Darn, I want this t-shirt

Busted Tees are a bit overpriced considering what they are...

That being said, however... They have some of the best t-shirt designs on the web.

I want this one.

--Tuckmac

Well, it's been an interesting few weeks

Since my last post, where I admit I was less than enthusiastic about our new President, things have been occuring which frankly, bears out my opinions.

President Obama has done a few good things... Dealing with Gitmo, terrorist defendants, the environment, and other 'liberal' ideals.

However, during this stimulus-package debate, President Obama has been less than stellar.

In holding to his 'bipartisan' goals of governing, I've seen a so called 'trimmed down' stimulus package that will not do ANYTHING to actually help our economy.

Gail Collins from the New York Times, wrote something 'pithy' that actually does sum up what is going on in her column today titled: Tough Times at Obama, Inc. An exerpt:

"I dropped out of school for a semester to campaign for Barack Obama. And now I’m asking myself whether I spent four months living with my aunt and going door to door in Dayton, Ohio, just so we could have a stimulus plan written by a bunch of moderate Republicans and conservative Democrats in the Senate."

I don’t know how many times we need to go over this, but this is actually a real-life version of what Obama promised during the campaign. Didn’t you jump up and cheer when your guy promised that he’d get Republicans and Democrats to work together?"

Yes... Ms. Collins, exactly... People expected Obama to be this transformative presence in the new American Government, and he may actually BE such a thing... But no true Republican will be happy, and certainly no true Liberal Democrat will be happy.

In the stimulous package bill currently blundering through the US senate, my OWN democratic Senator from Minnesota Amy Klobuchar voted for a REPUBLICAN amendment offered by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) that stated “None of the amounts appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, swimming pool, stadium, community park, museum, theater, art center, and highway beautification project.”

Okay... Highway beautification? Yeah, we can do without that sort of thing right now in our tough times. And casinos and gambling establishments? Fuck them. But... Everything else????

Parks? Museums? Theatres? Art Centers? We don't NEED these things anymore?

Minnesota has been losing its small theatre companies, dance is suffering, arts organisations are tumbling... And now the Feds have decided that none of these things are important either.

May I just say that I fucking HATE living in America at times like these... Corporate ass-wipes who put us into this failing economy in the FIRST place are getting huge stimulus cheques from the US government and $18 Billion of this money went for BONUS cheques to the CEOs of these companies. Aren't bonuses meant to be perks for GOOD work?

All of that is fine... But the arts are not.

When people can not afford to go out to dinner... A FREE museum or art gallery can be the only thing for a family to be able to go out and DO. The cultural side of life can be the only thing that will help people be able to DEAL with their problems, but... No... Culture is the FIRST thing to lose it's funding. But we'll give money to giant polluting corporations that DO NOT use the money to STIMULATE anything... No... They use it for fun company trips to the Virgin Islands, and for big bonuses for it's owners.

America... Get WITH it. Fuck the Republicans in congress and pass a REAL stimulus bill that will actually STIMULATE the economy! Money for the poor... Money for non-profits, money for small-business... Money for cities and municipalities who will help people that actually NEED it.

The Republicans continue to 'cut taxes.' F That. RAISE them. The CEOs that just got $18 billion in money from our government? Take it back through taxes... Tax the richest 10 percent in America 50% of their incomes. Tax them on bonuses... Tax them on property ownership... Tax the fucking rich, and give it to the REST of society that actually need it.

There IS no middle class anymore. Without a middle class, there is social unrest. (Just look at the history of Europe during the 19th Century. When there is no buffer of people between the REALLY rich and the VERY poor... The poor get angry. The poor get violent... And the country suffers.

--Tuckmac

Today, I got me a new President.

Mr. Barak Hussein Obama was sworn in today as my nation's president. I have to admit to having mixed feelings about today.

For the past week, everything... News, radio, other people... Have been speaking about January 20th, as though it was the day of the second coming of Christ.

People were crying, when they were talking about it. I mean... Crying. Wow.

I know that the election, and now swearing in of the 44th president, a Black Man, is a momentous and exciting occasion for my county. And I believe that people reacted differently to this man, depending on their own backgrounds, and ages, and creeds.

My reaction: Um... It's about TIME we elected a minority to the White House, I mean... Come on! Can't we move onward, past all this race crap?

But again... That's just my reaction. My mother was raised in a time of segregated schools, water fountains, and Blacks having to ride in the back of the bus. I was raised, where my first 'serious girlfriend' was African-American, and frankly... No one blinked. I certainly did not think that I was 'breaking rules' by thinking a beautiful girl was beautiful, now was I?

I understand, how someone of my mother's experiences, would react to President Obama in a different way than I would. Therefore... All people who have been annoying me the past couple of weeks... If you're in the "But a minority is finally in the highest office of the land" crowd... You are okay, I can hack it.

To the people who have been overly giddy... Due to the fact that a smart guy is replacing a horrificly STOOPID guy in the White House... Um... Okay. I sort of understand this too. Look, I admit that I am so happy I'm goofy, that Bush is finally out of the American Presidency. Really. I think that he has been the worst president we've had in my country for the past 100 years or so.

But, BUT... The idea that Barak Obama is going to be able to do all the things that he says he wants to do? Nah... Come one, folks. There's this big thing called a Congress. Every single one of the bastids is owned by major corporations, and those corporations control the votes. Doesn't matter if the Senator or Representative is a Republican or a Democrat, any real policy change that Obama tries to put through will be gutted/disallowed/ignored, you have it. Nothing is going to change.

Look, we may get rid of Gitmo. That's great. We may actually be able to get out of Iraq in a year or so... Also great. But universal healthcare? Forget it. Education upgrades? Forget it. Science funding? Phfa... All that's going to happen is that the rich are going to get richer... The poor are going to get poorer.... The middle-class is going to get poorer... And our environment is going to get worse.

Nothing is going to change that. As long as greed is the foundation of this great nation of ours... It will continue to lurch to the 'Right' in social issues, moral issues, tax policies, and fiscal irresponsibility.

Our county has perhaps eight years, where we'll have a decent man in the White House, who really won't be able to do much... And then our country, 'cause we've proved ourselves to be rather stupid... Will vote in Sarah Palin, or some OTHER doofus like Bushie was, to be the figure-head for the military-industrial complex... And it will all get much worse again.

Eight years of a reprieve, where things will only get sort of worse... Then Eight to 12 more years of Republican's destroying our Earth, our rights and our country.

Yeah... Congratulations Mr. Obama. I'm happy you're here. However, I'm a realist enough to know that you being here doesn't mean much beyond a nice fact that you're Black, and it's freaking about freaking time.

--Tuckmac

I just can't seem to do it... Dammit.

Okay, so it's been a month. Here I am... Checking other blogs, thinking, "Damn, why won't they post something?" And I'm MORE than guilty of non-blogging than they are.

And I don't really have an excuse. I promised myself about two months ago, to start doing the 'blogging' thing again. I've been really missing the whole 'writing one's thoughts down' experience that the whole 'blog' culture helps to force one to do. And I just seem incapable.

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

Right... Here goes again...

It's been cold, here, in Minnesota for about the past month. And most Minnesotan's are immune to a winter. I mean, we'll kvetch about it being cold and snowy, but really... We tend to complain about our humid and hot summers too. It's just something that we do, we talk about the weather, and 'how, well... Jeez, you know, it could be worse.' Oh, yeah... You betcha, it's been worse here before.

Here's the sitch: I've been regaling My Lady with tales of the dire "Minnesota Winter" for almost six years, now. But, since moving back to the country, and living through our now third winter in Minnesota... She hasn't been terribly impressed with the true horrors of an ACTUAL cold Minnesota winter. Whether that's due to Climate Change, or what... I'm not sure. But it's been positively balmy during the past few winters. An occasional cold week, or something... Perhaps a particularly heavy snow storm, but nothing truly monumental.

Well, that's changed this year. It's freaking AWFUL right now, in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. The winter has truly hearkened back to my childhood days of freakishly low wind-chill, and what seems to be a constant stream of low-pressure systems bringing just enough snow every two days to make driving a true horror.

We've survived, in the past four weeks:
Six mini-snow storms. Not leaving enough (about 2-4 inches 5-10cm) at a time, to do much.
Temps from -14°F to 20°F (-25°C to -7°C) with wind-chills MUCH lower. At times, when one figures in the wind-chill, it's 'felt like' -40°F (-40°C - Yes, the temperature scales get close together at freakishly low temperatures).

And we had a light dusting of snow this morning... With warnings of yet another storm coming tomorrow.

I can't even tell you how un-impressed I am with the weather this month. It's absolutely fridgid, and I can't say that I'm immune to this weather, anymore than My Lady, even though I've grown up here. This is cold even to a Minnesotan. And none of us are happy. It's one thing to have a week of arctic cold, heck... We're used to at least two of those events a winter... But to have it REMAIN this cold... For a whole month? No fair. Not fair at all.

All this has done, really... Is make My Lady and I more and more homesick for Britain. Tis the season to be homesick for England/Scotland... And we already have been a bit down about not being able to even VISIT this year... But when you factor in the weather, it makes Britain seem to be paradise.

Och weel... We miss 'home' but we're stuck here. Obviously, we'll make the best of a bad (cold) situation, and battle onward...

Missing all our friends back in the UK...

--Tuckmac

Cheese Sandwich time, November...

Hi folks,

Well, I was making a concerted effort to actually start blogging again, and once again... It's been weeks.

Well, since the day of Obama-vomit (also known as the day after celebrating the win of our candidate... Whoo-BOY the hangovers...) My Lady and I have been very busy. She had a show go up this past Saturday at The Soap Factory, and she needed several elements from me (as her work chronicler) so that took some time. Well, okay... LOTS of time. (Note: depending on when you read this, you may need to go HERE and click on Minimal Manimal, to see the show in question.)

Work's been a bit crazy this particular term. We continue to 'scale-up' the services at work for the campus, and we're not actually getting more employee hours. What this means, is that Tuckmac and the rest of the crew get slammed every hour we're there. I have TOO many projects going on my PERSONAL computer, let alone the student-run lab computers, and I'm trying to stay on top of everything, and generally failing. But... As per a normal educational-based job... We have time to catch up once the term is over, and the students and faculty piss off for Holiday.

Can't wait.

My Lady and I made a deal to hit a weekly music session at our favourite pub, Merlins Rest, and have failed in our promise. Our lives are just a bit too weird lately. HOWEVER... Now that her show is up, I am thinking that we may actually get the time to start going back to the session... And I can't wait.

Part of the weirdness and busy lifestyle that I've been attempting to maintain comes from the change in my work hours. During the term-time, to try to accomodate the students on campus, is that my boss and I have started doing four 12-hour days a week (and thus having one extra day off a week, mine are Wednesday's) I hear what you're thinking... Jeez... Tuckmac has a whole extra day off... He's swimming in free-time. Well, no... Actually... That is NOT the way it works. You'd be surprised how busy a Wednesday can be, when one tries to cram everything into that day... Errand running, grocery shopping, doctors appointments... Etc/ ad nauseum. So, the days are long, the day off is nice, but crazy, and Tuckmac is zonkered.

Now that the term is almost over, this will be my last Wednesday off for a while. I'm actually rather looking forward to getting home at 6:00pm instead of at 8:30pm though... It'll be nice, even though I'll be back to five days a week.

My Lady continues to work too hard, and do too much. My darling workaholic is currently at a staff meeting at the Soap, and she's also working a shift tonight at the pub. No rest for my weary kitten.

Um... Finally, I threw my back out last Friday. It was dire. I'm finally starting to feel a bit better, but there were five days there, where every inhale of my breath HURT. It sucked.

So... Yeah. That's about it. Work... Work... Work... Play? What the heck is that? More work... Work some more... Ohh... Sleep. Work... Work... Gah.

My life is really boring, which is why I tend to avoid the "Cheese Sandwich" type blog entries. So. Now that I've bored all you poor little pullets, I'm going to call it a day.

Hang on, folks... The world just may be getting better. We'll see.

Oh, my dear sweetest one...

I've had a crush on Isabella Rossellini pretty much since I was 13. I always thought she was glorious, and sexy, and brilliant... (More adjectives, ad nauseum)

Anyhoo... I came across this 'Short' today, and well...

I think it's all been ruined.

Damn.



Have a good one, all...

Ramblings...

Is Any other American that is really sick of the bloody election crap?

I am.

Look. I get a THOUSAND e-mails a day. It's my own fault, I mean... Joining MoveOn back in the day when it was all about Clinton diddling an intern... I never stopped my 'membership' and I really probably should have. Suddenly I'm getting e-mails from Barak Obama, ACLU, and the DNC (Democratic National Committee) The problem of course, is that they all send the SAME bloody e-mail. And several of them have more than one of my e-mail addresses... How did THAT happen? So what happens, is I get eight e-mails across my accounts, and they're all about the same!

Gah.

I want to be left alone!

I'm voting a straight DFL ticket. I am. I'll tell everyone on the internet. Yes... Tuckmac is voting for the Dems.

Duh.

Now let's move onward. I am NOT going to cold-call voters for the Dems... I'm not going to give an already 'rich' campaign any more money... I'm not going to go door to door and stump for the Dems.

I just AM one. I will vote. Leave me alone. I'll be doing my civic duty on the fourth of November, and that's all I am going to do.

Okay...

Other than that... Um... (See, I said 'ramblings' so that should mean that I'll have more than one thing to ramble about...)

Nope. I just wanted to vent about being bothered daily by the damn electioneers...

Oh... I remember... Anyone else having a similar nightmare to me?

McCain wins... The Dems go after the Republican's for voter fraud, by like the 2000 and 2004 election, the Dems kinda just do it proforma, and drop it after three days. In January, McCain is at the swearing in, and has a massive heart attack. Sarah Palin is then, in a few days, confirmed as the next President of the United States of America.

She decides to, at the same time, redecorate the Oval Office in shades of mauve and fuchsia and touches of dead animals like stuffed moose-heads and a polar bear on a stand, oh, and nuke Iran.

Russia then nukes the USA due to a treaty with Iran, we all die in horrible hell-fires of atomic warfare... And some dude in Paraguay looks up from his TV dinner and says: "Well, there went the neighbourhood."

Yeah.

Not a happy nightmare. But it keeps coming back!