Sunday Schedule

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Now that's romantic:

When Valerie Myers opened her Valentine’s card this morning she could have been forgiven for feeling a slight sense of déjà vu.

For 31 years her husband Ken has sent her the very same card. But to stop their romance going stale, he has added a new – and very cryptic – message each time.

The father of five designed the large padded card himself in the Seventies while working as a freelance card designer.

He first sent it to Valerie in 1979 – five years after they wed – with the coded inscription ‘Aisle ooh view’ – meaning ‘I love you’.

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See? I told you Craig Ferguson was the best of the late night talk hosts.

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Want to know that your donated dollars are going to the most effective organization possible? Add the Charity Navigator to your favorites.

(And read the descriptions carefully. You've got to wonder about the altruism of an agency that would post the following: "The Lambi Fund never dictates to a community organization what should be done; through discussion and reflection, the peasants decide what is best for their community and present the project to the Lambi Fund for support." In this day and age there's an agency that refers to people as peasants???)

Which did I choose? Local, but highly-rated Bright Hope International. Based on what I saw at their site, I'll be adding them to my annual giving list.

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Look! A new Simon's Cat video:

The origin's of Simon's Cat?



Yeah. I bought myself a little Valentine gift after seeing that.
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From the British scientist who started it all:

• Data for vital 'hockey stick graph' has gone missing
• There has been no global warming since 1995
• Warming periods have happened before - but NOT due to man-made changes

Now let's wait and see how long it takes for Big Media here in the States to pick up on this.

Drive-Bys

Quote of the Day:

I imagine right now Satan’s imps are trying to start a snowplow…

Heh.
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For all those people who are being inconvenienced by CTA bus and el service cuts, remember this:

Free rides for senior citizens and other categories of riders account for a big source of lost revenue -- more than $60 million a year, officials said. The CTA provided 68 million free rides in the first 11 months of 2009, said Karen Walker, CTA chief financial officer. That's an increase of 16.8 million free rides compared with the same period in 2008, she said.

I have no problem issuing free cards where there's a genuine need, but many seniors in the Chicago area can well afford to pay their own way. This is just one more of those cases where Governor Quinn's largesse makes no financial sense whatsoever.

Yeah, yeah -- Blago started it. Quinn, however, could have and should have put an end to that program. He just can't bring himself to do it.
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Man, this sounds like a great leap forward in dental care. When can we get this here in the U.S., please?
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Hmmmm.... why does this post on 44 extreme snacks make me think of Elisson?
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Steve Dale would like to remind cat lovers everywhere that a good way to open your heart for Valentine's Day is to support the Winn Feline Foundation's Ricky Fund for feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy research.

I know that this is a subject near and dear to Steve's heart, as I was Ricky's breeder. Steve has been a dear friend, and is a great champion for this common and often fatal form of feline heart disease.

If you can, go here and drop a buck or two.
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Giggle of the Day:


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As a very early birthday gift to me, The Plumcake posts the recipe for one of my favorite sneak-up-and-bite-you-in-the-butt (because it tastes good and you just can't taste how strong it is) cocktails. You guess the month. And it's no wonder I have a girl-crush on her!

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If you read no other article from the New York Times this year, read this one about the Jihadist Next Door. Positively terrifying!

(Swiped from leeann, who usually writes the funny, but not this time.)

Quick Stop

At the end of an insanely busy day today, this could be me:


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Oddly, I was already planning on wearing red tomorrow, and it had nothing to do with this:

Tomorrow is National Wear Red Day. Thousands of Americans will be wearing red to draw attention to this startling fact: Over 430,000 women are silenced each year by cardiovascular disease – and most of these deaths are preventable. I’m writing because I hope you’ll wear something red tomorrow to honor those women – and that you’ll help fund the research and programs that can save them. Today, we’re launching a Go Red & Give campaign. One week, one goal: $100,000 to keep our sisters, mothers, daughters and wives safe. Give a gift today and support our education, outreach and research programs to help save women’s lives. Your donation could help keep someone you love safe from the #1 killer disease in the U.S.

Nearly every minute, another woman succumbs to cardiovascular disease. The American Heart Association is fighting back, and we need your help. Wear red tomorrow – and donate today to help save women’s lives. Our goal: $100,000 by next Friday.

Big or small, your gift can help put information in the hands of more women – information that can save a life, like how to eat better, how to recognize the warning signs of heart attack, and how to talk to a doctor about critical health choices. The American Heart Association is also a major funder of breakthrough research with $44 million invested in women-centered research in just the past five years. But we can only save lives with your help. Please donate what you can. Every dollar will help us reach our $100,000 goal by midnight February 12th. Thank you for showing your support tomorrow by participating in National Wear Red Day – and thank you for your generosity.

Sincerely, Nancy Brown Chief Executive Officer American Heart Association

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Sunday Schedule

From Politico:

A tactic that would have seemed far-fetched a year ago, when the new president was sworn in with a 67 percent job approval rating, is now emerging as a key component of the GOP strategy: Tie Democratic opponents to Obama and make them answer for some of the unpopular policies associated with the chief executive.

The GOP has a lot to answer for, too, in creating our current financial mess and far too large federal government, so I would encourage them to listen carefully to what the public is saying and act on it now. Counting on my vote by simply being the opposition to the current administration ain't going to cut it in this election or the next. (Update: I'm not the only one who thinks this way, either!)

I really HATE attack ads, and I'm far more interested in what any candidate, Dem, GOP, Green or Lib, will do for his/her constituency.

I'm done with voting for the least harmful candidate. Give me a candidate with a clear slate of beliefs and objectives I can (mostly) agree with and a positive message, and that's who I'm voting for.

Because of this, I'll be voting in the Illinois Republican primary this year, even though I'm an independent. I really like Adam Andrzejewski for Governor, Jason Plummer for Lt. Governor, Judy Barr Topinka for Comptroller, Roger Keats for Cook County Board President, Mark Kirk for Senate (with Patrick Hughes as a strong second choice) and Joel Barry Pollack for 9th Congressional District. (If I could "cross the aisle" on this ballot, I'd be voting for Tom Dart for Cook County Sheriff. The man rocks.)

Still don't know which candidates speak most closely to your own politics? Go here, and read about them all in their own words.

If you don't vote, you can't bitch later. Educate yourself and then get yourself out on Tuesday, okay?

Update: Nice to see that Rush is getting on the bus. (Although I'm not sure if that's a help or a hindrance.)

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Swiped from my Barstool Blog Son, the funniest SNL skit I've seen in a long, long time:

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Governor Quinn makes a funny:

Defending his handling of the state’s deficit-plagued budget, Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn said today he’s “cut all the frills” out of state government but more tax money is needed to fund essential services.

Yeah, sure, right.

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Still want to donate for Haitian relief, but haven't figured out the best way to do it? You might consider this:

On Thursday morning, Munsen and his workers from Elburn's Sun Ovens International joined with the volunteer organization Feed My Starving Children in mounting a major relief effort for Haiti.

In Thursday's deep cold, they worked together at FMSC's Chicago-area headquarters on Aurora's far East Side, loading 270,000 meals and 121 solar-powered ovens destined for the earthquake-devastated island nation. The ovens, Munsen said, also could provide long-term aid for undernourished citizens there.

"Right now, each oven we get into Haiti is going to save lives," Munsen said.

The ovens come in two types. One is a large "Villager" oven, which Munsen said can make 1,200 meals a day. The other 120 are "Family" oven units, each capable of preparing meals daily for a family of eight.

That's not short-term help; it's long-term. Donations can be sent to Friends of Haiti Organization, P.O. Box 222, Holland, OH 43528. Those wishing to contribute to Feed My Starving Children may contact the group's Web site, www.fmsc.org.

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PSA

The Anchoress has a long list of great agencies if you're looking to donate towards earthquake relief in Haiti.

If you'd rather take a longer view and donate not only for immediate relief, but towards future rebuilding efforts, go here.

Whichever you choose, if your company has pledged matching funds, be sure and ask if those matching funds are on top of funds set annually, or if they come out of those regular funds. Local agencies are already hurting, and I'd hate to see funds diverted from services that are badly needed here, too.

Ultimately, you have to do what you feel is right, but an educated choice will do more good than an impulsive one.

Cash Box

Instapundit, Sisu and my political blog crush William A. Jacobson have all jumped on the Scott Brown bandwagon. Me, too!

Join the Money Bomb here. Even $5 helps.

If Massachusetts can vote in a fiscal conservative, any state can!

Don't think it'll happen?

The response continues to be overwhelmingly positive from the phone calls. I was told the response rate, which they track, and I can tell you that based on what I heard, I have every reason to believe that Rasmussen and PPP have a good understanding of how independents are breaking. Of course, I don't claim to have seen a representative statewide sample, but what I saw is consistent.

Anecdotally, there was a little more resistance in the heavily Democratic area, than I saw in the other town or on Saturday. But still, the overall numbers were very positive.

C'mon. MLK is not the only man who ever had a dream. Help Scott get to the $1 million mark. It's not that far away!

(And although I live in Illinois, I was born in Bean Town.)

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Oh, the (in)humanity! Where's Oliver Stone when you need him?