After some coffee and a nap, as well as a little time to unwind I am happy to report I am feeling much better.
Generalities: October 2004 Archives
re: my rope
I am nearly at the end.
Good fences make good neighbors.
The year at the Lake, the neighbor has really cleaned up his property. It is a real improvement.
I finally had a chance to d/l the Jon Stewart appearance on Crossfire. I had already read the transcript a few days ago so I knew what was going to be said. I still loved the show. It's one of the few times in my life a TV show has fired me up enough to whoop. Below are my favorite lines.
Stewart: Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America.
...
STEWART: I would love to see a debate show.
BEGALA: We're 30 minutes in a 24-hour day where we have each side on, as best we can get them, and have them fight it out.
STEWART: No, no, no, no, that would be great. To do a debate would be great. But that's like saying pro wrestling is a show about athletic competition.
...
STEWART: But the thing is that this -- you're doing theater, when you should be doing debate, which would be great.
BEGALA: We do, do...
(CROSSTALK)
STEWART: It's not honest. What you do is not honest. What you do is partisan hackery. And I will tell you why I know it.
Jon had the chance to go on the show and make people laugh, instead he chose to be serious and hold the pundits feet to the fire. He was right and courageous. Jon Stewart has become the fool (in the classic sense) of this election. He's the one telling the truth about the absurdity of the process; noting the emperor has no clothes. My hat is off to Jon.
He is so right about America needing an honest debate. I propose a new show on PBS that is dedicated to debating real issues. It would follow a more traditional debating style, like High School or College debating instead of the dinner theater style the major parties agreed to in the Presidential debates. The show should also feature fact checkers and intelligent commentators. If this show is on for the next fours years, perhaps the American people will demand a real presidential debate the next election cycle.
We frequently visit a lake cabin owned by my wife's uncle Russ. It is situated near Ely, Minnesota on Lake Vermillion. If you don't have an atlas handy it's not all that far from the border between Minnesota and Canada, on the edge of the BWCAW.
This weekend we went up there to have a little R&R and to get the cabin ready for winter. It was our first time to help shut the cabin down for the winter.
Shutting the cabin down for the winter is a melancholy sort of exercise. The cabin is so full of summer memories; catching loads of crayfish, catching northern and smallmouth bass, taking my niece and nephew camping, entertaining relatives and friends, watching a spectacular display of the Aurora Borealis for hours, and much more.
My kids in particular loved going to the cabin this year. From the moment there feet hit the ground they wanted to be outside on the dock or in the boat, or just running around catching squirmy things.
The crunch of leaves underfoot and the chill that accompanied a small snowfall made it clear that winter is approaching fast and we'll have to wait out the bitter Minnesota winter to feel the same skinny dipping--shoes off freedom again.
Dinner last night was spectacular. The guests were very talkative and interesting and more importantly nothing serious went wrong with the food.
Ever invite people to your house and then feel a sense of impending doom?
No you say, ... uh me either.
Why won't Cheney talk about poverty in Cleveland? He answered about education.
Why wouldn't Cheney answer more directly about Israel. He was off topic.
I think Cheney's crooked smile is endearing.
I know people like to talk about evil Dick Cheney, but frankly he just seems like an effective leader to me. I would rather work for him than Kerry, Bush, or Edwards.
I saw an article on caffeinated beer on Slashdot today. This reminds me of one of my most profitable business ideas, which I have never pursued. NicoSoda: It's like normal soda, but with added nicotine. I thought of it long before the fabled Tomacco episode of the Simpson's BTW. It would be so addictive and profitable.
I spent yet-another-day in my basement. I am adding a home office. Today I finished the framing of the walls and the ceiling today as well as almost finishing roughing in another door way. The bulk of the day was spent working on an angled corner I put in the office. One simple angle made things a lot harder to do. My mother-in-law's husband has been helping and he has been an enourmous asset to the project.
I am looking forward to the day when this office is truly a fortress of solitude.
