I just made a donation to the American Red Cross here to contribute to hurricane relief for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans is at least 80% underwater. The city, for all intents and purposes, is gone. People left homeless, jobless, or worse. The death toll is mounting.

You can do without those few lunches from McDonalds or lattes from Starbucks this week. Make a donation, even a small one helps.

Or in this context: While Bush diddles, New Orleans drowns.



Yes, all four pictures are from August 30th. Brilliant.

Thank you, Mountain Dew!

Pitch Black is coming back...with a new sour bite!

I might have to start buying soda again, just for that...

Ordinarily, I laugh at the anti-drug spots I see on TV and can't really take them seriously. For example, the one with the guys smoking in line at the fast food drive-thru who end up running over a little girl on a bike as they exit the lot. I mean, that driveway looked like a busy suburban area with lots of traffic and the girl looked like a 5-year-old on training wheels - where the hell were her parents?! Yeah, I know, I know, we're not supposed to think critically when it comes to the so-called "war on drugs".

But one ad tonight actually evoked an emotional response in me.

The scene: a small kitchen/dining room.
The setting: a grandmother sitting alone at the table, dinner made, and two places set.

She waits there...and waits...fixes one of the place settings...and waits.

The voiceover: "Don't worry. You can just tell your grandmother you blew off dinner with her because you were stoned."

And damn it if that grandmother didn't look so sad and lonely. Damn you, anti-drug ad moguls! You finally got me!

Yay, it's my birthday today. I'm closer to 30 than I am to 20. How depressing is that? Excuse me while I curl into a ball underneath my desk here at work.

Welcome to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Praise be to his noodly appendages. Amen.

Defenseman Andreas Lilja (formerly of the Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators) and center Don MacLean (formerly of the Columbus Blue Jackets).

MacLean's an unknown quantity to me, but Lilja may add some of that grit on the ice that we so desperately need.

This is friggin' ridiculous. I've had doctors tell me before when I need to lose weight for the good of my health. I honestly can't figure out why what this doctor said is so offensive. Simply sounds like a case of some crazy bitch who doesn't want to acknowledge that she's obese and is trying to ruin her doctor's career over it because she can't open her eyes.

Doctor in trouble for calling patient obese
N.H. woman filed complaint; state attorney general asked to investigate

ROCHESTER, N.H. - As doctors warn more patients that they should lose weight, the advice has backfired on one doctor with a woman filing a complaint with the state saying he was hurtful, not helpful.

Dr. Terry Bennett says he tells obese patients their weight is bad for their health and their love lives, but the lecture drove one patient to complain to the state.

"I told a fat woman she was obese," Bennett says. "I tried to get her attention. I told her, 'You need to get on a program, join a group of like-minded people and peel off the weight that is going to kill you.'"

He says he wrote a letter of apology to the woman when he found out she was offended.

Her complaint, filed about a year ago, was initially investigated by a panel of the New Hampshire Board of Medicine, which recommended that Bennett be sent a confidential letter of concern. The board rejected the suggestion in December and asked the attorney general's office to investigate.

Bennett rejected that office's proposal that he attend a medical education course and acknowledge that he made a mistake.

Bruce Friedman, chairman of the board of medicine, said he could not discuss specific complaints. Assistant Attorney General Catherine Bernhard, who conducted the investigation, also would not comment, citing state law that complaints are confidential until the board takes disciplinary action.

The board's Web site says disciplinary sanctions may range from a reprimand to the revocation of all rights to practice in the state.

"Physicians have to be professional with patients and remember everyone is an individual. You should not be inflammatory or degrading to anyone," said board member Kevin Costin.

Other overweight patients have come to Bennett's defense.

"What really makes me angry is he told the truth,” Mindy Haney told WMUR-TV on Tuesday. "How can you punish somebody for that?"

Haney said Bennett has helped her lose more than 150 pounds, but acknowledged that the initially didn’t want to listen.

“I have been in this lady's shoes. I've been angry and left his practice. I mean, in-my-car-taking-off angry," Haney said. "But once you think about it, you're angry at yourself, not Doctor Bennett. He's the messenger. He’s telling you what you already know."

I wish I knew what the hell was up with my body these past couple of days. Yesterday, I was feeling light-headed much of the day whenever I would stand up or walk, from the moment I got up until the moment I went to bed. Now today, I've been dealing with random waves of nausea all morning. I've been eating, I've been getting decent sleep, so I have no idea what's up. I better not be getting sick, that'll just serve to piss me off, especially with the new semester starting next week.

This administration continues to shock and offend me in ways that I thought weren't possible:

Meeting briefly with reporters Monday aboard Air Force One, Trent Duffy, a White House spokesman subbing for Scott McClellan, said that President Bush believes that those who want the U.S. to begin to change course in Iraq do not want America to win the overall "war on terror."

So basically, if we're against the war in Iraq...we're supporting the terrorists. McCarthyism, anyone?

And come to think of it...didn't they change the name from "War on Terror" to "Global Struggle Against Extremism"? I guess Dubya didn't get the memo while he's been on his five week vacation.

And wait...didn't Dubya also say that he doesn't think we can win the "war on terror"? My head's spinning here. But that's nothing new resulting from this administration. Ugh.

I just noticed that I've actually exceeded 10,000 hits on my site since I first put up a counter about a year and a half ago. Who the hell all is visiting this place? It has to be more than just me, Danielle, Sarah, Sara, and Krystal, right?

Yep, I was in Baltimore this past weekend for Otakon 2005 with friends Brent and Chris, and have some pics to share if you'll click on the links...

Of course, there was a lot of cosplaying, as would be expected. Even Mario & Luigi, Pac-Man, the Prince from Katamari Damacy, the cast of Kingdom Hearts, and even a tentacle from Day of the Tentacle were there! This resulted in some odd partnerings, such as Bender and Darth Vader buddying up.

Oh yeah...there was also this ship in the harbor.

Then there were the panels and such, in particular the voice actors panel, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Vic Mignogna (Kurz in Full Metal Panic) was there, alongside Justin Cook and Mike McFarland. A great source of hilarity on the panel was Greg Ayres, flanked by Luci Christian and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (Greg was Shinji and and Luci was Kanami in Full Metal Panic, and Mary is well known for her work in Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell). Sitting alongside Luci and Mary was Michelle Ruff and to round off the bunch, Michelle had an exhausted Monica Rial next to her (Kyoko in Full Metal Panic). Phew. The panel was so successful, they ended up having to bump the panel which was to follow it so we could stay in the room longer. Unfortunately, Scott McNeil of Transformers fame never managed to appear. Brent and I theorized that he was "detained" in the local Hooters restaurant.

There was also a video game room where there was much DDR-ing going on.

On the last day (Sunday), Brent and I chilled in the dealer room while the band The Indigo gave a live performance.

All in all, a great weekend. Plus, I didn't have to spend that much cash (I didn't really buy anything except food, gas, and train tix into Baltimore) and I only had to drive 3 hours to Brent and Chris' place where they graciously let me crash for the weekend (thanks again, guys!).

And now...ugh...I'm back at work. And classes start next week. Yay, oh fuckin' yay.

Why is it that in 99% of public bathrooms, the toilet paper dispenser is always in such a position to necessitate turning myself into a contortionist? Just wondering.

I think this collection of quotes from when Clinton committed troops to Bosnia is brilliant. Note how many of the quotes come from staunch supporters of what Bush has done in Iraq...and note how hypocritical they sound now.

"You can support the troops but not the president."
--Rep Tom Delay (R-TX)

"Well, I just think it's a bad idea. What's going to happen is they're going to be over there for 10, 15, maybe 20 years."
--Joe Scarborough (R-FL)

"Explain to the mothers and fathers of American servicemen that may come home in body bags why their son or daughter have to give up their life?"
--Sean Hannity, Fox News, 4/6/99

"[The] President . . . is once again releasing American military might on a foreign country with an ill-defined objective and no exit strategy. He has yet to tell the Congress how much this operation will cost. And he has not informed our nation's armed forces about how long they will be away from home. These strikes do not make for a sound foreign policy."
--Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA)

"American foreign policy is now one huge big mystery. Simply put, the administration is trying to lead the world with a feel-good foreign policy."
--Rep Tom Delay (R-TX)

"If we are going to commit American troops, we must be certain they have a clear mission, an achievable goal and an exit strategy."
--Karen Hughes, speaking on behalf of George W Bush

"I had doubts about the bombing campaign from the beginning . . I didn't think we had done enough in the diplomatic area."
--Senator Trent Lott (R-MS)

"I cannot support a failed foreign policy. History teaches us that it is often easier to make war than peace. This administration is just learning that lesson right now. The President began this mission with very vague objectives and lots of unanswered questions. A month later, these questions are still unanswered. There are no clarified rules of engagement. There is no timetable. There is no legitimate definition of victory. There is no contingency plan for mission creep. There is no clear funding program. There is no agenda to bolster our over-extended military. There is no explanation defining what vital national interests are at stake. There was no strategic plan for war when the President started this thing, and there still is no plan today"
--Rep Tom Delay (R-TX)

And this...this is the best one yet:

"Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is."
--Governor George W. Bush (R-TX)

Isn't it odd that during that conflict in Bosnia, there wasn't a single troop killed in action?

I'll say it again and again. I truly fear for the future if these are the people we have in charge.

I'm almost tempted to bid on it just because it's so damned odd.

Rolled back into town around 1:00am this morning and rolled into work around 8:00am this morning. Phew. I feel like crap, but I'm surviving. Seems like some odd equivalent to jet lag, only as a result of spending 10 hours on the road instead of on a plane. 'twas a good weekend though and totally worth it. I'm tired as hell, but I suppose I can't complain - Danielle had to be into work at 7:00am today.

Now I'm just catching up on everything here at work, then when I arrive home, I'll be catching up on everything at home - unpacking, cleaning, laundry. Fun fun fun.

On vacation in Michigan until next Tuesday...

All I have to say is...

WOO-HOO!!!

I just found out that Yahoo! Alerts is compatible with my cell phone and as a result, I can have the Wings' game scores sent to me when I'm in class and such. The only thing I might consider now is boosting my text messaging allowance a bit on my phone so I can have it notify me after every goal and not just at the end of each period.

Can you tell I'm getting excited for hockey season to start?

This article completely explains what Steve Yzerman means to me and what he means to all of Detroit. Glad he's coming back for another go.

Well, that's another signing I don't have to worry about, Shanny being the first.

Now if Holland can snag Osgood, Joe Thornton, and figure out this garbage with Datsyuk and Zetterberg, we'll be getting somewhere.

This is quite possibly one of the best food-related bits of news for a Michigan native who's moved out of state. Yes, they will be able to ship me all the proper materials for Michigan Coneys. I dig it, lots.

I just discovered something that I'm surprised I never knew. Apparently, Kirsten Dunst was in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. I guess it makes sense that I might not have noticed it was her, since it was in the final season of TNG and she was only about 11 then.

What's even weirder? I just discovered that Danielle and Kirsten Dunst share the same birthday, two years apart. Creepy. I guess there was ultimately a reason Kirsten Dunst became my male-requisite actress obsession. I still like Danielle better though. :)