Leslie's Omnibus

U-Turn

I got on the train at Ogilvey Transportation center, headed for home. I was reading Mercury Falls* until Clyborn, at which point I made my first mistake, and thought, "I'll just rest my eyes* for a minute."

Next thing I heard was the dulcet tones of the canned voice saying, "Next stop, Norwood Park."

Oh, good. Norwood Park, Edison Park, Park Ridge, Dee Road, Des Plaines.

Snooze.

"Next stop, Fox River Grove."

Oh, fuuuuhhh-- oops.

One cup of cold coffee flavored with vile French vanilla creamer and a bag of even viler Jay's Cheeze Wheels later, I was headed in the opposite direction... with Batman sitting in the seat across the aisle from me, entertaining a couple of Valley Girls.

Oh, right. It's Halloween week.

Robert Kroese would see the synchronicity... and cackle with glee.

Off to bed...
_____

*A ripping good read so far!
Leslie

Whiplash

anti and pro-gay protesters
see more Political Pictures

I giggled myself silly.
Leslie

Pub Crawl

Where were we? Oh, yeah... Darkey Kelly's and The Ha'Penny Bridge Inn in Dublin, The Danny Mann in Killarney, O'Connor's Traditional Pub in Killarney and An Pucan in Galway.

Next stop, Richardson's Pub in Galway. The first song, Come Out Ye Black and Tans, is sung in every bar, pub and trad session across Ireland:
words by Dominic Behan, music traditional

I was born on a Dublin street where the Royal drums do beat
And the loving English feet they tramped all over us,
And each and every night when me father'd come home tight
He'd invite the neighbors outside with this chorus:

Oh, come out you black and tans,
Come out and fight me like a man
Show your wives how you won medals down in Flanders
Tell them how the IRA made you run like hell away,
From the green and lovely lanes in Killashandra.

Come let me hear you tell
How you slammed the great Pernell,
When you fought them well and truly persecuted,
Where are the smears and jeers
That you bravely let us hear
When our heroes of sixteen were executed.

Come tell us how you slew
Those brave Arabs two by two
Like the Zulus they had spears and bows and arrows,
How you bravely slew each one
With your sixteen pounder gun
And you frightened them poor natives to their marrow.

The day is coming fast
And the time is here at last,
When each yeoman will be cast aside before us,
And if there be a need
Sure my kids will sing, "Godspeed!"
With a verse or two of Steven Beehan's chorus.
The second song, Red is the Rose, is a gorgeous love song:
Chorus
Red is the rose that in yonder garden grows
Fair is the lily of the valley
Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne
But my love is fairer than any.
Come over the hills, my bonnie Irish lass
Come over the hills to your darling
You choose the rose, love, and I'll make the vow
And I'll be your true love forever.

'Twas down by Killarney's green woods that we strayed
When the moon and the stars they were shining
The moon shone its rays on her locks of golden hair
And she swore she'd be my love forever.

Chorus

It's not for the parting that my sister pains
It's not for the grief of my mother
'Tis all for the loss of my bonny Irish lass
That my heart is breaking forever.

Chorus
_____

Trying to cut through the accents to hear enough of a snippet of each of these to locate the lyrics, I felt a bit like Whoopi Goldberg in this movie in scene where she tries to figure out the lyrics to "Jumpin' Jack Flash":



Yes, it's a stupid movie. Yes, it ALWAYS makes me laugh.
Leslie

The Zonker Dialogues

Jawja Blown-eyed Blodger Zonker used to have a blog, and is still active in blogmeets and the like... but I haven't seen or heard from him in a while. (Okay, he occasionally pops up over at T1G's joint, but other than that, I've had to depend on others to let me know he's still among the living, and still his sassy own self.)

Until yesterday, when I was so strongly reminded of Z-Man that the following email correspondence ensued:
Me: I thought of you this morning when I spotted not only the shortest dwarf I've ever seen (a female, under 3' tall), but also a midget who was Indian. At first I thought it was a 9 or 10 year old kid, until I saw his luxuriant black mustache and crows feet!

Both of them were headed into the old Mercantile Exchange building (2 S. Wacker Dr.) right across from my office building.

Bizarre.

Z: I'm touched that you thought of me. Sort of...

;)

Me: I almost chased the little guy in your honor...

Z: From experience, I assure you...they are remarkably fast. Plus there's the question of what to do in the event that you actually catch one.

Me: I figured I'd FedEx him to you and let YOU figure it out...

Z: Tsk, tsk. Attach a radio collar and release it back into the wild. After all, we want to show our love for all of Mother Earth's creatures...



ps - I think my favorite part is the Bobcat Goldthwaite-like character that appears around 0:25. TFF.

Me: Ooo! Like Hatchlings on Facebook! I can do that... And I'll watch out for Bobcat Goldthwaite lookalikes.

Smooches!
I can guarantee you he's the only person in the world I could have that particular conversation with!
______

Update:
Z: Hatchlings on Facebook? Geez, I am completely out of touch with FB at this point.

And it's not a Goldthwaite-lookalike...not exactly. More like a Goldthwaite-soundalike. Scary!

Me: Hatchlings is just another one of those games that's designed to hook anyone who's even slightly OCD into obsessively combing through Facebook for new eggs to hatch and for ones you already have to feed the critters that hatch. It's kind of like the high school parenting class where you have to haul a sack of flour around with you everywhere and pretend it's your baby, multiplied to the nth power. Large guilt pangs when you don't feed them and they "run away". After trying to keep about 50 of them fed while still looking for new ones, I had an epiphany: it's as unnatural to try and keep one of those online critters as a pet as it would be to breast feed a wolverine, and I happily released them all...
Leslie

Bus Fumes

Audrey Bethel is a far more forgiving woman than I would be.

First her mother invades the privacy of her adult daughter not once, but twice.

Then she promises herself she'll never breach her daughter's privacy like that again.

Then she confesses her breach of trust to her daughter, who forgives her.

THEN, she decides she needs to deal with her own angst, derived from breaching her daughter's privacy, and write a long article about the whole thing, including intimate details of her daughter's health scare, show it to her editor, who wanted to publish it... and then asked her daughter if that would be okay.

Call me crazy, but Joyce Maynard is a narcissistic bitch who doesn't deserve her kid's forgiveness over this. Unfortunately, HIPPA doesn't cover a family member with a big mouth and no moral compass.
Leslie

Drive-Bys

Ear Worm of the Day:



My "No. 1 Son" at work used to sit in the cube next to me and play this song over and over again. For a while there it was iffy as to whether or not one day I'd crack and go over the top of the cube after him if he played that song just one damned more time. But No. 1 Son is now "Dr. Rudy" and has gone from the world of cubicles for several years, and I can now listen to this song, and smile when I do, with great fondness.
_____

How much did cash for clunkers really cost us? How about $24,000 per vehicle instead of the the $4,000 the government told us it cost.

Still feeling good about that?
_____

Chicago logic: We have a vastly understaffed police force in Chicago that's gone without a contract or a raise in over two years, so what do our alderman and mayor want to do about it? Discuss making each and every peace officer and fireman in the city take 25 furlough days!

The aldermen are making big loud noises about seriously limiting raises for the boys and girls in blue.

Given the number of school shootings, muggings and other crime problems we've recently been experiencing here, especially in the face of the recession, it's no wonder SCC has declared war.

The only way the aldermen and Mayor Shortshanks could be more stupid is to not only enforce the furlow days, but to announce to the local networks when those furlows will take place. And because this is Chicago, that's a distinct probability.
_____

And speaking of our brilliant aldermen, it seems the light bulb just went off above their collective pointy heads:
“We’re selling our future. . . . We’ve heard a lot of promises about how we’re gonna put this back. I just don’t believe it.”
Dude! If you don't believe it, just how do you think the tax-paying public feels?
_____

I'm glad to see that our legislature is considering taking away the free Metra passes for seniors who can afford to buy their own. I was against giving this perk when Governor Give-Away forced this on the RTA in the first place, and I'm against it now.
_____

Nah. Her firing had nothing do to with the lawsuit.

Right.

Smooth move, guys.
_____

Are dollars tight for buying holiday gifts this year? Even if the answer is "no," you might want to check out this article, which lists tons of ways to get discounts and save money.
_____

Giggle of the Day -- It's a Two-Fer:

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

... and...

cute pictures of puppies with captions
see more dog and puppy pictures
_____

Update: And you thought people with itty bitty dogs they speak to in baby talk were nuts? Ummmm, think again. (And I wouldn't have asked that from a paid pet sitter, let alone a good friend. That takes crazy to a whole new level.)
_____

One more reason I have a blog-crush on William A. Jacobson.
_____

If this headline doesn't tell you everything you need to know about Pelosi, nothing does.
_____

Quote of the Day:
Too right.

And, by the way, the total cost of that health care plan is approximately the cost of our 1982 national debt. Chew on that for a while.
Leslie

Rubber-Necking

I hadn't heard a word about this moving until I got the pointer from Ken Lammers, but "Despicable Me" looks like it'll be hilarious:

Leslie

Drive-Bys

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahaha! This is the guy that Obama's sending his health czar to court???

Excuse me. I have pick myself up off the floor and wipe the tears of laughter from my eyes. And the side of my hand hurts from where I was pounding it on the ground during that exquisite giggle fest.

Ahem.
_____

Here's even more hair-raising news on the problem with over-use of anti-psychotics in nursing homes in Illinois.

I'm telling you, you need to deal with issues like this now and in writing. Make sure whoever holds your healthcare power of attorney has a copy on file. This is scary, scary stuff.
_____

What does all this messing around with healthcare in Washington have to show for itself so far? Oh... just this. I suspect we'll see a lot more news items just like that in the near future. Grrr.
_____

Got pumpkins on display for Halloween? Here's a way to discourage the local rodent population from eating them.
_____

Bacon reaches new heights of popularity? That's just as it should be.
_____
Leslie

Between Pub Crawls

Just so you know I was thinking of you when we were in Galway, here's a quick video of the 360-degree view from O'Brien's Tower at the Cliffs of Mohr.



And later in the evening, we ran across this bizarre bit of street performance smack in the middle of Galway's gauntlet of pubs for tourists.



(That's Judy on the left and Mr. Bill on the right of that most colorful actress.)

What's it mean? I haven't got a clue, but it was really beautiful in its own way.
Leslie

Pub Crawl

Here we go again... Darkey Kelly's and The Ha'Penny Bridge Inn in Dublin, The Danny Mann in Killarney and O'Connor's Traditional Pub in Killarney. Now... on to see The Scattering at An Pucan in Galway:

Our friend Judy particularly liked these guys, and has been waiting for days for me to post this. Hope this doesn't disappoint her... or you!





Here are the lyrics to "The Good Ship Kangaroo"

Once I was a waitin' man that lived at home at ease.
Now I am a mariner that ploughs the angry seas.
I always loved seafarin' life, I bid my love adieu
I shipped as steward and cook, me boys, on board the Kangaroo.

chorus: Oh I never thought she would prove false or either prove untrue
As we sailed away through Milford Bay on board the Kangaroo

`Think of me, oh think of me,` she mournfully did say,
`When you are in a foreign land and I am far away.
Take this lucky tuppenny bit, it'll make you bear in mind
That lovin' trustin' faithful heart you left in tears behind.`

`Cheer Up, cheer up, my own true love. Don?t weep so bitterly,`
She sobbed, she sighed, she choked, she cried and could not say goodbye
`I won't be gone for very long, 'tis but a month or two.
When I will return again of course I'll visit you.`
Our ship it was homeward bound from many's the foreign shore
And many's the foreign present unto me love I bore.
I brought tortoises from Tenerife and toys from Timbuktu
A china rat, a Bengal cat and a Bombay cockatoo.

Paid off I sought her dwellin' on a street above the town
Where an ancient dame upon the line was hangin' out her gown.
`Where is me love? ` `She's vanished, sir, six months ago
With a smart young man that drives the van for Chaplin, Son and Co.

Here's a health to dreams of married life, to soap suds and blue,
Heart's true love and patent starch and washin' soda too.
I'll go unto some foreign shore, no longer can I stay
And with some China hottentot I'll throw meself away.

Me love she is no foolish girl, her age it is two score
Me love she is no spinster, she's been married twice before.
I cannot say it was her wealth that stole me heart away;
She's a washer in a laundry for one and nine a day
Leslie

Drive-Bys

Giggle Fest:

From my dear Allen, this old but hysterical post:
“When I wass young I lissen to dah radio,
Waitin Foe mah favree song…..
When dey play I sing along
It make me smile

EvLeee Shah Lah Lah Lah, Evvv Leee Woa Woa Woa,
Still shiiiine,
Evv Lee Sheen a Leen a Leen, Dat dey Stahting to Siiing
So Fiiiiiine,
When dey get to dah Paaaht where he breakin’ her haaaht.
Eee can rearry make you cry…
Juss like Befooooe, Is Yessuhday One Mohhhhh. (Zhoo Bee Doo Woe Woe)
I giggled myself teary-eyed.

Then I ran across this hilarious tale, and decided to tee it up as a belated birthday gift for Eric.

And in the news, this article caused me to fall off my chair cackling with glee.

In the "kids say the darnedest things" category, Maggie Koerth-Baker is looking for your toddler's science questions. Be sure to scroll down through the comments -- they're priceless.
_____

Just so you know, I'm not typical:
When it comes the arena of ideas, the women who blog are not typical women. Over and over, the women who blog are tougher. Like the shotgun wielding Western expansionists of yore, women bloggers take shots and can shoot back.
Yup. I'm the Annie Oakley of the intarwebs.
_____

In a world where jobs are scarce and loads of people would love to have one, you'd think the Chicago Streets & San guys would be smarter... but... nope:
Chicago's Streets and Sanitation commissioner is cracking the whip to reduce absenteeism that sidelines nearly one-third of all laborers every day. [Emphasis mine]
Seriously, what took so long for the crack-down? And why aren't the commissioners of public works group on the city payroll doing the same thing?
_____

In the continuing horrifying saga of atrocities in Illinois nursing homes:
Frail and vulnerable residents of nursing homes throughout Illinois are being dosed with powerful psychotropic drugs, leading to tremors, dangerous lethargy and a higher risk of harmful falls or even death, a Tribune investigation has found.

Thousands of elderly and disabled people have been affected, many of them drugged without their consent or without a legitimate psychiatric diagnosis that would justify treatment, state and federal inspection reports show.
Go read the whole darned thing. Maybe this hits way too close to home because I lost my mom not too long ago. Or maybe because I'm not getting any younger and that could be me some time in the not so distant future.

I'd definitely put this under the heading of things to discuss with your primary care physician and your family long before you ever consider the nursing home option. Be sure your wishes regarding psychotropic drugs are explicitly understood, in writing, all the way around.
_____

Property taxes are going up by a whopping 46.4% in Garfield Park, Illinois.

There.

Don't you feel better about your measly property tax increase now?
_____

The scariest thing I read in the news today?
U.S. official resigns over Afghan war
Foreign Service officer and former Marine captain says he no longer knows why his nation is fighting
There's nothing that disgusts me more than the fact that President Pantywaist has brought us to this.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Chimpy McBushhitler Halliburton got us into this. It's all his fault! Blah dee blah, blah, blah.

We were already there when he came into office, Dude. I want him to deal with what is, instead of pointing fingers in a backward direction. Fat lot of good that does to fix the situation.

Our young men and women are dying right now at a higher rate than at any time during the war in Afghanistan.

For cripes sake -- do something other than dither. Send them the help they need or toss in the towel and bring them home -- and do it, like, yesterday. Our troops deserve far, far better than this.
_____

Finally, a politician who tells it like it really is:

Frank: "We Are Trying On Every Front To Increase The Role Of Government"

Told you so. And if that doesn't scare you, something is really, really wrong with you.
_____

Ah! Now I understand. Polanski actually put the spotlight on himself about a year ago. No wonder the State of California went after him. He might as well have kicked a sleeping, but ornery bull and then waived a red flag at it.

Stupid ass.
_____

Sheesh. Now I need a chaser of funny...

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
Leslie

Whoa, Nelly!

This is a first. I've been so busy working on the cookbook that I haven't picked up a book since Friday.

I didn't even throw a book or magazine in my bag this morning.

I am a sick, sick woman.

Leslie

Pub Crawl

So... Darkey Kelly's and The Ha'Penny Bridge Inn in Dublin, The Danny Mann in Killarney... what's next?

An unusual trad session at O'Conner's Pub in Killarney. It's small. It's darker than dark inside. The musicians were a bunch of kids sharing a single microphone and calling themselves "Train Wreck." Why unusual? Well, they play not only traditional Irish music, but also some kick-ass blue grass. But see for yourself:





We heard guitar, mandolin, recorder, penny whistle, accordian and string bass, along with excellent vocals. I wish I'd been able to film the last song of the night, as the kids all stood up on the seats of their stools, including the guy with the huge honking bass, and played their hearts out!

(And that's Rasher on the accordian. He made very sure to ask for full credit. Heh!)
Leslie

Drive-Bys

funny pictures of dogs with captions
see more dog and puppy pictures

Yep.
_____

Amazon.com is holding a contest to win a free Kindle. Christmas is coming. Go update or create a wish list!
_____

I saw this:

engrish funny red hood
see more Engrish

... and thought of this guy. Can't imagine why...
_____

If the crappy weather's got you down, go here for a little bit of cheer, put together by a filmophile with a great sense of humor and too much time on his hands!

(Swiped from Erica, who needs to get off facebook and drop some pearls in her blog every once in a while, dammit!)
Leslie

Quick Stop

After a day of really crappy weather, this little video, swiped from an old camp buddy, put a big-ass grin on my face:


Yes. I was bopping in my seat and singing along like a dork.
Leslie

Oooh! Shiny!

I have once again bitten off a project that is much more complicated than I ever imagined it would turn out to be. I've been transcribing selected recipes from my mom's THREE ginormous recipe boxes for my sister and sister-in-law. But they left out too much good stuff. And going, recipe by recipe, through the boxes, it's brought back a ton of memories.

Thus... a cookbook is in the works, tentatively titled:

From the Recipe Box(es)of Barbara Ann Jones Morlock
Transcribed, Translated, Annotated and Greatly Appreciated
by Leslie Meredith Morlock Spiller,
Who Learned Everything She Needed to Know
About Life and Cooking
From Her Mom
(Who Knew Everything About Everything,
And Reminded Her of the Same Frequently)

I'm already 50 pages into the bugger, and am only 2/3 of the way through the first recipe box. I'm thinking this will be a Christmas gift for everyone in my family. And I might offer it to friends for free if they make a $10 donation to their favorite charity first.

Here's a little excerpt from the Forward (as it stands at the moment; it's subject to change):
"Mom’s cooking was a product of the convenience era, and she favored comfort food. If a main dish didn’t have at least one of the following, it probably wasn’t worth making: real butter, cheese, bacon, sausage, kielbasa, sour cream, mushrooms, cream of mushroom, chicken and/or celery soup, mayonnaise, Lipton’s Onion Soup mix and Pepperidge Farm herbed stuffing mix, with bonus points for any combination of the foregoing. That is to say, if you’re counting calories or cholesterol, put this book down and walk away now. If you want to toss caloric caution to the wind, I guarantee you’ll find good stuff here."
Whaddaya think?
_____

On the heels of all this, I swiped this little excerpt from Wife Swap from my ex-sister-in-law:


A kid after my own heart!
Leslie

Rubber-Necking

From Texts from Last Night:
(832): it doesn't count as moral degradation if you win the strip off -right?
*Bou blink*
_____

Hilarious reddit stream of unusual quotes from little kids, including this gem:
My daughter was learning to speak around age 1. She was hungry and was pointing at her highchair; I told her to say highchair. She looked at me then looked at the chair with a puzzled look on her face. Again I told her "Say highchair" with an even more puzzled look she looks at the chair lifts her hand and waves and says "Hi Chair!" ... it was a good laugh.
_____

Happy weekend!
Leslie

Quick Stop

Your next stop on this little Irish pub crawl is The Danny Mann Inn in Killarney.

Tim O'Riordan and Diarmuid Grainger of Natural Gas are incredibly talented and put on a great show.

I chose this particular piece to film because Tim rocks the house with an unusual instrument -- the bodhrán. Why unusual when you see a lot of them in trad sessions and they're sold in every gift shop across Ireland as children's toys? Well... just like the penny whistle, it's simple to learn to play simple music on them. And, just like the penny whistle, it's possible to raise the difficulty and quality of the music played if the musician is really talented.

Just ask Wes, bodhrán players catch a lot of grief, and are not looked upon kindly by other trad musicians... until you find one that's great. That's Tim:



Tim is at the Danny Mann every Monday night, and he is frequently joined by at least one other member of Natural Gas. (On my last visit he was accompanied by fiddler Vince Morrison. Diarmuid this time added pipes, penny whistle and vocals. Pretty freakin' awesome!) It's on my personal "must see" list for Killarney night life.

Hope you enjoy!
Leslie

Drive-Bys

For my buddy Nancy, whose roses are fading, these images from Tralee Town Park, home of the Rose of Tralee Festival:

The Rose herself.



Yes, they really were that lovely in October!
_____

Boy, I wish I'd seen these illuminated balloons while I was in Ireland, as I'd have brought some home for my nieces. How utterly cool!
_____

See, this guy made his serious mistake when he crafted his motorized La-Z-Boy lounge chair. If he'd talked to me first, he'd have insisted on cruise control. And he'd have never made the second mistake... which led to a DWI. Sheesh.
_____

The Chicago Tribune features some "lost" recipes, at least three of which are going straight to my recipe box (and, oddly, none of them feature bacon). Yummy, yummy stuff!
_____



He really doesn't realize or care how smug and small-minded this makes him look, does he? (And, really, doesn't he wish that, at a minimum, Joe Biden was that way, too?)
_____

Giggle of the Day:
Code Brown
Go ahead. I dare you not to laugh out loud. (My receptionist heard me shrieking with giggles from the other side of the office. So there.)
_____
Leslie

Quick Stop

I loved almost all of the music we heard in Ireland, but this song by The Corries, heard at the Ha'Penny Bridge Inn in Dublin, has been lilting through my head ever since I got back. Hope you like it as much as I do!



Wild Mountain Thyme

O the summer time has come
And the trees are sweetly bloomin'
And the wild mountain thyme
Grows around the bloomin' heather
Will ye go
lassie
go?

Chorus:
And we'll all go together
To pull wild mountain thyme
All around the bloomin' heather
Will ye go
lassie
go?

I will build my love a bower (summerhouse)
By yon cool crystal fountain
And round it I will pile
All the wild flowers o' the mountain
Will ye go
lassie
go?

(chorus)

I will range through the wilds
And the deep glen sae dreamy
And return wi' their spoils
Tae the bower o' my dearie
Will ye go
lassie
go?

(chorus)

If my true love she'll not come
Then I'll surely find another
To pull wild mountain thyme
All around the bloomin' heather
Will ye go
lassie
go?

(chorus)
Leslie

Knock, Knock, Knock!

Is this thing on?

Sheesh, it's been a while, but the trip to Ireland was crazy fun, and we ran our legs off from breakfast to closing time every night. Mr. Bill and the Lovely Miss Judy were fabulous traveling companions. Here's a little sampling of the music we heard, starting with our favorite hang-out in Dublin, Darkey Kelly's Bar:



... and...



Slàinte!
Leslie

Waives Hello!

Just a quick update from Killarney -- we've had a wonderful trip so far. Dublin was a lot of fun, and Killarney is a hoot. The weather has been gorgeous -- in the 60's and mostly sunshine. Just a bit of "soft" weather. Uploading photos takes forever, so I've posted some to Facebook, and will upload here when I get home. Off to Tralee tonight, Galway Thursday and Friday, then back to Dublin Saturday. Home on Sunday. See you then!
Leslie

Pub Stop

JihadGene says, "It's Friday! Let's Dance!" I hope to be dancing to this by tomorrow night!



Off to do laundry and pack!
Leslie

Moving Violation

I love Dax Montana, but I think he's dead wrong about Roman Polanski.

He's certainly called bullshit on one of the big dogs of blogging, but it seems he can't take the heat when it's turned up on his own freakin' kitchen.

I asked a simple question -- "If it was your thirteen year old daughter, would it be 'rape-rape'" And my comment has been deleted. Elisson has called bullshit on every other level, and his comments still stand. But the real question on whether it's okay if it's someone else's kid, or if it's YOUR kid still stand.

You can delete my comment, but you can't delete my own blog post asking the question, dude.

Hoosierboy is absolutely dead on. A pervert is a pervert. And the bastard RAN from facing the consequences of his actions. Justice is overdue.
Leslie

Drive-Bys

Ear Worm of the Day:



Yep. Tired of yucky, rainy weather.
_____

Be kind to our feathered friends during migration season. I found this especially freaky:
What matters most in autumn is fueling the long flight or, if you're a snow bird, bulking up. Unlike humans, who slow down when running out of gas, a bird whose tank is emptied simply drops from the sky.

"The wings just stop," says Tim Joyce, a birdscaper and longtime birder who runs the Wild Birds Unlimited shop in Glenview. "They're fish food at that point." Thus, what you put in your backyard diner just might matter to a long-distance hauler.

Now you know.
_____

Refurbished Kindles? That's pretty tempting... but I think the price will come down more yet.
_____

Giggle of the Day:

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

For Miles and Sammy, who'll know why.
_____

Ack! I leave tomorrow for Ireland and I'm not ready! (Dublin, Killarney, Tralee and Galway this trip.) I need a maid. And a laundress. And a chef. And a bartender. Especially that last one.
Leslie

Rubber-Necking

Giggle of the Day:

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Just heard a hysterical song that the Elderly Brothers must learn before the next blogmeet. Here you go, guys:



Oops.

Let the giggles begin.

(And a tip of the cap to The Bride!)
Leslie

Drive-Bys

Sorry it's been quiet here on the bus for the last few days. A birthday party for a special four-year-old and jury duty have combined to make me a busy, busy girl.

Ah, jury duty! It's a good thing they agreed to a panel of 12 before they got to me, as every question every other juror answered "no" to, I answered "yes" in my head. It got to the point where I could sincerely imagine counsel for the plaintiffs and defendants Indian leg wrestling to decide who got the privilege of using their peremptory challenge first.

Ah, well... it would have amused his Honor, who had a wonderful sense of humor.
_____

The CTA wants to do more cuts? I don't see how they can possibly cut services right now, as Metra and the El are busier and more crowded than I've ever seen. In fact, they should be adding cars to both.
_____

Do you know a family with a military member serving overseas? Take a tip from JihadGene and go over to Laptops for Flat Tops.

The entries will be judged by the following criteria:
  • Intensity of need as expressed in the essay
  • Immediate family member is an active member of the US military and is stationed overseas, as confirmed by their military identification number.
  • Winners will be selected from entries collected in April through May, June through July, August through September, October through November, and December through January 2010.
Contest Rules:
  • Submissions must come from a family who has an immediate family member (husband, wife, mom, dad, brother, sister, son, daughter) who is serving in the US Military in a location not in the continental United States.
  • Submissions may come on behalf of a third party who has an immediate family member (husband, wife, mom, dad, brother, sister, son, daughter) who is serving in the US Military in a location not in the continental United States.
  • Entries must be submitted through allamericandirect.com/laptop
  • All entries must be associated with a AllAmericanDirect.com registered email address
  • Entries must be associated with an "opt-in" email address
  • AllAmericanDirect.com submissions must include name, email address, phone number, and physical mailing address.
  • Families that submitted essays in previous months may resubmit a new essay each month if they are not selected
  • Submissions should be no longer than 400 words
  • Entries cannot be from an employee of or immediate family member of an employee of AllAmericanDirect.com
  • No purchase necessary to enter or win
Spread the word!
_____

Cato @ Liberty has launched a new website exposing wasteful government spending: Downsizing the Federal Government. Lots of folks I know will be adding this to their favorites!
_____

Denny makes me drool. (Heh.)
_____

I return the favor and make Denny drool.
_____

Off to Therapy Night!
Leslie

Drive-Bys

JihadGene says, "It's Friday! Let's Dance!" This week's theme word is "fire."

How 'bout a little Fire in the Belly?



(And if you're in the mood to dance, pop up a Youtube video on your site, then drop a link in Great Reader's comments. Join the party!)
_____

Anti-wi-fi paint offers security

Bastards.
_____

Quote of the Day:
"I went to the front of the house and yelled 'Death from above’ and started throwing the pool [table] balls."
(A tip of the cap to Harper. I giggled myself silly over this feisty woman's ingenuity.)
_____

So that whole Chicago being out of the running for the 2016 Olympics in the first round of voting?

The part of me that pays taxes in the Chicagoland area is greatly relieved.

The part of me that is an Olympic junkie who'd have gone to see everything from decathalon to pole vault to synchronized swimming to badminton and table tennis and everything in between is truly sorry.

I'm not blaming either of the Obamas. (Don't faint.) I'm not blaming Oprah. (No, really -- don't faint.) Mayor Shortshanks? Mebbe.

Mostly, I'm just glad Da Mair will now have to turn his attention back to Chicago and once again turn it into the City that Works.
_____

The 2009 Ig Nobel Prize winners have been announced. My favorite?
PHYSICS PRIZE: Katherine K. Whitcome of the University of Cincinnati, USA, Daniel E. Lieberman of Harvard University, USA, and Liza J. Shapiro of the University of Texas, USA, for analytically determining why pregnant women don't tip over.

REFERENCE: "Fetal Load and the Evolution of Lumbar Lordosis in Bipedal Hominins," Katherine K. Whitcome, Liza J. Shapiro & Daniel E. Lieberman, Nature, vol. 450, 1075-1078 (December 13, 2007). DOI:10.1038/nature06342.
WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Katherine Whitcome and Daniel Lieberman
Priceless.
_____

Giggle of the Day:

funny pictures of dogs with captions
see more dog and puppy pictures
_____

Happy Weekend, All!
Leslie

Quick Stop

Eight more days to blast-off for Ireland. I've been doing a lot of research, and picked up a copy of "The Rough Guide to Ireland." How rough is it? Here's a description of a Galway site:
From the Spanish Arch you can take a pleasant walk north along the north riverside path and across the Salmon Weir Bridge to the Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven and St. Nicholas. Commissioned about thirty years ago and in hideous contrast to the Collegiate College, its copper dome seeps green stains down ugly limestone walls. Inside, the horrors continue in a senseless jumble of stone, mahogany and Connemara marble. It's so remarkably awful that it demands attention, and viewed from a distance its sheer bulk does achieve a grandeur of sorts. [Italics mine.]
Yeesh. That's not rough -- that's BRUTAL. And we're so going to see it.

I'm going with two friends, and I expect to return home with sides aching for days because I've been laughing for days, a face that smarts from smiling so much, and a liver that'll follow me home a week or so later once it's gotten over the shock.
Leslie

Drive-Bys

Ear Worm of the Morning:



Yes. I bopped all the way to the train station with this in my head, it followed me onto the train, into the city, and all the way to my desk. Agh!
_____

A question for Whoopi Goldberg: If it had been your own thirteen year old daughter or one of your two granddaughters, would it still not have been "rape-rape"???

I betcha it would be.
_____

Stupid quote of the day:
"As much of a sacrifice as people say this is for me or Oprah or the president to come for these few days," the first lady told a crowd of people involved in the Chicago project, "so many of you in this room have been working for years to bring this bid home."
It shouldn't be a sacrifice, lady. It should be and is an honor and a privilege.
_____

So I saw this article about an ice cream parlor that serves up 24 scoops of ice cream in a kitchen sink and couldn't understand why the reporter thought this was new and unique. After all, Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour & Restaurant has been doing that for years. Then again, he must not be a child of the 70's, as Farrell's has been gone from the Chicagoland area for a long, long time!

Let's see a show of hands for how many of you celebrated a birthday at Farrell's complete with siren, base drum and kitchen sink!
_____

Joanie is once again offering up her gorgeous photos as a way to raise money for Boobie-Thon 2009. Make your home more beautiful and support breast cancer research and awareness at the same time.

And I'll have to haul the camera out when I get home. Gotta be supportive, you know, and it's not like I haven't done it before... Heck, I even got 'em named.
_____

Giggle of the Day:

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
_____

Ear Worm of the Rest of the Day:



Boy, my brain bounces in funny directions.
_____

Speaking of funny, Alan made me giggle uproariously:
I swear by Muhammad's child bride, I vow, I declare that I will bring you people into compliance with all safety regulations, and I will do it quickly.
The Photoshop is priceless. And this?
Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT select someone for this type of martyrdom if his rear end has been used as a Hamster Habitrail.
Slayed me! (Oops. Apparently it slayed Asiri, too.)
Leslie