVER had to take it. It was the mere act of BUYING it that would end her constipation, just knowing she COULD end it by taking the laxative.
When she died, I think there were like 25 boxes of unused, unopened Ex-Lax in her medicine chest. Now why she just didn't BRING last year's box on vacation is beyond me, but I decided it was the purchase of it, not the presence of it!
Basically, you just bought a box of Blog-Lax and voila! No more blog constipation!
Too good to be hidden in the comments, don't you think? Kirke, what a nice way to say, "You're full of shit." You are soooo right.
Mimi, it was the mere act of "giving yourself permission to take off" that did the trick. It reminds me of a funny story of my late grandmother....
Granny, when we took car trips on vacation, would INEVITABLY get constipated. I think she just had a thing about pooping in her own toilet instead of all the strange toilets who God-knew-who sat upon.
After a couple days of this, she would say, "I have to buy Ex-Lax." Ok, so we would find a Walgreens or something and she would buy some. But she NEVER had to take it. It was the mere act of BUYING it that would end her constipation, just knowing she COULD end it by taking the laxative.
When she died, I think there were like 25 boxes of unused, unopened Ex-Lax in her medicine chest. Now why she just didn't BRING last year's box on vacation is beyond me, but I decided it was the purchase of it, not the presence of it!
Basically, you just bought a box of Blog-Lax and voila! No more blog constipation!
Too good to be hidden in the comments, don't you think? Kirke, what a nice way to say, "You're full of shit." You are soooo right.
Addicted Again!
All right, it was a joke. I'm a joke. I've lapsed back into my addiction. I can't resist this from Frank Rich in the NYT on the Republican meltdown and blame game:
In defeat, the party’s thinking remains unchanged. Its leaders once again believe they can bamboozle the public into thinking they’re the “party of Lincoln” by pushing forward a few minority front men or women. The reason why they are promoting Palin and the recently elected Indian-American governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal, as the party’s “future” is not just that they are hard-line social conservatives; they are also the only prominent Republican officeholders under 50 who are not white men. The G.O.P. will have to dip down to a former one-term lieutenant governor of Maryland, Michael Steele, to put a black public face on its national committee.
....
The only other widespread post-election conservative ideas are Bush 2000 retreads (market-based health care and education reform). Jindal offers generic gab about how the party must offer Americans “real solutions” and “substance,” but he has yet to offer a real solution to his own state’s gaping $1 billion budget shortfall. Indeed, the only two “new” ideas that the G.O.P. is pushing in defeat are those they condemn when practiced by Democrats: celebrity and identity politics. Palin’s manic post-election publicity tour, which may yet propel her and “the first dude” to “Dancing With the Stars,” is almost a parody of the McCain ad likening Obama to Paris and Britney. Anyone who says so is promptly called out for sexism by the P.C. police of the newly “feminist” G.O.P.
It's about Louisiana's main man, Gov. Bobby Jindal. How could I resist? It's also quite funny. Jindal is careful about his political career. If Obama has a fairly successful presidency, I predict that Jindal will not run in 2012 against a sitting president. He'll wait until 2016.
In defeat, the party’s thinking remains unchanged. Its leaders once again believe they can bamboozle the public into thinking they’re the “party of Lincoln” by pushing forward a few minority front men or women. The reason why they are promoting Palin and the recently elected Indian-American governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal, as the party’s “future” is not just that they are hard-line social conservatives; they are also the only prominent Republican officeholders under 50 who are not white men. The G.O.P. will have to dip down to a former one-term lieutenant governor of Maryland, Michael Steele, to put a black public face on its national committee.
....
The only other widespread post-election conservative ideas are Bush 2000 retreads (market-based health care and education reform). Jindal offers generic gab about how the party must offer Americans “real solutions” and “substance,” but he has yet to offer a real solution to his own state’s gaping $1 billion budget shortfall. Indeed, the only two “new” ideas that the G.O.P. is pushing in defeat are those they condemn when practiced by Democrats: celebrity and identity politics. Palin’s manic post-election publicity tour, which may yet propel her and “the first dude” to “Dancing With the Stars,” is almost a parody of the McCain ad likening Obama to Paris and Britney. Anyone who says so is promptly called out for sexism by the P.C. police of the newly “feminist” G.O.P.
It's about Louisiana's main man, Gov. Bobby Jindal. How could I resist? It's also quite funny. Jindal is careful about his political career. If Obama has a fairly successful presidency, I predict that Jindal will not run in 2012 against a sitting president. He'll wait until 2016.
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