Long days

I knew today would be rough.  Part of the reason it was so bad it that I just can't say no, when I should say no.  I said yes to scheduling a client after my doctor's appointment, meaning I had to go back to the office after I'd already put in five hours (which should be the maximum I work on any day).  I said yes to adding a second client in the late afternoon.  I said yes to helping someone fill out their FAFSA. 

The first five hours were busy, productive and I was able to help my clients a lot.  I love a day when I am able to do things to help clients.  It's the best part of doing this work.  Then I went to the VA to get the preliminary testing done for the big procedure next Thursday.  That's a whole story in and of itself.

Then back to the office.  I don't talk about clients and what happens with them in the office, but it was a long late afternoon.  The second client cancelled.  I went to help the person with their FAFSA but she didn't show up.  I waited 35 minutes and then left.  She called a little while later, apologizing for running late.  I tried to steer her elsewhere for help, but then I gave in and agreed to meet with her in the morning.  I shoulda just said "no".

The cardiologist I met with today was new to me, but he was really good and really thorough.  First he explained that the catheter has to be inserted either at the top of the leg, or through the wrist.  Then he checked to see if I have two good pulses in my wrists.  I have two good ones in my left wrist, but not in my right wrist.  That wasn't good news.  In fact, it's a little bit upsetting.

He described the procedure in detail.  Then he outlined the risks.  Based on what he told me, here are some numbers.

1 out of every 100,000 people who have this test will not make it off the table.
1 out of every 10,000 people who have this test will suffer a heart attack.
1 out of every 4 people who have this test are at risk of suffering reversible damage to their kidneys (that was really disquieting).

I knew most of this already, without the specific numbers.  It's a no-brainer.  Get the test.  Better to find out what, if anything, is wrong.  Maybe I'll need a bypass (another 1 in 100,000 shot).  Maybe I'll need a stent (too many variables to calculate accurately).  Maybe they just need to work on meds, and I need to work on diet/exercise more.  We will know in a week.  I'm nervous, but determined.

Tomorrow I'm going to play trivia with friends, see a movie and enjoy myself after I do this FAFSA thing.  Saturday is a day of almost complete rest.  I probably won't even see a movie.

Time for some shorter days.

The best laid plans

I have about eight minutes before I need to get ready to leave for the office.  I don't work again until Sunday and next week I only work two days.  Much needed rest and downtime.  Of course I do have those tests coming up next week so it will be an anxiety-filled period of rest.

I'm pondering why people say they will do something and then don't do it.  I'm thinking of a specific thing and many people have promised me they will do it this year, but few have done it.  I wouldn't think less of them if they just said "no, I don't want to do that".  I'd be fine with someone saying "that's just not my thing".  But to tell me you will and then you won't, rubs me a tiny bit the wrong way.  Fortunately I suspect that 9 out of 10 who tell me they will, actually won't, and I hold no ill-will against them.  It's human nature I have a problem with.

Because as humans we often choose to avoid saying or doing that which we find difficult.  It's the reason why women asked for their number by a man they don't want a call from will give out a fake number.  The reason why a man or a woman will just blow someone off.  Or fail to tell them why they aren't interested.  A friend will ask why they didn't just say "I don't find you attractive" and the response is inevitably "I'm sparing their feelings".  In fact they are sparing their own feelings which they don't have to deal with by having that tough conversation.

I once went on the blind date from hell.  I may have mentioned this before, so bear with me.  We met through a personal ad and she lied on the phone about her age, appearance and employment status.  But we were already at the restaurant, the movie tickets were already purchased, so I figured "let's press on and see".  She was very upset about something and when I asked, she finally admitted she'd had a big fight with a female friend.  When she got to the end of her story and mentioned "maybe I shouldn't have told her I find her so attractive, huh" I knew a rough evening was in store.  The movie was only alright and afterward when we were walking her back to her car, she said what a great time she'd had and how much she was looking forward to seeing me again.

I could have "spared her feelings", but I was honest without being cruel.  It wasn't easy but it was definintely fairer than trying to avoid the conversation.  I wouldn't have gone out with her again even if someone gave me "Indecent Proposal" type money...alright, alright, for $1 million I might have gone on one or two more dates.  But there would never be anything between us.  Even friendship was out of the question because of her propensity for dishonesty.  I have to get going, more later.

Other ponderings today:

Girls Gone Wild and related companies have filed for bankruptcy protection as Joe Francis tries to avoid paying $30 million to casino mogul Steve Wynn.  Joe, if you can exploit college-age girls by getting them to show their boobs for your cheap swag, you can man up and pay your debts.  If you'd just paid the $2 million you lost at Wynn's casino, you wouldn't be in this mess.

It is always a stirring sight.  Military jets doing a flyover at a sporting event, like the World Series or the Superbowl.  But those days are over.  Budgetary concerns will end these flyovers.  Is this a good thing?  If we can't send carriers to the Persian Gulf because we don't have the money then we shouldn't be paying to promote sporting events.

Did a restaurant really get the sheriff to help track down a woman who'd used their restroom in violation of the "customers only" sign?  Did they really bill her for $5 for violating that policy?  Yes on both counts.  Stupid is as stupid does.

CBS censored Kaley Cuoco regarding a tweet she made talking about how wonderful the "Hopper" is.  Since it allows viewers to bypass the commercials that generate CBS' profits, guess the moguls at the network didn't think this was a good idea.  Speech isn't free when you're pulling down six figures per episode on a sitcom.  You can't pimp the competition.

The retiring Pope will get a pension of nearly $3,300 per month from the church, along with room/board/medical care for the rest of his life, along with providing "servants".  Don't priests take vows of poverty, chastity and obediance?  Guess the poverty shit goes away when you make it to being Pope.

What kind of scumbag tells his wife that her dog is dead?  The kind who gives the dog away.  But this story had a happy ending.  Ten years later, someone called to let her know they had the dog, thanks to a microchip.  She divorced the scumbag years ago.

The Olive Garden says it is going to revamp its menu and decor.  As though they can regain the market share they've lost to places like Chipotle and Panera.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1827, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was incorporated, becoming the first railroad to carry passengers and freight, and the first railroad on the Monopoly board.
On this date in 1885, AT&T is incorporated in New York.
On this date in 1940, the first ever telecast of a basketball game takes place.
On this date in 1993, BATF agents raid the Branch Davidian church in Waco.  This started the 51 day standoff that ended with many deaths.
On this date in 1997, the North Hollywood shootout took place.

Famous Folk Born on this Date:

Linus Pauling
Vicente Minelli
Bugsy Siegel
Zero Mostel
Charles Durning
Hayden Fry
Tommy Tune
Mario Andretti
Bubba Smith
Mike Figgis
Bernadette Peters
Mercedes Ruehl
Ricky Steamboat
Gilbert Gottfried
Adrian Dantley
John Turturro
Rae Dawn Chong
Dorothy Stratten
Ali Larter

Particular ponderings puzzling on a Wednesday

Why do doctors communicate with each other in front of you using terms that they think you won't understand, and then act amazed that you understand them?

Is it really sanitary for women to leave their work shoes at the office tucked under their desk?  Especially in an office where others use that desk when she's not there?

When the law of the state of CA says that board of rights hearings for cops have to be secret, why do idiot politicians and reporters talk about cops who want their case to be re-examined signing a waiver to hold a public hearing?  They can't waive their right of privacy.

I didn't know Rachel McAdams was with Michael Sheen.  Then again, I didn't care. 

Will Stone Temple Pilots lead singer Scott Weiland be filing for unemployment now that the rest of the band has fired him?

Why is Tina Fey saying "no way" to the possibility of her hosting next year's Oscars, with or without Amy Poehler? 

What kind of middle name is Lashun?  How do you put the word "shun" anywhere in a child's name?

Dog bites man, yes.  Man bites dog, maybe.  Dog shoots man, no.  Hell no.  But it happened.  Fortunately the man shot by his dog survived the experience.

Is the media the best place for a school district and the parents of a six year old that is apparently a transsexual to fight over whether or not the child can use the bathroom that doesn't match the child's genitals?

Nevada, New Jersey or Delaware?  Which will become the mecca of on-line gambling?  All three are vying for the place, which will mean getting millions in new tax revenues.

Will Yahoo be better or worse in the wake of forcing telecommuting employees to abandon their computers at home and get themselves into the office?  I say worse.

Will someone please tell the Massachussets Department of Public Health (or the local one if they're responsible) to stop sending "fat letters" home regarding young children they think are "overweight"?

A morning of pondering the past

I went to the VA this morning to see the foot doctor.

Usually I take a book with me to pass the time in the waiting room but I didn't feel like reading this morning.  So I just let my mind wander and somehow it settled on the story of a student at the school where I used to work.  Back in the mid to late 90s (don't want to identify the student or parent in any possible way), there was a family who was overjoyed to get their kid into the 7th grade.  Paying the tuition was a struggle, as the father was self-employed.  He managed to get it paid in time to get issued a contract for the 8th grade; however, we had a meeting in my office and I made it clear that he wasn't going to get financial aid for the current year unless a miracle happened, and that he couldn't apply for financial aid for the 9th grade until the 8th grade balance was paid in full.

It is actually a good policy.  No school should be giving financial aid to a student with a large unpaid balance for a future year, if they have a policy that says students can't start the next year until the current year's balance is paid in full.  It takes precious financial aid dollars out of the budget and ties them up for a student who may not be back.  Then someone who had need doesn't get a grant and ends up going elsewhere.  Now the school has lost two students, one they could have helped and one they wanted to help but who didn't meet their obligations.

I had another meeting with that father mid-year.  He was way behind on his tuition and he brought me his completed financial aid application.  I said we'd hold it, but it would not be considered until the balance of tuition was paid in full.  To make a longer story shorter, he didn't pay in full until July.  By them the financial aid budget was exhausted.  No aid was available for the upcoming year.  We sat down in July when he paid the 8th grade tuition in full and I told him the administration's position for the upcoming year.  1.  The deposit had to be paid within three weeks or the place would be given away.  2.  Half the tuition had to be paid before the first day of classes.  If 1 and 2 were not done, his child's place in the school would be lost.

Now I understand financial difficulties.  I spent much of my 17 years in private school administration helping families find creative solutions to the dilemna of paying large amounts of tuition with limited after-tax incomes.  I saw a man sell his Rolex so his son could graduate.  I saw a man mortgage his paid-off home to keep his kid in school.  I understand that this particular father simply could not find a way to pay the deposit or the tuition.  But how he chose to handle it was reprehensible.  He sent his child to school on the first day even though we'd told him more than once that his child would be refused admission to classes and that the place had already been filled.

So I had to tell a ninth grade student that their father had not done what the school had asked him to do as a condition of attendance.  I had to explain to a ninth grader how financial aid worked and why their family didn't get any, even though they might well have been eligible.  The child didn't get it.  The child cried.  Eventually the mother showed up and took the child home.

That day is haunting me right now.  I wanted to help.  If I'd had the money in the bank, I might have written the check myself and worried about being repaid later.  I don't know what happened to that kid.  I hope they are doing well in life.  I feel bad about what happened and logically I know it was beyond my ability to help.  Emotionally though, I feel like I failed.

There are lies, damn lies, and more lies....

but no statistics here.  Well, maybe one or two.  The movie "Bloodsport" is on my mind this morning.  Yesterday was the 25th anniversary of its release date.  It is a very good film in terms of the fight sequences and action.  But it appears to me that the claims of the man whose "story" is suppoedly being told are specious.  There was an L.A. Times article published not long after the movie opened.  There is a book called "Stolen Valor" that provides supposed evidence to back its claims that he is a fraud. 

But it is in the records that he claims to hold that are on display at the end of the movie, that truly call his boasts into question.  Here they are:

From 1975 to 1980 Frank W. Dux fought 329 matches.
He retired undefeated as the World Heavy Weight
Full Contact Kumite Champion.

Mr. Dux still holds four world records:

Fastest Knockout - 3.2 seconds
Fastest Punch with a Knockout - .12 seconds
Fastest Kick with a Knockout - 72 mph
Most Consecutive Knockouts in a Single Tournament - 56

So someone was timing these fights that took place in the 1970s with a stopwatch that measured tenths of a second, during the 1970s, while the fights were being held in secret?  Excuse me, hundredths of a second.  And there were radar guns all around the ring to measure the speed of every kick?  How else would anyone know the specific speed of a specific kick?  Radar guns in those days barely recorded speeding vehicles.

Then there is the one statistical issue I alluded to earlier.  56 consecutive knockouts in a single tournament.  Well, unless these tournaments involved every fighter fighting every other fighter at least once, just imagine how big a tournament would have to be in order to go 56 rounds?  Single elimination would require over 36 quintillion fighters.  Double elimination half that.

Even if every fighter fought every other fighter, 56 bouts would mean at least 28 matches per day over nearly two months of fighting seven days per week.  If you forced these fighters to fight two full-contact matches daily it would still take nearly a month of daily punishment.  Not to mention that 56 daily fights that were three rounds of three minutes each, with one minute between rounds would take 56 times 13 mintes (allowing one minute to get the fighters in and out of the ring between bouts) or over 11 hours daily.  And that's pushing the limits of the possible.

To quote Bugs Bunny, it just don't add up.

Other items I'm pondering on a morning where I have to get out the door by 7:30 in order to be on-time for a doctor's appointment include:

Does anyone really care what specific kind of cancer killed Dr. Jerry Buss?  I sure don't.  I'm just saddened by his passing.

How is it that a 2% reduction in federal spending will bring the entire nation to a halt and cause major damage to the economy?

Do you think we could persuade North Korea to just keep Dennis Rodman and not allow him to come back to the U.S.?

When will they rename "Dancing With the Stars" to take out the word "stars"?  One look at the next incarnation's line-up calls the use of that term into serious question.

Will the Weinstein Company ever allow Jennifer Lawrence to be cast in one of their films after she forgot to thank Harvey Weinstein in her Oscar acceptance speech?  Speaking of Lawrence, you can own some of her wardrobe from the movie that garnered her an Oscar, if you want to bid on it at auction. 

Do most people know that Hillary Swank forgot to thank her husband when she won her first Oscar, but did remember to thank her psychotherapist?

Will the world survive the spread of Honey Boo Boo outside the U.S.?  She's apparently a big hit in Poland and now her show will begin airing in Italy.

Can someone please tell Israel to stop demanding the release of Jonathan Pollard from prison?  He committed espionage against the U.S.  It doesn't matter that it was done on behalf of an nation with close ties to the U.S.  I bet Israel wouldn't be releasing any U.S. spies that delivered Israel's secrets to the CIA.

Calling 911 to order a cheeseburger is not bright.  Doing it nine times in 90 minutes is the height of stupidity.

Sugardaddie.com and Seekingarrangement.com both hook up wealthy men with women willing to "date" them in return for "gifts".  What's really striking is that college women make up 44% of those looking for a Sugar Daddy on Seekingarrangement.com.  Reminds me of the guy who asked a woman at a party if she'd sleep with him for $1 million.  She said "of course".  Then he said "how about for $100" to which she replied, "of course not.  Do you think I'm a prostitute or something" to which he responded "we've already established that.  Now we're just haggling over price."

Speaking of sugar, a tragedy occured when a man working at a processing plant died when he fell into a vat of sugar. 

Do people really get into watching darts on television?

This Date in History:

On this date in 425, the University of Constantinople is founded.
On this date in 1594, King Henry IV is crowned King of France.
On this date in 1801, Washington D.C. is put under the control of the Congress.
On this date in 1860, Abraham Lincoln makes one of the key speeches of his 1860 election campaign.
On this date in 1900, the British Labour Party is formed.
On this date in 1940, Carbon-14 is discovered.
On this date in 1964, Italy asked for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from falling over.
On this date in 1973, the American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee, SD.
On this date in 1991, President Bush announced that "Kuwait is liberated".

Famous Folk born on this date:

Emperor Constantine the Great
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Hugo Black
William Demarest
Gene Sarazen
John Connally
Joanne Woodward
Elizabeth Taylor
Ralph Nader
Roger Mahony
Barbara Babcock
Howard Hesseman
Neal Schon
James Worthy
Noah Emmerich
Chelsea Clinton

Medical Marijuana shop profits go to pot, thanks to the IRS

Federal law makes marijuana illegal.  Even in the 18 or so states that have legalized medical marijuana.  There is a provision in the federal tax code that is hitting the owners of medical marijuana shops where it hurts most; in the wallet, because their product violates federal drug laws.  Let's picture two businesses next to one another.

Bob's Bicycles and Mike's Marijuana Market are in the side-by-side office spaces in a building on Main Street.  They pay the owner of the building the same amount of rent each month to lease the space.  Their utility bills are about the same.  They have similar expenses for advertising, telephone, internet, in fact for everything.

In calculating the taxable income for a sole-proprietorship, you take gross revenues, subtract the cost of the goods sold and you get a number.  Then from that number you subtract your deductible expenses and the result is the net profit.  That's what is subject to self-employment tax and to income tax.

Let's pretend that after subtracting the cost of goods sold, both Bob and Mike had $150,000 of revenues before expenses.  Their expenses are about the same, $100,000.  So they should each have a net profit of $50,000, subject to self-employment tax and income tax.  Seems fair so far, right?

Wrong.  Because of a 1982 change to the tax code, after a convicted drug dealer successfully claimed his yacht, weapons and bribes as business expenses; now anyone selling illegal substances is barred from claiming their related expenses on their income tax returns.

So Bob will be taxed on his income after expenses.  Mike will be taxed on his income without being able to deduct expenses.  Because of the way self-employment tax is calculated, Mike isn't paying double what Bob pays, but he pays more.  A lot more. 

All because pot is illegal under federal law and a law designed to catch big-time drug dealers is making medical marijuana businesses in states where their business is legal, is making them pay more than "their fair share" of income tax.

Is that fair?

I already hate the next few days...

It's Tuesday morning and I have to be at work at 8:30 in the morning.  Take care of three clients, then go home.  But I'll be back at the office at 4 p.m. until 9 p.m.  Makes for a long day.  Then the following morning, I've got to be at the VA at 8:00 a.m. although I have most of the rest of the day free.  Screening Wedsnesday night, work on Thursday, back to the VA Thursday afternoon and then I get to collapse in exhaustion afterwards until Sunday morning.

I just got a little more tired just typing that up.  But I will power through.  There's no choice.

I now know most of the movies I'll be seeing and reviewing during March and April.  Here's a list:

42
Oblivion
Admission
Dead Man Down
Olympus Has Fallen
G.I. Joe: Retaliation
Oz: The Great and Powerful
Pain and Gain
Phantom
The Big Wedding
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
The Place Beyond the Pines
To the Wonder
Trance
21 and Up
Greedy Lying Bastards
Love and Honor
The End of Love
The Sweeney

Actually I've already seen and written reviews for a few of them, but the reviews are being held until the movies open.  I'm trying to approach my reviews this year a little differently.  I want to be clear and honest but I think I can do it without sounding smug or being mean.  And even when a film is bad, I want to talk about those things in it that were good.  Very few movies are total disasters, but you can review such a film without being a jerk.  More and more as I talk to people who love movies who aren't doing film criticism, their major objection is that those who do do film criticism focus on the negative in a jerk-like fashion.

Time for a song.  Suddenly I felt the need to hear this:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-Naa1HXeDQ

Things I'm pondering this morning:

Why is it when I looked at the menu for the dining room for this week, I immediately discarded the notion of eating almost every meal there, except for the breakfasts.  Yes, I'd be missing lunch and/or dinner because of work or other commitments on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, but the choices on Monday and Saturday weren't anything I was interested in anyway.  Then again I can just order one of the alternative choices on the days and meals I will be here.  It just seems silly that there wasn't one meal at lunch or dinner at the times I could have used the dining room.

The weather is changing but my nose is still all stuffed up.  At this point I'll wait until I see the Primary Care doc on 3/4.  Trying to get a specialist to deal with something in Primary Care's area of responsibility is the textbook definition of an exercise in futility.

What was Martha Stewart thinking, when after entering a deal promising exclusivity with Macy's, she then went and signed a deal for a Martha Stewart shop at J.C. Penney's??  Do she and her team of attorneys not understand the meaning of the word?  Or is this the second example (the first being her conviction for insider trading) that she's just really, really greedy?

The good news is that once the project to expand/fix the 405 in the area of Wilshire and Sepulveda will probably ease traffic congestion in the area.  The bad news and what I'm wondering about, is why it is suddenly going to take one full year longer than originally planned?  You plan a big project like that, you set target dates for completion of the phases?  What went wrong?

As the rumors fly over who will be the "stars" in the next round of competition on "Dancing With the Stars", the one that most intrigued me was the name Andy Dick being mentioned as a contestant?  Given his propensity to melt-down and/or freak-out, I'd watch when he was on just to not miss him doing that.

If Janet Jackson was secretly married to a billionaire last year, why would she be worried about getting her hands on any of the estate of her late brother Michael?  That's what certain media outlets were claiming last year.  Now those claims seem specious.

Apparently historians and legal scholars read my blog, or maybe I just thought of this first.  But now, members of those two groups are speculating that the opening of all combat jobs to women may force Congress to either end the draft, or begin registering women for it.  The Supreme Court's decision that excluded women from being eligible for a draft was rooted in the fact that women were prohibited from serving in combat roles.  Now that this is no longer the case, legally they are eligible to be drafted and failing to do so would be a violation of the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause.

Most of us have seen the wonderful Natalie Portman film from 2000, "Where the Heart Is".  But did we know there were actually two movies with the same exact title made in the ten years before the Portman film was released?  I knew there was one, but not that there were two.  Why do they insist on using the same titles again so soon after they've been used by another production?

What old TV series will be the next to appear in a big screen version as Hollywood continues to mine old ideas rather than investing in new ones?  Bachelor Father?  Emergency?  Hogan's Heroes?

Speaking of Hogan's Heroes, I'm now wondering if the sandwich shop with that name that's hidden in the corner of an out of the way mini-mall near LAX is still there.  I always laughed when I drove past it, wondering why no one connected with the show didn't file a lawsuit.

Why would you try to sneak onto the red carpet at the Oscars, after being told in writing you will be arrested if you try?  Better question.  If you're going to do that anyway, why would you wear an outrageous outfit to draw more attention to yourself?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1815, Napoleon escapes from Elba.  He would not do as well once he was exiled to Saint Helena.
On this date in 1914, Brittanic, the Titanic's sister ship was launched.
On this date in 1929, President Calvin Coolidget signed an order establishing Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming (it's one of my four favorite national parks).
On this date in 1935, Adolf Hitler violated the Treaty of Versaille, by ordering the Luftwaffe back into existence.
On this date in 1966, South Korean troops in Vietnam massacre 380 villagers in a one hour attack.  Almost exactly two years later, troops from South Korea were involved in another massacre of Vietnamese civilians.

Famous folk born on this date:

Victor Hugo (no, his mother wasn't miserable at his birth)
Levi Strauss (reports are, he got good genes)
William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody
Grover Cleveland Alexander
William Frawley
Jackie Gleason
Tony Randall
Verne Gagne
Fats Domino (the man to blame for Richie Cunningham's off-key singing)
Ariel Sharon
Johnny Cash (reportedly, he was swaddled in all black blankets)
Marta Kristen
Michael Bolton
Marshall Faulk
Teresa Palmer

Borrowing a page from H. Ross Perot

Many of us will never forget the 1992 Presidential campaign when H. Ross Perot ran as an independent candidate.  What I remember most is how he made copious use of charts and graphs.  I don't normally use them in my blogs, but I'm going to use one today to make a point.



That's right friends, this is what all the fuss is about.  An amount equal to only 2% of the total Federal Budget.  2.23% if you want to be specific.

The White House just said that 64,000 defense jobs in California might be lost as a result of these cuts.  If those jobs cost the Federal government an average of $50,000 per person, including benefits, that's $3.2 billion just here in CA.  But let's be more conservative and say $40,000 per person.  That reduces the hit to only $2.5 billion.  In one sector in one state.

Seems reasonable.  Until you take that $2.5 billion out of the state's economy and ponder how many more jobs will be lost because those people won't have that money to spend on food, gasoline, rent, clothing, entertainment and more.  When I was in the service, the base commanders used to tell the local communities outside the gates of our bases that every dollar that base personnel were paid translated into several dollars for the local economy.  So will CA take a $2.5 billion hit just in defense jobs?  Probably not.  It will be higher.

However, bear this in mind.  If we were to just spend this extra $85 billion and add it to the national debt, 30 years from now it will have cost us $64 billion in interest expense at 2.5% per annum and we will still owe the $85 billion that we just had to spend and therefore borrowed.

Will sequestration kill the U.S. economy?  No.  Not right away.  There will be pain and in some sectors of the population it will be very difficult to bear.  But we're in a bad way already.  We have no solutions on the horizon.  We can tax and spend, borrow and spend, or cut spending while raising revenues.  The first two haven't worked yet.  The third remains untried. 

Something has to be done.

What the heck?

I entered an Oscar contest on Saturday.  It was a pretty simple contest.  Pick the winners of six categories.  The four acting categories, plus Best Picture and Best Director.  I went five out of six.  But even if I'd gone six out of six it wouldn't have mattered.  Somewhere between posting my entry and the Oscar telecast, my entry disappeared from the contest.  Oh well, I won the important contest yesterday anyway.

My four teammates and I won the winter league finals of the SoCal Trivia League and each pocketed $200 in cash.  It made for a long day but who cares?  They showed me the money.

I'm waiting to see how The Onion deals with the a-hole who was tweeting on their account last night and called the youngest Oscar nominee for Best Actress ever the "c-word".  While we no longer draw and quarter, firing should be the minimum punishment.  Or perhaps a suspension accompanied by public exposure, so we can all let this a-hole know what we think of their choice of words.

With Governor Moonbeam's plan to make the public schools unequal in funding in order to provide more educational services to support low-income students, particularly those for whom English is not their primary language, it is time for someone to teach him a lesson in Constitutional law.  This idea is a textbook example of violating the Equal Protection Clause in the 14th Amendment.

Notice how most of the people making comments about Jennifer Lawrence's most recent slip and fall of awards season are men?  Could it have something to do with the fact men haven't had to navigate slippery stairs in high heels and long skirts?  At least she didn't walk like that actress/writer at the Gloden Globes who looked like she'd borrowed her mother's shoes for the first time.

Shirley Bassey and Barbra Streisand ruled with their performances at the Oscars.

Allegations that Afghans working with U.S. Special Forces troops in one province have been torturing other Afghans has led to the U.S. troops being ordered out of that province.  Why should this bother anyone?  We should be letting the Afghans to their own thing and not interfere.

Omlette afficianados should head to the Parker Meredien Hotel in New York City where they have an omlette with a $1,000 price tag.  It does have ten ounces of caviar in it.

Why did James Franco feel the need to ad-lib his one line at the Daytona 500?  All he had to say was "drivers, start your engines".  It was "gentlemen" until the age of Danica Patrick who is many things but is no gentleman.  So Franco ad-libs and says "drivers and Danica, start your engines".  Now the scripted line would have been fine.  An ad-lib of "gentlemen and Danica..." would have been fine.  Franco blew this one.

Was it bad breath?  Or was Erin Andrews simply exercising her right to not want a kiss from 50 Cent when he tried to liplock her at the Daytona 500?  Dude, just cause you're who you are, not every woman wants to kiss you.

Amy Adams is gorgeous.  That is all.

A couple of quibbles with the trivia finals last night.  Asking a music question where George Harrison is the right answer is fine, right up until they played "While My Guitar Gently Weeps".  Asking which in which of the contiguous 48 states the point furthest to the North is fine, right up until you mention the state's motto which happens to be a dead giveaway.  Asking something about Field Marshal Erwin Rommel from WWII is fine, unless you ask what was his nickname; earned for his skill at desert warfare.  If that didn't give you "Desert Fox", you didn't belong in the finals.

Today is a day off, but it will be a busy day.  Fortunately by the time dinner rolls around I plan to do nothing but relax, play Words With Friends and go to bed early.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1570, Pope Pius V excommunicates Queen Elizabeth I of England.
On this date in 1836, Samuel Colt was granted a patent for the Colt revolver.
On this date in 1919, Oregon instituted the first ever gasoline tax by a state on sales of the fuel within its borders.
On this date in 1932, Adolf Hitler becomes a naturalized German citizen, which allows him to run in the upcoming election.
On this date in 1933, the USS Ranger is launched.  First ever U.S.ship designed to solely be an aircraft carrier.
On this date in 1968, the Hy Ma massacre takes place during the Vietnam War.  It never attracted the attention that My Lai did, probably because the soldiers involved in the mass killings were from South Korea.
On this date in 1988, Roh Tae-Woo becomes President of South Korea, replacing Chun Doo-Hwan, the architect of the Kwang-Ju massacre.
On this date in 1991, an Iraqi scud missile hits a barracks in Saudi Arabia, killing nearly 30 U.S. reserve soldiers.
On this date in 1991, the Warsaw Pact is officially disbanded.

Famous Folk Born on this Date:

Enrico Caruso
John Foster Dulles
Zeppo Marx
Frank Slaughter
Gert Frobe
Jim Backus
Bobby Riggs
Larry Gelbart
Christopher George
Sally Jesse Raphael
Bob Schieffer
George Harrison (he would be turning 70 today had he survived)
Ric Flair (he was wrapped in a sequin robe at birth)
Kurt Rambis
Sean Astin
Chelsea Handler (that party will consume some liquor supplier's full inventory of vodka).
Rashida Jones

All I want today is an extra hour

between now and the time I need to be somewhere, where I have no control over when I have to be there.  There are things I want to write that can't wait.  I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.  I have four films to review, two screeners en route via mail, two articles to write (including one after tonight's Oscars that I'm unable to watch live).  But the good news is I get all day tomorrow to play catch-up.

One of the things I want to write about is how it is high time that Hollywood refines its definition of what makes a film an "indie".  Silver Linings Playbook is a wonderful film.  It definitely would not have had the success it did had it opened wide its first weekend.  It is not a typical mainstream movie.  But it had a production budget in excess of $20 million.  Do films with that kind of budget really earn the label of an "indie"?  More on this later.

Other ponderings this morning:

Why is the state of CA mandating that worker's comp carriers pay big bucks to athletes who played most of their careers for teams outside the state, and most of their cummulative injuries were incurred outside of CA.

If you thought those ankle bracelets that monitor the whereabouts of convicted sex offenders make people safer, think again.  These people are removing or disabling the devices, with little risk of going back to jail.  The jails are too full to hold them.

Halle Berry didn't kiss Adrien Brody back when he kissed her at the moment she handed him his Oscar?  Hard to believe, especially if you go back to the video.

Is the fact that there is a very large group of "Twi-Hards" who are very strident in their belief that the "Twilight" film franchise is brilliant filmmaking, and can do no wrong; an implication of danger for those who run the Razzies?  Breaking Dawn - Part 2 did win seven Razzies last night.

I love Anne Hathaway.  She's gorgeous and a great actress and I've even forgiven her for finding someone more age-appropriate for her to marry.  But when it comes to making award acceptance speeches, someone needs to tell her to give up the ad-libs, the attempts at humor and remind her that "less is more".

At this rate that cheerleader who made the half-court "flip" basketball shot will wind up playing with the Globetrotters.  She made the shot again.  Eventually she'll become automatic at it.

I wonder if the woman who came home to find a big pile of horse manure inside her beloved Peugeot convertible will ever forgive her husband.  Then again, since he only did that after seeing her online dating profile on their computer (never leave stuff on-screen you don't want seen) that claimed he was an idiot and completely crazy, and the only two things she loved are her horses and her convertible; she shouldn't be surprised.

http://movies.yahoo.com/photos/mistakes-in-oscar-nominated-movies-slideshow/#crsl=%252Fphotos%252Fmistakes-in-oscar-nominated-movies-slideshow%252Flife-of-pi-photo-43064127.html

That's a piece on how even the Oscar nominated films have small errors that go mostly unnoticed.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1387, King Charles III is assassinated.
On this date in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII announces the Gregorian calendar.
On this date in 1803, the case of Marbury v Madison establishes the principle of judicial review.
On this date in 1863, Arizona is organized as a U.S. territory.
On this date in 1868, President Andrew Johnson becomes the first president to be impeached.  He is acquitted at trial in the Senate.
On this date in 1920, the Nazi Party is founded.
On this date in 1968, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces recapture the city of Hue, ending the Tet Offensive.
On this date in 1980, the miracle on ice is validated when the U.S. wins the Gold Medal in Men's Hockey by beating Finland 4-2.
On this date in 1989, the Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwah offering $3 million to anyone who would kill Salman Rushdie, author of "The Satanic Verses".
On this date in 1989, a United Airlines flight bound for New Zealand from Hawaii suffers a tear in the fuselage in-flight and nine passengers are sucked out of the business section. (not a good argument for flying coach)

Famous Folk Born This Date:

Emannuelle Riva (wow, if she wins the Best Actress Oscar tonight, that would be one hell of a birthday present)
Abe Vigoda (turns 92 today)
Phil Knight
Joe Lieberman
Terry Semel
Mike Fratello
Edward James Olmos
Rupert Holmes
George Thorogood
Steve Jobs
Eddie Murray
Kristin Davis
Billy Zane

The definition of valor

As of today, 3,471 people have been awarded the Medal of Honor.  That's since it was authorized by Congress during the Civil War.  Most recipients in modern times received their award posthumously.  During the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, two members of the Army's Delta Force, Gary Gordon and Randall Shugart were awarded the medal for their heroic actions in trying to save the crew of a U.S. helicopter that crashed.  Both men died in the attempt.

As the highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor takes precedence above all other awards.  The next highest award for valor (there are service awards that rank in various places in precedence among decoration for valor) is the Distinguished Service Cross (Navy Cross for sailors and Marines, Air Force Cross for Air Force members).  Third in precedence among awards for valor is the Silver Star, and below that is the Bronze Star.

Now, the Department of Defense has decided to create a new award for valor, and this one doesn't require something that all of those awards listed above do (although Bronze Stars are often awarded for 'service' rather than for 'valor).  The Distinguished Warfare Medal has been created to recognize cyber-warriors and drone operators who work in air-conditioned rooms, often far from away from the field of battle.  That their work is critical to military operations is not in question.  But what is in question is whether or not what they are doing is worthy of recognition by a medal that will outrank a Bronze Star in order of precedence.

Other than tripping and falling, or suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome, the 'warriors' who will be awarded this medal perform their duties with no risk of life or limb.  I don't mean to denigrate their contributions or efforts.  I just want to point out there is little valor in doing what they do, since they are perfectly safe from harm.  Particularly when our government continues to treat the victims of the mass shooting at Fort Hood in 2009 as having suffered from "workplace violence" rather than domestic terrorism.

This award will undoubtedly be referred to as the "Geek Medal" and rightly so.  John L. Levitow was a loadmaster in the Air Force during Vietnam.  He was on a mission aboard a gunship where he was expected to do no more than set the ejection and ignition controls on magnesium flares that he would pass to the gunner to be launched.  But when his plane was hit by a mortar shell and he was wounded by shrapnel.  40 pieces of shrapnel.  He still managed to spot a burning magnesium flare that was about to set off nearly 20,000 rounds of ammo.  He crawled to the flare in spite of the severe angle of the plane (it was banking to get away from enemy fire), picked it up and carried it to the cargo door, tossing it.  He save the plane and crew and his valor was properly recognized by the award of the Medal of Honor.

He wasn't an infantryman, or a pilot, but he did fly into harm's way.  He did risk his life.  His actions were valorous.  Flying a drone, or preventing a cyber attack just isn't.

Create an award for those who fight our nation's battles on keyboards or with joysticks.  But place it properly in precedence, below the awards for valor and heroism.

Measuring fatigue

Sometimes the simplest way to measure how fatigued you are is to look at silly errors you make while in the throes of exhaustion.  This morning I actually added myself as one of my contacts in an instant messaging program.  Had I not noticed the mistake, I might have become one of the first people in history to IM myself.  While it might have made for fascinating conversation, I quickly deleted myself from my contact list.

I've learned there are new 'professionals' to help you with your well-being.  Not life-coaches, but health-coaches.  They help you to try to lose weight, improve your general well-being and to help you exercise properly.  Mostly they assist by helping you in setting and achieving goals.  The jury is still out on this, but my initial impression of the health coach I met with yesterday was very favorable.

Why is the Jewish deli disappearing?  A combination of rising prices for food and rent, younger generations that are more focused on eating healthy food rather than comfort bood and the growing variety of eateries.  The weak economy isn't helping either.  Why go to a deli and spend $40 for you and a friend to have corned beef sandwiches when you can get a corned beef sandwich elsewhere.  It won't be as good, but it will still be the type of sandwich you were craving.

Other things being pondered on a relaxing Saturday morning:

FBI and other law enforcement agencies raided the offices of the Scooter Store, investigating Medicare fraud.  People who don't need the power-chairs the company sells get them anyway, because of the company's aggressive tactics in 'bulldozing' doctors into prescribing them.  Now when I see one of the resident here in a power chair a good deal of the time, but once in a while getting up and walking, I don't think twice about it.  But when I see one in a chair and then in a wheelchair and then walking with a walker, I wonder what's going on.  A power-chair should be reserved for someone who can't move themselves easily in a wheelchair, for the most part.  However, there is something to be said for giving those people who can navigate short distances in a wheelchair the freedom of movement a power chair provides.  I'll be curious to see how his comes out.

Speaking of wheelchairs, TSA officials are now estimating that 15% of requests for wheelchairs from passengers approaching security checkpoints are phony.  People will ask for the wheelchair, get moved to the front of the line, pass through security and then miraculously leap from their chair and make a beeline to their gate.  How utterly disgusting.  Get in line with everyone else you jerks.

Clive Davis, record producer extraordinaire took several cheap shots at Kelly Clarkson in his recently published memoir.  Now Howard Stern himself is defending Clarkson and giving Davis the verbal smackdown.  Stuff like that crap in his book should be ignored. When Clarkson and Stern engage Davis in the war of words, the only winner is the book's publisher and Davis.  They make more money because more people buy the book.

So is Glenn Beck afraid to appear with the WWE and defend his insults against fans of wrestling and how the WWE's "anti-Tea Party" character is wrong?  Apparently so.  Heck, I'd tune in to see Jack Swagger power-slam Beck.  I'd even love to see it done multiple times.

Three sisters in Pennsylvania were convicted of political corruption.  Why is the fact they are supposedly "devout Catholics" relevant to the story?  Does someone having deep religious convictions mean they can't possible commit a crime?

Dead mice with tylenol tablets stuffed into their mouths are going to be air-dropped on Guam to try to control the island's brown tree snake population.  Really?  Who thought this up?  It's actually a brilliant strategy.  The pills are toxic to the snakes and harmless to almost every other creature that might happen upon a mouse with a pill in its mouth.

If it's the end of February, it must be time for North Korea to rattle sabers and tell the South and the U.S. that dire consequences will be suffered if they go ahead with joint military exercises.  Why do they bother?  They make these empty threats annually and then don't do a thing.

Mark Cuban says the Lakers should "amnesty" Kobe Bryant??  (amnesty means to get rid of a player so that their salary won't count against how the league's luxury tax is calculated).  I hope Cuban manages to have one of his many minions keep him supplied with some of that anti-fungal gargle to treat his athlete's mouth condition.  He does keep his foot in his mouth regularly.

A WalMart worker confessed to stealing junk food from her employer on a regular basis during her seven years as a maintenance worker for the retail giant.  She acknowledged it was wrong and said she'd never do it again.  WalMart made sure that was the case and fired her.  The items weren't expensive, but she's been charged with felony theft in addition to losing her job.  63, out of work and facing a felony charge.  I hope the Oreos were worth it.

Bobby Bonilla was a pretty good baseball player.  In 15 seasons he was a six-time All-Star, won three batting titles and one World Series ring.  All well and good.  But he retired in 2001 and yet, the Mets owe him an annual payment of just over $1.1 million from 2011 through 2035.  Is it any wonder why baseball ticket prices and parking are so damn expensive?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1455, the Gutenberg Bible, first book printed with movable type, was printed (this is considered the 'traditional' date of printing).
On this date in 1836, the Battle of the Alamo begins.
On this date in 1870, post-Civil War control of Mississippi ends and it is readmitted to the Union.
On this date in 1896, the Tootsie-Roll was invented.
On this date in 1903, Cuba leased Guantanamo Bay to the U.S. in perpetuity.
On this date in 1905, the Rotary Club was formed.
On this date in 1941, plutonium is produced for the first time.
On this date in 1945, the famous "flag-raising" on Iwo Jima took place.
On this date in 1974, the Symbionese Liberation Army demanded $4 million in cash to secure the release of kidnap victim Patty Hearst.

Famous Folk Born On This Date:

W.E.B. Du Bois
Paul Tibbets (pilot of the Enola Gay when it dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima)
Majel Barrett
Peter Fonda
Fred Biletnikoff
Bobby Bonilla
Emily Blunt (today is her 30th birthday)
Dakota Fanning (19 years old today)

More than just a number

On April 12th of this year, the film "42" opens.  It is a biopic of Jackie Robinson and how he broke the color barrier in Major League baseball.  It is a narrowly focused look at a fairly brief period in his life.

It would take a mini-series, or several films to tell all of the story of Jackie Robinson and to detail all that he achieved in his life.  Born in Georgia, his mother moved her family to Pasadena after Jackie's father abandoned them while he was less than two years of age. 

He was encouraged by his older brothers to pursue sports (his brother Mack won a silver medal in the 200 meter run at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, finishing just behind Jesse Owens) and he was a five sport star at John Muir High.  Baseball, basketball, football, track and even tennis. 

He became the first athlete of any race to win letters in four sports at UCLA.  He was drafted after Pearl Harbor and ended up going to Officer Candidates School.  Following graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant; but an incident involving segregation on a bus derailed his military career.  He was court-martialed by racist commanders, but an all-white jury of officers acquitted him.  However, that prevented him from going to Europe and seeing combat with his unit.

He became athletic director at Sam Houston College but was offered a job in professional baseball with the Kansas City Monarchs in 1945.  It was while playing with the Monarchs that he was approached by the Brooklyn Dodgers about possibly becoming the first "Negro" to play in the major leagues. 

The rest of his story in baseball is well-known.  He was one of the game's greats, playing ten years for the Dodgers and then retiring rather than being forced to don the uniform of their hated rivals, the New York Giants.  But there is so much more to the story of Jackie Robinson.  He became the first black baseball commentator on television broadcasts.  He was general manager of a football team in a short-lived league.  He helped to found a bank.  He was the first black to be vice-president of a major corporation.  He chaired a fund-raising drive by the NAACP trying to raise $1 million  in 1957 and served on the organization's board.  He founded a construction company that was designed to build housing for low-income families. 

He wore the number "42" on his uniform.  Today he is so revered by baseball that no one will ever again wear 42, except one day a season.  On that day, every player in baseball wears that number, as it is Jackie Robinson day.  The awards for rookie of the year in both leagues is named the Jackie Robinson Award.

Jackie Robinson died in 1972 from complications of heart disease and diabetes.  He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.

The Agony of the Feet - Part III

The pain and swelling in my feet is going down.  Finally.  So I doubt the toes are broken.  There is still some pain but I suspect it will be gone in two or three days.  However the combination of painful toes on the right foot and this probable stress fracture on the left foot is making walking a pain in the feet.  Or if you prefer, a pain in the ass.

One week from today, February ends.  That also means the end of Black History Month.  I don't like Black History Month, but not for the reasons you might think.  Every month should be Black History Month.  Every month should be Hispanic History Month.  Every month should be Asian History Month.  And so on.  Whites, blacks, hispanics, asians and all other "groupings" have made positive and negative contributions to the history of human beings on this planet for hundreds and hundreds of years. 

Talk to high school students today.  They know who Chris Brown is.  They know who Ne-Yo is.  They know Kanye West is romantically involved with Kim Kardashian.  But do they know who George Washington Carver was?  Shirley Chisholm?  Barbara Jordan?  Clarence Thomas?  Benjamin Banneker?

They're aware of Jennifer Lopez, Sofia Vergara, Salma Hayek, Pau Gasol and more.  They might know who Cesar Chavez was, if they live in California, because they get a holiday in his honor.  But ask about Delores Huerta, Oscar Arias, Isabel Allende, Simon Bolivar or Federico Garcia Lorca and you'll get a blank stare.

One month per year is simply not enough to teach, inform and remind us of the achievements of the people who helped shape and change the world in which we live.  The founding fathers weren't the only ones who gave us this nation.  But I guess, until we as a society decide it is important to teach this stuff year round, Black History Month is as good as it will get.

Other things I'm pondering early on a Friday morning:

With my worsening breath, the push at work by events/circumstance/management to get me to work more hours is not a good thing.  Yesterday I sat in my car for ten minutes after work, before I could drive home.  I'm sure if I had just driven away it would have been fine but I felt better resting a bit first.  At some point I'm going to have to just say "no, I'm at my limit".  I just hate doing that.  It means admitting I'm not what I once was.

I saw a photo of two women engaged in a Mixed-Martial Arts fight and had to laugh at the brilliance of some marketing guy.  He or she got one of the two women to let them put an advertisement for "TaxSlayer.com" on the front of her top.  A warrior advertising a company that positions itself as a 'slayer'. 

Reportedly, the training officer who was a key figure in the firing of Christopher Dorner from the LAPD is continuing to receive threats.  Who would be threatening her and why? 

I know that modern cars have too many buttons and gadgets already, but I have an idea for a new one that will cut down on the use of horns.  We put in a button for when the driver is behind someone who isn't moving at a green light.  Pressing the button will make a message appear on the windshield of the driver in front of them in bright, bold letters.  But I'm not sure which message to use.  Here are the potential messages.

There's only shade of green, pal.
Are you going to wait for the written invite to move?
They chose Green because both Green and Go start with G.
WTF are you waiting for??

Let me know which you think might be most effective, or feel free to share your own idea.

The designer who lent a gown to Lindsay Lohan and was angry when it came back ruined needs to look in the mirror to see who is to blame.  You don't loan a valuable garment to someone like her and expect to get it back none the worse for wear.

This one has to be seen to be believed:  http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab-the-dagger/cheerleader-sinks-incredible-half-court-trick-shot-mid-045358445--ncaab.html  Why in the world would you even think to try this?

It's sad to read that Rebecca Marino, a 22 year old pro tennis player from Canada is quitting the game, partly because of bullying from her "fans" on social media.  If all you can do with your social media is attack public figures, you need to do some serious soul-searching.

How did it get to be so much?  A deadbeat dad in New York pleaded guilty to charges he hadn't paid $1.2 million in back child support.  The mothers of the kids involved don't want him jailed.  He can't earn any money to pay restitution in jail.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1732, George Washington was born.
On this date in 1819, Spain officially sells Florida to the U.S. for $5 million.
On this date in 1855, Penn State University was founded.
On this date in 1856, the Republican Party held its first national meeting in Pittsburg.  There is no truth to the rumor that the meeting was held as the Primanti Sandwich shop.
On this date in 1862, Jefferson Davis was officially inaugurated as President of the CSA.
On this date in 1879, Frank Woolworth opened his first five and dime store.
On this date in 1889, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill admitting North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Washington as states.
On this date in 1924, President Calvin Coolidge becomes the first president to make a radio broadcast from the White House.
On this date in 1942, FDR orders General MacArthur to leave the Philippines.
On this date in 1958, Egypt and Syria combine to form the United Arab Republic.
On this date in 1974, Samuel Byck tries and fails to assassinate President Richard Nixon.
On this date in 1980, the so-called "Miracle on Ice" takes place as the U.S. defeats Russia 4-3 in the Olympic Men's Hockey competition at the Lake Placid Winter Games.

Famous Folk Born on this date:

Ladislaus the Posthumous (so-named because he was born 4 months after his father, the King, died)
Sheldon Leonard
Robert Young
Charlie Finley
Don Pardo (this is Jeopardy).
Ted Kennedy
Sparky Anderson
Jonathan Demme
Robert Kardashian (it wasn't his fault, Kris did it)
Julius Erving (he began dunking basketballs three months later)
Jeri Ryan
Michael Chang
Drew Barrymore
Rajon Rondo

As the Assisted Facility Lobby Construction Turns

In this installment of "As The Assisted Living Facility Turns", we'll open by taking a look at the renovations that are nearly finished.  The office space in the back of the lobby has been re-done and looks much nicer.  New carpet just got laid in the hallway outside the President's room.  Most, if not all of the other hallways have been done.  There is new wallpaper everywhere.  While the 'brown' look of almost everything may not have pleased some, there is no denying that it looks much nicer than it did before.

In the lobby, they are working to finish the hard floor design, which will have an oversized replica of one of the "stars" on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at the center.  I'm guessing that rather than an actor, this star will bear the name of the facility, which is the name it once had before prior management took over.  Now the old name is new again and apparently we're going to be reminded of it every time we walk through the lobby.

There appears to be a reduction in the variety of soups being offered at dinner and this has the President concerned.  Within the last ten days, squash soup, lentil soup and white bean soup have each been served on two different days.  There should be seven different soups every seven days and the President will be making this point to the Head Chef as soon as the President can find a moment to see the Chef.

The new resident who had been smoking in front rather than in the back of the facility hasn't been seen smoking out front since the last encounter involving him and the President.  Perhaps the Facility Director's conversation with him convinced him that he can't go out there and smoke.  The President believes that this new resident is simply one of those people who delight in breaking the rules, and really believe those rules do not apply to special people like them.  The kind of person who loves to park at a meter and put a sign on it saying it is out of order; even jamming it to make it out of order.  The kind of person who would put a mannequin in the back seat to drive in the carpool lane.

One of the residents who had not been seen in several days turned out not to be in the hospital after all.  She was staying in her room at mealtime because she had a bad case of the flu and didn't want to infect other diners.  Very considerate.

The agony of the feet - Part II

I thought that a few hours after banging my foot into the nightstand/cabinet, the pain would begin to fade.  I could not have been more wrong about that.  Today, 24 hours later the pain is worse and worsening.  But I won't go to the doctor, at least not yet.  As I stated earlier, there is nothing they can really do, even if the toe or toes are broken.  Except of course tell me to keep off of my feet and do the other things I'm already doing.

I've been reading about how some states are going to institute drug-testing for welfare recipients.  Again, this is one of those issues where there are valid arguments to be made on both sides.  No one wants to be working and paying taxes just to see government money going to people for their subsistence and housing; only to see them using that money to feed their addictions.  At the same token, even though we've yet to decriminalize the use of certain drugs; the freedom to choose to ruin one's body with these substances should belong to those who want to make that choice.

However, in the final analysis, it isn't our duty as a society to feed those habits.  To feed the people who are unable to feed themselves, yes. To feed their need to get high, to escape the overwhelming emptiness or lack of self-actualization that usually is at the core of drug use is not society's responsibility.  If you want food, shelter, healthcare, and a helping hand to become self-sufficient, then by all means, we as a whole should be providing those things.  But if you want to smoke crack, or shoot heroin, go out and steal the money yourself, like people have been doing for years.  I'd say earn the money yourself, but the whole point here is that these people can't support their own addictions with their own labors.

I'm less than one week away from starting the process to get that long-awaited angiogram.  My shortness of breath continues to increase and my concern about this only stresses me out more.  I only hope that I won't end up having to be hospitalized again before getting to the morning of the tests and have to endure yet another delay.  If I need treatment or procedures, and they will help me breathe more easily, I just want to get whatever it will take done and move on.  Again, we tend to take breathing for granted until it becomes difficult to do.

Thanks to not playing trivia last night I got to watch an episode of "Southland".  It is by far the best cop show currently in production on television.  While I very much enjoy "Blue Bloods", Southland is a much better show.  More realistic, and with better writing and stories.  It's just awesome and one of the things I would DVR if I had one.  I'll get to watch the episodes eventually, when more time permits.

Speaking of episodes, seems like I never did get the most recent DVDs of Season 1 of "Lost in Space" from Netflix.  Will have to follow up on that.  I thought they'd come in, but they are nowhere to be found and I don't remember bringing them home.

Other ponderings this morning include:

The Lakers won last night.  They played what was probably their best game of the season and I can't help but wonder if it was the inspiration of the recent death of the team owner, Dr. Jerry Buss.  Never underestimate the power of real inspiration.

Ashley Judd is a talented, beautiful actress.  But what part of her resume and experience qualifies her to be a candidate for a United States Senate seat?  Activism and involvement in the campaigns of others is not sufficient preparation and/or experience to become part of the club of 100 that will have a critical role in the years ahead in trying to resolve our nation's economic mess.

Joe Garagiola is retiring at the age of 87.  58 years in broadcasting.  I wonder how he kept at it so long and maintained such a high level of professionalism while still being and sounding down to Earth and grounded.

One of the favorite jokes of the late Richard Burton was that the only word of Italian his wife, the late Elizabeth Taylor knew, was "Bulgari".  Now Bulgari is going to display much of Taylor's legendary collection of jewelry.  If we're in such an economic downturn, why is it that when this jewelry is finally sold, it will be the subject of intense competition. 

Illegal immigrants don't get deported on a routine basis, unless they've got a criminal record.  Now some of them who pled guilty to crimes before a Supreme Court decision are finding out that the guilty pleas might have been a mistake.  In one case, a woman who pled guilty to mail fraud in the case of a staged auto accident that defrauded an insurer out of $22,000; had her appeal to get a new trial denied by the Supreme Court.   Absent a new trial so that she can avoid being convicted of a crime that rises to the level requiring deportation, she will be deported.  If we're going to have a policy that illegals don't get deported unless they have a criminal record, and we've decided what crimes rise to the level of deportation, we should apply such policies with consistency.

This Date in History:

On this date in 1804, the first self-propelling locomotive debuts.
On this date in 1842, John Greenough is granted the first U.S. patent for the sewing machine.
On this date in 1848, Karl Marx and Freidrich Engels publish "The Communist Manifesto".
On this date in 1874, the Oakland Tribune publishes its first edition.
On this date in 1878, the first phone book is published.
On this date in 1885, the Washington Monument is dedicated.
On this date in 1918, the last Carolina Parakeet dies in captivity at the Cincinatti Zoo.
On this date in 1921, Reza Shah takes control of Tehran in a coup.
On this date in 1925, the New Yorker publishes its first issue.
On this date in 1965, Malcolm X is assassinated by members of the Nation of Islam.
On this date in 1972, President Nixon visits the People's Republic of China.

Famous Folk Born on this Date:

Peter III of Russia (husband to Catherine the Great)
Andres Segovia
Anais Nin
Alexei Kosygin
Carmine Galante (more notorious than famous)
Ann Sheridan
Sam Peckinpah (great director!)
Robert Mugabe (see Galante above)
Erma Bombeck
Nina Simone (any day where you listen to a Nina Simone song is a good day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfJRX-8SXOs)
Rue McClanahan
Barbara Jordan
David Geffen
Tyne Daly
Alan Rickman
Anthony Daniels
Kelsey Grammer
Jennifer Love Hewitt

The Oscars are on Sunday, Feb 24th

and awhile back I ranted about what I thought was overlooked in the nominating process.  But now that we're almost to the awards ceremony itself, it's time to predict the winners and offer my opinion on which of the nominees should have won.  I do not make predictions in every category.

Best Picture - The Nominees are:

Amour
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

My predicted winner is Argo.  Zero Dark Thirty might have had a shot before all of the bad PR it got.  The winner should actually be a tie between Life of Pi and Lincoln.

Best Director - The Nominees are:

Michael Haneke - Amour
Ang Lee - Life of Pi
David O. Russell - Silver Linings Playbook
Steven Spielberg - Lincoln
Benh Zeitlin - Beasts of the Southern Wild

My predicted winner is David O. Russell.  He should win.

Best Actor - The Nominees are:

Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Joaquin Phoenix - The Master
Denzel Washington - Flight

My predicted winner is Daniel Day-Lewis.  Hugh Jackman should win, but he won't.

Best Actress - The Nominees are:

Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Emanuelle Riva - Amour
Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Naomi Watts - The Impossible

My predicted winner is Jessica Chastain, although it is possible Jennifer Lawrence might sneak through because of the negative reaction Zero Dark Thirty is getting.  Chastain should win.

Best Supporting Actor - The Nominees are:

Alan Arkin - Argo
Robert DeNiro - Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln
Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

My predicted winner is Christoph Waltz.  He should win.

Best Supporting Acgtress - The Nominees are:

Amy Adams - The Master
Sally Field - Lincoln
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions
Jacki Weaver - Silver Linings Playbook

My predicted winner is Anne Hathaway.  I think it should have ended up in a tie between her and Helen Hunt, who was brilliant in The Sessions.

Best Writing: Original Screenplay - The Nominees are:

Amour - Michael Haneke
Django Unchained - Quentin Tarantino
Flight - John Gatins
Moonrise Kingdom - Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola
Zero Dark Thirty - Mark Boal

This is a tougher prediction, given that the WGA award went to Boal.  Tarrantino will probably win, although a win for Boal wouldn't be a big surprise.  The winner should be Anderson and Coppola, as Moonrise Kingdom was a simply awesome script.

Best Writing: Adapted Screenplay - The Nominees are:

Argo - Chris Terrio
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Lucy Alibar and Behn Zeitlin
Life of Pi - David Magee
Lincoln - Tony Kushner
Silver Linings Playbook - David O. Russell

My prediction is that Terrio will win this category.  As to who really deserves it, four of the five are neck and neck.  Only Beasts of the Southern Wild doesn't belong in the hunt for this award.

You can follow me on Twitter.  @cyclist1959

And the agony of the feet

This morning, when I got up I noticed that whenever they'd made my bed yesterday, it had been pushed toward the West wall of the room.  That moves it out of line with the television.  So after pulling on some sweats, I decided to move it back.  Not putting on shoes first was a big mistake.  In trying to get between the bed and the tall nightstand/cabinet next to the bed I managed to kick that piece of furniture with great force.  Now two of my toes are swollen to epic proportions and the pain is intense.  I'm hoping some tylenol will dull it a little.  I'm not going to the doctor over it.  Even if it involves broken toes, they can't do anything except prescribe painkillers, soaking with epsom salts and elevating it.  I'm doing two of the three at the moment.

The day improved when I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Mark Webber and Shannyn Sossamon; the stars of "The End of Love", a film I saw last week and will be reviewing.  I'm also doing an article on the film and the story behind it.  I've had the pleasurable and not-so-pleasurable experience of interviewing actors, writers and directors.  I've also gotten to know some of them.  Mark and Shannyn were open and honest in talking about themselves, the movie and the making of the movie.  Two very genuine and nice people.  Two artists definitely passionate about their craft.  I look forward to bigger and better things from both.

It might have been an even better experience if the harried receptionist had given me the right amount of validations so that I wasn't forced to spend $13.50 for parking.  In retrospect, given how many tasks he was trying to do at the moment he gave me the validation card, I should have double-checked that it was right.  I'll own some responsibility for failing to do that. 

I tried to stop by and visit my instructor from last year's tax course, but she was out of the office.  I was in the neighborhood and was just curious to see how she was doing.  I'll try again.

Last night my friends and I played trivia and some of us were going to play together tonight, with the same trivia host but at a different bar.  However, he let us know that owing to an emergency, he would be re-using the same game tonight as we played last night.  Since we know the answers to all 50 questions, it would be completely unfair for us to play the game.

That doesn't mean that I wasn't tempted, and didn't ponder how much fun it would be to go and win, collect the money and watch the team that's won the last two weeks be unable to gloat like the braying fools they've been after their prior victories.  Ethically and morally, I could not do it.  But I certainly can think about how much fun it would be, as long as I don't go.

Sunday is Oscar night.  Sadly, it's also the night of the trivia league finals and so we won't be able to watch the Oscars.  They will undoubtedly be on the television screens where we will be playing the game, but the sound will be off.  I suppose winning the first prize would assauge the frustration of being unable to watch the telecast and hear the speeches.

My Oscar predictions will be posted sometime between now and tomorrow morning.  I'm not predicting in all categories, only Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor and Actress, and the two writing categories.

Now I need to go and search out some epsom salts.

Another mystery to solve

Maybe this isn't a mystery.  Maybe it's just some corollary of Murphy's Law.  Why is it that you have trouble getting up early on the mornings when you have no choice but to get up; but on mornings you could have slept in, you're wide awake way too early.

I could have slept until 7 a.m. this morning.  But no my body decided that 4:19 a.m. was the right moment for me to awaken and be unable to fall back to sleep.  And yes I have blogs to write.  Reviews of films to write.  My own creative writing, which has been sorely neglected since the start of this year.  But given my druthers, I'd have preferred more sleep.

Vice-President Joe Biden says you don't need an assault weapon to defend you or your loved ones at home.  Just get a shotgun.  I had no idea that the VP was an expert on home-defense, and the tactics involved.  Then again I didn't know Jose Canseco was studying the history of gravity and had concluded that ancient gravity was much weaker than gravity today.  I won't even bother asking the VP what he'd do once he'd shot off all five rounds in his shotgun at the bad guys and needed time to reload.

It is just me?  Lately when I dine out and I order salad, it has been weird.  All of the ingredients are there, the iceberg, the romaine, the cucumbers, the sprouts, the shredded carrots,the purple lettuce and so on, but it's like they're being served in a tray with compartments.  Is it that hard to actually mix, or more properly "toss" a salad?

How drunk do you have to be, to be stupid enough to call 911 to order a pack of cigarettes?  That happened in Texas (naturally).

Guests staying at a downtown L.A. hotel have checked out in droves, after a young female tourist from Canada was found in one of the hotel's water tanks.  She'd been missing for three weeks.  One woman who was checking out said that she was upset at having showered in the water the dead woman had been in.  Makes me wonder, how much showering and scrubbing would someone in that situation need to feel clean again?

Women get mad at their boyfriends.  Men get mad at their girlfriends.  But what is behind a woman biting off a piece of her boyfriend's tongue?  That's going way too far, even if they had a major argument.  He's going to have a tough time licking this speech impediment thing.  http://instantrimshot.com/

Was it an act of cruelty or kindness in the mind of Mindy McCready when she shot and killed her dog, before taking her own life?  I suspect she thought it was kindness, so the dog wouldn't be left alone.  Then again, she left two other dogs at her house untouched.  Go figure.

Will whoever is in charge of fashion trends please put an immediate stop to the rapidly growing popularity of overalls?  They sucked before and now that they are attempting a comeback, they such even more now.

Do you care that this Sunday we won't be watching the "Academy Awards"?  The telecast will not use that reference.  It will simply be "the Oscars".

What moron thinks that he can build a 40 foot high castle on his property, in secret, by hiding it under tarps and behind hay bales?

The so-called "Chuck E. Chese killer" has lost his latest appeal and faces execution in Colorado.  My question is, will he order pizza for his last meal?

This Date in History:

On this date in 1472, the islands of Orkney and Shetland are pledged by Norway to Scotland in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark.
On this date in 1792, President George Washington signs the Postal Service Act, creating the U.S. Post Office Department.
On this date in 1872, the Metropolitan Museum of Art opens in New York City.
On this date in 1931, Congress approves the construction of the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge.
On this date in 1943, U.S. movie executives agree to allow censorship of movies by the Office of War Information.
On this date in 1962, aboard Friendship 7, John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the Earth.
On this date in 1987, a bomb placed by the Unabomber explodes in a Salt Lake City computer store.
On this date in 2003, a pyrotechnic display sets a nightclub ablaze during a Great White concert, resulting in 100 deaths and over 200 injuries.

Famous Folk Born on This Date:

Ansel Adams
Gale Gordon
Tommy Heinrich
Evgeny Dragunov (Russian weapons designer, made great sniper rifles)
Gloria Vanderbilt (designing clothes was in her "jeans")
Robert Altman
Sidney Poitier
Bobby Unser
Roger Penske
Phil Esposito
Mike Leigh
Brenda Blethyn
Sandy Duncan
J. Geils
Walter Becker
Edward Albert
Cindy Crawford
Justin Verlander
Rihanna (Chris Brown's punching bag)

And on this date in 1966, the U.S. lost a great wartime leader with the passing of Admiral Chester Nimitz.

Once Again, Albert Hammond Will be Proven Wrong

For those who don't recognize the name of the singer in the headline, he's the one who sang the song "It Never Rains in California".  Which it will be doing later today.  In fact, the forecast from the hot woman on the late night news last night said we might even get hail.  So let's hale the hail and stay safe during this period of inclement weather.

I have this friend who is in financial trouble and I am not in a position to do anything of consequence to help.  His operation has been around a long time and for years now, revenues have been outpaced by rising expenses.  He has been able to keep going by using credit facilities, even though the interest cost is now so high any hope of ever again balancing the books seems very remote.  He could just call it quits and go out of business, but there are so many people who depend on him for their livelihood and the valuable products and services he provides; that's not an option.

We've sat down and tried a variety of budget models, triming of costs, ways to raise revenues and there just don't seem to be any real answers.  If his ability to borrow were to suddenly disappear, or the creditors holding his loans were to demand payment, that would be it.

What makes this worse is that my friend's name is Sam.  Uncle Sam.  Even the coming sequestration isn't going to fix the budget mess in Washington.  But the day of reckoning of spending more than we take in is coming and it will probably be reached in our lifetimes.

Other Tuesday morning ponderings include:

How great it is that the World Series of Poker is going to rename a 7-card stud event in honor of the late Dr. Jerry Buss.  He loved to play 7-card stud and once finished 3rd in that event at the WSOP.

The issue of minority representation in cities that have "at-large" rather than "district" representation on their city councils is flaring up again in Palmdale.  The charge is that the at-large representation denies minorities representation because they aren't able to vote as a bloc in a geographic district.  There are other cities involved in lawsuits on the issue.  This is a no-brainer.  Geographic representation is much fairer.  An elected representative can better serve a constituency defined by geographic boundaries.  The City of Los Angeles has 3.8 million residents and 15 city council members.  So each of the city council members represents roughly 250,000 people.  Much easier than having to be responsive to any of the city's 3.8 million residents who choose a council member to approach with their specific problem.

I've had a Hotmail account forever, although I almost never use it.  Now Microsoft is going to migrate it to a different email service?  Why?

Was Ashley Olson aware that the big fur coat she was wearing made her look a lot like Chewbacca from Star Wars?

This date in History:

On this date in 1807, Former Vice President Aaron Burr is arrested for treason.
On this date in 1846, the new state government of Texas takes control after Texas is annexed by the U.S.
On this date in 1847, the first rescuers reach the Donner Party.
On this date in 1859, Daniel Sickles, a member of Congress from NY is acquitted of murder charges on the grounds of temporary insanity.  First time this defense was successfully used in the U.S.
On this date in 1861, serfdom was abolished in Russia.
On this date in 1878, Thomas Edison patents the phonograph.
On this date in 1942, one of the lowest points in U.S. history takes place, as FDR signs the executive order that authorizes the detention and relocation of Japanese-Americans in so-called "internment camps".
On this date in 1945, 30,000 U.S. marines land on Iwo Jima.
On this date in 1976, President Gerald R. Ford rescinds FDRs executive order authorizing the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II.
On this date in 1999, President Clinton pardoned Henry Ossian Flipper, the first African-American to graduate from West Point.  He'd been wrongly convicted at a court-martial.

Famous folk born on this date:

Nicolaus Copernicus
Florence Green (she was the last British survivor of World War I when she died in 2012)
Eddie Arcaro (he had to jockey for position on this list)
Lee Marvin (the man who is to blame for palimony)
Smokey Robinson
Homer Hickam (love "October Sky")
Karen Silkwood (RIP)
Amy Tan
Ray Winstone (you were great in the upcoming "The Sweeney")
Prince Andrew
Hana Mandlikova (holder of four Grand Slam tennis singles titles)
Seal (thanks for the phrase "fornicating with the help")
Benicio del Toro

The Courtship of Eddie's Father

was a TV series in the 1970s about a widower raising a young son who wanted his father to re-marry.  It's important at the moment because of it's theme song.  For those who never saw it and have never heard the tune:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCF7Dnov8vA

It talks about friendship.  Friends are so important.  Even though I don't always express it, I treasure my friends.  They're a big part of what makes life so wonderful.  When "Brian" (how appropriate) in the film "Mahogany" says "...success is nothing without someone you love to share it", he's referring to a romantic love.  But the statement applies to platonic relationships as well.  Not the love part, but about how the good things in life just aren't as good without someone to share the experiences with.  The taste of a victory at trivia, the awesome feeling a terrific film can engender; these are things that only improve when you're able to share them with others.  I don't mind going to a movie alone, but it isn't my preference.

In case you've been absent from my blog the past few days, I have had a bit of a tiff with some friends.  It's over and as far as I'm concerned, all is forgiven.  I hold no ill will.  I bear no grudges.  Friendships are far more important than differences of opinion.

I have enough bullshit to deal with between now and the end of April without stressing over that kind of stuff.  So I've put it behind me.  I'm moving on and planning to enjoy the company of my friends.  As for jerks who can't read no-smoking signs, I'll leave that to ATALFT and the next episode of that continuing serial.

Yet another installment of...

"As The Assisted Living Facility Turns".

The President lost his cool this evening.  For the second night in a row, he returned home after dark and found one of the new residents standing outside of the front door smoking.  Now there are two signs that indicate this is a no-smoking area.  There is a designated smoking area in the back. 

It's that way for a reason.  There are a number of residents, the President included, who have lung problems and need to NOT be inhaling even a small amount of second-hand cigarette smoke.  So how the heck are they supposed to go in and out the front door to their home when there's an inconsiderate asshole standing between them and the entrance; without getting a lungful of smoke.

The President doesn't lose his cool easily.  The first time he encountered this resident doing this, he asked the on-duty Med Tech to talk to the man.  She did so and assured the President he'd promised not to do it again.  That was over a week ago.  Then last night the President saw the same man standing out front and politely pointed out the presence of the signs and where the designated smoking area was.  The man politely responded by putting out his cigarette and going inside.

But tonight he was there yet again, and the pungent odor of the stinking deathstick in his mouth permeated the evening air.  So the President approached but kept a distance and said "didn't we have this conversation last night?"  The man took umbrage and asked why it mattered to the President.  Finally the President lost his cool and told him exactly why.  "Because the air you're polluting is the air I have to breathe as I walk into my home and my bad lungs can't handle the second-hand smoke you're pumping out.  I'm not the only person who lives here who has lung problems.  That's why there's a designated smoking area so that we don't have to be exposed to a health hazard.  You aren't the only one living here, and the rules are designed so that the behavior of one resident doesn't harm others."

Yet more umbrage was taken and the President really lost it, giving the man a verbal what for as he walked away.  It was wrong and the President is angry at himself for having lost his temper.  Some of his friends have chosen the past few days to go out of their way to agitate him and on top of the extended hours he is working, the stress is approaching the point of serious overload. 

He considered getting a sign that says "don't prod the cranky one", but that would just egg certain people into prodding.  So he's going to breathe deeply, meditate a bit and try to get and remain calm so that he doesn't have a stroke before he gets those heart tests.

He really was a doctor

Dr. Jerry Buss has died.  He was 79.  He may have been the most influential sports franchise owner of the second half of the 20th century.  He turned a financially successful Los Angeles Lakers team into a team that not only made money, it won multiple championships.  But he was so much more.

He wanted to be a teacher and after getting his undergrad degree in less than three years from the University of Wyoming, he moved on to USC.  There he got a MS and then a Ph.D. in physical chemistry.  Because teachers were not well paid, he invested in real estate to try to generate more income, with the idea being that this extra money would enable him to continue teaching.  But he was such a successful real estate investor he soon pursued it full-time.

His first foray into the professional sports ownership arena was in World Team Tennis.  Even here he was a winner, with the Los Angeles Strings winning a championship in 1981.  Two years earlier however, he rocked the sports world with his purchase of the Lakers, the Kings and the Forum in Inglewood, home arena for all three teams.  The $67.5 million he paid for the teams, building and a ranch was the largest sports purchase in history up to that point.  He sold the Kings, kept the Lakers and found a way to make more money, selling Great Western Savings the right to put their name on the Forum, which became the Great Western Forum.

Remember that number of $67.5 million because 34 years later, estimates place the value of the Los Angeles Lakers franchise at $1 billion.  Mostly because of the efforts of this visionary sports owner.  He was the one who had the final decision when it came time to choose between drafting Magic Johnson or Larry Bird.  He made the right call for his team. 

He created "Showtime", by taking the Lakers and making them "Hollywood".  He followed the lead of the Dallas Cowboys and created a squad of "Laker Girls" to cheer the team on at home games.  He built a roster that played a brand of up-tempo, fun to watch basketball.  And his teams won.  Five NBA championships during the Showtime era.  Five more since then.

In 2010 he was rightly rewarded with enshrinement in the NBA Hall of Fame for his accomplishments and contributions to the game.  He was a philanthropist, endowing a scholarship fund for grad students in chemistry at his alma mater, USC.  He was an excellent poker player, making final tables at the World Series of Poker and on the World Poker Tour.

He was a giant in the field of sports ownership and he will be sorely missed.  Now his children run the team he so loved, and hopefully they will do as well as he did.  RIP Doctor Buss.  The sports world and the world in general is a poorer place today with your absence.