Slamming Blogspot

The Wall Street Journal had a recent article rating different blog hosts. Blogspot was slammed for being so f-----g difficult to understand. We all should be on the MSN version. It's not perfect, just easier.

Fears

Trying to understand my fears. There are so many of them. Success, failure, health, death and everything in between. That's a daunting task ahead of me. Wish me luck.

Anxiety

So now, I'm dealing with anxiety attacks. Sheesh. They are perhaps to most evil thing a mind can create. I hate them. I want them to go away. Taking medicine .... helps sometimes, but I don't want to remain drugged up all day. What powerful monsters, these brains of ours.

A Timex Moment!

Great News! I just had my heart checked, and the cardiologist says I'm doing well. My "ticker took a licking, and keeps on ticking"! I am blessed.

Am I Not Pretty Enough?

I have had the lyrics to Kasey Chambers' song running through my head. Whether boy or girl, those of us who were/are not very attractive have had our share of heatbreak.

"Am I Not Pretty Enough?
Is my heart too broken?
Do I cry too much?
Am I too outspoken?
Don't I make you laugh?
Should I try it harder?
Why do you see right through me ?"

All those lonely high school days, missed dances; trying too hard to fit in. Nope. Don't need to attend high school reunions. Life is painful enough.

Tattoos,the NBA and the Velodrome

I don't enjoy following the National Basketball Association as much as I have in days gone by. One reason -- I just don't "get" tattoos. OK, a person might be justified in having one tattoo. When a player, or anyone is covered with images and words on their body, I find it very distracting.
Another reason the NBA has lost me ... too often, the outcome of a game is decided in the last quarter. It's as if the first three quarters were, well, why does anyone bother? I'm reminded of those cycling races held on banked tracks called Velodromes. Most of us have watched that competition in the Olympics. No matter how long the race distance, in the early laps, the racers are slooowwly circling the track, playing mind games with each other. Then, with a few laps to go, everyone peddles with everything they have to win the race. It's like watching two guys play chess for an hour only to have the winner decided by which one can leap out of their seat and run to the door first.

OMG, The Giants Are A Mess!

Watching the Giants play has become difficult. Can you believe the pitching staff is that awful? A bad sign ... the staff "ace", Jason Schmidt, is getting rocked. Those reports that he has lost velocity on his pitches may be true. Let's take a look at Kirk Rueter: an aging left-hander, without a decent fastball, trying to get by being "crafty". Hmm... Seattle pitcher Jamie Moyer is over 40 and having a nice season. My suggestion to Kurt is to study how Moyer pitches. Each time Rueter goes to the mound, I wonder how long he can survive using the "chuck & duck" approach. The relievers seem to be pitching scared. Maybe, just maybe, it's time for a new pitching coach. And our manager, Felipe Alou. When the Washington Nationals played at SBC Park, I was struck by the irony that their manager, Frank Robinson, was once manager of the Giants. He is turning a roster of "nobodies" into a fun, exciting team who may finish the season with a better record than San Francisco. At the least, it appears to me that he has a better idea how to handle a pitching staff. Hey, catcher Mike Matheny! I thought you were adept at handling a pitching staff?? Please ... plase don't make me say "I wish we still had A. J. Pierzynski." Barry Bonds ....what a mess. At least I'm thankful I didn't draft him on my fantasy league team.

The Pope and Product Disclaimers

The world mourns as funerals for the late Pope John II begin. In many ways he was a great man. Those stories can be read everywhere. Unfortunately, some of his policies were too "Old World" to be relevant to citizens of the world today.
I don't understand why the rules banning women from becoming priests can't be relaxed. To ban women from the priesthood forever does not bode well for the future of the Catholic church. Supposedly, finding enough priests to meet the demand of parishes around the world is becoming more difficult. Seems to me tapping into women as a new resource to fit the need would be the pragmatic and innovative course to follow. Will the new pontiff travel a different path? Probably not.
The questions of birth control and celibacy of priests also need to addressed by the new papacy.
More contentious is the idea of same-sex marriages. Faiths of all kinds are split on this issue. Try to imagine how much more relevant Catholicism would be if the definition of marriage would change. John Lennon reminded us "It's easy if you try". Not to worry though. That one will never happen. More "Old World" thinking for the 21st century.

I've just about had it with product disclaimers. We've all been subjected to those audio tag-ons to radio advertisements and bottom-screen visuals used to cover the advertiser's rear end. On radio, some announcer races through a line or two at break-neck speed, leaving us with no chance to actually what was said. On television, the disclaimer is super-imposed on the screen in such small print, the only way we could ever actually read the message would be to record the commercial, freeze frame on the disclaimer and sit 2 feet from the television. Who's kidding who here? What a joke.
Let's quit pretending those are true disclaimers alerting the public to specific conditions of sale or use.
I propose we require advertisers to simply state, "Before you spend money, read actual terms and conditions offered". After that, any potential customers would be on there own.

Peanut Butter

I see Skippy has introduced a natural peanut butter that doesn't need stirring before hand. Now that is cause for celebration. I'm imagining even Crick and Watson would be impressed.