• Hot Off The Presses - Politics, Schmolitics

    Blagojevich Enjoyed The Limelight, Burris Fumbles The Numbers

    I can’t believe Blagojevich appointed Roland Burris to the Senate, I can’t believe Burris accepted after earlier saying he wouldn’t, and I can’t believe that Blago just said he’s enjoyed the limelight of the past few weeks. But he did, he did, and he did. I don’t know if video of this news conference will stay up for long on most television news sites, but I’m listening to an unfiltered stream that WBEZ put up shortly after the end of the presser. I had to stop it just now to get my head together. At least the reporters had some…

  • Dear Mom - Episcopal - Random Access Memories

    Christmas Disasters | Padre Mickey’s Version

    Padre Mickey tells the thrilling tale of one memorable Christmas, when a flaming dessert burned itself into the memories of everyone present (also the carpet, furniture, the kitchen floor) before being kicked back into the kitchen). He promises 2 more visitations of this memory, as recalled by other, saner heads. It’s a Rashomon Christmas! You owe it to yourself to read the whole thing: I nearly coughed up a lung laughing at it. We had a wonderful meal; lots of good food, and the children opened presents, and oh, what a wonderful Christmas it was! Gramma Connie had prepared a…

  • Politics, Schmolitics

    Bush Chose Stupid

    Supposedly, George Bush read 40 books this year to Karl Rove’s 64. I’ll believe it when I see the book reports. By all accounts, Bush 43 wasn’t born stupid – his supporters tout his degrees from Yale and Harvard Business School. But Slate had an article a few years back that dissed Bush’s grades as “gentlemen’s C’s” and posits that Bush’s stupidity is voluntary. He’s anti-intellectual and lazy, and simply can’t be bothered to think – and it’s supposedly a Freudian reaction to his father’s achievements. Rove puffs nostalgically on his magic memory pipe, changing history before our very eyes.…

  • Home Improvement

    Fake Amish, Fake Craftsmanship, Fake Savings

    Don’t be fooled by the images of the portable heater with the “Amish-Made” mantle. You pay through the nose for something that puts out about as much heat as a $21 heater from Wal-mart. The photos showing Amish men wiping cabinets and driving away with them in the back of a horse-drawn buggy are likely Photoshopped. The heating element is made in China… need I say more? And the same company has been linked to a scheme selling digital converter boxes that can be obtained for a fraction of the price with a government coupon. Arlington, VA – June 20,…

  • Clan: McTiVo - Perfectly Dreadful Movies

    The Movie Franchise That Would Not Die

    A long time ago, in a far-away land, I used to be a major geek for Highlander: The Series. I even bought a computer so I could find other fans online, and eventually hosted a twice-weekly chat on AOL and ran keyword: H I G H L A N D E R. Yep. like I said, geek. There was a marathon of old Highlander episodes on the SciFi channel today, culminating in a showing of the direct-to-DVD movie, Highlander: The Source. I knew that long-time fans, who still belong to the HIGHLA-L mailing list either due to nostalgia or because…

  • Hot Off The Presses - Random Access Memories

    This Is Not Your Father’s Little Red Wagon

    This is just WRONG. I had a red wagon that wasn’t a Radio Flyer, and I was always embarrassed because it wasn’t the classic square shape and brand. It was kind of a weird streamlined shape that was actually ideal for coasting down hills because you could sit in it and dangle your legs over the curved lip while steering. This? It’s just too much. You can’t coast in this thing, it’s designed for a jogging or speed-walking parent to drag two little kids along on a workout. With tunes. Safety belts? Cupholders? GAH! But then, I did break my…

  • Moblog - Parish: Holy Moly (ECUSA)

    Earthrise: Christmas Eve

    40 years ago, Apollo 8 orbited the Moon on Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve at St Nicholas – 430PM family service, 9PM Lessons, Carols, and Eucharist.   I have to be in Elk Grove by 8pm for rehearsal before the 9pm service at St Nicholas, but don’t get off work until 5pm. It’ll make for a LONG, cold, snowy night, but it’ll be wonderful if we can pull it off, as we’ve worked on some of this music for months. The highlight for me is probably John Rutter’s “What Sweeter Music,” but we’re also doing some old, rarely heard Christmas hymns…