Murdered By The Media? RIP Richard Jewell, 44

Richard Jewell, the security guard falsely accused of being the 1996 Atlanta Olympic's bomber has died at 44 of natural causes. He recently was diagnosed with diabetes and kidney failure.

After twelve grueling weeks of investigation by the FBI, US Attorney's office and endless hounding by the press, Richard Jewell was ultimately cleared of being the bomber. He really was the hero he claimed to be:

"Jewell was working as a private security guard in Centennial Olympic Park about 1 a.m. on July 27 when he identified a suspicious unidentified package and began moving people away from it. The package turned out to contain the bomb, which went off, killing one person and wounding more than 100." CNN

Eric Rudolph confessed to being the bomber in 2005 and is serving four life sentences plus 120 years for bombings at the Olympics and three other locations including a gay nightclub. One of the bombings killed a police officer.

Bang-Up Day

I slipped on the stairs this morning and landed mostly on one knee. Yes, Duckie, there are pix.

Looks like Vegas is moving to The OC. He's there now house-sitting and has parted ways with the boyfriend.

I'm sipping lemonade and having a teriyaki bowl.

A Trek And A Tre

I strolled to the grocery and to the bank between 4 and 6am. I'm pretty sure that's the first I've left the community since early July. I hadn't planned to do a month's worth of grocery shopping but the urge overtook me. The night was clouded and felt warm, probably from humidity. Once again I managed to dump my groceries in the street thanks to a bungled attempt to avoid just that.

Along the way a few things tried to escape out bags and my new postage stamps flew from my pocket too. Yes, I finally got the new more expensive stamps. Even better, these are those "forever" stamps which means if he price goes up before I run out, I don't need to buy addition postage or wastefully double-up stamps.

I seem to remember the grocery kept stamps in the registers, even earlier this year, but someone had to unlock the service desk to get a book for me this morning.

I paid the rent. There's someone new in the office! She looks to be early 20s and only started yesterday. I hope that doesn't mean my favorite has left us. If she did, I hope she got a better gig.

There's a scent of wildfire smoke in the air from dual fires. One is in Mexico and the other in a county further north. Add in the fresh cut grass and humidity and I think I'll stay indoors the rest of the day.

Kitty is napping in her lounge chair and has been generally non-plussed at my comings and goings. Ok, she was hiding when I got back from my early morning errands but with all the noise I probably made dragging things up stairs, who could blame her for expecting the worst? I promptly shed my sweaty attire, filled a glass with ice and put on the A/C.

Last night we watched Flipping Out and Top Chef. I'm very sorry to see Tre eliminated on Top Chef. It was a surprise. He'd won three of the nine elimination challenges.

Monday Mutterings

Here's an image from "High School Musical 2"'s "What Time Is It." Troy (Zac Efron), Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) are in the front row:



I changed the litter box so kitty can return to being nice to me. I hope. The station has gone off the air for a top-down reorganization. I've been asked to stay on to assist with the shifting of deck chairs. Duckie refused to advise me saying he knows I'll do it anyway. He's probably right. That's why I keep him around.

My fingers are doing better. Monday means Greek and Kyle XY on TV for me and kitty.

I've been having bizarre dreams. Last evening I dreamed of doing groceries with Mother (deceased). I remember the car vanished from the parking lot. Father (deceased) had run off with it and the groceries. I've had a few grocery shopping dreams over the past few days especially some involving perusing delis. I'm a little vague on recalling the details for now. It isn't grocery time yet so I'm not sure how the dreams fit in.

The so-called "Queen of Mean," real estate tycoon Leona Helmsley, has died at 87. She became most well known during her tax evasion trial in 1989s. The $5 billion holdings of she and her husband included managing the Empire State Building in NYC and two dozen luxury hotels. According to trial testimony, she allegedly told an employee only the "little people pay taxes," a statement she denied making. She survived a collapsed lung caused by a stabbing during a home robbery in 1973 and donated millions to New York-Presbyterian Hospital and related institutions.

High School Musical 2

Well, more than a few people watched "High School Musical 2" on Friday. It was a record cable viewing audience of over 17 million. Kitty and I were among them.

The first one was better, this one seemed more forced as a story. My real concern, as I watched it, was the message that somehow hanging out with your pals constantly is more important than setting up your future.

Since his family can't afford college, the friends should've supported Troy's chances to cultivate a possible scholarship opportunities rather than getting down on him. Even his girlfriend decides to turn away and returns his necklace.

As the climax approaches he's guilted into spiking his chances but--never fear--his friends have set him up with a rouse and it all works out. His opportunities still seem open, his friends forgive him and his girlfriend love's him again. In real life, some friends would support him while those who did not, would just write him off.

For me, other than "What Time Is It?" and "I Don't Dance," the musical numbers are generally uninspired and songs pretty forgettable. "I Don't Dance" features a baseball game with the villainess' brother and presumed gay character, Ryan (Lucas Grabeel), and Troy's best friend Chad (Corbin Bleu) battling it out as pitcher and batter.

A young Rob Lowe look-alike, Troy (Zac Efron) is very fit while shirtless in several scenes and does his own singing this time.

The most annoying part, for me, was how evident the studio effects were in the over-dubbed music. There's at least one ballad which starts on screen with voice and piano only and suddenly it has a drum kit thumping away with no on screen source. That works for big production numbers but seemed bizarre with the spare ballad. PerhapsI should assume the resort's grand piano is enhanced with electronics like Elton John's concert pianos?

Riiight.

Worth a look but don't expect a whole lot from the plot. I'd hope a rumored third film will be a return to form but they may need to infuse the franchise with a new villain.

Beware of Glass...

...it bites! Glass from a picture frame slipped out of my hands while cleaning it. I got two cuts and lost a wedge of flesh to the edges.

TV Renewals

USA Network's "Burn Notice" has been renewed for a second season of 13 shows. It's a fun show. If it comes to your country, give it a look.

GRΣΣK has been picked up for another 10 shows.

GRΣΣK's doing ok but it isn't as strong story-wise as it could be. Still, it's a bit of light entertainments and I like Cappie. OK. How many characters do you need to like to watch a show anyway?

KYLE XY was good on Monday. It's moved the main plot about Kyle ahead. Next week Kyle reveals to Jesse there's more in common to them both than they knew.

Nick In A Bow Tie!

Clipped from promotional photos for the next BSB CD.

Damn. SoCAL Icon Passes...

The fantastic Hal Fishman passed away last week. I grew up watching Hal anchor the "News At 10" on KTLA out of Los Angeles. In fact, with 32 years anchoring KTLA's news, Hal's the longest running anchor in TV history. He was no non-sense and always looked smartly dressed. He was "old skool" in his delivery cadence and it worked.

Quite appropriately, he was in Spider-Man 3 as the anchorman during the climactic battle with Spider-Man and the villains. I noted his delivery style was a little different--more modern--but it was Hal.

Hal was also famous as a private pilot with a number of altitude and speed world records.

There are some echo-worthy comments about Hal in the piece from "The L.A. Times". He died of cancer; it was diagnosed just over a week before he passed on.

You presented what I came to believe the news should be. RIP Hal Fishman.

---

Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune creator and all around entertainer Merv Griffin Dies at Age 82 of colon cancer.

There I Was, Minding My Own Business...

... when I saw this posted on a website:

Published August 6, 2007

Redmond, Washington—Microsoft today kicked off the greatest holiday lineup in videogame history by announcing...

What The!? H-O-L-I-D-A-Y!?! It's frigging August!

Bah humbug!

So Far, So Good?

Well, I'm still awake. I went up to the office but it was closed. Summer hours so it opens at 9am, not 8. Fine. So I came back here and raided the garage. I found a 2 liter bottle of cola I didn't know I had and fished out another fish dinner. Not the repulsive fish sticks I had last night so maybe this will be edible. On the down side there's no brownie. I ambled over to get my mail which, of course, is mostly advertising. There was an odd piece though since I could feel what seemed like a credit card. It seems my ATM card expires the end of next moth. How nice of them to remember for me. I didn't realize it even had an expiration date.

I checked the few remaining items in the pantry. The oatmeal is still good as if the corn bread mix--I think. I think my stuffing mix is good through October and that about covers it. I went up to the office dreading it would be occupied with the absent-minded one in need of retirement. I know Duckie will be crushed but she wasn't there. Instead it was the woman who lives on-site. She doesn't seem the sharpest tool--she was the one who couldn't find my rent check a few months ago--but I was able to get a photocopy and she signed it. I had to ask for the photocopy. I missed my usual cat chat. Maybe next month.

I returned and checked my email. Look! It's an email from the power company. It says my bill is available. Due mid-late August. Well, it seems I checked the site on Sunday before all bits of it got caught up with amounts and dates. See earlier entry for that stresser.

Someone had carelessly tossed a lotion bottle in the new plants, just passed a set of dumpsters. It was there when I went up to the office at 8am and not there before 10am. Someone actually picked it up and, seemingly disposed of it! Amazing. I don't know if it was one of the maintenance folks or dog walkers. Doesn't matter, really. There were no cookies in the office and the community kitchen is out of Splenda. There were some yogurt bars so I picked up one of each flavor. Maybe I'll like them.

As I think about it, really, everyone should be able to live like this. I mean, generally, it's a pleasant place. The staff are fine and the residents pretty much keep to and police themselves. It's this last part that makes me like living here. Sure, there were the unruly folks in the pool that one night and the angry guy storming off another but that's two incidents in seven months neither of which amounted to more than noise. In both cases, had I been sleeping like a normal person, I'd probably been completely unaware. Ok, I forgot the garage "break-ins" a few weeks after I moved in but that was addressed with changes to the side doors and it was more pranking than anything as nothing appeared to have been taken other than a box of diapers.

It's more pleasant than living at the house where I had to listen to obnoxious children, pets and face the dread of the ringing doorbell. Kitty has taken up her usual haunt for an afternoon nap, her chair in the lounge. I might turn in soon.

End of Month Routines...

I was doing bills Sunday evening because there wasn't much else going on. I looked at the power bill online and it say "due July 17." So, of course, I gasped! I paid bill online right away! Then I looked to see why I didn't get email about bill. Email came June 27. Well, maybe I forgot about email when it came? Then I look at billing history and it says payment made June 27! Hmm. I look at bank statement. Yes, I gave money on June 27 to power company! It is same amount as was due July 17! I had paid! That is different amount from what I just paid which is a little higher so I'm guessing the stupid system hasn't updated its due dates yet. Very annoying.

My statement from health care says they did not get payment. It also says they will send a courtesy statement from now on. So, I guess, they just decided on their own I didn't need statements which is why I wasn't seeing them in the mail. Instead I had to provide my own envelopes to make payments. I need to see if they cashed check but it won't appear until my next statement for the period that ends the 31st. I looked online but there is no billing info for the health care online. This is just stupid. I guess I will call. I am not paying double! Grr.

I heated two hot dogs today. I put them in buns and one decided to fall over, roll out and off the counter onto the floor. Since food is low in the apartment and I was feeling daring, I picked up the dog, rinsed and dried with with a paper towel twice, then microwaved it 30 more seconds and put it back in the bun. I was not going to let it avoid being eaten! If I end up with botulism that is how I got it. I blame hunger and a conversation I had the other night about my germ phobias for this daring feat.

Tonight I had the door for the deck wide open to air out the stuffy air inside apartment. I forgot I left it open. When I finally remembered and dashed to see if it was open, kitty was sitting neatly on the inside "welcome mat" guarding the doorway and soaking up the breeze. She is a good kitty!

Sleep has stayed the same but it is still an improvement over last week. What else did I do? I cleaned the toilet. I was bad and skipped cleaning it last week. My "Osama look" scares the office lady so I did some trimming. Duckie approves. He is online so I will post this and annoy him awhile!

My cable internet introductory deal ended so it's gone up $10. Why does 5Mbps/768Kbps cost $50 in Southern CA when 10Mbps/1Mbps costs $52 in Texas?

GRΣΣK

Here's a look at three of the characters on GRΣΣK:



Rusty is the main character, a frosh engineering student who joins Cappie's laid back frat. Calvin, the gay character, is a new friend of Rusty's and belongs to a rival house.

Rusty's sister attends the same university and is an ex-gf of Cappie. A sorority girl herself, she's the current gf of a prominent member of Calvin's frat.

It's on cable's ABC Family, Mondays after Kyle XY.

Random Items

Cisco is killing the LinkSys brand. I'll miss LinkSys. Non-US readers probably won't care.

Cisco is apparently going to do yet another branding change. They did one in 2006 to a crappy logo sometimes compared to eye brows or toddler toys.

Casting for the new "Star Trek" film is going OK. The guy who plays the villain Sylar in Heroes (Wiki), Zachary Quinto, is cast as the younger Mr. Spock while Leonard Nimoy has come out of acting retirement to put on his pointed ears one more time. Nimoy has been notoriously difficult to involve in Trek revivals and films. That they got him involved is a huge boost to the film's potential to not completely suck.

Still, I remain quite skeptical at the underlying premise and return to the Kirk and Spock characters and exploration of their early years.

I've been scheduling my meds a bit further apart and it seems to be helping with sleep. I hate waiting for the scheduled time rather than taking them "early" but my dreams are a little less vivid and sleep a less disturbed and thus a bit more restful.

I still need to grocery. I'm in my usual end of the month funk. I hate the act of paying bills so I put it off although I know I feel better once they're paid. I miss having a bill payer.

Dan decided to stay on holiday a week longer which meant a bit of scrambling with the radio gig. I did an extra show and negotiated who would fill when. I might do the show Monday if I get other things done (read as groceries and bills). He's called a meeting for week's end. At this point in life, the very mention of the word strikes terror. No time or agenda is known. Yet.

J, moving from Tues to Fri on air, is now working part time on remodeling a Wal-Mart in addition to his firefighter gig. He needs to slow down, or at least relax. I worry about that boy. Ok, he's 25 but I'm allowed to worry like he's a younger brother, right? Duckie is exchanging his indentured servitude err, I mean he's changing jobs. He needed to climb out of hell err to find a less thankless work situation.

No trip to Comi-Con this year. Brother's decided it's too much of a "zoo" and so that tradition is dead. We were supposed to take my niece for the first time this year. I've been wondering what I'm missing behind the curtain. Go to the films? Nope. Go see the kids play ball? Nope. Host the SIL's surprise bday party? Nope. Connect on Mother's Day? Nope. Mother's birthday? Nope. Close the estate? Not a word. Father used to say I'm paranoid and, well, he'd be right. Of course I am and I probably got it from him. I resist the urge to see conspiracies and plots but, as they say, "my spider-sense is tingling."

Recent dreams have featured my grandmother who passed over 15 yrs ago. I'm not sure where that fits in. Kitty is doing fine. We've been watching "Kyle XY" (Wiki) which has had a bumpy season, the new shows "GRΣΣK" (Wiki) and "Burn Notice."

"Burn Notice," (Wiki) a "dramady," is five weeks in and is the most entertaining of the three we're watching. That said, I've probably just hexed it. I like it so it's doomed.

"Kyle XY" introduced a female counterpart, Jessie XX, and the mystery and exploration of Kyle has taken a bit of a back seat. This past week was an cringe worthy "after school special"-like episode cramming nearly all things gay into the show. We had the drunken homophobic slurring guy, the girl with two mommies, the banning of same sex couples from a school dance, the protest, the alternative dance, the son wigged out by the idea of male couples, straight girls who kiss to show support and the token background gay males who only dance in a three-party group with a girl. None of the principle or supporting characters is gay. It was too heavy-handed.

More as inclination inspires.

RIP Tammy Faye

Tammy Faye Messner dies at 65

I was going to blog about her Larry King appearance but had put it off. :(

Exercise in Frustration.

Doing IT from 9000 km away is a quick way to destroy your disposition and mental health.

I haven't seen duckie in day. I think he's hiding from me. No, I've probably just passed out too early. I'm feeling better today. Thursday I had a very sore and stiff neck, ear and headache issues. Yes, it's the evil left ear again. I think kitty must run her tongue down my ear while I sleep.

I've had a few weird dreams. I had been on a field trip of sorts. I looked at my watch and saw it was too early to go home but really too late to return to school. I asked this other student, Peter, what he thought and the bus scheduling. Long story short, the appropriate bus wouldn't be coming for a couple hours. I remember fumbling with my cranky cell phone. I was going to call Mother to pick me up and asked Peter if he'd like a ride home rather than wait hours since, in the dream, he lived only several blocks away. I knew Mother was at Brother's place but couldn't remember the phone numbers. I also remember having to stuff things back into my pack. Anyway, it's weird.

Obviously Mother's deceased, the car I imagined she'd be picking me up in was the early 1970s station wagon I've mentioned before. It was resold about 20 years ago. Peter, well, I don't even really know where he lived and I'm fairly sure I didn't see him after primary school. I certainly don't know why he, of all people, appeared in my dream except as a stand-in for someone of like name or appearance.

The other weird dream I had involved clothing. I was picking out clothes to wear and Mother wasn't ... OK, there was yelling and because I'm nosey I went outside to my porch. I couldn't see but did hear some things. I threw on some clothes, took the misdelivered package and strolled north on a walk around the complex. Someone left their garage door up but there were two autos part inside so I moved along and headed around the backside of the community center. I did find the noise. It's 2am, tis not the usual time to frolic in the pool and yet that's where the loud voices were.

Coming around to the complex entrance I dropped off the package that belongs in the sister complex and followed the path around to the pool. Suddenly there was hushed voices with one of the women telling a guy to be quiet. I just kept walking and pretended not to see or hear them. Returning to the apartment, I picked out a few things from the deep freeze and returned up stairs. My walk seemed to have served its purpose, it's quiet once again. How no one nearer the pool called in a noise complaint I don't know. It isn't as if I'm immediately adjacent. Anyway, I just heard a couple walk by.

I stumbled outside to notice our rent-a-cop drive in and make an early U-Turn with another couple from the pool right in front of him. I could see him down in the car and imagine he's well over 300 lbs. Why ruin a good night by getting out of the car?

Anyway, they were a young attractive couple. I half suspect they belong to the apartment with the open garage door. I wonder if they climbed into the pool area because when I tried one morning to deposit my rent check, the second lock had been secured and so I couldn't get into the area without resorting to gymnastics.

OK, curiosity got to me and I went back to the pool to see if the gate had been double-locked. It was. No Dr. Pepper for me tonight. On my way back I noticed there was bark on the sidewalk in one spot. A look at the ground showed at least one large indentation as if a heal sunk in. It seems like a good place to exit because you won't land in plants. Walking on, I noticed sandal prints on the high voltage box which is more than half as high as the fence. That's not a bad way to enter. And, just for final giggles I looked and, sure enough, the open garage was now closed.

Kitty is hiding in the bedroom behind her chair. I'm going to have some pasta and loiter around the internet. The pasta cooked badly--that fits the day I've had.

Mmm Nicky...

"US Magazine" had a feature on Nick Carter's weight loss through exercise and counting calories. Supposedly he's 224 in the left photo from 2005 and now around 180 (trying to reach 175). Video here.



Personally, I'd like to see him add back 5-10 lbs. Any more loss and he'll look like a bobble-head.

Doing Better?

Well, Mother's birthday was this week. Or would've been or however you talk about those things after someone's passed away. As I'm sure Duckie won't be surprised to know, I heard nothing from my Brother. Kitty and I had a nap as substitute for actual sleep, and once it was clearly too late in the day for my Brother to invite me on a cemetery visit before work, I went online.

I did something I normally wouldn't do. I employed the axiom, "When you're winning, shut up!" For once in my life I didn't point out that the "1st Amendment" freedom of speech doesn't extend to private entities, only gov't in its many forms. We'll see if there's any improvement in basic civility of the oversight ahead. Let's hope so.

I have to wonder folks reading late always seem so damned loud. Could it just be relative noise? I'm very curious about ambient background news during daylight as compared to night. Just how much is there ignored by the brain yet sensed by the human ears?

Hmm, I just ate some macaronis and I'm still feeling hungry. That's an annoyance!

I'm tired, too. I just noted it's Thursday so Duckie will be very late due to clubbing so it perhaps isn't worth battling sleep too much nor indulging cravings either. If I had ice cream, I'd be diving in right now.

Mumble, mumble...

Let's see, I did three fill-in shows this past week. Vegas had a birthday, Duckie quit his job. I just changed the litter box and now I'm out of breath. I hate warm weather. Hmm. Safarai is way behind as I type this.

Not sure what I'm doing with the rest of my day other than trying to keep from overheating.

Burn notice was better this week than the second week. I watched the pilot for Greek. It had many of the expected cliches. I still might watch it in the regular time of Monday nights. That is, I'll tune in if I remember it's on.

Friday Comes!

It is Friday, about 5am. The Duckie has taken me off block. I am sorting songs. I am doing a fill-in today! I just found out. :/ It will be 2.5 hrs this time. Kitty does not seem interested in helping me. And that is the thanks I get after cleaning litter box! I even put a new filter in. Oh well.

We've watched a bit of a new show called "Burn Notice" , an action comedy series. It's OK. We'll probably watch next week too.

Did I mention I am IT staff for station too? Another development. *sigh* I keep getting bugged about doing a regular show but resist.