Diatribes and rantings

Join the Impact! Protest tomorrow in San Diego.

bad-dawg — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 17:57:52 GMT

We are definitely going, and bringing the Pup. We are all supposed to meet at 10 AM at 6th and Upas street. I'm kinda thinking that maybe we should all try to meet up at 6th and Thorn(park side of street) instead so we can be a block of Solidarity together. What say you-all? http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/event.php?eid=35213645923

And the world changes...

bad-dawg — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:08:21 GMT

3 Items to speak of. I finally bowed to peer pressure and started a facebook page... Not purty. Please add me? At work yesterday we hit the ten thousandth work ticket in our work management software. When I started here we had less than 2000 tickets. It's a big number and I am making the department buy my crew lunch! What it comes down to is 2 guys processed more than 1000 work requests per year, for 3 years straight. That's a shitload of helpdesk... Today I took the Trolley to work. It's not quite as easy as it sounds: get in car and drop Pup off at school, drive to trolley, ride trolly entire route, transfer to an express bus. 1 hour and 12 minutes and by car it's about 45 minutes. Not bad though and at $5 per day RT, it's $3 cheaper than driving. And then there is parking... I pay $81 a month for that. If I dump the monthly permit, and buy a transit pass at work for $44, it's a HUGE savings in the long run. Basically from $281.00 to $44.00 plus a tiny bit of gas for the drive to the station. And.... Good for the planet!

Good news! Mars is nearer than we think!

bad-dawg — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 05:23:46 GMT

The Techno-Magicians at Mission Control have selected the launch site for the Mission to Mars Southern California Decom. There was some early confusion due to metric vs. standard measurements, but now all Techno-Magicians are using the same ruler, and everything has been coordinated. We have teamed up with the people at TeleMagica Grounds, who have the Magica-Technology to Teleport us to Mars on schedule. The launch site is in Jacumba, about 80 miles east of downtown SD just off the 8 freeway. As you go south past the onion fields, and through the town of Jacumba, there may be a slight shimmer in the air when you enter the teleportation field. Do not be alarmed, it is just the feeling of going to a new home for the first time. Once you have passed the Greeters you will be transported to a magical landing site on Mars, TeleMagica. The TeleMagicians have scouted the landing site, and discovered some Sacred Land, a Pyramid, left by the ancients, some sculptures, and an ancient Martian Rail Road track along with some rail cars. There is also a large section of the landing site that has not been terraformed, and will provide a great space for tent camping. Book your flight soon! All of the $20 tickets have been sold, and the $40 tickets are running out quickly. Please go to www.socalde.com to reserve your seat. All tickets are purchased through PayPal. If you do not have a credit card or bank account for PayPal to use, please contact Mission Control for alternate payment methods. It appears that the ancients were expecting us. It also appears that the ancients were fascinated with art, and want their world to be filled with art. They have left instructions, and oddly, $1,500 to assist Earthlings in bringing their art to Mars. Please see the art grants information on www.socalde.com for information about how you can receive an art grant. The last (Earth)day to submit a proposal is 9/15 – This coming (Earth)Monday. Mission Control would also like to plan for any art, theme camps, fire, Recreational Space Vehicles, Performers looking for a place to perform, any activities or performances, or anything else they may need to plan for. Please go to www.socalde.com and look for questionnaires related to these items. Mission Control will place all art and theme camps as best fits the need and the landing site. The Tele-Magicians were able to create a bubble of Earth air on Mars for our comfort, but the space is limited and some of the landing area is sacred or very fragile, so no mutant vehicles or bicycles will be allowed to roam the site during the mission. Stationary Mutant vehicles are welcome, and should use the theme camp or art questionnaire. For more information, please go to www.socalde.com. Martians are friendly and hard working people, but they could use some help with various activities. If you would like to volunteer, please complete the volunteer questionnaire at www.socalde.com Thank you, Mission Control

Halleluja!!!!!

bad-dawg — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 06:32:56 GMT

Tribe has risen... for now

Art Grants!!!

bad-dawg — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 20:37:51 GMT

OK folks, The clock is ticking on Art Grants for Socal Decom. To date we have not received a single application that I am aware of, so that means there is a bunch of money available to you to create art for Socal Decom, To be held on October 17. So take those ideas you came back from the BURN with, and put them down on paper and apply!!! Deets: http://www.socalde.com/art/grants

Happy NewBurn!!!

bad-dawg — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 06:34:20 GMT

Watched the burn on BMIR tonight. It was a bit melancholy but still cleansing. Tomorrow will be another year in the life. A year of change and growth and of newfound health and joy.

Good good Dawgie!

bad-dawg — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:08:23 GMT

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20080825-1127-odd-puppyscaresbears.html WYCKOFF, N.J. – If only Goldilocks had a cockapoo. A 15-pound cocker spaniel-poodle mix named Pawlee scared off a mother bear and her two cubs Sunday morning after they strayed into his owners' back yard. Whether his bark was worse than his bite, Pawlee's tactic worked just fine. These three bears got the hint and took off. “We had just let him out for the morning and he ran into the yard and started barking his head off,” owner Fran Osiason said. Osiason said her 9-year-old son, Jacob, went outside to see what the commotion was about and came running back in to report there were bears in the yard. Advertisement She was worried that the mother would come after Pawlee to protect her cubs, but the pugnacious pup, just 8 months old, had other plans. His barking drove the two cubs up a tree, and they eventually climbed down and hopped over a fence with their mother and retreated into the woods. Osiason said she, her son, husband Andrew and daughter Eden, 6, have had Pawlee since he was about 8 weeks old. She marveled at his fearlessness. “He's a little fur ball,” she said. Northern New Jersey seems to breed feisty pets: In 2006, a tabby cat named Jack chased a bear up a tree in his West Milford yard. Bears are not uncommon in Wyckoff, but Osiason said her family has lived there for about 10 years and had not seen any until Sunday. With Pawlee on guard, they might not see another one anytime soon.

LeRoi Moore: 1961-2008 Rest in peace

bad-dawg — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:56:39 GMT

LeRoi Moore, Founding member and Sax player, Dave Matthews Band. Died yesterday in Los Angeles from complications stemming from an ATV accident in June. You will be missed.

Arnold went and did it...

bad-dawg — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:50:56 GMT

this morning we had all our Caltrans projects and funding frozen, we had about half of our postdocs laid off, and they are talking about laying off the Lab staff in our department today. Arnold is such a dirtbag! Not only is he screwing with peoples lives, but he messing with public safety projects. I am in shock...

Homesick blues

bad-dawg — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:41:32 GMT

Zach called me today, He is incredibly homesick and told me about how much he wants to be home NOW, instead of taking the slow and scenic drive down 101 from Oregon. It's really heartbreaking to have a 9 year old call you crying on the phone and tell you how much he misses lakeside. I told him to hang in there, he is on the way home now, and it's just a few more days. But it's hard not having a way to get him back earlier available. it's better that he keeps to the schedule home bound trek as it's "character building" to be stuck in a car with my dad... But I really miss him too, and feel so disconnected from him at this point with only phone access. This photo was from about 3 years old.

Made this for Christina and Dore's wedding reception...

bad-dawg — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 19:54:21 GMT

Punjab Wedding pilaf: 9 cups water 4 cups white rice 1 cup Orzo Pasta or Fideo knots, broken up 1/2 cup Pistachio nuts, shelled(substitutes ok...) 1 large onion, finely chopped 1 red sweet pepper, finely chopped 5 cloves Garlic, crushed 1/2 stick butter, or equivalent in Ghee ore Olive oil 1 bunch Cilantro 1 TBS Salt (more if you want) 2 tsp ground black pepper 1 TBS Ground Cumin 2 tsp Coriander 2 tsp Garam Masala 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper 1 tsp black Mustard seeds 2 tsp turmeric In heavy bottomed covered pan (dutch oven or shallow lidded Sauté pan is best) place butter,onion, and red pepper in pan and sauté until onions are clear (5 minutes) Add crushed garlic and sauté until aromatic. Add all seasonings at this time and stir stir stir until well mixed and fully aromatic. add pasta and nutmeats. Stir until coated. add rice and stir until rice is evenly coated in the oil and spices. Before rice starts burning in the pan, gently add the 9 cups water and bring to boil. Turn to low, cover and cook 25-30 minutes. Garnish with chopped Cilantro leaves and serve with Raita and kabobs.

Tomorrow is National Orgasm Day

bad-dawg — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 20:57:33 GMT

http://www.scientificblogging.com/news_releases/national_orgasm_day_31_july_2008_the_2008_orgasm_survey Be ready people!!!

Nugget the rooster found a new home today

bad-dawg — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 04:00:11 GMT

Our "big Cock" Nugget went home with a little old Armenian today that has two hens. Hopefully he will fare well.

Just got this lovely piece of crap in my mailbox...

bad-dawg — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:54:18 GMT

All I can truly say is that if My pay suddenly decreases to $6.50 an hour I am going to Arnold's house and camping on his front lawn... He is an ASSHOLE to even consider doing this to those of us that have worked very hard to keep things running... CAMPUS NOTICE University of California, San Diego OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT VICE CHANCELLOR - HUMAN RESOURCES July 25, 2008 ALL ACADEMICS AND STAFF AT UCSD (including UCSD Medical Center) SUBJECT: Employee Communication Regarding Potential State Pay Cuts Chancellor Marye Anne Fox has requested that I forward to the campus community the letter below from President Yudof. Thomas R. Leet Assistant Vice Chancellor - Human Resources ========================================================================================================================================== July 24, 2008 Colleagues: You may have read recently that Governor Schwarzenegger is considering an executive order that would reduce the pay of state workers to the federal minimum wage until a state budget is approved. A number of news articles published in the past few days report the order would call for full salaries to be paid retroactively after budget approval. It is anticipated that the Governor may sign the order on Monday. The reports so far indicate a great deal of uncertainty surrounding this issue. Based on the information we have at this point, however, and our experience in prior years with similar budget situations, we will make every effort to ensure that employee salaries will continue to be paid at current levels and that all labor contracts will be honored until an agreement is reached on a State budget. At the same time, we recognize the severity of the budget crisis confronting the State, and as in the past, UC will take appropriate measures to assist the Governor and the State in addressing its fiscal situation. We will let you know if our understanding of the University's obligations regarding this issue changes. Sincerely, Mark G. Yudof President

Headed for the Bay Area we think...

bad-dawg — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 22:37:47 GMT

Next Friday we are jumping in the car and heading north. Our plan was to first stop in Calaveras County to visit with my brother and then move on to Napa to show our daughter around her new college outside Calistoga. But she is being very troublesome and probably not going with us. n any event we may very well be going to SF(Like August 4-5), my old stomping grounds, and spend at least a day there with the pup. Would love to hook up with some burner friends in the area, and maybe find some stores to check out where we could find some "burny" clothing. We are also looking for camping in the area, so if anybody has some ideas on that, let me know... I lived in Sunset for a time in the mid 80's, and spent my time in the Haight (you know us deadheads), but the last time I was up there it just wasn't my bag anymore. Where else might us burners with kids go hang out for a lively scene not impacted with tourists? We are not wedded to the City, I like Berkeley and Oakland too. Then again, we may just go to Tahoe...

Art grants for San Diego Decompression

bad-dawg — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 23:32:39 GMT

I am part of the San Diego Decom Art Grant committee and am happy to release the fact that we get to give money away for the first time ever. Getting the money was not my doing, but I get to help disburse it and It feels really good to help give back. http://sandiego.tribe.net/event/San-Diego-Burningman-Regional-Art-Grant-Committee-2008-Art-Grant-awards/san-diego-ca/d095ec8c-417f-4f23-b0ba-ea648609b246 Check it out!

Hurricanes for the masses

bad-dawg — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:28:51 GMT

I Love XKCD!!!

Yer Mother's Biscuits!!!

bad-dawg — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:12:42 GMT

yup, That's what I said... and... Why I like Onions... http://www.theonion.com/content/news/san_diego_zoo_prison_merge

To Quote Faux News: Gobal warming? I don't think so!

bad-dawg — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:08:05 GMT

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/07/080714-ice-shelf-photo.html Holy Crap! Ice in Antarctica is now melting in the WINTER!!! Time to buy those rubber boots! It's a short little article, but the satellite images are compelling. This ice is already in the water so it won't bring sea levels up any, but the fact is that every one of these ice shelves in Antarctica and Greenland is holding back land ice. and when the sea ice breaks away, the land ice moves very quickly to fill the gap. and THAT will bring sea levels up... We are doomed as a species if we do not start doing SOMETHING to mitigate even some of the damage we have caused with just 200 years of unrestrained carbon emissions.

Strike!

bad-dawg — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 23:45:56 GMT

I walked through a large picket line today to get to my office. I wasn't happy about going to work this morning to begin with. After all the fun Of Elysium I was exhausted, and sore. And I really wasn't feeling the goodness of a windowless box on a beautiful sunny day, but gotta eat so off I went. And When I got there, there were at least a hundred green shirted picketers between my parking lot and the 1/4 mile walk to the office, and no way around them. They were not really in a line, more of a mob with large signs and drums and bullhorns. I pushed my way through, feeling uncomfortable and a bit 'dirty" for it and got to the corner. While waiting for the light, I asked one of the green shirts what was up? It was AFSCME, which represents all the UC Food service, grounds and building peoples, and who knows who else. Most are low level unskilled jobs, and most of the strikers were Immigrants and many did not seem to speak English at all. I asked What they were striking for? They want their pay to be equal to their counterparts at the community colleges and the CSU system, Which pays more across the board than UC, but with less benefits. Can't blame them for trying, but I think they are only hurting themselves. They have good protected jobs with the best bene's I have ever experienced. And are living in a recession economy where there are many that would happily take their job. But they are low paid... Later on when going between a couple of our buildings and ran into Chris, a grounds keeper I talk to on occasion about gardening(he has great knowledge) and I asked him "Why aren't you out there?" His response was that he was pretty happy with what he was getting, especially the bene's, and was frustrated with the union getting everyone all riled up. and he said most of his coworkers did not deserve a raise because they were always bragging about how much time they were able to waste with things other than working. He said most of his co-workers like to snooze in their trucks and usually only put in 4 good hours a day. and those like him that worked hard could not get ahead because the Union controls wages and promotions... So here I am, looking at both sides, thinking back to my own run-ins with a Union that supposedly 'represented' me, and when I left that union how they continued to collect money from me even after I repeatedly told them to knock it off. And how the only way I stopped them was by having to go and threaten to sue their asses. And then never getting my $700.00 back from them... Are unions still needed? I feel they have completely switched their roles, and are no longer representing workers needs, but are looking out for their own needs more. Yet another group feeding on the proletariat... Yet I know that Corporations are even more greedy... Do we need the unions? probably... Could they get better probably... Will they? I really doubt it. And those strikers out there getting $80.00 bucks to stand on the corner today? Will their life be better for it? Probably not... And it's a damn shame that all their energy is being wasted.

This is just... Awesome!

bad-dawg — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:10:38 GMT

http://feministing.com/archives/009499.html

Jesse Helms is dead!

bad-dawg — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 19:19:49 GMT

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20080704-0900-obit-helms.html I don't often rejoice at someones death, but this Grade AA Jumbo sized Asshole has needed to "meet his maker" for a long time. If there is a God like he has propounded for so long, Jesse has got some 'splainen to do... 1> His biggest supporters were Big Tobacco. 2> Opposed the Martin Luther King Holiday because he claimed King was a "communist". 3> Used Illegal subliminal advertising techniques during his 3rd run for senate using the word "rats" over the top of his opponents names. Other things to note about him: Helms' referred to the University of North Carolina (UNC) as the "University of Negroes and Communists." (Charleston Gazette, 9/15/95)[7] Helms once deeply offended a black colleague, Democratic Senator Carol Moseley-Braun of Illinois, by singing part of "Dixie" on a Capitol elevator. Soon after the Senate vote on the Confederate flag insignia, Sen. Jesse Helms (R.-N.C.) ran into Mosely-Braun in a Capitol elevator. Helms turned to his friend, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R.-Utah), and said, "Watch me make her cry. I'm going to make her cry. I'm going to sing 'Dixie' until she cries." He then proceeded to sing the song about "the good life" during slavery to Mosely-Braun (Gannett News Service, 9/2/93; Time, 8/16/93).[7] While working on the 1950 Democrat primary campaign of Willis Smith against Frank Porter Graham, Helms helped create an ad that read "White people, wake up before it is too late. Do you want Negroes working beside you, your wife and your daughters, in your mills and factories? Frank Graham favors mingling of the races." Another ad featured photographs Helms himself had doctored to illustrate the allegation that Graham's wife had danced with a black man. (FAIR 9/1/01, The News and Observer 8/26/01) Helms had close ties to the rightist Salvadoran death squad leader Roberto D'Aubuisson and was considered a main sponsor of D'Aubuisson's political party, the Nationalist Republican Alliance.[8] When confronted with evidence that D'Aubuisson ran death squads that systematically murdered civilians, he replied that "[a]ll I know, is that D'Aubuisson is a free enterprise man and deeply religious. Helms was an ardent supporter of the late Chile dictator Augusto Pinochet. When Roberta Achtenberg was appointed Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1993 by President Bill Clinton, Helms attempted to block her confirmation, stating that he refused to vote for her "because she's a damn lesbian." In 1994 Helms spoke out against metal industrial singer Marilyn Manson. Manson responded by painting an anti-gay slur on his chest during a show in Winston-Salem, in a sarcastic and critical display against Helms's social viewpoints. Hendrik Hertzberg of The New Yorker noted in his memoirs that Helms had "the 'humorous habit'" of calling all black people "Fred". Helms used race issues in many elections; for instance, in 1990, he ran the famous "Hands" television ad in a tough re-election race. The ad has become legendary in Southern political circles as the most direct appeal to white backlash in modern American politics. The ad played upon white voters' ideas that affirmative action might lead to a job going to a less-qualified candidate ("Gantt supports Ted Kennedy's racial quota law, that makes the color of your skin more important than your qualifications.") Helms opposed an amendment offering war reparations to Japanese-Americans who had been interned during World War II; he proposed an amendment stipulating that no reparations would be made unless the Japanese government compensated the families of Americans killed at Pearl Harbor. In 1994, Helms created a sensation when, on the anniversary of John F. Kennedy's assassination, he told broadcasters Rowland Evans, Jr., and Robert Novak that Clinton was "not up" to the tasks of being commander-in-chief and suggested that Clinton had "better not show up around here [Fort Bragg] without a bodyguard." Helms was a strong supporter of drug prohibition, and opposed former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld's nomination as Ambassador to Mexico because Weld supported medical marijuana.[1] Helms proposed several bills as part of the war on drugs. Helms once claimed that "The New York Times and Washington Post are both infested with homosexuals themselves. Just about every person down there is a homosexual or lesbian." The only good thing he ever did was oppose most favored nation Trading status for China... But not for the right reasons, but because they were communist. Jesse, Hell is too good for you. May you be reincarnated as a poor gay black man with no skills and no job.

Decom Planning meeting tonight. Be there to VOTE!

bad-dawg — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:22:00 GMT

It's at Brutus and Jingles place in Santee at 7PM Coffee and water will be served or BYO. 8619 Hacienda St. Santee, CA 92071

Techno? Sounds like...

bad-dawg — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:49:54 GMT

http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail45.html

If you need a good laugh

bad-dawg — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:00:47 GMT

Possibly NSFW for language... But freaking FUNNY!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Euu_DMhsXQo