What do I want to see happen in 2013??

Here is a short list of things I'd like to see happen next year.  They probably won't, but that doesn't mean I can't want them to happen.

I'd like to see a year go by without a single terrorist attack against anyone.  Unlikely, but it would be nice to see.

I'd like to see first-time fines for DUI offenses lowered, but for the purpose of making it affordable for those offenders to have the interlock equipment installed on their cars that would prevent them from ever again driving while drunk.  Far too many repeat offenders among drunk drivers.  This would prevent the problem.

I'm not a beauty pageant contestant, but world peace would be a good thing.  Having to find a way to employ all of the world's soldiers and people who make weapons and ammunition would be a good problem to have.

I'd like to go a whole year without having to encounter a homeless person.  Not because I don't like them or think badly of them.  I'd like to think we could have a whole year where no one was sleeping on the streets.  Again, unlikely but one can dream.

I'd like to see CEOs who value the work of every single employee in their company.  There are some, but not nearly enough.

I'd like to see the Dodgers in the World Series.  That has a good shot at coming to pass in 2013.  Yes, that's for personal gratification but I'm not the only one who would benefit from that.

I'd like to see a real solution to the problem of healthcare in the U.S.  Somewhere between the "rely on yourselves" and the "socialized medicine for all" is a position where everyone will have access to healthcare and we need to find it.

I'd like to get through one week without the cable's audio feed having a problem.  It seems to happen daily and it's happening as I write this.

I'd like to see every single resident of the place where I live here next New Year's Eve, safe and sound.  Even if some of them won't vote for my reelection next November.

I'd like to see all of my family and friends have a safe and prosperous 2013.

I'd like to make a ten letter word in Words With Friends.

I'd like to see scripted television begin to once again dominate television, replacing reality TV programming.  Except of course for the reality shows I like, like Storage Wars, Parking Wars, Deadliest Catch, Pawn Stars and a few others.

I'd like to see the film "Middle of Nowhere" get the recognition it deserves at Oscar time.

I'd like to see me win a great big lottery prize.  I know, selfish but sometimes you have to be at least a little selfish.

I'd like to see a year go by without a single mass shooting in the U.S. (or anywhere else in the world for that matter).

I'd like to see more interest in real news and less in entertainment news.  Even if that meant decreased opportunities for those who work in the entertainment news industry.  Maybe if we as a nation were more interested in fiscal cliffs than TV programming cliffhangers, it wouldn't have gotten as far as it did.

I'd like to see myself do more with the ideas of the Centrist Party than just blog about them.  Or at least I'd like to see me blogging a bit more about them.

And I'd like to see me doing a version of this blog for 2013 one year from now.

There are a lot of great lines in...

"Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope" but one in particular comes to mind at this moment.  Luke Skywalker's Uncle Owen is looking over the droids that the Jawas are trying to sell and he comes upon SeeThreepio and says "I suppose you're programmed for etiqutte and protocol".

We as humans do work at protocol and etiquette but there are times when it is difficult to know what the proper protocol and etiquette is in a situation.  Earlier today I saw someone eating their lunch where I was picking something up to have later on today (they're serving cornish game hens for dinner here and that's not a favorite of mine) and I saw a woman who had food on her face.  I didn't hesitate to go over and whisper to her that "you've got something on your cheek".  She took out her compact, wiped it off and then thanked me.

A few minutes later I was at the drugstore to run one last errand and as I was waiting to open my door, there was a young woman standing between my car and the one to my left, waiting to get in on the passenger side.  She was facing the door and I couldn't help but notice that her low-rise trousers had fallen lower, and were displaying her thong underwear.  I didn't know if I should or shouldn't say anything.  Maybe she was doing it intentionally.  Maybe she would think me a pervert for noticing and/or commenting.  I decided to remain silent. 

Do women whose pants have fallen that low want to know this fact?  Back in the day when women wore dresses, they wore slips and if a woman's slip was showing, it was considered one's duty to inform her of this.  Is it that Spanx have replaced slips and that's why I never see a woman's slip showing, or did they just become obsolete?  Never mind, that's not important.  What is important is do women want to know if they are showing a little more 'cheek' than they might have intended to.

It's tough enough for men to deal with issues along these lines.  I've mentioned this before but there is absolutely no "good" answer to the question posed by your wife/girlfriend when she asks "does this dress make me look fat?"  There are several possibilities:

"I think it looks nice on you."
"Maybe a little, but I still love you madly."
"No, you look great.  You haven't changed a bit."
"Honey, it's not the dress that makes you look fat, it's you being fat that makes you look fat."

The first three will probably result in you being called a liar.  The last will probably result in you getting a black eye and/or a divorce.  It may be the most honest, but this is not a situation where honesty is called for.  This question isn't quite on the level of "answer yes or no, do you still beat your wife", but it's closed.  Just as neither yes or no are adequate answers to that question, there's no truly adequate answer to the question about dress and fat.  I've decided that if I were ever to again be in a romantic relationship with a woman and she asks that question I'd decline to answer.  "Honey, I'm not going to say anything because no matter what I say will be wrong.  You have to decide if you're happy or not with how you look in that dress."

I don't know if it will work, but at least it's within the bounds of proper protocol and etiquette.

I wasn't planning anything major for...

New Year's Eve, but the one thing I didn't want to be doing today was to go to the VA.  However, after breakfast that is where I'm headed.  The swelling in my right hand that was going down has gone back up and is worse than before.  Plus there's an area of discoloration in one part of where it is swollen, so my plans for the day just got ruined.

Someone drove a car into a church near my place after midnight.  Then they fled the scene.  It shouldn't have been that hard to find parking at that hour, but maybe parking wasn't the issue.

A homeless man died of hypothermia in Wyoming.  He had a very large cashier's check in his wallet and he was the potential heir to a $19 million fortune.  None of his relatives had seen him in years, but someone retained an attorney to represent his interests in the battle over a $307 million estate.

New State Laws going into effect tomorrow:

Wellington, Kansas has a new city ordinance limiting how many cats can be owned.  Homes are limited to four cats.

Good news/bad news for motorcyclists in Illinois.  The good news is that they can now run red lights, if a reasonable amount of time has passed, because motorcycles aren't heavy enough to trip the sensors to cause the light to change.  The bad news is that if they pop a wheelie while speeding, the fine has been upped to $1,000.

In Florida it will be illegal to flash your headlights to warn another driver of a police speed trap.

And in North Carolina, it becomes a crime to steal unused cooking oil for deep fryers.  If the value of the stolen oil exceeds $1,000, it's a felony.

Things being pondered today include:

If Congress gets rid of the penny, will the 99 Cents Only Store be forced to finally move prices up to a dollar?

In some states, if a woman gives birth while married, her husband is legally the father, even if he didn't father the child.  Should Kim Kardashian be concerned that she's preggers and still married to her estranged husband, Kris Humphries?

Why in the world will people jump into freezing ocean/lake/river waters to begin 2013?  I don't get the point of freezing to ring in the New Year unless you're bundled up in Times Square to watch the ball drop.

Will there be at least one day in 2013 where I don't get any complaints about anything from a resident? Probably not.

Why do woodchucks chuck wood?

What will be the worst movie re-make to be released in 2013?

Since Jennifer Lawrence has admitted to being a "junk food junkie", did anyone introduce her to this song?  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Na2ot4X7Zpg

Do we really need to eliminate terms like "trending", "spoiler alert" and "Twitterverse" from the English language?

Will Yahoo ever hire a freaking editor to avoid stuff like this:  Thieves Break Into 2 SoCal Thieves, Escape With…- CBS 2/KCAL 9 

Fun With Classifieds

There's an ad for a p/t personal assistant with an interesting statement on the line involving compensation:  "Compensation: 420/ per week"  Is that supposed to mean $420 per week or that you'll get a bag of '420' each week?

"STRIP CLUB WEEKLY.com - needs data entry clerk."  Words escape me that the market for this website is large enough to make it viable.

"Must be Bilingual in English & Korean or trilingual in English, Korean, & Spanish." So if you aren't bilingual in English and Korean, you're still able to be considered if you're trilingual in English, Korean and Spanish??  I'd talk about sets, subsets and supersets, but apparently sixth grade math is no longer relevant.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1600, The British East India company was chartered.
On this date in 1660, James II of England was named Duke of Normandy by Louis XIV of France.
On this date in 1695, England enacts a window tax, causing many to brick up their windows to avoid paying the tax.
On this date in 1759, Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000 year lease and starts brewing Guinness.
On this date in 1831, Grammercy Park was deeded to New York City.
On this date in 1862, President Lincoln signed a bill admitting West Virginia to the Union.
On this date in 1907, the first New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square takes place.
On this date in 1951, the Marshall Plan ends, after distributing $13.3 billion in aid to Europe.
On this date in 1983, AT&T/Bell is broken up.
On this date in 1999, the U.S. turned over the Panama Canal to Panama.
And on this date in 1937, Sir Anthony Hopkins was born.  Also born on this date were:

1930 - Jaime Escalante
1943 - John Denver
1948 - Donna Summer
1958 - Bebe Neuwirth
1977 - Psy

Once again, it's time for another installment of...

As The Assisted Living Facility Turns.  This episode is entitled "Where's the Parmesan".

Menus for the dining room are published one week at a time and for the most part are on a cycle of six weeks (there are occasional changes and occasional 'special' meals).  So last Monday when this week's menu was published, everyone could see that lunch today was scheduled to be Chicken Parmesan, with "baby red potatoes" and steamed vegetables.  I suppose it's not that big a deal that Chicken Parmesan is being served with potatoes rather than pasta, but whatever.

However, as I heard from a number of residents during and after the meal (and was able to see for myself), there was a big problem with lunch.  It was chicken, but it was not Chicken Parmesan.  There was no marinara sauce.  The chicken was on the bone.  It was not breaded and it had no real Parmesan cheese on it.  There was a dusting of cheese flakes on it, as though the cheese shaker you use to put cheese on spaghetti had been used lightly on the chicken.

Then to compound matters, the lemon cake that was supposed to be dessert was so poorly made that pieces of it contained more holes than the average slice of Swiss cheese.  Since the head chef is off until Tuesday and the Facility Director isn't due back until after January 1st, there is little the President can do but take down the complaints and promise to address them to the proper people upon their return.  In point of fact, the President was so tired of hearing these complaints that rather than risk hearing more of them by going to the dining room for dinner, he chose to go out and pick up something to eat. 

It didn't help.  As he walked back from his car to his room through the lobby, the President received more complaints about lunch, and about dinner as well.  Worse yet, he noticed that the suggestion box had not yet been put back up, which will undoubtedly lead to one resident making a mountain out of a molehill the next time she sees the President. 

Tune in next time.

Time once again for another installment...

of As The Assisted Living Facility Turns.

We were working the daywatch out of Robbery-Homicide.  The boss is Captain Melnick.  My partner is Bill Gannon.  My name's Friday....wait, that's Dragnet, not ATALFT.  My bad.

It was a quiet Sunday morning and the group of residents referred to as "second seating" were slowly filing into the dining room.  Because the dining room is not large enough to accomodate all of the residents at the same time, each of the day's three meals have two seating times.  Recently the first seating times were changed to give that group more time to eat, and to allow the staff more time to clean between the two groups.  Breakfast is 7:00 - 8:30 for first seating, and 8:30 - 9:30 for second seating.  Lunch from 11:00 - 12:30 and 12:30 - 1:30, with Dinner being held from 4:00 - 5:30 and 5:30 - 6:30.  By 7 p.m. each evening, the dining room has been cleaned and everything put away, although the residents are free to use the sink to get water and to cook things in the microwave oven.

So as the second seating residents were walking, rolling and otherwise moving into the dining room for breakfast, two of the first seating residents were among the throng of people seeking seats.  One man, who happens to sit in the same seat at first seating that the President sits in during second seating was trying to get to "his" seat but the President was already there.  The staff attempted to get him to take one of several seats that are normally vacant during second seating, but the man was moderately agitated and chose to leave instead.

Meanwhile, the other resident who is normally fed during first seating was wheeled to a table far from her normal seat.  Several of the residents on second seating had sought to get her moved to first seating because she coughs and often won't cover her mouth.  Not only does she cough, but she coughs loudly and for long periods.  A couple of residents were so disconcerted when she started coughing this morning, they just got up and left.  But not before grousing to the President about her presence at the wrong seating.

This is not a new problem.  It is almost always caused by a shortage of what are known as PCAs (the new acronym for what used to be the Resident Assistants), and as a result, the short-handed PCA staff can't wake and bathe all of the residents at the usual time.  Thus some first seating residents, through no fault of their own don't get to breakfast on time.  The President plans to approach the Facility Director about seeing if some extra attention can't be made to those residents who need to be awakened early enough to get them to first seating to avoid future disruptions.

Tune in next time for another installment of ATALFT.

Time for "what do you think"...

and the main issue for you to ponder and express your opinion on has to do with Maryland's passage of a marriage equality law, that allows same-sex couples to wed.  Actually the question is what do you think about the reaction of one Maryland business to this law.

On Tuesday, that law goes into effect and Discover Annapolis Tours, a trolley company that has been involved in weddings in that city for years is walking away from all business relating to weddings.  The owner, Matt Grubs won't comment on the situation except to state he is walking away from $50,000 a year in revenue and that his choice is based on:

The fact he is a Christian and serving same-sex couples would violate his religious beliefs.

Because he runs a "public accomodation" he can't legally discriminate and exclude same-sex couples while providing his services to heterosexual couples.

He suggested in an email to a prospective client that he turned down that Maryland residents should approach the Legislature to add an exemption to the law for the "layperson in the pew".

So, what do you think?  I know it isn't fair for me to ask without sharing my own opinion so here it is.  I think he has every right to choose to stop providing service to all weddings.  As long as he isn't discriminating, he is doing nothing legally wrong. 

I also think there's no reason to provide a "layperson" exemption.  That's just a way to allow religious discrimination and circumvent basic civil rights.

I further think that this is a bad business decision on his part.  Not just because he's walking away from $50,000 in revenues, but because I think that there will be individuals who will refuse to use his business under any circumstance due to his position on this issue.  Just as a business owner has every right to stop providing one of his services, so as to avoid being forced to serve a segment of the population he doesn't want to serve; I and others have the right to refuse to patronize a business that makes such a choice.

That's my opinion.  What is yours? 

Before I get to today's ponderings, I

wanted to share some interesting things I've read of late. Most are trivial in nature, or just outright trivia.  You were warned.  So, did you know...

while filming "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", Eli Wallach spoke almost no Italian and Sergio Leone almost no English, so they communicated in French.

The last film Ernest Borgnine appeared in has the tagline "The Good, the Bald and the Elderly".

George Lucas was so convinced that 1977's "Star Wars" would flop and that his friend Steven Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" would be a hit, he made a deal with Spielberg where they each got a small percentage of the profits from each other's film.

When the Lincoln penny first came out in 1909, the designer's initials were located on the reverse side, and the controversy over them was so huge they were removed mid-year?  They returned to the front of the coin in 1918 and are there to this day.

Alan Alda once told Donald Sutherland "thank you for my life". 

Jamie Farr's "Corporal Klinger" was supposed to be a one episode deal.

The 1974 song "Billy Don't Be a Hero" is really about the Civil War, not the Vietnam War.  And, the group that wrote it, Paper Lace, didn't do well with it in the U.S. because Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods covered it and got it released first.

The amount of blood in your body is about the same as the amount of soda-pop contained in 13 cans.  Thanks to the VA's blood-drawing facility for that one.

When you count the number of episodes that the various actors on the show "ER" appeared in, two of the top five in terms of most episodes appeared in weren't stars, but nurses who weren't the focus of any major storylines.

Contrary to popular rumor, the song "Killing Me Softly With His Song was NOT inspired by singer Don McLean.

William Henry Harrison served the shortest time as President of the U.S., but James Madison was the shortest President in terms of height, at 5'4".

Abraham Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy that told him not to go to the theater. JFK had a secretary named Evelyn Lincoln who warned him not to go to Dallas. Then again, Lincoln was in Monroe, Maryland before being killed and JFK was in Marilyn Monroe before being killed.

Okay, time to start pondering.

Why did he blow his mind out in a car?  Younger people won't get that one right away.

Why is my hand's swelling going down, but now some of the skin is turning purple?

Was the universe eavesdropping on a conversation of mine last night?  I was talking with a friend about what an awesome guest host Anne Hathaway is on SNL, and suddenly it was SNL time and they aired a re-run of an episode from last month that had her as the guest host.

How many stabbings take place on any given day in the greater Los Angeles area?  More than a few one would think.  So why is it that when two teens are stabbed at a shopping mall in a relatively affluent area, it's big news?

That there were two rocket launchers turned in during L.A.'s gun buyback was big news.  Why is it that the fact both were missing parts and therefore incapable of doing anything but looking dangerous won't be as big a story?

Psy's video of "Gangnam Style" has over one billion views now.  But did 1 billion different people view it, or did a few million obsessed viewers look at it hundreds of times?

Does Charlie Sheen really expect people to buy his bullshit explanation as he tries to do damage control over the homophobic slur he threw down in Mexico?  He said "How are we doing...lying bunch of f***ot a***oles".  Then he said "I meant no ill will and intended to hurt no one and I apologize if I offended anyone.  I meant to say maggot but I have a lisp."  Funny how we never hear this lisp in anything else he says.

Why do any of the residents of this place give a damn if someone is sitting in a dining room seat that isn't their assigned seat; as long as they aren't being displaced themselves by that person?  I don't give a damn where anyone sits as long as they aren't in my seat.  Then I have an issue.

Speaking of issues with seats, should there be a limit on how many seats one person can save in a movie theater?  Can one person "save" a whole row because all of their family and friends are coming?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1066, Muslims stormed the royal palace in Granada, crucified the Jewish vizier and massacred most of the Jewish population of the city.
On this date in 1853, the U.S. buys a big chunk of land from Mexico, now known as the Gadsden Purchase.
On this date in 1903, a fire in a Chicago theater kills over 600 people.
On this date in 1905, Idaho's former Governor, Frank Steunenberg was assassinated.
On this date in 1919, a female is admitted as a bar student at Lincoln's Inn in London (one of the four inns to which barristers are admitted).
On this date in 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is formed.
On this date in 1927, the Ginza, the first subway line in Asia, opens in Tokyo.
On this date in 1936, the United Auto Workers union stages their first sitdown strike.
On this date in 1947, communists backed by the USSR force Romania's King Michael to abdicate.
On this date in 1965, Ferdinand Marcos becomes President of the Philippines.  Also on this date, Imelda Marcos buys her 500th pair of shoes.
On this date in 1972, the U.S. halted heavy bombing of North Vietnam
On this date in 1977, Ted Bundy escaped from his cell for the second time.
And on this date in 1935, the future happiness of long-suffering Dodger fans was assured (at least for awhile) when Sandy Koufax was born.

The year will end in about 53 hours and...

that means it is time to finalize my end of year movie lists.  My lists of the Top Ten Indie, Top Ten Feature-Length Documentaries and Top Ten Foreign movies are or will be available on www.TailSlate.net and so I won't repost them here.  I do have a few other lists I want to share.  All are in alphabetical order.

My list of the Ten Best Films overall for 2012:

Les Miserables – Stage musicals are a hit/miss proposition when adapted for the big screen and Tom Hooper’s film is a major hit.  The choice to have the actors sing “live” is definitely there on-screen and was brilliant.  The leads were all magnificent.

Life of Pi – Ang Lee’s choice to do this in 3D was an excellent one and it is as powerful visually as it is in terms of the story being told.

Lincoln – Not really a biopic, but a focused look at one short but critical period during the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln.  Daniel Day-Lewis is great in this.

Middle of Nowhere – Wonderfully written and directed by Ava DuVernay, and with a stellar performance in the lead by Emayatzy Corinealdi.  It may be fictional but it resonates with reality.

Moonrise Kingdom – Wes Anderson always makes quirky, interesting films and this is the best one yet.  The story and the acting are all top-of-the-line.  A movie you can watch again and again.

Silver Linings Playbook – A terrific adaptation of a novel by writer/director David O. Russell.  Outstanding performances by Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.  A joy to watch.

Skyfall – Definitely the best Bond film since Sean Connery retired from the role.  It might be the best ever, period.  Great writing, action and an Oscar-worthy performance by Javier Badem as one of the “best” villains James Bond has ever faced.

The Avengers – Quite possibly the best ever adaptation of comic book stories/heroes to the big screen.  Contains just the right amount of humor while amazing audiences with a great story and phenomenal special effects.

The Impossible – A movie that grabs hold early on and manages to maintain its grip without being totally relentless.  The depiction of the tsunami and its aftermath seem to leap right out of the screen and wash the audience away.

Zero Dark Thirty – Kathryn Bigelow was the first woman to win a Best Director Oscar and she may win two before any other female director has won one for this movie.  Jessica Chastain will almost certainly be nominated for Best Actress for her work here.

Honorable mentions for:  The Dark Knight Rises, Argo, Flight, The Intouchables, Hello I Must Be Going, Killer Joe and The Raid: Redemption.

My list of Best Directors of 2012:

Ang Lee

Kathryn Bigelow

Steven Spielberg

Tom Hooper

Wes Anderson

My list of Best Actors in a Lead Role:

Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook

Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln

Denzel Washington - Flight

John Hawkes - The Sessions

Matthew McConaughey - Killer Joe

My list of Best Actresses in a Lead Role:

Emayatzy Corinealdi - Middle of Nowhere

Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook

Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Marion Cotillard - Rust and Bone

Melanie Lynskey - Hello, I Must Be Going

My list of Best Original Screenplays:

Ava DuVernay – Middle of Nowhere 
 

Jason Micallef - Butter

Mark Boal – Zero Dark Thirty

Quentin Tarantino – Django Unchained

Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola – Moonrise Kingdom

My list of Best Adapted Screenplays:

Chris Terrio - Argo

David Magee - Life of Pi

David O. Russell - Silver Linings Playbook

Stephen Chbosky - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Tony Kushner - Lincoln

My list of Best Actresses in a Supporting Role:

Ann Dowd - Compliance

Anne Hathaway – Les Miserables

Helen Hunt – The Sessions

Octavia Spencer – Smashed

Susan Sarandon – Jeff, Who Lives at Home

My list of Best Actors in a Supporting Role:

Dwight Henry – Beasts of the Southern Wild
 

Javier Bardem – Skyfall

John Goodman – Flight

Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln

William H. Macy – The Sessions

 

It's the weekend and I have no plans...

to go and see a movie.  It's a strange feeling.  I think this is the first weekend this year that I won't see at least one movie; assuming I don't decide to go see one tomorrow.  Today is almost 100% out of the question because I'm very tired for some reason.  But I am looking at what's playing in theaters with an eye to find something I haven't already seen to go and watch tomorrow.

Things I'm pondering this morning include why the makers of DVDs of the entire season of a TV show divide them up the way they do.  I am watching the early seasons of "Grey's Anatomy" and the sixth disc of the season arrived in yesterday's mail.  It had only one episode on it.  The first five had five each.  They should have added this one to disc 5 or perhaps made them all four episodes per disc, except the first and last, which would have been five episodes.  5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 1 just isn't a good division.

Why did it take this long for one of the surviving children of the Newtown mass shooting to sue the state of Connecticut?  Yes, a six year old girl who survived is suing the state.  I have a lot of sympathy for the ordeal she underwent, but I don't see where the state is to blame for what happened.  Someone's just trying to cash in.

Does the government need to intervene to make pay-telephone calls more affordable for prisoners while they are incarcerated?  Just allow companies to install competing payphones in prisons and the ones with the most favorable rates will be the ones that get used.  The problem is the absence of a free market.

Why do people not read the fine print when they get something in the mail?  A friend has been wanting a credit card for some time (her problem is no credit history, not bad credit history) and she got one in the mail, from a business she'd sought a signature loan from.  She was about to use it when she got smart enough to ask me to look it over first.  For a $600 line of credit the annual fee would have been $115.  Worse yet, the starting interest rate was 29% per annuam (32% for cash advances) and if she ever missed even one payment due date, the interest rate would rise to 35.99% permanently.  She cut up the card and sent it back.

Why is it weird to finally see a business you'd had years of telephonic dealings with?  Earlier this week I drove by a hospital that I'd spent hours on the phone with, when I worked at a nursing registry.  I didn't even know where they were located, and suddenly there it was.  I actually pulled over and stopped to look at it.  It was much smaller than I'd imagined from the number of nurses they were hiring from us.

Is $47 million in alimony too much?  Apparently not when you're Italy's richest man and you were fooling around with younger women while still married to your second wife.

Does anyone really care at this point that Nancy Reagan's obsession with checking plans with her astrologer kept President Reagan's staff from responding in a timely manner to an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II for the Reagans to stay at her place?  That was 30 years ago.  We already know all about her astrology obsession.

Really?  Is the latest obsession for women to have younger looking faces is shaving them like men do?  Actually it involves something called dermaplaning in a doctor or esthetician's office.  But the basic idea is the same.

Does anyone really care how far Suri Cruise travels at the holidays to be with her paents?  Why is this even celebrity news?  She's a kid.

I'm not so much pondering this one as I am amazed and admiring.  Former NBA superstar Dominique Wilkins wrote a very touching piece about a former teammate of his who died in 2012.  Dan Roundfield had been a team leader and All-Star and he drowned saving his wife while they were in rough waters off the shore of a vacation destination.  The piece Wilkins wrote is a strong reminder that athletes are more than that, they are people as well.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1813, British soldiers burn Buffalo, NY.  Imagine, if it hadn't been rebuilt, buffalo wings would have never been created.

On this date in 1845, the U.S. annexed Texas.

On this date in 1851, the first YMCA in the U.S. opened in Boston.

On this date in 1890, the Wounded Knee massacre takes place, with more than 200 Oglala Lakota being killed by four Hotchkiss guns (Hotchkiss guns were a type of rotating multi-barrel machine gun).

On this date in 1911, Sun Yat-Sen becomes provisional President of the Republic of China.

On this date in 1934, Japan renounces several Naval treaties.

On this date in 1940, the German Luftwaffe fire-bombs London.

On this date in 1959, a physicist gave a speech that is considered the birth of nanotechnology.

On this date in 1971, an Eastern Air Lines plane crashed on approach to Miami International Airport, killing over 100 people.

On this date in 1998, leaders of the Khmer Rouge apologize for the 1970s era genocide in Cambodia.

And on this date in 1938, actor Jon Voight was born.

Just when you think your fellow humans...

can sink no lower, you learn of someone doing something that manages to evoke images of a person who can walk upright beneath the mold on pond scum lying in the street.

I'm referring to Noeul Alba, a 37 year old Bronx woman who is accused of trying to profit from the tragedy in Newtown, CT, by posing as one of the relatives of one of the victims and soliciting funds.  When confronted with evidence of her scam, she denied involvement.  The good news is that she faces some serious punishment.  Up to five years in jail and $250,000 in fines.  Personally I'd rather see her forced to do a few thousand hours of community service volunteering to tend the graves of the children who died at Newtown.

Things I'm pondering this morning include:

Why in the world would a restaurant chain be willing to discount its salad when added to an entree by 50%, but only if you ask?  Putting on the menu that "add a salad to an entree for only $2 more" (the eventual price) will encourage people to buy one and result in more sales.  Forcing people to ask if there's a discount will reduce the sales.  If it isn't a moneymaker, then don't discount it.  But this half-way solution is no solution.

How smart is the person who came up with this billboard?  It's for a church and it shows an image of a casket being borne by six pallbearers into a church with the caption, "will it take six strong men to finally get you back into church?"  Brilliant.

Is the intersection of Crenshaw and Adams the only intersection in L.A. County where there are gas stations on all four of the corners?  I've seen a couple with three, but this one appears to be the only one with four.  I will keep looking.

Why is it when you order fast food at the drive-thru that some of the french fries end up at the bottom of the bag?  Always. 

Why is red carpet red?  Why not blue or green?  The first mention of someone having a red carpet rolled out for him was being so "honored" by a vengeful wife (in a fictional story).  Is that really an honor?

Why Piers Morgan considers the Bible flawed is something I get.  When you can use the Bible to make the argument that same-sex unions are wrong, there is something wrong with the book, not the unions.  But why he thinks the Constitution is flawed makes no sense to me.  Yeah, yeah, he's hung up on the Second Amendment.  But that Amendment isn't flawed, how people pervert its purpose is flawed.

Will we get to the end of 2013 and still have Sears and JC Penneys in malls around the country?  Who knows?  Both are in serious trouble.

Yesterday I went to the movies with a friend.  Midway through the film, the picture went dark and the manager walked in.  "Sorry folks, we had to stop the movie to bring the house lights up.  We'll do our best to keep the interruption as short as possible."  Turned out that a woman in the audience had fainted and had to practically be carried down to a waiting wheelchair.  It seemed like half the remaining audience latched on to the opportunity to run to the restrooms during the break.  So why don't people make it a point to go just before a movie starts?  If you do that, should you really need to go again an hour and ten minutes later?

Should we be generous and offer to help our friends when they have a problem or issue where we have expertise?  I imagine it gets tiring to be a doctor and always being asked medical questions.  But when there is a serious issue, most of the doctors I know on a personal rather than professional level are happy to discuss the matte.  If someone who is a friend has an issue with their income taxes, I take it as a compliment if they ask for help, and I'll offer it freely.  Sometimes even before being asked, although if they don't want to discuss it I'll drop it like a hot massage rock.

How can an NBA coach be the league's coach of the month in November and then be fired weeks later in December?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1612, Galileo observes Neptune, becoming the first astronomer to do so.  He mistakenly catalogues it as a fixed star rather than a planet.
On this date in 1832, John C. Calhoun becomes the first Vice-President of the U.S. to resign.
On this date in 1836, Spain recognizes the independence of Mexico.
On this date in 1846, Iowa becomes the 29th state.
On this date in 1867, the U.S. claims Midway Atoll.
On this date in 1895, Wilhelm Röntgen publishes a paper on radiation that leads to his being known as the man who discovered X-rays.
On this date in 1902, the first ever professional football game played indoors was played at Madison Square Garden.
On this date in 1912, the first municipally owned streetcars in San Francisco went into service.
On this date in 1935, Pravda published a letter by Pavel Postyshev, reviving the New Year tree tradition in the Soviet Union.  Wait, Pravda published a letter???
On this date in 1944, Maurice ("The Rocket") Richard became the first person to score eight points in one hockey game.
On this date in 1971, Kim-il Sung added President of North Korea to the titles of Prime Minister of North Korea and General Secretary of the Worker's Party of Korea that he'd already bestowed on himself.
On this date in 2000, Montgomery Wards announces it is going out of business.
And on this date in 1922, Stan Lee, founder of Marvel Comics was born.  Happy 90th birthday, Stan!!

 

One of our nation's great military leaders has died...

General H. Norman Schwarzkopf.  He was 78 years old.

Most people know the basics about his life.  His father was an Army general and also the lead investigator trying to solve the kidnapping of Charles Lindberg's baby.  He went to West Point, graduated 43rd in his class and became an infantry officer.  He had a spectacular military career leading up to his promotion to Major General when he was given command of a mechanized division (commanding a division is the highest job a 2 star general can have in the Army).  It was while he was commander of the 24th Mechanized Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, GA that he rose to prominence.  When the plan to invade Grenada to rescue the Americans there was drawn up, because it was an amphibious operation, an Admiral was put in overall command.  The Army insisted on sending Gen. Schwarzkopf along to be the Admiral's Army advisor.  He made several key suggestions on how to best use the Army forces on the mission and the Admiral in command quickly realized what an asset he was.  That resulted in his being named Deputy Commander of the Task Force.  The mission was a complete success.

Everyone knows that he was the commander of all U.S. and Allied forces during the First Iraq war.  Most know that he wrote an autobiography and retired after that war ended.  That he endorsed George Bush Jr. in the 2004 election.  But there are a lot of things people don't know about him.

He loved mint chocolate chip ice cream.  He crawled across a minefield in Vietnam to rescue one of the soldiers under his command.  He was able to save this man by thinking quickly and having engineers use shaving cream to mark the location of the mines.  He had a real temper and often got into shouting matches with General Colin Powell during the First Iraq war.  He once had one of his aides stand in a long line to use a men's room and then cut into the line when the aide reached the front.  He was deeply affected by the Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War, which he watched during the buildup of U.S. forces prior to the First Gulf War. 

He was a giant of a man and a giant of a leader.  He probably had more to do with the successful defense of Saudi Arabia and the liberation of Kuwait than any other single person.  His autobiography was entitled "It Doesn't Take a Hero", but General H. Norman Schwarzkopf was indeed a hero.  RIP General.

P.S.  The H stood for nothing.  His father had it added to his birth certificate just before he entered West Point.  It's a fascinating story.

I'm not going to name names, but...

I need to forgive someone.  That person won't be reading my blog, and there probably aren't many (if any) people who read it who know that this person was once the boss of my boss.  But I've been holding on to a lot of anger, for a long time and it's time to let it go.

There were four people in life I was very angry with at one time.  Two of them are ex-wives and I released that anger long ago.  One was my father and I'm very grateful that I was able to tell him that he was forgiven for all that he did to me that required forgiveness, before he passed away.  We had reconnected prior to then and I'm so glad we did.

But I still hold a lot of anger towards this person and after I finish this blog entry I will release it.  I will no longer allow what that person did to have any power over me.  I will stop wasting energy on this betrayal from long ago.  How did this person betray me?  By asking me to take on an additional task that was NOT part of the job I was being paid to do, even after being informed I was on 'overload' and one of my regular job tasks would likely fall through the "cracks" and I would get into trouble with my boss.  Particularly since part of the request (it was phrased as a request but it was unquestionably an order) was to not tell my immediate supervisor what I was doing.  The person who asked me to do this task told me that they would cover for me if anything went wrong, and that I would not get into trouble because I was busy doing this task rather than my regular work.

Of course something went wrong and naturally this person threw me under the bus.  They were living proof of one of Vladimir Illyich Lenin's axioms.  "Promises, like piecrusts, are made to be broken" he said.  He was right.  A promise was made to me, and because I relied on it, I suffered greatly as a result.

For a lot of years I've been angry, although the level of my anger had gone up and down over the years.  But I will no longer allow myself to be angry.  I know that you can't just decide you won't feel a specific emotion, but from the moment this entry ends, I'm going to try.

History is about to repeat itself on L.A.'s Westside...

and it is just as sad this time as it was the last time.  A landmark deli will be closing its doors in less than a week.

Junior's opened in 1959 on Pico and moved to its current location on Westwood just north of Pico in 1967.  Now the owners of the 11,000 square foot building aren't willing to compromise on a rent increase and so the Saul family is being forced to shut the doors.  For some of the employees of Junior's, it is the only job they've had as adults.  Co-owner David Saul talks about re-opening elsewhere with a more modern "vibe".  That would be nice but the truth is that few eateries are able to re-open elsewhere after closing and departing a location.

When I read about the imminent demise of Junior's my mind immediately turned to the fate of Zucky's deli, which was on the corner of 5th and Wilshire in Santa Monica from 1954 through 1993.  Even though my grandfather owned his own restaurant in the Santa Monica Canyon, during my childhood we spent a lot of time at Zucky's.  The food was expensive, the service only slightly above average and the wait for a table on a Sunday morning was very protracted.  None of that mattered.  We loved Zucky's.  In high school, many a late night's homework was done while accompanied by a bowl of matzoh ball soup.  Or maybe just a cup, depending on how much cash one had.  It closed without warning when the owners had to choose between sinking $500,000 in improvements into the business, or going out of business.  For what it's worth, I've always thought they made the wrong choice.  It took over a decade for anyone to occupy that space and during that time, the area only got busier.  Their investment would have been returned to them.

I'm not as big a fan of Junior's as I was of Zucky's.  But it has a lovely ambience.  The food is also expensive, but the high quality makes it a decent value.  The service is better than at many delis.  I've heard people say they got lousy service there but that wasn't my experience.  I may try to find time to get over there for one last meal before they shut their doors forever.  I will also never set foot in whatever business replaces it, as my form of silent protest against the end of another iconic L.A. eatery.

So after spending more than an hour waiting...

the doctor at the V.A. (a resident, but clearly thorough and competent) tells me that the swelling in my right hand is some kind of cellulitis infection.  She prescribed antibiotics and insisted on an x-ray to rule out any possibility of something being broken.  Between the wait to see her, to see the pharmacist, to wait for the pharmacist to talk to the doctor over a potential medication interaction, the wait to get the prescription filled and the wait for an x-ray, I was there three hours.  And it wasn't really busy.  And that's unusually fast for a walk-in.  There were at least fifteen people in the Emergency Room's waiting area, although I have no way of knowing how many were waiting to be seen and how many were just relatives of people waiting to be seen.

Things I'm pondering today:

Without mentioning who, can you guess what parents got their 17 year old daughter a pair of $1,200 shoes for Christmas?  I guess considering she's probably making enough on her own to afford a dozen pairs of them if she wants them, it's not a big deal.  If a woman wears a pair of shoes that cost that much and happens to stop at the gym to work out, is an armed guard posted next to her locker in the locker room?

Why do people ask if seats are being saved when it's obvious they are?  If the cups in the holders and the jackets or purses on the seats aren't enough of a clue, maybe the arms of the people in the adjacent seats laying across those seats in a possessive manner might be an indication?  I went to see a movie today and watched at least a dozen people trek up to the top row where I was sitting and ask if any of the four vacant seats between people around me were "being saved".  One guy was actually pissy after everyone told him that all the seats were saved.  I guess he figures he's so important he can show up less than five minutes before a big movie starts on its second day in theaters and get a great seat.

Spike Lee has criticized the use of the N-word, among other things in the new Tarantino movie "Django Unchained".  Now Sarah Silverman says that Lee's criticism is inappropriate.  My question is, is Sarah Silverman's opinion on dramatic films all that important?

Why in the world do people use such simple PIN codes for their ATM cards?  According to one researcher, almost 30% of ATM card PIN codes can be guessed with only 20 attempts.  There are 10,000 possibilities when it comes to four digit PIN codes.  Frightening.  Then again, my email account was recently hacked and I had a 14 character password for it that was alpha-numeric with both upper and lower case letters and one special character.  I've replaced it with a 21 character password that is even more complicated and no, I didn't have to write it down to remember it.

Who cares that Mark Cuban says "the Nokia Lumia 920 crushes the iPhone 5"?  He may be a billionaire and owner of an NBA team but I don't recall asking him for advice on what smartphone to buy.

Is there anyone anywhere with any modicum of intellect that thinks arming teachers is a good idea?  I know a lot of teachers.  They are almost all incredibly talented, intelligent people who are fully engaged in the educational process.  And I wouldn't want to see any of them carrying a gun on school grounds.  I know a certain former school headmaster who once voiced his desire to have one gun on school property, locked in his office where only he could retrieve it in case of emergency.  I had this vivid image of him shooting himself in the foot twice, before someone took the gun from him.  Fortunately that never got beyond the wistful mention phase.  If we reach the point where we need armed guards to keep schools safe, we need to hire people who are fully qualified to "serve and protect", rather than to instruct.

Do people really think that additional laws on gun control will keep guns out of the hands of people who are planning to commit multiple murders?  Do they still think that when you remind them that there are over 200 million privately owned firearms in the U.S.?  I am in favor of additional registration and sale restrictions on guns.  I'm in favor of requiring people to have undergone training and licensing to own a gun.  But I don't believe for a moment that any of those things will keep guns out of the hands of people who are planning multiple murders.  Maybe someone has a workable solution.  I sure don't.

How many of us knew that Jimmy Buffett, who hasn't had a hit since before Ronald Reagan was President, was worth $400 million?  He is apparently one damn smart businessman and has turned "Margaritaville" into an empire.  Meanwhile, Max Baer, who played "Jethro" on "The Beverly Hillbillies" can't get his proposed "Jethro's Beverly Hillbillies Hotel/Casino" off of the drawing board.

Did anyone else notice that L.A. area TV sportscaster Jim Hill is making more errors these days?  When he did a piece on the tonight's Lakers game, he said "the Lakers ended their five game losing streak with a loss to the Denver Nuggets".  They were on a winning streak, Jim.  You don't end a losing streak with another loss.

Are there really laws that prevent stores from selling "candy cigarettes"?  Wow.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1831, Charles Darwin sailed on the HMS Beagle, where he would formulate his theory of evolution.
On this date in 1845, Ether was used as an anesthetic during childbirth for the first time.  No, the mother giving birth did not yell "give me drugs and give them to me now".
On this date in 1923, a Japanese student tried to assassinate Prince Hirohito.
On this date in 1932, Radio City Music Hall opened in New York City.  Back then there were only two Rockettes.
On this date in 1945, the World Bank and the International Money Fund were created when 29 nations signed an agreement.  Later that day, their loan department was accused of "red-lining".
On this date in 1968, Apollo 8 splashed down, ending the first manned mission to orbit the moon.
On this date in 1978, Spain became a democracy after 40 years of dictatorship.  By then, "Saturday Night Live" was no longer using the running gag "Our top story tonight; Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead".
On this date in 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.
And on this date in 1960, actress and Bond Girl Maryam D'Abo was born.

I usually don't post many films reviews...

here on my blog because the vast majority of them end up posted at the website I write for.  In case you weren't aware, that's www.TailSlate.net and feel free to check it out.

But today I saw Les Miserables and since another TailSlate critic is reviewing it for the site, I'm posting my own review here.

In 1985, the novel that is considered by many to be the greatest novel of the 19th Century became a stage musical.  It ran on Broadway for 16 years and is still the fourth longest running Broadway show in history.  Not long after it first hit the stage the process of bringing that musical to the big screen began.  This is not the first film version of Victor Hugo's novel, and it probably won't be the last.  Bear in mind that in English, the abridged version of this novel runs over 1,400 pages so there are things Hugo wrote that won't be in the movie.

"Jean Valjean" (Hugh Jackman) has spent 19 years as a slave in the galleys of France.  His crime was stealing a loaf of bread for which he was given a five year sentence.  The 14 additional years were added due to his numerous attempts to escape.  On the day he is paroled, Inspector Javert (Russell Crowe) forces him to do something that demonstrates Valjean's prodigious strength.  Then he is released, but his papers are yellow, marking him as an former prisoner.  He can't find anywhere to sleep or eat and winds up at the church in Digne.  There the Bishop offers him food and shelter, an act of kindness for which Valjean repays the Bishop by stealing the church's silver.  He is caught by the police and tells them that the Bishop had given the silver to him.  To his surprise, the Bishop confirms his story and insists that Valjean take the two silver candlesticks as well.  But before he takes his leave, Valjean is told by the Bishop that he must use the money realized from the sale of the silver to become an honest man.

Years later, living as Monseiur Madeleine, and serving as Mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer, Valjean is also the owner of several businesses.  Fantine (Anne Hathaway) works in Madeleine's sewing business in order to pay to keep her daughter sheltered by a couple who own an inn.  When a dispute breaks out between Fantine and other women working there, Madeleine would have intervened but he is distracted by the presence of Inspector Javert.  He orders the foreman to handle the problem and he promptly fires Fantine.  Probably because she had spurned his advances.

Desperate, Fantine sells her hair and two teeth and winds up as a prostitute.  Madeleine, upon realizing his role in Fantine's downfall rescues her and promises to reunite her with her daughter.  But she dies before he can do this.  He resolves to raise Cosette (played as an adult by Amanda Seyfriend) himself and to keep her safe.

There is much more to the story, but that should be enough to whet your appetite.  Particularly if you've never read the novel.  I haven't read it since high school but the details poured back into my mind as I watched and listened to this wonderful movie.  The music was recorded live, rather than in the studio and in my mind this made a significant difference in the quality of the singing.  The emotion, the reality is astonishing.

The movie is a tad long, but considering how much story there is to tell, that wasn't surprising.  It is very beautiful to watch and if you've seen the musical on stage, you'll probably have to resist the temptation to join in with the familiar songs.  The aforementioned four main actors were terrific and so were the rest of the supporting cast.  There is high drama, some outstanding comedy and the packed auditorium broke into applause at the end.

The highest praise I can give a film is that either I want to see it again, or I want to read (or re-read) the source material.  In this case, I plan to do both.

The morning after Christmas....

and no torn wrapping paper to throw away.  No presents to find places for.  No thank-you notes to write.  I'm happy that there are no chores to be done and yet this is once again a reminder of what a solitary life I am leading.

Not that I wasn't leading a pretty solitary life before I got sick and nearly died.  Between full-time work and part-time work and what little social life I managed to eek out, it was a pretty lonely existence even back then.  I did talk to co-workers, to students that I was teaching tax preparation to, to my clients and to my friends on-line and in RL, but basically I lived alone and spent most hours outside of work alone.  Today isn't all that much different.

But a lot of it is by choice and I have to recognize and accept that.

Things I'm pondering on this morning after the holiday include:

Is it just coincidence that in most of the games of Words With Friends I was playing last night, I kept getting no vowels other than I's?  At one point I had four vowels among my seven letters, all the letter I.

What in the world did I do to my right hand?  The back of that hand, below the fingers is swollen twice it's normal size and I don't have any recollection of any injury that would have caused this.  My left hand is fine and compared side by side, the difference is remarkable.  And it's painful when I try to make a fist with my right hand.  Guess it's a good thing I don't need to hit anyone with a fist today.

Why were all the good seats for almost every show of "Django Unchained" sold out yesterday where there is reserved seating?  I had to end up choosing a show at 8:45 a.m. in order to avoid sitting in the front two rows.  Was the demand that strong for this movie?  I guess it was.

Why in the world would anyone think Ben Affleck would be qualified to serve as a United States Senator?  He was in the discussion about who might replace John Kerry until he said he would not run.

Why shouldn't Mattel and Hasbro be terrified of the trend of kids wanting iPads, iPods and electronic gear rather than traditional toys?  It doesn't bode well for the future of the toy business.

Wouldn't we live in an amazing society if people were as generous the rest of the year as they are during the holiday season?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1776, at the Battle of Trenton, the Continental Army defeats a group of Hessian mercenaries.
On this date in 1799, 4,000 or more were present at the funeral of President George Washington who was eulogized by Henry Lee as "first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen."  It wasn't until decades later that the hosts of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" added "...and first to wear a wig and stretchpants".
On this date in 1825, the Decembrist Revolt in St. Petersburg, Russia is put down.
On this date in 1846, the Donner Party, trapped in the infamous pass in the Sierra Nevada, resorts to cannibalism to survive.
On this date in 1862, 38 Native Americans die in the nation's largest-ever mass hanging.
On this date in 1898, Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium.
On this date in 1919, George Herman "Babe" Ruth is sold to the Yankees by Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee, beginning the "Curse of the Bambino".
On this date in 1941, FDR signs a bill into law making the fourth Thursday of November the official holiday of Thanksgiving.
On this date in 1944, Patton's Third Army frees the troops who were trapped at Bastogne.
On this date in 1966, Kwanzaa is celebrated for the first time.
On this date in 1972, 78 B-52 bombers are launched from Anderson Air Force Base, Guam to attack Hanoi as part of Operation Linebacker II.  It was the largest single combat launch in the history of the Strategic Air Command.
On this date in 1982 Time magazine named the computer as "Man of the Year".
On this date in 1991, the Soviet Union is formally dissolved.
And on this date in 1948, journalist Candy Crowley is born.

Almost without exception, I have....

given everyone the same Christmas gift as last year.  Nothing.  My family doesn't exchange gifts and the few friends I'm close enough with where we might exchange gifts choose not to.  It's fine.  But I'm feeling generous today and so I'm going to give a gift to one group.  I have a Christmas present for the Republican Party.  I doubt they'll pay attention to, or use this gift but I'm going to give it freely anyway.

I'm going to identify the biggest problems that Republicans had in the recent presidential election and what will undoubtedly be the biggest obstacles they will face in the 2014 Congressional elections and the next Presidential election in 2016.  They are, in no particular order:

Rush Limbaugh
Bill O'Reilly
Sean Hannity
Mark Levin
Glenn Beck
Larry Elder

Why am I assigning blame for the failure of the Republican party to be competitive in the most recent Presidential election and for their failure to regain control of the Senate when it was theirs for the taking?  Because the power structure within the party has allowed talk show hosts to do the party's branding for them.  Allowing them to set the party's agenda.  The people who should be leading the party aren't doing so.  Quick.  Without research, name the chairman of the Republican Party.  Can't, can you.  Quick.  Name the man he replaced as chairman of the Republican Party.  Can't, can you.  Would you believe me if I told you that the man who was elected as the party's chair in 2008 was the first ever African-American chair of the Republican Party?  It's true.

As long as Republicans let talk-show hosts set the party's agenda, and its branding, it will continue to suffer setback after setback.

Then there's the party's other set of problems.  Again, in no particular order they are:

Evangelical Christians
The Tea Party
Republican Politicians whose brains occasionally vapor-lock.

The "religious right" may get out and vote but the party's platform and agenda can't cater to every single one of their issues and have any prayer (pun intended) of garnering a majority of the vote anywhere outside of heavily gerrymandered districts.  A candidate in a Republican primary who espouses opposition to abortion rights and/or same-sex marriage may win the primary, but unless their party is in the majority within the block of registered voters who can elect them, they are doomed to fail.  It's time to recognize that those issues aren't as critical as issues like the public debt, the budget deficit and our sputtering economy.  What good is continuing to prevent abortions and stopping gays from marrying when the nation is going bankrupt? 

Not to mention there are a lot of Republicans who aren't opposed to abortion rights or same-sex marriage.  I'd be one of them if I hadn't departed the party in disgust some time ago.  But I'm not and I won't be again until I see a sea-change in the party's direction.  Even then I'll probably remain an independent.

So there's your gift, Republican Party.  Take the power of branding and agenda setting away from those talking heads, and focus on critical issues and you might do well in upcoming elections.  Merry Christmas.

Cool.  I didn't even have to wrap the one gift I gave this year.

Waking up and finding that I needed...

to sit down and write an obituary for the tremendously talented actor Charles Durning is not how I wanted to start Christmas Day.  He was a hero during WWII who became an amazing character actor and he will be greatly missed.  RIP.

I can't get the song lyric, "and so this is Christmas" out of my head this morning.  This is a holiday that never had much meaning for me, except of course that it meant my mother wasn't working.  While I was in school it was just another day during the winter break.  After I went out into the world as an adult, it became a day where those of us in town would gather at Mom's house and spend a few hours together.  Mom always has a tree, even though we aren't Christians.

I haven't been to anyone's home on Christmas in years.  Until Christmas of 2010, I'd always do the same thing on this day.  See a movie and then eat at one of the restaurants around that's open 24/7 and doesn't close on Christmas.  Today I am going to see a movie although I plan to eat here at home.  I'll try to do some writing and I may watch some stuff on streaming video.  I won't see or talk to my family, except of course for Mom.  I'll call her.

I'm being petulant today.  I called my siblings on Thanksgiving and they never called back.  So if they want to talk today they can call me.  Otherwise, it will be like last year.  No one calls anyone.  I've tried reaching out without success and while I will try again in the future, I don't feel like trying today.

Actually I plan to do a little studying today as well.  It should be quiet and I can read through an online course manual.

Things I'm pondering today begin with a story that really made me sit up and take notice yesterday.  There was a non-profit that was passing out $25 gift cards at a supermarket in an economically depressed area.  One man was being interviewed about his reaction to getting this gift card and he was ecstatic.  It will be his family's first Christmas in their car and thanks to someone's generosity they were able to buy their child an eight dollar toy as a Christmas gift, and enjoy a decent meal.  That one really makes you think about how good your own life is, in comparison.  It did for me.

I am pondering where the family members are of some of the residents this week.  Yesterday was the big meal to celebrate today's holiday and there were almost no family members visiting.  Are they too busy with their own lives to go see their parents/grandparents/aunts/uncles/whatevers?  Are they just warehousing their loved ones here until their time comes?

I'm wondering why Governor Moonbeam got generous with pardons on Christmas Eve.  He gave out 79 of them.

Is it wrong to enjoy watching a movie because someone you were once close to gets shot in it?  If so, I guess I'm wrong, because I love that movie and seeing that woman get shot is one of the reasons I love it.  I'm not angry with her and we remain friends...but I love that scene.

This Date in History:

On this date in 800, Charlemange is crowned as Holy Roman Emperor.
On this date in 1066, William the Conqueror is crowned King of England.
On this date in 1100, Baldwin of Boulogne is crowned first King of Jerusalem.
On this date in 1130, Roger II is crowned King of Sicily.
On this date in 1776, General George Washington and his army crosses the Delaware.
On this date in 1868, President Andrew Johnson pardons all soldiers who fought for the Confederacy.
On this date in 1941, Admiral Nimitz arrives at Pearl Harbor to assume command of the Pacific fleet.
On this date in 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union.

In today's installment of...

At The Assisted Living Facility Turns, the residents have been enjoying their Christmas Day meal on Christmas Eve.  The usual bland fare has been replaced by ribs, chicken, ham and prime rib.  Salads with full slices of cucumbers, and larger than usual chunks of tomatoes.  There's fresh mac and cheese, green beans, asparagus and several types of desserts.  It is a real feast, and yet some of the residents are still unhappy.  What they wanted isn't available on the buffet table.

Which seems strange to the President.  Because there was a meeting earlier in the month, to which all of the residents were invited; where the Chef asked people what they wanted served at this meal.  With the sole exception of strawberry pie, everything that anyone asked for, is there on the table.  If people didn't get to the meeting, they have no room to complain that they didn't get what they wanted.

The rumor mill regarding the specious allegations that the odor of cocaine can be detected outside the President's room seems to be dying down.  But with the Facility Director being away on vacation, some are wondering why her boss is here, in her office.  Maybe she's just covering for her.  Maybe there's something more nefarious afoot.  At least that's what someone wanted to imply.  It is untrue.  The Facility Director has worked for this company for some time and her boss is just here keeping an eye on things while she is away.

A new complaint has been brought to the President.  One of the residents engages in an obsessive/compulsive behavior and it has reached the level of annoyance in the eyes of some.  It isn't like he's trying to open room doors, as a former resident with serious dementia used to do.  She actually went into the President's room one night as he watched television, but left immediately when she saw him.

This resident's compulsion is chairs.  Specifically, making sure that chairs are properly positioned at tables once whoever was sitting there has left.  He will finish eating in the dining room and then on his way out, will straighten out every single chair between where he was seated and the doorway.  Even if it means crossing to the other aisle after he finishes the first one.  Since pushing the chairs in makes a lot of noise, people are complaining.  The President plans to discuss this with the Facility Director upon her return, but there probably isn't much to be done.

Today is Christmas Eve...

and I was reminded by a friend's tweet yesterday how employers treat this day.  There is a very broad spectrum when it comes to who works on this day.

In the military, we were always instructed to have all functions staffed with minimum manning when this day fell on a week day.  I worked for another employer where we had a week off either the week of Christmas or New Year's but Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve we never really worked for very long, if at all.  I also had a job where not only did we work a full day (they sometimes let us go a couple of hours early) on Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, and even the Friday after Thanksgiving.  Then again, that employer gives employees a day off each year for their birthday and another for the anniversary of their hiring date.

Unless there is a real business reason to be staffed and open on Christmas Eve, it makes more sense for employers to give as many employees as possible this day off.  Their minds aren't going to be fully focused on their work.  They want their holiday to start.  They want to be like all the other people who don't work in food service, retail or other industries that are busy serving people.  The courts are closed.  The police are in maximum enforcement mode.  If you owned a business, would you have all of your employees working?  Some?  None?

Among the things I'm pondering today are:

I mentioned this one in my FB headlines yesterday but I'll raise it here.  How is it that people who are stars of the Real Housewives of Wherever remain "housewives" when they get divorced?  They are definitely no longer wives.

If what his son Tagg says is true, why in the world did Mitt Romney run for President for nearly 10 years?  It sure sounds like he didn't want the job.  He certainly wasn't in it for the money.  Did the magic underwear force him to run?

How many bad jokes will we hear about Senator Michael Crapo's DUI arrest?  I can think of a bunch of them but will spare you.  Just pretend I just wrote several of them and then click the link below:
http://instantrimshot.com/index.php?sound=rimshot

Is Calvin J. Candie really the worst, most vile villain from 2012's crop of films?  That's one opinion.  I haven't seen how Leonardo DiCaprio did with the role, but of the villains I've seen thus far, it's a very close race between Javier Bardem's 'Raoul Silva' from "Skyfall" and Tom Hardy's 'Bane' from "The Dark Knight Rises".

Picture ten people out shopping for Christmas gifts today.  How many of them were out shopping last Christmas Eve and swearing not to put it off until the last minute this year?  I'd say six or seven out of the ten.  There are some who wait until the very last minute because desperate merchants offer the best prices on the last shopping day.  Of course, that assumes what they are shopping for will still be available.

What kind of ass defaces a Nativity scene by drawing a Hitler moustache on one of the Wise Men?  The kind who can't spell 'Heil Hitler' when they write it next to their artwork of course.

What kind of idiot steals a 1989 Corvette and then locks it away in a self-storage unit, spending $70,000 over the years to store the car?  It was discovered only when the idiot stopped paying the storage fees.  It's been sold on EBay by the insurer that paid the stolen vehicle claim off long ago, for right about the original sticker price of $40,000.

Anyone want to contribute to my latest idea?  I think we should get together and send idiots like Todd Akin and others who insert their feet firmly into their mouths a flash card to refer to before they say anything.  It would read "Remember, that it is always better to remain silent and let others think you are a moron than to speak and remove any possible doubt".  I'm kicking in $18.72 to start the movement off, all the cash in my pocket at this moment.

We haven't done Fun With Classified Ads for a while:

"Company looking beautiful and professional girls for door to door / phone marketing and customer services."  Why do they have to be beautiful for phone marketing?  Or do they mean that the beautiful girls go door to door and the professional ones work the phones?  Dare we ponder what profession they want these girls to work in or what "customer services" they will be offering?

"We prefer bartenders that are culturally aware and sensitive since most of our customers are Asian.  All are welcome to apply!" Either they've been sued before or someone smart knows to accept applications from everyone to avoid being sued later.

There was an ad seeking an experienced barber that speaks fluent Spanish.  Nothing wrong with that, except it was under the "Food Service/Beverage category".

"PLEASE....DO NOT SEND ....your resume as we do not respond.  Instead, please email us a very brief history of your past experience including your telephone number and best time to call you."  So how is a brief history different from a resume except in terms of brevity?

The last ad was one for a "young attractive girl" to work in a boutique on Melrose.  Then in the body of the ad it added the word "energetic".  So I guess old, lazy but attractive girls need not apply.

This Date In History:

On this date in 1294, Boniface VIII becomes Pope, following the resignation of St. Celestine V.
On this date in 1814, the Treaty of Ghent is signed, ending the War of 1812.
On this date in 1818, the first performance of "Silent Night" occurs.
On this date in 1826, the "Eggnog Riot" breaks out at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
On this date in 1851, the Library of Congress burns.
On this date in 1865, the KKK is founded.  A dark day in our nation's history.
On this date in 1914, the "Christmas Truce" of WWI begins.
On this date in 1943, General Eisenhower becomes Supreme Allied Commander.
On this date in 1951, Idris becomes King of Libya as the nation gains independence from Italy.
On this date in 1955, NORAD tracks Santa for the first time.
On this date in 1968, Apollo 8 enters lunar orbit and for the first time, humans orbit the moon.
On this date in 1974, Cyclone Tracy causes widespread damage to Darwin, Australia.
And, since I watched "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" last night, on this date in 1945, writer/director Nicholas Meyer was born.

Among Tom Clancy's novels is...

"The Cardinal of the Kremlin".  In that novel is a character named Colonel Mikhail Semyonovich Filitov, who works for the GRU (the Soviet's Military Intelligence).  He is a mole for the CIA and when caught and imprisoned by the KGB, he refers to his interrogator as "Comrade Chekist".

That's because the Cheka was the predecessor of the KGB which has since given way to the current Federal Security Service or FSS.  All of these organizations that exist in repressive nations (and many not quite so repressive) have names or acronyms.  Some well known, some not so much.

Thanks to Hollywood most everyone knows the Mossad is Israel's intelligence agency.  But few know that there is a Shin Bet (internal security) and Aman (military intelligence) organization in the Israeli intelligence community.  I can't recall if Ben Affleck's film "Argo" mentioned SAVAK, which was the Shah of Iran's secret police until the 1979 coup.  "Zero Dark Thirty" uses the acronym ISI which is the acronym for Pakistan's intelligence agency.  Most familiar with France know of the Sûreté but France also has a DGSE.

The point of all this?  I saw a movie today that reminded me that we Americans take our rights and freedoms a bit too much for granted, compared to what goes on and used to go on in other nations.  This film was set in East Germany in 1980, when their Stasi was one of the most feared and repressive state security services ever.

In this film, a woman doctor commits the heinous crime of applying for an exit visa to West Germany to join her boyfriend.  As a result she loses her job in a prestigious hospital in Berlin and is more or less exiled to a provincial clinic.  Her career is for all intents and purposes, over.  She's followed, and when she disappears for a few hours she is subjected to a search of everything in her apartment, including her body cavities.

Outside of the U.S., "Miranda" is a woman's name, not the landmark case protecting our right to be free from self-incrimination before being advised of what our rights are.  Freedom of speech in Germany doesn't include espousing Nazism and it isn't the only nation to have a law like that.  We can move freely about the nation, going from state to state without worrying over borders.  Back in the day, within the Soviet Union, movement was very restricted and if you didn't have identity papers you were essentially non-existent.

When a police officer stops you in the U.S., he or she can't just arbitrarily search your car.  Oh they can, but without the appropriate probable cause, or a search warrant, any evidence they find pretty much can't be used against you.  Try telling the cop in Thailand that he can't search your car and you'll learn all about that nation's system of justice from inside a jail cell.  Hope you brought cash with you, because in a Thai jail, without money of your own, or from the outside, death from starvation is a high probability.

Perhaps we need to be reminded every once in a while not to take our freedoms for granted.  Films like the one I saw today are excellent reminders.

And now, the latest installment in...

our continuing story, "As The Assisted Living Facility Turns".  On a quiet Sunday morning, someone gives the President a piece of disconcerting news.  Apparently at least one of the residents is spreading a rumor that when they walked by the President's room, they could smell the odor of cocaine.

This is problematic on several levels.  First of all, pure cocaine is odorless.  The only smells it gives off are those of whatever substances it is "cut" with.  Crack cocaine has been described as smelling like burning vinyl or plastic by crack addicts the President spoke with during the time he was working in a organization housing the homeless.

Then there's the fact that we're talking about a man who in his entire life has never smoked a single "joint" or "doobie" of pot.  In fact, has never smoked a single tobacco cigarette.  Never taken a single dose of any drug that wasn't prescribed by a physician for medical reasons.  For a personal reason he refuses to discuss, he's been wary of illegal drugs since his early teen years.  So it just isn't possible.

The President tried to locate the source of this rumor, but the person suspected by most of being the originator denies having said it.  That person claimed they'd actually heard someone else saying it.  Then again, the person who was accused of having said it by multiple sources also said the same thing when she was asked to leave that meeting of the Resident's Council as she was departing.  So her denials must be taken with a large grain of salt.

In the end it is pretty meaningless.  No one's ever seen the President wandering around "stoned" or "high".  Even if he were doing something like that in his room, it isn't impacting anyone else or the performance of his duties.  And eventually rumors like this die down.  But it was amusing.

The flow of visitors is increasing as Christmas Day approaches.  The Nativity scene in the lobby has been joined by Santa and a Christmas tree.  No one has ever complained about those.  Perhaps the complainer who was upset by the Nativity doesn't consider Santa or a Christmas tree to be a religious symbol.  That person will hopefully not ever study the actual origin of the Christmas tree.

That's all for now.  Stay tuned for our next episode.

If it were a person who was waking me...

at five in the morning, I'd let them know my displeasure vocally.  But it isn't someone else.  It's something internal.  Fortunately, I was able to go back to sleep this morning and sleep until 7.

It's the first morning since this past Monday that I will be able to relax and enjoy breakfast in the dining room. Assuming of course my protracted absence doesn't result in everyone coming over to my table to voice their latest complaint.  Perhaps I should make a sign "the president is not available until after breakfast."

I'm grateful that the movie I will see today, if I decide I'm up to seeing a movie, is not playing adjacent to a shopping mall.  The parking for movies that play at or next to shopping malls is a nightmare at this time of year. 

Among this morning's ponderings is the way people ignore the anti-gridlock law.  I saw people blocking the intersections on several streets yesterday and then going into panic mode when they realized the light was turning red and they were trapped in the intersection.  I always stay out of the intersection until I can definitely get all the way across.  That's a ticket I don't want to receive, although I can't remember seeing anyone get that ticket for a long time.

Another is that people are such lemmings while driving.  One place I was driving yesterday had a traffic light out on a major thoroughfare.  I saw the long lines waiting to get across this one intersection and immediately used side streets to get around the jam.  There were no other cars using this technique to get around the waiting in long lines of cars.  Why don't people think "gee, I can turn right, go left and then come back to my street below where the light is out"?

There's an island between Maine and New Brunswick that is at the center of a dispute between the U.S. and Canada over who owns it.  Will we go to war over an island with no permanent residents, solely because the waters near it are great for lobster fishing?

Now that I know there is a Diaper of the Month club, a Bacon of the Month club, a Moss of the Month club, a Sock of the Month club, and a JustFab Shoe Club, I'm pondering what will become the next odd item to have a monthly club.  Virus of the Month club?  Cancelled TV Series of the Month DVD club?

I'm wondering if what I'm watching on TV ever happened in real life.  On this episode of "Law and Order", a doctor is under fire because he acted as the only sperm donor in his fertility clinic.  Their cases are usually "ripped from the headlines".  So I'm guessing that somewhere, some doctor actually did this.

Someday, someone's going to get really, really rich by devising a way to stop what I'm dealing with at this moment.  I'm a Netflix subscriber.  In fact I have streaming and DVD service.  There isn't anything else for them to sell me.  Yet I continue to be innundated with ads selling their services.  If someone were able to develop software or modify existing browsers so that services you are already using wouldn't waste their advertising dollars on you, people would buy that process.

How much longer will the period between the end of the commercials/pre-show entertainment, and the start of the movie get in coming years?  On Friday I saw a movie and there were 21 minutes worth of trailers and "silence your phone" messages.  That's a record.  What can make those 15 - 20 minutes seem longer is when you see a few movies in the same genre within a short period is that you'll see the same trailers over and over.

This Date in History:

On this date in 484, Humeric dies and his nephew succeeds him as King of the Vandals.  During his reign Catholics are largely free from persecution.
On this date in 1783, General George Washington resigns as the Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army.
On this date in 1823, "A Visit from St. Nicholas", which we know as "The Night Before Christmas" was published anonymously.
On this date in 1893, the opera "Hansel and Gretel" by Engelbert Humperdinck was first performed.
On this date in 1913, President Wilson signed the Federal Reserve Act into law, creating the Federal Reserve System.
On this date in 1938, the first modern coelacanth was discovered. 
On this date in 1968, the 82 sailors who were the crew of the USS Pueblo were released after 11 months of captivity in North Korea.
On this date in 1972, the survivors of a plane crash in the Andes were rescued.  They had only been able to survive because they chose to practice Anthropophagy.
On this date in 2002, a MQ-1 Predator drone was shot down by an Iraqi MIG-25, marking the first ever aerial combat engagement between a drone and a piloted aircraft.
And on this date in 1946, soap opera star Susan Lucci was born.