Rumblin' and Bumblin'

I know you didn't read this!

2010-08-25T12:43:00.001-05:00

In the unlikely event someone comes across this blog and wonders why I haven't posted to it in awhile, I moved to a new blog site at the request of the Daily Local News who lists me on their website.

The new blog can be found here: http://jmcvickar.blogspot.com/ .

Thanks for reading!
- Jamie

Well then whose job is it?!

2010-01-27T16:07:00.003-05:00

January 14, 2010 headline in the NYT: Haiti Lies in Ruins; Grim Search for Untold Dead

I won't tell them if you don't. Maybe the Grims have to keep searching for them until they find them and then they'll tell them?

I know it's not really something to laugh about, but that's just how it struck me. Maybe posts like this are to help dissuade me from ever running for public office.

Well could I have her viagra instead of the baked beans then?

2009-11-16T13:41:00.006-05:00

I'm wondering if the comment posted by an anonymous blogger (spammer) to my post (poorly) entitled: "People I know, who I wish would start a blog" is advice to me so I spend less time thinking about other people, or advice to the people on my list.

It also sounds like one of the few Monty Python skits I ever liked..."Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg, viagra and spam; egg bacon viagra and spam; egg bacon viagra sausage and spam; spam viagra bacon sausage and spam; spam egg spam viagra spam bacon viagra and spam; spam sausage viagra spam spam viagra bacon spam tomato viagra and spam."

Won't stop me from trying regardless

2009-11-16T13:35:00.003-05:00

One needs only to flip through the channels one time after midnight to quickly the realize that not only are many people's brains not wired the same way as yours , but that they never will be, no matter how hard you try to re-wire them from the outside.

Advice to my kids...or something I need to remind myself all too often

2009-11-16T13:22:00.004-05:00

This post isn't meant to be funny or cute, but it's advice to my kids, in case this blog outlives me.

Being of the Paul McVickar gene, there's a good chance the older they get, the harder time they'll have biting their tongues when confronted with some sort of injustice, whether it's on the grand political stage, or just in their personal lives, even in some personal interaction they've had with someone, particularly if they feel they've been offended or wronged in some way.

I have two suggestions for how to respond to someone when you feel a nasty response coming from within, and these aren't interchangeable, but they are easily identifiable as to when it's appropriate to utilize them.

The first is for when someone is acting in a way you don't understand or agree with, and you think they know it. As my dad used to say to us kids..."Do what you feel is right." It simply puts the onus on someone to draw from their basic goodness and communicates so aptly that you trust them to make wise and loving decisions without your having to talk them into it.

The second is most appropriate when someone writes or says something where you have great opportunity to really lay them out, really blast them for whatever they said, when you know that as good as it would feel to give it right back to them, you know it won't advance the dialogue and will most likely only inflame things. It is, again simply, "You can be right or you can be Love."

So perfect.

And now that I've matured physically, I can make them last much longer...like 6-7 seconds!

2009-09-01T09:24:00.004-05:00

This is one of those things where I don't know whether it's really impressive or really unfortunate. I heard recently that the average dream only lasts 3 seconds. For some reason, well, because this is the way I think, it made me think of wet dreams...and how, as I say, sad it is, or impressive, that a boy can reach orgasm so quickly.

Maybe teenage girls shouldn't be so upset when their boyfriend can "only" last a minute or two, they should be impressed they can hold on so long.

Not saying the reasons aren't the same in each case, though.

2009-09-01T09:18:00.003-05:00

When someone asks the same exact question twice in a short period of time, they fall into one of two categories:

1 - If it's because they forgot that they asked the question in the first place, it's because they have some form of frontal lobe dementia.

2 - If it's because they remember asking the question, but didn't listen to the answer, it's because they are a guy.

Only after we had that out of the way did we have time to discuss the merits of bilateral nuclear disarmament

2009-09-01T09:12:00.007-05:00

I can quickly think of three things that I thought happened to me alone that friends of mine have, in the course of conversation, told me have happened to them them as well:

1 - Walked into a room and forgotten why they came in.
2 - Taken a shower and half way into it, forgotten whether or not they had washed their hair yet. (So sad.)
3 - (This is my favorite) Drinking a cup of coffee over the course of a morning, but being aware, without even thinking of it, that you still have one last swallow of coffee left in your mug, and if someone were to find your mug and empty it to put it in the dishwasher, you get this terribly empty feeling, like you just said goodbye to a close friend, whom you won't see again for a long, long time...well, at least until your next cup of coffee.

Read the one below this first

2009-08-05T09:19:00.003-05:00

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to post the other one...I wrote a semi-long lost friend a facebook post about our lives back in our twenties, mentioning my friend Dennis whom she dated and who died a few years back, and she wrote back "What you sent is truly a gift — a look back at a time and a place when things were ripe, and all seemed possible." She's a writer, can you tell? And a really awesome one.

But upon thinking about it further, I thought, No, back then, all things seemed Impossible. NOW all things seem possible...or at least all the things I'd really want to do. Or maybe my list of things I'd want to do has narrowed. Or maybe I've done many of the things I wanted to do back then. Or maybe I'm just thinking in terms of women.

Or maybe if I worked at it as hard as I've been thinking about it...

2009-08-05T09:08:00.006-05:00

I've often thought of starting a website called aphorisms.com. It would be a compilation of aphorisms - truisms about the things in life we learn as we grow old. Not about life necessarily, but about practical things too. Like, the easiest example that everyone knows: What are the 3 things most important in determining the value of real estate - location, location, location. But there are many others having to do with so many things, of course none of them are currently popping into my head. They could have to do with sailing, cooking, drinking (wine before liquor, never sicker? I can never remember that one!)

But along those lines, I've heard two things in the past few days that probably fit into those categories that I just don't agree with. Something I've heard many, many times and was repeated by a friend on Sunday afternoon when we were giving relationship advice to some 20-something year olds: "Marriage takes a lot of hard work. You have to work hard at it every day." I immediately thought, but for once, didn't say, I don't work hard at my marriage! And then as I've thought about it more, I thought, Wait, does that mean I have a bad marriage? Or does the person who said that have a bad one? Does Cheryl work hard at it? And what does that say about me if she has to work hard at it? Does she wish I would work harder at my marriage?

So I asked her last night, and luckily, she agreed with me. Whew. But wait, could it be better if we did? Couldn't be any better from my standpoint, but how would I know if I don't try?

My Own Personal Orienteering

2009-08-05T09:03:00.002-05:00

We all need, or should have, a person who serves as a moral compass to help guide us in our decisions in life. For me, that person was always my dad. Would dad approve of and be proud of my decision on some matter?

This morning I realized that Trev - 9 years old today - is now that person for me. Well, and my dad too.

Not yet in the 100-125 demographic

2009-07-21T10:02:00.002-05:00

I like reading about guys that live to age 113 before they die. Then I can say I'm not yet middle aged.

People I know, who I wish would start a blog

2009-06-08T11:16:00.003-05:00

Colleen Finzel
Gwennie and/or Andy McMahon
Martin Bradfield
Dean Bratis
David Lee

Go ahead give me yours, and I'll give you one.

2009-06-08T11:11:00.002-05:00

If I were ever to open a Bar, i would call it The "Guy Walks Into A" Bar, and anyone who could tell me a Guy walks into a bar joke or a variation thereof that i'd never heard before, i'd give him his first drink for free.

My favorite is Evelyn's:

Two guys walk into a bar. Wouldn't you think one of them would have seen it before walking into it?

What's black and white and not red all over?

2009-05-06T15:07:00.002-05:00

I wonder if you have to read the newspapers to know that no one reads the newspapers anymore?

But then maybe I'm just a lesbian trapped in a man's body

2009-04-17T15:40:00.005-05:00

It struck me today after hearing about two lesbians walking down the street, wearing pins that said "Yes, we're lesbians, and no, you can't watch" (cute) that one of the very few paradoxes about us men, who usually are easily defined by their/our interest in food, f*cking, farting and football (OK, for me, I'd substitute baseball for football and beer for farting) is that they/we get excited at the idea of watching two women do to each other exactly what they/not we! themselves don't like to do with our women: engage in extended foreplay.

Things I wish I'd said

2009-04-17T08:12:00.002-05:00

"Water is air, only juicier. "

Esteemed author (only of college creative writing papers...so far!), Becca Griesemer wrote that. It's so good. But maybe it's just because i like things that are juicy...well, except maybe for juice. I'm not too crazy about juice.

Seeking and avoiding the George in all of us

2009-03-31T10:58:00.007-05:00

I was sitting in a Quaker Memorial Service on Saturday for a man named George and was reveling in all the amazingly wonderful messages people were sharing about him, especially considering that George, whom I didn't know terribly well, suffered from some personality disorders and while an incredibly intelligent man, could also apparently be a very difficult friend to have. The gathered crowd made no attempt in their spoken messages to hide what everyone there knew about him and made passing reference to the challenge of being his friend, but took great care to emphasize all the best things about him as well. And I was so impressed by the loving, intelligent people with whom I was surrounded. They seemed to be all the same people who had been to all the previous memorial services I'd been to, fully of loving, caring messages about the deceased. And I was reveling in their love and thoughtfulness and wondering why there aren't more people like that in the world, when I realized that these are also the same people who, when I get back out in my car on the highway, going 64 in a 55 mph zone, will be flying up behind me, blinking their lights at me, or not letting me in when I try to merge or taking my parking space if I don't get there first. I think there is a bigger message in what I realized, but I'm not sure what it is yet. But it did strike me that that duality in all of us was apparently most evident in George himself, who could be both the best of friends to have, and the worst as well.

Just don't open your mind so much that stuff falls out!

2009-03-19T11:52:00.002-05:00

I wish I had been more willing to try new experiences and to open my mind (see post below) to things I never considered when I was younger. I never took things like yoga, TM, or even reiki (if i'd have heard of it before I met Cheryl, that is) seriously when I was younger, but I now realize I was so wrong about them. Now I wonder what else I may be missing. And don't tell me I should try being a conservative! I have my limits.

You probably think you know the answers to these, but I'm a better judge of that than you, and you can't convince me otherwise

2009-03-19T11:46:00.003-05:00

Two things people would answer "Yes" to, when they should say "No":

1 - Are you a good judge of people?

I used to think I was a good judge of people until a close friend and idol of mine went to jail for conspiracy to commit triple murders and then another friend was discovered, by me, to have stolen a half million dollars from the company we worked for at the time.

2 - Are you open-minded?

I think people are open-minded about things they don't yet have an opinion on, but not so much on things they've already made up their mind about. When is the last time YOU had your mind changed by someone?

Things they never taught us in health class

2009-02-20T09:51:00.007-05:00

One day, as I sat down in Quaker Meeting for Worship, these thoughts all suddenly came roaring into my head, about the joys of, well, you know what I'm talking about:

You can do it alone, or with anyone really, but doing it with the person you love makes it way more meaningful.

Some people like to talk during it, some people always do, some never do but most people make that decision when they're in the moment, maybe depending on what they're thinking about.

Sometimes while you're doing it, you wonder why. It's not doing anything for you, you're just not really feeling it and you can't wait til it's over. And you wonder what the big deal is that makes so many people so enamored of it.

Sometimes it doesn't feel exactly right when you start, but once you're into it, it feels like the greatest thing in the world and you wonder why it's been so long since you did it. You remember again why you love it so much and why you should do it way more often than you've been doing it lately.

Sometimes you feel obliged to do it, because your spouse is in the mood. Sometimes even when you're in the mood but your spouse isn't, you either don't do it, or you do it alone anyway.

Sometimes when you haven't done it for awhile you feel like you're gonna explode if you don't do it soon.

Of course, I'm talking about Meeting for Worship, but like I said at the start, you probably already knew what I was talking about.

But still not as bad as the past 8 years

2009-02-10T10:37:00.000-05:00

When reporters asked President Obama how bad our financial crisis is at last night’s press conference, Obama should have paraphrased:

Dr. Peter Venkman:
This (country) is headed for a disaster of biblical proportions!
Mayor:
What do you mean "biblical"?
Dr. Raymond Stantz:
What he means is Old Testament, Mr. Mayor. Real wrath of God type stuff! Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling!
Dr. Egon Spengler:
Forty years of darkness, earthquakes, and volcanos!
Winston Zeddemore:
The dead rising from the grave!
Dr. Peter Venkman:
Human sacrifices, dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!

Come to think of it, I didn't know anyone named Bunny the first 40 years either

2009-01-30T13:12:00.005-05:00

Our friend Bunny Trowbridge recently sent me this email about an upcoming weekend where I have a conflict between my 35th (!) high school reunion (being held primarily at our house), a Land Trust Conference that I would like to go to and a Springsteen concert:

"WOW, all that energy in your direction…there must be some type of harmonic convergence that weekend. I’d say you’re in for a great weekend however you look at it! That will be a time to be fully “aware”, because something is happening."

First let me say that for the first 40 or so years of my life there was almost no chance of anyone sending me an email that said those things, but second, I find myself not wanting any harmonic convergences or "somethings" to happen in my life, and I don't know if it's because I'm getting old or because I like my life exactly how it is, thank you, and don't need "something" to happen!

And that is also not something I would have said to myself the first 40 or so years of my life, when I often found myself singing from West Side Story "Something's coming, I don't know, what it is, but it is, gonna be greaaaaat!"

(And I was right about that, by the way...tho it sure took long enough!)

But then, I'm rounding up, so it's not totally accurate

2008-12-31T10:10:00.000-05:00

A conversation last night (Cheryl was out shopping):

Emma: "Do you love me, Daddy?"
Me (pulling her close and whispering in her ear): "More than you'll ever know, sweetie."
Emma (excitedly taking a guess): "61 inches?!"
Me (smiling): "Much more than that!"
Emma "62?!"
Me: "Even More!"
Emma (taking one last shot, taking time to think about it a little this time): "65?! Cuz that's how old I am?!"
Me: "More like 65 thousand million thousand million!'
Emma (putting her hands up to her mouth, eyes wide): "Whoaaaaaa!"

OK, do it for me...and Al Franken

2008-12-22T10:56:00.004-05:00

News Item: Police Departments are asking people to display blue lights in their Christmas decorations to "show your support for the service given everyday by our law enforcement officers".

Along these same lines, I would like to ask that people display white lights in their Christmas decorations to show support for me and what a wonderful person I am, and if you really, really like me, then put a white candle in each window and leave them up all year long.

This can serve two purposes: One, it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling about how complete strangers support and appreciate me, and Two, it may get people to STOP USING WHITE LIGHTS IN THEIR CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS! :-)

Life really is just a big Fairy Tale for me

2008-11-25T12:03:00.005-05:00

I realized the other night that drinking beer has a different effect on me depending on whether I'm drinking at home or with others in a more social setting, and furthermore each beer takes me to impersonate a different one of Snow White's Seven Dwarves.

At Home:
The first beer makes me Happy.
The second beer makes me Sleepy, and
The third beer makes me Grumpy.

When I'm with other people, before I have my first beer, I'm kind of Bashful, and after 4-5, I probably act kind of Dopey.

And if I were allergic to hops, I'd be Sneezy.

In any case, when I have too much beer, I make more like Snow White...unconscious for a long, long time, tho not as pretty...and if I really have too much, I'd probably need a Doc.

Or a dessert topping...maybe a floor wax?

2008-11-19T10:18:00.001-05:00

This has to be recorded for future reference...Just Palinizing:

"My concern has been the atrocities there in Darfur and the relevance to me with that issue as we spoke about Africa and some of the countries there that were kind of the people succumbing to the dictators and the corruption of some collapsed governments on the continent, the relevance was Alaska’s investment in Darfur with some of our permanent fund dollars."

And, she concluded, “never, ever did I talk about, well, gee, is it a country or a continent, I just don’t know about this issue.”

But have YOU ever seen them both in the same place?!

2008-11-19T10:12:00.004-05:00

When people ask how anyone could possibly still think Sarah Palin is qualified to become President, it reminds me of the question - Why is Paris Hilton famous? And I suspect the answers are very similar, as, come to think of it, are the two of them.

If they made Dustin Hoffman look like a semi-attractive woman, what could they do to Paris Hilton? To make her look like Sarah Palin, I mean!

Isn't it though?

2008-11-19T10:10:00.003-05:00

Have I pointed out before how ironic it is that today's common use of the word "ironic" has come to mean something completely different from what it actually means?

I told you we live in a Glass(es) house

2008-11-14T15:53:00.001-05:00

What do you have most of in your house:

1 - TVs
2 - Computers (PCs & Macs, not like the computer your DVD/Blu-Ray (whatever that is) uses to confuse you)
3 - Phone numbers
4 - Pairs of reading glasses

I just today realized we (and by we, I mean I ) have more of #4 than the other 3 put together, which is about 10.

Jamie's getting adjutated!

2008-11-11T08:54:00.003-05:00

Sometimes I have questions I just really don't want to know the answer to. I'd rather just wonder. Like what exactly is an adjunct professor? And is one an "Adjutant" anything besides General? And I'd ask if they can live adjacent to each other or if there are adjectives to describe the person who came up with such titles, but then people would think I was just thumbing through a dictionary and got stuck on adje and adju. (G'Bless me!)

People have wondered what we're going to do with our time now that the World Series and the election are over. Well there's my answer, I'm going to come up with such contributions to the world as the fascinating thoughts encased herein.

Bizzarro World Indeed

2008-11-07T22:34:00.000-05:00

"You know who I blame? The Large Hadron Collider. It is the world's largest and highest particle accelerator. You may remember we were warned that it could create a black hole and destroy the Earth. Consider this: it launched in mid-September, when John McCain was leading in the polls. I believe it jolted us into a parallel universe that was exactly like our own, only Barack Obama is president and the Phillies are world champions." ---Stephen Colbert

Educational Advances

2008-11-06T16:28:00.000-05:00

I think we all owe an apology to President Bush. Turns out the No Child Left Behind Program must have been a success. The 18-25 demographic went about 65% for Obama.

Talk about your Motley Crews

2008-11-06T16:26:00.001-05:00

Westtown School: About Westtown » News » Photo of the Day

...like gophers

2008-09-09T10:48:00.001-05:00

3 more words that can go:

- cruel
- rural
- gruel

Bad Theatre

2008-07-25T15:11:00.003-05:00

Worst TV shows ever - not open to discussion:

- The Jeffersons
- Murphy Brown
- Golden Girls

...and pretty much any show having anything to do with lawyers, doctors, detectives and/or police, well, since Adam-12 and Car 54 went off the air anyway. Oh yeah, and pretty much all British Comedy - which may be the all time oxymoron.

If you nab it by the nub, will it go numb?

2008-07-25T15:06:00.003-05:00

3 words that should be eliminated from the english language:
- Nab
- Nub
- Numb

In fact, you can throw niblets in there too.

Num-nums are okay though.

Except for me, of course!

2008-07-14T10:12:00.002-05:00

I wonder why it is that the most sincere things, both complimentary and not, that we say about anyone is said to anyone but the person we're talking about.

Don't read this, Dad!

2008-07-11T09:40:00.005-05:00

I like to learn the meaning of a new word as much as the next guy, but there are some words, like one I saw in the New York Times this morning, that I just don't need to learn. So I'm going to start a list of words that I just don't want cluttering up my head, lest it force me to forget important things, like the name of the only Phillies pitcher to wear sunglasses while he pitched (Lowell Palmer, duh!) :

- solipsism
- rubicon
- Machiavellian
- epistemological (see k8's comment) Any other suggestions?!

And that's how a TRUE patriot feels!

2008-06-27T10:32:00.004-05:00

I like to tell people that it's okay for Eagles fans to criticize the Eagles, but if a New York Giants fan does it, they are looking for a fight.

It strikes me that two recent Supreme Court decisions follow an odd parallel to that. The conservatives argue that the ruling on the Guantanamo Bay detainees guarantees that more Americans will be killed by foreign terrorists, but the same conservatives were thrilled that gun laws were relaxed to allow all americans the right to bear arms.

So if I am boiling it down correctly, they're saying they'd much rather be killed by their fellow americans then by a bunch of funny-looking foreigners.

Emma-ese

2008-06-24T22:01:00.002-05:00

Cheryl said we should write down some of these conversations we have with our kids:

Emma: "Daddy, are we allowed to give you things, even when it isn't Father's Day?"
Me: "Sure, Emma, Mommy and I love presents from you guys anytime!"
Emma: "No, I mean just to you."
Me: "Sure, that would be great, Emma, but you guys are already really good at that."
(pause)
Emma: "But I don't even know how much milk you like on your honey-nut cheerios!"

Gungula gungula

2008-06-24T21:48:00.003-05:00

Is ogling ALWAYS followed by googling? Or is it just me.

Has anyone ever said this sentence out loud before? Go ahead - you can be the first:

Does googling follow ogling just as obladah follows obladee?

Keep that mirror away from me! No, give it back.

2008-05-21T12:03:00.003-05:00

I realized an uncomfortable truth in myself last night that I don't understand: When I hear Obama supporters claim that people are voting against him for racist reasons, it makes me like him more. When I hear Hillary supporters claim people are voting against her b/c she's a woman, it makes me like her less. I don't know what that means about me, but it makes me a little uncomfortable.

UPDATE (a few hours later): I just heard that the Manager of the stinkin' Mets said he's getting extra criticism because he's black and it made me like him less, so I guess it has more to do with my feelings about the person before I heard the comments than anything else, so feel free to skip over this post completely.

They Shoot Horses Don't They?

2008-05-01T10:38:00.003-05:00

Seems to me there is some sort of weird parallel between the discussion of which is worse - to sentence someone to the death penalty vs giving someone a life sentence and what my parents have experienced.

My Dad got the death penalty 5 years ago, dying of aspiration pneumonia. My mom got the life sentence and she spends a few hours every night banging on the windows of her apartment, screaming, trying to get the attention of someone walking by so she can warn them about The Man.

I just hope the stinkin' liberals don't tighten up the gun control laws before I get to that age, when I'll scan the gunshows looking for the End-of-Life Special - a handgun...and one bullet.

Top 10 Obama List...give or take a few

2008-04-11T12:19:00.008-05:00

Is one allowed to do a top 10 list if:
a - it makes no attempt at humor
b - there aren't ten reasons...yet?!

I've been jotting down reasons as I think of them, although I don't know if I have ten good ones yet, but here they are - My Top 10 Reasons I decided to vote to Barack Obama:

1 - Diplomacy - As he said at the appearance we went to on Wednesday, quoting JFK, "We must never negotiate out of fear, but we should never fear to negotiate." If your neighbor is throwing rocks at your dog, or spraying pesticides on your flowers, which will get the best results - to do the same thing to him or to knock on his door and ask if you can talk about what is happening? Maybe there is an easy, peaceful way to work it out once you understand what is causing him to do what he's doing.
2 - A Different kind of Role Model - I saw a 20-something black man the other day walking toward me. He had a baseball cap on tilted sideways. His pants were down past his hips with his underwear showing. His clothes were all baggy and he had gold chains around his neck. After weeks of following Obama so closely, it struck me that this young man looked like an anachronism. And I felt sorry for him, wishing he had a better role model to look up to then rap stars and basketball players. Maybe not an entirely PC reason, but it’s what I was thinking at the time.
3 - Anti-Groupthink - I remember from 30+ years ago Social Psych class, that JFK used to appoint someone in his cabinet meetings to play devil's advocate. He didn't want yes men (yes people?) on his staff. From what I've read in 2 separate accounts, Obama will call people he knows who have opinions on things that don't agree with his. He wants to know both sides of an issue before he makes his decision on where he stands on an issue. He will even warn the person he's asking that he probably won't agree with what he is saying, but he just wants to know all there is to know so he can take both sides into account.
4 - Validation - The students, the "Young People", are so energized by Obama, I would hate to see them feel like all their energy and excitement was wasted. And I would especially hate it if they felt disillusioned by the Democratic Party. What would make it many times worse would be if after all their hard work, which gave Obama the clear lead in delegates, popular votes and states won, if a bunch of fat cat politicians came in in the form of super delegates and told them basically. "That's cute that you all got so excited, but we know better what's best for you, so we're going to put someone else in place."
5 - From a strategic general election-winning standpoint, it will be a lot easier for the R's to attack Hillary than Obama. Partially because he's black, but also because there's just not a lot there to dislike, I think the R's will look all the worse for going negative on him.
6 - Somewhat related, do we really want the next 7 months to be all about travelgate, and all those goofy things they threw at Hillary for 8 years? Let's just get all that Clinton stuff in the rearview mirror...including Bill himself. He just looks worse everyday, every time he gives a speech. It's enough to make one wonder if the R's weren't right about him.
7 - With Healthcare such a pressing issue, we would hear all about "Hillarycare" and socialized medicine instead of the real facts and approaches to best attack the issue of our terrible healthcare system. Let's start from a position of working together instead of Hillary's legacy of telling everyone what we're going to do.
8 - The Lies - The Bosnia Sniper lie doesn't seem like that big a deal. I have a hard time remembering details of things that happened to me 10 years ago, though if it had to do with people shooting at me, I'm thinking I'd probably remember that a little more clearly. But she messed up so many parts of the story, even when she'd told the story repeatedly and then claimed to be sleep deprived, (and if she's easily affected by sleep derivation, do we really want her answering the phone at 3a.m...and can someone please tell me why she is wearing a pearl necklace and bright red lipstick at 3a.m.?!). I just don't want 4-8 more years of the lies and obfuscations and of Bill defending her and making things up himself (she didn't tell the story at 11 at night, she told it at a luncheon speech).
9 - It's not all about Obama - Beside the #1 reason at the top of this list - diplomacy - I think the biggest reason I want Obama to be the nominee is the effect he'll have on the rest of the races. So many R's and independents will come out to vote against Hillary, that they'll also then vote for the other R's on the ballot. If those types stay home, not only does it give Obama a better chance to win, it gives all the other D's on the ballot a better chance to win. The best chance the R’s have to win isn’t John McCain, it’s Hillary.

(I guess I had more reasons than I realized!)

10 - The impact around the world of not only voting a black man, ok half-black, whatever, as President will be huge, especially in Mexico, Africa and South America, but even more so, how angry can teenage male suicide bombers get against a country with a President named Barack Hussein Obama. There is a huge cleansing effect on the world and, even more so at home, where he is not as polarizing a figure as Hillary is.

But wait, there's more!

11 - Truth to Power - there was a great article in Time Magazine some months back that listed all of the speeches Obama has given where he has told his audience the exact opposite of what they wanted to hear. The example I remember best was about merit pay - the teachers very much oppose the idea. Obama is for it. He has done the same thing in speeches he's given to unions.

And finally...for now:

12 - Don't you want your daughter to be the first Woman President?!

And here are some other articles I've bookmarked through the months as evidence of why I'm such an enthusiastic supporter. The top 3 are written by the conservative columnist for the New York Times, David Brooks:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/opinion/04brooks.html?th&emc=th

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/18/opinion/18brooks.html?th&emc=th

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/opinion/08brooks.html?th&emc=th

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/10/opinion/10cohen.html?th&emc=th

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/04/04/notes040408.DTL

Obama as a professor at U of Chicago:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/12/20/12119/122/324/424784

I had a nightmare last night that I was lucky enough to be at a party with all kinds of important people and I saw a friend who was talking with Barack Obama and the Dalai Lama, and when the friend saw me, he called me over and said to them, I'd like to introduce my friend:

(turning first to them and then pointing to me, he said) Obama? Lama?...Ding dong.

Ok, you find a better way to make it into a joke!

A weekend about...nothing

2008-03-08T00:05:00.004-05:00

I did something last week that I don't remember doing since I got married, or since Cheryl and the kids moved in with me. And no, it's not that! Cheryl and I went away for the weekend, by ourselves, and we rarely left Audrey and Dave's cottage, except to go eat. So when we weren't, uh, you know, we did a lot of nothing. We read. We did...nothing. And specifically, what I did, that I haven't done since about August of 1998 is, while Cheryl was sleeping in the other room, I laid on the couch, and just stared at a wall and thought about...nothing. I didn't have kids climbing on me. I didn't feel guilt for not getting something done. i wasn't planning what I needed to accomplish by the end of the day. I wasn't thinking about problems at work. I wasn't thinking about politics or sports. I was just thinking about well, whatever popped into my head, some of which involved thinking about mom and how I need to spend more time with her before she's gone. But the cool thing is, I did that for a half hour or more and an hour or 3 later, when I told Cheryl about it, I couldn't think of just about anything I thought about except mom, and how cool it was that I had nothing I had to think about! I miss that...but I sure wouldn't trade my current life for it.

loving you and hating that pencil!

2008-03-07T23:58:00.003-05:00

There were things I knew to expect about growing old, memory and physical well-being related, tho it still amazes me when I am in the shower and can't remember whether I washed my hair yet, but I didn't expect this: The older I get, the more patience I have with people and the less I have with inanimate objects.

More and more when people say or do things that previously would have made me angry, now I just sort of shake my head and feel sorry for them. But if I bump into something, or drop something, ARGH - it makes me nuts! And I am pretty sure both those things are age-related, and I have no idea why.

See?

2008-03-03T12:32:00.004-05:00

I wish this were an original thought. Well, come to think of it, it was by someone, though not by me, but I like it so much , I don't want to forget it:

Can you see farther in the daylight or at night?

And now, I have literally sat here for about 5 mimutes waiting as if to give you enough time to think about it. And maybe, though I suspect you've guessed that the easy answer - daytime - is wrong, I can help you get the right answer by illustrating the reason why that's wrong, with this: Put a flashlight up in your face about 6 inches from your eyes and turn it on. Can you see anything behind it?

Of course you can see farther at night - look up in the sky tonight and tell me what you see.

And here I didn't even know the ladder was a suspect

2008-03-03T12:26:00.004-05:00

Now that I have sufficently dumbed down this blog with observations as pointless as the one below this, I am now officially freed up by the blog-gods in my head to post more frequently about matters equally germane...and bland...such as this:

I wonder if more people are influenced to vote for Hillary because she's a woman or against her for the same reason.

And furthermore, I don't know know which would be worse, though I suspect it's the latter.

little help!

2008-02-28T11:53:00.000-05:00

I just realized the word is accompanist, not accompany-ist. And here I had embarrassed myself by mis-pronounciating it all these years.

I don't but does it ever!

2008-01-31T16:38:00.000-05:00

I don't love rocks, but love rocks!

plus sa change...

2008-01-31T16:34:00.000-05:00

Things that never seem to change, and that's a good thing:

1 - Joe Paterno as coach at Penn State
2 - Springsteen's awesome excellence

Things that never seem to change, and that's a bad thing:

1 - a Bush or Clinton running for VP or President...for every presidential election from 1980 to 2011, and possibly beyond.

And yes these are your only choices

2008-01-31T16:29:00.001-05:00

Which feels less natural?

1 - the way you felt pretty much every day of middle and high school
2 - monogamy

And as a disclaimer of sorts, monogamy is not really a challenge for me, but it just doesn't feel right somehow.

I was going to say monogamy comes easily for me, but somehow it just didn't sound right.

And after an hour or two The Sounds of Silence seem pretty nice too

2008-01-31T16:22:00.000-05:00

If I'd been asked, and I wasn't, my favorite sounds, up until recently, I would have said:

- rain hitting our roof
- skates cutting on ice
- the solid crack of a bat hitting a baseball or even a softball
- the swish of a basketball going through a net

But I realized not too long ago that my really favorite sound is when I get home from work and I hear Trev and Emma running out of the house yelling, "DADDY!!!!"

I have a bad feeling about this

2008-01-18T12:08:00.000-05:00

Have you ever felt badly?

I think if you asked Paige Elmore about the summer of 1972 she would tell you that I had. But it sure didn't feel that way at the time.

I suppose I should tell her that I'm sorry that I don't feel bad about feeling badly.

Thank me very much

2008-01-18T12:02:00.000-05:00

Cheryl likes to make fun of me when I seem to seek some sort of congratulations when I have accomplished some relatively small task. "Nice job, Sweetie, you did such a great job taking out the trash!" And although I like to think I'm not that bad it struck me that in the same way we sometimes repeat the punchline of a joke after everyone has finished laughing the first time they hear it so we can laugh a second time, part of the enjoyment one gets from being told they did a nice job at some little thing, comes from getting the same feeling of accomplishment one had upon finishing it in the first place.

Really, really fascinating observation, eh?

Just take care of each other

2008-01-18T12:01:00.000-05:00

Don't feel bad for me when I die, cuz I'll be dead.

Get me re-write

2007-11-15T13:10:00.001-05:00

OK, upon viewing my last two posts, the two directly below this one, it seems like maybe I should have had a different subject line on the lower one, so it doesn't look like the two are related, so to speak, in any way! I'll look into it.

And sometimes I just don't like the answers I give myself

2007-11-15T12:45:00.000-05:00

I guess I found the answer to my previous question about which kind of pain I'd rather do away with, but I wish I hadn't figured it out this way. My (first-) cousin (-once-removed), Laura, died on Sunday. They found her dead in her apartment in Denmark where she was on an off campus program of some sort.

Even though I thought of Laura as sort of a generally sad person, not happy enough with herself, or content with her attributes, every image I have of her in my mind is with the biggest of smiles, always with a glow, just enjoying the scene she was a part of, enjoying the people she was with. But then, every time I was with her, she was with her family, and she clearly loved them very much. She seems like she would have been a good person to have as a friend - loyal, a good listener, low-maintenance, always looking for the humor in things...like a lot of us McVickar-types, of which she was one, tho her last name was Schaefer.

She emailed me a few months ago from Denmark, and here is what she wrote:

"Jamie & Co.,Don't cancel Big TG on my account! I do understand your reasoning, though. Part of me is a little relieved -- since I would have missed it anyway, I'm a little glad I won't be missing out on great big family fun! It's a Friday night here and, normally, that would involve partying (I did get drunk for the very first time [of my life] last night... I am quite entertaining when intoxicated) -- however, I am, sadly, sick. I've got the snifflies and the coughs and I'm losing my voice... I must say, it's extremely annoying. It's nice to have a bit of an excuse for a reprieve from social life 24/7, as, over the past year and a half, I've gotten pretty used to having nearly no social life. Big change from there to here! Sometime I'll tell you all about IPC. I need to go back to sleep soon (I'm just waiting for this damn sneeze to finally appear... it's tickling my nose and teasing me but not giving me the satisfaction of a sneeze!), but let me tell you: IPC? Is amazing. It's an amazing experience. Earlier today I talked to one of my teachers (the drama and choir teacher, so he's seen my vulnerable side) about my experiences at Colby and my anxiety and such... a bit of an explanation, I guess? By the end of our talk, we shared a nice hug. I'm already much more outgoing than I ever was at Colby or than I've ever really been in my life, as, out of 50+ students, I feel completely comfortable with about 45 of them. I was telling Mom and Dad that, already, after less than a month here, I can't imagine leaving these people. That they've all affected my life and become important to me... and I definitely won't want them to leave at the end of the term (I say 'them to leave' as I'm going to be staying for a second term). It's truly impressive. Anyway, much more later. I encourage you (and Cheryl, definitely) to respond. Ask questions, give me info about Ev and Elissa and the young'uns and Ammar... also, I'm sure you probably don't have time, but I encourage letters/packages. Packages are a bit much to ask, I know, but hearing one's name at mail call in the morning is wonderful. Here's my address:Laura SchaeferInternational People's CollegeMontebello Alle 13000 HelsingorDENMARKFinally, please, go make an account at http://www.flickr.com/. I have an account (ldougers) -- Dad and K8've signed up as well. Friend me or email me with your account name and I'll add you as family... and you can see my pictures. I'm slowly but surely putting up pictures I have on my computer. Eventually, I'm sure, I'll get up pictures from last Thanksgiving. Anyway, yeah, that's it for now. I've just gotten hiccups and I'd better try to steer them away. Like cattle. Annoying, annoying cattle. Much, much love! Laura"

...which she quickly followed with:

"PS (I suppose): Does one steer cattle? Or herd it? You herd sheep and steer cattle, yes? I like sheep so I'd say my hiccups aren't sheep. But I like cows, too. Anyway, I was concentrating on this steering/herding phenomenon and now said hiccups have been steered. Or herded. Whatever. PPS: If you couldn't tell that I'm exhausted and rather ill before, then you can now, right? ...right. PPPS: Love!"

This was my very unfortunate reply:

"Hi Laura - I am SO behind on emails. I'll catch (sic) with you one of these days. Great to hear you're having a good time tho.- Jamie"

Not even so much as a "Love, Jamie" ...and here it is 2 months later and I never did reply, dammit. What an asshole. But who's hurt most by my ignorance? Me...I hope.

Oh yeah, the answer to my question is I'd rather never feel physical pain again. The pain I've felt this week feels good...appropriate, like Laura deserves my feeling this much pain, not that she'd want me to, but because if I just thought "Ah, darn the luck." and moved on, it wouldn't have been the right reply. There's some inexplicable solace in the pain I've felt all week.

I'm glad I got to know you these past few years, Laura. Thanks for always brightening my life, when ever you were in it. Love, Jamie

Unless she's really into incest, then it would work the same

2007-11-15T11:35:00.000-05:00

It strikes me that there's no better example of the difference between men and women than how they break up. A girl, wanting to do it in the nicest possible way, tells the guy that he thinks of him more of as a brother, and wants to remain friends. There is nothing worse you can say to a guy. All the guy hears is that he's ugly, and worse, that he's lousy in bed.

If a girl really wants to be nice, she'd say she's breaking up with him even though the sex is the best she's ever had, but she just can't get over what an asshole the guy is. A guy would leave that conversation on cloud nine, pumping his fist and telling his buddies all about it.

The way a guy breaks up with a girl? He stops calling her or taking her calls. Ever the more thoughtful of the genders.

other than that we're lots of fun!

2007-11-09T12:18:00.000-05:00

Who changes more between the ages of 14 and 30 - males or females? And I don't mean in terms of appearance.

(decide before you read further...)

Most people I know say males, but I disagree. I don't think guys change from the time they're 14 til pretty much the time they die. Girls change more b/c at age 14 they think guys are really cool and mysterious and as loving and thoughtful as they are, but by age 30 they pretty much realize most of us are jerks, more interested in sports, beer, and food than just about anything else.

Well, except playing with ourselves...while we watch sports and drink beer and eat hoagies.

hypothetical

2007-11-08T17:02:00.000-05:00

If you had a choice between never again feeling physical pain or mental pain the rest of your life, which would it be?

Don't ask

2007-11-06T16:51:00.000-05:00

Just because someone asks you a question doesn't mean they want to hear the answer.

And OK, Sher, just for you...but with a twist...often the main reason a person asks you something is in hopes you'll ask them the same question.

But sometimes they drive you crazy too

2007-11-06T09:34:00.000-05:00

It's been my experience that a woman's driving ability mirrors the amount of fun she'll be...in bed. Something to do with wild abandon and taking chances maybe.

And I wonder what other kinds of abandon there are? Can you do something with measured abandon, or calm abandon?

Was lost but now am a piece of white cardboard?

2007-11-05T17:11:00.001-05:00

OK, so I've been away from this for awhile. I think the Interconnectedness thing threw me off my game, so I'm going to let it go, tho I did have such a moment last week when first I was opening a Reese's Cup and appreciating the simple pleasure of the little white cardboard thingamajig they put in the packaging, and then Satuday night when Paul and Suma were over for dinner, we were talking of the joys of chocolate mixed with peanut butter and Cheryl mentioned how upsetting it is that they don't put the little white cardboard thingamajig in the packaging anymore! What?! But I...It was...I just saw...(insert Twilight music here).

Anyway, I have a list of stuff to write about, so I'll try to add one thing a day. I guess this was it for today, tho I didn't plan it to be.

First, shoot the lawyers, then send guns and money

2007-09-11T15:50:00.000-05:00

I recently encountered an old schoolmate, who was 4 years or so behind me in high school. I don't remember a great deal of interaction with him, but when I saw him last, he was a painfully shy 8th grader, whom I went out of my way to say hi to because I could see me in him as a shy kid, trying to find someone/anyone to so much as send a friendly nod my way.

When I approached him last night, he stuck out his hand with a smile, said "Hi Jamie", then stood up and said “How’s it going your way?” to which I said "Great", to which he said “so how’s it going your way?”, to which I said something along the lines of "It couldn't be going any better, how about you?" So after that discomforting start, we lapsed into small talk for a few minutes during which he constantly looked around the room as if he was waiting the arrival of someone more far important than me, while checking his blackberry or some equivilent handheld electronic device.

He wore a silk-ish grey suit and a patterned light purple tie with loafers and no socks and moved like a quintessential lawyer, which he is, all stiff, like he hadn’t so much as bent over in 30 years, except to take a dump.

And there he was, just exactly what we all wanted to make sure we never became when we got to this age.

If anyone reading this ever sees me in a grey suit with a purple tie and loafers but no socks, checking a random handheld electronic device, consider this my living will - shoot me then and there and do not resuscitate and you will have done me and society at large, tho not necessarily my family, a great service, which isn't to say I would do that to him, because I'm not judging. Oh no, I would never do that.

I just wish I'd said this first

2007-09-04T11:34:00.000-05:00

"And for our part, let’s stop being so surprised when we discover that our public figures have their own complex sex lives, and start being more suspicious when they self-righteously denounce the sex lives of others."
Laura M. Mac Donald, in the NY Times 9/2/07

...and maybe the Church of Rock n Roll

2007-08-21T11:12:00.000-05:00

"I believe in the Church of Baseball. I've tried all the major religions, and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I heard that, I gave Jesus a chance. But it just didn't work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there's no guilt in baseball, and it's never boring... which makes it like sex. I've tried 'em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the Church of Baseball."
- Annie Savoy (played by Susan Sarandon), Bull Durham

Abbeen Tellin' ya

2007-08-10T21:29:00.000-05:00

OK, this one's even better. Today we picked up our new Foreign Exchange student - Ammar. Today's featured letter to Dear Abby? About a family taking on a new foreign exchange student.

Mini-Icee's

2007-08-10T19:36:00.000-05:00

OK, maybe these are a reach, but two more mini-IC's (Interconnectness...es): We talked about Pee Wee Herman at length the other day and Paul Reubens was on Jimmy Kimmel last night.

And today, my co-worker, Steve, talked wistfully of the idea of owning a big old car, from the 70's or so, with the huge back seat. And sure enough, on my way home a few hours later, a gig ole 60's era El Dorado with antique plates and a huge back seat pulled up a long side me. Just sayin...

Be still, my swelling organ

2007-08-10T19:31:00.000-05:00

Twice in the past week, my sister, Laurie, has said something "...made my heart swell." Isn't that a cool expression? It sure does feel like that sometimes, but i wonder if it actually does.

Where am I again? And why am I in this handbasket?

2007-08-10T13:59:00.000-05:00

News Item - August 10, 2007:

"The president also faced questions at his news conference on the lack of visible progress in Iraq toward the political reconciliation that the strategy intends to foster.
“There is a lot of work left to be done, don’t get me wrong,” Mr. Bush said. “If one were to look hard, they could find indications that — more than indications — facts that show the government is learning how to function.”

Yeah, they've learned from GW to take month long vacations while their country slides deeper into the abyss.

First Example

2007-08-09T15:13:00.000-05:00

I recently did something I would never, ever have thought I'd do - I got plastic surgery! At least of a sort. I have had really bad teeth ever since a dermatologist prescribecd tetracycline when I was a teenager to try to clear up my acne. As a result, I had holes in my teeth, like not from the usual vertical type cavities, but like holes through them from front to back, so you could see through them. And they just kept getting worse with stains on the repairs and all kinds of yuck so bad that I was finding myself not smiling as much as I wanted to for fear of what people might think of me!!! Since one's personality is so closely linked with one's teeth, of course.

So I got 6 new front teeth last week. In my semi-defense, my teeth were so bad, my dental insurance agreed to pay some of it because it was not considered cosmetic, it was medically necessary. Now that's some bad teeth, yo! But in the end, it turned out that their estimate of how much they'd cover was somewhat disingenuous, and instead of paying half the $3500, they only paid about $900, so we were out $2626, to be exact.

So, feeling really guilty about that, I decided I would look into the possibility of a part time job to somehow make it up. Well, back at work a few hours later, Bill,who works down the hall from me, poked his head in my office and asked me if I'd have any interest in doing some part-time consulting work for the township. Giddyup.

Interconnectedness

2007-08-09T14:59:00.000-05:00

Serious post here - I sort of don't know what I'm saying here except that I'm going to try to explain a phenomenon that I call Interconnectedness. Maybe someone else called it that first or maybe it's a really bad name for it, but it's the one I came up with to try to describe it. The easiest way to explain it is through the example we've all experienced where you hear a word for the first time or maybe a Band or a place and even though you're sure you've never heard it b4 in your life, you then hear it like 3-4 times in the next week or two.

Actually, that's the weakest example. I'll try to define it better without an example. I only feel the need to write about it, because it's something that happens to me with alarming frequency. Some people would just call it coincidence, and maybe it is, but it's eerie sometimes.

It usually involves a thought I have - maybe a person I think about for the first time in a long time, or a place I want to go to, or a concern I have...and then out of nowhere, something more tangible happens that speaks to my thought, in some cases as if a prayer is answered, tho in most cases, it would be insulting to God (and you know how sensitive he or she is!) to think he got involved in something so silly.

I write about it here, because I'm going to start posting some of the examples of when it happens to me, even the really little ones. Sometimes it happens 2-3 times a day, sometimes, I'll go a week or more without it happening, but I want to starting writing some of them down, and this seemed like the place.

I'll give it the label at the bottom so they can be grouped.

Seriously

2007-08-03T15:34:00.000-05:00

Thinking the other day in the one place we all do our best thinking...the shower, with sitting on the toilet a close second...and thinking about my life, i came to this conclusion: I wonder when my dreams will catch up to my reality.

Or maybe it was the puns that ruined the good marriage

2007-08-03T15:31:00.000-05:00

I think a good judge of the strength and happiness of a marriage can be gauged in the reaction of one spouse to the other's use of a pun, especially a bad one. If they laugh no matter how bad it is, they're doing fine. If they groan and roll their eyes, there's probably a problem...or lots of them.

Reflect on this

2007-08-03T15:29:00.000-05:00

Wow, 2 months since I last posted. It took me two months to come to this conclusion:

The world would be a much better place without mirrors.

Thank you. I'll check back in in October.

Balance

2007-06-01T15:23:00.000-05:00

A terrible thing happened in our lives a few months back when our 11-month old cat, a Christmas present for our 6 year old, was killed by dogs. It was heartbreaking all around, of course for Habs, the cat, for Trevor, for Cheryl who did most of the cleaning up, for the rest of the family and presumably for the owner of the dogs, tho it was a challenge for her to express her sorrow to everyone.

It surprised me in the weeks that ensued the need I had, a seemingly physical need as much as an emotional one, to tell people about what happened. And each time I told the story, especially to cat lovers, particularly the kind folks I work with, that it was incredibly selfish of me to tell them this story. What good would they get out of it? They would feel pain too - the sorrow we were all feeling, the sadness, the helplessness. What right did I have to bring such pain into their lives?

But then I thought about the phenomenon of people slowing down to see the after effects of traffic accidents, or to get wrapped up in a story in the news about a mom killing her young children, or a fire that kills a family. Why do we read those stories? It brings us absolutely no joy whatever, only pain and sadness.

So it further struck me that like so many other aspects of our lives, there is so much balance, and also a NEED for so much balance. Give credit to God or whatever, but it's so cool that we have such a need to tell people the terrible things that have happened in our lives and there is such a seeming need for people to hear about such things.

As for me, I slow down to see accidents only to see if I know the people involved. I don't read or watch stories of tragedy, especially if they involve children - I turn the channel as fast as I can if it comes on TV and I glance at headlines to see if I can read them in full, if they meet my criteria. And if someone starts to tell me a story involving children getting hurt, I ask them to stop. I hope I'm not upsetting the balance of the universe.

Having said that, I spent 4 hours last night talking with a friend who is going through a divorce. I got the impression he didn't have many folks he could talk about it with. Well, he had people, but most of them had turned against him, thinking they had to choose sides, and had decided he was the bad guy in the situation, as if there had to be one. Much of it was a sad discussion, but it was 4 hours I enjoyed as much as any 4 hours I've been through in a long time. It was happy too, as he's since fallen in love again, and we also talked about a lot of other fun things as well.

So there's something to be learned there, but I don't know what it is. I think it had more to do with the buddy I was talking with then the subject matter. He's one of the many, many people I've been lucky enough to be friends with in my life.

I just can't stop

2007-06-01T15:19:00.000-05:00

Have you ever:

- stood for something
- taken a strong stand
- been stood up by someone
- been big on someone

And have you had to play on an uneven playing field? Actually, I have - our soccer field at Earlham was terrible. No wonder we always lost - it was the proverbial uneven playing field!

...and I probably still am!

2007-05-30T14:29:00.001-05:00

I just sent the email below to a guy I graduated with in High School who had emailed a bunch of us about an upcoming reunion. Joe was very active with the Black Student support group at Westtown - I forget the exact name, but it probably fit into some cute acronym like the same group in college - the Black Leadership Action Committee. I forget how it came up, but he once invited me to come over to his room in our senior year to talk about race issues, a topic that has always fascinated me. I don't remember a lot about our discussions, but I remember this: He asked me very matter-of-factly and non-confrontationally, "Are you afraid of black people?" Of course, I answered no, and he didn't challenge me on it, but I suspect the real answer lay somewhere along the lines of Yes! Funny, I also remember my sister, Sherry, asking me the same question some years later, except this time it was about women and of course, I am pretty sure the answer I gave and the one I should more honestly have given were the exact same as to Joe's question.

Hey Joe –

How are you? How’s life? Hey, I saw the thing in The Westtonian about George Bell and googled him to try to say hello and congrats on what was it – getting in to the Hall of Fame? But I couldn’t find an email address for him. Do I remember that you are in touch with him on occasion? If so, please tell him I said Hi and congrats.

I think of you from time to time, Joe, tho I’m embarrassed to admit, I think of you primarily when events like the Imus thing happened. I was a fan of his, to some extent, used to listen to his show on the way to work. It always seemed sad to me that that he felt it necessary to use some of the routines his staff engaged in – sad that he wanted it, sad that people still found it funny. I think after what happened, an opportunity was missed. He pledged to change the format of his show to include, I forget what his exact words were, whether he said more diversity or more minority voices. I wish they’d suspended him, put him on probation and then waited to see what direction he took his show in. He could have used it for good going forward, and taught people a lot.

I get tired of hearing people say that we need a “national dialogue on race”. Seems to me that people love to talk about race issues already. Problem is, it’s too often whites talking to whites and blacks to blacks, and presumably other minorities with each other too. I think I may have told you that I once participated in a “Listening Seminar” hosted by the local YWCA, hosted by the mother of a Westtown Student I coached there in volleyball, named, shoot, her last name was Pettus, for some reason, I’m thinking her name was Candy? She was a very talented actress, I believe. And the father of the family may have been the President of Cheney University? Anyway, there were about 10 of us in the seminar which met 1-2 nights a week for a month or so. I think about ¾ of us were of the Caucasian variety, and the problem was that we were pretty much all of the same mind – open-minded, liberal-types. Well, open-minded to a point. I took many things away from that gathering, but one thing I remember in particular relative to what I started this paragraph with.

One woman was African-American – the head of the local NAACP. She was very angry about a lot of things. And she seemed far more interested in talking than listening, but that was OK, because we had a lot to learn from her. I was upset by some of the things she said, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. One thing she said that most upset me was when someone said they would like to have more opportunity to speak with blacks about race issues and she said that her friends wouldn’t be interested in doing that since they were tired of talking about it with each other! I sure hope that isn’t/wasn’t true, but it kept us from pursuing the idea any further and perhaps an opportunity was missed.

Well, I didn’t expect to go off on that tangent, Joe. I promised you a few years back that I was going to email you with some of my thoughts about race issues, and this is a thimble full of those thoughts. There’s plenty more where they came from, tho none of it necessarily more coherent!

And I also want to make clear that although I admitted above that I think of you primarily in a black/white context, when such issues come up, it has always struck me how comfortable I am around you. You know how you have close friends you can go without seeing or communicating with for years, but when you do see them, you can start talking as though you never stopped hanging with them? You make me feel that way too, not because we have a lot to talk about or a lot in common, but it’s your aura, I think. One that makes you immediately comfortable to be around. I always think of Randy Nadeau that way too, tho since he and I were roomies, we have more to talk about. Anyway, I hope you get my point.

I hope life is great for you, Joe, and if you ever are down here to see the Longs and want to stop in for a home-cooked meal, please let me know. Or I can just meet you somewhere after work if you’d prefer that.

- Jamie

Come again?

2007-05-24T12:04:00.001-05:00

My friend Mike, whose blog can be found at http://www.michaelpcolumns.blogspot.com/, recently referred to a store in Exton called Purvis Indian Market, so, wondering where it is, I googled “Purvis” and “Exton” and this was one of the top Google results:

"Social Neuroendocrinology
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobatcontact would be more conclusive. Masturbation-induced orgasm also leads to in-. creased T in heterosexual women (Exton et al. 1999) and men (Purvis et al. ... "

This raises so many questions in my mind (as opposed to my left kneecap) it's going to take everything I have (well, maybe not everything) not to look into it, but it does make me wonder what "T" is and whether it's a good thing, and if so, why only for heterosexers?

I also wonder how they explained to the participants exactly what it was they intended to measure and how they needed to go about compiling the uh, raw data.

Scoring points with people

2007-05-24T11:54:00.000-05:00

Last week, someone said in a meeting "Jamie's point is well-taken". Why did he compliment himself for understanding my point instead of saying "Jamie's point is well-made!" How about a little somethin' for the effort!

And have you ever seen anyone's point?

Losing: The New Winning

2007-05-22T14:59:00.000-05:00

It seems to me that the wars we've been involved in since say, 1946, and I mean the ones that have lasted longer than a holiday weekend, which rules out Grenada, we've been better off losing than winning or tying:

Korean War - It was a draw and we're still there, many billions of dollars later

Vietnam War - We lost and now their country has never been in better shape. We're one of their major trading partners, and furthermore, if we'd "won" we'd have spent many billions of dollars propping them up with financial aid these past 30 years

Desert Storm - We won this one, and then had to go back in 10 years later to, as we kept hearing the right-wingers say, "finish the job", which nicely leads us to the current

Iraq War - Did we win yet?

Especially all the girls I knew in high school

2007-05-22T14:53:00.000-05:00

What ISN'T easier said than done? Even picking a peck of pickled peppers is easier said than done.

Just don't ask what I think of when I see Jerk Chicken on the menu

2007-05-06T22:19:00.000-05:00

Whenever someone refers to a door jam, I think about toe jam, which makes me think about strawberry jam, and then jamming a radio frequency, and then I think about learning to play the banjo so I can jam with my friends, which would be fun to do while we eat jambalaya, and we could sing jamboni, jamboni, j-j-j-j-jamboni. And then, of course, it gives me yet another chance to think only of myself.

Except when you're taking care of little kids - that's legit!

2007-05-04T16:28:00.000-05:00

Funny how often we say we haven't had time to do something:

"We really want to have you guys over but we've just been so busy."
"I've been trying to get that stuff to you, but I just haven't had time."

But I realized that the same people saying that, myself included, have also had time to watch any number of random TV shows, or cut their grass or go to a ballgame.

So what we/they're really saying is "We really want to have you guys over, but there are just so many other things we'd RATHER do."

Power to the 3-year old people

2007-05-04T16:25:00.000-05:00

Our 3-year old daughter, Emma came into our room the other morning while Cheryl and I were still in bed, the TV having just woken us up, after which i reset it to let us sleep a little longer and turned it off, at which point, Emma said "The power must have gone off." Made me realize I know as much about why the power goes on and off as a 3-year old. Not a deep thought, but about right for first thng in the morning.

Stuff I think about sometimes that makes my head hurt if i spent to much time on it, tho not as bad as when i think about what will happen when I die

2007-05-04T16:16:00.000-05:00

Is zero a number? Seems like it should be, but if I said that I've been to Namibia a number of times, am I telling the truth?

Is it fair to say we live just minutes away from Keokuk, Iowa? It's many, many minutes, but it's minutes nonetheless. But then noneistheless than many many usually, unless we're talking about many, many negative numbers. Noneisthemore than negative numbers.

Damn illegal immigrants - will they stop at nothing?!

2007-04-27T09:48:00.000-05:00

News Item:

Apr. 26
Freddy Sanchez, second baseman of the Pittsburgh Pirates, missed yesterday's game after having a foreign body removed from his right eye, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He should return from the eye irritation today.

Wait, has anyone gotten his fingerprints? Could be Osama Bin Laden!

But only because we don't have Nixon to kick around anymore

2007-04-26T15:05:00.000-05:00

After many years of too much time spent reading newspapers, with a particular fascination with baseball and politics, I've discovered that all the ills of the world can be blamed on one of these factors:

- el nino
- steroids
- climate change
- partisan politics
- the war on terror
- Bill Clinton, though this could soon change to Hillary, in the unlikely event she is elected...or even nominated for that matter
- the designated hitter

So next time you need an excuse for something, feel free to consult this list. For instance, just yesterday when Cheryl let me have it for forgetting to screw the toothpaste top back on, I simply blamed partisan politics and she didn't seem so upset anymore.

Eli, dude, first, you have got need for a grammar tutor

2007-04-25T09:56:00.000-05:00

News Item: Billionaires Start $60 Million Schools Effort

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published, NYTimes: April 25, 2007

Eli Broad and Bill Gates, two of the most important philanthropists in American public education, have pumped more than $2 billion into improving schools. But now, dissatisfied with the pace of change, they are joining forces for a $60 million foray into politics in an effort to vault education high onto the agenda of the 2008 presidential race.

“If we really want to get the job done, we have got to wake up the American people that we have got a real problem and we need real reform.” said Mr. Broad, the billionaire who founded SunAmerica Inc. and KB Home and who has long been a prodigious donor to Democrats.

that pretty much covers it

2007-04-24T19:41:00.000-05:00

Conversation with 6-year old Trev:

Trev, after seeing a McDonalds commercial: "I'm Loving it"
Me: "I'm lovin' you!'
Trev: "I'm lovin Life!"
Me: Cool, really, Trev?"
Trev: Yeah...sometimes it's fun, sometimes it's frustrating, sometimes it's not fair, sometimes I'm sad...and sometimes I'm happy!"

an I for an I

2007-04-24T19:33:00.000-05:00

Why, when people write Letters to the Editor, do they insist on saying, "I, for one, would like to see...". If the Editor ever gets a letter saying, "I, for two..." I hope they publish it...and then contact the authorities...unless it's from a pregnant woman.

Boring stuff about masturbation and murder and stuff

2007-04-24T19:03:00.000-05:00

OK, so I've been away from this for awhile and to my legions of readers, I apologize. My sister, laur-laur emailed me today and having just read it for the first time, gave me major positive reinforcements, affirmations, compliments and generally nice comments about this ole blog, so I'm re-energized.

A couple of things kept me away from it. One was that I've sort of set up a pattern of cutsie little thoughts, and I feel like I've painted myself in a corner (Have you ever? I have!). And I'm sort of writing too much with my audience in mind, an audience of, I think, Mike, Cheryl and Kate, all of whose interest in this site means a LOT to me, but I think I'll mix in some other stuff, like just stuff, whether it's stuff in my life or random thoughts even if they aren't funny.

Another reason I haven't written as much is from feeling a lot of sadness lately. Not like overwhelming depression-type sadness, just sadness about the way the world is. The Iraq war, the Climate Change thing, the disappearing bees, and this is going to sound funny, but the the recent thing with Imus getting fired really disturbed me. Partially because of what it said about me as a fan of his show, but also what it said about society. And from both sides, too. It upsets me that people talk and think that way, and it upsets me that people get so upset about someone saying something so stupid. I have a lot more thoughts on what happened there, but I'm not going to spend anymore time on it. Too much has been said and written about it already.

Another thing that happened in the past month or so since I last wrote was the shootings of 33 people at Virginia Tech. It was upsetting for obvious reasons, but from a selfish standpoint, which, after all, is what blogs are all about - the only thing more narcissitic is probably masturbation - well, there goes my whole audience - where was I, oh yeah, for those still reading, the second most upsetting thing to me about it was how unaffected I was by it. It was like, Wow, that's a shame, what's for dinner.

Of course, when the very next day, over 100 Iraqis were killed in a bombing in downtown Baghdad, I think it helped me better understand why it didn't upset me as much as I think it should have. It's all needless murder (as opposed to needed murder?) whether it's citizens going about their lives in Iraq or attending classes in Virginia.

Well, I have another thought about that but I'll save it for a seperate entry. Thanks for hanging in there with me, M & K & C...and now L!

you could probably grow mushrooms in there

2007-03-28T10:37:00.000-05:00

Press Briefing by Tony Snow
White House Conference Center Briefing Room

1:10 P.M. EDT March 21, 2007

(well into the press conference, but quoted verbatim, if somewhat out of context)

MR. SNOW: “You know, the President has a very fertile
mind.”

Me: "yeah, full of shit"

Maybe the Bush Presidency has been a success after all

2007-03-23T08:54:00.000-05:00

News Item, March 23, 2007, Seattle Times:

WASHINGTON — Public allegiance to the Republican Party has plunged since the second year of George W. Bush's presidency, as attitudes have edged away from some of the conservative values that fueled GOP political dominance for more than a decade, a new survey has found.
The survey, by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center for People and the Press, found a "dramatic shift" in political-party identification since 2002, when Republicans and Democrats were at rough parity. Now, half of those surveyed identified with or leaned toward Democrats, while 35 percent aligned with Republicans.
What's more, the survey found the public attitudes are drifting toward Democrats' values: Support for government aid to the disadvantaged has grown since the mid-1990s, skepticism about the use of military force has increased and support for traditional family values has edged down.

What a world, what a world

2007-03-22T10:44:00.000-05:00

It used to be when someone said "What'll they think of next?!", it referred to some amazing invention or time-saving device. Now it refers to sites like this one:

http://www.popularitydialer.com

Though I have to admit, there are times I coulda used their service.

Theorize This

2007-03-12T11:41:00.000-05:00

Lawrence M. Krauss, a theorist at Case Western Reserve, said not long ago at a public panel on cosmology in Chicago: “If you got rid of us, and all the stars and all the galaxies and all the planets and all the aliens and everybody, then the universe would be largely the same. We’re completely irrelevant.”

Actually, that's not true. If you got rid of just me, the universe would be changed forever. Well, at least mine would be.

Shirley you can be Frank with me

2007-03-01T15:07:00.000-05:00

Did ya ever wonder why when someone starts a sentence with "Needless to say..." they say it anyway?

Whenever someone says "Honestly..." or "Frankly..." or "To tell the truth..." or my favorite "To be really honest with you..." it makes me think they aren't telling the truth the rest of the time.

Have you ever been Frank with someone?

And can you get put in jail for feeling a little Randy?

Come again?

2007-02-21T16:38:00.000-05:00

On a family trip back from Vermont, the kids asked: "How much hours til we get home?", to which Cheryl told them that we would get there much faster if they'd go to sleep, elaborating that it's just like Christmas when she tells them that the faster they fall asleep, the faster Santa will come, which got me to thinking how unlike that is from most men, who, the faster they come, the faster they fall asleep.