election thots

As you know, this blog is about work, not politics. But we have an important election next Tuesday, which will determine the course of history, or more accurately - the course of the future.

For what it's worth, here is how I see the current situation:

Of the two choices we had in 2000, George W. Bush was the right guy to have in the White House when we were attacked on 9/11. We all cheered his response against the terrorists. But somewhere between defeating the Taliban in Afghanistan and bombing Iraq, things went wrong. Bad decisions based on bad intelligence led us into a war which most of us now agree was unnecessary and badly conceived. Instead of beefing- up the resources protecting our borders, ports and soldiers, huge sums of money have been spent in a low-percentage attempt to import Democracy to a people who will always prefer - and will always vote for - Theocracy.
[Incidentaly, What kind of example are we demonstrating to the world? 10,000 lawyers, more hanging chads, dead voters, fraud, scandal, etc. Maybe we need Jimmy Carter to come with a UN team to monitor our elections!]

I read in the paper yesterday that a recent study estimated 100,000 civilian deaths in Iraq due to American military action. Didn't say how many wounded. (Hey, it was in the paper so it's got to be true!) If this is even half true, how can we still justify our intervention to save the populace from a murderous dictator. Can we honestly say things are better today for the Iraqis. Or us? Do you feel safer? I don't.

Despite inheriting a budget surplus in 2000, we now have a budget deficit that will impose an even greater burden on the next generations of Americans, many of whom are already forced outsource child care because both parents must work to support a half-decent lifestyle. Many are priced-out of the hope of buying a home in the communities that they grew up in. (Is this the Conservative interpretation of family values?)

If re-elected, Bush has promised a continuation of the tax breaks for the those earning over a million dollars a year. This item alone represents 90 billion in lost revenue. That amount could cover quite a few protective vests for soldiers on the from lines who can't get them. And, perhaps some of it could be used to fund the education program that Bush takes credit for despite the fact that he refuses to pay for it.

Finally, Bush is a public embarrassment. He cannot utter an unrehearsed sentence without flubbing it. Everyone knows he is the front man for the real presidents - Cheney, Ashcroft, Rumsfeld and Karl Rove. The arrogance and capacity for deceit that this team has already demonstrated is chilling.

Now, on the other hand we have John Kerry. He has shown himself to be a chameleon and a phony. He continually reminds us that he defended the country, although his own words seem to contradict the amount of defending he was doing (as opposed to pillaging the countryside). There are many men whose military experience qualified them to be heroes, but there is nothing to indicate that that such valor would make them become good presidents. He has chosen some embarrassing photo ops - just recently the hunting trip - which make you want to cringe.

Still, no one denies that Kerry is intelligent, has a long career in government, and has an understanding of why we want and need global partners, and how mindless Nationalism easily leads to Fascism.

Despite our doubts about Kerry's character, we know two things. 1) This election is really about who appoints the next few Supreme Court Justices. The progress of the past three decades in human rights and personal liberty are at risk under a neocon-backed presidency. 2) We are not more secure with Bush in the White House. Despite the tough and scare filled rhetoric, the Bush administration has failed to secure peace in Iraq. The real enemy - Osama Bin Laden looks healthier than ever as he broadcasts (from a studio - not a cave) his latest warnings for the next attack on the USA.

How can John Kerry do worse?
The message for George Bush (and his co-presidents) is "No more years."

Total Exclipse of the Cards

As predicted, the Red Sox cowboyed-up and vanquished the opponent. The Cards folded like girly men. Most of the drama was in the commercials which have been repeated in mind numbing frequency throughout the games. Will Badger ever find his way home? Do you believe AOL really listens to their customers?

How the hell does Manny get MVP? (Mr. two errors in one game?) Wasn't Shillings gutsy appearance the real spark for the team?

Well, back to work. I have another writing job today. This one is due Monday. I have to read a big document and abstract it into a little document. If the work keeps up at this rate, I may be forced to consider resigning from retirement.

Wickid Pissah

St Louis will be playing the blues in the night, going back home after dropping the first two games to Boston. I don't count these guys out yet. They have a dominant record at their home park and were weak on the road with the Astros in post season. On the other hand, the Red Sox played very strong in New York. It should be a couple of nail-biters. Productivity in the Boston area will be poor again this week due to bleary eyed fans who stayed up to watch the game.

Someone ought to tell "Buckwheat" Manny Ramirez to get a haircut for crissakes. He has not impressed me so far. Take his big money away and give it to Papi Ortiz.

Am I the only one who hates all the distracting graphics that the TV guys paste on the screenduring sports games? I like the bar at the top showing the details of the game, men on base, speed of piches, etc. All that is good. It's the animated previews of other programs that take up the lower third of the screen, the crawling text, the jiggling, flashing, whooshing images. All this eye trash, spoils the game. And I don't care what Steven King is doing in the stands. Let's watch the damn game.

Work Series

The builder called Friday to tell me that he would be over to start building the screen porch on this coming Tuesday. This is excellent and surprising news. I only signed the request for a building permit a few days ago. I figured it would take at least another month to get something going. I always knew I was a "fill-in" job, and I accepted the fact that this small job would get bumped by conflicts of larger jobs The contact agreement had a final deadline of May 3, 2005. But, now the builder seems to think that he will get most of it done in the next few weeks.
The only downside is that now we will need to come up with the money sooner.

On Tuesday afternoons, several of us guys usually meet at George's for "tea". You know, Ice cold frosty "tea" that comes in six packs. This week, I think we should move the Tea here, so we can supervise the work.

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Last weekend, I completed a freelance writing job. Then on Monday, I called on a local business nonprofit to look at their database and discuss fixing some reporting problems. I think they liked me. I gave them a written proposal for 40-60 hrs of work. No response yet.

I'm thinking actively soliciting more business writing gigs. I think I am good at this type of writing, and the remuneration is excellent. The uncertainty of work and the prospect of down times between jobs is much preferrable to a tedious work series of fifty 40 hour weeks per year. And, you know, someone needs to keep an eye on the guys working on my new porch. So, I am optimistic about the prospect of small occasional work to pay for my lavish lifestyle....

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The other day, a retirement expert-financial planner called to offer his services.
"Well, I might be interested if you can answer one question." I said in my most cooperative tone.
"Sure. What's the question?" he asked, helpfully as he mentally began to tote up his commisson.
"When am I gonna die?"
"Excuse me?"
"I know how much money I have. The only thing I don't know is how many years to divide into the nest egg?"
The silence on the end of the line spoke volumes. Finally, "Well, actually, it's not quite that simple..."
"Oh yes it is," I interjected. "Tell me! When?"
"Sir, I am not in a position to answer a question like..."
"Hey, it's the only question I have about financing my retirement." I hung up, not to string the poor shmuck along any further. I really need to find another way to entertain myself - instead of jerking around with telemarketing callers. But it is fun.

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Last night just before game one, Steve Tyler from Aerosmith sang the National Anthem. In my humble opinion it was the best work I have ever heard him do. Well, maybe "Walk This Way" was a little catchier. (Or, was that Led Zeppalin? I dunno. Neither of those bands fall within my golden era.) Anyhoo, just as Tyler finished the SSB there was a low fly-over of two F-150 Air Force jets. Or is F-150 a Ford Truck model? I don't know nuthin' about jets - or trucks. The timimg was awesome. I figured I had enough time to get up and get a frosty brew. By the time I got to the fridge there was this tremendous roar overhead. It scared the crap out of me for a split second. The cats - who are quite accustomed to the noise and vibration associated with the occasional but noisy passing of freight trains - panicked and ran under the table. Then, I realized it was the Fenway fly-over jets on the way back to Hanscom Field in Bedford. Through the rear slider I could see the lights speeding through the dark sky as they screamed overhead, dishing thunder to the ground below. It makes you wonder: how the hell does anyone get any sleep in Iraq?
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Speaking of Jets, the Pats kicked their New York asses all over the field today.

Changes to the game

They should institute some changes to baseball to make the game more interesting.
#1 A 3 pitcher limit, pitcher must bat to stay in game.
#2 Video review of close calls (two big mistakes by umpires occurred in last two games)
#3 No women sports analysts - wimmen are not allowed to play, and they shouldn't be allowed to talk during the game. Exception: Dick Cheney's daughter.
#4 Every other spectator sport has a time limit. In Baseball, the limit should be nine innings. Game over tie or no tie. Or maybe a sudden death home run shootoff.
#5 No spitting. The constant expectoration on camera is revolting.

Remember, these guys are professional entertainers, not amateur athletes.

It Ain't Over Until I Say It's Over

A fat lady sang tonight in the heart of Gotham city. Oops, it was Rohan Tinan singing God Bless America with an Irish accent. Oh well, stuff happens.

Then an odd thing occured. The Red Sox did not embarrass themselves. They did cowboy up. Except for the foolish move of bringing Pedro in to pitch a few Yankee runs in, and getting the Yankee fans revved up, the game was a unabridged victionary.
OK they won the pennant, and I am happy. The small problem is: It ain't over.
(But, wow!)

Walkoff Home Run

All of a sudden I'm hearing this term. No one has defined it for me, so, I looked it up on the web at a place called FAQ Farm. Here's what they say:

"A walk-off home run is a home run which ends the game. This is a phrase that has only recently entered the baseball lexicon. Comes from the fact that if the home team hits a home run to take the lead in the 9th or an extra inning, both teams walk off the field since the game is over. "

Eternal Endeavers

Despite my better judgement, I allowed myself to get sucked into the game again last night. Another grueling contest that should never have gone fourteen eternal innings. The whole spectacle raises some metaphysical questions about the meaning of life, the existence of a supreme being and the reality of an afterlife.

I felt very sorry for the poor shmucks who paid big bucks to sit in the narrow seats freezing their collective asses off for more than 5 hours while their hometown heroes bobbled, stumbled and slid around the bases like a bunch of little leaguers.
While I was ensconced on a comfy sofa with a frosty Sierra Nevada, a perfectly grilled burger and of course with my trusty clicker within easy reach, the ticket holder in the stands had to settle for undrinkable coors lite beer for $3.50 a pop and marginally warm hot dogs at $5.00 and a long line at the rest room. They had to watch every tedious second of the "park experience" including the singing of God Bless America. I surfed around, catching fragments of the Cards vs Astros, the football game on ABC and Sienfeld reruns.

I think it is pretty clear that if there is a god, then he is a taunting bully. Faithful Boston fans are yanked helplessly back to New York like kittens chasing a string 2 of Red Sox wins in a row. In their hearts, they know how it is going to end, the way it always ends, but they can't help hoping. This is the nature of this earthly existence. Something wonderful will happen - tomorrow, if you believe! Then, just when you think it might happen, despite all of your pessimism and dark thoughts, that's when the hammer of defeat smacks you with a baseball bat. That is why I call it a Hellhole.

If there is an afterlife, and I am on some cloud looking at the re-runs of my life, I firmly believe that I will be pleased that I chose the option of not-being-there when it comes to professional sporting events. However, it begs the question of whether I used my time on Earth wisely in watching the game on TV, when I could have been doing something worthwhile - like, making fudge.

Gurus who specialize in Time Management remind us that Time is the supreme scarce resource. No matter how rich we are or how smart or sexy, we cannot ever get back so much as a single second of Time. Nearly everything else in our lives can be replaced - relationships, property, even critical body parts. But we never get to do yesterday over. Our lives are like spools of twine unravelling one second at a time. One day there will be no more twine. It behooves us to spend this day doing things that we wont regret.
So, anyway, who's watching the game tonight?

Homer in the 12th Inning

I have an interview scheduled this morning, so I gave up and went to bed at 1AM with the game tied in the 11th inning and the Red Sox so deep into the bullpen that they were bringing in Wakefield to pitch again.

This morning I hear that Ortiz wins the game 20 minutes later with a homer in the 12th. He shoulda done it in the 9th when he had bases loaded, and I was still awake. They play again tonight - this is the reshedule of the game that was rained-out friday night. I'm sick of seeing the Jeeter and Sheffield and especially Alex Rodriguez. They are not human.

Don't get your hopes up. You will not be seeing Pedro vs Clemens in the World Series.

Blowout

After last night's blowout loss to the Yankees (19-8), I feel compelled to quote myself from my blog entry of several weeks ago:

"That giant choking sound you hear in the distance is coming from Fenway Park. It's annual the Red Sox end-of-season slog up Heartbreak Hill."

I take no pleasure in being right. I merely note that one should have faith in causes that are worthy of one's hope. It did not escape the notice of some observers that A-Rod (the guy that the Yankees outbid the Sox for) led the smackdown.

This year I hope they fire that punk Theo Epstein and also bring Grady Little back as Manager. And get rid of those annoyingly stupid TV announcers. Scratch interviews with celebrities in the stands - we don't care what they think!

No team has ever come back from a 3 game deficit and won the Series. Looks like the Yanks against the Cards in the finals.

October Surprise

Normally, just before the national election one or both of the candidates campaign staff reveals some tawdry secret that reveals what a slimy evildoer the opponent is. Or, the incumbent finds some reason why the country should not even consider changing horses midstream. Did John Kerry think he was dealing a lethal blow by calling the VP's daughter a lesbian? Hmmn, it was shocking - but mainly because only a thoughtless A-hole would make that kind of remark.

But anyhow, the real surprising event for me recently was that I got calls from two people who called to discuss potential projects. I am working on one (paying) writing project this weekend. (Naturally a rush job due on Monday - but they don't pay the big bucks unless there is an unreasonable deadline involved.)

Monday, I have an appointment with a local business to look at their database and see if I can help them clean it up. I have a feeling that I will be the right one for the job, (whether I am or not). Between these two gigs I will earn enough to cover my bar tab for a month!

That's not all: I have a message from a headhunter who wants to discuss a contract opportunity with me - urgently. So, something is up. Fiscal quarter? I dunno. I just feel busy all of a sudden.

I was watching 20-20 last night. They had a piece on the Saudi Royal Family and their obscene oil riches. They were interviewing one of the Princes (the 5th richest man in the world with some twenty three billion of his own)on his yacht anchored on the Riviera, where he spends the summer. Apparently, the homeland desert is too hot. He admitted that he had a lot of money, but quickly pointed out that his luxurious 150 ft yacht was "used." He had bought it from Donald Trump. He viewed this bit of frugality it as a sign that he was not living in excessive luxury - despite the fact that the majority of his countrymen and women live in squalor. He accepted the disparity as simply the way Allah wants it.

I guess it's all relative.

I read this am that the auditors can't account for billions of dollaers that were earmarked for the Iraq war. I'll bet that all those wounded amputee soldiers are wishing someone had spent the money on better armor.

Hey wait, we already know who has stole - oops I mean accidentally overbilled - several million dollars in reconstruction activities in Iraq. Can they spell Halliburton? (Dick Cheney's lesbian company). What a surprise that the Dems should have discovered the error just before the election....

Home Improvements

It hasn't really been a week since I updated the blog. I had attempted to write on two previous occasions, but my timeless prose was lost somewhere in the internets (as our hi tech prez would say). There is a glitch in the blog-writing program that allows your text to disappear if you fail to save the text before clicking on another window. I call it a "glitch", you might call it "user error."
Pajamas pajahmas - let's not fight about it.

The new baby and mom are doing fine. They look a bit tired what with the nightime feedings and the chaos that is caused by the arrival of a new member into the family routine. They have turned the ringer of the phone off so the only way you can contact them is to go over there and bang on the door, yelling "Police! We have a warrant. Open up!"

Our builder stopped by yesterday for a serious discussion of the porch project. We gave hime our "final" changes to the drawings. He will have a contract ready in a few days, and then we will be underway - sometime in the next 5 months. The survey guys were here last week, measuring and siting and writing notes in their booklets. They sprayed little red circles on the street marking the property lines. Hmmn. Hey neighbor, get your tree off my yard!
The project next door is nearly complete. Maybe the crew will just come over here and do my little porch in a few days. Dreamer or what?

The house across the street just went up for sale. Over a million. Hope they get the price. It will help my property values. Most of the people who are looking at the property are arriving in fancy cars. I made a deal with the owner that for the price of a couple of cases of beer, I would agree not to sit on my front lawn in a beach chair, wearing plaid bermuda shorts and my favorite Hooters Tee shirt, looking like a bipolar geezer who has gone off his meds. The owner offered to double the extortion payoff if I would promise to stay inside whenever prospective buyers were on their premises. The agreement doesn't specifically prohibit me from mooning them from the upstairs window, so I can still have fun with it.

My wife took a week off from work to be on-call for the newborn and mom. It has been enjoyable for us, since she rarely takes time off to be at home. Normally we go somewhere on vacations. So it is a bit of novelty for her to be around the house, telling me what to do (You know you promised to paint the living room before Columbus day!) and what not to do (Are you having another beer?), and organizing my exercise regimen (Get up you lazy lout; It's 7:33 am - time for our walk!).

I cite the recent scientific study "Men who drank one-two beers per day had a bone density 7 percent greater than nondrinkers." If two is good for you, how much better to have more beers? But my logic is useless in the face of her determination.


On the plus side, when she is not over the daughter's house in her capacity as grandmother. she has been doing the shopping and cooking, which gives me a break - and plenty of time to get that painting done. She has re-taken control of the kitchen.
I can't find anything any more. The beer opener is in a different drawer. The cupboard has been re-organized. She will be going back to work next week, so I can get some rest, and re-arrange the utensil drawer the way I like it. Re-gain some of the weight I have lost walking and being denied access to the beer fridge,
PS - The living room has been painted - ceiling walls and woodwork - two coats.