An important day tomorrow

On August 18, my wife Sandy and I celebrate 36 years as a married couple; I can't think what I would do without her.



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More fighting over the health bill; I hope they scrap the one they're pushing. The government is necessary, sometimes, but should never be brought in unless absolutely necessary; most of the time they just make stuff worse. And the people in Congress are up to their usually hijinks. (H/T to The Irritable Architect)

"Suppose you were an idiot and suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself."
- Mark Twain

"We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office."
- Aesop

"What's the difference between a whore and a congressman? A congressman makes more money."
- Edward Abbey

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Some good articles in the blogosphere for those people who believe in taking care of themselves.

Brigid has a good post (I don't think she has ever written a bad one) concerning home security; it is an excellent read.

Paladin shows how he put together a practical medical pack for a fraction of what you would pay if you bought one.

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More ancient music. Any favorites in this collection of moldie-oldies?

"Moondance" by Van Morrison
"Red, Red Wine" by Neil Diamond
"Scarborough Fair/Canticle" by Simon & Garfunkel
"You Only Live Twice" by Nancy Sinatra
"Sympathy for the Devil" by The Rolling Stones
"Eight Miles High" by The Byrds
"Whispering Pines" by Johnny Horton
"Good Vibrations" by The Beach Boys
"Legend of a Mind" by The Moody Blues
"Let Me Be" by The Turtles

The last one has always been a favorite of mine, due to the lyrics.

Please don't mistake me or try to make me
The shadow of anybody else
I ain't the him or her you think I am
I'm just trying hard to be myself
Oh, society's goal is to be part of the whole
That may sound good to you, not to me

Let me be, let me be
To think like I want to
Let me be, let me be
That's all I ask of you
I am what I am and that's all I ever can be

Don't try to plan me or understand me
I can't stand to be understood
I could never give in to or ever live up to
Being like you think I should
I've got some inner need which I'm tryin' to heed
I can't take hand-me-down destiny

Let me be, let me be,
To think like I want to
Let me be, let me be
That's all I ask of you
I am what I am and that's all I ever can be

Don't try to change me or rearrange me
To satisfy the selfishness of you
I'm not a piece of clay to mold to your moves each day
And I'm not a pawn to be told how to move
I'm sorry I'm not the fool you thought would play by your rules
But to-each-his-own philosophy

Let me be, let me be,
To think like I want to
Let me be, let me be
That's all I ask of you
I am what I am and that's all I ever can be

I said that's all I ever can be
I said that's all I ever can be
I said that's all I ever can be



The next to the last one is familiar to anyone old enough to actually remember the Woodstock years, the Sixties, and the relevance of terms such as Orange Sunshine, Purple Microdot, and Clear Light.

Can we move on now, please?

Okay, the cop, the professor, and the president have had their little get-together; can we get on with the real world now? Or is the fourth estate going to try milking this for the next couple of weeks?

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Sounds like more taxes may be in the future; since when is this news? Every administration says they are going to keep taxes down, but they don't. As I've said many times in the past, politicians lie; it's what they do.

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Looks like Nissan has an electric car. Sorry, but I'm unimpressed. For one thing, this has to be charged up to use, which means more power from the grid. And that means burning more coal. Alternative energy sources are nice, but unless they are nuclear, they cannot keep up with even the demand today, let alone if everyone is charging their vehicle all the time.
According to the article, it will run 100 miles on a charge. That may sound good to people in the tiny little eastern states, but here where I live that isn't very much. Just running to my mom's and back is about a 120 mile round trip. I'll pass, thanks.

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The Park City Art Festival has been going on this weekend, so we went up there for our yearly visit. Had an early dinner at Wasatch Brewery; we both opted for fish and chips and a couple of mugs of cold brown ale. Good stuff.
We spent a bit of time listening to various groups playing music here and there. Spent the longest time listening to some Brazilian jazz; a friend of ours was playing sax and flute for them.



We didn't get a chance to go in here, but I liked the sign.



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Spotted this little guy tapping away at one of my trees; he didn't seem too afraid of me.







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My usual hodge-podge of music; any favorites in this bunch?

"Anvil of Crom" by Basil Poledouris
"Rebel Rouser" by Duane Eddy
"See You in September" by The Happenings
"Don't Fear The Reaper" by Blue Öyster Cult
"Bob Wills Is Still the King" by Waylon Jennings
"Cold Hearted Woman" by Cross Canadian Ragweed
"Photograph" by Def Leppard
"Witchy Woman" by Eagles
"Tennessee Stud" by Eddy Arnold
"My Mirage" by Iron Butterfly

If the first choice on the list doesn't look familiar, then listen to it here; I'm sure you'll recognize it. It's from one of my favorite music scores.