The sparrow flies at midnight...

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Follow up: It's about time...

Fleiss' Bordello to Be Documentary Subject NEW YORK (AP) - Heidi Fleiss' planned Nevada brothel of male prostitutes for women customers will be the subject of a new HBO documentary.

Of course HBO couldn't let the opportunity to film this just slip by. Then again, it couldn't hurt to window shop before renting the merchandise...j/k!

Saturday, November 26, 2005

Wax on, wax off

‘Karate Kid’ star Pat Morita dies at 73 Associated Press

Owner of the hang-out where the gang grew up on "Happy Days", wise and patient teacher from "The Karate Kid"...you will always be remembered.

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Happy Thanksgiving!


Just wanted to wish each and everyone one of my readers (all 3 of you) a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Sunday, November 20, 2005

The ol' "date bait and switch"

Online daters sue matchmaking Web sites for fraud NEW YORK, Nov 18 (Reuters) - It's not easy finding love in cyberspace, and now some frustrated online daters say they were victims of fraud by two top Internet matchmaking services and have taken their complaints to court.

Like it's not hard enough to meet someone in this crazy world. I know that some feminists might jump down my throat but...sometimes I long for the days when dating was seemingly a little simpler. When a guy would go to a girl's house with flowers, meet her parents and ask her to go steady. Ok, so maybe that only really occured on "Happy Days"
but still. Back then you most likely met the person you were going to marry in high school or college. Many of my currently married friends met during their college years. However, for those of us who didn't have that experience, life after school left us with few appealing options. Out in the "real world", we were still going to bars but they were then filled with strangers. You couldn't hope to talk to a cutie and then see him or her the next day on campus. And there was also the ill-advised work hook-up or meeting friends of friends.

Then came online dating. Suddenly, men and women were at each other's fingertips...literally. You could shop for a date like you shop on Amazon.com. At first many were sceptical and people who belonged to dating websites were just geeks who couldn't get a date. Reality eventually set in. Many people simply didn't like meeting in a drunken haze and certainly, with careers to pursue, didn't have the time or energy to go out every night of the week. The internet became a way to search for someone you weren't only attracted to but who had similar personalities, interests, goals, and values. Of course, this form of interaction brings about it's own set of problems but that's for another post.
So now millions of people who have enough trouble trusting someone they meet online can be extra paranoid. Isn't that special...

Friday, November 18, 2005

The Young Wizard Puts Away Childish Things

The Young Wizard Puts Away Childish Things NYTimes:Childhood ends for Harry Potter, the young wizard with the zigzag scar and phantasmagorical world of troubles, not long after the dragons have roared and the merpeople have screeched their empty threats through broken teeth. And, as in the book "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" on which this latest and happily satisfying film adaptation is based, childhood ends with screams and a final shudder in a graveyard crowded with tombstones and evil.

I really cannot wait to see this movie, especially at the IMAX theater, but alas it doesn't seem like it's in the cards for this weekend . I'll be damned, though, if I don't get to see this before it comes out on DVD. I've let too many movies slip through my little fingers.

It's about time!

Hollywood Madam to open Nevada 'stud farm'
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former "Hollywood Madam" Heidi Fleiss, whose previous career running a call-girl ring landed her in prison, is returning to the world's oldest profession -- to open a Nevada brothel catering to women.

Shop-Till-You-Drop Specials, Revealed Here First

Shop-Till-You-Drop Specials, Revealed Here First NYTimes: At least three Web sites are dedicated to digging up sale secrets well in advance of the biggest shopping day of the year.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

"Bang, Bang, Bang"

A 90-year old man said to his doctor, "I've never felt better... I have an 18-year old bride who is pregnant with my child. What do you think of that?"

The doctor replied, "I have an elderly friend who is a hunter and never misses a season. One day he was in a hurry and picked up his umbrella by mistake.

When he got to the creek, he saw a beaver. He raised his umbrella and went "bang, bang, bang", and the beaver fell dead. What do you think of that?"

The 90-year old said, "I'd say somebody else shot the beaver."

The doctor said, "My point exactly."

Young, Assured and Playing Pharmacist to Friends

Young, Assured and Playing Pharmacist to Friends NYTimes: Nathan Tylutki arrived late in New York, tired but eager to go out dancing. When his friend Katherine K. offered him the Ritalin she had inherited from someone who had stopped taking his prescription, he popped two pills and stayed out all night.

This is just one of many articles in a series by the NYTimes called "Being a Patient". It's a pretty good series regarding the trials and tribulations of people who find themselves unwell. Most of us know what it's like to not have health insurance for a while and that little voice (prayer?) that says "please, please, please let me not get sick/hurt until my benefits kick in". Some of us, unfortunately, also know what it's like to be in the hospital (or have a loved one be there) at the mercy of the doctors, nurses and the insurance companies. This series addresses these and other issues which are painfully familiar to some and eye-openers to others. The article which hit home with me most was "In The Hospital, A Degrading Shift From Person To Patient". When each of my grandparents were in the hospital, it was amazing how quickly they went from being people to being a number or a case. And it doesn't just happen to the elderly. The same thing occured when a friend of mine was in the hospital for double-pnemonia. He went from being a healthy 30-year old marketing exec to someone who was "being difficult" when he notified the nurse that his fever was spiking and he needed Tylenol. It's hard enough to trust people when your healthy, let alone when your life may depend on it.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Plan B

Audit questions morning-after pill decision WASHINGTON (AP) Federal health officials didn't follow normal procedures in rejecting over-the-counter sales of the morning-after pill -- and some documents suggest the decision was made even before scientists finished reviewing the evidence, congressional investigators reported Monday.

This is just ridiculous. As best said in the article linked above, there should be a pending reconsideration of the pill's status "based on the best available science instead of ideology." Although with the changing definition of science these days, who knows...

Muy suspicioso...

Cheerleader Says She Was Crying, Not Having Sex
TAMPA - One of two former Carolina Panthers cheerleaders arrested in a Channelside nightclub bathroom said Thursday she was crying over an ex-boyfriend - not having sex with her teammate - when a fracas erupted over the women sharing a stall.

Friday, November 11, 2005

Minister for Silly Walks

Lemur Species Named After John Cleese ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) - Most people know him as the Minister for Silly Walks on "Monty Python" or as Q in James Bond films. But John Cleese will also go down in history for another reason: lemurs.

The lemur's long legs are the only physical attribute it shares with Cleese, Thalmann told New Scientist magazine. "Woolly lemurs can't really walk - but they do enjoy silly jumps," he said

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Baby Panda Gets Her Name

Panda baby named in Zoo ceremony
After tallying more than 70,000 votes, San Diego Zoo officials announced the name chosen by panda devotees: Su Lin (sue-lynn).

Ahoy maties?

Pirate attack - This is not a drill

A Decisive Election in a Town Roiled Over Intelligent Design

A Decisive Election in a Town Roiled Over Intelligent Design NYTimes: DOVER, Pa., Nov. 9 - In the end, voters here said they were tired of being portrayed as a northern version of Dayton, Tenn., a Bible Belt hamlet where 80 years ago a biology teacher named John Scopes was tried for illegally teaching evolution.

In light of what's going on in Kansas, it's nice to see that there are still rational people in some parts of the country who understand that intelligent design is just religious creationism in new packaging.

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

Martha, Martha, Martha

Tonight, watch Martha teach Jay Leno how to prepare pecan pie using a recipe from "Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook".

Also, tomorrow Martha will be a special guest on Ellen, where she'll teach everyone how to create branch napkin rings from Martha’s Classic Thanksgiving DVD.

Then, on MARTHA, musician Melissa Etheridge learns how to make biscuits and the perfect omelet. She also will give a special musical performance.

It took 12 days?!

State of Emergency Declared in France

Monday, November 07, 2005

Working together...what a concept!

When Cleaner Air Is a Biblical Obligation - NY Times
Wow, conservative Republican bible-thumpers getting together with tree-hugging hippies, I mean environmentalists, to do something that would actually benefit everyone?! What's next?

Friday, November 04, 2005

Panda Cam



Panda Cam

Too cute for words, check out this adorable baby girl panda on the San Diego Zoo's website.
Based on a Chinese tradition, the cub will be named Thursday, Nov. 10, when she reaches 100 days old. San Diego Zoo officials are now tallying more than 70,000 electronic votes submitted through www.sandiegozoo.org during a naming poll that closed Monday. The name will be announced at 11 a.m. at the Zoo’s Giant Panda Research Station.

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

An incentive to start cooking...

Ex-Pizza Deliveryman Accused of Killing 10 By CHRISTINA ALMEIDA
Associated Press Writer,LOS ANGELES


A former pizza deliveryman accused of being one of the city's most prolific serial killers was ordered Tuesday to stand trial on charges of murdering 10 women, two of whom were pregnant.

Narcotics Policy vs. Needs of a Church

Justices Weighing Narcotics Policy Against Needs of a Church- NYTimes: WASHINGTON, Nov. 1 - The Bush administration tried to persuade the Supreme Court on Tuesday that federal narcotics policy should trump the religious needs of members of a small South American church who want to import a hallucinogenic tea that is central to their religious rituals.


If the Native Americans can have their peyote, why can't these people have their tea?

Tuesday, November 01, 2005

chasing our tails?

Here is an intriguing article I came across on NYTimes.com this morning. As of right now, it is the most emailed article on the site. Not Bush's new supreme court nominee choice, not the tax reform discussions and not the possibility of spending $7.1 BILLION dollars on preparations for the bird-flu threat!

And why do we think that is? Because no one knows their ass from their elbow anymore when it comes to what they really want VS. what they've been conditioned to want VS. what they can or can't get. And God forbid if you want what others only think you've been conditioned to want OR what may or may not be possible to achieve. I mean, really...WTF?!