Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my dreamy confections! How are you? The first day of February and we’re going to see 50 degrees again? What happened to winter this year? Is it going to come in like gangbusters late in the season, or just sputter out with a few more cold spells this month? Mother Nature is not talking to me, of course, and I can’t find Old Man Winter anywhere. Obviously, when he’s not around, the temperature rises. Word on the psychic gossip hotlines is that Old Man W is having a fling with summer, and that’s what has him preoccupied. Of course, opposites attract, but in the long run, they’re totally incompatible and I expect that our weather will return to normal sooner rather than later.

In perusing the news yesterday, I came across this disturbing item: “Pythons Wiping Out Everglades Mammals, Report Says” http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/01/31/sci-pythons-everglades.html Oh my. I immediately thought of our Ms. Beejay. I know she’s battled a few snakes in Florida, but I don’t know if she is ready to take on 16 ft. long Burmese pythons. Apparently, these pythons are the descendents of pets that either escaped or were let loose into the Everglades. They have devoured nearly all other species into extinction. It’s quite a mess and I don’t know what they are going to do about it. Once man has upset the natural balance of things, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to restore it. The pythons have no natural enemies in the Everglades. If you introduce a natural predator, then you need to think of what is going to control that animal. Whatever happens, please stay away from the Everglades, Ms. Beejay and Mr. BiggieD.

A little closer to home, I was reminded that a Kenosha judge is supposed to rule tomorrow on whether Mr. Mayor John Dickert was acting as mayor or not when he said the e-word on the radio during a mayoral candidates forum. My prediction is that the judge will rule that Mr. Mayor was not acting as mayor when he said the e-word. However, that won’t stop our Common Council from picking up Mr. Mayor’s legal tab, anyway. Thus spake Madame Zoltar!®

Thank you so much for stopping by to read my blog today. It’s always wonderful to share time with friends and family. My blog is your blog. I’m delighted to have you as a guest.

Taxes prepared, audit antidotes: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Keep your wardrobe for all four seasons out. That’s the only way to cope with weather so out of kilter. Stay warm, cool, dry, wet, or whatever you need to coexist peacefully with the elements. I love you all. Rorulent!

Open Blog - Wednesday & Thursday


Welcome to February.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Cool Video



"What looked to be three people were spotted flying around the skies of lower Manhattan last Friday, causing a lot of double-takes and dropped jaws from onlookers.  But while it appeared to be a sight straight out of a comic book, it was actually a clever bit of viral marketing for this week's upcoming film Chronicle." read more here

Can you imagine how freaky it would be to happen upon this?

"Peaceful protest to be held to save the street lights-February 7, 2012"

From RacineUncovered.org:

"Residents have come together and want to be heard. Residents in the Jerome Blvd. area have organized a peaceful protest on Tuesday February 7,2012 around City Hall starting at 4:00 p.m. and ending at 6:45 p.m. just prior to the start time of the Common Council meeting. They have also sent a letter to city hall requesting a common council special hearing (which by law they are entitled to).

"Residents have stated that they are contacting the TV stations in Milwaukee and other media outlets inviting them to this rally to show that this means a lot for residents for the safety of their neighborhoods.

"ALL RESIDENTS OF RACINE ARE ENCOURGAGED TO ATTEND AND SHOW THEIR SUPPORT!"

Bedtime Games

Bedtime Games

Installment 27 

Make your best guess and.... GO TO BED!
Answer revealed tomorrow.   


  
Well now, this is fun!  You know you've seen this before.  The question is..... where?

Primary Colors

Featuring OK Go and a video they made for Sesame Street



Very good, but this only applies to pigments (paints and dyes) and is called subtractive color mixing. Mixing light, such as in live theater, is very different. The primary colors of light are red, green and blue. I think they need a sequel on additive color mixing!

Sunday, January 29, 2012

"Thoughts from the Common Council President Greg Helding-Street Lights & Woowoos"

 
RacineUncovered.org has another story up about the streetlight situation in Racine: http://racineuncovered.org/2012/01/thoughts-from-the-common-council-president-greg-helding-street-lights/

That was sparked by an email from Common Council President Alderman Greg Helding to RacineUncovered.

It also includes a link to a WISN TV12 report on the streetlight issue in Racine: http://www.wisn.com/news/30308931/detail.html

My previous blog on the same subject: http://www.jtirregulars.com/2012/01/fox-6-news-bye-bye-street-lights.html
 

Useless Information




Did you know:

62% of the small towns in America, the population is less then 2,500,

Friday, January 27, 2012

Rémi Gaillard - "Radar"




I've posted videos from Rémi Gaillard here before:
I like his twisted, almost anarchistic, sense of humor.

Four for Fridays

Hello everyone! Welcome back to Four for Fridays after an industrious week. This morning, I wrestled to come up with some questions, then it hit me... Here are some questions for you.

1) What celebrity do you feel has been overexposed?

2) If you where a celebrity, how much exposure would you give yourself?

3) If you were an actor/actress what role would you like to play?

4) What do you think of the paparazzi?

Enjoy your weekend!

Open Blog - Friday & Weekend


That's a positive and productive message.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

"QUIZ: How well do you know Racine's history?"

 
From the JournalTimes.com, a quiz on historical facts about Racine: http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/quiz-how-well-do-you-know-racine-s-history/html_76d5d0f6-482f-11e1-be97-0019bb2963f4.html

I started out great and got three right, then got the next four wrong. :-(

Didn't Meatloaf sing, "Three out of seven ain't bad"?
 

"Fox 6 News-Bye-Bye Street Lights"

 
RacineUncovered.org has a video of last night's TV 6 spot on the removal of streetlights in Racine: http://racineuncovered.org/2012/01/fox-6-news-bye-bye-street-lights/

I worry that one big snowstorm, like last year's, will paralyze most of Racine for a week because of cutbacks in snowplowing.
 

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Bedtime Games

Bedtime Games

Installment 26  (Yes, we've been at this a half of a year!)

Make your best guess and.... GO TO BED!
Answer revealed tomorrow.    




No more easy,  artistic, through the looking (measuring) glass shots... we are back to beastly.  You guys are just too good!  DodgeBoy claimed the guilty pleasure certificate, what prize do you covet?


Some wild and unusual answers this week.  While I felt that this photo was difficult, you were able, once again, to crack the code.  Congratulations, Drew!  Please pick your prize for super-sleuthing and being the first to answer correctly!



A Close Encounter Between Venus and the Moon

Venus and the Moon are engaging in their dance the next few months in the evening sky. Tonight the crescent Moon was well below Venus.


Tomorrow night the Moon will be below Venus and Thursday night it will be just above Venus giving two more excellent opportunities to see this nice pairing in the night sky.

But that's not all. Venus is nice and far away from the Sun right now which and the Moon provides a useful guide to help see Venus during the day. I recommend using a program like Stellarium to help you out. Set it up for your location and time of observation. Be sure the Moon and Venus are up in the sky during the day. Note the position of Venus relative to the Moon. Now you are ready to track down Venus in broad daylight.

Find the Moon and slowly scan away from the Moon toward where Venus should be located according to Stellarium. You really have to look directly at Venus to see it during the day. That is, the image of Venus must land on the fovea of your eye. The fovea is the small spot in the center of your retina where the cones are most closely spaced and your vision is most acute. Once you hit that spot, Venus will pop into view so prominently you will wonder how you missed it before.

It takes some practice. Be sure your eyes are focused at infinity (focus on the Moon before you scan will do the trick). It also helps if you stand so the Sun is hidden Sun behind a tree or building to cut down on glare.

Many people wait until close to sunset to try this, but I have seen Venus practically any time it is up, even in the middle of the day. A good strategy might be to try it near sunset on Wednesday night and if you are successful, try it during the day on Thursday.

Happy observing!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my snappy snow sculptures! How are you? Faring better than the sculptures downtown, I hope. These brief flirtations with warmer weather are doing a number on the creations in Monument Square. Saturday was perfect for the event, though. You just take what you get weather-wise when winter rolls in around here. It’s like a rollercoaster ride that you never wanted to get on. You just hang on and pray until it’s over.

As I duly noted last week, the season is over for our hapless Green Bay Packers. These words are just an echo of that catastrophe.

I’m sorry, my dears, but my winter funk persists. I don’t think it’s just the weather. It’s the constant bombardment of bad news from around the world that does it. When it’s nice outside, I can get away from the litany of the negative for awhile. As the weather worsens, I stay inside more. I can astral project to escape, but that takes an extraordinary amount of energy. It’s not for daily use. One of the things that has helped me is searching for the positive on the internet. For instance, I went to YouTube and typed in “happy” into their search engine. Below is one of the videos that came up.



I will admit that watching Mick wiggle his tight buns still makes me happy. You’ve still got it, baby! You and that magic tongue of yours.

Oh my, did I say that? I meant to say that I love all of my readers and I thank you for reading my blog this week. Without you, I would be nothing, like a figment of someone’s imagination. My visits with you are the high point of my week. You are my family.

Skeletons in the family closet? Contact: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Watch out for the changeable weather, my dears. Sunny, dry, cloudy, rainy, snowy, sometimes all in one day. Keep your hat on and your zippers zipped. You never know what the day is going to throw at you. That’s my job. Kia ora!

Open Blog - Wednesday & Thursday


And joyous Thursday!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

"Lee gets OK to emerge from bankruptcy January 30"

From boston.com:

"DAVENPORT, Iowa—Newspaper publisher Lee Enterprises Inc. said Monday that a judge had approved its debt refinancing plan, which will allow it to emerge from prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Jan. 30.

"The publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and nearly 50 other newspapers filed for bankruptcy protection on Dec.12 to compel a small minority of lenders to go along with a refinancing plan that gives the company more time to repay about $1 billion in debt. The plan extends due dates to December 2015 and April 2017.

"Lee CEO Mary Junck said the favorable outcome will give the company nearly four years to continue improving its balance sheet.

"Lee's stock jumped 21 cents, or 24 percent, to close at $1.10 on Monday."



Lee Enterprises Inc., of course, is the owner of the Journal Times. I didn't know that their stock was so low. Even as it is, I might be able to buy 5 or 10 of them. How do I do that? I've never owned stock before. I just want to be able to write letters to the editor complaining about various crap while harrumphing that I own stock in the company. "I am your boss," I may say. Or how about, "I own part of your ass,"?