Yesterday wasn’t exactly a banner day, was it?  Especially for those of use who take a train to work everyday.  Hundreds heart or killed in India, and then a Chicago subway train derailing during the evening rush hour.  Gives you something to think about during those mindless commutes. And of course we learned that Syd Barrett died quietly last week, bringing his creative and troubled story to a sad ending.

Hopefully today will bring some better news.

Yes, it was just eight years ago today that me and the missus got hitched in a candle ceremony, outside, on a day when the wind blew so hard that it blew over the arbor my father-in-law built (thank god it didn’t land on anybody – he built that thing pretty damn solid), blew the flame from the oil lamp we used to light the candles over so that it set my mother-in-law’s antique lace tablecloth on fire, and diverted every flight in the vicinity over my in-laws’ back yard, so so that we couldn’t hear a goddamn thing (still not sure if she said “i do” or “fuck no,” but the priest  – well, he was an ex-priest, actually, who’d quit the priesthood to marry a nun – signed the license, so I guess she’s stuck with me).

Fortunately, there won’t be any of that mushy, in the same state (let alone the same house) stuff this year, as I’ve cleverly managed to arrange for my wife to have the whole house to herself today.  Plus, she gets the dog.  It doesn’t get any better than that.  Anyhow, Happy Anniversary, Honey.  Try not to pick up too many strange men today (you’d be hard-pressed to find one  stranger than me, though this blog would be a pretty good place to start).  I miss you.

Monday again. Let’s see, what’s new? Italy won the world cup, which most of the world gives a shit about. More people killed in Iraq. Okay, that’s not really new. And this is the beginning of the end of the Marc Maron Show, which really sucks. It’s a shame we can’t all call in and say goodbye. I guess we could all call AAR and politely tell them that we are not, in fact delighted. Unless Marc makes an announcement this week that actually delights us – and him. And Jim. Anyhow, have a happy Monday.

Oh, and Happy Birthday Jim Earl!

Whoopie, it’s the bobbleheads. Thanks to Wimbledon, you’ll have to get up a little early to watch Press the Meat. My advice? Sleep in. But if you’re some schmuck stuck in a dorm somewhere and can’t sleep, Guest host Andrea “I use preparation H instead of Oil of Olay” Mitchell hosts North Korea talk, as we struggle to understand why Iraq with no WMD’s (and no actual threat to the US of A) was an immediate danger, while the only person in the world that makes Michelle Malkin look only slightly fucking nuts gets to celebrate the fourth (or whatever) of July with actual missles. Guests include Nicholas Burns (who is apparently under the Secretary of State – better him than me, though I could use something to keep my beer cold), plus a few people from an administration that actually did something about North Korea, Bill Richardson, Ashton Carter (isn’t he married to Demi Moore?), and Robert Gallucci.

On Faze the Nation, guess what? It’s the same shit! Nicky Burns gets out from under secretary of state long enough to join bush buddy Bobby Scheiffer, this time to be joined by John “Maverick” McCain, and Senator from CT that’s not gonna run as an “individual democrat,” Chris Dodd.

Over on This Weak with George Snufalufagus – you guessed it – it’s North Korea! Must be North Korea Day (reminds me of an episode of M*A*S*H, where people kept coming to the 4077th with ID cards that said their names were Kim Luk, and Hawkeye said, “another Kim Luk? Well, this must be my Kim Luky day”). George has Dick Lugar (sounds like something really nasty you’d find in the drinking fountain, doesn’t it?), plus a story on racist asshole George Allen vs. James Webb, and at the roundtable, it’s editor of the New Republic Peter “Oops,maybe Iraq wasn’t such a great idea, afterall, biut I still love Joe Libermann” Beinart, Donna “nice job neutering Al Gore so we got dubya instead” Brazile, and George :jerk: Will. Plus, he’s big, he’s black, and he’s got a shiny new kidney – it’s Alonzo Mourning (sorry, but I have an automatic dislike for anyone who played hoops at Georgetown; not an actual dislike, of course, just a “sports” dislike, and his kidney was actually installed in December ’03, so it’s not all that new, though it would probably be shiny, unless you let it dry out). By the way, Alonzo? Just kidding, and I hope you can take a joke, but if not, my name is Geroge, and you can find me at 1600 PA Avenue. Just hop over the fence, and tell ’em you’re there to see me.

CNN’s Late Emission with Wolf Blitztheredonethat continues the North Korean theme with Nick “now that I’m finally out from under secretary of state, I’m gonna make the most of it” Burns Lindsey “la poof” Graham, Barbara “I heart Joey” Boxer, Iraq’s ambassador to the US, Samir Sumaidaie (obvioulsy a fake name), Al “I’m in charge” Haig, Zbigniew “talk about an assumed name” Brzezinski, and Peter Bergen, plus Fouad Makhzoumi, chairman of the Future Pipe (as in pipeline) Group and (surprise, surprise), board member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

On Fux News Sunday, weaselfacedoes the North Korea thin (are you getting as tired of this as I am?), with, you guessed it, Nick Burns, Pete “Crazy Fuck” Hoekstra, James “I eat puppies for breakfast” Woolsey, and Wendy “the bitch” Sherman.

Later, on 60 Minutes, it’s a slightly different twist on North Korea, as Scott Pelley interviews Charles Jenkins (former soldier who deserted to North Korea), then Steve Kroft investigates why $8.8 billion of reconstruction money in Iraq is unaccounted for (shocked – I’m shocked, I say!). Then Ed Bradley talks about Derek Jeter because baseball is such a compelling news story. :yawn:

New Deadwood for the non-HBO challenged, and for the rest of us, it’s the 4400, and The Dead Zone.

Have a good Sunday.

Ok, no more Ann “The Man” Coulter today. So, what else is going on? Dubya is out on a summer tour, tryin’ to figger out whut’s Americans thinkin’. Well, anything to keep him out of DC, I guess. I’m sure he’ll be all tuckered out and ready for his annual August vacation. You’d think Uncle Dick would just have him stay on the “ranch” until 2008. It’s not like he’s helping out the Republicans at this point – just look at how much trouble he’s causing Liebermann. Poor Joey, he looked into that manly “mission accomplished” codpiece and just hasn’t been able to control himself since. I’m not sure why folks like Barbara Boxer and Joe Biden (OK, Barbara Boxer, anyway) can’t take a step back and look at what a pathetic wanker Joey is.

Anyhow, I don’t know what I’ll do today to keep myself busy. I have the three most recent Marc shows to listen to (well, as soon as last night’s show gets posted), and I guess I can wander around town listening to them. I might go and see The War Tapes, but it’s supposed to be fairly cool today, so maybe I’ll go wander around somewhere, and see how my GPS toy works (I’ll just head out walking for a while, and see if I can find my way back).

Enjoy your Saturday.

Whoopie, the weekend’s here.  That’s about all I got, so I’ll leave you with some words of wisdom from Nazi Anne Coulter:

…these health fanatics, when it comes to smoking, encourage every form of polymorphous perversity, which, by the way, does have public health consequences — but no, no, no, no. That — that — you know, anal sex and fisting, that’s part of our deepest privacy rights.

Amen, Ann.

Well, back in DC, a week after I left, and, barring any catastrophes, no more trips back home until this shit is finally over with. Whoopie. At the risk of being called a baby, this sucks. Oh well, only 30 more days to go. That’s about 4 1/2 weeks, 4 more weekends, and 22 working days (not that I’m counting or anything).

I just don’t know what to say about the Marc Show. We waited so long for it, and suffered through the Clippers and every other goddamn thing, and we’d hoped for syndication, and now this.

I didn’t stay up to listen to Marc last night, of course, so I don’t know if there was any more news. I reckon I ought to go over to his blog and see what came up (unless somebody here would like to save me the trouble; I find the AAR blogs difficult to read for some reason – not enough smilies, I guess – and apparently if you go over there and deign to say that you don’t think Eddie Pepitone’s yelling schtick isn’t all that funny, you get accused of being an intolerant neocon or something).

I feel very bad about this shit. I feel bad for Marc and Jim, and everybody else involved with the show. Why do stupid people get to decide how things work? It jus aint right.

Anyhow, have a happy Thursday.

Well, shit. I gotta go back today.  I suppose that’s just as well, since I think my wife is getting sick of me being around all the time – or, at least, the thrill of my being home has pretty much worn off (that took about a day, I think).

My wife has to work, as does junior, and since I’ll have to leave before either of them get back home, I guess it’s one last walk with Siggy (poor guy’s been pretty much glued to me since I’ve been here) before I see how the traffic gods treat me today. I’ve been fairly lucky, so hopefully they won’t try and screw me over on my last trip (for a while, anyway) back to DC (they can screw with me on my final trip back home in a month instead).  According to the forecast, I’ll be returning to heavy t-storms, which is more or less how I left.

On the plus side, I have my new GPS toy to play with. I know the route pretty well by now, but hopefully it’ll expand my radius of movement down in the DC/MD/VA region (and it’s already got Canada loaded into it, should emigration look like the only way out – and don’t tell me about their Conservative PM; their Conservatives are better than our Konservatives). It also plays mp3’s, so what the hell.

I have a couple of leftover Marc Maron Shows to listen to, and a week’s worth of Majority Report and Malloy – not to mention a bunch of audio books (I keep falling asleep about one chapter into “The Hammer of God,” which is somewhat appropriate after our recent close encounter). I could always listen to music, too, I guess, but there’s something about the spoken word that keeps you (well, me anyway) from feeling all alone. Long rides by yourself can kinda suck (I remember leaving after a really nice weekend visit with someone and having to drive from Olean, NY back up to Oswego, and Carole King’s “So Far Away” came on the radio and bummed me right the hell out) – especially when you’re heading in the wrong direction – but five or so Maron shows pass the time quite nicely.

So, anyway, youse guys have a good day, and I’ll probably stop by before I head out.

At the risk of attracting NSA attention, I’d like to quote from a famous document that we are supposed to be honoring today. Have a safe and happy 4th.

Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government…. The history of the present [government] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden…to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices….

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

We, therefore…solemnly publish and declare, That [we]…are Absolved from all Allegiance to [him]…and that all political connection between [us] and [him] is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that…we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Hey, had some problems, in case you didn’t notice.  I decided to upgrade WordPress (a fairly simple process), but of course things didn’t go exactly as planned.  The process involved backing up the database and all the files, then turning off everything I’ve added, overwriting all the files, and then going back in and turing everything on one at a time to see what worked, and what got broken. 

Easy enough, but just as I was in the process of getting it back up and running, I lost my Internet connecton, and it was down all last night, so I was powerless to fix it.  Finally got everything back up, and I’ll be tweaking things during the day today, if my Internet connection stays up.  See ya.