Facebook'ing the last half of February. Yes, February. And yes, I made Facebook into a verb.

February 16th

A big day for my Smiley. He volunteered to do a petition @ the school Mass this morning, & all props to the teacher for letting him do it despite his speech problems. We've got him all gussed up & are planning to attend in force, & he's practiced all week. "For all soldiers we pray to the Lord". Sadly, he's so worried about it he had several nightmares last night, meaning sound sleep was in short supply here.



He did great!



With reports of a Borders (bookstore) bankruptcy a "low probability event" the company began reorganizing. "Good luck to them. They have a more pleasing color scheme than B&N and I wish them all the best."

CBS New's Lara Logan was beaten and suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault by a crowd of Egyptian "pro-democracy" protesters. I wish her well.

President George Herbert Walker Bush received the Medal of Freedom, the highest honor our nation can bestow upon a civilian. Congrats sir!

"‎"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." -Anais Nin"





Feb 17th

[a few school districts closed due to teacher protest 'call ins' related to the budget battle in Madison] "MPS reports only 'slightly higher' than normal call ins, 425 as opposed to the 'norm' of 340-350. Putting aside the budget bill, just think about those #'s. On a typical Thurs in Feb, 350! teachers will call in sick in MKE. For the 100 who are legit ill on those days, I wish them all the best. For the other 250 who took a spa day, thanks for putting the kids first. Your dedication has made our schools what they are."

"Stay away from the crack . . .unless you can manage it socially - Charlie Sheen"

Feb 18th


"I've finished Charles Portis' novel 'True Grit'. It's a very short book, written as a monologue by the teenage heroine a half century after the events. I love the voice Portis gave the character; think Huck Finn with a bad temper and a cranky disposition. Well worth a read."

"I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars. - the late great Fred Allen"

"Woke up to discover MPS is closed with the teacher 'flu'. Not that I'm cynical or anything, but I do note that with the scheduled day off on Monday MPS teachers have now guaranteed themselves a 4 day weekend with which to spend their average salary of $46K (for working 9 months a yr w/ wknds and holdidays off). But it's not about $ people, it's about their rights!"

"tried and failed to secure Taylor Swift tix for Grace. The only ones i could get were out of my price range, and efforts to borrow the xtra $ were for naught. So I failed my 1st born again. Wonderful.

Feb 19th

‎"YaYa's junior troop is doing a service project and needs to collect a few things. If you'd like to help her troop out they need: men's socks, men's underwear, wash cloths, travel size soap, shampoo, prayer cards/coins, tooth brushes/paste. Our goal is to make 50 small care packages for a omeless shelter, so it's a great cause. No donation too small :)"

"After work tonight we sat down & watched "Eleven Minutes" a documentary about the creation of Jay McCaroll's 2007 fashion line. Fascinating to watch, and Jay is certianly a character. Interesting fact: he turned down the prize $ from his win on Project Runway, citing the fact that the contract gave 10% of his earnings, in perpetuity, to the PR production company."

"Other than Molly, is anyone on here going to Madison to support Gov. Walker? Someone asked me to go, but I have to work this morning - insert lame joke about how only teachers can skip work w/out penalty. Anyhow, if you are heading to that mess, stay safe. It could get ugly, esp since unions are bringing in folks from out of state to swell their numbers. (that's a fact out of the JS front page article, not opinion)."


Feb 20th

"I had a great day post-work. Capped it off by watching 'Piranha 3D' with Lisa - believe it or not, her Redbox choice, not mine. It was campy, gory, featured a lot of boobs and an awful soundtrack. I thought it was swell."



"That's supposed to be a clear bottle of water. What you're looking at is the typical, persistent backwash of Ginger."



"After a nice dinner w/ the kids Lis & I sat down to watch "You Again". Despite some nice buzz here on FB I thought the script was paint-by-numbers, w/out an original thought to be found. BUT it did pick up steam in the last third, so not all was lost."

Feb 21st

‎"I find it ironic that the same day that thousands of people skipped work to rail against our “undemocratic” leader [Walker] fewer than a quarter of the registered voters in Madison bothered to vote in an actual election." - Phil Hands of the Wisconsin State Journal"

"This evening's soundtrack: Edith Piaf, George Harrison, Amy Winehouse, Fleetwood Mac, Rihanna, David Bowie, Black Sabbath . . ."





Feb 22nd

"‎16 years ago today I met Lisa for the first time. 2/22/95 will always rank as one of the pivotal days of my life, and she remains the best thing to ever happen to me. Happy Anniversary."

Feb 23rd

"I watched 'Monsters' tonight. Despite its moronic choice of title, it was grand. The story involves 2 people trying to cross the "Infected Zone" & reach the US - the Zone being an area of Mexico that has been overrun with ET's who arrived when a space probe broke up on entry. Yeah, yeah, I know - but it's GOOD, even moving at times. IIRC it won several film awards in the UK, and I think it was well deserved."

"Lisa took YaYa (or Grac.E as she now writes her name) to Justice to use up a gc from her aunt katie (thanks!). She found a lot of bargains, even buying something for LuLu. Nice mother/daughter time."

"You're born an original. Don't die a copy." - John Mason"

Feb 24th

"I downloaded a virus on my home computer. Working hard to fix it as we 'speak'."

CBS has stopped production of "Two and a Half Men" due to the dispute with star Charlie Sheen

Feb 25th

"B4 work I sat down w/ the kids & watched Tyrone Power in "The Mark of Zorro", (these kids will appreciate movie history if it's the end of me). Since it features no talking dogs or singing teenagers, they wandered off 1 by 1. All, that is, except for LuLu, my doll. For her faithfulness she was treated to the greatest sword fight in movie history - Tyrone Power vs Basil Rathbone, a scene she even asked me to rewind."

"I've mentioned before how I quiz the kids about what artist is playing on the radio, in an effort to get them to pay attention and broaden their listening taste. Yesterday the radio was playing "Captain Jack". I asked YaYa who was singing. "Uh . . .Guns 'n Roses???" she said. Long silence. "That may be the only time in history," I said, "where Billy Joel was confused with Axel Rose"



South Viet Nam: Death at Intermission time - a link to a contemporary time article detailing the first combat deaths in Vietnam, Master Sergeant Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis. It was July 20th, 1959, ten years to the day before man would walk on the moon.

Feb 27th


"I'm just going to say what needs saying, regardless of the boos from the gallery. Kirk Douglas made a harmless ass of himself at the Oscars, and it was downright embarrassing. Kudos to Justin Timberlake for recognizing the humour in the situation, and a big un-kudo the folks who let a senile, barely intelligible Douglas present an award. A healthy, younger Kirk would be appalled."

Duke Snider, the HOF center fielder for the Dodgers, is dead at 84. In high school I read his autobiography "Duke of Flatbush". RIP Duke.

Feb 28th

"Self Pity
I never saw a wild thing
sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
without ever having felt sorry for itself.
- D. H. Lawrence"

Frank Buckles, the last living US WWI veteran, has died at age 110. RIP sir, and thank you.

Hollywood sex symbol Jane Russell has passed away at the age of 89. RIP.

The Week on Facebook

October 15th

"After dinner Lisa and I watched "Hey, Boo: Harper Lee & To Kill a Mockingbird" a documentary on, duh, Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird. There is nothing earth shattering or original in the doc's content, but it certainly reminds you of how great a book that really is, and if nothing else, that makes it all worthwhile."

This week I added Victor Cruz/CIN Def/John Kotsay & dropped Sam Bradford, ARI D, & Rob Bironas. My lineup for Wk 6: Cutler, Desean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Victor Cruz, Hillis and Turner at RB, Kotsay, Gronkowski (TE) and CIN. Versus: Brady, Reggie Wayne, Greg Little, Colston, Mendenhall & Ingram at RB, Jimmy Graham (TE), Janikowski and TB's Defense. Wish me luck.

"Congrats to the Texas Rangers and their fans" [on winning the AL Pennant]

"‎60 yrs ago today I Love Lucy debuted on TV"

"‎Carlos H- says: Facebook should have a limit on times you can change your relationship status... After 3 it should default to " Unstable ""

Today is Sweetest Day. If you're going to buy your sweetie flowers (and u should) please go to --- btwn 9 & 1 and ask for Lisa. U won't b sorry!"

October 14th



My Pumpkin Farm Monster! Today was Ginger's first school field trip to the pumpkin farm, and she brought home a teeny-tiny Ginger sized pumpkin home with her!

"Got home from work, wrote and submitted a column, made dinner, now off to sell Cub Scout popcorn and Brownie nuts door to door. BTW, if anyone wants either POPCORN or NUTS, please let me know. Thanks!"

October 13th

"There, Brewers win, LCS tied at 2 games each. Happy now? Jiminy Cricket, I said it in the NLDS and I had to trot it out again yesterday: have some confidence and act like you've been there before. Watching Fox 6 Wake up News this morning was like watching a funeral for the team. Until the last out of the elimination game, have faith."

"watching teen wolf too"

“Even the devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.”
-William Shakespeare”"

October 12th




October 11th

"Today I finished reading 'Shockwave', a Virgil Flowers novel by the great John Sandford. It's a serial bomber in a small Minnesota town, who appears to be trying to stop the fictional equivalent of a Wal-Mart from opening. As expected from Sandford, it's a fine read with plenty of style and a who-dunnit that actually kept me guessing. Recommended."

"BREAKING NEWS: Twitter is reporting that long-time Brewers groundskeeper Gary Vandenberg has lost his battle with cancer. RIP."

"“If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.” - Elmore Leonard"

"CNN is reporting that the US has disrupted a plot by "elements of the Iran government" to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the U.S."

NJ Gov. Christie has endorsed Mitt Romney

"Just FYI, I lost my fantasy matchup by 92.52 points. Not only was it the biggest whupping of the week, my opponents 164.67 points is some kind of league record. Good grief."

"The Beast of Bray Road is a low budget horror film centered around the werewolf legend of Walworth County (here in Wisconsin). This was awful, but in a 'make you smile not retch' kindaway. The acting is rec-class awful (although the lead & Kelly were good), the costumes were ill fitting, everyone in WI apparently wears Stetsons, cops don't retaliate when punks spit at them, and the werewolf looked silly. But it was set in WI, there are two nice sets of breasts bared for your viewing pleasure, and what the hell - it's set in Wisconsin."

"LuLu is a big fan of the book "Porkenstein" by Kathyrn Lasky and has read it 2 or 3 times since checking it out of the school library this week."

October 10th

"Breaking News: The NBA has officially cancelled the first two weeks of its season."

I don't care about pro basketball at all, but i do mind that the hotels, restaurants, bars, parking garages, vendors, ticket exchanges, etc in Milwaukee that profit from the games will now take a hit.

"This morning we watched "The Perfect Host" an indie horror film starring David Hyde Pierce (Niles from Frasier). A bank robber on the run worms his way into a dinner party hosted by Pierce, only to discover the foppish host might have plans of his own. Pierce was great, the early twist was devious, and we enjoyed it. My one complaint was that the story should have ended at dawn, and ixnayed the rest. Available to stream on Netflix."

Lisa made a great dinner of chicken and mashed potatoes. She made the chicken perfectly, following a method advocated by America's Test Kitchen, and the results were easily the juicest, most perfectly cooked chicken I've ever had. Unfortunately, I like my chicken dry and slightly overdone LOL

"Down by 91 points in my fantasy game going into tonight. All I need is for Jay Culter to throw 400 yards, w/ 4 TDs and scramble for ten yards - and I'll still lose by 50 points. A humbling week."

"I just got word that the column I wrote Friday will be in tomorrow's (Tuesday's) Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Please feel free to comment on it the JS site."



(a wax covered leave the kids made)

Ginger in the Columbus day hat she made at school (yes, we still celebrate it!):



"‎125 years ago today New York millionaire James Potter showed up at a dinner party wearing a new style of jacket, one suggested to him by the Prince of Wales. The jacket proved a hit and people soon referred to it by the name of the place where Potter debuted it - the Tuxedo Park Club."

October 9th

"‎100th Career TD tonight by Aaron Rodgers"

"‎56 yard field goal by Mason Crosby just now, w/ plenty of oomph to spare. It ties GB's all-time FG distance mark."

RIP Pianist Roger Williams

"I'm a 30 point underdog going into this weekend's fantasy matchup. Playing QB Cutler WR's Moore/Desean Jackson/Manningham RB's Benson and Turner TE: Gronkowski K Bironas DEF New England. Opponent: Brees/Bowe/Calvin Johnson/Steve Smith/Jones-Drew/Adrian Foster/Vernon Davis/Minn D/Philly's kicker."

October 5th - 8th

Wednesday October 5th

"QB Aaron Rodgers has been named the "NFC Offensive Player of the Week" for the second time this season"

"OK, just finished my 30 min phone interview, the 4th step in the WI Dells process. I think it went well, but whadda I know? If I get this, it means $ - the *starting* wage is more $ than I've ever earned - and relocation (she told me the $ they'll give me for relocation and apologized for the amount. Apologize? I thought the relocation amount was my ANNUAL wage - and I was happy.) Too good to be true, which means it won't happen."

"‎'Cuz I was asked: Philadelphia/Milwaukee NLCS, Yankees/Rangers ALCS."

"BREAKING NEWS:
Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, has died at age 56."

"We just finished watching Season Five of Hell's Kitchen. It's a lot of fun to watch, as I've noted five times now, but I do wish they'd add a little variety to the challenges. Still, congrats to winner Danny Veltri, who as usual went on to become 'the executive chef' at a Ramsay restaurant - aka, a standard sous chef. Most mislabeled prize in all of reality TV."

October 6th

"‎'Occupy Wall Street' protesst business while mourning Steve Jobs. Fine. But Steve Jobs had a net worth of around 7 billion and was one of the *gasp* 1% that 'undermine democracy'. On principle, they should toss out their IPads, IPods, and Macbooks. They won't, of course. Know this kiddies: Jobs created more jobs, and hence helped more people, in any given year than all you protesters will do in your lifetimes, COMBINED."

"Folks at work were soooo despondent over the Brewers dropping 2 games in a row to now face elimination in the NLDS. I'm talking hardcore, kept a day to day W-L count on the bulletin board kind of fans. Huh. That mindset is new to me. As a Yankees fan, they can be down 3 games to none in the LCS, losing 9-0 in the bottom of the eighth, and I'd still bet on seeing them in the Series. Milwaukee fans need to act like we've been here before and quit anticipating a collapse."

Smiley's Power Rangers Halloween costume:





"And . . . I didn't get the Dells job. I was just notified - @ 10:27pm!? - via a personal email. Ugh."

"Detroit just ousted the Yanks. What a crappy half hour for Danny."

October 7th

"Went to bed 3 hrs earlier than normal in a depressive funk, but time to nut up & keep slugging. Off to work soon, then afterwards I'm going to stop and price a new suit. I clean up well, emerging, when I care to, as a plump but politically wiser Alec Baldwin. Enough of this bulls--t. Time to make some money again."

"‎@ eric's watching game 5 of the NLDS"

"NLDS Victory in the 10th inning, courtesy of T-Plush! Fireworks went off in Bay View (literally) and cops are pulling people over everywhere, as the whole damn neighborhood is drunk (or just delirious w/ joy). Whoo-hoo!"

Pics taken during the game winning hit (plus Eric's 'Beast' pose)















"Work bit ass. Went to tailor shop afterwards, tried on some threads. Looked smashing. Par for the course. Came home, wrote and submitted JS column, it may run Tues. Wrote it intending to stir up some schtuff, so less than 50 JSonline comments will mark it as a failure."

"Home from Eric's. Once his wife came home it was kibosh on MLB night. Lisa and the kids are in the Dells with a friend (enjoying a haunted hayride, I'm told) so I Redbox'ed "The Walking Dead, The Complete First Season" and plan to knock that off tonight."

Our Miraculous Continental US Pancake:



October 8th

"Breaking news: Raider's owner Al Davis is dead @ 82. RIP"

I literally kissed the cover when I saw it on the shelf. Disturbing but true.



I'm a 30 point underdog going into this weekend's fantasy matchup. Playing QB Cutler WR's Moore/Desean Jackson/Manningham RB's Benson and Turner TE: Gronkowski K Bironas DEF New England. Opponent: Brees/Bowe/Calvin Johnson/Steve Smith/Jones-Drew/Adrian Foster/Vernon Davis/Minn D/Philly's kicker.

Courtney Love has gone on record as saying she'd kill Kurt Cobain if he came back to life. I guess if you've done it once . . .

RIP Elisabeth Sladen 1 February 1948 – 19 April 2011

My heart dropped yesterday when I learned of the passing of actress Elisabeth Sladen, aka "Sarah Jane Smith" of Doctor Who fame. She was 63.

Sarah Jane was an extraordinarily popular character in the Doctor Who universe, and yes, of course, she is my favorite of the Doctor's many companions. To the preteen boy who had such a serious crush on her, she was much more too.

I found her beautiful and sexy, intelligent and adventurous. Perhaps more importantly - for the first time in my life I appreciated an intelligent woman determined to forge her own place in the world. Compare Sarah Jane to the shallow, deferential characters who, university degrees or military rank be damned, would melt into a sniveling mess of Victorian womanhood at the first sight of trouble. She would have none of that, and that wee bit of '70's feminism that snuck into her characterization did me a world of good.

And in those childhood daydreams of a life spent traveling the globe, getting in bar fights in Singapore and stopping the Russians from invading the West, I must admit it didn't hurt to imagine a woman like Sarah Jane at my side . . .







When she rejoined the cast of Doctor Who in mid '00's I was overjoyed - and found her no less attractive as she approached sixty.




RIP Elisabeth. You will be missed.

Facebook May 8th - 18th

May 8th

Came home from work and, wanting to get some repairs done on the porch roof, promptly sliced my thumb on a utiity knife. Don't worry, I stopped the blood flow - by accidently crushing a tube of asphalt sealant while I headed inside, thereby covering my hands, forearms, & shirt with a layer of black tar that took 20 minutes to scrub (75%) off. Ah, well. Saved me a stitch or two I suppose.

Jody Gerut hits for the cycle! Congrats to Jody, the first Brewer since Chad Moeller to accomplish the feat. [btw I was at the Moeller game in 2004 w/ my friend Carlos - I caught two foul balls!]

‎"Big, big mistake. Huge. Didn't anyone ever tell you there's one thing you never, ever put in a trap. Not if u vaulue your continued existence, if you have *any* plans about seeing tommorow. There's one thing you never put in a trap . . . ME." The 11th Doctor, "The Time of Angels"

Milw's top mental health adminstrator *intentionally* houses female patients with known, violent male offenders to 'reduce violence'. This would explain the # of sexual assaults at our mental health complex. So would this: the adminstrator is a man who uses his position to punish & degrade women for the sake of his sick masturbatory fantasies. Given that his actions have destroyed the trust in our mental health system, and led to sexual assaults and the violent rape of a pregnant woman, he needs to face criminal charges, for negligence or whatever else they can scrape together. Once he belongs to Jerome or Rick or Mr. Big, let him argue his stance about the 'lesser' violence of sex. assualt.

May 9th

This morning my mother-in-law took Lisa out for breakfast. When Lisa said it wasn't right that her Mom pay for the meal, and certainly not on Mother's Day, this was her Mom's response: "Don't worry about it. In twenty years when you're changing my diapers, I'll Just take an extra dump and call it even."

May 10th

RIP Lena Horne

re: a negative critique of Betty White's SNL episode: This critic is on crack. Of course many of the skits exploited her age - Duh! She's 88 years old. What are you supposed to mine for comedy, her thoughts on social security? It was the first SNL I've watched in years and I thought she did marvelous. She has such great comedic timing, and that kiss - McGruber is a lucky man!

May 11th

The Big Ten has extended offers for the following schools to join the conference: Missouri, Rutgers, Nebraska, and Notre Dame. I think Nebraska would be a nice fit, and I guess Rutgers expands the B10 reach into the NY area. I'm told MO is a fertile recruiting ground for the Badgers, so screw adding them, and I'd pass on the Irish. We'll see how it turns out.

Jury duty all day, then came home to horrible children. Seriously. Horrible. Children. I sent them all to bed just after six with no supper. If they're lucky and actually show some compassion and regret, they might qualify for meals by June. July is more likely.

May 12th

Tuesday's Glee was a downer, wasn't it? Quadraplegics (sp?), John Mellencamp and Kurt going all boo-hoo over a Dad who CLEARLY loves his son despite their differences. Nut up kid. Ah well. Neil Patrick Harris guest stars next week. Should be a hoot.

Finally saw last night's Lost. I'll cop to being a little confused, which is unusual; sometimes what I 'know' turns out to be wrong, but I always walk away with a gist of it down and a decent theory in my head. I'll need to mull this one over.

May 13th

If you're in need of a good (albeit violent) drama to fill up your TV screen, take a gander at 'Justified' on FX. I've watched the first 8 episodes via On Demand and I've enjoyed every show.

May 14th

Horrible news. Dano Plato's son, who by all accounts has strugged to deal with his mother's legacy in the decade since her death, has committed suicide. RIP.

A 42 year old actress has stepped forward claiming Roman Polanski had sex with her when she was 16. It should be noted that the legal age of consent in Paris, where the alleged sex took place, was (is?) 15. However, since she claims he forced himself on her, the age of consent is irrelevant. I'm not sure I buy the rationale behind her stepping forward now, but it certainly isn't good news for Polanski.

The Missouri legislature has given approval to strip Mark McGwire's name from the highway they named in his honor. What a sh*t move. Ugh. On the other hand, former Brewers manager Ned Yost has been named the manager of the KC Royals. Congrats to Ned, and all the best.

May 15th

So, let me get this straight: the Twins intentionally walked the bases loaded to face my man Arod, a HOF'er and notorious Twins killer. Brilliant. Congrats to ARod on the game winning shot, and for passing Frank Robinson on the all-time HR list.

May 16th

Lisa was super po'd at me yest. So after work, w/ our kids dispersed to relatives, I took her out for dinner and drinks, followed by a moonlight ride by the lakefront. With her again loving the Dslap, I finally got down to enjoying Saturday night the way it was meant to be spent: w/ a new episode of Doctor Who on the TV. ;)

re: "Ashes to Ashes" I saw an episode of this show last night on the BBC and while it was very good, I thought it was awfully similar to "Life on Mars". Well, it turns out it's a spin-off. A female police detective is shot in the present day and awakens in 1982, where she leads a second life as a detective in that era. Putting aside the time travel stuff, it's a solid police procedural.

LuLu is seriously in love with Justin Beiber. She has posters on her wall, and she asked me to help her enter a Teen Beat contest to win his teddy bear. She's so cute - for weeks afterwards she'd ask me if she'd 'won yet'. :)

re: Taio Cruz's "Break Your Heart" I couldn't get this song out of my head yesterday, and caught myself humming it while a customer was droning on. Oopsie. BTW - Ludacris seems to appear on every song produced in North America. He's the Jude Law of the music biz.

May 17th

Milwaukee, stick a fork in [DJ's] Bob & Brian. I used to love 'em, and they did their schtick - blue collar/everyday Milwaukee Joe - better than anyone. But now they're rich, 50 yr old guys who live in the burbs; they're guys who have to google pop culture references, who refuse to play ANY music, & who pander to the stick-in-the-butt Zayban (sic). Enough. And please, don't even get me started on this 'Reheated' B.S. [where there show is repeated later in the day]

May 17th

To every yahoo that went around Milwaukee yesterday saying "Whoo-hoo! Summer's finally here!" - thank your karma for the fifty degree weather today. I 'preciate it. :)

"Constantly choosing the lesser of two evils is still choosing evil." - Jerry Garcia

Seven losses in a row for the Brewers, including an entire homestand. This team sucks right now. Yikes. Let's start a FB pool - barring a 180, I say Macha is fired by May 25th. [I was wrong; he lasted the season before being fired]

May 18th

Timbaland coulda stayed home - Justin carries this song. "I'll take two # 3's/ that's a whole lot of you and a side of me/now is it full of myself to want you full of me?/ . . . Do you like it well done? 'Cuz I do it well/'Cuz I'm well seasoned if you couldn't tell"



Last fall the city used stimilus $ to tear up my lawn. They replaced a functioning, intact gas pipe w/ more of the same, wiped out the small hill in front of my porch & destroyed my grass. I was set to cut the new lawn today for the 1st x - so naturally the city returned & dug it up AGAIN. They left a note on my door saying it was just to ck & see if they'd done the work right. America, your gov't at work.

Facebook Jan 28-29th

Jan 28th: J.D. Salinger has passed away. RIP. Still, let me be honest: I'm one of those readers who felt Catcher in the Rye was vastly over-rated, and that Holden Caulfield was a spoiled brat.

* How to be a Bad Parent to an 8 yr old: After school, YaYa was ecstatic. "Dad, I got a hundred on my math test!" she said. To which I immediately responded: "How?? Did you cheat?!"

The Senate voted to increase the debt by $1.9 trillion: From the piece: The measure would put the national debt @ $14.3 trillion — more than $45,000 for every person in the United States. And the debt is increasingly held by foreign nations such as China. The measure passed 60-39 under ground rules insisted upon by Republicans that required 60 votes to pass it.

* My sister just called to say Jay Leno's on Oprah, doing an "aw shucks, I didn't mean to screw over anyone" schtick, perfected circa 1992. Never fear Jay, your AARP audience will stand by you. I thanked her for the info, but I've got no interest in boosting Oprah's ratings.

* That's it folks. MPTV will no longer be featuring daily episodes of Mr. Rogers. By the time of my grandchildren it will known only through second-hand recollections. RIP Neighborhood of Make Believe.

Avatar neared Titanic on the all-time revenue chart: Because someone asked me about this very subject . . . if you account for inflation and the rise in ticket prices, Avatar would have to double its current gross to approach Titanic, and would have to rake in 1.5 BILLION to match Gone with the Wind.

Jan 29th: My five favorite TV Shows are Lost, Project Runway, Match Game, Doctor Who and American Idol. BTW, if you were going to flesh out my list of TV shows: Twilight Zone, Dirty Jobs, MASH, Friends, Barney Miller, Naked Science, Seconds from Disaster, Air Emergency, As the World Turns, Chuck, The Dish, Launch my Line, One Step Beyond, Demons, Life is Worth Living, The Prisoner (original), Unsolved Mysteries, Beyond Belief, Cake Boss, Rupaul's Drag Race, Medium, 19 Kids and Counting, etc.

* Today's random, taken out of context, overheard conversation, this time at a local restaurant: "Just shut up and put your meat in the hole".

* Doctors volunteering in earthquake stricken Haiti were under fire for pictures of them drinking: Poor judgement and indiscrete. Yet their work was 'excellent' - & keep in mind they're not giving breast implants to movie stars, they're helping quake victims in the middle of chaos and carnage. Give them a break, and bury the PC bullsh** that might cost them their careers.

* This being Doppelganger week, I asked Lisa what celebrity I resembled. "Dante from Clerks," she said. Duh - I was even called Dante for a bit when the movie was big, and neither one of us has a chin. "That, or a really, really fat Ben Affleck."

My Life according to Facebook Jan 25- 27th

Jan 25th: Pissy Dan says - I know some people here have Bluetooth's, but I have to say it. If I'm in line with you, and you're yakking into thin air on that thing all la-di-da, obnoxiously loud and pretentious, know this: if it wasn't for my good looks making jail a liability, I'd put you on the ground.

Later that day I find out actor Pernell Roberts has died: What lousy, lousy news. True (albeit dorky and lol) story: in high school typing class we were instructed to type out a letter to someone of our choosing. I wrote a fan letter to Pernell Roberts.

Jan 26th: Father Gene Jakubek, a beloved Milwaukee figure who left the city in 1989 after admitting to an affair with a woman, has passed away. He was 87. Among other things, Jakubek was the founder of Father Gene's HELP (Happiness for the elderly, lonely and poor). I still remember going with my Dadto donate clothing to that o...rganization. He did a lot of good in this town. RIP Father.

Here's a rule of life as true as any in physics. No matter how long your ride - 10 min, 30, eight hours- you can count on a radio station playing a great 7 or 8 minute opus when - and ONLY WHEN - you are 2 min or less from your destination. I haven't heard the end to Bohemian Rhapsody or LA Woman in years.

I finally (!) found a new tank for the turtle, dang near a month after his old one shattered. It's as big as his old tank/smaller than his temp. digs, but he seems happy. Smiley and I found it at Goodwill for $5, and stopped to get Franklin a 'welcome home' meal of live crickets as a treat.

Plans for Family Night: BBQ chicken with a baked potato bar (salsa, sour cream, bacon bits, etc), followed by either a card game or door-to-door for Girl Scouts. Later, AI. Right now tho' Lisa is volunteering at YaYa's play practice for the 1st time, and I expect some rookie hazing. I give YaYa a 50/50 chance of NOT forcing Lisa to give her up for adoption.

Quoting Lisa's FB: [YaYa]has reached her goal of selling 150 boxes of Girlscout cookies! I feel redeemed for a pitiful showing last year (we didn't sell any!). She told the last house "I only have 3 more to sell and then I can go home!"....and the lady bought it! (it was the truth, but part of me thought, why didn't we... think about that line earlier!)

Jan 27th: Family Night went as planned (for once!) and all was well. My take on AI: Avril was an immature brat and a waste of airtime, Katy Perry was stunning, headstrong, and should be invited back, and this show is doomed once Simon leaves. BTW, "This isn't a Lifetime movie" (Perry) was one of the best lines I've ever heard fr...om an AI judge not named Simon.

"Not ironic?? This is like O. Henry and Alanis Morissette had a baby and named it This Exact Situation!” - from Archer, a great adult cartoon on FX

refering to pop star Ke$ha, who sings TikTok: Clear something up for me Ke$ha. Everybody gettin crunk crunk, boys trying to touch ur junk junk, now the dudes are lining up cuz they heard u got swagger, but u kick em to the curb unless they look like Mick Jagger. Have u looked in a mirror girl? Why would YOU waste your time on a Jagger look-a-like?

Then again, I do love a woman who brushes her teeth with Jack. :)

Three passings of note

It's old news by now, but Patrick Swayze passed away of cancer Monday. His autobiography, The Time of My Life, is scheduled to drop September 29th. He was 57.

Dirty Dancing was on constant rotation in my house at the tail end of grade school, and I greatly admire his all too public fight with cancer. Not that they'll ever read this, but my condolences to the family, especially his wife of over 30 years.

* * *

The real-life inspiration for the film Norma Rae, Crystal Lee Sutton, passed away from cancer as well.

She remains an icon of the labor movement, but Sutton never reaped the financial benefits of her life story. She had to return to the workforce as a nursing assistant before being sidelined with cancer. She was 68.

* * *

Lastly, Jody Powell, long time Press Secretary for Jimmy Carter, died of an apparent heart attack.


Powell plays a role in a few upcoming posts about Carter, and so the timing of his passing struck a nerve. Powell was with Carter from the late '60's until his political end, and carried a deserved reputation as a hothead. He once dumped red wine on Sam Donaldson on an airline flight, and answered a letter to the then-Governor by referring to the writer as a moron.

He was 65.

Ted Kennedy, Dead at 77

I returned home from a camping trip today to discover that Ted Kennedy had passed away of cancer at 77. The news was expected and Ted lived a long life, so I'd imagine his family was prepared for the loss, but all the same my sympathy to them on his death.

In the wake of his passing I dread the next week of political grandstanding. In the media, on the Hill, and in blogdom he will be eulogized, crocodile tears will spill, and a man who spent his life immersed in a modern mythology will be interned to the sound of the same tales.

* * * *

You know, I actually had a correspondence with Senator Kennedy around Christmas of 1983. My Mom had written him on my behalf, stating my adoration of JFK. In response came what I'm sure was an oft-recited reply, along with several items of JFK memorabilia.

(Dave Powers, a longtime friend of JFK, did him one better. Powers sent me a personal letter along with 8X10 Black and White photos of the President and actual magazines from his Presidency)

It must have been hard for Ted by the time my letter arrived. There he was a twenty year veteran in the Senate, and most people - even a boy in Wisconsin - thought of him only in terms of his genetic connection to his brothers.

Sad really, but let's also be realistic: Ted got his job because of his name and he remained in the Senate 40 years because of the same (would anyone but a Kennedy have politically survived Chappaquiddick?).

If, in the end, he will be remembered primarily for his family, it seems almost fitting.

* * *

Since I began this post I've caught wind of two articles predictably urging the passing of health insurance reform bills in his honor. "Do it For Ted!" is one headline, opportunistically jumping on the perception that Kennedy was a champion of universal health care.

Not so fast. He like to talk a lot about the subject, and he did make efforts to have various programs passed, but I've heard doubts about his committment to the idea. I'm not quoting a Republican, but rather Jimmy Carter.

Three years before their dust-up in the '80 election Carter grew frustrated and resentful of Kennedy. It seems - and I'm referencing Carter's own autobiography here - that the Congress was closer than ever to passing health insurance reform and initiating universal coverage when Kennedy hit the brakes. He would not support the bill, nor would he encourage others to do so.

It was not HIS bill, you see, and it was important, ever so important, that Kennedy have his name associated with any such reform. He backed away from the bill, and it died a quiet death.

* * * *

This has gone on too long already. Regardless of his politics (which I detest), and some of his highly questionable personal actions, I wish his soul rest. Goodnight Senator, and may God bless.

Les Paul Dead at 94

Waukesha's own Les Paul, the inventor of the electric guitar and music legend, has passed away. He was 94.

RIP Les - you made Wisconsin proud.

Billy Mays of OxiClean Fame, Dead at 50

CNN is reporting that Billy Mays, the popular bearded pitchman for OxiClean and other products, as well as a star of his own reality series, was found dead in his Tampa home at age 50.

Saturday Mays had been on a jet that made a distressed landing when a tire blew out. He told a local Tampa reporter (emphasis mine):

"All of a sudden as we hit you know it was just the hardest hit, all the things from the ceiling started dropping. It hit me on the head, but I got a hard head."

An autopsy will be performed to identify the cause of death, and the airline has stated they will co-operate fully. RIP Billy - I think you were a lovable and believable salesman for a great product.

Farrah Fawcett Dead at 62

Farrah Fawcett, '70's icon and star of TV's Charlie's Angels, died this morning after battling cancer. She was 62.

My clearest memories of her are from watching The Burning Bed in the mid '90's. I was never into Farrah, as she was a bit before my time, although I do remember an episode of Charlie's Angels were she was kept captive in a steam bath. Even though I was a kid of five or six I remember being . . . impressed.

RIP.

"Kung Fu" Star David Carradine Dies

I hate to post this on Lu's birthday but David Carradine, star of TV's "Kung Ku" and of the "Kill Bill" movies, is reported to have passed away in a Bangkok hotel room. He was 73.

My lifelong memory of him? Confusion. Kung Fu was on TV a lot growing up, but as a little kid in the '70's the flashback sequences completely threw me for a loop - total mind melt. It remains my primary memory of the show and its star.

RIP.

Last Titanic Survivor Passes Away

Milvina Dean, who was an infant when aboard the ill-fated passenger liner, passed away at 97. She was the last known survivor of the most famous sinking of all time.

Quoting the CNN article on her death:

. . . she was 8 years old before she knew she was on the fateful ship. Dean, along with her young brother and mother, survived the sinking of the Titanic, but her mother didn't tell her about it until years later . . .

Dean became the last known Titanic survivor after Barbara Joyce Dainton died in October 2007. The last American survivor, Lillian Asplund, died in May 2006.

According to the article, all the attention she received from Titanic enthusiasts in recent years gave her something to fill the days, an extra bit of oomph and vitality that increased her quality of life.

When I heard the news I went to tell YaYa, who continues to be fascinated by the ship.

Rest in Peace, Ms. Dean.

Author Michael Crichton has died

CNN is reporting his cancer related death. I have no more details. The author of bestsellers like Jurassic Park and creator of ER was 66 and shared a birthday with YaYa.

I will update this post later in the day.

Paul Newman Dead at 83

                                             

CNN.Com is flashing breaking news of the actor's death, presumably of cancer. Check the site for further details throughout the day.

Hat Tip: Chrissy

Bernie Mac Dead at 50

                                                       

CNN is reporting that comedian Bernie Mac is dead at the age of 50 from complications of his recent pneumonia. Mac went into semi-retirement a few years ago with a lung ailment that further complicated the illness.

Although I wasn't a huge fan I did enjoy his sitcom and I tip my hat to the man for filming Mr. 3000, a film about my Brewers, here in Milwaukee.

[and while I didn't get a chance to post about it at the time, RIP  Estelle Getty. I liked her spunky wise-ass portrayal of Sophia on the Golden Girls, which was one of my Grandma's favorite shows and in constant rotation on her TV for awhile.]

 

Tags: Bernie Mac, Estelle Getty, Milwaukee Brewers, Mr. 3000

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RIP Charlton Heston

                        

Charlton Heston, star of movies like Planet of the Apes, El Cid, and my personal favorites Ben-Hur and The Ten Commandments, has passed away at age 84.

An additional tribute can be found at Here, There, and Everywhere.

Rest in Peace.

 

Heath Ledger, Fred Thompson, and Courtney Love (but not in that order)

It's hard to imagine just how shocked I was when a "News at 10" promo came on and casually announced the death of actor Heath Ledger.

I wouldn't describe myself as a 'fan' - I don't think I can say that about any current actor, except perhaps Tom Hanks - but I respected Ledger and his work.

He was charming in '10 Things I Hate About You', cheerfully anachronistic in "Knights Tale" and his performance in 'Brokeback Mountain' was as near to a complete transformation as an actor will ever accomplish.

When you saw his name attached to a movie you walked in with high expectations, and his death, by whatever means it came,was a waste of true talent and ability.

He will be missed

* * * *

Ledger's death took a lot of the wind out of my sails. Earlier in the day I was irate about an article about Courtney Love that I saw online - angry enough to bend my wife's ear while she was on break at work.

She patiently told me I was getting worked up over nothing, that Love had every right to do what she did, and that I should give her the benefit of the doubt.

Translation: Kurt Cobain is long dead, get over it, and please don't call me at work to rant about his widow.

She has a point.

Then again, so do I. Love has announced the go-ahead of a feature film of Kurt Cobain's life, based on Charles R. Cross' bio Heavier than Heaven.

I'm not a big fan of the book and frankly, [full disclosure] couldn't read it cover to cover. To me it just seemed to be a book-length gossip rag supported by, and perhaps catering to, Courtney's version of events. There's a lot of items that come out of left field that are unsubstantiated and seem designed to sell copies.

And of course, the book ends with an infamous narrative of Kurt's last moments that openly incorporates fiction and guesswork - 'New journalism' perhaps, but piss poor history.

[Here's a few comprehensive objections to the book. I agree with some and find others as odd as some sections of the book.]

So I'm naturally leery of any feature film based on the book, especially when Love's people call the movie "an accurate, credible glimpse of her life with Kurt" and a "labor of love".

Credible, huh? Then why ask Scarlett Johansson to play you in the film?

Courtney was always hot in that bad girl/crack addict kind of way, but for Johansonn to pull it off she'll have to do more work than Charlize Theron did for Monster. 

All grumbling aside, I'll see the movie. How could I not?

* * * *

By the way, here's a pic of Kurt's daughter Frances Bean, who was about a year and a half when he died. Man, we're all getting old.

* * *

In politics, Fred Thompson gave up the ghost (oh, poor choice of words given the rest of this post) and dropped out of the race. So much for my friends theory that he was simply laying low until voter fatigue set in for the other candidates.

I watched some of the Democratic debate last night. They'd best be careful. You have to fight tooth and nail in the primaries, but if you rip the competition too effectively you eliminate any reasonable chance of being a plausible VP, and perhaps more importantly on a grand scale, how can anyone buy your future support for the nominee in the general election?

Tags: Heath Ledger, Kurt Cobain, Frances Bean Cobain, Courtney Love, Fred Thompson

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RIP Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus

For those of you outside Wisconsin, the Badger State lost one of its best this week. Former Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus (R), passed away of respitory failure. He was 81.

Dreyfus was in office from 1979-1983, a one term governor who walked away from an almost certain re-election. He was a latecomer to the Republican party and politics in general, joining the party only after a mid-'70's trip to China convinced him a one-party system was abhorrent.

Wisconsin, at the time, was a Democratic stronghold bordering on absolute dominance. So Dreyfus joined the GOP.

"My mother always taught me it was polite to join a party before you take it over," he said.

He ran without special interest money or much advertising, but ran into luck when Pope John Paul II took office. Dreyfus, the former Chancellor of what would become UW - Stevens Point, had once met the new Pope when he toured the state as a Cardinal. 

In Wisconsin, the  news footage of the new Pope featured  Dreyfus alongside the Pontiff in many shots, burning the association into the minds of good Catholics across the state  - and nevermind that Dreyfus was Episcopalian.

Dreyfus, with his trademark red vests, was also quick with the one-liner. Madison, he said, "is 30 square miles surrounded by reality"

He found the concept of a budget surplus an 'immorality' because he believed it meant citizens were either being over-taxed, slighted on services, or both. He would leave a defecit behind for his successor.

A national economic downturn curtailed any grand plans for the administration, but he remained a popular figure that would go on to lead Sentry insurance.

Dreyfus is the first Governor I remember, primarily from his photo on the back of maps as a kid, and he's the first one I ever saw in person. It was nothing more than a passing glimpse. I think I was with my paternal Grandparent's and as we were leaving a restaurant he was walking in, or vice versa. He could tell I recognized him, smiled, and nodded. Maybe he even said hello. Maybe not.

Nothing more than that, but it was enough for me to remember him fondly.

He'll be missed.