Bella has been continuing her northern reconnaissance this week of the Sacramento neighborhood called Richmond Grove. On Tuesday night, we went as far as Ernesto’s Mexican Food Restaurant, at S & 16th (round trip: 2.6 miles). Last night, we traveled even farther north, along P Street (round trip: 3.1 miles). Typically we walk from 12:45 to 2:15 a.m.
Tuesday night felt kind of creepy. A coughing, skinny, long-haired blonde dumpster diver guy followed us for a time, but since he kept his distance, I wasn’t worried. We passed by a fellow sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk (how does anyone do that?) and we said hello to a bearded fellow who had gotten out of his wheelchair and was leaning against the wall, either on his knees, or on stumps. (How did Peter Dinklage end up here?)
I’ve been puzzling why torn cardboard litters the ground outside a local ice cream parlor. Pizza box tops, mostly. Looks like a homeless sleeping pad, but they’ve recently put up signs saying planting is in progress. Which just begs the question, what the heck is being planted that requires littering the ground with cardboard, and what business would put up with that?
At one point, we heard a clatter in the street as a lout sailed drunkenly around the corner in his white sedan (U & 23rd St.). The plastic shell of his driver’s side rear-view mirror had detached and fallen into the street. How does that happen? Cars disintegrating mid-trip?
Wednesday night was much friendlier, although it started off badly. A teenage girl was peeing against a fence two houses down the alley from my house, so I called the police. Not even a homeless person; probably a nearby resident. WTF? Gotta have standards, you know? This is a nice neighborhood!
Two guys in their 30’s stepped out of a bar and said hello to Bella. At first, she ignored them, so one said “What’s wrong? Come to me! I’m a human!” I apologized for her, and said the problem was he didn’t smell like a cat.
Bella and I were walking along Broadway when Sk8er Grrrl zoomed past on her skateboard. She pointed, and laughed, and said “Pooper scooper?” Pointing at Bella, I nodded and said “Yes, gotta keep up with her!” She laughed again, and vanished into the night.
A few minutes later, though, Sk8er Grrrl came back, and stopped. She was carrying a Little Caesar’s pizza box under her arm. “Is there a pizza in there?” I asked. “Sure. Want some?” she replied. I said, “No, I was just wondering if it’s a good idea to carry it that way.” She said, “You should see what it’s like when I go shopping on the skateboard – carrying all those bags!” Very friendly. She was 43 - had two kids.
Turned out, Sk8er Grrrl once had a Black Lab. “Such a smart dog!” she said. “I LOVE Black Labs!” We talked about skateboards, and weird injuries, like the broken ankle she once got skateboarding. I could only complain about my recent dislocated knuckle, which fortunately had popped back in. I told her that I purchased a skateboard just 16 months ago, but all I could manage to do on it was fall down (hinting I need tutoring). But her pizza was getting cold and Bella had just spotted a cat, so we both went our separate ways and vanished into the darkness.
Sk8er Girl is the album, but Sk8er Boi is the song:
Thursday, May 05, 2016
Matt Walsh Bails
Matt Walsh's deeply-conservative screeds have been the best thing about this election so far (except maybe Bernie Sanders' bird):
Ruination is obviously what a majority in both parties have enthusiastically endorsed, especially the predominately “conservative,” “Christian,” “Republican” states that turned out in droves for a left-wing vulgarian who, when he’s not bragging of his adultery or fantasizing about dating his daughter or mocking POWs and the disabled, has taken to perpetuating conspiracy theories about how his former opponent’s father killed JFK. Of course, he said this on Fox News while the empty vessels on their morning show sat by and nodded submissively.
Donald Trump Will Never Be President
Idiots:
Unlike Republicans, Democrats plan to hit Trump with a fusillade of attacks from all directions. And they plan to exploit weaknesses that Republicans didn’t touch until it was too late to stop Trump. They’ll hit Trump for his open and vicious misogyny; they’ll publicize his history of racism and discrimination; they’ll attack him where he’s strong with stories of ordinary people he’s scammed and defrauded; they’ll emphasize the fact that he doesn’t know anything about the world or governing.
Tuesday, May 03, 2016
Going to Get Crushed
Say what you like about the GOP, in any election cycle, they always nominate their strongest candidate. It won't matter this time. They are going to get crushed in November.When you crush cochineal beetles, you get useful dye. Maybe something useful will be produced by crushing all these Pillsbury dough boys.
That Fabulous Funky-Fresh Feline Flava
Last night, Bella continued her northern exploration. She finally succeeded in manipulating me to go past a camper vehicle under the freeway that I'm leery of, because it's almost-certainly occupied, but since I've never seen anyone there, I finally relented, and we passed uneventfully by.
I notice Bella groups neighborhoods into those with that Fabulous Funky-Fresh Feline Flava, and those that are only just so-so. At one point, there was an overpowering odor of dead animal, which of course was of great interest to the dog, but there was no obvious body (likely already in a garbage can).
To my surprise, Bella remembered that I told her that the Earth ends in a big cliff just north of S St., and she headed east along S St. without complaint, until we reached 24th St. Across the street, a bicyclist was happily crushing cans gathered from a garbage can, and singing to himself, "Hey, baby!" I looked at Bella and said, "Bella, it's time to head south!" And so we did.
At W St., there was a forlorn sign on a lamppost pleading: "If you witnessed a traffic accident here at 8:20 a.m. on December 16, 2015, please, please get in touch!" Now, that's a pretty busy place, and loads of people must have passed by, but not Bella and myself. It's so hard to create documentation once the instant has passed.
I notice Bella groups neighborhoods into those with that Fabulous Funky-Fresh Feline Flava, and those that are only just so-so. At one point, there was an overpowering odor of dead animal, which of course was of great interest to the dog, but there was no obvious body (likely already in a garbage can).
To my surprise, Bella remembered that I told her that the Earth ends in a big cliff just north of S St., and she headed east along S St. without complaint, until we reached 24th St. Across the street, a bicyclist was happily crushing cans gathered from a garbage can, and singing to himself, "Hey, baby!" I looked at Bella and said, "Bella, it's time to head south!" And so we did.
At W St., there was a forlorn sign on a lamppost pleading: "If you witnessed a traffic accident here at 8:20 a.m. on December 16, 2015, please, please get in touch!" Now, that's a pretty busy place, and loads of people must have passed by, but not Bella and myself. It's so hard to create documentation once the instant has passed.
Such a Pretty Bird
Came across a dead yellow-breasted chat today in a strip shopping mall. Such a pretty bird. Such an odd place to die. Disturbing.
Baby Cham - Ghetto Story (Feat. Alicia Keys)
Liking the choice of Barreto Brothers Zumba for this reggae-fusion cool-down song:
A Photojournal of Reies Lopez Tijerina and His Career
I was very pleased with this page of photos regarding the career of Reies Lopez Tijerina and the Alianza Federal de Mercedes. Boy, do I remember those days! The author was both a journalist and in law enforcement, and possesses a truly-valuable archive of what happened in New Mexico in the Sixties.
Monday, May 02, 2016
Hell Freezes Over
In order to keep the conservative dignity of the GOP, George Will urges conservatives to vote against Trump (which could only mean vote for Clinton) if Trump is the nominee.
Trump would be the most unpopular nominee ever, unable to even come close to Mitt Romney’s insufficient support among women, minorities and young people. In losing disastrously, Trump probably would create down-ballot carnage sufficient to end even Republican control of the House.
Sunday, May 01, 2016
Recap of the California 2015-16 Rainy Season
Time for a recap of the 2015-16 rainy season. At the Sacramento Executive Airport, rainfall amounts ended up 91% of normal - far better than 2013-15, but not nearly good enough to call an end to the drought.
Southern California didn't get nearly enough rain this winter. The dearth of water will cause much political friction in California this year.
Even though the rainy season is officially over, we still have excellent chances for rain in northern California on Thursday of this week. Looking forward to more!
It's unclear what next winter's rainy season may bring. Changes are afoot.
The Pacific Decadal Oscillation is increasing again. Not only is the eastern Pacific is warming, but the central Pacific north of 30 degrees latitude is cooling. What does that portend? Zonal winds? I don't know. After years of heat, hopefully a cooling trend will take hold soon.
Meanwhile, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology reports: "The 2015–16 El Niño is in its last stages. Recent changes in the tropical Pacific Ocean and atmosphere, combined with current climate model outlooks, suggest the likelihood of La Niña forming later in 2016 is around 50%." So, we'll see what that change brings too.
Southern California didn't get nearly enough rain this winter. The dearth of water will cause much political friction in California this year.
Even though the rainy season is officially over, we still have excellent chances for rain in northern California on Thursday of this week. Looking forward to more!
It's unclear what next winter's rainy season may bring. Changes are afoot.
The Pacific Decadal Oscillation is increasing again. Not only is the eastern Pacific is warming, but the central Pacific north of 30 degrees latitude is cooling. What does that portend? Zonal winds? I don't know. After years of heat, hopefully a cooling trend will take hold soon.
Meanwhile, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology reports: "The 2015–16 El Niño is in its last stages. Recent changes in the tropical Pacific Ocean and atmosphere, combined with current climate model outlooks, suggest the likelihood of La Niña forming later in 2016 is around 50%." So, we'll see what that change brings too.
A U-Boat Found In Lake Ontario
How bizarre!:
The U-boat was spotted for the first time by amateur scuba divers in late January and they had contacted the authorities. Archaeologists associated with Niagara University of and master divers from the U.S Coast Guard were mobilized on site to determine what it was, and they soon realized that they were dealing with a German submarine that sank during World War II.
A wreck recovery vessel of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society was mandated to refloat the ship and bring it back to Niagara Falls, where it must be restored before becoming a museum ship. The delicate recovery operation took nearly 30 hours to complete, but the submarine was finally brought down on the bank with relative ease.
Laure Courtellemont Is Fundraising For An Ambitious Project
The most amazing person on the planet, Laure Courtellemont, is leading the effort to crowdfund a project to raise the profile of Jamaican Dancehall in Los Angeles. Dancehall has what it takes to sweep the world - Jamaica is a tiny island stuffed with talent - and strategic use of money can be critical.
Please donate, if you can!
Please donate, if you can!
One of my great dreams for this Jamaican originated art form is to give it an opportunity to be displayed on a live stage with some of the best dancers and actors of its kind. I want to showcase this passionate dance in all its glory in a way that any other well-respected dance should be shown. The Show will be held at Movement Lifestyle in North Hollywood, on June 18, 2016.
Welcome Back To New Mexico!
Surprise!:
A California Condor showed up in Los Alamos New Mexico on Friday. As Arizona Public Radio’s Justin Regan reports, it’s the first confirmed case of a condor in the state in recorded history.
The bird is a two year old male and one of the 71 California Condors in the greater Grand Canyon area. It had gone missing and was feared dead over the winter, but was then found and tagged with a GPS transmitter in mid-March.
Go Far
Galls are falling from the big oak tree, which means Bella is convinced that an invisible benefactor just wants to play fetch.
Our nighttime walks are getting longer and longer. Tuesday night, we walked 2.5 miles. Bella just wants more walks. If she was a musician, she'd call for more cowbell.
Our nighttime walks are getting longer and longer. Tuesday night, we walked 2.5 miles. Bella just wants more walks. If she was a musician, she'd call for more cowbell.
Noise
While Bella indulged her mad compulsion to go even farther afield, and last night to master the neighborhood of 16th and T St., I wondered about the subterranean rumbles. Freeways? Trains? Everything is BNSF these days, but still, Sacramento folks prefer the historic usages. They allow horns at night, so you can hear the Union Pacific trains for miles and miles, but you never, ever hear the Southern Pacific trains until they are right on top of you. But these rumbles? What are they? They're everywhere! It's a mystery.
The Tee Set - Ma Belle Amie
With the Classic Rock radio format, not only do you hear the same set of songs OVER AND OVER, but you also DON'T hear other songs that were also popular on the airwaves at the same time, but just don't fit the narrow Classic Rock stereotype.
I had almost forgotten about this song, from 1969:
I had almost forgotten about this song, from 1969:
Cruz Hopes to Tap Into Immense Popularity of Carly Fiorina
Everyone loves her in California SO much!:
“It’s no secret that Ted Cruz has some trouble with likeability,” the Republican strategist Harland Dorrinson said. “What better way to fix that than by choosing Carly Fiorina, a person everyone is absolutely crazy about?”
Fiorina’s reputation for winning the hearts of everyone she comes in contact with dates back to her days as the incredibly well-liked C.E.O. of Hewlett-Packard and, before that, Lucent Technologies.
“At Lucent, she could light up any room with her smile,” former Lucent employee Tracy Klugian said. “If you had to say what people loved about working at Lucent Technologies, it all came down to two words: Carly Fiorina.”
Let's See If We Got This Straight
Lies spill from North Carolina:
Republican North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory says that even though he personally called for lawmakers to take action against Charlotte's nondiscrimination ordinance, even though Republicans initiated a special one day legislative session to do so, even though Republicans drafted and pushed HB2 through both chambers, even though every Senate Democrat walked out making the bill's passage by Republicans unanimous, even though he personally signed HB2 less than 12 hours after it was first introduced last month in the General Assembly, and even though he staunchly has defended HB2 every day since, liberals are to blame for it.
Exactly Like ISIL
The Bundy bunch are monsters:
Saturday, the day after Earth Day, members of the Moapa Band of Paiutes and other tribes staged a “culture walk” across 11 miles of Gold Butte to call attention to vandalism of cultural sites, illegal offroading, and ranchers letting cattle onto land where grazing isn’t allowed. You know — what the Bundyite crowd calls “responsible local control of the land.”
Since the Bundy standoff, ancient petroglyphs in the area have been defaced.... When in doubt, shoot holes and draw dicks, for Freedom! Other petroglyph sites have been shot up by gunfire or chipped off and removed altogether. William Anderson, the former tribal chairman of the Moapa Band of Paiutes, said, “I couldn’t believe someone would do that … It was surprising that people had no respect for our culture and our people.”
Head North
Tonight, Bella was possessed by an urgent desire to head north, so north we went, probing bushes and abandoned shopping carts, until we reached Safeway and the offices of the Sacramento Bee. I persuaded her the earth ended in a cliff just a short distance farther north, so we headed east, then south again.
In the distance, I caught a glimpse of blanket-enshrouded Dirty Sally 2. She's attached herself to a long-standing homeless camp, and was bawling something like "Fire!" or "Liar!" This will be a long summer coming up in the neighborhood.
In the distance, I caught a glimpse of blanket-enshrouded Dirty Sally 2. She's attached herself to a long-standing homeless camp, and was bawling something like "Fire!" or "Liar!" This will be a long summer coming up in the neighborhood.
Invisible People
The theme of tonight's walk with Bella was 'people who fancy themselves to be invisible.'
First off, we saw a pickup truck pass by filled with a variety of junk. It looked appropriate for Saturday 1 p.m., but at Saturday 1 a.m., it just looked suspicious.
Then, I realized a curly-headed person was observing us from the second floor of an apartment building. When I looked at the window, the person ducked reflexively, but returned to keep watching. I couldn't tell because of backlighting, but the person was either 1.) a naked woman, 2.) a naked man, or 3.) an ambiguously-sexed person with form-fitting clothing.
We walked on, and suddenly we saw the junk truck again in an Auto Zone parking lot. The truck's passenger had stepped out into the dark parking lot and was changing into thrift-store-reject pants. Who drives a junk truck to Auto Zone at 1 a.m. in order to change into the world's ugliest pants? Mysterious.
On the way back home, Bella and I passed through the 26th Street underpass to where the homeless often gather. There was a variety of smelly trash, including two empty wine bottles with necks stuffed with paper in the manner of Molotov Cocktails. There was also a book: "The Good Shepherd", a book by Gunnar Gunnarsson, translated into English and published in the U.S. in 1940. Looks like a Biblical historical novel, told from a Lutheran point of view. I pocketed the book. No one else will notice. After all, Bella and I are the truly invisible ones - Sacramento's Spectral Spectators of the Night.
First off, we saw a pickup truck pass by filled with a variety of junk. It looked appropriate for Saturday 1 p.m., but at Saturday 1 a.m., it just looked suspicious.
Then, I realized a curly-headed person was observing us from the second floor of an apartment building. When I looked at the window, the person ducked reflexively, but returned to keep watching. I couldn't tell because of backlighting, but the person was either 1.) a naked woman, 2.) a naked man, or 3.) an ambiguously-sexed person with form-fitting clothing.
We walked on, and suddenly we saw the junk truck again in an Auto Zone parking lot. The truck's passenger had stepped out into the dark parking lot and was changing into thrift-store-reject pants. Who drives a junk truck to Auto Zone at 1 a.m. in order to change into the world's ugliest pants? Mysterious.
On the way back home, Bella and I passed through the 26th Street underpass to where the homeless often gather. There was a variety of smelly trash, including two empty wine bottles with necks stuffed with paper in the manner of Molotov Cocktails. There was also a book: "The Good Shepherd", a book by Gunnar Gunnarsson, translated into English and published in the U.S. in 1940. Looks like a Biblical historical novel, told from a Lutheran point of view. I pocketed the book. No one else will notice. After all, Bella and I are the truly invisible ones - Sacramento's Spectral Spectators of the Night.
Become One With The Tornado
My dreams feature idiotic slogans. Like last night's dream about tornadoes. I recall: "Don't fight the tornado - become one with the tornado."
Dirty Sally 2
Returning to the house on this early-morning's walk with Bella, we heard a yelp in the distance. It wasn't a very convincing yelp, and didn't sound like trouble. A few minutes later, though, two cop cars with headlights off passed us and scrambled into local alleys on a search-and-encounter mission. Bella and I kept plodding on, heading into our home alley.
Suddenly, the cops succeeded on making their encounter. A blanket-enshrouded woman was walking down our alley and yelling at the cops. The cop stopped encountering, perhaps to write a report about the encounter.
As luck would have it, Bella and I would have to follow this annoyed woman as she walked down the alley in order to get back home. She was yelling loudly in a croaking voice. I had trouble understanding her. I thought I heard her say "I was married in Yolo County because of thieves like you'" and "I was nearly run over by the Sacramento Police Department."
My guess is that I will see more of this woman in coming weeks and months.
Suddenly, the cops succeeded on making their encounter. A blanket-enshrouded woman was walking down our alley and yelling at the cops. The cop stopped encountering, perhaps to write a report about the encounter.
As luck would have it, Bella and I would have to follow this annoyed woman as she walked down the alley in order to get back home. She was yelling loudly in a croaking voice. I had trouble understanding her. I thought I heard her say "I was married in Yolo County because of thieves like you'" and "I was nearly run over by the Sacramento Police Department."
My guess is that I will see more of this woman in coming weeks and months.
Introduction to a New Bureaucracy
Not the best of Mondays. Introduction to a new bureaucracy. First question to be answered is, how do you bail someone out of Placer County jail?
Sorry, Not Much Posting Lately
Except for posts regarding "Better Call Saul" and "Breaking Bad". I've been upgrading my filming locations book again.
Will reboot...
Will reboot...
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