The Pancho Sessions

Rob and Julie.

Thanksgiving Blogathon

Greetings, and I hope you all had a nice safe Thanksgiving. For me, it has been an eventful week. As many of you know, Kev and I have a hobby popularly known as the Palo Pinto House Pants House Band. This is a "band" we have in our house while wearing our house pants (sometimes called "sleep bottoms" in the retail world, but the Palo Pinto Sleep Bottoms House Band doesn't sound very good, and we've always called them house pants anyway). It is great fun being in a house band. Kev writes songs, and we play them and sometimes even record them, since one of our wedding gifts was a 12-track recorder. Last year we made a whole CD and gave it to people for Christmas. It is very home-made sounding, but I really like it, and it was fun to do. I think Kev is a great song-writer. And for being recorded in our house, I think it sounds pretty darn good. Anyway, we decided to record another CD for this Christmas, and this week we finished it up. I hope people will like it. I think it's better than the first one. And the really exciting thing is, that this time we have some special guest stars. Here is what happened:

Kev made a country song. And it was good, but kinda slow moving, and we couldn't figure out who (meaning which instrument) should play the melody. So, I kept saying that it was the kind of song that needed vocals, but neither of us can sing. Actually, Kev can sing, he just doesn't like to. Meanwhile, Pancho, our backyard 'possum as regular readers will know, had stopped frequenting our yard, and I was getting worried about him. Then one night a couple weeks ago, we saw a 'possum on the side of the road who had, um, gone to be with Jesus. It broke my heart. We of course don't know if it was Pancho, but it definitely could have been, so I was really sad. The next morning, lyrics to Kev's country song were born. So now, "Song for Pancho" had music and lyrics, but no one to sing. So, I called my friends Julie and Rob and invited them to record a little country song about a 'possum, and they both enthusiastically accepted! They came over on Tuesday night, and got the song in very few takes, and it sounds awesome. I want to say right here and now that Rob and Julie are really really cool and fun, and I am so excited that they were part of the PPHPHB this year. It is a goal of the band to have lots of other people participate. So if any of you would like to join in, you are more than welcome.

So anyway, that night I went to bed stuck on the Pancho song, which I had heard over and over that night. At about 3 in the morning, I woke up. There was lots of wind outside, but I began to hear a familiar scratching at the aluminum around our foundation, so I jumped up and ran to the back door, but I didn't see anything. I decided it was just the wind, or the pepperoni pizza playing tricks on my mind. Or maybe it was Pancho's ghost?

Yesterday was Thanksgiving, and I want to kick a shout out to my mom who made a great dinner, and my dad who tried to get everyone to play cards even though all everyone seemed to want to do was nap.

When we got home, it was pretty much time for bed, so I went to sleep only to wake up at 2 AM. The scratching sound was back! So again, I jumped up and went to the back door. What a racket! Suddenly, a critter emerged from under our house! I held my breath and waited, and there he was! A giant....raccoon.

You thought it was Pancho, didn't you? (Sigh). So did I.

So I didn't know if I should be disappointed that it wasn't him, or excited about my first raccoon sighting, or what. Was it being disloyal to Pancho if I decided to be excited about the raccoon? I was awake for at least an hour.

Well, as Kev said, even if Pancho is gone, he has been immortalized in song. I welcome the raccoon, and any other woodland creatures that want to live in my back yard. We have had rabbits, 'possoms, raccoons, birds, lizards, and cats and dogs. My parents have an armadillo. Kev's parents have had deer, geese, moose, wild turkeys, and recently a bear. And his sister has bobcats. I think it's good to have wildlife around. It makes me happy.

Anyway, be watching for your copy of the PPHPHB Vol.2, featuring Rob and Julie.

And if anybody wants to read something funny, check out
larryfeathers.blogspot.com
and make sure you have the volume up on your computer.

Time to go buy a Christmas tree!

Official Statement from the LRHS

I would like to take this time to officially apologize to all domestic turkeys of the world for accusing them of being ignorant enough to drown in rain. I realize I should not blog things if I am only 97% sure of the accuracy. Thanks to Christine for setting me straight.

Thanksgiving List

Well, as Thanksgiving approaches, I thought it would be appropriate to blog a list of things I am thankful for. So, here goes:

My nice family, Kev, Kev's nice family, Albert, all of my friends, my good house, my front porch with swing, the brief periods of sunshine over the weekend, that the sun is supposed to come out again Wednesday, coffee, my friend Damon is OK, critters of all kinds, PBS, KERA (esp Fresh Air and Diane Rehm and Glen Mitchell), freedom to blog, White Rock Lake, Central Market, the groove, the Christmas spirit, housepants, nice people who don't litter and do take good care of their pets, and ice cream, popcorn, pie and various other treats.

Thanksgiving is a good holiday because it is about food and fellowship instead of gifts. And now that I am a grown-up, I like more of the traditional food items, so I don't have to ask my mom to make extra different stuff or order pizza.

Not-so-fun fact: Domestic turkeys aren't very bright. Many of them die because they don't know how to eat when they are born. Also, they have been know to drown in the rain by looking up.

Little Hike on the Prairie

Prairie Growth

This morning, I got up at the crack of dawn to attend my first Sierra Club field trip. I met some others at the carpool location in Plano at 7:00am, and managed to get a ride with some people in a mini-van to our destination, the Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Area. This is an area behind the dam at Lewisville Lake which is closed to the public, and good birds were promised. I've been interested in birds for over a year now, but this was my first guided excursion, so I was looking forward to having an expert there to point things out. I did end up seeing a few new birds for my list, but I didn't learn very much about them. And I think maybe I missed the excitement of figuring things out for myself. It seems to kinda lose something when someone else is solving the mystery for me. Anyway, here is what I saw today:

• Red-tail hawk
• American Kestrel
• Yellow-bellied sapsucker*
• Song sparrow*
• Turkey Vulture
• Ruby-crowned kinglet
• American goldfinch*
• Rock Wren*
• Savannah Sparrow*
• Shrike*
• LeConte's sparrow*
• Downy woodpecker
• Cedar waxwing
• Harrier hawk*

*indicates new bird for list.

I also saw coyote tracks (pictured above), and a family of bobcats, which was really the best part of the trip. And it was my first time to be in the official prairie I think. So that was cool.

Anyway, I was hoping that I might make some new friends, but I don't think it's going to be easy. For one thing, I am shy. And I don't really know if these are the friends I am looking for. They are all very nice, but all much older than me. And they are all VERY serious about birds. These are people who use the word "bird" as a verb without the slightest hint of self-consciousness. "First, we'll bird by the beaver pond, and later we'll be birding in the prairie." They all have high-powered binoculars and some even have telescopes that they carry around. I think they think I am a bird poser. That's OK though. I will still go on field trips sometimes. And I will still go to meetings. And I will still try to make some new friends. I think today my heart just wasn't in it. I am cranky.

Sideways Dog

Oops...I forgot to rotate this picture. Turn your head sideways, and you will see Albert, a good dog.

Oo-oh, who are the critters in your neighborhood...

Yesterday as I was going down a street around the corner from my house, there were some chickens. I was glad to have my camera. I live in the city, by the way. I showed this picture to one of my students. He said, "Yeah, that one would make a real nice meal." It was disappointing.

Hank vs Garth

Last night I watched part of a show on CMT called The 100 Greatest County Songs of all Time. This was a very bad show with annoying hosts (Keith Urban, Austrailan Country Guy, and Kimberly-Williams-Paisley, spare actress married to lame country guy). But I thought I'd get to see some good footage of cool singers doing cool songs. Anyway, I can't really say too much because I didn't see the whole list, but I did see numbers 50 through 12, and I'll tell you this is a bogus list. First of all, in the two plus hours I invested in this thing, there was no mention of the great Buck Owens. Also, the very best country song of all time, I'm so Lonesome I could Cry by Hank Sr. came in at #29! And some of the songs that were "better" were " I Hope you Dance," " Amarillo by Morning," and the Dixie Chicks hit that I can't remember plus some other really bad stuff. I am now going to vow in public that I will never watch a list show again. I think I'll make my own lists from now on.

Wet Wednesday

Every day it rains and rains. Is this what it's like to live in Seattle? My hair cannot handle all the humidity, especially the silver ones which like to strike out on their own and call attention to themselves by distancing from the other hairs. There is one in the front that likes to stand up like a little antennae every day. I think I will name it "Marvin." Speaking of naming things, I have been receiving some good ideas for my sock monkey, so thanks to those who participated.
Saw an interesting "Frontline" about Wal-Mart last night. This country has problems.

Lazy Russian Horses Show Volunteer Reader Participation Activity courtesy of Carl Pope:
Immediate Action Needed: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Under Attack.The Bush Administration is pushing hard again to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil development. The Sierra Club is urging members and supporters to sign a petition to Harry Reid, Senate Minority Leader-elect, urging him to rally opposition to the Bush Energy Plan and any proposal to allow development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

If that link doesn't work, try

www.sierraclub.org/petition/arctic/

Yesterday I got a letter from a congressman about landfills and it was really signed! So, some of them really do pay attention I think.

In spite of last night's defeat, I like what I'm seeing from the Mavericks. I wish Mark Cuban would be more behind-the-scenes though. He is a creepy guy.

Fun Fact: George Jones' nickname is Possom.

Updated Monkey

Here is a more recent photo of my one-eyed un-named sock monkey.

La Tour avec un Chapeau au Paris, Texas

I was told my blog needed more pictures. Here is the Eiffel Tower, Texas-style. I talked to Whitney today, but she couldn't remember the name of the good barbeque place across from the McDonald's in Paris either.

Please Help Me Name My Monkey

This is a picture of my sock monkey. He isn't quite finished. He now actually has one eye, but this picture was taken before I stitched it on. Anyway, he is going to need a name. Please submit your ideas via "Comments." No swear-words or obscenities please.

Train people

Today as I was riding the Dart Train, I realized how much I miss regularly riding the Dart Train. It is an interesting thing to do, and I recommend it if you have time on your hands. First of all, there are all kinds of people to watch. Most people sleep, but a few make better use of their time, like the lady today who tweezed hair after hair from her upper lip, or the man behind her who was rolling his own cigarettes. Also, you can learn stuff by reading the train marquee. Today I learned that HBO started with only 350 households in Wilkes-Barre, PA. And I learned that I can improve my life by attending DeVry. There is also good advice for you if you are pregnant, have diabetes, or have a torn earlobe in need of repair. In addition, if you are feeling blue and need a pick-me-up, there is the "Get Happy" advice of the day. Past examples I have seen are: "Don't just sit on your couch, go out and enjoy the sun," "Read a great book. It will put you in a good mood," "After it rains and there is a rainbow, everything is brighter," and "Write someone a nice letter. It will cheer them up, and put a smile on your face." One time, I was waiting for the train on a hot hot day, when a lady came up and told me to beware because there was witchcraft all around. "You've got it on your shoes," she said to me. Another time a lady sat by me who smelled like balogna. Once, when I got off the train, some police officers had rounded up and hand-cuffed a group of gangstas who were all wearing big character slippers (i.e. Homer Simpson, Spongebob). So, you see, you never know what adventures you might have on the Dart Train.

Fiesta de los Perros

I LOVE Sunday. It is one o'clock in the afternoon, and I am sitting here with my nice cup of Vanilla Decaf Hot Chai Tea, wearing my pajamas, with no commitments whatsoever, blogging. Earlier, our daily walk took us to Benny's bagels for breakfast and the Sunday paper. This is the life.

Yesterday was Topsy's birthday party, and what a production! Ron invited all of his (or Topsy's) friends from the dog park, and in the early afternoon, they all began to gather in his back yard. There was Spike, Junior, Woody, Yogi, Yoda, Draper, Emma, Suzy, Leo, and Mr. Wiggles, just to name a few of the guests. Oh, there were also some people. Kev and I were the only dog-less couple there, so it was a little awkward, but we enjoyed watching the other people's dogs run and fight and play, and they also did a few kinda gross things I won't mention. ( We here at the LRHS like to keep things rated G). And as promised, there were tamales from a place called Luna, which were really good. Ron gave us some of the left-overs. I put them in the freezer, because I have found that tamales are the kind of food you can't go around eating every day. Anyway, back to the dogs. Here's the thing. They were all really cute dogs, but I gotta say, most of them didn't appear to be very bright. I think this may be due to in-breeding. The smartest one there I think was Mr. Wiggles, and he is a mutt. There were some (3) bull-dogs, who were very cute, but had terrible manners and a great deal of difficulty breathing. I once knew a bull dog that belonged to my brother's friend David. My brother was dog-sitting one time, and I went with him to David's apartment. Upon arrival, I was shocked to see the nearly unrecognizable remains of David's couch and a lot of other damage. I don't think I would like to have a bull dog. But, the party was fun, and I'm glad we have a nice neighbor like GNR.

Last night we went to the Son's of Hermann Hall to see what's left of Cowboys and Indians, but that's a story for another day. I'm gonna go sit on my couch and do nothing now. Because it's Sunday.

Saturday Morning Shorts

• If you want to see a good movie and don't mind some swear-words and nakeds, go to see Sideways. It is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time. If you are particularly beaten-down, it might make you feel better about your life, even.
• I was thinking maybe consumers should get together and stop paying movie theater prices for snacks. They suck you in with the popcorn smell. It isn't right.
• If you want a good meal, try Mai's Vietnamese restaurant at Bryan and Fitzhugh. The food is great and cheap, and the people who work there are very nice.
• If you don't have recycling in your neighborhood, you can take your newspapers to the SPCA or other shelters to be shredded and used in the crates for the pets.
• I wish Samurai Jack would come back to Cartoon Network.
• I recently got a mail-order catalog where you can order a life-size giraffe for your yard. Is there really a market for that? The same catalog also had velvet cloaks. They weren't trying to be funny.
• I am worried about Pancho. He hasn't been around lately.

Dogs

Yesterday I went to the Downtown SPCA to get a birthday gift for Topsy, Good Neighbor Ron's dog. If any of you out there want a good dog, go to the SPCA. They have some really good ones. There are good puppies, and good older dogs too. At the end of the big dog row, there is a GREAT dog named Trixie who really needs a nice new home because she was abandoned by her owners and is scared at the SPCA. She was shaking like a leaf, but calmed down a lot after I petted her for a while. She is two years old, and already trained. She is really gentle and sweet and I think if you met her you would want to take her home as much as I did! Plus they have cats and rabbits. Even if you don't want a new pet, the SPCA is a good place to visit because the dogs and cats and rabbits really really like having visitors.

Tomorrow is the Dog party next door. I found out there are going to be lots of dogs there, and I wonder what GNR is going to do if it rains. There will also be tamales.

Anonymous

I would like to kick a special shout out to the people who read my block and never comment. I know who you are.

Open Letter to a Jack-Ass

Dear Man-in-the-giant-blue-SUV,

I just want to thank you for setting me straight tonight when you laid on your horn for several minutes behind me in the completely stopped traffic. I'm sure the six or seven other drivers in front of me appreciated it too! I don't know what we were thinking, having the audacity to follow traffic rules and exercise caution when entering the Service Road to 75 into fast-moving on-coming cars during rush hour tonight. It was inconsiderate of us to make you late for meeting your crack dealer or whatever it was you were in such a hurry to do. I know it must have been much more important than anything the rest of us were on our way to do. It was very silly of me to think maybe my car was on fire or that I was about to be car-jacked when I heard you honking and honking for no apparent reason. Why, important people like you don't have time to warn other drivers of impending danger! I should have realized you were only trying to encourage us to pull on out into traffic without a care in the world. If you ever catch me being such a rude driver again, please feel free to go ahead and ram my car from behind a few times. That'll teach me!

Sincerely,
The Blue Buick

Sad bird news

Well, two whooping cranes in Kansas have been shot, according to CNN.com. It is very extra sad considering there are only about 500 whooping cranes in all. These cranes were shot by hunters who claim to have thought they were actually sand-hill cranes, which begs the question, why would anyone want to shoot sand-hill cranes? Evidently, it was opening day of "goose and sand-hill crane season" in Kansas. Do people eat cranes? Why do we need to hunt them? This news was upsetting, and I was so distracted by it this morning that I almost poured coffee in my cereal bowl. People often ask me why I care so much about things like whooping cranes and polar bears. I just think it is a shame that animals are going extinct, not because of any kind of natural process, but because of humans coming along and screwing up their world. The thing is, we're not only screwing things up for the animals, but for ourselves too. Eventually the damage will be irreversible. Make fun of me if you want to, I don't care.

Dinner with the Activists

After some initial panic because I couldn't find the right building, I made it to the Sierra Club meeting. I got there just before the program was about to start, and I was greeted by several people with welcomes and smiles and handshakes. I immediately got invited to a birdwatching day trip next weekend, and a clean-up-the-lake project on Saturday. The program this month was a slide show of a trip to Wyoming in the Big Sandy area. There was some pretty spectacular scenery and moose and snow (in August!) and mountains and streams and lakes. After the meeting, I was invited to go for pizza and socializing at Pappas Pizza, so I thought, why the heck not. The food was bad, but the people were nice to me and they were very squippie and interested in birds. Some of them were a little over-whelming with political agenda talk, but that was OK. I think if I keep going to meetings, I will learn something and be able to help. They have a program where you can volunteer to take inner-city kids on day-hikes and camping trips. I think that is right up my alley, so I am going to check into getting involved with that. If anyone is interested, the Sierra club has web sites (national and local) which you can google to find.

Nerves

Tonight I am going to my first Sierra Club meeting. I am nervous. I don't like situations where I have no idea what to expect. I don't know if there will be 10 people there, or 200 people. I don't know if anyone will welcome me or talk to me. Oh dear, I hope I don't have to stand up and introduce myself! It sucks to have low self-esteem. Because of my job, I am going to be late getting there, so I hope I don't make a big spectacle of myself by coming in late. It's just like the first day at a new school. Ugh.

But in spite of nerves, I am excited about going to the meeting. I hope they assign me to writing some letters to senators. I recently wrote to a senator about landfills, and he wrote back! It was cool to get mail from a senator, even if it was a fill in the blank type form letter with a rubber-stamp signature. "Thanks for your letter, Tara H., I share your concerns about, landfills."

By the way, in case anyone was wondering, the mushroom lasagna was pretty good. Groove on!

Dog Peace

Frankly, I'm a little stressed out. I am trying hard to be calm, but things are somewhat difficult right now and I'm feeling it. I worry about jobs and money and my friends and the state of the world and the plight of the polar bear and other creatures and it just gets to me sometimes.

So I was working at my parents' house today and feeling all stressed, so I got Albert and went outside. I sat down on the swing and got the dog brush and Albert came over because he loves the dog brush. And suddenly, I was concentrating on the repetative motion of brushing Albert, and the cool breeze, and the singing birds and Albert's happy dog face and it was like BAM! Instant serenity.

Maybe this will be helpful to you if you are stressed and have a pet and a swing.

Oh dear.

If global warming continues at the current rate, it is projected that polar bears will be gone by the year 2100. That makes me very very sad. The scientists have been warning people for decades, but nobody listens to the scientists. I have a theory that maybe if scientists didn't have such crazy scientist hair, people might take them more seriously. All the scientists on PBS and Discovery Chan. have wild sticking-up hair. Anyway, tomorrow I am going to my first Sierra Club meeting. Maybe they can tell me how to help the polar bears, and maybe the guillemots too, while I'm at it. Come to think of it, my hair isn't exactly tame. Especially the new silver hairs that are coming in at an alarming rate. I wonder if that's why nobody takes me seriously. Hmm...

Ho Ho Ho Hum

On Saturday, I was driving over to meet Julie for our trip to Paris Texas. On the way, I was flipping through radio stations, and landed on Sunny 97.1, which was playing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." Mind you, it was November 6. And it was a warm sunny day. So, there I am in my car, AC blasting, listening to a Christmas song. I still have Halloween candy ! So I thought, maybe they punched the wrong button or something, and I stuck around for the next song. "Chestnusts roasting on an open..." WHAT?! It wasn't a fluke. Sunny 97.1 is playing all Christmas, all the time. Already. Dangit. They used to wait until at least Thanksgiving. No wonder people are against Christmas. It gets shoved down our throats for 2 solid months! I love the holiday season, but I am not sure it really needs to start just yet. So, watch out for Sunny 97.1 if you want to still like Christmas by December.

Our trip to Paris was fun. I got to see Whitney and Bob, and their cute girls and good dogs. Paris Texas has a fake Eiffel Tower with a big red cowboy hat on top. I will post a picture of it if I can figure out how to change a portrait-oriented photo to landscape. The drive up was pretty, with lots of hawks and farm animals to see along the way. We had good barbecue there, but I have forgotten the name of the restaurant. It is on the main loop across from the McDonalds. The service was excellent. I recommend the smoked turkey sandwich. Paris Texas does not have a Target, but it does have a town square.

The Simpsons Halloween show was pretty bad this year. I think maybe the Simpsons should probably stop.

Tonight's meal is Portobello Mushroom Lasagna, which I made this morning before I came to work. I hope it is good, and can help repair the groove damage from the chicken incident of last week.

The PPHPHB is in full swing again, and have almost finished the follow-up to Otra Parte.

Good Neighbor Ron is having a birthday party for his Boston Terrier, Topsy, this weekend. Topsy will be 42. There should be some good dogs there and I am looking forward to it.

No fun fact today. That's all for now.

Free Will, Man

The famous Rush band once said, "If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice." And they are Canadian. So maybe I should move to Canada, where it's OK to opt out of "doing the deed" if there is no way to do the deed and feel OK about it.
I do not like what this election is doing to people, which is why after today there will be no more election talk on the Lazy Russian Horses Show.
My brother actually got HATE-mail from a (supposed) good friend because he opined about the election, and I am getting slammed on other blogs about not voting. Ugh. No more.

On with other things:

Yesterday I had the blues because I think my groove is waning based on a kitchen disaster from the night before involving chicken and parmesan cheese. So in an attempt to cheer me up, Kev suggested going to the lake for a stroll. This was a great idea as the weather was perfect. The usual suspects were there: grackles, starlings, coots, great egrets, mallards, double-crested cormorants. But I added two new birds to my list because there were also ring-billed gulls and a kingfisher. It was exciting. There were also lots of turtles sun-bathing on logs, cool spider webs, and a guy flying a remote-control helicopter which is something you don't see every day. It cheered me up. Then we went to see "Ray" at the studio movie grill. Very good movie with excellent music of course. Jamie Fox was pretty remarkable.

Today I am driving up to Paris Texas with my friend Julie to visit our friend Whitney who just moved back from Tennessee. I have never been to Paris Texas, nor have I seen the movie. It should be fun. I hope the topic of politics doesn't come up.

I am going to go make some French toast now. Have a good weekend!

Whoa Trigger!

Well, the election is over, and of course I have concerns. I would have had concerns, albeit different concerns, had it gone the other way. But now the choice has been made, and all of us have to live with it. That doesn't mean we have to live with it silently and do nothing about our concerns. There are things to do, and we are not helpless.

I am pretty sure that moving to Canada is not the solution, although that seems to be the knee-jerk solution of many Americans, according to CNN. Now, I like Cananda. It was on my FOR list a couple of blogs ago. I have even gone so far as to wonder aloud what it would be like to live there, as it seems like a nice safe place where one doesn't have to worry about earthquakes, tornadoes, terrorist attacks, and Texas summer heat. Plus it has moose and eagles and snow. All things I really like. But think about it. Many of the things that cause concern regarding the Bush administration policies are going to affect the whole world, including Canada, so isn't it better to stay here and try to do something about it? I don't know, maybe I'm wrong and we're doomed. But I don't think so.

I am only one person, and I have to accept that I can't change the world, but here are some things I am going to do to at least be proactive. From experience, I know that idle bitterness never really gets me anywhere.

• Learn about Islam and the Middle East
• Pick up trash at the lake and in my neighborhood
• model tolerence to those around me
• go to sierra club meetings and become active in some way
• save up for a hybrid car
• think about education reform possibilities to propose to important people
• try to represent positive American qualities when I am abroad
• and maybe write some protest songs

It's not much, huh? But maybe I can do just a little bit of good and feel better about things. Otherwise, I am just troubled all the time. And it sucks to be troubled all the time.

I'd like to end by kicking a shout out to my friend Jamie McLeod who just won a seat on the City Council in Santa Clara, California. Congratulations, Jamie! Do some good stuff for people!

Important Note

The lists in the previous blog are not in any particular order.

And I know I typo-ed "election" in the first line.

And I forgot to put "mean bad people, aka 'turkeys' " on my AGAINST list.

Election Day Fun!

Today is elecion day, and I elected not to vote. The reason I did not vote is that I could not decide for whom to cast my ballot. Neither choice was really doing anything for me. As much as I disagree with many Bush Administration policies, Kerry wasn't offering me much, and I got a sort of sleezy vibe from him. So, there you go. Perhaps that makes me a bad citizen, but I honestly couldn't make a choice.

I thought I'd have some fun and kill some time by making lists of things I am FOR and things I am AGAINST on this day of voting. These are opinions and I am entitled to them. If you don't like opinions, you can stop reading now, but come back tomorrow for some more stuff about birds and whatnot!

I am FOR: birds, dogs, penguins, owls, whales, opossums, snails, and all animals, garlic, mushrooms, Macaroni Grill, chocolate food, ice-skating, cruises, Jamaica, house-bands, England, Michael Owen, the Dalai Lama, Jesus, Mr Rogers, Japanese maples and other trees, the Old 97's, Nero's Italian restaurant, Christmas, sleep, Target, housepants, sock monkeys, the Artic Wildlife Area, the Galapagos Islands, Alaska, Canada, John Wesley Harding, Elvis Costello, LarryFeathers, blogging, mountains, snow, Steve Martin, roller skates, fun, the Dallas Mavericks, the NY Jets uniforms, orange, green, coffee, Central Market, White Rock Lake, Kev, the Haitian people, and some other stuff.

I am AGAINST: speeding, cell phones in cars and restaurants and movie theaters, littering, smoking in public places, roaches, wind, mustard, pickles, drilling for oil in protected areas, cutting down trees in National Forests, over-testing children, sweetbreads, Elizabeth Newman's agenda, the death penalty, animal cruelty, sand, telemarketing, liars, and more.

Lazy Russian Horses Show Poll of the day:
How many of you have ever heard of "Pliney the Elder?"