Raider Nation Rise From The Ashes

The Raiders are a great three quarter team. They have shown since the disaster of Week 1 that they can be competitive as long as they are balanced. Had the injuries to their running back corps and an important O-Line member not occurred undoubtedly they would be 3 and 1. The fact is that all teams deal with injuries and the Raiders have already shown that they can adapt to change it just takes a little time.

I am a homer for the Raiders, they have been my team since I was a kid and I have experienced the most exciting moments in sports watching them over the years. I remember the good old days when they were regularly on top and in the playoffs and thinking to myself when they beat the Redskins in the Superbowl "where do we go from here?" Like my use of the royal "We"?

It just seemed to me that the joy of victory required the struggle to get there for it to mean anything. If the team is in the playoffs every year and just misses the big game by a playoff game or two and in a subsequent season gets there and wins, does it mean the same as a team that finishes among the last 5 teams for 5 years straight? What did i wish on my team?

The Raiders really are a talented and young team and I know that "Big Al" sees this. I believe the reason Lane Kiffen is still the head coach is because Al sees how the team has grown from week to week. It makes me sick that the coaching controversy continues and I wish Al would put out a press release saying that Kiffin's job is secure and call the dogs off. Al you don't want Lane to take his talent and apply it to a rival team like Shanahan & Gruden did. Or have you forgotten the Raiders last Superbowl appearance? Firing a good coach mid-season is always a mistake and Lane Kiffin is a good coach.

So here comes that crazy prediction from the Raider's homer:

The Raiders will be in the Playoffs this season.

As Good as it Gets?

Are you getting the most out of your life?
If things aren't perfect do you check out of society?
Do you have to control everything?
Are you not flexible or willing to compromise? Ever.
Is this as good as it gets?

It seems that time and again I meet people who are so self-centered that they cannot cope with their own existence unless everything stems from their tree of life. They are not interested in new things unless they discover them. They are not flexible in the direction their life takes (how about Wahoo's instead of El Torito this time?). They put rules on themselves and others that can only result in disappointment because life doesn't always go their way.

Some might say that these people just haven't grown up. Others might describe them as stubborn and self-centered. But I have to believe that in some way these people are the way they are because they want to be that way at any cost. They want to have their way, they are convinced that they cannot learn anything from others, and this is the best of life.

This kind of personality can be frustrating at times and I have found that when I apply my "associate within boundaries" philosophy to this type of situation I can get the optimal results. In short this philosophy says to address people at their level. If your friendship with someone is based on having a beer at Hooters once in a blue moon you shouldn't expect that person to say YES when you call them in the middle of the night asking for a spare kidney.

Are you one of these people? Someone who needs that coffee table to be exactly 14 inches from the TV. Someone whose happiness is dependent on the outcome of a sporting event. An individual who can never admit when they are wrong but trumpets the failure of others.

If you are then I suspect you aren't reading this.
On the slight chance that you are this way and reading my blog I ask you this.

Are you happy?

Normally I would end a post like this with a profound question like that but in this case I think I have to be blunt. The self-centered among us need to examine who they are dominating by being so controlling and inflexible. I think if you think about it you will discover that the only person you are dominating by building up the walls of self-centrism is you.

Life is too short. Live a little.

If the kitchen is out of orange juice why not try grapefruit?

Followas

I recently added the ability for you to become a follower of my blog (see right column) but apparently you can only sign up as a public follower if you have a blog yourself and the fact is that some of us are bloggers and some just don't know the struggle we bloggers face.

I think you shouldn't have a be a blogger to a follower of a blogger. But I's don't like it when people who are not bloggers refer to me as blogger because they are not bloggers and don't understand where we bloggers come from, you know?

Once in a while when I see one of the other bloggers I know in my hood I will say "Yo Blogga, wassup?" but I don't want to see no damn Site Owners (I call 'em boardas) calling me a blogga, they just don't know my struggle. Frikin boardas, they think just because they own da site that I blog on that I am a slave to dem. I ain't no slave to no damn boarda! One day I will get what I deserve for spreading my content and won't have to answer to none of them tight ass white linen pants wearing boardas.

Peace!

Sarah Palin The First Female President

You heard it here first. Come 2012 Sarah Palin will be the boss.

Why?

Because she single handedly killed the Obama campaign last night. Because she is what the politicos call a "great communicator".

I am sick of what has become of our government and I question whether it was always like this and I was just a naive get. At one time I thought the right was about lowering taxes and promoting business and the left was all about supporting those who can't support themselves. But the fact is that both parties are two sides of the same coin. Don't kid yourselves people politicians are in it for the money and power just like any other ambitious corporate ladder climbers.

So now I look at politics as a SPORT.

Not so much thinking that anyone will change anything or better my life but by the plays made to get the advantage over the opponent. When Obama picked Mile High Stadium for his convention speech I thought it was a smart move. Kind of saying "I am a man of the people. Watch me fill this f'in stadium with people". And he did. But then his less than stellar performance at the mic that night didn't keep me interested. Maybe if he had thrown in a "people's elbow" or repeatedly referred to himself in third person "And Barack says to George W Bush and his people know your role and SHUT YOUR MOUTH".

Dude you have to attack to win and saying the McCain is just a third Bush term is not enough. I'm just sayin...

Shortly after the convention McCain made the very wise choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate. This choice will bring in 50% of the Hillary voters who only voted for Ms. Clinton because she is a woman. Many women voted Clinton as blacks are voting Obama because of gender or race. I am not being critical of this just stating it as I see it. At the same time some white people vote McCain because he's white. Who cares? It's not news to anyone that people pick a candidate for many stupid reasons. Remember the people who voted for Bill Clinton because he has "a kind face"?

But last night Sarah brought her hunting gear and had her guns blazing at the Obama campaign.

Last night she was confident, comfortable, and clear.

Last night she put John McCain in the Whitehouse.

Open to New Things

Are you a person who is open to new things?

I like it when people tell me about new things they discover, new cities they've visited, new restaurants tried, etc. Of course for me the source of the info determines the value of the information so I wouldn't take a wine suggestion from someone who prefers it "from the box" because you can easily store it in the garage. At the same time I admire the courage of someone who will put himself out there and make a suggestion.

I enjoy sharing my knowledge, speaking my mind, heck that's why I have this blog. But sometimes I am hesitant to suggest things to others because I know nothing good can come from it. It's like there are people in life that cannot take suggestion, that no matter how good or life-enriching a suggestion I have might be they will not follow it because they didn't come up with it. I sometimes censor my critiques on this blog as not to offend the sensitive reader which is kind of strange because I bet the vast majority of the people I e-mailed about this blog rarely bother to read it.

It's always humorous when I bring an idea to someone who passes it off and years later brings the same idea back to me as the best thing ever. I by no means believe that I have all the answers but it's very funny when a person is so adamant about a restaurant today they I have been going to since 1996 (or whatever).

Then there are the people who make up shit. You know those people who love to give unsolicited advice, that feel good about themselves if they know more about something than others do. I know this one dude who enjoys speaking of archaic stuff that no one in the general area has a clue about just so he can sound intelligent. Always talking about how this is the best place for pasta or the best city to visit. Yet when a topic comes around I am familiar with and he knows little about he won't let it stop him from painting a canvas of lies. It's almost like the guy tells the same lie enough times so that he will get to the point that he believes it as the truth when I know it's crap. I do not take suggestions from this guy, at least not anymore.

I am a sucker when it comes to people. I tend to be too trusting. At times this can bite me in the ass because there are a lot of users out there. I think one of the reasons I have not been able to move up in the company I currently work for is the I have repeatedly trusted the wrong people and they have repeated stabbed me in the back. I don't take suggestions from these people either.

So are you open to new things? What criteria do you use to determine whether to employ a suggestion from someone? Is it important to you that you be the smartest person in the room or are you open to advice? When you criticize something do you take into account the audience of your critic?

Open Letter to James Allotey

Or whoever you are.

The spam letter you sent me:

Dearest

Please, I want to introduce myself and this business
opportunity to you.My name is Mr James Allotey , a bank accountant,I will
need your assistance in this business transaction.I would like you to
stand as the next of kin to my deceased customer,Mr David Clemetson, who
died in a plane crash in January 31st 2000 plane crash.Check the
website for the details of the plane crash:
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/02/01/alaska.airlines.list/
He was a wealthy medical doctor who made a deposit of
$17Million with
our bank.He died without any registered next of kin and as
such the
funds now have an open beneficiary mandate. If you are
interested please
do let me have your private telephone number so that I can
give you
comprehensive details on what we are to do.

Send me the following information:

1. Your Full name :
2. Your private secured telephone number :
3. Your occupation :
4. Your home or office address :

I urgently hope to get your response as soon as possible.
Best Regards,
James Allotey



I want to thank you and curse you at the same time. You sent me a letter in an attempt to con money out of me like so many of the folks from Nigeria. Your's was the standard format detailing the huge sum of money ($17 million) that could be had if I posed as an heir. All I need to do is send you my contact information to get the ball rolling.

But then in a attempt to legitimize your contention you included this:

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/02/01/alaska.airlines.list/



It makes me sick that you would go so low as to include the heartfelt memoirs of real people who lost real friends and family just so you could make a buck. What deceit. Have you no conscience?

At the same time I want to thank you because I didn't know that an archive of this kind existed. Reading notes, at times detailed, on the lives of these poor people who lost their lives too soon put me on that plane. Left me thinking what last thoughts they had and how the people that survived them took the tragic news.

Brett the Jet

Whether Brett Favre is to wear a Packer jersey or not has been up in the air for the last week or so. Well today he became a Jet and to me that makes no sense. I guess he wants to live in New York so he can hear Opie & Anthony everyday on regular radio, those satellite bills can be expensive for a pro quarterback. He said he wants to play for a team in contention, a team good enough to make it to the big game.

The Jets?

Over the Bucs?

Why would the guy choose a team that plays the Pats twice a year? What support staff do the Jets have to help him reach the Superbowl? Why couldn’t he reach an agreement with Green Bay? He was one pass away from the big game last year, now he’s on the "other team" that plays in New York who didn't make it to the Superbowl last year.

If the reports of his belligerence with Green Bay officials were correct he would have made a perfect Raider.

Did you know that he is on the cover of the latest version of Madden football?

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/genericContent.do?oid=216745&c=1

I wonder if they can reprint all the labels and put a Jets jersey on them before next Tuesday?

Do you think when they chose him back in the spring to be the cover boy they thought “this guy won’t suffer from the ‘Madden Curse’ because he’s already retired”

Not so much.

U-PLAY

"Viva La Vida" because death will strike you down one day and all this will be gone.

In my favorite track "42" of the latest Coldplay release Chris Martin sings "Those who are dead are not dead, they're just living my head".

INDEED.

In mine as well Chris.

But we are not crazy are we? We might be ghosts. Or at least maybe we just think we are.

42, the answer to the greatest riddle of the universe is a "rite of passage" track. It melds the Coldplay we know and love with the new "Brian Enoized" Coldplay which sounds similar to Bono and the boys from Ireland. I call the new band U-PLAY.

"Life in Technicolour" opens with a unforgettable whirl of sound that is reminiscent of a fire once stoked in an abandoned castle.

"Lovers in Japan - Reign of Love" could easily be a track on "Joshua Tree" but it would have a more earth-conscious title like "Revelation in the city of fossil fuels".

The album concludes with the reassurance that we will die at some point but that Death is our buddy. Followed by that familiar whirl from the beginning to complete the U-Play journey.

Kind of hokie, kind of cliche'

I LOVE IT!

A MODERN MASTERPIECE!

I WANT MORE!

Smorstick

A brilliant man once said "Smores don't taste that good, they are just fun to make".

Well the other day at the beach in celebration of a special birthday the fire was blazin and the kids were dangling their marshmallow covered "smorsticks" hoping to toast them just good enough so they are melty but not create too much cancer. One of the moms warned "Don't burn them because the black stuff will give you cancer". I guess she's not a big fan of Carl's Jr or any barbecue food. I mean what is this bitch thinking? Scaring the kids into thinking that they will die if they eat a marshmallow that's slightly charred? I love that charred stuff. Have you been to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse? A slice of heaven the steaks are there with that nice charred exterior and that "great-4-you" garlic butter sauce. I don't know how anyone could live without barbecue. You would probably have to eat a 100lbs of charred meat in one sitting to take in enough cancer causing crap (ccc) to affect you.

Holy shit!
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/19/health/19real.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=barbeque%20causes%20cancer&st=cse&oref=slogin

We're all going to die! And it's because we like our barbecued meats. Maybe that's the reason the life expectancy of the African American... maybe I shouldn't go there. My apologies to the nappy among us and that lady I called a bitch. She was a nice lady, I am an ass.

Anyway back in his days in Holland or Denmark or Stuttgart or wherever he came from my good friend Cor as a young Leganheighen (Dutch Weblo) invented the Smorstick. It was quite an accomplishment as previously the little people of Leftinghaus used their fingers to melt marshmallows which often caused severe burns. In addition at times their fingers had teeth marks on them when they forgot to remove them from between the marshmallow, chocolate and graham crackers in a rush to ingest those heavenly delights.

The smorstick was of simple design a stiff wire glued inside the circular husk of what is known today as cardboard tubing but back then was considered "the finest of material for making the strongest of Dutch furniture". To see Cor use his tribal knowledge and some Gorilla Tape to create the most efficient way to maneuver a marshmallow over flame was a thing of beauty.

Quaken

This morning on my drive to work I started to get a bad feeling. It wasn't the normal indigestion of excessive drinking from the night before, I don't usually start the weeks embibing until Wednesday.

I had this feeling of impending doom. I was fearing something bad was going to happen. I though Nina might have car problems or be in danger. Since I vowed to listen to my sixth sense and not ignore it. I thought I would give Nina a call and let her know to be careful. I was happy that she got to work and everything seemed fine.

Then 11:42am came and an earthquake that seemed to last a full minute rumbled it's way under our feet.

I was not scared but became concerned when I couldn't reach my wife as the cell phones were out. It turned out Nina was able contact me on a land line. She was safe.

Maybe I am full of crap but I really think this sixth sense of mine has some strange source that is trying to legitamize itself. I mean why would I have any sense something was going to happen.

Or that I will be working for DirectTV soon.

Later

A message for all time

A great man died today.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080725/ap_en_ot/obit_pausch

http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture/

Car Shopping Redefined

I remember back in the day when shopping was something you did in stores. Today we have the internet so shopping is now something we do wherever there is an internet connection. When purchasing a used car this year I was able to use online shopping to give me the advantage over the car dealer.

I started off by finding what is called a “web forum” which is a website where people who have an interest in a topic go to share knowledge. This was a good place to hear people's experience and complaints with the car and give details on what to look for in evaluating the car. To find a forum simply enter the subject you are interested in plus the word “forum” in a Google or Yahoo search. (e.g. “BMW forum”)

I then used “Yahoo Autos” (www.yahoo.com) to search the available cars in my area. Many of the dealer listings provide a link to a free CarFax report that gives the history of each car. Dealerships usually maintain inventories of the used cars they have on the lot at their websites. What this allows you to do is watch the movement of their cars over a period of time (I shopped for about 3 months) and tell when a car has been sitting on the lot for an extended period. This gives you a huge advantage when negotiating the price at the dealer. If the dealer says “I can’t sell the car for that price” you simply reply “How much will it cost you to let it sit here another month?”

Of course your mileage may vary but I think these tools can certainly help you get the killer deal I got in my recent car purchase.

I should be charging for this crap but you get it free for visiting MOSSNEWS!

Dukacab

In putting together a "mixtape" for a guys trip to Vegas I came across some old favorites and some of them stuck. I was amused by the stuff we thought was cool when we were young and I felt nostalgic listening to "The Cure", "The Jam", "Echo & The Bunnymen", "The Smiths". How we thought one band was "gay" when another one that sounded similar was cool struck me funny but we were kids after all. Kids don't know crap.

One thing that really stuck with me was my CD's of Genesis's "Duke" & "Abacab".

When the tune "Keep it Dark", the story of a man trapped by his fear who dreams of the world outside but is too scared to open the shades, came on the stereo one of my friends said "what is this?". I guess we didn't all listen to the same stuff back then.

As my Genesis CD's are now converted to MP3 and thrown together in a single folder the two became a mixtape of their own sorted by cut number and song title instead of by album. Call it "Abacuke" or "Dukacab". Whatever it is it takes two thematic masterpieces and creates a melange of messages that question issues of socioeconomic differences through a battle of good vs. evil intermixed with an examination of the insecurity we all possess inside.

Phil Collins, yes kids he had a career before going solo, belts out a series of emotionally wrenching hymns about those whose value is in their possessions and who ignore the damage caused to nature that surrounds us. The end result making him "feel like an alien, a stranger in an alien place". Followed by the lonely man who "is just waiting for someone to show" and deliver him from the purgatory that is his life.

Is life a battle of good versus evil or is it merely finding the balance in all of us the makes living OK?

Listening to my Sixth Sense

Some people call it intuition, some think they are psychic, some think that there is an angel looking over them or a message from a loved one who has passed. I am not sure what it is but it seems that lately my sixth sense has taken over.

So I am in Las Vegas and I am walking through the Casino and before I sit down at a table I know whether I will win or lose. It's when I don't listen to my sixth sense that I lose because every time it told me to play I won. It's uncanny and I didn't have to be drunk for it to speak to me.

For example:
I was playing a version of Texas Hold'em that my buddies like at the Hard Rock Casino and just had a bad feeling about it. The dealers were cool, the game is fun and we were having a good time but the bad feeling persisted. I lost $100 very quickly so I left the table. My buddy Erik left at the same time and I asked if he wanted to play some blackjack and we walked to the blackjack tables. None seemed like the place to sit but then I passed by a craps table it was as though the Nubian Queen dealer was beckoning me to play. I ignored it at first because I don't like to play craps unless there is a low limit but after a second pass around the casino and a second come hither look I was taken in. It was a blast and I won more than the $100 I had lost at the other table.

This kept happening to me, whether it was the table I was sitting at or the seat at the table I was sitting at I knew whether it was in the cards (or dice) for me to win. Next time I will listen to my sixth sense.

With A Little Help From My Friends

What would you do if you couldn't find your way?
If you felt like you had lost your grip and there was nowhere to turn?
What if you thought that the world was closing in and you were trapped?

You might send an e-mail to some old friends.
And that might result in the a trip to Las Vegas.
The reuniting of longtime friends for a couple nights of gambling, drinking, and good times
And the start of a new tradition

It was good.

Understanding

The world is too complex to provide understanding.

There is too much cultural division to be understood.

Our differences make understanding impossible.

How can I be expected to understand something if you do not teach me?

That's the way it is, it's not for you to understand.

To be understood is to let down your guard to impending marauders!

Why aren't you with us, don't you understand the consequences of not being in the gang?

The greatest satisfaction comes from true understanding

Get me?

So you think I can write?

I've been told I have the writing chops but I guess it's the reader to decide.

Since it's "so you think you can dance" season and my wife and are big fans of the show (american idol who?) I see it an interesting subject to comment on. Each year we are treated with some very talented dancers but it seems to me that what makes this show so great is when the music, choreography, and dance come together in such a way that it's a heart felt moving experience.

Such was the case the other night when Katee and Joshua danced to the Jordan Sparks/Chris Brown tune "No Air". These two dancers portrayed the emotional side effects of a broken relationship in such a way that it spoke to my heart, brought a tear to my eye. Choreographers Tabitha & Napoleon did a superb job providing the framework for Katee & Joshua to hip hop their way through pain and joy of relationship. A truely amazing performance.

My Mom and Dad were such big fans of dance and now that they are gone I feel, when I see a performance that reaches into my soul, reconnected to them. I wish that when they were alive I had the passion they had for dance that I could have shared this with them. Hopefully I am sharing it with them here.

Mom - I still feel that tingle on the back of my neck
Dad - Do you get to hear Amy Winehouse up there?

The Journey Begins

These are the times that try mens souls. Or at least my neck, back, and brain are not too happy. When you live amongst the vermin that want nothing more than to put you down to get ahead there comes a time when you have to toss it all aside and find a new avenue. There comes a time when we who have been loyal and supportive realize that there is no future in the current environment, no turn before the dead end. Simply put, it's time to go.

But where to go? How do you determine the next path to take?

We all want the power to drive our own destiny but living in a day to day corporate world we get too wrapped up in the trappings of reaching the next paycheck instead of finding what our soul is searching for. For me I think my soul is search for this. For the ability to express my opinions freely. To be heard and appreciated. To enrich others lives with my thoughts and feelings and hopefully make a few sheckels along the way.

It's to this end that I have returned to the world of the blogger. A mine field of contradiction and rhetoric. Where I can put it plain and simple. Where I can have my opinions heard. At least by some.

I welcome you on this journey with me.

Opie & Anthony in L.A.

With the impending merger of XM & Sirius it is more important today than ever to get the PESTS (POWS) out for Opie & Anthony. No one knows if phoney hoo hoo and his Daddy Karmazi will work with The BOYS so e-mail these guys http://971freefm.com/pages/1537.php and bring O&A and Ron&Fez to L.A. radio where they belong!

Memorial Street

Yesterday I was at a memorial service for my Dad. If I ever had doubt that he was a kind and gentle spirit those doubts disappeared as people who were business associates, colleagues, students of, or just friends came to me one after the other to tell me how kind, caring, and genuine my Dad was.

Roy, a guy I knew when I was a kid and would visit my Dad’s TV station, came up to me and said that Dad was the kind of guy who cared for the people he worked with. Who nurtured and supported them so they could get ahead. Roy told me about how he moved his way up the career ladder from a guy who kept the library of film to an editor (maybe before he was actually ready). All along my Dad knew how to encourage and teach those around him so they could reach their potential. He tried to hide them behind his sunglasses but I saw the tears that came to his eyes as Roy said how much he loved and missed my Dad.

I was able to place names with faces as all these people from Dad’s past came to pay their respects. Two of his close friends, Ken & Dave, talked about Dad’s accomplishments and his heart. There wasn’t a dry eye in the place as we all remembered how loving and generous he was.

After the service we had some time to visit with each other and share remembrances and I especially enjoyed speaking to Dave who was my Dad’s closest friend over the last 20 years. Dave has the grin of Old St. Nick and you could feel the warmth of his friendship with my Dad in the way he spoke of him.

Even though we came to honor my father there was an underlying stress to this event. A tension that stemmed from someone who deep down inside didn’t feel like sharing. A person who the world revolves around and loves the spotlight but hates criticism. Avoiding those things that are hard to accept and returning to apologize the next day to those offended when it’s already too late. This person is frustrated because even though the person thinks they are saying the right thing most of the time it is not about what you SAY but what you DO that defines your character. Certainly people mourn in different ways but it is offensive when one persons mourning has damaging effects to other mourners. This certainly can’t be good for the offender either.

I wonder what goes on in the head of a person like this.
I wonder what they dream of.
I wonder if there is any chance that this person will change or if they’re an old dog who has long since given up on new tricks.

I just fall back to my standard mantra these days:
“What would Dad have wanted?
What would he do?
What would he want me to do?”

Numbers

I felt the warmth of my friends and family around me and it helped to ease the blow of what had happened but there was still emptiness. I am still in shock; I can’t get over the fact that he is gone. Sure the support is great but if I am looking for closure I didn’t find it. Though I think this event may be a step in the right direction but I still feel lost.

In my dreams that night I saw my Dad for the first time since his death. I don’t know why it took nearly two weeks for him to show up in my dreams but there he was. I saw a vivid image of him pointing to numbers on a telephone. Telling me to remember these numbers. I found myself repeating them in my head, making sure I didn’t forget and telling myself that I can’t forget to write them down when I awake.

The following day I felt as though a dark cloud was above my head. No longer did I have the open house preparation at the forefront of my mind, keeping it busy. Now all that was left was loss, emptiness and those 11 numbers. I wish I knew what those numbers meant. I looked them up as though they were a phone number and found they referenced a couple in Michigan, the Templins.

How strange would it be for me to call the Templins up and find out if they knew my Dad?

How amazing would it be if they had some connection?

How terrific would it be if they could help me find answers to the questions and doubts that invade my head?

I haven’t called.

My Dad

I have sat down six times over the last few days to write down these words. They may not be completely coherent but I will do my best.

On Monday November 27th at 5:15am my Dad died, 7 days after his 68th birthday. Before he left even though he was not able to communicate we were able to tell him how much we love him and he heard us.

I send this out to all the people that loved him, knew him, or simply were familiar with my Dad's struggle with diabetes and kidney disease. As I write this so many thoughts are swirling around in my head: the regret of not having enough time with him, the wish that I could turn back time (like Hiro Nakamura in the show Heroes) and somehow change what happened, the hopes and dreams we shared for his future, the emptiness inside me after losing him.

On October 28th my Dad finally got the chance he had waited more than 8 years for, a kidney match had been made. When they performed the surgery on October 29th the doctors found that Dad has a massive infection in the cavity around his stomach that had gone undetected. This infection had it been found before the surgery would have resulted in his being denied the transplant. They also found a carcinoma in his bowel which they removed. So when the surgery which lasted more than 8 hours was complete the doctors had saved his life whether the kidney functioned or not. The coming weeks found slow progress with the kidney but by mid November my Dad began to do something that he hadn't done the previous 8 years. He began to pee. It wasn't as much as a healthy person, he was urinating somewhere between a pint and a quart of liquid a day, but it was far more that the one ounce a day he had become used to.

During his recovery we enjoyed some good times. Nina and I visited UCLA frequently and most of the visits we spent talking about TV, movies, current events and on occasion I would bring in some of Dad's favorite foods including dim sum. I loved so much the talks we had.

One of Dad's gifts was the ability to layout a problem that I presented him so I could see the outcome should I pick one solution or another. I will forever be grateful for this gift and I have and will continue to practice it with others for the rest of my life.

He was always supportive and never judgmental. It was not a surprise that his heart required a bypass and so much maintenance over the years because it was so big, so charitable, and so full of love. He was strong and tough when it was required but you always knew what an old softie he was inside. He was a fighter and a survivor who had beat the odds time and time again. He was my Hero.

On November 20th I visited Dad for his birthday and he was in good shape but tired from the physical therapy he had performed that day. I was lucky enough to be there when he got one of the best birthday presents ever. A visit from his grandson TJ and TJ's girlfriend Michelle. I was so surprised and happy to see them and the minute Dad saw them there was this amazing warmth that filled the room as Dad cried with happiness. Yes the old softie had come out once again.

At some point during the following week he contracted an infection that didn't show itself until late Thursday night. From that point on doctors tried everything they could to give him a chance to fight the infection and the nurses tried to give us hope but by Sunday morning I think we all knew the end was near.

Though he had been in a coma that was induced by the infection and he could not speak I discovered through the day Sunday that he was hearing what I said to him at each visit. During one of my visits in the early afternoon I got up in his face to tell him how much I love him and to give him a hug as he lay there in his hospital bed. At that moment I thought I saw his head move. The first response I had seen from him in many days. When Nina and I walked out the ICU I told her that I could have sworn I saw his head move and that he heard what I was saying. She told me she saw his leg move when I was talking to him. I went back to his bedside a few minutes later to confirm my feelings and he was able to raise an eyebrow, and give me a partial grin to let me know he heard me.

On Sunday Night my Step-Mom Jan and a couple of chaplains from the hospital visited him to give a blessing based on his Episcopal Faith. Following this first Nina and I and then my brother Tom and his wife Cari were able to visit him one last time. On this visit my brother and I told my father pretty much the same words. We told him that we love him and that it is up to him if he wants to keep fighting and that if he was tired and ready to leave us that it was ok. That if he wanted to continue fighting we would support him but we didn't want him to fight just for us. I told him how much I love him and that I would take care of Jan and the others he left behind. As I said these words I saw a tear come from his eye.

In my grief I write these words and I hope that this letter is not seen as burden on you. If nothing else it is a celebration of my father and the love I have for him and a part of the process that I must go through to find the closure I so desperately need. Hopefully as time passes what will remain are memories of the good times we had.

Get rich quick

Someone just hit the powerball for $340 million. This person had a 1 in 146 million chance and they hit it. And this person lives in Oregon where $340 million might as well be 340 extillion trillion dillion. More money than you could possibly spend.

We all wonder if that will ever happen to us. I am convinced that it won't for me. I found the following article interesting in the words that scammers use to justify their actions. Usually the justification is that they are a robin hood like being taking from the rich (Americans) and giving to the poor (themselves). Just like the drug trade this is a no win situation for anyone. Even the scammer loses when he wastes his money on furr sinks & electric dog polishers.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/latimests/20051020/ts_latimes/iwilleatyourdollars

Since I know someone who fell for a scam like this and still believes in it I know that this is a reality even in 2005. They target the elderly because they are more trusting. Perhaps it's a good thing that grandma doesn't have a computer or know how to e-mail? She can be protected. But then again my grandma is so stingy I can't image her sending money to Nigeria to a stranger. It's sad that I know someone who has been taken for a huge sum of money yet I do not know someone who has won a huge sum.

Stay informed, protect the elderly in your family and FIGHT BACK!

Thinking my way thru the morning commute

Sitting in Traffic you get to thinking.

I would like to invent a device like the remote that turns off TVs in airports that would do the same to cellphones on the road. 80% of the people I see on the freeway are talking on the phone while driving. It is very frustrating when you are stuck behind some idiot concetrating on the phone more than the road and holding you up in the fast lane. If I had a device to turn that puppy off I would turn my frown upside down. Criss cross applesauce that buddies!

I travel the 91 west every morning to work and the best days to commute are when there is an accident on the 91 east of where I pick it up (Magnolia Blvd). I wouldn't wish that anyone be in an accident but wouldn't it be cool if there was a service that could create a disruption in the area behind you so that you could avoid traffic? A group of guys dressed in reflective vests jump out of a truck and start coning the freeway east of me down to one lane. Sweet.

I am back to considering a Hybrid vehicle for my next purchase because the price difference between the Escape Hybrid and the regular Escape is $3000 and not $10000 like it is for other hybrids. The thing is I try to avoid traveling slower that 40 mph and it is at the lower speeds that you really get the savings over the gas engine. Also I need to determine if in fact running the air requires the gas engine to kick in all the time and if I need to run the air all the time.

The best thing about my commute is listening to Opie & Anthony. Recently they had a comedian named Patrice on talking about how he needed to teach his girlfriend how to be a friend. She knew how the to be his girl, but she didn't know how to be his buddy like one of the guys. Opie & Anthony were tight lipped about this, guess they didn't want to ruffle anyone's feathers. The bottom line is that women are not your friends. They are sexy, sweet and wonderful companions but they will never be "your buddy". You can't go to a bar with your girl and talk about the rack on this one, or the ass on that one. At the same time you don't want to hang out with your girl checking out guys packages (do they even do that?).

Are We Making Progress in the Middle East?

A letter reportedly from the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq to Osama Bin Laden was intercepted in early July that details al Zarqawi's concerns about their tactics in Iraq might turn muslims against al Qaeda. If this letter is legitimate then perhaps we are making progress on the War on Terror afterall.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/07/pentagon.al.qaeda/index.html

Bush's Speech Thursday morning was well prepared and was one of his best. Too bad he didn't save it for prime time. It's about time he put it out there that Iraq is a quagmire and it's his quagmire. I think the more he takes responsiblity for things, the better he will be perceived. To portray the war on terror as similar to the war on communism is kind of a stretch. I like the way he linked sacrifice to success and made it clear that people are dying and that they will continue to die until this war is over. That is how great change works. The fact that people do not want to deal with this issue is understandable but if we don't fight this war now we will pay in the long run. Like if you don't change the oil on your car regularly. Got that Fantasia Barrino?

Clearly if the US were to pull out that would make Iraq a terrorist haven.

Since Bush is looked on positively for taking responsiblity do you think he should admit his mistakes? Would that endear him to the American people and to the world?

If he admitted that he made a mistake and shouldn't have gone into Iraq in the first place would you feel better about the guy? Can he be saved in the opinions of guys like Sean Penn (do we care?) or Phil Donahue? Does it make him look weak or responsible?

I think if he did admit to his wrongs and used it as a basis to convince the world that the past is the past but that today we need to finish the job in Iraq things might be different.

Weekend Observations for 10/03/05

Now that I have a DVR from my crappy cable company taping things for future broadcast is much easier. Is "taping" the correct term when no tape is involved? Being a fan of the vast world of television I sampled all the returning shows from last year and a good number of the new ones.

The best show this year is the best show from last year. LOST. JJ Abrams has a second success to accompany ALIAS, that is so dynamic in the stories it tells as it pulls the experiences of the stranded plane crash survivors past's into the events on the island and ties the whole thing together. We still don't know the big picture which in my mind is what will make this a long term success. If you don't know what's around the corner you will always be surprised to find it. Terry O'Quinn and his mysterious Loc character is the highlight for me. He is much better than the skipper, gilligan, or even the professor.

At the same time the folks at ALIAS really dissappointed me with how they treated Vaughn in the season opener. I should have known that when I saw Jennifer Garner had a producer credit that this was going to happen. Ben Affleck sucks.

The worst show this year has to be SURFACE. The acting, the writing, the concept. Well it's all bad and I give this show a month before it's done. A close second is E-RING. Not because it's not a good concept, I love the "homeland security" play and I am still pissed that CBS cancelled The Agency. Dennis Hopper is great but the other acting is very poor, not to mention the dialogue, and Benjamin Bratt is lousy.

Survivor is getting tried (as we all knew it would).

Can you tell that the only significant thing I did over the weekend was watch TV? That's what happens when you work on Saturday.

Joe Rogan = Evolution Man

Listening to Joe Rogan the other day on Opie & Anthony was a blast. This guy really has some interesting things to say. He is actually a student of Man. He has the best job in the world (eventhough he hates it) because it's easy, he works 3 days a week and the money is amazing. But I never thought listening to the host of Fear Factor would direct me toward national geographic.

The most interesting thing he talked about was evolution. Scientist have mapped the human genome (the set that consists of all the genes that determine who we are) and found that we are 96% ape. This being said how could one argue against the concept of evolution?

Don't believe me? Read it for yourself.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0831_050831_chimp_genes.html

Calling humans human is like calling a sandwich that is 96% shit and 4% cheese a cheese sandwich. I am sorry friend, that is a shit sandwich.

Hoo hoo ha ha hee hee
(scratch the head)
(pound the chest)
(rub the tummy)

Popular Political Opinion

I am the first person to stand up for the war in Iraq. I feel strongly that in order to insure that Iraq is settled as a peaceful country that U.S. forces need to remain there. I am not overly concerned with the death toll of civilians or military. Not because I don't care but because I understand that when you are trying to exact great change there is a cost.

What concerns me is the American Public and how long the Bush Administration will stand strong against the growing number of the who demand the withdrawal of U.S. Troops from Iraq. This is still a small group but it's a vocal group. I am afraid that the message that the "U.S. Troops in Iraq is wrong" will become public opinion. It is public opinion that brought the troops back from Vietnam and it could be the same for Iraq. Although I see no similarities in the two conflicts.

Yet I wonder if a major cause of the war in Vietnam is the same as what has created the conflict with al Qaeda. If there was not a "Head of al Qaeda in Iraq" would the situation appear so grim? If Al Zarqawi was dead would peace come to the region sooner? If you saw the documentary "The Fog of War" you know that a major cause of the Vietnam conflict was miscommunication. I think it is clear that communication is a big part of why Osama Bin Laden and his followers hate the U.S. and I think most would agree whether you like him or not that George W. Bush is far from a great communicator. He even calls on invisible reports at press conferences. (Bianca are you there yet?).

It takes time and sacrifice to exact great change.

Lets hope the American Public has the patience to see it through.

Bad Week

Ever have one of those weeks when you feel like a dark cloud is following you around?

This week is one of those for me. You think that everything you touch will break. Whatever you try to do will be a failure. The feeling of frustration and paranoia that you are not capable of doing anything right and you are incompetent and others know it. I ask myself what I did wrong that I deserve such problems?

Maybe if I had donated to Hurricane Katrina Aid?
So if I had donated to this one cause then I would be ok? All the money I have donated through the year (part of which was when I was without a job) to other good causes means nothing because I didn't donate to this cause? Everyone else in the country donated but I didn't so I am destined to break everything I touch and fail every task I attempt? Maybe if I had just purchased a kayak and paddled out to the survivors in New Orleans to rescue them my freezer wouldn't have broken this morning?

Maybe if I hadn't been slacking on my workouts for the past week? My stupid mind could tie my guilt for not working out the last week to bad karma which results in bad luck? When you are in a bad way and frustrated your mind plays tricks on you.

Don't worry, I am not insane, I am just having a bad week.

Really glad I was able to share it with you.

And it's only Tuesday.

Weekend Observations for 09/26/05

When you schedule a service call for certain cable companies (all of them?) between 8am and 10am it really means after 11am. Also you are not capable of attaching a coax cable to a cable box (otherwise why would we need to schedule an appt with you stupid ass?). I have attached cables to boxes for years. There is nothing like a properly attached cable. How complicated can the box be? Anyone who has seen a box before knows how it works and what to do to make it work for you. Am I still talking about Cable TV?

The Raiders are tough. Being a fan of the Raiders is tougher this year than most. Everyone picks them to lose every week, and odds are that in most cases they will be right. The difficult part is that the Raiders are in all these games. On Sunday they tied it up against the Eagles with 3 minutes to go when their defense broke down and the Eagles drove the ball down the field just to have a gimp come out and kick a winning field goal. My heart was pounding, I was all sweaty, the tension was high and then at the big climax I was spent and ashamed. I don't know how many more of these I can take because I am not getting any younger. I am talking about Football right?

The Cold Case season opener last night was nothing too great, until the end. I read this article in entertainment weekly talking about how all these TV shows end with a montage of images set to music. Like a cool music video, but EW asked when it will no longer be in fashion to do this. Cold Case is usually a terrific show but last night I was left unsatisfied because the mystery was just blah. Then the end comes where they roll out "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel as you see the pictures of the characters as they hug, as they are locked up in jail, as they look today, as they looked when the murder occurred and then the final recognition of the dead guy but Det Rush at the end. Damn that makes me all tingly just thinking about it. It was a great music video but just a so-so show.

You don't notice people whispering around you when you are in the IN Crowd. Do you? Are you in or out? Do you spend a lot of time in the IN Group? Do you prefer to be in or do you like it when you are out? Maybe you like being out and then going in and then getting back out again just to be welcomed back in? Sometimes being in is the best.

The Hell Express

In life there will always be people that hate you. There will always be people who no matter what you do will think you are a bad person. Usually these people are relatives that have expectations far beyond reason. Psychos.

The other day Nina and I were discussing how no matter what we do that a certain individual in our lives will always think we are bad. Will always be unhappy with us. Will always think we are going to hell. The option we chose is to not give a crap. I guess we are bad people.

We are so bad in some people's minds that I am sure we are on "The Hell Express". Because not only are we going to hell we are on a plane that has 95% OnTime Performance Record and supercharged engines. I can just see meeting Saddam in the lounge as he asks "What did you do?", and I tell him that I told one of my relatives that they could do whatever they wanted because they won't listen to me anyway. "Rough".

Nina told me that the bad thing is that murders, rapists, and child molesters will be on the express with us. I told her that's ok, because they will be in coach.

Weekend Observations for 09/19/05

This weekend I discovered Bavarian Abbot Ale, imported from Belgium. Nice. With 8% alcohol it about put me on my ass but it was quite tasty with a range of flavors from fruity to spicy in a nice mix of three wheats (Tripel in Bavarian-Speak). All Poulez Fussie's (sic) are not created equal. In Canada we enjoyed a bottle of this variety and it was amazing. Unfortunately I did not note the winery (it was a 2001 though) so I decided to try a few bottles at the Beverages and More store. We sampled two over the weekend and one (Louis Jadot 2002) was ok but did not differ much from your garden variety Chardonnay the other (Joseph Drought 2003) tasted like watered down Louis Jadot. Any recommendations?

Shower repair. Next time I have an issue with plumbing I am going to dive into it instead of being sheepish. Lord knows I am a mechanical clutz but with a year plus of home improvement under my belt I discovered that I can do a thing or two. I discovered that by taking apart my shower massage that I was able to do a sufficient repair that stopped the "spray all over because of hard water mineral collection" problem. I also discovered the folks at Home Depot Expo are not like the guys at Home Depot. They don't know anything about anything related to home improvement. The guy I talked to had one objective, and that was to get done talking to me so he could move on to whatever other crap he had to do. Sheesh! Mineral collection got you down? Try a soak in a little vinegar.

My 1983 TV is nearly toast. The other night there was a green flash and everything went purple. Then the Raiders hit the field and looked nervous, scared and a tad inept. They held there own but in the end fell short of a victory. I am not sure why they got so shaky all of a sudden, they did not look that way in the season opener in New England. Next week they take on the Eagles. This could be a long season.

Local Color:
When in Fullerton (now in Brea too) be sure and check out Kimmie's Coffee Cup. They have the best chicken fried steak and eggs in So-Cal. Sunday we decided to try "Bernies" which advertised itself as good hometown cooking. The place had a line out the door. The food just sucks. It's horrible. I don't know if the place is better for lunch or dinner but the breakfast was a zero. Go to Kimmies.

Shopped for a new bicycle. Since the last time I bought one was in the early 90's I figured it was time to find a new one. I think the bike I liked the most was the Giant Yukon which is a comfort bike that felt quite good. It seems the best one available for me but I am not sure if it's as comfortable as I want it to be. It's also only $100 than the Diamond Back Ascent that I purchased in 1992. Not bad. Anyway I have not purchased it yet but I think I will soon.

What is a good price for alternations? $12 a seam is the price I was quoted on Saturday. Is that good?

If you have a fountain in your yard is it supposed to sound like a rushing stream? I had to get up to pee three times the other night because my neighbor's fountain has been running like Hurricane Katrina for the last few days.

Frick and Frack suck.

Enjoy the week.

Spread the Virus

Opie & Anthony on XM 202.

Stern is done.

Whoo hoo Robin, I'm done.

Oh Howard you will be going to satellite too.

Whoo hoo Robb-in I invented everything.

Whoo hoo but I won't be as funny as Jim Norton.

Don't Give to Hurricane Katrina Relief

Don't give to Hurricane Katrina Relief.

That is don't give until you have properly evaluated who you are giving to and what the people you are giving to will do with your hard earned funds.

I am shocked and amazed at the outpour of help that has washed over those who have suffered from this disaster. It is equally amazing that just because a miss-managed international charity that uses a red plus sign as their symbol spouts off a huge figure for rebuilding far before the actual damage has been assessed.

Let's get real people they botched up 911! Why would you trust them with your hard earned wages now? There are millionaire coke addicts traveling all around the world because they hit the lottery thanks to the red plus sign. Charities like this one and a certain breast cancer fund that plasters pink ribbons everywhere are businesses that make money off the business of helping people. These organizations throw big parties for their management team in 4 star hotels in NYC and nobody pays mind to this. Many don't even know about it.

Let's look at the people we are helping. According to Celine Dion (I love to quote her) these people may have never touched a plasma TV (So sad, tears). She says so what if they steal 20 pairs of shoes because "they won't get far with it. Let them touch these things they never touched." Touch it, rub it leibshen (sic). Und now is the time on shprockets when we dance!

New Orleans has the second highest murder rate in the nation. Even the police were caught looting after Katrina passed.

More importantly, they all knew Katrina was coming. The media tracked this storm for more than a week before it hit the coast. Don't tell me these people don't have TV's, you can drive through south central L.A. and see little shacks that people live in and there in the front room is a huge big screen. Blame the major of New Orleans for being unprepared (like he was), blame the governer of Louisiana for not acting quickly (because she didn't), blame the president for being on vacation (because he does his best sleeping in Texas) but when it all comes down to it we are each responsible for our own survival and the survival of our loved ones.

YOU ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THEM!

YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY FOR WHAT HAPPENED EVEN IF YOU DON'T DONATE A CENT!

You probably have already paid the bill in higher gas prices. The one percent of the petroleum refining that is done on the gulf coast stopped due to the storm. So that equals a $1/gallon increase (on average) in gas prices? I DON'T F---ING THINK SO!

It's high season for the gas station owners!

You will also pay in insurance premiums just like with 911. How many of you had a 50% increase in your property tax because of 911?

You will pay in taxes as Bush asks Congress for billions upon billions of aid for the gulf coast. All before any damage assessment has been made.

After the predicition that it would take a month for the waters to recede, today, a little more than a week after the disaster parts of New Orleans are already opening. Mardi Gras is back on schedule. The plastic bead necklass makers are back in business. And Howard Stern's girlfriend is flying around looking for lost puppys.

It just warms the heart that soon the thieves and murders of the Big Easy well be back to work again.

Hertz Don't It? (Northwest Adventure Part 1)

Just got back last week from a trip to Oregon & Vancouver BC to attend the wedding of my nephew Warren and his lovely bride Dena and to see my niece Paullllla off to her new adventure as a marketing major at the University of British Columbia. There is a lot to cover and I am sure you will be hanging on my every word.

Ya right.

The first issue that comes to mind is my rental car. Despite that fact that I did not have to get the car until three days into the trip, up to that point things had gone quite well. Everyone had arrived and were in good health. Nina had put on a terrific rehearsal dinner with rave reviews. We were a mere day away from Warren & Dena's nuptuals.

I had decided to rent from Hertz because they tend to have newer cars in better condition and my brother-in-law Sam had a coupon for me to borrow. I managed to rent a full size car for 8 days and the tab was about $200. Not bad eh?

I rented from an HLE (Hertz Local Edition) to avoid the added taxes that are put on rentals that are picked up at the airport. I thought this was a smart move. Save money, the place was closer to my sister-in-law's house where we were staying, I had no cares at all. At noon I had my niece Julie drive Nina and I to the HLE to pick up the car. We had a brand new Ford (who incidentally owns Hertz) Taurus waiting for us. The car had barely 2000 miles on it and I thought it would be a comfortable vehicle to transport us from Portland to Vancouver.

On the way back from the HLE I noticed that the temperature gauge was quickly moving to H. I asked myself if I wanted to take a risk driving this car on the 6 hour journey to Canada. I decided that if my car at home had the needle pointing on H I would take it to shop as soon as possible. I decided to take the car back and trade it for another one.

When I returned to the HLE I told them about the problem. They said they didn't have any more cars and would have to get one from another HLE. About a half hour later someone showed up with a Buick. While the pretty boy no brain Hertz agent did the paper work I went out to check out the car. It needed a good wash so I went back in and asked them if they could wash the car. They gave me a card for a free "Kaddie Kar Wash" which is one of those drive thru quick car wash stores. They said that they don't wash the cars.

When have you ever rented a car and it was clear when you picked it up? Was I at Hertz or Rent a Bucket of Spit? (nice image)

So I take the car back to the house and on the way I realize that this car is dirty on the inside as well as the out. They had not tried to clean it up at all since it's last return the day before (the previous renters paperwork was in the car). Pathetic. I called the Hertz 800 number and asked them if I exchanged the car at the Portland Airport would I have more cars available to choose from. Indiria the nice lady from Bangladesh asked what car I wanted. I told her I would be happy with a clean, correctly functioning Taurus, so she reserved one for me. At about 6:30 Nina and I ventured out to the airport to exchange the dirt bucket.

When we got the airport I told the attendent that I was exchanging the car. He called his manager over and the guy took down my story and said that he would file a complaint against the Hertz that I rented from. We went into terminal and waited for the next agent to become available. While we were waiting the guy behind me mentioned that people were going right up to the agents and bypassing the line to "ask questions". I told him that those people are just far better human beings than he and I and were deserving of being first. Then I told him that perhaps I was delirious because this had been the third time I had been in line at a Hertz that day. He was pretty surprised, you could tell he had high expectations from Hertz as I did.

It was finally our shot and the agent was very accomodating. Eventhough I was sick of telling the same story over and over somehow I thought I would get something back for my pain. She offered us a Ford Escape (Ford's compact SUV) for the same rate as the Taurus. After checking the car out in the lot we happily agreed. Hertz finally made the right call from a customer service standpoint. The Escape turned out to be a very smart vehicle that I am considering purchasing in the future. Paula's dad also liked it because he got to shove a bunch of the crap he bought for her to take up to University of BC.

We left the airport at 8pm (note this for future post) and went back to the house.

to be continued...

Open Letter to Best Buy

Your company failed to reach estimated profits because of your failure to respond to customers needs. About a year ago I e-mailed you about your rewards program and how you should not charge a yearly fee to belong to it and my e-mail was completely ignored. I had been a customer of your company for many years and you lost me. I have not purchased anything from Best Buy ever since.

You get nothing. You lose. Good day sir.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050913/bs_nm/retail_bestbuy_earns1_dc

Busy

Back to work, going to school, everything I used to do during the week I now do on the weekend.

I get no Sleep

I'm Busy

An Open Letter to Want-to-be Wine Country Temcula

I am going to hold you people accountable.

I am going to tell it like it is and try to explain why your so-called "wine country" is 85% trash.

On a recent trip to Temecula, California it became crystal clear why to really experience California wine country you must go North of Los Angeles. For those of you not familiar, Temecula is a small town located in the Northern San Diego County but I consider the place more Riverside adjacent (the only trash here is white).

About 5 years ago Nina and I made our first trip to Temecula. Being winos and fond of drinking and driving (just kidding) Temecula was a way to do some wine tasting and not have to drive for more than an hour. Back then we visit about 5 wineries and heard the classic comment from a trailer dweller as she re-entered her rented limo "That place has the best wine. One drink and your toasted". This trip include mediocre wine, high fees for tasting, and overpriced crappy food and the then Premier Temecula Winery Thorton Vineyards. A meal that we had to wait 3 hours to get. Needless to say Thorton was not on our list to visit this time.

The art of wine tasting is about sampling the subtle differences between one winery and another comparing it to what you are used to. It's about discovering a new flavor, it's about finding a wine that you like the taste.

IT'S NOT ABOUT GETTING DRUNK!

In the next few posts I will describe what happened at the various wineries we visited. The good the bad and the ugly.

Baily Winery

We started our visit at Baily Winery. Having arrived around Noon we decide to have lunch at Carol's Restaurant on the Baily property. I had a Salmon Salad and Nina has a Steak. The Salmon was prepared well and served over a bed of greens with grapes, gorgonzola cheese and candied pecans. It was a tasty combination of flavors but the salmon itself didn't have much of a punch. A little seasoning or perhaps a wine marinade may have helped this. The steak was ok but you would think at a winery based restaurant all steaks would be marinated in red wine to bring out the flavor. When you cut into a steak that hasn't been properly marinated it's blah. You shouldn't have to add salt to a steak that has been properly prepared.

This being said overall the lunch was tasty. I enjoyed a glass of the Baily Rose' with my salad and it was delicious. The Rose' was very fresh tasting and reminded me of a sparkling wine, somewhat effervescent. The service was also very good.

After lunch we entered the tasting room. The wine at Baily's is pretty tasty with their standouts being the Rose' and a Muscat Blanc. The tasting fee is $5 for 5 tastes from a list of about 10 wines not including their Cabernet Franc and Meritage. If you want to taste these you pay $10 but you still only get to try 5 wines. Since we were focusing on whites we decided to go for the $5 option and were not able to try all the wines they had to offer.

I have to say this whole # of tastings for # of dollars is crap. I understand why people charge for tasting but don't make the bookkeeping difficult. Just charge one price for basic tasting and another for "premium", 'reserve", or "extended" tasting. Don't make me have to figure out what wines I get to taste from a list. How the hell do I know what I want to taste if I haven't tasted it?

At the tasting room we met Phil Baily who seemed to be a nice guy. He asked us if we enjoyed our lunch. It's this kind of consideration and customer service that makes you feel good to patronize a store. The fact that he remember seeing us and was courteous was great and it was the last we would see of customer service in this wonderful valley. I also noticed that he was very tollerant to the guy standing next to me who was bragging about how he was the president of some pasta sauce maker and how because of Phil he now had a 2000 bottle wine cellar in his house. Yet you know that he probably drives a 81 Chevy Nova. His hoochie girlfriend looked like she used to work the local strip joint until the truck accident that somehow disfigured her horribly (insert your own image here).

Mount Palomar Winery

"Could you move closer to the wall so we can get these other people in to taste".

This was one of the wonderful one liner's from the snobby bitch that served us. The fact that she tolerated our presence was so delightful of her. I would not judge an entire wine tasting experience strickly based on the staff but for Mount Palomar I'll give it my best shot. We walked into the dimly lit room with the wonderful sounds of a dishwasher surrounding us as a hint of swamp gas from it gave us that Feng Shui feel. Bitch-Monica I will call her, though I never even asked her name, told us the rules. 6 tastings for 5 dollars from a list of 12 wines. After I paid BM (Bitch-Monica) she put down a glass and a card that had 6 little perforated pieces on it. As she poured each tasting she would rip off one of the strips. This must be a god send to her because after I cosied up against the wall there must have been 10 people tasting. Heaven forbid she lose track and give someone 7 tastings instead of 6! Once she finished tearing off the strips she would deposit the left over card into a large glass vase. CHA-CHING!

This all being said Mount Palomar did have a few good wines, the highlight being their Sherry. Apparently they have some sort of deviced to make the sherry that no one else in Temecula has. I don't know what it is. I don't know why they need it and BM was not too interested in explaining it so I didn't push it. Needless to say this sherry had a taste of a fine brandy without the bite. Very nice.

Mount Palomar also has a deli with some great smelling pizza. The woman who works the deli was very kind an accommodating but she had too much to do and not enough help. A world of difference from BM. That's Bitch-Monica in case you haven't kept up with the theme of this post.

You know it's called wine tasting. Not wine drinking. Maybe if they didn't pour so much then they could offer the whole line of wines to taste without all the punch cards, torn perfs, body modification for a tasting, etc. It must cost a lot of money to make up those little deals and the liability insurance for the tattoo artist must be astronomical.

One last comment. We spent $80 on wine at Mount Palomar. Did we get one thank you?

NO.

I know that there are some people that spend hundreds of dollars at each visit to a winery but these people are few a far between. The most common in Temecula are the "One sip and your toasted" group so you would think that when some spends some money that even the most snobbish, cynical Bitch-Monica would at least throw out a "Thank you for visiting Mount Palomar".

Maurice Car'rie

Maurice Car'rie reminded me of Knotts Berry Farm.

They have all this crap all over the place. Jam, jellies, chocolate, gold panning supplies. Oh yes they are big fans of the color pink.

Maurice Car'rie is the only winery in Temecula that doesn't charge for tasting. The reason from my perspective is that their wines are nothing special. We tasted the whole list of wines and despite the fact that all were good, nothing really stood out. The fact that the woman that served us was complaining that she wanted to go on a break and that she hoped another tourist bus was not pulling up just added to the ambiance. She was kind enough to offer us a reserve cabernet that was not on the list but when I asked her what the difference was she said that it was grown in a different place (inside joke for wine tasting fans). The one bright spot is their Pineapple Champagne which is not on the tasting list but I asked to taste it anyway. There is no distinct pineapple flavor or aroma but this sparkling wine was quite refreshing. The older lady who helped us after the break woman took her break in the middle of our tasting mumbled something about how we were supposed to taste the whites first so she doesn't have to use another glass but poured us the sample anyway.

Lets put this into perspective.

Nina and I buy one taste at each winery and share it. They pour so much that even after we taste the wine we dump half of the sample. So even though every other couple didn't share a glass this woman was bitching about our choice of sampling champagne after tasting all the other wines. We would have been ok with rinsing out the glass we had used but there were no pitchers on the bar to rinse out the glass with. There were sinks that this woman could use to rinse out the glass and we would have been fine. Yet she took the road to complain to the customer.

When I went to the Maurice Car'rie Website to reference this post the site crashed my browser.

We bought the champagne.

Detour For Cheese

We made a detour to Winchester Cheese to pick up some nice cheese combustibles.

They make Gouda. Just Gouda. 15 types of Gouda. It's Good-Ah! (sorry about that)

The lady who helped us was super nice and the pretzels were from walmart. Woo hoo!

Wilson Creek Winery

Wilson Creek was bustling with activity.

Sampling here was 5 tastings for 7 dollars with an extra $3 for a tasting of the chocolate port that comes in a small chocolate cup.

The wines here are good with the highlight being the White Cabernet. I have never tasted a white wine made from Cabernet grapes and it was quite tasty. It was one of the most unique wines I have had and it made for an instant sale. Other highlights were the Almond Champagne and the Chocolate Port. The Champagne had a great Almond aroma and taste, unique and delicious. The Port was good summer style port. There was not a strong chocolate flavor but was very light a airy.

I think the fact that they had tip jars on the bar was tacky. The staff was friendly and I did tip but after spend $10 to taste should I have to pay the server?

Ponte Family Winery

I think this place is called a "Family" winery because they let people bring the kids to hang out at the bar. There were so many people at the bar (tasting and not tasting) that when we arrived at 4:45pm we decided to look around a little before tasting. Around 5:01 I got the chance to step up to the bar and told the guy that I wanted to purchase one tasting. He told me that the winery closes at 5:00. I said that we were there 15 minutes ago but there was no room at the bar. He acted like he didn't understand what I was saying and repeated that they close a 5 and he can't serve me. I said that I thought this was a lousy way to treat customers and that we were here before 5 and there was no room at the bar because all these kids were hanging around. He then said that they need to clean up so they need to stop serving at 5pm yet it was 5:03 at this point and others at the bar were still being served. I told him to forget it. He then said that he could serve us while they cleaned up but it's going to be messy. I told him to just forget and walked out the door.

I guess the problem is that they hire snobs to work at these places and pay them minimum wage. There is no doubt in my mind that were we in Santa Ynez, Sonoma, Napa, or Portland we would not have been treated so rudely.

South Coast Winery

The woman at this place who poured called the Rose' (Rose-ah) wine Rose (rose) wine.

Did she think it was made up of roses?

Pompous bitch should get a little learning about accents and tildes and the like before she stands on her podium and declares how many tastes you get as she sharpies your card to keep track. Be sure and use the blue sharpie and circle the glass on the card if they try the port!

Yes Sir!

I will add some conclusions about the total experience in a future post.

Slacker

Have I slacked off from my mission or what?

Anything I say will be thought of as an excuse but at least I am back.

To answer the deodorant question I use speed stick or old spice. I do not use anti-persperant because for me they are evil.

Comments

Just a note that the comments logic has been changed recently so you do not have to set up a blog account to post a comment. You can also post a comment anonymously.

Time for cornflakes

Interesting Site of the Month

http://www.thesuperficial.com/

This site describes itself:
The Superficial is a brutally honest look at society and its obsession with the superficial. It is not satire. It is not social commentary. It is the voice of our society at its worst. It is first impressions without sense of social obligation. It is the truth of our generation. It is ugly racism. It is jealousy. It is honest.

But the truth is (also taken from the "About Us" page):
Our goal is to make fun of as many people as possible.

In a nutshell this site is mocking celebrity and all it's entrapments. It cheers when candid photos of Jessica Alba on the beach are found and it laughs when it discovers Britney Spears is fat. Somewhere in the middle Hillary Duff is describe as "a giant rectangle", Tara Reid comes out of a club at 4am with bloodshot eyes after a long night of "studying" and Vanilla Ice is declared a wussy.

I don't know where this guy gets all this great material but I need to tap into that information highway.

24

If you saw Kiefer Sutherland on "Inside the Actor's Studio" you may have been turned off by the fact that this guy's favorite word is the Latin word "Gravitas" (meaning weighty, heavy). The fact of the matter is though his response seems so pretentious "Actor's Studio" is all about pretentiousness. James Lipton has made pretentiousness an art form but I digress, my acerbic transgressions belie my true intent, that is to review Season 4 of 24.

24 is probably the most compelling program on TV. Each hour represents an hour in the day which unfolds each season. It draws you into the lives of Jack Bauer and his team at CTU (Counter Terrorism Unit) located somewhere in downtown Los Angeles. Just like the great blockbusters on the big screen 24 pits Bauer versus the end of the world. This year he finds himself against a group of Arab terrorists out to breakdown the safety controls of a group of nuclear power plants, cause the plants to meltdown and kill millions. Creating images based on recent news events (such as the taking of hostages and broadcasting it on the news) 24 terrorizes the audience.

With the exception of Sutherland and a few cameos the cast is all new, a move that definitely gives a freshness to the storyline. While Bauer tracks the bad guys a mole has infiltrated CTU and must be found and dealt with. A mother and son grapple with their loyalty to the terrorists cause and self preservation. Old friends (e. g. Tony Almeda as played by Carlos Bernard) are brought in to help Jack save the day, and Kim Bauer though nice to look at is thankfully at camp for the season. Put this all together and you have what I believe is the best season of 24 so far.

Certainly there is a lot going on in these peoples' lives and a little suspension of disbelief is necessary. Each hour is chock full of events that bend and draw the story leaving you craving for more as the last few seconds tick away each week. What makes Season 4 so good is that all the storylines are interesting, there are no duds in this lot, no fly in this ointment, no rotten apples in this bunch, no stained g-string in this laundry, no scratch in this finish, no James Lipton in is Dinner for Five. It's just a good tight show.

24 airs Monday Nights at 9pm on FOX.

Kitchen Accomplished

After


As you can see we have been busy remodeling our kitchen. Now that it is finally done I am quite relieved. Let me tell you this job was not an easy one.

I decided to take on the job of general contractor for this project because I was tired of years of wanting a new space and no results, besides what else is there to do when you got no job. Now mind you (who talks like this?) I have no mechanical skill and my attention to detail is minimal. But I thought this would be a good learning experience and up till now every home improvement job I have taken on has never come out the way I wanted so what did I have to lose?

Did you know that if you buy stone from certain Armenian tile companies that they don't hold it for you until you come to pick it up? I purchased the stone tiles for the floor in October because they were on clearance and I wanted to get my share before they ran out. When I returned to pick them up in December they had been sold out from under me. I had already paid for them and they were not in the warehouse. I was told when I purchased them that I didn't need to rush to pick them up yet when I tried to pick them up I was told that you must pick up your purchase within 2 weeks of purchase or you will have to pick something else. I was told that this is the way the tile business works. Bullshit. Bedrosians will not get any more of my business.

Another interesting thing that I discovered is that when you purchase custom cabinets make sure that when they are installed they are level. I am told that it is not uncommon for the floor of your house to be uneven because the cement was not poured correctly or the earth has shifted. If the cabinets are not level and you choose a granite slab (or other solid surface) as your countertop the installer cannot install it properly. Oh and don't count on the countertop guy to make sure the cabinets are level before he installs the top. My slab guy would have gone ahead installing the slab had the cabinets not been so far off level (1/2 an inch). I called the cabinet people out and they re-leveled all the cabinets so the slab guy could do the install. It was a nightmare that I don't envison taking on again but I learned a lot. Mainly that I will not remodel my next house.

This is only the first phase of MOSSNEWS EXTREME HOME REMODEL.

That 70's Kitchen

Before

Look at this old kitchen. And the ceiling used to be popcorn, the walls used to be white and off-white colors.

Hello Moto!

After two years of dependability I washed my Motorola T720 into oblivion. Having had both Nokia and Motorola Phones I found that Motorolas to be better, the Nokia I had started malfunctioning within the first couple of months. Had I not left my T720 in my pants in the washer I am sure it would still be functioning fine.

If you look through the phones available these days it's a sorry looking field. All the Motorolas have all the features that interest me and they all get bad raps. Many reviews I have seen say that the phone just shuts down, or crashes and you have to take the battery out to reset the whole thing. When looking at the recommend phones, Samsung & Nokia, they are either expensive ($200+) or very large.

I have had t-mobile for a while and like the service and the cost and my intention is to stay with them. I hoped to reactivate through Amazon and get one of those rebates that ends up giving me money for buying the phone once the rebate is processed (a hassle). But I found that unless I changed from t-mobile to another carrier I do not qualify for the amazon special rebate. If I sign up for another year with t-mobile I can purchase a phone at a t-mobile store and qualify for the discounts new customers receive and I can do the mail in rebate if one applies.

So I am checking out the phones and the ones that the salesman recommends I hate. I didn't care much for the salesman either. Just then a girl comes in with her mom and asks if she can return her phone because she is having problems. I asked her what phone she purchased and she pointed at the very Motorola phone I wanted to purchase (V180). I debated this for about 15 minutes and decided to take my chances and buy the Motorola ($50).

So we will see how it goes.

The Road to Objectivity Part 1

My ultimate goal is to be objective.

People see things with a bias, me included, but at some point in my life I hope that I can reach the point where I can view things with an objective eye.

Growing up with a Democrat Father and a Republican Mother I was torn as to which direction to take because I could see the good things on both sides. It wasn't until many years later that I realized politicians are politicians regardless of the side they take. The word politician for me conjures other words like liar, money grubber, corrupter. There is no doubt in my mind that most politicians have one priority, themselves.

I have been a registered Republican since I was 18 and some of my friends would say I am conservative, others would say that I am liberal. If the fact that I enjoy watching Fox News over CNN makes me a conservative then so be it. If listening to Howard Stern every morning makes me a liberal then I guess you got me. I even enjoy an episode of Oprah now and then.

Now that George W Bush has been inaugurated to a second term the press is full of pictures and stories of protestors who burn flags and display signs against the president and the war. It is clear that there are a lot of people who are not fond of this president and I am not his biggest fan either, but do these people really know what they speak of?

Yesterday I spoke of the Indonesian people as a microcosm of people overseas that may have an inaccurate view of what the US War on Terror is all about. I stated that our opinions are shaped by the media around us and that is true of Americans too. So much of what the media reports is negative and especially in relation to the war in Iraq. The only positive mention I saw today was that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi confirmed that one of his top lieutenants was killed when Coalition Forces took back Fallujah. Got em!

There is no doubt that the shocking stories sell newspapers. I have recently started reading other blogs to get more information regarding the war. I came across this interesting article written by a Lieutenant Colonel stationed in Iraq.

http://www.blackfive.net/main/2005/01/aiding_and_abbe.html

This guy has an interesting perspective and provides insight you will not find in the national news. I provide this only as a service to my readers not a means of slanting then to a particular direction.

Does it matter who benefits?

In the wake of the Tsunami we have seen people show up asking you for help (mostly in the form of money) to relieve the suffering in India, Indonesia, Thailand, and Sri Lanka as the death toll rises. It is surely a sad thing and knowing someone who has lost a child as a result has made this personal. I think it's clear that the dollars we have sent do help the cause but can anything that someone does help soften the loss of a child?

I encourage you to donate to the causes that are helping and I know that your actions count. But have you ever considered who gets the benefit of your money? Does it matter to you?

I was watching a news program in which people were debating whether the money that the United States has promised and sent to aid the tsunami victims will better the world opinion of the US. Being the largest contributor publicly and privately the US should certainly look better in the eyes of the rest of the world shouldn't it?

As you may know Indonesia is one of the largest Muslim communities the world. It seems that overseas that the US war on terror has been perceived as a war on Muslims. I believe this is a result of the news shaping people's perceptions. I believe that regardless of the source of the news you receive it is likely slanted in one way or the other. But you are probably telling yourself that what people read doesn't matter because actions speak louder than words and our gestures to help the tsunami victims will do wonders to help the cause for peace throughout the world.

On the same news program a picture was shown of some men carrying an injured man and one of that men was wearing a t-shirt with the image of Osama Bin Laden on it.

The Idonesian government has ordered that the US be out of their country by March 26th.

Thanks.

New found friendship? I think not.

The other day we are at Target shopping for containers and the like to organize all of our crap. As I was looking at the containers I heard "James, James". Next thing I know Frack is walking up to me. She has no clue that Nina and I really have no interest in her trials and tribulations but she has to tell someone and apparently our kindness during the fire resulted in a new found friendship.

The fact that she has lied repeatedly to me has no part in the logic that whirls through that big head of hers.

So she starts telling us about dealing with the claims adjuster and what a slow process it is. She describes how the local cleaners came to pick up all their smoke damaged clothes like they where the nazis coming to nab the jews. Quite tramatic. "Tell me they didn't! And when they came back with the clothes were they actually clean? Shocking!"

She tells us that they have not been staying in the home and that she is staying with her friend (you know the one who drives the red BMW that always parks in front of YOUR house while she is visitng ME). Oh ya that one that when she got into a fender bender she covered up the scratch with contact paper. BLUE contact paper. RED Car. BLUE sticker backed contact paper.

Apparently the damage was not too extensive and pretty much confined to the area of the garage where the dryer was. She said that the insurance company would "go after" the manufacturer. I asked her how old the dryer was and she said 4 years. The idea that enough lint would collect around a dryer drum to cause a fire in four years when there are only 3 people living in the house is surprising to me. But I figure that if their laziness carries over to "the drying process" I suspect they may only clean the lint trap once a month.

Frack tells us that her daughter is going to get married in June and that the grandmother bought her some Tiffany lamps that Frack has put away for safe keeping. Where? You guessed it, in a garage cabinet above the washer & dryer. I know that if I had Tiffany lamps I would store them in the garage. That has to be the safest place for valuables. We keep all our expense jewelry, important documents, family heirlooms all in cabinet next to the weed wacker, motor oil, and fertilizer. I suspect that if she actually did have Tiffany lamps in there they were lamps with pictures of that popstar that used to perform concerts in malls in the 90's.

I am not sure how the conversation went this way but Frack told us that Frick snores and that she can't sleep because she is a light sleeper. I have that same problem when Frick and Frack have those keggers to 2am. So she will wake up Frick in the middle of the night and he gets mad at her for waking him up. I suggested a muzzle but she didn't think Frick would go for it.

Then Frack tells us that her daughter works at a rehab facility for developmentally disabled people. She begins to talk with a speech impediment and walking around like a monkey with her hands in the air to demostrate. If she weren't so pathetic she would be funny. Hasn't society evolved to the point where making fun of the mentally and physically handcapped is not acceptible? I got to hand it to Frack's daughter, after all she is helping people but then again working at the rehab for her is probably like an average day with her parents.

Happy New Year

I hope 2005 is a great one for all of us.

Nina and I decided to spend New Years Eve at home this year watching the movies Super Size Me, Troy and The Punisher. I thought The Punisher was the best of the three and we didn't even finish watching it. Maybe it was the champagne?

Close to midnight we took a survey of the New Years Eve shows and found none of them to be too exciting. Has Ryan Seacrest's 15 minutes of fame ended yet or is it just beginning? I sure like it when he makes those gay jokes about Simon Cowell. Laugh riot.

Regis did his best to fill in for Dick Clark but what's with interviewing the crowd to find out what their new years resolution is? It's clear that no one has thought about it and the answers always come out flat but they keep plunging forward. And was it really necessary for Regis to interrupt from the booth with "Is that your final answer?"

Also country music is not hip. How many Cowboy Boogie bars are left in America? When was the last time you went line dancing? No one in the blue states wants to watch that crap and in the red they prefer Shania Twain not Kenny Chesney.

Usually MTV has something interesting but they put on Kelly Clarkson. While watching her performance I kept thinking of that sorry son of a bitch Justin Guarini. Remember mister second place? I wonder what vegas lounge he's singing at? Don't get me wrong, Kelly has an amazing voice but I miss the good old days when a band like Nirvana or Pearl Jam rang in the new year. This year the best they could muster was Green Day, a band that has played the same guitar riff for 6 years.

I think the TV highlight was the Usher video on Fox, excuse me I mean the Usher "movie". We kept switching back and forth from this to the other new years eve shows and the thing never ended. When will Usher start wearing one glove? If his hair caught fire he'd end up in much worse shape than Michael did.

If you decide to donate to one of the charities participating in the relief effort in Southeast Asia be sure and use this website http://give.org/ to check them out. I was not a big fan of the Red Cross after they botched up the 9/11 response but a report this morning on the news said that they are making a large impact in Thailand and India. I do not recommend one charity over another but do check out give.org before you donate.

Have a great 2005.