Palin: inspiring chalk graffiti

Need i say more? I took this picture on Thursday as i drove to meet friends. It's on Highland just below Fountain.

I have to say i've enjoyed the Palin bashing, she makes it so easy. It is rallying the most unlikely bedfellows, er, bed-ladies? and i don't mean that sexually in the slightest. It is a comedy that on the wrapper looks like a strategic move for the Republican ticket. But then Palin opened her mouth; and reporters dug (they didn't have to dig much) and the results have me hooked.

For example, the NARAL is having a bumpersticker contest:

"There is so much wrong with the McCain-Palin ticket that we hardly know where to begin. We've been trying to come up with some ideas-- will you help us sum up what this ticket...means?"

NOW published a press release with their sentiments on VP pick Palin, titled 'Not Every Woman Supports Women's Rights.' I had to take a few snipets, 'cause they are awesome:

"Gov. Palin may be the second woman vice-presidential candidate on a major party ticket, but she is not the right woman. Sadly, she is a woman who opposes women's rights....

John McCain's choice of Alaska governor Sarah Palin as his running mate is a cynical effort to appeal to disappointed Hillary Clinton voters and get them to vote, ultimately, against their own self-interest....

Finally, as the chair of NOW's Political Action Committee, I [Kim Gandy, NOW PAC Chair] am frequently asked whether NOW supports women candidates just because they are women. This gives me an opportunity to once again answer that question with an emphatic 'No.' We recognize the importance of having women's rights supporters at every level but, like Sarah Palin, not every woman supports women's rights."

Wowsers. You've seen the interviews with her; she makes a very scary Halloween costume, my friends. One that is made even more terrifying by the reality that this could happen.

As my mother said tonight, and i'm paraphrasing:

"Well, if McCain wins, he'll have a heart attack and we're stuck with Palin. If Obama wins, white supramasists will probably shoot him, so then we have Biden. This is an election based on VP nominees."

Wow. With that said, my mother now just may vote Democrat! Not exactly the optimism that we'd like to find with the Obama campaign but if it sways Republicans... I know morbid, morbid. Meh. For now, i'll just wait & enjoy what the most masculine candidate for '08 does next. I bet it is a doozie.

anniversaries

i don't think i've really ever celebrated an anniversary of my own... i've never been the "Oh, it's been one month, or six." And i guess i have not really had the opportunity to celebrate a true milestone, 365 days, until today.

August 3rd marks my one-year anniversary with Jack. Yup, i survived --rather he survived 12 months with me.

So even though he prefers to pee on the couch or my bed when left alone for more than 5 hours and the fact that he likes to escape and will only run to strangers, we're doing alright.

Vertical vs. Horizontal Stripes

i want to help people, really i do.
You know the Jefferson Airplane song, White Rabbit:

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small

The same thing goes for stripes: Horizontal stripes make you larger.
Now, if you are a waif, this could be a good thing. But for the rest of us, looking larger isn't so desirable.

Also, not all horizontal stripes are bad. Just make sure they work before you purchase/forage out in public. Get stranger's opinions, and believe them. Stay away from stretchy, tight stripes that wrap around, uh, the more bulbous parts of your body.

The other thing about horizontal stripes is that they can make one dizzy, if they must stare at you. Again, if you want the attention, go to young gal/lad.

Vertical stripes make you longer, leaner. They are happy stripes on all shapes and sizes. A standard in happy men's button-down shirts, for example.

So please, choose your stripes carefully. Thanks.

so it happened sooner...than later

So as you might have gleaned, i'm riding my bike to work, whoo-hoo. Last week was my first full week, awesome. Everything was beautiful, until Friday morning:

Now you know these parking arm thingies like the one above, right? well, there is one at the top of the driveway into work. There is also a bike entrance, but on Friday morning a big 'ol truck was blocking bike access. The only way in was under The Arm.

So i was on the right flank of a vehicle, thinking i'd just pop in with the maroon honda. WRONG. Instead The Arm came down, like swift justice. i glimpsed it just before it dropped upon me, glancing off my left jaw, neck and collar bone. Amazingly, i kept my balance on my bike and was able to fling The Arm over my head. i did a sweep of the grounds and although there were plenty of people around, i worked with none of them, whew.

Also lucky was that the press-wood arm was cushioned a bit, by one of those water noodle toys kids play with in the pool. It seemed that a water noodle had been sliced down the middle and half used to hug the bottom portion of The Arm. Thank goodness for water noodles.

So i park my bike, laughing at my stupidity (isn't it usually our own stupidity that get us into trouble? YA.) and go to start my day. Now at this point i was unsure if i wanted to reveal to the masses about my attack with The Arm, but then something made it necessary to share: as the very edge of The Arm had scraped me, it now looked like i had a hickey at the base of my neck (i wish).

So i told the story umpteen times at work, taking on a romantic air as if The Arm was my futile enemy that attempted to unseat me from my creamsicle bicycle, ha! as if. It seemed better to make fun of myself to all than to welcome speculation if my 'scar' was the result of wrestling a vacum cleaner....

So there you have it, my first bike riding incident. Not too bad. Hopefully the only one for a long time to come, as this hickey does not seem to be going away anytime soon. Thanks.