Shrimp running on Treadmill

Today's Idiot

Jimmy Patsos, coach of Loyola (MD). He practically ran a 3-2 defense on Davidson tonight... All to shut down Stephen Curry, who scored 0 points because he stood aside so he teammates could go 4-3 on the other team. Davidson won 78-48. Way to go, dude.

I want a Roomba and a cat!

The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC

I now own 2 postcards of this beautiful Episcopal cathedral in NYC. Here's an interesting fact from their website.

The Very Rev. James Parks Morton, Dean at the time, pressed for a revival of the building program, but with a new emphasis. The Cathedral would hire and train the unemployed and underemployed from the neighborhood to do the work. He urged, "We will revive the art of stonecraft ... and provide our city with a massive symbol of hope and rebirth."

The Stoneyard was dedicated on June 21, 1979, and on September 29, 1982, aerialist Philippe Petit crossed Amsterdam Avenue on a 150-foot high wire to deliver a silver trowel to Bishop Paul Moore, marking the start of the next phase of construction. Because stonecraft was a moribund skill in the United States, professionals had to be brought from England to train the stoneworkers. The great work was underway again. Blocks were cut, and both the North and South Towers progressed upward.

Congrats to Myron Rolle!

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/football/ncaa/11/22/staples.rolle.rhodes.scholar/index.html?cnn=yes

Rolle named Rhodes Scholar

MOUNTAIN BROOK, Ala. -- Florida State professor Sally Karioth bought two cards to give her prized pupil Saturday; one for good news and one for bad. Had Myron Rolle opened the bad-news card, it would have played the old Band-Aid jingle.

That card will remain stuck in its envelope. When Rolle, FSU's starting free safety, opened the good-news card, it blasted that Tag Team classic, "Whoomp, There It Is." And that probably marked the first and last time Tag Team will serenade a freshly minted Rhodes Scholar.

Rolle, a junior who earned his bachelor's degree in 2 1/2 years, now has the opportunity to join a club that includes former President Bill Clinton and former New York Knicks star and U.S. senator Bill Bradley. He was one of two Rhodes scholars selected from 13 candidates in District 7, which comprises Florida, Alabama and Tennessee. There are 32 Rhodes Scholars elected each year. Rolle is the first BCS conference starter to win a Rhodes Scholarship since Stanford tight end Cory Booker in 1992. Booker now is the mayor of Newark, N.J.

Rolle said he wasn't nervous for his interview early Saturday afternoon.

"It's almost like a game," he said. "You practice, practice, practice, and when the lights come on, you show what you're made of."

The scholarship will pay for two to three years of tuition, room and board at Oxford. Rolle has said he likely would study medical anthropology at Oxford.

After hearing the good news, Rolle hopped into an SUV, which took him to Birmingham International Airport. There, he boarded a jet bound for Baltimore. Upon landing, Rolle will travel to College Park, Md., where he will hopefully arrive in time to play the remainder of the Seminoles' game against Maryland.

I doubt Lennon would care.

Especially since he was raised Anglican and would be what you could call lapsed.

Vatican forgives John Lennon for Jesus quip
In 1966, Lennon said the Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ

VATICAN CITY - The Vatican's newspaper has finally forgiven John Lennon for declaring that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, calling the remark a "boast" by a young man grappling with sudden fame.

The comment by Lennon to a London newspaper in 1966 infuriated Christians, particularly in the United States, some of whom burned Beatles' albums in huge pyres.

But time apparently heals all wounds.

"The remark by John Lennon, which triggered deep indignation mainly in the United States, after many years sounds only like a 'boast' by a young working-class Englishman faced with unexpected success, after growing up in the legend of Elvis and rock and roll," Vatican daily Osservatore Romano said.

The article, marking the 40th anniversary of the Beatles' "The White Album," went on to praise the pop band.

"The fact remains that 38 years after breaking up, the songs of the Lennon-McCartney brand have shown an extraordinary resistance to the passage of time, becoming a source of inspiration for more than one generation of pop musicians," it said.

Lennon was murdered in New York in 1980.

Postcardpalooza!

http://sites.google.com/site/susanvmayer/postcards

Susan's Preferred Videos for Today

Ne-Yo - Closer


AND

John Legend feat. Andre 3000 - Green Light
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hd-uklv-5g

Heck yeah!

Finally, a little common sense...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27778146/

Some abortion foes shifting focus
Frustrated by failure to overturn Roe v. Wade, activists look to assistance

Frustrated by the failure to overturn Roe v. Wade, a growing number of antiabortion pastors, conservative academics and activists are setting aside efforts to outlaw abortion and instead are focusing on building social programs and developing other assistance for pregnant women to reduce the number of abortions.

Some of the activists are actually working with abortion rights advocates to push for legislation in Congress that would provide pregnant women with health care, child care and money for education -- services that could encourage them to continue their pregnancies.

Their efforts, they said, reflect the political reality that legal challenges to abortion rights will not be successful, especially after Barack Obama's victory this month in the presidential election and the defeat of several ballot measures that would have restricted access to abortions. Although the activists insist that they are not retreating from their belief that abortion is immoral and should be outlawed, they argue that a more practical alternative is to try to reduce abortions through other means.

This disappoints me so much

It's sad we send our troops to guard others against aggression and we end up poisoning them. Someone should pay for this.

Gulf War illness real, federal report says

An extensive federal report released today concludes that roughly one in four of the 697,000 U.S. veterans of the 1990-91 war in Iraq suffer from Gulf War illness. "This is what Gulf War veterans have been saying all along," said one advocate. The panel that released the report noted that research funding has declined dramatically and calls for a "renewed federal research commitment."

Lil' O'Reilly

Amazing Spiderman 573

Yes, it's real!

In the Marvel Universe, Colbert was still a viable presidential candidate. He won the popular vote but Obama won the electoral vote. The determining factor? FLORIDA

"Pregnant man" pregnant again

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081114/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_pregnantman

I'm socially liberal and am all for personal freedom, but this just crosses the line. This person made a choice to change genders, but still stayed on the fence. Bottom line, if you want to be a man, BE A MAN. Men don't get pregnant. You can't have it both ways!

Yuck.

Obama gets the Clinton band back together

Thirty-one of the 47 people so far named to Obama's transition or staff posts have ties to the Clinton administration.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15617.html

As the last Democratic presidency in the past 30 years which ended only 8 years ago, doesn't it make sense to hire staff that has experience?

Politico, you're starting to get a bit obvious...

Colbert is a flippin'... flipper

Obama adviser tied to defense contractor

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15553.html

Sam Nunn, whose national security expertise drove his selection as a senior informal Pentagon adviser to Barack Obama’s transition team, sits on the board of a major defense contractor that sold critical infrastructure equipment to Iran.

Nunn, who has staked out a reputation as one of the world’s preeminent experts on nuclear non-proliferation, joined the board of General Electric in 1997, shortly after stepping down from his four terms representing Georgia in the Senate.

From 2000 to 2007, the company won 281 contracts from the Defense Department worth a total of $8.8 billion.

And, in 2006, the Securities and Exchange Commission singled out the company’s nonmilitary business in Iran, inquiring in a letter why GE didn’t reveal sales to the country in its corporate filings.

“The issue of whether to conduct business in certain countries is complex,” GE wrote back in July 2006. “We must take into account not only the views of the U.S. government but all relevant stakeholders."

Nunn, now 70 and listed as chairman of “public responsibilities” for GE, was copied on the letter.

Neither he nor the Obama transition team responded when asked if his continued paid service on GE’s board was a conflict of interest with his informal role helping to guide Obama’s transition in the Defense Department.

Stephanie Cutter, a spokeswoman for Obama, pointed to a transition statement clarifying that Nunn, who was mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick for Obama, “will play an informal senior adviser role throughout the defense transition process.”

Cutter added in an e-mail to Politico that Nunn “has no formal role. He's an outside informal adviser, offering his advice as needed. He's not part of the agency review team.”

Seriously, what a ridiculous story! It's frickin' GE! They are involved with EVERYTHING! Singling out one division of their business is pretty flimsy, Politico.

Here's GE's businesses, from Wikipedia:

GE's divisions include GE Capital (including GE Commercial Finance and GE Money and GE Consumer Finance,^[16]), GE Technology Infrastructure (including GE Aviation,the former Smiths Aerospace and GE Healthcare), GE Energy Infrastructure, and NBC Universal, an entertainment company.

Through these businesses, GE participates in a wide variety of markets including the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity (eg. Nuclear,^[17] gas and solar), lighting, industrial automation, medical imaging equipment, motors, railway locomotives, aircraft jet engines, and aviation services. It was co-founded and is 80% owner (with Vivendi) of NBC Universal, the National Broadcasting Company. Through GE Commercial Finance, GE Consumer Finance, GE Equipment Services, and GE Insurance it offers a range of financial services as well. It has a presence in over 100 countries.

Cheer!

All these articles about Palin running in 2012 makes me think of an old basketball cheer:

Go back, go back!
Go back to the woods!
'Cause your team ain't got no spirit
and your coach is no good!

(Coincidentally, I though the same thing about my HS basketball team. Depressing.)

I'm just so tired of it.

I'm tired of seeing articles about people dying in wrecks because they WERE NOT WEARING THEIR SEATBELT.

Sinking island's nationals seek new home

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/11/maldives.president/index.html

MALE, Maldives (CNN) -- The new president of the Maldives wants to relocate -- his entire country.

Mohamed "Anni" Nasheed, a former political prisoner, was sworn in Tuesday after he unseated Asia's longest-serving leader in the country's first multi-party elections two weeks ago. He inherits an island nation with several problems.

Foremost among them: The very likely possibility that the Maldives will sink under water if the current pace of climate change keeps raising sea levels.

The Maldives is an archipelago of almost 1,200 coral islands located south-southwest of India. Most of the islands lie just 4.9 feet (1.5 meters) above sea level.

The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has forecast a rise in sea levels of at least 7.1 inches (18 cm) by the end of the century.

The island was badly hit by the December 2004 tsunami, which killed an estimated 273,800 people and left thousands missing across Asia and Africa.

In the Maldives itself, at least 82 people were killed and 26 unaccounted for from a population just over 270,000, according to the Maldives Disaster Management Center. Sixty-nine islands were completely flooded and a further 30 islands half flooded.

The capital of Male was also flooded, although sea walls protected it from further devastation. The government has calculated that creating a similar barrier around the rest of the country would cost too much.

And so the tourist nation, which has white sandy beaches that lure well-heed Westerners, wants to set aside some of the billion dollars a year it receives from tourism and spend that money on buying a new homeland.

"We will invest in land," Nasheed said. "We do not want to end up in refugee tents if the worst happens."

Nasheed's government has said that it has broached the idea with several countries and found them to be "receptive."

Land owned by Sri Lanka and India are possibilities because the countries have similar cultures, cuisine and climate as the Maldives. Australia is also being considered because of the vast unoccupied land it owns.

Read the rest at CNN.com.

Chef Susan Presents!

Tonight I made a stew!

Well... It's a stew in name. The liquid is more a soup than a thick stew. But I didn't burn it this time!

I used the recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook (or online here). It took a little over 6 hours on high.

Maybe it will thicken up when it's cooler. Or maybe not.

But it's edible and that's what counts!

Oh, Lord

Slaying Linked To KKK Initiation; 8 Arrested

Woman Traveled From Oklahoma To Join

COVINGTON, La. -- Eight people were arrested Tuesday in connection with the killing of a woman who apparently tried to back out of a Ku Klux Klan initiation ritual, St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain said Tuesday.

The woman was slain Sunday morning, allegedly shot to death by a Klan leader from Bogalusa. Her body was found Monday in a ditch in the small St. Tammany community of Sun, about 60 miles north of New Orleans, the sheriff said.

Raymond "Chuck" Foster, 44, is charged with second-degree murder for allegedly shooting the woman. Seven others -- Raymond Foster's son, 20-year-old Shane Foster; Frank Stafford, 21; Timothy Michael Watkins, 30; Alicia M. Watkins, 23; Andrew Yates, 20; Random Hines, 27; and Danielle Jones, 23 -- are facing obstruction of justice charges.

Shane Foster and Stafford are being held in Washington Parish and will be brought to St. Tammany Parish soon for processing. The other six suspects are being held in the St. Tammany Parish jail.

Strain said the woman lived near Tulsa, Okla., and was recruited over the Internet to come to Louisiana for initiation into the Klan. Deputies have not been able to confirm her identity.

She arrived in Slidell last week and was met by two members of the group, Strain said. She was taken to a campground near Pearl River for the initiation ceremony, and when she asked to be taken back into town, there was an argument. That's when Foster allegedly shot and killed her, Strain said.

The other members of the Klan group are accused of helping cover up the crime by burning items at the campsite, including the woman's personal effects. A clerk at a nearby Circle K alerted police after two of the suspects went into the store bathroom to wash blood out of their clothes, Strain said.

Investigators found Klan paraphernalia at the campsite, including flags and six Klan uniforms. Strain said Raymond Foster is chief of the "Sons of Dixie" or "Dixie Brotherhood" KKK branch.

Strain said the case does not appear to be connected to the recent election of Barack Obama as president. He told WDSU he was surprised to find out about this KKK group because it hadn't been very visible before.

Doggie! Doggie! Doggie!

http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE4AA3WL20081111?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews&rpc=69

It's so cute! I love those big ears!

Peru offers bald dog of Incas to Obamas

LIMA (Reuters) - Peruvians crazy about their national dog, a bald and often toothless breed popular among Incan kings, offered Monday to send a hypoallergenic puppy to the Obama family.

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has promised daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, a new pet for the White House. But Malia is allergic to most breeds, he said Friday as speculation swirled about the dog the family would choose.

Owners of the Peruvian Hairless Dog, a breed dating back 3,000 years and depicted in pre-Hispanic ceramics, say it is perfect for kids who are sensitive to dogs.

"They do not cause any type of allergy and are very friendly and sweet," said Claudia Galvez, 38, director of the Friends of the Peruvian Hairless Dog Association.

"We want to give a male puppy to Obama's daughters, so they get to experience all the joys of having a dog but without any allergies."

Someone's been playing with the Winnfield Wikipedia page.

• Bodie Little, Current parish sherriff, kind of a jerk, and sticks his nose where it doesn't belong, spends too much time worring about potheads.
• Scott Nugent, Police officer that killed a man by tasing him to death while he was in handcuffs.

No wonder people thought I was "rich" when I was a kid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lowest-income_counties_in_the_United_States

100 poorest counties by per capita income

Rank	County	Per Capita Income
1	Buffalo County, South Dakota	$5,213
2	Shannon County, South Dakota	$6,286
3	Starr County, Texas	$7,069
4	Ziebach County, South Dakota	$7,463
5	Todd County, South Dakota	$7,714
6	Sioux County, North Dakota	$7,731
7	Corson County, South Dakota	$8,615
8	Wade Hampton, Alaska	$8,717
9	Maverick County, Texas	$8,758
10	Apache County, Arizona	$8,986
15	East Carroll Parish, Louisiana	$9,629
26	Madison Parish, Louisiana	$10,114
75	Evangeline Parish, Louisiana	$11,432
87	Winn Parish, Louisiana	$11,794

Halloween!

We had 12 trick-or-treaters this year!

Getting excited!

Wool over my eyes

http://www.newsweek.com/id/167581

I defended her against critics over the clothing flap. Boy, was I wrong!

NEWSWEEK has also learned that Palin's shopping spree at high-end department stores was more extensive than previously reported. While publicly supporting Palin, McCain's top advisers privately fumed at what they regarded as her outrageous profligacy. One senior aide said that Nicolle Wallace had told Palin to buy three suits for the convention and hire a stylist. But instead, the vice presidential nominee began buying for herself and her family—clothes and accessories from top stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. According to two knowledgeable sources, a vast majority of the clothes were bought by a wealthy donor, who was shocked when he got the bill. Palin also used low-level staffers to buy some of the clothes on their credit cards. The McCain campaign found out last week when the aides sought reimbursement. One aide estimated that she spent "tens of thousands" more than the reported $150,000, and that $20,000 to $40,000 went to buy clothes for her husband. Some articles of clothing have apparently been lost. An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast," and said the truth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits its books.

Funny HaHa

Obama won Maverick County, Texas, 78% (8,554) to 21% (2,316).

Simply moving.

Love him or hate him, this is one of the goals he has fought for for 40+ years.

Congratulations!

President-elect Barack Obama

It's so nice to finally be able to say it!

RIP

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/03/obama.grandma/index.html

Obama's grandmother dies after battle with cancer

(CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died following a bout with cancer, Obama and his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, said Monday.

MINK, 73, READY FOR SHOT AT HOOPS HISTORY

http://beyondthearc.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/11/02/1628595.aspx

Ken Mink’s ready for his shot.

The Roane State (Tenn.) senior may become the world’s oldest college basketball player on Monday. He’s no ordinary senior. The last time Mink played college hoops, Dwight Eisenhower was President.

The 73-year-old hoopster has garnered plenty of attention in his return to the court. Newspapers, TV and Internet stories have popped up about Mink. “The Today Show” wants him as a guest. A Hollywood screenwriter reportedly wants to capture his story.

When the Raiders open their season against King College, the Guinness Book of World Records will be paying attention. “Inside Edition” will have a film crew on hand.

The attention’s nice, but right now, Mink’s more concerned about how he’ll fare. He last played college hoops at Lees College (Ky.) in 1956. If Mink does see the court, he knows he’ll be a little nervous. It’s been a while since he’s been on that stage.

“Fifty-two years,” Mink says. “Can I retain that memory? Can I recapture that? I don’t know. It’s going to be a mystery for me.”

I've been waiting for a story like this one to come out today.

Boo! Supporting Obama? No treats for you

Mich. woman shares sweets with only those who back McCain, Palin

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27488353/
GROSSE POINTE FARMS, Mich. - A woman refused Halloween candy to children whose parents support Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Shirley Nagel passed out candy Friday on the scary U.S. holiday, but only to those who shared her support for Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his vice presidential pick Sarah Palin.

Television station WJBK reported that a sign posted outside Nagel's house in suburban Detroit served this notice to children seeking treats: "No handouts for Obama supporters, liars, tricksters or kids of supporters."

Nagel told WJBK that "Obama's scary." When asked about children who were turned away empty-handed and crying, she said: "Oh well. Everybody has a choice."

Congratulations Republican Party!

Because of your fear-mongering (Democrats are going to take away our guns!), this household will now be casting TWO votes for Obama/Biden. And one of us is a Republican.