Sex, booze, drugs, gifts, and government contracts?

The following news story was sent to me via email by a friend. I was absolutely shocked that I'd not heard of this before.

Does anyone else have a problem with this? Why is it that anything Britney does becomes the lead story on every news and entertainment source, but something like this does not?

Gov't officials investigated for sex, gifts
By DINA CAPPIELLO, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Government officials handling billions of dollars in oil royalties partied, had sex with and accepted golf and ski outings from employees of energy companies they were dealing with, federal investigators said Wednesday.

The alleged transgressions involve 13 former and current Interior Department employees in Denver and Washington. Their alleged improprieties include rigging contracts, working part-time as private oil consultants, and having sexual relationships with — and accepting golf and ski trips and dinners from — oil company employees, according to three reports released Wednesday by the Interior Department's inspector general.

The investigations reveal a "culture of substance abuse and promiscuity" by a small group of individuals "wholly lacking in acceptance of or adherence to government ethical standards," wrote Inspector General Earl E. Devaney, whose office spent more than two years and $5.3 million on the investigation.

"Sexual relationships with prohibited sources cannot, by definition, be arms-length," Devaney said.

The reports describe a fraternity house atmosphere inside the Denver Minerals Management Service office responsible for marketing oil and natural gas that energy companies barter to the government in lieu of cash royalty payments for drilling on federal lands. The government received $4.3 billion in such royalty-in-kind payments last year. The oil and gas is then resold to energy companies or put in the nation's emergency stockpile.

"During the course of our investigation, we learned that some RIK employees frequently consumed alcohol at industry functions, had used cocaine and marijuana, and had sexual relationships with oil and gas company representatives," the report said. Two government employees who had to spend the night after a daytime industry function because they were too intoxicated to drive home were commonly referred to by energy traders as the "MMS Chicks."

Between 2002 and 2006, nearly a third of the 55-person staff in the Denver office received gifts and gratuities from oil and gas companies, including Chevron Corp., Shell, Hess Corp. and Denver-based Gary-Williams Energy Corp., the investigators found. Two oil marketers received gifts and gratuities on at least 135 occasions. One admitted having a one-night-stand with a Shell employee. That same individual allegedly passed out business cards for her sex toy business at work, bragging that her income from that business exceeded her salary at the Interior Department.

Devaney said the investigations took so long because Chevron refused to cooperate. An Interior Department official said Chevron would not allow investigators to interview its employees.

Don Campbell, a Chevron spokesman, said Wednesday that the company "produced all of the documents that the government requested months ago." A Shell spokeswoman said it would be premature for the company to comment on the report until it had time to review it.

The reports also said former head of the Denver royalty-in-kind office, Gregory W. Smith, used cocaine and had sex with subordinates. The report said Smith also steered government contracts to a consulting business that paid him $30,000 for his work from April 2002 through June 2003.

Smith retired from the office in May 2007.

Smith's attorney, Steve Peters, called the claims "sheer fantasy."

"Greg Smith was a loyal, dedicated employee of the federal government for more than 28 years," Peters said Wednesday. "His efforts in running the royalty-in-kind program resulted in one of the most profitable government programs in American history."

MMS Director Randall Luthi, in an interview, said the agency was taking the report "extremely seriously" and would review the allegations and weigh taking appropriate action in coming months. The inspector general is recommending that current employees implicated be fired and be barred for life from working within the royalty program.

House Natural Resources Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., said "this whole IG report reads like a script from a television miniseries and one that cannot air during family viewing time. It is no wonder that the office was doing such a lousy job of overseeing the RIK program; clearly the employees had 'other' priorities in that office."

One of the employees named in the investigation, Jimmy Mayberry, already has pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Washington to violations of conflict-of-interest laws. The Justice Department declined to prosecute Smith and former Associate Director of the Minerals Revenue Management program Lucy Querques Denett, who the report says manipulated contracts to ensure they were awarded to former Interior employees.

The findings are the latest sign of trouble at the Minerals Management Service, which already has been accused of mismanaging the collection of fees from oil companies and writing faulty contracts for drilling on government land and offshore. The charges also come as Congress and both presidential candidates are debating whether to open up more federal offshore waters to oil and natural gas drilling.

"This all shows the oil industry holds shocking sway over the administration and even key federal employees," said Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla. "This is why we must not allow Big Oil's agenda to be jammed through Congress."

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., urged Democrats to reopen a House investigation of the Minerals Management Service that was initiated in 2006 by House Republicans. "Looking into and fixing these problems would have meant highlighting the enormous revenues that domestic oil and natural gas production contributes to our treasury. This just didn't fit into their anti-drilling campaign," he said.

While most government royalties for drilling on federal lands are paid in cash, the government in recent years has been receiving a greater share of its oil and gas royalties in the actual product. More of that oil is also being sold on the open market, versus being deposited in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation's emergency oil stockpile. Congress earlier this year passed a law halting deposits of oil to the reserve to help alleviate high gasoline prices.

The investigation was prompted by a 2006 phone call from an employee in the Denver office who reported ethical lapses.

Crush du Jour: Forrest Griffin

Chicago mulls high school for gays

My thoughts follow this article.

Chicago mulls gay high school
By 365gay Newscenter Staff

(Chicago, Illinois) Chicago school officials are considering a plan to create a separate high school for LGBT students, but the proposal is not without its detractors - both outside and within the gay community.

LGBT advocates hail the idea, but others warn the school would isolate gay students. Conservatives call the proposal a waste of taxpayer money.

A 2005 study commissioned by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network found that gay-bashing remains a major problem in the nation’s schools.

Three-quarters of students surveyed across America said that over the past year they heard derogatory remarks such as “faggot” or “dyke” frequently or often at school, and nearly nine out of 10 reported hearing “that’s so gay” or “you’re so gay” - meaning stupid or worthless - frequently or often.

Over a third of students said they experienced physical harassment at school on the basis of sexual orientation and more than a quarter on the basis of their gender expression.

Nearly one-in-five students reported they had been physically assaulted because of their sexual orientation and over a tenth because of their gender expression.

The study also showed that bullying has a negative impact on learning.

LGBT students were five times more likely to report having skipped school in the last month because of safety concerns than did the general population of students.

Nevertheless, some LGBT community leaders say a separate school for gay students could give them a false sense of security and make them unprepared for life outside schoolhouse walls.

“If we’re going to set up a separate school, let’s put the bullies in the school and not our gays kids,” Rick Garcia, public policy director of Equality Illinois told the Chicago Tribune. “Kids should be able to go to school in a safe environment wherever they are.”

Conservatives call the proposal for the school a misuse of public funds and charge it would require administrators to take a moral stance on homosexuality.

The plan must still undergo a series of public hearings - the first is set for Sept. 18. It then would require approval by a Chicago Public Schools evaluation team with the final decision up to the head of the school system, Arne Duncan.

The earliest it could be up and running would be 2012.

The first all-gay high school in the U.S. opened in New York City in 2003, and is named for slain San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk.

**********

While I think it would be totally fun for gay kids to be in school only with other gay kids, I don't think it is a good idea to separate them from the general student population because they are the victims of bullying.

Rather than separating gay students to ensure a safe environment for them, the schools need to take seriously the idea of school bullying and implement measure to reduce it.

Too often school officials scoff and snicker at bullying, suggesting "kids will be kids", as if bullying (for any reason) is expected, and therefore understandable or acceptable. They chalk it up to 'hormones' and 'typical teenage behaviors', but I believe this is just an excuse for inaction. They would likely feel differently if their own child was the victim of bullying.

Rather than spending millions on a new school for gay students, why not use that money to install video cameras in the existing schools which will help administrators monitor bullying and take action against it. Students who know they are "on camera" may decided against inappropriate behavior.

I believe schools need to adopt a 'zero tolerance' policy for bullying.

First offenders should be suspended for a day. Second offenders should be suspended and sent to mandatory counseling. Repeat offenders should be expelled for the rest of the term.

I believe that if these penalties for bullying are communicated first and then implemented, students will think twice about beating up an effeminate boy while calling him a faggot.

Crush du Jour: Jason Shane Scott

Mama Mia and other films

Earlier this week Spouse & I joined our friends Dave & Scott at the theatre to see "Mama Mia - The Singalong Version". Its the film "Mama Mia", but with the lyrics of the songs at the bottom of the screen, changing color when they are to be sung, like karaoke. Audiences are encouraged to sing along.

This sounded like a lot of fun, for several reasons. Spouse & I both love Abba music. We saw Mama Mia in Las Vegas (from 5th row seats) on my birthday in 2004. I have sung karaoke several times. See? It seemed like the perfect recipe for a campy, gay ol' time!

Only, it wasn't.

Maybe it was my fault for agreeing to go on a Tuesday night. There were only about 12 people in the theatre, and only 2 of them appeared to be gay, excluding the 4 of us. We should have gotten a big group of queens together and gone to see it on a Fri or Sat night. We sang along to some of the songs, but I didn't hear anyone else singing. It just seemed like one of those great, fun ideas that somehow just didn't turn out.

We still had a good time, but not the campy, gay ol' time I was expecting. Now, about the movie...

All the actors were too old for the characters they portrayed except Sophie and Sky. Meryl Streep is supposed to be this early 40's single mom whose 20 year old daughter is getting married. Only Meryl Streep is 59, not in her early 40's. Same goes for the 3 possible fathers, whom we would assume are close to the same age, early 40's. But they're not, they're 57, 55, and 48.

Normally I wouldn't get all hung up on the age thing, but the songs, dialog, and choreography were all designed for actors in their early 40's, so it almost borders on comical to hear and see these older actors saying and doing this stuff.

And who committed the tragedy against the world of telling Pearce Brosnan that he could sing? Sweet baby Jesus, that was bad. Couldn't they have cast an actor (closer to his early 40's) who could actually sing?

But the music was fun, and the Grecian setting was absolutely beautiful. I doubt this film will win any awards, but it was cute, and I bet the actors had an absolute ball making it.

Speaking of films, I recently came across AfterElton.com's list of 50 greatest gay male films. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that "Brokeback Mountain" took the top spot, although it is not my favorite. The #1 spot on my list would be "Torch Song Trilogy". Other surprises to me were that "Priscilla: Queen of the Dessert" came in at #10, and "Too Wong Fu: Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar" came in at #27. I would have ranked them both in the top 5.

So if your Netflix queue is nearly empty and you want to restock it with some good gay films, check out the list.

Crush du Jour: Will Fennell

Gay police and service members

My comments follow this brief article.

Italian gay cops to stage mass coming out
By 365gay Newscenter Staff

(Rome) Gay police officers throughout Italy who publicly have remained closeted are planning a mass coming out after the Milan force announced it was investigating a cop who had won a gay beauty contest.

Fabrizio Caiazza, 33, won the “Sex Factor” online contest organized by the British gay website Gaydarnation, beating out 46,000 contenders from 162 countries and winning a $20,000 prize.

In his submission, Caiazza posed in his police uniform. A spokesperson for the Milan police said Caiazza did not seek permission to appear in the uniform or to enter the contest. The traffic cop is under investigation for bringing “discredit to the force.” If convicted, he could be sanctioned, fined or fired.

Milan’s deputy mayor, Riccardo De Corato, said Caiazza will likely receive a slap on the wrist.

But Caiazza says the entire investigation is tainted with homophobia and will result in gay officers staying in the closet out of fear.

“Many policemen don’t come out because of the enmity they would face from colleagues and the isolation they would be put in by superiors,” he told Britain’s Observer newspaper.

The investigation has prompted the formation of Italy’s first organization for LGBT cops, called Polis Aperta.

The group will hold its first meeting on Sept. 26 and organizer Nicola Cicchitti says dozens of gay cops will come out publicly at the meeting.

“We’re coming out against creeping discrimination,” Cicchitti told the Observer, adding that the organization already has about 200 members.

Cicchitti said the group will seek official recognition from the government.

The idea won the backing of Vladimir Luxuria, a transgender former member of the Italian parliament.

***************

It really bothers me that gay people in most professions can be 'out' without fear of losing their jobs or being treated unfairly while Americans in the military and Italian police officers can not.

Is it because 'gays can't be trusted with guns'?

I don't think so. In America anyone with no criminal record can legally purchase a gun and not be asked to disclose their sexual orientation. So why can't military service members and police officers be 'out'?

I think it is a matter of trust and respect. Bigots have gotten the crazy idea that gay military service members 'pose a national security risk', so they can not be trusted. Since they can not be trusted, they certainly do not deserve respect and fair treatment.

What about a person being gay would make them any more risky or any less trustworthy? Nothing I can think of. But I imagine that there are lots of things about alcoholics, wife abusers, and drug addicts that make them more risky and less trustworthy, but those things don't seem to matter to the bigots.

Its the same kind of bigotry that allowed the US government to pass DOMA in 1996. Exactly what did marriage need to be protected from? Gays? Hardly, since gays were unable to legally marry in the US in 1996. With the national divorce rate so high, it would appear that marriage needs to be protected from is divorce.

In reality the treatment of Italian police officers and American military service members has nothing to do with posing a 'national security risk', being 'untrustworthy', or 'discrediting the force', but has everything to do with discrimination by bigots in power.

That is why the way we vote is so important. Let's not elect anymore bigots.

Crush du Jour: Pete Sampras

Ford's decision

Ford has decided NOT to sell its 65-mpg Fiesta in the US because it feels Americans don't like diesel fueled vehicles.

They say only 3% of cars sold in the US are diesels. But did it occur to them that more people would likely buy a diesel if more models were offered? Currently only VW and Mercedes Benz offer a few diesel models.

My guess is that US car buyers wouldn't care if the Fiesta were diesel if they knew they could get 65 miles per gallon.

Americans are slowly adjusting to the reality that we can't rely solely on gasoline powered vehicles if we want to be competitive in the world marketplace and protect the environment. Unfortunately our government seems to feel the answer is simply to drill for more oil. We need a variety of fuel choices, which will make them competitive with each other and reduce unit cost, as well as reduce environmental damage.

Ford Won't Sell 65-MPG Fiesta in US
By DAVID KILEY, BusinessWeek.com

If ever there was a car made for the times, this would seem to be it: a sporty subcompact that seats five, offers a navigation system, and gets a whopping 65 miles to the gallon. Oh yes, and the car is made by Ford Motor, known widely for lumbering gas hogs.

Ford's 2009 Fiesta ECOnetic goes on sale in November. But here's the catch: Despite the car's potential to transform Ford's image and help it compete with Toyota Motor and Honda Motor in its home market, the company will sell the little fuel sipper only in Europe.

"We know it's an awesome vehicle," says Ford America President Mark Fields. "But there are business reasons why we can't sell it in the U.S." The main one: The Fiesta ECOnetic runs on diesel.

Automakers such as Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz have predicted for years that a technology called "clean diesel" would overcome many Americans' antipathy to a fuel still often thought of as the smelly stuff that powers tractor trailers. Diesel vehicles now hitting the market with pollution-fighting technology are as clean or cleaner than gasoline and at least 30 percent more fuel-efficient.

Yet while half of all cars sold in Europe last year ran on diesel, the U.S. market remains relatively unfriendly to the fuel. Taxes aimed at commercial trucks mean diesel costs anywhere from 40 cents to $1 more per gallon than gasoline.

Add to this the success of the Toyota Prius, and you can see why only 3 percent of cars in the U.S. use diesel. "Americans see hybrids as the darling," says Global Insight auto analyst Philip Gott, "and diesel as old-tech."

None of this is stopping European and Japanese automakers, which are betting they can jump-start the U.S. market with new diesel models. Mercedes-Benz by next year will have three cars it markets as "BlueTec." Even Nissan and Honda, which long opposed building diesel cars in Europe, plan to introduce them in the U.S. in 2010. But Ford, whose Fiesta ECOnetic compares favorably with European diesels, can't make a business case for bringing the car to the U.S.

TOO PRICEY TO IMPORT

First of all, the engines are built in Britain, so labor costs are high. Plus the pound remains stronger than the greenback. At prevailing exchange rates, the Fiesta ECOnetic would sell for about $25,700 in the U.S. By contrast, the Prius typically goes for about $24,000. A $1,300 tax deduction available to buyers of new diesel cars could bring the price of the Fiesta to around $24,400. But Ford doesn't believe it could charge enough to make money on an imported ECOnetic.

Ford plans to make a gas-powered version of the Fiesta in Mexico for the U.S. So why not manufacture diesel engines there, too? Building a plant would cost at least $350 million at a time when Ford has been burning through more than $1 billion a month in cash reserves. Besides, the automaker would have to produce at least 350,000 engines a year to make such a venture profitable. "We just don't think North and South America would buy that many diesel cars," says Fields.

The question, of course, is whether the U.S. ever will embrace diesel fuel and allow automakers to achieve sufficient scale to make money on such vehicles. California certified VW and Mercedes diesel cars earlier this year, after a four-year ban. James N. Hall, of auto researcher 293 Analysts, says that bellwether state and the Northeast remain "hostile to diesel." But the risk to Ford is that the fuel takes off, and the carmaker finds itself playing catch-up -- despite having a serious diesel contender in its arsenal.

Crush du Jour: David Beckham

Pray away the gay?

Palin's church hopes to 'pray away the gay' and convert homosexuals to heterosexuals

FROM ASSOCIATED PRESS

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin’s church is promoting a conference that promises to convert gays into heterosexuals through the power of prayer.

‘‘You’ll be encouraged by the power of God’s love and His desire to transform the lives of those impacted by homosexuality,’’ according to the insert in the bulletin of the Wasilla Bible Church, where Palin has prayed for about six years.

Palin’s conservative Christian views have energized that part of the GOP electorate, which was lukewarm to John McCain’s candidacy before he named her as his vice presidential choice. She is staunchly anti-abortion, opposing exceptions for rape and incest, and opposes gay marriage and spousal rights for gay couples.

Focus on the Family, a national Christian fundamentalist organization, is conducting the ‘‘Love Won Out’’ Conference in Anchorage, about 30 miles from Wasilla.

Palin, campaigning with McCain in the Midwest on Friday, has not publicly expressed a view on the so-called ‘‘pray away the gay’’ movement. Larry Kroon, senior pastor at Palin’s church, was not available to discuss the matter Friday, said a church worker who declined to give her name.
Gay activists in Alaska said Palin has not worked actively against their interests, but early in her administration she supported a bill to overrule a court decision to block state benefits for gay partners of public employees.

At the time, less than one-half of 1 percent of state employees had applied for the benefits, which were ordered by a 2005 ruling by the Alaska Supreme Court.

Palin reversed her position and vetoed the bill after the state attorney general said it was unconstitutional. But her reluctant support didn’t win fans among Alaska’s gay population, said Scott Turner, a gay activist in Anchorage.

‘‘Less than 1 percent of state employees would even apply for benefits, so why make a big deal out of such a small number?’’ he said.

‘‘I think gay Republicans are going to run away’’ if Palin supports efforts like the prayers to convert gays, said Wayne Besen, founder of the New York-based Truth Wins Out, a gay rights advocacy group. Besen called on Palin to publicly express her views now that she’s a vice presidential nominee.

‘‘People are looking at Sarah Palin as someone who might feasibly be in the White House,’’ he said.
*************

It surprises me that educated, thinking people can still be under the delusion that homosexuality can be 'prayed away', or removed via 'reparative therapy'.

Are they unaware of the studies that show no lasting 'change' from anti-homosexual therapies? Are they unaware of the so-called 'success stories' who are later found to be seeking out homosexual encounters once again? Why do people who are not gay think they know more about being gay than gay people?

My experience as a teenage and 20-something year old includes hours and hours and hours of praying for a cure for my homosexuality. For nearly 20 years I prayed earnestly and incessantly for a change.

The 'change' finally came when I was 29, but it wasn't the change I'd prayed for. I was still gay, but God changed my perception of myself. I realized there was no reason to change who I was, only a need to change how I understood and valued myself.

Crush du Jour: Preston Lee

Updates

I've been having sinus congestion and pain for a week now. I started by taking a generic, over-the-counter Loratadine for the congestion and acetomidophine for the pain. Five days later I decided to 'upgrade' to the Loratadine with Psuedophedrine (Claritin D) for the congestion; the kind you have to get from a pharmacist.
It works better than the OTC stuff, but leaves me feeling a bit 'dull', despite the fact that it is supposed to be a "non-drowsiness" formula.

Tropical Storm Hanna had very little affect on my area. We got rain and wind on Sat, but honestly it was less severe than the Nor'easter back in May.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not complaining. I'm glad the storm veered away from my little town. We hosted Movie Night as planned and everyone showed up. We showed "Lars and the Real Girl", and everyone loved it. The storm was completely gone by 9:30 pm Sat night, and being out on the beach Sun afternoon was absolutely divine. It appears Ike will not even come close to us.

The settlement date for our house in VA has been moved up from 10/2 to 9/19. The current tenants are moving out earlier than expected and the buyers are very eager to move in, so it is all working out for the best for everyone involved.

Of course Spouse & I can't think fast enough of all the ways we'd love to spend the money! But we'll use most of it to significantly reduce the mortgage on our current house, like good, responsible adults, and put the rest in savings.

Spouse & I are thinking about buying a new mattress. Our current one is no longer comfortable, despite having flipped it several times. I heard that mattresses usually last about 10-12 years, and ours is 11 years old. I would really like to get a Tempurpedic memory foam mattress.

I received a Tempurpedic memory foam pillow for Christmas a few years ago and I absolutely love it. But the mattresses are very expensive; the cheapest queen is $1,500. and the most expensive queen is $7,500. As usual, we will do our 'due diligence' before making a purchase.

To celebrate the swift sale of our house in VA, Spouse & I are planning a 4-day trip to NYC in early Oct. We've wanted to return ever since our last, very brief stay in NYC in 2004. My friend since childhood Lisa has graciously invited us to stay at her place in Sunnyside, and we are planning to see some shows, some sites, and some friends. I'm wondering if any of you NYC bloggers would be interested in a meet-n-greet at some fabulous NYC nightspot? That could be quite fun!
"Autumn in New York"... that has a nice ring to it.

Crush du Jour: Bradley Cooper

Gay bashing

Gay man fights for life after homophobic attack
By 365gay Newscenter Staff

(London) Three teenagers are in police custody following a vicious unprovoked attack in East London that has left a gay man in hospital fighting for his life.

The 20-year old victim, whose name is being withheld by police for his protection, was stabbed seven times.

The attacked occurred as the man and his female friend were walking towards a gay-friendly bar. Police said five teens swarmed the victim and the woman. They yelled homophobic taunts at the man, before beating him over the head with a bottle and then stabbing him in the back and torso.

He was rushed to Royal London hospital where he underwent emergency surgery and was listed Thursday in serious condition.

Investigators are continuing to search for two other teens involved in the attack. They said that the teens could be charged with attempted murder, but that could be upgraded to murder if the victim succumbs to his injuries.

“What we’re concentrating on is tracking down and bringing to justice the people who committed this evil crime,” Det. Insp. Howard Way told the local newspaper The East London Advertiser.

It was the 47th homophobic attack in East London in the past 12 months.

Local politicians appealed for calm in the area’s substantial gay community, as demands for greater police protection rose on Thursday.

“This is a sickening and vile assault,” said George Galloway, the Member of Parliament for the area.

“A near fatal knife attack on a defenseless man is horrific enough. The fact that this also appears to be a homophobic hate crime compounds the evil.”

Crush du Jour: Michael Ballack

Hanna

Last evening we felt the results of one of the "outer rain bands" of hurricane Hanna. It poured rain for about 20 minutes, then moved on. No wind.
This morning Spouse & I awoke to overcast skies and noticeably more humidity than usual. We ran a few errands, had a late breakfast/early lunch at Bob Evans (don't ask...) and then stopped at the grocery store.

This is one of the things I love about living here: the grocery store was NOT mobbed. When we lived in the DC area, all they had to do was suggest we MIGHT have inclement weather and the grocery stores would be pillaged. Every ounce of milk, every loaf of bread, and every roll of toilet paper would be purchased before the 1st drop of precipitation fell.

Here in "slower, lower Delaware" the scene is very different. Despite the fact that we will be visited by Hanna today, there was milk in the cooler, bread on the shelves, and toilet paper in several brands to choose from. No hysteria; no drama. Just people going to the store to get stuff they needed anyway, hurricane or not.

The wind has kicked up several notches and the rain has been pouring for a couple hours now. Its not scary and we haven't lost our electricity (yet).

In fact, tonight is our turn to host our monthly movie night, so as soon as I press the publish button I will vacuum the house in preparation. Yesterday I emailed the movie group and told them we would plan to host, regardless of the weather. Those who didn't want to brave the wind or rain would be excused, and we would call from our cell phones if we lost electricity. But I don't think that's going to happen.

Crush du Jour: Rafael Lazzini

Endoscopy fun!

Yesterday I had to take Spouse for an endoscopy at 9:45. He's trying to find out what's causing his 'noisy stomach'.

The endoscopy place is only about 2 miles from our house, and since they said the procedure takes about 10 minutes, followed by 20-30 minutes recovery, I figured we'd be back home in about an hour. No problem, I'd just use my lunch break to shuttle him, and not bother using any leave.

Well... we arrived just before 9:45 and Spouse was given the cursory paperwork to fill out, which probably took 5 minutes max. And then we sat and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Finally at 11:00 they called his name and he left the waiting area, which by the way had no music and no TV. It was just silence, occasionally punctuated by the calling of a patient's name.

So I was a bit ticked off that his 9:45 appointment resulted in us sitting in the waiting room for 75 minutes until 11:00, but I figured that since he was finally back there now, we'd likely be ready to go home in about a half hour. Had I known this would not be the case, I would have dropped him off and gone back to work until the office called and said he was ready to be picked up.

But I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

After flipping through Newsweek and various fashion magazines from 2005 and 2006 for about 40 minutes after Spouse had gone into the back, a nurse finally came to the waiting room at 11:40 and made an announcement.

"I'm sorry to say that we are running behind today, probably about 1 1/2 hours behind. There's no equipment malfunctions or power failures or anything like that to blame it on. Its just one of those days when it seems every procedure takes longer than expected. If anyone would like to leave and come back in an hour and a 1/2 or so, please check in with the office manager before you leave. Again, I'm sorry for the delay."

Great. This is the kind of thing that really ticks me off. If a patient or a client were to be 15 minutes late to a doctor's appointment or hair salon appointment, the office manager would give them all kinds of attitude and say something snarky like "Let me see if we can still fit you in or not", leaving you wondering if you'll have to reschedule for yet another inconvenient date. But they appear to have no qualms what-so-ever allowing patients and clients to wait on them for extended periods of time.

By this time, I'd already been away from work for 2 hours, but I felt I couldn't leave because I knew Spouse had already been called to the back. I figured he was probably in 'recovery' at the moment, and that we'd be going home soon.

But again, I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

Again I sat in the waiting room with no music, no TV, and 3 year old fashion magazines. Do you know how ironic it is to be looking through the Aug 2005 issue of InStyle magazine with the feature article "What's Hot and What's Not Today?"

12:00 came and went.

12:30 came and went.

Finally at 12:45 - 3 hours after arriving - they called me back to the recovery area where Spouse was, still in his hospital gown, and still connected to all kinds of machinery. The doctor came over a few minutes later and said he didn't see anything bad, but did take a small sample of a small area of redness for a biopsy, which he explained was just his protocol. Then the nurse gave us the post-procedure care instructions and told Spouse he could get dressed.

At 1:05 we walked out of the office. Mind you, endoscopy patients can't eat or drink anything for at least 8 hours before the procedure. Spouse's last food and drink were around 7pm the night before, and now it was 1:05 in the afternoon.

I was nervous that my unexplained absence from work might have been noticed, even though the morning had started off slowly. Sure enough, I returned to a voice mail and urgent email from a colleague, so I had to explain that I'd been detained unexpectedly at the doctor's visit. It wasn't a big deal in the end, but it could have been.

Having good insurance is a mixed bag. Yeah, they pay for most everything, but that makes you feel like you can/should go to the doctors whenever you feel something isn't right so that you can get the benefit of having such good insurance!

I guess I should stop whining and be happy that Spouse was only going for a 'noisy stomach'. We are both fortunate to be in extremely good health.

Crush du Jour: Josh Duhamel

Sarah Palin

Oh my... Where do I start with John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his VP candidate?

Many friends who know what a 'bleeding heart liberal' I am have forwarded me information about Alaska Governor Palin from various sources, so I'll share it with you and let you form your own opinion.

On Aug 29 Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund wrote this:

"WASHINGTON-- Senator John McCain just announced his choice for running mate: Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. To follow is a statement by Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund.

“Senator McCain’s choice for a running mate is beyond belief. By choosing Sarah Palin, McCain has clearly made a decision to continue the Bush legacy of destructive environmental policies.

“Sarah Palin, whose husband works for BP (formerly British Petroleum), has repeatedly put special interests first when it comes to the environment. In her scant two years as governor, she has lobbied aggressively to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, pushed for more drilling off of Alaska’s coasts, and put special interests above science. Ms. Palin has made it clear through her actions that she is unwilling to do even as much as the Bush administration to address the impacts of global warming. Her most recent effort has been to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove the polar bear from the endangered species list, putting Big Oil before sound science. As unbelievable as this may sound, this actually puts her to the right of the Bush administration.

“This is Senator McCain’s first significant choice in building his executive team and it’s a bad one. It has to raise serious doubts in the minds of voters about John McCain’s commitment to conservation, to addressing the impacts of global warming and to ensuring our country ends its dependency on oil.”

The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund provides a powerful voice in Washington to Americans who value our conservation heritage. Through grassroots lobbying, issue advocacy and political campaigns, the Action Fund champions those laws and lawmakers that protect wildlife and wild places while working against those that do them harm."

On Aug 30 MoveOn.org (entirely funded by 3.2 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs) wrote this:

"Yesterday was John McCain's 72nd birthday. If elected, he'd be the oldest president ever inaugurated. And after months of slamming Barack Obama for "inexperience," here's who John McCain has chosen to be one heartbeat away from the presidency: a right-wing religious conservative with no foreign policy experience, who until recently was mayor of a town of 9,000 people.

Huh?

Who is Sarah Palin? Here's some basic background:
* She was elected Alaska's governor a little over a year and a half ago. Her previous office was mayor of Wasilla, a small town outside Anchorage. She has no foreign policy experience.
* Palin is strongly anti-choice, opposing abortion even in the case of rape or incest.
* She supported right-wing extremist Pat Buchanan for president in 2000.
* Palin thinks creationism should be taught in public schools.
* She's doesn't think humans are the cause of climate change.
* She's solidly in line with John McCain's "Big Oil first" energy policy. She's pushed hard for more oil drilling and says renewables won't be ready for years. She also sued the Bush administration for listing polar bears as an endangered species—she was worried it would interfere with more oil drilling in Alaska.
* How closely did John McCain vet this choice? He met Sarah Palin once at a meeting. They spoke a second time, last Sunday, when he called her about being vice-president. Then he offered her the position.

This is information the American people need to see. Please take a moment to forward this email to your friends and family.

We also asked Alaska MoveOn members what the rest of us should know about their governor. The response was striking. Here's a sample:
* She is really just a mayor from a small town outside Anchorage who has been a governor for only 1.5 years, and has ZERO national and international experience. I shudder to think that she could be the person taking that 3AM call on the White House hotline, and the one who could potentially be charged with leading the US in the volatile international scene that exists today. —Rose M., Fairbanks, AK
* She is VERY, VERY conservative, and far from perfect. She's a hunter and fisherwoman, but votes against the environment again and again. She ran on ethics reform, but is currently under investigation for several charges involving hiring and firing of state officials. She has NO experience beyond Alaska. —Christine B., Denali Park, AK
* As an Alaskan and a feminist, I am beyond words at this announcement. Palin is not a feminist, and she is not the reformer she claims to be. —Karen L., Anchorage, AK
* Alaskans, collectively, are just as stunned as the rest of the nation. She is doing well running our State, but is totally inexperienced on the national level, and very much unequipped to run the nation, if it came to that. She is as far right as one can get, which has already been communicated on the news. In our office of thirty employees (dems, republicans, and nonpartisans), not one person feels she is ready for the V.P. position.—Sherry C., Anchorage, AK
* She's vehemently anti-choice and doesn't care about protecting our natural resources, even though she has worked as a fisherman. McCain chose her to pick up the Hillary voters, but Palin is no Hillary. —Marina L., Juneau, AK
* I think she's far too inexperienced to be in this position. I'm all for a woman in the White House, but not one who hasn't done anything to deserve it. There are far many other women who have worked their way up and have much more experience that would have been better choices. This is a patronizing decision on John McCain's part- and insulting to females everywhere that he would assume he'll get our vote by putting "A Woman" in that position.—Jennifer M., Anchorage, AK

So Governor Palin is a staunch anti-choice religious conservative. She's a global warming denier who shares John McCain's commitment to Big Oil. And she's dramatically inexperienced.
In picking Sarah Palin, John McCain has made the religious right very happy. And he's made a very dangerous decision for our country.

In the next few days, many Americans will be wondering what McCain's vice-presidential choice means. Please pass this information along to your friends and family."

And what about her underage, unwed, pregnant daughter? And what about the ongoing investigation into Palin's illedged abuse of power as Governor? Sit tight...

In response to this article in the Washington Independent, Anne Kilkenny, a citizen of Wasilla AL who claims to have known Palin for 16 years answers these questions and many more you might not have thought of yet. Its rather long, but extrememly informative and interesting"

"I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992. Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more City Council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the residents of the city.

She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because she is a "babe".

It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents for seven months.

She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby. There is no cover-up involved here; Trig is her baby.

She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.

She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out there" and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or so in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their major source of income. Nor has her life-style ever been anything like that of native Alaskans.

Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.

She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000 (at the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about 670,000 residents.

During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been pushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had given rise to a recall campaign.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative". During her 6 years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece of property that the City didn't even have clear title to, that was still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the delight of the lawyers involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects that could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.

While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated more than once.

These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions nor open to outside ideas or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys". Palin fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as Governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people, creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally grateful and fiercely loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the case of pressuring the State's top cop (see below).

As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated" her, she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that an important factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't fire her sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in help. The City Council person who personally escorted her around town introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She abruptly fired her loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness. Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything publicly about her.

When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got the best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no background in oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great job which paid $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party) engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move which some undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit, exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to.

As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing projects, calling them pork. Public outcry and further legislative action restored most of these projects--which had been vetoed simply because she was not aware of their importance--but with the unobservant she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork".

She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a fiscal conservative.

Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah. They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her.

As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package of legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to march to the beat of her drum.

Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state initiaitive that would have either protected salmon streams from pollution from mines, or tied up in the courts all mining in the state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the State's lawsuit against the Dept. of the Interior's decision to list polar bears as threatened species.

McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a heartbeat away from being President.

There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more knowledgeable and experienced than she. However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are regretting it.

CLAIM VS FACT

"Hockey mom": true for a few years.

"PTA mom": true years ago when her first-born was in elementary school, but not since.

"NRA supporter": absolutely true

"social conservative": mixed. Opposes gay marriage, BUT vetoed a bill that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex relationships (said she did this because it was unconsitutional).

"pro-creationism": mixed. Supports it, BUT did nothing as Governor to promote it.

"Pro-life": mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby BUT declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-life legislation

"Experienced": Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska. No legislative experience other than City Council. Little hands-on supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city administrator to run town of about 5,000.

"political maverick": not at all

"gutsy": absolutely!

"open & transparent": ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at explaining actions.

"has a developed philosophy of public policy": no

"a Greenie": no. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box stores and disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.

"fiscal conservative": not by my definition!

"pro-infrastructure": No. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built streets to early 20th century standards.

"pro-tax relief": Lowered taxes for businesses, increased tax burden on residents

"pro-small government": No. Oversaw greatest expansion of city government in Wasilla's history.

"pro-labor/pro-union": No. Just because her husband works union doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim that she is pro-labor/pro-union.

WHY AM I WRITING THIS?

First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting programs in the schools. If you google my name (Anne Kilkenny + Alaska), you will find references to my participation in local government, education, and PTA/parent organizations.

Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen when good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do because few have gone to as many City Council meetings.

Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will cost me somehow in the future: that's life.

Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship.

Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to say anything because they were somehow vulnerable.

CAVEATS

I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in spending & taxation 2 years ago (when Palin was running for Governor) from information supplied to me by the Finance Director of the City of Wasilla, and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust for inflation? for population increases? Right now, it is impossible for a private person to get any info out of City Hall -- they are swamped. So I can't verify my numbers. You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000" up to 9,000. The day Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that the current population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was 5,460. I have used about 5,000 because Palin was Mayor from 1996 to 2002, and the city was growing rapidly in the mid-90's."

Everybody likes a good "fact check", right? Check out this one in the Anchorage Daily News, and this one on Yahoo!

And last but not least, check out this video and this video.

I bet you know a whole lot more about Sarah Palin now!

Crush du Jour: Matthew Montgomery

Holiday weekend highlights

Finally, I've got some time to share our holiday weekend highlights!

Fri afternoon our friends John & Marty came over to show us the landscaping plan John designed for our yard. Wow - it is amazing! John currently works as a florist and has a seemingly limitless knowledge of plants and flowers. He took our desire for a low-to-no maintenance yard, our favorite blooming plants and flowers, our desire for year-round color, and the soil and climate, and converted them all into a beautiful, casual garden.
There are some hardscapes, a water feature, outdoor art work, and a meandering path - all the things we said we liked. I was expecting a hand-drawn sketch with lots of notes, but John delivered a professional landscape plan made with computer software, and a list of what to buy. Needless to say we were extremely happy and impressed. I want to hire someone to purchase and install everything now, while Spouse wants to have it done in stages. Fortunately we agree that it will need to wait until the house in VA goes to settlement and we have time to meet with a landscape company.

Marty & John joined us for dinner with 'the usual suspects'. We had our largest dinner group so far with 16 people! In addition to John & Marty, there were 2 other visitors. Olivier & Francois are 2 French Canadians vacationing from Montreal. They were nice guys whose English was much better than my French. Occasionally I tossed in a word or simple phrase in French in an attempt to make our visitors feel welcomed. I asked them if they liked Poutine and they seemed a little surprised I knew of it. One of the Americans asked what it was, and I felt slightly superior since I was able to describe it and pronounce it correctly, thanks to Tornwordo.

We had such a fun time on our 'night out on the town' with Doug & Jim a few weeks ago we decided to do it again, sort of. As we drove into Rehoboth Beach it was quite apparent it was Labor Day weekend. The little seaside resort town was absolutely packed! We drove around for nearly 40 minutes looking for a parking place. We decided to skip cocktails at a bar and have them at the restaurant instead, while we (undoubtedly) waited for a table. Sure enough, there was a 30-40 minute wait, so we squeezed into the tight bar area and ordered cocktails.

After a brief conversation with these 2 guys from Pittsburgh who looked like Sopranos caricatures, we were eventually seated. Lupa di Mare is a great restaurant, as are the rest of Matt Haley's restaurants we've visited. The 4 of us had exceptional dinners and desserts.

Sun morning Rick & Nick came over for breakfast. Spouse made blueberry oatmeal pancakes and scrambled eggs with cheese and sausage.

We enjoyed chatting with them about vintage cars, politics, and made plans to meet at the beach the next day.

That afternoon Spouse & I went to a BBQ at George & Steve's in Dover. They are sweet guys who invite us to their BBQs every Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day, only we are never able to go because we always have company on those holiday weekends. So our company cancelling actually allowed us to finally join these friends for their famous BBQ.

Upon returning from Dover we fed and walked Jordan the dog, then walked to the canal where the charter boats are docked. Doug & Jim and Rick & Nick met us there for a evening boat cruise at 7:00. Until Doug suggested this, I didn't know they offered an evening cruise. I thought they only took fishermen out for saltwater fishing. The evening cruise was just $15. and lasted an hour and a 1/2, which we all agreed was a terrific bargain. We enjoyed seeing the Lewes canal and Delaware Bay from an entirely different perspective. We saw several lighthouses and the breakwater, which controls the tides from entering the bay from the ocean. And then there was the sunset. It seemed like one of the most beautiful ever, with its hot oranges, peaches, pinks and salmons against the steel blue-grey watery horizon.
After the cruise Rick & Nick went home and Doug & Jim asked us to join them for dinner at Beseme, just across the canal from the boat. I remembered a kumquat and soba noodle dish I'd seen the last time we ate there, but I ordered something else because I was afraid it might not be enough to satisfy me. But this time I wasn't as hungry so I thought the kumquat and soba noodle dish would be perfect. Unfortunately they were out of it! Guess I'll have to go back. A guy was playing the guitar and singing, so that was a nice treat with our meals.

On Mon Spouse & I met Rick & Nick on the beach around 12:30. It was a beautiful day, with a gentle breeze and not a cloud in the sky. Not surprising, there were a lot of people on the beach since it was Labor Day. We had a great time and stayed until 3:00. Spouse & I had angus burgers and Deitz & Watson hot dogs cooked on the grill for dinner, which we ate on the screened porch while listening to Bette Midler sing the Peggy Lee songbook. Delightful!

Spouse watched TV and I watched a Netflix DVD called 'Love Affair', the 1939 film starring Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. Its about 2 people who meet and fall in love on a cruise ship, only both of them are engaged to other people. They decided to meet at the top of the Empire State Bldg in 6 months, after they've dis-engaged themselves from their respective fiances. But Irene Dunne's character is struck by a car on her way to meet her true love. I liked the film and Irene Dunne a lot. I don't recall having seen her in any other films, although she made a bunch of them and was nominated 5 times for an Oscar.

And finally, I must plead with everyone to STOP SAYING "summer is over" just because Labor Day has passed. I lost count of how many people I heard say this over the long weekend. I love summer and am not ready for it to be over yet. Our a/c is still turned on, I'm still driving with my convertible top down, and people are still coming to the beach. Here in the mid-Atlantic region we usually experience Indian Summer well into Sept. Last year we were still going to the beach in early Oct. You may begin saying "summer is over" when the leaves are changing colors, and no sooner.

Crush du Jour: Anderson Cooper

Swamped

Work was unusually busy last week for me. Typically the week before and the week that includes a holiday are slower, but not this time. I worked like a dog last week, and today was nearly as busy.

I've been missing reading my daily blogroll, and have lots to catch up on! So hang tight and I will post soon. In the meantime, enjoy a 'crush'.

Crush du Jour: Romain Barras