Villa Borghetti Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie

Picked up a $5 Pinot Grigio at Trader Joes that was delightfully light, tasty, and crisp.  Villa Borghetti Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie, Indicazione Geografica Typica.   Dr Desert Flower and I had it with some cheese and fruit earlier this month on a Saturday afternoon.  Good stuff.  You should get yourself a bottle.

Entitled!

C.Montgomery Burns had a video released this week... I mean... Mitt Romney, comfortably talking to $50,000 a plate donors at a private dinner in Boca Raton, trying to get them to write him checks for his campaign, let slip how he really feels about nearly 1/2 of all Americans.  All those silly Americans who work for a living, instead of investing, like Mitt and his plutocratic buddies. 

The Daily Show characterized the Mother Jones video perfectly, so I ma going to provide all the links here:

http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/president-barack-obama/17uve05r4?q=President+Obama&rel=msn&from=en-us_msnhp&form=msnrll




It was remarkable how "at ease" and comfortable Mitt was, amongst the plutocratic elite in Boca, compared to how rigid, stick-up-his-spine, inarticulate, forced-delivery his speaking was during town halls and diner meetings during the Republican primaries.  It's like..  he was an entirely different man.   Watch the clips yourself, to see with your own eyes and hear with your own ears.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/09/secret-video-romney-private-fundraiser

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU9V6eOFO38&feature=player_embedded

2 million blurred views
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnB0NZzl5HA&feature=relmfu
ENTITLED!

moment of zen
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-september-18-2012/moment-of-zen---mr--burns-speaks-at-the-springfield-republican-party-headquarters?xrs=synd_twitter

Millionaire John Hodgeman's Eloquent delivery:
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-september-18-2012/exclusive---an-elegant-message-to-the-47-

Minnie the moocher
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ5gCGJorKk

You know, I pay a hefty sum in taxes - Federal, state, FICA, et al... and I voted for President Obama, and I DO NOT feel "Entitled!" as Mitt has emphatically stated all Obama supporters feel.  I DO feel entitled to an apology from both Mitt and his boy wonder Paul Ryan for being dismissive & condescending of 1/2 the electorate.

It's really sad how many poor, white, rural and suburban Americans will enthusiastically vote for Mitt, thinking his trickle down, redistribution of wealth from-poor-to-rich will somehow help them someday.  But that's how America rolls.

Duca Di Camastra Nero d'Avola

I remain a large fan of Nero d'Avola.  More restaurants are starting to carry it, and more retailers selling it.  I got a nice bottle of Duca Di Camastra Nero d'Avola from Trader Joe's for less than $6 last month, and enjoyed it with a rare red Double Check Ranch ribeye this month.  Excellent quality.  Deliicous.  Highly recommended.  I only wish I would have bought more than one bottle.

Sweet Soft Drinks Alter Genes In Women

The New England Journal of Medicine published a study today (link here) that shows (with tiny tiny P values) that there is undeniably a link to consuming sugary beverages and obesity, and in the women studied (a tiny population of just n=21,740 over multiple years... don't they know really awesome science takes n=2 without a good control, and No Collaboration with any of your colleagues??) it has a correlation to genetic association with adiposity (being fat).

Many will say "Duh!" to this, but it is real, detailed, disciplined, peer reviewed science that published this, not some industry funded obfuscation or pseudo-science. 

For my part, I will continue to avoid sugar laden drinks, and their evil twins full of nutrasweet, sucralose, acesulfame K, phenylketonurics, and other synthetic poisons that are deliciously sweet.

Shieldaig Nasty Ashtray

Dr Desert Flower and I were at Total Wine over the summer, and they were offering a free tasting of Shieldaig "The Classic" Blended Scotch Whisky, aged 12 years. 

In Tasting at the store, it was fine.  12 year? that's pretty good.  $12 a bottle...  Why not?  So I bought a bottle, and brought it home. 

Sometime in July, I opened it up, and ew!  It tasted like an ashtray.  Very smokey, very unpleasant, it reminded me of a dive bar like Casablanca used to be in Greenville SC next to the Reedy River - but not a happy memory of many beers consumed and music listened to. No, it was a more primal memory triggered by scent, and taste, of thick smoke, permeating the bar's very existence.  DDF encouraged me to pour it down the drain, but I found that with LARGE quantities of ice and lemonade and a splash of Cruzan flavored rum (banana or vanilla) that it was drinkable.

If you LOVE the taste of smoke, then Total Wine's got a cheap bottle of Scottish smoke for you. I won't be buying the stuff again, and cannot recommend it.  I'll stick with my High West instead.  =)

Gary Taubes NuSI

 Thanks to my buddy Matt for the head's up on this:
Gary Taubes and Peyer Attia have founded a non-profit to fund real research into nutrition:
http://nusi.org/about-us/a-letter-from-the-founders/#.UFsga65Og-B

Goes along with the new finding from the University of Illinois study (link here) that poorer and less educated white Americans are living shorter lives than their parents.

Bon Midi Pays d'Herault

Fresh and Easy has a cheap red wine from France, Bon Midi, Pays d'Herault. indication geographique protegee.  It sells for $4 a bottle, and it is not bad.  I found it very drinkable.  It's a screw top.  Not too fruity.  A lighter Southern French red.  50% Merlot, 50% Grenache.  I'll be getting it again the next time I am at F&E.

And Another Ones Gone...

Another one bites the dust, hey hey!

Our lemon tree is dieing.  Another main branch wilted this month.  I cut off the first branch in July,and a 2nd one immediately began to wilt.   That one took August to die, and I cut it off last weekend.  Now, a third main branch is quickly wilting.  Leaves shrivel, bark splits, humming birds take keen interest in hovering around it, apparently looking for mites or something too small for DDF and I to see, that is high protein and irresistable to hummingbirds.

It will take the rest of September and the beginning of October for the 3rd branch to die.  Once it is gone, the tree will have less than 40% of its original growth.   Very disheartening, as the lemon tree had produced 4 years of bumper crops of juicy, organic lemons.  We are baffled by what is killing it.  Not too wet.  Not too dry.  It's likely a virus, or mites, or something over which we have no control.

Ryan Loves Charts

Blue eyed right wing ideologue darling, and Vice Presidential hopeful Paul Ryan love charts.  So here's a few telling charts, he'll never show.

I'd really love to wipe the perpetual smirk off his face, with a resounding election loss for the Republicans, or, by other means.. but I don't want the Secret Service to come interview me, so my views will remain silent on this point.  "Grew up in a middle class family" - yeah, if by "Middle Class" your father is a millionaire who owns a very profitable construction business, and he dies when you're a teenager, leaving a large life insurance settlement to your mom.  If only everyone in America was so "middle class" as poor old Paul Ryan.

I Could Become A Chargers Fan

After watching da Bears blow it, year after year since 1985, and watching the San Diego Chargers beat the Oakland Thugs, er, I mean Oakland Raiders last week, I really think I could become a San Diego Chargers fan.   Yes, it is true, that the Chargers began as a Los Angeles team, but LA can't support a football team.  They've lost the Chargers, the Rams, and the Raiders.  Somehow, they support two baseball and two basketball teams, but every city has its quirks I guess.

I am going to try and watch more Chargers games this season, and perhaps... just maybe..  I can become a Chargers fan.   Being a Bears fan is just consistently, too damn depressing.  I spent my childhood watching da Bears lose, year after year, in Soldier Field, Lambeau, the domes of Detroit (on Thanksgiving) and Minnesota, and the occasional other stadiums.  Qualcomm stadium is an extremely LAME name... but I could get over that, maybe, if the team did OK year to year.  I'll always have a love for the da Bears, no matter how much they keep losing.  But it would be nice to root for a winning team, for a change.

And I hear there's lots of bio-tech jobs all over Southern California... so becoming a Chargers fan might not be so theoretical.  Il faut voir.   They DO have the nicest weather in all the US. 

A True Friend

A true friend, is one that will hold your hair while you get sick in the bath room.

I bet these two adorable little girls will be college roommates someday.  this won't be the last time they're in this situation.

Walk The Shark

I've heard of "jumping the shark", but this is the first time I have ever seen anyone "walking the shark".

I think DDF would like her shoes..  They're sorta sparkly.

I Love You Lamp!

da Bears are completely blowing the first 1/2 of their Thursday night game with da Packers.  I need something to lift my spirits.   This feline humor made me crack up.

Awwww kitty, your bud was just trying to give you some lovin!   LOL!

Be Like Han

Maybe it's because I live in Arizona.. and it is an open carry state, that I can relate.  Maybe it's because I don't tolerate overt evil when I encounter it.  I don't know,...  but I really liked this Demotivational poster.

The Heavy. Crescent Ballroom, Sept 11th

The Heavy played at the Crescent Ballroom in downtown Phoenix (just off of 2nd Ave & Van Buren) Tuesday night.  Dr Desert Flower and I were there, and wow, was it an incredible show.  The Silent Comedy opened for The Heavy, and they were fine, but we were not there to see the opening act, complete with their handle-bar mustached banjo player.  We were there to see The Heavy.

We'd never been to the Crescent Ballroom before.  It is reminiscent of The Handlebar in Greenville, or The Pour House in Charleston SC.  A more relaxed crowd.  No metal detectors at the door.  No frisking, no "take off your shoes" requirement like the unpleasant Marquee in Tempe has.  There's a eating area / restaurant in the front, and a band venue / bar in the back.  Friendly bouncers, security, door, and wait staff.  Not grungy and sticky / nasty / diver-like as many band venues can be.  We patiently listened to The Silent Comedy, while sitting near the merchandise booth.  The had The Heavy Pizza Boxes!!!  For just $45 - which is a bargain, when converted from the online price of $35 British Pounds + shipping!

So after my 1nd Jameson neat, and my 2 mini bottles of Hennesy that I stashed in my pockets, I shelled out two Jacksons and a Lincoln to the nice hispter couple running the merchandise booth, and gave them my last 2 Washingtons to "watch" the pizza box.during the concert, assuring them I would be back later to get it after the concert.  They humored the old gray haired man with more money than sense.

After buying the pizza box (complete with double vinyl album, CD, T-shirt (size medium, as I am no longer an XL, and tour poster), Swaby came out of the back room and mingled with the crowd.  Everyone wanted pictures with him, and autographs.  Dr Desert Flower was looking lovely, demur, and amazing as my trophy wife (with a PhD even!). while I looked old, gray, fat, and drunk (hence the small thumbnail size, to mask these non-flattering properties).   I hurriedly grabbed the pizza box and borrowed a marker, and got Swaby's signature!   Very cool.   Not a collector's item.. not yet anyways..  but it meant alot to me. 

I bought the band a round of PBRs, since 'the only thing we get from the House is Miller Lite" - ew!  I don't like PBR, but I KNOW the band does, from my previous Vegas experience at the Cosmopolitan.  6 PBRs for $18 - these aint Chicago, Atlanta, or NYC drink prices my friends!  =)  I had a chance to talk to Chris Ellul before The Heavy went on, and we discussed drumming, the US tours, the ninja skills video filmed i Austin TX, and how I still believe The Heavy is Way Better than The Black Keys.  He admitted that he hoped The Heavy would be as popular someday as The Black Keys are today.

When The Silent Comedy finished, Dr Desert Flower and I took the 4 feet between stage center and the crowd, to park ourselves.  It is the vantage point from where she took the picture of Ellul's 4 piece set above.  It was also the vantage point where we were close enough to have Swaby's sweat fall upon us during the concert - he really gets into the music, as much as the fans do.  The Heavy played a solid hour+. and then came back on for a 3 song encore.  I lost track of how many songs they played.. but they rocked the Crescent Ballroom.  It was one of the best, if not the best, shows I've ever seen in my life - and I have seen many shows.  It was even better than Vegas, and Vegas set a pretty high bar.

After the show I remembered to gather up my autographed pizza box, and we headed the three block walk back to the car.  We got home at 12:30, which is pretty late for a school night, so I went into work very late on Wednesday, and kept working until sunset (hence, not much blog posting yesterday!). 

Well.. it's time to go back and watch da Bears give up more yards (and points) the da Packers in Lambeau, with I am DVRing now...  oh well.

Ionic Bond, Taken not Shared

This cracked me up  =)

Sam Becile, Meet Nakoula Basseley Nakoula

So a Southern Californian Coptic Christian, of Egyptian heritage, named Nakoula Basseley Nakoula creates a low budget film with American actors, called "Desert Warrior" that tries to mock Islam, under the pseudonym "Sam Becile".  He then redubs it in Arabic, calls it "Innocence of Muslims", changes the verbal content to be more inflammatory, posts a trailer for it on Youtube, shows it once in a lonesome Hollywood theater with no one attending.  He then calls his friends in Washington (Steve Klein) and Florida (the traitor, Terry Jones), to get the ideologue propaganda machine ramped up to Push the links out to the Arabic speaking world. (link here)

Crowded Theater + an American Shouting Fire, that results in American deaths = Felony (not misdemeanor)

Congratulations to Eric Holder's Justice Department for finding this Nakoula guy.  I hope he enjoys his up-coming stay in federal prison for multiple charges, including implication in the death of Christopher Stevens, former US Ambassador to Libya.  Stevens joins the previosuly killed-in-the-line-of-duty Ambassadors Cleo A Noel Jr and Arnold Raphel, who were killed in Sudan and in Afghanistan respectively, in 1973. 

It's truly sad that such despicably motivated people can cause such global death and destruction, with a reactionary religious group, by feeding them snippets of poorly produced, incorrectly attributed, intentionally derogatory crap.

I don't recall how many people died when Last Temptation of Christ came out, or how many theaters burned after Jesus Christ Superstar or Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat premiered...  but I'd say it was an integer value close to zero.  Those works were actually somewhat entertaining, and though inflammatory (to some people in the world) had value, and resulted in no human deaths.

Don't Judge A Game By The First 3 Minutes

If you only watched the Indianapolis Colts vs da Bears game today for the first 3 minutes, you would have thought it was a Friday night blooper reel from a High School league.  As I cleaned up the kitchen, sliced organic celery, and got ready to do yoga, I was scoffing at the TV.  4th and 26, from your own 2 yard line?  Throwing an interception straight to a Indianapolis secondary for a touch down?  It was pathetic.  And I figured sports writers were already writing da Bear's season epitaph.  But then they got their act together, and blew away the Colts by 20 points, resting Peppers and Urlacher for most of the 2nd half. 

Just 4 more days until da Bears go to Greenbay, where the Packers will likely wipe up Lambeau Field with their visiting opponents on Thursday night.  I hope it won't be a wipe out, but ...  we shall see.

I love my DVR.

Pool time.. with rum..  is now on order for the rest of Sunday afternoon!  =)

EL on NYC

Over at I Love Charts, they published this gem recently (link here).  The Chicago EL, rotated and superimposed to scale, over NYC.  The Loop is roughly centered over Central Park.  The white lines show the exiting subway lines of NYC.  I love the EL.  I've taken it to visit friends in recent years, and I used to take the Shore Shore Line in to the city during the summer to go to work when I was in High School.

Johnny B. Goode Crosses The Heliosphere

Voyager is crossing the Heliosphere this week, at a meager 10 miles per second (yikes!) as it exists the unknown solar system. No other object made by humans has gone this far away from Earth, ever before.  On board, chosen by Carl Sagan (RIP), is a gold disk, with 27 songs from Earth.  Among them, is the Chuck Berry classic, Johnny B Goode.

And Voyager runs on a 1977 vintage computer processor and memory chip that has 1/100,000 of the memory and capability that an 8 Gig iPhone has.  NASA site link here.