"Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" - DMTC - Tuesday Night Rehearsal

Horace Gonzalez, aka The Cow Of Justice

Miscreants of Woodland, fear.....

Bows, Final performance of DMTC's "Hairspray"

Tagger

I saw a middle-aged man, perhaps a merchant, using a spray can to paint over a tagged surface on a cover for telephone equipment. "Hate those taggers," I said, then added "or are you tagging yourself?" He chuckled and said, "I just get tired looking at it."

Truth Hurts

Ouch:

McCain says he didn’t pass over Romney for Veep because of anything to do with taxes. It was because “Sarah Palin was the better candidate.”

Squasher Of Dreams

J.: And so, here it is! A classic picture of Janis Joplin, topless! Perky, isn't she? I picked it up last year from a fellow who works in a thrift store. There seems to be another photo attached to the back: I don't know what that is. The folks in Hollywood are casting about for Hollywood memorabilia. Maybe this photo is worth lots of money!

M.: Well, let's see. This doesn't appear to be a photograph.

J.: It's not?

M.: No. It's some kind of magazine stock cardboard paper. It looks like someone had a magazine with Janis Joplin's picture in it, and used scissors to cut the picture out, in order to put it up on the wall, or something. The photo on the back is whatever happened to be on the next page. It's probably from the Sixties, but it's not original. Here ... let's go online ... See, there is the Google image of the same photo of Janis Joplin. The original photo is somewhere, but not here.

J.: (sigh)

Very Pleased By Obama Roughing Up Romney

They have him exactly where they want him. This might be the turning point of the campaign!:

A question: why exactly did Romney do his full media blitz Friday afternoon? I strongly suspect it was driven in large measure by Romney’s personal umbrage at being called a liar or having the word ‘felony’ spoken even in proximity to his name. The only logic of doing that kind of full court press is to bring forth something new to the table that can change the direction of the debate. But the only thing that counted as somewhat new was Romney’s emphatic restatement that he’d release only this and last year’s tax returns.

...I think the best angle on what’s happening here comes from TPM Reader WM …

I’m not a GOP operative (thank God), but I do work on Wall Street (the industry, not the geographic location) and I think it’s worth noting that Romney’s reaction to the Bain Storm is very much of a piece with the way assorted hedge fund managers, bankers and other Masters of the Universe have responded to even the slightest criticism from Obama — with as much shock as outrage.

Over the past 20-25 years these guys have gotten used to extreme deference from BOTH parties (think Cory Booker and Ed Rendell) and like to think of themselves as rational beings who are far, far above the partisan sandbox in Washington, up there in the financial heavens, doing the Lord’s Work — to quote Lloyd Blankfein.

I’ve had enough contact with the PE guys to know they particularly see themselves in a heroic light — as the saviors of capitalism from the quasi-socialist clutches of entrenched management, the unions, outside pressure groups, and the other “stakeholders” of the big public corporations (the PE guys really detest that concept).

What’s more, they’re usually insulated enough from normal human reality that they can assume all “reasonable” people see things the same way. And when you’ve got as much money to spend on campaign contributions, endowed chairs, wingnut welfare, etc. as they do, an awful lot of people are going to see things your way, or at least tell you that they do.

Point is, Mitt is not only congenitally blind to the optics of all this, he also appears — to quote Sonny from the Godfather — to be taking it very, very personally. That’s the only way I can explain his incredibly bizarre decision to spend the entire afternoon on TV talking about it, which is about the best way imaginable to keep the feeding frenzy going.

You’d think after a gubernatorial race and two runs for president, Romney would have adjusted his attitude, or at least figured out a strategy for dealing with it. But he apparently can’t — the sense of his own rectitude (upon which his sense of entitlement rests) just won’t allow it.

Got Punched In The Face By Homeless Guy

As I posted on Facebook in the wee hours this morning:

So, now it's war. Returning home this evening, I found the homeless guy who's been defecating under my bedroom window over the last week camped in my driveway. I got aggressive, and so did he. He punched me in the face and shouted threats; I took photos for my blog. Interestingly, Sac Police did not really respond: overburdened with calls. So it'll be interesting to see what happens next.

When I arrived home after the "Hairspray" cast party (about 12:35 a.m.) I saw the homeless guy camped out exactly where he had camped out last week: in the driveway near the alley, but despite there being no fencing right there, it is technically and legally my property. It is likely that this fellow is the same one who has been defecating under my bedroom window lately. Even Joe The Plumber (who is homeless himself) had noticed this fellow perching himself in the corners of the parking lot where he could observe the comings and goings of my neighbors and I. I'm convinced this passive-aggressive approach of his is no accident. It's a kind of casual imperialism, moving in where he thinks there is going to be little or no resistance.

So, I got out of my car and ordered him to leave. He was sleepy and reluctant. I explained he was on my property. He slowly assembled his belongings. I started taking flash photos of him, and he began getting angry. He hurled obscenities: I hurled them right back. My anger began getting the best of me. He threatened all-out war, and promised to break every window on every building in the immediate vicinity of my house.

He began rolling his shopping cart down the alley, as I followed a short distance behind, taking a few more flash photos. As we approached 21st Street, he turned in a rage, and lunged towards me. He seized my eyeglasses and threw them on the pavement, and punched me on my left cheekbone (which drew blood, but barely-hurt in the excitement). I retreated from his reach.

We then had a standoff for about ten or fifteen minutes, interspersed with lots of yelling and obscenities. I was able to retrieve my glasses, and regain eyesight. He menaced me - even threw a lit cigarette at me at one point - but I didn't want contact any longer. At one point, he moved to the NE corner of 2nd Ave. & 21st St. (his weird dog sat down in the middle of 21st St., despite the danger of traffic) as I went about calling 911, but the guy eventually changed his mind, and started heading north with his shopping cart on the sidewalk beside 21st St., before disappearing altogether.

The cops never showed up. It was about an hour before closing time for Sacramento bars on a 'Second Saturday' night. The cops asked if I needed medical help, but unless there was a lot more blood on the pavement, they had other, more pressing, priorities. They suggested I should file a police report this week.

I'm adding a bit better lighting, but have no interest in adding a home security system, or purchasing a gun. What this fellow needed was some guidance about where his limits are, and I was able to provide that.

Julissa Veloz At "The Social Club"

Julissa Veloz, around midnight Saturday morning, at "The Social Club".




I took some video of her performance. It's not very good, but for the record, here it is.

In any event, here is a better video of one of her popular songs....

A "Classy, Decadent" Evening At The Social Club

I initially had trouble figuring out where "The Social Club" was located, so off I went to the Web to find out. Apparently it's upstairs over "The K Bar", at 10th & K Streets. Discovered they prefer 'classy decadence' there.

Now, Sacramento has some classy, non-decadent places, and some non-classy, decadent places, and a whole lot of non-classy, non-decadent places, but this is the only place I was aware of that featured 'classy, decadence'.

The omens were good when I arrived. They ushered me in without collecting a cover charge, but nevertheless making sure I was over 21 years of age. The club seemed to be modeled after clubs in Las Vegas, or LA, but somehow seemed friendlier, and not as intimidating as those places.

(more)

The "Breaking Bad" Bonus

Here is a diagram of my blog readership over the last two years. Things are looking up!

Nevertheless, that is counter to usual experience on the Internet. The Internet is expanding faster than its number of readers, so, on average, readership should trend downwards, not upwards.

My success is almost-entirely due to interest in "Breaking Bad" locations. By latching onto something before most people realized they would need it, I was able to beat the odds. The peaks in the distribution (like the big one in early October, last year) are due to the timing of events in the show. Page Loads have exceeded 500 every day this week, even though I've been blogging less than I usually do.

I'll miss this TV show, when it's done.

Tips Of Icebergs

Life among the "job creators":

The chief executive officer of an Iowa-based brokerage firm admitted in a suicide note that he carried out an elaborate fraud scheme in which he embezzled more than $100 million from customers over nearly two decades, federal investigators said Friday.

FBI agents arrested Russell Wasendorf, Sr., 64, of Cedar Falls on Friday. Federal prosecutors unsealed a criminal complaint charging the CEO of Peregrine Financial Group, Inc., with making false statements to regulators and released documents detailing a wide-ranging fraud scheme that apparently fooled colleagues, customers and regulators for years.

..."Through a scheme of using false bank statements I have been able to embezzle millions of dollars from customer accounts at Peregrine Financial Group, Inc. The forgeries started nearly twenty years ago and have gone undetected until now. I was able to conceal my crime of forgery by being the sole individual with access to the US Bank accounts held by PFG," he wrote in the note, according to court documents.

...He said he used "careful concealment and blunt authority" as the company's founder and sole shareholder to hide the fraud. He said he ordered bank statements be delivered directly to him unopened, that he was the only person with access to the firm's online bank account, and he told the bank that he was the only representative they should call, according to court documents.

Julissa Veloz Will Be In Sacramento Tonight!

Didn't realize - I wonder if I can make it?:

World Town & Social Night Club Present

***SNOB's like it freaky***

we all have a lil snob in us, join us once a month to find out what SNOBS are into. This month for friday the 13th SNOBS LIKE IT FREAKY.

Friday, July 13th of 2012 at Social Night Club

Featuring a live performance by JULISSA VELOZ with

DJ set's by Trevor Simpson and Nate DavitVIP BOOTH & BOTTLE SERVICE:

Please call Social Night Club at 916.316.9577

DJ Unk - "Show Off"

Pepper played this infectious tune this evening, and so - I guess I'm infected.....

Florence + The Machine - Dog Days Are Over (Glastonbury 2010)

Slavery, Oh How I Missed Ya, How I Missed Ya!

For those who worry about deficits and the burden of student loans, a brilliant idea:

A revived draft, including both males and females, should include three options for new conscripts coming out of high school. Some could choose 18 months of military service with low pay but excellent post-service benefits, including free college tuition. These conscripts would not be deployed but could perform tasks currently outsourced at great cost to the Pentagon: paperwork, painting barracks, mowing lawns, driving generals around, and generally doing lower-skills tasks so professional soldiers don’t have to. If they want to stay, they could move into the professional force and receive weapons training, higher pay and better benefits.

Arizona Has Always Had More Glamorous Criminals

I'm sorry, but Tucson has better mug shots than Albuquerque does. Just sayin'.

Is This Heat Really Necessary?

So hot! Bailey the Rabbit doesn't like it! He's doing all he can to cool off, in the basement: his man-cave.

It was 106 Deg. F at Sacramento Executive Airport yesterday (but well below the record of 113 deg. F, set in 1961).

A tropical-type wave is passing through the Southwest. Last night, thunderstorms roared out of the Jemez Mountains and passed through western Sandoval County NM, heading SW towards Mt. Taylor. It looks like there were related, fierce storms in the Phoenix, AZ area too, heading NW:

Thunderstorms danced around the Phoenix area Wednesday night, bringing lightning strikes that set at least one building on fire, 50 mph winds that knocked down trees and power lines, and rainfall that reached up to nearly an inch in some areas.

...Workers at a strip mall near 24th Street and University Drive found a large tree with a base nearly two feet in diameter fully uprooted by winds.

...About 12 miles away, lightning struck the Republic Monetary Exchange building, sparking a fire on the roof of the structure near 40th Street and Camelback Road early Thursday.

The owner of the business, Jim Clark, said much of the inside was damaged from the sprinkler system. Clark said they lost some computers but were able to save other computers, as well as documents and servers.

Officials managed to put out the fire in about an hour.

A billboard on 16th Street and Elwood fell onto a road, possibly after a lightning strike. Power lines in the area were momentarily disrupted.

...The winds built up to 50 mph in some parts of the Valley, knocking a few trees down and scattering debris across roadways and homes.

Clouds could remain through the late morning Thursday, and temperatures should reach up to 106 degrees.

Today, the monsoonal moisture is over Las Vegas, NV, and approaching central California. Later today we may see the high clouds here in Sacramento! So it will be hot AND humid! Yuck!

Naked Homeowner Tries To Outcreep Creepy Homeless Guy

Last week, very late at night, as I drove through the DMV parking lot on my way home, I was startled by the sight of a small dog curled on the pavement right in the middle of the parking lot. It took me a few seconds, but I recognized the dog as belonging to the creepy homeless guy who trespassed into my driveway ten days ago to take a dump under my bedroom window. (I've blogged about this strange dog before: The Dog In Suspended Animation.) The creepy homeless guy was sleeping on a patch of lawn a short distance away, and the fiercely-loyal dog, according to its custom of not ever being precisely at its owner's side, but always a short distance away, had also sacked out, but in the middle of the parking lot. The parking lot serves as an alternate roadway, so the dog was quite vulnerable there.

Anyway, last night, I was awakened at 4:35 a.m. by a barking dog. I looked out and recognized this dog, which was, once again, in the middle of the DMV parking lot, but this time exactly opposite my driveway. "Oh, crap," I thought, "is that creepy homeless guy taking another dump down there?" I peered into the gloom, but saw nothing.

I decided to investigate. Completely naked in the summer heat, I headed downstairs, waving a flashlight around, hoping to dissuade any "squatters". As I approached my back yard's gate, I heard an annoyed masculine voice somewhere outside the gate say "SSSSHHHHH!" Immediately, the dog fell silent, and disappeared.

I STILL didn't see anything, or notice anything else unusual. I crept out into the driveway, but was dissuaded from venturing further by the sharp pebbles in the driveway. Nakedness is a bold statement, but it's easily thwarted by sensitive soles of the feet.

Driving to work through the parking lot this morning, I saw the dog again, this time heading somewhere on an errand. A bicyclist stopped to reach out and kindly pet the dog. The dog ignored him.

"Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" - DMTC - Some Promotional Pictures

Willa Paskin Hates Walter White

And who doesn't? Bryan Cranston has turned Walter White into a thoroughly dislikable and exceedingly dangerous person:

With just the tone of his voice, the stupendous Bryan Cranston can make clear whether Walt is being genuine (deeper, slower voice), fake (angry condescension), pretending to be genuine (sweet, high pitched, hint of condescension), or genuinely being fake, as in he is just deluding himself (hepped-up, manic energy). It is increasingly claustrophobic and anxiety-producing just having him onscreen. Every single thing he says has started to sound like a threat. He is the something horrible that is waiting to happen. He, as he only half-delusionally put it, is the one who knocks.

Drum Circle Bounty

Last night, I arrived late for Tye's first drum session after he returned from camp. Uncharacteristically, he had attended a drum circle a few days ago, and recruited several new people. These people - know their stuff! Interesting!

North Korea Begins To Crack

This is how it starts:

North Korean state-run television on Monday showed footage of costumed versions of Tigger, Minnie Mouse and other Disney characters prancing in front of the leader, Kim Jong-un, and an entourage of clapping generals.

The footage also showed Mr. Kim in a black Mao suit watching as Mickey Mouse conducted a group of young women playing violins in skimpy black dresses. At times, scenes from the animated Disney movies “Dumbo” and “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” were projected on a multipanel screen behind the entertainers; an article in the state-run press said unnamed foreign songs were on the bill.

The appearance of the characters from the United States, North Korea’s mortal enemy, was remarkable fare on tightly controlled North Korean television, which usually shows more somber and overtly political programs. A Disney spokeswoman, Zenia Mucha, had no comment Monday beyond a statement: “This was not licensed or authorized by the Walt Disney Company.”

As with many things in the North’s bellicose and reclusive Stalinist government, Mr. Kim’s rationale was a mystery, but there was a hint that the performance might be significant. An article about the performance by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said that Mr. Kim, who took over after the death in December of his father, Kim Jong-il, had a “grandiose plan to bring a dramatic turn in the field of literature and arts this year.”

Political Spin

Clarifying what already seemed clear enough:

The best part of this story (the Maine Gov calling the IRS the ‘new Gestapo’) is the Governor’s press secretary trying to help spin or explain away his decision to compare the IRS to the ‘Gestapo’. This from the Gov’s communications director …

“He was going for the effect. He did say the ‘new Gestapo.’ He was not referring to the ‘old Gestapo’. I think that’s important to note.”

Flood In The Basement

The intrusion of tree roots in the sewer line has become an annual event, usually in late spring.

The drought this winter seems to have delayed the annual event. The spring passed by without incident. There was a preliminary rumbling last week, but I caught it quickly, and it passed.

About 2 a.m. last night, while the washing machine was merrily draining its water and I was getting ready for bed, E. approached:

E.: (Sigh) I think we're going to have trouble with the sewer again.

M.: And why do you think that?

E.: Because the toilet was burbling.

M.: NNNNNNNNOOOOOOO! When that happens you have to stop the draining water RIGHT AWAY! It's going to be a disaster in the basement!

And, sure enough, it was a disaster. In the basement, the cap to the sewer line had popped off, and there was water everywhere. I mopped till 3 a.m. I likely lost some old, stored magazines in the mess, but the damage seems mostly-confined to the temporarily-stored belongings of Joe The Plumber, E.'s arch-enemy.

And so, soon I'll have to clear out that line again. It needs replacing, but who's got extra cash for a sewer line replacement?

More Stupid On The Right

Great place you put Texans in, Mr. Perry: getting taxed for services they can't access, because of your special brand of stupid:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Monday he will not implement ‘Obamacare’ provisions such as the Medicaid expansion and the insurance exchanges. The decision could mean that Texas ultimately loses an opportunity to cover half of its uninsured residents and relinquishes to the federal government more control over its health care system.

You Should Have Thought Of That A Long Time Ago!

You dumb Birther morons! OF COURSE this is what's going to happen! And we now know who you are! Stupid Birthers!:

“By the way Alex, remember when you were in my office in Virginia, one of my crew asked if you’d ever seen a drone, and you answered no you hadn’t,” he said. “I get home and within a week or two of that conversation, I’m taking my dog for a walk, and guess what I see right over the tree line? Right above my head is a drone.”

...“There could only be one thing that this drone was spying on, and that would be me,” he said. “That would be my property.”

...Jones and Farah seem to be reacting to recent reports that the government has permitted limited use of unmanned drones in civilian airspace. Last June, an antigovernment “sovereign citizen,” whose family had chased police off their North Dakota farm with high-powered rifles, became the first American citizen to be arrested with the aid of such a device. The government reportedly plans to expand the use of drones within the next few years, an idea that unsettles civil liberties watchdogs on both the left and right – and leaves antigovernment activists like Farah and Jones giddily unhinged.

“This is a game of control for them,” Farah told Jones. “We have to resist all attempts to control us, whether they’re telling us our kids have to have these mandatory vaccines, or they tell us in order to get on an airplane you’ve got to be groped. This is where the resistance starts, because this is part of conditioning for what is really the endgame for them, which is, you know, we’re all going to be global citizens, we don’t have any say in our government and so forth. It’s everything our Founding Fathers fought against, and we’ve got to be like our Founding Fathers all over again, and the only question in my mind is whether we have the fearlessness, and the courage and the conviction that they had to do that.”

He continued, “If [Obama is] re-elected, it’s gonna be war. We will be at war. We will be hunted down like dogs, Alex Jones, just keep that in mind. That’s what the stakes are.”

Piper Stoeckel, Miss Arizona 2012

Interview on KGUN Channel 9, in Tucson. Crowned Miss Arizona Saturday night. Miss America, here she comes!

A University of Arizona dancer (I recognize the big studio!) Go Wildcats! (And hopefully an association with TRB too!)

Marcus Crowder's Greta Gerwig Profile

Marcus Crowder's Greta Gerwig profile, from last week:

Sacramento acting guru Ed Claudio worked consistently with Gerwig from the time she was in elementary school through her high school years at St. Francis.

"She was a natural actress and always made really good, sharp choices that were right on target. When she played Nina in 'The Seagull,' she was Nina," Claudio said.

"As an acting teacher, the best you can do with people like that is draw out their talent, encourage them and help them grow," Claudio said.

"Hairspray" - 'Bows' (July 7, 2012)

A Fish Tale

E.: MMMMAAAARRRCCCC! I have such a tale to tell!

M.: How was Minden Lake?

E.: We caught so many catfish! One was 30 inches long! Chris and I used worms to catch ours, but the Portugese guy next door used anchovies. The biggest one he caught, however, he used a piece of hot dog!

M.: Catching cats with dogs?

E.: MMMMAAAARRRCCCC!

A Bike Ride, With Joe The Plumber

Now I know why Joe The Plumber gave me a bicycle: He wants someone to ride with.

On Saturday, he decided we should bicycle to Old Sacramento. I saw no escape.

It's been a long time since I did much bicycling, so I was fairly-unprepared. Instead of taking water, I decided to hydrate first. Joe decided to take his water bottle, dangling from a kerchief from the handlebars.

We first bicycled to College Cyclery, so he could get air in his tires. He left his water bottle behind there when it fell out of his kerchief.

We biked up 21st Street. At P Street, we stopped for the light. He pointed at 'The Press Club' and said in a low conspiratorial voice: "It's run by the Hell's Angels." I nodded gravely (knowing how unlikely that is likely to be).

We passed a locksmith that displayed a sign that said: "Think Keys." So, I thought keys.

Joe kept pointing out a variety of local plumbing mishaps along the way, like malfunctioning sprinklers and leaks from large pipes with old fittings. He pointed at pipes poking out of the ground at a street corner and repeatedly said something like: "Vacuum assembly! Beverly Hills!" I stared stupidly at the pipes in the ground, trying to figure out what the heck he was talking about.

We turned off 21st at K Street, eventually emerging among the crowds near the Convention Center. Joe found another water bottle near the IMAX Theater. This newfound water bottle was chilled. Joe decided it was a gift from God.

We continued down the K Street Mall. Joe stopped to take a drink, and spilled some water onto the pavement, to honor "those who are not with us any more."

We plunged into the Saturday midday crowd at Downtown Plaza Mall. We got separated for a while, when a security guard politely asked me to walk my bicycle through the pedestrian walkways, rather than rudely pedaling through, as Joe had done.

We passed through the tunnel under Interstate 5, and emerged in Old Sacramento. We bicycled a short distance north along the Sacramento River, stopping briefly to look at railroad work near the Train Museum, and ended up at the Water Intake Facility on the Sacramento River (pictured at left: christening date 2004).

At the Sacramento River Water Intake Facility, with Joe The Plumber.

Summer's day frolicking on the Sacramento River.

Suffragettes in Old Sacramento lambaste some misogynist Old-West coot who had the temerity to challenge their progressive notions of Voting, and Equal Rights.

Eating ice cream just opposite Evangeline's. Joe entertained himself by chatting up a parking meter reader.

Afterwards, we shopped among the spiked bracelets at Evangeline's.

We bicycled back, mostly by following the Light Rail tracks.

We stopped at the lone remaining tent at the weekly Farmer's Market, under the W-X Freeway, and looked at antique-ey stuff, like a school microscope.

The bike trip was very, very Sacramento, the way we hit so many key Sacramento landmarks.

You know what else is very, very Sacramento? This music video, featuring Krystle Morales (clearly identifiable at 0:18, and again at 4:43, with a trademark Red Rose), hits many of the same, key Sacramento landmarks we visited on this bike trip:



Uh oh! I guess Sacramento's ICE Dance Company wasn't the only one with this idea! Dance crews from all over the world faced off against each other on YouTube using the same song by Beyonce. This Russian dance crew is awesome!

Support our local dance crews against formidable foreign competition! If anyone is going to run the world, it's got to be our local Sacramento girls!

"Hairspray" - 'Bows' (July 6, 2012)

Blue Mink ~ Good Morning Freedom

The cumulative impact of the musical choices on "Breaking Bad" is to create a really odd, quirky sensibility. Most television series confine their impact to a few notable theme songs, but "Breaking Bad" is just all over the place with their choices.

From 1970, here is one of those favorite "Breaking Bad" songs....

Queasy About The LIBOR Scandal

I've got misgivings about the mortgage refinance I'm mulling this summer, and this LIBOR (1) scandal is playing an increasing role in that sense of unease. The adjustable rate mortgage I'm considering is supposed to be locked in for seven years, then allowed to float, based entirely on what the LIBOR rate happens to be then. Hearing that greedy British bankers have been moving the rate up and down, every day, as it happens to please their trading positions, does NOT make me feel more comfortable.

So, I'm supposed to pony up more and more cash if some callow banker in the City decides he needs a third vacation home in France, plus a new Mercedes? Really? Really!:

On a listserv I subscribe to, a seemingly knowledgeable participant (2) said the victims of the scam include investors who owned floating rate notes, LIBOR-linked CDs, or pay-fixed-receive-floating interest rate swaps; or anyone who traded LIBOR contracts on a U.S. futures exchange and lost money. And let's face it: that doesn't sound much like widows and pensioners, does it?

What's more, the LIBOR scam wasn't about pushing LIBOR systematically up or down. Sometimes it was pushed up, sometimes it was pushed down, depending on whatever happened to be good for the Barclays trading desk on any given day. So even if you are a widow or a pensioner with a CD linked to the LIBOR rate, it's not really clear if you were ever hurt.

Nonetheless, it's a big deal, and I think the Economist pretty much nails it here:

The attempts to rig LIBOR [...] not only betray a culture of casual dishonesty; they set the stage for lawsuits and more regulation right the way round the globe. This could well be global finance’s “tobacco moment”....Despite the risks of banker-bashing, a clean-up is in order, for the banking industry’s credibility is shot, and without trust neither the business nor the clients it serves can prosper.

Additionally:

That could end up costing the banks a lot of money. LIBOR is used to set an estimated $800 trillion-worth of financial instruments, affecting the price of everything from simple mortgages to interest-rate derivatives. If attempts to manipulate LIBOR were successful—and the regulators think that Barclays did manage it, on occasion—then this would be the biggest securities fraud in history, affecting investors and borrowers around the world. That opens the door to litigation not just by the direct customers of implicated banks, but by anyone with a financial interest in LIBOR. The lawsuits have already begun.

1 LIBOR is the London Interbank Offered Rate. It's basically the current interest rate banks charge each other to borrow money, and it changes on a daily basis. So if you have an adjustable rate mortgage, for example, your interest rate might be LIBOR + 3, or something like that.

2 How's that for a reliable source?

Conservative Judge Posner Tells Movement Conservatives To Take A Hike

Striking out at those who strike out against Justice Roberts:

But over the past 10 years, Posner said, "there's been a real deterioration in conservative thinking. And that has to lead people to re-examine and modify their thinking."

"I've become less conservative since the Republican Party started becoming goofy," he said.

Judge Richard Posner speaks to NPR

Posner, who was appointed to the appeals court by Reagan, speculated that the leaks about the deliberations over the national health care law — which are apparently designed to discredit Chief Justice John Roberts' opinion upholding the law — would backfire.:

"I think these right-wingers who are blasting Roberts are making a very serious mistake," he said.

"Because if you put [yourself] in his position ... what's he supposed to think? That he finds his allies to be a bunch of crackpots? Does that help the conservative movement? I mean, what would you do if you were Roberts? All the sudden you find out that the people you thought were your friends have turned against you, they despise you, they mistreat you, they leak to the press. What do you do? Do you become more conservative? Or do you say, 'What am I doing with this crowd of lunatics?' Right? Maybe you have to re-examine your position."

Sting - Synchronicity II

I wanted to post The Police's original video, but for some copyright reason, it doesn't seem to be available on YouTube in the United States. Nevertheless, this live version serves well!

Lots Of Thunderstorm Activity West Of Belen/Los Lunas

I just love the monsoon!

Trying To Anticipate What People Want

I remember manning DMTC booths at Davis Community Park in 2005, and 2009, and now, once again, in 2012. I didn't expect too many surprises. In fact, I tried to predict what we might expect in the way of cookie sales.

DMTC obtained $476.45 from Celebrate Davis in 2005. That’s nearly 500 cookies, but there was additional demand too, because we had the most bargain-conscious food item around. I remember how a small child complained that she wanted pizza instead of cookies, but her father explained to her that she was going to eat cookies, or nothing at all. It was the power of the market! Celebrate Davis was an efficient market!

If turnout in 2005 matched what the promoters expected from 2004 attendance (5,000 people), and if we sold nearly 500 cookies, we might expect to sell one cookie for every ten people who attend. If turnout was larger this year, it would mean more cookies sold. I thought 600 cookies should cover 2012's needs.

The 2009 example wasn't very instructive, because that year we won the lottery to sell both pizza and beer, so we were set up for big sales, no matter what happened.

In fact, this year, turnout appeared to be lower than in either Celebrate Davis in 2005, or Fourth of July in 2009. I'm not sure why.

The City of Davis provided free water, but did so at a location away from the food vendors. In theory, that should have spurred soda sales. In practice, it appeared to have irritated people. People purchased little in the way of sodas.

People nibbled away the cookies, but their real interest was in the popcorn. We provided popcorn almost as an afterthought, and had only a small cooker to work with, but people were willing to wait patiently in long lines just to get a taste of the maize goodness. We started wondering if there was crack in the corn, so inordinate the demand seemed.

When you read histories of the Great Depression, people talk about how that economic trial made for a more-sober, family-conscious people. I've noticed that the Great Recession of 2008 has had similar effects. We are now a better well-grounded people than we were in 2007.

What I did not expect, however, was the insatiable appetite for popcorn. There's just no way to keep up!

DMTC Fourth-of-July Booth At Davis Community Park

On the Fourth of July, DMTC supporters set up a fundraising booth at Davis Community Park. We got ready to sell cookies, popcorn, and soda. Where is Health Inspector, we all asked, as we prepared to sell.

The Health Inspector was delayed, but we did get a visit from U.S. Congressman (and former Lieutenant Governor, and former Insurance Commissioner) John Garamendi!

Garamendi expressed his interest in supporting the arts, and asked for our support in his reelection campaign.

Davis Mural, In Progress

North of Tres Hermanas; south of Ace Hardware.

Conservative Consistency

(Via Eileen, on Facebook).

Actually, conservative renunciation of all their previous positions is totally consistent with the American conservative movement.

Because they really aren't conservatives at all - they are radicals - and that's exactly what radicals do. George Orwell wrote all about it in "1984".

Remember that next time when conservatives tell you they care about deficits.

Barney Fife and the Preamble to the Constitution

(h/t Steve). Fourth of July special! More effective without the laugh track!

Back To My Favorite Summertime Sport

Watching gust fronts echoing back and forth across the Albuquerque area.

Feeling Sorry For The Spider In My Briefcase

Terrible insect selection in there....

The Mailman Doesn't Have To Knock Even Once To Get Past That Fourth Wall

"Mexican Shootout", by Rich Kelly


I got a nice E-Mail:

Just wanted to drop a line to say thank you for taking the time to go past the front door and take those who delve further into Breaking Bad.

As a USPS mailman for all of 87106, 87108, 87102, 87105 and 87110 the last 3 years, I’ve been oh so close to when and where they film a large portion of scenes. Only up until about a year ago, I started to mention it to friends as not to ruin the opportunities that I had to literally walk right through police barricades, across barriers, and into businesses where they were shooting scenes in the back.

This show is incredibly great and those who do like it, just don’t like it….they are completely passionate about it. I’ve literally met a dozen people who didn’t know about it, given them all of season 1, and gotten a call a day or so later asking if I can get them S2. What other show makes their viewers do this kind of thing? Binge TV. LOL.

Anyhow, just wanted to really say hi, thank you for posting up your Blog for others outside of “The 505” to see and wish you all the luck in your future endeavors.

We’ll all be reading.

I replied:

Thank you! I am honored!

That’s amazing, being able to penetrate past that fourth wall, all as a part of official duties (reminds me of that scene with the mail lady in “Peekaboo”)!

I started watching Breaking Bad fairly late - at the beginning of Season 3 – but one of the first things that caught my eye was the hillside behind the Mesa Credit Union, where Walt withdraws his life savings to buy an RV. That hill was a favorite hiking destination when I was in high school, but unless I said something about it, no one would ever know. So, I started blogging about BrBa, knowing that other Burqueños must have plenty of stories of their own about other locations they were familiar with.

Interestingly, even though I could sense interest, the folks from Albuquerque that I knew seemed reluctant at first to get too involved. Part of it I think was that they were simply too close to the action, and that it was enough to go about the daily routine, but part of it was a gracious humility: even if they weren’t very familiar with the show itself, they sensed they had a good thing going and they didn’t want to spoil things by pushing too hard or interfering too much. So, apart from folks at ‘Duke City Fix’, and maybe a few other forums, it was up to partial outsiders to speak first. Regarding locations, “WallDruggie” (initially, a part-time ABQ resident from S. Dakota) posted her pictures first, then me, then “OldeSaultie” with his maps (strangely-enough, he’s from Virginia and has never been to ABQ, but by using Google Earth he knows the city’s streets better than most Burqueños).

Now that Season 5 is starting, and the show’s end is in sight, I think the reluctance of the Burqueños will melt away, as the celebratory rush begins.

Once again, thanks!

Nothing Catches Them By Surprise In Scotland

Last night, I got carried away watching videos on YouTube (plus actually doing some real work), and so didn't leave work (which is located in Midtown) until shortly after the ungodly hour of 3:30 a.m.

Just as I set the alarm and shut the back door, the entire block went dark. Power failure! In addition, the building's alarm failed to set. So, I was torn between the need to sleep and the idealistic necessity of bodily defending my place of employment to the death from the blood-sucking spectral zombies of Midtown. Sleep sounded like the better option.

So, I posted the news - where else? - on Facebook, and had the following exchange with Norma Jean, who once resided in Rancho Cordova:

N.: ‎"KCRA news just gave a heads-up for Downtown Sacramento dwellers - SMUD has to "re-set some kind of equipment" (??) So we may have a brief power outage in the very very lat night /early morning 9 I think they said around 3am"

M.: Wow! Aren't you, like, in Scotland? Better informed than me!

N.: I am in Scotland :) I got that from Martha Kight :)

M.: I swear, the two of you are like watchful spirits over us mortals. You know when stock prices will crash, when volcanoes will erupt, and you can sing too! I feel safe against zombies now!

RIP, Andy Griffith - We'll Be Missing Your Vitajex

Sad, the passing of Andy Griffith.

Andy Griffith was best known for his heartwarming, eponymous TV show from the Sixties, but his most brilliant appearance was in 'A Face In The Crowd', Elia Kazan's amazing movie, and here Andy Griffith is, in the most brilliant appearance in that movie.

The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again

Perusing Paul Krugman's blog, a seemingly un-economic post. But welcome!

1971 was my family's most-calamitous year, and this song was the only solace.

Lyrics:

We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgement of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again

(small instrumental)

The change, it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the fold, that's all
And the world looks just the same
And history ain't changed
'Cause the banners, they are flown in the next war

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
No, no!

(instrumental)

I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
Though I know that the hypnotized never lie
Do ya?

(instrumental)

There's nothing in the streets
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

(instrumental)

Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss

And They Called Her "Gondwana"

Important geographic information, via Doug Barbieri, on Facebook.

The Trespasser

Over the last week or two, the homeless guy in the neighborhood, the one with the shopping cart and the weird, alert dog, has been skulking around the DMV parking lot. Even Joe The Plumber noticed: "That guy isn't just hanging out. He's scanning the neighborhood. He's up to something." And it's true, the guy was in a perfect place to watch the comings and goings of the neighborhood, and notice the little things (like E. departing this weekend for a week at Minden Lake).

Two nights ago, neighbor Doug was walking his dog in the DMV parking lot, and we started talking. He had noticed the homeless guy too. "Yeah, he was on the ground over there at the corner, next to the broken-down car. He was asleep, but he was holding a lit cigarette. A few nights later, there was a burned spot there, like the cigarette had gotten away from him." Doug added that he had heard the guy was in poor health.

Yesterday, I spent most of the day in Davis, involved in various theater activities. I returned home at 1 a.m. To my (not entirely complete) surprise, as I drove up, I discovered the homeless guy was camped out in my driveway.

I parked the car, got out, and unloaded the groceries from the trunk. The homeless guy was snoring softly. His weird dog was nowhere to be found. I decided I didn't want an abrasive and ugly encounter at one o'clock in the morning with The Trespasser, so let him sleep on.

By late morning, the fellow was gone, but had left his calling card: he had defecated under my bedroom window during the night. Pushing past the flies and cleaning that up was a joy.....

I told the DMV parking lot guard about The Trespasser. He hadn't seen the fellow camped out there (the fellow must have departed early). He pointed under the hedge and asked: "What are those eyeglasses?" I replied, "What eyeglasses?" Where The Trespasser had been the night before there was now a pair of eyeglasses. They looked nice: they had nice, stylish Italian frames. I offered them to the guard, but he demurred.

Joe the Plumber showed up. As he came into the yard he said: "Hey, I found these eyeglasses in the driveway! Do they belong to what's-her-name?" I told Joe the story, and he said: "That bastard! Let's break them!" But I told him not to do so, and so they remain still, on the ground next to the driveway, under the hedge, in the event The Trespasser wants them back.

Ned Roscoe Update

Last week, Ned Roscoe's wife updated friends and family on Ned's activities and adjustment to life on the inside:

On June 12 Ned moved from the Detention Center to the Satellite Prison Camp.

He now is able to take a horticulture class, which allows him to be outside daily, in 5 acres of gardens of fruit and vegetables and flowers, that he says, rival the Buchart Gardens in British Columbia.

He has taken a job as an orderly, cleaning the bathrooms, which by now, I am sure, are sparkling clean and will continue to stay that way if he continues with that job! That was always a special talent of his, even at home.

He is able to take out books from the Chemeketa (Sheridan) Public Library, with approval of his choices, of course.

Inside the facility, there are over 600 books available, including some DVDs from the Great Courses catalog. He is currently beginning the Calculus course.

If you have never listened to any of these college level courses, they are well worth looking into (and currently on sale at www.salegreatcourses.com).

He is also exercising daily, and goes to worship services on Sundays.

All in all, he is adjusting very well to his new environment and appreciates the letters he has been receiving.

The visiting form that I sent out in the last update should actually go to a different address than to the one I indicated.

Please let me know if you plan to visit and I will get you the address.

Thank you for all of your good wishes and love and support. We appreciate it more than you know.