Annie Got Her Mug

No more changes to this blog--

Happy April Fool's Day,
Ann T.
All that vanilla was getting to me. So close, and yet so far!

Truthfully, I'm trying to upload my own background, and it's not happening. So, uhh. I'll try not to shock anyone's sensibilities, but it will change somewhat  . . . someday . . .

Bzzzzzzram! Shazwhack! Zombie Killah Queen!

When you want something done Right--

The Meeting
Last night, after months of Zombie Depredations, we had an Executive Session after the regular Board Meeting. I explained to the Board that since the earth was made November of 2008, I have been screwing with concerned about collection accounts. That I continually have to explain the same procedures. I think I gave good examples. But--

Eloquence was unnecessary. Prep was really bad for this meeting. Everyone was already disgusted.

So, the Board agreed I was to obtain access to the offices via keys, in order to check ledgers. I will also have access to the files, and can look up the confusing stuff and figure it out. This problem will be solved. Bzzzzram! Shazwhack!

Ann T. 1, Zombies -0-

Okay, Z-B, You Get What You Ask For
I wrote out those "expectations" that Zombie Boss said he wanted. Re-charged the Ray Gun. Ate Wheaties.

The Meeting
Well, I expected this meeting to net me the keys and access codes the Board said I should get. But no. I got the umyeah um as usual. Zombie-Boss told me that Zombie-Asst. was correcting the ledgers this very minute. That he had called with instructions for her to do it. (Since he did not come to work on time.)

But the Board agreed last night that she is not doing it, I am. But I let that go. Of course, he wasted her zombie payroll hours, but I had to stick to the point.

Zombies 2, Ann T. 1

I presented my Expectations. There were a lot of them. The sheer number of screwed up items, with verbal examples, should have made this zombie curl up and die. So that was one point more--
Zombie Assistant showed up with corrected ledgers. "Just tell me if this is what you want from her," he said.
Now there's the BIG TRAP--

I scooped up the ledgers. 'Thank you,' I said. "But Z-A's not working on these any more." I patted the three pages of Expectations. "I expect you to work on these, and I will work on the old ledgers as we discussed last night." Shazwhack! Bzzzram!

Ann T. 3, Zombies 2

So, I made my exit while his mouth was still hanging open. Unfortunately I still did not have keys or access codes.

Penalty, Ann T. -1

Score Ann T. 2, Zombies 2

I reverted to remote-control ray-gun, i.e. the Internet. Wrote him about the keys. Said I expected them this afternoon and would be coming back for them. Wrote the accounting firm that has the pass codes about the new procedures. Wrote the Board President about how things were going. 

Went Back Down to the Basement. "Do you have my keys?"

"Umyeah umyeah no," Zombie Boss said. "Can I call you when I have them?"  Another TRAP.

"No, I'll be back in an hour to get them." It's already quitting time. "Did you call about my access codes?"

"Umyeah umyeah no."

"I'll want those too."

"I can call them," he offered.

"That would be great. I want that today too."

I stared at him until he pulled the key off his keychain. I put it on my keychain. "The access codes."

"I'll call them," he sighed.

Ann T. 3, Zombies 2

I received a call from the accountant. "I got your letter," he said. "We are thrilled you are going to do this. We want to help you any way we can." He outlined what he could do: almost anything. Shazzam!!! Bzzzzzrack!

Ann T. 4, Zombies 2

I need an access code."

"It's the same for everybody down there," he said. "They already have it." 

I now have the access code, despite these lying zombies.  Shazzam!

Ann T. 5, Zombies 2

I get a letter from Zombie Boss that says I have his key (Bzzzzram!), and he thought I was going to let him show how he could manage Zombie Assistant. That my having the key meant I could go anywhere and do anything all over the building. Do you think that sounds like a threat of future liability? Let him try.

I get a call from the Board President.

"What the hell is his problem?" he asked. "We've wanted him to manage Zombie Assistant since the earth was made November 2008. We told him how it was going to go last night." 

Shazzwhack!

Ann T. 6, Zombies 2

I write Z-B back, very sweetly. "Dear Z-B, I think instituting the procedures I outlined for you and Z-A will require all of your a significant use of management skill." Okay, it was nicer than that. Really. "As soon as those procedures are habitual, I will be able to relinquish much of this control."

Zing, zing, Brzing!

Ann T. 7, Zombies 2

So, if they don't start accusing me of stealing their lunch money, I win. So far.

So, the key to winning against the Zombies??? Really good alliances. And good prep.

Elezioni: L'intervista al Sindaco Di Milia

Luca Gemelli su La Stampa intervista Canio Di Milia, appena rieletto sindaco alla guida della lista civica «Stresa e Frazioni» con 2.282 voti pari al 74,4% dei consensi.
Per le elezioni ha ottenuto l’inusuale appoggio congiunto di Pdl e Pd, ci sarà un problema politico o di posti in giunta?
«La nostra lista, come cinque anni fa, è nata come civica. Contiene esperienze politiche diverse ma è fondata sulle persone e non è nata per accordi di partito. Quindi nessun problema in vista, l’apporto di
ogni consigliere è essenziale. Già negli ultimi cinque anni gli undici consiglieri, assessori o meno, hanno partecipato collegialmente a tutte le decisioni. Un metodo di condivisione che funziona e continueremo a usare anche per il futuro, affidando a ognuno un incarico da seguire».
Quali saranno i rapporti con Provincia e Regione ?
«Non vedo perché ci debbano essere difficoltà, anzi. Stresa è una località turistica di fama internazionale, ed è quasi naturale che ci sia attenzione. Lo dimostra anche come, nonostante il succedersi di diverse amministrazioni provinciali e regionali, ci siano sempre stati proficui rapporti. Sarebbe brutto pensare che le scelte si riducano a quelle basate sui colori della politica e non sulla validità delle proposte».
Come legge il forte risultato ottenuto?
«Gli stresiani hanno scelto la continuità e con il voto ci chiedono di continuare sulla strada intrapresa. Un risultato così ampio ci spinge a un forte senso di responsabilità. E’ fondamentale rimanere sempre con i piedi per terra, in mezzo alla gente. Credo anche che con il voto gli stresiani abbiano voluto mandare un messaggio chiaro a chi ha scelto di condurre una campagna elettorale basata su violenti attacchi personali. Ma niente polemiche sul passato, ora è tempo di lavorare».
Quali i primi impegni nei prossimi mesi?
«Si tratta di far partire i lavori del porto, che contiamo di portare finalmente a conclusione, e di avviare, entro giugno, la piscina pubblica comunale al Lido di Stresa. Ho anche un altro tema a cuore: all’interno della squadra voglio creare una sorta di task force da impegnare sulle problematiche sociali. Anche a Stresa dobbiamo fare i conti con nuove povertà, più o meno visibili».
Nel medio periodo, invece?
«Una sfida reputo particolarmente importante per il futuro di Stresa: è la variante strutturale al Piano regolatore. E’ un’occasione unica per disegnare il futuro della nostra cittadina e delle sue infrastrutture».

Stresa: Bottini, adesso concentriamoci sui lavori

Chiede un po di tempo il vicesindaco Giuseppe Bottini intervistato da Mauro Rampinini su La Prealpina a proposito della formazione della nuova giunta comunale e l'assegnazione degli assessorati : «Lasciateci un po’ di tempo, l’unico in giro al momento sono io. Ci sono tanti lavori da terminare entro Pasqua e, a causa della pioggia, siamo indietro. Ci sono tutte le asfaltature, i marciapiedi, le ultime rifiniture in via Duchessa di Genova, le frazioni collinari. Il primo Consiglio comunale della nuova amministrazione non lo faremo prima del 12 di aprile». Poiché la legge impone, per un Comune delle dimensioni di Stresa, un
massimo di quattro assessori più il sindaco, la giunta di per sé sarebbe già fatta. Oltre a Bottini, infatti, gli elettori hanno riconfermato la fiducia ad Antonio Coppola (ex assessore a Polizia municipale e commercio), Carlo Falciola (Personale e Politiche giovanili) e Albino Scarinzi (Cultura). Anche in caso di riconferma in blocco della giunta uscente, comunque, due degli assessori uscenti avrebbero dovuto essere sacrificati. E sono proprio due quelli che non sono stati rieletti: Vincenzo Citterio (Finanze e bilancio) e Mauro Fortis (Pubblica istruzione, sport e servizi sociali).
Appare scontata la redistribuzione degli incarichi ai consiglieri di maggioranza, una prassi già attuata da Di Milia durante il suo primo mandato con un incarico specifico affidato a ciascun consigliere (unica eccezione Giancarlo Gabaldo). Nell’assegnazione di assessorati e incarichi, inoltre, il sindaco dovrà tener conto di riconferme come quella di Valeria Sala, con 154 preferenze seconda solo a Bottini, e, fra i nuovi eletti, Emanuele Iacono (110).
(Ma.Ra. su La Prealpina)

Barbie Football

The Dirty Disco - Vulture

"I'm burning up and now I want you more and more"

I've made it my business to keep up with The Dirty Disco, one of a handful of new bands that are going to make 2010 very special. Their first single, the stomping Sista, did well on the dance charts, and now the band are inviting you to hear (and download) a new track called Vulture. It's in remix form, and I'm not one for remixes, but I'll make an exception for this track. I'm dying to hear the original, as this offers a nice teaser for what's to come. Buoyed by swirling synths and a propulsive energy throughout, Vulture takes a simple melody and blasts it into space. They've teased another new song on their site, describing it as a "Fleetwood Mac stadium number." That gets me way excited. I love bands with a bit of variety to their sound. At this rate, the debut album could be up their with Scissor Sisters' first one. Download this track for free by clicking the arrow in the soundcloud link.

The Dirty Disco "Vulture" (The Dirty Disco Remix) by Tomorrow Never Knows

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Listen to more here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

The Maltese Rooster

Two o'clock in the morning, and the only light in the joint came through the window, red and mean. If I walked to the window, I knew it would say Paradise, winking on and off. I was only across the street but as far from Paradise as you could get.

The power was off, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. The condo board was gone, leaving me high and dry--dry except for the bottle I was drinking out of. The paper bag it was wrapped in was still damp from the rain. Another day, another chance for glory. But it was two a.m., and so far no glory had come knocking. I took another slug.

I heard someone tramping up the stairs, whistling. That would be Smitty from the condo. Never anyone so glad to give bad news to a woman drowning her sorrows with the last bottle on tap. There probably wouldn't be power for weeks, going by the whistling indicator.

Slam! Slam! Slam!
Okay, not Smitty. He always tapped the glass with his key, the jerk. I screwed the top back onto the bottle and set it in my desk drawer. They don't drink Doctor Pepper in these Northern burgs. I get tired of explaining.

Slam! Slam! Slam!
"Keep your shirt on," I growled. "Coming!"

I toddled my way to the door, in light as fleeting as my prospects. I took my pistol out of its holster and like a spring chicken, opened my door at two a.m. to a complete stranger. Call it the drinking, the red light, or maybe, just maybe, that trouble is my business.

"Now here's real sugar." The voice was low, cool.  I like that in a man.

"I'm fresh out of sugar, buster."
"I'm not Buster, I'm  Humf. Looking for a lonely angel."

Humf, like Humphrey. "I'm not alone." I brought up the pistol, aimed it right to the brisket.  "I'm entertaining Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson. And if they don't like you, all your angels will be fallen ones."

"Fallen, huh? You don't have a clue. I'm making a delivery." He held out a bird statue.
"It's a Maltese Rooster," he said. "It's for you."

Some people say never to look a gift chicken in the beak. But in the end, nothing's free. I don't always mind paying. I just want to understand the lay.

"Right. I have a clue or two," I lied. "The bird contains some key to a state secret, but you whacked the goose with the golden egg. Now I'm supposed to fry while everybody scrambles."

He spread his arms wide. "It's on the sunny-side up, sweetheart."
"It's a chicken, and this ain't a roost." It's better that way.

"You just gotta say thanks, link up to the giver," he said. "Guy name of Slamdunks. He's got a blog, says you're familiar."

"Yeah, I know Slamdunks. But I don't know how you know him."
"Everybody knows Slamdunks. That's just how it is."

He was right about that, but I still had the pistol up. It was still two a.m. The Paradise still was the only light in town. Humf leaned against the door jamb, casual-like. But I wasn't fooled.

"The real catch is you gotta say five things about yourself," he said. "You do that, and you get me for life."

"Be still, my heart."

"I figure a dame like you has something to say for yourself. I hear you're always cracking wise." He grinned in the suddenly on-light of the Paradise. "You can keep the Maltese Chicken if you say how you like  your eggs."

"Hard-boiled."

"So, the Maltese Chicken is yours. Now you gotta give the Quillfeather Award to some other people. Spread the glory, you know."

"That's it?"
"Sure, that's it. Slam, he'd never set you up." He snapped his fingers. "I figure you can say five things. Come on, look at this mug. Don't you want my image for all time?"

"One rooster at a time, Humf." I was still cracking wise, but something about the big yegg--

I lowered my guard, holstered my pistol and accepted the Maltese Chicken. Now it was only Humf. I'm a sucker for a guy who doesn't give up.  I walked to the window. Humf didn't know it, nobody did. But talking from the heart isn't easy for a gal like me.

The lights of Paradise blew on again. So did the lamp on my desk. Damn if it wasn't Bogey. So it was true confessions time. Sometimes a gal just has to grab for the glory . . . or for its image . . .

--
1. The most embarrassing date I ever had was with one college student from a fraternity with bad manners. We were being waited on by another guy I had dated casually. Oooh, eek! Then the waiter brought our coffee. Mine was all milk with a dash of coffee thrown in. "That's how she likes it," he told my date.

Zing, zing, triple zing! I could not Wait to get out of there.

2. I sometimes make refrigerator magnets for a hobby. I take interesting pictures to Kinko's, reduce them on a color printer, paste them to magnet sheets, then cut them up. When I left RiverTown, I gave every employee at my store a set of hand-made refrigerator magnets in a theme they would like. The one I remember best was the series of Altoids advertisements for the guy who always had a tin of them, and who frequently shared.

3. My desk is a dining table, fairly old, from Ruff n Ready furniture. The guy that runs it has hair down to his waist and has obviously lost teeth from too many fights with pool cues. The table sheds sawdust. At first I was afraid it had termites (!), but no--it's from getting wet once too often. It works great and is still pretty. Next to my chair is a pile of books. Thesaurus, Atlas, and Rhyming dictionary, two maps of Manhattan and a poetry anthology are permanent in the stack. Everything else changes. A week or so ago, World War II. Yesterday, Joseph Mitchell. Today, Machiavelli--

4. I like beautiful things, and I like them to be a bit dilapidated. Unless it is a tube of toothpaste or a paperback book, new things are never quite as good as the things that have absorbed the stories of others. When I buy used books, frequently they have old bookmarks, old notes, old train tickets. I always leave them in the books. They are new every time I find them, and I see the signs of other lives.

5. I lied to the yegg. My real favorite way to eat eggs is over-easy, with homemade hash browns, whole wheat toast or a fluffy biscuit, and crispy bacon or link sausage. This is about a million calories, so I have it about once a year. And I Really enjoy it, too. With orange juice and strong coffee with some (not all) milk in it.
--
Now that I have claimed my Awards, I can confer the Award on others! All you have to do is keep the chain, link to me and then to your future awardees. That way people can backtrack their way across the blogosphere.

Quillfeather Awards

I'm giving these to the guys whose shells are tough to crack. Maybe they'll open up about breakfast.

Captain Joe Schmoe at Report on Conditions
For leadership, the love of the desert, and the Men of Moron . . .

Bob G. at The Pa-in Erudition
For flowers and bald eagles, crime reports, and boot-strappin' philosophy . . .

You're Going Places, Baby Awards

 Tell five things about yourself, large or small. And may the going places  be grand!

peedee at Queen of the Dogs
music, fun, self-improvement, and let's kick-it-back n' shoot the breeze . . .

The Observer at The South Kansas City Observer
she loves her hometown, stray animals, EMS, cars, politics . . .

Here's looking at you, kids! Thanks again, Slamdunks! And to all my readers for stopping by!

Stresa: Al Camelot Pub serata live con i Monorail Cat

Nuovo appuntamento live al Camelot Pub di Stresa in Via De Vit. Venerdì 02 aprile 2010 alle ore 22.30 saranno protagoniste le note rigorosamente live dei Monorail Cat.I Monorail Cat sono un gruppo di Verbania nato nel 2007 che ha come scopo quello di proporre, nelle oltre 2 ore di repertorio, le tappe principali della musica rock degli anni 70 e qualche richiamo ai primi '80 (deep purple in primis, led zeppelin,queen,ecc), aggiungendo un tocco di personalità e humor allo spettacolo proposto. La band è formata da Simone alla batteria, Alberto alle
tastiere, Marco al basso, Felice alla chitarra e JT Obo alla voce.

Rant #223: Chocolate Health Benefits Too Sweet To Believe

Well, once again, a new study shows that eating chocolate can actually be good for you.

German researchers found that eating just six grams of chocolate a day--and that is dark chocolate, not the more common milk chocolate--could prevent heart attacks and strokes.

Dark chocolate is rich in cocoa and potentially protective flavonols, and the ingestion of this type of chocolate seems to help a person's health.

Just what we needed--another study saying that chocolate is good for you!

I am sure that the candy industry is licking its chops once again over this one.

Remember, dark chocolate is much more expensive than milk chocolate, so now, it gives more reasons for these companies to churn out this stuff.

And, of course, people will buy it, thinking that dark chocolate, and dark chocolate alone, will cure their ills.

And they will eat it, whole bars and large amounts, even though the study says that just basically a smidgen a day could help you.

I am almost willing to believe that the chocolate companies will one day list their dark chocolate offerings as "Health Food," and proceed to have these items placed next to vitamins and those types of things.

Let's be sensible about this. Wine has also been listed as healthy when taken properly, but it doesn't mean that binging on wine is the way to good health.

A little bit of just about everything in moderation is OK for you, but you have to add in exercise, a better diet and lifestyle, and your genes into the picture.

These research studies simply give people another set of reasons to chomp down chocolate as if it were water, and it is simply not the way to do this.

Personally, I have never been much of a candy eater.

My scourge is cookies. I love cookies, and yes, some of them have chocolate in them.

But I am not going to try to reason with you that eating five chocolate cookies in one sitting is going to help my heart and general health.

But I am sure some people will reason with themselves that this is true.

What's next? Bubblegum is good for your teeth?

In Which Zombie Boss Looks Bright-Eyed

I took my troubles to the Board last night. Zombie Boss said he'd like to meet with me so that he could learn my expectations. Does anybody that reads here think I was not forthcoming about my expectations?

Just checking.
I meet with him at 1 p.m. today.

Bullies

How I wish that young girl had lived.  How I wish this kind of beastly  Bacchanalia would end.

This Persephone
Was driven down by beasts.
She will not return.

If only someone
Had stood for her. If only
Someone had seen it--

Some stood, but never
Enough. Nothing that lasted.
Maybe we blame them.

Take this lesson hard.
Yesterday rioters said
What they wanted to,

Broke windows, threw stones,
Tried to maim and kill. A girl
hung herself at home

Because her classmates
Did as they pleased. The allies
To the rioters

Supported their view
More than they hated the means.
And they don't see it--

They're not standing up.
The one relates to the next:
Beasts, drunk on cruelty.

.
.
All this preaching to the choir. That lasting stand. I don't know how to make it. Yet.

Ford Says Market Share in Canada May Increase to 16%

Ford Motor Co.’s market share in Canada may rise to 16 percent this year, from 15.2 percent in 2009, as new models such as the redesigned Fiesta subcompact reach showrooms, the automaker’s regional chief said.

Market share in Canada will be in a range of 15.5 percent to 16 percent, David J. Mondragon, chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. of Canada, said today in an interview in Vancouver. Ford was No. 1 in Canada through February with about 16.2 percent of sales, he said.

“As we bring new products on, there will be an opportunity to grow our share further, but we need to get that product on the ground, we need to launch it and then see how it resonates” with buyers, Mondragon said.

The Fiesta is among eight new vehicles Ford plans to unveil in Canada this year as the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker seeks to entice consumers with improved fuel efficiency and options such as the Sync voice-activated phone and entertainment system developed with Microsoft Corp.

“We are going to move our company from a niche player to a true competitor” in small cars, Mondragon said. Ford expects the price of oil to soar to $120 a barrel in the coming years, he said, without giving a timetable. Crude for May delivery rose 20 cents to $82.37 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

First-Quarter Gain

First-quarter sales in Canada rose by about 25 percent from a year earlier, Mondragon said, including a 51 percent gain in February. Sales in March are up about 25 percent, compared with an industrywide increase of about 10 percent in Canada, he said.

Comparisons should be easy for the next several months with the results from a year earlier, when the deepening recession damped demand, Mondragon said.

“As we get into the summer months, though, we’re going to butt up against some very high sales volumes from last year when our sales surged while GM and Chrysler were going through tough times,” he said, referring to the bankruptcy restructurings of the predecessors of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.

Ford fell 29 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $13.28 at 4:01 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares have risen 33 percent this year.

Through February, Ford had 17.5 percent of the U.S. market, second to Detroit-based GM.

On Air: Le vostre lettere inviate a Stresa 2.0

L'incoronazione, di Piervalle

Avevamo previsto un piccolo trionfo, è stato un tonfo, ma questa volta per l’alternanza che non c’è. Mai minoranza come ora, mai maggioranza come adesso. Questo è il risultato, un plebiscito e l’unico assoluto vincitore che ha raccolto l’omaggio del suo popolo: di centro, di destra e di sinistra. La democrazia, forse anche un po’ eccessiva , ieri e l’altro ieri ha compiuto il suo rito, ha risolto l’uno dei suoi due corni, quella di trovare chi governa. Rimane adesso l’altro corno,
quello di come si governa, quello delle regole che plebiscito o meno, essere maggioranza del 51 o del 91% non importa, valgono per tutti. La tentazione di chi ha raccolto il massimo consenso sarà da contenere? Noi non ce lo auguriamo e ci auguriamo invece che l’umiltà dei forti sia l’omaggio migliore agli sconfitti.

Lista Insieme! L'oppsizione che sarà

La lista di minoranza Insieme!, oltre al candidato sindaco Giovan Battista Vecchi, sarà rappresentata in Consiglio da: Roberta Luini, Marcella Severino, Piero Vallenzasca e Alessandro Bertolino.

(GUARDA LE PREFERENZE)

Lista Stresa e Frazioni: Ecco il Consiglio

Dopo il conteggio delle preferenze ecco come sarà formato il Consiglio Comunale. Insieme al Sindaco Canio Di Milia  entreranno in consiglio comunale: Giuseppe Bottini, Valeria Sala, Emanuele Iacono, Carlo Falciola, Roberto Bolla, Albino Scarinzi, Alberto Galli, Piero Poletti, Maria Cabrini, Antonio Coppola e Massimo Albini.

(GUARDA LE PREFERENZE)

Linda Sundblad - Pick Up The Pieces

"Everyone in love take a piece of my heart"

Here's an example of a song with pleasant (if not entirely memorable) verses saved by a dynamite chorus. In fact, the chorus here is so punchy that Sundblad skips the middle eight altogether and goes right back for more. I really love Linda Sundblad and was looking forward to her second solo release (her first being one of the best pop albums of the last five years). As a whole it's not quite up to the last one, but it's still full of excellent pop that puts anything released Stateside to shame. But back to that chorus. Of all the new songs, Pick Up The Pieces sounds most at home beside the album's best track (and first single) To All My Girls. It's got a bright, energetic synth sound that's very "80's disco anthem," while the lyrics manage to have a melancholic quality to them that are somewhat at odds with the song's energy. Sundblad does pop in the late-80's Madonna mold. Because of this, her songs have a classic sound to them that outlasts attempts by similar pop divas. Check out the album. Full review coming soon.

Linda Sundblad - Pick Up The Pieces by alienhits

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Buy the album here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

Joseph Mitchell-My Ears are Bent

Down in our condominium's "Community Room" we have two couches, a fancy rug, a glass table and some framed antique maps of our city, a television set--and a conference table with six office type chairs, padded, brown. All this is new: picked it out myself, with one other condo board member, only last year. The other member also got the maps and frames, and I framed them up.  It was a fun project, and I like to remember it.

We also have this large library of rejected books. When people move, they drop heavy freight in the community room. So when we got the furniture, I went through the library to thin it down. And I learned it's a pretty good library.

Oh, yes, the Point-
So, I picked up this book in there by Joseph Mitchell: My Ears Are Bent. It starts:

Except for a period in 1931 when I got sick of the whole business and went to sea, working on a freighter which carried heavy machinery to Leningrad and brought Soviet pulp logs back, I have been for the last eight years a reporter on newspapers in New York City.

I knew his name. He used to write for The New Yorker and the Herald-Tribune. He was a crime reporter and a political reporter.

The book is full of interviews: female wrestlers, fan dancers who imitate Sally Rand,  and anecdotal crime reporting. You hear about old men trying to beat the summer heat by drinking wine, watermelon-sellers, the way police got tips out of drunks in Harlem (no longer allowed, but still somehow a relationship) and the oyster trade plied off the banks of Manhattan Island. Osinning Prison (Sing-Sing). He went everywhere. He met characters everywhere.

These stories are short, and true, and written in the way of a man who listens carefully to crazy people. I still can't decide if he was a romantic, a cynic, or the most deadpan writer in American lit.

So, my ears will be bent starting at approximately 7 p.m. tonight and I have to get ready. I will be spending some hours with my seat in a padded chair in the Community Room this very night: CONDO BOARD MEETING. Another contribution is this ceramic statue of Buddha. I find myself looking at it during meetings when I need some calm. Right now he is also holding up more books.

In the meantime, here is Sally Rand and the fan dance. She made a fortune not revealing very much.

10 cool sofa design

Stuffed Animal Couch

Glow In The Dark Couch

Lego Sofa

Pixel Sofa

Custom Car Sofas

Cactus Sofa

Colorful Puzzle-Piece Couch

The Paper Cloud Sofa

Lip Sofa

Grass Sofa

CERN -- NEW ENERGY RECORD & WEBCAST

The Large Hadron Collider at CERN has just up'd the energy at which they have collided particles to about 3 times the previous record.

They celebrated this accomplishment with a live webcast -- a repeat of which is now continuing. It's been interesting. Theoretical physics described in a way that even journalists can understand.

Here's the address of the webcast:

http://webcast.cern.ch/lhcfirstphysics/

Elezioni: Per il Vco, occasione storica

Il Verbano Cusio Ossola ha fatto il pieno. Mai la legislatura regionale che si apre è stata così positiva sulla carta per il territorio della "Provincia Azzurra".
1) Il presidente Roberto Cota è un novarese, conosce le realtà periferiche del Piemonte. E' amico di lunga data con il collega avvocato Paolo Marchioni, vicepresidente provinciale, entrambi sono della Lega Nord.
2) Per la prima volta il Vco elegge quattro rappresentanti in consiglio regionale (3 di maggioranza: il domese Michele Marinello, il ghiffese Valerio Cattaneo e il verbanese Roberto De Magistris, uno di opposizione: il verbanese Aldo Reschigna). Due,
Cattaneo e Reschigna, hanno peraltro già esperienza di palazzo Lascaris. Il Vco rappresenta il 4 per cento dell'elettorato piemontese, con 4 consiglieri su 60, ottiene una rappresentanza ben superiore del 6,7%.
3) Il governo provinciale e quello dei maggiori centri (Verbania, Domodossola e Omegna) è composto da coalizioni di centrodestra, analoghe (a parte in alcuni casi la presenza dell'Udc) con quella vincitrice delle elezioni regionali.
Insomma, se fra cinque anni qualcuno piangerà per un Vco poco considerato da Torino, l'unica alternativa coerente a quel punto sarà la "secessione" dal Piemonte.
(Di Andrea Dellapina su VerbaniaNews)

Rant #222: Jello Shots

Some of you might have heard about a quaint little case that has reared its ugly head on Long Island.

Two elderly people with nothing better to do in their lives bought several boxes of Jello at a few area markets, took the Jello mix out, and replaced it with salt and sand. They put their concoction in a bag, sealed it, and placed it back in the Jello box. Then they went back to the markets, demanding refunds for tainted products.

Happily, they were caught pretty much from the get go by surveillance video at the markets.

Evidently, the elderly woman has had some mental problems, and her husband, who loved her dearly but was of supposedly sane mind, did what she asked out of love and commitment to this person.

They were caught, and now face various charges.

Their lawyer is portraying them as almost "innocents," not aware of what they were doing.

I don't care how senile a person is, if they concoct a scheme like this, they can't possibly be that senile, can they?

But the love the husband showed for his wife is incredible. Even though he knew she was doing wrong, he went along with this scheme out of commitment to his mate.

Sure he was wrong--as wrong as she was, or even more wrong, since he supposedly knew what he was doing was not above board--but he loved the woman and did what she wanted.

Love is a funny thing. It kind of blinds you, at times. I think it is one of the most powerful emotions that one can have.

Here, the husband's devotion to his wife won out over clear thinking.

I am not absolving the husband at all. He appears to be a squeamish individual.

But that devotion to his wife ...

Love is a funny thing, isn't it?

Magazine Covers And Detailed Spoilers For Season 5 Of Doctor Who

Four days to go and here are the magazines covering the return of Doctor Who. Warning: spoilers.

Radio Times - gotta love them. The cover has a new picture of the Doctor and Amy Pond and you get to see the inside of the TARDIS for the first time. I like it but the lack of a railing makes me hope our TARDIS duo don't have too many crashes. Interesting nuggets also included Matt Smith admitting he wrote fanfiction with the Doctor and Einstein to help him with the role. I can think of a certain episode for Season 6 now.



Gay Times - apparently Matt Smith is the first actor to play the Doctor to be on the cover of a gay publication. The issue came out last week and the coverage in twelve pages was brilliant. Every main player for the new series was interviewed and while there weren't any big spoilers (except maybe for the character of Rory - thanks Arthur Darvill), it was still a worthy issue.

Issue 420 of DWM comes out on April 1st and there are some new interviews with Matt Smith and Karen Gillan to behold as well as previews for the first five episodes. You've also got the option of two covers. Which one to snag is up to you but I think I'll go for the Matt one.

Then again, the one with Karen Gillan does look lovely as well. Oh, it doesn't matter as long as get some more spoilers and covers for the first series of 11th Doctor/Amy Pond books that are due out in April.

Matt and Karen were in Belfast yesterday to promote the new series (the kids loved it) and there was an interview with them on Radio Ulster. Sadly the female presenter kept mistaking Karen for Amy throughout the interview and that recurring question of 'what if there was a female Doctor?' popped up again. Is every companion from now gonna get asked that question? Other places that Matt and Karen's tour will take this is Iverness, Sutherland, Salford and Northampton between today and tomorrow. Matt also did an interview for Chris Moyles as well.

Some recent promotional pictures from the BBC Doctor Who site in regards to the arrival of the new series. The site has a series of different videos and preview clips as well as some character files and an archive for the RTD era and the Classic Series as well.

As for an episode guide for the new series, here goes nothing ...

5x01: The Eleventh Hour - Introduces the Doctor and Amy as they team up to save the world from the Atraxi, who are in pursuit of Prisoner Zero by any means neccessary.

5x02: The Beast Below - Doctor/Amy in the far future as the British people are amongst the stars. A masked lady wants the Doctor's help and Amy discovers a terrible secret that no-one else can remember.

5x03: Victory Of The Daleks - WW2 based where the Doctor and Amy discover that the Daleks are being used by Churchill or do they have their own plan? The Doctor needs Churchill's help to stop them.

5x04/5x05: The Time Of Angels/Flesh And Stone - A crashed spaceship, shattered temple and a climb to the maze of the dead. Weeping Angels are on the loose of the ruins of the Alfava Metraxis and River needs the Doctor's help. Amy also discovers something worse than just not looking at the Weeping Angels as well.

5x06: Vampires In Venice - First episode to add Rory as a companion and based in Venice where the House of Calverri has the city in lockdown. Also some slightly creepy girls with an aversion to sunlight.

5x07: Amy's Choice - Five years after her travels with the Doctor ended, Amy is reunited with him and on the eve of the birth of her first child, she's faced with a heartbreaking choice.

5x08/5x09 - 2015 and Dr Nashreen Chaudhry's team are drilling down to the Earth's crust but Amy realises that you can't trust the ground beneath your feet.

5x10 - Terror lurks in the cornfields of Provence and the Doctor and Amy team up with Vincent Van Gogh to take on the threat in question.

5x11 - The Doctor's forced to live in Aickman Road for a week and help solve the problem of a sinister force of a staircase that people walk up but never come down in. The one where he plays football.

5x12/5x13 - A message on the oldest cliff face in the universe, a puzzle box opening from the inside and a love that lasts a thousand years - the fates are drawing close around the TARDIS - is this the day the Doctor falls?

Guest stars this season include Arthur Darvill, Annette Crosbie, Olivia Coleman, Nina Wadia, Sophie Okenedo, Terrence Hardiman, Ian McNiece, Bill Patterson, Alex Kingston, Iain Glen, Helen McCrory, Toby Jones, Meera Syal, Stephen Moore, Neve McIntosh, Tony Curran, Bill Nighy, James Corden, Daisy Haggard and Melanie Walters.

BBC Site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/dw

Radio Ulster Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9zrAGdThY8

Chris Moyles Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPLHZqZb-pU

Stresa: Di Milia resta in Piazza Matteotti per altri 5 anni

Forse il numero di fan delle proprie liste sulle pagine di facebook, 183 per Di Milia e 121 per Vecchi, lo aveva in qualche modo predetto. Ma è stato con le 2218 preferenze (74,3%)  ricevute dagli stresiani andati alle urne, contro le 767 date alla seconda lista, che è stato sancito ufficialmente che a guidare la città di Stresa per il prossimo quinquennio resterà il Sindaco uscente Canio Di Milia. Al 27° Sindaco dall'unità d'Italia nel 1861 (ELENCO) ed ai suoi futuri nuovi assessori i nostri migliori auguri di buon lavoro.

Vecchi: Stresa ha avuto un'opportunità e non l'ha sfruttata

Gli stresiani hanno avuto l’opportunità di cambiare e non l’hanno sfruttata. Non c’è molto altro da dire. Evidentemente il sistema Di Milia, fatto di sprechi e di contributi distribuiti a pioggia, ha funzionato. Evidentemente buttare i soldi di tutti è cosa che interessa a pochi. Ma è inutile recriminare: a ognuno il suo governo. La mia speranza è che Di Milia e la sua giunta rinsaviscano e capiscano quali sono realmente i bisogni della città e dei suoi abitanti. Ma, onestamente, non ci credo per nulla. Il lupo perde il pelo, ma non il vizio. E Di Milia ha come vizi la poca oculatezza nell’amministrare il denaro di tutti e
l’incapacità di cogliere il buono che c’è nelle proposte degli altri.
Temo che saranno altri cinque anni di tempi bui per la nostra Stresa: ma questo ha voluto la maggior parte dei cittadini. E così sarà.
Per quanto riguarda me e la lista Insieme!, faremo un’opposizione precisa e puntuale, portando sempre all’attenzione della gente le magagne della maggioranza e cercando di far aprire gli occhi agli stresiani che, evidentemente, sono rimasti incantati dal castello di favole che Di Milia ha disegnato.
Un sentito ringraziamento a tutti coloro che hanno creduto nella possibilità del cambiamento e hanno scelto la nostra lista.

GIOVAN BATTISTA VECCHI
CANDIDATO SINDACO LISTA INSIEME!

Android Approaching iPhone OS in Mobile Web Market Share

It likely comes as no big surprise that Apple’s iPhone OS has been at the top of the mobile web space game since 2008. The company’s market share at one point approached 70% of the mobile web, and showed no signs of slowing down — until now.

Mobile advertising firm AdMob has released their latest statistics on the state of the mobile web market, and it would appear as if Apple could soon lose its crown.

That’s because Google’s Android OS is quickly finding itself more and more penetrated into the mobile web market, currently in the region of 42% market share. What’s interesting is the fact that Android may soon be taking over as kind of the mobile web market, surpassing Apple’s now-declining market share. In fact, we wouldn’t be surprised if Android hasn’t already surpassed iPhone OS in terms of mobile web market share.

Meanwhile, Research In Motion’s BlackBerry OS continues to decline, approaching 10% [mobile web] market share, along with Microsoft’s Windows Mobile, under 5%.

Stresa: PdL primo partito, oggi il conteggio per il Sindaco

A Stresa (CLICCA PER RISULATI) il PDL è stato riconfermato primo partito con 1.017 preferenze, ovvero il 41,1% dei voti.
Il secondo gradino del podio spetta al PD Bresso Presidente con il 19,2% (475 voti)  con solo 2 punti percentuali in più della LEGA NORD Bossi ( 425 voti ) che si ferma al 17,1%

Per oggi è atteso lo spoglio delle schede per l'elezione del Sindaco.

Piemonte a Cota trascinato anche dal Vco

Il vento del centrodestra soffia ancora più forte. Roberto Cota è diventato presidente del Piemonte superando, nel Vco, la soglia del 55% dei consensi. Meglio del 53,3% di Enzo Ghigo, cinque anni fa. Un successo che non si spiega soltanto con la politica: il legame tra l’avvocato novarese di Galliate, capogruppo del Carroccio alla Camera, e questa provincia è da sempre molto forte. Per anni ha trascorso le vacanze in valle Vigezzo e sua moglie, Rosanna Calzolari, ha lavorato a lungo come giudice a
Verbania prima di approdare al tribunale dei minori a Milano. L’ultimo fine settimana da candidato ha voluto trascorrerlo, con la famiglia, in un albergo di Baveno. Mercedes Bresso, presidente uscente con casa sul lago d’Orta, nel Vco si è fermata ad un amaro 40,2 per cento contro il 44,9 della precedente consultazione. Di sicuro è toccato proprio a lei pagare il prezzo più salato della presenza degli altri due candidati alla presidenza. Rabellino, infatti, non ha turbato affatto la marcia trionfale del leghista. Più efficace invece Davide Bono che ha superato il 3 per cento, beneficiando anche dell’effetto trascinante del comizio di Beppe Grillo che ha richiamato in piazza a Intra molti volti in passato già visti nelle kermesse elettorali del centrosinistra.
Per quanto riguarda i partiti sul fronte Bresso ci si aspettava di più dall’Italia dei valori, presente nel «listino» con il coordinatore provinciale Massimo Turconi, che è addirittura in flessione rispetto alle provinciali dell’anno scorso. L’Udc, invece, è rimasta in linea con provinciali e precedenti regionali. Tra le «corazzate» il Pdl perde terreno e avanza la Lega che galoppa rispetto al 12% del 2005 e cresce ancora rispetto al 17,7 delle provinciali che hanno riportato il centrodesta anche al governo del Vco. Ma dalla candidatura di Michele Marinello, che era nel listino di Cota e quindi entra per direttissima in consiglio regionale, c’era chi si aspettava addirittura di più. Il Pd è il secondo partito della provincia e il primo di Verbania, un segnale di ripartenza. Da un’opposizione che da oggi non ha più la sponda amica a Torino.
(Carlo Bologna su La Stampa )

Simon Curtis - 8Bit Heart

"Is it so, so wrong to love and be loved in return?"

Paul is gonna love this post. He's been on the Simon Curtis train for ages now, while I've been standing on the platform waiting for the right cabin to pull up. Ha! That was a ridiculous metaphor. What I'm trying to say is that I've been somewhat ho-hum about this whole Simon Curtis guy until two days ago when I downloaded his new album (for FREE). As far as glossy pop music goes, it's pretty epic. Reminds me a lot of a Darren Hayes album if Darren was still a teenager (this is not a dig at you Mr. Hayes... can't wait for your new album). What Simon Curtis has done with this album, on no doubt a shoestring budget, is pretty remarkable. The music isn't so new or different, but the thought put into is totally refreshing. It's a real pop concept album, for god sakes! Then there's the voice, most apparent on this soaring track. There's falsetto and there's falsetto, and this gets into Adam Lambert territory. Stirring. Add to that a magnificently simple melody and production that sounds like a modern electro update of an old Motown song and you get the sense of this guy's ambition. Download the album and let me know what you think. He's certainly converted me. (And listen also to Beat Drop, because I nearly posted that one instead)

Simon Curtis - 8Bit Heart by alienhits

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Download the album for free here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

2010 Bb. Pilipinas-Universe Maria Venus Raj Dethroned

In less than one month after nyang makoronahan bilang Bb. Pilipinas-Universe, nakatakdang bawiin ng Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Inc. (BPCI) ang korona ng half-Indian, half-Filipina na si Maria Venus Bayonito Raj dahil sa issue ng kanyang nationality.

Ayon kay Jenny Inocencio-Marcial, Corporate Affairs and PR Manager ng BPCI, nakita ng BPCI na may inconsistencies sa statements ni Venus at ng kanyang ina, at sa legal documents na isinumite nina Venus sa mga abugado ng BPCI bilang patunay ng kanyang nasyunalidad.

"We found inconsistencies in their statements. Both Venus and her mother said she was born in Doha, Qatar, while yung na-submit nilang legal documents say she was born in the Philippines," pahayag ni Ms. Marcial.

At sa official statement ng BPCI, sinabi nito na tuluyan na ngang tinanggal ang korona sa dalaga, "Today March 29, 2010, Bb. Pilipinas Charities, Inc. decided, with a heavy heart, to let Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 2010 Maria Venus Raj go, after the organization discovered inconsistencies contained in her birth records, in contrast to her personal account of her birth."

Dahil sa mga pangyayari, ang 2nd runner-up na si Helen Nicolette Mercado Henson ang siyang magsusuot ng korona at magre-represent sa Pilipinas sa darating na 59th Miss Universe Pageant in August.

Matatandaang ang pagkuwestiyon din sa nasyunalidad ang naging dahilan ng pagkakabawi ng korona kina Anjanette Abayari (Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 1991), Tisha Silang (Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 1998), at Janelle Bautista (Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 1999). Ipinanganak at lumaki sa U.S. sina Anjanette at Janelle, habang sa Canada naman si Tisha.

Sharon Cuneta Opens Her Wack-Wack Doors in YES! Magazine April 2010 Issue

When the cameras stop rolling, Megastar Sharon Cuneta heads home to Wack-Wack, where she becomes just like any other wife and mother that tends to her family's needs. YES! magazine captures the Megastar at home this April, as Sharon opens the doors to her Wack-Wack home for the first time ever.

The Wack-Wack residence has a warm and cozy feel. The living rooms showcase souvenirs from Sharon's travels and various paintings by esteemed artists like Juan Luna and Mauro "Malang" Santos. Photos of daughters Frankie, Miel, and KC are also prominently displayed in the living room. As Sharon tells YES!, "You know, my smiles that are really from my heart of hearts, they're the ones reserved for my kids, 'cause they're the only ones that can bring them out."

Her smile gets even brighter at the mention of the latest addition to her family—her adopted three-month-old son Miguel. Sharon shares, "After my three girls, parang I was thinking how nice it would be to adopt a boy."

When the opportunity finally presented itself, Sharon just knew in her heart that Miguel was meant for her. But first, she had Frankie and Miel to worry about. "Kinausap namin, because that was one of the concerns, parang baka magselos," she says. "But you know what, oddly enough, I think it will balance out the rivalry between the two. Because there's rivalry whether they admit it or not, e, di ba? Actually that's what happened. Miguel balanced it out."

A self-confessed homebody, Sharon also talks about cooking with her kids and teaching them her specialties, as YES! features her home in more than 70 photos.

A 10th Anniversary Special, the April issue also features the red carpet photos of the star-studded YES! 10th Anniversary Party.

YES! Magazine April 2010 issue is available in newsstands, bookstores, and supermarkets nationwide.

The Ark - In Full Regalia

This blog has turned into a bit of an Ark blog the past few days, hasn't it? Well, this morning I have the "album" cover and tracklist for you. You'll notice "album" is in quotations because the band have decided to release the record in conjunction with their own magazine (unfortunately in Swedish), complete with 100 pages of photos, lyrics, and behind the scenes articles. Pretty exciting! It'll allow them to have massive distribution, not only in record stores but at newsstands, too. Plus the album art is fantastic.



The Ark - In Full Regalia

1. Take a shine to me
2. Superstar
3. Stay with me
4. Singing ’bout the city
5. Have you ever heard a song
6. Publicity seeking rockers
7. I’ll have my way with you, Frankie
8. All those days
9. Hygiene squad
10. The red cap

Piemonte: Cota Bresso, una regione in bilico

Controlla lo spoglio e l'evoluzione dei risultati delle elezioni in Piemonte sul super-sito della Repubblica creato per le Elezioni 2010. (Sito Repubblica)

Rant #221: Happy Holidays

This time of year is pretty special, as two of the most revered religious holidays come on top of each other.

Passover begins this evening and lasts for the next eight days. It signifies the Jews' flight out of Egypt, and its greatest symbol, matzoh, reflects the unleavened bread that the Jews ate in their flight. Seders are held tonight and tomorrow night, and religious Jews hold a final Seder on the final night.

Easter allows Christians to reflect on Jesus Christ and upon themselves. This is perhaps the most sacred holiday on the calendar for Christians, and it is preceded by Palm Sunday, yesterday, and Good Friday, coming up this week.

As a Jew, Passover for me is probably the best Jewish holiday on the calendar. Unlike Chanukah, where you are under pressure to buy gifts, on Passover, you aren't under pressure to do much of anything--unless you are cooking and/or preparing for the Seder-- but follow the fabled "Four Questions" and eat until you can't move. All kidding aside, following the Jews' flight from Egypt with the rest of your family is a great tradition that has been handed down from generation to generation, and my kids get a special kick out of this holiday, as I have for all these years.

I am sure the family gatherings that take place during Easter present the same introspection that the Passover Seder does.

So for everyone, happy holiday. I don't have much else to say, but for whatever holiday you follow, these coming days are to be cherished as we meet with our families to study our religious past, present, and future.

So to all, have a nice holiday.