Rest needed

This is one busy week. This whole month has been busy, with the camping, Napa Valley trip, sailing, etc. Almost every non-working, non-sleeping period of time has been spent doing something or being with one friend or another in one way or another. It’s been great, but I’m going need a break. I’m just going to hibernate this weekend, I think. Maybe go for a drive somewhere. No wait, that’s doing something LOL.

Today is a strange day

Something wonderful happened today. Can't go into details.

Review of Chateau Hotel, Napa, CA

El Sh*t-toe is the term I overheard another guess use to describe the Chateau Hotel. It fits. The hotel looks good at first glance when you arrive, but in fact it is not well maintained. The rooms are old, outdated and not maintained. The dresser had one handle missing. The bathrooms were extremely simple. The beds mattresses squeaked loudly. The pillows were worn out. The bedspreads looked as though they had been in the room since the hotel was first built, decades ago. The A/C unit was horribly inadequate, and again looked to be as old as the hotel, yet added on as an after thought years later. The hot tub was a mess and its jets did not work in any useful manner. The carpets are dirty and old. The hallways where not cooled. The vending machines where out of stock for three days straight on the weekend during a busy season. The T.V. was small, appeared to be decades old, and buzzed very loudly every time a bright light was in the background of the T.V. show. The T.V. only had local channels and HBO, with no movie selections. The hotel is farther from Napa’s downtown area than suggested in the hotel’s description. On the plus side, they had a working ice machine. Oh, the staff was courteous, but seemed fully aware of the hotels issues.
Even at my discounted rate, the hotel is way way over priced. However, you couldn’t lower the price far enough to convince me to stay there again. In Napa Valley, I’ve spent much less on a room and received better, newer rooms and more services.

Napa Valley

Man, it was beautiful there this weekend. The weather was hot and clear. The only downside was the hotel. More like a glorified motel. Anyways, it was a lot of fun. Went to V.Sottui, Berenger, Copola, etc. Don't ask me to spell them right. LOL They are all on highway 29. Also, had a great lunch on Saturday at Fumé. Came back with prolly more wine than needed for the year to come. LOL

"Continue on 29"

::Driving on the highway up to Napa Valley from the Bay Area::
Miriam is driving her hot red Mustang, and I'm navigating. After we get past the bridge over the delta waterway on highway 80, our Mapquest instructions tell us to take the highway 37 exit, but we know we need to be on highway 29. She's not trusting my navigating skills (based on experience and the Mapquest map) so decides to hit the earlier 29 exit. She cuts across the whole freeway and just manages to get on the exit by the graces of a fellow traveller who waved us in. Now, 29 goes thru a city called Vallejo. It's been said that Vallejo is the armpit of California. On the plus side, we are on highway 29, so the route is easy to follow. Umm, well, not quite. As anyone who knows 29 in Vallejo, there is one confusing 5-way intersection. She hits that intersection and instinctively goes the wrong way. I forgot about the intersection, so wasn't able to direct her in the correct direction in time. We are forced to make a mid-street u-turn. We get back to that intersection, only to find it does not allow us to turn in the direction we need to go. So, we go straight thru again, and make another u-turn. Finally, we can turn the right way. After all of this, she asks, "Which way now?" I innocently look at my map for reference (though we are not following the route laid out). I reply, "Just continue on 29".

Some time passes, and we finally get thru the city streets. The intersection with highway 37 is ahead. Hmmm, we really shoulda gone that way. Oh well. She asks, "Is this the right way?" Again, I innocently look at my map. We are now following the path on the map again. The directions read, Continue on 29 so, I say, "Continue on 29".

Some more time passes. We are driving down 29. Now she asks again, "Is this the right way?" At this point, it is starting to be a running gag to me. I slyly look at the map, smiling, and just read what it says, "Continue on 29".

No more than 15 minutes later, "Matt, what's the next road we take?" she asks. "Let me look at the map. Oh right, it says 'Continue on 29'!" LOL She finally gets it. So finally, we get to the hotel. It was just off of highway 29.

The next day, we head up 29 to hit up some of the wineries. "Continue on 29" as again uttered several times, but mostly in jest. All of the wineries we were interested in are on highway 29, of course.

New KFC Popcorn Chicken (fwd)

Mmmm The new KFC Popcorn chicken is great. Damn really improved. I was
so surprized I'm entering this blog in from the road. It's like a
little slice of heaven. Mmmm


--- end forwarded text

Napa Valley Getaway II

September 19, 2003 to September 21, 2003

With Miriam Melo, visited Napa Valley and Old Faithful Geyser of California.  Original post/backup link.

Napa Getaway

Miriam and I are going for the weekend to Napa Valley to just relax. Take the wine train, sit by the pool, and just all around do nufin...after hitting up a bunch of wineries along highway 29.

I'm confused...

I'm confused, but I am not bothered by that confusion.

Weekend Camping

Went camping this weekend with some friends. We didn't have a plan other than to drive to the coast and find a place. We lucked out and found something north of Santa Cruz. It was more a resort with a campground attached. The camp sites were even powered with AC outlets! Very nice. It almost didn't fill like roughing it. The beach there was great. The weather was perfect. While the inland was scorching, we were on the beach in the sun and temp in the low 80's with a gentle cooling breeze. Of course the water was chilly! Turned out to be a great weekend.

Camping on California Coast

 

September 13, 2003 to September 14, 2003 

With Alice Leung, Stefan Schmeisser, David Erlichman and Miriam Erlichman, visited Santa Cruz, California and Costanoa for a fun trip up California Coast.  Original post/backup link.

Phone Bill

Ok, I've got my house phone bill rate down to under $5.85 on a measured rate plan. I dumped my long distance completely. So with taxes and other services, my total home phone bill is going to be prolly under $12.00 total.

Mvys

I saw Jason Vs Freddy (or is that Freddy Vs Jason) last week. Pretty good slasher. I don't watch many, but this one is worth the time. Entertaining. Not good enough to show up in my DVD collection though.

I saw Pirates of the Caribbean this weekend. Good movie. It was enjoyable to watch. It knows it's an action/adventure movie, and it revels in it. I do recommend this film. It will go into my DVD collection.

I saw Johnny English this weekend as well. It is funny, but not really hilarious, which a movie like this needs to be. Not a waste of my time, but it is definitely not going to show up in my DVD collection.

If you haven't notices already, my criteria for judging movies is whether or not is will end up in my DVD collection. This is a slightly higher bar than "thumbs up" or "hot or not". It means even a marginally good movie will not get a passing mark. It needs to actually be a good movie to end up in my DVD collection. Doesn't have to be really good. It just needs to have redeeming qualities if it is marginal.

Meteor

Last night, in the north (from Campbell, CA) I saw this bright greenish white glowing ball streaking down from the sky. At first, I thought it was fireworks or a burning plane. It was staying bright too long to be fireworks. It was moving down too fast and glowing to consistently to be a burning plane. It was so bright, I was able to clearly see it thru the city light pollution near the horizon. The glow suddenly faded as it approached the ground. The only thang I can figure is that it was a meteor that made it pretty far into the atmosphere. I've seen plenty of shooting stars, but never seen a meteor this close before. It was over so quick.

eBay Auctions

Ok, I've done something I haven't done in years, I'm actually selling on eBay! See the new link on the right. It's the icon "My Auctions eBay". Or click that link here too. :)

Updating the week

It looks like I'm done ranting for now. LOL So, here's a layout of my bus-i-ness instead, just for me. Monday, hung out with a friend in the day, and another friend in the evening. Tuesday, had pizza with Miriam and tried not to pay too much attention to reality TV she was watching, but damn that shit is so lame and it bugs me to see ... ok... umm... next topic. Weds, hung out Dave in the evening. (Please note, I never refer to work as busy time...it is just lost time, period). Tonight, I'm going to the movies with a friend. Tomorrow, Miriam and I are going to see Ronie up in the Delta. There's personal reasons for this. I bailed out on a sailboat race for this nite to go see her. Prolly going to play mini-golf just for the hell of it. On Sat, I'm going to catch a couple of matinee movies by myself, then meet up with another friend in the evening for drinks. It also looks like I'm covering the booth at the Campbell Farmers Market on Sunday, then going to take it easy for a breather that evening. My weeks have pretty much been like this for a few months now. blah blah blah...now I remember why I don't post these kinds of post very much. Just doing this to remind myself of what I'm doing. :)

Long Weekend?

Is this really a long weekend? It's almost over, kinda. Sunday. I was out Friday having fun, and hit up SF Zoo on Sat. Today, I'm taking it easy before going to a club in downtown San Jose, if you can believe it. Going to hit up the Tapestry and Talent Fair tomorrow.

Yesterday evening...

I went out yesterday. Had a lovely afternoon outdoors over at Viva Sol, a rest'rant on El Camino in Mt. View. Later, at my friend's place, I felt a headache coming on, so I asked where the pain relievers were. This lead me to take a generic Tylenol PM. uhh. Well anyway, my friend was in the mode for hanging out at a place in Downtown Mt. View. We where there most of the night until the PM part of the Tylenol started kicking in around 11. So it ended up being an early night. Damn, that's the last time I don't pay attention to the bottle and take PM anything. I'm still feeling it. yuk.

eBay

I’m an eBay user. I love the service, and use it frequently. I have one piece of advice. If you are looking for VHSs, DVDs, CDs etc, make sure you look at all sources and compare. Examples: Half.com, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble. I’ve been looking for a hard to find DVD recently. It had been hitting over $30 everytime it appeared on eBay. So, I checked Half.com and found it for under $16, with less shipping charges. The best part of this is that eBay owns Half.com, so ordering was easy.
So, when looking for bargains or hard to find items, it always helps to shop around. Often eBay will be the place where I end up, but not always.

Survival of the...science

As with other sciences, evolution is now in practical use within modern technology. This is due, in part, to the invention of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and other genetic analysis tools. These tools allow for more efficient studies of genetics. PCR opens the door into how all species relate to each other. Exploration of this interconnectivity allows much quicker identification and treatment of old and new diseases. The use of applications based on biological studies of evolution is benefiting our society. It will soon become part of our daily lives. Denial of evolution is the equivalent to saying that the Earth is a flat, or that heavier objects fall faster than lighter objects.

 
There are examples of evolution’s survival of the fittest principle within our own species. There are traits in the human species that are fighting for dominance.

 
One trait in the Western Culture is lactose persistence. 75% or so of our population (Western Culture) can properly digest lactose (from milk) our entire lives.¹⁽¹⁾ This is a newer trait that has become dominant because of the long history of our use of milk in our daily diet. In other cultures, at least 75% of the population becomes lactose intolerant after the age of weaning. These are cultures that historically did not have access to milk on a daily basis, and so carry the older trait which naturally causes the weaning of a child. This older trait used to be necessary for survival, but now is unimportant.

 

Where lactose persistence is succeeding, there is another trait that is failing in the tropics. There is a genetic adaptation which allows an individual to be more resistant to malaria. But if a man and woman (who carry this trait) procreate, their children may have sickle cell anemia.²⁽²⁾  This is an example of a genetic trait that benefits the individual, but not the species. If left alone, the trait will likely die out eventually. Or maybe it will lead to further adaptation that does not cause sickle cell anemia.

 
More rapid examples come to us in the form of viruses and bacteria. These species evolve yearly. Understanding of their origins (made possible by PCR through biological studies of evolution) allows us to combat them more effectively. This will eventually develop into technologies that will be apart of our daily lives, like flying in an airplane or satellite TV.

Misspelling search keywords?

I’m getting many hits to this site for funny spelling of words, Ok…here’s a quick spelling lesson for the most recent searches. Governor, not govenor. Candidate, not canidate. I have entries and information about these items below. Here’s some links:

Link to the list of recall candidates for Governor of California.

Comments about the Recall

California Constitution rules about replacing the Governor

Brief general impression of “right” and “left”. I’m a centralist, by the way.

Three problems with California polictics right now, including the Recall.

Encinal We won!

The Spitfire won at the Encinal last night, and with Brant as skipper. It's the first out right victory of that boat since its restoration! Sports are more fun when you win. hehe. We had a great start, prolly do to all the practice last weekend. Once we got into the lead, we stayed in the lead the whole race. Our sister boat Double Trouble, skippered by Kevin, came in second, keeping are best competitor down at third. This is the first race Double Trouble didn't finish DFL, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Spitfire is now first place in the series, with one 3rd place, one 2nd place and now one 1st place finish! Let's just see if we can keep up the pace!

Acceptance.

For every reasonable belief system to be accepted without censorship, as a people, the government can not endorse any belief system or their icons. What of our Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and atheist citizens, etc? Do we also put up Muslim Koran scriptures on stones at Mt. Rushmore? Do we build Hindu statues in front of our town halls? Do we have a 30' budda sitting and laughing on the White House lawn? Do we put "God is Dead" on our coins? Do we build a Wiccan alter at Arlington? Hell No! For all of us to be religiously free, we must keep our government from choosing a religion or using relevant religious icons. (I believe using religious icons of dead religions, from Greek and Roman mythology, in the tradition of western culture is acceptable since they don't invoke any practiced religion)
And about prayer in school: Again, what of our atheist citizens? A moment of silence does impose a religious practice on to their children.

A fish named Goldy...mystery thriller and some sheit

At work today, there’s a bit of a mystery. A coworker of mine (I’ll call her Squeeks) had this nice mylar balloon of a large gold fish delivered for her birthday yesterday. It was actually kind of an eye sore from far away, but it really is a very nice balloon. She named it Goldy. Anyways, she gets in to work this morning to find a ransom note and pictures of her balloon with pitiful “help me” type printed messages, being threatened by sulfuric acid and a screwdriver in the eye. The kidnapper is demanding one stick of mango flavored Trident gum, a “shinny” (mispelt) 1977 penny and before & after pictures of Michael Jackson. It was signed “Sick Individual”. Squeeks and other coworkers are looking over the pictures for any clues as to who is involved. Her boss keeps seeing people in the reflections on the mylar surface of the balloon in the picture. No clear details, of course.
So, as if that isn’t ridiculously fun enough, I wanted a piece of this action myself! I set out to frame a cube neighbor of mine (I’ll call him Fred) for the heinous deed. I quickly printed out one threatening follow-up ransom note, which quickly got picked up as part of a large report that someone else was printing, and copied 60 times as part of that report. I couldn’t have planned that better if I tried! Needless to say, Squeeks got the message. She waited in the printer room for someone she suspected to come to the to pick up the now multiplied message. Fred haplessly comes walking into the printer room to pick up his mail. Of course, Squeeks immediately suspects him of the kidnapping! Again, I couldn’t have planned that any better if I tried. Phase two of my plan spoke for itself. I printed another threatening note and left it in Fred’s cube and just waited for Squeeks to make the incriminating discovery. As she’s still reeling from the first “discovery” when she finds the second note in Fred’s office. The timing was perfect. Of course, Fred is nowhere around, being in the labs most of the day. Their boss goes to find him to see if he is the culprit. Everyone is cracking up the whole time about this ridiculous situation.
So right before this lunch hour, Squeeks is in Fred’s office making further accusations about other “evidence” against him. Fred’s pitiful and weary “help me, help me!” cries were drifting from his office like a ghost’s moaning.
For lunch, their boss is eating fish…hmmm…very suspicious!

A Fish named Goldy Part II

Around 3:00pm or so, after meeting two/thirds of the ransom requirements, Squeeks got her golf fish balloon back. It turns out that it was her boss that staged the kidnapping! Too funny. Fred and other coworker were in on it as well. The fish is now safely back in Squeek's cube, no worse for the wear.

Well...

Friday night was supposed to be a big nite, but ended up not going out. I do wanna check out a couple of new places in San Jose downtown soon, so maybe plan sometime this week. I did a little shopping this weekend too with some girlfriends as my guide (and to make the experience a bit more palatable). Despite my protests, they dragged me into the Gap. They wanted to get me shirts and stuff, but I insisted that I'd only get jeans there. Ended up a Banana Republic and got a couple of nice thangs there. I know, some say it's worse than the Gap (and it's the same company), but it is more stylish. I walked in the Guess too...what the hell are they thinking with all that ugly patchwork clothing? Yuk...doesn't looks interesting, stylish or wearable.
Yesterday, I was aboard the Spitfire practicing in the tactical position for getting our timing down on our race starts. It was a lot of fun!

Impossible to find customer service numbers for Amazon.com and others!

Here's some impossible to find customer service numbers for online retailers (as listed in U.S.News Aug 18-25, 2003)
Amazon.com 800-201-7575
Hallmark.com 800-425-5627
Netflix.com 800-585-8131
Sony.com 800-571-7669
Target.com 800-591-3869

Here's a page about issues with Amazon.com customer services and suggestions to resolve them. http://www.clicheideas.com/amazon.htm

Use in good health!

List of Candidates for Governor of California's Recall

Here's the link. You'll need PDFReader installed to view the page. http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/2003_cert_list.pdf

Sailboat Racing

The Spitfire team physically won our first sail boat race on Friday! Woohoo! We didn't get first place in the final standings because handicaps. We did get second place though. It was a lot of fun. The whole team is still stoked. There was a couple of mistakes that prolly cost us the outright official victory, like our very bad start, and almost going around a marker we weren't supposed to be rounding. With even better tacking, and without those mistakes, it is likely we can have more than one first place in the remainder of the racing series! The whole team is pumped for the next race in a couple of weeks.

Trouble with "canidates"

Candidates is spelt with a "d". Just FYI for those of you who are searching on yahoo and google for info about the governor's recall in CA. In some posts below, I've got some brief statements about the recall and some of the people involved with it. I intend on adding a link to the official list of candidates when it is made available, so feel free to visit back soon.

Movies this weekend...

I watched Dirty Pretty Things this weekend, oh, and American Wedding. Dirty Pretty Things is not as much of a thriller that it has been billed as, unless you have a weak stomach. It does have body parts turning up, but under real life type situations. Nothing fanciful, like American thrillers usually do. The movie is very entertaining. It exposes a rather dark underside to life as an illegal immigrant in London. I'm not sure how much of it is poetic license, since I've never been exposed to that topic before. The movie tells its story through character development, and not some flat plot. There are some powerful scenes, and some week scenes too, but over all, it is a great, enjoyable movie.
American Wedding was very funny sep for the very end when the wedding got started...then it got sappy. Watch it for the sight gags, situations and other laughs, but be prepared for a sweet ending when the laughs stop and everyone lives happ...ok, I'll not give away the final joke after the sappy wedding is done, but it is predictable enough for you not to care.

Governor Recall Race

This recall is an insult to California Voters, with the very wealthy slapping us in the face, trying to buy our government from under us. Anyone with a lot of money can come in and pretend to be a politician for a year. It's starting to get pathetic. Isis is like the third guy to come in out of the blue and try to pull something in the pass few years. Now there’s the Terminator pretending too. Note to the very rich newbies: Either be a real politician or just Fuck Off!
This recall has already made California look stupid, and it’s going to be more ridiculous if it passes. I predict that the results of this recall of the governor here in California is going to make Florida (with its hanging chads and false removal of eligible voters) look like a smooth and competent operation. There’s going to be lawsuit after lawsuit disputing the results for a year! Especially if the recall is approved and some marginal and/or nonpartisan player gets the highest number of votes (go Gary Coleman! LOL). That said, the Lt. Governor is supposed to take over if the office of Governor is vacated for any reason according to the CA constitution. Oh well.
Since the law now allows both a no vote on the recall, and a vote for replacement if the recall passes, I am using my back up for Bustamante. I’ve respected him for some time. He is a good man and a respected politician. Of course, it would be great to have Bustamante reporting to Gov. Gary Colemen. :) hmmm…

Flash Mobs, lastest story

Flash Mobs! I love reading about these. Funny-ass shit!

Blog update

I haven't written a blog status update in aeons, mostly cuz well...why? LOL Well, this is pretty cool. I added the picosearch thang to the right side bar menu, and I reconfigured my archives to be weekly instead of monthly, making just a tiny bit easier to find the interesting blog entry once you are on the page where the search as brought you. Anyways, that's that. :)

California Governor Candidates! Search words: 'california governor canidates'

I'm considering casting my vote for Gary Coleman or Larry Flint. They aren't taking this whole mess seriously, thank god! Actually, there may not be any candidates on the ballot when it's time for a vote. The California constitution is clear that the Lt. Governor is to be made Governor is the current Governor is removed for any reason. This means another portion of the Recall law is unconstitutional. Here's the article:

CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE 5 EXECUTIVE

SEC. 10. The Lieutenant Governor shall become Governor when a vacancy occurs in the office of Governor.
The Lieutenant Governor shall act as Governor during the impeachment, absence from the State, or other temporary disability of the Governor or of a Governor-elect who fails to take office.
The Legislature shall provide an order of precedence after the Lieutenant Governor for succession to the office of Governor and for the temporary exercise of the Governor's functions.
The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction to determine all questions arising under this section.
Standing to raise questions of vacancy or temporary disability is vested exclusively in a body provided by statute.

So that's that, right? LOL No...I'm sure this whole recall thang is going to make Florida's hanging chads look like Saints. BTW, I don't understand the last sentence of the article either.

Have fun, y'all.

Trouble with Gay Priests? Jesus people!

Back when I was a devout Christian, seeing other churches with gay priests would have been confirmation of my own religion's legitimacy over those other churches. After all, how could a church claiming to be worshippers of God accept homosexuals into their ranks. Nowadays, I'm a bit more reasonable. I shed the nonsense of dearly holding onto modern perceptions of ancient, prejudice and convoluted texts like the bible.

 
The whole renewed push by "conservative" religious people against homosexuals is frustrating. It is sad to see fellow Americans openly treating other Americans as inferiors, using their interpretation of ancients texts to justify their prejudice, in the same way they were used to justify prejudice against blacks and other nonwhite races in the past.

 
I believe that a religion has the right to choose its leadership for itself. That's part of freedom of religion. Maybe it would seem like a contraction against the bible to have a gay priest or bishop in many faiths. To reconcile, maybe it's time for religious people to accept the message of their bible while leaving behind its prejudice, as we evolve into a more mature and reasonable society.

 
Final note, this is America, land of the free. How can anyone be free when we choose to oppress one segment of our population? Let's live and let live.

 
P.S., BTW, The bible never once forbids homosexuality between women. It doesn't even hint at it. It only specifically condemns sexual relations between men. So, it could be argued that only sex between men is forbidden in the bible, and not homosexuality itself. This would mean that it is ok to have a gay priest.

Damn, been hella busy

I've been hella busy. Been going from one thang to another for days now, almost not stop sep for what sleep I'm getting. It's not stopping now either. going to need a break...anyways, I got a couple of rants brewing, so there'll be more posts coming soon!

An Ant Cures Antrax in Cabo Tourist Shop!!!

Cure for Antrax found in Cabo tourist shop, and it's an ant! This picture was taken by an associate of mine in Cabo last year. (Photo copyright 2002)

Nessie the Loch Ness Monster is Dead

Sonar was used to prove, once and for all, that Nessie doesn't exist.

Political Opinion...hey, I'm allowed! LOL

I'm neither conservative or liberal. I find the battle between the two amusing. The terms themselves are often misused to apply some stereotypes. Heck, the terms freely are applied backwards when it comes to fiscal policies. Republicans in government want a free market system where money flows freely and let the markets correct themselves (liberal) and Democratics try to regulate the follow of money for perceived stability (conservative). Not to mention the fact that the most hardcore liberals and conversatives are the biggest hypocrates. The "don't tell me what to do, but here's what you should do" nonsense comes from both ends of US politics. How 'bout no one tell me what to do, and I won't tell you what to do! :)

I believe my rights are protected by protecting the rights of others. The more rights we all share, the more free we are as a people. If you have opinions (whether from the bible dogma or liberal social dogma) about human behavior, then live it, but stop trying to force other people to live it with you.

Commuter Theme today:

Get In Front of Matt and Drive Slow Day.

Some days have themes during the commute to work and from work. Today's theme is cars getting in front of me to drive slow. It seems like there was some organized effort. A lane would open up completely, so I'd change lanes only to have someone else get into the lane right in front of me and drive slower than the crowded lane. Once, twice, three, and then four times this morning. The traffic wasn't even heavy. I only got held behind one red light because of this, so it isn't as bad as it has been on other days.

I like it when the commuter theme is more along the lines of Get Out of Matt's Way Day, obviously. :)

Sailboat racing

The first race sailboat of the season this past Friday afternoon, aboard the Spitfire in Oakland, was a lot of fun. We did well, coming in second in our class. The race lasted a little over an hour. I had just gotten over a cold, and was a little wore out, but managed to do well in my position on the boat. We saw a lot of good work on the part of all the sailboats, and one crash between two boats near the mark. It was all fairly exciting.

Trouble with California

First, this whole recall business is making California look stupid. It is proving that our system is for sale to the highest bidder. Anyone with a lot of money can come in an pretend to be a politician for a year. It's starting to get pathetic. Isis is like the third guy to come in out of the blue and try to pull something in the pass few years. Note to the very rich newbies: Either be a real political or just Fuck Off! I'm against a recall until after the budget has been hashed out for this year. Then if you aren't happy, let's get rid of Gray. Problem is, anyone who becomes governor now is going to be faced with the same issues and is politically doomed.

Second, term limits in the state legislature is leaving our leadership in shambles. Any experienced members are lame ducks, and the rest are rookies. There's no accountability because no one is around long enough to care! Originally, term limits was supposed to help minorities and women get into government, but now it is having the opposite effect. We need to get rid of term limits.

Third, is the ridiculous requirement for a 2/3rds supermajority vote on the budget each year. This is a democracy, where the majority rules, but the rights of the minority are protected. How is a supermajority vote requirement for something as mundane as the yearly budget supposed to do either? It is unheard of to use supermajorities except in cases of political crisis (impeachment) or changing winds (changes to the constitution). To use them for anything else is damn near anti-democratic! We need to get rid of the supermajority vote requirement for the state budget. Even this "55%" replacement requirement being floated around is not acceptable. It is still a supermajority requirement.

If you have any rants to add to this, please leave a comment. Gray (or it is Grey) Davis, you are welcome to leave a comment about your recall if you like too. LOL

Anthrax Detection at your local Post Office may come soon

Check this out! Of course, the reason I care is cuz the company I work has technology at the heart of the detection system. :)

There's a lot of stars out there

A lot!!

U.S. fights Fake Wars from Time to Time.

The U.S. wages two kinds of wars; Real wars and fake wars. How can you tell the difference? Here's how: If the name of the war begins with "War on...", it's fake. As in, War on Poverty (late 1960's), War on Drugs (1980's, 1990's), and War on Terrorism (turn of the 21st Century). Real wars have names like Civil War, World War II, Persian Gulf War, and Cold War. So, if you are ever in doubt about whether or not the U.S. is really fighting some declared war, just judge it by its name.

Bodega Bay again

I drove up to Bodega Bay again for a weekend get away with a friend. I had planned on snorkeling, but the weather was a bit unpredictable on Sat, so we ended up at the pool instead. It was a nice relaxing weekend. On the drive back, we stopped up at Stintson Beach. I'm going to check the rates there for a future weekend getaway that isn't quite so far, even though it can get pretty crowded.

Weapons of Mass Destruction Found?

Enter the keywords "weapons of mass destruction" in Google or Yahoo and come across this site: WMD

Bodega Bay Trip

 

July 11, 2003 to July 13, 2003

With Alice Leung, visited The Inn at the Tides and Bodega Bay, California for a nice and relaxing getaway. Original post/backup link.

Describe the Universe in 6 words

The Universe is "Beige, Flat and really really big." Nuf said. lol