Politics Again... (I know, I know...)

But I'll be brief this time. ;o)

Isn't it funny how Barney Frank can scarcely keep his composure in this "battle" with a lowly college student? Isn't it good to know that he's helping to make the big decisions in D.C.? What a joke! I particularly love his statement that "labels are important". (Hm. Back in school, some liberal professors were quite vehement that "labeling" someone was terribly wrong. I guess it depends on who's being labeled.)

Link:

That man makes me sick to my stomach. (No, I mean I literally get a stomachache from listening to him.)

Also: I know it's not nice to make fun of traits that people can't help, but in this case, I'll make an exception. When I first heard this guy speak, I could barely believe it wasn't a strange joke. Just the sound of his voice would be enough to make me feel ill, everything else aside. *shudder*

Lattice Window Rag Quilt

Last week, I wrote about finishing my second denim-and-flannel rag quilt on my sewing blog. (Scroll down the page for photos of the quilt-- and even further for a couple photos of the window that it reminded me of, during the planning process.) There are a few more photos of the quilt in this entry, too.

Political Rantings & Ravings

You've probably heard all about these stories and issues, and if you know me personally, my responses to them are unlikely to surprise, but I still think they merit mention in what is essentially my journal.

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I deeply resent Obama's declaration (while in Europe) that Americans have "shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive" of their allies. Nor do I appreciate his assertion that the US has "failed to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world". It sickens me that the man who represents us chooses to do so in this manner. There are better ways, Mr. President.

(It's interesting to note that-- so far-- this groveling excessively apologetic approach hasn't inspired other countries to step up to the plate and shoulder some/more of the burden in Afghanistan and elsewhere.)

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According to a recent Pew Poll, there is a huge (61-point) partisan gap in Obama's approval ratings.

Some are arguing that one reason for this chasm is that so few respondents identified themselves as Republican (24% versus 34% identifying as Democrat)-- the implication being that those who continue to label themselves as "Republican" (as opposed to "conservative", for instance) are more likely to respond unfavorably to Obama than those who identified as Republicans twenty or forty years ago would have been.

Pew associate director Michael Dimock describes this view as "reasonable", but suggests that a more interesting aspect of the poll is the staggering 88% approval rating from Democrats. As one article phrases it, "we are left with the question of why the larger number of Democrats, making up 34% of the sample, approve of Obama so highly."

Here are some thoughts:

• Many who voted Obama into office are so determined to support him that it will take a glaring, undeniable failure for them to withdraw their support. For some, this is merely because they don't want to admit that they were hypnotized by the chanting-- hoodwinked by the "cult of personality". For others, it goes deeper. They've waited a long time to see the Democrats back in control, and now that they have it, they'll fight tooth and nail to keep it.
• Sadly, most of them probably don't have a clue what's actually going on in Washington, good or bad. They don't follow real news. (Many don't even know the name of the vice president, for crying out loud!) Instead, they scent the air-- compare notes with the Collective Mind (aka Twitter, YouTube, FaceBook, etc.)-- receive the message that "We are happy with Obama. Obama can do no wrong."-- so they go with the flow-- follow the herd-- and if someone asks how they feel about his job performance, well, by golly, they're just as pleased as they possibly could be. (I mean, duh. It's Obama, stupid. *insert eye-roll here*) Now, if the time should come when it becomes popular to disapprove of Obama, you can be sure that they'll follow suit, but please don't expect them to provide a logical explanation for that, either. *sigh*
  

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Strange how you hardly ever hear anything about these Tea Parties in the news...

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Here's a little something else I found on Michelle Malkin's website:

As half of a couple that not so long ago paid off a mortgage, I have to give this one a hearty "AMEN!" To pay for our house, we had to forego some of the expensive pleasures that we could otherwise have indulged in. If we could do it, so can they-- or else they shouldn't have chosen a house they couldn't afford. I'm sorry, but it's not our fault that others were irresponsible, and we shouldn't be forced (even more than we already are) to help pay their bills on top of our own. It's simply not right.

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This is old (from before the election), but it's the first I've seen of it. Maybe it's just me, but this is one of the creepiest things I've seen in a long time...



(When I link to or embed these videos, I don't necessarily agree with the "more info" or people's comments. That should really go without saying, but just in case...)

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I'm pretty sure you've all seen or heard this by now, but just in case:



If you don't care to watch the clip, here's a transcript of what one Obama supporter had to say after attending a rally:

"It was the most memorable time of my life. It was a touching moment because I never thought this day would ever happen. I won't have to worry about putting gas in my car. I won't have to worry about paying my mortgage. You know, if I help him, he's gonna help me."

It makes you wonder how many people believe(d) this way. . . Also-- If I didn't vote for O., does that mean that I don't get any free gas? :'o(

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I imagine Donald's getting sick of hearing it, but so often, these days, I find myself hearing something about Obama and having to say, "If Bush had done/said that. . ."

Here's one example:

The media made a big deal about Obama "making his picks" for the silly (I cannot express how little I care about it) basketball championship-- and the necessity of his being able to see the games while abroad for the G20 summit.

First-- It's a total non-issue, because I seem to remember seeing lots of commercials about the fact that the (oh-so-boring) basketball games were going to be available online. (And come on. It's not like he was camped out in the jungle, but even if he were, we all know that the US prez would have access to those televized basketball games, no matter where he went.)

Anyway, I don't care that he wants to watch his game. Sure, that's fine. I understand that the guy needs an hour or two of entertainment, now and then. What does annoy me about this? Because it was Obama, the mood was clearly "oh, isn't that cute/cool? Obama's just like the rest of us! He really cares about basketball!" I submit that if the same thing had happened with the hated Bush, it would've been "What an idiot-loser! How dare he waste time on his stupid sports when there's a world in crisis?!"

That's just one instance, of course, but I may mention more in the future, as they occur. Just to give you a little something to look forward to. ;o)

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So. I guess that'll do for now, as far as blowing off steam goes. I get the feeling I may be talking to myself (more than usual, that is), anyway. . . (g)

SkyMall Shopping Spree, Part Two

I've decided to take another stroll around the SkyMall. . .

Travel Toothbrush Sanitizer:
"This compact device from VIOlight uses proven germicidal UV technology (the same kind trusted to sanitize hospital instruments) to eliminate up to 99% of the millions of germs that can accumulate on your toothbrush... The battery-powered device sanitizes a single toothbrush in less than seven minutes."

So, this is the same type of thing they use to sanitize scalpels and whatnot between surgeries? And you use this on your own personal (i.e. not communal) toothbrush? It seems a little bit excessive.


Children's ATM Bank:"This is the electronic bank teller machine that helps children learn money management as they maintain a savings account up to $999.99. The machine accepts real coin and bill deposits and gives up-to-date account information on its screen. Young depositors interact with the teller on its screen, and have their own ATM card and PIN for checking account balance, making deposits, or withdrawing funds."

Hm. I guess this might be more interesting to a modern kid than the "old school" ceramic piggy bank, but the ATM format seems odd to me. I associate ATMs with taking money out-- not putting money in. Besides, it seems silly to spend $35 on a "toy" that's supposed to teach kids how to manage money.

(...I wonder if it flashes "insufficient funds" if you try to over-withdraw...?)


Ultrasonic Dog Deterrent:"This patented outdoor behavior modification device quickly and humanely restores peace and quiet for those vexed by a dog's nuisance barking. When a dog barks within range of the birdhouse, it emits a harmless ultrasonic tone, inaudible to humans, that startles the animal into silence. The dog quickly associates its bark with the unpleasant sound which conditions him to curb this undesirable behavior."

This type of thing has always seemed kind of mean to me, but I guess I might feel differently if I had a next-door neighbor with a constantly barking dog. Still, the birdhouse disguise seems sneaky. (g)

Indoor Dog Restroom:
"This ingenious system uses a mat made of antimicrobial, porous artificial turf that gives off an organic scent to attract dogs, so they can be taught quickly that it is an acceptable spot for relieving themselves. The mat sits on top of a plastic insert which allows liquid to drain into the included tray for easy clean-up. The turf yarn is a unique construction specially designed for use with dogs, and its antimicrobial composition helps prevent odors. The tray is easy to empty and can hold up to two gallons of liquid."

First, ew. I don't care that they say it "helps prevent odors"; I have a feeling you'll still catch a whiff now and then. If you can't find a better solution, I'm sure it's preferable to having the dog "go" just anywhere-- but I must still reiterate: Ew.

Second: What is this mysterious "organic scent" that attracts the dog and makes it eager to go wee-wee, and how can I make sure it doesn't occur naturally in my home?

Third: The tray holds up to two gallons of liquid? That seems like a lot, but maybe if you have a Great Dane or a Grand Pyrenees...


SkyRest Travel Pillow:Finally a product that it makes sense to advertise on airplanes. (g)

I wonder how difficult this large pillow would be to inflate? That's the only problem I can see with this product. Well, that and the fact that everyone around will be fighting the urge to stare at you and your bizarre pillow. Of course, if it's a long overnight flight, those will probably be looks of envy. (I think I might actually be able to sleep on a plane if I had one of these things. Maybe.)


Auto Card Managers (aka ACM Wallet):"The ACM Wallets innovative, patented design allows you to organize, protect and select up to 6 or 12 of your favorite credit, I.D. and membership cards quickly and easily at the push of a button. The ACM's precision card spacing feature is the key to preventing card demagnetization, scratching and premature failure of your cards magnetic strip."

I do try to avoid exposing my credit cards to magnets, but I never dreamed anyone would take their card protection to this level.

"The ACM allows you to organize, protect and select your credit and other cards easier, faster and with less hassle than ever before."

Really? Is it so much easier and faster than just whipping out your wallet and selecting the correct card? Also, if you're a guy, where do you carry this thing? In one of your rear pockets, like an old-fashioned wallet? Seems kind of bulky.


Reading Pen:"The world's only hand-held scanning device that enables all readers to improve comprehension, vocabulary and fluency. Scan a word or line from any printed text and hear the word(s) read aloud."

The entry in the catalog described it as a "discreet device that provides immediate word support to the reader"-- to which I responded, "Oh, yes, very discreet." It reads aloud. How is that discreet? Everyone in earshot will know that Little Jimmy couldn't read such-and-such a word on his own. He might just as well go up to the teacher's desk or lean across the aisle to ask for help. (Online, they mention that it can read aloud from either a built-in speaker or an earphone, which does make a difference.)

A similar item is the SuperPen Translator:"The perfect 'scan and translate' tool, this ideal language translator package provides both mobile and PC based translation. The SuperPen comes complete with a CD containing over 30 downloadable language dictionaries. Scan, Store and Transfer function allows the capture of any printed text, anytime, anywhere! Store up to 1000 pages of text for late transfers to PC, PDA/Smartphone or laptop via USB or IrDA."

Now, that does seem pretty nifty, though I do question how well the translation feature works. If it's not any better than the free translation programs you find online, it's certainly not perfect.


How about some more pet-related products?

Feline Drinking Fountain:The description indicates that it can be used for dogs, as well. The sound of the trickling water is supposed to encourage pets to drink more often, and it's filtered to keep it fresh and appetizing. A nice idea, but I don't think I'll be paying $70 for this luxury item.


Safest Pet Nail Clipper:"This is the only nail clipper that takes the guesswork and trauma out of trimming your pet's nails by sensing the correct cutting depth, preventing you from cutting into the quick--the sensitive tissue below the nail line. Upon inserting your pet's nail between the clipper's blades, a built-in sensor distinguishes between nail tissue and the quick and lights a green LED when a safe trimming depth is reached. A firm squeeze of the easy-to-grip handles cleanly and painlessly clips the nail in one smooth motion."

Sounds pretty fancy. (And for $80, it had better be!)


Pet Crate End Table:"Blending beautifully into your décor, this handsome slat side end table also offers some advantages for your pet: hide kitty's litter box inside (she'll appreciate the privacy, you'll appreciate how tidy it looks), or let Rover use it as an interior dog house."

We use a crate for Trixie-- where she sleeps at night, and where we can keep her out of mischief sometimes during the day-- and I guess that this is basically the same thing, but for some reason it feels wrong. (g) Maybe because it looks like a piece of furniture built for displaying a pet... like an antique birdcage. In any case, Trixie could never be trusted in something like this. I'm sure she'd be gnawing on the wood in no time.


Dog-Off Deluxe:
"Protects you against hostile dogs wherever you might travel. It creates an uncomfortable, but not harmful, high-frequency sound audible to dogs, but not to humans. A simple 1 to 2 second burst or quick on-off action startles the dog, instinctively deterring its approach from as far away as 20 feet."

It also has "a 'personal alarm' button to trigger an audible alert to startle potential human attackers and a belt clip and built-in flashlight. Don't walk your dog or walk alone without one!"

Ok, that might be useful, but what happens if you use the "dog-dazing" feature while you're walking your own dog? Does it fall over like one of those fainting goats? Does it go into a trance? Or does it merely freak out, making it difficult for you to get yourself and your pet away from the scary stranger-dog?

Also, I think I'd want something with a little more bite to it than an "audible alert" and a flashlight, if I'm worried I'm about to be attacked-- by man or dog! Pass the pepperspray, please.


Traveling Pet Seat:
It's like a baby's car seat or booster seat, but for dogs. I guess it makes sense-- if you have a dog that would fit in it and wouldn't chew the restraints to shreds (and if you're willing to part with the $100 it costs)-- but it looks kind of silly.


Animal Planet Travel Sets:

This is basically just a rolling suitcase with an opening for the dog's head to poke out. It may be very convenient for people who travel with their pets often. For me, however, it's just very silly-looking.


Pet Doorbell:
"This new portable wireless electronic Pet Doorbell Set helps your pets tell you when they need to come in or go out (and no more "accidents") Works for both dogs and cats and any size pet can operate it by simply pushing the Pet Paw transmitter which works up to 100 feet away."

First thought: How cute! Also, this is kind of ingenuous, if you can train your cat or dog to use it as intended.

Second thought: Wait a minute. My dogs already let me know when they want to come or go-- usually by barking or whining. And I think most cats and dogs do the same by barking, mewing, or scratching at the door. So unless you're frequently too far from the door to hear them, this isn't so useful, after all.

Last thought: It would be really cute to see your pet go over and press the doorbell, but probably not $70-worth of cute. (g)


I think that's enough window-shopping for a while. But in the pages ahead, I spy some real doozies...

Storm Damage

Early Friday morning (somewhere between 4:00 and 4:30, I think), we woke to the sounds of worsening weather. I got up (because I can't just sit there under those circumstances) and turned on the TV in search of radar. Yes, there it was, bright reds and yellows all over the place.

Suddenly, the noise increased to the point that I deemed it wise to skedaddle off to the hall bath (no windows-- small, interior room-- our best bet for hiding from scary weather). No-one followed, and by the time I'd called out to give Donald a word or two of advice (i.e. "Oh, Donnn-ald! Yoo-hoo! Honey-Bunches-of-Oats*, I think you should probably get in here right now."), the worst of it was already dying down. (g)

Anyway, while it was bad, it sounded very bad, I thought. The wind was absolutely roaring, and there were frightening thuds as things hit the roof and exterior walls. (Whenever that happens, I beat a hasty retreat to the hall bath and pray that we don't blow away.)

Once the wind had subsided, we peeked into the backyard. We caught a few glimpses when the lightning lit up the landscape, but it wasn't until after sunrise that we could see the damage. Mostly, it was "tree debris" littering the yard. Lots of pine cones and needles-- many small branches. There were also a few larger branches, and quite a bit of mistletoe, of all things. (I quickly snapped those up when I saw them, because I seem to recall that it's very toxic, so likely Trixie would choose that twig to gnaw, out of the thousand available.) Some of the branches we found must have blown a decent distance, because there are no trees of that kind right next to our yard. Two pines that had been killed in previous storms toppled over, and I've noticed at least two more pines visible from our back yard that were snapped off. We also saw that we had shingles off the roof in two spots. (Off the roof and into the yard. I had to pick them up and move them out of the yard before I could trust Trixie on her own. The crazy dog would probably have tried eating them, otherwise.)

Unfortunately, we were in for another line of storms, Friday night/Saturday morning. Knowing this, Donald went onto the roof and patched one of the spots missing shingles. Thunder was approaching, and he thought the other spot looked well-protected still with tar paper, so we left it as it was. For future reference, that was probably not our most shining moment, in terms of foresight. (g)

The next morning, I found a thin line of wetness in the ceiling directly below the spot we thought was sealed with tar paper. Oops... After Donald had gone up into the attic to take measures to allow that spot to dry (and check the extent of the leak), I made another unpleasant discovery-- a larger wet spot in our dining room ceiling! I'd been kicking myself over the first leak, but at least this one we couldn't have prevented, anyway. We couldn't see any damage to the roof in that location.

So, fast-forward a bit. We knew to expect more rain for Tuesday (yesterday), so on Monday afternoon, Donald went up on the roof to up a new layer of tar paper over the spot we knew might leak. He also put a couple of waterproof "makeshift tarps" (an old shower curtain liner and a waterproof tablecloth) in the attic, over the two spots where we'd had leaks, along with a towel at the mystery leak location. It did rain yesterday, but in the evening, we found that everything was dry. We're hoping that the leak in the dining room ceiling was due to rain blowing under the ridge vent, trickling down a rafter, and just happening to drip off at that point (where two boards butt together unevenly).

We've called a roofer to come and give ours a look-- just in case there's more damage than meets the eye-- but I'm really hoping that he'll say it's in good shape (apart from the two spots we already know need some attention). Donald inspected the shingles in several places, while he was up there, and it doesn't seem as though the seal has been broken (which is a problem my parents had after Hurricane Ivan). We did have hail in those storms, but nowhere near as bad as we've had before, and the edges of the shingles don't look feathered. . . Anyway, one way or the other, I'll be glad to have that inspection finished. Unfortunately, it may take a while before he comes. Roofers in this area should have plenty of work for a good while to come:

Story from one local channel's website:

Damage survey shows straight line winds

B. CO., Ala. - A damage survey team from the National Weather Service in Mobile has completed an initial damage assessment of the storms that moved through the R. and E. communities of central B. County Friday morning.

The team found evidence of damaging winds that occurred along the leading edge of a severe bow echo that moved through the R. and E. areas between 4:00 a.m. and 4:15 a.m. Friday morning.

The team found a path of straight line wind damage from 200 to 400 yards wide and was near two miles long. the worst damage along the path occurred near the County Road 85 area just north of US Highway 90 where six single family homes of varying construction techniques experienced significant structural damage to roofs and walls.

Several out-buildings and smaller structures were also destroyed near several residences along the path of damaging winds. All of the evidence was consistent with a 120 mph straight line wind event where all of the debris was blown in a single direction from west-southwest to east-northeast.

I've put up some video that I filmed Friday morning. It's mostly just missing shingles-- very exciting stuff. ;o) If you want to be able to read the text, you'll probably have to go to Vimeo to see it larger, but I'll embed it here anyway...


March 27th, 2009 Storm from Michael Johansson on Vimeo.

We may be getting more rain tomorrow and toward the end of the weekend. I hope our temporary roof fixes hold up!

*I don't actually say "yoo-hoo" or call Donald "Honey-Bunches-of-Oats", by the way. That was purely for comic effect. Just making sure that was clear. . .