We Stand for Change

The other evening, armed with my cell-phone, I went halfway across town to join about a dozen complete (though quite friendly) strangers to do some phone-banking. I can hear you now: "You did what? I can't even get you to go to the movies." Well, I did. These are desperate times. Faced with the specter of another Republican president, even us de-motivated, low-energy, depressed peoples are restless and unable to sit still . We've learned the hard way what can happen when we assume no one could possibly vote twice for the same idiot a village in Texas has been looking for. The village can't believe it either.

The house, tucked down a side-court off a minor cross road, was easily identified by the row of cars in front all sporting Obama/Biden spots, linked to corresponding signs on the lawn and in the windows. I was welcomed at the front door; the greeter took me to a table in the den for a 10-minute briefing. All around me, on the sofa, in every corner, in the two bedrooms and scattered about the back yard, women and men sat with phones to ears and a few pages in front of them. I found a recently vacated patio love seat, the cushions still warm from the previous phone-banker, and set to work in the quickly chilling air. We were contacting supporters, so I shouldn't have been so surprised when most of the people I talked to said they'd already voted, or contributed last week and/or were ready to join us for another round of calling this weekend. Still, I was charmed,encouraged and thrilled.

So where is this going? to this music video that I received today from one of the crew. Check it out. We Stand For Change .

If you think you hear some David Grisman influence, you would be right. Snoop around the Cast and Crew links on the video.

Another Limerick!

John McCain said " I've Picked Palin;
"We love Micheal" we said "We're all in"
But it's not Micheal, but Sarah,
and if that doesn,t scare ya,
it's a whole different kind of a Laugh In.

October 30, 2008 7:35 PM
submitted by Anonymous

Limericks!

A submission

Senator stodgy explosive McMean
picked Palin to be his new queen
150 grand to play dress up
weak interviews, troopergate misconduct
poll numbers heading down the latrine

by Anonymous...

Foaming Pipe Snake

You think I made that up, don't you? I'd love to take credit for such a fortuitous choice of words and images, but no. It's a real ad, for drains. from Liquid Plumr. Their spelling, not mine. Though,personally, I think some SNL writers are on the loose, creating chaos, having too much fun...think we can get away with it, in the "real" world?? I talking about the OG SNL writers, the ones who brought us Swill, the bottled essence of Lake Erie, Puppy Uppers, Jamitol, Bassomatic.

Maybe they're acting on a dare, maybe they want to see if we're paying attention, maybe they just want to give us some comic interludes.

Candygram, ma'am.

Landshark.

Three Limericks starring Palin and McCain

In Wasilla there once was a Mayor
whose knowledge of geography was, errr, fair.
On her porch with a friend, she said, "yeeup that's Russia
but enough on foreign stuff, so hush'ya --
Say what? running for Veep? Good lord, I have nothing to wear!

yeah, this is harder than I thought.

There once was a Mayor of Wasilla
who said to a moose, I'm gonna kill'ya
But with her new togs and a bun
ten winks and a gun,
she sure as hell looked mighty silly-ah.

okay.... next?

There once was a Governor of Alaska
to whom John McCain said " I'll ask ya
to run as my Veep
though you know less than my sheep
about history, foreign affairs and math-yeah!

that took all weekend. Aaarrrrgh!

Caution, Gnomes at Work

not a limerick...but the gal has her heart in the right spot. Hit the title above to find the Tax & Spend Gnomes

McPalin Limericks

yessss! a take-off on the Sarah Palin Haiku Hysteria sponsored by People For The American Way. Check the link out:
McPalin Haiku Hysteria...and vote for your favorite. Then, just for ducks, come back and send me a limerick starring McPalin (or components) via Comments and I'll post it. Unless it is just too vicious or way past bawdy, of course. No name calling! This is serious literature!

Here's one to get the ball rolling;

For a Veep, he picked quite a dear
though why, is not immediately clear
while she can handle Wasilia
a dead moose and Alaska --
what'll happen when Putin draws near?

I didn't say they had to be good

Joe Hearts Joe

So the word is out. Joe Six Pack and Joe the Plumber are getting married at San Francisco's City Hall. McCain of course, dropped his support and wants his "incentives" back. So much for reasoned arguments and researched positions.

Someone scooped me, too, getting a look at the wedding announcements already and posting it in his or her column. As soon as I find the original post that this came from, I'll post the link.

Andy Goldsworthy in San Francisco

Hit the title or link below for the complete story, but the upshot is that Andy Goldsworthy is building a sculpture/installation this month in the Presidio. I was alerted to this via Zyzzyva and Howard Junker's blog, in which he stumbles by the installation site on one of his walks. Only in SF. (Junker also announced his immanent resignation as editor of the Journal. that's an era )

http://www.presidio.gov/experiences/spire.htm

Goldsworthy's work is inspirational; I am entranced by his imaginative use of natural materials. To me, he personifies the drive we have in us to create something, anything, whether it's useful or not. It's a drive that can sometimes be seen in animals, too, though we usually see their more useful creations: nests, burrows, dens. It's the sort of thing that children often do, just making things out of what's around them. But Goldsworthy takes it all one mega-step further. Not just in size but in concept and stunning beauty. But it's not something so easily described, so if you aren't familiar with him, here are some links.

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=andy+goldsworthy&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=1&ct=title

www.morning-earth.org/ARTISTNATURALISTS/AN_Goldsworthy.html>

and...any of you Bay Area folks up for a field trip to the Presidio?

Joe Six-Pack.

Who the heck is this fella? That guy down at 7-Eleven with a six-pack of beer in each hand? Bud or Coors, usually. Always wears a baseball cap. That guy? Why is anyone pandering to his vote? If he's putting a six-pack away each night, he probably doesn't have much brain-function left and will probably won't get around to voting, if he even remembers. Because, you know, Tuesday is the day after Monday, which is a lost day, and Tuesday he's gotta work doubletime to get caught up, so he's too tired to do anything after work. Maybe if the Election was on a Weds.

But, jeeez. Is this the fella whose opinion counts so much? Oh, wait, maybe they mean the fellas with the six-pack abs. Riiiiight. They're really paying attention to trade agreements, balance of power and the finer points of de-regulation. After all, they seem to think that drilling offshore will bring in enough oil to amount to a hill of beans.

Barak Hussein Obama

As most of us know, sharing a notorious name does not mean one shares those notorious qualities, despite what some Republicans currently running for office try to say. If it did, then all Timothys or McVeighs should be rounded up and put away because, of course, one day they’re bound to blow up a few government buildings.

Nevertheless, some continue to make a big fuss about Barak Obama’s middle name, Hussein, trying to make a link to extremists that simply doesn't exist. Obama deals with the issue so elegantly and honorably, refusing to be baited with this most ridiculous of arguments, directing the discussion instead back to the more important issues facing the country: the economy, energy and education.

Hussein is an extremely popular name in the Arabic world; it comes from "hasan," meaning good, handsome or beautiful. (Wikipedia:Hussein) It’s the name of one of Muhammad's two grandsons, who became the revered leader of the Shia sect of the Muslim faith. Giving the name Hussein to a child is the same as giving the name Jesus or Mary or Linda; we want to infect him or her with the wisdom, heroism or beauty carried in the name. That some people with such a name cannot live up to it does not poison the name for everyone else.

McCain’s attempts to use such shoddy tactics to frighten voters dries up any respect I have for him. It reveals his hypocrisy, for honorable men, men of principle, true mavericks, wouldn't stoop so low ... just to win.

funnier than you ever thought

Now is all around us, ready for the watching

Now, on a more sedate note. Two weeks ago, we went on a fall vacation up to the Mendocino woodlands. It was a good week to go. This is what it was like.

For a few moments, as the fog fell away to reveal a blue ground, the valley held its own concert: an interlacing of croaky bassoon notes in 4/4 time, high squeals interspersed with cheet-wheet-wheet's, a run of knockety-knockety-knockety's like coconut-shell horse hooves, and a rapid kakakaka-keer! kakakakaka-keer! Though usually the names of birds will flash or rumble through my mind, for this short time, I could not identify the singers, or even if they bore feathers or fur; I could only listen to the songs, the tapestries of sound.

Final Debate 08

...did everyone else hiss when McCain said that Sarah Palin reached out to women? maybe to the Stepford Wives.....but I wouldn't want her to touch my dirty laundry.

....what about the statement that she "understands Special Needs kids more than anyone else." Ha! Her baby's only a few months old and there's a nanny involved. I think my friend Gail who has raised her Down's Syndrome kid at home for the past 18 years and about half of that as a single mom (no nanny ever), knows a whole hell of a lot more than Mrs Sarah "I can too fire you" Palin.

....for McCain to say that "the health of the mother issue has been overblown" ? Hello! Guess you've never been in 48 hour labor with a breach baby with one leg behind his shoulder. Guess we know what he thinks about women, too. They're expendable. They are not precious, like "children." Especially boy-children, I bet. "Get the baby out of there, to hell with my wife." Feels so good to be appreciated for bringing life into the world. They forget that in a biological sense it's far more important to have 10 women and 1 man, than the other way around. In the actual fact of it, men are more expendable. That's why women are in general healthier and live longer. Get it, McButthead?

As you can tell, someone pissed the living hell out of me.

I will also say, that on presence alone, Obama is Presidential: he kept his cool, stuck to the issues, promoted his program, revealed his plans, pointed out all the times that McButthead distorted the truth (lied), maintained a confidential manner, and was neither ruffled or flappable. He looks like he could handle any situation and any head of state.

McButthead looked desperate.

'nuff said.