And an interesting analysis of her on this fan site: “In addition to her (for the times) pretty outragous stage persona, she also frequently choose to cover songs from male artists without changing the lyrics, thus giving lesbian overtones to the performance.” No wonder mom didn’t like her. Yet another “gay” thing that my mother tried to shelter me from (also, Three’s Company, Soap, etc.). Didn’t work, mom.
Some people have way too much fun with Macromedia Flash. Damn them for being cool. After you’re done playing with all of the cool games at the beginning, enter the site and look through his links. He’s got some damned cool links you could sit and surf through all day. Which reminds me, I need to update my links.
A breakdown of the rights you no longer have under the U. S. Patriot Act. War on Terror my ass. More like a war on the U. S. Constitution.
What I did this weekend… scraped and painted more of the house, stripped and refinished the window to go in the entry hallway. Now I need to finish stripping the outside of the window and get glass for it. I’ll have photos up when I’m finished…
Just in time for the new M. Night Shyamalan movie “Signs” to come out, there’s a fantastic new crop circle near Stonehenge. Who want’s to bet this is a massive marketing stunt? Here are some other great links to crop circle sites that will explain that the phenomenon is not as unusual or as uncommon as one might think. Even though crop circles are not extra-terrestrial in nature, they are a fantastic example of public installation art.
Explanation from a Plastic user on how he lost weight:
I don’t watch fat cals. I don’t eat bread, pasta, and rarely eat white potatoes. I only eat brown rice, early in the day.
A typical day of eating is:
Breakfast: protein drink or a few egg whites with a cup of oatmeal, with a banana or Equal
Mid morning: can of tuna and a green veggie
Lunch: chicken breast and microwaved sweet potato
late lunch: yogurt and/or high protein bar
dinner: green, leafy salad with small amount of tomatoes with chicken breast or can of tuna
I supplement with a good multi-vitamin and exercise.
Exercise regimen includes running 3-4 miles 4 times a week and regular weight training (real weight, progressive resistance).
Cool as hell — an online spirograph. I sat and played with this forever. Ignore the boring math stuff at the top of the page and go directly to the spirograph and dink around. You’ll get the hang of it.
It’s been a tough year for Americans. We’ve endured one of the worst events in our nation’s history — the stealing of an election by a man who didn’t win the office. We’ve also had to deal with a terrible terrorist attack on our own shores… something we never imagined could happen. And since then, the liberties we’ve enjoyed as American citizens have been systematically dismantled under the guise of "Homeland Security." Now more than ever (oops, that’s a cliché, isn’t it?) celebrating our Independence Day is very important.
In celebration of the Fourth of July this year, why not do something other than just shooting off fireworks? Why not do something that truly says, "I’m a free human being living in the United States of America, and I believe in the founding principle of my country: Liberty!"
Do something (anything) to exercise one of the freedoms guaranteed to you in the most important document that belongs to our country–the Bill of Rights (reprinted here for you to peruse).
Also, Here’s something you COULD do. I’m not saying I do this, but you could do it, if you wanted…. Considering the recent hullabaloo about the unconstitutionality of the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, a number of people on both sides of the issue have pointed out that we celebrate God on our money with "In God We Trust." The religious right wants you to believe that our founding fathers were responsible for including references to God on our currency and in other government institutions, but the reality is that this happened during the red scare in the 1950’s. Prior to 1956, our national motto was "E Pluribus Unum" (Out of Many, One), not "In God We Trust."
Take any bill of currency, find the phrase "In God We Trust" and cross out the word "God." Yep, cross it right out. He’s not supposed to be here anyway. (See Amendment I below.) Then, above the word "God" write in the word "Freedom" or the word "Liberty."
Is this illegal? Is defacing money against the law? Only if you deface the money in such a way and with the intent that it can’t be recirculated. If you tear it, cut it up, make it unreadable or in some way that it cannot be used any longer. Simply crossing out the "God" on your money doesn’t make it impossible to pass on to someone else. In fact, that’s really the point, isn’t it? Passing it on to someone else so they see it and spend it, too. Writing on money is just an expression of the First Amendment.
However, there are some cases where federal officials have harassed people who defaced money and otherwise threatened or intimidated them. Which is why I personally am not defacing any money. No siree.
"Not enough" you say? This is too small to make a difference? Well here are some other suggestions for things you can do to protest the erosion of your basic freedoms.
An Incomplete Manifesto for Growth by Bruce Mau. I like it. I need to come back to it again and again when I’m creating designs.
I saw this link (Popular Baby Names) once, a few years ago, and have been trying to remember where it was located ever since. Turns out it was the Social Security Administration, not the U.S. Census Bureau. It’s come up in discussions a number of times, and I kept saying “there’s this link…” Well, here it is: An analysis of popular baby names based on Social Security applications, going back each year to the late 1800’s. Ah, the good old days, when Mildred was the #9 most popular girl’s name in the country, and Gertrude made it at #22. Guys, don’t laugh, Walter was #11, Clarence #18.
It’s also scary to look at the stats for the 1990’s…. with 8 different variations on the name Brittney. I hate last names as first names, especially for girls. Courtney, Brittany, Shelby, Taylor, Madison—-yuck, yuck, yuck. I’m going to name my daughter Mabel. That’ll show them.
Okay, that’s a little extreme. How about Eleanor?
Scooby Snacks Anonymous:
Do you have a problem with scooby snacks? Only you can answer that question for yourself. However, taking the following quiz may help to put your relationship to scooby snacks in perspective for you. If you end up answering “yes” to three or more questions, you may want to take a good look how your life is affected by scooby snacks.
1. Have you missed classes or work because of scooby snacks?
2. Do you have trouble refusing scooby snacks?
3. Do you need scooby snacks in order to have fun at a party?
4. Do you use scooby snacks to build up your self-confidence?
5. Do you use scooby snacks to help you relax?
6. Have you tried to give up scooby snacks and failed?
7. Do you crave scooby snacks as soon as you wake up?
8. Do you get into trouble because of scooby snacks?
9. Do you crave scooby snacks at a definite time daily?
10. Do you lie to others about how often you partake in scooby snacks?
11. Have you gotten into financial difficulties because of scooby snacks?
12. Do you often wish people would just mind their own business about you and scooby snacks?
Remember, there are people who can help you control scooby snacks, instead of scooby snacks controlling you.
Rut Ro, Raggy.