That time of year

The time of the winter solstice is just about here; an old celebration in many cultures and places that is reflected in our culture as Christmas. Best wishes to all who celebrate a holiday at this time of year.
I have no religious beliefs of my own, but I like to respect the wishes and attitudes of those who do have faith; if a person is doing good and treating others with respect and compassion, who cares where they send their prayers?
It is almost time for a new year, whether for better or worse we will not know until it comes; all we can do is prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

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Not too bad around here so far this winter; it has only been getting down into the twenties on the thermometer, which isn't bad. I remember times when I was younger that would bring the mercury down to -15º F every night for a couple of weeks at a time. To those in the northern US and Canada that may not sound too bad, but when combined with the altitude it can cut to the bone. Much as I hate snow, we could use some more around here. We got some this weekend, but where we need it is in the higher elevations; rainfall around here is practically nonexistent in the summer, so all of our water is dependent on winter snowfall in mountains.

This is a picture of the Oquirrh Mountains a few minutes to the west of me that I took from my front yard; the higher parts are blocked by a snowstorm (I took this picture Sunday morning). It is not a high range; I think the highest point is only 10620 feet in elevation. The Wasatch Mountains on the east side of the valley are taller, and more rugged. They are the ones that store the water for summer use. I don't have a picture of them, because they are a little farther away and are blocked from view in my neighborhood.



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I'm not sure what the big deal is about Blagojevich; after all, he is a politician in Chicago; they have been electing crooks into office since the city was founded. During Prohibition it got even more corrupt when organized crime took over. Looking at the history of the last few governors, it is no surprise that this one is a crook also. I imagine there will be all sorts of shit flying around for a while yet; who knows who will get hit over the next few weeks. The media will be interesting to follow, they tend to edit the news according to their political beliefs, so if you want to know what is going on, you may wish to check several sources before believing anything. Personally, I don't trust a big percentage of the press.

"The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers."
-Thomas Jefferson

If that offends anyone from the Fourth Estate, too bad.


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I remember when I was a kid, Nikita Khrushchev taking off his shoe at a UN meeting and pounding on a table with it. At the time I thought it sounded like a little kid throwing a tantrum, or a barbarian that had no idea of civilized behavior. Over the weekend some journalist character throws a shoe at the president, and all sorts of people act like he's a hero. Personally, I don't care for Bush. That does not mean that I approve of assholes insulting the office of the president. What I would like to do is slam one of my shoes up the journalist's ass while it is attached to my foot, just on principle.
Just my opinion.

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The bailouts are getting more ridiculous all the time; we have a bunch of fools and crooks who put us in this state, and what happens? Everyone decides to let the same bunch of coprocephalics try to solve the problem by giving them more of our money to spend. Why the hell would you want someone of proven incompetence to solve a problem that they were instrumental in causing?

"Alexander Hamilton started the U.S. Treasury with nothing -- and that was the closest our country has ever been to being even."
-Will Rogers

"Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public."
-H. L. Mencken

“Washington is a stud farm for every jackass in the country.”
- Mark Twain

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Tried to put together a playlist that was a little more upbeat in word and/or structure; mostly a lot of older pieces.

"Hell in a Bucket" by Grateful Dead
"And The Grass Won't Pay No Mind" by Mark Lindsay
"Vacation" by The Go-Go's
"She Comes In Colors" by Arthur Lee
"Chelsea Morning" by Judy Collins
"Hot Rod Lincoln" by Commander Cody
"Sugar Town" by Nancy Sinatra
"Burnin' for You" by Blue Öyster Cult
"Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison
"98.6" by Keith