Thrust & Riposte

Oh My

Retro Music

Four Years Ago Today

Terpmas

Merry Terpmas

Sorry Kids

Oh My

A Christmas Story

CHRISTMAS             Christmas Story “ My grandmother noticed Louise the moment she walked in the door. "What the hell is that?" she asked. My brother quickly explained, "It's a doll." "Who would play with something like that?" Granny snapped. I had several candidates in mind, but kept my mouth shut. "Where are her clothes?" Granny continued. "Boy, that turkey sure smells nice, Gran," Jay said, trying to steer her into the dining room. But Granny was relentless. "Why doesn't she have any teeth?" If you've never been in an X-rated store, don't go. You'll only confuse yourself. I was there an hour saying things like, "What does this do?" "You're kidding me!" " Who would buy that?" Again, I could have answered, but why would I?   It was Christmas and no one wanted to ride in the back of the ambulance saying, "Hang on Granny, Hang on!" My grandfather, a delightful old man with poor eyesight, sidled up to me and said," Hey, who's the naked gal by the fireplace?"   I told him she was Jay's friend. A few minutes later I noticed Grandpa by the mantel, talking to Louise.   Not just talking, but actually flirting. [Continued] A sweet Christmas memory, wot. ”

A Kid's Christmas

Tis The Season

A catchy folk tune

Oh My

Cousin Ricky

Obama Claus

Oh My

Tommy Joe Mann

Today's Bargain

Tommy Lee Smith

Ellen DeGeneres Stretching Things

What I Saw                                   I am not making this up (Surfing Channels) Even though Ellen is pretty cute, you know hers ain't been used much in the normal, you know, way.  So why go and stretch things?  Course I don't know what lesbians do, so I'm not one to talk. Where the hell is Helly when I need her? HELLY!

COBY Who?

What I Saw                                         Wooted GEE DAD-IT'S A COBY! Me and MoSup Christmas gifted Mo-Sup with a   Famous Maker 46" 1080p 3D LED HDTV  for $405 Delivered! (Woot).  She had a lousy 32 inch SEKO that didn't get full HD, and had no recognized code for the Verizon remote.  When it was being unloaded from the truck yesterday, I looked—gasp.  HFS!  The "famous maker" is SONY!  But, when the guy put the box down in the hallway—see rollover.   It was a COBY!?! My first thought was of Manhattan discount stores selling SOMY electronics and such.  Yikes. I Googled COBY and up popped ads from Best Buy, Wal-Mart, etc.; so I felt better. Getting to the bottom line—HMFS! Out of the box this is the best picture I've ever seen, and I have a Sony 46" LCD in the den. LED rocks.  I can pick this thing up with one hand. My selling point to MoSup was that she can leave it running for a year with $2 of electricity.  I overstated, but not by a whole hell of a lot.   Coby claims a yearly cost of $21.  Plus, the picture is viewable from any angle. After charging up the included 3-D glasses, I  found RIO on Verizon, and HFS!  It's freaking 3-D! It's wonderful—way way better than the only other 3-D movie I ever saw, House of Wax. And get this.  ESPN is going 3-D at year end!  HFS!!! Anyway, I'm happy.  MoSup's flabbergasted.  The sumbitch might break in a year, but for now this is one sweet deal. I just noticed that the Woot promo does say "Coby 46" 1080p 3D LED HDTV, 3 HDMI." Now it does. I swear it didn't when I first tuned in.

The Plague

Today's PSA

Exit Tax

Oh My

Lying Mayan Wetbacks

WHOA! “ Man, we're still here? Glad I didn't at the last minute believe them Mayan wetbacks, and not steal the Bentley from City Motors, or do that cheerleaders thing.   Phew. ”

The Best of Us

Above & Beyond “ Dog tags of the more than 58,000 service men and women who died in the Vietnam War hang from the ceiling of the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum in Chicago on Veterans Day, November 11, 2010. The 10-by-40-foot sculpture, entitled Above & Beyond, was designed by Ned Broderick and Richard Steinbock. The tens of thousands of metal dog tags are suspended 24 feet in the air, 1 inch apart, from fine lines that allow them to move and chime with shifting air currents. Museum employees using a kiosk and laser pointer help visitors locate the exact dog tag with the imprinted name of their lost friend or relative. [More] Tim W ”

Sleep Monsters

Meet The Press

When Childhood Fears Come True Peggy Noonan “ "What's so terrible for the little kids who hear about Newtown is that the 'dream' monster is now real," said a friend. This from Peggy Noonan's interesting "When Childhood Fears Come True." (Behind a paywall, but I copied some of it)  I think what's happening here is not to much the "dream monster" being realized as actually being created.   I know that the "End of Earth" monster promulgated by too many "Yes, the earth will die in 5 billion years and here's why." science shows is in my grandson's head.  I mean to kids 5 billion and next year are pretty much the same. So monsters do not have to be real. My childhood fear was that a windy night sounded like a tidal wave rushing to engulf our house.  More than once I got out of bed to look, because I heard waves lapping the house. I think because a tidal wave hit Montrose Beach (on Lake Michigan), near Chicago's Loop stuck in my head.  This happened mostly in December, as I look back, because the real fear was I'd die before Christmas presents. More on point, in 1955 3 boys my age were found strangled in the forest preserve very near to where we kids played and caught catfish.  I never ever forgot that, but not once did I go to bed worried that I was next.  We, none of my gang, ever stopped playing in the "woods" because of that incident.  By the by, I stumbled across "Death Closes the Case of Boys’ Murders," five years ago.  Here's another cut from Noonan's article that I like. ‘ Religion, said Mr. Kennedy, "isn't supposed to explain such things" as Newtown. "That's not the task of religion, never has been." Religion has to do with the central mystery of existence—"the tremendous and gripping mystery" of being alive. "Joseph Campbell once said people don't need an explanation of their lives as much as they need an experience of being alive." ’ Which is pretty much, "Life sometimes sucks, live with it kid."  ”

Ah, the comforting sound of the firing squad

Red flowers for Stalin’s birthday “ Stockholm Syndrome? I imagine this in Detroit 100 year from now (Roll) Communists across Russia are celebrating 133 years since the birth of one of the most influential dictators of the past century, Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. [full] Like you I find it mind boggling that people will  publicly celebrate the most evil of people.  I guess when you grow up in a culture of daily terror it's like the crappy fish soup you momma made you eat; it's today's comfort food.  Or, maybe the Stockholm Syndrome at work?  Anyway, it's hard for some to accept that 80 years of their life was akin to roasting in Hell.  We'll have some of the same in 100 years. ”

Michael Mooron- He's BACK!

Michael Moore: Americans’ desire to own guns stems from racial fears I wonder if during WWII Americans had the opportunity to watch Nazi propaganda film?  I think it would have made it easier for families who lost loved ones to accept and understand their sacrifice.

And the answer is ...

—   you berk   " ...  if given the chance, what new law would you create and why?" “ “I think that any lays there are in Constitution or in life, are already made. I think that we should have, uh, a straight way to go in our similar, or, eh, in our lives as is this.” “For example, I’m a surfer, and I think that the best wave that I can take is the wave that I wait for it. So please do our only, eh, law that we can do. Thank you Vegas!” [DC] Irene Sofia Esser Quintero was still awarded third place, but more importantly is now allowed to vote in California. ”

MAYAN WTF?

WHOA! “ You can't see it, but electricity was arcing between two transformers. Nobody so far has said they'd ever seen such a thing outside of the movies.  Let me tell you something - I was not laughing at the Mayan thing at the time. I couldn't find my rosary until  our power came back at 2:30 AM.  ”