Where's Primetime?

Politics

I still find it rather astounding that the primetime channels (ABC, NBC,FOX,CBS) didn't carry the convention live each night. You had to turn to cable or satellite to listen. No wonder people never vote in this country - they're being sent the message that the Simpsons are more important than an election. The only channels worth watching were CSPAN and PBS. Too many of the others had too many commentators butting in, offering their opinions. Most disagreeable was Chris Matthews going bonkers (he's always bonkers, but now more so.) and playing Mr. Republican, when in reality, he isn't. He was downright rude to Al Sharpton and fortunately Al didn't back down a bit and gave it right back.

I thought the speakers for the Dems were outstanding. 5 stars to Barak Obama (we will have really come far in this country when we elect a guy with a name like that to be president - and that might not be that far off). Thought the Kerry kids did great, as did Theresa Heinz Kerry and in particular John Kerry, who gave the best speech I've heard him give. Will it make a diff? Maybe. How many undecided voters watched? And how many, who never vote, watched? Probably not a whole lot.

Health Care

Compare the Kerry-Edwards Health Care Plan to the Bush-Cheney Plan

Krugman's Views

Krugman makes some good points in his opinion piece today . Worth Reading. Thought this final comment was interesting, "Three weeks ago, The New Republic reported that the Bush administration was pressuring Pakistan to announce a major terrorist capture during the Democratic convention. Hours before Mr. Kerry's acceptance speech, Pakistan announced, several days after the fact, that it had apprehended an important Al Qaeda operative."

Computers

Recent Updates

Zone Alarm 5.1.011

Mailwasher Pro 4.1.75

Windows Critical Updates

Word of the Day

incarnadine \in-KAR-nuh-dyn\, adjective:
1. Having a fleshy pink color.
2. Red; blood-red.

transitive verb:
To make red or crimson.

Usage: The more he scrubbed it, the more it bled.
It made the seas incarnadine, he said.
and....
In a night of rain, the ruddy reflections of their lights incarnadine the clouds till the entire city appears to be the prey of a monster conflagration.

(from Italian incarnatino, which came from the Latin incarnato, something incarnate, made flesh, from in + caro, carn-, "flesh." It is related to carnation, etymologically the flesh-colored flower; incarnate, "in the flesh; made flesh"; and carnal, "pertaining to the body or its appetites.")

Quote of the Day

"Never do today what you can put off till tomorrow. Delay may give clearer light as to what is best to be done."
Aaron Burr

How can this be?

"In recent polls, Americans said they had more confidence in Mr. Bush to make the right decisions to protect the country compared with Mr. Kerry." Hello? Are more Americans having a brain aneurism or what???? George Bush - who led us into an unjustified war? George Bush - who was dodging out on his National Guard duty? This makes him better qualified to protect our country? Give me a BREAK! I am amazed at how people can even compare the two - here's a guy who's trying to dodge out on his military duty and then here's Kerry, jumping out of a swift boat and chasing guys through the jungle and he's even volunteering for this duty! And then there's the other fact - what makes George Bush so special just because he got pissed off that terrorists attacked our country on 9/11? Because he acted like a tough guy? Hell, who amongst you, if you were leading the country, wouldn't have acted pissed off? That has to be one of the dumbest arguments I"ve heard in a long time. Don't Americans realize that our stature abroad has sunk to an all-time low and that the reason is the world considers our President dangerous and incapable and just plain ignorant about the issues? Why else do you think they hate us? Sure, we have sex, TV, too much food and the inclination to think that we are some sort of missionaries out to save the world, but it takes a George Bush to push these countries over the edge into actually hating us, versus just being jealous. Do us all a favor America - drive these Neo-cons out of office and in so doing, you will really be protecting the country.

Still Time!
You still have time to contribute at www.johnkerry.com After tomorrow, no more contributions, while George Bush has another month to keep sucking up money. Don't let the Dems fall victim!

Mountain Blogger has returned!

Had to take a week off for a family reunion on the mountain. Think it was actually successful, so perhaps we might even try this again. No family members killed each other, so should be considered booming success! LOL

Sports

Ready for the Olympics and the World's best women's softball pitcher? The men will be tuning in to watch Jenny Finch pitch, that's for sure. :) Pitching some 70 mph from a shorter distance than the regular 60' of baseball, her fastball is equivalent to a 92 mph fastball in baseball. She has already struck out 4 major leaguers. During her college career she won 60 consecutive games. To read more about this amazing young woman, check out her bio here . You can watch her and Team USA today at 1 p.m Eastern on ESPN or August 1st at 1 p.m on ESPN. I'm getting psyched for the Olympics!


Lance Armstrong

Watched Lance crush the competition on the next to last day in the Tour de France during a blistering time trial. He smoked the 2nd place guy by a full minute - the guy is damn near inhuman!



Politics

Heading for a house party on the night of the Democrat's convention to hear John Kerry give his speech (better be a good one! - the speech that is.... Of course, would be nice if there were some good munchies as well. ). Should be interesting to meet some like-minded folks. The Dems are enthusiastic, but will that be enough?... If you want to bone up on some of the issues and Kerry's take on them, go to his web site and read Kerry-Edwards Policy Documents . You may not agree with every single one of them, but remember, you are not the only fish in the pond and sometimes things have to be done that may be for the greater good of all, even if in that particular instance, that doesn't mean you.

There are a lot of volunteer opportunities at the Kerry site, some easy to do and right from your computer. So take a few minutes and make sure all your email friends will be reminded to get to the polls on 11/2 and vote. Check the Kerry site to sign up as a volunteer- takes only seconds.

Theresa Heinz Kerry
From Arianna's column , "when it comes to spicing up the political dessert tray, Teresa Heinz Kerry is one of the most flavorful and compelling public figures to hit the national stage in decades." On the media and their attacks on Theresa, "You gotta love this about our media mavens: They are constantly bemoaning the lack of forthrightness in our public figures — the vast majority of whom wouldn’t know a straight answer if it bit them in the butt. But when they are finally presented with someone who doesn’t (pardon the expression) beat around the bush, they start sharpening the long knives.

They’re like a bunch of little kids who have gotten so used to being fed nothing but vanilla ice cream for dessert that a serving of Rocky Road with some sprinkles on top leaves them sputtering and crying, “Yuck!”"

And the real problem? "Thirty-eight million women didn’t vote in 2000, many of them because they were so disgusted with our inauthentic politics-as-usual. If even a small percentage of them turn out this November, they could very well end up deciding the election and the direction of the country.

So I propose that we turn on its ear the traditional good-old-boy political litmus test — which candidate would you rather have a beer with? Instead, let’s ask the women of America: which candidate’s wife would you rather have a cup of coffee with?"

Interactive Election Guide
For a constantly updated election Guide and some neat graphics, head to this page .

Quote of the Day
"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind."
Aristotle

Word of the Day
jeremiad \jair-uh-MY-uhd\, noun:
A tale of sorrow, disappointment, or complaint; a doleful story; also, a dolorous or angry tirade. Johnson's jeremiad against what he sees as American imperialism and militarism exhaustively catalogs decades of U.S. military misdeeds ....... Economics ministers in general were taken aback when a recent World Bank report -- after a year of jeremiads -- suggested the crisis was being exaggerated

The "Left Behind" Series

Someone should leave these authors behind! What is so amazing is that so many people actually believe this gibberish. Obviously, I am not one of that persuasion. NY Times columnist Nicholas Kristof discusses their latest novel - If the latest in the "Left Behind" series of evangelical thrillers is to be believed, Jesus will return to Earth, gather non-Christians to his left and toss them into everlasting fire: "Jesus merely raised one hand a few inches and a yawning chasm opened in the earth, stretching far and wide enough to swallow all of them. They tumbled in, howling and screeching, but their wailing was soon quashed and all was silent when the earth closed itself again." These books have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide. The latest is "Glorious Appearing," which has Jesus returning to Earth to wipe all non-Christians from the planet. It's disconcerting to find ethnic cleansing celebrated as the height of piety.

Furthermore - In "Glorious Appearing," Jesus merely speaks and the bodies of the enemy are ripped open. Christians have to drive carefully to avoid "hitting splayed and filleted bodies of men and women and horses."

"The riders not thrown," the novel continues, "leaped from their horses and tried to control them with the reins, but even as they struggled, their own flesh dissolved, their eyes melted and their tongues disintegrated. . . . Seconds later the same plague afflicted the horses, their flesh and eyes and tongues melting away, leaving grotesque skeletons standing, before they, too, rattled to the pavement."

One might have thought that Jesus would be more of an animal lover.

These scenes also raise an eschatological problem: Could devout fundamentalists really enjoy paradise as their friends, relatives and neighbors were heaved into hell?

If you find this far fetched, well many of your fellow Americans feel this way. Makes one pause, doesn't it?

Olympic Trials

Deena Drossin smoked the other ladies in the 10,000 meter finals, almost lapping the 2nd place finisher. She won't run the event in Athens though, choosing instead to run the Marathon (She set the American Record in the Marathon - 2:21.16 in London in 2003). Tune in August 23rd to see her compete. She's a class act - after almost lapping every person in the field, she waited at the finish line and congratulated every finisher. Nice to see that - in her interview later, she proved herself to be articulate and a credit to Track and Field. She's a English/Creative Writing/Journalism major from the Univ. of Arkansas, where she won 7 Southeastern Conference titles.

To keep up with other fast ladies, check out this web site .



Tune in on Sunday to the Trials to watch Alan Webb try to win the 1500m - should be a great race. He's the kid who broke Jim Ryun's High School Mile Mark. Could this be the year America brings home a Gold in the 1500? Now that would be big! For a good interview, turn to this page .

What happened to chasing Terroists?

Now we're chasing poor ol' bad boy Bobby Fischer ? Wouldn't you think a few terroists would somehow be a bit higher on the priority scale, than trying to track down Bobby Fischer? He was scheduled for a match with Boris Spassky in 1992. Just before the match, however, the United Nations imposed sanctions against Yugoslavia for supporting Serbian aggression in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the United States banned its citizens from doing business there. Mr. Fischer ignored a formal warning from the government against playing the match, and at a news conference spat on the letter. He won the match, collecting $3.3 million, and has been in exile from the United States ever since.. If you are unfamiiar with chess, Bobby was and probably is the greatest chess champion of all time.

Bobby is a bit nuts, professing to be a Jew hater, amongst other things (he is a Jew himself) and thought 9/11 was a fine thing, so you can see why there is not a lot of love lost for him, but somehow I doubt this guy is a huge danger.

Fahrenheit 911

Took in Michael Moore's movie yesterday. Not bad, but being aware of his stance and most of the issues, didn't come as a huge shocker. I suspect it might to folks who rarely read the news. It started off a bit overblown, I thought, but got better as it went along, in particular the scenes with Lisa Lipscomb, who lost her son in Iraq. It closed powerfully, bringing the message home that it is our poor youth and the kids from the projects who are really sacrificing their lives for the rest of us. Hopefully, it will sway some voters to vote Democratic - although Kerry/Edwards lead overall in the polls, Edwards isn't bringing the pop to the southern vote , that many probably hoped he would. He is more likely to appeal to those in Michigan and Ohio, who are out of work. Bill Moyer's piece I alluded to yesterday, pointed out why the poor still vote Republican, despite the economic damage that does them. It is discouraging to see how illiterate so many Americans are when it comes to having even an inkling of the issues - it's as if so many are in tune with Britney Spears, who has said that she just trusts our president and you have to believe in him. Just having Britney extoll those words of wisdom should be all that would be necessary to elect Kerry/Edwards, but....

Health
I got a chuckle out of an ad I heard on the radio yesterday while eating one of those low-carb wrap sandwiches at Subway (not really that good in my opinion). The ad was extolling the virtues of Slim Jims as a low-carb , healthy snack. Slim Jims are now healthy? Lord help us all. They really prey on gullible folks, don't they?

Experts Set a Lower Low for Cholesterol Levels
New lower levels for LDL cholesterol are touted, especially for those at risk. Of course, they encourage heavy use of statins. Doc Mercola thinks that is all wrong, "This give the drug companies another tool to forcefully advocate use of their drugs to lower cholesterol into very dangerous low levels. These "experts" are absolutely clueless as the foundational causes of heart disease. Cholesterol is only an innocent bystander and using drugs to control a symptom is a sure fire solution to worsen the problem. The most obvious is the reduction of coenzyme Q10 that occurs to everyone consuming statin drugs. The less obvious ones are the side effects and complications that result when using a drug Band-Aid solution rather than treating the cause of the problem. The recent Baycol recall is a classic example.

The way to lower heart disease risk is to address foundational causes of

* Optimal exercise
* Ideal diet for one's metabolic type
* Addressing emotional stresses
* Good sleep
* Exposure to adequate levels of sunshine

Think Doc is right or not? Good question. Offer your opinion in the comments section.

Your ol' used Computer
Office Depot is taking in your old worn out computer this summer for FREE. HP and others have done this in the past, but have charged for it (usually about $35), so this is a great opportunity to dump some of those big paperweights (I have quite a few myself).

Firefox/Mozilla/Thunderbird patch
If you're using one of these browsers instead of IE, there's a new security patch out for it. Go to this page to install the patch.

Quote of the Day
"The only reason some people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory."
Paul Fix

Ouch of the Day Story!
SHEFFIELD, England - A man who shot himself in the groin after drinking 15 pints of beer and stuffing a sawed-off shotgun down his trousers was jailed for five years Tuesday for illegal possession of a firearm. Read the whole story here . Geez, get it together there you crazy bloke!

Mo Greene blazes to narrow Win in Olympic Trials finals

A great race - 1 1/00th of a second separating the top 3 finishers, 9.91,9.92,9.93 - that is some smokin' running! First time since 1972 that 2 guys have broken 10 flat in the Trials and this time actually 4 did (a 9.99 also in there for a 4th place, but no trip to Athens - only first 3 go - bummer for Coby Miller). It was lucky that Mo Greene had such a fast start cause I think if Shawn Crawford had had a good start, he would have run him down. Always exciting to watch! Better, of course, by far, if you're there in person, but ...

Marion Jones
Gary Hall, the Olympic swimmer, took a poke at Marion Jones the other day. `I hate that her defense is, `I never tested positive,' '' he said, pointing out that the drug in question, THG, has only recently been detectable. ``In an Olympic year, there's only a handful of athletes who get the attention that they deserve financially, and it's what keeps us going for another four years. If she has cheated, or if anybody has cheated, they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.'' Marion finished a disappointing 5th in the finals of the 100 and won't be around to defend her Olympic Gold of 2000. It will be interesting to see how she does in the 200 later in the week and in the long jump. She had a baby just a year ago and probably isn't in top form, but many will wonder if she has lost here spark because perhaps it was steroids , all along? That would be a shame, because she was very good for Track and Field. Trials continue tonight from 10 p.m.- 1 a.m. Eastern on the USA channel and Thursday night from 10 p.m. -12 a.m. (USA), and Friday night from 11 p.m - 1 a.m. (USA). Saturday, they return to NBC from 5-6 p.m. Looks like I will be burning some long nighttime hours - may have to set up the VCR.

Politics
What's the Matter with Kansas? Watched an interesting program with Bill Moyers yesterday. He had author Thomas Frank on, who was talking about his book, "What's the Matter with Kansas"? As Democrats and Republicans battle for the hearts and minds of voters in key swing states, author Thomas Frank turns his attention to the traditionally red-voting state of Kansas which, he says, is a microcosm of a sea change in the voting patterns of working class Americas. Blue collar workers, says Frank, are embracing a conservative moral agenda centering on opposition to abortion and gay marriage and support for school prayer. The American working class, he argues, is voting against is own economic interests. What can the Sunflower state tell us about why Americans struggling to provide for their families would vote conservative and against their own economic futures? Bill Moyers talks with Frank, who argues that a culture war has led to a political deck stacked against America’s working poor.

Sounds like it would be an interesting read.

Quote of the Day
"One of the few good things about modern times: If you die horribly on television, you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us."
Kurt Vonnegut

In America (and Africa)

Movies
Just finished watching a marvelous movie, In America . The story of an Irish family coming to NYC in the 1980's and trying to cope. Wonderfully acted, with 2 marvelous little girls (who happen to be sisters in real life). 5 Stars. Bring your kleenex box. One of the best movies I've seen this year , made so in particular by these wonderful kids.

Books
#1 Ladies Detective Agency - A great series of books by African born author, Alexander McCall Smith, this being the first one in the series. A fat African woman opens a detective agency in Botswana - lots of bush tea and great stories. This first novel in Alexander McCall Smith’s widely acclaimed The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series tells the story of the delightfully cunning and enormously engaging Precious Ramotswe, who is drawn to her profession to “help people with problems in their lives.” Immediately upon setting up shop in a small storefront in Gaborone, she is hired to track down a missing husband, uncover a con man, and follow a wayward daughter. But the case that tugs at her heart, and lands her in danger, is a missing eleven-year-old boy, who may have been snatched by witchdoctors..... This series, about delightful people in the beautiful country of Botswana, is simply one of the very best new literary series in decades .......The humour is gentle and the characters are beautifully portayed. Especially Mma Ramotswe herself who confidently eats fruit cake as she does not need to worry about such things being a woman of 'Traditional African Build'. If you like audio books, this is one to listen to, as it is superbly narrated by South African, Lisette Lecat, who also narrated on "Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight". Check out the ad at the top of the page for audio books - they really combine the best of a book with the best of theater - 2 for the price of 1. :)

Electronics
Just when I mentioned the new Maha charger C204W as an excellent new charger with worldwide voltage regulator built in (so you can use it while you're in Botswana :) ) , my C204 bites the dust after 4 years of use - most likely from too many power surges on our lightning prone mountaintop - next time will have to plug it into a decent surge protector. Though the 204W is their newest, I went with the 401FS which has a lifetime warranty and charges each cell individually. I liked the thought of that lifetime warranty. :)

Tungsten T3
Still loading software onto my new T3 Palm Pilot - this really is a very handy device. Getting (2) 256mb SD cards for storage (only $60) was a good move, as I can put lots of audible books, mp3's, and additional programs on it, that won't fit in the 64MB of built-in memory. So now I have an audio book device, a tape recorder(very handy), ebook reader, a photo and movie viewer, a master organizer, ability to connect to a Bluetooth enabled cell phone and surf the Net anywhere, game player, and a mega load of additional applications should I wish to install them. Not bad for free - thank you Ameritrade! (Just downloaded and installed "Naked in Baghdad", Anne Garrols (an NPR journalist) acclaimed book on Baghdad and the run up to war. Very nice display on the T3, better than my little Otis player I normally use - will be interesting to see what kind of a drain on the battery occurs from listening to an audio book).

Olympic Track and Field Trials
Just a reminder to tune in tonite for the Track and Field Trials - 8 p.m NBC (Eastern Time)

Health

Why Fat Hips are better than Fat Stomachs

From Gabe Mirkin's newsletter - A new study from Queen's University in Canada confirms that storing fat primarily in your belly, rather than your hips, increases your chances of suffering heart attacks and diabetes (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, March 2004). When you take in more calories than your body needs, your liver turns them into fat. People who store fat primarily in their bellies are called "apples," while those who store fat primarily in their hips are called "pears." Fat cells in your belly are different from those in your hips. The blood that flows from belly fat goes directly to your liver, whereas the blood that flows from your hips goes into your general circulation. The livers of those who store fat in their bellies are blocked from removing insulin by the extra fat and therefore do not remove insulin from the bloodstream as effectively as the livers of those who store fat in their hips and have less fat in their livers. So "apples" have higher blood insulin and sugar levels. You need insulin to drive sugar from your bloodstream into your cells, but insulin is also a harmful hormone because it lowers blood levels of the good HDL cholesterol that prevents heart attacks and raises blood levels of the bad triglycerides that cause heart attacks. Being shaped like an apple and having a beer belly increases your risk for a heart attack and diabetes. People who store fat primarily in their hips and are shaped like pears are less likely to have heart attacks.

Quote of the Day
"You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."
Dale Carnegie

Word of the Day
refractory \rih-FRAK-tuh-ree\, adjective:
1. Stubbornly disobedient; unmanageable.
2. Resisting ordinary treatment or cure.
3. Difficult to melt or work; capable of enduring high temperature.

Usage: 1. And even those most refractory infections of all, those caused by viruses- 2. Bauxite is mined in only a few places. It is used to make aluminum, iron, copper and dozens of refractory products such as the bricks used to line blast furnaces. 3. It's a head shot of Lucien Bouchard peering out of the dark, openmouthed, teeth showing, eyes glittering and appearing not to have shaved in a week. In another age, the shot might have been held up to a refractory kid with the warning, "The boogeyman will get you if you don't watch out."

Palm Pilot and USDA Food Database

If you want to know the nutrient content of a zillion foods and want it handy, then you can download the entire USDA food database into your palm pilot. Incredible amount of info on each food - if you're dieting or counting carbs, this is extremely handy.

Digital Toys
If you need a good charger for your rechargeables, look no further than the Maha C204W I've used one of these for years with very good results - now they've improved it, especially for those of you who might be traveling overseas.

Happy 4th of July!

More on Joe
For an interesting web site with lots of good interviews on the main protagonist of the book and movie, "Touching the Void" (winner of the outstanding British film of the year), you should check out Joe's own web site . He pulls no punches. A rather amusing quote from one of his Interviews/excerpts - I also have fairly strong views about climbing and children but they are purely personal and I have no criticisms of those who combine family and mountains. It is their choice and their conscience.
It has never been a problem for me since I have no desire whatsoever to have children, nor do I understand them. They are a mystery I never wished to delve into as well as being desperately expensive, life consuming and ambition compromising. I’m quite happy to live a lonely old age after a lifetime of fun (if I get the chance) than breed on the off chance that any of the little buggers will be around when I need them. A little selfish perhaps, or maybe just honest. Apologies to all parents out there.

I would suggest, however, that you watch the film first, without reading his web site, then watch the extra footage on the DVD, then read the book if you have the time. I think watching the film with no idea what will happen is worth it.

Diet
If you are low carbing it, check out the low carb soups made by Walmart. About 7-9 grams of carbs per cup of soup. Suprisingly -very tasty - some of the best canned soup I've had. Some are also fairly low on sodium ((550mg). They say they contain no trans fats, but the contents labels indicate partially hydrogenated oils, so how they claim the 0 transfats is a question.

If you use Smart Balance as a 0 transfat butter substitute (and it is a very good one), then you might also want to check out Smart Balance cooking spray (like Pam) - no transfats - that's gotta be a good thing.

For an excellent web site on the glycemic index, carbs, and the consequences of a crappy diet and potential diabetes, check out David Mendosa's site . (He used to go by Rick, but changed his first name to David - don't ask me why). Loaded with excellent information - it doesn't get much better than this. I notice much of the info on his site leads to further info by him on the About.com sites, which have to be about the best general web site on the Net - if you want info on damn near anything, go to www.about.com

Looking for a low carb pasta that really tastes like pasta without all those soy fillers? Try Dreamfield Pasta. Check out what David Mendosa had to say about it by clicking here .

Quote of the Day
"If absolute power corrupts absolutely, does absolute powerlessness make you pure?"
Harry Shearer

Cheap Books

My wife just delivered two hardback copies of recent books to me. Ted Koppel's "Off Camera" ($25.00 retail) and Sebastian Junger's "Fire" (author of the Perfect Storm) ($25 retail). Know how much she paid for them? $1 each! Where? Where else? Dollar Tree. So all you inveterate shoppers, keep an eye on the book selection at Dollar Tree - you sure can't beat the price. She's even picked up books off of Oprah's list there.

Disappearance
If you've wondered where this column has gone in the past week or so, well I got a new Tungsten T3 palm pilot and I've been buried in it for awhile. Am now resurfacing to deliver you a new stream of gripping entertainment! I assume this sentiment is shared? :)

Mattie Stepanek
Was sorry to hear of the demise of little Mattie. This was the most courageous and incredible kid I have ever seen. He was light years ahead of so many of us. I still remember the first time I saw him on Larry King and just sat there open-mouthed. If you never saw Mattie speak in person, then you truly missed a once in a lifetime event. You can read about the Hero Poet here If there were only more Matties, the world would be a lot more peaceful.

Tennis
Did you catch the women's final this morning at Wimbledon? A gorgeous and very likeable young 17 year old (Maria Sharapova ) smacked Serena Williams around the court, 6-1, 6-4 to win her first Grand Slam title. She's better looking than Anna Kournikova and with this win is destined to make millions. Coming with her father to this country at the age of 7, she enrolled in a tennis camp and just 10 years later is the Wimbledon champ. I'll say one thing - she had that determined spirit - highly impressive. First Russian woman to win Wimbledon.

You can catch a great Men's final tomorrow morning between Andy Roddick and Roger Federer, last year's champ. #1 and #2 duking it out - should be a great match. Tune in early. The last time 2 top seed met was Connors and McEnroe in 1982.

Movies
Watched "Touching the Void" last night. A fabulous mountainering movie. A guest from England had tipped me off to the book a few years ago and I read it back then, thinking it was even better than Krukauer's "Into Thin Air". Translated into over 60 languages and over a million copies sold, it is a classic and well worth the read. Rent the DVD and get a chance to meet these 2 climbers who went through such an incredible week. Beautiful photography. I won't clue you in on what it's all about, but let's just say when you lose a 1/3 of your body weight in 4 days, then you've obviously come up against quite a challenge.

Don't forget to watch the upcoming Olympic Track and Field Trials!
They start July 9th. First day's coverage is on USA from 11 p.m. - 1 a.m. Eastern (whew). July 10th at a more reasonable 8-9 p.m. on NBC - unusual for this to be a prime time event. The Swimming Trials are going on at the same time. Tune in to see which athlete can consume the most drugs and still not be caught!

Quote of the Day
"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy."
Ernest Benn (although I could have sworn this was a quote from GW's personal diary)

Hmmm... Does our Nation have its own case of Alzheimers?

I, myself, was surprised at all the gushing over Ronald Reagan during the past few days on television and in the news. Perhaps one should take a look at his "real" record. Makes one pause. I'm sure Ronnie might have been a "Great Communicator" in his younger days, but I sure didn't see much sign of it during his presidency.

Ron Jr.
Did you pick up on the comment by Ron Reagan at the funeral ceremony in California? I thought at the time - oh, boy that will get them a talking! And it appears it has.

Genocide
It is rather astonishing how the world can continually snooze over these mass genocides. Rwanda and now western Sudan. Bunch of crazy Arab militia backed by a nutty government out to eradicate all black people. I would think 320,000 killed would wake up a few people - our 1000 or so soldiers in Iraq who have been killed in our own nutty war seems to pale against those numbers. Yet, how often, do we hear about those dying every day in Darfur? If you listen to the BBC World News, you'll hear about it, but you'll be hard pressed to hear about it here. At least Nicholas Kristoff of the Times gets the message out here. Watch his editorial for a follow up. "The Bush administration says it is exploring whether to describe the mass murder and rape in the Darfur region of Sudan as "genocide." I suggest that President Bush invite to the White House a real expert, Magboula Muhammad Khattar, a 24-year-old widow huddled under a tree here."

Bitter at the Top
Brooks writes an interesting article in the Times about the differences between the educated classes and how they vote. Business Managers to the Right - Teachers to the Left. THe Black and White thinkers are hired to make decisions and any waffling will hold up the financial juggernaut. Unfortunately, that black and white thinking doesn't always work for the long haul and leads to heading down the wrong path, something we have seen all too many times in the recent past , both with companies and with our elected govt officials. Failing to understand the subtleties and nuances of situations leads to this. I think the "thinkers" can look down the road a bit further and understanding the nuances, can see better where some of our actions will lead. But they have a hell of a time making a decision, because of all the subletities. Thus, the conundrum. Must be why I lean left - never could stand all those business types who wanted to see everything in black and white cause it was easier and quicker than really thinking about all the consequences. I've worked with many a black and whiter - thanks, but no thanks. Probably why it was so always so hard for me to fire someone - always could find some redeeming quality in a person. :) Brooks is a Republican as you will probably note, if you read closely.

News on Demand

If you're an avid news reader, then you owe yourself a review of this article from PC World. I've included it in it's printable form, so that it is all on one page, thus alleviating you of the trouble of flipping pages. :) As you can see there are numerous readers out there, some of which are free and some of which offer free trials before using. Personally, I use FeedDemon, but there are plenty of other choices out there.

Clinton
Check out the pic of Clinton's presidential painting to be hung in the White House. Painted by Simmie Knox, born to a family of sharecroppers in Alabama, it looks to be a pretty darn good likeness. For more on Simmie Knox, turn to this page . "He turned to portraiture after years of painting a wide variety of paintings because he found that there is nothing more challenging and interesting to paint than the human face. He states "I think that a good portrait is the most difficult thing for an artist to bring off successfully. Not only must you get an accurate likeness, but you must also create a good painting. Somehow you must convey a subject's character,spirit, and personality; and everything must communicate the dynamism of the subject". A great portrait of Thurgood Marshall here

Quote of the Day
It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.
Upton Sinclair

Word of the Day
equanimity ee-kwuh-NIM-uh-tee; ek-wuh-\, noun:
Evenness of mind; calmness; composure; as, "to bear misfortunes with equanimity." Usage: For one whose mind has been notoriously troubled, Brian Lara is at least retaining a sense of equanimity Origin: Equanimity comes from Latin aequanimitas, "impartiality, calmness," from aequanimus, "impartial, even-tempered," from aequus, "even" + animus, "mind, soul."

News on Demand

If you're an avid news reader, then you owe yourself a review of this article from PC World. I've included it in it's printable form, so that it is all on one page, thus alleviating you of the trouble of flipping pages. :) As you can see there are numerous readers out there, some of which are free and some of which offer free trials before using. Personally, I use FeedDemon, but there are plenty of other choices out there.

Clinton
Check out the pic of Clinton's presidential painting to be hung in the White House. Painted by Simmie Knox, born to a family of sharecroppers in Alabama, it looks to be a pretty darn good likeness. For more on Simmie Knox, turn to this page . "He turned to portraiture after years of painting a wide variety of paintings because he found that there is nothing more challenging and interesting to paint than the human face. He states "I think that a good portrait is the most difficult thing for an artist to bring off successfully. Not only must you get an accurate likeness, but you must also create a good painting. Somehow you must convey a subject's character,spirit, and personality; and everything must communicate the dynamism of the subject". A great portrait of Thurgood Marshall here

Quote of the Day
It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.
Upton Sinclair

Word of the Day
equanimity ee-kwuh-NIM-uh-tee; ek-wuh-\, noun:
Evenness of mind; calmness; composure; as, "to bear misfortunes with equanimity." Usage: For one whose mind has been notoriously troubled, Brian Lara is at least retaining a sense of equanimity Origin: Equanimity comes from Latin aequanimitas, "impartiality, calmness," from aequanimus, "impartial, even-tempered," from aequus, "even" + animus, "mind, soul."

Roady Review

Thought I'd add a review of the Roady, now that I've pounded down the road for some 600 miles with it. First of all, the sound is impressive - excellent clarity. I had thought my speakers were going out before I got this - now I realize it was just the trashy radio I have in the car. With the Roady, I can crank it up and the sound is great. I was also impressed with the no loss of signal, other than in tunnels or under heavy trees. I got a full 3 signal bars all the way to N. Indiana from Virginia. I was suprised to see it not bat an eye at incredible rain downpours, even where cars were pulling off. I know with satellite TV, you wouldn't have had any signal, so perhaps an engineer or someone can explain to me , how satellite radio differs from that.


The cons, which are minor, is that the unit is tiny, so the buttons are tiny and the descriptions written above the buttons are so miniscule they are almost impossible to read. One learns which buttons do what though, so that is nothing major. The method of anchoring it to your dash is not so good - it comes with some little pedestal that supposedly rotates to where you can read it, but it didn't rotate enough for my flat dash, so was basically worthless. Janet suggested we just put a small strip of velcro on the dash and one on the bottom of the unit and I think that is an outstanding idea. Much simpler. The unit also has a lot of wires coming out of it - one going to the cigarette lighter, one going to the cassette adapter and one going to the antenna (click on thumbnail to the left and you'll see a larger view). You can buy a $60 kit for installing it professionally, which would be the best alternative. I'm not bothered that much by the wires though, so probably won't bother.

Would be nice to have an extra antenna though, so that when you took the unit out of one car and placed it another, you wouldn't have to go through the hassle of removing the antenna. We found some clips that fastened on the outside of the windshield, through which we guided the antenna wire. Those worked well, otherwise you would have antenna wire just flying around.

Tons of stations - some 120 in all. So plenty of stuff to listen to. We spent a lot of time on the World Music channels, New Age, Classic Rock and Reggae channels. Many songs you would never hear on regular radio. It would be nice to be able to see the Album title as well rather than just Artist and Song Title - that would be helpful when you press the Memory button to save a song that you might later like to look up and purchase as a CD, although I'm sure a search of the Net with Artist and Song Name, would turn that up quickly. You can also buy a remote
for it - I'll have to check that out - that would be very handy vs leaning forward to punch buttons. Checking Ebay , I see you can get the Roady + free remote and wireless FM Adaptor (in case you don'th have a cassette deck in your car) for $112 + shipping - that's a good deal - wish I had seen that earlier.

For $10/month, hard to beat (no contracts either - quit whenever, of course if you sign up again, I'm sure they will hit you with the $10 activation fee again). I normally listen to my audio books in the car, but this gives me one more thing to listen to, when I tire of those.

Google News Alerts

Did you know that Google will deliver up emails to you with alerts to any news topic you might be wishing to keep an eye on? Yep, works quite well. You can tell Google how often you would like to receive these alerts. Check it out at this Google site . This is not a new Google tool, in fact, I've used it for over a year now, but I suspect many are not aware of it.

More on the "Roady"
Yesterday I mentioned XM Radio's new "Roady" version. There are some good reviews of it at the Epinions site. Speaking of Epinions, it is an excellent source for indepth reviews of many things, so before you buy something, you might want to scan the Epinions site to get a few user opinions. Update! Well, I sprung for the Roady - pretty slick. Slap tiny antenna on the roof (strong magnet) , route the antenna wire into the car - plug in cigarette lighter adapter to receiver along with a cassette adapter and you're good to go. Simply call or go through the Net to XM Radio's site and activate the unit and in about 20 minutes, your unit has some 100+ channels on it. Reception was excellent on top of our mountain - will be giving it a good test tomorrow when I drive up towards the Chicago area.

D70 Picks up another positive Review

Ken Rockwell writes a long and very positive review of the Nikon D70. If you're looking for a digital SLR with an outstanding kit lens, this may be the one to look at (for the moment, that is, until Canon comes out with their reply!). I had some concerns with the focus issues, which Rockwell explains here - still would be good to check that issue out before camera gets out of warranty. Incidentally, you might want to check the fine print on your credit card, as often they add 1 year warranty to the basic warranty. Another reason I always use a credit card that offers this advantage.

Safer Shopping
Although you wouldn't expect it from Doc Mercola (since he writes mostly health articles), he is a gadget freak and in this article points out a few ways to shop safer online - worth a look.

Wireless
Had a chance to try out my Dell 600m laptop in Roanoke in the downtown Market Square the other day. Free for 2 hours of use at a time - was a good way to download my audio books which are often 25mb and up in size. Unfortunately, signal was a bit low and got only 1mb/sec download speeds (still better than 56k dialup by a long shot!). Normally, would get 5-10mb/sec downloads. Even lost the signal a few times, but couldn't complain for free. Will be glad when wireless takes off everywhere. If businesses are smart, they won't charge - brings in business to coffee shops, etc that they might not otherwise get. I can certainly see the advantage of a PDA though - beats lugging around big laptop, especially if you're just going to check email,etc. Will be interested to see what kind of a wireless solution I can come up with for the Tungsten T3 that will hopefully be arriving soon in my mailbox. The Bluetooth cell phone option is nice, but too expensive and the speeds are more in the 56K world and who needs that?

XM Radio
Getting interested in XM Radio at the moment - noticed that they now have an XM "Roady" available for $119 and if you act soon, you get a free Home kit (which enables you to plug into your home stereo) and a free wireless FM transmitter kit for the car, which enables you to transmit the signal into an empty FM station on your car radio and thus play it through your car speakers (in the event that you don't have a cassette player in your car - the kit comes with a cassette adapter, if you do). It plugs into your cigarette lighter and doesn't require hard wiring, so you can transfer it over to your other car and use it there, or take it into the house and use the Home Kit to plug it into your AC outlet and then plug the RCA cables into your home stereo system. Check out the options at the XM web site! . For a list of some of the programming and to hear some samples, click here . You can pick these things up at your local Walmart.

2 Gigs of Free Email!
It didn't take long for folks to challenge the Google email system. Check out AventureMail

Politics
Bill Clinton was front and center again this week, kicking off his "My Life" book tour . Put June 20th on your calendar for his 60 Minutes appearance, just a few days before his book is released. He'll also be on Oprah a few days after. If you want to listen to Clinton and talk to the BookExpo America folks, then you can listen for free at this Audible site . I listed a few days ago and it was typical Clinton - always interesting, amusing - quite refreshing to hear someone who is so good at getting up in public and speaking, something I miss in a President. I think we'll see Kerry do well, once he gets past the campaign and starts talking like a human being again, but nobody can match Clinton.

Quote of the Day
Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil, and you're a thousand miles from the corn field.
Dwight D. Eisenhower

How Cool is this? Hello is free, so give it a try!

Will it be Smarty Jones's day?

The big event of the day comes late this afternoon when Smarty Jones goes for the Triple Crown - he's a good bet to win, but it's a rare one that can pull off the Triple Crown - tune in! (For an opinion on the race, read this article .) The race takes off at 6:38 ET, but TV coverage begins at 5:30 p.m.

Music Players
This looks like a pretty neat 20 Gig music player. Certainly different than most. I like the line-in recording ability, which makes it nice to record those old albums. Check out the specs and a review . Certainly not cheap, but cool!

Word of the Day
autochthonous aw-TOK-thuh-nuhs\, adjective:1. Aboriginal; indigenous; native. 2. Formed or originating in the place where found. Autochthonous derives from Greek autochthon, "of or from the earth or land itself," from auto-, "self" + chthon, "earth." One that is autochthonous is an autochthon. - Usage - For cultures are not monoliths. They are fragmentary, patchworks of autochthonous and foreign elements. This is the word that won the 2004 National Spelling Bee Championship for 14 yr old David Tidmarsh of South Bend, Indiana

Fiber to the Dorms!

Think I'll go to Case Western Reserve in my next life (of course larger brain will be required to get in, but that's another story). Fiber connectivity in the dorms! "Case operates the fastest and largest network in Higher Education. We have deployed more than 16,000 Gigabit Ethernet connections throughout the residence halls and campus buildings. This Gigabit-to-the-Desktop approach provides each user with 10 to 100 times faster connectivity then a typical Ethernet connection. All students have access to over 16,000 fiber ports throughout the university plus 802.11g campus-wide! "

Music
DALLAS - Eric Clapton will host a three-day festival this weekend featuring 60 guitarists, including B.B. King, Carlos Santana, Jeff Beck , Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Joe Walsh , J.J. Cale , Bo Diddley, James Taylor , Jimmie Vaughan and Vince Gill . Proceeds go to Crossroads Centre, the nonprofit drug and alcohol rehabilitation center Clapton founded on the Caribbean island of Antigua, where he maintains a residence. The Crossroads festival, which will be held at Dallas Fair Park and Cotton Bowl Stadium, coordinates with the start of Clapton's U.S. tour, which begins June 9 in Oklahoma City.

Politics
George Tenet is resigning come July. "Tenet, who also faced fierce criticism over his agency's handling of Iraqi intelligence, including a now famous prediction that the case for war against Iraq (news - web sites) was a "slam dunk," broke the news to Bush at the White House on Wednesday night. "He told me he was resigning for personal reasons. I told him I'm sorry he's leaving," Bush said. LIfe in the fast lane - it was probably time for him to go - I can imagine he's had enough.

Audible in USA Today
Big article in the money section of USA Today about Audible.com and its drive to success. They're really the only player in town at the moment and with the ability of Ipod owners to listen in, sales are picking up. Audible continues to add new compatible players to its line up - the Creative Nomad MuVo being the latest one (free with 12 month membership). So if you have have an Ipod, or a Palm Pilot, or Pocket PC, or one of their compatible mp3 players, you're ready to start listening! It truly is a great way to increase your reading and in a whole new, different, and enjoyable way - you will be amazed at what good narration can bring to a book. So when you've grown tired of listening to just music, you can now listen to a good book - ya gotta love it. You can see some of the Audible selections I would recommend on the sidebar to the right.

DaVinci Code Fans
Did you like the DaVinci code? Lots of debate over that one - I started it as an audio book but then realized it was the abridged version, so I stopped. Audible now has it in the unabridged version so I will have to download and listen in. There is now a new book out by Dan Burstein entitled, "Secrets of the Code: The Unauthorized Guide to the Mysteries Behind The Da Vinci Code ". To read the transcipts of a recent chat with the author of this book, click here .

Feed Demon Revisited

If you're not yet using RSS feeds for your Internet browsing, then you're missing a tool that will save you boodles of time. Check out this good review of Feed Demon 1.10 It will save you a lot of time wandering around to various web sites, when you can visit them all with this one tool all while staying within the same window. "The highlight of the interface is the integrated browser and how seamlessly it blends in with the rest of the application. What makes the browser so great is that it has the capability to open new windows in tabs. This feature alone makes FeedDemon more useful than IE as a Web browser." This review actually covers Version 1.0, but if you pay for it, it is actually up to 1.10 RC5 (release candidate 5).

Word of the Day
pernicious Tending to cause death or serious injury; deadly:a pernicious virus . Causing great harm; destructive: pernicious rumors. Usage - "The murders have subsided, but a more pernicious trend worries him. The price of food -- particularly rice -- has almost doubled. ... "