Outside Shane's Window -- Little Rock

Shane had to go to Little Rock, AR, on business today. This is the
view out his hotel window. Luckily, it is just for one night.

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Obama Hate is Off the Charts

The right-wing crazies have gone beyond crazy with their assertion that President Obama is trying to indoctrinate school children with his pep talk airing in some schools across the nation today. It is out and out hate against the president and his policies. No uproar was made against President Bush prior to him visiting school children in Florida on September 11, 2001, and hearing about My Pet Goat.

Though there was lots of criticism of President Bush, it doesn't compare to what Obama has coming at him. On Sunday's New York Times Best Seller List for Nonfiction, four of the top 10 books listed were conservative trash (counting Bill O'Reilly's memoir). What is wrong with this country that we pay good money for this BS when you can get if for free 24 hours a day on Fox News?

I looked up the NYT Nonfiction list for Sunday, September 9, 2001, and guess how many ultra-liberal or anti-George W. Bush books made the list? Zilch. Zero. Null. The only thing remotely political was John Adams by David McCullough. I don't remember anywhere near this much hate thrown at Bush at this point is his presidency. That's because there wasn't. Sure, there was some criticism. The man was an idiot. How could there not be? But even GWB was not deluged with nearly this much scorn and abuse this early in his presidency.

I know the crazies are going to say it is because Obama is ruining us, but he is doing (mostly) what he said he would do. He did win the election. He gets to be president for now. Too bad for the crazies.

Back from Florida House Hunting

Shane and I just got back from another trip to Florida. We were house hunting again. We went down certain that we were going to put a bid in on one house and came back bidding on another.

Both houses are in Punta Gorda, FL -- about 2 hours south of Tampa. The house in which we were first interested was in the Historic District of Punta Gorda. It was built in 1927 (or 1930) and was on a residential street about three blocks from Charlotte Harbor and a beautiful park with free tennis courts. The house is a Key West-style house with a fireplace, beautiful wood floors, a beautiful front lanai, and two "Florida Rooms" in the rear. It also has drop ceilings, a bouncy kitchen floor and a really ugly kitchen. We loved it mostly for the location. We could walk to great restaurants, galleries and that park with the tennis courts.

The House in Town

We were all set to make an offer on the in-town house, but the Realtors took us to another house. It is in another part of Punta Gorda, further south. I walked into the living room and saw the view out the lanai and said "Oh My God!"

We all but forgot about the other house and wanted to make an offer on this one with a salt water canal. The house is a foreclosure (more than $500K was owed on it). It was built in 1980 and is in pretty good shape. The bathrooms are nothing to write home about, but who cares with that view? The photo of the view above does not do it justice. It looks out over a mangrove (who doesn't love a mangrove?) that can never be built on. That view will always be there. The sun sets over the water behind the mangrove. It is a dream house nearly in our price range. The house is surround by big beautiful homes, many with pools. It is by far the worst house in the neighborhood.

We would have been perfectly happy in the old house in town, but now this house has ruined it for us. We put an offer in, hoping against hope, but we know deep in our hearts it is a long shot. Though the listing price is relatively low and its only been on the market a few days, we know there are other offers already in. We put in the highest and best offer we could -- far more than we were planning on spending. We are half terrified that we'll lose this house and half terrified that our offer might be accepted.

Look at that view! How could we resist?

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #207

Yes, he's a great dancer, but buying him pants is a bitch.

The above cartoon is the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #207. Let me know if you come up with any captions too. Click on the link above to enter.

Ben & Jerry's "Hubby Hubby" Ice Cream Celebrates Vermont Marriage Equality

The Vermont-based ice cream maker, Ben & Jerry's, is renaming its "Chubby Hubby" ice cream "Hubby Hubby" for the month of September in celebration of the State's new same sex marriage law taking effect. Though my Hubby loves Coffee Heathbar Crunch, we would buy "Hubby Hubby" if we could. It won't be sold in retail grocery stores, but will be given away for free across Vermont from wedding-themed ice cream trucks. Let's hope they expand on the idea and sell it nationwide!

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #205 + #206

Yeah, they ran out of the ankle things, so

my house arrest is a bit more obvious.

Aren't you Daniel Radcliffe?

The above are the cartoons for New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest for the weeks of #205 and #206. Since I was on vacation, I never got the chance to enter #205. Let me know if you come up with any captions too. Click on the link above to enter (#206).

Another Amazing Maine Sunset

Just after Sunset at Pumpkin Light

Sunset on Pumpkin Light in Maine

Isle of Haut

View from the Porch

Little Deer Isle, Maine--we're on the porch, watching the lighthouse.

Help Save Marriage in Maine

Shane and I are starting our second Maine vacation of the summer. We're staying at Moose and Squirrel, a house on Little Deer Isle with a spectacular view of Pumpkin Island Lighthouse. Shane is from Maine, and I am hoping that one day we can get married in there. We have purchased land in Maine and we're planning on building a house there when we retire.

Though Maine is one of the States that reportedly allows same sex marriage, it hasn't happened yet. There is a referundum up for vote this fall that could take that right away before any same sex couples get married there. Much like Prop 8 in California, Referendum 1 can take the civil rights away from LGBT Mainers. Do what you can to help win this fight. Go to Protect Maine Equality and help if you can. If you live in Maine, vote NO on 1! Thanks.

Police Ignite Wood with Taser

Police in Lancaster, Ohio, got new tasers on Sunday. That was bad news for Daniel C. Wood, 31, who was huffing a substance from an aerosol can and running in traffic. An officer caught Wood, but he was resisting arrest. He allegedly was kicking and biting and"made gestures with his hand as if he were reaching for a firearm in his waistband," according to Lancaster Chief Dave Bailey. That is when Mr. Wood's day started going very wrong. The officer zapped Wood with a taser, which caused him to catch on fire. The officers on the scene were able to pat out the flames, but I'm guessing Mr. Wood suddenly ceased in his resistance.

On the Bright Side

We have to stop and remember how good we have it. Sure, we lost out on getting the house of our dreams, but we really can't complain overall. You know you're spoiled when you are devastated that the cable is out -- no TV or Internet (I'm posting this on my iPhone). That's not the end of the world, right.

On the bright side, Shane is coming home from his business trip to Nashville tonight. He's only been gone since Sunday, but it sucks to have him away. On the not so bright side, he is going to grouchy we he finds out we don't have cable. (Actually, he got home as I was writing this and didn't care about the cable -- nix that.)

On the bright side, we only have three more days until we leave for our second week of our Maine vacation. We spent a rainy week in Maine in late June. On the not so bright side, it looks like it is going to be another rainy week and Hurricane Bill is headed that way.

On the bright side, our cactus is breaking out in a crazy amount of new blooms. The not so bright side is that we'll be out of town by the time it blooms.

On the bright side, Shane is home now!

Good Stuff Eatery--Suicide by Burger+Fries

Good Stuff Eatery is on Pennsylvania Ave. near our house in DC. I was walking home by it right after I got the news that we lost the house in Florida on which we made an offer (see below). Anyway, what better way to cheer yourself up than gorging on a burger with fries?

They had lines out the door this past winter, but I had not eaten there until today. It was busy, but no long lines now. I'm not a big fan of the Food Network, but apparently Chef Spike Mendelsohn won the South Beach Wine & Food Festival Burger Bash (which was on the Food Network in February). Spike took home three top prizes -- People's Choice, Judges Award and the Best Dressed Burger -- with his Colletti Smokehouse Burger.

I had the basic Farmhouse burger with cheese and fries. The burger was very good, but the fries were soggy with grease. It's a bit more than McDonald's, ($9 for the meal), but I'd go back for the burger. I will also go back for a milkshake, which I saw others enjoying.

I hadn't had a hamburger in a long time. I was not eating meat for several month, until I decided I wasn't getting enough protein for running. Not being used to so much greasy food, my stomach is a little churney, but I think I'll be OK.

Interestingly, I have a heart screening tomorrow morning. I will have a blood test for cholesterol and other heart-related stuff... probably not the best night to eat this meal, huh?

We Didn't Want That House Anyway

We made an offer on a house this weekend in Florida (see below). We just found out we didn't get it. Waaaaaa! Someone else made an offer on Friday that was accepted this morning. We're very depressed.

We had our heart set on waking up and looking out over that canal. Our realtor said that he only sees houses on canals like that on the market twice or three times a year, and they go fast. We live in DC, which makes it difficult to run down to Florida at the last minute to look at a house. This was a forclosure and an amazing deal. We were just a day late.

I now understand why you don't announce you're going to have a baby until after the first trimester. I know this isn't really anything like losing a baby, but we feel a little like there was a bit of a miscarriage.

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #204

Shirley, you cut the cheese.

The above is the cartoon for New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest for week #204, along with my entry for the week. Let me know if you come up with a caption too. Click on the link above to enter. I realize my caption this week is juvenile, but I thought it was funny even though it doesn't really address why one of the businessmen in a rat. I like all their little hands.

We've Made an Offer on a FL House

We went to Florida this weekend to look for a second home. We used to have a condo in a golf community in Fort Myers, FL, but as the prices of real estate started to plummet a couple years ago, we sold it. Now prices seem to be at rock bottom (we hope), so we thought we'd see if we could find something we liked. We did. We have made an offer on the house above. It is in Port Charlotte and is on a canal. It is an older home, but our hope is that it being waterfront makes this a good investment.

This is the view a few feet from the back of our house, looking down past our dock. Yes, it comes with a small dock. That metal contraption in the foreground is a hoist that lifts boats out and into the water.

This is the water view from the master bedroom.

It is a foreclosure. Apparently, the previous owner went broke updating the kitchen with new cabinets and granite counter tops.

The living room and family room are tiled. This is the corner of the family room with a built-in bookcase. The doorway on the left goes to the garage and the other doorway is to the laundry room.

This is Shane on the dock of the canal. This house needs some work. Some of the appliances are old, it needs new carpeting in the bedrooms and one of the hallways, it needs some major landscaping, and there are some other small problems we can see. We're just crossing our fingers and waiting now to see what the response is to our offer.

On the Short List

Shane and I are house hunting in Florida this weekend. This house is
on our short list. We looked at about six houses yesterday and this
is the one we liked best so far. It is huge (2,000 square feet) and
in a nice area of North Port. We'd have to replace the carpeting, but
not much else. It is a foreclosure and listed for $114K. How can we
resist?

Shane Looks Over a Hole into the Attic

We may be crazy, but we're not crazy about this house.

The View from the Disaster

This is what we liked about the house on the canal--the only thing.

Crossing One Off the List

Shane and I are in Florida looking at houses this weekend. Shane had
high hopes for this abode he found on the web, but we quickly crossed
it off our list. It does have a beautiful view of a canal in the
back, but the house was a disaster. It said it needed a kitchen, but
it needed much more than that. it was completely gutted inside, had
rotted wood, broken windows (including a bullet hole through a front
window), and was a general mess inside and out. It was priced at
$95K, which is a pipe dream. The view is the only thing it had.

Hump Day Art - Beever Chalk Drawings

Julian Beever is an English artist who is famous for his anamorphic chalk art on the pavements around the world. Beever gives an amazing illusion to his drawings, so that the objects appear to be 3-D (at specific angles) rather than flat as they actually are. See more at his web site here. He also does nice oil paintings, such as the one below.

Back to the Grind

This is all the stuff I took and brought back from the beach. I spent the week at Bethany Beach, DE, and since Shane drove the car home Sunday (he had to go back to work), I didn't have a car. I had to depend on the kindness of strangers... well, actually, my sister. She drove me to my mom's on Friday evening and Shane came up to fetch me on Saturday.

Today was my first day back at work in more than a week. It was also my first day commuting with my new Kindle. Shane got me a Kindle for my birthday. I wasn't totally sold on whether I wanted a Kindle, but I have to say I'm loving it. And, technically, I haven't purchased anything for it yet. I did get a Washington Post subscription, but there is a 14-day free trial before I have to start paying the $9.99 a month. I've also downloaded about a dozen books, but they were all from the web site http://www.manybooks.net/. You can get various classics (and many not so classic) books with expired copyrights for free. So far, I've gotten Wuthering Heights, Emma, Pride and Prejudice, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, among others.

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #203

I haven't come up with a caption for this one yet. Since I'm posting this from my iPhone, I don't know how to include the link to the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest. There is a link to the site from my web site links in my sidebar. I'm on vacation.

Beach Drag

On Sunday, we went to Rehoboth Beach to see Eyecons, a drag show by Christopher Peterson. He is an amazing performer. He may be most famous for being one of the Lucys in the movie Rat Race. In the show, he performed as Lucy, Marilyn Monroe, Cher, Judy Garland, Liza, Eartha Kitt, and many others. This is not a lip synch show. He is doing their voice and look. He changes costume on the stage before your eyes. If you ever have the chance to see him perform, I would recommend it. He is very good.

The original plan was for Shane, my Mom, sister, and myself to see the show. But, because Shane had to go back to work early, he had to miss it. It ended up being my sister and two of my nieces and me. In the end, my Mom elected to stay home. I offered to get more tickets so we all could go, but the one niece didn't want to go and my Mom didn't want her to stay home alone. We were having bad storms and a tornado warning. Fun times!

Happy Birthday Lucy!

Lucille Ball was born August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York. The clip above is just one example of her genius. It is an edited down version of the classic Vitameatavegamin Commercial episode. Though Lucy died in 1989, she will live forever.

The Gang at the Beach

From left to right -- Kelly (niece), Shane, Megan (niece), my Mom, my sister, and Nicole (niece) -- this was from Sunday, prior to Shane's departure later that day. It was a cloudy, windy day, and we had to leave after less than 2 hours because a storm started brewing. Poor Shane didn't get much beach time. He had to go back to DC for work.

Hump Day Art -- Beach Sculpture

This was near where we were set up on the beach at Bethany Beach, DE. I was not involved in its creation. The artist is unknown. It is about 5 feet long and the medium is sand. The model, placed on a towel in front of the sculpture, may have been purchased at a dollar store.

Old-Fashioned Wrapping Paper

My wonderful husband got me a Kindle for my birthday. He wrapped the cover, which he also gave me, in this antique paper that had clowns smoking on it. Very cool!

A Bad Influence

My mom shows her granddaughters proper smoking techniques. My niece, Kelly, on the far right, purchased the fake cigarettes. Megan, on the left, looks like a natural. It is wholesome fun here at the beach.

The Best Pizza Ever

I'm on vacation at the beach and tonight we went to Grotto Pizza for dinner and had the Baker's Choice. It consists if pepperoni, sausage, sweet peppers, mushrooms and extra cheese. OMG it was good! I love their sweet peppers.

Let Me Eat Cake

We celebrated my birthday yesterday because Shane had to go back to DC. He got me a cake and gave me my gifts.

Off to Bethany Beach

Me on the beach at Fenwick Island, DE, earlier this year.

Shane and I are off to the beach. Shane is only going for the weekend because he has limited leave. However, I am renting a house for a week and my Mom and my sister, along with my triplet nieces, are joining me for most of the week. Shane, my Mom, sister and I have tickets to see a drag show (Christopher Peterson's Eyecons) at Rehoboth Beach on Sunday evening. Shane an I saw her perform a few years ago and we never laughed harder in our lives. I can't wait to see my Mother's reaction.

Running Music: The Beloved's "Your Love Takes Me Higher"

I know it's very 1990, but I love to run to this song.

Hump Day Art -- Colin Barclay

The Sea, Twillingate

oil on panel

8"x18"

Gros Morne, Newfoundland III

oil on linen

26"x26"

After the Burn

oil on panel

12"x24"

Frenchman Bay, Morning

oil on panel

12"x24"

The works above are by Colin Barclay. We saw them at the Leighton Gallery during our recent trip to Blue Hill, Maine. Once again, I apologize for the photo quality due to me using my iPhone camera. To see many more examples of Barclay's work and much better quality examples, click here. You can also visit Colin Barclay's website at http://colinbarclay.blogspot.com/. He also has much better photos of his work there.

Solving the World's Problems a Beer at a Time

In chatting with my Mom on the phone recently, we began discussing the arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. for disorderly conduct. I had written a blog posting about the incident and was curious to know what she thought about it.

Nobody is a bigger fan of Barack Obama than my Mom. She has a 16-year-old girl crush on the man. She has told me that she gets tears in her eyes when he speaks. But beside being sick of hearing too much about the Gates arrest on the talking head shows, she also was not happy about the remark.

Now, I'm not talking about the remark about how the police acted "stupidly." I'm talking about the let's get together and talk this out over a "beer" remark. Her exact quote was, "How does he know they even like beer?"

The poor president can't win. There must be a sizable part of the population that thinks it is terrible that he is promoting alcohol consumption. Now, if he would have offered to have the guys over for a glass of iced tea, my Mom would be a groupie again.