Better Know Racine...

Stephen Colbert got a lot of mileage out of his "Better Know a District" series where we was attempting to interview the Representative of every Congressional District. Eventually of course the politicians wised up and not many of them want to appear in his series any more.

Now Colbert is letting you have a go with the Colbert Nation Interview Simulator. All you need to do is upload a picture of yourself and then record your answers to his questions about your town. If you want to do full fledged video of yourself, that's cool too.

I know quite a few people here have some strong opinions about how things are going in Racine so here is your chance to tell Stephen. Winners will be featured on the Report.

Orbs, I am looking at you! Or better yet, make it a group effort at the next get together!

A Pretty Morning Threesome

Weather and clouds seemed to be conspiring against me in my attempt to get the conjunction of Saturn and Venus. As an added bonus, Mercury is also in the morning sky right now and fairly bright.

Well, I finally got my chance. I am at a workshop at Bryce Canyon. I got up early and drove to Fairyland Canyon near the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park and set up there to get the conjunction. Venus and Saturn are at the top (Venus is the bright one) and Mercury is the bright one lower in the sky (click to embiggen).

You still got another chance or two. Saturn will be moving up above Venus the next few days and Mercury will be getting lower. You can really watch the movement of the planets from day to day when they are this close together in the sky.

So economists say the recession is over?

Tell it to the people at Kohls Distribution Center this morning.

Ahmish Pizza Delivery

Just a little something I did with some people from the improv troupe. You might recognize the "bearded father".

Cash For Clunkers

The Goverment spent $2.877 billion dollars for Clunkers...
They saved $399+ million in barrels of oil...

15.8 mpg/clunker
15,000 average miles/year
949 Gallons/year

24.9 mpg/new vehicle
15,000 average miles/year
602 Gallons/year

690,114 Clunkers traded in

239,440,194 Gallons of gas saved per year
42 gallons in a barrel of crude oil
5,700,957 full barrels of gas/oil

$70.00 cost per barrel of raw oil
$399,066,989 total savings in barrels

Top 10 Cars Purchased -
1.Toyota Corolla
2.Honda Civic
3.Toyota Camry
4.Ford Focus FWD
5.Hyundai Elantra
6.Nissan Versa
7.Toyota Prius
8.Honda Accord
9.Honda Fit
10.Ford Escape FWD

Uhmmmm not saying much for American Made.....

Source: Department Of Transportation

Just for fun...

kk and I have been doing this over the weekend. Words that sound alike:

dough or doe
two, too or to
hi or high
do or due
there, their or they're
weight or wait
whey, way or weigh


okay, let's take it from here...kk will not be out-done...just to warn you guys! She is tough.

Welcome to Racine, Mark Lewis, New Publisher of The Journal Times

"We shall extend and display respect to all others which reflects our own appreciation of humanity. We shall carry our pride quietly, neither boasting of ourselves nor speaking badly of others - often a dishonest method of self-praise. Yet we must be unashamed of our principles and honest in our criticisms."

~ Hawaiian Code of Conduct

Welcome to Racine, Mr. Lewis, I don't know when you officially arrived, or if you're currently staying in town, but I thought you might appreciate a shoutout from one of the very vocal local yokels. I searched YouTube for some Hawaiian music and came across the above video. It struck me not only because of the beauty of the music, but also because of the "Hawaiian Code of Conduct" which was attached. As I understand it, that's where you were last ensconced. I just want to point out right off, in case you haven't noticed for yourself, that's not how things are done in Racine, Wisconsin. LOL, as it were.

In Racine, we like our politics like our snow: dirty. You will have time to learn all of that, though, along with our customs and idioms. ("Bubbler" means drinking fountain in Racine. In January, 30 degrees is "warm.") I sincerely hope that you and The Journal Times impact our community positively. Good luck, sir. You will need it.

Marge Simpson in Playboy

She is hot!

Did President Obama Deserve the Nobel Peace Prize?

Sorry, but something just isn't right. If our president accomplishes all of his goals, then he damn well better get the Nobel Peace Prize, but I frankly do not understand this. Politics, I assume, on an international stage.

The poll below is set to run for one week and is unscientific, I'm sure. I'm voting Undecided.

Miley Cyrus Wants Privacy, So She Posts on YouTube

More here: Miley Cyrus Quits Twitter, World Ends.

Nice Morning Conjunction

When I was outside trying to image the LCROSS impact this morning, I couldn't help but noticing that we have three planets fairly close together in the morning sky, Venus, Saturn and Mercury. Mercury is the lowest of the three, Venus is the highest and Saturn is in the middle, all in a fairly nice line. They will be nice for the next few days. Here is what you will see tomorrow morning (map for 5:30 am in Tucson...click to embiggen).

Over the next couple of days, Saturn will get progressively closer to Venus until they are right next to each other on October 13th. This should be a spectacular conjunction and I will be luck enough to be in Bryce Canyon. Yeah, I am thinking pictures!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Bad Business alert - Midas in Racine

Don't ever, and I mean ever take your vehicle to Midas. Here is my horror story. I took my truck in to get an oil change at Penzoil (Synthetic) with a seal condition treatment for 68.00on Wednesday. I knew that my catalytic converter was going, so I called around, and Midas was the lowest at $195.00. I get there early (5:00 appointment), fill out my paperwork and wait. At 5:45, John, the manager comes out and says "Ok,that will be 23.95". I said for a catalytic converter, what a deal. He says no for your oil change and tire rotation. WTF! No, I said I am here for a CC repair. Oh, hey says sorry, you wont have to pay for that, and has one of his guys put the car back in. I told him that he just wasted my 68.00 oil change from two days ago. He "Claims" that he put synthetic in it. BS! He then tells me, after looking at the CC that he cant do it for 195, it has to be a special CC for $485!!!! They also rotated my tires, and put my three month old front tires on the back. I told them to give me back my truck I am going elsewhere. Stay away from Midas, and don't believe what John, the manager tells you. FAIL, FAIL, FAIL. Plus, he was snotty to my wife. I have my nomination for the next bird of the week!

Watch the Moon Get Whacked Courtesy of Slooh:Update

Update: The impact went off on time this morning. Initial reports are negative of people on the ground seeing a plume (even with scopes much larger than I was using so I don't feel quite so incompetent!) However, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter did see the plume. Not seeing the plume from the ground is not necessarily a bad thing...it may mean more dark regolith was sent up which is much harder to see.

But I am not quite giving up yet. I took 10 minutes of video of the Moon. There is computer software that can search frame by frame to find the best images in the set. I will be working with my video this weekend to see if anything shows up with some more processing (unfortunately, busy at work today so I can't justify spending time on that here...next trip is on Monday morning!)

______________________

This Friday morning, October 9th, at 4:30am PDT, the Moon is going to take a hit for science. The LCROSS mission (Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite) will impact a crater near the Moon's south pole.

There will be two impacts. The first one (which is the upper stage of the rocket that sent the mission on its way) will impact first and kick up a bunch of dust and debris. A few minutes later, the second spacecraft, known at the Shepherding Spacecraft, will fly through the debris with a suite of sensors before it crashes into the Moon as well. Although we stand to learn a lot about the composition of the Moon from this, the real goal is to find water (the Apollo missions landed near the equator so they couldn't do this when they were there).

You might be able to see this with a small telescope. I am going to be out with an 11 inch telescope and video camera optimized for astronomical recording to try and get it (well, I hope to...its a brand new scope that has not been tested or even put together yet...I know you are supposed to practice in advance and all that but we just got the scope and timing requires that the first test is live!) If I get anything interesting, I will post it here.

If you don't have a telescope, the good folks at Slooh will give you a chance to watch online. Slooh is a network of remote telescopes that you can watch as they take data live. Most of the time you have to pay to do this (a yearlong membership is a very reasonable $50...they have a telescope in the Canary Islands which is ideal for early evening observing in the entire U.S.). For this event, they are using a telescope in New Hampshire and one in Arizona to webcast the event. You can watch the webcast here.

So set your alarms early for Friday morning to catch this unique event.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicst Blog.

John Pinette - "France & Italy"

A friend emailed me a link to this video with these words: "If you don’t laugh at this, there is something wrong with you." Well, I know there's something wrong with me, but I laughed like hell anyways.

Bird of the Week Winner

After the due process of nomination and unbiased voting on behalf of the Irregulars, I do declare that for the second week in a row, for reasons only known to themselves, the Irregulars have voted Jim Doyle the recipient of the Bird of the week, given this week by Mr Johnny (filmed in Wisconsin) Depp. Jim Doyle, We (one finger) salute you!

Time to vote!

vOTING IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks for voting and the results will be coming soon!

Stu

Who should be flipped the bird?
	Jim Doyle
	The weather
	Brett Favre and Ted Thompson
	The Racine City Council
pollcode.com free polls

Monster New Ring Around Saturn

Saturn is famous for its rings which are one of the best sites to view through a small telescope. As the years have gone on, we kept discovering new rings. Surely there couldn't be more discoveries now...I mean, we have spacecraft there and stuff, right?

Wrong...the Spitzer Space Telescope just discovered a very large, diffuse new ring around Saturn. This ring is over 3.7 million miles from the planet and extends outward another 7.4 million miles. It's also very thick...over a million miles from top to bottom. For comparison, the rings you see in a telescope are only a hundred feet thick or so.

Of course this ring is very large and diffuse. The density of it is much lower than the other rings, so low that we have had spacecraft fly through this ring unharmed. It is not visible to normal telescopes, but cool objects give off infrared light making it the perfect target for the Spitzer Space Telescope.

Here is an artist conception of the ring. Saturn is way too small to see at this scale, a mere dot at the middle.

This ring is orbiting Saturn in the opposite direction of the other rings...so is the nearby Moon Phoebe. This leads to us to believe that Phoebe may be the source of material for the ring. And it solves a second mystery of the moon Iapetus. Iapetus is dark on one side and light on the other. It orbits inside this new ring in the opposite direction. Material from this ring appears to be spiraling in toward Saturn and coating one side of Iapetus giving rise to its unusual appearance.

Unfortunately, Spitzer ran out of coolant in May. These observations were made before the coolant ran out. Observations such as this illustrate the importance of observing in all parts of the EM spectrum.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Star Party at the White House Tonight!

I have been droning all all year about how 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy. Tonight the Obamas are getting in on the act hosting a White House Star Party! Students will join the Obamas for observing and activities tonight.

I have been in the know on this for a while, but not at liberty to say anything (hence my secure and undisclosed location facebook status a few days ago) until the press release. My bossman is going to be there at the White House. I am in DC, but outside the White House setting a telescope for the public.

Skies are clearing after overnight rain...looks promising for tonight!

Journal Times Seeks Online Editor

The Racine Post published this link:
http://www.journalismjobs.com/job_listing.cfm?jobid=1104637.

LOL

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my gorgeous goblins! How are you? Did you get your flu vaccination yet? Don’t forget, there are two this year. There’s one for the regular flu, which is available, and a separate vaccine for the H1N1 flu, which they say will be available very soon. I was going to make some swine jokes, but I’ve decided that this is too important. I want all of my Irregulars and regular Irregular readers to be as healthy as possible over the flu season. Although I could recommend some MZ Flu-Away® (just like your money - ha-ha - inside joke), instead I urge everyone to follow their doctor’s recommendations for avoiding the flu. Wash your hands a lot. Especially you, Mr. OrbsCorbs. In fact, you should wash everything more.

There were no passes, no interceptions, no yards gained or lost, and no emails last week. Therefore, I’ve decided to give this week’s blog a seasonal theme: spooky videos. Before the festivities begin though, I’d like to take this opportunity to remind Mr. Brett F. that he owes me big time for Monday night, buddy, big time.

Here’s an interesting video involving highway accidents and ghosts, or does it?



This video seems to prove that ghosts are old people. And that high pitched sound effects get tedious quickly:



It’s not just ghosts that come out at this time of year. Consider “Flying Witches Filmed Over Mexican Skies:”



Finally, here’s a little clip to demonstrate the dangers of messing with the spirit world when you don’t know what you’re doing:



Be sure to avoid those kinds of complications and entrust your paranormal needs to a professional psychic. You can contact one here: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

That’s it for this week, my dears. I love you all. Enjoy the ghosts and ghouls of October. The trees will put on a spectacular show for us. Brylcreem!

Bird of the week nominations

The chair will now entertain motions for nominations for who you would like to give the bird of the week. Tell me who and why. The nomination period will close at 3:00 PM Wednesday.

Irregular Football League Standings: Week 4

Resistance is futile!

Packers Fans Smash Car in Honor of Favre

I still think that the moment he took the field, the entire Packer defensive line should have beat the snot out of him. Sure, there would have been some fines, but think of all the pent-up hostilities that it would have released.

Wisconsin's SeniorCare Rx Ripoff

Mom received another letter from Governor Doyle touting the success of Wisconsin's SeniorCare prescription drug program for senior citizens. She got it on the same day that SeniorCare denied coverage for another one of her medications. That is how they save money: they decide that the medicines that your doctor has prescribed are too expensive, so go suck an egg.

Mom is 88. She fell and shattered a hip three years ago. After the surgery, her doctor prescribed Boniva, a medication for the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis. She received that for a month or two, then SeniorCare decided that was too expensive and they wouldn't cover it. So her doctor had to find an alternative. He then prescribed Fosamax, which essentially does what Boniva did, but it has to be taken more often. She's been doing OK on that for a couple of years. Now SeniorCare has decided that Fosamax is too expensive, too. So we're back to playing the find a less expensive (and often less effective) alternative game.

This has not happened with only one medication. It has occured with her acid reflux meds, pain meds, and heart meds. Her doctors prescribe something, the insurance says no, and she is left without medication while SeniorCare, pharmaceutical companies and the doctors slug it out. She once was transported to the ER because they thought she was having a heart attack. It turned out to be the under-treated acid reflux disease - under-treated because SeniorCare (NOT a medical doctor) demanded that she take a useless over-the-counter alternative. A trip to the ER is more economical than a pill?

It's quite obvious that the care of seniors is the last thing SeniorCare is concerned with. As always, money is more important than people. And as always, people who worked their entire life take it in the ass while Medicaid provides cradle to grave coverage for those who leeched off of them.

Screw you, Doyle.

WTF

Bet you thought something else other than the Wisconsin Tourism Federation. That's exactly the problem and why they decided to rename themselves the Tourism Federation of Wisconsin (although they still have their old domain name).

There was a very amusing segment on this week's Wait, Wait' Don't Tell Me where they asked panelist P.J. O'Rourke a question about the name change. Turns out that he is part of an older, less internet savvy generation who didn't quite know the meaning of WTF until the other panelists kind of helped him out and led him to a very funny moment of revelation.

Just an amusing story about changing times and how name that may have been innocent years ago suddenly has some baggage attached to it.

Still Tasty... Keep it, or Toss it

How long can that bottle of ketchup stay in your fridge before it goes bad? This site lists all kind of foods and how to keep them fresh longer, as well as when to get rid of them. If you have a question, click on the particular picture, and a whole list of stuff appears.............WHAT A GREAT SITE!

Click here to access the site.

Jet-Powered Merry-Go-Round

Sorry for being a blog hog, but no one was posting anything anyway, and I just couldn't resist this one. Every boy wants a jet-powered merry-go-round, and so do some girls, too.

Viral Video Legends Compilation

I think I've seen about one-fourth of those videos, maybe less. You have to watch it twice to get it all.

One Man Band

A video on YouTube calls him "An amazing one-man-band street performer in Rijeka, Croatia:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXMuWi0dUBc.

I think he's pretty amazing, too.

Introducing This Year's IgNobel Laureates...

Yep, it's that time of year again, time for the IgNobel prizes. These are given annually for the science research that makes you laugh then makes you think.

This year we had a great visual which is making the rounds as Public Health IgNobel winner Elana Bodnar demonstrating a bra that can be quickly turned into a gas mask in an emergency. So you better be nice to your wife or she might not give you one in the case of a gas attack.

The IgNobel Physics Prize was given to Katherine K. Whitcome for determining (analytically mind you) why pregnant women don't tip over.

The Mathetmatics Prize went to Gideon Gono of Zimbabwe's Reserve bank for printing money in denominations from one cent to $100 trillion (can't we all see Dr. Evil with a $100 trillion bill?)

And the IgNobel chemistry prize went to a group from Mexico who managed to create diamonds from tequila. Check out the rest of the 2009 Winners.

The ceremony will be posted online as a podcast and video. They are always entertaining featuring segments such as the "Welcome, Welcome" address, The Big Bank Opera, the 24/7 lectures (24 second technical explanation of a topic followed by 7 words anyone can understand) and the Win a Date With a Nobel Laureate game. Don't worry about the speeches running long...if they do, they have a young girl on hand who will start telling them, "Please stop, I'm bored" repeatedly until they stop talking.

Be sure to check out one of the highlights of the year in science.

#1 on this day

This song hit #1 on this day back in 1982. Gotta love one hit wonders!

Spend Our Money Like You Mean It

"Madison - The Department of Tourism has temporarily sidelined the state slogan, 'Live like you mean it,' as officials ponder its future just months after it was unveiled and then widely mocked.

"The phrase and accompanying logo, showing a silhouette figure doing a cartwheel across letters spelling out Wisconsin, are missing from the department's fall ad campaign and its main Web site.

"Department of Tourism Secretary Kelli Trumble said the department was reviewing the slogan with the state's new advertising firm, Milwaukee-based Laughlin Constable."

http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/63199077.html


That slogan cost us $57,000. Heck, I woulda let them have "Party on!" for just $25,000.

Everyone's A Little Bit Racist

From Avenue Q, The Musical: http://www.avenueq.com/

iChill Simulator NOT Coming to Douglas Ave BP

FIO

Thanks alot Jimmy Doyle! (or What Would Johnny Cash Do)

I understand you find yourself in a six billion dollar hole, but did you have to tax my tuneage downloads to close it? For your new IPOD tax, you win the WWJCD bird of the week award!

Interesting Email We Received

Hey JT,

I work for bigMETHOD, a digital marketing agency, representing the new relaxation shot iChill. I saw your post about Drank, the relaxation drink, back in June and thought I’d reach out. [drank - the Anti-Energy Drink]

iChill is a zero sugar, carb, and calorie relaxation shot for the mind and body. I’ve included more information about the relaxation shot and a link to the website in my signature below. Would love to send you a case of the product so you can check it out and if you like it, review on JT Irregulars at some point.

We’ll also be releasing a few humorous videos in the coming weeks, and I’ll keep you posted as they come.

Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll send some samples of iChill your way.

Take Care,
Kelly

Creator Greg Figueroa says, “The market is flooded with energy drinks - sugar-filled, high-calorie, stress inducers. The world is intense enough, why add to it? With iChill, we make it easy for consumers to unwind in a natural way.”

iChill Relaxation Shots combine a natural blend of Melatonin, Valerian root, Rose Hips and B vitamins that are proven to ease anxiety, curb stress and elevate the drinker’s mood. For more information visit www.iChill.com.

As a part of the iChill product launch they are running a sweepstakes for an all-inclusive one-week trip for two to Coco Plum Resort in Belize to users who interact with the brand on Facebook and Twitter. www.iChillBelize.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/iChill/102371179422
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ichilldave
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/iChilling

iChill Press Page: http://ichill.com/company/press
--
Kelly Yahr
Public Relations

bigMETHOD
5519 S. Centinela Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90066
www.bigMETHOD.com



Thank you, Kelly. We've decided to accept your offer of a case of iChill. Perhaps we'll distribute it at our next get-together. We'll be sure to sample one and write a review.

We're delighted with the attention. It is very much appreciated.

Oh, and if you could, please don't call us JT. JTI is fine, thank you, or JT Irregulars, or just about anything else, but never, ever JT. Please.

Thank you again for your kindness.

PORK CHOPS?

In a zoo in California , a mother tiger gave birth to a rare set of triplet tiger cubs. Unfortunately, due to complications in the pregnancy, the cubs were born prematurely and due to their tiny size, they died shortly after birth.

The mother tiger, after recovering from the delivery, suddenly started to decline in health, although physically she was fine. The veterinarians felt that the loss of her litter had caused the tigress to fall into a depression. The doctors decided that if the tigress could surrogate another mother's cubs, perhaps she would improve.

After checking with many other zoos across the country, the depressing news was that there were no tiger cubs of the right age to introduce to the mourning mother. The veterinarians decided to try something that had never been tried in a zoo environment. Sometimes a mother of one species will take on the care of a different species. The only 'orphans' that could be found quickly, were a litter of weanling pigs. The zoo keepers and vets wrapped the piglets in tiger skin and placed the babies around the mother tiger. Would they become cubs or pork chops ?






Now, please tell me one more time ...

Why can't the rest of the world get along?

Another Test........

TEST YOUR NEUROLOGICAL SKILLS

NEUROLOGICAL SKILLS

"Flap Over 'Homeless' American Girl Doll"

"Some Observers See It as Awareness-Raising, Others Fear It Sends Wrong Message; And Where Do Proceeds Go?

"(CBS) American Girl dolls are expensive and extremely popular - among the most sought-after toys among girls from ages four and up.

"Each doll comes with its own storyline, and a relatively new doll is causing quite a stir.

"'Gwen,' which debuted this year, is portrayed as being homeless.

"In an accompanying book and movie, 'Chrissa Stands Strong,' a friend stands up for Gwen against bullying classmates."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/09/26/earlyshow/saturday/main5343132.shtml


You could spend $95 on this doll to "teach" your daughter about homelessness. Or you could donate the $95 to a homeless shelter, take your daughter there and show her how you volunteer your services.

Sears Tower-Highest Glass Floor in the World

Not content with having the tallest building in America, the owners of Sears Tower in Chicago have installed four glass box viewing platforms which stick out of the building 103 floors up. The balconies are suspended 1,353 feet in the air and jut out four feet from the building's Skydeck.

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my crisp caramel apples! How are you? How did your garden grow this year? Mine stunk. Actually, everything did well except for the plants that needed sunlight. Again, though, I will not speak poorly of dear Mother Nature, lest she crash land me over Detroit some night. There’s a nip in the air and the nights are wonderful for sleeping. Autumn almost makes me forget about what immediately follows it. Let’s enjoy the spectacle while we can.

First, my friends, I’d like to comment on an editorial which appeared yesterday in the online edition of The Korean Herald: http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/09/29/200909290006.asp. After decrying the rising number of my fellow practitioners in South Korea, and disparaging our art and science, the editors of this rag then had the gall to say, “Fortunetellers can do something good to society by giving more encouraging verdicts to our innocent youths with boundless futures.” What? How dare they? They expect me to lie about something as serious as someone’s future just to satisfy their agenda? How could I maintain my integrity, how could I look at myself in the mirror, if I did that? For shame, Korean Herald, for shame! How dare you suggest that I dissemble when predicting the future? For shame!

Next is the sad tale of Janet Lee, at right, a woman with a psychic store in Greenwich Village. “However, the self-proclaimed ‘foremost psychic in New England’ was arrested by Greenwich police over the weekend after detectives said she lied about being attacked in town by rival psychics over the summer.” The grisly details are here: http://www.greenwichtime.com/ci_13440512. It can be difficult at times to sort out the truth amongst competing psychics. And it rarely gets to the point that physical violence is involved. But it is not unheard of, not at all. In a situation like this, I would suggest a few sprays of my MZ Tru-Mist® on everyone involved. Some whiffs of that and they’ll be spilling their secrets for the next eight hours. Though not approved by the courts for interrogation purposes, MZ Tru-Mist® can provide the edge that interrogators need to crack the hardest of eggs and scramble up the truth. Discounts available on volume purchases by military and law enforcement personnel.

And while visiting this subject, I’d like to address the condescending tone displayed in the first paragraph of the above story: “Despite her intuitive powers, psychic Janet Lee probably did not see an arrest in her future, …” Ha. Ha. Ha. How many times have I heard that one? The contempt with which the writer regards her subject is evident throughout. I’d like to explain something to her and to the rest of the jokesters. Psychic predictions don’t just pop into my head to help me or my clients conveniently avoid disaster. Being psychic is more like having a television on with all of the channels going at once. Most of the time, I can suppress most of the noise in order to lead a somewhat normal life. In order to enter that area and sort out a particular “channel” takes skill and daring. To capture a moment or two of the future or past for someone, I must risk the integration of my very self. I do not do that lightly, nor do I charge lightly for doing so. Laugh all you want. My bank manager thinks it’s pretty funny, too.

Finally, I want to direct your attention to this story from the online Romanian Times, “Gipsy women consider themselves inferior to men:” http://www.romaniantimes.at/news/General_News/2009-09-29/3174/Gipsy_women_consider_themselves_inferior_to_men. It simply is horrible to read about the attitudes and condition of these women. They are little more than livestock to their husbands. What a shame that they don’t have access to my MZ Castra-Oil®. Just a few drops applied to the proper area results in a marked difference in behavior (and appearance) within days. Not recommended for use on those below the age of 18 or older than 65. See package insert for details.

Don’t forget Party on the Pavement this Saturday, Oct. 3, in Downtown Racine, dears: http://www.racinedowntown.com/party.html. Although I don’t have a booth in the festivities, I plan on astral projecting onto Monument Square in the early afternoon. Be there, or else.

Be here, too: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Keep your buns warm, my friends, and your hearts lit. Düsseldorf!

It's like an illness

Now I'm decorating for Halloween. I don't even have kids. Last year I scorched the paint with the Christmas lights.

Foods That Prevent Cancer | Anti Cancer Foods | Caring.com

I found this article interesting and thought I would share it.

Foods That Prevent Cancer | Anti Cancer Foods | Caring.com

Monday Night Pictures

I saw that the ISS was makinga pass tonight and decided to go outside and check it out. It was only about 20 minutes past sunset, so long exposures to pick up the trail were difficult. Using a zoom and low ISO got some results.

There was supposed to be cargo ship nearby, but it was too bright to see the much dimmer satellite.

I turned a little to the south of this image and saw the Moon and Jupiter rising over the Rincon Mountains.

Go out tomorrow shortly after sunset. The Moon will have moved to the east (left) of Jupiter. Should be a nice pairing.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Microsoft Offers Free Security Software

"REDMOND, Wash. — Sept. 28, 2009 — Microsoft Security Essentials, Microsoft Corp.’s new no-cost, core anti-malware service that helps protect consumers against viruses, spyware and other malicious software, will be available tomorrow, Tuesday, Sept. 29. Microsoft Security Essentials, independently certified by West Coast Labs, is backed by the company’s global security response team and is built on the same award-winning core security technology found in the company’s security solutions for businesses. It requires no registration, trials or renewals and will be available for download directly from Microsoft at http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials."

http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/press/2009/sep09/09-28SecurityEssentialsPR.mspx


The price is right.

You Will Allow Me to Shop at Your Store (hand wave)

From the people that can't tell fiction from reality, a member of the Jedi religion is claiming religious discrimination because the British retailer Tesco made him remove his hood in the store.

Tesco spokeman offered the following advice: "If Jedi walk around our stores with their hoods on, they'll miss lots of special offers."

The thigh bone connected to the hip bone

I just spoke with a buddy. He's having surgery tomorrow: a hip replacement. His hip has been aching more and more over the years, much more than you'd expect from his (mostly office) work. It turns out that the hip was malformed from birth and just got worse with time. Cortisone shots, painkillers, blah, blah, are available and were tried to some extent, but he knew he'd have to get a new hip eventually. So he's doing it.

We spoke for awhile and I tried to be of good cheer. He said he was depressed about having the surgery and just wanted to get it over with. Understandble, I guess. Then he said something that surprised me. He said, "I want you to be an additional witness to this." "What?" I asked. He said, "I wrote the doctor a letter and my wife knows and I'm telling everyone I see before the surgery tomorrow: I want the hip bone that they take out of me."

I paused for a second, stunned by the idea, then I burst out laughing, and I laughed and laughed. "No shit?" I asked. "Yes," he said, "yes."

We talked about it. I told him that he should have drawn up papers with a lawyer beforehand, but he insisted that telling and mailing his doctor was enough. He also repeated the notion that he would be telling everyone tomorrow that he wants the bone (top of the thigh, I guess). I said they'd just sedate him sooner if he acted up. I've heard of people getting their gallstones and teeth after removal. Years ago, I think, kids were even given their tonsils in a jar.

My buddy's argument is, "I've owned these bones all my life. They're mine." I assume there are laws regarding the disposal of body parts, organs, whatever, but I don't know. Maybe he has a case.

What is this?

My friend had this bird in her backyard today. I've never seen anything like this in Racine.
Anyone know what it is?

Orbs, you will love this one...

h/t The Washington Times

A teacher was told by a 15-year-old high school sophomore that he was having homosexual sex with an "older man." At the very least, statutory rape occurred. Fox News reported that the teacher violated a state law requiring that he report the abuse. That former teacher, Kevin Jennings, is President Obama's "safe school czar." It's getting hard to keep track of all of this president's problematic appointments. Clearly, the process for vetting White House employees has broken down.

In this one case in which Mr. Jennings had a real chance to protect a young boy from a sexual predator, he not only failed to do what the law required but actually encouraged the relationship.

According to Mr. Jennings' own description in a new audiotape discovered by Fox News, the 15-year-old boy met the "older man" in a "bus station bathroom" and was taken to the older man's home that night. When some details about the case became public, Mr. Jennings threatened to sue another teacher who called his failure to report the statutory rape "unethical." Mr. Jennings' defenders asserted that there was no evidence that he was aware the student had sex with the older man.

However, the new audiotape contradicts this claim. In 2000, Mr. Jennings gave a talk to the Iowa chapter of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, an advocacy group that promotes homosexuality in schools. On the tape, Mr. Jennings recollected that he told the student to make sure "to use a condom" when he was with the older man. That he actively encouraged the relationship is reinforced by Mr. Jennings' own description in his 1994 book, "One Teacher in 10." In that account, the teacher boasts how he allayed the student's concerns about the relationship to such a degree that the 15-year-old "left my office with a smile on his face that I would see every time I saw him on the campus for the next two years, until he graduated."

Mr. Jennings' denials about these events reveal a lack of remorse. He has not admitted that he made mistakes in this case, and he now refuses to answer any questions about the scandal. Don't forget, this is a presidential appointee we're talking about. Mr. Obama should make clear what his standards are for public servants serving at the pleasure of the president. Encouraging and covering up man-boy sexual activity are serious offenses. The White House should force Mr. Jennings to come clean.

His job in the Obama administration is to ensure student safety, and this scandal directly calls into question his ability to perform that job. Mr. Jennings and Obama administration officials refuse to answer any questions about this newly discovered evidence. A lot of Americans want answers about this guy and how he was approved for a job in the White House.

More Cat Stuff

A little Monday morning humor.....