Nom de Plume

This time we mean it. Here we go …
Steve cut this bit out months ago to see if we could get rid of the jog in the wall.

More …

All gone!

This mold is DISGUSTING. We put on masks and gloves, and carried it out as quickly as possible.

The original window area reappears.

Steve realizes that even though […]

My mother, who is going to Iraq tomorrow, has been in training classes for the past week and a half. She’s been busy and so have I; thus, we’ve been playing phone tag. Serious phone tag. The latest? She was just at the shooting range, practicing with an AK47, a rifle, and a shotgun.
She’s in […]

For the past month or so, I’ve been having problems with Vonage: dropped calls; fading in and out; weird echoes. The problems intensify whenever I’m connecting to a conference calling number. And for the past couple of weeks — ever since I listened to a podcast on net neutrality — I’ve been wondering if this […]

This is something, by the way, that I tell her on a regular basis and she says, “Well, at least you inherited it legitimately.”
So. My mother is going to Iraq. I’m still not precisely sure what she’s doing, but it has something to do with leading a team out in the field to help […]

THESE ARE FIRST PERSON NARRATIVES FROM NEW ORLEANS … NOT THE FIRST, TO BE SURE, AND NOT THE LAST …. PLEASE READ THEM (all the way through - they are long) AND ASK YOURSELVES AGAIN WHAT KIND OF COUNTRY THE UNITED STATES REALLY IS TODAY … AND, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE CITIZENS OR […]

Got your attention with that, didn’t I?
Cruising around Boing Boing this afternoon when I saw this handy-dandy guide to making chai in the microwave.
It reminded me of my father’s method of making chai in the microwave, which he perfected years ago. (Though I have to confess that the version above sounds infinitely more palatable.)
Put tap […]

“Psst, have you seen Ernie?” one pinus contorta whispers to another.
The second pinus contorta rustles his needles and looks around. “No, where’d he go?”
“Well …. I heard he got …. bonsaid.
A sharp intake of breath. All the trees still. Even the wind hushes. The horror, the sheer unmitigated horror.
Ernie got bonsaid.
Steve wants to take a […]

Have I mentioned that Harry has mange? Caused by Demodex mites, the kind of mange he has is noncontagious, but hard to treat. At this point, he’s getting a shot every two weeks and a dip on alternating weeks. So off to the vet this morning. Woohoo!

It’s been a long week.
I’m feeling guilty because I stuck Harry outside for the day, and am worried about his little wussified rear end freezing. Speaking of Harry, Steve has started the “Let Them Swing” campaign. He doesn’t have much time since the dog’s scheduled for a little snippity snip on Monday. Here is the […]

‘Stinking Evidence’ of Possible Election Fraud Found in Florida
University researchers challenge Bush win in Florida
Coalition’s Support of Voting Machines Causes Confusion, says Journalist Lynn Landes
Study finds Fla. ‘ghost’ e-votes
Recount to Come for Ninth District Congressional Race
Election Fraud 2004: Kerry, the Times and the Democrats

Confound those online political pundits known as bloggers, anyway. Hey, I’m the first to admit that bloggers are hardly the most reliable source–but I really love how the traditional media is taking the high moral road after the debacle of 2000. From the L.A. Times: “As they have in the past, television networks and newspaper […]

Another four years of a president who is trying to consolidate as much power as possible, lets his religion and bank account dictate domestic and foreign policy, and seeks to suppress freedom of speech.
This is not democracy. To those who voted him in for a second term, I say this: You have chosen to believe […]

I am terrified the numbnut will win another four years in office, which will be the end of democracy as we know it. Who are these people who are voting for him? Whare are they thinking?

This, from the inbox:
Zia, you may remember Zainab. Political activist, ran for President of Sierra Leone. I sent her on the IV.
Kiki Skagen Harris
—–Original Message—–
From: Zainab Bangura
Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2004 2:48 AM
Subject: Good Luck
I am sending this email to all my friends in the United States who have a right to vote […]

The New Yorker almost redeemed itself in my eyes with a fabulous article on Gore in last week’s issue, but the advertising in this week’s made me want to vomit. Once I felt like each NY was like a mini liberal arts education, but the magazine has lost its scope of articles. Now, it mainly […]

Steve bought himself a wet suit that’s thick enough for cold Washingtonian waters on Saturday–and spent that night parading around the house in it. “Smell the neoprene,” he urged. “Isn’t that the best smell in the world?”
Apparently, the fact that I wouldn’t let him sleep with it means I’m jealous. All I can say […]

Stopped by Chris’ the other night to say goodbye to my dog and the father of my dog. He wields a mean digital camera; I couldn’t get away from it.
The happy family:

She still loves me best!

And then, of course, there’s Jenny the demon dog:

I think one of the problems of having businesspeople (wasn’t that PC?) in public office is that they start treating the government like a corporation–and not just any corporation, but one in which the fat cats at the top get fatter, and those at the bottom get leaner and scragglier.
Take fingerprinting visitors to the U.S., […]

Here’s one thing I simply don’t understand: why people are planning to vote for Nader.
Okay, maybe they like what he stands for, but the fact of the matter is that it just siphons off people who would ordinarily vote for the Democratic candidate. C’mon people! Let’s get Bush out of office. That should be our […]