Random Flickr Blogging IMG_5744

Random Flickr Blogging explained.
You may click on each picture to go to the original.

R I funny? . . . R I amuse U? . . . R I here to fucking amuse U?

The gig was up. It was only a matter of time until the "Jerry Garcia is alive and well, living in Russia" rumors started.

"No, it looks better on you." "No, don't be silly, it looks so much better on you."

Somehow, Aha's early work wasn't as well received as the later stuff.

Although the Running of the Bulls gets all the press, the San Fermin festival's "Running of the Cougars" is just as popular.

"yeah, potted meat food product MY ASS"

Excuse me, miss? There seems to be a mistake. I believe I ordered the LARGE cappuccino!

Oh! Well, I guess the Cubs can win the World Series this year.

Pictures at Eleven .....

So I promised pictures of the cheesecake, which btw was yummy. It probably could have stayed in the oven a little longer. It was really fine, I'm just being picky. Everybody seemed to love it.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures, (alcohol may have been a factor.....)
You may click for full size





More pictures from the weekend ..........

There was food

Sam is desperately hoping someone drops some turkey

There was fishing

There were flowers

Let us not forget naps in the hammock

It doesn't suck to be Clinton

Brave Sir Robin is very thankful for his friends, his family, and for those of you who care enough to stop by here and read my musings.

Thanks for stopping by. I am working on a long post to tell the whole Rene' story once and for all. It may be serialized, after all better bloggers than me have done it.

Today's Task.....

My good friends D & L were in Canada skiing over Thanksgiving, and missed out on a traditional meal, so today we are all going to their house for a belated Thanksgiving feast. My task is to make a pumpkin cheesecake, (recipe below) and whatever else I choose. Since I still have an abundance of rich turkey stock in the fridge, I will probably make a pan of stuffing.

However, my main task today, and every day it seems, is to purge my mind of Rene'.

My Mantra:

I am in love with who I thought she was. It is even fair to say I am in love with who I hoped she was, who I wanted her to be. I am in love with who she could be. I am in love with who she pretends to be, and perhaps even who she wants to be.

That person does not exist.

That person is a facade, created by a careful set of lies and manipulations.

Boy, thinking it is one thing.

Saying it out loud to myself is another thing.

Seeing it written down here for the world to see is something else entirely.

I know in my heart that what I've written is true, but that doesn't make the memory of that love any less real or less bittersweet. I am deeply in love with a person that never existed. The question of whether she could be that person if she choose to be is the one thing that keeps me going back for more each time.

I'm not sure she can.

Pumpkin cheesecake

Crust

• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 cup ginger snap crumbs
• 3/4 cup finely chopped toasted pecans
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted

Press crust into bottom and a little up the sides of a 9 or 10 inch springform pan. Put in freezer at least 20 minutes. While preparing filling, pre-bake crust 10 minutes‚ at 400° and let cool.

For the filling:

• 1 1/2 cups solid pack pumpkin (fresh makes a huge difference, but it can be made with canned)
  
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 t. ground ginger
• 1/4 t. allspice
  
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
• three 8-ounce packages softened cream cheese
• 1/2 c. granulated sugar
• 2 T. heavy cream
• 1 T. cornstarch
• 1 1/2 t. vanilla
• 3 T. bourbon

In a bowl whisk together the pumpkin, the cinnamon, the nutmeg, the ginger, the salt, and the brown sugar. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs until just mixed, then fold into the pumpkin mixture. In a large bowl with an electric mixer cream together the cream cheese and the granulated sugar, beat in the cream, the cornstarch, the vanilla, the bourbon, adding the pumpkin mixture last, and beat the filling until it is smooth. Note: do not over mix after the egg/pumpkin mixture is added. excess air whipped into the eggs will cause cracking later.

Pour the filling into the crust, bake the cheesecake in the middle of a preheated 350°F. oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the center is not quite set, and let it cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes.

For the topping:

• 2 c. sour cream
• 3 T. granulated sugar
• 3 T. bourbon liqueur or bourbon, or to taste
• 3/4 c. chopped candied pecans
  

In a bowl, whisk together the sour cream, sugar, and bourbon. Spread the sour cream mixture over the top of the cheesecake and bake the cheesecake for an additional 5 minutes. Let the cheesecake cool in the pan on a rack and chill it, covered, overnight.

I've Been Tagged!

I'll get back soon on this one.

Biggest problem?

I don't think I have 8 readers (who blog)!

:)

If This Doesn't Scare The Shit Out Of You...

Wow.

This post over at Pensito Review outlines a scenario that hadn't really occurred to me.

What if Cheney's atrial fibrillation is just a ruse to allow him to flee to Paraguay resign. That would allow a newly incumbent V.P. to slide into a nomination, bypassing a less than acceptable lineup of current candidates.

Normal people often overlook how hierarchical Republicans are by nature. They prefer to anoint their candidates in an orderly way: In the absence of a sitting vice president, as George H.W. Bush was to Reagan in 1992, a senior statesman is anointed, as Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole was in 1996 — or, better yet, they can satisfy their aristocratic yearnings by anointing the son of a former president, as they did the current Bush in 2000.

This year, in the absence of a clear choice, Republicans find themselves facing a roster of unacceptable candidates: a philandering liberal, a Mormon, an aging warrior who’s considered insufficiently doctrinaire, a lazy television actor, a former preacher with a weak record as governor of Arkansas and a Libertarian kook.

The strain of this disorderliness must be tormenting the GOP power base. And all of it could be wiped away in a simple fiat — the replacement of Dick Cheney with a new vice president whom they could anoint right away to become Bush’s successor.

So who might fit the bill — who could be counted on to beat the Democrats next November and keep the Bush family secrets for at least four more years?

Only one name comes to mind. He is experienced and available, and tanned and rested — and his name is Jeb.

I'm not sure about Pensito's choice of replacement, (God I hope not!) but it sure might shed some light on Lott's sudden retirement, less than a year into his new term.

Go read it all.

h/t to Pookyshoehorn

Purrrrrrrrrrfect Way To Relax

Via Robin, an instant way to relax and melt the stress away.

Have your speakers turned on.

Enjoy

What I Can Do

As most of you are aware, we are in day four of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign.

Today Melissa over at Shakesville had an excellent (as always) post about what men can do.

I urge you to go and read it in its entirety. Much of the post struck home with me. For example:

See, the thing about men who are violent toward women is that they don't respect women, or what they have to say, or even their basic rights—and when you consider that the responsibility for preventing violence against women has traditionally been left to women, you start to see the problem. We need other men to communicate to them loudly and clearly and constantly that violence against women is totally unacceptable. We need male allies, just like the LGBTQ community needs straight allies, just like people of color need white allies.

Yes, I consider myself a feminist, and of course I abhor the thought of violence against women. That being said, I haven't really done much else. I have made the occasional post about it, but honestly I am a bit uncomfortable writing on the topic and I often punt, if you will, to Melissa. If I see something that offends my sensibilities, I usually email her and she will write a post about it. I will probably keep doing that because she is a better writer than I am and she does have about a few thousand hits more a day than I do.

So, back to the question: What can I do?

Well, this list (via A Call To Men) is a good place to start:

10 Things Men Can Do To End Men's Violence Against Women

1. Acknowledge and understand how sexism, male dominance and male privilege lay the foundation for all forms of violence against women.

2. Examine and challenge our individual sexism and the role that we play in supporting men who are abusive.

3. Recognize and stop colluding with other men by getting out of our socially defined roles, and take a stance to end violence against women.

4. Remember that our silence is affirming. When we choose not to speak out against men's violence, we are supporting it.

5. Educate and re-educate our sons and other young men about our responsibility in ending men's violence against women.

6."Break out of the man box"—Challenge traditional images of manhood that stop us from actively taking a stand to end violence against women.

7. Accept and own our responsibility that violence against women will not end until men become part of the solution to end it. We must take an active role in creating a cultural and social shift that no longer tolerates violence against women.

8. Stop supporting the notion that men's violence against women can end by providing treatment for individual men. Mental illness, lack of anger management skills, chemical dependency, stress, etc… are only excuses for men's behavior. Violence against women is rooted in the historic oppression of women and the outgrowth of the socialization of men.

9. Take responsibility for creating appropriate and effective ways to develop systems to educate and hold men accountable.

10. Create systems of accountability to women in your community. Violence against women will end only when we take direction from those who understand it most—women.



Thanks Liss, for the suggestion and the work you do.

Pearl Jam - H.R. Pufnstuf Theme

How is it possible that I have never seen this before?

Awesome.

I loved this show as a kid.

You might want to have a little "something to share" before viewing.

I'm just sayin' .....

Goodbye Riley Ann

I have nothing snarky to say. I'm sitting here at my computer at 6:15 in the morning with tears streaming down my face.

I just read the police account of Riley Ann Sawyers death. This is a local story that has garnered some national attention.

On October 29th, a plastic storage container was found washed up on Galveston Island with the body of a two year old little girl. Her skull had been fractured, and she had other injuries as well. Local police were calling her "Baby Grace"

I won't go into the account of her death, it's all here.

The killers were her mother and step father. A full confession has been given.

How?

Why?

I look at this picture and I can see my own daughter at that age in that face. Who could do this? Who?

I wasn't going to rant, but let me say this:

All you fuckers out there who claim to be "Pro-Family", yet don't want gays to marry or adopt ask yourselves this -

Would little Riley-Ann have been better off in a loving home with two fathers who cherished her? Or two loving mothers?

Damn, this is not a good way to start the day.

For you Riley Ann:

The Problem With Libertarians ....

Yesterday, Litbrit posted a stunningly beautiful piece outlining what we get with libertarian policies. (Are you listening Ron Paul devotees?)

She did it in perfect Elizabethan sonnets.

I stand in awe.

Go read it, be amazed.

The Rational Actor's Libertarian Fête

Well, It's a Start ....

I saw her again today. While I did have a bit of a twinge, it didn't jack me up as much as it did last time.

I had spent the better part of the day telling myself (out loud a few times) that she didn't deserve me, and perhaps my righteous indignation shielded me a bit.

It's hard knowing that she wants me, I want her, yet I did the right thing.

Trust me.
I did.
I may share all of that with you someday.

loneliness sucks.

Random Flickr Blogging IMG_1335

Random Flickr blogging explained

You may click on the photos to link to the original photo posting.

Initiation rites for the incoming class at the Police Academy were tougher than Bob feared.

Must learn to center shots....must learn to center shots...must learn to center shots....

Mrs. Potter thinks to herself....

What do I have to lose? No one's ever gonna know.. and I'm not gonna see Paul for another couple of weeks. Sure, Fred's not the most attractive guy in the world.. but if he makes a living at this, he must be doing something right. . . . . . . .. Okay, Mr. Garvin. I'll try it.

Too obscure?



(More to come)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!

From my castle to yours a very happy Thanksgiving.

I wish you joy and peace today.

Now I gotta run, I have a pie in the oven.

You Ate What? Part Deux

I have lived in Texas for 42 of my 45 years. I will admit that I have eaten my fair share of battered, deep fried delectables. My mom deep fried just about every vegetable known to man. Okra? Check. Squash? Check. Potatoes, eggplant, onions, peppers, you name it, she fried it. There was a deep fryer on the kitchen counter that was used if not daily, multiple times a week.

And let us not forget that Texas staple, the sine qua non of Texas cuisine, the chicken fried steak. Ahh yes, a tenderized piece of beef, pounded thin, battered, deep fried and smothered with a creamy gravy.

That all came to a screaming halt in 1978, when my father at the age of 42 had a heart attack. Needless to say, Brave sir Robin does not eat that way these days, and I haven't since that time. Perhaps once every two or three years I will have a chicken fried steak in a restaurant. I have even been known to enjoy a bit of fried okra now and again, in moderation.

What does that have to do with anything?

Glad you asked.

Nothing, and I mean NOTHING in my culinary life has prepared me for the video below. You can almost hear their arteries exploding. Oh, and notice that THEY SMOKE as well. How are these people still alive?

Err, WTF????

Ok, I thought I’d seen it all. I have become jaded and cynical when it comes to this administration and it’s “support the troops” rhetoric. I really didn’t think I could be shocked anymore, and certainly not surprised by anything that the Pentagon, and by extension this administration could pull.

I was wrong.

The military is demanding soldiers injured in service repay signing bonuses because they cannot complete their commitments.

What.

The.

Fuck?

Let me get this straight. If a soldier loses an eye, or an arm, or a leg and gets sent home they have to pay back any bonus they received for volunteering?

I don’t believe in hell, but I hope it exist so these fuckers can burn in it.

Random Flickr Blogging IMG_4196

Well, it's been a while since I've participated in this little Monday ritual, so:

Random flickr blogging explained.

"Dude, I think I found your gum! ..... Oh, never mind."

Ed Grimley had a totally decent prom date, I must say!
(If too obscure, click link)





The winner of Wired's Saddest Cubicle contest was amazed at what they were able to do to his work space.




I haz ur insulashunz, but I eated it

Improvised Muffins Of Overwhelming Deliciousness

Today is #2 son’s 15^th birthday.

This of course, calls for something more than cold cereal or scrambled eggs (which he is not overly fond of anyway) for breakfast.

Problem is, today is my first day off since the cruise. Before that, it had been 18 days since I had a day off. Bottom line, I haven’t done any serious grocery shopping in almost a month.

Hmmmm.

A look through the pantry yielded oatmeal and flour. The Fridge held orange juice, milk, eggs, and some store bought cooked apples.

I found a recipe for oatmeal muffins online and I changed a few things, tweaked it a bit, and tada! Muffins!

Really good muffins, not overly sweet, very tender, but with an interesting bit of chewiness from the oats.

Orange Glazed Oat Muffins

Muffins

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour + 3 tablespoons

1 cup old fashion oats

2/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1/16 teaspoon ginger

1/16 teaspoon allspice

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

2/3 cups orange juice

½ cup 2% milk

1 jumbo egg

¼ cup melted butter

½ cup chopped, cooked apples in sauce.

Glaze

¼ cup orange juice

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon melted butter

More sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Prepare muffin pan by spraying the bottom only with cooking spray

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg well.

Add other liquid ingredients including apples, mix well.

Pour on top of dry ingredients all at once, stir until just combined.

Bake 16 min at 400 degrees.

Remove from oven and brush tops with glaze mixture until all glaze is absorbed.

Sprinkle tops with sugar.

Cool in pan for 5 minutes, remove muffins and place on plate.

Enjoy warm.

A-A-A-A-A-A-A-Allison.......

I've always loved Elvis Costello. He was so fresh and amazing when he was young, and over the years he has shown how truly amazing and gifted a musician he is.

So in honor of his incredible wife's 43rd birthday, (which was actually yesterday) here is his first ever TV appearance.

I can't actually verify that, but that's what the submitter claims. Anyway, it's simple and beautiful, just him and the electric guitar.

Enjoy.

Dammit Dammit Dammit

I saw her a few minutes ago and now I'm a wreck.

I had to run out to the client's site for a while and on the way back I pass right by her daughter's school gym.

There she was, getting out of her car.

How is it possible to be in love with someone who has treated you so badly? She really did, to the point that I simply couldn't go on, yet here I am.

Help? Anyone out there ever have trouble leaving an abusive relationship?

Don't Give Them What They Want

Let me make one thing clear; I will vote for the Democratic nominee. As I’ve said before, the stakes are too high to try and make a bold statement of principal and support a third party candidate.

The Republicans are as splintered as they have been since I have been old enough to vote, the religious right is discouraged. A Romney or Giuliani nomination would more than likely cause some right wingers to just stay home on election day…….

UNLESS….

What is the one thing, the one and only hope the Republicans have of stirring up and motivating the whack-job, wing-nut, haters base to get out and rally around the nominee?

It’s not terrorism.

It’s not even Iran.

Abortion won’t do it. Been there – done that.

It’s Hillary.

That’s right, the Republicans one and only chance to steal win this election is if Hillary is the Nominee.

Every nutcase, fundie out there will flock to the polls to keep her out of the oval office. It’s the Republicans wet dream. Make no mistake, Dobson and his ilk may posture and preen and make noise, but if Hillary gets the nomination, they will hold their nose and vote for Giuliani, or Romney.

Hell, if Hillary gets the nomination, Giuliani could accept the Republican nomination in full drag, with Tony Soprano as his running mate, divorce papers hanging out of his back pocket and tongue his newest mistress right there on the stage and they would still flock to the polls.

PLEASE – don’t nominate Hillary.

I Guess My Nomination Got Lost In The Mail.....

Matt Damon named "sexiest man Alive"

Guacamole tastes better on the beach….

Brave Sir Robin had a snack on the beach. (Under the shade of a Tiki Hut of course.)

More About The Cruise ......

Ok, I promised a post at lunch. I wish I had time to sit down and write.

The cruise was fine.

The ship was impeccably clean, the staff was attentive, friendly, and efficient, the food was excellent and interesting, the weather was perfect, and the alcohol was plentiful.

So what’s the problem?

My worst fear was that I’d get on the ship and be overwhelmed by a flood of memories and be miserable. I’m happy to report it wasn’t that bad. I did have moments of deeply missing her, mostly during meals and in the late evening. I avoided the places she and I frequented most, and that seemed to help.

I took the attitude that I was there to relax, rest, read, and rejuvenate. I didn’t attend a single show, I didn’t once rush to get somewhere by a certain time, and when I was tired, I slept. That in and of itself is such a vacation from my regular life that it was rejuvenating.

Oddly enough, it was debarking and the long drive home alone that really made me the saddest

Over the next few days, I will try to fill you in on the details.

I survived.....

I'm back!

The cruise was, .... well it's a long story but it was OK. I am really busy at work right now, but I'll try to post a bit at lunch with maybe a picture or two.

I did OK, but I really missed her. I know it's foolish, I know she isn't ever going to change, but she was wonderful to travel with.

Check back after lunch...

By This Time Tomorrow....

I will have my drink on!!

Brave Sir Robin usually eschews fruity, sweet drinks. However, when in Rome.......

All Work And No Play.......

Make Brave Sir Robin a very dull cranky boy.

At the rate I'm going, I will be too tired to do anything but sleep on the ship. 12 hour days without a day off since the 22nd. I only worked 10 hours on Halloween and only 6 on Sunday, but I had to drive 4 hours Sunday to pick the kids up from their Mother's.

I really have planned to post, but work and sleep keep getting in the way.

I managed a run to the book store yesterday to pick up World Without End. I plan on re-reading The Pillars Of The Earth first. I started it yesterday, so between the two of those, I should be set for the cruise, they are both nice and long.

.... Hmm, that didn't sound very sexual did it? I can just hear Sean Connery on Celebrity Jeopardy saying, "Joost like yoor Moother likes it Trebek."

Enjoy:

7 More Days....

Until I sail to Cozumel

Rest In Peace - Robert Goulet

Dead at 73 -



What a set of pipes. He may have been a bit of a cliche' in recent years, but the man could sing.

I saw him on stage about 17 years ago. He was in a decent touring version of Camelot. The others weren't awful, in fact they were pretty good, but when he came on stage, his voice, his stage presence just made everyone else seem small and insignificant.

Rest in peace Sir Lancelot.

The Quagmire Of Masculinity

Wow, just Wow.

Please go read this. You'll be glad you did, unless you're a misogynist asshole.

Yeah, that's a strong statement grounded in nothing but opinion.

That's why it's my blog.

The Quagmire Of Masculinity

h/t to Red Queen

Not How I Wanted To Spend My Sunday...

Busy, busy, busy…….

Brave Sir Robin missed work Monday due to a nasty virus, but will still have over 70 hours for the week.

Do the math on that.

It is about 6:30 AM, Sunday Morning and I’m at work, which is probably where I’ll be at 6:30 PM today.

Sorry for the lack of real posts, but that’s what I’ve been doing.

Best weather we’ve had since May. (Seriously, since May!) and I’m doing 12 and 14 hour days. That’s ok, it’s good to be busy right now. Keeps my mind from drifting into dangerous territory.

Brave Sir Robin does get a small break in 11 days. On Nov. 8^th I will board a cruise ship and take a small little cruise down to Cozumel. I sail on a Thursday and return the following Monday.

I really didn’t want to go, but I either have to take the cruise, or let it go. You see, last year about this time, I took a cruise with Rene’. While on that cruise, I won a free 5 day cruise playing bingo. I have one year to take it. The year is up on Nov. 28^th. I am allowed to take a shorter cruise if I choose, so I took the cruise with only one stop instead of two.

I am either really brave or really foolish, time will tell. I will be on the exact same ship I was on with her. The idea of going on a cruise alone is not very appealing in the first place, add to that the memories of a really, really good time with her on the ship and I may be setting myself up for a serious case of missing her blues.

I plan on bringing several books. Any suggestions? I’m planning on getting World Without End for sure. I hope to re-read Pillars of the Earth before then, but I can’t find my copy.

I’ll keep you all updated on my preparations.

Brave Sir Robin has work to do. In more ways than one.

Are you Lurking Out There?

Today is de-lurking day!!!

I know there are a few of you out there, so step up today and say hello in the comments.

If you think I suck, say so.

If you think I'm great, say so.

Or just say hello.

Thanks for stopping by.

Quote Of The Year

File this under things that would have made me shoot milk out of my nose if I, in fact, had been drinking milk.

If George W. Bush were a tree, he'd be a fascist, asshole tree

That's pretty much the money shot, but its all worth reading.

Please go enjoy.

Happy Syncretism Day!!!!!!!

Actually, today is Saint Crispin's Day. Notable to me mostly because it is the one day a year I am pretty much guaranteed to hear this:





Please, no Branagh bashing here. Brave Sir Robin likes him.

Also notable because it is my oldest son's middle name. Before you ask, he was named after a high school friend who died, not the Saint, who incidentally probably didn't exist.

In any event, fictional or real, we have him to thank for Shakespeare writing this glorious passage:

If we are mark'd to die, we are enow
To do our country loss; and if to live,
The fewer men, the greater share of honour.
God's will! I pray thee, wish not one man more.
By Jove, I am not covetous for gold,
Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost;
It yearns me not if men my garments wear;
Such outward things dwell not in my desires.
But if it be a sin to covet honour,
I am the most offending soul alive.
No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England.
God's peace! I would not lose so great an honour
As one man more methinks would share from me
For the best hope I have. O, do not wish one more!
Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host,
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made,
And crowns for convoy put into his purse;
We would not die in that man's company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is call'd the feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when this day is nam'd,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say 'To-morrow is Saint Crispian.'
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
And say 'These wounds I had on Crispian's day.'
Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot,
But he'll remember, with advantages,
What feats he did that day. Then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words-
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester-
Be in their flowing cups freshly rememb'red.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered-
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

Ok, maybe just one more...

I did mention that DVDs and CDs are exempt from me being materialist....right?

Look what came out yesterday:



Anyone heard it yet? Konagod? Minstrel Boy?

Work, Work, Work ....... UPDATE***

Brave Sir Robin is busy, busy, busy.

Mostly thanks to missing work Monday due to a nasty little virus that swept through the castle this past weekend.

I don't have time right now for a post, but PLEASE.

Go Vote For Litbrit!!!!

It's easy!! Just email your votes by Friday morning.

***UPDATE the nominees are listed here.

Send Email Here

Cut and paste this into your email:

1. Best National Blog -

2. Best State Blog -

3. Best Local Blog -

4. Best Media Blog -

5. Best Professional Blog -

6. Best Party Website -

7. Best Candidate Website -

8. Best Local Party Website -

9. Best Interest Group Website -

10. Best Writer - Litbrit

11. Netroots Candidate of the Year -

12. Netroots Activist of the Year -

13. Netroots Organization of the Year - Florida Progressive Coalition

Add your votes to the other category's.

Enjoy the blessings of Brave Sir Robin for the rest of your days.

Posts to come.

I PROMISE!!!!!

Laurel Wreaths For Everyone

I love the smell of sweaty running shoes in the morning, ......

It smells like VICTORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The last cross-country meet of the year was held Saturday morning. It was the District meet, with the top finishers (Varsity level only) moving on to the Regional and State meets.

The boys had to be on the bus at 5:00 AM. I had enough time to go home and have coffee, shower and get in the car to make the almost 2 hour drive.

I am thrilled to tell you that the District meet was a rousing success!!!! Not only for Sir Robin's squires, but for the teams as well.


Cross-Country is somewhat of a unique sport in that (at least around here) it is the only sport where Jr. High and High School compete at the same events. All year long these kids from 7th grade to Seniors have been arriving at school at 5:45 AM, 4 days a week to run and then loading on buses at the butt-crack of dawn every Saturday morning since school started to go to a meet together. It is great for the younger kids because they feel so important going with the big kids. In turn, the high schoolers really support the younger ones and it is a true team spirit in this, the most individual of sports. It takes a great deal of dedication to get up and run 4 miles every morning before school and then have an after school practice as well. These kids all share the pain of training together and it shows at the meets.

Well, on to the results!

#2 son ran on the Freshman team and placed 7th. (The top ten in each level receive medals)
#3 son ran on the 8th grade team and placed 4th.
If they were varsity level that would advance them both to the regional meet.

In the team standings, it was almost a clean sweep for our teams. The top 6 finishers on each teams scores are combined for a team score. There are boys and girls teams for 7th, 8th, Freshman, Junior Varsity and Varsity. With the exception of the girls JV who took third, every other team we entered took first place.

There was much rejoicing.

Am I proud?

Yes I am!!

Damn Good Pie........

Brave Sir Robin is not materialistic. Really, I'm not. Sure, there are a few small indulgences I enjoy, I am a sucker for fine food and drink, but it is quality more than quantity I desire.

I do however have one glaring weakness.

DVDs , ......(and to a lesser extent - CDs)

I have an embarrassingly large collection.

There is a hole in my collection exactly the size of this:

The Twin Peaks Definitive Gold Box Collection.

Sigh, This show was the first show in my whole life that I simply had to see. I forced myself to learn the rites of the fourth hell that was programing a mid 80's model VCR so I wouldn't miss an episode of this show.

It has been incompletely available until now. The first season has been out for while, but alas, without the Pilot, which was FREAKING AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

The second season came out a few weeks ago, but this, ......oh this has every episode, and TWO versions of the pilot plus interviews and geeky extras and...... I better stop. I'll need to go freshen up if I don't slow down here.

Ok, it's $65.00 at Amazon. Maybe a paper route..........

Excuse me while I go find some "Damn fine coffee".

Must.. Read... These .... Books....

So many books, so little time part two....



OMFFSM!!!!!

Brave Sir Robin has spent the last few months voraciously reading (in some cases re-reading) the classics. (That however, is another post)

I am ready for something a little more ... shall we say.... fun? Something to read for the story and plot alone? Just because I like to read?

Imagine my excitement this morning when perusing the comments over at Tart's Place to see Minstrel Boy point this out.

So of course, a trip to "The city" is in order, as my little village (pop. 12,000 - more or less), doesn't have a book store. We do however, have 11 Mexican restaurants. (But that's another post)

AND THEN.......

I saw this.

Unbelievable. Pillars Of The Earth is in my top ten of all time. I am Jones-ing to leave work early just to go to the book store!!!!!!

Any new releases have you excited?

Well, DUH!!!

From the files of the....
Totally Fucking Obvious To Anyone With An Inkling Of A Clue....

Feminist have healthier, happier relationships.


So you mean women are more satisfied with men who consider them vibrant intelligent equals? And Men who feel this way are more likely to enjoy good sex and loving relationships?

"But... but...but... the bible says"...........

Nice to see research confirm what should be obvious.

btw - Is it really ironic that Yahoo has a Don Imus ad on this page?

Thursday Morning ITUNES random 10...

Pretty random for a change .......

Together.....The Raconteurs
London Calling.....The Clash
New York State Of Mind.....Billy Joel
That Old Black Magic.....Sammy Davis, Jr.
If I Was The Devil.....Pat Green
Hey.....Red Hot Chili Peppers
Awake.....Letters To Cleo
Doll Parts.....Hole
Fell In Love With A Boy.....Joss Stone
Fall Out.....The Police

Meanwhile, back in Hicksville....

I’m still here, I’m just busy.

I actually have a lot to say to you all, it’s just between work, open house, cross-country and football, I have been swamped.

Add into the mix an anti-histamine induced stupor and it has been hard to find time.

Bear with me my friends; I am coming back with a vengeance.

Meanwhile, enjoy this – I find its lack of subtlety charming. Very unusual for an American ad, much more what one would expect from a European ad. I like it, what do you think?

FRIDAY!!!

AGHHHH!!!!

Day From HELL!!!!!

Office politics is such a fucking childish game.

Gore Wins (again)

Imagine what should have been. How different would the world be today if we as Americans hadn't allowed our election to be stolen.

Congratulations Al, the Nobel Peace Prize is truly the most honorable award that I can imagine.

Now please run. Please.

106 Books

H/T to Minstrel Boy for this meme... Ok, so you take this list of 106 books and bold what you've read, italicize what you've partially read. (I seem to have a lot of those, I keep promising a post about books I just can't seem to make it through....)

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Anna Karenina Crime and Punishment
Catch-22 One Hundred Years of Solitude
Wuthering Heights
The Silmarillion Life of Pi : a novel The Name of the Rose
Don Quixote
Moby Dick
Ulysses - This Year!! I promise!
Madame Bovary
The Odyssey
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Eyre
The Tale of Two Cities
The Brothers Karamazov
Guns, Germs, and Steel: the fates of human societies War and Peace
Vanity Fair
The Time Traveler’s Wife - It's been on my shelf for months!
The Iliad
Emma The Blind Assassin The Kite Runner Mrs. Dalloway Great Expectations American Gods A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Atlas Shrugged Reading Lolita in Tehran : a memoir in books
Memoirs of a Geisha Middlesex Quicksilver Wicked : the life and times of the wicked witch of the West The Canterbury tales The Historian : a novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Love in the Time of Cholera
Brave New World
The Fountainhead
Foucault’s Pendulum
Middlemarch
Frankenstein
The Count of Monte Cristo
Dracula
A Clockwork Orange
Anansi Boys
The Once and Future King
The Grapes of Wrath
The Poisonwood Bible : a novel
1984
Angels & Demons The Inferno
The Satanic Verses
Sense and Sensibility
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Mansfield Park
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
To the Lighthouse Tess of the D’Urbervilles
Oliver Twist
Gulliver’s Travels
Les Misérables
The Corrections
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Dune
The Prince
The Sound and the Fury
Angela’s Ashes : a memoir
The God of Small Things
A People’s History of the United States : 1492-present
Cryptonomicon Neverwhere A Confederacy of Dunces
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Dubliners
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Beloved
Slaughterhouse-five
The Scarlet Letter
Eats, Shoots & Leaves
The Mists of Avalon
Oryx and Crake : a novel Collapse : how societies choose to fail or succeed Cloud Atlas The Confusion Lolita
Persuasion
Northanger Abbey
The Catcher in the Rye
On the Road
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Freakonomics : a rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance : an inquiry into values
The Aeneid
Watership Down
Gravity’s Rainbow
The Hobbit
In Cold Blood : a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences White Teeth (own but haven't gotten to this one yet) Treasure Island David Copperfield The Three Musketeers

This Is Not a Paid Endorsement……

A couple of weeks ago, I went to the Houston Hot Sauce Festival. There was food, music, and of course, all things hot and spicy.

There were quite a few salsas and hot sauces that stood out, but the vast majority of the show was sweet treatments, pepper jellies and such. Some of these were good. In fact, I even bought a few items that I liked. That being said, I expected many, many more salsas and actual hot sauces. I guess even in our spicy foods Americans sweet tooth will not be denied.

So, with all my bitching about sweets, what product did I leave there raving about?

Joy Peppers!

Oh my FSM are these good!!!

Do you know what bread and butter pickles are? They are sweet, but interesting with spices and onion in them. Well, these are jalapenos pickled as you would a bread and butter pickle. I can see I will need another jar quite soon.

My favorite Hot Sauce of the day was B.J.’s High Tech Pepper Sauce. Unfortunately, the website doesn't seem to be working and it is a local product. Sucks for you, because this is a habenero sauce that is hot, ok very hot, but not melt the back of your throat stupid hot, that is absolutely delicious! It has a mild vinegar bite, but it’s backed up with a very exotic flavor, almost fruitiness. Wicked Good!!

I Love This Site

So, I guess there is hope ....

Which Candidate Is Your Best Match?

This is cool.

You take a quiz on all of the major issues, and it matches you to a candidate.

I was a 91.4% match with:

Dennis Kucinich


Tell me who you matched up with.

The Unfortunate Update

Where do I begin?

I knew better, I knew who she was, I knew how it would end, but I foolishly hoped otherwise.

I had no reason to believe it would end otherwise except her word and my hope. In the end, neither was enough to stem the inevitable.

The kids are good, cross-country season and football season keep us very busy.

We have straight A’s (even in French!), we have cross country medals and only one defeat in football. It is still way too damn hot, even this late in the year and my friends still love me.

I must remember that whether or not I have a girlfriend, fiancé or wife has nothing to do with what kind of person I am, what kind of Father I am, or my worth as a human being.

It’s just hard some days. Loneliness is a bitter, bitter pill.

Thank you all for taking the edge off of that loneliness.

It’s good to be back. I will be updating regularly again.

I’ve missed you all.

bsr

Note To Self:

Just because you desperately want someone to be sane doesn't mean they ever will be.

Remember that, it will save you a lot of anguish.