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August 26, 2008

Folding went well

We had a very good turn out for folding the September 2008 issue of Erie Gay News tonight. Someone had asked about folding at their home, so we tried that. He got a few co-workers and even had snacks on hand. We powered through getting stuff done. Every month, I am just amazed and grateful for the support and help of so many terrific folks.

Sigh. Another group had arranged some meeting locations, as we seemed to be scrambling to get stuff done. I had said that we had kind of a tight deadline to get stuff done for the newsletter. (I also think that it only enhances a group's reputation to have stuff nailed down ahead of time.) I found out that one of the meeting locations that we talked about last week won't be available on the day that we wanted. Of course, this was after the newsletter was printed. Sigh. I am going to try to push folks to get stuff scheduled a bit farther out.

August 25, 2008

Evening with GLBT for Obama

I went to a meeting at Craze Night Club tonight for GLBT folks for Obama. It went fairly well. My friend Chris Young was the organizer. I have known him about 17 years.

One young guy had formerly been a Hillary supporter and happened to wander in. He was reluctant at first, but he was passing out voter registration forms by the end of the night. I also chatted with a staff person there.

Fairly tired, although looking forward to some late night frolicking soon. ;)

August 24, 2008

Visit to Mom's

My mom had me over yesterday for a slightly belated birthday dinner, which was very nice. My brother, Steve, and his girlfriend, Karen. were also, and I brought my 2 dogs, so we had my 2 dogs and Mom's 2 dogs. They were actually fairly calm.

After dinner, my mom showed us the batch of chicks that were about 4-6 weeks old. Cute! Some of the chickens were a breed that tends to have feathers on their feet, so it looked like they were wearing glitzy pants from a Las Vegas lounge act or something.

I also helped Mom reset her voice mail box on her cell phone.

All in all, it was a very nice day! (Apologies for the poor photo quality. I was using the camera phone for basically the first time.)

0823082006b_edited-10823082005a_edited-10823082004a_edited-10823082003a_edited-10823082002b_edited-10823082002a_edited-20823081959a_edited-10823081958a_edited-1

A somewhat productive day

I had been having a problem with a display issue for the Erie Gay News site under Firefox 3 where the central content column was sliding down below the 2 side bars. I have been meaning to do a site layout redesign at some point, but I feel like I need to mull some stuff over. However, I found that the problem seemed to be just to do a missing colon in a CSS style sheet. Yay! All better now.

I got a few other minor geek things done, including printing the envelopes for the newsletter. I was having a problem with Word crashing when I did a merge from Outlook. I panicked that there was a compatibility issue with Word 2003 and Vista Home Premium, but it turned out to be a damaged NORMAL.DOT, so that is now okay.

August 23, 2008

Amusing bio chat line

Hmm, I am finishing up prepping the envelopes and mailing stuff for Erie Gay News. I happened to glance in the chat room at GAY.COM and saw someone's bio line which talked about the importance of getting to know someone first and not passing judgment or giving in to preconceived notions.

This was then followed by NO PIC=NO CHAT.

{Giggle!} I guess someone didn't have their irony detector turned on.

August 22, 2008

Grammar Vigilantes busted

Okay, it is not cool to alter public property, but I totally LOVE the phrase "grammar vigilantes." (Hmm, I wonder if they are a gay couple.)

I checked out their site. I thought "teal" was a reference to the color. It is actually an acronym for Typo Eradication Advancement League. Hmm, it is an EXTREMELY minimalist site.

"Grammar vigilantes" get one year probation for vandalism (w/photo)

08/22/2008 08:52 AM
Alexis Huicochea

Two self-described “grammar vigilantes” were sentenced to one year of probation and have been banned from all National Parks after they were caught “correcting” a a historical sign at the Desert View Watchtower on the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park.

Jeff Michael Deck, 28, of Massachusetts and Benjamin Douglas Herson, 28, of Virginia, pled guilty to conspiracy to vandalize government property.

The men were on a tour of the United States from March to May 2008 with a purpose to stamp out typos in public signage and other venues, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona.

A rare hand painted sign hangs in the Watchtower and is considered irreplaceable, the release said.

The pair came across the sign and found “a few errors,” they wrote on a Web site, which is how authorities learned about the vandalism.

They waited for a ranger to leave the area and then used a permanent marker and white out to correct the sign.

“Those marks really didn’t blend in well at all,” the Web site said. “I was reluctant to disfigure the sign any further …”

In addition to not being able to visit national parks during their probation periods, the men are prohibited from making any modifications to any public signs and must place a statement on their Web site educating others about the historical and archeological impact of vandalizing signs in national parks.

They will also pay restitution in the amount of $3,035, which will be used to attempt to repair the sign.

On Friday, the Web site http://www.jeffdeck.com/teal/ posted the following message: “Statement on the signage of our National Parks and public lands to come”

Here is a photo of Deck at the Grand Canyon from the Web site, courtesy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office:

www.azstarnet.com ® | Police Beat

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August 21, 2008

McCain unsure how many houses he owns

Um, so who is the elitist? Remind me again? When many Americans are having problems making payments on their homes, or losing them, McCain can't recall how many he owns!

McCain unsure how many houses he owns

By JONATHAN MARTIN & MIKE ALLEN | 8/21/08 6:34 AM EST

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said in an interview Wednesday that he was uncertain how many houses he and his wife, Cindy, own.
"I think — I'll have my staff get to you," McCain told Politico in Las Cruces, N.M. "It's condominiums where — I'll have them get to you."
The correct answer is at least four, located in Arizona, California and Virginia, according to his staff. Newsweek estimated this summer that the couple owns at least seven properties.
In recent weeks, Democrats have stepped up their effort to caricature McCain as living an outlandishly rich lifestyle — a bit of payback to the GOP for portraying Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as an elitist, and for turning the spotlight in 2004 on the five homes owned by Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) and his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry.
Pro-Obama labor groups have sent out mailers highlighting McCain’s wealth, and prominent Democrats have included references to it in comments to reporters.

McCain unsure how many houses he owns - Jonathan Martin and Mike Allen - Politico.com

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More Muppet musical madness

Hee hee! Hat tip to the ever-delightful Eden on this. (Check out the Habanera at her post.)

I went looking and found the clip below of Danny Boy with Swedish Chef, Beaker and Animal. Too funny!

And just for good measure, Beethoven's Ode to Joy. With Beaker.

August 20, 2008

Erie Bloggers logo

A friend of mine who is a graphic artist came up with a logo for the Erie Bloggers. I think it is pretty cool.

erie-blog-logo

You can click on the photo to see it full sized.

He also came up with a flyer for our September get together.

Here it is a PDF: Click here for flyer

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Photo Mosaic Meme from Mike/Arsenic.net

 mosaic2368529

 

To do this yourself:

  • Type your answer to the questions into a flickr search
  • Using only the first page, pick an image
  • Copy and paste each of the urls in the Mosaic Maker

    1. What is your first name?
    2. What is your favorite food?
    3. What high school did you go to?
    4. What is your favorite color?
    5. Who is your celebrity crush?
    6. What is your favorite drink?
    7. What is your dream vacation?
    8. What is your favorite dessert?
    9. What do you want to do when you grow up?
    10. Who/ what do you love most in life?
    11. Choose one word that describes you?
    12. What is your Flickr name?

  • From David
    Wed, 20 Aug 2008 05:04:25 GMT

    August 19, 2008

    Memory meme from Justin

    This was a nice one! My friend Justin posted this here, and I commented on his entry. So, here is the meme:

    If you read this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, even if we don't speak often, please post a comment with a memory of you and me. It can be anything you want -- good or bad. When you're finished, post this little paragraph on your blog and be surprised (or mortified) about what people remember about you.

    So, maybe leave a comment with a memory!

    Perception personality quiz

    Justin took this. I think I saw it on a few other blogs that I know. Again, not sure if this has any validity, but it was interesting.

    Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

    HFPS - The Humanitarian

    Humanity, Foreground, Big Picture, and Shape

    You perceive the world with particular attention to humanity. You focus on what's in front of you (the foreground) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on humanity, you tend to seek out other people and get energized by being around others. You like to deal directly with whatever comes your way without dealing with speculating possibilities or outcomes you can't control. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.

    The Perception Personality Types:

    16715388163861827773.gif___1_500_1_2000_7fa54554_.jpg

    Take The Perception Personality Image Test at HelloQuizzy

    August 18, 2008

    PC basically rebuilt, a nice chat with Aelis

    I pretty much took the day off to rebuild the PC. There are some minor things left to be done, but I am basically back up and running. Sigh. The Palm can't sync via USB under 64 bit Vista, but it can sync via wireless, so that's okay. There were a few other compatibility issues, but nothing earth shattering.

    Deb came over to work on newsletter stuff, and I took the opportunity to do some domestic chores. (Truth to tell, I pretty much needed to step away from the keyboard.)

    I also got a call from my friend Aelis, who was encountering some annoyance with a situation rather similar to what I had been going through a while ago. We commiserated, and generally caught up. Aelis and I have known each other for almost 20 years now.

    August 17, 2008

    Birthday party for a friend and computer woes

    Sigh. I was fairly well caught up on stuff and my PC started acting up. I can't connect online, and I have been getting Blue Screen of Death occasionally. I got a new PC.

    I took a break from geek stuff to go to the birthday party for a friend at the Casablanca Grill. The food was great, and I chatted with some good friends.

    Back to still working on rebuilding the new PC. I had been resisting jumping to Vista, but I really didn't have a choice. We moved the newsletter to InDesign from PageMaker about a year ago in anticipation that we might have to switch, since PageMaker doesn't run under Vista.

    Oh yeah, NOT fun that computer crash happened just as we were starting to get ready for newsletter stuff, although later in the week would have been much worse.

    August 16, 2008

    Chatting with a gay guy at the oil change place

    Since I have started tracking it with my PDA, I have been pretty good about getting the oil changed in my car. I was due today and went to the usual place. I was greeted by a rather cute guy I have known from the bar for years.

    While they were working on it, he chatted me up and it was very nice. He mentioned having been there for a month and a half or so and was out. Everyone there was cool and he was glad to be in Erie. He asked whether I was going out tonight, so I said that I thought I was.

    What I have been thinking lately is about the importance of being out in a sort of terraced sort of way. I know some folks/groups that alternate between either hiding who they are or only going to a predominantly gay venue/focus. I think that something like marching with everyone else in the 4th of July parade or just being casually out at work is intensely powerful.

    Some straight folks might think that gay people can't focus on any other part of their identity. So, it is important that they encounter folks who show a variety of interests and involvements. This is not to say that there is some preset level of involvement or important for any aspect of identity that is optimal for all people and all situations. It just needs to flow from who we are. Hopefully, it doesn't feel like the awkward elephant in the room that has to be kept silent nor is it something that only can be expressed when that is the only focus.

    Food Meme, via Jeremy

    My friend Jeremy had this meme. A fair number of things I couldn't identify, so I didn't do anything with them. Alcohol and smoking/tobacco stuff are all out for me, of course. In some ways, I am rather dull and unadventurous.

    The Food tasting meme


    1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
    2. Bold all the items you've eaten.
    3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating (or eating again)
    4. Optional extra: Post a comment http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

    To make the filling out of this form and generating the HTML for it a bit easier, [info]reddywhp has played around with some PHP. Go to http://reddywhip.org/lj/foods/ and fill it out there. After filling it out, you will be given the code to copy and paste into your blog.

    Livejournal users, remember to use your LJ-Cuts!

    1. Venison
    2. Nettle tea
    3. Huevos rancheros
    4. Steak tartare
    5. Crocodile
    6. Black pudding
    7. Cheese fondue
    8. Carp
    9. Borscht
    10. Baba ghanoush
    11. Calamari
    12. Pho
    13. PB&J sandwich
    14. Aloo gobi
    15. Hot dog from a street cart
    16. Epoisses
    17. Black truffle
    18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
    19. Steamed pork buns
    20. Pistachio ice cream
    21. Heirloom tomatoes
    22. Fresh wild berries
    23. Foie gras
    24. Rice and beans
    25. Brawn, or head cheese
    26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
    27. Dulce de leche
    28. Oysters
    29. Baklava
    30. Bagna cauda
    31. Wasabi peas
    32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
    33. Salted lassi
    34. Sauerkraut
    35. Root beer float
    36. Cognac with a fat cigar
    37. Clotted cream tea
    38. Vodka jelly
    39. Gumbo
    40. Oxtail
    41. Curried goat
    42. Whole insects
    43. Phaal
    44. Goat's milk
    45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth $120 or more
    46. Fugu
    47. Chicken tikka masala
    48. Eel
    49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
    50. Sea urchin
    51. Prickly pear
    52. Umeboshi
    53. Abalone
    54. Paneer
    55. McDonald's Big Mac Meal
    56. Spaetzle
    57. Dirty gin martini
    58. Beer above 8% ABV
    59. Poutine
    60. Carob chips
    61. S'mores
    62. Sweetbreads
    63. Kaolin
    64. Currywurst
    65. Durian
    66. Frog's Legs
    67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
    68. Haggis
    69. Fried plantain
    70. Chitterlings or andouillette
    71. Gazpacho
    72. Caviar and blini
    73. Louche absinthe
    74. Gjetost or brunost
    75. Roadkill
    76. Baijiu
    77. Hostess Fruit Pie
    78. Snail
    79. Lapsang souchong
    80. Bellini
    81. Tom yum
    82. Eggs Benedict
    83. Pocky
    84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
    85. Kobe beef
    86. Hare
    87. Goulash
    88. Flowers
    89. Horse
    90. Criollo chocolate
    91. Spam
    92. Soft shell crab
    93. Rose harissa
    94. Catfish
    95. Mole poblano
    96. Bagel and lox
    97. Lobster Thermidor
    98. Polenta
    99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
    100. Snake

    Quote of the Day: Bush doesn't have his irony detector turned on

    Wow. Talk about a tragic lack of self-awareness! Hello? An unprovoked invasion of another sovereign nation? That's not just Russia going into Georgia, it's the US going into Iraq!

    "Bullying and intimidation are not acceptable ways to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century."
    -- President Bush, quoted by the Associated Press.

    Quote of the Day
    Sat, 16 Aug 2008 17:39:00 GMT

    August 15, 2008

    Stunningly busy web site graphics

    I saw this site linked from a thread on the ever-delightful Datalounge. Caution! The graphics are a tad.... busy. Can I just say that a vertically scrolling rainbow stripe background is possibly not the best graphic choice? Jesus might very well want you to accept him as your personal savior, but it would be nice to not induce seizures in epileptics at the same time. Someone from the Datalounge quipped that apparently the Master Control Program from Tron has found Jesus.

    And what's with the backwards leaping cat in the lower left portion of the screen? Is it running from the way too over-stimulating background as well.

    They also have a Cyber Church on Second Life. Hmm, if you are born again and also on Second Life are you born again again or is it automatically Third Life?

    Okay, not my brand of spirituality, but that's okay. (I actually had a very nice online chat tonight with a Christian gay guy.) For what it's worth, they seem like nice enough folks. They just are maybe a tad overboard with the web layout.

    August 14, 2008

    Help save lives and maybe win an Apple iPhone 3G

    Very cool! Erie Blogs is teaming up with Community Blood Bank for the second annual blood bank. On top of doing something good for our community, you can also win an iPhone 3G. Kudos to both organizations for doing so much good!

    You can read the article here or what was pasted in below:

    One of the easiest things you can do to help others is to donate blood. Each week, the Community Blood Bank needs 800 donors to keep up with demand from local hospitals. Did you know 1 unit of blood can be used to help save 3 different peoples' lives? That's where we come in.

    Erieblogs.com is teaming up with the Community Blood Bank to present Erie Blogs Week II at the Community Blood Bank from August 17 through August 23. We hope readers of not only ErieBlogs.com but all the amazing blogs by people in the Erie area will come out and give blood that week and help this great organization.

    iPhone 3G baby!This year, we're stepping up and giving you a pretty awesome incentive to come to the Community Blood Bank during Erie Blogs Week. One random donor during the week will win a new Apple iPhone 3G. How awesome is that? Surf the web, watch YouTube videos, try out all the new applications that are available, use the built-in GPS and so much more.

    Blood donation is safe, easy and usually takes less about a half an hour from start to finish. The Community Blood Bank of NW PA is the EXCLUSIVE supplier of blood to all the hospitals in Erie, Warren, McKean and Elk counties and provides over 98% of all the blood used in Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties in Western New York.

    When you arrive at the Community Blood Bank, there will be a special sign-up sheet where you can sign in to donate as well as record what local blog you'd like your donation to be counted towards. One random donor as well as the blog that gets the most referrals will win a great prize basket with items donated by local businesses and organizations. Did we mention the yummy treats you get after you donate? For some, that's the best part. It's a win-win for everyone!

    The Community Blood Bank is located at 2646 Peach Street in Erie and is open Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.. On Tuesdays, the blood bank is open from 9:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

    Please help us support the Community Blood Bank as well as people of the Erie area.

    If your business or group would like to contribute to the prize pool, please contact Mike Richwalsky via email.

    Brain meme via Eden

    Hmm, I got this from Eden. I don't think this is accurate for a fair portion of the analysis. I tend to think of myself as more over-organized, at least in terms of info stuff. Physical organization I do admit to being bad at. A big yup to overcommit, but I am fairly good about follow through. (I HATE it when folks don't follow through on what they talk about. I would far rather underpromise.)

    Your Brain Usage Profile:

    Auditory : 52%
    Visual : 47%
    Left : 42%
    Right : 57%

    Michael, you are moderately right-hemisphere dominant and have even preferences between auditory and visual processing, traits that might make people perceive you as "slightly off balance."

    You are most likely to be slightly disorganized, a "dreamer" and a person who focuses more on the end result than the immediate task at hand. You are creative and spontaneous if somewhat lacking in direction and focus. You are a learner who is generally patient and a person for whom time is an ally, not an enemy.

    You are more passionate than most people with regard to life and learning and recognize your own intuitive abilities. You have sufficient goal-direction to satisfy yourself and guarantee success without being or feeling driven. You are willing to be reflective about yourself and others without getting lost in rumination.

    The balance of your sensory modes allows for both learning and expressive capabilities achieved by few. You are active and "seeing" while retaining an equally strong propensity for being reflective which slows you down a little but allows for a more comprehensive perception and analysis of situations and problems. You do not spend excessive time analyzing since you mostly trust your perceptions.

    In all likelihood, you have a tendency to overcommit and cannot understand why others get upset since you operate on a different "time table" than they do. Your organizational abilities are frequently overwhelmed by the stimulation seeking and active nature of your mind as well as by the tendency to create new categories and gloss over details, making categorization and classification almost impossible at times.

    To the extent that your career path allows for creativity and abstraction as well as a bit of disorganization, you should find yourself equipped to handle any learning that is required. Your own personal adjustment to your style should come naturally although you are likely to feel frustrated by your own limited discipline and often wonder "Why?"

    August 13, 2008

    Joe. My. God.: Manhunt Founder Donates Max To McCain

    I think one would have to (man) hunt really hard for a more literal representation  of politics and strange bedfellows. I have never been on Man Hunt and this definitely makes me glad.

    So McCain gets money from Paris Hilton's parents and then slams her in an ad. He has a lousy record on GLBT rights, but he takes money from a gay sex hookup site.

    Wow.

    Manhunt Founder Donates Max To McCain

    Hot on the heels of last week's evisceration of Manhunt in Out Magazine's article Is Manhunt Destroying Gay Culture?, comes the revelation at Towleroad that Manhunt cofounder Jonathan Crutchley has donated the personal maximum of $2300 to John McCain's presidential campaign.
    Via Towleroad comes this exchange between Crutchley and a commenter on Online Personal Watch:Andy Towle: "It appears John McCain has accepted the maximum individual campaign donation from the owner of America's largest gay sex hook-up website."
    Log in, get off, get betrayed.

    Joe. My. God.: Manhunt Founder Donates Max To McCain

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    Reception for Dan Onorato

    After work, I went to a reception for Dan Onorato, who is the current County Executive for Allegheny County and who seems to be planning on running for governor in 2010. There was a very large turnout by the Erie County Democratic Party, and I said Hi to quite a few people that I know. He was a very good speaker. I was way to the back, so I didn't catch everything, but what I heard sounded quite good. I chatted for a bit with a member of his campaign staff and we traded contact info.

    I had another event/meeting after that which was social. It was okay. I talked with a few friends.

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    August 12, 2008

    Political Radar: John McCain: ABBA fan???

    I am sorry, but not good enough to win the GLBT vote on this one. Yes, I know that the members of ABBA were 2 straight couples, but they have a very strong gay sensibility.

    And THIS dancing queen for one is NOT willing to take a chance on him.

    John McCain: ABBA fan???

    In all the commotion over Hillary Clinton's long goodbye to the Democratic nomination fight, an odd moment in the Republican race got surprisingly little attention.

    Presumptive nominee John McCain called a Phoenix radio station last Friday and confessed to a secret passion for ABBA!

    McCain dropped the ABBA bombshell on the popular Johnjay and Rich Show on Phoenix's KZZP-FM.  McCain told the deejays that before big speeches he pumps himself up by listening to the Swedish quartet's 1977 hit "Take a Chance on Me."

    Political Radar: John McCain: ABBA fan???

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    August 11, 2008

    Erie Bloggers get together this Tuesday!

    What:Erie Bloggers Get Together
    Social group for those who blog, or those just interested in blogging. All are welcome. For more info, contact Michael Mahler at (814) 456-9833 or info@eriegaynews.com. Also check out http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eriebloggers. Photos from past get togethers are at http://www.flickr.com/groups/eriebloggermeetups/pool/
    When:Tuesday, August 12, 2008 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
    Where:Panera's (Yorktown Plaza)
    2501 W Twelfth Street
    Erie, Pennsylvania 16505   United States
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    Brother out on his own

    Cool beans! My baby brother had lived with my mom and stepfather for years. He has never really lived on his own, apart from a brief stint when he was in the Army around 1990 or so.

    He is now in his new apartment and sounds like he is doing well. I am so happy for him and proud of him for moving forward.

    August 10, 2008

    Getting caught up

    It has been a fairly quiet weekend, but I got a lot done. I had the films that I was supposed to review for the GLBT block at the Great Lakes Film Fest in late September. The reviews were due by Monday, and working with the newsletter I tend to be cognizant of deadlines. I was feeling guilty for not jumping on it, but late Saturday I just dove into it.

    There were paper forms to record results, but being a computer geek, I scanned it in and made a PDF form to fill out (which also totaled up the scores for the various criteria.) I celebrated completing the task by going out to the Zone after dropping off the films at Theatre 145. There were a couple of fairly good films, and only a few that I didn't care for so much.

    I had been having a problem for almost 2 weeks with cron jobs not executing for the Erie Gay News site. It was rather frustrating, and I was fairly sure that it wasn't anything that I was doing wrong. Among other things, this meant that the email list stuff wasn't regularly checking. However, the web host finally escalated the ticket and it is now resolved. Yay! A side benefit was that I added some code to track when the jobs run and fixed some things that had been not quite right before.

    Just in the past couple days, we have gotten an influx of requests for free sample issues of Erie Gay News. There is a form on the web site. They were coming from all over, which I found puzzling. It turns out that we were listed on a site for free offers, so that explains that.

    August 9, 2008

    Visit with my sister and brother-in-law

    My sister Su and brother-in-law Tom were traveling through from Toledo OH to Jamestown NY to visit his sister. My brother-in-law does Santa Claus stuff as a sideline. (check out http://www.toledosanta.com) While we were at the restaurant, another Santa guy (who just happened to be in the area) stopped by the table to say howdy. My sister says that happens all the time. We had a very nice lunch and it was great seeing them!

    DSCN0763_2397DSCN0764_2398DSCN0767_2401

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    Car on the train tracks

    I was coming home from checking on the newsletters, when I saw a car that was just stopped with its lights on at 16th and Raspberry in the middle of the 2 tracks. I wasn't sure what to do. I normally worry that calling 911 frivolously is bad, but this seemed to demand for it. I am not sure if someone was suicidal, but it represented a danger to whatever train/trains might be coming through.

    So, I went home and called. The person answering the phone said that the police had already been notified, which was good. I just wanted to be sure that things wouldn't have a tragic ending through my failure to act and call someone.

    I hope that it works out okay.

    August 8, 2008

    Photo cataloging caught up - I think

    I am trying to make sure that I have all my photos cataloged and tagged appropriately. There are rather a lot. I realized that I needed to catch up on the ones for the past 2 years of Drenched Fur and Pagan Pride Day, after getting the Pride stuff done.

    So, I think I am now caught up. I try to tag things not only by event, but also by people and locations. It's a fair amount of work, but if I keep up on it, then finding stuff is MUCH easier.

    August 7, 2008

    UNCLE Board meeting and being flashed

    I was at a board meeting tonight of the United NeoPagan Council of Lake Erie (UNCLE) since we are gearing for for the 4th Annual Erie's Pagan Pride Day on Saturday, September 13.

    Things went fairly well. We meet at Rich's house. Since it was warm, he was just wearing a sarong tied at his waist. This would be hunky straight powerlifter Rich.

    At one point TJ noticed that Rich's sarong had shifted and since he was sitting down, he was rather exposed. I happened to be sitting opposite Rich. Goodness! He laughed and covered up and I smiled. The nice thing about Pagan guys is that they tend to be fairly relaxed about sexuality/nudity issues, so we were cool. He wasn't leading me on, and I wasn't being rude and intrusive. (I was flashed but I looked away.)

    Afterwards, I drove Ruth home (she usually gets a ride from me) and we talked about media/publicity stuff and other topics.

    I should go walk the dogs now. Whee!

    Straight Talk Express In Crash Seen w/ Obama Sticker

    Florida has not been treating John McCain's campaign vessel, the Straight Talk Express, very well in the past two days. First, someone photographs that an Obama '08 bumper sticker had been affixed. Then it was in a collision with a minivan. Oh yeah, the minivan was blue. McCain wasn't on the bus at the time of the collision, but Sen. Joe Lieberman was. Someone pointed out that this is simply DRENCHED in metaphors.

    Given that McCain now looks like Paris Hilton one upped him, it just hasn't been a good week for him.



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    August 6, 2008

    Lughnassadh with BrighidsHaven

    I felt like going to ritual tonight, so I went to the open circle that the Covenant of Brighidshaven had for Lughnassadh/Lammas. It was a pretty good. I also had a nice time visiting.

    Amusingly enough, we have a board meeting of the United NeoPagan Council of Lake Erie, so I will be seeing some of the same people tomorrow. And I also saw 4 of them on Monday at belly dance practice. I guess that this is a very Pagan week.

    August 5, 2008

    Pride photos posted

    Deb was over cleaning up and preparing photos to be posted for the 16th Annual Erie Pride Picnic and also the March/Rally. I have the photo sets on Flickr and also posted to the Erie Gay News site.

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    Paris Hilton responds to John McCain ad

    Hee Hee! Pretty funny! I am very much amused that Paris has a sense of humor about herself and played along in this video lampooning McCain's (aka the "wrinkly-faced white hair dude") campaign ad attacking Obama. I think that this just reinforces how desperate the McCain campaign is.

     

    See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die