As I said in this post, I actually took a physical blow for him once (not that I planned on that!)... Hopefully, I will be able to collect myself later, to write a better post.
For now, please listen to one of my favorites. Just magic.
We were less than a year apart in age...so imagine a very young Daisy listening to a very young Michael.
Of course, I had Jackson 5ive posters on my wall, right next to David Cassidy, David Bowie, Iggy, The Who...
And when he sings, "there's so many things we haven't tried"-- (((cries)))
I wanna be where you are - Michael Jackson
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Dead Air is devastated
Friday, June 26, 2009
Friday Cat Blogging: New Family Member
I went to the kitten rescue, to take photos of kittens. As I've said here before, I visit feline rescues regularly.
Unexpectedly, I saw a miniature version of my smoky-gray Grand Old Man, whom I lost a year ago. There he was! (below, far right)
Of course, since cats have nine lives, I wondered if it really was him.
I picked up the white one, and he was disinterested. The gray one was very determined, yowling insistently at me. Hmm, I thought. Is it him?
I picked him up and he purred and head-butted me, promptly crawling into my hair.
Okay.
I guess you know what happened next. :)
~*~
Peace Cat appears very jealous and is punishing me for the new arrival by refusing to acknowledge my existence. Currently, he just glares (and occasionally hisses) at the kitten, but I am hoping he will come around. His grief was as profound as mine, and I fervently hope he will soon make friends with our new family member.
He is an affectionate little sweetheart; I am very happy right now.
The Bent Strings
Bluegrass band The Bent Strings at benefit for Harvest Hope food bank yesterday at Earth Fare Plaza. Excellent music! (The food wasn't bad either.)
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Governor Sanford's lovesick correspondence
At left: Governor Mark Sanford and the family he has betrayed. (Photo from Chapin, South Carolina's official website.)
I have retail inventory in a few days, and company coming next week... and what am I doing? What every self-respecting resident of South Carolina is doing, of course. Reading the steamy emails between Governor Mark Sanford and his paramour, Maria.
Interestingly, before the Governor's fun-filled press conference on Wednesday in which he admitted his affair, I joked on Aunt B's blog about the legendary Wilbur Mills and Fanne Foxe, known as the Argentine Firecracker. I wondered if the Governor was playing with similar fireworks, and damned if I wasn't right.
But what really surprises me about the emails between the Governor and Maria, is that he turns out to be a better writer than I expected:
Got back an hour ago to civilization and am now in Columbia after what was for me a glorious break from reality down at the farm. No phones ringing and tangible evidence of a day’s labors. Though I have started every day by 6 this morning woke at 4:30, I guess since my body knew it was the last day, and I went out and ran the excavator with lights until the sun came up. To me, and I suspect no one else on earth, there is something wonderful about listening to country music playing in the cab, air conditioner running, the hum of a huge diesel engine in the background, the tranquility that comes with being in a virtual wilderness of trees and marsh, the day breaking and vibrant pink coming alive in the morning clouds — and getting to build something with each scoop of dirt. It is admittedly weird but one of my more favorite ways of escaping the norms, constant phone calls and formalities that go with the office — and it probably fits with my weakness in doing rather than being — though you opened up a new chapter last week wherein I was happy and content just being. Last point worth further discussion. Afternoon projects had me outside and by days (sic) end I pretty much looked like a homeless person ... but in this case a very content one. Enough about my love of heavy equipment and woods at sunrise ...Hey, not bad. He should take up blogging, his GOP-fans (assuming he has any left) would eat it up. That "vibrant pink coming alive in the morning clouds" was pretty good. Do you think he plagiarized? (And what makes me think he would be the type of person to do that?)
While I was getting exhausted with one project after another at Coosaw work week, you were basking (I’m certain gloriously) on the beach..
Sounds great, hope to hear more about what sounds a great spot.
Will now finally get some sleep and write you a longer note with a few more profound thoughts tomorrow or Wednesday. In the meantime I send my love and hope you know I am thinking of you.. M
And then it gets pretty hot:
Above all else I love that inner beauty about you. That gift of yours is going to make a tremendous difference in [The State deleted sons’ names] life — and in anyone’s life who is blest to be touched by yours — you need to rest very comfortably in that fact. As I mentioned in our last visit, while I did not need love fifteen years ago — as the battle scars of life and aging and politics have worn on this has become a real need of mine. You have a particular grace and calm that I adore. You have a level of sophistication that is so fitting with your beauty. I could digress and say that you have the ability to give magnificently gentle kisses, or that I love your tan lines or that I love the curves of your hips, the erotic beauty of you holding yourself (or two magnificent parts of yourself) in the faded glow of night’s light — but hey, that would be going into the sexual details we spoke of at the steakhouse at dinner — and unlike you I would never do that!I love how right-wing Christians quote the Bible when they are aroused. They do, you know, as if to give it the A-OK: I'm quoting the Bible, so it's CLEAN desire!
Three and finally, while all the things above are all too true — at the same time we are in a hopelessly — or as you put it impossible — or how about combine and simply say hopelessly impossible situation of love. How in the world this lightening strike snuck up on us I am still not quite sure. As I have said to you before I certainly had a special feeling about you from the first time we met, but these feelings were contained and I genuinely enjoyed our special friendship and the comparing of all too many personal notes (and yes this is true even if you did occasionally tantalize me with sexual details over the years!) — but it was all safe. Where we are is not. I have thought about it and in some ways feel I let you down in letting these complications come into a friendship that I hope will last till death. In all my life I have lived by a code of honor and at a variety of levels know I have crossed lines I would have never imagined. I wish I could wish it away, but this soul-mate feel I alluded too is real and in that regard I sure don’t want to be the person complicating your life. I looked to where I often look for advice and counsel, and in I Corinthians 13 it simply says that, “ Love is patient and kind, love is not jealous or boastful, it is not arrogant or rude, Love does not insist on its own way, it is not irritable or resentful, it does not rejoice in the wrong, but rejoices in the right, Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things and endures all things”. In this regard it is action that goes well beyond the emotion of today or tomorrow and in this light I want to look for ways to show love in helping you to live a better — not more complicated life. I want to help [one of Maria’s sons] with film guys that might help his career, etc. I also don’t want you walking20away (sic) from some guy (I take it the younger guy you mentioned a t dinner) because of me — and what we both have to see as an impossible situation. I better stop now least this really sound like the Thornbirds — wherein I was always upset with Richard Chamberlain for not dropping his ambitions and running into Maggie’s arms. The bottom line is two fold, my heart wants me to get on a plane tonight and to be in your loving arms — my head is saying how do we put the Genie back in the bottle because I sure don’t want to be encumbering you, or your options or your life. Put differently, given I love you, I don’t want to be part of the reason you are having less than an ideal week in what sounds like a cool spot.
Lastly I also suspect I feel a little vulnerable because this is ground I have never certainly never covered before — so if you have pearls of wisdom on how we figure all this out please let me know ... In the meantime please sleep soundly knowing that despite the best efforts of my head my heart cries out for you, your voice, your body, the touch of your lips, the touch of your finger tips and an even deeper connection to your soul. I love you ... sleep tight. M
And who knew he liked THE THORNBIRDS? Damn, our Governor is a closet romantic and there was never the first clue.
The political questions everyone has now: who paid for the cars, gas, and plane fare for his many trysts? Apparently, it was a state car he drove to the Atlanta airport. (Surely a 'fiscally responsible' conservative like Mark Sanford would not charge the costs of flying to his private love-nest to the good people of South Carolina?) Is abandoning the state an impeachable offense? People are bloody livid, including (especially?) at least two Republicans I know.
If he resigns, we get Andre Bauer. Holy God, are we ready for that?
But it's been fun, yall. As I said on Aunt B's, an Obama campaign worker I hadn't seen in months came into the store Tuesday night while I was working...and we just grinned and cackled at each other. And that was before Wednesday's bombshell.
It's been a long time coming. Justice is sweet. Although when I look at Jenny Sanford's face in the photo above, and I see that tight smile I always thought was just plain snootiness, I now see forced politeness and possible disgust.
Jenny, I'm sorry that our schadenfreude is at the expense of your pain.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Don't Cry for me Argentina
Undoubtedly, when our disappearing Governor Mark Sanford heard about the infamous "Naked Hiking Day" that coincides with the Summer Solstice, he decided a change-of-venue was in order... that is, the story changes, once again.
Now, we learn that our disappearing governor was vacationing incommunicado in Argentina for 5 days. As Dead Air proclaimed correctly, he was not hiking the Appalachian trail. (Although the "Naked Hiking Day" thing was oodles of fun to think about, and photographers fanned out all over the trail, looking for the Governor in the buff.)
Report: Gov. Sanford was in Argentina, not hiking trail
The Associated Press • June 24, 2009
The most wonderful facet of this whole fiasco has been the complete demolition of Sanford's presidential hopes. THANK GOD. The GOP will never nominate someone like this... or would they? (((thinks about Dubya and Sarah Palin)))
ATLANTA (AP) — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford is telling a newspaper that he was in Argentina during his unexplained 5-day absence, not hiking along the Appalachian Trail as his office previously said.
The Republican told The State newspaper in South Carolina that he arrived at the Atlanta airport Wednesday.
Sanford says he decided at the last minute to go to the South American country. The governor says he had considered hiking on the Appalachian Trail but wanted to do something "exotic."
Sanford says he returned after a five-day absence because the trip turned into more of a fuss than he ever expected.
At least, if they do nominate him (doubtful at this juncture) the disappearing-Governor routine would make for a great attack ad. Voiceover: (picture of Buenos Aires) Governor Sanford disappeared for five days during Naked Hiking Day. Why?
Stay tuned, sports fans, the story can only get better!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Fun search terms, June edition
All of the following terms were used to find my blog in Yahoo or Google:
forgive those lifelong suicides robert hunter*
u.s. supreme court t-shirt "fuck the army"
love quotes involving tambourines
"Alice Cooper" "Bob Jones University"
famous dead golfers
biker funhouse old fart
england home school well-done or relative friend to speak to bring teacher name to guess what a an beatiful surname pronoun to do to make
i had 80 favorite cities on weather underground and you deleted it
Mark Sanford on crack for HOW LONG?
Mark Sanford stupid
Mark Sanford idiot
Mark Sanford mistress?
I need to kill fleas NOW crazy insane drugs fleas herbs kill fleas?
Feminist christians UNFAIR to women and christians!
Did king edward invent the Cromer Carnival of 1969
Can republicans be vegetarian?
Did Bob Dylan mean Nixon?
Real Housewives of New York TV botox! botox! botox!
~*~
Now, who can argue with that? (name that movie quote!)
*I was intrigued by this line, and followed the search term back to Google, where I found Blue Heron's blog, and the entire quote in context:
Forgive those lifelong suicides
you who jumped into the water
fully clothed
to rescue the reflection
of the setting sun.
Robert Hunter
Appalachian Trail, my ass
Mark Sanford back in March, whipping up support in suburban Greenville for his anti-stimulus nonsense. Photo from the worshipful Greenville News.
Yes, we are continuing our sordid gubernatorial saga from yesterday, wherein South Carolina governor Mark Sanford goes on a binge... oops, I mean, decides to hike the Appalachian Trail all Father's Day weekend, without his four sons and (pointedly) not telling his wife where he is going.
What kind of patriarch is THAT, I ask you? Some Family Values THOSE ARE, Governor Sanford!
As stated yesterday, our chickenshit Gannett newspaper, ever-eager to tote water for the GOP, did not cover the story until it went national and people were giggling on cable TV outlets over it. Now, they have decided to (apologies to Gerald Graff) "teach the controversy" as a way of covering the story, without really covering it or doing any in-depth investigation.
Cagey!
Sanford's undisclosed getaway mocked in the media, criticized by lawmakers
Governor leaves town to 'recharge'
By Tim Smith • Capital Bureau • June 23, 2009
COLUMBIA - Gov. Mark Sanford has been hiking along with Appalachian Trail, his spokesman said this morning, and he will return to work tomorrow because of the attention this trip has garnered.Well duh! No, a sabbatical is not unusual, but not telling even your wife and children where you are, during Father's Day weekend, is just plain weird.
Joel Sawyer, a spokesman for the governor, said Monday that he could not disclose the location of Sanford. He said today that the governor’s staff waited until last night before releasing more detail, in part because “we wanted to have a little bit better understanding of where he was.”
He said the governor was taken aback by so much attention to his trip.
Sawyer said he did not know when the governor would finish his hiking trip or what section he was on of the popular trail, which runs from northern Georgia to Maine. Sawyer said there was no need to turn over his authority to the lieutenant governor.
Sawyer on Monday said the governor had left town last week to a secret location to “recharge” after his bruising political battle with lawmakers over the federal stimulus issue.
Sanford’s sabbatical drew the interest this morning of national radio talk show host Glenn Beck, who mused that the reason the conservative governor’s absence had stirred so much talk among politicians is because he poses a threat to the status quo.
“This guy’s a threat,” he told listeners. “What do they do? They smear him.”
Beck and his staff poked fun at critics of Sanford, mockingly suggesting that one reason Sanford’s wife had said she was not sure where her husband was could be because she had him killed.
“What’s next, Governor Sanford, fishing at Christmas?” Beck quipped.
One state senator questioned whether the governor’s location was known by his staff and criticized the governor for leaving without handling over control of state government to Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer.
“I think everybody in South Carolina ought to have a problem with it,” said Sen. Jake Knotts, a West Columbia Republican and frequent Sanford critic. “I don’t mind him taking off somewhere to be alone. But the constitution says that in the absence of the governor, the lieutenant governor should be left in charge.”
Sawyer said the Republican governor was taking time away “to recharge after the stimulus battle and the legislative session, and to work on a couple of projects that have fallen by the wayside.”
He said the brief sabbatical is not unusual.
Further, it STINKS.
Does anyone believe this bullshit?
“The governor put in a lot of time during this last legislative session, and after the session winds down it's not uncommon for him to go out of pocket for a few days at a time to clear his head,” Sawyer said in a statement. “Obviously, that's going to be somewhat out of the question this time given the attention this particular absence has gotten.”Why are we stuck with this jackass for a governor? Haven't we been punished enough?
Before leaving last week, Sanford told his staff his whereabouts and let them know he would be difficult to reach, Sawyer said.
Should any emergencies arrive before his return, Sawyer said, the governor’s staff would contact other state officials to address them.
Knotts, a former police detective who first learned of the governor’s disappearance on Saturday, said Sanford left last week in a State Law Enforcement Division vehicle and that agency has not been able to contact him since. He said it is not the first time the governor has shaken his security detail.
“I understand that in other instances over the last several weeks, the governor has left without any detail and gone for short periods of time,” Knotts said, “but this is the longest.”
SLED Director Reggie Lloyd could not be reached for comment.
Knotts said he also had a problem with the governor taking a fully equipped SLED vehicle.
“I’ve had my battles with the governor,” Knotts said. “But this isn’t a battle with the governor. This is just plain out logical thinking.”
When Sanford first took office in 2002 he indicated he did not want a security detail watching him. He later relented after discussions with SLED’s chief.
Word of his disappearance on Monday prompted the leader of the Senate Democrats to say that he was praying for the governor.
“We’ve been concerned by the governor’s erratic behavior for some time,” Sen. John Land said in a statement. “We’re praying for him and his family. I hope he is safe and that he contacts the First Lady and his family soon.”
Sanford spent months opposing the acceptance of about $700 million in federal stimulus aid and even filed suit to try and get a federal judge to rule on the issue after the Legislature passed a budget with a provision that required the governor to apply for the money.
A federal judge sent the issue to the South Carolina Supreme Court, which ruled against the governor.
And why DIDN'T he want a security detail? Oh yeah, all that Republican fiscal responsibility, right? Does anyone believe that?
I hope some intrepid, dedicated reporter with money and means, is snooping around the bank accounts as we speak, and looking for the brothel or the dope dealer or whatever else it is. Because I don't believe a single word of this CRAP.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Mark Sanford in hiding?
I've been getting hits for a couple of days now, with search terms like:
Mark Sanford Suicide?
Mark Sanford sick
Mark Sanford gone
Mark Sanford in hiding
Where is Mark Sanford?
And so on.
Of course, this excited lots of us, for obviously unsavory reasons, but I won't get into that.
The Greenville News, another Republican...oops I mean, GANNETT newspaper, has not covered the Governor's disappearance. I finally saw it on POLITICO, and now that the story has been picked up by the Associated Press, the Greenville News is forced to take note of the fact that Sanford has been incommunicado for several days:
Unclear if S.C. governor has talked to staff in days
By Jim Davenport • The Associated Press • June 22, 2009
Translation: Even his kids don't like him.
COLUMBIA -- A spokesman for South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford says the chief executive may not have checked in with anyone on his staff in four days.
Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer said Monday he last spoke with the governor Thursday and was not aware of any other staff member speaking with him since. He says nobody in the office spoke with Sanford on Monday.
Sawyer said the the two-term Republican was expected to return later this week.
The spokesman emphasized that Sanford routinely takes time to unwind after a legislative session ends. But this time even Sanford's wife says she doesn't know where he went.
First lady Jenny Sanford told The Associated Press said she had not spoken with him for several days. That includes Father's Day. The Sanfords have four sons.
Politico reports:
Staff says Gov. Mark Sanford is safe
By JONATHAN MARTIN & ANDY BARR | 6/22/09 6:25 PM EDT
Considering some of his sleazoid friends, maybe he decided to go on a coke binge.
South Carolina GOP Gov. Mark Sanford is safe and secure, his office said Monday afternoon, moving to tamp down speculation that he had gone missing.
Sanford has not been in touch with his office since Thursday and left Columbia without his state police detail.
His communications director, Joel Sawyer, wouldn’t disclose Sanford’s location but said that before the governor left town last week “he let staff know his whereabouts and that he'd be difficult to reach.”
“Should any emergencies arise between the times in which he checks in, our staff would obviously be in contact with other state officials as the situation warrants before making any decisions,” said Sawyer.
Sanford’s wife, Jenny, told The Associated Press Monday that she was unconcerned and that the second-term governor is “writing something and wanted some space to get away from the kids.”
Sawyer added: “The governor put in a lot of time during this last legislative session, and after the session winds down it's not uncommon for him to go out of pocket for a few days at a time to clear his head. Obviously, that's going to be somewhat out of the question this time given the attention this particular absence has gotten.”
Sanford allies blame that attention on some of the governor’s adversaries, especially state Sen. Jake Knotts, a veteran Republican who has clashed repeatedly with Sanford.
It was Knotts who provided the only on-record confirmation of Sanford’s absence to The State newspaper, prompting nationwide buzz about the unlikely story of the disappearing governor.
Knotts demanded in an interview Monday with The State to “know immediately who is running the executive branch in the governor’s absence.”
“As the head of our state, in the unfortunate event of a state of emergency or homeland security situation, Governor Sanford should be available at all times to the chief of [the state police force],” Knotts said.
State authorities told the paper that Sanford’s last known location was somewhere near Atlanta where the governor’s phone signal was picked up by a local cell phone tower.
Sanford’s solo summer sabbatical is only the latest reminder of his eccentricity.
“He marches to his own crazy beat,” said one veteran Palmetto State GOP strategist when asked about this Salinger-like episode.
Sanford, a potential 2012 presidential aspirant, has previously raised eyebrows in South Carolina for bringing squealing and defecating pigs into the statehouse to make his case against pork-barrel spending and for sporting a ratty blazer to his own Inauguration.
A former House member, he easily won his gubernatorial races and has been more popular with the electorate than the state’s political class.
But with unemployment climbing in South Carolina, Sanford has come under fire for initially refusing to take some federal stimulus funds.
Now he’s sure to become the butt of late-night television jokes for a time, not exactly the preferred launching pad for White House hopefuls.
Drugs? Booze? Women? Men? Solitude? Satan? You decide.
HeroesCon, Charlotte, NC
Unfortunately, I am informed there were not many women in costume, and a proliferation of Batmans. But I do love the two Green Lanterns (below).
Enjoy, you geek maniacs!
~*~
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Estimated Prophetess
I am one of those lifelong weirdo-hippies that enjoys talking to strangers, and so the article titled Happinomics in Adbusters totally vindicates me. I do think I am happier when I exchange pleasantries with other people, and I enjoy the warm fuzzy feeling of connection/communion that results from it...it's not (only) because I am a nosyparker! Random social exchanges are good for our well-being! And now I have this hotshot happiness-researcher to back me up in my random babbling in restrooms and checkout lines. Alright!
I have long noticed that friendly chit-chat increases the possibility of sales in a retail environment, just as familiar, fast-paced music does.
~*~
I am about to get banned, at long last, from FEMINIST CRITICS, the argumentative blog dedicated to criticizing feminism. I am already on the "watch list"--even though one guy who throws around the word "skanks" (and authoritatively announced that the Southern USA is a "shithole") is on no such watch list. I guess it depends on who you know and who you blow, as the expression goes.
In any event, the version of women's lives propagated at FC is a sharp contrast to the version offered at No Longer Quivering, a blog started by ex-Quiverfull women that I have been visiting regularly. On FEMINIST CRITICS, feminism is presented as a blight, blunting the happiness of our society, making people (read: men) totally miserable and altering the course of natural desire, blah blah blah. On NLQ, I see what our world would be WITHOUT feminism, and I feel like getting down on my knees before Almighty God and giving thanks for being born into a world that has finally been given the possibility of WOMEN'S FULL HUMANITY. Hallelujah and praise GOD for FEMINISM!
Graphic grabbed from Cyborg Mommy.
The guys at FEMINIST CRITICS (along with their trusty anti-feminist female mascot/hench(wo)man, TyphonBlue), would be totally at home in the Quiverfull movement... in fact, I don't understand why these anti-feminist malcontents aren't jumping on the bandwagon to find them a proper Quiverfull wife who will shut up and not argue.
Then, of course, it dawns on me: they'd have to support all those kids! LOL--obedience comes at a high price, dudes.
Meanwhile, TyphonBlue continues her complaint that her husband has been greatly harmed by the loss of his Bodily Integrity (FC lingo = circumcision) and resultant male sex-Godhood, or she'd be in the secular-Quiverfull movement for sure. [Caution: second link contains ableist language, the term "crippled sexuality"--which is horrendously gross, but I linked it to make a point. And TyphonBlue wonders why hubby has issues? I certainly don't.]
And you know, that's the thing...Quiverfull is a religious movement. IS there a secular equivalent? Absolutely.
The constant, worshipful fetishizing of the large family (Jon & Kate Plus 8, Nadia Suleman) is everywhere in our culture. It's been going on since the Osmonds, the Jacksons, The Brady Bunch and The King Family. And in these enlightened times (cough) you don't need religion to be radically natalist. In fact, I found the Quiverfull blog when one of their readers linked my Surfwise review to their message board, offering the wise observation that it sounded the same as the Quiverfull life, only no surfing.
The Quiverfull women are awesome in their self-analysis and truth-telling, one speaking openly about what it was like when her husband no longer desired her. (And what happens to these wives then? Are they simply supposed to ACCEPT loveless marriages? Apparently.) These women ain't a bit shy regarding the use of that much-maligned word PATRIARCHY; in fact, they are very clear about the usage. Unlike some of us, they don't throw the word around in a meaningless mish-mash of theory, they are quite specific: a patriarchal household is one in which the husband/father rules. After all, patriarchy is literally defined as "rule of the fathers"--and that is the life they have escaped from, the life they are warning us about. They know what patriarchy is.
PATRIARCHY is that which would exist, if feminism had not challenged it, if feminism did not continue to challenge it throughout the world.
PATRIARCHY is that state of affairs championed on FEMINIST CRITICS. And the Quiverfull women come forward to say, very plainly, NO. NO. NO.
I am now addicted to the blog, and the eye-opening spiritual witness of powerhouse-survivors Vyckie and Laura, also very descriptive and talented writers. God bless you strong womyn, and I love you. I am waiting for the special moment, here in Bob Jones University-land, to give your website-address to women who truly NEED it. I meet Quiverfull wives every day, I know it will happen eventually, so stay tuned. (((blows copious kisses)))
~*~
And speaking of patriarchy, dig THIS! It made me somewhat dizzy, but you know how cognitive dissonance is. Lord have mercy!
Kittywampus writes about Masters and Johnson, reviewing a review (we are somewhat derivative here in Blogdonia, you may have noticed) about the new biography of the duo, titled Masters of Sex.
Dana Goldstein's review on The American Prospect:
She said what?!
The truth of the Masters-Johnson partnership, however, was far more sordid. By Johnson’s own account, and that of friends and colleagues, Masters hired the divorced mother of two under the implicit understanding that she would become his sexual partner — for the purposes of research, Masters claimed. “Sex for Virginia Johnson would become part of her job,” Maier writes matter-of-factly. And indeed, Johnson told Maier herself in an interview, “No — I was not comfortable with it, particularly. I didn’t want him at all, and had no interest in him.” Johnson engaged in sex with Masters, she claimed decades later, because as a single-mother, “I had a job and I wanted it.”
Is this Virginia Johnson we are talking about?!
Well, damn, who knew.
Kittywampus writes:
As I said over on her blog, all you can say is WOW.
Of course, when Masters hired Johnson in 1957, Catharine MacKinnon was still in grade school. No one had dreamed up a name for sexual harassment, though it occurred commonly, and women certainly knew it was wrong when they experienced it. And yes, sexual harassment is the right word for what Masters imposed on Johnson. She very clearly states that she had no interest in him. She was living a hardscrabble life as a single mother, and her other options appeared worse.
This is the couple whose work overturned the oppressive Freudian conceit of the vaginal orgasm as essential to mature femininity. They proved that clitoral and vaginal orgasms didn’t differ, physiologically. How ironic that this liberatory insight flowed from a partnership that began as sexual exploitation.
I am really quite stunned.
~*~
At left: Close-up of red and purple angelonia. (I love them!)I'm always glad to hear that there are more feminists in South Carolina (this rates another strong hallelujah! from me)... and Moody Springs is Rachel's relatively new blog. She writes about Ellen DeGeneres' new 'funny' commercial in which Ellen announces 'ironically' (and watch out for that free-floating irony, folks!), "Inner beauty is important, but not nearly as important as outer beauty.":
Rachel, may your new blog live long and prosper, girlfriend! Welcome to wacky Blogdonia.
It's funny, I guess. Or...supposed to be. See, because she is a comedienne, and she makes jokes. And she uses verbal irony here...everyone knows that inner beauty actually is more important than outer beauty, but it doesn't hurt to enhance one's outer beauty. But instead of saying that, she says the opposite of what we all know to be true....
Or do we?
Actually, what she is saying is very "true." Outer beauty is more important than inner beauty. Or rather, that one must do everything she* can to hide her outer ugliness. Or in other words, her wrinkles; the fact she is old...or the fact that she didn't die young and is still alive. Oh, the situational irony is just as rich as the verbal irony...the fact that you have the vitality in you to live long, and that you have been blessed for many years with the good luck to not have been involved in some circumstance that resulted in your death, makes you ugly. So if you use this makeup, it will lie flat over those wrinkles. Hide them. Your potent life force that led you to be wrinkled will be your secret.
And BTW: YES!--as several have asked, I did coin the word Blogdonia, with considerable help from Groucho Marx. Unfortuntely, the graphic in that link, featuring the mercurial Rufus T. Firefly, has now evaporated into the cyber-ether. (My advice to new bloggers regarding images is: always copy and download your own, because other people's stuff comes and goes like summer sitcoms, and frequently does not even last out the week.)
~*~
More stuff you should check out:
Politico on Obama's persistent gay problem.
Angry Black Bitch is hilarious on the subject of Senator John Ensign, violating the sanctity of man-woman opposite marriage.
The New Agenda's Urban Girls: The Have-Nots of Sports
Mr Daisy has deserted me on this sultry, sauna-like day, to go to HeroesCon in Charlotte. I assigned him Dead Air photography duties, so let's hope he returns with some proper Superhero photos to celebrate the Solstice!
And now, signing off to sizzle...
~*~
Estimated Prophet - Grateful Dead (jump to 1:31; they diddle with chords for a whole minute and a half!)
Like an angel
Standing in a shaft of light
Rising up to paradise
I know I'm gonna shine
Fabulous Women: a diva round-up
I figure everyone should be able to find at least one diva and song they like.
I was just listening to some old tunes and decided to share them. Enjoy these fabulous and larger-than-life women.
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I don't know what the special occasion is, but I love the roar that comes up from the crowd when she starts singing in the film clip. I feel the same way when I hear it!
Rosemary Clooney - Mambo Italiano (1954)
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Nobody had heard of her at this point outside of Bay Area hippies and bikers, so this performance has the added electricity of one who knows: this is my big chance. She didn't waste it, either, she burned the freakin house down.
After the Monterey Pop Festival (where this was recorded), she was virtually a household name. This clip is also famous for catching Mama Cass Elliot's unabashed "Wow!" at the end. (Well, what else could you say?)
Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company - Ball and Chain (1967)
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This song was originally recorded in 1958, but this TV appearance is quite obviously later, since there was no color TV in the 50s. I can actually remember seeing it when it was first broadcast, so I am guessing it was around 1965 or 66.
"What a lovely way to burn"...can't argue with that. :)
Peggy Lee - Fever (mid/late 60s)
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Okay, somewhat melodramatic to die from not getting a phone call, but that's exactly why we loved it. This clip is from Belgian TV, and contains some rather artsy set decoration for its time. And I love the "frosted" hair, the shiny dress--this really brings back the 60s for me!
Vikki Carr was born Florencia Bisenta de Casillas Martinez Cardona, but none of us had any clue at the time. It was only when I heard her sing in Spanish, I wondered why she recorded so many songs in Spanish...
Vikki Carr - It Must be Him (1967)
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I am not sure which of the back-up singers are Aretha's sisters--I am guessing from photos that Erma is on the far left and Carolyn is on the far right? (Does anyone know for sure?) This clip is from Cliff Richard's British TV-series.
Aretha Franklin - I Say A Little Prayer (1970)
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Amazing to watch the very young Dolly in this one! She is too fabulous for mere words. (And Porter Wagoner's flashy get-ups never disappointed.)
Dolly Parton - My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy (1970)
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My mother called this "an excellent whiskey-drinkin song." Caution: If you're going through a breakup, please avoid; turn back now!
Check out how perfectly she delivers the poignant line, "and I never drew/one response from you"--she could make you weep, people.
Linda Ronstadt - Long, Long Time (1970)
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I can hardly believe this is now a staple of "lite rock"--but alas, it is.
Don't let that put you off, she is incredible.
Chaka Khan and Rufus - Sweet Thing (1976)
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Patti wrote this for her husband, Fred "Sonic" Smith, guitarist for the legendary MC-5. When I heard he passed away (in 1994), the song was the first thing I thought of...
Patti Smith Group - Frederick (1979)
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I've always loved the way Chrissie delivers the line, "and the veins bulged on his....brow..."
Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders - Up the Neck (1980)
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To be included with the above women, you have to record a song as good as this one:
Kathleen Edwards - Maria (2003)
Friday, June 19, 2009
Friday music: Anchorage
And how many letters have I written, how many letters written to me, sound exactly like this song?
I am unable to listen to this song in public, since it makes me cry for reasons I can't explain. Luckily, when I heard it again the other day, I was safely sequestered in my car.
For all of us who miss our former best buddies.
~*~
Anchorage - Michelle Shocked
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Venerable Matt Talbot
Venerable Matt Talbot, traditional holy card.
In the Catholic calendar, today is the Feast Day of Matt Talbot. He has not been fully canonized yet, but is currently in the first stage, which gives him the title of "Venerable"; he needs to progress through the second stage (and the title of "Blessed") before he is a saint.
My late, great Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor, Kathy Anthony, supervised the detox unit at the old Talbot Hall in Columbus, Ohio, which is now part of the Ohio State University Medical Center, but was at that time part of the St Anthony Hospital complex on the east side. At Talbot Hall, she made me stand up at an actual podium and give my AA "testimony" to about 300 people. It was the first time I had ever done it, and I was scared shitless. I remember looking at the painting of Matt Talbot hanging in the entrance hall, and asking him for a boost. I can even recall reaching out and touching the picture, whispering, "If you're listening, how about an infusion of grace?"
He got me through it, and I owe him. In fact, after the first few sentences, I relaxed completely and it was not unlike a regular conversation... or like blogging. :)
After he is properly canonized, Matt Talbot will likely be designated patron saint of alcoholics.
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Nezua freaked me right out, offering a story that the mainstream media has all but ignored.
I am as angry about the national-media blackout, as I am about the story itself, which is horrifying enough.
I’M VERY SORRY TO SAY that Brisenia Flores and her father Raul are dead. That’s Brisenia on the left. The Flores familia was sleeping when anti-immigrant crusaders busted down their door and invaded their home, ICE-style, before shooting the father and daughter to death.And did you hear about little Brisenia?
Me neither, and I am a major newshound.
According to The Arizona Daily Star:
Three people, including the leader of a border watch group and an officer within that group, were arrested in connection with a May 30 home invasion that left a father and his daughter dead and the mother wounded, authorities said.The next time you see Lou Dobbs or one of those talking-head-hacks babbling about the Minutemen "protecting" our borders, just remember this story, okay?
One of those arrested, Shawna Forde, is the leader of Minutemen American Defense, a group out of Washington state that conducts operations along the U.S.-Mexican border in Arizona. The group is not related to either the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps founded by Chris Simcox, or the Minuteman Project founded by Jim Gilchrist.
Authorities also arrested Jason Eugene Bush, 34, who serves as operations director for the Washington group, and Albert Robert Gaxiola, 42, in connection with the shooting deaths of Raul Flores, 29, and his 9-year-old daughter, Brisenia Flores, said Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik.
The three are charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first degree burglary, and one count of aggravated assault.
Several men and a woman claiming to be police officers forced their way into the home in the middle of the night May 30 and killed the pair. The girl's mother was wounded, and investigators believe she returned fire, injuring Bush, Dupnik said.
Dupnik painted a grim picture of the tragedy during a press conference Friday at the Sheriff's Department headquarters.
Raul Flores was a suspected drug dealer, and the three suspects targeted the house with the intention of stealing money and drugs, he said.
Bush was the suspected shooter, Dupnik said.
They did not plan to leave any survivors, he said. "The plan was to kill everyone. To kill a 9-year-old because she might be a potential witness is one of the most despicable acts I've heard of."
Sure they are.
~*~
Aunt B reports on the exploits of Harass II the wonder dog, who actually had the power to convict people.From The Agitator:
Incredible story from Orlando, where police and prosecutors were apparently convicting people of violent crimes based almost exclusively on the “testimony” of a police dog whose handler claimed has extraordinary powers.Last weekend, we looked at the case of Bill Dillon, the Brevard County resident imprisoned for 27 years before DNA tests set him free…
At least two other men suffered the same fate — and another shared link: a dog.
Not just any dog. A wonder dog helped convict all three men: a German shepherd named Harass II, who wowed juries with his amazing ability to place suspects at the scenes of crimes.
Harass could supposedly do things no other dog could: tracking scents months later and even across water, according to his handler, John Preston.Judges and juries apparently bought this crap for years. It finally came to an end when Judge Gilbert Goshorn ordered the dog to perform a basic tracking test after Preston claimed the dog had alerted to a suspect’s scent at a crime scene six months after the murder. The dog failed.
So far, three people have been cleared after collectively spending more than 50 years in prison, all of whom were convicted primarily due to the dog’s alerts, despite other evidence exculpating them. Florida criminal justice activists say there may be as 60 more people wrongly convicted thanks to Preston and his dog.
Yet Florida officials don’t seem to care, and have no plans to proactively look for other people who may have been wrongly imprisoned.
In a statement, [Florida State's Attorney] Wolfinger’s office said it didn’t have a list of the cases in which Preston testified — nor even the records that would allow the office to compile such a list.
Essentially, Wolfinger contends it’s up to defendants to raise questions about these decades-old cases.What can you say to a story like this?
I am as speechless as Aunt B.
Georgia woman arrested for performing exorcism on son
I was not aware that exorcisms are now also against the law.
Georgia woman arrested for performing exorcism on son
Kevin Rowson • 11alive.com • Atlanta
If this teenaged boy had been abused without any claims of exorcism, would there have been this sensationalist news report and arrest?
LILBURN, GA -- A Lilburn mother was arrested after she allegedly told police she was performing an exorcism on her 15 year old son. Sandra Alfred and a friend, Larry Powell, were charged with Cruelty to Children. Alfred was also charged with False Imprisonment.
Powell, who was released on bail, answered the door at his home and told 11-Alive News "Everything has been blown out of proportion." He says he and Alfred, who recently moved in with him, were not performing an exorcism. Asked why police would say that they were, Powell responded "I have no idea."
Lilburn Police say they were called to Powell's home on Burns Road in Lilburn on June 10th. The call came in as "an unruly juvenile" according to Lilburn Police Detective Matthew Lake. Detective Lake says Alfred made that 911 call. When police arrived, they found handcuffs in the house. "The mother said that she was trying to perform an exorcism on her child," Detective Lake said. When asked if she believed the boy was possessed, Lake answered "I believe she did."
Detective Lake says the mother told police officers she and Powell handcuffed the boy for 12-hours at a time with no food or water. Lake said this went on for three days.
Larry Powell says that's not true. He says the boy was trying to hurt himself and hurt them. "He actually bit my thumb, pushed her (Alfred) and pulled her hair and he was a little aggressive," Powell said. When asked if he handcuffed the boy, Powell said "No comment on that." "We prayed for him constantly, kept praying, that's basically it," Powell said. "No exorcism."
Detective Lake said "If somebody's a threat to them, they need to call the police department; they don't need to handcuff the boy."
The 15 year old boy was treated at Gwinnett Medical Center and then turned over to the Department of Family and Children's Services. Detective Lake says the boy had some lacerations and bruises on his wrists from the handcuffs. Lake said he also had to be treated for dehydration.
Alfred is being held in the Gwinnett County Detention Center without bond. She has a court appearance scheduled for June 26th.
The fact that this story has been broadcast throughout the south has something of a "warning" element attached to it: don't try any exorcisms at home!
Meanwhile, I am not aware of any church exorcisms that have been outlawed. Does law enforcement know everything that is going on with all of the churches behind closed doors? (Are these standard operational procedures, or did Alfred and Powell improvise? Where did Alfred get her protocol from?)
This whole thing leaves a very bad taste in my mouth as a possible erosion of religious freedoms. "Exorcism" should not be the "official reason" for the arrest.
And what do you think?
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Summer vegetarian recipes
I've been intending to post these since I started my blog two years ago, and finally remembered to do it!
What's great about these is: they will not heat up your house in the summer. Here in the south, that is a real plus!
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Savory Veggie-nut burgers
2 cups pecans, soaked 1 hour (or presoaked and dried)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 cups chopped broccoli
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
5 carrots
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 zucchini
2 tsp. dried marjoram
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (soaked 4-6 hrs)
1 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1/4 tsp cayenne
3/4 cup flaxseed, ground
Process nuts and each veggie separately, the finer the better... if no food processor available, mince as much as possible!
Stir in rest of ingredients and mix with (clean!) hands, working it through very thoroughly until it no longer sticks to your fingers, but is still moist. Form into patties about 3" in diameter and 1/4" thick (should work out to about 1/4 cup each) and dehydrate at 105 degrees for 4-6 hrs. Turn patties over and continue dehydrating for 2-4 more hrs.
Serve with a BBQ sauce or other sauce you love!
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3 cups raw sweet potatoes or yams, finely shredded
1 medium sweet apple, chopped
1 cup fresh pineapple, chopped into tidbits or chunks
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/4 cup organic raisins or chopped dates
1/2 cup Vegenaise
1-2 Tbsp raw unfiltered honey, can be substituted with agave or stevia
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp "lemon zest" (grated lemon peel, organic preferred due to pesticides on outer fruit peels)
In large bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients... mix dressing ingredients and add to existing combo. Mix well. Yummy!
~*~
Blueberry Truffles
2 cups walnuts
1 cup pitted dates
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1/4 cub raw carob powder
Crushed walnuts or shredded coconut to roll truffles in
Blend nuts, dates, berries and carob powder in food processor, or mush up to the best of your ability! Try to make the mixture as smooth as possible; slicing and dicing can work, but may take awhile. Shape into small balls and roll them in crushed walnuts or shredded coconut.
Makes 10 medium or 20 small truffles.
Wordless Wednesday: my beautiful grandchild!
Here's hoping I will get to see her in a couple of weeks! I miss her like the dickens. 
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The case of Alexander Draper
Alexander Draper, photo from WYFF.
Jerri Althea Gray, of Travelers Rest, South Carolina, recently fled the state with her son, 14-year-old Alexander Draper, a student at Northwest Middle School in Greenville County. Draper weighs 555 lbs and this case has become something of a local sensation.
The two were finally located at the end of last month in a laundromat near Baltimore, MD, traced through Gray's cell phone.
It's difficult to unravel the whole saga, but it appears to have ignited when Draper was approached for 'treatment' at school, and declined:
After the failure to appear in court, Gray was considered a fugitive.
According to the Department of Social Services, Gray was supposed to appear in family court with the boy on Tuesday, but they did not show up. Draper was to be taken into protective custody in South Carolina after officials determined that he was considered to be at a critical stage of health risk.
"There have been some opportunities that have come along for him to participate in some treatment programs and things such as that, and it's my understanding, that for whatever reason, he's not allowed to take part in those treatment programs," said Greenville County Lt. Shea Smith.
At the hearing, Draper was ordered into the custody of the state due to medical neglect and Gray's failure to appear in court.
When officers went to take the boy from the home, they found that he and his mother had left the home on Goodwin Bridge Road in Travelers Rest.
"The understanding was that the individual was of the weight where it was decided by medical authorities that he needed treatment that he wasn't being provided for by his mother," said Matthew Armstrong, of the Greenville County Sheriff's Office.
I am horrified that having a fat kid is now considered a crime. On the other hand, I have watched a lot of those Learning Channel shows about morbidly-obese people, and I realize that the words FAMILIAL DYSFUNCTION and CO-DEPENDENCY are usually written all over them, in large, bright captions. Many of these very-obese people confined to their homes, simply would and could not be where they are, without someone constantly feeding them. (Many cannot even leave their houses, much less shop for food.) There is a point in which family IS to blame, just as a family that kept providing alcohol to an alcoholic would similarly be judged. (Note: my father once did this to me, demanding I drink with him if I wanted to stay in his house, so this subject triggers me a bit, as the trendy young bloggers like to call it.)
What if Ms. Gray's religious sentiments conflict with the whole idea of "treatment"? What if she doesn't think he needs any treatment? At what point does law enforcement have the right to intervene? After all, the government regularly intervenes to save the lives of children of Jehovah's Witnesses (and various other anti-medical parents) who decline life-saving medical procedures for their children. If obesity is an illness/disease, how is Gray's refusal to consent to treatment any different from a parent refusing, say, a blood transfusion for their child?
Gray is now charged with medical neglect.
What do you think?
Is the Republican Party dead?
Very interesting discussion in many different places about last month's hang-wringing from TIME magazine, titled Republicans in Distress: Is the Party Over? (we can only hope!) by Michael Grunwald:
And let me repeat, with considerable emphasis: Fuck Mark Sanford! While we go to pieces around here, he is busy making a future-GOP STAR of himself.
The Democratic critiques of the GOP — that it's the Party of No, or No Ideas — are not helpful either. It's silly to fault an opposition party for opposition; obstructionism helped return Democrats to power. Republicans actually have plenty of ideas.
That's the problem. The party's ideas — about economic issues, social issues and just about everything else — are not popular ideas. They are extremely conservative ideas tarred by association with the extremely unpopular George W. Bush, who helped downsize the party to its extremely conservative base. A hard-right agenda of slashing taxes for the investor class, protecting marriage from gays, blocking universal health insurance and extolling the glories of waterboarding produces terrific ratings for Rush Limbaugh, but it's not a majority agenda. The party's new, Hooverish focus on austerity on the brink of another depression does not seem to fit the national mood, and it's shamelessly hypocritical, given the party's recent history of massive deficit spending on pork, war and prescription drugs in good times, not to mention its continuing support for deficit-exploding tax cuts in bad times.
As the party has shrunk to its base, it has catered even more to its base's biases, insisting that the New Deal made the Depression worse, carbon emissions are fine for the environment and tax cuts actually boost revenues — even though the vast majority of historians, scientists and economists disagree. The RNC is about to vote on a kindergartenish resolution to change the name of its opponent to the Democrat Socialist Party. This plays well with hard-core culture warriors and tea-party activists convinced that a dictator-President is plotting to seize their guns, choose their doctors and put ACORN in charge of the Census, but it ultimately produces even more shrinkage, which gives the base even more influence — and the death spiral continues. "We're excluding the young, minorities, environmentalists, pro-choice — the list goes on," says Olympia Snowe of Maine, one of two moderate Republicans left in the Senate after Specter's switch. "Ideological purity is not the ticket to the promised land."
Some conservatives think that in the long run, the party will be better off without squishes like Specter muddling the coherence of its brand; a GOP campaign committee celebrated his departure with an e-mail headlined "Good riddance," and Limbaugh urged him to take McCain along. Inside this echo chamber, a center-right nation punished Republicans for abandoning their principles, for enabling Bush's spending sprees, for insufficient conservatism. South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, who has refused to accept $700 million in stimulus cash for his state despite bitter opposition from his GOP-dominated legislature, argues that Chick-fil-A would never let its franchisees cook their chicken however they want; why should the Republican Party let its elected officials promote Big Government? "We're essentially franchisees, and right now nobody has any clue what we're really about," Sanford tells TIME. "You can't wear the jersey and play for the other team!"
(Anybody got any other opinions about the imminent death of the GOP, possibly presented somewhat better than I just did?)
Reedy River falls, downtown Greenville.Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce is beside itself with glee after the GOOD MORNING AMERICA feature last week comparing Greenville's sparkling downtown to Rockford, Illinois, a downtown-area that is struggling. You can hear the preening of Republicans all the way out here in the suburbs:
Hmph.
At midday on Main Street in Greenville, South Carolina, people are drifting up and down the street going to or coming from lunch at one of dozens of restaurants or cafes. Greenville has not escaped the larger economic decline, but it has proven recession-resistant if not recession-proof. Many of the strollers are smiling.
"We're holding our own," said Mayor Knox White. "And I guess that's good news."
They were careful to note that South Carolina has the third-highest jobless-rate in the USA. So, why is Greenville, specifically, doing so well economically? Easy answer, but you sure didn't find it mentioned anywhere on GOOD MORNING AMERICA: the proliferation of foreign businesses in the area. BMW, Hitachi, Michelin, Fuji... these are the magic incantations that keep Greenville going.
And I wondered: How successful might Greenville be if we did not have a neanderthal Governor holding the entire state back?
It should also be noted, our "successful downtown" is the result of the forward-thinking and urban consciousness of former Greenville mayor Max Heller, a Democrat, thank you very much.
Last month, a statue was dedicated to Max Heller, South Carolina visionary:
In short, THE GOVERNMENT and DEMOCRATS made Greenville what it is now, and in spite of Sanford's jerking off, the downtown-area remains strong because of the dedication and awareness of the people who initially re-designed it. NOT REPUBLICANS.
The City of Greenville marked with a statue on Main Street the life and leadership of Max Heller, an Austrian Jewish refugee who fled Nazi genocide in 1938 to become an Upstate icon of economic renewal.[...] Heller’s public life started with his election to city council in 1968. He focused on improving substandard housing and expanding affordable housing. He was elected mayor of Greenville in 1971. A major thrust of his work as mayor was to desegregate all departments and commissions of city government, and to erase differences in treatment between the races by police. [...] Heller’s major endeavor as mayor was to reverse the decay of Greenville’s core. Most retail stores had abandoned Main Street for the suburbs. His European heritage told him a city without a heart would rot from within. [...] In 1978, the city received a federal Urban Development Action Grant for $7.4 million, which was used to buy land on North Main Street. On that site at College and Main, a new hotel and convention center was built. Today, it is a Hyatt Hotel, and remains a strong centerpiece of North Main Street’s redevelopment.
I repeat: NOT.REPUBLICANS.
And then there is also the matter of Mother Nature; the incontrovertible fact that we have a WATERFALL downtown, and most cities don't. OF COURSE people will come to hang out at the waterfall, as I do regularly...
After all, the waterfall is beautiful and still free.
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