Thank you, Sarah Palin

Take a look at the fourth name on the left hand side.

Now, I don't know if there is a link, but...once again, using images of gun violence will always incite the crazies, or as Gov. Palin calls them "Her Base"

Gawker has an eye witness account.

Image via HuffPo

MSNBC is reporting that Rep. Giffords office had been vandalized and shot at during the Health Care Debate, and there have been a history of threats.

NPR is reporting at 2:10 that Rep. Giffords has died.

At 2:30 MSNBC retracted the death of Rep. Giffords. She is currently in surgery and in critical condition.

KVOA is now reporting at 2:45 that Rep. Giffords has past away.

Thank you, Heather, for this image:

(2:53)

ABC News is reporting that Mark Kelly, Rep. Giffords husband, has confirmed that his spouse is alive. (2:58)

SarahPAC and TakeBackthe20.com have scrubbed the above images. (3:04)

(3:08) This event was sponsored by Rep. Giffords opponent last November.

Via Roger Ebert

3:56 Rep. Gifford, it has been reported, is expected to recover.

This is a sad day, and the shooter, Jared Loughner, is a sad and confused 22 year old I would love to know what his motivation was.

It get weird.

This is horrific.

The Intercontinental is a gorgeous hotel (based on the web site and reviews. I have not stayed there.) but would you want to stay there?

The Daily News has more information.

And I too had a dream

The return to nonflesh consumption is going well however it is causing changes in my dreaming patterns. I know that my body is craving protein.

I was at a bar (I know, why would I be there?!?) and talking to a random group of people and we decided to order food.

The subject of wings came up and I happily acquiesced to the boneless wings.

When the silver platter of wings came out, JMFJT sat down and started eating them and challenging me to have one. Not thinking, I popped it in my mouth (dream wing was delicious) and then I was berated for being a pussy by the aforementioned person.

Why?

Because I couldn't stick to my vegetarianism.

My mind needs protein and my subconscious hates me.

And some other things

Some things are worth getting up for in the morning.


This Costa Rican Dark Roast may be one of them.

I forgot one if the sad songs, mistakenly, but now that I think about it, it is too pathos inducing for inclusion. That song would be Johnny Cash's version of "Hurt".

I am wondering this...does anyone else do the Obi Wan Kenobi hand wave when going through an automatic door, or is it just me?

Let Me Be That Bad Decision

I had to ask someone if our friendship as based on the "one too many beers" decision making process. I wasn't complaining or feeling hurt when I asked, I was just curious.

I like the one too many beers decision making process as it is often honest, and as a sage friend once told me, always do sober what your promised to do drunk.

Danger Signs on a Date

Sad Songs Say So Much

So, after I wrote the post about the conversation about relationships and the subsequent song that popped up on my iPod, the friend reached out to me asking about the song and it started a conversation about sad music...which lead to my love of lists...and it lead to both of us making iTunes play lists.

Here is mine:

George Michael - One More Try


Big Star - Thirteen


Ben Folds Five - Don't Change Your Plans


Bruce Springsteen - The River


Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter


The Cure - Disintegration


Velvet Underground - Oh Sweet Nuthin


Sinead O'Connor - Troy

Air Supply and Wikipedia

After Jimmy Wales was on The Daily Show talking about how most issues get corrected in five minutes or so, this surprises me.

In the end of 1981 Air Supply were not allowed to to travel by plane to most locations in U.S. due to excessive crying by both memebers.

I am not even going to try to explain why I was looking at the Wikipedia entry for Air Supply.

(Wikipedia)

mc Chris and Twin Peaks

It is like a huge vat of awesome-sauce.

Here I stand, proud and free...

I had a long conversation with an old friend (thank goodness for Facebook and the ability to reconnect) about the nature of relationships and why it is sometimes difficult to maintain them. She and I have been using the same coping mechanism (or protective shield) in different ways and, I suppose the point of it is that while this doesn't doom all of our relationships to failure, it doesn't lend itself to grasping for the difficult handhold that is the relationship cliff face.

She may be the only one who is going to understand this, and it isn't particularly well written but...it evoked some feelings...that were exacerbated by the above song coming up on shuffle when I went to go for a jog.

She is wonderful in white

Lee held a presser on Tuesday to focus attention on New York's food pantries. The press release announcing the event boasted that Lee intended to "use her added notoriety as Governor Andrew Cuomo's significant other to raise awareness of hunger in New York State." But when one local reporter asked Lee whether "having the governor's ear" will help her fight hunger, she got this weird surprised look and said simply, "No."




Via Gawker

Amazingly Disappointed

Casey?!? Really? First Dale and now Casey? I was almost as shocked as Jamie when Casey had to pack her knives.

Okay, enough about that...or there is more but I will save that for other places.

Some pocket reviews of media.

Black Swan was...well...I am still processing it. It was beautiful and terrifying and while I have heard it described as a horror film as well as a sports film, it is neither and both. You know the sense of dread you feel when watching Jim commit to doing what he has to do in 28 Days Later? Yeah, that feeling is almost always there.

I am halfway through The Unnamed and I am wondering a couple of things. Why didn't I read this book last year and has Joshua Ferris become America's best young novelist?

Oh, and for those of you who like comics, I, Zombie has gotten really good and really weird. It is not a great book, but it is a fun one.

241543903

And I admit that I made a mistake...

Last year, someone on the ABC mailing list linked to a Craigslist post about a CycleOps trainer for $75.

I thought about it and thought about it and when it came time to pulling the trigger on purchasing it, I was too late.

So, I have been looking daily on the list since then for someone selling a trainer. I want one. I want to be riding my bike on a daily basis and I got rid of my exercise bike.

So...here is the debate: do I continue waiting or do I pull the trigger and buy a new one?

My Fake Announcement from Robert Gibbs

(I have just read the headlines, not the content. Apparently the White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs is stepping down in February. This is how I think his statement is going to go.)

Thanks, everyone.

As you know, I will be stepping down in February.

My reasons for this are many.

After the past two years, I need to take time to be with my family and to rededicate myself to being a father and a husband.

Any questions?

No, I think the President is in a great position and will win the White House in 2012.

Random House.

Hopefully I will have it done by Halloween 2012.

Three and a half million.

Power to the People

Ohes Noes!

There has been a schism in the NYS Senate Democratic Conference!

NYS Senators Klein, Valesky, Savino, and Carlucci have left the Conference and have formed the Independent Democratic Conference.

Their reasons include Democratic mismanagement while the were in the majority over the past two years, a strong indictment of Sen. Sampson and (from Sen. Carlucci) returning politics to the people.

This is going to make for a really interesting day on a number of levels.

Salvation!?

Baldness can be cured!

The US team told the Journal of Clinical Investigation the fault lies with the stem cells that make new hair.

It may be possible to 'cure' male baldness by restoring the normal function of these cells, the experts hope.

Ultimately, they hope to be able to develop a cream that could be applied to the scalp to help the stem cells grow normal hair.
BBC

I don't care. A number of my friend, male and female, are using products to stem the loss of hair and regrow hair they have already lost. Now, especially for the female friends, I do feel for them, and I understand why some of the men are treating this "problem" but why is baldness a problem?

I am bald. I am happy about it. I like that I am almost immune to the vagaries of style and that with a wash cloth, my head is clean. I don't have to use product (though I love the lotion that I use that is SPF 30 for my face and scalp) and I don't have to worry about my hair being too long. I know that these sound like justifications and that's fine. You are entitled to your opinion, but...

Bald is beautiful.

The other way to "cure" baldness would be to undertake a culture-wide re-adjustment of beauty standards. Or, to blind everyone! Permanently!

Via Gawker

The List of Common Misconceptions

I love this cartoon!

I love the idea behind it.

That there is a Wikipedia entry called the List of Common Misconceptions is even better.

Thank you, Jimmy Wales!

Image from Xkcd.

And now that is over...

SyFy burned off the last five episodes of Caprica last night in a marathon. (They had been released on DVD on December 21st.)

First of all, the last five minutes of the series was able to do what so few programs are able to do. They answered all the questions and kept the show well in continuity, with the exception of one, (the one being, why did Joseph Adama become a civil rights attorney? What was his revelatory moment? Did Tamara become a skinjob?) and I was left with far fewer WTF moments then I was at the end of Battlestar.

I am going to try to avoid spoilers as some people who are going to watch the end of the series haven't seen the episodes yet but...

One of the problems with the show that became a strength as the arc continued to conclusion was the consistency of the characters. They were who they were, and they were fully realized. Allowing the series to end so that we could see where that took them, and not putting anything in the hands of divine providence, was a goodness. As I said, most of the questions were answered and we do know where this generation of Cylons came from (as all this has happened before).

While I am always disappointed when something ends prematurely, or in a way that I did not see happening, this was satisfying because the truth of the series was revealed. We (and by extension, our creations) are flawed, nuanced, complicated, and doomed to fall into the paradigms that we have been assigned. When they went against this (i.e. Daniel and Amanda allowing Zoe to make the choice to come to them) they find something fulfilling, but...

That act was the central action that allowed the final denouement, and I suppose that's the point in Ron Moore's Universe...playing against type will always lead to your downfall through your ultimate triumph.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

This Questionable Content (yes, it is an old one, I was just hitting random to see what ones would come up) begs the question:

What is the worst thing you can say during sex?

"Happy Birthday, Grandma!" was Marty's contribution.

What do you offer?

Oh! It's a Happy Penguin!

FAU has pointed out that I like birds, and I do. I think they are amazing.

Then I see something like this and it makes me really frakin' happy.

As a friend said about this, "I want to be as happy as the penguin. Every day."

H/T to Stray

A Couple (or four) of Things that Excite Me

The Decemberists have a new album that you can listen to here.

Will Ferrell is doing a hip-hop album based on his character in Step Brothers.

You can download a complete Radiohead concert that benefits Oxfam's work in Haiti.

Muppets with People Eyes is the weirdest site I have seen in a while. It is a little creepy.

365 Things To Do In Albany - 56 through 62

56. Participate in the Great Beer Walk
57. See a show at Capital Rep
58. Hula Hoop in the rain in one of Albany’s parks.
59. Close out at bar at 4 am.
60. Food Fest in the Empire State Plaza
61. The Albany AutoShow in the Plaza and Times Union Center
62. Dinner and drinks on one of Lark Street's many back decks.

Consider this...consider this...

Via Twitter (Obviously)

For my friends who are fans of the Yankees

A Yankee Stadium guard returning from Guyana told customs that he had a "cooked rabbit" in his luggage. Upon searching it, they didn't find the bunny, but they did find three bricks of cocaine. Perhaps they're trying to lure Doc Gooden out of retirement if Andy Pettitte doesn't come back.

Via Deadspin

And the boys are back in town

Twenty five years ago, Phil Lynott passed away.

Now, Thin Lizzy was never one of my favorite bands, but they have an important place in my appreciation of rock music and they were an admitted influence in the musical life of one of my heroes.

Thanks to the Saw Doctors for pointing this out.

The Great Beer Walk 2011

It's coming!

More information will be made available as we get closer to the (as now tentative) date.

Tuesday Morning Randomness

Sarah Palin either came out against hypocrisy, DADT, or the prequal to Monsters, Inc. (Gawker)

My favorite suggestion for 365 Things to do in Albany: Go to the airport and look at the taxidermy samples of local animals.

I don't know about your iPhone, but my alarm has been working fine. I think it may be a PEBCAK problem. (NY Times)

I continue to find Sandra Lee fascinating...in a car crash sort of way. (NY Post)

Justice Scalia is awesome. No, seriously. He has stated that the Equal Protection Clause fails to protect equality. (HuffPo)

Oh, and HIMYM...really?

365 Things To Do In Albany - 37 through 55

Items 1 through 36 can be found here.

37. Visit the USS Slater
38. Take a class (or have your kids take a class) at the Albany Art Room.
39. Go to the top of the Corning Tower.
40. Bowl at the Playidum
41. Feed the ducks and take a walk in Washington Park.
42. Tour of the Schuyler Mansion
43. Visit Historic Cherry Hill
44. Ride the restored Carousel in the NYS Museum (or get married on it).
45. Run the Santa Speedo Sprint
46. Run the Corporate Challenge
47. The Zombie Walk and Zombie Prom at the Linda.
48. Having a drink and a meal on The Barge.
49. LarkFest
50. Having a drink on your stoop on a hot day. (The link is worth it.)
51. Early morning breakfast at Cafe 217.
52. Watch the Albany Knicks play at Dick Green Field.
53. Donating to WAMC's Fund Drive
54. Swimming in the Lincoln Park Pool.
55. Build a statue of Jimmy Fallon on the College of St. Rose's Campus

Please keep them coming in. I do really appreciate it.

Silent Star Wars

What if Star Wars was a silent film? I am dying to make a "Birth of the Empire" joke here...dying.

Via a much cuter Ned...

365 Things To Do In Albany

So, I saw a link for 365 Things to do in Saratoga and went looking for a similar list for Albany.

Surprisingly, there isn't one. So, I am going to start one, and I encourage you to help me (via the comments, on Twitter, or on Facebook. If you are using Twitter, please use the hashtag #365AlbanyThings).

So, I am going to list a number here, and my hope as the year goes on, we can complete the list.

1. Tour the NYS Museum.
2. TulipFest in Washington Park
3. Walk, run, or ride through the Corning Preserve.
4. See a show at the Egg. May I suggest the Roots and Branches series.
5. Ice Skate in the Empire State Plaza (Yes, people should do this. It will be available in the future...I hope.)
6. Take the Aqua Ducks Tour.
7. Breakfast at the Miss Albany Diner.
8. Catch a movie at the Spectrum 8 or Madison Theater.
9. Eat cart food in the shadow of the NYS Capital.
10. Have your Birthday Boot at Wolff's Biergarten!
11. Watch or play football in Lincoln Park.
12. Hike the Normanskill Path.
13. See a show at Valentine's!
14. Have a cheap beer and a great time at The Palais Royale.
15. Have an obscure beer at Mahar's Public Bar.
16. See the Mummy at the Albany Institute.
17. Go to an Alive at Five show!
18. Play softball at Ridgefield Park!
19. See a show at the Park Playhouse.
20. Catch a sporting event (especially college) at the Times Union Center.
21. Cheesecake at Cheesecake Machismo!
22. Fireworks in the Empire State Plaza.
23. First Friday on Lark Street.
24. Walk the length of Madison Avenue.
25. Dance on 80s Night at the Fuze Box.
26. Watch or Run in the Friehofer's Run for Women.
27. Roller Derby at the Washington Avenue Armory.
28. A hike in the Pine Bush Preserve.
29. Dinner at Jack's Oyster House. (It is an Albany Institution.)
30. Wings with friends for football at your favorite place. (Mine is the Hill Street Cafe.)
31. Watching a classic film at the Palace Theater.
32. The Greek Festival at St. Sophia's.
33. Browsing for books at Dove & Hudson.
34. Sitting outside on a warm summer night enjoying a beverage of your choice.
35. Free Comic Book Day at Earthworld Comics.
36. The Saint Patrick's Day Parade.

Okay, so...I have offered up roughly ten percent of the 365 things to do in Albany. I am sure that you will have different things to offer and will disagree with me on some of the things that I think should be done.

Anyway, if you want to contribute, please do! Even if you don't want to contribute, please!

Ex-Albanians are encouraged to add what they miss!

You can find items 37 through 55 here.

Post Secret

Yesterday, I tweeted that "Sometimes Post Secret surprises me with the universality of our hopes, dreams, and fears. It makes me feel a lot better."

The above is the reason I thought this.

It was the best of times, it was the end of time

Hah! You were wrong! All of you who thought that the world would end in 2012 are wrong. All of you who ordered your food insurance from Glenn Beck but haven't had it delivered yet are screwed. All of you quirky limo drivers who were going to be driving for those oligarchs are going to die.

I am sure that you have seen the stories.

First, thousands of birds fell from the sky in Arkansas.

Then, twenty miles of dead fish clogged the Arkansas River.

What does this mean?

It is the End Times(oh, check the site out. It is glorious.), and you know it.

Next is either the plague of boils (if we are following an Old Testament trajectory) or the Plague of Boehner in which Americans start looking more like Oompah Loompahs.

So, while you still can, make peace with your loved ones, familiarize yourself with the Left Behind books (face it, the Rapture is going to leave you here with me if you are reading this, and choose which side you want to be on: cannibalistic marauder or Wez's Golden Boy)(are you Rapture Ready?) and prepare for Hell on Earth.

Just so you are aware, and...I will have a Maker's rocks waiting for you when we run into the Pit.

(Yes, thank you for that message. I realize that Australia is suffering from flooding of Biblical proportions and I was not making light of that situation nor was I making light of the earthquake in Chile.)

And I hate when I am correct

Regarding the NFL, I called how it was going to play out before the games because it was the most absurd situation that I could imagine. Well, that's not exactly true. The most absurd situation that I can imagine involves the SCotUS deciding ultimately who the PotUS is, but that would never happen.

I was also correct when I was on the phone with a friend and told her that once I sat on the couch, I would fall asleep immediately and then wake up at 3:30 after sleeping for 6 hours.

Yay! Two correct predictions in less than 24 hours!

Both of them ending up being awfulsome.

There was a dream. It was in turns delightful and terrifying.

I have said it before, and I will say it again

A couple of years ago, I made the argument (successfully, mind you) that OK Computer was the greatest album of all time. Now Q magazine has validated me by naming OK Computer the best album of the past 25 years. (yeah yeah yeah, I know it is not the same, I am taking my validation where I can get it.)

With that as the lede, here is Radiohead's "Electioneering".



Via Green Plastic

Watching the Giants versus the Redskins

And whenever Rex Grossman is on the field, all I can think of is this.

What, wait?

Okay, I know this is more than a year old but why did I never hear about this?

Why didn't any of you tell me about it?



Maybe I should pay more attention to pop culture...

Uncertainty

I watched this film the other night, and I have been thinking about it since I saw it. I ponder the choices that I have made (and by extension, have failed to make) and wonder how each little difference could have been handled.

This film doesn't answer those questions, but it asks another one.

What if you are exactly where your supposed to be? I am not suggesting karma or some universal force that places you exactly where you need to be when to need to be there. As I explained to TEA the other day, the universe doesn't care.

If I had gotten on the flight, or made that phone call, or held back when the lesser angels of my psyche had encouraged me to say the thing that I knew would wound the deepest...if I had been less me, would my life be terribly different?

Maybe for that moment, but, as I was writing this, I received a call and a couple of e-mails from people who I care about and I don't want my life to be different from how it is on the macro level.

Maybe that is my issue too...

Anyway, watch the film. It is on IFC and available on NetFlix. Joseph Gordon-Levitt gives a wonderfully nuanced portrayal of a late 20s transplant to New York and Lynn Collins is just hot.

News Coverage of the Polar Plunge in Lake George

The Troy Record

The Albany Times Union

The Glens Falls Post Star

Your News Now

WNYT

The Saratogian (Linked to for the video)

My pictures are available here.

The End of the Season

Here is what I see...

The Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears, eliminating the Giants from the playoffs based on tie-breakers.

While that is happening, the Giants beat the Hell out of the Redskins, going to 10-6, causing a gnashing of teeth in New York and Dan Snyder to call up Mike Shanahan and demand that Rex Grossman be sacrificed to Ba'al, who is Snyder's Lord and Dark Master.

Then for the late game, the 6-9 Seahawks show that they have the "Greatest Show on Turf" versus the Rams and take the game. The 7-9 Seahawks are in the playoffs while the 10-6 Giants end up on the golf course.

And I will be content with this.

"Why?", you ask.

The Giants do not deserve the playoffs. They have 41 turnovers already this season, and that is not including today's game. (If I knew how many picks Eli would throw today, I would call Hulse or Baker and have them make an option bet for me.) The Giants give it up more than (insert your own misogynistic comment about loose women here) and as a consequence (insert your own social chastisement).

I want Tom Coughlin to be fired. I do not know who to replace him with, well, I have an idea, but I doubt that they would be able to survive the New York media or would be willing to leave their nice SEC job. When Coughlin is gone, Chris Snee is gone. This fills me with a glee that I cannot describe. It is akin to TEA being born on Christmas Day while I am announced a lottery winner and a Macarthur Fellow. That's major glee!

Anyway, football is over, hopefully, and I all I have to look forward to in 2011 in the Giants starting training camp, as the NY Mets have decided not to field a team this season.