This Blog Is Full Of Crap

Con te partiro, Cox and Forkum and Plunk Biggio.

Guy David the Night Guyhas collected up his whimsical and fantastic 100 word stories from the Weekly Challenges and has started posting them on his own podcast.

Tom of Footnote and Caleb Bullen of Black Tie Martini Club have done this before, and they're well worth a listen.

I've had a request to collect up Planet Z's stories from the Weekly Challenges.

Of course, it was from Planet Z.

(Arrogant, slave-driving bastard.)

Thousands of Burmese have been slaughtered by the brutal regime there, so the UN has sent a special envoy to beg them to stop.

The regime hasn't even bothered to tell the sap to go pound sand. They're acting like he's a buzzing gnat, easily ignored and not worth swatting.

I'm sure that the UNHRC will ponder this incident... and swiftly condemn Israel once again for some fringe member of the government reacting to Iran's calls for their country's destruction or the constant barrage of rockets on Sderot.

So, where's the Special Committee to Protect the Inalienable Rights Of The Burmese People?
Taiwanese People?
Kurdish People?
Darfurese People?

(crickets)

Thought so.

Remember when Morgan Ensberg vouched for Jason Lane's character and got him permanently untangled from the Astros organization?

Besides Morgan and Jason going 0-for-1 as pinch hitters again...

Prince Fielder did not play because of a high right ankle sprain he sustained when San Diego's Jason Lane slid into first base in the 11th inning on Saturday

Sliding into first to take out the first baseman?

Yeah, that's character for you.

Oh, and all that talk about Morgan and Jason helping the Padres down the stretch... 4-6 for the last 10 games.

Go Rockies.

Once again, Warren Zevon left out in the cold. Same with Tom Waits, Yes... but Warren... the man was Rock and Roll.

Hell, he still is, thanks to his son digging up some old masters in a storage unit.

You know, it's about time Paul Schaeffer and David Letterman got vocal about the fact that the hall's shoveling in crap acts while class acts aren't even considered.

If only Larry Bud Melman were still around to wave a sign around and shout random nonsense.

I've always wondered about the line "Most things in here don't react too well to bullets." from The Hunt For Red October.

Is there anything that does react well to a bullet?

Morgan Ensberg and Jason Lane did for San Diego what they've done since 2005... sink any hopes of playoff chances for their team.

Here's hoping they find a home with the Yankees.

After being told to tone down her act, Beyonce told Malaysia to go pound sand:

R&B star Beyonce Knowles has axed her debut concert in Malaysia in protest against the nation's ultra-strict dress code and over fears of a Muslim outcry over her show, an industry source said on Tuesday.

Of course, it wasn't presented as such:

Her agent ICM cited a "scheduling conflict" as the reason, but the source said unofficially she was unhappy over a possible hostile reception in the mainly Muslim nation.

"They foresee that when she comes over to Kuala Lumpur, there will be protests against her," the source said. "They didn't want that to happen."

If she mouthed off about their society being a repressive misogynistic madhouse, Malaysians would have been up in arms... um... burning their stacks of pirated Beyonce CDs in protest, I guess.

On the other hand, Gwen Stefani knuckled under. But Beyonce didn't.

WTGG, Beyonce.

If case you're wondering, The Ergowraps have made a significant difference in how my wrists and hands feel at the end of the day. My elbows feel a lot better, too, because they don't hang at weird angles anymore while I type.

Arm-wise, feeling much better. In fact, co-workers were interested in these things.

I'll have a full report on Saturday, KPRC 950AM radio at 11:00AM to 2:00PM.

Not that it's different from any other day in Iran or many parts of the Islamic or Arab World (or the chambers of the UN, EU, and State Department for that matter), but today is Jerusalem Day in Iran where they march and call for the destruction of Israel.

So, today I'm promoting Kurdistan Day.

You see, Woodrow Wilson promised the Kurds their own independent nation after WWI.

They have their own culture, language, and (with some assistance) trend towards democratic rule with greater tolerance to others than that has been shown to them.

Then Winston Churchill fucked them. He fucked them big time, and enslaved their fortune to the Turks, Syrians, Persians, and Iraqis.

They haven't fared very well under that arrangement. In fact, they're been pretty much screwed, just like the Tibetans under the Chinese, Burmese under the so-called Myanmar regime, how the Formosans will fare under the Chinese, Christians under the House Of Saud, blah blah blah pretty much all those places the UNHRC ignores to condemn Israel on an hourly basis.

So, I figure if there's anyone deserving of their own national identity, it's the Kurds.

Hence, Kurdistan Day. To undo Wilnston Churchill's injustice.

Apparently, the British Press have a taste for chasing royals into dangerous situations:

Princess Diana's son Prince William and his girlfriend were pursued "aggressively" by paparazzi photographers after leaving a London nightclub, royal officials said Friday.

Pictures of the second in line to the throne and Kate Middleton appeared on the front pages of the London Evening Standard newspaper and thelondonpaper freesheet Friday.

The pair, both 25, split up in April and the newspapers said it was the first time they had been seen together since rekindling their relationship.

The paper offered readers the chance to see video of the couple as they left the glitzy Boujis nightclub in an upmarket west London suburb at about 2:00 am (0100 GMT).

But William's spokesman Paddy Harverson said Friday: "Prince William was concerned by the threatening behaviour of the paparazzi in London last night (Thursday).

I say, contract out William's security to Blackwater.

The press (that survive) will learn very quickly not to harass their client.

Was David Carr's off-the-bench victory a fluke?

His only score last week as a starter was a "It's late, we all want to go home, just take a knee and stop bothering the defense, Dave" score with 23 seconds to go.

Now he's up against the NFC's punching bags, the New Orleans Saints.

With a Points-For-Points-Against ratio that rivals the French Military for lopsided losses, Carr can't fail, right?

We'll see.

Garf's gotten the green light to do his show earlier on Saturday, so I'll be heading over to Clear Channel's Castle Of... um... er...

Well, it's a Castle of Something.

Anyway, I'll be sneaking into the studio from 11:00AM to 2:00PM today, filing a report on how well the ErgoWraps worked out.

Eleven? In the morning?

I guess this means that I woke up too late to fire up the bread machine to make a fresh loaf of bread.

Sheesh. I totally suck.

Seriously, I need to start these things the night before. But you know how it is.

Catch the stream at kprcradio.com or hit the podcast tomorrow.

In the studio. Forgot the ergowraps, so had to run back to get them.

Verizon will be here to show off their Voyager, so I will try to steal a test unit or beg for a discount. Ziggy the V is on his last legs, so I might as well go with an iPod killer, right?

I'm a bit leery of being an early-adopter, especially when the V turned out to be such a disappointment with Bluetooth 1.1 instead of stereo wireless Bluetooth. Plus, the card reader wore out after a year of use.

I guess we'll see.

By the way, I'll LiveTwitter the show at http://twitter.com/isfullofcrap. If you haven't realized that I write there more often than I write here, well, I guess you've been missing out. Oops.

While at the radio show, I've left the catcams on.

Since the cats don't go in their kittycave all that much, I've moved the IR wireless camera to the food bowls so you can watch Nardo and Frisky snack all day long.

I think y'all will like that view a lot more.

Remember that Patriot Edition of the BIC lighter I had?

I tried to give it to Barack Obama, but he threw it back in my face.

So, I'm giving it to Garf.

I swear, I'll get shoutouts to Filthy Fluno and Grace somewhere.

I 'd be a lousy in-studio stalker if I couldn't, eh.

By the way, been using the wrist rests all throughout the show while blogging, twittering, etc.

They feel great. I sent a testimonial to those folks, we'll see if they use it.

When you need a field goal with 1 second left to beat the 0-3 Dolphins, you don't have much hope.

Mycah's Dad is off to Duke to get poked, prodded, pricked, and pretty much poleaxed by the doctors at Duke today.

Oh, and he's slurring the name of Andrew "Beg And Bolt For A European Vacation" Sullivan in his most-recent post.

As if he needed to do anything else to get on the Good List in my book, eh.

Congratulations to George Steinbrenner for having the best postseason flameout squad that money can buy.

Mercenaries like Johnny Damon, Andy Pettite, and Roger Clemens sure came through, didn't they?

Now the ultimate mercenary, A-Rod, is about to get set loose by Boras to suck some team completely dry so that they don't have any money left over for players to back him up.

Hopefully, Drayton won't touch A-Rod with a ten foot pole. The Astros wouldn't know what to do with a decent third baseman, anyway. Might scare people out of the park with someone who can actually play the position standing at the bag. Scary!

Nor should he touch Andy Pettite, who "came home" for a few years and then skedaddled the instant he realized that Purpura and Garner were out of their fucking minds.

Must have been God talking to him again, telling him who to play for.

Mercenaries. Gotta hate 'em.

I was going to do a surprise Ten And Only Ten today, it being 10/10.

One of the blogs in my list is JWalk.

And then I see this.

Spooky, eh?

Today is Powers Of Ten Day.

Go. Be powerful. And, um, be ten.

(If you do one of these, feel free to use the Technorati tag of 10blogs to track others chasing the rabbit.)

Sometimes, I ask myself questions. Occasionally, I'll answer them.

As I've asked before, I ask it today once again. Today's question is "If I could only read ten blogs, which blogs would they be?"

Oh, and I can't pick any site that I'm writing for or have written for in the past. This knocks out some sites like Yourish.com, YesButNoButYes, IMAO, and others.

If a site's gone dark, I do not mourn its passing. I just move on to the next on the list.

Look folks - this is not easy, since I've got a bloglines list of over two hundred feeds. However, many of them are just click-and-scan. Not really in-depth reading unless it's got a unique perspective on something, excellent cat photos, or a springboard for further discussion.

So I looked through my Bloglines subscriptions and started whittling them down as best as I could. The voices in my head asked me: "Which do I click through to read the entire article instead of just reading the headline and moving on?"

For a little perspective, here's the history of Ten and Only Ten:

10/7/2004 - First Round

1. Blogging Cat by Prince Muddy Paws the Doll-Faced Seal Point Himalayan Persian
2. Little Green Footballs by Charles Johnson
3. A Small Victory by Michele C.
4. Scrappleface by Scott Ott
5. Mind of Mog by Mog
6. Cox and Forkum by Cox and Forkum
7. Yourish.com by Meryl Yourish
8. Gut Rumbles by Rob Smith the Acidman.
9. Knowledge is Power by Sondra and Rodger
10. Protein Wisdom by Jeff Goldstein

1/21/2005 - Second Round

1. Blogging Cat by Prince Muddy Paws the Doll-Faced Seal Point Himalayan Persian
2. Little Green Footballs by Charles Johnson
3. Cox and Forkum by Cox and Forkum
4. blogHouston by Kevin, Anne, and the gang.
5. Mind of Mog by Mog
6. Yourish.com by Meryl Yourish
7. Knowledge is Power by Sondra, Claire and Rodger
8. IMAO by Frank J.
9. J-Walk by John Walkenbach
10. Protein Wisdom by Jeff Goldstein

4/30/2005 - Third Round

1. Blogging Cat by Prince Muddy Paws the Doll-Faced Seal Point Himalayan Persian
2. Little Green Footballs by Charles Johnson
3. IMAO by Frank J.
4. Cox and Forkum by Cox and Forkum
5. Yourish.com by Meryl Yourish
6. blogHouston by Kevin, Anne, and the gang.
7. J-Walk by John Walkenbach
8. Blog Maverick by Mark Cuban
9. Techblog by Dwight Silverman
10. Wizbangblog by Jay Tea

7/31/2005 - Fourth Round

1. Little Green Footballs by Charles Johnson
2. IMAO by Frank J. and others
3. blogHouston by Kevin, Anne, and the gang.
4. Google Sightseeing by Alex, James & Olly
5. Cox and Forkum by Cox and Forkum
6. J-Walk by John Walkenbach
7. TechBlog by Dwight Silverman
8. Wizbang by Jay Tea
9. Yourish.com by Meryl Yourish
10. Mind of Mog by Mog

10/28/2005 - First Podcast Round

1. Mostly Trivial - Johnnie Bee.
2. Israellycool - Zionaussie Dave.
3. History According to Bob - Professor Bob.
4. Technology Bytes - "Fighting" Jay Lee, Flicted (sp?), Peter, Dwight.
5. Israelisms - Charley and Carol.
6. The Starkcast - Jim K.
7. The View From Here - Harry and Zeva.
8. Digital Flotsam - D.W. Fenton
9. Slacker Astronomy - Aaron and Pamela.
10. Riding With The Window Down - Chris Doelle

12/10/2005 - Fifth Round

1. Little Green Footballs
2. blogHouston
3. Savage Chickens
4. Google Sightseeing
5. J-Walk
6. Cox and Forkum
7. Gizmodo
8. Yourish.com
9. Mind of Mog
10. TechBlog by Dwight Silverman

4/19/2006 - Sixth Round

1. blogHouston
2. Stuff On My Cat
3. J-Walk
4. Savage Chickens
5. Little Green Footballs
6. Mind of Mog
7. Google Sightseeing
8. TechBlog
9. Michael Totten
10. Cox and Forkum

My taste in reading has shifted radically in the past year and a half. I am not all that interested in the echo-chamber of the political blogosphere, a few voices have grown horrendously annoying, and I've gotten more into SL and podcasting.

Also, with less time to read, I click past the RSS feeds of a lot of stuff. Even sites I like.

So, let's see what's up:

1. Stuff On My Cat

   If I could only follow one catblog, this would be it. I'm sure that some of the cats aren't pleased with having stuff on them and PETA's just grinding its molars looking for a way to shut it down, but it's still damned funny seeing all of this stuff on cats.

2. LOLTHULHU

   Seriously funny and twisted stuff. LOLCATS has gotten dull, but this one's strong each and every post.

3. J-Walk

   The best selection of interesting and unusual link-fodder out there, always with an explanation or a reason for linking.

4. Savage Chickens

   It may seem like a simple concept to have two chickens discussing things in a Post-It sized cartoon, but Doug Savages chickens are always funny. Add in their robot-boss with his board-with-a-nail-through-it motivator, and you've got high comedy.

5. World Of SL

   Tao Takashi aggregates some of the best blogs in SL. Sure, I link to the originals as well, but World Of SL makes it easy to see if there's a pattern of problems. Drawback is the including of BlogHUD garbage-shots.

   (I won't be including any other SL blogs on this list because they're pretty much covered by World Of SL's aggregator)

6. Israellycool

   Aussie Dave's podcast may have podfaded, but his blog's been going strong since he changed platforms and got back into the swing of things. Snarky humor, funny photo comparisons, and frustrations with the geopolitical neighborhood all clash for a lovely symphony of madness.

7. Hog On Ice

   Sure, his podcasts were the stuff of brillians, and now they're gone. But his writing lives on.

   Plus, let's face it - the recent videoblogging of his culinary adventures is repulsively delicious.

8. Gizmodo.com

   Yes, it's back. This is my primary feed for gadget and technology news, seeing what's cool or horrendously stupid out there in consumer electronics. I like the snarky attitude, too.

9. Blog d'Elisson

   I know you're surprised not to have seen this one here before, but it's here. Now.

   It's not just the glad-handing, backroom deal with the podcasting and the books and all that. No, it's the solid variety-special atmosphere that causes this longtime blogger and raconteurs to rise back to the top of the top.

   Well, that and the cats.

10. Sportsjustice

    I know what you're thinking. "Doesn't Laurence think Richard Justice is a clueless blowhard cheerleader and lap-boy for the local sports teams?"

    Ensberg... just give him another chance!
    Lane... wow, he hits with power!
    Jennings... great acquisition, bring him back!
    Garner... awesome manager.
    Purpura... brilliant exec, give him another season!

    Yup. And it's amusing to watch him dig in his heels at the beginning of each season and then pull a "We're at war with Eurasia" 180 when everything's gone to hell. Makes the trainwreck of the editorial page look pale by comparison.

    It's so bad, it's good.

My "Ten And Only Ten - Podcasts" will be out at some point.

Once I get to 10, I'll be knocking sites off of the list. Every site on means one comes off. Feel free to campaign for a particular site or remind me that I've forgotten one of my favorites, and I'll have to ask myself "What other site would I stop reading to read this site?"

Here's the clincher: If I decline a site, I'll tell you why with no holds barred. No bullshit, no pulled punches, years of friendship or alliances laid to the bone and beyond to tell it like it is, right here and now. And if I think a site sucks, I'll give it both barrels and beat it with the shotgun's stock even after the coroner's bagged and tagged it.

Also, feel free to accuse me of kissing ass here, but if you get between me and my King Size supply of Chapstick, you're dead meat.

This is not an easy thing to do. You should try it yourself. You're more than welcome to do this meme on your own, but I demand that you properly credit the person who inspired you to do it...

I've mentioned before that I ride the 9 route to work in the morning.

I've also mentioned that the 9 doesn't run in this part of town in the late evenings, nor does it run on Sundays, but METRO has decided to waste tens of millions of dollars on light rail for a significant portion of the 9 route in this area.

What's even more impressive is the fact that most of the stops along the 9 route in this part of town have no cover. Even the ones that are planned for becoming stops for light rail when it arrives.

The sun's rising later each morning as Winter approaches.

Is there a light at my morning stop?

Of course not. No point in trying to read a book when the early 9 driver is too early and I'm stuck waiting 30 minutes for the next one.

If this route's so important to METRO to establish light rail along, why do they treat the people who currently use it like cheap garbage?

The Astros wasted no time looking for a replacement for Jason Lane's weak bat:

[Reggie] Abercrombie, 26, hit .197 with two home runs, five RBIs and seven stolen bases in 35 games for the Marlins this year after hitting .323 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs for Class AAA Albuquerque. He finished second in the Pacific Coast League with 41 steals.

Here's hoping for a great career for Abercrombie... at Round Rock!

It's called starting pitching, Wade.

Get some.

My new iPod arrived today.

But it's not an 80GB Classic like I had ordered.

Nope. It's a 160GB. And it's name is iSfullofcrap.

It's my first iPod. Yay.

I've been using Podcast Ready all this time with my cell phone's chip, but I wanted to give iTunes a shot before I went down the road of loading P.R. on this little monster.

One thing I hadn't had before is a display screen that works well. So, I avoided video podcasts.

So, what video podcasts should I add? And, for that matter, what audio podcasts have I been overlooking all this time?

I've got a ton of music in my Windows Media Player ripped from my CD collection importing into iTunes right now for the sync to little iSfullofcrap.

I'm still confused as to how the Slade trial ended in a mistrial because of a hung jury.

Let's just take one single item from the entire list of swindles, misappropriations, and illegal purchases: the bedroom set.

Will someone please explain how that bedroom set was going to help in the recruitment and fund raising efforts by Slade?

If you can explain that one simple item, I guess you can explain how the other criminal acts aren't really crimes at all.

Which, apparently, Slade's defense team managed to do in a way that confounded six of your fellow Houstonians.

Marion Barry, Ray Nagin, OJ Simpson... it seems every World Class city has their high-profile minority criminal celebrity who gets off where their accomplices, underlings, associates, and henchmen all end up in the slammer.

Harold Washington? Coleman Young?

Even Jesse Jackson used his half-brother Noah Robinson as a scapegoat to continue his career as a high-profile shakedown artist.

But what about Houston? Well, Carol Alvorado wasn't enough of one to put us on the map, but I guess Dr. Slade may just have done it.

Congratulations, Houston. We're World Class now.

Garf brought tacos from the new Taco Bueno restaurant up in the Woodlands, and it's muy bueno!

Want to listen in, but you're not within the range of the gigantic stick in the sticks?

The station home page has a Listen Live link... click that bad boy!

My talking points:

• Slade non-verdict - Check previous post. Dick DeGuerin quoted in the Chronicle that the bed on its own was pretty bad, but in context was a part of the overall plan... ahem... BULLSHIT!

• Radar jammers - Why can't people just drive the speed limit and put on their seat belts? Are you really in that much of a rush? Everybody has traffic problems, so it's no big surprise if you show up late to something, right? Lay off the pedal, folks.

• Ergowraps

• New iPod - what should I get for it?

• Ticketmaster giving away free songs - just join their facebook group and you'll get a code for 5 free iTunes downloads. Hey, I got me an iPod now! Cool!

• Ringxiety - I used to have this problem when I was at KTRK, thinking people were calling me in the middle of the night for stupid stuff. So, I'd change my ringtone so the phantom ringtone wouldn't wake me up.

• Ann Coulter - Want to know what I think about Miss Tits-On-A-Stick wanting to "perfect" me by making me Christian?

  Um... how much will she pay me to do it? Because, let's face it, the Buddhists are a rockin' bunch right now.

And more!

"Oh, you do Jack Daniels? I just had that for breakfast!"

I remember when ZZ Top was signed up for a ludicrous deal with one of the record companies, and they ended up coming out with just one more album before riding out the clock with a few tours and Best Of compilations.

There was no way they were work that much money to the label they shackled themselves to... not even Jeff Bagwell soaked Uncle Drayton for that much money, eh.

Now, Madonna's trying to make her own deal with Warner Brothers Music for 9 figures, but she's getting the boot and crawling off to another label with more money than brains.

She's... not... worth... it... anymore. (Same with the Rolling Stones, eh,but some jackass keeps writing them deals and checks.)

Are we seeing the death of the traditional big players of the music industry, descending into revenue through lawsuit instead of sales, or is the music industry just getting sick of shelling out dumptrucks full of money for music superstars who do everything but produce music?

Condi Rice needs a serious reality check:

Secretary of State Condoleezza said Monday it was "time for the establishment of a Palestinian state," and described Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts as the most serious in years.

She said that while in Ramallah.

Ahem. Stand in the middle of Gaza City and say that, Condi.

Apparently, today is some kind of Blog Day For Action or something.

Um... right.

What should I get all active about?

Leave suggestions in the comments, and I might get active about it.

Or not.

Tired of Facebook?

Try Hatebook!

Forget the BRTs... it's all rail, with none of it connecting to the airports or the suburbs.

Who elected these clowns?

Apparently, being a part of a group that beats the shit out of a white guy gets you airtime on a BET awards show.

It's not exactly like the Palestinians naming streets, summer camps, hospitals, schools, and sandwiches after suicide bombers, but...

It just doesn't seem quite right, does it?

First up, an old friend sends me a link to a blog post on their colonoscopy.

I know it's just their way of saying "I'm fine, everyone" but I can't help but think they went through all the trouble just to goatse me.

ThenI get this link from Youtube on a somewhat invasive Chinese bathroom product.

WHAT IS IT WITH PEOPLE TODAY???

(Share your random ass-related links in the comments, eh.)

I'm a bit confused about the whole Dumbledore is gay announcement today.

If this is so earth-shattering, why was it not explicitly stated in any of the seven books?

I'm sure the fringes of both ends of the political spectrum are going to jump on this one. And then a bunch of folks are going to say "I knew it all along!" like Pee Wee Herman says "I meant to do that!"

As if it matters.

Heck, you could tell me that Professor McGonigal is a robot lesbian and it wouldn't matter.

I think Rowling is just fucking with people.

She's rich. She's famous. She has absolute control over some cultural icons.

And unlike J.R.R. Tolkein, she's still alive.

If J.R.R. were still alive, sitting on a dragon's hoard as large as Rowling's, tired of scribbling out book after book to a global fanboy audience, do you think he'd say "Yeah, Frodo and Sam were packing some Dwarven Fudge, mining each others asses like Moria." ?

Who knows? Who cares?

Just enjoy the books, read into them what you want to, and in fifty years there will be kids graduating from college with degrees in this stuff (Potterology?) while the rest of the planet graduates doctors, scientists, and all those other things a civilization needs.

Today is the first day that feels like Fall.

Sure, Fall started in September, but the late sunrise and drizzle and cool temperature makes it feel like what Fall should feel like.

I'm wearing a sweatshirt. I haven't had to take it off yet. It's nice and comfy.

When I went outside, it was drizzly and cool. Felt good to feel the drizzle on my face, really.

It's not like the Summer drizzles where the world becomes a steam cooker.

This is a relaxing, cool thing going on right now.

I think the time has come for the read-on-the-patio-in-the-evening sessions.

Until, of course, the weather bounces back one for time for the steam baths.

The Chronicle follows the adventures of Astros in Sandiegoland:

Ausmus said Loretta, who lives about five miles east of him, evacuated along with his family on Monday and still isn't sure about the fate of his home. Loretta didn't immediately return a phone call Tuesday.

Ausmus said he'd heard Padres closer Trevor Hoffman, former Astros and Padres infielder Phil Nevin and Padres Hall of Fame outfielder Tony Gwynn were among those who had to evacuate.

No mention of the two players Wade threw into the dumpsters known as The Padres Organization.

So does this mean that Jason Lane and Morgan Ensberg have already been ridden out of town on a rail?

And too damn lazy to check the catcams, yes, the cats are fine:

I moved the IR cam to the food bowl area because they weren't hanging out in the kitty-cave anymore.

But now that it's getting colder, I'm sure Frisky will want to go back in his cave more often, right?

There's just no telling with that fluffball.

More accusations of travel restrictions from the ever-decreasing Christian minority:

Israel has rescinded some travel privileges for Arab Christian clergy traveling to and around the West Bank because of security concerns, an Israeli spokeswoman said Friday.

The decision means the religious leaders' visas will be good for one entry only, and not for repeat visits as in the past, Interior Ministry spokeswoman Sabine Haddad said. This means they will be required to coordinate each trip they make, she said.

"According to a request by security officials, we restricted the visas of the clergy," Haddad said. "We are trying to find a solution to make it easier for them."

Jerusalem's prelate Michel Sabbeh could not be reached for comment, as he was busy performing his daily prayers at a local mosque.

The Vatican's reps rail against the Israeli government at every opportunity because they know if they rail at the local Muslim gunmen ethnically cleansing Bethlethem (oops... Beit Laham), they end up burned out of their churches, dead, or both.

Meanwhile, more rockets fired from Gaza into Israel... how many collection plates were melted down to build those rocket casings?

So, how many of y'all have devices with clocks that thought this morning was when they should switch back to Standard Time?

Me, I haven't found anything yet, but I'm sure I'll stumble acrosss something that didn't listen to Congress when they messed with the fabric of the space-time continuum even more.

After being a very important part of the disaster that was the 2007 season, Craig Biggio picked up the Roberto Clemente Award to honor his outstanding contributions to the community and... and... and...

Outstanding play?

Okay, the 3,000 hit thing was amazing. But it was over the course of a 20 year career.

If the Clemente Award is a career-based award, Biggio deserves it without a doubt. And he deserves enshrinement in the Hall Of Fame, too.

WTG Biggio. Have a great retirement!

With the first cold front of the fall moving through, it's time to clean out the remaining pots, sort out the stones, and stack it all up in the corner until springtime.

This time around, I've got the iCrap playing some of Kyle Beltran's jazz.

I should probably get a dock with speakers in it. Instead, I got a comfy set of isolating earphones from Sony, but they're really for travel.

I'll look into docks next week. Any suggestions?

Whatever... the process of pot-stacking is pretty simple:

• Get a big plastic tub.
• Bang out the pot's contents into the dirt
• Pick out the stones.
• Put the stones into the tub.
• Remove any remaining dirt from the pot.
• Remove any greenery or plastic tabs from the dirt pile.
• Smooth out the dirt.
• Carry the pot into the corner, stack into pot of same size.

Mindless, relaxing work on a Sunday morning.

If anything, this year's garden was a miserable failure crop-wise. Only the thyme survived long enough to get any use. I did harvest a few cayennes for boiling into pasta for a faint spicy flavor, but they really didn't hit the spot.

Next year, I'm thinking just mint, cayennes, and colorful and pretty plants.

Basic, simple stuff for a quiet getwaway.

Hopefully by then, I won't keep looking up at the fence and thinking something's missing.

Maybe I'll put the wooden sleeping-cat carving out under the overhang there as some kind of memorial. Or perhaps I should get a stone one that can handle the weather.

My wife made a pizza last night with the Smoked Jalapenos that Garf has his smiling face on.

For those of you taking notes at home, I like 'em. Not spicy at all. Just intensely smoky... flavorful.

The intensity of the smokiness was a bit too intense for the Mrs. however.

So, for good or bad, there's agreement here: intensity.

We're doing Kenneally's tonight, so the intensity will be in the form of the sharpness of the crust.

(The ergowraps will help keep me from slashing my wrists after a Monday's work nightmare.)

Last night was a Kenneally's Night with me, the Mrs., and Bob.

Needed it. Badly. 139 tickets didn't feel like 139 tickets until my fingers told me YOU DID 139 TICKETS TODAY.

My wrists felt great. Yay ergowraps, eh.

But I needed the beer. Needed the pizza. Needed to... (bump bump) get away I had to (bump bump) run away...

What awaited us at Kenneally's was a strange scene, pumpkins on nearly every table, waiting... waiting for the assault.

I thought they were decorations until I saw the orange slips of paper.

Pumpkin carving contest.

So for the next two hours, occasionally remembering to sip my beer, eat some Irish nachos, consume a chip or two, or wolf down pizza too quickly (I know I need to take smaller bites and chew my food, dear) I was rendering my pumpkin most surreal.

Toothpicks. Needed toothpicks. Blackened toothpicks.

If you swing by Kenneally's, look for "Leave Britney Alone!" entry #1.

And enjoy the pizza and Guinness.

It's the best!

Assuming that Ed Wade and Cecil Cooper continue under the Purpura-Garner delusion that Adam Everett's pathetic bat is more than made up for by his fielding, welcome to another year of 7-8-9 easy outs for the Astros:

The Astros signed the veteran catcher to a one-year contract worth $2 million plus incentives, the team announced Tuesday.

"Brad has had a solid big league career and, despite the fact that he's played for a couple of other teams, he considers himself to be a lifelong Astro," general manager Ed Wade said. "We're very pleased to have him back for 2008. We know that he can make a significant contribution on the field, and we know the impact he has in our clubhouse.

The Astros' fortunes depend on whether Brad mentors J.R. from the field or from the bench.

Well, that and if the Burke-Pence madness in Spring 2007 isn't repeated when Cody, John, or some other hot prospect explodes during spring in a position currently occupied by a flamed-out veteran.

UPDATE:
While gibbering and clapping with glee, Justice goes all loopy again:

If Andy wants to bring along his famous friend so much the better.

Yeah, that's what this town needs. An entire offseason, Spring, and first two months of the season where the owner and general manager are distracted by a washed-up part-time overpaid hamstring injury-laden mercenary instead of, say, spending all that money on pitchers heading towards the peaks or their careers.

I know, there's not much out there in the free agent market, but what there is, it can certainly deliver for more of a season than Roger "Name Your Price" Clemens. (WHY DID PURPURA THINK THAT JENNINGS WOULD FAIL TO SUCK AT MINUTEMAID LIKE HE'D DONE ALL THOSE SEASONS BEFORE?)

Look, the man's going into the Hall Of Fame with a Yankees hat, folks. Let him retire with one on, okay?

(Ought to be a dollar sign, though.)

Saw this slip down the Twitter scroll today:

susanreynolds so if I really want to unfollow someone cuz I just dont wanna hear their crap BUT dont want to offend there's no hope cuz u guys keep track!

I, for one, don't keep track of each individual follower. There's too damn many to track, eh.

In fact, I posted this today about followers:

At 246 followers to begin. Count the defollows, kids!

See? Large number.

Not exactly a Chris Brogan or a Leo Laporte or a Darth Vader, but still too many to track.

Look, if people want to follow, fine. Yay them.

If people don't want to follow, fine. Yay them.

Yay everybody.

Other than those warning sides on the roadside or those goofy plane crash porn cartoons the airlines put in seat pockets, you aren't compelled to read anything.

Not even that dork Scott Adams' stuff. Especially Scott Adams.

In fact, I don't want to know if your following or defollowing or what you're reading or not reading the stuff.

You're not going to change what I write or twit or peep or snort out anyway. It's pretty much random musings, rants, bus frustration, co-worker madness, and public replies to stuff so that people don't think I'm ignoring something, even though it's none of their fucking business if I reply to someone or something or thank them or congratulate them or even acknowledge they've said anything in the first place.

So, you can watch http://twitter.com/isfullofcrap if you want to. Or not. You can read any of the IFOC sites. Or not. You can listen to and vote on the podcast. Or not. You can strap on roller skates , shove a rocket engine up your ass, and fly to the mooooooooooooooooon.