Patriot = White Supremist?

This guy really looks Supreme, doesn't he? Bet he could lead the country in the right direction.

Patriot as defined in the OED:
a. A person who loves his or her country, esp. one who is ready to support its freedoms and rights and to defend it against enemies or detractors.
b. derogatory or ironic. A person who claims to be disinterestedly or self-sacrificingly devoted to his or her country, but whose actions or intentions are considered to be detrimental or hypocritical; a false or feigned patriot.

I get so tired of hate groups calling themselves “patriots”. A small college I know sold shares in a time capsule as a fund raiser and called everyone that coughed up a hundred bucks a “patriot and citizen”. So the price of partriotism is a hundred bucks. What a crock. Check out the article on Kalispell, Mt. (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gg8rdUcUb2BBadNHJUJ3GgepCmVg?docId=84e43afb2c0945e89b196894c7b6270c) to see what I mean. What Crap.

Image: http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2008/12/tattooed_white_supremacist_sus.php

"Just Mice" is Just Right for Snakes

Today I deployed my funnel snake trap. This is a humane no kill trap that gets the snake inside via a funnel, like a lobster trap, and then you release it when and where you want to. I baited the trap with “Just Mice”, a ground up mouse mixture that mouse eaters can’t resist. We will see just what happens. There are some pesky water snakes that I think are eating my gold fish, and lots of others that are no problem. I’ll post photos (see, optimistic at the start) of the catches as they happen.
And, if there is no action in the trap, I can always mix the Just Mice with a little Vegemite and spread it on toast. Yummmmy. (KC, you can field test it for me.)
Image: www. dunnsfishfarm.com

Dining in Nicaragua One: Guapote

Guapote is a fine fish to eat. This fish belongs to the cichlid group of fish, a very aggressive predator, and the name is pronounced “wa-po-te”.
We were staying at a place on the isthmus between the volcanoes on Ometepe island in Lake Nicaragua. Not much of a place by gringo standards, but clean sheets, fans and not too many bitey things. And a restaurant. This was comprised of a couple of plastic tables with plastic chairs set out on the rear porch. The kitchen was an open air affair, wood burning stove, and an old coke cooler, chest type, for refrigeration. Thatch roof and open air. Rats usually seen running along the rafters waiting to grab something left carelessly out. The grill was a couple of pieces of rebar, bent and sagging from years of use, with a single log underneath providing the heat and smoke.
I had a grilled guapote, crosshatched in one inch squares with garlic rubbed into the cuts. This beauty was grilled to a charred perfection, along with several others for other people, and served with lime, rice and beans and I don’t remember what else. And Victoria beer, of course. The fish was probably the best I have ever eaten, bar none. The ambience was wonderful, the company outstanding and the beer cold and plentiful. Of course a bottle of 7 year old rum was on the table.
Now there might be some dispute over “Victoria” versus “Tonya” beer, but other than that, all agreed it was a great meal. And it was my birthday to boot. What a treat.
Image: www.panoramio.com. Typical way to serve guapote.

Boehner: Won't Play Golf with Women!!

What a day for hypocracy. John Boehner again. This time the news that he belongs to a Golf Club that doesn't allow women members or golfers. This from a guy that professes to represent "the people". What a crock. I wonder if blacks and jews are also banned? Would you really be surprised? Why would anybody vote for this guy, much less women? Once again I don't get it. (See also http://searchesworld.blogspot.com/2011/06/hypocrites-lead-us.html.)

Image: www.sanityscraps.tumblr.com

Charlottesville Virginia in the old days had a small college hangout where drinking got rowdy and duck races (rubber) were held as needed to relieve tension. References to this place on the web are scarce, and even the spelling is in dispute. One site calls it “Carrol’s Tea Room” while another “Carroll’s Tea Room”.
Not in dispute is the next line of the sign: “No Carrol (or Carroll), No tea. No Room.” There must be a picture of this once infamous place, but no one has bothered to post one on the web that I could find. Almost a lost bit of history.
Carroll’s came to mind yesterday as Sal and I were starting our Sunday walk. Near the house is Beaver creek, a fairly steady creek that flows into lake Talavana. We walked down into the small floodplain, under river birch arches and over to the white sand creek. I looked down and said, “No Beavers and No Creek”. Beaver creek was dry as a bone in the sun. Not even a puddle. We talked a minute about the disastrously low rainfall and the fire potential. None of the branches of Beaver creek were flowing, and only a few had so much as a puddle. Not good for wildlife.
Later that day we noticed a black rat snake coming from one of our small fish ponds, and for some time we have been seeing water snakes hanging around and in the ponds. Click! It seems we have one of the very few places with water where critters can get a drink.
Last week I ran into a guy in Texas who keeps a sharpened hoe by his door to kill snakes. My feeling is they were here first, and if they can get by with a little help from their friends, good. Rainbow Rise, our place, is a “No Kill” zone. And an oasis as well, it seems.

Imagae: www. nokillmovie.com

Two of a few references for “Carroll’s Tea Room”.
When Objects Talk: Solving a Crime With Science (Discovery) by Mark P., Jr. Friedlander and Terry M. Phillips (Sep 2001)
e Architecture of Jefferson Country: Charlottesville and Albemarle County, Virginia by K. Edward Lay (Jan 22, 2000)

Gay Pride. Can You Feel It?

In all the turmoil of the daily events in the world, don’t forget to participate or support gay pride events. The tide of hatred is slowly turning and the GLBT community is gaining acceptance around the world, albeit slowly in some places. I wouldn’t want to be gay in some parts of Africa for example. But Israel would be OK.

So take a minute to reflect on how you feel, to see if your views have changed, or to consider changing them. After all, some of your best friends are gay.

Image: http://www.nighttours.com/gaypride/

Hypocrites Lead Us

Hypocrites and liars abound. Point in case: the world attacks Gadhafi for killing his people but looks the other way when Assad kills his people.
There are mixed messages coming out of Syria today about helicopter gunships firing on crowds for hours, but no wounded people reported. Now either those gunners weren’t very serious, were shooting blanks, or maybe the story got distorted. I don’t know. I wasn’t there, thank the FSM. But somebody was, and as my father said more than once “five will get you ten” that somebody had a cellphone. Video or photos should be out shortly.
Doesn’t really matter though. The good old USofA and the rest of the world don’t seem to have the interest to get involved. So what is the difference? Why one and not the other?
Hmmmmm. Both arabish states; both Middle East; both ruled by lifetime despots; both have lots of oil; both are- - - - Wait a Minute!!! Only Libya has oil. Not Syria. You don’t think that could have anything to do with it, do you?
Naaaaaaaah.
Image: www. imperfectwomen.com

A Bit of Fun at the Expense of Baucus

Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said Social Security is not in crisis.
"It is a long-term issue," Baucus said. "It is an issue that should be addressed sooner, rather than later, to give workers time to plan for any changes. But the current situation does not necessitate rushed or severe action."
Not in Crisis. Huh? What planet is this guy from? The SS trust fund has been systematically looted for decades by every conceivable party and has been in crisis for at least 2 decades.
Ah. I get it. You have to re-define the term “Crisis” to get to his point. Here we turn for help to an unusual source. There is a small university in Alabama that has an interesting School. It is called the School of Scientific Interpretation. This School specializes in uncovering the real meaning of words, phrases and symbols on request. They defined crisis in the following way:
Cr – element number 24 is known for an unusual property called Passivation. This term derives from the Latin ‘passivus’ and relates to suffering. Since chromium resists “suffering” in that it doesn’t oxidize more than a few atoms deep, the term is being used in the negative. In this case SSI interprets it to mean the exact opposite: ‘not suffering’ or resisting oxidation’
Isis – Egyptian goddess known specifically for nature and magic.
Putting the two roots of ‘crisis’ together as used by Baucus, the SSI concluded that the word actually means “as a result of magic, no suffering is or will occur” and therefore concludes that when Baucus says something is “not in crisis” what he actually means is that it is. Crisis by the SSI definition means no suffering, so “not no suffering” means suffering. See? This is how politicians think. To cover his butt, he is saying ‘no crisis’ but can later argue that he actually meant it was in crisis by the conventional definition. Typical political BS.
This resource of alternative definitions is widely used by politicians and administrators of all kinds to clarify and support unpopular positions.
No, Baucus. We are only in crap up to our chins, not our noses, so no need to pump out the old tank, is there?
Image: from the film “Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence”

A Flower and a Dead Snake

As I look out my window I see a frangipani in bloom, many orchids in bloom, a Tabasco pepper plant covered with yellow-going-to-red tiny peppers, some ferns, a day lily blooming (but going fast) and some woods, beginning to droop a bit.
I water all the things that are blooming or growing, but not the woods. And I fear for the woods and all woods everywhere. Massive droughts bring on fires or disease. Massive amounts of greenhouse gasses cause the weather shifts we are experiencing. No lie. Just science. You know, like the “E” word or the “U” word.
When I drove home this afternoon there was a dead black racer on the road just down from my house. Run over. I moved it off the pavement and apologized for the driver that couldn’t or wouldn’t stop in time. The first is unfortunate, the second unconscionable. I hope it was the first, but either way the snake is dead. Same for the Earth.
If we are inadvertently ruining it, that is unfortunate, but if we are aware of the ruination and not stopping in time, unconscionable. But either way it is in deep, deep trouble.
What do you think?
Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindatreichphotos/3616889839/
Image: http://www/.flowerzone.org

Go Take A Hike!!

Life is Short: Hike while you can still Walk.
I saw an old guy with a walker the other day, struggling to get around. Old guy? Well, as old as me or maybe a bit older, but yes, and old guy. I don’t know why the guy couldn’t navigate well. Maybe a stroke or broken hip or maybe just too little exercise. Maybe just bad luck.
The thought that came first was something like “Gads, I’m glad I can still get up from a chair without using my arms, and I can still walk 10 miles if I want to.” Sal and I have passed and been passed by lots of, er, older hikers over the years. And we wondered if hiking kept them hiking or just good luck kept them on the trails. I think probably luck has a part to play, but I am convinced that hiking and walking beget more of the same. Kind of a momentum.
My advice has always been centered around living life now and to the fullest possible. Best wine first; take the trip while you can; take the hike; laugh, and cry too. I believe to my core that this is the best way to go. So what are You waiting for? Go take a hike.
And by the way, don’t tell Sarah Doherty she can’t hike any more. Read more about Sarah at http://sidestix.com/about/ .
Image of Sarah Doherty: www.hollandbloorview.ca