TV News is a Joke

From JSOnline's Duane Dudek, commenting on the Slenderman story:

"The crime was "graphic, disturbing and hard to believe," said Meekins, as a WTMJ onscreen headline screamed "Slumber Party Stabbing" and later "Plot to Kill." Reporter Jermont Terry practically leaped off the screen describing the crime and sat on a bicycle while reporting that the victim was discovered by a bicyclist. WISN reporter Christina Palladino prefaced her report by noting "the people I talked to literally have no words" and then interviewed people who used words to speak on camera."

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

We watched "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" over the weekend. If I'm being honest, I thought it was slow. His fantasy life, so hyped in the trailers, was a throwaway that wasn't needed to establish his character's yearning to break free from his rut, and the movie moved at a PBS pace. Still, not a bad film and certainly not the worst way to pass a few hours.

Want

Tiananmen Square

25 years since Tiananmen Square . . . man I'm getting old. And in China, the government is still hiding their crime.

The Slenderman Stabbing

I'm sure you've heard the media jump on the story about the two local 12 year old girls who stabbed their friend after hatching a murder plot, then tried - so far successfully - to blame it on the influence of the video game character SlenderMan. 

I saw some Alpha Male sheriff, looking all howdy doody in his little dress up costume, give a stern lecture about the dangers of the game and boy did the local stations slurp up his crap. 

For the record, SlenderMan is a thin, very tall, faceless paranormal being who inhabits a first person horror game that is downright, legitimately pulse-raising creepy. I wish I'd come up with such a scary, iconic character. 

 All of my kids know of the game, and OJ and PD have played it. I've watched them play it, I've heard them talk about it, and I don't have a problem with it - and that's coming from someone who enforces a no-video game system household. We have no Playstation, X-Box, etc. None. These 12 year old's hacked away at their friend because they are sick, warped f**ks, not because of some computer game.

Shame on the media (yet again) for jumping on the nearest bandwagon. Once the SlenderMan angle falls short, they'll start talking about how the girls were bullied, boo-hoo. Just you watch.

Ugh.

Table Ettiquette

Ann B Davis

RIP Ann B Davis, beloved live-in housekeeper to us all.

The Matrix

I sat down to watch The Matrix with YaYa and was prepared to a) argue in defense of its worth and b) explain it BUT she surprised me by saying at the outset that she's seen it before and that it was one of her favorite movies. Huh. Well, okay then 🙂

Unbelievable! Gross Incompetence

I just checked my bank account and was floored when I discovered that iconic downtown restaurant Real Chilli charged me ........$1708.21 (!) for a couple of hot dogs for the kids and a bowl of chili. I got the # for the restaurant owner who said he saw the charge go through, knew it was an error, and lacking my name, was "waiting for an angry customer to call". Well, mission accomplished. There is a mortgage check and utility payments in the mail and now disaster looms, although the owner claims he'll cover all charges if that happens before he can reverse the charge Monday morning. What a life.

Spring Grades

Spring grades were posted. I didn't do as well as I hoped, notching only a B and a B- and taking a 2.912 GPA into the fall. 

The B in Civil Procedure ticks me off, b/c even in looking over the material in retrospect, I thought I kicked ass on the final. I'm left shaking my head and wondering what I have to do to earn an A.

Maybe it's beyond me. 

That said, that B- in Property Law features an obligatory reduction of my final grade because car trouble caused me to be late for the final, and the Professor informed me of the penalty before I was allowed to start the exam. Sooooooo, looking at it in that light, and remembering the awful stress that put on me in the moment, I guess I'll notch that as a shaky "win", or at least a draw.

As is almost always the case, EGBAR.

Maya Angelou

RIP Maya Angelou

Quote of the Day

You can delegate authority, but not responsibility." - Stephen W. Comiskey

With Lisa and the youngest two at Marquette School of Dentistry

Godzilla

I took advantage of $5 Tuesday's to take the oldest three and their friend Sydney to see Godzilla. I liked but didn't love it.

YaYa is amazing okok thanks ❤ ❤ - YaYa

The 2014 Memorial Day Parade

Junie Gets a Check Up!

Annual check up. 49" tall, 54#

Lisa and Junie Read a Book

Woods Cemetery

At Wood National Cemetery with the kids that didn't accompany us to the parade. Yes, I know it's Memorial Day, not Veteran's Day. We were merely paying our respects.

The Memorial Day Parade

Downtown on WI and Van Buren awaiting the Memorial Day parade. Front row seats in the shade no less...

Jump Rope

Smiley and I went to the park to skip rope. There are pics of me in action too but I'll spare you the horror.

Quote of the Day

Never do a wrong thing to make a friend or to keep one." - Robert E. Lee

Happy Birthday Sir!

Pearl Jam is playing the Bradley Center on Lisa's birthday/my Dad's birthday (Oct 20th). A little too close to some big events to part easily with any $, but it sure would be nice

Yup

To quote someone online: If your political party doesn't include people who make you uncomfortable, it's probably not broad enough to win a general election.