Goodbye Pete Carroll

The Seahawks are pitiful. It's time for Pete Carroll to take his Charlie Whitehurst and Tavaris Jackson and head back to the college ranks where he might still be able to cheat his way to victories. Whatever he's trying to do in the pros just doesn't cut it. How could anyone ever have expected anything good to come from this cast of losers? With no quarterback in the NFL, it's probably best to just stay home and watch the real teams play on Sunday.

Unsustainable Growth

There's something odd about growth.

Certainly there are limits to growth of all kinds. Take trees, for example. Imagine what the world would be like if all trees always continued to grow. Or people. Or frogs. Beanstalks! There's a limit to all growth, not necessarily pre-determined or even consistent in reality but a limit, nonetheless.

What seems to happen naturally is growth to an extent, followed by some form of maturity or refinement, followed by obsolescence or death of some kind. Growth is a small part of the overall existence of a thing. Without some refinement at or near the peak of development, things just fall down or implode. They don't ever reach a healthy, mature stature.

I think the same growth limitations apply to societies or economies. Take the United States for example. Our economy can only grow so far without proper nurturing and refinement. At some point, there's no more room for economic growth and it's time for introspection, refinement and true progress. It's time to wonder, "What now?" Indeed, what now? Our economic growth is based on a very shaky foundation. The corporate idea, backed by our government and bought into by the senseless masses, is to keep building new things for us to buy. Most new technology seems to be geared toward that end What new gadget can be built that the people will spend their money on? In fact, all the new gadgets, machines, hi-tech gizmos, vehicles...everything...is built with a short life expectancy. We buy a thing, use it for a while, and then, when it begins to deteriorate in short order, we buy a newer better thing to replace it. The broken one? It goes to a landfill. (Oh! Landfills happen to be among those things having limited growth potential. Just imagine a world with only landfills!)

Knowing there is such a limit to the growth of our economy and society, one should question how close we are to that limit. One should wonder if we have already reached the limit of economic growth. Even now, the world is hard pressed to sustain the current population, yet that population still increases while countless millions live in unspeakable destitution. (Of course, there is a small, yet divine, minority who live in constant luxury. Those are the same people who benefit the most from continued manufacturing of…things.)

Assuming we are at or near our limit now, some form of progress or refinement must be pursued in order to remain standing. Indeed, to remain at all!

It is now time to rethink our entire system. The uncontrolled, wasteful growth we’ve undergone has run its course. It’s time for that serious introspection. It’s time to build a washing machine that will last longer than a couple of years before it makes its way to the landfill. It’s time for vehicles to be built with longevity in mind rather than presenting a ritzy, new design each year that we JUST MUST HAVE. It’s time to examine the quality of life of everyone…not just those elite few at the top of the food chain. In fact, they’re really not at the top of anything. They just have more money and more toys. Every one of them will pass away the same as the rest of us when their time comes. Nothing lasts forever.

Economic, corporate, manufacturing, political, population, waste disposal, clean water, sufficient food, energy usage, atomic power generation, oil, minerals…these are all areas which have probably reached their limits of growth in our society. It really is time to rethink everything we’re doing and put a lasting, sustainable lifestyle ahead of narrow-minded, short-sighted greed. We’re all here now and together. It would be nice to leave this place better than we found it, eh?

The people have to speak. It takes the masses to stand up to manipulative advertising and political nonsense. Don’t buy the new car, the television or the latest cellular technology. Instead, demand improvements in manufacturing, health care, environmental protection and sustained, refined progress. Our time for growth is passed and if we don’t alter our course soon, the downward plunge may take us all into a very dark place for a very long time.

Killer Ladybugs

It's an unusually sunny day in Fall City, maybe over 60 degrees. That's nice except for the ladybugs. On the sunny side of the house, there are thousands of them. When I go outside and venture into the sunlit area, I'm set upon by them. They go in my ears, down my shirt, in my hair, around my glasses...they're everywhere!

When I was building a shed-barn in the field several years ago, there was a similar onslaught of the little darlin's. There is a difference now, though. When building the shed-barn, I was bitten repeatedly by yellowish ladybugs. They pack a mean sting. This time, the ladybugs are all reddish in color and I haven't been stung yet. So, I have that going for me.

Also, several years ago, I happened to notice a large, dark ball of something in an upper corner of the kitchen. It turned out to be a mass of ladybugs about the size of a tennis ball...which I dispatched via my vacuum cleaner.

Getting back to today...these cuties have no problem getting into the house. They flatten themselves down as thin as a single sheet of 80# text paper and slide around the windows and doors. They just keep coming, oozing through the cracks, slithering under the doors faster than I can vacuum them up in here. Fifteen minutes ago, I vacuumed and now I count about fifty more in this room already. I was planning to mow the lawn before the rains settle in for the next six months but I don't think it's worth the ladybug aggravation...especially if these turn out to be of the biting kind. I can imagine myself flailing and swatting to no avail, falling to the grass, writhing in pain with millions of little bites as an agonizing certain death looms. Ladybugs are the piranhas of the insect world!

It's just horrifying to me to think that some people actually go out of their way to populate their lawns and gardens with these little bastards. They send away for them because ladybugs eat aphids...or something like that. They PAY for them! That's nonsense! It's like hiring a hit-man to off yourself.

I'll wait until sunset, then tend to those in the house. I don't know where they all go when it's cold and dark outside but it would sure be nice to get started on an early, depressing, dank, miserable winter...soon.

Additional note: After vacuuming as many ladybugs as I could find, I went to sleep. No sooner had I closed my eyes when a ladybug landed right on my eyelid. I swatted it away, only to have another graze my forehead. On with the lights! There were nearly fifty of the bastards in my bedroom. After vacuuming again, I went back to sleep with my head under the sheets. In the morning there were fewer than twenty-five in the room.

Carmen...Seattle Opera...My review (finally!)

I haven't been to this opera yet. That will be this Wednesday...but I'm hoping for the best. Stay tuned.

So…I did go to see Seattle Opera’s Carmen last night and, in general, it was good.

As usual, the chorus (including the youth chorus) was great and the overall presentation was great and all the dancing was wonderful.

Carmen was okay…a mezzo who had plenty of sound and energy, and carried herself well on stage. She was not the most graceful person for the part and her movements were a bit choppy and mechanical at times but I really have no serious complaints about her Carmen portrayal. (I do prefer the soprano, Cecilia Angell as Carmen.)

Don Jose, early on, seemed a bit weak in the voice but strengthened later on. There was one odd thing about his singing, however…when I was learning how to sing French arias, I was told that they should be sung with an Italian type of pronunciation. (Apparently, this originated as a result of Italian tenors singing the French with a certain arrogance that their way was the only correct way.) Specifically, the letter ‘R’ should be pronounced with a rolling ‘R’ rather than the pharyngeal (?) French norm, from the back of the throat. This Don Jose sang with the pharyngeal ‘R’ pronunciation…sometimes. Other times, he rolled his R’s. First, it was a distraction (and almost an offense) to hear the ‘R’s” coming from the back of his throat instead being rolled. Second, it was an even greater distraction to hear them pronounced differently from time to time. Another distraction of his was the unusual pronunciation of most vowels. They seemed to be neither French nor Italian and most were totally different than I was taught. (I should mention that, although I learned to sing a lot of the Don Jose role, I am more of a shower singer than a real performer!) All that said, although this Don Jose was not the most powerful tenor I’ve ever heard, he certainly was better than most tenors I’ve heard at Seattle Opera. I just didn’t like the pronunciations of so many things that it was a distraction and detraction from my personal enjoyment. It occurs to me that this Don Jose’s native language is probably Spanish and I noticed that many of his vowel pronunciations were to similar to Placido Domingo ‘s. Okay, one more minor complaint about Don Jose…he over-acted at times…especially in the ‘flower song’.

Escamillo was fair. His voice was the weakest of all, especially in the lower register, and it surprised me that he was even cast for the role. Craig Nim would have been a far better choice and would have probably acted the role as well or better.

Zuniga was adequate with a strong enough voice.

Micaela…was as wonderful.

Frasquita and Mercedes were perfect.

Occupy Fall City

I wonder about the "Occupy" phenomenon. If everyone in my town of Fall City were to gather along the river and peacefully demand changes in the economy and in government...what good would come of it? Certainly, everyone living around these parts must be included in the 99% but what of it? With the current state of affairs, the result of a sit-in in Fall City would likely be the same as a sit-in in Times Square, the rest of the world or even in my own bathroom. ..nothing would happen.

People all around the country are experiencing personal, financial meltdown. There are few jobs to go around, health care is non-existent, foreclosures are rampant, savings are eroding and the future looks bleak. However, just gathering together and carrying signs for a disinterested media to notice seems pointless...unless...

...unless a very large proportion of the 99% joins in. Unless those masses escalate their efforts. I think it would require millions of participants rather than hundreds or thousands. I think it would require marches down affluent neighborhoods and boycotts of all imported materials and services. Everyone would have to be involved and very, VERY boisterous. It would require voting out all incumbent politicians with a groundswell of demand for term limits and corporate and political accountability. There are so many things in need of overhaul that it appears impossible to affect meaningful change. The wealthy, our supposed governmental representatives and corporations should be held to the fire. All tax loopholes must be sealed and an equitable tax system (probably a flat tax) must replace the IRS. There seems to be enough money in the system for the country to get out of debt but those in power haven't done anything because their interest lies within their own wallets…not ours.

Until there are throngs of American citizens marching in front of the homes of every corporate thief and corrupt politician…until those throngs are shouting out the injustices of American life…until those throngs are carrying pitchforks and burning effigies…until there is real, substantial near-violence displayed by the masses…there will be no change. No real change. Oh, there may be subtle compromises made. There may be hints of change splattered all over the airwaves. But there will be no real improvement in Fall City, on Wall Street, in Washington or anywhere else. “Occupy” is not enough. Maybe “Assert” or maybe “Take Over” but not just “Occupy”.

As a minor aside, I must say...it makes no sense to me that anyone who is not independently wealthy could be so blind as to support even the tiniest fraction of the Republican, conservative agenda. To support such folly is to cast oneself into the fires of Hell.

Anyway, that’s how it looks from where I sit in this little town.

Don't go to Seattle

A friend told me last week that it took an hour to get from Queen Anne to I-5 and that was BEFORE the first planned shutdown of the 99 viaduct which begins this week. Travel in and around Seattle is already a nightmare but it only gets worse with the 99 issue and rolling shutdowns of the 520 floating bridge and near-future tolling implemented on the bridge. In addition, for those who still care to brave the traffic, parking is extremely expensive and mostly, unavailable. For those who think about using public transportation...good luck. It stinks. Rather than do the right thing and make much-needed repairs to the viaduct to prevent catastrophic results from an inevitable earthquake, it was decided to build a tunnel which will cost billions and disrupt traffic for years. In addition, the tunnel will be subject to even worse destruction from said earthquake. It all makes no sense. Seattle is heading for gridlock for many years to come. Imagine trying to do business in Seattle. Prospective shoppers are discouraged from going downtown and parking costs are out of sight. Imagine being a salesperson, attempting to make a few meaningful calls during the workweek. Seattle is off-limits. Imagine going to dinner in Seattle and paying through the nose for parking (if there is any available, then paying a fortune for the dinner. Stay away. Seattle is people-unfriendly.

Hurricanes Irene, Donna and Alma in Denville, New Jersey

With all the news about Hurricane Irene working its way toward the US mainland and the entire coastline bracing for possible disaster, I’m reminded of a couple of hurricane experiences of my own:

THE FIRST WAS HURRICANE DONNA IN SEPTEMBER OF 1960.

I was attending school at the Main Street School in Denville, New Jersey and the hurricane was making itself known in town with heavy rains and gale-force winds. Apparently the school officials felt there was a real danger to the building, students and faculty and the weather was continuing to worsen as the day wore on. They closed school early and sent us all on our way to get home to safety before all the roads became impassable.

I didn’t live the required two miles from the school to qualify to ride the bus (our house on Morris Avenue was 1.9 miles away), so I walked. From the Main Street school, I walked through town, along Route 46 and out Franklin Road (or was it Savage rd? I don't remember much these days!) to the Little League field by the river (Gardner Field?). It was not a pleasant or easy walk, what with the wind and rain.

Anyway, when I came to the bridge that crosses the Rockaway River just past the baseball field, I couldn’t help but notice the river had risen to within a few feet of the bottom of the bridge. In the summer, we all jumped from the railing to the river beneath but it was probably a good ten or fifteen-foot drop to the water then. A very few, very daring kids climbed to the top of the bridge for the jump. I wasn’t one of those. I was afraid. This time, however, I realized, with the water level so high, it was ten or fifteen feet from the very top of the bridge to the water!

I walked out onto the bridge, which had that metal-grated surface that hummed when driving across, took off my socks and shoes and placed them neatly with my books along the railing. I could see the brown water through the grating below my feet. Then I climbed to the top of the structure, stood there for a brief moment and leaped out over the railing and into the storm.

As soon as my feet hit the water, they were swept out from under me as though I had just landed on the top of a speeding truck. I was thrown on my back, then pulled straight down in the churning, angry, muddy water. I fought with all my strength to get back to the surface, then with all my might to get to the bank. The problem was, the bank was a lot farther away than usual and the water was moving so fast! The river was wide! Very wide and racing full-speed with me in its clutches. I kept swimming in the direction of shore until I finally managed to reach the bank and crawl out of the mess. I must have gone under, over or around the bridge at Diamond Spring Road (although I don’t remember how) but when I did crawl out of the water, I was on the other end of town. I think it was the parking lot for a place called Norell’s (?), along Route 46 and across the river from the hospital and the old St Francis hogs where I found myself.

I had to walk barefoot through the flooded streets of Denville, wade the length of Riverside Drive, then swim and wade across the fields just below the main Little League field to get back to the bridge. The water had risen since I first jumped but it wasn’t above the bridge surface…yet. I picked up my shoes and books and walked the rest of the way through the trail to Morris Avenue and home.

THE SECOND WAS HURRICANE ALMA IN1966.

I was working on the Felicia, a scallop boat that made its home at the Fulton Fish Market, in New York City. The captain and crew were all Norwegians and considerably older than I was at the time. The captain spoke English well but the others, only barely.

Oddly, the first time I ever worked on that boat was the first time I had ever been on any kind of boat at all that was longer than a car. This one was 95 feet! When I first set foot on the old wooden hulk, I was aware that I was the only one sober enough to walk a straight line. The crew promptly passed out in a unified, drunken stupor while the captain gave ME instructions to get us out of the harbor, under the Verrazano Bridge and into the Atlantic. He said to wake him when I go under the bridge. Then he passed out, himself. I had no clue. I was still sixteen (or seventeen) years old! Fortunately, it was daytime and I could actually SEE the Verrazano Bridge. Other than that bit of good luck, I was at a near total loss. I knew nothing of proper navigation…which buoys meant what, what to avoid, what maritime laws were. Eventually, I woke Captain Finn as we slid under the bridge and he took over the helm from there.

Anyway, about the hurricane…we had worked our way about seventy-five miles off the coast and (maybe) as far south as Virginia when Captain Finn realized there was a hurricane heading toward us. It was time to head back. In fact, it was already past time to head back. The weather was getting worse by the minute as the afternoon wore on. The crew had already stowed all the gear and gone below as evening neared. The wind, rain and seas were all rising. Frothy ocean water sloshed back and forth across the deck and blended with the torrential rain. Wind and water came from all directions as Captain Finn maintained course, heading north. We were losing the race with the leading edge of Hurricane Alma.

It only got worse as darkness fell upon us. Yes, the weather was worse but there was more to it. Captain Finn brought me up to the wheelhouse, showed me what compass heading we were attempting to maintain…and went to sleep in his bunk. He went to sleep and left me there in the wheelhouse by myself. Everyone else was asleep. It was pitch dark. The wind howled, the rain came from everywhere and the seas swept over the deck as though we weren’t even there.

The Felicia had one of those old-fashioned steering wheels…huge, with gnarled wooden handles all around. It takes a physical effort to spin the thing all around a few times to just make a turn of a few degrees. The compass was about two feet in diameter and was mounted on the floor next to the wheel where I stood, unprepared. There was no point looking outside the wheelhouse. Everything was as black as death out there. The waves buffeted the boat, smashing against the elevated, wheelhouse windows, the door rattling open and closed, water rushing in and out of where I hung on to the steering wheel while staring at the compass. Each time the boat was pounded from one side, the compass indicated we had been turned as much as 90 degrees. I frantically spun the wheel to get back to the correct heading on the compass, only to be hit again and turned in a different direction. Side to side we all traveled that night with the relentless roar of the hurricane bearing down on us. I turned that steering wheel twenty times one way, then twenty the other, then ten back and twenty again. Spinning the wheel, soaked with rain, seawater and sweat, I fought all night long, alone in the wheelhouse, as Hurricane Alma didn’t care if the Felicia ever made port again.

As daylight approached, Captain Finn reappeared and assumed the helm. I was totally spent. We had made some progress through the night, putting some distance from the hurricane…somehow! Also, Alma seems to have headed a bit eastward rather than smashing directly into New York City. (It had also lost a lot of its strength by then.) We eased under the bridge to safety in the late afternoon.

Radio and TV Announcers I hear in the Seattle area

For sure, I'll get back to this but I'm listening to a Mariners game on the radio right now and I just must say I think Ron Fairly is absolutely awful. He's boring. His low-keyed, matter-of-fact delivery is boring. His constant, "Uh" is boring. He seems to slur his words at times so that I don't have a clue what he's talking about. I think he might be a bit senile since it seems he tends to forget what he was talking about sometimes. I should mention that I do enjoy hearing some of the stories from the past.

I think I'll just keep adding to this post about people I've heard on radio and television in the area.

Oh! Still along the line of baseball announcers...I lived in Los Angeles a long time ago. I did not like Vin Scully. I did not like Dave Niehaus when he worked with Dick Enberg, doing the Angels broadcasts. I was very disappointed when I learned that Niehaus was the Mariners' voice. I didn't like his raspy voice, I found him to be boring and I didn't like his southern-like pronunciations of many words such as...he said "Nitional" with a long i, instead of "National" with a short a. He did grow on me eventually. I definitely did not like Rick Rizs especially when he said, "kerplunk". Also, he runs his words together too much for my taste. He might say, "Frinning" instead of "four inning". He often emphasizes the wrong words or syllables...with the score 3-2 Mariners over the Yankees, the Yankees score another run and Rizs says, "It's now 4 to 2", placing the emphasis on the 2, as though the Mariners had just scored. It's just weird. Now, with Dave Neihaus gone, Rick Rizs is sounding pretty darn good to me.

Tom Brokaw was working with a Los Angeles news show and it drove me nuts listening to him struggle with his speach impediment, unable to pronounce the letter "L". I was horrified to learn he was moving up to national prominence and wondered how no one seemed to care about how poorly he spoke.

Seattle weather rporter, Harry Wappler looked and sounded so wimpy that I just couldn't watch him. Then, it got much worse! They replaced him with his son, Andy! He had such a small, cartoon-like voice that was only made worse by the fact that he couldn't pronounce the "L" either. Hearing him say, "meteorologist" or "little" was downright funny (and pitiful). He did change a bit though. After a while, he started wearing black suits and actually lowered his voice so he could appear more grown up I suppose. It wasn't much better and he's finally gone.

George Karl, the Supersonics coach...he did radio commercials for a Cadillac dealer but he never pronounced the "D" in Cadillac. He said something like, "Caa-lac. Very funny.

There's a guy on some sports broadcasts for Westwood One. When he says "Westwood One" he uses a fake, breathy, unnatural, deep voice (to sound macho) and it's just too phony for me.

Vaughn Palmer comes on the local NPR station once a week, reporting on Canadian issues. He's interesting and I appreciate what he has to say...when I can hear him. He has an extremely sing-song voice that often shoots into the soprano range. The main problem is that he tails off at the end of every sentence to the point that he's probably not really speaking. I turn the radio as loud as it goes but I still can't hear what he says. Then, the local guy speaks and it's deafening. I just change channels when Vaughn Palmer comes on. It's not worth the aggravation.

Barbara Walters...how in the world did she ever get a job in broadcasting? She can't speak.

There are FAR too many women on the radio with a real problem...at the end of almost every sentence, their voices have tailed off so much that the only sound coming out is a choppy, rattling, unpleasant, throaty, guttural noise. How can they not know their voices have been spent?

Mike Blowers sounds like he has a clothes pin on his nose.

Fortunately, I don't listen to the radio all that much and I haven't been able to watch much television since the switchover to digital broadcasts. (I just have an antenna on the house.)

Sports talk radio...there are too many guys on the radio with New York accents. This is Seattle! The guys on KJR all sound like buffoons far too often with their nonsensical laughing. Also too common is the way interviews are conducted...they might be interviewing a great sports legend (for example) and they spend so much time and hot air in the process of phrasing the question that there's no time left for a response. I don't want to hear the local guy at all. I want to hear what the star has to say.

When KOMO radio is on in my car, I can only listen until the guy who seems to be the "Voice of KOMO" comes on. Then I change the station as soon as I hear him. He has an overly, breathy delivery and doesn't pronounce consonants clearly or properly. He slurs through them and sounds extremely phony. Too phony for me to stay tuned to that station.

When Dave Grosby comes on KIRO radio, I turn it off or change stations. I was very disappointed that he became a regular on KIRO/ESPN. His voice kind of gurgles and what he has to say is of very little interest to me. In fact, there are far too many sports radio people who talk about themselves too much.

Speaking of talking to oneself, that brings Dory Monson to mind. He talks about himself as much as anything else and is extremely rude to anyone who disagrees with his opinion. He's okay working in the Seahawks broadcasts but that's all. I don't ever listen to him any more.

The two guys on afternoon KIRO, Ron and Don are two more who talk about themselves too much. Also, they seem to make themselves out to be saintly with only the best interest of the public in mind...to a fault. I don't listen to them any more.

There isn't much TO listen to on local radio. Of course, I listen to most of KUOW/NPR. However, I think of NPR as having a place in the area of news and I don't usually have any interest in hearing about musical performers. There's too much of that.

I like it when the BBC comes on in the afternoons on KUOW. Their reporters don't let any interviewees get away with anything and challenge them at every turn. It's refreshing.

There was a time when I listened to Tavis Smiley but I've heard enough of his "Brother", Homey" and other African American jargon. He just comes across as a bit of a racist to me and I don't like the way he seems to try so hard to pronounce some words so correctly while ignoring so many others. I don't listen to him any more.

Derek Wang (I think) is the guy who goes overboard when saying "KUOW". His "W" is over-emphasized. He says, " double-you", and no one else I've ever heard makes such an effort to get the "double" part in there. It just sounds weird.

There is an incredible number of people in broadcast and in the public eye who don't pronounce "Washington" properly. It comes out as "Washtin" or some other, similar shortening of the word. It sounds lazy.

What about all those people in broadcast and the public eye who say "nuculer" instead of "nuclear" How could a person NOT know the correct pronunciation! It makes the speaker sound ignorant.

Needless to say (perhaps), I don't listen to much radio any more and almost never watch television. It's all too much "chalk-scraping-on-the-blackboard" for me.

On radio and television there are numerous, instant "turn-offs" or "channel-switch" occasions for me. As soon as I hear Tom Shane...off. The first notes of the annoying Kars for Kids ad...off. When someone pronounces "either" or "neither" with a long "I" sound instead of a long "E"...off. When Dave Ross pronounces the word "err" with a short "U" sound...off. When a sports broadcaster talks about "difference makers"...off. When a weatherperson says "precip"...off. Why do so many (most) sports announcers have nearly soprano voices?

My review...Seattle Opera, Porgy and Bess

Very briefly (I'll get back to this)...I was exceedingly disappointed with Seattle Opera's Porgy and Bess! I have front row, center seats. Anyway, check back...I'll describe what wasn't done well at all.

I thought I might add a few comments to this while I have a minute.

First, due to an original request (or requirement) by Gershwin, Porgy and Bess is made up of black performers playing all the black parts. This seems to have been accomplished by Seattle Opera by setting aside most of the normal members of the chorus and bringing in local black singers as temporary replacements. (I'm not sure how that was okay with the union but...okay.) Anyway, the chorus was spectacular and I appreciate the magnificent efforts of the chorus director.

Most of the cast was...okay...sort of...when I could hear them. That was the problem!

Porgy (Gordon Hawkins) seems to have a decent voice although he seemed very weak in the lower register notes. Basically, I heard very little of what he sang because the orchestra overpowered almost everything.

Bess (Lisa Daltirus)...I had the same impression of her as with Porgy. Her lower register was inaudible and the rest was mostly drowned out by the orchestra.

I'll get back to Serena (Mary Elizabeth Williams)...

I liked Crown but he was overwhelmed too often by the orchestra.

Sportin' Life was good (!) and delivered good sound that I could actually hear!

Clara might as well not have bothered singing...especially the opening "Summertime". I heard almost nothing.

Maria...there was a point in the second act (I think) when Maria, Porgy and Serena sang together...Maria was (apparently) singing and was obviously gesticulating and playing up her part very well...however, I sat laughing at my seat because, even though I was certain she MUST have been singing, I never heard a single sound from her. It was very funny (and pitiful). The orchestra was so loud for her weak voice! I barely heard anything from Porgy either! Here's the problem...Serena was wonderful! She had a powerful voice that cut right through and above the din of the orchestra! That means to me that maybe the orchestra really wasn't so loud. Maybe most of the singers were very VERY weak.

Crab Man...he was another whose voice was sufficient for the venue.

My seats are in the front row.

In rehearsals, how could the company NOT have noticed that the voices disappeared? How could they NOT have sat in various areas of the hall so they could determine changes had to be made? It seems like they just had to bring the performers forward on the stage and/or have the orchestra quiet down a bit for all those weak voices. It was very disappointing.

In general, it was a wonderfully, entertaining performance but it could have been SO much better if I could have heard more than a few of the cast members and the chorus. Something is very wrong that this group made up of incredibly weak and sufficiently powerful singers were ever placed on stage together. Is it all about casting? If so, I give the casting director an F-minus. It reminds me of (some years ago) I went to see Turandot at the old Seattle Opera house. I was anxious to hear Nessun Dorma and my seat was just beyond the middle on the floor. I heard almost nothing from the tenor. He was far too weak. What a waste!

Incidentally, I understand Seattle Opera is doing Carmen this season so I checked to see who's in it. I was afraid they'd go ahead and cast another gigantic (totally unbelievable in the part!) woman to play the lead role as they did with Madama Butterfly and so many others. They didn't do that this time. They cast Anita Rachvelishvll as Carmen. I never heard of her but at least she isn't gigantic...unfortunately, here's a review of her playing Carmenn elsewhere..."Leave it to the paradoxical world of la Scala to open their season with a "Carmen" where Carmen herself is the weakest link in an otherwise strong cast." This means I probably won't hear much of what she sings later this season. (I would have chosen Cecilia Angell as Carmen.)

Vote down THE DEAL!

I'd rather have the Senate vote down the budget deal. Then, I'd like Obama (for once!) to take a firm, leadership stand and raise the debt ceiling on his own, via invoking the 14th amendment. Let the courts sort it out later. It's a lot better for all (the vast majority) of us than the crappy "compromise" they've agreed to.

Then...let's all work in earnest to maintain control of the Senate and take back the House!

Super Congress?

Is the creation of a Super Congress even constitutional? Isn't it the intent that the Super Congress will have final say in budget issues, bypassing the duly-elected representatives of the People? Isn't this taxation without representation? Is it a backwards step in a democracy? Also, what ever happened to the Republican demand for Smaller Government? Establishing a Super Congress is a definite expansion of government!

Give those in power an inch...just the slightest opening...and they'll exploit it. A super Congress seems to be a step in the wrong direction. Another chance for our government to strip the populace of self-dignity and inalienable rights.

So...I get an email from the Democrats with an attachment of President Obama supposedly explaining "The Deal". I didn't watch the video but, whatever it is, I'm not happy about it.

There should be no freeking "Deal" to pay our debts. There should be no freeking compromise with the slimy Republicans to pay our debts. The Republicans got us all into the shit hole in the first place and somehow they've managed (again) to avoid a fair tax rate for the wealthy and corporate thieves. I hate them and want them all to disappear from this section of the solar system.

Here's my most recent note to the White House:

Maybe it's not too late. Maybe President Obama can wake up from his delirium and call on Congress to reject "The Deal" Maybe President Obama can grow a backbone in the next few hours, forget about his own, selfish, political posturing for re-election and do the right thing before this economic catastrophe becomes reality. What a freeking wimp! While I would never cast a vote for any of the thieving Republican extortionists, I'm certainly ashamed of President Obama's miserable performance! I hope, Mr. President, you're ashamed, yourself. (Maybe it's not too late to be a man, eh?)

I HAVE LEARNED HATE

I've learned hate from this scummy process of extending the United States debt ceiling. That Republicans can take such a deceitful stand at the expense of the American populace and claim they're in the right position for us is disgusting. I hate them and what they're doing. I hate the non-compromising, haughty, self-righteous attitude they take. I hate that they favor assistance to the filthy rich and big business and think American citizens are shit and deserving of nothing. I hate corporations for bleeding the public and paying little or no taxes. I hate the filthy rich for basking in their millions and billions while the rest of us struggle to make ends meet...put food on the table, avoid foreclosure, put the kids in school and somehow get some semblance of health care. I hate them all. I hate that the Republicans can start two foolish wars and destroy the economy and somehow convince people that the Democrats did it. I hate that the Republicans can stand in the way of health care for Americans. I hate that they get away with lying so regularly. I hate the American caste system. I hate that the rich and powerful keep getting richer and more powerful. I hate the American political system. I hate that the Republicans have so much more money and can manipulate the system and the ignorant voters to their own advantage. I really do hate them all. This debt ceiling debate has uncovered the hatred in me. It's left me with my stomach in knots. I hate them. I hate that Democrats are somehow coerced into reaching a compromise in order to pay our bills. I hate them and I want change. It has to change or we'll be facing a horrific uprising. The American public can't always sit idly while the scum keeps stealing from them. We are not slaves! We do not live for, and at the mercy and whim, of the Republican liars! I hate them. I want Boehner gone. I want ALL the Republicans gone. They are lying, selfish thieves. Yes...I have learned hate and I want change.

How is a 'Super Congress' smaller government?, Debt Mess

The Republican proposal to establish a 'Super Congress' flies directly into the face of their continual cries for smaller government! You can't call for less government control while, at the same time, attempting to create an entirely new government entity. They're all liars.

"East is East and West is West..." The left hand doesn't know what the right is doing....Black and white...Up and down...In and out...Night and day...Opposites, all - and all, opposite...forever. There will never be any compromise between the Republicans and Democrats on the budget or anything else. Sure, they may agree to let some things pass along but there are such vast differences in the agendas of the two groups that there is no middle ground, no gray area. The Republicans are interested in their (supposed) conservative values and the Democrats are interested in helping those citizens in need of help. It's all so wrong! With the current debate of extending the debt ceiling, it's all just criminal politics at work. The Republicans want a temporary solution so they can continue the debate into the next Presidential election. They don't want to reach any solution because it takes a hot (unnecessary) issue off the table. They push their agenda under the guise of 'smaller government', 'religious conservative values', 'right to life', and so on. Their real agenda is to maintain selfish power, control and (ultimately) wealth. All this comes at the expense of the vast majority of Americans who only want a chance at a decent life. It's inconceivable to me that the Republican base is so utterly foolish as to fall for this nonsense. As to the Democrats, I believe most of them entered the political fray with a clear intention to do the right thing for the American people. However, given the need to run for office again in such short order, they often fall prey to the money and influence of corporations and big business and lose their pristine political youth. What choices are there for the voting public? We can continue to place our hopes in the hands of the Democrats who will all be tarnished by the system. We can give up, declare ourselves slaves and vote Republican.

I say...

Term limits! (ONE)

No career politicians!

Limit salaries for public office to the average income of their constituents!

No more Presidential libraries!

No more lifetime Supreme Court Justices!

A major third party is needed!

Flat taxes!

No more American Imperialist wars!

Get out of Iraq and Afghanistan!

No PAC money!

Corporations can have no say in political decisions.

Affordable health care for all!

Government employees should have the same health care and retirement as the rest of us.

Fair trade has to be fair to us too!

Flat tax!

By the way...as I mentioned in an earlier post, gravity is a pressing force...not a pulling force.

Republican self-serving, selfish liars

The filth of politics in the United States is more than one can cleanse in a single lifetime. Republicans are taking a stand to maintain tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy at the expense of Social Security benefits, the poor and the needy! It makes no sense that the millions of individual, regular citizens who happen to call themselves Republicans are too blinded, foolish or just plain ignorant don't seem to be able to understand that their own party is working steadfastly against them too. It's all lies! They're all self-serving liars! I can't stand it. The Conservative base seems to be supporting their racist leaders with their votes for the lost illogical reasons. They seem to be more interested in supporting narrow-minded religious ideals, right-to-life platforms, immigration laws and corporate rights at their own expense! Why in the world would anyone keep voting in favor of the wealthy conservatives when they MUST know they're cutting off their own noses? Why indeed!? They can't all be that stupid...can they?

It's a downright pity that neither the Left nor the Right pays any heed to the other side. I get countless emails and other correspondence from the Left. What's the point? I already agree with most of the agenda. There's no dialogue between the two sides. It's the multitudes of Conservatives who need to hear and listen to the message from the Left but they're too blind and deaf to pay any attention...lest they feel manipulated. They'd rather starve to death than give in to a black President's desire to help ALL American citizens...themselves included.

Most people seem to enter politics because most of them are already wealthy and want to preserve and foster their own interests. They just don't give a rip about the American public.

We need change. Single term limits for public servants. No corporate payments or donations to those who are elected to represent the people. Government employees should not have their own brand of insurance or retirement benefits while the rest of us suffer. Outsourcing of jobs to poorer countries is a disaster. There's no longer a need for Americans to do anything but work in service industries. No more wars! Now, with the economy in the tank, fewer people can afford to even pay for those services. Our jobs have gone overseas to countries where the people are treated nearly as slaves and there is no interest in conserving the environment.

Of course, there are far too many humans on Earth. Those of us alive now can't be expected to just off ourselves to solve that problem...but we can curtail our reproduction before it's too late (if it isn't already).

It's all sickening.

Here's what I just emailed to Dave Reichert and John Boehner:

Leave my Social Security alone!

Get the Republicans to the table with a realistic attempt to resolve the budget crisis.

Stop the political games and face facts as they are. The economy is where it is because the Bush administration started two unnecessary and non winable wars, relaxed controls on the financial community, reduced taxes for the wealthy (which have NOT stimulated industry as suggested), and took the initial steps to bail out Wall Street and corporations. This was all the result of the Republicans. Taking a hard, inflexible stand now is ridiculous. Raise the debt limit, increase corporate and wealthy tax burdens, stop handing out American dollars to countless free-loading countries, get us out of the two ill-conceived wars, close corporate tax loopholes and leave our individual benefits intact! Do this for the American people and be honest about what is really the right thing to do! This talk of "smaller government" is all worn out and is just phony rhetoric.

As an aside - our country would be a lot better off without career politicians (such as yourself). We need (single) term limits and flat tax rates across the board. It makes no sense for anyone (not related) to ever cast a single vote for Republicans who are working so diligently to reduce the standard of life for so many of the "regular", tax-paying citizens of this country.

Budget Crisis

Of course, my point of view is limited to what I can see from my little house in Fall City. However, it appears that the Republicans have a particular agenda to enhance the wealth and power of those already wealthy and powerful...at the expense (and without the slightest interest) in the well-being of the masses of middle and lower income citizens of this country. Am I missing something? Isn't it true that Republicans are taking a stand to protect the rich and powerful? Isn't it true that Obama is attempting to protect Social Security and Medicare along with so many other necessities for the masses? What could possibly be the ultimate goal of those republicans? Do they really want to bankrupt the country? Are they really looking for an entirely new American order in which only the wealthy and powerful have anything and the rest of us are just their slaves? This is all so wrong! I paid into Social Security for 47 years. Something is so wrong! Why are we fighting these wars in Iraq and Afghanistan? Isn't it true that they were started by George Bush? Isn't it true that they are both unnecessary and un-winnable anyway? Isn't it true that the fighting in Libya is a NATO-led operation - not an Obama war? Why does the American public forget so easily what's happening? Why does the American public fall for the republican attacks on Obama concerning those conflicts? Isn't it true that the economic downfall was caused by George Bush? Wasn't it Bush who first handed over trillions of our dollars to Wall Street, banks, corporations, insurance companies, etc. Are we all really so stupid? Do we have no memories at all? It's just too much like Animal Farm, isn't it? Personally, I want all the republicans purged from office. I want term limits for the whole bunch of blood-sucking politicians...including the democrats. This is just a gigantic mess we're in and it's all driven by greed and short-sighted, petty politics. That's what I see from my front porch, overlooking the pond and feeling the cool rain of summer here in Fall City.

Fall City Horses

Well, I was shocked by this: Yesterday, several horse riders passed my house, coming down from the trails that begin at the end of my street. As usual, my two dogs ran to the gate, barking and jumping against the fence. It happens that they do that almost every time anyone passes by, either on foot, bicycle, horse or even in cars and trucks. The shocking part was that one of the horse riders called in to my friend and me, "Can't you control your dogs?!" My dogs were fenced in and on my own property. The horse riders were outside on a public street. My dogs WERE under control! If people want to ride on a street with no possibility of being disturbed by dogs, they can just ride somewhere else and leave me alone. It's not that I like listening to my dogs barking but I don't like navigating my car around the piles of horse shit all along the road either. I also don't like listening to the VERY LOUD conversations of bicycle and horse riders coming and going all day. It seems they all feel it's necessary to shout to each other all the time. Anyway, as I mentioned, if people don't want to hear my dogs...they can just go somewhere else. I live here!

Social Security Benefit Cuts???

I live in a little house in Fall City and collect some Social Security,
while I still have a job that provides almost no income. Every month, I
have to take more money from my meager savings to pay my bills as it
is.

Now! Now I hear they're considering a decrease in my Social
Security benefits. I've been paying into Social Security for more than
forty-five years and now it seems they won't be able to live up to
their side of the bargain. It's just too expensive to conduct THREE
WARS, bail out Wall Street, bail ou the insurance companies, bail out
the Auto Industry and countless other corporate entities all while
cutting taxes for the rich. It's such a great burden to hand over
billions of our dollars to so many other nations every year. It's no
wonder there's nothing left for me (and millions of others in my
situation).

Probably in every city, the largest, most
expensive buildings are owned by banks and insurance companies. Where
do we suppose all the money for such filthy extravagances comes from?
The same can be said for the most lavish homes and lifestyles all
around the country. It all comes from the little people...us. We pay
and they collect. Our government and business leaders are draining us
dry.

What is this all about? What happened to the Democrat we elected
as our President? What happened to the Democratic-controlled congress?
Why do we keep spending our money for everyone but our own people? Why
have we allowed our jobs to be shipped overseas?

When John
McCain comes out in support of Obama's war in Libya, doesn't that tell
us something? Doesn't that tell us there's very little difference in
the performance of our so-called leaders, regardless of their political
parties? Of course I'd expect the Republicans to conduct as many wars
as they can get their hands in but the Democrats!? Why are we still
giving all those billions away? Why are we still fighting in Iraq and
Afghanistan...and now Libya?

Enough! That's enough!

It's time to focus on the United States...on our own citizens...on our
own needs . I can't speak for anyone but myself. However, I'm
relatively confident that most Americans would prefer to have decent
health care and a dependable retirement income. We have nothing! Our
"Leaders" are squandering away all that we've all worked so hard to
achieve.

I suppose our "Leaders" don't really care.
After all, their own pensions are not in danger and their health care
is far superior to that of the masses. Even the "Snake-in-the Grass"
losers like Weiner can cheat and lie, then resign, and still collect
our tax dollars afterwards.

It's all wrong!

We
need accountability in government, a FLAT TAX system, universal health
care, term limits (ONE TERM) for all political office holders.
Corporations should not be viewed under the law as people. There should
be no corporate influence over our government employees (elected or
otherwise). NO CORPORATE POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS. NO PACS. Government
employees should have no benefits beyond what the average citizen
receives. NO CAREER POLITICIANS AND NO CAREER MILITARY. It should be an
unpaid (almost) civic duty to serve the country in any capacity.

I've just plain had it! A cut in my Social Security will end up costing
me my home while the Rich Just Get Richer, the politicians keep raking
it off the top and my hard-earned money is thrown to Nation-building
efforts, wars, corporations...

Anybody have any solutions?

TWO NEW HIPS!

I had a hip replaced on April 11th and the second one on June 1st. This is the third day after surgery but they sent me home the day after. That turned out to be an extremely challenging and painful day. I wasn't able to put any weight at all on the new hip that day. However, I can walk without even using a cane now (almost). There's some swelling and numbness on my thigh, apparently because the surgeons spent some extra effort making sure my leg was lengthened sufficiently. (After the first hip was replaced, that leg was 3/4" longer...so now they're the same.) Both operations involved two, minimally-invasive incisions of about 3" lengths. It's just amazing! There were no stitches...just Super Glue. 

Fall City Diner

Here in Fall City, there's a little, low-end restaurant that has been in business for as long as I've lived in the area (since the early eighties). I recall it was called "The Other Place", then "The Fall City Grill". The owner of the Fall City Grill abandoned the restaurant several months ago and now it's re-opened under the ownership of the same people who own the burger joint, "Small Fries". 

My point? 

First impressions in a restaurant are keys to success! My first impression, on trying the new Fall City Diner was woeful. There is no real menu, other than a typed list of burgers and Costco-bought meatloaf and such. While the place is certainly brighter and cleaner than ever before, that's the end of the positives! The food is not good (except for the fries), the portions are meager and the prices are unwarranted. It's not likely I'll be going there again any time soon. That's too bad because I live so close to the place. I would not recommend anyone should ever go there based on my own first impression. Aside from the fries, I can imagine the new owners might develop a good clientele if they allow customers to go to Small Fries and drive over to the new "Diner" so they can sit inside while eating their burgers. 

Alas! I was so hopeful there might be a decent and affordable alternative to the other places in town. But my first impression...is not good.

I should mention that during the period of time the business sat idle with a real estate sign outside, I tried contacting three real estate companies and even called the owner of the building with the hope that I might take over the business and serve some fine, healthy foods. However, not a single person even responded to my calls. The result...we have a sleazy, low-class new place to eat in town.

End of the World?

Today (May 21st, 2011) is reputed by some quack named Harold Camping to be the end of the world. Actually, it's my understanding that today is the "Rapture" day when all good souls are taken to heaven and those remaining will suffer for six months before the final end in October or November. In any case, I assume there's a good possibility that the quack (Harold Camping) who has raped the ignorant public of millions of dollars might just "off" himself so he never be aware of the folly of his prediction. He predicted the end would be in 1994 also but, when it didn't occur that time, he declared he had made a minor miscalculation and that today would be the day. How convenient for him to be able to steal so much more money from the sheep. People are just plain stupid, don't you think?

Boycott Arnold Schwarzenegger

Fathering a child with his housekeeper must, JUST MUST, be the tip of a very large iceberg. Imagine how many other illicit affairs this sleaze has had! If he goes back into the movie business or any other form of entertainment, all his efforts should be boycotted. No one should pay a single cent to ever see him again...that applies to all his old movies as well. Don't rent them! This is one more untrustworthy man who has betrayed his wife and family. There are so many like him! It's sad. It's very sad to think of the countless, ridiculously wealthy men in sports, politics and business who have sunken to this level. Where are the strong women? Why are there so few women in influential positions in the world? It's time for real change and we can all start by boycotting Arnold Schwarzenegger. (Then, we can get on to the total censuring of the rest of the immoral miscreants in the world.)

To the Democrats, etc...

Whatever happened to "REAL" Health Care? Where are the jobs? Why is Guantanamo still operating? Why are the wealthy still paying reduced taxes? Why is the government still taking it in the shorts from big business and Wall Street? Why can't individuals in financial trouble get assistance in mortgage restructuring? What happened to all those campaign promises? Why do we still have troops in Afghanistan and Iraq? Why are American jobs still going overseas while our own citizens are unemployed? I would like to see some REAL action to solve our problems...not just smooth talk anymore. 

Why is it okay for the Army Corps of Engineers to blow out Mississippi dikes, thereby flooding farmland? Why is it okay for that same group of so-called "engineers" to dredge the upper Snoqualmie valley, knowing full-well that the lower valley will experience far greater flooding in the future? (Fema has already adjusted floodplain maps, placing many neighborhoods in the flood-danger zone. These are neighborhoods that have NEVER flooded...but they will now.)

Is anyone steering all these buses as they careen downhill?

With bin Laden gone, get out of Afghanistan

Officially, the US invaded Afghanistan because the Taliban refused to turn over bin Laden (as though he was even there...and as though they could have captured him). It was simply a strike at the most available target to appease an angry US citizenry. Well, now we're mired there as well as Iraq. We started both wars, needlessly and under false pretenses. There's an incredible drain on our resources, human and financial. Let's just get out of both wars right now. We don't have the understanding or the ability required to rebuild those nations in our own likeness. Let's just call it all off now that we have an excuse to do so. Don't we ever learn anything?

THE PRESSING FORCE OF GRAVITY

I posted this on a different Blog several years ago. I came upon this epiphany while sitting on my deck during many late nights in  Fall City. In addition, I've approached numerous physicists with this theory, dating back about ten years now.

Gravity

I believe our universe sprang forth in an area of space already occupied. The
occupant was Dark Matter of some kind and it existed, as it still does, within
a confined, finite space...similar to a sealed jar of tightly compacted jello.
As to the nature of the area surrounding our universe and confining it within
itself...that's open to speculation. There is no vacuum anywhere. In fact,
from within every atom to the vast reaches of space, every bit of space not
occupied by known particles is occupied by Dark Matter which permeates every
nook and cranny of every atom in the universe. The Dark Matter exerts pressure
upon every particle, from impenetrable atomic elements to porous planets and
stars. The pressure exerted is proportional from the atomic level to the larger
celestial level.

Gravity is a pushing force, not a pulling force. This can be shown by measuring
the weight of a given object on Earth at the leading edge of Earth's travel and
at the trailing edge. There is an average of .6% to 1% greater weight at the
leading edge than the trailing edge, regardless of the moon's position. To do
this, simply weigh the object at the same time in the morning and evening. To
visualize, place a large marble between two sponges, squeeze them together and
observe the increased density of the sponges, nearer the marble. Place two
marbles, squeeze again and observe. The sponge, acting as the Dark Matter,
illlustrates the pressure exerted from outside on a star and planet.

Incidently, this little idea came to me when looking at an illustration of a
star, resting on a grid which represented the fabric of space. The depression
in the fabric was to show how gravity works. An orbiting planet with sufficient
velocity would simply continue to circle the star. Since space is not
two-dimensional, it is obvious that the exact opposite of the illustration
would have to be true.

Also, when taken backward in time to the Big Bang, it makes sense to imagine a
Black Hole being crushed by the pressures of the Dark Matter. Perhaps, in the
creation of the Black Hole, large amounts of the Dark Matter were trapped
within the Black Hole and perhaps the pressure finally became so great upon the
particles and the trapped Dark Matter that there was a split or complete
eruption. No matter. The simultaneaus release of all the known particle matter
of the universe is the source of the vibrations of each particle which,
crushed, bent, and compressed for eons, simply resonates open and closed and
outward and inward, seemingly forever. No strings and loops. Just resonating
particles of infinite sizes and shapes. No 15 dimensions. Just three.

There are obvious, far reaching implications in this hypothesis. The only
practical use of this information seems to be...launches of spacecraft should
be made in the evening...and from high elevations...say, Denver at eight PM.

The compression of dark matter around a star or planet may be
sufficient to affect the direction and velocity of light as it does around a
Black Hole.

Oh...it was pointed out to me by a noted nuclear physicist that there is
another practical implication to my theory. The constant variation in
gravity from morning to evening gives obvious rise to the possibility
of a perpetual motion machine. That little observation was offered,
almost tongue-in-cheek but, it is actually plausible. While I don't think 

of a perpetual motion machine, I do acknowledge the possibility of harnessing 

energy from the continual, daily change in the pressing, gravitational force.

One more thing...I've noticed the "tectonic" effect on the rugs in my house.
They are set in motion by my walking on them. I think this indicates how
the pressure created by the moon creates plate movement on the earth. This
is completely in accordance with my theory of gravity.

It's likely there would be an infinite number of universes created similarly
to ours but not occupying the same time and place.

As an aside, imagine backing away from our universe, traveling some 50 billion light years away. Keep on backing 

away and  there is no longer any indication that we exist at all. There is no light or other energy to show we are 

even here because time steps in. Turn around and look outward. How many other universes are out there all around us?

New Hips in Fall City

In and out of the hospital in two days, I now have one new hip and am awaiting scheduling for the second. It's a good time to take care of all this because the weather is so winter-like and there seems to be no sign of Spring anywhere in sight. I did manage to get the lawn mowed and may (if it warms up a bit) rototill the garden so I'll be prepared for planting when it Spring finally arrives...maybe never. There's no good news anywhere. Politicians continue to lie and cheat, nuclear fall-out abounds, health care is almost non-existent, wars drag on, the economy is still dead and I've lost most of my savings. These are dark times.

New Hips

The first of my new hips is in with minimally invasive surgery. Monday morning they cut me open and removed the top of the femur. Then they installed a titanium apparatus with a new ball into the femur, placed a titanium socket with polyethylene receptacle in the pelvis...Anyway, today I was up walking with my new hip. 

Update...Wednesday 2 PM (2 days after surgery)...I'm home. I have 2, relatively small incisions which were super-glued, so there won't be any scarring from stitches.

Radioactive Fallout in Fall City, Washington

I'm wearing my hat with aluminum foil wrapped around it for protection from the radioactive fallout from freeking Japan. There's Delerium, Sleezium and Scrotomium, all laced with horrible, killing, cancer-causing elements falling all around me...from freeking Japan. How stupid are we humans to allow such folly? Indeed! Humans are incredibly stupid and short-sighted. So...I've wrapped my hat with aluminum foil. My brother suggested I sell this idea on the internet...or at least sell it at the end of my driveway. I feel much more secure with my head covered with aluminum foil! There have been a few odd, questioning looks from passers-by but, what the heck, I'll still be alive after the worst occurs and they'll all have boils, lesions and bloody carbuncles oozing from their bodies...I'll have my shiny hat for protection!

New Hips and Floods

I'm scheduled to receive the first of two new hips in less than two weeks. I'm not especially overjoyed with the prospect. I worry mainly about infection. If all goes well, I hope to replace the second hip just a few weeks later. 

It's raining like crazy with lots more to come in the next few days...plus the snow level is up to 9000', so there'll be a lot of rapid snowmelt.  The Snoqualmie river is expected to flood and, once again, I may be stuck on this dead end street.

Fallout

With radioactive fallout arriving in my area (Washington State) from Japan, I wonder if we'll ever learn anything. The dangers of radioactive contamination are so great and long-lasting, and scientists (and the rest of us) have been aware of those dangers all along. Why? Why would nuclear power ever have been approved? Why would we have developed nuclear weapons? This is all so incredibly stupid that there aren't any words to justify or explain our behavior. We don't really need all the energy supplied by nuclear reactors. We don't need all the air-conditioning, personal computers, mega-computers, brightly lit cities, electric cars or any of that. We need to face reality and adjust our lifestyles to living within our actual needs. Aside from the fact that there are already too many people in the world, those who are here now must adapt to living sensibly. 

The initial explosions in the Japan nuclear facility released small amounts of radiation. That's what's falling on us now. In fact, it's already reached Europe! Subsequent radiation releases are far greater and that's what we should expect to arrive soon. Where are the government and news media? What are the real facts? They only continue reporting traces of non-lethal radiation but, with a little extra research, it seems these reports are far from the truth. I would like to know just how much radiation is falling on me along with continuous rain today (Sunday, 3/28). 

Now it's Monday and there are reports of radiation in the water in new England. I'm beginning to think this can turn out to be a world-wide catastrophe. And...while all these little news items come out, there are no real details. The New England contamination report includes no actual location, and the fallout in my state of Washington is completely un-reported! 'm such a meaningless pawn!

Temporary Partial Blindness

So...a couple of days ago, I realized I couldn't see. Yes, I could make out larger forms, lights and colors but seeing little things such as numbers and letters on the keyboard...no way. There was an aura of bright lights that moved when I turned my head. There was no difference in either eye, with or without glasses. I splashed some water on my face and poured a glass of wine . Then I was okay again. How odd! The next day, I was trying to recall what might have triggered such an event. All that came to mind was that I had tea instead of coffee in the morning (I was out of coffee). I decided to replicate that and had the same, extremely strong black tea this morning. I fully expected to be somewhat blind as a result but...it didn't happen. I wonder if I was experiencing an odd version of petit mal (which I had the entire time I was growing up). The problem with that is that I had nocturnal petit mal...and this event occurred in the late morning hours. What to do!?

Minor update...in a continuing attempt to find the cause of my temporary blindness, I remembered two, unusual things: One, I had chicken pho the night before and, Two, just before the onset of said, temporary blindness, I was watching an Al Jazeera video about Libya. This morning, I re-watched the same video (the idea being, perhaps the video was encrypted with some mind-altering undertones.) Nope. That wasn't it, I think. Back to the drawing board, eh?

No Fly Zone over Israel

What say the West smartens up and realizes it's time for a no fly zone over Israel to prevent further loss of innocent lives? Oh! Is Israel above the laws of common decency and humanity? I think not.

Libya and Nuclear Emergencies

Isn't it just plain eerie that the US bombs Libya every time there's a nuclear disaster in the world? The previous time was in April, 1986. Chernobyl was in the process of meltdown as US planes bombed Libya. Now, with Japan's reactors in a similar situation, we're bombing Libya all over again...and the enemy is Gaddafi...again! Are we all doomed to keep repeating the bad aspects of history? What say we relive some of the good parts too?

School Buses

I remember, as a smartass little kid back east, riding to school in one of those school buses, careening around corners, up and around narrow streets and hills. I remember bouncing around and having my head smashed against the cold metal ceiling. Why? Why are there no seat belts on school buses or public transportation buses? They're all death traps! Why do local school districts and governments have so little regard for the safety of their own children? Why is it okay to have public service buses rattling around every major US city with people standing and being smashed against each other and the cold metal seat railings? How can it be acceptable to have such strict demands on the auto industry and ignore buses? (Those same buses spew noxious, foul diesel fumes into the air for people like me to inhale.) I suppose it's all about money, eh? There's something very wrong with this system. As to school buses, don't Americans think their children should be transported safely? As to public transportation, don't we deserve to ride on, or in, a safe vehicle without being concerned with suffering severe injury from a minor mishap? It's all about money, eh? I don't ride on buses anymore. 

Seattle Earthquake

Doesn't anyone in a decision-making capacity have any ability to learn from history? Imagine a massive earthquake in the Northwest and think of what would happen to the new tunnel. Everyone inside would be either crushed or drowned. Imagine the liquification in the Sodo area...it's just fill dirt there. But the tunnel! The tunnel doesn't exist yet...and never should. Yes, the mayor is aware, in light of the recent Japan earthquake, that the viaduct is a deathtrap. But really!? A tunnel is far worse! Either do a retrofit of the existing viaduct or tear it down and build a nice boulevard along the waterfront. The Seattle area is living on borrowed time and the massive earthquake could be only moments away.

Seattle earthquake

With all the horror in Japan as a result of the earthquake, I wondered about potential damage in my area, Seattle. Five to ten years ago, there was an extensive study to determine expected results from a mere 6.7 earthquake. Among many other awful things, the viaduct would fall, the seawalls would collapse and there would be numerous, minor tsunamis in the Sound. Well...Seattle intends to remove the viaduct and replace it with a tunnel. A tunnel! I can't even imagine how many people are sopping up the profits of such a venture. The tunnel would run right along, parallel to, and lower than the...seawall. That would be the same seawall that just fell into the water, taking all the docks with it. That would be the same Puget Sound that would be generating local tsunamis, swamping houses and businesses along the waterfront. Does anyone think the tunnel, not fifty feet from that same waterfront, would survive? Really?! That's all fill dirt along the waterfront. The tunnel would rupture and fill with water in a mere 6.7 earthquake. What of a more intense earthquake? Even in that 6.7 earthquake, hundreds of vehicles (and humans) could be crushed and/or drowned in this foolish tunnel. The tunnel idea should be abandoned immediately. There should either be a retrofit of the viaduct or it should be replaced by surface streets. This folly can only be the result of a tremendous amount of political scheming and palm-greasing. Stop the tunnel! Now! 

Hip replacement

I just scheduled myself for hip replacement surgery. They refused to do the newest technique on me, which is hip re-surfacing, because they say I'm too old! I need both hips replaced but the soonest they can do the second one is three weeks later. It's gonna be a helluva month or so but I hope to be playing golf, hiking, snowshoeing, roller-blading, biking and just living a more normal lifestyle...sooner rather than later.

Family Radio

May 21, 2011 is the guaranteed Day of Judgment...The Rapture. (Of course, the Family Radio people originally claimed it was September 6, 1994.) In any case, only the Chosen will be saved by the Rapture. The rest of us will suffer until October 21, 2011. Then...the world will end.

My word! How can people be so incredibly stupid? The Mayan calendar ends in 2012, so many others claim the world will end then. Indeed, how can people be so incredibly stupid? I'm curious if the characters running the Family Radio business are cashing in on the gullible few who have walked away from all their worldly possessions. Maybe Family Radio has them sign over all their assets. Maybe they just go in and take everything after the sheep vacate their houses. I say, religion of all kinds has done more harm to humanity throughout history than all the wars, diseases, earthquakes, tornadoes and every other form of catastrophe combined. Some quack claims he calculated this, newest End-date by carefully examining the Bible. I suppose that same quack has a marvelous, radio voice and that's how he's convinced so many weak-willed people to follow him. Maybe they will just have their own version of Jonestown, drink their own Kool-Aid and be done with it. Maybe the quack at Family Radio will go straight to the bank on May 22, 2011. Maybe they won't just "off" themselves but just look around in a daze on May 22, 2011 and wander away in unknown directions, blending back into society. Maybe, on May 22, 2011, Family Radio will come out and say they made a minor mistake and the End is really a couple of years away. Heck, they did the same thing before. What's to prevent them from luring in a few thousand more sheep to bring to the financial slaughterhouse when they announce the next "End of Days." I suppose, in the long run, everyone gets what they deserve.

Seattle Opera

I went to see Don Quixote last night and was very disappointed. I suppose I just don't like operas with no featured sopranos or tenors. They did have a couple of tenors in minor roles but their voices (one, especially) were extremely weak and unimpressive. If I were not sitting in the front row, I probably wouldn't have heard them at all. They also had a couple of sopranos in smaller roles but they were playing male suitors. It was downright silly. The dancing and acting were great, though. Another good thing...it was a short opera.

Fall City Rain

It's finally raining, the temperature is above freezing, snow is melting and all's right with my little world. Once again, I can give some thought to spring planting with yet another (possibly vain) hope that we might actually have a summer this year. Last summer never happened. It was cool and very wet. From the thirty or forty tomato plants, I managed to get about three tomatoes. The potatoes were okay at first but the rested rotted in the saturated ground. Bring Spring!

Time is a relentless foe

When I was so much younger than I am now, when I could move without pain, when I felt a sparkle of hope in my eye...Those were wondrous years but I was not aware. Time was eroding my body and my mind, relentlessly, and I was not aware. Even now, I don't presume to be fully aware. I do recall, in my youth, writing a little (childish) poem in which I described that youthful period as the time I died. Part of it..."I can't remember who I was, where I went, what I did, I died..." Perhaps I was more aware of the ravages of time, eating away at me, than I knew. Relentless, is the work of time. A foe, indeed. A relentless foe. I could be a Time Traveler. In fact, I am. I travel forward on the straight line or the spiraling arc of time. I can, of course, travel in the opposite direction. Traveling into the past is studying history and lending credence to memories. Otherwise, my time travels go in only one direction. Even though my own time is so limited, without me, it keeps plodding onward and I continue to shed my youth and my self with each passing moment. What is to be done about this? While I have always claimed it's best to leave no trace, I have left traces...sons, grandchildren, stains on the furniture, occasional friends who may remember me...but the traces of my mind, the dreams, the unique experiences of my existence, my real self...those are all encapsulated, never to be available to the rest of humanity, in the clutches of time. I think, as such, it's inevitable that we repeat history and learn so little from its lessons. It's another cold day in Fall City, where the river level is dropping, new snow is falling and the pond is again, mostly frozen over.

Cold

It's still cold here in Fall City. The snow is evaporating but not melting and there's more on the way, anyway. Where is Spring? When can I start planting the garden? This all that matters here and now. We have no ruthless dictator stealing our money, no mercenary army killing and raping the populace, no pirates sailing up and down the river. It's just cold. That's all. 

Today, there's a birthday party designed to celebrate four separate birthdays but it's being held at an elevation of about 1400'. That means far more snow will be there. If I go, I'll probably end up stuck in a snowdrift...again.

More snow

Holy crap! Another 6" of snow fell overnight. This is the fourth time this winter that snow prevented the freeking garbage man from coming!

While I sit here in my sheltered little corner of the world and worry about whether I can make it to the store, an entire other reality continues to play out, elsewhere. What a cushy life I've had! Sometimes, I try to transport my consciousness to other places...where people are crushed by power and money grabbing dictators...where people have little (or no) food or water...where life is a real challenge. Sometimes, I feel I can feel it...but it's just not the same. So...I content myself with my own reality. This is a cushy existence, mine. I apologize to all those, less fortunate.

Gadhafi

If Gadhafi really did order the Lockerbie bombing...isn't that an act of war? Where's the American and British outrage? Where's the retaliation? We seem to have such different standards in so many areas of the world. We turn our heads on the brutality of some while we bomb the living daylights out of others. These shitball countries are all the same. They exploit their own citizens and crush the life right out of women. What of Saudi Arabia? Where is American outrage there? What of Israel crushing anyone who looks cross-eyed at them? We have different standards, depending on what's in it for us (by that, I mean our own politicians and business interests). Let's just maintain an even keel for once and see where that leads us, eh? Besides, doesn't anyone remember the United States Marine hymn? "...to the shores of Tripoli..." Where are all the American Marines now? 

Fall City Snow

Snow and cold. Cold and snow. Even though this little town is at a low elevation and receives far less snow than other areas nearby, it's still coming down and is expected to continue for several more days. I've had it up to here and I'm not going to take it anymore. I think I might get a bonfire going in the yard. That may warm up the lowlands and turn the blasted white stuff into harmless rain. Of course, there's nothing else going on around here except...I was watching two cormorants swimming in the pond across the street. Just a few weeks a go, there were three but one of my neighbors shot the third, less than 150' from where I sat on my deck. Cormorants may or may not be protected from hunters. I don't know. I've read the state hunting regulations and searched through the internet. It just isn't clear if people are allowed to kill cormorants. Most recently, I sent an email to the state wildlife agency, asking about this. (I haven't received a reply yet.) However, I do know that firing off a couple of shotgun blasts within 150' of my house just must be wrong, eh?

Fall City solitude

It's so very difficult to grasp what real life is all about out there...in the real world. Here, the concern is whether or not there might be a flood...or snowstorm...or massive windstorm. These things are rare. Once, every year or so, something like that happens and the little neighborhood huddles together to weather the trying times. What must it be like to face the unending challenges of war, political upheaval, religious persecution, rape, food and water shortages...? So many trials go on each day elsewhere in the world as I sit on the porch, basking in the light of the lamp and contemplate how I'll deal with the snow flurries in the forecast. Life is so fickle. My being as a human might easily have existed in the body of a waif in the Gaza Strip. I may have been a warrior in a distant African tribe attacking and fending off interlopers. I may have been raised in an Orthodox Jewish family, or Mormon, or as a poor Mexican trying to find a better, yet illegal, life in the grand USA. I may have been so many things and yet...I wonder if any of the snow flurries might stick to the road. I wonder if I'll be able to drive to the store for fresh cigarettes...and wine. I don't know what to do or say about all this. However, I do know that my own existence as it is...is all I know. I am truly sorry to have reaped the rewards of a life, free of life-and-death challenges...a life, sheltered from the real world. Indeed, I am sorry to have traveled along a path of soft sod with roses along the side for my pleasure...while so many others suffer. What's to be done? What's to be thought as I look outward and upward, and the flakes of snow fall gently upon my knees? I suppose I can only hope I used my wondrous time with ample appreciation...and maybe give something of value back to those in need and those less fortunate. That's what's happening today in Fall City.

Uprisings

All that's going on in the world...uprises throughout the Arab world! What of Saudi Arabia with the same inhumane treatment of women as so many nations? On the flip side, what of Israel with it's unforgivable treatment of Palestinians and everyone else, non-jewish? Where and when will real justice prevail?

Conservatives

It seems right-wing conservatives fall into a couple of categories...they strive for (or already have) wealth and power...apparently, they believe their own moral principles are superior and uncompromising...and they view corporate interests to be above individual rights and freedoms. This means that, when given authority over the little people, there is no hope for any but the select few at the top of the food chain.

The Movement may be born in Wisconsin

Hopefully, the unrest in Wisconsin created by a union-busting attempt by the governor will grow into a real movement. Perhaps we may see real interest and concern of everyday Americans. Perhaps there can be real change resulting from the awakening of the middle class and we can take back our country from corporate, military, Wall Street and far-right moral ignorance. Perhaps the average American might stand up and take notice what is really happening to this country. Perhaps...

Tax Money

Personally, I'm completely sick of the US government handing out billions upon billions of American tax dollars to the rest of the world, especially while our own citizens have such great needs. It's time to gather our troops and dollars closer to the vest and take care of ourselves. Start no more wars. Keep our money at home.

Revolution in the US?

Where is the hue and cry from American citizens? Why is there no economic or meaningful, political revolution here? It seems to be working elsewhere. Aren't Americans weary of handing over billions of tax dollars to other countries? Aren't we sick and tired of instigating and maintaining unnecessary wars which were started by us under false pretenses, more with an interest in oil and pipelines than anything else? Where is our revolution? We have a broken economy and a corrupt political system. Let's start by limiting terms for elected officials. It should be a responsibility, not a career to work in government. There should be no free retirement ride, no superior health care, no perks at all for those elected to serve us. What say we have a flat income tax, maybe 10% to 15%? There should be no tax loopholes for the filthy rich. The entire system stinks and it's time for real change...not just in false promises from politicians...it's time for our own revolution.