It's Contagious

So, apparently, John McCain took note from Sarah Palin - question answering optional! Shame on him.

Window Dressing

Sarah Palin would not take questions from the press...

Um, pardon me, but isn't it customary, when one is named a Vice-Presidential candidate and one is particularly unknown to the public at large, to actually TAKE questions from reporters? It appears that this is a McCain strategy -- keep Palin to a tight script with the same

A Vice-Presidential candidate who will not accept questions from reporters?

One Smart Scot, Er, American

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdRVQ4xwwmQ

Craig Ferguson is truly remarkable.

Free the New Jersey Four

If you needed any additional evidence to convince you that the justice system doesn't always actually provide "justice," read about these women.

Back off, bitch!

My better half and I, catching the end of the Republican National Convention so we can keep our friends close but our enemies closer, heard Heart's 70s anthem blasting as McCain awkwardly tried to decide whether he should stand next to his wife or his ticket-mate Sarah Palin (Uh, do I stand here? Or here? Do I wave? Oh honey, stand over here, sorry!) and we were confused. "Is that Heart?" E wondered aloud. "Why are they playing that?" I asked, indignantly.

Since then, the ladies are speaking up and out: HEART issued a statement against the Republican Party stealing and using their song:

"Sarah Palin's views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song 'Barracuda' no longer be used to promote her image. The song 'Barracuda' was written in the late 70s as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women. (The 'barracuda' represented the business.) While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the RNC, there's irony in Republican strategists' choice to make use of it there."

Take that!

Cartoon card from kittykittybangbang, who reblogged from someplace else. Thanks!

Baking With My Grandma

My mom went away last weekend, so I traveled down to T-town to stay with my Grandma. She's 88, and while she is in reasonably good health for her age she really shouldn't be alone for an entire weekend. She uses a walker to get around, and so my mom was concerned that my Grandma might fall or something might happen. Better safe than...well, you know.

Grandma and I had an action-packed weekend. I got down there at about 10 PM Friday, after working late and fighting traffic (which included a car chase, which I only learned later. So THAT explained the multiple flipped over cars and the 10 police cars lined up on the side of I-5!). We stayed up late chatting, not getting ready to hit the hay until midnight. The next morning, I popped out of bed at 8 AM in full-on granddaughter mode - I made my grandma's morning pot of tea, got dressed, and ran out to the store to pick up the last-minute things we needed to bake bread. Yes...bread. My grandma said several weeks ago that she wanted to make bread the next time I came to T-town; this somehow evolved into me wanting to make bread. I'm not against bread, but it wasn't my idea to bake on an 80 degree weekend.

Once back from the store, we made breakfast and then got to the business of baking. My grandma couldn't find the cookbook containing the bread recipe, but she found a recipe for "Ice Box Rolls" which seemed to be a great second choice.

We mixed and stirred. We punched down and kneaded. The dough rose, and it rose again. We put it in the "ice box" for the night, and the next morning...the rolls you see in the photo. Light yet substantial, yeasty and tasty. We had them with breakfast sausage patties. I had one with strawberry jam. Since returning home, I've had a couple with the strawberry freezer jam handmade by my best pal KP. They are, plainly, fabulous!

The rest of the weekend...we went out to lunch and visited a fruit stand. I did some minor housekeeping for my mom - some laundry, changing lightbulbs (My grandma said, "JP, how are you going to get up there and change those bulbs?" I said, "Grandma, I'm going to walk over to the light fixture, reach up my hand, and take the bulb out!" She laughed so hard she had to sit down. I'm at least 6 inches taller than my grandma, but I think some times she forgets that), washing dishes. I felt better than I have in a while (pain in the arse sciatica) and I got a lot accomplished.

I'm thinking of making cinnamon rolls with the rest of the dough...my co-workers will love me forever if I do. A good reason to do it!

What I've Been Doing

1. Parenting two incredibly needy small dogs:http://ultravioley.blogspot.com/.

2. Dealing with a literally pain in the ass type injury that apparently is introducing me to my late-30s. This is what prevented me from dealing with #4, below, myself.

3. Working.

4. Mourning my bed of pansies, which the grass cutting and weeding man pulled out, saying they "Couldn't tell the difference" between flowers and weeds.

5. Avoiding preparing for the class I am about to teach in a couple of weeks. Don't worry - I taught it last year and so my procrastination is more about refinement than acutal prep.

6. Trying to stay cool despite the almost-100 degree heat here in Seattle (where, of course, air conditioning is scarce and fans are weak and small).

Where I'm From

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Inland North You may think you speak "Standard English straight out of the dictionary" but when you step away from the Great Lakes you get asked annoying questions like "Are you from Wisconsin?" or "Are you from Chicago?" Chances are you call carbonated drinks "pop."
The Midland
The Northeast
Philadelphia
The South
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

It's true!

Thanks, Mobeta!