Tour De France

Pardon me!

Slate.com is reporting the most likely candidates for Pardon by George bush in anticipation of his exit from power this winter. The usual suspects are all there. The Enron guys, Michael Milken, some sleazy republican ex-congressmen, and other shamed non-notables. Even Marion Jones and Michael Vick could grab themselves a get-out-of-jail-free card, although unlikely.

There is, however, one person on the short list who I fully support even though I know she was guilty as hell. A momentary lapse in greed for an otherwise fine purveyor of household taste.

PARDON MARTHA!

When last names attack

Theres one in every crowd.

The big three Auto makers have been in Washington these past few days fighting for their lives. Of course this comes in the form of a 25 Billion dollar bail out loan they expect the US (ie taxpayers) to pony up. My feelings remain, they shouldn't get a dime. They've spent the last 15 years ignoring rising fuel costs, continuing to pump out lack-luster gas guzzlers and watching foreign automakers loop them in sales and concepts; all the while continuing to pay their top executives Millions in salaries and "performance" bonuses, company-supplied lavish business lifestyles and other massive corporate financial wastes. I found it sadly ironic that the Auto CEO's touted of recent severe cost cutting measures within their industries when they all three travelled to these hearing in Washington aboard private jets ($20,000 per round trip).

Despite all this ridiculousness, BY FAR my favorite thing to come out of these meetings was Rep. Maxine Waters insistence to insert racism into the already convoluted mix. She felt it appropriate to bypass all the obvious financial conversations and go straight for the race jugular. Her ONLY contribution to the hearings were her comments about the automakers "lack of support" for minority-owned dealerships. Im sure that'll score her a 5 ham hock rating among her constituency in east Atlanta. Way to play to the home crowd Maxine!

Are we human or dancer?

Great song by The Killers.

Collard Stalk gets 3 to 5

Oh My F%$#(*%) god! News from my country fried hometown. God I miss that place.


Mayor in collard costume accused of assaulting entertainer at annual Maxton Collard Festival.

Published: Thursday, November 13, 2008 8:43 PM EST
The Laurinburg Exchange

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Maxton Mayor Gladys Dean on a charge that she assaulted an entertainer at the town's Collard Festival on Saturday. Dean, mayor since January 2008, is charged with simple assault. She is accused of grabbing Rene Ward, the director and owner of Step 2 It Dance Studio, during the dance troupe's performance. Dean has denied assaulting Ward. The warrant was issued in Lumberton late Tuesday afternoon after a Maxton magistrate recused herself from the case. As of Thursday, the warrant had not been served on the mayor.

The incident allegedly began when Dean — who was dressed as a collard stalk — approached Ward and asked her to cut the performance short so that another group could perform.“We don’t perform a concert at a festival,” Dean said. “I didn’t ask her to stop. I just asked her to suspend her performance and then come back after the other group performed.”Dean said when she asked Ward to stop, the director reacted violently.“She started screaming and yelling. She went crazy,” the mayor said. “I lightly touched her arm and lowered my voice in an effort to calm her down. I never grabbed her.”The mayor added that she told Ward she was sorry if she offended her by touching her arm.

A Robeson County District Court hearing is set for Dec. 12

you get a bailout..you get a bailout..you all get bailouts

The Bush "administration" released yet another bailout plan for mortgage holders today. And of course my hyde is continuing to be chapped by these "emergency measures". Theres been nothing but finger pointing and bank blame since the consumers widespread, inexcusable ignorance finally caught up with them. Personally I say let them all fail and learn first hand what happens when you lie to yourself and buy things you know you cant afford. If Joe the plumber has the faculties to fill out a mortgage loan application, he has enough sense to KNOW that he cant afford a $750,00 home on a $50,00 salary. Let him lose his house and live on the street. It's called survival of the fittest.

I cant wait to see what the Obama camp does to continue the sympathy parade in this country. It's no secret that the Dems have always supported that notion. Welfare, free health care, free money, free food, basically free living for the bottom half of the country. Well when the bottom half stops buying $400 sneakers, $50,000 cars and homes WAAAY out of their league, maybe then I'll sympathize.

Until then....

We've been Propositioned

Should we be surprised that the black and Hispanic voters in California made up a significant portion of the population who voted yes on Proposition 8? Not really. The Christian evangelicals (i.e hate aficionados) knew exactly who their go-to voters were. The poor, the uneducated, the easily swayed. Unfortunately for these populations, their participation in the passage of this very discriminatory proposition makes them look like complete fools. These are demographics who have cried foul many many times in the past claiming discrimination and unfair treatment yet they had no problems biting many of the hands that helped feed them all along the way.

In the end I continue to be flattered that my very existence threatens so many people’s way of life. I am truly honored that my “lifestyle” so invades the psyches of small minded, ignorant people that they must take time out of their own lives to lobby against my rights to equal treatment under the law. I had no idea I was such a celebrity. I also understand that more often than not, there are sinister, secretive reasons why certain people politic so aggressively against equal treatment for gays and lesbians. Whether it’s struggling with their own sexual identity internally, crippling insecurities within their own lives or just a pathetic need to feel “above” others in some way, it’s a clear and direct indication that these sad people are suffering from some very complicated demons. I personally believe that they will have plenty time in the hottest part of Hell to work through things and rethink their position later on.

So we remain second class citizens. We can be fired from jobs for loving someone, our long term relationships have no legal definition or protection, we have no tax relief, we have no end-of-life/familial rights, and we are shunned from most religious communities. We will continue to be gawked at, talked about, ignored, secluded and abandoned. The media and pop culture will continue to sensationalize us and our community as a whole will struggle with its own identity and avoid responsibility as a result.

Personally, I don’t let any of this affect me. Gay or straight, I believe relationships are personal and not to be publicly declared, I do however believe that the law should intervene at some point and provide protections to all parties involved. I pay zero attention to the “god warriors” and would rather not be included in their inner circle anyway. Most importantly, I enter into my relationships with the same fervor and determination that my straight counterparts do. The love I give is no less real than theirs and that should be recognized by both humans and the law.

Despite my mild ambivalence, I continue to be amused by the irony all the while saddened by the deliberateness of it all

Epicurially Speaking

Some farm fresh produce we picked up at the Farmers Market on Saturday proved it's point.... Purple Okra and all...

PS...I'd love to be a food stylist.

Breast Stroke

You know it's love when you get up out of bed at 7am on a Sunday morning and battle a crowd 30,000 strong to watch your boyfriend run in the Race for a Cure. He did brilliantly....5Kin 23 mins. Not bad for his first official timed race. I felt like a proud momma, all camera ready and all.

Beginning


Middle


And End.

Picture Perfect Weekend

Saturday reminded me, again, why I love Austin! Forrest and I hit up The farmers Market, Austin Botanical Gardens and The Texas State History Museum.

I photologed all day.

Reflections in the Rose Garden

Asian garden Nymph

Stately Monarch

Forrest imparting his vast knowledge of roses

The Long Center Arch

Death by Chocolate

Wanna enjoy the cool weather and give your arteries a good hardening at the same time? I suggest you cook this up. Best you’ll ever have.

16 Oz Whole Milk
16 Oz Heavy cream
8 Table Spoons Ghirardelli Double Chocolate Cocoa Powder
¼ tsp Vanilla Extract (Preferably Mexican)
Marshmallow Crème

Mix milk, cream, cocoa powder in a medium saucepan with heavy bottom under medium heat. Aggressively mix powder into milk/cream mixture (Will take a while for powder to saturate). Consistently whisk mixture as it heats (will become less frothy and more liquid). Add Mexican vanilla. Once it’s reached a desirable temperature (personal taste) remove from heat. Drop one heaping spoonful of marshmallow crème into the bottom of a large mug and pour hot chocolate over it. When marshmallow lump floats to the top, it’s ready to drink.

Suggestion: Serve with lavender caramels topped with Fleur De Sel click here

Goo Goo over Gaga

Lady Gaga's new track "Poker Face"... does it for me..

Click here for the cheesy eurofabulousness

Kitchen Confidential

I bit the bullet in a big way today and bought my first appliances for my soon-to-be remodeled new home.

First, the refrigerator to end all refrigerators.








Up next, a Wolfe that can feed an army

Calculate This

It really is the little things..

JT sent me a link to an online percent change calculator. For mathmatically challenged media folks like me, shortcuts like this can mean more time time perfecting my ping pong game and less time nursing media math-related headaches.

Share the love:

http://www.csgnetwork.com/percentchangecalc.html


Heres a long laundry list of web calculators for other lazy folks:

http://www.webcalc.net/menu.php


Wanna know how long you're gonna live?

http://calculator.livingto100.com/calculator

Who's The Boss?

Loved this E-Card I got today for bosses day! Good to see that my ability to source and hire top notch smartasses is still sharp as ever! Loved it!

Thank you!!

Reward This!

Enough with the rewards cards people! Every store I go into now has their own “rewards” card and consumers get bum rushed and sideswiped in the checkout line when you don’t have one or forgot to bring yours along. If had to carry every rewards card I’ve signed up for (or been offered and refused) I would need 2 wallets, a backpack and a paper bag to carry them all.

The worst perpetrators of the “Reward card or die” tactic here in Austin? CVS pharmacy and Randall’s grocery store. I avoid Randall’s altogether now because I don’t have their reward card and you can’t even do a transaction on their POS without either swiping it first or receiving a 10 minute lecture from the cashier on how much money you can save with one. I’ve found that if you quickly cut them off and say “I don’t like to save money”…… they usually shut up right there and proceed with your checkout, only after looking at you like your some asshole elitist.

Maybe I’ll invent a global rewards card that you can go online and register your stores of choice to and flash when you checkout? I’ll take it one step further and allow consumers to globally opt out of receiving the “Would you like to donate a dollar to (insert random children’s charity here)” too.

Now that idea’s got some legs.

Food Frets

Forrest made dinner for me last night. He was visibly nervous when I arrived at his place because he was worried it wouldn’t taste good. So nervous so that he quickly downed a drink before I arrived in hopes of taking the edge off; Cleary a failed attempt. I found it all too cute and extremely familiar. I remember how important it was to stay calm, cool and collected in the early stages of a relationship. Long before I felt comfortable burping out loud and peeing with the bathroom door wide open, I had to be indestructible, unscathed and generally perfect.

Of course his meal was delicious, and I was extremely appreciative of every detail. Down to the lemon wedges cut and arranged on a side plate. Everything about Forrest’s life reminds me of my own when I was in my mid 20’s. There’s something wonderfully familiar about eating dinner at his apartment on stools at the breakfast bar surrounded by books, papers, unopened mail and random pocket change.

I thought I might struggle more with our age difference but I’m completely unfazed by it. Well, almost…he’s never seen Sixteen Candles and that’s just incomprehensible. And un-American if I do say so myself. ;)

At this very moment

I am the happiest I've been in years.



Finally.....