"DPW truck watches citizens remove snow and calls police"

This is interesting. Racine Uncovered reports that Dino's Restaurant and Twins Food Mart on 16th Street took it upon themselves to hire a contractor to remove the dangerous snow mounds on their sidewalks. A DPW truck driver sat in his truck and watched the process for half an hour, then called the police. The police responded and found no problem. Read and see about it here: http://racineuncovered.org/?p=30119

I wonder what the DPW driver's problem was?

ordering early pizza for the game

I tried to order a pizza from Pizza Rut for the championship game. I ordered at half time, and got a delivery time of twenty minutes after the game ended. Not only that, but it never arrived! This time I will not be denied. You can pre-order days, even weeks in advance, so I did. 5:00 pm, Sunday. I'm ready.

Four for Fridays

Hello everyone! What a crazy week! With the storm and everything going on it is hard to believe it is Friday already. This week's questions are about high school.

1) Did you like high school?

2) What was your favorite class?

3) Describe yourself in high school.

4) Did you go to the prom?

Enjoy your weekend!

Open Blog - Weekend

Even though the blizzard is over, be careful out there.

Green Flash Near Kitt Peak

I was on the east side of Tucson taking sunset pictures. From this point, the Sun is setting just to the south of Kitt Peak. I got a pic tonight of a modest green flash at sunset.

Click to embiggen. You can see the Mayall 4 meter dome at the far right and the sideways 7 that is the McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope toward the left of the peak in the full size version. The Sun is setting to the south of Kitt Peak which means that it will soon be setting directly behind Kitt Peak as it journeys northwards as summer approaches. One of my goals is to get a pic of a green flash behind some of the telescopes.

Two things about this pic. First, I am shooting with a Canon 70-300mm zoom lens now so I get a slight boost in magnification. Second, my camera is in the shop so I took this with a borrowed Canon T1i which has a higher pixel count than my usual camera. I can tell a difference when I crop the image.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

The Age Gap

At 85 years of age, Boudreaux married Marie, a lovely 25 year old. Since her new husband is so old, Marie decides that after their wedding she and Boudreaux should have separate bedrooms, because she is concerned that her new but aged husband may over exert himself if they spend the entire night together.

After the wedding festivities Marie prepares herself for bed and the expected knock on the door.. Sure enough the knock comes, the door opens and there is Boudreaux, her 85 year old groom, ready for action. They unite as one.. All goes well, Boudreaux takes leave of his bride, and she prepares to go to sleep.

After a few minutes, Marie hears another knock on her bedroom door, and it's Boudreaux, Again he is ready for more 'action'. Somewhat surprised, Marie consents for more coupling. When the newly weds are done, Boudreaux kisses his bride, bids her a fond good night and leaves.

She is set to go to sleep again, but, aha you guessed it - Boudreaux Is back again, rapping on the door, and is as fresh as a 25-year-old, ready for more 'action'. And, once more they enjoy each other.

But as Boudreaux gets set to leave again, his young bride says to him, 'I am thoroughly impressed that at your age you can perform so well and so often. I have been with guys less than a third of your age who were only good once. You are truly a great lover, Boudreaux.'

Boudreaux, somewhat embarrassed, turns to Marie and says: 'You mean I was here already?'

The moral of the story:

Don't be afraid of getting old, Alzheimer's has its advantages.

Russian inventor shows off propeller backpack

I want one of those. In the summer, I could use roller skates or blades. A few years ago, I could have built one in mom's garage. Now I don't have access to facilities or parts. To hell with Segways, I think this is the wave of the future.

"Snow flakes."

Snow flakes.

I counted till they danced so
Their slippers leaped the town,
And then I took a pencil
To note the rebels down.
And then they grew so jolly
I did resign the prig,
And ten of my once stately toes
Are marshalled for a jig!

--Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson (1830 -1886) was an American poet who led a reclusive life. Her poetry was almost unknowm until after her death.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Dickinson

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my Racinesicles! How are you? Are you digging out yet? Oh my, oh my, oh my. Even I, of Zoltar® fame, would not dare to predict the total amount of snow we’re going to get from this one. Lake effect snow is notoriously fickle. In any case, I hope we have enough to satisfy the blithering and blathering weathermen and women who have been relentlessly yammering about this storm for the last 72 hours. I don’t know which is worse, the constant harping and hyperbole from the media, or the storm itself. Give it a rest, please. We live in Wisconsin. It is winter. Please inform us and then STFU. (I learned that from Junior.)

Such weather concerns are far from the minds of our illustrious Green Bay Packers as they prepare to meet the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV this Sunday. As I have stated elsewhere, I predict a Packers win. No matter what happens, though, our Packers have played an extraordinary season and I congratulate them on that. They have overcome great odds to get to where they are: NFC Champs. Hail, o mighty Packers! Defeat the Steelers on Sunday! Crush their skulls and grind the dust into the field! Oh my.

Speaking of the Super Bowl, are you having a party or going to one? No, I’m not looking to crash your party; I’m just cuprous about what my Irregulars are doing on such a festive and historic occasion. I plan to watch the game on TV with Junior and some of his friends. (If they get a little too rambunctious, I just slip a pinch of Zoltar® brand Relaxium into their sodas. Zzzz….) I’m grilling brats and hot dogs on the porch, if Junior clears the snow off. We’ll also have some potato salad, some veggies, some snacks, etc., etc. Maybe a little wine for me. (Hic – oh dear.) What are you having? Where are you going? Who is going to win?

I want to comment on a local story that the Journal Times published online last Friday:

http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_1632ede0-2b40-11e0-bcc0-001cc4c002e0.html

The article is entitled, “Crime rates drop in 2010 - Racine rates decline for second year in a row” and it is one of the biggest loads of crap I have read in a long, long time. I consider it terribly unfortunate that those who run this city think it is better to try to deceive our residents than it is to work with them towards solutions to our problems. I thank Racine Uncovered for publishing a response to such hogwash:

http://racineuncovered.org/?p=29333

I get so angry when someone lies to the people of my beloved Racine. Grrr! I can make you go bald.

Finally, my friends, I present a very pertinent video for your perusal, “Snow Shoveling Tips by Dr. Vogelmann:”



Chiropractors make a good buck, don’t they? I wonder if he’s single.

Thank you for reading my blog today. I hope that wherever you are, you are safe and warm. We’re having a blizzard, but who isn’t these days? I love you dear, dear readers.

Please forward your spam and threatening messages to: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Listen to the dear doctor and take it easy out there today, please. If you don’t have to go out, don’t. Today would be a good day to practice navel gazing or self-hypnosis. Or maybe navel hypnosis. Réaumur!

Open Blog - Wednesday

If you're snowbound today, just stare at the picture above and relax. 

I hate asking this but...

My friend knows a couple that have two children with a rare genetic disorder. The cute kids probably won't live past twelve years of age, and be a burden even though they are cute and seem normal now. My friend has been pushing all her friends to vote for a PEPSI funded research grant, and at the moment they are in first place inn the grant contest. Just squeaking by though. I would like anyone interested in helping out, to vote each day. i think you can vote twice a day even.

Thanks


http://www.refresheverything.com/curesanfilippo

The Big Snow Blog

"A blizzard in the forecast" - http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/article_1a3e9212-2d53-11e0-8b4e-001cc4c03286.html

National Weather Service Blizzard Watch - http://forecast.weather.gov/wwamap/wwatxtget.php?cwa=mkx&wwa=blizzard%20watch - "NEEDLESS TO SAY THIS COULD BE A HISTORIC BLIZZARD CAPABLE OF PARALYZING PARTS OF SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN."

Are you ready?

Are you afraid?

Or are you eagerly awaiting it?

Then we're supposed to drop into the deep freeze again.

Personally, I hope they've overestimated the snowfall amounts.  But I'm resigned to whatever happens because it is winter in Wisconsin, so there's not a lot you can do but make sure you have enough food and whatever else you need  for a couple of days.  And try to think spring.

Open Blog - Monday

Me, too.

St Paul Winter Carnival

http://spwc.smugmug.com/popular/1/462218661_VbdZK#462218661_VbdZK
These are pictures from the St. Paul, MN Winter Carnival. The snow sculptures are amazing!! We didn't get there to see them in person, but this is a good place to see all of them without freezing your tootsies off!
Check out #2! Is that SER??

This link has some pictures of the ice sculptures.
http://www.365twincitiesmn.com/day-264-ice-sculptures-at-the-st-paul-winter-carnival/

Catapot

No, that's not a typo. Drug smugglers have recently been using a catapault to send bales of marijuana over the U.S.-Mexico border.



When will they learn to build a trebuchet?

Be My Valentine?

I'm so glad that you allow my strange mind to flourish without too much ridicule.. 

I had a bunch of stuff floating around up there: my band's cd/album cover, Valentine's Day, poetry and limericks, and Sassa's naughty valentine. It all gelled into this overnight. 

Now I see that there is a poet laureate contest?  Hmmm... Somehow, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be interested. :D

"Apply by Feb. 15 to become poet laureate of Racine or Kenosha"

"Racine and Kenosha Public Library systems have extended the deadline for submissions of the poet laureate program to Feb. 15.

"Poets are encouraged to submit applications to become the poet laureate of their respective communities. The poets laureate will be crowned in early April during National Poetry Month.

"The honor also includes publication of the poets’ work and a $500 award, given to each poet, from the Friends of the Kenosha Public Library and Friends of the Racine Public Library.

"Poets must be age 18 or older and a current resident of Racine or Kenosha counties in order to apply. Application forms and more information are available at all library branches in Racine and Kenosha counties. Forms and information are also available on the Web at www.mykpl.info and www.racinelibrary.info"

More: http://www.journaltimes.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/article_1cd1563a-2a57-11e0-8f34-001cc4c002e0.html

Bittersweet Valentines

Still time to place your order to arrive in time for Valentines Day.....

Touted as the option for the rest of us. How did they know? :(
http://despair.com/bittersweets.html

A challenge!

I got this in an email. I thought all of you irregulars would be up for the challenge and to share this.
CALLING ALL PACKERS FANS

The Greater Green Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau has been challenged by the Pittsburgh Convention & Visitors Bureau to prove we have more fans than they do. We know that Packers Fans are all over the country, and we need your help to reach out to them.

Both CVBs have put together a contest that not only counts the number of fans we have, but there's an awesome prize... (2 Packers tickets for next season's opening game, hotel and dinner). We'll draw a winner after the Super Bowl.

The Packers Nation contest is located at www.greenbay.com . Click on Packers Nation Ticket Giveaway and enter!

Please share this with all your friends. Help us prove that Packers Fans are the best Super Bowl fans!

What If Teachers Graded Parents?

That's a proposal being put forth by Florida state rep Kelli Stargel. Teachers would be required to grade parents as satisfactory, unsatisfactory or need improvement. The bill contains three criteria for the grade:

• A child should be at school on time, prepared to learn after a good night's sleep, and have eaten a meal.
• A child should have the homework done and prepared for examinations.
• There should be regular communication between the parent and teacher.

Now I might add that the students comes to class with everything they need (paper, pencils, textbook, calculator, etc) to the list.

Not everyone thinks this is a good idea of course. It will take extra time for teachers (and I don't see anyone offering extra pay for extra work in education). The other arguments against it seem to be of the grading parents will cause confrontation and bad feelings (as if grading teachers, which many support, would never do this).

I know there are some teachers on here (and I am a former teacher) and there are parents I would have LOVED to grade. I had a student that missed 35 days of class one semester yet his parents insisted that his grade was somehow all my fault. You know, I can't teach someone who isn't there. It's not uncommon for parents not to return or respond to repeated phone calls and emails, although they sure respond to a low grade on a report card! If your student can't stay awake or keeps trying to bring breakfast into class, well, there is a problem happening before the student walks in the door that the teacher doesn't have any influence over yet is expected to overcome these issues. If you come to my class with no book, no pencil, no paper and no calculator, you are going to have a tough time. All of this before the teacher even gets a chance to do the job.

I have never once had a parent say they sucked at parenting yet I know many to whom that terminology applies. Parents don't tend to be a very self-critical lot and maybe turning the tables and grading the parents would be a good way to get them to wake up and smell the toast burning.

Slideshow: Southeastern Wisconsin Mug Shot Hall Of Shame - Photos - WISN Milwaukee

Slideshow: Southeastern Wisconsin Mug Shot Hall Of Shame - Photos - WISN Milwaukee

They live amongst us. How do their lives get so out of control?

See Venus During the Day: January 2011 Edition

I know that this topic interests people since I see a slow but steady stream of searches that land on my blog that mention this topic. Therefore, since we have a good chance to see Venus during the day this weekend, I'll review how to go about it.

Venus is best seen during the day when it is far from the Sun in the sky. We call this greatest elongation. Venus passed greatest western elongation on January 8th and is still nicely separated from the Sun. Venus is hard to find during the day and it helps to have a nearby landmark to find it. The Moon provides a nice guide and makes a nice pass by Venus on January 29th. The Moon a waning crescent and sets late morning/early afternoon (depending on your location and time zone) so check sometime mid-morning is your best show. Here is a finder chart made for Tucson at 9:00am MST tomorrow.

The Moon moves about a half degree every hour (which is conveniently about the same as its diameter) so if you look earlier the Moon will be farther to the west of Venus and if you look later the Moon will be farther to the east of Venus. You can use the free program Stellarium to make a chart for your time and location.

Find the Moon and then slowly move your gaze toward Venus. Slowly scan the sky. There are a couple of tricks to finding Venus. First, you have to keep your eyes focused at infinity. When you look at the Moon, your eyes will focus at infinity. If you are conscious of your eyes focus point, you can keep it from changing. It may take a little practice, but it can be done. Looking at a blue sky, your eyes have nothing to focus on so the focus may drift if you are not paying attention to it!

Second, you have to look DIRECTLY at Venus. You want the image of Venus to form on your fovea, the part of your retina responsible for sharp central vision. You can't spot Venus out of the corner of your eye! It is amazing that you won't see it at all and then suddenly Venus pops into view when it his your fovea and is so bright and obvious you wonder how you missed it before. Don't be fooled...you only get this view when you look directly at it!

Another trick is to stand near a building. You want to stand in a place where the building blocks direct Sunlight but you can see the Moon and Venus. Blocking the bright glare of the Sun helps.

If its your first time trying to see Venus during the day, you might try picking it up just before the Sun rises and track it over the course of the morning. That practice will help you in the future. The Moon will still relatively close to Venus on Sunday, so you can give yourself a test then!

If you have clear skies, there is no reason you can't see Venus anytime it is up and away from the Sun.

You can try this again next month as the Moon makes an even closer pass to Venus on February 28th.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

25 Years Ago...

January 28th, 1986. The day the Challenger lifted off on a chilly morning in Florida. 73 seconds after launch, the main fuel tank exploded in a spectacular fireball and the orbiter broker apart. Seven astronauts were lost int he accident.

I was a senior in high school. Kristin came in late that day for some reason and I saw her between classes. She is the one who told me the space shuttle exploded. A couple of years earlier, a joke went around about the space shuttle exploding. I forgot the punch line (but remembered I thought the joke was funny) and thought she was going to tell me that joke. The punch line didn't come and my heat sank as I realized she was delivering news and not telling a joke.

I had a schedule that let me leave school at noon since I had no afternoon classes. I went home and had the television on watching the coverage until I had to go to basketball practice later that afternoon.

I was not born at the time of the Apollo 1 fire (January 24th, 1967) which had its 44th Anniversary yesterday. For a good personal account of this tragedy, read Gene Kranz's excellent book Failure is Not an Option. It captures both technical and personal aspects of the Apollo 1 fire that almost derailed the Apollo program.

The 8th Anniversary of the Columbia accident is next week, February 1st. I heard about it on NPR listening to Weekend Edition. I was living in Racine at the time and remember the publicity surrounding Laurel Clark, a Horlick high grad (I was performing in a show at the time and remember driving by Horlick and seeing all the news trucks around it that evening). One year the Kiwanis Club sold Christmas ornaments honoring the Columbia astronauts at Zoo Lights. I bought one even though I never put up a Christmas tree.

NASA holds a Day of Remembrance each January since its major accidents are clustered at this time of year. I definitely remember all the NASA astronauts we have lost.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Four for Fridays

Hello everyone! Can't believe it's Friday already! This week sure flew fast. This week's topic is about television.

1) What have you been watching lately?

2) What is your all time favorite TV show?

3) What was the last movie you watched or rented?

4) What was the last movie you saw in the theater?

Enjoy your weekend!

Open Blog - Weekend

Today, apparently, is a day to honor cowardice. 

Check Out my Band's New Album

Someone mentioned the piano in the water would make a good album cover. It reminded me of something I found on Facebook. It was fun to play with and thought maybe you would like to give it a try... You create a first album cover for your new band by following the instructions below. The photo  to the left is my result.


My new band
1- Go to wikipedia and hit random. The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
2 - Go to quotationspage.com and hit random. The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.
3 - Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”. Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.
4 - Use photoshop, paint or similar (sumopaint.com is a free online photo editor) to put it all together.
5 - Post it, or post a link to the image.

 Here is my second attempt.  I blurred it a little to give it a more artistic effect.....Oooohhh.

Beautiful Sun

I was out at Old Tucson Studios today for Ted Walker Day, an annual event for students in Tucson. I was showing off the Sun with a Personal Solar Telescope. The Sun did not disappoint today!

Sunspot #1149 just departed over the limb of the Sun. However, it is going out with a bang sending huge plasma bursts into space. Here is a pic from the Solar Dynamics Observatory.

Now my telescope is much smaller and on the ground, but I couldn't help but holding up my cheap Sony point and shoot camera to the eyepiece and here is what I got. I could only fit in the limb of the Sun near the action. The camera has very few controls on it...I turned the flash off, put it in auto mode, lined it up with the eyepiece and held it as steady as I could.

Okay, not a great shot, but it's a nice way to remember this spectacular site! If you have a solar telescope, dig it out now!

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.

Just coincidence?

"Social networking leads to sex faster?"

"(Reuters Life!) - Nearly four out of five women and three of five men say they believe texting, Facebook and other social networking tools cause new couples to jump into bed faster, a survey released on Monday showed.

"But only 38 percent of women say they have actually slept with a date any sooner because of digital intimacy, according to the 1,200 women and men who participated in the third annual sex survey by Shape and Men's Fitness magazines.

"Smart phones and laptops are the new toys that lead to the bedroom, it said, with nearly 80 percent of women and 58 percent of men saying social media tools leads to sex faster.

"Texting is the No. 1 way lovers stay in touch, the survey found, with men texting 39 percent more often than phoning and women 150 percent more.

"Even before the magic begins, 70 percent of women and 63 percent of men use Google and other online tools to screen potential dates.

"Sixty-five percent of those polled said they had been asked out by text and 49 percent through a Facebook message.

"Once the relationship clicks, 72 percent of women report scouring a current partner's ex-girlfriends' Facebook pages.

"Even in the heat of passion, some people just can't get enough of their digital devices, the survey found. When a call or text comes in during sex, 5 percent of respondents said they glance to see who is calling and 1 percent say they stop to answer the phone."

More: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70O4IJ20110125

I don't text, I don't even have a cellphone. And I don't use Facebook or MySpace, or instant maessaging of any kind. Well, I guess that explains a lot.

We All Suck

What is your state worst at?

I am disappointed Massachusettes is home to the worst drivers. Bostonians take pride in that. For fun, tell someone fro Boston somewhere else has worse drivers and watch the veins in their neck pop out as they start frothing at the mouth trying to convince you that Bostonians are the worst drivers that are now, ever were and ever will be.

And Again From Florida....

Video here:

http://news.yahoo.com/video/odd-15749658/piano-bar-mystery-intrigues-miami-23972698

Beejay.... a piano purchased in Milwaukee ends up on a sandbar in Florida?  Sounds a little too coincidental. You did mention you were a party animal! :D

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my poignant penguins! How are you? My, what a difference a week makes. Last week it was snow and then the deep freeze. Now it’s slush-o-rama. This is not a good time of year to stand out near the traffic lane while waiting for the light to change at a crosswalk. You could very easily get splashed with a dirty mixture of ice, salt, and snow. I know that from experience. It’s a good thing that I wasn’t wearing any “dry clean only” clothing that day or a certain driver might not have made it home that evening. Oh my.

Of course, of course, I do not have to report what we all already know: the Green Bay Packers triumphed over the Chicago Bears last Sunday to win the NFC Conference Championship and a trip to Super Bowl XLV in Dallas on February 6, 2011 to face the AFC Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Oh my, indeed. I feel terribly sorry for the bad press that Mr. Jay Cutler, quarterback of the Bears, has received for leaving the game early in the third quarter. (That’s him on the right in the photo, meeting with our Mr. Aaron Rodgers after the game.) I’m sure that he will overcome it. Just like our glorious Packers will overcome the Steelers in the Super Bowl! That’s my prediction and I’m standing by it.

In response to that prediction, I was honored that Ms. kk composed a limerick featuring me in the comments of her recent Packer Poetry blog: http://www.jtirregulars.com/2011/01/packer-poetry.html
Here it is:

A prediction from Madame Z
How accurate will it be?
How good it would feel
To put a hurt on some steel
And send home the Lombardi trophy!

Oh thank you, Ms. kk, for writing about me. I would do anything I can to help our magnificent Packers win. Awhile back, a commenter was ridiculing our Packers for their name, mocking them for deriving the name from meatpackers. Which makes me wonder: do they even produce steel in Pittsburgh anymore?

And as long as I’m already a little on edge, I would like to most stridently state that the dreaded Zoltar® Curse has been placed upon the perpetrators of the hacking attack on Racine’s beloved “Racine Uncovered” news/blog site (http://racineuncovered.org/). You can run and you can hide from the law, your family, or even yourself, but no one escapes the dreaded Zoltar® Curse, no one. It is difficult for me to believe that some people are so hateful as to destroy the work of others done for the benefit of our community. Poor parenting? Lack of morals? Lead poisoning? I don’t know, but the shrinking of your genitals shall soon overcome you. Oh dear.

Finally, for our edification, I present, “The Illusion of Peace!”



“All we are saying is give peace a chance.” I’m just an old hippy at heart.

Peace to all of you, my dear readers, irregular and otherwise. Thank you so very much for stopping by to peruse my blog this week. I so enjoy spending time with you. Tell your friends: “Madame Z, she’s for me!”

Please send your queries, comments, and Nigerian bank scam emails to: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Enjoy your week, my dear friends. Believe it or not, the days are growing longer. Slowly, but surely, old Sol will rise again in the sky. Outshine him with your smile. Velleity!

Open Blog - Wednesday

Aww, now you just have to have a good day. 

Saleman gets fired!

THAT'S COLD .......

AP News : vcstar.com : Ventura County Star: "OAK LAWN, Ill. (AP) -- A car salesman in suburban Chicago has been fired for refusing to remove a Green Bay Packers tie that he wore to work the day after the Packers beat the Chicago Bears to advance to the Super Bowl.
John Stone says he wore the Packers tie to work Monday at Webb Chevrolet in Oak Lawn to honor his late grandmother, who was a big Green Bay fan.
The sentimental gesture did not impress his boss, Jerry Roberts.
Roberts says the dealership has done promotions involving the Bears and he was afraid the tie could alienate the team's fans and make it harder to sell cars.
Roberts adds that Stone was offered five chances to take off the tie but he refused."

Racine Uncovered Hacked

Local blog site Racine Uncovered (http://racineuncovered.org/) was hacked last night according to a comment in our Monday open blog. Beth, who runs the site, prmosises prosecution to the fullest extent of the law if the perpetrators are caught.

Racine Uncovered covers the local crime scene, and covers it very well. The site has been a thorn in the side of the city of Racine's administration since its inception. Whenever our mayor opens his mouth to spew another lie, Racine Uncovered has been there to dispute it. Recently, the site endorsed Eric Marcus for mayor of Racine. I have little doubt that Beth's politics played a major role in this attack. Who would orchestrate an assault on a small, local, volunteer-run site that providies such a service to the citizens of Racine? I can think of no one other than our own lying John, the dirtiest piece of garbage to slime his way into City Hall in decades. This is filthy, lying, dirty politics - the kind that pigs wallow in.

Oink on, lying John!

5:30 PM - I've re-thought the situation and kk is right (see comments): I don't know for sure who hacked Racine Uncovered, so I shouldn't point fingers.

"Caught up in a cycle of sin."

So this Air Force Chief goes on an adultery and sexual harassment binge, and at his court marshal he claims that he was "Caught up in a cycle of sin." It's like the Race Card Christians use as a get out of jail card. I've been asked more than once the question of "If you don't believe in a god, what keeps you in check?" Well, the golden rule. I treat everybody or try to as I want to get treated myself. Anyway, an old comedy skit hit me from years gone by. I bring you Flip Wilson at the Ed Sullivan Show doing his skit, "The devil made me do it."

Party at Bee Jay's!

What can I tell you...we know how to party???? Well, the Packers were playing and it was the dog's birthday??? Decisions, decisions! All turned out well!

Google is so Smart

Open Blog - Monday

Monday is better when the Packers win the NFC Championship the day before. 

Game Day Blog

NFC Championship Game - 2:00 PM CST - Soldier Field - TV: Fox (Channel 6), Radio: AM-620

Name that color and scent

Here's to a strange post -
if you had to give a color and scent to things, what would it be?

Examples for me -

Happiness would be yellow and the scent would be lilac. Someday I would love to have an area of lilacs with a table set inside just surrounded. To me, it is the most beautiful scent there is. I love vanilla but something about lilac tops it all.

Sad, I guess would be gray and smell like dirt?

what do you think?

What scents make you feel something? good? bad? reactions to colors?

ah yes, a tired mind at work, indulge me here :)

WOW, so pretty!!

I know there was no way to get a picture of the beauty that was outside at 3am this morning, but the new snow shimmered as if covered in diamond dust, mesmerizing and absolutely gorgeous, I just wanted to keep driving to keep it sparkling, it was the most beautiful thing I've seen in a long time. Please tell me I wasn't the only one to see that incredible site!!

Ok, yes, I - ME - I was actually excited by the beauty of the snow, it really isn't ALL evil, just the driving in it part when there are other people on the road, but this morning was the best drive to work I've ever had!! :)

Johnny Cash & Bob Dylan - "Girl from the North Country"

This is one of my favorite songs.

OK, let's just call it Poetry

A couple of weeks ago, I had the idea to start an irregular feature entitled Poetry Corner:

http://www.jtirregulars.com/2011/01/poetry-corner.html

As it turned out, the JTI already had blogs featuring and/or about poetry published with the labels Poetry, Poems, Poetry Corner, and Poem. In an effort to simplify matters, I've decided to go with just the label Poetry. That's what the feature will be titled in the sidebar and previous labels will be amended. If you post a blog containing poetry and/or about poetry, please add the label Poetry when you are composing it (lower right corner of the composition form). Thank you.

Live Black Bear Den

This is a live webcam for Lily, a black bear in Ely, MN. She had a cub last year (Hope) and has just given birth to two cubs this afternoon!
It's kind of cool to watch. I didn't see the births, but I did just see her face!
Check it out!
http://www.bear.org/livecams/lily-hope-cam.html

Giffords Leaves Tucson

You may have seen on the news that Gabrielle Giffords is leaving Tucson today to continue her physical therapy in Houston where her husband is based as an astronaut. The move makes sense from the perspective of her family.

The route from the hospital to the airport passed about two blocks from my office so I walked down there this morning. News chopper flying overhead and some media photographers on the sidewalks as well as members of the community coming out to wish her well.

The police at the front of the procession.

The ambulance in which she was riding. Obviously she couldn't wave to the crowd or even see them, but that didn't seem to matter to the people lining the street.
Some motorcycles from the local VFW brought up the rear of the procession. I was kind of surprised they didn't lead it (at least after the first wave of motorcycle cops cleared the way).

I was watching the twitter feed as I was waiting to see if they were on schedule (they were) and was happy to see many people from Texas welcoming her and saying she would be well cared for there. The only negative thing I saw was some people complaining that their local station cut into the Price is Right to cover this and a few people criticizing them for publishing the route of the procession.

On a slightly lighter note, has anyone else seen the coverage of her using an iPad? Apple must be thrilled with the free publicity they are getting from this!

One Day at Gurnee Mills

A Chicago family went shopping at Gurnee Mills. The son asks to go into the Sports Authority. As he is there he is pondering a life change. The spirit of St. Lombadi enters the boy. He grabs a Aaron Rodgers jersey and walks up to his mom.

"Mom?" "Yes Son?" "I'd like to become a Packers fan and would like this Jersey. His mom whacks him in the head and says "Go see your Father!"

The kid walks up to his Dad, Packer Jersey in hand.

"Dad?" "Yes Son?" "Dad, I am now a Green Bay Packers fan and would like this #12 Jersey." The Dad whacks him on the head, takes the jersey away and states "No son of mine will ever ever wear this! Go go get in the car!"

On the way home, the Dad turns to his Son and asks him "So I hope you have learned something today Son"

"I sure have Dad! I've only been a Packer fan for one hour and I already hate you FIB's!

Four for Fridays

Hello everyone! It's Friday again? Whoa...Either I've been sleeping the whole week or the week flew fast. This week's questions are about the big game.

1) Are you going to watch the Packer/Bear game this Sunday?

2) Who do think is going to win?

3) What your prediction for the final score?

4) Are you doing anything special in preparing for the game?

Enjoy your weekend!

Hale Bopp, about the speed of light

You are standing still and a train goes by. You notice it's speed. Now you're in a train car with no windows, and a glass smooth track so you don't feel the clacking jars as the wheels pass over the rail joints. You toss a ball between you and a friend, and the ball to your present perception is just moving at the speed it's thrown.

A jet is moving through the air at Mach 3. it's gotten quieter in the cockpit, because the jet is moving faster than the noise it is producing. The pilot keys his mic and talks to the tower. His voice is being spoken in a bubble of air (interior of the cockpit) that is moving at Mach 3 so the sounds he makes seem normal in that enclosed environment.

A space ship is flying near/at the speed of light. Light as we know it is perceived far differently depending upon which direction an observer is viewing. Blue shift red shift. An observer inside the spaceship however turns on a light and views his surroundings with no problem. I understand the Doppler affect of a train whistle as it goes by, but wonder what exactly happens if a search light were aimed forward of the speeding space ship. Would the photons/light energy be amassed near the front of the space ship? Sort of a "Photon torpedo," or would it become a different form of energy that travels faster than the speed of light. Because everything gains in mass the nearer it approaches the speed limit of light, why don't photons have annihilating properties? They are traveling at light speed, so they should ave infinite mass. Their mass is used for solar sails and move space craft with light pressure

I'm curious and want to know. I hate junk science in sci-fi and want to write a good one.

Open Blog - Friday

With the current temperature, this doesn't look half bad...