A week ago, my wife and I had our yearly jaunt to the City by the Bay. Best Winter weather I've ever seen in San Fransisco. Sunny and up into the 70s, every day. My wife went to Mac World. I got a cheap bus pass and enjoyed being out and about.
You can certainly see the city evolving into recession times over the last few years. There are fewer people in the city. Fewer street people, fewer workers, more foreign, ethnic enclaves. The buses used to be difficult during morning and evening rush hours. No more. Always seats available, no matter the hour. Plenty of elbow room on Market and Van Ness. No waiting for tables at restaurants, even the gyp joints at Fisherman's Wharf and North Beach, not that I'd ever eat there. Made for a nice, relaxing tourist experience. Here's a tip. Food's a little pricey there. The best cheap lunch in town is the In n Out Burger franchise at Fisherman's Wharf. Same prices as any other In n Out. No drive thru, counter service only with lots of eat in tables looking out over the Wharf. I'm sure it's maintained by the company as a promotional location because there are so many national and international visitors to San Francisco and they all eat at Fisherman's Wharf. Believe me, In n Out will be the best and most authentic food you get there these days. No fishermen work out of the Wharf anymore. All the seafood comes in frozen from Alaska, not that there is anything wrong with that.
Hotel rooms weren't as cheap this year. I think it's simply because management has given up on trying to lure non existent travelers in with cheap rates. The Hotel Carlton, is a very nice, rehabbed, 1920s era speakeasy, whorehouse and men's club, has 160 rooms and never more than a few dozen rented while we were there. I only saw two maids and they were moving at a very leisurely pace, never a problem getting an early check in or late check out. The desk clerk seemed eager to do both and begged us to return again next year, even though we were shameless, bottom feeding trollers from Priceline, paying little more than a third of their rack rate. I highly recommend the place, by the way, Room was clean. Nice linens and bathroom. Plenty of hot water pressure to the shower. No air conditioning but hardly necessary any time of the year in Frisco with big windows in the room and a ceiling fan. The walls are a little thin but with the place so uncrowded, it wasn't a problem. I paid $52 a night for a large room with two queen beds. Rack rates start at $139 for a single Queen, double occupancy. I was worried it might be a little out of the way, on the corner of Larkin and Sutter but turns out the entire center city is walking distance and frequent buses to everywhere within a block. Great neighborhood. Yemani ethnic enclave during the day and evening and a stroll for tranny hookers, late night. Very few street people. Good reasonable restaurants. Nice area.
I came down with a little virus the night we got home. Achey bones, chills and a little upper respiratory smut. At my age and general condition, you got to start worrying that it's really congestive heart failure from the exertion of hiking up and down steep hills. Didn't seem to be the case though, so I guess I'm still good to go for a while yet.
If you get the opportunity, visit San Francisco. It's a great place to visit. No place else quite like it in America. Weather is nice. Lots to see and do. Cheap public transportation. Buy a visitor's bus pass, $20 for 3 days, $27 for a whole week and the bus drivers never check whether or not it's expired. You could probably buy one in January and use it the whole year, not that I would ever do that. Senior passes are only $20 a month. If you can convince them you're retarded or disabled they're almost free.
Monday, February 07, 2011
Fluffy Barry
So, did you see the State of the Union address a week or so ago. It was interesting I thought. Mostly an exercise in shifting blame, letting the new Congress know that if they wanted to cut government spending, they should have at it but emphasizing that domestic spending, which includes all those nasty entitlements to the young, old, poor and disadvantaged comprise only about 12% of the Federal budget.
I'm not a big fan of Obama's administration, so far. We're still spending huge money on foreign war and more money by multiples than the rest of the World combined on National defense. The wealthy and corporate sectors of the nation's economy have a greater percentage of the wealth, among fewer people, than in any other nation, at any time, in the World's history. As far as I can see, Obama is simply letting them rape the rest of us, not that this is any great departure from any other President in living memory. I have to admit, he looks very cool and stylish doing it.
Yesterday was the Superbowl. Before the game, Barry let Bill O'Reilly interview him live at the White house, also a very fluffy experience for him. Barry never let himself get ruffled or pinned down. He may not have answered many of the questions directly but that's nothing new, especially compared with his recent Republican predecessors. The important thing, in this interview, as well as the State of the Union address, was that he never let himself appear stupid, mean or angry. Given the rampant ignorance and punishing rage that the Republican opposition has been caught up in since he was elected, that's all he has to do to appear superlatively in charge of himself and the national situation.
I believe that this sunny, self control, however shallow and non reality based, will be the dominating feature of his 2012 re election campaign.
It will likely be enough to get him re elected easily. It's not going to win him a lot of new votes. I think probably fully 40% of the American electorate will end up hating him more than any other modern President. There may well be whole geographic regions of the country that will want to secede. They will continue to believe that he is an, alien, Islamic, mudman, Manchurian Candidate. I say fine, let them go. In fact, America might be better off as four or five different countries. Only time will tell. I don't think anybody is willing to have another Civil War to keep the country together. I think the country would break up in interesting and surprising ways. I think Western States would band together based more on mutual interest than stupid Blue/Red State social, religious and economic philosophies.
What do you think of Barry? Would you rather have Michelle Bachmann as President?
I'm not a big fan of Obama's administration, so far. We're still spending huge money on foreign war and more money by multiples than the rest of the World combined on National defense. The wealthy and corporate sectors of the nation's economy have a greater percentage of the wealth, among fewer people, than in any other nation, at any time, in the World's history. As far as I can see, Obama is simply letting them rape the rest of us, not that this is any great departure from any other President in living memory. I have to admit, he looks very cool and stylish doing it.
Yesterday was the Superbowl. Before the game, Barry let Bill O'Reilly interview him live at the White house, also a very fluffy experience for him. Barry never let himself get ruffled or pinned down. He may not have answered many of the questions directly but that's nothing new, especially compared with his recent Republican predecessors. The important thing, in this interview, as well as the State of the Union address, was that he never let himself appear stupid, mean or angry. Given the rampant ignorance and punishing rage that the Republican opposition has been caught up in since he was elected, that's all he has to do to appear superlatively in charge of himself and the national situation.
I believe that this sunny, self control, however shallow and non reality based, will be the dominating feature of his 2012 re election campaign.
It will likely be enough to get him re elected easily. It's not going to win him a lot of new votes. I think probably fully 40% of the American electorate will end up hating him more than any other modern President. There may well be whole geographic regions of the country that will want to secede. They will continue to believe that he is an, alien, Islamic, mudman, Manchurian Candidate. I say fine, let them go. In fact, America might be better off as four or five different countries. Only time will tell. I don't think anybody is willing to have another Civil War to keep the country together. I think the country would break up in interesting and surprising ways. I think Western States would band together based more on mutual interest than stupid Blue/Red State social, religious and economic philosophies.
What do you think of Barry? Would you rather have Michelle Bachmann as President?
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Blood Libel
You have to ask yourself what was Sarah Palin thinking when she invoked "Blood Libel" against the media in it's treatment of her in the wake of last weeks shootings in Tucson? If she thought it would provoke an unflattering response on the part of the media, she wasn't thinking too clearly.
All the media players have to do is play the clip of her saying it, over and over again, while letting her, ever so slowly, twist in the wind.
I'm not saying it's not a little embarrassing to watch, because it is and most of the embarrassment has to do with the realization of the sick fascination that something like this engenders in all of us. That doesn't really do her any good though, does it?
All the media players have to do is play the clip of her saying it, over and over again, while letting her, ever so slowly, twist in the wind.
I'm not saying it's not a little embarrassing to watch, because it is and most of the embarrassment has to do with the realization of the sick fascination that something like this engenders in all of us. That doesn't really do her any good though, does it?
Kick Off
I don't want to be too cynical but it seems to me that somebody needs to be. Tuning into the memorial service for the victims of last weeks mass shooting in Arizona, yesterday, was a big surprise. I have never seen a memorial service for the victims of this kind of event that was anything like it. I'm not going to go into what went on there. If you've seen it, you know. If you haven't seen it, you need to watch it. Make up your own mind what you think about it.
It was not a traditional memorial service in any sense. It may not really have been a memorial service at all. What I think it might have been, was the kick off, by President Obama and his campaign staff, of the 2012 Presidential campaign. We should know more about this after the President's State of the Union address to Congress in a couple of weeks.
I think that the coming election campaign will not be about concrete issues. Both parties are going to be saying the same kind of things about the issues and more than usually, both parties will be saying one thing and doing another.
The next Presidential campaign and perhaps for legislative and State executive offices as well, may be about feelings. About what kind of people and what kind of a nation we want to be.
Republicans will still try to brand Democrats as tax and spend, entitlement bearing liberals who are soft on crime and immigration, anti military and Godless atheists. Both sides will charge that the other wants to steer a course toward fascist, totalitarianism. I don't think anybody is going to listen to any of that.
I think it's going to come down to would you rather hang out with one posse or another. Rebs and Yanks, relativist or fundamentalist, Lions or Rotary, Crips or Bloods. Style not substance. Don't let anybody kid you, style is real important.
I'm going to be left out, probably. I don't have those kinds of sensibilities. More of a Geek than a Mod or Rocker. Still, it should be interesting to watch as they battle it out.
Who do I think will come out on top? The Republicans are going to have to nominate somebody really special to beat Barry O, unless he really blows it.
It was not a traditional memorial service in any sense. It may not really have been a memorial service at all. What I think it might have been, was the kick off, by President Obama and his campaign staff, of the 2012 Presidential campaign. We should know more about this after the President's State of the Union address to Congress in a couple of weeks.
I think that the coming election campaign will not be about concrete issues. Both parties are going to be saying the same kind of things about the issues and more than usually, both parties will be saying one thing and doing another.
The next Presidential campaign and perhaps for legislative and State executive offices as well, may be about feelings. About what kind of people and what kind of a nation we want to be.
Republicans will still try to brand Democrats as tax and spend, entitlement bearing liberals who are soft on crime and immigration, anti military and Godless atheists. Both sides will charge that the other wants to steer a course toward fascist, totalitarianism. I don't think anybody is going to listen to any of that.
I think it's going to come down to would you rather hang out with one posse or another. Rebs and Yanks, relativist or fundamentalist, Lions or Rotary, Crips or Bloods. Style not substance. Don't let anybody kid you, style is real important.
I'm going to be left out, probably. I don't have those kinds of sensibilities. More of a Geek than a Mod or Rocker. Still, it should be interesting to watch as they battle it out.
Who do I think will come out on top? The Republicans are going to have to nominate somebody really special to beat Barry O, unless he really blows it.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Gunned Down
A lot of people seem pretty grateful that the 9mm slug and following propulsive exhaust gasses, unleashed at point blank range, that ripped through the brain of Congressional Representative Gabrielle Giffords from back to front, didn't completely liquefy the contents of her skull, killing her instantly. Several other people did die from gunshot wounds, including a senior Federal judge and a little 9 year old girl. That seems bad enough. I doubt Gabrielle will be returning to a normal life and her Congressional duties any time soon.
It seems moot as to whether or not the shooter was politically motivated or just mentally deranged. It seems to me that many, if not most, of the Tea Partiers, Birthers, ethnocentric racists and xenophobes that make up the bulk of the Republican Party base are mentally deranged, the leadership being closer to the pod people that replaced previously rational people a la "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and the rank and file little more cognisant of what's really going on than the shambling zombies in "Night of the Living Dead".
What seems to me the most typical response to the shooting, by the Right Wing, that I have seen so far, was posted on "Hot Air" and lamented that Sarah Palin would now be in great danger from retaliatory gun violence from enraged "Leftards" and she had better recruit and travel with large numbers of heavily armed body guards. Right, that's where we should be placing out main priorities at this time, protecting the safety of Sarah Palin. What would the country do without her? We need someone to tell us who to shoot next.
It would be nice to think that this senseless episode of gun violence would provoke a discussion among Americans about the heightened levels of inflammatory, divisive, political rhetoric among us and the inevitable consequences of them, but it would also be a mistaken thought.
It seems moot as to whether or not the shooter was politically motivated or just mentally deranged. It seems to me that many, if not most, of the Tea Partiers, Birthers, ethnocentric racists and xenophobes that make up the bulk of the Republican Party base are mentally deranged, the leadership being closer to the pod people that replaced previously rational people a la "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and the rank and file little more cognisant of what's really going on than the shambling zombies in "Night of the Living Dead".
What seems to me the most typical response to the shooting, by the Right Wing, that I have seen so far, was posted on "Hot Air" and lamented that Sarah Palin would now be in great danger from retaliatory gun violence from enraged "Leftards" and she had better recruit and travel with large numbers of heavily armed body guards. Right, that's where we should be placing out main priorities at this time, protecting the safety of Sarah Palin. What would the country do without her? We need someone to tell us who to shoot next.
It would be nice to think that this senseless episode of gun violence would provoke a discussion among Americans about the heightened levels of inflammatory, divisive, political rhetoric among us and the inevitable consequences of them, but it would also be a mistaken thought.
Thursday, January 06, 2011
The Wingnut Creed Is A Lie
The crux of the wingnut creed is that government exercises too much control over the individual. Bullshit.
Wingnuts believe that Church and State should not be separate. They think that a woman should not have control over her reproductive function. They believe that the individual should patriotically support any war that the government engages in, for whatever reason. They think that it's all right to withhold basic civil rights from individuals because of personal choices they have made regarding religion, sexual preference, political or personal philosophy.
It is the wingnuts who want to institute totalitarian control and repression on the people of this country. It is they who want to roll back the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They need to quit lying to themselves and everybody else but they never will. They're too stupid to even see what they are.
Wingnuts believe that Church and State should not be separate. They think that a woman should not have control over her reproductive function. They believe that the individual should patriotically support any war that the government engages in, for whatever reason. They think that it's all right to withhold basic civil rights from individuals because of personal choices they have made regarding religion, sexual preference, political or personal philosophy.
It is the wingnuts who want to institute totalitarian control and repression on the people of this country. It is they who want to roll back the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They need to quit lying to themselves and everybody else but they never will. They're too stupid to even see what they are.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
How's Obama Doin'
I think Barry O wants a second term. He's governed in a very centrist manner. Maybe even center right. He has never allowed himself to be baited by all of the racist slurs against him by the wingnuts, into an angry response. All things considered, he's still pretty popular. I don't think a second term is going to be a big problem.
A lot of people think that his plan for universal medical care is far left. The truth is that it's pretty right wing. No Republican Congress, no matter the majority, will ever repeal it.
A lot of people think that his choices for the Supreme court were too liberal. The truth is that both the girls are centrist compared to the far right justices, Scalia, Thomas, Roberts and Alito that recent Republican Presidents have put on the court.
If it had been me, I would have made the health care system far more socialist and allocated a lot of money for expanding medical school graduates in America and decreased the amount of money doctors could expect to make. As far as the Supreme Court goes, there's no question in my mind that the first two justices I would have nominated would have been Anita Fuckin' Hill and Henry Waxman. I'd have the FBI working day and night digging up dirt on the Republican justices to force them off the court and I believe that there would have been plenty of it. I guess that's why he's President and I'm not, among a lot of other reasons.
A lot of people think that his plan for universal medical care is far left. The truth is that it's pretty right wing. No Republican Congress, no matter the majority, will ever repeal it.
A lot of people think that his choices for the Supreme court were too liberal. The truth is that both the girls are centrist compared to the far right justices, Scalia, Thomas, Roberts and Alito that recent Republican Presidents have put on the court.
If it had been me, I would have made the health care system far more socialist and allocated a lot of money for expanding medical school graduates in America and decreased the amount of money doctors could expect to make. As far as the Supreme Court goes, there's no question in my mind that the first two justices I would have nominated would have been Anita Fuckin' Hill and Henry Waxman. I'd have the FBI working day and night digging up dirt on the Republican justices to force them off the court and I believe that there would have been plenty of it. I guess that's why he's President and I'm not, among a lot of other reasons.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Be A Good Boy And Eat Your Grease
Doctors are so fucked.
News out today that full fat dairy products contain fatty acids that protect against type 2 diabetes. Seems like just yesterday that we were being warned against consumption of butter, cream, cheese and whole milk. Turns out they are good for you.
My theory is that it's alright to eat absolutely anything, as long as you don't stuff yourself with it, that humans have been eating large amounts of for at least the last several hundred years.
Chow down on fats from meat, dairy, cold pressed oils.
I stay away from modern, small molecule vegetable oils refined or stabilized with chemical reagents and homogenized dairy products.
I'm a big fan of porky goodness. The perfect meal may turn out to be pinto beans, served with boiled collards, side meat and hoe cakes, all cooked with lard. I'm sure the American Heart Association will soon be recommending porcine lipid supplements in little gel caps. What a bunch of stupid shits.
Sedentary lifestyles are the main cause of deteriorating physical health. We don't have the correct motivation for vigorous physical activity. I suggest we all need to spend a lot more time in the aerobic pursuit of and then having sex with, a large variety of age appropriate and fully consenting, sexual partners. It sounds like fun to me. I'd spend a few hours a day at it. Then we could all kick back over a nice greasy meal and a couple of cups of strong distilled spirits. What Larks, Pip!
News out today that full fat dairy products contain fatty acids that protect against type 2 diabetes. Seems like just yesterday that we were being warned against consumption of butter, cream, cheese and whole milk. Turns out they are good for you.
My theory is that it's alright to eat absolutely anything, as long as you don't stuff yourself with it, that humans have been eating large amounts of for at least the last several hundred years.
Chow down on fats from meat, dairy, cold pressed oils.
I stay away from modern, small molecule vegetable oils refined or stabilized with chemical reagents and homogenized dairy products.
I'm a big fan of porky goodness. The perfect meal may turn out to be pinto beans, served with boiled collards, side meat and hoe cakes, all cooked with lard. I'm sure the American Heart Association will soon be recommending porcine lipid supplements in little gel caps. What a bunch of stupid shits.
Sedentary lifestyles are the main cause of deteriorating physical health. We don't have the correct motivation for vigorous physical activity. I suggest we all need to spend a lot more time in the aerobic pursuit of and then having sex with, a large variety of age appropriate and fully consenting, sexual partners. It sounds like fun to me. I'd spend a few hours a day at it. Then we could all kick back over a nice greasy meal and a couple of cups of strong distilled spirits. What Larks, Pip!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Shining Path
The key to American politics is that somewhere around 40% of the voting population are not too bright and not too educated. They have a pretty basic view of the World around them, that isn't necessarily reality based. Their political leaders are people like Sarah Palin, Rick Perry and the Dicks Armey and Cheney. They really like watching "Dancing With The Stars". It could be worse. In a lot of places it's 80 or 90% of the population that are ignorant dimwits. Actual reality based societies are limited to relatively few countries where the majority strongly value education and rational thought. I'm not that well traveled and could easily be wrong. There may not be any reality based societies. America may be about as good as it gets.
The forces of reactionary politics in America only need to come up with a little more than 10% of voters who are willing to humor the dimwitted 40% along and they can control the country. It's not that hard and may not be for quite a long time.
It would be nice to think that America is a country that is at least on a path to becoming a country of reality based, rational thought. I don't think it's true. If anything, people here are getting stupider all the time. Current demographics of immigration are not helping the situation. Bummer, Dude.
The forces of reactionary politics in America only need to come up with a little more than 10% of voters who are willing to humor the dimwitted 40% along and they can control the country. It's not that hard and may not be for quite a long time.
It would be nice to think that America is a country that is at least on a path to becoming a country of reality based, rational thought. I don't think it's true. If anything, people here are getting stupider all the time. Current demographics of immigration are not helping the situation. Bummer, Dude.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
An Influential Generation, So Far Silent
The most recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have been going on now for almost a decade, unabated. They will probably go on for several more years. These wars surely will have profound effects on the countries where they are fought and the people who live there. They will have profound effects on the American military, in both it's formal and informal culture. I think most people realize that.
Maybe what most Americans don't realize are the effects that these wars will have on American civilian culture. Many of our young men and women in military service, have been fighting these wars, in foreign countries. Many of them for several years, in cumulative time. This is the kind of military service that hasn't been required in this country since the 1920s and 30s. Eventually, these wars will end. The veterans, as has happened in all previous wars, will be pushed out of military service and return to America. There are a lot of them and they have experienced life as few of their countrymen and women have. They are going to have different perspectives on a lot of things than the rest of the country.
They are going to be people worth knowing, worth listening to. They are going to be people who feel they have earned a right to participate in the national dialogue. If you believe that they are going to line up in any kind of liberal vs conservative or religious vs secular manner, I think you are mistaken.
I have no idea what they are going to be like or how their voices will shape the future of America but I think we will be hearing from them in the decades to come. I'm interested to see what they do. I'm interested to hear what they have to say.
Maybe what most Americans don't realize are the effects that these wars will have on American civilian culture. Many of our young men and women in military service, have been fighting these wars, in foreign countries. Many of them for several years, in cumulative time. This is the kind of military service that hasn't been required in this country since the 1920s and 30s. Eventually, these wars will end. The veterans, as has happened in all previous wars, will be pushed out of military service and return to America. There are a lot of them and they have experienced life as few of their countrymen and women have. They are going to have different perspectives on a lot of things than the rest of the country.
They are going to be people worth knowing, worth listening to. They are going to be people who feel they have earned a right to participate in the national dialogue. If you believe that they are going to line up in any kind of liberal vs conservative or religious vs secular manner, I think you are mistaken.
I have no idea what they are going to be like or how their voices will shape the future of America but I think we will be hearing from them in the decades to come. I'm interested to see what they do. I'm interested to hear what they have to say.
Friday, December 10, 2010
I never thought I'd get married
When I was growing up, a lot of my friends had parents that were divorced. I think I was in the first generation that this was true of. I had teachers in school who were divorced. A lot of my friends that married early got divorced within a short time afterwards.
I was impressed early as to how total the devastation on a life could be, made so by the effects of divorce.
When I got married, not getting divorced in the future was a major consideration for me. It affected who I picked to marry. It affected how my wife and I crafted our relationship. During the inevitable terrible times that all marriages go through, divorce was never high on the list of options for either of us and we got through those times on that basis. Sometimes not much else.
My wife and I are heading into the end stage of our lives and we're still married. That may be a good thing or bad, depending on what perspective you're viewing it from but staying married was a high priority for both of us. From that perspective, at least, it has been a success. I'm pretty happy both with my life and with the fact that we're still married. I think my wife is too but you'd really have to ask her. If you want to stay married, you have to allow your partner some space and her own opinions.
There's no trick to staying married, you just really have to want to. I don't think staying married is always the right thing to do but just from my observation, it usually is. Not all that many people who stay married are totally satisfied but a lot of people who get divorced, a lot, spend the rest of their lives totally fucked up. At the very least, this involves living in crappy places, working long hours at crappy jobs and fucking people infected with chronic outbreaks of Herpes Simplex II or worse.
I gotta admit, I've known several people who have slid out of several marriages without a scratch. Some actually come out in better shape than they were before. There aren't that many though and I'm pretty sure I would not be one of them, if I tried. Maybe I'm just a coward but I don't think so. Life's a war no matter how you choose to live it. I've lost more battles than I've won and have my share of scars and amputations.
If I had it to do all over again, there are things I would definitely do different. There were a lot of times I was a total dickhead and some of those times went on for years. I think I could probably live my life a lot better If I had the chance to do it over. I think I'd still stay married though.
I was impressed early as to how total the devastation on a life could be, made so by the effects of divorce.
When I got married, not getting divorced in the future was a major consideration for me. It affected who I picked to marry. It affected how my wife and I crafted our relationship. During the inevitable terrible times that all marriages go through, divorce was never high on the list of options for either of us and we got through those times on that basis. Sometimes not much else.
My wife and I are heading into the end stage of our lives and we're still married. That may be a good thing or bad, depending on what perspective you're viewing it from but staying married was a high priority for both of us. From that perspective, at least, it has been a success. I'm pretty happy both with my life and with the fact that we're still married. I think my wife is too but you'd really have to ask her. If you want to stay married, you have to allow your partner some space and her own opinions.
There's no trick to staying married, you just really have to want to. I don't think staying married is always the right thing to do but just from my observation, it usually is. Not all that many people who stay married are totally satisfied but a lot of people who get divorced, a lot, spend the rest of their lives totally fucked up. At the very least, this involves living in crappy places, working long hours at crappy jobs and fucking people infected with chronic outbreaks of Herpes Simplex II or worse.
I gotta admit, I've known several people who have slid out of several marriages without a scratch. Some actually come out in better shape than they were before. There aren't that many though and I'm pretty sure I would not be one of them, if I tried. Maybe I'm just a coward but I don't think so. Life's a war no matter how you choose to live it. I've lost more battles than I've won and have my share of scars and amputations.
If I had it to do all over again, there are things I would definitely do different. There were a lot of times I was a total dickhead and some of those times went on for years. I think I could probably live my life a lot better If I had the chance to do it over. I think I'd still stay married though.
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Pat
When I was in my late twenties, I was working at a large commercial lumberyard down here by the beach. It's not there any more but it was only a few blocks from where I live now. The beach is a good place to have a lumberyard. The humidity and mild climate lets you store the lumber for a long time without warping and the salt in the air keeps fungus from getting into it too bad. Part of the way the guy that owned the yard made money, was to buy when the price went down and demand was low and hold the lumber to sell when demand and thus the price, went back up. Lumber is a cyclical commodity. The ability to store lumber cheaply for long periods of time gave him the ability to leverage the fluctuating market, usually to his advantage.
The hardest job at the yard was load builder and also the lowest paying. That's where I started. The guy that trained me was named Pat. Pat was maybe 7-8 years older than me. Made him 36-37 years old at that time. He was a good load builder. He had been doing it at various lumber yards since high school. A pretty long time. His job was secure because if you wanted a load builder, they didn't come much better than him. On the other hand, he wasn't the kind of guy that was ever going to get a promotion and load building was the hardest job in the yard.
You never want to have any more staff at a lumber yard than you absolutely have to and there would be frequent layoffs when things slowed down a little. Sometimes the reason was seasonal sometimes because the housing market contracted. Even though it was a union job, the layoffs were never by seniority. They laid off the guys who had personal problems, didn't get along, missed a lot of days or couldn't maintain production.
So, Pat was getting up towards 40. He had been married when he was younger. It didn't last too long. His wife had a methamphetamine hunger. That's never too good for a marriage. It became especially bad when his wife got pregnant and had a little girl. She really couldn't manage raising a child.
They got divorced. The wife got custody of the baby, even though she was an unregenerate speed freak. That's just the way the law was and is. Since she was expected to raise the child, the court awarded her $800 a month. Pat would be paying that amount until the girl turned 18. When I met Pat the little girl was 7 years old.
There was always a lot of overtime. We normally worked 54 hours over six days. When it got busy we'd go to 60. It didn't matter how many hours you worked though, you could never break much above $300 dollars a week take home and you always needed to save a little in reserve. We never worked when it was raining at all. A day here and there and at least a few storm fronts every year that might stretch to a week or more. Things could get tight. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't bad money in the late 70s, if you were single and lived cheap. I did. Pat wasn't exactly in that kind of situation though.
He had to pay his wife $200 a week, right off the top. She had got the court to have it taken out of his pay and sent straight to her. She wasn't really raising the child though, her parents were and they got nothing. The money was just a head start on her monthly drug expenses.
Pat lived with his own retired parents, in a screened patio they had on the back of their house. He drove an old car of his father's, still in his parent's name because the insurance was cheaper that way. He had to pay for gas and keep it running. He gave his mom what he could afford for expenses. His parents fed him and kept him in cheap work clothes from Kmart. His father bought him a couple cartons of cigarettes and a twelve pack of beer every Friday. He got to see his daughter Sunday afternoons. Any money he had extra went to taking her out and buying her all the things a little girl needs, otherwise she wouldn't have anything.
The really sad thing about Pat was that he had no way out. His little girl was only 8. He was going to be paying his ex wife and living in that screen porch for another ten years. By that time he would be close to 50. If you're working 54 hours a week as a load builder in a lumberyard, that's really old. Things change, of course. Most of the lumberyards around here shut down long ago. The land got too expensive to keep using for that. Most of the home building moved way inland, even out into the desert. Then Las Vegas became the main market and that was mostly direct shipping. It was cheaper for the builders to do that and hire guys to break it down on site. Even that's all gone now. Nobody's built much of anything for years.
If Pat's alive now, he's close to 70. At least he has Social Security and Medicare. Maybe he found a kind woman with a little income of her own. I hope so.
I remember Pat's one big claim to fame was that he'd gone to high school with Gary Gilmore in Buena Park. I guess every thing's relative. He probably did better than Gary, all things considered.
The hardest job at the yard was load builder and also the lowest paying. That's where I started. The guy that trained me was named Pat. Pat was maybe 7-8 years older than me. Made him 36-37 years old at that time. He was a good load builder. He had been doing it at various lumber yards since high school. A pretty long time. His job was secure because if you wanted a load builder, they didn't come much better than him. On the other hand, he wasn't the kind of guy that was ever going to get a promotion and load building was the hardest job in the yard.
You never want to have any more staff at a lumber yard than you absolutely have to and there would be frequent layoffs when things slowed down a little. Sometimes the reason was seasonal sometimes because the housing market contracted. Even though it was a union job, the layoffs were never by seniority. They laid off the guys who had personal problems, didn't get along, missed a lot of days or couldn't maintain production.
So, Pat was getting up towards 40. He had been married when he was younger. It didn't last too long. His wife had a methamphetamine hunger. That's never too good for a marriage. It became especially bad when his wife got pregnant and had a little girl. She really couldn't manage raising a child.
They got divorced. The wife got custody of the baby, even though she was an unregenerate speed freak. That's just the way the law was and is. Since she was expected to raise the child, the court awarded her $800 a month. Pat would be paying that amount until the girl turned 18. When I met Pat the little girl was 7 years old.
There was always a lot of overtime. We normally worked 54 hours over six days. When it got busy we'd go to 60. It didn't matter how many hours you worked though, you could never break much above $300 dollars a week take home and you always needed to save a little in reserve. We never worked when it was raining at all. A day here and there and at least a few storm fronts every year that might stretch to a week or more. Things could get tight. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't bad money in the late 70s, if you were single and lived cheap. I did. Pat wasn't exactly in that kind of situation though.
He had to pay his wife $200 a week, right off the top. She had got the court to have it taken out of his pay and sent straight to her. She wasn't really raising the child though, her parents were and they got nothing. The money was just a head start on her monthly drug expenses.
Pat lived with his own retired parents, in a screened patio they had on the back of their house. He drove an old car of his father's, still in his parent's name because the insurance was cheaper that way. He had to pay for gas and keep it running. He gave his mom what he could afford for expenses. His parents fed him and kept him in cheap work clothes from Kmart. His father bought him a couple cartons of cigarettes and a twelve pack of beer every Friday. He got to see his daughter Sunday afternoons. Any money he had extra went to taking her out and buying her all the things a little girl needs, otherwise she wouldn't have anything.
The really sad thing about Pat was that he had no way out. His little girl was only 8. He was going to be paying his ex wife and living in that screen porch for another ten years. By that time he would be close to 50. If you're working 54 hours a week as a load builder in a lumberyard, that's really old. Things change, of course. Most of the lumberyards around here shut down long ago. The land got too expensive to keep using for that. Most of the home building moved way inland, even out into the desert. Then Las Vegas became the main market and that was mostly direct shipping. It was cheaper for the builders to do that and hire guys to break it down on site. Even that's all gone now. Nobody's built much of anything for years.
If Pat's alive now, he's close to 70. At least he has Social Security and Medicare. Maybe he found a kind woman with a little income of her own. I hope so.
I remember Pat's one big claim to fame was that he'd gone to high school with Gary Gilmore in Buena Park. I guess every thing's relative. He probably did better than Gary, all things considered.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Nice Digs. For Sale Cheap.
Have you ever seen Sheryl Crow's house in Nashville? Go here. Cruise around the site. Look at the pictures. Watch the videos. Nice place. It comes with 150 acres of pretty nice pasture land, big swimming pool, tennis court, home theater, recording studio, a garage for a lot of cars, stables for a lot of horses, indoor riding arena. Probably close to some nice bike paths too! If there aren't enough bedrooms and bathrooms in the mansion for you, there's a guest house with even more. Plus, there's undoubtedly places for all the "little people" to stay too. In my opinion, it beats the hell out of the jungle room in Memphis.
She bought it six years ago. It doesn't look like it's too much older. She tried to sell it for 7.5 million dollars. Didn't work, so now she's auctioning it off. It might go for as low as a million dollars. There's a reserve price though, like on Ebay. I bet nobody get's it. Speaking of Ebay, maybe Meg Whitman would be interested. She's not doing anything and I bet she'd like to move.
If Nashville, Tennessee is the place for you, hurry and get your bid in. Also, it's probably the only chance anybody will ever get again to fuck Sheryl Crow and enjoy it.
She bought it six years ago. It doesn't look like it's too much older. She tried to sell it for 7.5 million dollars. Didn't work, so now she's auctioning it off. It might go for as low as a million dollars. There's a reserve price though, like on Ebay. I bet nobody get's it. Speaking of Ebay, maybe Meg Whitman would be interested. She's not doing anything and I bet she'd like to move.
If Nashville, Tennessee is the place for you, hurry and get your bid in. Also, it's probably the only chance anybody will ever get again to fuck Sheryl Crow and enjoy it.
Thanksgiving Traditions. Muslims Can Enjoy It Too!
Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving Day to be the last Thursday in November of 1863. He did it to buck up the nation and remind them, though not overtly, that the Civil War was coming to an end, successfully, for the Union. He also did it to help kick off his re election campaign, one that a lot of people doubted he could win, to a term in office he would not be able to fulfill. The Civil War was not a popular war and never less so than at the end of 1863.
Later, the Jewish merchant class took up the Thanksgiving holiday as a celebration they could support without blatant hypocrisy and use as a kick off for merchandising during the following Christian holiday season.
The whole tradition of commemorating the Pilgrims first harvest in an new land by inviting the local indigenous people to a big feast, has never been really documented and is likely a big pile of shit.
Enjoy yourself anyway. It's as good a holiday as any other. Probably better. Even church goers, while they work it into the program, like they do with every other God Damned thing there is, tend to keep the Sky Faerie stuff to a minimum on Thanksgiving.
Eat yourself sick. Get good and drunk. Watch football. Call your brother's wife a whore. Make fun of your sister's husband for being a sissyboy and inadequate provider. Then, stomp out mad or if it's your house, kick everybody else out, continue drinking until it's time to terrorize the children and beat the wife. It's traditional.
Later, the Jewish merchant class took up the Thanksgiving holiday as a celebration they could support without blatant hypocrisy and use as a kick off for merchandising during the following Christian holiday season.
The whole tradition of commemorating the Pilgrims first harvest in an new land by inviting the local indigenous people to a big feast, has never been really documented and is likely a big pile of shit.
Enjoy yourself anyway. It's as good a holiday as any other. Probably better. Even church goers, while they work it into the program, like they do with every other God Damned thing there is, tend to keep the Sky Faerie stuff to a minimum on Thanksgiving.
Eat yourself sick. Get good and drunk. Watch football. Call your brother's wife a whore. Make fun of your sister's husband for being a sissyboy and inadequate provider. Then, stomp out mad or if it's your house, kick everybody else out, continue drinking until it's time to terrorize the children and beat the wife. It's traditional.
Is Good Enough, Good Enough? Laid Back at Staples.
I like the Lakers this year. They have a lot of good players. Nobody is the super star. Different guys have good days every game. Everybody seems to get along. There don't seem to be a lot of personal issues. Everybody is playing like they'd rather see the team score points than themselves. I like that they play clean.
It's a long season. It's just starting. Anything can happen down the road. Probably will.
If they keep playing like this and don't have too many injuries, they have a good chance to get to the Championship series. That would be great.
Phil Jackson is a good coach. I think he probably has a lot to do with it.
The Lakers spend a lot of money to get the players that they have and keep them happy. That doesn't always work but it seems to be, this season.
It's a long season. It's just starting. Anything can happen down the road. Probably will.
If they keep playing like this and don't have too many injuries, they have a good chance to get to the Championship series. That would be great.
Phil Jackson is a good coach. I think he probably has a lot to do with it.
The Lakers spend a lot of money to get the players that they have and keep them happy. That doesn't always work but it seems to be, this season.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Chop, Gut and Pluck
If I was the President, I would kill a turkey on the South Lawn, gut it, pluck it and have the Chef roast it up for Thanksgiving Dinner. Michelle and the little girls could help.
That's what the turkey was raised for. What good is it otherwise?
That's what the turkey was raised for. What good is it otherwise?
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Do You Mind Being Groped?
Do you mind the TSA security procedures at airport boarding gates? In principle, I'm opposed but I can't honestly say they bother me. Unless it's really crowded, it doesn't take that long. I don't mind being groped. I can see where some people might but I'm just not that kind. The worst part is taking off my shoes. There used to not be any good way for age challenged individuals like myself to get them back on afterward. I had to awkwardly do it leaning against a wall so that I didn't fall over or just sit down on the floor and do it then lunge ungracefully back on my feet. Now they have chairs and benches at the other end where older travelers can re shoe with a little dignity. So I'm OK with it.
I don't think it does much good though. My carry on stuff is always full of contraband. Either they don't see it or they just don't care. Either way, I'm sure a determined terrorist could raise a ruckus if they wanted to on any flight, anywhere.
I don't think they really want to. If they really did, there would have been some planes blown up. The Department of Homeland Security is a big waste of money, as far as I'm concerned.
I don't think it does much good though. My carry on stuff is always full of contraband. Either they don't see it or they just don't care. Either way, I'm sure a determined terrorist could raise a ruckus if they wanted to on any flight, anywhere.
I don't think they really want to. If they really did, there would have been some planes blown up. The Department of Homeland Security is a big waste of money, as far as I'm concerned.
Thanksgiving
It was Thanksgiving Day. I was probably 12. My Mom was going to cook a dinner. I'm sure some people were going to come over later.
I put on my Billy the Kid jeans, a wool sweater over a T shirt and an old oversize cotton flannel shirt that used to be my Father's over that, it was cold out, a pair of US Keds, said I was going for a walk and was out the door.
I walked West out of my tract to Gilbert. There I picked up the Red Car track line that jogged a little to the North all the way to Highway 39, up around to Cerritos, where the Red Palm, Gypsy Fortune teller house was. I knew a guy that swore there were whores in there. I was sure he was right but never knew for sure. I was too shy for whores and later on, too cheap. Then North From there. At Hobby City, up around Lincoln, I started to wonder how much farther I should go. I wasn't tired. I've always been a walker. When I got to Knott's Berry Farm, it seemed far enough. He had built this replica of Independence Hall on the East side of his property, with a big lawn and pond. I sat on a bench there and watched the ducks for a little while. Then I walked home. I'm not sure how far that is. More than twelve miles for sure, not close to twenty.
By the time I got home dinner was over. Whoever had come for it was gone. Nobody said anything. I took a nap. Later I had left overs and then went back to my room and read.
I put on my Billy the Kid jeans, a wool sweater over a T shirt and an old oversize cotton flannel shirt that used to be my Father's over that, it was cold out, a pair of US Keds, said I was going for a walk and was out the door.
I walked West out of my tract to Gilbert. There I picked up the Red Car track line that jogged a little to the North all the way to Highway 39, up around to Cerritos, where the Red Palm, Gypsy Fortune teller house was. I knew a guy that swore there were whores in there. I was sure he was right but never knew for sure. I was too shy for whores and later on, too cheap. Then North From there. At Hobby City, up around Lincoln, I started to wonder how much farther I should go. I wasn't tired. I've always been a walker. When I got to Knott's Berry Farm, it seemed far enough. He had built this replica of Independence Hall on the East side of his property, with a big lawn and pond. I sat on a bench there and watched the ducks for a little while. Then I walked home. I'm not sure how far that is. More than twelve miles for sure, not close to twenty.
By the time I got home dinner was over. Whoever had come for it was gone. Nobody said anything. I took a nap. Later I had left overs and then went back to my room and read.
What Will Republicans Do?
It will be interesting to see how Republicans interpret their mandate next year.
If they are serious about cutting the deficit, thy will have to tackle middle class entitlements. Property taxes for all homeowners will have to be reflective of services received. Programs like Prop 13 in California, which allow long time homeowners to pay far less tax than recent purchasers will need to be eliminated. Fees paid by those who use a disproportionate amount of government provided services, infrastructure and resources must reflect the actual value of what they receive. Home mortgage interest deductions on income tax will also need to be eliminated. Public sector pay, benefits and pensions will need to be drastically reduced. Medicare and Social Security benefits must be controlled and curtailed. War and military spending must be cut. Monetary policy must be tightened. Corporate and agricultural welfare programs must be abolished. Interest rates must be raised, bailouts for entities public and private that go belly up must be stopped and what money has already been given out must be recovered quickly.
Simply repealing Obama care, abolishing social services, educational subsidies and entitlements to the poor will not make a dent in the budget deficit. Most of the money that the government pays out goes to people who genuinely believe that they have earned and are entitled to every cent of it. I bet some of that money goes to you. I get some. We all do.
Another legislative emphasis that the Republicans have to address are on social issues. Fully 35% of the American public expects them to move to outlaw abortion, stamp out homosexual civil rights, make a secure place for the observance of religious moral law in secular life and amend the Constitution to deny citizenship to native born children of non citizens, not to mention getting rid of the aliens themselves.
If they address and act on all of these things, they will satisfy their base. Things won't be that bad. Probably no worse than they were in the immediate post war period of the late 40s and early 50s and maybe considerably better. We already have a lot of the infrastructure we need. A lot of housing is already built, it just needs to be utilized differently. Eight people could easily and comfortably live in my house. The power and utilities won't go away, people will just have to use less. The internet and satellite TV are everywhere and a lot of people will make them a big priority, I bet. We aren't going to go back to a segregated society overnight and homosexuals aren't going to be driven back into the closet. America isn't going to become a theocracy, nobody goes to church or really gives a shit about God. I don't, do you?
If our money inflates enough and personal income decreases, imports will decline, exports will increase, employment will rise and America will be on its way back from the brink.
I don't personally think much and maybe not even any of this will happen. The American people are spoiled and the politicians elected by them will continue to give them whatever they want. Deficits will remain high. Productivity will remain low. All the middle class entitlements will remain in place. Eventually, the rest of the World will foreclose on America's debts and we will default. There will be a complete fiscal, monetary and governmental meltdown. It's not the end of the World. History is littered with episodes like this. Iceland is broke, cold and isolated in the middle of the North Atlantic. They don't have a damn thing anybody else needs and aren't likely to anytime soon. I haven't heard that they're eating each other there yet or even the dogs. It happened in France and Italy about every six months for generations. They seemed to like it. It happened to Germany after Word War I. Five years later, the Third Reich was in place and everybody was happy. Well, almost everybody.
Me, I don't really care how it goes. I'm eager to find out though. Bring it on.
If they are serious about cutting the deficit, thy will have to tackle middle class entitlements. Property taxes for all homeowners will have to be reflective of services received. Programs like Prop 13 in California, which allow long time homeowners to pay far less tax than recent purchasers will need to be eliminated. Fees paid by those who use a disproportionate amount of government provided services, infrastructure and resources must reflect the actual value of what they receive. Home mortgage interest deductions on income tax will also need to be eliminated. Public sector pay, benefits and pensions will need to be drastically reduced. Medicare and Social Security benefits must be controlled and curtailed. War and military spending must be cut. Monetary policy must be tightened. Corporate and agricultural welfare programs must be abolished. Interest rates must be raised, bailouts for entities public and private that go belly up must be stopped and what money has already been given out must be recovered quickly.
Simply repealing Obama care, abolishing social services, educational subsidies and entitlements to the poor will not make a dent in the budget deficit. Most of the money that the government pays out goes to people who genuinely believe that they have earned and are entitled to every cent of it. I bet some of that money goes to you. I get some. We all do.
Another legislative emphasis that the Republicans have to address are on social issues. Fully 35% of the American public expects them to move to outlaw abortion, stamp out homosexual civil rights, make a secure place for the observance of religious moral law in secular life and amend the Constitution to deny citizenship to native born children of non citizens, not to mention getting rid of the aliens themselves.
If they address and act on all of these things, they will satisfy their base. Things won't be that bad. Probably no worse than they were in the immediate post war period of the late 40s and early 50s and maybe considerably better. We already have a lot of the infrastructure we need. A lot of housing is already built, it just needs to be utilized differently. Eight people could easily and comfortably live in my house. The power and utilities won't go away, people will just have to use less. The internet and satellite TV are everywhere and a lot of people will make them a big priority, I bet. We aren't going to go back to a segregated society overnight and homosexuals aren't going to be driven back into the closet. America isn't going to become a theocracy, nobody goes to church or really gives a shit about God. I don't, do you?
If our money inflates enough and personal income decreases, imports will decline, exports will increase, employment will rise and America will be on its way back from the brink.
I don't personally think much and maybe not even any of this will happen. The American people are spoiled and the politicians elected by them will continue to give them whatever they want. Deficits will remain high. Productivity will remain low. All the middle class entitlements will remain in place. Eventually, the rest of the World will foreclose on America's debts and we will default. There will be a complete fiscal, monetary and governmental meltdown. It's not the end of the World. History is littered with episodes like this. Iceland is broke, cold and isolated in the middle of the North Atlantic. They don't have a damn thing anybody else needs and aren't likely to anytime soon. I haven't heard that they're eating each other there yet or even the dogs. It happened in France and Italy about every six months for generations. They seemed to like it. It happened to Germany after Word War I. Five years later, the Third Reich was in place and everybody was happy. Well, almost everybody.
Me, I don't really care how it goes. I'm eager to find out though. Bring it on.
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