TomTom says: Wtf?

That poor guy.

Amazing Grace

Okay, I'm a sucker for this song. This version is A Celtic rendition from the André Rieu orchestra.

Please enjoy........SER

An Email from Newsy

"Hello Sheriff,

"I just came across your blog and found it very entertaining. I especially liked the 'Virus Walks Into a Bar' joke video. Since it seems like you like to have some fun by presenting news articles in a fun way, I have a video to share with you (about the witches in Romania!): http://www.newsy.com/videos/witches-hex-romanian-government/.

"Like your blog, this video took the matter in a light-hearted, fun manner. I think there’s many videos on Newsy that go well with your blog, and it’s definitely worth checking out. The source may be more serious than say The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, but there’s many videos like this one that has fun with the story. Let me know what you think, and I’m definitely revisiting your blog when I can because you had some really good material on it!

"Take care,

Daniel"

Thank you, Daniel, for the compliments. What a coincidence that you chose a story about the tax on witches in Romania to forward to us - our own Madame Zoltar is also keeping us on top of that situation.

To see what else Newsy offers, check them out here: http://www.newsy.com/

Wisconsin Poetry

Proud to be from Wisconsin !

The United States is the land of my birth
The strongest and wealthiest country on earth.
But the states aren't all equal, I'm sorry to say...
Wisconsin 's the pick of the 50 today.

I like Virginia , Montana and Maine .
But in my mind, it's in Wisconsin I proudly remain.
With walleyes and fish fries and hot apple pie
And the Badgerland motto:
"Eat Cheese or Die!"

We've got forests and prairies,
Breweries and dairies
Skiing on water and skiing on snow
From Big Bend to Bayfield,
Potosi to Plainfield
The lucky ones live in Wisconsin .

Arizona's too dry,
Colorado 's too high
In Alaska you'll freeze
and in Georgia you'll fry.

Hawaii 's so distant
it's barely existent,
California is crumbling;
let's all wave good-bye.

Nevada's too empty,
the deserts don't tempt me
In Kansas a forest is just one lonesome tree.
New York is an anthill,
a flesh-and-blood landfill,
And too many lawyers run loose in DC.

We've got silos and steeples,
And down-to-earth people.
Holsteins aplenty and Guernseys galore.
From Lone Rock to Lena ,
New Glarus to Neenah ,
The lucky ones live in Wisconsin .

Minnesota and Michigan ,
they're both our special friends.
We get along fine with the people next door.
Illinois on the other hand, I couldn't recommend.
It's flat as a pancake and spoiled to the core.
The Flatlanders visit us year after year.
Clogging the highways and killing our deer.
They root for the White Sox,
they frighten our livestock.
We hide all the children whenever they're here.

We've got sweet corn and bratwurst
Chicago 's a lot worse
Our cheddar is better,
our butter's the best.
From Monroe to Milwaukee ,
Waupun to Wausaukee,
The lucky ones live in Wisconsin .

In Wisconsin there's no slackers,
Oh, and we've got the Packers.
Yes, from Kewaskum to Algoma,
Two Rivers to Tomah,
The lucky ones live in Wisconsin !

Four for Fridays

Hello everybody! Welcome back to Four for Fridays after the holiday hiatus. Hope everyone had a happy holiday season!

1) So how was your holidays?

2) What did you do for Christmas? And the New Years?

3) What is your New Year's resolution?

4) Any predictions for the New Year?

Enjoy your weekend!

Open Blog - Friday

Friday and SpongeBob SquarePants. What more could you ask for?

Dear Madame Zoltar - Special Edition

From the Associated Press:

"CHITILA, Romania (AP — Everyone curses the tax man, but Romanian witches angry about having to pay up for the first time hurled poisonous mandrake into the Danube River on Thursday to cast spells on the president and government.

"Romania's newest taxpayers also included fortune tellers — but they probably should have seen it coming.

"Superstitions are no laughing matter in Romania — the land of the medieval ruler who inspired the 'Dracula' tale — and have been part of its culture for centuries. President Traian Basescu and his aides have been known to wear purple on certain days, supposedly to ward off evil.

"A witch at the Danube named Alisia called the new tax law 'foolish.'

"'What is there to tax, when we hardly earn anything?' she said, identifying herself with only one name as many Romanian witches do.

"Yet on the Chitila River in southern Romania, other witches gathered around a fire Thursday and threw corn into an icy river to celebrate Epiphany. They praised the new government measure, saying it gives them official recognition."

More: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jBtOF_pwiNU8mbn3tsG5ju6JbSNg?docId=6a383c2ae5bd49a6a40f6aeb6c26835f

Oh my, oh my, as if the Old Country doesn't already have enough problems. Some of the witches are threatening to cast evil spells:

"Queen witch Bratara Buzea, 63, who was imprisoned in 1977 for witchcraft under Ceausescu's repressive regime, is furious about the new law.

"Sitting cross-legged in her villa in the lake resort of Mogosoaia, just north of Bucharest, she said Wednesday she planned to cast a spell using a particularly effective concoction of cat excrement and a dead dog.

"'We do harm to those who harm us,' she said. 'They want to take the country out of this crisis using us? They should get us out of the crisis because they brought us into it.'

"'My curses always work!' she cackled in a smoky voice, sitting next to a wood-burning stove, surrounded by potions, charms, holy water and ceramic pots."

Oh dear, oh dear, I do hope that they can work things out. We've always been able to court special favor with our government no matter who was in power. I don't see why this should be any different. Peace, my dear Romania! Peace!

Touchy subject

I have a problem that is really bugging me. I use an Aide service that helps me around the house. Maid on steroids so to speak, or at least that's what one of them was. My first aide was a slow moving dim witted bovine. She had a nice personality, but she never finished a job, moved slowly as she did it, and couldn't remember what she had done the week before so was always asking me, “What do I do next?” I hate having to nursemaid someone that should be able to do simple tasks and complete them. I especially hate getting told the job is done and finding it half-assed or not finished at all. Eventually I had enough and told the agency to get me anyone but her.

My second Aide was, WOW! A self starter, always remembered what I needed, witty, fast moving, in fact so fast, many a time I cut her loose early because everything was done. She helped me out in the garage, got her hands dirty with joy, was a gear head, and soaked up EVERYTHING I taught her from machines, to electronics, to motorcycles, to computers. Sadly she left me for a job at one of our GOOD manufacturers and I'm proud of her and was told a lot of what she learned helped her get that job.

Now I'm on my third Aide and just don't know. While this one is faster than the first one, she seems even dimmer witted. I explained how I use water from my filter pitcher for ice cubes, then watched as she emptied a tray of ice cubes in the filter hopper. I explained no, water in the hopper, the filtered water in the ice trays. This was last week. This week I opened the fridge, saw the near empty pitcher and started to ask about filling it, and she beams at me and says, “I already got that done.” Huh? I open the hopper and it was filled with ice. Of course she refilled the ice trays from the tap... Yeah sure, I'm being neurotically picky, but that is just one example. These girls are CNAs! How do they get through their Certified Nursing Assistant courses?

My dilemma is that girls 1 and 3 are black, and girl 2 was white. I've seen intelligent industrious blacks. These are not them. Are they being slow out of choice? Is it like where you don't work fast or you will get more work thrown at you, and you don't use your brain or you might have to think? Is it an inability to think? I have a shirt that says Marilize Legaluanna. She read it and took near five minutes to put the words right so she got the joke. It's frustrating. How in the Hell do they teach their kids to excel when they don't know how to themselves?

I'm going to give her one more week then beg for a new girl. I'm going to specifically ask for a Hispanic one. I feel like I'm being racist, but I just can't be nurse maiding someone that has a bone head simple job and can't do it. When Aide #2 put in her notice, I specifically asked for someone with a brain and good work ethic. If this is their answer, I worry what I'll get next if I do request someone else. At least now I'm starting to understand why our school system is in so much trouble.

Please Vote for the Best Photo from Drew's Odds and Sods!

It's one of the few hobbies that I have, taking pictures. So, as you may have figured it out be now, many of the pictures on my blog I took.The early half of 2010, I snapped the pictures from my Sony DSC-H2 Cyber-shot Digital. It's a great (and expensive) toy, but awfully big and bulky to carry around. So, I invested into a much smaller Sony DSC-W350 Cyber-shot. I certainly wasn't about to try to sneak in a large camera into a concert. So therefore, later half of 2010 of pics were from this camera.

So I need a favor. I need your vote. Yes, your vote! I have compiled 10 of my best pictures from 2010 onto this blog post and could you please tell me your favorite? Thanks!

Wind Point Lighthouse in Winter
Wind Point, Wi 1/19/2010

Red Tailed Hawk at River Bend
Caledonia, WI 5/16/2010

Austin's Finished Mural
Gilmore Middle School
Racine, WI 6/7/2010

Harley on a North Woods Path
Pickerel, WI 6/12/2010

Rush in Concert
Marcus Amphitheater
Milwaukee, WI 7/3/2010

Rustic Picture
Doty, WI 7/17/2010


Flood at Horlick Dam
Racine, WI 7/25/2010

Autumn at Petrifying Springs
Kenosha, WI 10/9/2010


Sixth Street Bridge
Racine, WI 11/7/2010


Lily River
Pickerel, WI 11/27/2010

Winner to be announced soon...

Poetry Corner

I'm starting a new feature on the JT Irregulars: Poetry Corner. How cute. I've liked poetry for a long time and I thought I might occasionally post a poem I admire or that moves me. Poetry Corner will appear whenever I get around to it - or when you do. You can post a blog and call it Poetry Corner, too, and label it Poetry Corner in the lower right corner. Post your favorite poem. We should accredit the poems when we can. Or if you're not an Irregular and want to submit a poem, send it to: orbscorbs@jtirregulars.com.

I don't expect a lot of comments on Poetry Corner, just like we usually don't get a lot of comments on music videos. It's the arts!

__________

For the first Poetry Corner, I've selected a poem by Charles Bukowski (1920 -1994) from his book, At Terror Street and Agony Way (Poems 1965-1968)

beerbottle

a very miraculous thing just happened:
my beerbottle flipped over backwards
and landed on its bottom on the floor,
and I have set it upon the table to foam down,
but the photos were not so lucky today
and there is a small slit along the leather
of my left shoe, but it's all very simple:
we cannot acquire too much: there are laws
we know nothing of, all manner of nudges
set us to burning or freezing; what sets
the blackbird in the cat's mouth
is not for us to say, or why some men
are jailed like pet squirrels
while others nuzzle in enormous breasts
through endless nights - this is the
task and the terror, and we are not
taught why. still, it's lucky the bottle
landed straightside up, and although
I have one of wine and one of whiskey,
this foretells, somehow, a good night,
and perhaps tomorrow my nose will be longer:
new shoes, less rain, more poems.


More info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Bukowski
http://bukowski.net/

Moose Camp

I got this from a fellow Irregular in an email:


Four guys have been going to the same moose camp for many years. Two days before the group is to leave, Ron's wife puts her foot down and tells him he isn't going.

Ron's friends are very upset that he can't go, but what can they do.

Two days later the three get to the camping site only to find Ron sitting there with a tent set up, firewood gathered, and dinner cooking on the fire.

"Dang man, how long you been here, and how did you talk your wife into letting you go?"

"Well, I've been here since yesterday.

"Yesterday evening, I was sitting in my chair at home and my wife came up behind me and put her hands over my eyes and said, 'Guess who?' I pulled her hands off, and she was wearing a brand new nightie.

"She took my hand and pulled me to our bedroom. The room had candles and rose petals all over. On the bed she had handcuffs, and ropes!

"She told me to tie and cuff her to the bed, and I did. And then she said, 'Do whatever you want.'

"So, here I am."

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my New Year Irregulars! How are you? Did you party till you dropped on New Year’s Eve? I must admit, I stayed in and watched Marx Brother movies on TV. Even though I’ve seen them many, many times, I love watching their old films. Surprisingly, I didn’t hear much gunfire this year at midnight. Actually, I didn’t even think about it until New Year’s Day when a friend mentioned the lack of gunfire in her neighborhood, too. That’s a promising trend. Now we just have to get people to stop shooting at other people. Let’s make that a city-wide resolution for 2011. Spread the love, my people.

Wasn’t that something how December ended on such a warm note last Thursday and Friday? The temperatures were in the 50’s. There was all that fog and melting snow and ice. When I looked out my window on New Year’s Day, 90% of the snow was gone. Of course, then all the litter captured in the snow reappears along with the dirt and grit. It’s almost a relief when more snow arrives to bury it again.

I was so happy to see our illustrious and notorious Green Bay Packers get into the playoffs last Sunday. Their victory over the Chicago Bears means that the Packers meet on to glorious victory, valorous Packers!

In somewhat related news, I just have to say an ‘Oh my’ on the continuing Brett Favre scandal: http://www.journaltimes.com/sports/article_0f9297c4-17a4-11e0-a7db-001cc4c03286.html He’s being sued by two massage therapists and has been fined $50,000 “for not being forthright in an investigation.” What a sad way to end a great career. Oh my, oh my.

For what it’s worth, I have decided to announce my endorsement of Eric Marcus for mayor of Racine in 2011: http://racineuncovered.org/?p=27067 I know that there is usually a push for me to run as a write-in candidate in our mayoral elections; that is why I am stating this now. I give my blessings to Mr. Marcus. He has my endorsement, my full support, and enough Zoltar® Brand psychic power behind him to shatter the bad mojo emanating from City Hall.

Well, I guess this is turning into a potpourri of a blog. In case you missed the event, the Journal Times has some lovely photos of the annual Splash and Dash held at North Beach on New Year’s Day: http://www.journaltimes.com/collection_3500a26e-15e0-11e0-b6df-001cc4c002e0.html Very interesting. However, you could not convince me to do that. In July, perhaps; in January, never.

Also, the 2011 New Car Show takes place at Festival Hall this weekend, January 7 – 9: http://www.journaltimes.com/app/carshow/ Vroom, vroom!

Finally, confidential to Mr. O: you are most welcome.

Thank you for reading my blog this week. I so enjoy spending quality time with my beloved Irregulars and other readers. Think of me as a warm isle of sun and sand amidst our frozen January. It’s our love that keeps us so warm. Thank you for sharing your heat.

Hot love letters should be sent to: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

It’s supposed to get nippy again in a couple of days, so please be careful, my dears. We have to be hyper vigilant to the challenges and dangers of winter as we grow older. Take your time, take it easy, take it as it comes. Matutolypea!

Open Blog - Wednesday

Wednesday, perfectly.

Getting censored sucks

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_newsroom/20110104/en_yblog_newsroom/huck-finn-gets-some-changes

Here's One Guy Who Had A Happy New Year's Eve

Party on, penguin!

Astrobiology

This is where my lack of pop music knowledge might be a hindrance...I understand this is a parody of a pop song video. See Jank's site, they did the original.

I don't think I need to see the original...I couldn't possibly take it seriously after this fun little ditty!

Open Blog - Monday

The first Monday of the year. Let's make it a good one.

A Partial Solar Eclipse

January starts off giving us a partial solar eclipse, about two weeks after our lunar eclipse (solar and lunar eclipses frequently occur in pairs like this...nothing unusual here!) Unfortunately for us in the Americas, the eclipse is visible from Europe, eastern Asia and northern Africa. Greatest eclipse occurs in northern Sweeden where about 85% of the Sun will be covered.

Partial eclipses are not safe to view with the naked eye. A properly filtered telescope is required or you can make your own pinhole projector. Various companies sell eclipse shades for a few dollars that are safe as well.

For those of us outside the path of the eclipse, we can watch webcasts from people who are in areas where the Sun will be eclipsed. Fortunately, there are several feeds in case one is clouded out. These include Barekat Observatory in Israel, the University of Barcelona and Astronomy Live. I am sure there are others as well, and I may add more as I find them.

Unfortunately, the eclipse begins at 6:40UT, reaches maximum at 8:50UT, and ends at 11:00UT. For the east coast of the U.S., that is at 1:40am EST for the start and 6:00am for the end (EST is five hours behind UT). I might watch the recordings and look at the images when I get up!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

A Cold Meteor Shower

The Quadrantid meteor shower is about to peak. The Quadrantids would be famous if they were occurred at a warmer time of year as their rates can frequently approach 100 per hour, comparing favorably with the Perseids in August. Unfortunately, you need some good cold weather gear to see this meteor shower.

The Quadrantids peak at about 1UT on January 4th (8pm EST, 5pm PST). The Quandrantids have a very narrow peak intensity that lasts only a few hours (unlike the Perseids and Geminids which can be good for a couple of days either side of their peaks) so you if you are going to catch them, you get one shot. Fortunately the new Moon is on the 4th so the skies will be nice and dark all night long for optimal viewing.

Most meteor showers are named for the constellation in which their radiant is located which means you might wonder where "Quadrantid" is located. They are named after the constellation Quadrans Muralis which just didn't make the cut when the constellations were made official. The constellation was between what is now Booetes and the head of Draco. You can see the location on the chart below.

You can see I made that chart for 3:15am, so it takes a while for the radiant to get up very high. You might catch a few Earth grazers early in the evening, but you have to stay up pretty late (or get up pretty early) for the real show to begin. Since the radiant of this shower is so far north, those basking in the southern hemisphere summer don't have a good view of this shower!

It is known to put on a good show...if you catch a break and get an abnormally warm January night, it's worth checking out.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Pale Green Flash

Every sunset has a potential for a green flash and every one is different. This one was a little pale as the sunset behind a mountain.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Authorities Begin Collecting Racial Info

All 650 or so law enforcement agencies in Wisconsin are beginning an effort to determine whether deputies and officers are stopping drivers on the basis of race.

Officers must collect the age, zip code, gender and ethnicity of the driver and passengers. They also must collect the reason and outcome of the stop, and if and why a search was conducted, among other things.

Todaystmj4 article

http://www.todaystmj4.com/news/local/112753359.html

A Science Joke Walks Into a Bar...

I get all the jokes...do you?

New Years Planets

A little cloudy here this morning, but just enough breaks to get Venus, the crescent Moon and Mercury.

Venus is at the top, the Moon beneath it and Mercury is in the lower left. Tomorrow morning the Moon will be slightly beneath Mercury. Mercury is nice and bright and easy to find...well, easy to find for Mercury!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Morning Planets and Moon

If you get a nice grouping of Venus, the Moon and Mercury, you would expect lots of people to blog about it and see it...unless it is in the pre-dawn sky in late December! I managed to get up this morning and get the camera setup.

I like the effect of bright Venus and the Moon poking through the trees. The Moon is a waning crescent but overexposed in this pic so you don't see that effet well. In order to get a better picture of the Moon, I reduced the exposure time. Of course then you don't see as many stars.

But I haven't shown you Mercury yet. There's a reason for that you can see in the next picture.

Just above the clouds you will see a star with an orange tint. That is Antares, the heart of Scorpio. Mercury is just to the lower left of Antares...in other words, right behind the clouds!

Tomorrow the Moon will have moved closer to Mercury and Sunday the VERY thin crescent will be just below Mercury. Your best best to see Mercury is probably about 45 minutes before sunrise. I am hoping for clear skies here the next couple of mornings!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Open Blog - New Year's Weekend

May your New Year be filled with peace, prosperity, health and happiness.

Year End Sunset

It was a cold day for Tucson. A big winter storm passed through leaving the mountains coated in snow and daytime temperatures only in the 40's. Late in the afternoon, I noticed the sky had started clearing and decided to try sunset pictures. I am glad I did.

There were some low clouds in the area so I wasn't quite sure what I would get. I would not see the Sun behind the mountains. Let me show you a wide view of what I was dealing with.

Under such circumstances, prospects for a green flash are usually not seem as too good. Let's zoom in at the top of the Sun.

Yep, I caught a rare cloud-top green flash. I saw it as well as captured it with a camera. Not the brightest green flash I had ever seen, but not difficult to see either. I kept shooting and got a bonus a couple of shots later.

Lookey there...it turned blue! I did not see the blue visibly but got the picture. A cloud top blue flash!

Blue flashes are more rare since Earth's atmosphere scatters blue light more than green light. The blue light is usually scattered too much to see a blue flash. You need a very clear atmosphere with very few pollutants (both natural and human caused) to get a blue flash. Sometimes a nice storm system is just the ticket to clear things out enough to get that elusive blue flash.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Snow up to our arses......

KK's post made me think I haven't shared any new pictures of our snow...

This is what 33+ inches of snow looks like!

We're all adults here so....

You know how Celebs and Athletes like to tell the public all the good info on how to stay healthy7 and the like, well scientists are trying to debunk the worst of them like;

"It's actually very good for a man to have unprotected sex as long as he doesn't ejaculate. Because I believe that all that semen has a lot of nutrition. A tablespoon of semen has your equivalent of steak, eggs, lemons and oranges. I am reabsorbing it into my body and it makes me go raaaaahh," he said.

Oh yeah, I'd be going "raaaaahh!" alright.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/us_science_celebrities;_ylt=AgDxADty4_i8ve4JuJNBPhOs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNxam4xcGw5BGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMTAxMjI5L3VzX3NjaWVuY2VfY2VsZWJyaXRpZXMEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM5BHBvcwM2BHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5faGVhZGxpbmVfbGlzdARzbGsDcXVvdHNjaWVuY2Vz

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my pretty penguins! How are you? Did you have a merry little Christmas, or a merry big one? Junior and I stayed home on Christmas Eve and had a very nice chat with Santa later on. I only get to see him once a year. Santa is just as jolly as they say he is. He is such a wonderful guy. Santa gave us each a present – nothing fancy, the recession has hit the North Pole, too. And then he was off in the twinkle of an eye. Ahem, let me admit here, if that man wasn’t happily married, I might make a play for him myself. Oh my!

Racine was graced with that holiday lake effect snowstorm, too. Aren’t we lucky? Thank you, Mother Nature, for your gifts.

And thank you, Green Bay Packers, for your stellar performance against the New York Giants. Aaron Rodgers was in especially fine form last Sunday. I’m overjoyed that he is back, although Matt Flynn proved himself a reliable quarterback, too. This coming Sunday our mighty Packers meet their archrivals, the Chicago Bears, at Lambeau Field. Go Pack, go on the attack! May you maul the Bears.

Just two more days till New Year’s Eve. Happy New Year to all of my wonderful Irregulars and to all of my other readers. Madame Zoltar bestows her blessing on each of you! May you prosper in the year to come and enjoy health and happiness. I love you all.

For New Year’s, I thought I would toss out a few predictions of things to expect in the months ahead. I have consulted my crystal ball carefully, and I am quite sure of the veracity of these forecasts:

1) iMoney. In a merger of government and private enterprise, the US Treasury will join with Apple to run our economy. After decades of difficulty with capitalism, our government will simply throw up its hands and say, “Let Steve Jobs run it. He always makes a profit.” My visions have not been very clear on how exactly iDollars and iCents will work, but I’m sure they will be very stylish.

2) Who’s Your President? Mr. OrbsCorbs noted in a recent comment that he thought electing our representatives through reality TV shows would be the logical progression of things. Guess what, Mr. OrbsCorbs? You are 100% correct. Who’s Your President?, of course, will only be broadcast every four seasons, but various local versions of the show (such as Who’s Your Mayor? or Who’s Your Governor?) will be broadcast as needed. Once again, it is a blending of government with private enterprise, this time the entertainment industry. Win-win for the networks and the electorate.

3) WWC: World Wrestling Congress. The WWC will start as a spin-off of the Who’s Your President?-type reality shows. After years of acrimonious debate and near constant gridlock, the members of the US Congress will join the WWC to fight legislative battles in the wrestling ring. All the conventional trappings and showmanship of professional wrestling will remain, only the wrestlers will change. Fans will be able to root on their favorite representatives at ringside or via TV. All the hokum and bunk of the US Congress will remain, too. Again, win-win. A cheap show for the networks to produce, and cheap entertainment for an involved citizenry.

4) Closer to home, I predict a major UFO event taking place in Racine. A large craft will be spotted hovering directly above City Hall. Its appearance will cause a sensation in the country, but the big news to Racine residents will be that Mayor John Dickert is an alien. On second thought, perhaps some people will not be so surprised.

5) Finally, I predict that you will send a message to madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com. In that message, you will ask about the future, and I will tell it to you.

Thank you for reading my blog this week, sweethearts. They say we’re getting our January thaw on New Year’s Eve. Watch out for flash floods, my dears. Fallaciloquence!

Paul Zerdin, Ventriloquist, at Comedy Rocks

I don't know why that gadget strikes me as so funny, but it does. Steve does a good job as the dummy.

Open Blog - Wednesday

Today is so big, it's trademarked.

hale-Bopp

And no mention or credit to ya either.

http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/650b31d2-12f1-11e0-b1f1-001cc4c03286.html

A Rube Goldberg Holiday

I just found this today...it's still the holiday season so I am posting it.

Zero Views

We share popular youtube videos here quite a bit. What about the other end of the spectrum? The videos that don't get many views. Let's take it even further...videos that don't get ANY views. Not from their friends, not from their families, not from their own mothers, not even from themselves!

A few weeks ago, On the Media featured a segment about Colin Fitzpatrick's site 0 Views. And he makes sure that the videos aren't ones that have just been posted that no one has seen. He makes sure they have been up a while and no one has seen them. Seems almost inconceivable with the number of searches that someone should click on everything sooner or later, but it happens...at least until the videos make his site...then they get some views.

I got to post one of the videos...a bunch of kids lip syncing the song "Having Fun Isn't Hard/When you have a library card".



Just something fascinating about the videos that no one sees!

Blizzard Videos

A couple of neat videos of the blizzard. First up, the NASA GOES 13 satellite captured great images of its formation and movement up the east coast.




Moving right along, Michael Black took a neat time lapse of the snowfall. I love the way he had to keep moving the clock and add measuring devices!

December 2010 Blizzard Timelapse from Michael Black on Vimeo.

Any Soap Opera Fans Out There?

If so, one of my former students, Sarah Glendening just joined the cast of All My Children as Marissa. Today was here first episode. I have it on my DVR and just fast forwarded through it to catch a few of her scenes. She looks fantastic and I love seeing her do well and get roles. This is the first role I have seen her in on television where she didn't end up murdered (I saw the Law & Order: Criminal Intent and an episode of Cold Case where she was Corpse of the Week...Cold Case was really cool as she was the lead playing a hot shot female pilot in WWII).

We both did shows in local community theaters and we did a couple of shows together in our copius free time, including My Fair Lady and a revue called Broadway Rock and Roll.

So you go Sarah...I am looking forward to bigger and better things in the future!

Hey Orbs! Did you miss the Pope's speech?

Here is a letter written in response....

This is an Open Letter to Pope Benedict on behalf of all victims of child sexual abuse by catholic priests; on behalf of all catholic people, and all honorable catholic clergy; on behalf of every media outlet under the sun; and on behalf of The Holy Spirit.

Sir,

Some burning questions arise from the following statement you made in your Christmas address to your cardinals on December 20th regarding how it came to pass that the house of The Holy Spirit became a haven for criminals of a sexual nature.

"In the 1970's pedophilia was theorized [by the church] as something fully in conformity with man and even with children."

Please deign to respond to this letter directly and personally and put aside all the pomp and titles and so-called 'proper channels' -- all of which belong not in the 21st century but the 12th and are unbecoming of Christ.

Exactly who held the theory that pedophilia was fully in conformity with man and with children?

Please give us their names.

Exactly when did they hold this theory?

Exactly when if ever did they cease holding the theory?.

Why was this information not given to victims?

Why was it never given to any commissions of inquiry or civil authorities?

Why in all the years since these scandals broke out was yesterday the first mention of this information?

It is highly disrespectful of the victims that you would throw this out as an aside remark and not present yourself for questioning on such a very serious piece of information which would be key in the potential recovery of the church.

The Holy Spirit requires you to familiarize yourself with honesty and respect if you retain any desire to salvage the remains of the church which has been ruined by its being allowed to live by its own laws and not God's

~ Sinéad

Open Blog - Monday

Don't be Grumpy; instead be Happy.

U3-X Personal Mobility Prototype

Oh yeah, I want one. I don't even know what I would do with it, but I want one.

This video may explain why music plays throughout the above one - they're a little noisy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4jnl8D_Qts

Champagne brunch in Racine.

Where? Do we even have one? If more than one, which is the best, second best, worst? I want to throw a small(?) B-day party for family and a few close friends, but darn if I know Racine anymore. I figure to make it a philanthropic party and each couple will have to give me a bag of non perishable food for the food pantry. I know I could just give a donation to the food pantry, but then I don't get a party, and I'm not feeling that philanthropic.

Happy Santa Claus day everyone!

I just want to make sure everyone from all walks of life has a Happy whatever day today.

The Christmas Story

Best version ever.



"The Christmas Story (2010 version) - as told by the children of St Paul's Church."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWq60oyrHVQ

NORAD Tracks Santa

http://www.noradsanta.org/en/index.html

Now you can track Santa on the net or your cell phone. Is there an app to tell you if he's bringing presents or coal?

Open Blog - Christmas Weekend

I suppose I better start my holiday shopping.

North Point's iBand

Another way to use cell phones and new technology:



"Christmas music using borrowed iPhones and iPads at North Point Community Church."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9XNfWNooz4

Christmas Food Court Flash Mob, Hallelujah Chorus

Another submission:



"On Nov.13 2010 unsuspecting shoppers got a big surprise while enjoying their lunch. Over 100 participants in this awesome Christmas Flash Mob. This is a must see!

"This flash mob was organized by http://www.AlphabetPhotography.com to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXh7JR9oKVE

Cell Block Yoga

If only they had done yoga, Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart wouldn't have been on trial...

Machinema Meets Thermodynamics

It's a bit of a slow news week before the holidays (Happy Festivus today by the way) so I will just post the Flanders and Swann song The First and Second Law of Thermodynamics performed by characters from the MMORPG City of Heroes/City of Villains. Enjoy!



Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Irregular Football League Update

We're in the final week and two underdog teams, the KK Krunchers and The Debate Team, face off for the championship, while the Half-Astrophysicists and the Potato Heads, who must have lost their edge on the bye week, take each other on for 3rd place.

Cell Phones

Sassa got me thinking...could you live without yours? I could live without mine for a short period...I don't use it in banks, post offices, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. And I have a rule at my house that says no texting at the dinner table (only one family did I have to enforce this one! They were texting each other...duh!)

Can't we talk to each other...what is this where we can't put the darn thing away for two minutes? I don't get it!