Me Me

People Envy Your Generosity

You’re a giving soul, and you’d do almost anything for those you love. And they’d do anything for you!
People may envy how giving you are, but more than anything, they envy those you open your heart to.

This is terrible. It’ll ruin my image as a hard-boiled, brooding hermit.
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Barbara Waters used to be mocked for asking, in several of her interviews, “What kind of tree would you be?” Well, apparently I’m a weeping willow.
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Rumor has it that the movie Spider-Man 3 has come out recently. It cost about a third of a gazillion dollars, but will probably make a full gazillion, so it’ll still turn a profit. I saw the first movie, even own it on VHS, but haven’t seen the second one yet. I will, I will. Here’s a review or two or three, all somewhat more favorable than the lukewarm consensus so far.
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I’ve seen this a couple places recently. It dovetails well with a Bill Moyers special on selling the war, and the press buying it, which I watched recently that I hope you watched – excellent.

ROG

The Right Outcome

Schadenfreude doesn’t begin to cover it. I am SO happy that the primary person mentioned here and here is going to jail that I’m seriously thinking about being present at his sentencing. The former barber and, incredibly, assistant Secretary of State, was not only greedy, but arrogant, rude and surprisingly…I’m looking for a less harsh word for stupid. If you were on the phone, he’d want to talk with you – NOW – and would have a hissy fit if he didn’t get his way. Someday, they’ll be LOTS more to say on this. Knowing him, though, he’ll probably end up in a place like this. Still, just know that the news has made me giddy all week.
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Oh, and one of his patrons came up with the damndest reasons for opposing Governor Spitzer’s gay marriage proposal, reports Uthaclena here: “This governor has his priorities wrong… given the fatal shooting of a state trooper this week, Spitzer should be worried more about bringing back the death penalty for those who kill police officers.”

Wha?

OK, so I do oppose the death penalty; I’m not convinced of its efficacy, among other things, and there are too many errors by the criminal justice system. And I do support gay marriage, and it’s enhanced, interestingly, by my interpretation of my reading of this week’s lectionary passage from Acts 11:1-18. But what precludes the NYS legislature from, e.g., introducing BOTH a death penalty bill AND a gay marriage bill? It’s not that they are somehow overworked. Moreover, the stated motivation for the death penalty for cop killers legislation NOW is that recent death of a New York State trooper by accidental friendly fire. To be fair, right after this recent shooting of a state trooper – six dead in 13 months – the state senator was concentrating on the death penalty instead of campaign finance reform.
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I’m at my annual work conference last week, and two people come up to me to settle a dispute – being both a librarian and a JEOPARDY! champ, this happens a lot. The question: did Mork and Mindy start off as a spinoff of Happy Days? Why, yes it did, though only Mork appeared. (And in the “not that you asked” category, Happy Days was initiated from a segment of Love, American Style.) Anyway, Mork & Mindy reminded me of Tom Poston, who appeared on that show, three different Bob Newhart shows, and To Tell the Truth, all of which I watched regularly. I had forgotten that he was married to Suzanne Pleshette, who played Newhart’s wife on The Bob Newhart Show. Anyway, the actor, who also guested on many a series I watched, died recently, alas.
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Art in less than 10 minutes.
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Locally, here’s how to celebrate 50 years since the opening of West Side Story on Broadway!

ROG

Stress Busters QUESTION


I’m pretty sure that my wife gave me a gift certificate for a massage. not a massage from her, but from a professional outfit. (Not that I mind getting one from her.) It’s been two months, I just came from a conference, I need to go to another soon, and have I gotten this massage? I have not.

That recent report suggesting that boomers may be less healthy indicated that stress, along with weight, long commutes and the like, as one of the factors.

So, what I want to know is simple in concept, and perhaps difficult to achieve. How do you relax? Yoga, meditation, alcohol, drugs, television, turn off the TV, game night? We here at Ramblin’ will not judge you on this; we just want to know.
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Another way to relax is to laugh well. Some news report, in anticipation of the Republican Presidential debate this past week, indicated that it would be moderated by “Christ Matthews”. I wrote a comment indicating that Matthews had a big enough ego without having a Christ complex. Curiously, they didn’t print my reply; they did, however, fix the post to “Chris”.
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Is this a real story? George Bush Receives Purple Heart Award.

ROG

Talking with myself

It occurred to me that perhaps the best way to celebrate (milk) the blogiversary is to answer some of the questions I asked Scott as couple months back.

What posting(s) have generated the most interest, either in terms of comments and/or referrals to your piece in Google?

Well, in addition to what I mentioned the other day, Lydia is usually good for a few mentions. There are certain people who really like it when I venture into the comic book realm. The very few times I mention the radio station my grandfather worked at, WNBF in Binghamton, invariably gets some traffic. In fact, that last sentence will almost certainly bring some old radio/TV fan to this post.

Who comes to your blog, if you have a way of tracking that? What exotic locales have sent you comments?

There are certain friends, Internet and otherwise, who let me know they’re reading; some of them even comment.

Oh, and BTW, those of you who are confounded by commenting because Blogger wants signed postings to have a Google account; you CAN sign as Anonymous, and put your name in the body of the post. Also, I’ve found moderating the posts, for me, to be the most preferable way to avoid the spam postings; I started doing that the same time I went to new Blogger a few months back. As a user, I find it easier than typing in the alphabetic gobbledygook some sites require, including some sites I visit regularly.

And I’ve actually left some “spam” on. There was a piece I did on the Supremes a couple months ago, and someone wrote selling a book about Florence Ballard; I left it. At least it was targeted spam.

Here’s something that didn’t happen at all the previous year; my wife occasionally reads my blog.

I’ve had people visit from many lands, from half of the countries in the Western Hemisphere, all over Europe and Asia, some from Africa, some tiny Pacific islands. The comment I got that was from the farthest point was a young woman from Singapore, I believe.

Ultimately, why are you blogging? Do you ever write something, hoping you’ll get some sort of reaction and then … nothing?

The initial motivation was curiosity about why anyone would blog. Then, and I think Scott was experiencing the same thing, it was to impart my VAST wisdom on the universe. Then, it was to rant. Now, it’s because it seems to be, for the time being anyway, What I Do.

Yeah, I gave a link to the Bible done in LEGOS once; thought people would think it was funny, or would be outraged. Nothing. Generally, the less likely I think a piece will generate comments, the more likely it will, and vice versa.
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Happy birthday, Janna and Annika.

ROG

Free For All


So, here’s an important question: on Saturday, will America survive the convergence of Free Comic Book Day, when stores all over the country will be handing out some comics that are free, free, FREE…

…and Cinco de Mayo, the third of that holy trinity of secular celebrations (New Year’s Eve and St. Patrick’s Day being the others), in which the primary goal seems to be maximum inebriation. This is definitely true here in Albany, where the Cuervo truck has been/is making appearances not just this weekend (starting tonight) at multiple locations, but last weekend as well.

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Speaking of comic books, Mark Evanier recently noted this show with someone called Smilin’ Ed McConnell here. I had never heard of him until about 1980, when the now-late Raoul Vezina told me that McConnell’s name was the inspiration for the FantaCo symbol and eventual comic book character, Smilin’ Ed Smiley. Fred Hembeck describes Ed (and Fred’s involvement in same) here.
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I think I’d have to be inebriated to eat this. Actually, my initial thought was, to quote that classic Life cereal commercial, “I’m not gonna try it, YOU try it.”
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Thanks once again to my covert poster, who put up my last three postings while I was away and computer inaccessible.

ROG

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