3 Ring Binder

Thoughts of a Thespian

2012-01-27T10:09:00.000-05:00

I found this sign on my daughter's door on Opening Night.
She made it for herself.
Could that be any cuter?

The Saints Want to Wear (Down) My (Trademarked) Red Soles

2012-01-26T13:11:00.000-05:00

Yesterday’s WSJ reported on the continuing legal battle between the well-heeled shoe designers Christian Louboutin (CL) and Yves Saint Lauren (YSL). The battle surrounds the legal use of the trademarked color red on the outsoles of women’s fashion shoes.

In 2008, CL was able to obtain a trademark registration of this “lacquered red sole on footwear,” as shown in the following picture in the trademark application:

The trademark was granted and so it would appear that he has a case against the use of the same “lacquered red sole” as shown by other designers. Attorneys for CL claimed the use of the same bright red soles by YSL would be the wearing down or dilution of his trademark.

In its complaint, CL showed red shoes with red soles by YSL (like those on the right above) citing that they infringe on his trademark. (The gorgeous pumps on the left are iconic Louboutin). Were you thinking that the clunkers on the right might be CL’s? Can the government grant a trademark to a color used in fashion? Is the color of the sole of a shoe considered part of its function? Why am I asking these questions?

These are the questions that need to be answered in order to determine if CL’s trademark was granted in error (as the federal district court judge implied in his initial decision last year), if CL has a case against YSL and the denial of its injunction, and if the fashion industry is different from other industries in its use of color (i.e. will trademarked colors hinder creativity).

In its October appeal to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, CL states that the district court erred in denying its request for an injunction against YSL on these three counts:

Denying trademark protection on the grounds of aesthetic functionality;
Not applying the strictly limited doctrine of aesthetic functionality to hold that a single color on a fashion item could not act as a trademark;
Abusing discretion because the court’s analysis was legally erroneous.

(Read the whole appeal linked above – it is really fascinating.)

Basically, the federal judge denied the injunction on the grounds that color could not be trademarked in fashion without causing “not only commerce and competition, but art as well” to suffer. Furthermore, as trademark is supposed to protect a non-functional aspect of the design, it was the opinion of the judge that the color of the sole of the shoe was functional.

“By putting a distinctive red color on the previously ignored bottom portion of the shoe, Louboutin established a strong brand identifier.”

I completely agree with this statement in the appeal. Unfortunately, it goes on to say, “The red outsole has no utility and in fact adds to the cost of manufacture to the economic advantage of competitors. That the Red Outsole Mark is pleasing to consumers does not impair its ability to act as a trademark.”

This is unfortunate only in that in his denial of the injunction, the judge used Mr. Louboutin’s own words to refute the red outsole’s utility in stating that the red color gives his shoes “energy,” is “engaging,” “sexy,” and “attracts men.” Where did the judge find Mr. Louboutin saying these things? In the supporting documents to his trademark application the appeal reports (I couldn't find it in any of the government documents for the trademark).

So do red soles really reflect sex, or has Louboutin smartly built an empire suggesting it?

I love this case because it is helping me to understand the importance and scope of trademarks through a product that I completely understand and appreciate. (For a decent overview of how patent, copyright, and trademark differ related to the case see here.)

As the owner of what I’m certain now is a rip-off pair of Louboutin’s I’d admit that it’s the glimpse of an unapologetically bright red on the underside of a shoe where there is usually only dirt and scuff marks that makes the item quite a bit more titillating. Having the sole match the uppers as used by YSL is simply matchy-matchy and possibly a boon to CL products. Taking a functional product like a shoe and making it the desire of many women is a marketing skill of the highest order. But should CL own the trademark to that particular red on the sole of all women's fashion shoes?

I’m not sure where I stand on the validity of the trademark issue, but as it was issued I think the judge needed to uphold the law and YSL needs to question the issuance of the trademark on the sexy red sole.

I’m going to try to stay teetering on top of the issue.

I would like to find and link to Judge Marrero's original ruling, but have been unsuccessful in finding it online so far. Here is the original trademark registration as issued.

To a Kiss (The Parting Kiss)

2012-01-25T10:38:00.001-05:00

by Robert Burns (25 Jan 1759 - 21 July 1796),
1788

Humid seal of soft affections,
Tend'rest pledge of future bliss,
Dearest tie of young connections,
Love's first snow-drop, virgin kiss.

Speaking silence, dumb confession,
Passion's birth, and infants' play,
Dove-like fondness, chaste concession,
Glowing dawn of brighter day.

Sorrowing joy, adieu's last action,
Ling'ring lips, -- no more to join!
What words can ever speak affection
Thrilling and sincere as thine!

Happy Robert Burns' Day.

The poem is found under both titles. I prefer the title "To a Kiss" to the other; the first captures the import of the action in different situations -- as does the poem -- rather than concentrate solely on the final parting.

It's lovely either way.

Tunacanoe and Style, Too.

2012-01-24T15:21:00.001-05:00

Here is the result of my first foray into paleo kids cuisine (or Life Without Bread as my daughter might dramatically lament).

First, you take the Dean & Deluca tunafish salad recipe - which uses lemon juice, garlic, carrots, red onions, chives, celery, and parsley - take out anything your kid will balk at, use the Well Fed homemade mayo, hollow out a cucumber and voila!

A veritable boatload of good stuff that's fun to eat.

Sometimes, presentation is important.

If your kid is anything like mine, it'll be gone before you get back to the table with your own lunch!

I'm sure it would work just as well with chicken salad: Chickacanoe.

The Monday Table

2012-01-23T14:02:00.001-05:00

In search of a bit of clear white space,

Turning off my designer’s eye,

I seek only a breakfast place,

Recounting my weekend with a sigh.

This mess of incongruity is the Monday table:

Fraught with papers, books, and half-eaten fare.

I strain and wonder, How am I able

To finish Sunday night with this mess lying here?

Reading headlines of the papers I pile,

Belongings of other rooms I stack,

Housewares to be washed, I collect and smile,

This effort is my life, it’s not my lack.

As I recount another fruitful weekend,

Filled with activity, joy, and with thought,

It’s not my housekeeping that’s gone off the deep end,

It’s simply my is still approaching my ought.

How Far Will They Take All This?

2012-01-18T12:26:00.000-05:00

As far as we'll let them.

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

If you think more arbitrary government power will not protect intellectual property owners from infringement but will more likely be used to censor the internet, penalize its providers, and crush free content, please let your Congressmen know that you most emphatically do not approve of these horrendous bills.

http://www.sopastrike.com/strike

Read the bills here and here.

I CrossFit so I can . . .

2012-01-09T12:39:00.000-05:00

make the bed!

Seriously, if there is ever a time where I think to myself thank god I lift weights, it's when I'm changing the sheets on my bed.

Our bed in someone else's way cool room.

As slaves to modern minimalist design tastes, we own this awesome funky clean-line Japanese-style platform-like bed. Sadly we do not have a foam mattress, but a standard innerspring which weighs roughly 7,000 lbs. Even more sadly, instead of an actual platform, we have slats across the base (not sure why).

The platform around the bed (what I refer to as its running board) and slatted interior adds a level of difficultly to the dressing-the-mattress feat because tucking in the corners to remotely resemble the inspiring clean lines above means reaching to pick up its corners approximately twelve times each change, four times each tidy making. This means holding the top of a 300 lb. dead lift out in front of you while magically maneuvering the corners and lengths of the bedding layers - maintaining vigilance to not knock the papers, books, assorted socks, and various writing implements gathered along the running board into the under-mattress abyss - many times in one ten minute process!

Really, it is that frustrating for me.

Which is why I rarely do it.

And why we own a big comfy down cover to throw over the whole mess most days.

From a foam mattress manufacturer's website featuring the bed above:

Clearly, I missed something along the way.

Caught up in our desire to create a Zen-like environment, we have created an opportunity for additional inappropriate horizontal storage (running board clutter), an impromptu workout (making the bed shouldn't require a warm-up), and a major kvetch-session (herein).

There.

I feel better.

I think I can put the whole thing to bed now.

Twelve Months in Two Minutes 2011

2012-01-01T10:18:00.000-05:00

Compared to previous years, I'm a day late and thousands of dollars short, but I hope you enjoy my little end of year family retrospective in pictures anyway.

Happy New Year, friends.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T07:02:00.000-05:00

See? I recycle.

NYC Flash Tour 3: December 2011

2011-12-23T17:07:00.002-05:00

Traveling to New York City in record time again, we were early for even early check-in so we headed down to Chelsea Market in the Chelsea/meat packing district neighborhood. We walked around the crowded but very cool foodie heaven for a little while stopping in the Buon Italia where we ogled the proscuitto, the Manhattan Fruit Exchange where we admired the bin of salsify, and the Bowery Kitchen Supplies where we found specialty bowls that Stephen has coveted but been unable to find anywhere else. He got excited for a second, but was going to leave them there until I convinced him that fourteen bucks a pop is a small price to pay for realizing a culinary vision.

Speaking of culinary vision, we didn’t spy any Food Network personalities even though the studios are in the building, but we did add Morimoto to our list of NYC places to eat for the next Flash Tour.

Self-timer on stairs of amphitheatre on the High Line.

While we were in the area, we hiked up to the High Line linear park and walked along it a little way in the drizzle. It was an interesting space and one I imagine is quite idyllic in the summer and fall, rising above the busy city streets. While walking we spied Collichio and Sons and made another mental note for next time.

Interesting windows under overpass on High Line.

A room with a view.

We then headed to the Marriot Marquis in Times Square. We had stayed there before and I loved the décor and the location, so I was happy that it was our destination. (Did I mention that this Flash Tour was my Christmas present?) Well, it wasn’t so much our destination as the place we could leave the car and get away from the human density for a few minutes. The view from our room was perfect. High above the madding crowds, we took in the motion and sights of the heart of theatre district. After dropping off our stuff, we headed down to Eataly in the Flatiron district. (I have no idea if this is a district – but that’s what I’m calling it. I love the Flatiron building; it’s so site specific and iconic!)

Anyway, Eataly was another fantastic food market/retail specialty bazaar! It was crazy busy and we both regret taking no pictures in the market as we strode through it. It was a seriously bustling place filled with foodies, fresh food, butchers, a fishmonger, a cheesemonger, a salumi department (any place that has a salumi department is my kind of place), and sundry food, kitchen, and food-related paraphernalia for sale. We decided to eat in the rooftop beer garden where sausages and sauerkraut, not Italian food, was the specialty. While the rooftop aspects of the restaurant did not meet my requirements of a rooftop bar in NYC (it was only eight floors up with seriously obstructed views of the surrounding buildings and a scant view of the Empire State building), I thought the food was terrific. Who knew I would like a 2.5” in diameter pork and beef sausage over sauerkraut? Well – I did! Most impressive to me, however, was the olive oil. It’s the first time in my life that olive oil tasted faintly of olives. I forgot to ask about it and therefore am left with only a gustatory memory rather than a pint of it.

Jumbo sausage on sauerkraut with mustard. Yum.

Top of the Flatiron building over the kegs at Birriera.

Before leaving Eataly, we were sure to get a little gelato. Again, this creamy culinary adventure marks the first time I’ve had pistachio ice cream (or gelato) where I tasted the actual pistachios! Yeah. Good food is good.

Lots of folks hanging out on this balmy evening.

As we wended our way back to our home away from home, we saw some fabulous Christmas windows, some Christmas carolers, and some general Christmas revelry in the unseasonably warm and wet city weather.

Then we got ready for our actual destination: a night with Hugh Jackman.

Sadly, this is as close as I got to Hugh that night.

Okay , that was my destination – Stephen’s was only to make his wife happy (which is rather my permanent condition resulting from being married to him, so this was just a super-duper bonus). Hugh was a terrific entertainer. He sang. He danced. He told little stories. He charmed the whole audience (even the men – sometimes especially the men depending on why each was there) with his delightful personality. (What was oddest to me was that due to my physical distance from Hugh, the entire time I kept wondering . . . is this Hugh Jackman or David Tennant? I decided that I needed to stop listening to one of my friends and my youngest daughter who often extol the virtues of Mr. Tennant.) At the end of his song and dance review, he raffled off his sweaty t-shirts and sold opportunities to have one’s picture taken with him. Because we didn’t have an extra $2500 with us, we left the theatre, walked down the alley and across 45^th street and into our hotel lobby. This proximity to the theatre was particularly fortuitous because it had begun to pour buckets as we say.

Making the most of the 24-hour Flash Tour, we changed again and headed to the Broadway Lounge overlooking Times Square for a late night cocktails and snacks.

In the morning, after a quick Starbucks run across the street (forgetting there was one in the hotel), we made our way the open road. Well, not so much the open road as the gridlocked streets of New York City where I was let out to roam for 11.4 minutes (or three passes around the Mac Store block) to eyeball the Bergdorf Goodman Carnival of the Animals Christmas windows. Cool beans!

Because it was so unseasonably warm and we were without the kids, I lacked the inspiration to reenact any scenes from Elf.

Maybe next year.

Merry Christmas, friends!

May all your flash tours of the impending holidays be happy and healthy ones wherever you are!

The Incomparable Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey

2011-12-12T11:31:00.000-05:00

The Dowager Countess of Grantham delivers.

He's Right!

2011-12-08T12:53:00.001-05:00

It does fit on there nicely. Get yours here.

3 Good Things (Scaled edition)

2011-12-05T07:20:00.000-05:00

The Whole 30: 2nd edition

2011-11-23T10:29:00.002-05:00

This is not going to be as fun a report as my nutty foray into the Whole 30 last September. This one is bittersweet.

Oddly, although my Whole 30 experiment was quite successful in that I managed to follow the Whole 30 guidelines for the entire 30 days without falling face first into a box of Oreos, my desire to do so was much, much stronger this time. In short, it wasn't so much the crunch as the sweet I craved.

As someone who's had gestational diabetes - twice - and has only type 1 and type 2 diabetics for direct relatives, I've always been concerned about my blood sugar. My A1C levels have been okay, but they are slowly creeping up. My last fasting blood sugar was 102 mg/dl: not good. I wonder if it would be different this morning. I should have some of those diabetic relatives bring their testing equipment to Thanksgiving. (Do I know how to throw a party, or what?)

In any case, I found that coconut milk satisfied that sweetness craving to the point where I began to need it: in my coffee (which I cut down to one measured cup a day), in my tea, in my hot chocolate (first recipe without the vanilla, which I was thrilled to find completely satisfied my approaching-holidays-have-to-have-hot-chocolate urge), and whipped (!) on my red raspberries (still a favorite). My husband's post workout sweet potatoes induced some "Hot damn! This is good!" shouting. But I also felt a little hungrier this time. I don't know why that occurred, and I find the difference between my two Whole 30 sessions to be worthy of more exploration.

For now, I am quite happy to repeat that the magic worked. I've been sleeping better, working out stronger, lost six to eight pounds, and have been generally satisfied with my unprocessed, unsweetened, and unbreaded diet. While I think the timing of this Whole 30 v.5 will be responsible for many foodgasms at Thanksgiving tables around the country tomorrow, I'm hoping to enjoy the simple tastes of butter slathered on my green beans, turkey seasoned with rosemary and thyme, and bittersweet chocolate in any form administered.

Happy Thanksgiving and Good Eating, dear readers!

3 Good Things (Fab Pre-fab edition)

2011-11-15T17:27:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we made our way down to Portsmouth Abbey in Rhode Island to attend the open house of two new Evolution homes from Blu Homes. We were delighted by the light and open spaces which made the 1200 sf pre-fab house seem much bigger. The efficiency and economy that comes from building the home inside of a factory instead of on-site allows these houses to be completed in weeks.

These cost about $300,000, not including the $100,000 of site work and foundation.

Then I saw this:

This powerpod from PowerHouse Enterprises (which now seems defunct) is truly tiny, appropriate for a vacation home only, but at 500 sf for $100,000 delivered, it has some pretty cool features like radiant heating, active solar energy collection and passive solar heating, and water collection.

That they are green is incidental to me. That they are energy efficient and just plain cool looking is pretty attractive. And these builders are in my own backyard!

Finally, I just got this month's Dwell magazine and it has 42 pages of 32 modern prefabs, mostly out of California.

I love modern pre-fab design.

Promoting the Image of Live Christmas Trees

2011-11-09T08:08:00.000-05:00

Seriously.

The Magic of the Whole 30

2011-11-08T09:36:00.000-05:00

Last night, after a fun and exhilarating workout at the gym I had several hours of euphoria before I crashed into my pillow falling immediately dead asleep. I have not achieved either of these welcomed conditions for many months now, and I cannot help but think it is in large part due to the way I’ve been eating. I just finished Day 15 of my second go with the Whole 30. (See my report on last fall’s nutty effort here.)

The Whole 30 is an eating program which requires the removal of processed foods, sugar, dairy, and grains – all thought to be responsible for crazy cravings for empty calories and a myriad of often elusive ailments related to inflammation – from one’s diet, and the inclusion of good fats, good meats, nutrient-dense vegetables and some fruit, seeds, and nuts for thirty days. It does require effort to make sure what you’re eating doesn’t have hidden crap in it, but if you stick with food still in nature’s packaging (or recently out of it – hello gorgeous grass-fed beef), you can’t go wrong.

This is from the The Whole30 v.5.0, part of the The Whole 9, website where there is nothing to buy, nothing to sign up for, but a lot to learn and earn for yourself:

At some point, we promise you… the magic will happen. You’ll go to sleep easier, and sleep more soundly through the night. Your energy levels will increase and stabilize, and you’ll feel just as good first thing in the morning as you do at the peak of your day. Your body composition will start to change – your clothes will fit differently, and you’ll feel less bloated at the end of your day. Your performance, whether it be in the gym, while playing sports or during a hike, will improve. Your recovery after exercise, a game or a hard day’s work will feel easier and more complete. Conditions, ailments, aches and pains will miraculously start to improve. And through all of it, you’ll be eating delicious, fresh, natural, real food… food that tastes good, and is physically satiating and mentally satisfying.

After our workout last night, I convinced Stephen to cook shredded sweet potato in coconut oil until caramelized and add cinnamon. (Yes, I could have done it, but I was otherwise engaged, and he’s the cook, okay?) Anyway, when I began to eat it I could not believe that he added plain cinnamon and not the cinnamon/sugar mix we have for my favorite treat: cinnamon toast. I questioned him repeatedly, varying the question only slightly as if he did not understand English or his spices (because, let’s face it, he is in charge of the kitchen and the entire spice cabinet which he often likes to rearrange for his convenience but to the frustration of the rest of us plain folk who might like to add a little spice from time to time). But enough about that.

In short, I cannot adequately express how delicious, how delicately crunchy, how very satisfying that nutritious post-workout treat was!

This is how I know the magic is happening!

Sweet Potato Hash Brown

Ingredients: 1 med. sweet potato, 2 tbsp coconut oil, 1 tbsp cinnamon.

Good eats!

Nutrition Facts from Recipe Calculator

In Her Own Words

2011-11-05T07:00:00.018-04:00

“I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they do,” she says. “I support what they do.”

Elizabeth Warren on the Occupy Wall Street movement.
24 Oct 2011, the Daily Beast

The proper role of government is to protect individual rights including property rights. The government should be helping this woman get her money back from those who took it. Oh. Wait . . . since government is the only institution with the legal use of force, let alone the institution that forced the bail out on many banks, shouldn't she be marching on Pennsylvania Avenue?

Pot,

meet Kettle. (Just too close to ignore.)

A little more cerebral signage, closer to the intellectual foundation of the movement. The system in which every man can voluntarily trade with any other man must die. Long live . . . um . . . tyranny?

And there it is.

I'm not sure who "the man" is in this case, but the suggestion of lynchings is always in protest vogue.

While inventing the Occupy movement might be an overstatement of Gorian proportions, I personally thank Ms. Warren for her bellows-like contributions to the thought-savings that go along with the indiscriminate targeting of all those with "too much money." This is certain to make the world a better place for all.

Well . . . except for those rich people, and maybe anyone whose stunted thought processes are steeled by these intellectuals supporting the childish idea that wealth is a fixed pie - you are poor because someone else is rich. Oh, and possibly, the next set of people targeted by the mindless democratic tyranny: Doctors? Lawyers? Union bosses? French-Canadians? Who knows?

When you don't follow your ideas to their proper conclusion, the outcomes are always a surprise.

Photographs from Mercury News.

The Old Farmhouse Just Ain't What It Used to Be

2011-11-04T07:00:00.019-04:00

Although my current home does not reflect this, I'm a huge fan of sleek modern architecture, minimalist interior design, and modern conveniences (Okay. I have modern conveniences). Even so, there has always been something about the old sprawling farmstead -- the building that seems to accrue organically as space and functional needs dictate -- that has always been attractive to me. But this one took me by surprise.

On first inspection, it's an lovely old New England farmstead, freshly whitewashed with a vibrant red door nestled among the rolling hills of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Pretty.

Through the dusk, the landscape seems well-managed and the shapes oddly regular. On closer inspection, however, we see that it is not what it first appears to be!

Front (a little sterile)

Back (bam!)

Side (glowing)

Interior (clean and sleek)

Hey - we have those Eileen Gray tables!

Plan (and structure) by Hugh Newell Jacobsen

Set on 146 acres in Great Barrington, this 5000 sf home can be yours for $3.9M. Please call me when you move in. I'd love to see it.

3 Good Things (Cool Hand Look edition)

2011-11-03T07:00:00.012-04:00

Now that the snow has arrived--all too early for my liking--it's time to break out the winter hand protection. Black leather gloves have been my standard wear for the last 30 years or so with an occasional infusion of leopard or zebra print here and there. Recently, I found these really cool gloves that I wouldn't mind adding to my monochromatic collection.

Don't say goodbye, say "ironic things" in "air quotes." (From Kate Spade via SwissMiss)

Because there is conductive material woven into the fingertips of these gloves, you can use your electronic devices without freezing your phalanges off. (From Muji via SwissMiss).

Hedgehog mittens!!!! These are the cutest things ever - but you have to knit them yourself. Jenn? Earl? Somebody? (From CritterKnits)

I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up

2011-11-02T07:17:00.000-04:00

This is why I check out the daily Federal Register only once every six months or so. It's addictive.

At 475 pages, today's robust Register contains two Presidential Documents: One about how Sudan continues to be an "unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States" and the second establishing BusinessUSA (yes, a WikiWord - so hip!) to assist small businesses and exporters, because "those businesses help drive economic growth and have the most to gain from Federal assistance."

If we are to thrive in the global economy, and make America the best place on Earth to do business, we need to equip our Government with the tools necessary to support innovation and job growth in the 21st century.

----

BusinessUSA, a common, open, online platform and web service with dedicated resources that will, as a first step, disseminate core information regarding the Federal Government's programs and services relevant to small businesses and exporters. [emphasis mine]

So his answer to getting through the morass of red tape is . . . more bureaucracy? Yup. More telling, however, is that the President considers small businesses and exporters customers of the government's service industry: "If the private sector can allow consumers to customize interactions so that they receive only the information they want, in the form they want it, so can the Federal Government."

Again, for the strong of stomach, it's a must read.

Further, if you are so inclined to look, you will find the Final Rule implementing section 3022 of the Affordable Care Act. It's also a must read - if you have four months to decipher it.

Today's Federal Government

2011-11-01T17:00:00.002-04:00

Here is a list of agencies that are proposing changes to their regulations or policies and giving notices that are required by law so that we may understand what our government is doing - today. This happens everyday.

If you are of strong constitution, I urge you to take a little trip down one of the little sucking vortices known collectively as federal government agencies and see where it leads you. I like to do this at least once every six months. It's good to remind ourselves what our tax dollars really pay for.

Today, I am recommending the Education Department (ED) notification of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) report on recommendations for the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA). Need a primer on NACIQI? Here's one. How about the HEA? Here's one for that.

Enjoy.

· Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality1

· Agricultural Marketing Service2

· Agriculture Department6

· Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service1

· Census Bureau1

· Centers for Disease Control and Prevention3

· Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services3

· Coast Guard2

· Commerce Department16

· Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements1

· Defense Department3

· Education Department2

· Energy Department5

· Environmental Protection Agency7

· Farm Credit Administration1

· Federal Aviation Administration3

· Federal Communications Commission7

· Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation2

· Federal Emergency Management Agency1

· Federal Energy Regulatory Commission4

· Federal Highway Administration1

· Federal Reserve System3

· Federal Transit Administration2

· Fish and Wildlife Service1

· Food and Drug Administration7

· Food and Nutrition Service1

· Foreign-Trade Zones Board2

· Forest Service1

· General Services Administration2

· Health and Human Services Department22

· Homeland Security Department3

· Housing and Urban Development Department4

· Information Security Oversight Office1

· Interior Department3

· Internal Revenue Service3

· International Trade Administration7

· International Trade Commission2

· Labor Department3

· Land Management Bureau2

· Maritime Administration1

· National Aeronautics and Space Administration1

· National Archives and Records Administration3

· National Credit Union Administration1

· National Highway Traffic Safety Administration1

· National Institute of Standards and Technology1

· National Institutes of Health6

· National Labor Relations Board1

· National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration2

· National Science Foundation1

· National Transportation Safety Board1

· Nuclear Regulatory Commission2

· Occupational Safety and Health Administration2

· Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission1

· Postal Regulatory Commission3

· Securities and Exchange Commission16

· State Department4

· Trade Representative, Office of United States2

· Transportation Department8

· Treasury Department3

· Veterans Affairs Department10

The numbers after the agencies are the number of changes/proposals they are giving notice for TODAY.

Santa's Revenge

2011-10-31T09:36:00.001-04:00

Local schools closed Monday; trick or treating postponed

Wicked Local

Posted Oct 30, 2011 @ 07:36 PM

Local Public Schools will be closed Monday, Oct. 31 due to the safety hazard of low-lying power lines and remaining debris, the Superintendent announced Sunday evening.

In addition, the Local Police Department postponed Halloween trick or treating until Friday, Nov. 4. The hours will be 5:30 to 9 p.m.

Our traditional homage to the Halloween gods before . . .

and after Santa's Revenge.

Don't screw with Santa.

Happy Halloween!

The Real Legacy of the Salem Witchcraft Trials

2011-10-29T19:31:00.004-04:00

Having grown up in Salem, I was surrounded by the folklore of the Salem witchcraft trials.

Say No to Drugs, but practice the Dark Arts at this school.

Witchcraft Heights Elementary School is the actual name of this school. It is where my husband, my neighbors, and many of my friends attended elementary school. (I managed to complete my elementary education under the tutelage of the Sisters of St. Chretienne at Saint Anne's School before it closed. My husband missed that educational advantage by one year.)

In addition to the crazy-ass name for an elementary school, the good folks of Salem Town seemed to go through a witch renaissance - if you will - in the sixties and seventies. One particular area of town, Witchcraft Heights, is graced with some interesting street names.

I didn't grow up in Witchcraft Heights, but I
did practice cheerleading at Gallows Hill Park.
(Oh yeah, I was a cheerleader in middle school.)

And our high school took full advantage of the infamy.

All the teams were named The Witches.
I'm not sure that was best for team morale.

The witchcraft trials took place in Salem Village. Oddly, this is the modern-day town of Danvers, not Salem, Massachusetts; it is there where the memorial to the innocent victims is located.

According to Richard Trask, local historian of the Salem witch-hunt:

Salem Village (Danvers) was ground zero of the witchcraft events of 1692, with virtually the entire 500 person population involved. Salem Town (Salem), though they had several accused witches who lived there and had the formal trials there, escaped the social and religious maelstrom that followed. When witch times were over, Salem Village didn’t want to be reminded of those dark days. When the Village became independent in 1752, it was given the new name of “Danvers” and their association with the witchcraft was happily obscured. By the late 19th century, Salem became a tourist destination and the witchcraft events took on a caricature of a non-threatening witch riding a brookstick and wearing a conical hat.

The spirit of Salem (Town) is not riding the broomstick of the horrendously evil murder of innocents. Rather, with an iconic caricature, it is capitalizing on the bizarre: a wildly irrational, but brief time in our history. This was a time when people believed that someone's actions could actually be forced by another person's thoughts, and that accusation alone was proof enough to hang the offending thinkers.

Now we know better and can laugh at its crackpot irrationality.

Can't we?

Walking Man

2011-10-28T08:42:00.001-04:00

Today's song inspired by a little more than frost on my pumpkins (via FB friend)!

Say, who is that mask-ed squash?

I just love his voice.

3 Good Things (Mixing It Up edition)

2011-10-23T19:21:00.000-04:00

In the past week we've gone from tremendous to tacky to traditional in our search to spend our family time wisely.

We spent an entire Saturday afternoon with giant images and powerful sounds of the Metropolitan Opera's Anna Bolena. It was very good.

We spent the following Thursday night with ghoulish, ghastly geeks at Witch's Wood, a "Halloween Scream Park." It's been operating next door for many years; this is the first time we've been remotely tempted to go. It was kind of fun. Thanks, Groupon.

We spent some time on Friday afternoon hiking through our local conservation areas reveling in the gorgeous fall weather, a bit of Saturday morning at the pumpkin patch picking the perfect pumpkins and performing press poses, and an hour on Sunday carving colorful squash characters.

Objectivist Round Up #223

2011-10-20T04:12:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the 223^rd edition of the Objectivist Round Up, a weekly collection of blog posts written by Objectivist bloggers. Objectivism is the philosophy discovered and defined by Ayn Rand. You can find out more about Objectivism at the Ayn Rand Institute.

To live, man must hold three things as the supreme and ruling values of his life: Reason—Purpose—Self-esteem. Reason, as his only tool of knowledge—Purpose, as his choice of the happiness which that tool must proceed to achieve—Self-esteem, as his inviolate certainty that his mind is competent to think and his person is worthy of happiness, which means: is worthy of living.

Ayn Rand, Galt's Speech, Atlas Shrugged.

Read. Think. Enjoy.

Ryan Kavanagh presents Comments on Queen's University Academic Plan 2011 posted at Ryan Kavanagh's blog, saying, “Most of my concerns revolved around judging students, faculty and staff based on some group trait (i.e. ethnicity or gender) rather than on individual merit, while others revolved around recommendations on student assessment.”

C.W. presents The Financial Realities of Individual Retirement posted at Krazy Economy, saying, “I survey the problems with achieving a financially secure retirement. Calling people on Social Security "deadbeats" or "indigent" ignores the consequences of 100 years of government interference.”

Benjamin Skipper presents Chocolate Ethics: Slavery vs. Voluntary Child Labor posted at Capital Bean, saying, “Slavery and child labor are big issues in the chocolate world, but I argue that only one of these is truly a moral issue.”

Stephen Bourque presents Mere Hypocrisy posted at One Reality, saying, “Elizabeth Warren’s declaration follows, in all relevant aspects, the form of a protection racket.”

Doug Reich presents OWS Protestors Want Things Because They Want Them posted at The Rational Capitalist, saying, “A series of interviews and videos demonstrates the real motives of the Wall Street protesters.”

Edward Cline presents Not So Wonderful a Life posted at The Rule of Reason, saying, “At the risk of the accusation of my being a curmudgeon, a Grinch, overly analytical, and a person who was likely raised on a diet of sour grapes and Castor Oil, what follows is a critique of that hoary old American cinematic Christmas holiday chestnut, Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). I have never liked the movie, but have watched it many times, obsessed with the problem of why I did not like It’s a Wonderful Life.”

Doug Reich presents OWS: Dogs Chasing Cars posted at The Rational Capitalist, saying, “Some OWS protesters are comforted by not having any specific political demands. What is the essence of a movement that exists for the sake of being a movement?”

Jason Stotts presents SoCal Objectivists Second Meeting posted at Erosophia, saying, “A report from the second meeting of the SoCal Objectivists.”

Paul Hsieh presents Federal Government: All Your Data Are Belong To Us posted at We Stand FIRM, saying, “Under ObamaCare, the federal government will have much more access to your private medical data than you may realize.”

Kelly Valenzuela presents Shrinking US Cities Welcome Immigration posted at Mother of Exiles, saying, “Some cities are opening their arms to immigrants in an attempt to increase their shrinking tax base. How long will the welcome last though?”

Ari Armstrong presents A Parable of Shoe Stores and Bureaucrats posted at Free Colorado, saying, “What if bureaucrats controlled shoe stores the way they control other parts of the economy?”

Diana Hsieh presents Oh, Those Wacky YouTube Translations posted at NoodleFood, saying, “What happens when you put a simple conversation through YouTube's closed-caption translation feature... twice? Pure comedy gold, baby!”

See here for past and future hosts of the Objectivist Round Up.

Why We Work

2011-10-19T16:28:00.000-04:00

“I am unshaven and have been in my pajamas all day.”

“I am putting on a bra and going to the library.”

“Happy Anniversary, Darling.”

“Happy Anniversary, Dear.”

This is not a staged representation of the lifestyles of the relatively well-off and totally obscure, but an accurate portrayal of an actual encounter on the stairs today. This is why we work: We are both terribly exciting people and sparkling conversationalists, and we each expect the same from our significant other.

Breaking Charity

2011-10-17T17:19:00.000-04:00

We just finished reading The Crucible for school. My daughter was initially confused about the young girls' behavior and their motivations. As we read further, she became outraged at the injustice perpetrated on the accused innocents by the cowardly minister and pompous judges. This is of course only right, but still, her vehemence surprised me. Knowing that the book was written as a metaphor about the injustice of McCarthyism, this line from its author also surprised me:

In the countries of the Communist ideology, all resistance of any import is linked to the malign capitalist succubi, and in America any man who is not reactionary in his views is open to the charge of alliance with the Red hell.

Arthur Miller, The Crucible, 1952

Mostly it surprised me that sixty years later it seems as if both the malign capitalist succubi and the Red hell now occupy this one, same country. The questions to me remain: who will next be on trial for practicing witchcraft? And how many will be sacrificed before the validity of the accusations are questioned?

Government, alone, has the legitimate use of force. Government policies are in large part responsible for this economic mess. Government bailed out businesses, broke individual's contracts, and holds enormous power over sectors of the economy in the form of increasingly inscrutable regulations. A government which legislates every aspect of life is not progressive; It is not liberal; It is not an uninterested party. It is a master seeking slaves, whether they be in the bedrooms of Salem or the boardrooms of Wall Street.

"Examination of a Witch" Thompkins H. Matteson, 1853

The only real evil in Salem flourished through the corruption of government (when it hanged 19 men and women and pressed one man to death for not confessing to the crime of practicing witchcraft). That bubbling cauldron of public opinion, clamorous claims, and slippery standards is as real today as it was then and is now, not only held, but also stirred by the government! It is this corruption of governmental powers that must stand accused. It is with these aspects of a corrupt government -- not the feckless, hysterical children -- that we must break charity.

The Rest of Us

2011-10-15T08:58:00.005-04:00

There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody.

You got a job out there? Good for you. But I want to be clear: you got to work on the roads the rest of us paid for; you were hired by employers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe at your work place because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn’t have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your home, and hire someone to protect against this, because of the work the rest of us did.

Now look, you got a job and worked your way up, or came up with a successful idea? God bless. Keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.

Never forget: you owe the rest of us.

The first sentence is hers. Elizabeth Warren, running for the Senate in Massachusetts, didn't add the last sentence, nor did she level her threats at the middle class worker. Rather, she targeted her comments to the factory owners, reminding them that their success depended on the work of others: specifically, enumerating functions paid for with government funds (i.e. taxes) as work done by “the rest of us.” I’d classify her words as a threat to those factory owners as she calls protection from marauding bands seizing their goods at their factories as work “the rest of us did.” (I find this bit particularly wince-worthy when I think of the recent raids perpetrated by government agencies on Gibson Guitar and on raw milk sellers.)

Why is this would-be leader held in such high regard by some? Is it her middle-class-made-good background? Apparently, only those in the middle class who end up being able to go into academia are held in regard by Warren and her ilk. She is able to capitalize on the idea that those who, God bless, built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea somehow owe more to the rest of us than those who earn their money indoctrinating our youth with the idea that some individuals must be sacrificed for the good of the rest of us. She conflates extralegal functions of the governments (e.g. roads and schools) with the legitimate functions of government (i.e. police) and paints the factory owners as exploiters of a system paid for by the workers. She exudes confidence in her idea that forced altruism (you are your brother’s keeper) is the duty of government while effortlessly collecting the praise sprung from upper middle-class guilt along her route.

She is a condescending elitist. Despite the fact that she must have worked diligently to obtain her positions, she not only dismisses the nature of earning one’s living, she further indicts those who own more private property than the rest of us. She ignores the facts that not only do factory owners also pay taxes, but further, that factories actually contribute to the rest of us. More ominously, it appears that she not only does not understand the actual documents used in the founding of this nation, but further, espouses a mystical, congenital contract.

In this country, it is not supposed to matter if you are rich or poor; you should be treated the same under the law. When our politicians call for special treatment, or mistreatment as the case may be, of any particular group, they are claiming the right to pick winners and losers as they violate all of our individual rights – the protection of which is the only proper role of government.

Yes. This class warfare is Elizabeth Warren’s philosophical foundation.

I urge all voters to follow the principles supported by our politicians to their logical conclusion.

Ms. Warren’s actual words: September 2011:

There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody.

You built a factory out there? Good for you. But I want to be clear: you moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for; you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn’t have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory, and hire someone to protect against this, because of the work the rest of us did.

Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea? God bless. Keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.

Angry Sophie and Loud Emily

2011-10-14T15:16:00.000-04:00

I bought this book for my now 18 year-old daughter when she was about 4 or 5. Molly Bang's pictures are memorable and the story is explosive with the colors of extreme emotion and gentle with the child's angry state. I remember my daughter, like Sophie, used to get very, very angry and would take herself out of the situation and go somewhere quiet to calm down. She still does this. It is a great skill to have.

Around the same time, I bought her this book. The title kind of says it all. It's a little crazy tale that seemed appropriate for my less-than-dulcet-toned child in that Emily uses her vocal talents for good!

Apparently, I'm not very subtle in my book as gift buying.

Despite the fact that these books are for ages 2-7, I sometimes want to break them out (of their "Children's Books to Save" prison under the stairs) and enjoy their sweet simple and timeless wisdom for myself.

Fire Red and Gold

2011-10-12T06:47:00.000-04:00

As I work my way back into the everyday life this morning, I wanted to share this stunning serigraph from Eyvind Earle that captures autumn. While I didn't see anything this spectacular, his use of color and shapes evokes the memories of a great, extended weekend - half with friends and half with my honey.

It's Key

2011-10-04T19:42:00.001-04:00

Gearing up for my annual Girls Weekend, I was at the store today to stock up on a few necessary grocery items. (Okay. Let's face it - it was for garnishes for my fantabulous Girls Weekend drinks.) Seeing no standard limes, I picked up a bag of ugly looking tiny Key limes and inspected them. Suddenly, up from my hands wafted this most wondrous smell! It was them! They had the most splendidly sweet and citrusy subtle scent of a sultry summer soirée. I wanted to bathe in them! (It's happened often enough that you could say this is my standard reaction when I really like the smell of something.)

Then I spied the big, uniformly green, regular limes for much less in the next aisle. I wondered aloud if I should put back the more expensive bag of little discolored ones in favor of the pretty standard limes. They were going to be for decorative touches after all.

My daughter chimed in and said, "But did you smell these limes?" holding up the bag of Key limes.

She knows. The nose knows. I'm a sucker for smell and the incredible smell of these limes won me over. The drink will be pretty enough in its decorative glass with the salted rim and the gently muddled melange of red chili, green basil, and yellow ginger. But between now and the end of my car trip to our GW destination, I'll get to smell that nearly indescribable memory.

Like a Fish Out of Water

2011-10-02T16:18:00.002-04:00

This isn't a story about my husband in social situations; this is about our real fish out of water.

Early Friday evening, I went to check my email at my desk in the living room. My desk is in a little dark corner behind the free-standing bookcase. You really can’t see me unless you know I'm there. I like it that way. Anyway, this isn’t about me, but the location of my desk behind the bookcase, the location of the betta tank on the bookcase, and flippy/floppy sounds that pierce the darkest corners of the night.

So, I'm sitting there waiting for my email to download and I hear something rustling over near the stairs (my desk is in the corner and butts up against the landing on the dog-leg staircase). I figure it's a bug that somehow got in the backdoor and is now looking for a way out. I hear it again. I think, why is the bug in this darkest corner of the living room when bugs usually seek light? It must be a moth. I read my email. I hear it again. This time, it's loud enough that I turn on the light thinking it's got to be a huge moth.

I see a black and gold shape on my stack of bills. Wow. That IS a big moth! It moves again. EW!

It's not a moth, but my daughter's Betta, Sharkbait Ooh-Ha-Ha, aka: Chum lying flat on my stack of bills three feet below his tank!

I scream, WHAT?, scoop him up, and deposit him back in his tiny tank.

Chum in happier days. Maybe he's no longer a Buddhist.

The family gathers to watch the now dust and doghair covered Betta float in his tank. My daughter freaks out a little. I try to clean the doghair from the fish. He starts to swim around.

Now I don't know how long the damn thing was out of the water, but it was a good three to four minutes from the time I first heard him struggle until the time I figured out it was him. Additionally, he had moved from the top of the bookcase where he apparently jumped out of his tank, to the edge of the bookcase, and flopped onto my bills! I know this was his route because I could see his flippy trail in the dust on the top of the bookcase. (Ew for a few reasons.)

By later on in the evening, he appeared okay but began to develop pop-eyes. (Ew.)

It seems that Betta bowl abandonment is not so unheard of. Apparently they're very sensitive to water quality issues and it's not uncommon for them to jump out of their bowls after the bowl has been cleaned. My daughter had cleaned his bowl not two hours before. Apparently, Bettas, like some other type of fish, have an organ called a labyrinth organ which allows them to breathe out of the water. Who knew?

So now, while he seems to have survived his time out of water, his pop-eyes, a probably reaction to some type of bacterial infection from his dust/doghair dredging, may or may not clear up.

I hope it does. We've gotten used to having Chum around – just not as a paperweight.

From Eva to Eddie and Back Again.

2011-09-30T16:33:00.000-04:00

While I haven't forsaken my love of my silver fox collar, red-soled stilettos, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I find that I am inexplicably drawn to all things small farm. Specifically I want a small herd of dairy goats to make cheese, a pair of Randall oxen to pull stuff (and because they're beautiful), an Anatolian Shepherd Dog to watch over pastures, and enough land for them to all frolic in the fields surrounding my new super modern home.

Beautiful Baby Randall from Buttonwood Zoo.

I really shouldn't follow up a trip to the agriculture pavilions at the Big E by reading Dwell Magazine.

It confuses me.

Wielding, Waiving, and Granting: Education Edition

2011-09-29T09:14:00.000-04:00

No doubt, the No Child Left Behind law enacted in 2001 under President Bush has serious problems mostly stemming from false notion that percentages of test passing students equals educational success while resting on the even more destructive false premise that government-run schools is a proper function of government, but the President's recent proposal to grant waivers to the law does one thing of note and -- make no mistake about it -- it isn't for the children:

Under the waiver program, the annual identification of schools along with the mandate for changes would come to an end for qualifying states.

While wielding the power of government favors --"The Obama administration has said states can qualify [for waivers] if they sign on to the president’s education agenda, which Massachusetts did last year when it won $250 million from President Obama’s Race to the Top fund, a competitive grant program." -- for states who comply with his politics, President Obama also gets a pass for himself and teachers unions by removing at least part of the pervasive cultural dissatisfaction that arises from the constant and notoriously negative reminders of our failing government schools; it effectively removes public schools' accountability to the public.

It certainly appears to be a win-win for his administration as government education continues to be a lose-lose for the children, the taxpayers, and the rest of the country.

Strong Girls Are Fun to Watch

2011-09-27T16:38:00.000-04:00

She makes muscle-ups look quite balletic.

Burdening Commerce

2011-09-26T15:54:00.002-04:00

Or How to Make $5K in Your Jammies.

From the American Jobs Act, SUBTITLE D – PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT ON THE BASIS OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S STATUS AS UNEMPLOYED, employers may not explicitly dismiss currently unemployed applicants when hiring a new employee [Section 374 (a)(1) and (b) (1)]. This prohibition is disgusting! An employer should have the right to use whatever criteria he deems necessary in determining the best fit applicant for the position he is offering; he is taking all the risks in engaging that person for employment. But wait! It gets far worse. Explicit language prohibiting the hiring of the unemployed is easy to prove; what's threatening and will by all logic produce a chilling effect on any hiring is the second part of the remedies in that subsection.

(2) In any claim alleging a violation of any other subsection of this Act, an individual, or any person acting on behalf of the individual as set forth in Section 375(a) of this Act, may be awarded, as appropriate, the remedies available for a violation of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), section 302(a)(1) of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-16b(a)(1)), section 201(a)(1) of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)), and section 411 of title 3, United States Code, except that in a case in which wages, salary, employment benefits, or other compensation have not been denied or lost to the individual, damages may be awarded in an amount not to exceed $5,000.

This is the language regarding what constitutes a violation by an employer:

SEC. 374. PROHIBITED ACTS.

(a) Employers- It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to--

(2) fail or refuse to consider for employment, or fail or refuse to hire, an individual as an employee because of the individual's status as unemployed;

Let me highlight that for you: (2) fail or refuse to consider for employment, or fail or refuse to hire, an

individual as an employee because of the individual's status as unemployed;

Tell me, how can one determine whether his previous unemployment is the reason I have decided not to hire him if I have not made it explicit - which is prohibited in section 374 (a) (1)?

The most disturbing part of this Subtitle of the proposed legislation is its purported necessity:

This subtitle may be cited as the “Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011”.

SEC. 372. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) Findings- Congress finds that denial of employment opportunities to individuals because of their status as unemployed is discriminatory and burdens commerce by--
(1) reducing personal consumption and undermining economic stability and growth;
(2) squandering human capital essential to the Nation's economic vibrancy and growth;
(3) increasing demands for Federal and State unemployment insurance benefits, reducing trust fund assets, and leading to higher payroll taxes for employers, cuts in benefits for jobless workers, or both;
(4) imposing additional burdens on publicly funded health and welfare programs; and
(5) depressing income, property, and other tax revenues that the Federal Government, States, and localities rely on to support operations and institutions essential to commerce.
(b) Purposes- The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to prohibit employers and employment agencies from disqualifying an individual from employment opportunities because of that individual’s status as unemployed;
(2) to prohibit employers and employment agencies from publishing or posting any advertisement or announcement for an employment opportunity that indicates that an individual’s status as unemployed disqualifies that individual for the opportunity; and
(3) to eliminate the burdens imposed on commerce due to the exclusion of such
individuals from employment.

Someone found that not hiring unemployed people burdens commerce, undermines economic stability and growth, depresses Federal revenue, and imposes burdens on welfare programs, but that the threat of $5000 lawsuits every time an unemployed applicant is denied employment will encourage job growth?

Oh, yeah. Nothing greases the wheels of expanding employment opportunities like the threat of suing the employers for not hiring someone who has been thus far unable to get or unwilling to accept a job.

You can't make this stuff up. Oh wait. Someone actually did. And they are leading our country.

Why I Volunteer to Drive, Alone

2011-09-23T17:25:00.000-04:00

I can sing this - and others - at the top of my lungs.

Retarding Innovation

2011-09-21T15:07:00.001-04:00

As part of his recent budget reduction plan, President Obama once again seeks to decrease the biotech drug market exclusivity from twelve years, as shoveled in under Obamacare, to seven years.

The biotechnology industry argued it needed 12 years of freedom from lower priced competition to recoup research and development costs. Any less, it argued, would retard innovation. The generic industry, as well as many insurers and employers who pay health care bills, said a much shorter period would suffice.

So if I read this correctly, the folks who develop new drugs say they need more time as the exclusive owner’s of their products in order to guarantee a return on their significant investment in the lengthy development process. On the other hand, the folks who want their formula to capitalize on their initial investments, the folks who pay for these drugs in service to their clients, and the folks who offer their employees health care plans, say they know better how much time/money is enough. Therefore, the President is seeking to use the force of government, not to protect the innovators' rights, but to benefit the other folks who say they have to pay too much for the benefit of other's innovation. Once again, he decides how much is enough.

This may lessen the cost of some drugs in the short run (this is not definitive as other companies have not picked up the biogenic drugs after they were available for copy), but it is an excellent way to insure that fewer companies will risk their capital on the development of new life-saving drugs.

How the President's political pandering, never-ending energies toward creating an unknowable and chaotic business climate, and elitist drive for picking the winners and losers as only a messianic statist can is still seen by some as progress is beyond me. After all, once the government controls all of the producers' incentives under the guise of for the people, individual choices will be meaningless – as will the extraordinarily enlightened values once enshrined within the country founded on the sanctity of individual rights.

Found!

2011-09-19T16:44:00.000-04:00

Today. Three weeks later.

Today's Special: Squid Pro Quo

2011-09-18T17:01:00.000-04:00

Proud to support the Let's Move! initiative championed by First Lady Michelle Obama, the White House blog hosts her recent praise of the Darden Restaurants (like Olive Garden and Red Lobster) in their efforts to comply with her healthy food suggestions. In November, Darden Restaurants was exempted from provisions of the new healthcare law.

Connect the dots. Companies that use the force of government to further their business should be exposed. Government that grants special privileges to further its administration's goals should be voted out.

Follow the force and find out what that fishy smell is.

239 Jefferson Ave.

2011-09-15T16:34:00.000-04:00

Where I rocked that bikini like nobody's business.

Doesn't Seem So Funny Now, Does It?

2011-09-07T07:17:00.003-04:00

See you Friday! I hope.

Stranger Danger

2011-09-06T08:18:00.000-04:00

I love Gavin De Becker’s Gift of Fear. It’s not about being afraid, it’s about respecting your sense of fear and deciphering between what is real fear, which should be respected, and what is not. It’s about examining your environment, assessing different signals, and respecting the inner voice that tells you to remove yourself from the threatening situation no matter how much the second-handed voice says, don’t be a silly baby.

I gave the book to my oldest daughter before college and have Protecting the Gift of Fear lost among the piles of book depositories strewn wildly throughout my house (some are more formally known as bookshelves – others, formerly known as clear horizontal surfaces). Someday I need to find that one; it specializes in talking to kids about assessing risk without causing fear. I could have used it on Sunday.

My youngest, 13, asked to go bike riding with a friend at the cemetery at the end of our street: nice paths, almost no cars, lovely trees. We’d been there many times together and it is a quiet and peaceful place (so long as you are not mourning the loss of someone whose final resting place is there). Given her familiarity with the area, the relatively small size of the grounds, and the quiet neighborhood we live in, I had no problem with the plan provided they stayed on the paths and kept their voices to a respectful level especially if they saw people visiting the graves.

When she was gone longer than seemed appropriate for bike riding around the small area over and over and over again, I asked Stephen to give her a call on her cell phone. While she was on the phone with him she began to laugh, oddly and then hung up. Stephen called her back and she had that same odd laugh. He wouldn’t hang up and insisted she tell him what was going on. She reported that some guy was asking her friend where the “H's” where.

In a cemetery. Where are the “H's.”

Okay. The guy was on a bike, had stopped his bike and stood in front of them for a second. Moved on, and came back around to ask that question while Stephen was on the phone with our daughter.

Threatening? Lone guy on a bike? No.
Threatening? Lone guy on a bike asking children for ridiculous information? Adults do not need to gain information from unattended children. Ever. So this is suspicious behavior at best.
Threatening? Lone guy on a bike asking children for information when they are alone in an isolated area? Yes.

Stephen made his way to the cemetery as the girls were racing homeward. They were truly frightened and said the guy was following them. Stephen told them to ride straight home as he headed into the cemetery.

He approached the guy, who may have actually been following them out of the cemetery, stopped in front of him and said, “Hi.” The helmeted and overweight guy mumbled a “hi” back and rode off in another direction. Neither Stephen nor the girls had ever seen him around before.

Assessment: Probably a mentally challenged adult. This makes his asking about the “H's” less sinister, but it does not make his approaching the girls in an isolated area any less creepy or threatening.

So what did they do wrong?

Stopped to sit and talk in the isolated, empty cemetery.
Did not get back on their bikes as soon as they saw the lone male bike rider was interested in them.
Did not get on their bikes and leave as soon as the man approached them.
Laughed nervously instead of making a definite and defensive move away from the man.

What did they do right?

Assessed the man's behavior as creepy.
Got back on their bikes and headed home immediately after the man tried to talk to them (but it was also after Stephen told them to do so, so maybe it should not be in the plus column).
And as is her way, my daughter snapped a photo of the helmeted man on her cellphone as he left them.

So was he up to no good? Probably not, but obviously he was able to overpower two young girls.

Should a 12 and 13 year-old dismiss his odd behavior in their relative vulnerability? No.

Should they have assessed his first approach as a potential threat and moved away immediately? Yes.

Will they next time something similar happens? Most definitely.

New Girl

2011-09-03T07:15:00.001-04:00

Stephen and I watched this show On Demand last night and it did not disappoint. Zooey Deschanel is so damn cute that even if the writing wasn't good, I still might like the show. But it was hilarious! A lot, but not all of the hilarity can be seen in this 160 second trailer. I recommend it.

Premiering September 20th on Fox after Glee.

Damon Wayans, Jr. is so much like Damon Wayans (love him) and the Schmidt guy is a total. . . well. . . douche; the third character is iffy, but Deschanel is pure delight. Bonus for me: she completely reminds me of the some of the best quirky bits of both of my daughters.

What does it have in its pocketses?

2011-09-02T08:08:00.001-04:00

I love my giraffe print purse purchased on the streets of New York several years ago. It’s big and strong enough, and has a good top zipper and a bold, yet neutral colored animal print on it. What more could I ask for?

Sadly, it’s time to say goodbye to that purse. She has served me well, but my constant flinging her about onto rough surfaces has caused the bottom to fray. Sad. I know. But I was all excited by the challenge of finding a subtle animal texture, but more boldly-colored purse, like my toxic green snakeskin. How I loved that fake Prada purse.

Anyway, with the fall fast approaching, I had my heart set on orange or red. Red crocodile to be precise, with silver metallic accents (I don’t like gold plated things). After weeks of online searching – and finding in the $200-$300 price range! – I decided to hit the local stores. Lo’ and behold, I found a red croc cross-strap purse with excellent compartments that spoke to me. It was only when I got it home that I realized it said, “There’s no way you can get all your stuff in here, bonehead.”

So I put my stuff back in the giraffe purse and tried again.

There was a larger purse, much like the one that spoke to me, but this one had a manly cross-strap and no croc! No homage to animal imagery at all! But, like the croc bag, it had some lovely functional spaces for my different categories of things.

It was a really tough decision, but I returned Ms. Red-Croc Thang, and purchased Ms. I’m-Getting-Old-and-Sedate killer bag. It’s killer because, with all my stuff in it, I suspect I could actually kill someone with a good swing and delivery in the right spot.

But this is just background for what I really wanted to let you know.

When I returned Ms. Red-Croc Thang, the clerk reset the tag, and I’m certain, put it back on the shelf. Clearly, I had in no way used or abused the purse, so she thought it was safe. And it was.

It was only later that I realized someone else would likely be the proud owner of one emergency maxi-pad and my pocket Constitution which I had stuffed into one of its secret pockets.

You’re welcome, whoever you are.

100 Years in 100 Seconds of Fun!

2011-08-31T08:34:00.001-04:00

(found at The Clothes Make the Girl)

The Broken Window Fallacy

2011-08-29T20:27:00.000-04:00

Those who live in The People's House should not throw bricks.

A Sense of History: The Lansdowne Portrait

2011-08-23T06:22:00.003-04:00

Our kind friend, Mr. Carroll, has come to hasten my departure, and is in a very bad humor with me because I insist on waiting until the large picture of Gen. Washington is secured, and it requires to be unscrewed from the wall. This process was found too tedious for these perilous moments; I have ordered the frame to be broken, and the canvass taken out it is done, and the precious portrait placed in the hands of two gentlemen of New York, for safe keeping. And now, dear sister, I must leave this house, or the retreating army will make me a prisoner in it, by filling up the road I am directed to take. When I shall again write you, or where I shall be tomorrow, I cannot tell!!

Dolley Madison to her sister, August 23^rd/24^th, 1814

George Washington, by Gilbert Stuart 1796

More on the primary source document can be found here.

A detailed study of the portrait can be found here.

CT Flash Tour 2011

2011-08-21T18:32:00.000-04:00

What do Philip Johnson’s Glass House, Ticket to Ride, The Mystic Aquarium, and the USS Nautilus have in common? Two things I can think of: they’re all in Connecticut and my family enjoyed them all over one of my famous, crazy 24-hour flash tours this weekend.

First the Glass House.

Philip Johnson's weekend retreat: The Glass House, 1949

I’ve made attempts – at least once a year – to go on a tour of the property since it opened four years ago. It was either sold out (most frequently) or we didn’t have the time. I really wanted to bring the girls with us because I think it’s good for them to experience examples of good design in order to cultivate a sense of appreciation for it, especially when we live in organized chaos.

I was not mistaken – they loved it and were particularly enamored of the outdoor rooms meticulously designed by Johnson himself!

The pond and climbing structure as one view from the Glass House.

Overall, Johnson’s Glass House is quite similar in layout to the ultra modern prefab box homes that I covet, but with much more glass, much less kitchen, and as of yet, unimagined environmental control of every view – which is really saying something when all the walls are made of glass.

Mies van der Rohe was a friend and his
Farnsworth House was an influence on Johnson's design.

The modern architecture, the numerous follies, and the controlled landscaping made the trip well worth the significant price. We included the modern art collection in our tour, but all agreed on its sheer insanity. Overall, it was a great experience! (Thanks for the inspiration, Earl!)

One of the two "art" galleries on the property.
Its structure, including its play on light, was ingenious, if not waterproof.

Then things went south.

Actually, we went east from the tony New Canaan, CT to the very depressed New London area. Frankly, it was a little dicey, but when making reservations in an unknown area, it’s rather a crapshoot. Things ended well as we headed toward the beach for fireworks and the Fab Four. As we walked down the little boardwalk of the sad honky-tonk Ocean Beach Park area, it absolutely reminded me and Stephen of The Willows – a little depressed seaside park in Salem, but it was not as familiar as these weren’t our people (as types, they were the same, but we had no hope of having gone to high school with any of the smoking, drinking, inked-up folks we saw – and about this, we were happy).

Some decent fireworks.

Anyway, when we saw the overweight older guys on the stage doing sound checks, we were a little more depressed than when we had walked in – but twenty minutes later they emerged, in 60s suits and bowl haircuts and sang and played their hearts out! They were actually really good! Stephen, Victoria, and I sang all the songs OUT LOUD and Katy wished she were somewhere else. After the fireworks, we watched the fellas come back out in their Sgt. Pepper’s era costumes and sang ourselves out to the parking lot. They were a delightful surprise.

Ticket to Ride: A Beatles Tribute Band

Bad pictures of good music.

Regarding the hotel, I’m just going to say that I clearly don’t understand the sleep number bed system and leave it at that.

The next morning we headed to the Mystic Aquarium. As so often happens when the children are five years apart, I had mistakenly checked off “aquarium” as experienced by my youngest when she had actually never been! Oh, the parental shame.

Touching slimy things: all part of growing up.

Well, we changed all that. She watched the three beluga whales, the black-footed penguins, touched the rays, sea stars, marveled at the hugeness of the sea lions and the pups (one we named Bob because he bobbed his torpedo like shape up and down vertically in the water), examined wildly different sized jellies, and oddly, fed free flying birds from a stick. The reason this is odd is because I’m not really sure what the birds had to do with an aquarium, but it was really fun. The Cockatiels, parrots, and parakeets loved Stephen and one tried to come home with me in my purse. No one but me wanted to bother to go in the bird house, and it ended up being a big hit.

Beluga. Not sure if it's Baby.

Bob, the sea lion pup.

I just like bright orange and cobalt blue.

Stephen attracts all his birds by wearing Objectivism
on his sleeve. Or chest, as the case may be.

Finally, we headed back a little west to hit the USS Nautilus Museum. The Nautilus was the first nuclear powered submarine in the world and is now docked in Groton, CT offering tours of its spacious interior. Frankly, I was concerned that I would get claustrophobic just being inside the darn thing – even with it open and the air moving! But I distracted by the incredibly condensed interior, the 1960s dummies they used to simulate the crew, and 1950s pin-up girls designed to represent the ladies back home. Stephen pointed out that on one control panel, all that was labeled for the viewer was the “cup holder.”

18" drawers to sleep in. Fun.

I think that's Ava Gardner.

Guess who took this picture.

We had actually toured another sub, the USS Albacore, which now sits in a ditch in Portsmouth NH in 2004 or so and in 2008, Stephen toured an active nuclear sub in Groton as part of ESGR employer support appreciation in 2008.

That concludes our CT Flash Tour 2011. I hope you enjoyed it at least a fraction of how much I did.

Next up: Newport in a Day.

Obama, Creating the Market in His Own Image

2011-08-17T14:30:00.001-04:00

President Obama spoke Monday regarding the need for car makers to understand that people don't want SUVs and trucks! They want to save money! They want fuel efficient vehicles! Why are those silly car makers bothering to spend money on research and marketing when the president is around to help them suss things out?

At one point he actually had the audacity to say, "You have got to understand the market."

And just in case the market, which is already far from free, does not respond in the manner the Commander in Chief thinks is appropriate, here is his administration's plan to help shape that Medium and Heavy Duty Engines and Vehicles market. All 958 pages of it. Grab a pot of coffee and enjoy. It's for your own good, you know.

His approach to the market reminds me of something. Now what was that? Oh yes:

"Do you believe?" he cried.

Tink sat up in bed almost briskly to listen to her fate.

She fancied she heard answers in the affirmative, and then again she wasn't sure.

"What do you think?" she asked Peter.

"If you believe," he shouted to them, "clap your hands; don't let Tink die."

Many clapped.

Some didn't.

A few beasts hissed.*

I hate to be a beast, but no amount of clapping will make an artificial market viable beyond its special, governmentally-induced bubble. And even there, it's subject to the constant pin pricks of reality. (See Evergreen Solar)

*J.M. Barrie in Peter Pan

Part of the Problem

2011-08-15T13:23:00.004-04:00

As one of the self-described “mega-rich” in this country, Warren Buffett tries to make a compelling case regarding the inequality of tax laws and “other blessings” which he complains “are showered upon us by legislators in Washington” in today's New York Times.

“Most wouldn't mind being told to pay more in taxes as well, particularly when so many of their fellow citizens are truly suffering,” he states of his fellow ultra wealthy brethren.

Where is the controversy here? More importantly, where is the connection? It's as if Mr. Buffett thinks that our economy can be fixed by throwing more money into the government coffers! Then do it, Mr. Buffett! No one is stopping you or your really swell mega-rich compatriots from giving all of your money away! This will hardly make a dent in our national debt. But go ahead! Go for it! That's your choice. And your personal choice is not news.

The newsworthiness of this piece lies in the fact that people like Mr. Buffett – in ideology rather than necessary wealth – think they can decide who, by virtue of his wealth, should pay more, give more, sacrifice more to keep the state running. This appeal to our shared sacrifice in feeding the beast of big government completely disregards the proper function of government: the protection of individual rights and its manifest equality for each individual under the law. I don't know enough about tax laws to suggest that he is wrong about the percentages of taxes paid; however, by implying that rich people – as defined by whomever is making the statement at the time – owe a greater percentage because they are rich, and worse, supporting the idea that the proper role of the government of the United States of America is to determine how much wealth is too much wealth, Mr. Buffett is part of the problem, not the solution.

He begins his slippery slope of “pain” distribution with the 400 “mega-rich” – of whom he is a part, thereby lending his claims an air of noble leadership rather than the naked arrogation they are – and ends with the over 200,000 households he suggests aren’t paying enough taxes by stating, “It's time for our government to get serious about shared sacrifice.”

Mr. Buffett is apparently an excellent investor, but, like our President, has the putrid soul of a collectivist.

It stands to reason that where there's sacrifice, there's someone collecting sacrificial offerings. Where there's service, there's someone being served. The man who speaks to you of sacrifice, speaks of slaves and masters. And intends to be the master.

Ayn Rand “The Soul of a Collectivist,” For the New Intellectual, 73 (via the Ayn Rand Lexicon)

3 Good Things (Uncommon Goods Edition)

2011-08-14T18:00:00.002-04:00

In a fit of trying to rid the house of unnecessary items (only to bring in more unnecessary items at a later date when I forget why I threw a fit to get rid of the other stuff in the first place) I don't do as much catalog shopping as I used to. In fact, other than Lands End - who might NEVER remove me from their mailing list for reasons only they can understand - a scant three companies bother to send catalogs to my house on a regular basis: Bas Bleu, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Store, and Uncommon Goods. I love them all!

Here are a few of the things in Uncommon Goods that I won't buy but am very happy to know exist in the world for others to buy (or make):

1. The F-bomb Paperweight

The possibility of dropping this rather than its namesake in front of my neighbor's kids gives me further reason to break out my welding kit.

2. Personalized Couple Pillow

I could draw a certain cartoonish likeness of folks, but my more crafty friends could definitely make these delightfully personalized gifts. (Christmas idea.)

3. Renewal Tree Globes

Yes, the names make them a little new-agey, but I have a thing for glass, light, colors, globes, and trees. Put them all together and call me enchanted! They remind me of my bloggy friend's lovely tree pendants.

BC: Before Computers

2011-08-12T23:23:00.000-04:00

An out-of-commission laptop led to dueling Heinleins, instead.
(The cover of my book has a man in a kilt in case you were wondering.)

Original Dueling Laptops here.

The Working-Man's Mr. Darcy

2011-08-08T19:59:00.001-04:00

I finished reading Elizabeth Gaskell’s 1854-55 serialized novel, North and South, last week and spent one glorious weekend with the BBC interpretations of her Cranford and North & South.

I lifted the title of this post directly from the character biography on IMDb, but only because it was so perfectly in line with what I had been thinking: Although Ms. Gaskell was writing forty years after Ms. Austen, one cannot help but compare her romantic hero, Mr. John Thornton, with the latter's paragon of Regency romance. Having more of an intriguing perpetual scowl than sigh-invoking love-look, John Thornton is a serious manly man who never had time to cultivate the formalities of romantic attachments yet still had the serious (mis)fortune to fall hard in love with a young woman who always spoke her mind.

Richard Armitage as BBC's Mr. Thornton.

Original love-god, Colin Firth as BBC's Mr. Darcy

Sadly, unlike Mr. Darcy—who had the literary orphan advantage—Mr. Thornton had some mommy issues which disturbed me immensely, and yet, not even this strong ick-factor was enough to relegate him to the bin of unworthy man-boys which so plague modern literature, not to mention modern life.

While I, perhaps more than most, do enjoy a good “I am so intense I could consume you with my eyes” willful stare, the best part of Mr. Thornton was his unapologetic drive to create a successful cotton mill business on his own terms. Using principled efforts to ensure that his mills not merely survive, but thrive during the nascent industrial revolution and workers’ strikes, Mr. Thornton, much like Donna Summer's heroine, worked hard for his money. Being questioned by a friend regarding his treatment of his workers and his “strong objection to acts of parliament and all legislation affecting your mode of management,” Mr. Thornton answered:

You know the proverb, Mr. Hale, "Set a beggar on horseback, and he'll ride to the devil,"--well, some of these early manufacturers did ride to the devil in a magnificent style--crushing human bone and flesh under their horses' hoofs without remorse. But by-and-by came a re-action, there were more factories, more masters; more men were wanted. The power of masters and men became more evenly balanced; and now the battle is pretty fairly waged between us. We will hardly submit to the decision of an umpire, much less to the interference of a meddler with only a smattering of the knowledge of the real facts of the case, even though that meddler be called the High Court of Parliament.

This early industrialist saw the big picture, which really means that this mid-19^th century novelist seemed more or less to adopt the trader principle and understand the destructive intrusion of government in such matters.

Gaskell deserves her resurgence in popularity for that alone.

While there was a magical influx of cash at the last minute, Mr. Thornton was sadly resigned to accept his defeat as the product of his efforts. The last scene in the movie better captured what I thought was the book’s short shrift of the love story’s resolution, but the book better described Mr. Thornton the trader, the master, the man.

Miss Hale kisses Mr. Thornton's hand. The End.

You can read the entire book here and listen to it here.

Here is a pretty funny blog post (from which I copied many pictures) that “isn't anything but a thinly veiled excuse to post lots of pictures of pretty people and kissing,” so I like it.

Miss Bennet kisses Mr. Darcy's hand. Almost the end.

(Thanks to Diana Hsieh and Lady Baker for the recommendation.)

Objectivist Round Up #212

2011-08-04T08:45:00.000-04:00

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Objectivist Round Up: A somewhat smaller, but nonetheless strong showing of what some Objectivist bloggers have been writing about (or talking about) this week.

Jenn Casey and Kelly Elmore presents Podcast #17: Brainstorming a Parenting Problem posted at Cultivating the Virtues, saying, “In this podcast, Jenn and Kelly brainstorm a real-life parenting problem and come up with several options for handling it.”

Toby Selwyn presents Changing Minds I: Discrimination Laws posted at One for One, saying, “The first in my series of articles debunking some of the work I wrote four years ago on my atheist blog of the time, A Load of Bright.”

Rob Abiera presents The problem with taxes posted at The Oklahoma Capitalist, saying, “The problem with taxes is: they aren't voluntary - as illustrated by an editorial in the local newspaper.”

Diana Hsieh presents Does the Right to Life Trump Property Rights? posted at NoodleFood, saying, “Does the right to life trump property rights? I explain why not.”

Miranda Barzey presents Simple Activism for Shy People: Promoting Ideas without the Stress posted at Building Atlantis, saying, “Simple advice for those who want to help promote Objectivism, but are too shy or introverted for most face-to-face activist tactics (debating, handing out pamphlets, making speeches).”

Gene Palmisano presents Misnomer of the Day posted at The Metaphysical Lunch, saying, “More word play from the irrational pragmatists in our midst. Check out my podcast: The Anecdotal Objectivist.”

David Masten presents Ignorance is NOT Bliss! posted at Blazing Truth, saying, “This is the last I want to hear of the cliche' "ignorance is bliss". Let's bury it once and for all through an analysis of the famous mantra's origins in Alexander Pope and Thomas Gray.”

Paul Hsieh presents Government Response to Medical Student Debt? posted at We Stand FIRM, saying, “Will the government use the medical student "debt bubble" to control future doctors' practices? ”

Kelly Elmore presents Rhetoric: Who Needs It? posted at Reepicheep's Coracle, saying, “There is not value-less truth, no communication without connotation, and choosing how to phrase something, how to speak effectively is not dishonest, it's rhetoric.”

Jason Crawford presents How can an objective theory of value permit personal preference? posted at The Rational Egoist.

Santiago and Kelly Valenzuela presents Famous Immigrant of the Week posted at Mother of Exiles, saying, “Check out our new weekly feature, Famous Immigrant of the Week! So far we've featured Irving Berlin and Andrew Carnegie.”

Ari Armstrong presents MoveOn Smears Lamborn for Invoking African Tar Baby Folklore posted at Free Colorado, saying, “On the origins of the African tar baby story -- and the modern political debates about it.”

As for me and my hosting privileges, I’d like to leave you with this thought from Ayn Rand:

The businessman’s tool is values; the bureaucrat’s tool is fear.

From “America’s Persecuted Minority: Big Business,” Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, 48 (Read more here via the Ayn Rand Lexicon.)

That concludes this week's Objectivist Round Up. For past and future hosts, see here.

Read.
Think.
Enjoy.

Jonathan Banks on Menstruation

2011-08-03T17:52:00.000-04:00

Goofball educational film from the 70s: Fifteen year-old gets her first period and her slacker boyfriend writes a report about it. His ability to withstand her constant chatter about her period is more convincing when we see him have to carry home a partially bagged jumbo Kotex package for his mother.

Despite the goofiness of the missing wastebasket “problem,” the pharmacist who lays out all the feminine protection choices, and the pony-tailed man who would like to have his period, the movie ends up being able to impart some decent information about menstruation in an oddly humorous and matter-of-fact manner.

From the Prelinger Archives

Frodo Baggins Pied a Terre

2011-08-02T11:40:00.001-04:00

I would have used the hyphenated word had I wanted to discuss a quaint walk-up in the Shire. Alas, this is truly about a foot on the ground: specifically my bare foot on the hot, hot ground.

Yes, this is about burn/friction blisters the size of half-dollars on the both feet from barefoot running!

It was only a 400m barefoot warm-up run, which I have done several times since the barefoot running clinic. Some of the time it was at 7 in the morning or 7 at night, but the initial barefoot run was done at 3:00 on a wicked hot day! At 3:00 the heat is radiating back from the pavement surface making it even hotter, and yet, I had no problem on that day.

Yesterday, however, I burned the hell out of both feet. I will spare you further description except to add that I am walking like a fragile old lady trying not to pop the gigantic blisters and invite infection which results in death (as warned by my mother).

The good news is that the huge blisters are in the right spot, on the ball of each foot, showing that I’m running correctly. The bad news is that I probably have second degree burns on the bottoms of both feet showing that I’m not thinking correctly.

I should have figured that the transition from skin as soft as a baby’s bottom to hobbit feet was going to take a lot longer than ten days.

Live and learn.

A Distinguished Household

2011-08-01T11:38:00.000-04:00

According to a New York Times article and its interactive info-graphic, last week my household was like over 500,000 other households in the US with a married couple and three kids, two under the age of 18.

Then, when one of my daughters turned 18, our household became less common, if you will, with a married couple and three kids, but only one under the age of 18.

As my son prepares to move out into his own house, we are left with the fact that we are soon to become a household like over 1% of the households in this country.

Even more frightening is the fact that as my daughter heads out to college, our type household will become quite commonplace: a married couple with one child under the age of 18 – similar to over 5% of the households in the country.

Staring down that sea of sameness and struggling, somehow, to distinguish ourselves, we came up with a plan.

3 Good Things (Step Change Children edition)

2011-07-30T19:58:00.000-04:00

Thursday morning, son not a homeowner;

Thursday afternoon - a homeowner!

Thursday morning, daughter a wearer of braces;

Thursday afternoon - NOT a wearer of braces!

Saturday morning, other daughter a 17 year-old;

later Saturday morning, an 18 year-old!

We’re Going for a Ride

2011-07-29T13:02:00.000-04:00

Yesterday’s New York Times reported on the newly proposed automobile fuel-economy standards and the automakers who begrudgingly love them. I couldn’t help but notice the report was full of package deals, fallacies, and wiggle words.

Still, the industry’s meek acceptance of what are considered extremely challenging fuel-economy goals is a marked retreat from years past, when the companies argued that consumers would not be willing to pay for the technology needed to meet higher mileage requirements.

“The auto companies’ level of vitriol and rhetoric has changed,” said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Campaign, a group that works to mitigate global warming. “We welcome all epiphanies.”

Vitriol and Rhetoric

Hate speech. That’s what most people think of when they hear those two words together. While vitriol is language using bitterly abusive feeling or expression, rhetoric is the art of using language effectively. Putting the two together does not make either a form of hate speech (which is a package deal). The biggest difference between them is how they reflect upon the ability of the speaker: while the first may reflect passion for the subject, it mostly reflects the speaker’s inability to form a cogent argument; the second reflects upon the speaker’s power of persuasion. Don’t be fooled by these two fine words packaged to discredit any speaker whose point of view disagrees with your own.

Details of how the credits will work have not yet been made public, but the intention is to encourage the development of cars with far lower emissions.

Details and Intentions

There ought to be a law - don’t worry about the details. This sort of short-term thinking is the reason statists give in order to regulate all aspects of our lives. They imply that people can’t be trusted to figure things out for their own long-term benefit (shall I buy the car with the hybrid premium or the less expensive traditional gas model?) so we must be nudged by an all-knowing benevolent government which has previously determined how things will work best for us and for all men. So long as the government has good intentions (e.g., lower emissions – which has previously been sold to us as an unquestioned good), statists claim its interference in any industry is proper. Don’t be fooled by this appeal to authority. The authority to live your life comes from the fact that you are alive.

[. . .] but the real test will be if costs can be lowered enough so consumers will want to buy more electric and hybrid models.

---

This time, the automakers’ trade group proposed radio ads that would have raised concerns about job losses, but the proposal was squelched by some of the companies, notably G.M. and Chrysler.

---

[. . .] and the White House made it clear to Detroit executives that the changes were coming and they needed to cooperate.

Free Market vs. Government Force

A successful company thrives by providing its customers with valuable goods and services – unless of course, that company relies on government funding. When a company cannot fail by virtue of underlying government support, there is no real incentive to thrive. While the auto companies that were under government receivership may or may not be on solid financial footing, they clearly remain stooges for their government bosses. This is not vitriol, but an assessment of their actions as reported in this article.

In the end, though, Detroit was faced with an undeniable political reality: there was no graceful way to say no to an administration that just two years ago came to its aid financially.

“This was no time to fight these regulations,” said one Detroit executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the nature of the closed-door negotiations. “And you’re starting to see these fundamental shifts in the market that play a huge role in this.”

Political Reality

What is political reality? There is politics and there is reality. When the government attempts to shape reality through political maneuvering (e.g., regulations, taxes, grants, and special interest spending), all it creates is a house of cards.

Just as we couldn’t continue to live in the house of cards carefully crafted through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, we can’t ride in a car fueled by government machinations for very long either. Sooner or later it will breakdown leaving those of us who would have been better off with the less-expensive, traditional gas models, stranded.

This Provincial Life

2011-07-28T12:44:00.000-04:00

It’s not as if we came from the BIG city, but moving from an (in)famous city to a little town brought its share of culture shock. Where was the Home Depot, the WalMart, the hospital? Sure, I can get to those staples of civilization if I need them, but they are all now just a little further away than may warrant the trip. With the exception of banks and gas stations – of which our little town has an inordinate proliferation – I needed to satisfy my consumerist urges with a paltry few mom & pop stores with their limited selection and high prices. I’ve gotten used to this inconvenience over the years.

Then came last Saturday.

Starting out as any typical Saturday, we made our early morning trip to the dump [n.b. Curbside trash pick-up is one more of the shocking shortcomings of small town life to which I have not only grown accustomed but begun to embrace. While you must make the trip to the dump, you can do so three times a week and not have to accumulate particularly smelly things for up to a week.] After the dump we headed home, changed cars from my darling daughter‘s dump car (which is a far better model than Stephen’s commuter car) to the “If Mama Ain’t Happy Ain’t Nobody Happy” touring SUV, and planned our route d’errands. (I figure if I say it in Franglish, it may seem less perfunctory. It didn’t really work for me, either.)

First stop, an old farmhouse turned appliance store. A little over a mile from our house, we decided to scout out the local appliance store and immediately scored a new over-the-range microwave with installation for less than what I priced out over the internet at Lowe's. In addition to the fast and friendly service, we got to spend some time kicking around the merits of Metallica vs. The Bee Gees. Good times.

Ten minutes later we ventured to the car parts store on the next block and were able to pick up a broken signal bulb for the commuter car for under five bucks. Sweet! Then we drove a half mile to the hardware store to look for a new door knob and purchased a brushed silver one to match the other one in the room. Grabbing some Dunkin’ Donuts coffee and gas at the gas station with the Dunkin’ Donuts inside, we came home triumphant in our pursuits.

Later in the morning we collected our gorgeous and just-picked CSA vegetables from the farm across town.

I’m bothering to record and relate this experience because all too often things don’t go as planned: people are late, stock is lacking, help is discourteous or dumb. As we drove home from our last stop we reveled in our success not only in getting the items we sought, but also in doing so with an economy of both time and price and all within a convenient two mile radius of home!

Now why the microwave broke and an un-lockable brass doorknob suddenly started to lock itself are much like “What about the smell of the ocean?” in that they are questions whose answers are best left for another time. For now, I’m happy driving around my little town, waving to my neighbors, and appreciating what this provincial life has to offer me.

Did I mention the proximity of our Crossfit gym to our house? 1.45 miles.

Oh, yeah. It’s so close I could run there – if that were the kind of thing I’d be tempted to do.

And now a word from Belle & Co.

The Best Things to Happen to Eyelashes Since Moll and Zeis

2011-07-27T15:29:00.000-04:00

Paperself via SwissMiss

Tokyo Lash Bar

Carlashes via Design Fetish

Strike a POSE

2011-07-25T19:44:00.001-04:00

There's nothing to it!

On Saturday afternoon I attended a POSE/barefoot running seminar given by Drew Wallace of Upstream Fitness at my CrossFit gym. For those of you who weren't on the East Coast or who may have a very short memory, Saturday afternoon temperatures hit over 100 degrees with major humidity. You might say that even when I'm having a good time this kind of weather turns me nasty. Add in a little bitterness due to some cross-scheduling of Girls Night Out with a previously planned and pre-paid seminar, and a little grumbling about my least favorite physical activity in the world and you have the makings of a miserable afternoon. And yet, somehow, I enjoyed myself.

I really dislike running because, let's face it, I suck at it. But when you think about it, how can someone be so bad at something they've been doing naturally all their lives? The problem is that from around the time running became about more than a way to get from the swing set to the slide to the monkey bars to the bubbler and back again, I've really had no use for it. I don't run so much anymore as simply move my body forward in a slow plodding manner in my best imitation of people I've seen jogging.

But because you can take running with you everywhere you go, and because even with my slogging pace, I have found that running can be a great way to burn calories, to work big muscles, and to provide an overall cardiovascular workout, I want to be able to do it better. By better I don't necessarily mean faster or longer, but merely with less disdain and with the hope of long-term satisfaction rather than joint injury. Barefoot running may provide that path.

I've got hurdles: not the kind on a track, but the mental kind.

I grew up in a house with a diabetic. If we had a coat of arms, I have no doubt that Protect Your Feet would have been emblazoned across our dog-hair-covered shield. Foot injuries lead to infections which lead to death. Seemed simple enough. As a result, the bottoms of my feet are as smooth as a baby's butt. This is nice when you rub your feet on someone else's legs, but as you can imagine, this is not such a good quality to have when trying to run on those feet. (And the bottom of my someone else's feet are like 12 grit sandpaper, so it's not as if he cares.)

In February I hurt the ball of my left foot. I don't know exactly what I did (tuck jumps) to it, but it never healed completely. This became evident in the "after" film of me running – oh yes: there was video! After the seminar, some exercises, and biomechanical explanations, we were filmed running barefoot (or with shoes again in a barefoot manner as the instructor explained that this it when it seemed harder to keep good form). I was able to adapt my stride striking the pavement with my right foot, but I still struck the ground with my left heel – possibly in an attempt to protect my old injury.

Hot pavement. Did I mention that it was sunny, over 100 degrees F, and had been for three days? Oh yeah. The pavement was HOT.

Nothing Vogue about it.

Barefoot: In Body or Mind

So, here's the important part whether you're shod in something that allows your feet to spread out and feel the impact of the ground or barefoot: heel strikes are bad, unnatural, and send shock waves through your body when running. So don't do it. Land on the ball of your foot allowing as much of your foot as possible to hit the ground, but only kiss the ground with your heel. Your body should be upright with the weight bearing leg directly underneath it while your trailing leg should be near to passing through to land when the rest of your body gets there. Don't bounce. Keep a good rhythm and relax.

My favorite part of the exercise was running with a clip-on metronome. I'm going to get one and continue to practice my POSE-ing at increasing rates of speed. Who knows? With enough practice, I may actually be able to pick up some speed. Maybe.

Posture – Rhythm – Relaxation.

Girlfriends Guide to Soaking the Rich

2011-07-20T08:43:00.000-04:00

As a fan of 1950s housewifery, I find myself particularly attracted to Ayn Rand's explanation of why someone might find the idea of taxing the rich so compelling. "If an average housewife struggles with her incomprehensibly shrinking budget and sees a tycoon in a resplendent limousine, she might well think that just one of his diamond cuff links would solve all her problems." It's an understandable mistake, but a mistake nonetheless.

No one tells her that higher taxes imposed on the rich (and the semi-rich) will not come out of their consumption expenditures, but out of their investment capital (i.e., their savings); that such taxes will mean less investment, i.e., less production, fewer jobs, higher prices for scarcer goods; and that by the time the rich have to lower their standard of living, hers will be gone, along with her savings and her husband’s job—and no power in the world (no economic power) will be able to revive the dead industries (there will be no such power left).

“The Inverted Moral Priorities,”The Ayn Rand Letter, III, 21, 3

Girlfriends, don't be fooled by the sparkle of that cuff link. There is no wealth in the unearned and only destruction in the force used against the minds of men (or housewives). The legitimate use of government force is not to equalize our incomes but to protect our individual rights (e.g., how we choose to pursue our own happiness, free from the force of others). Most significantly, unlike political power, economic power is achieved by voluntary means (i.e.,by individual choices) not force.

Don't be sold on the notion of soaking the rich as a means to gaining value. It's an ideological facade.

3 Good Things (Up to Date Weekend Edition)

2011-07-18T12:00:00.000-04:00

1) My daughter's friend has been keeping up with her Dr. Who obsession. She made her TARDIS earrings as a party favor for her own birthday party. Awesome.

2) I've been reading, reading, reading to stay on top of my three book clubs. We read Galt's Speech, two supporting essays, then met to discuss it with friends for my Atlas Shrugged Reading Group. I finished The Help for a neighborhood book club this week and am reading the Koran and Spencer commentary for another discussion group.

3) No kids Saturday night: date night at home. There is nothing quite as wonderful as date night at home. I wonder, though: when all the kids have permanently moved out, will our time home alone be as sweet? Certainly the stolen moments aspect of it will be absent, but I plan to make the concentrated time together every bit as appreciated. I don't imagine it will be terribly difficult, but it will be somewhat different.

Aye Eye!

2011-07-14T08:22:00.000-04:00

Hyperopia: n. An abnormal condition of the eye in which vision is better for distant objects than for near objects. It results from the eyeball being too short from front to back, causing images to be focused behind the retina; farsightedness.

Myopia: n. A visual defect in which distant objects appear blurred because their images are focused in front of the retina rather than on it; nearsightedness.

These are distinct, and in fact, opposite eye defects, both of which, oddly, I have. My right eye is myopic and my left, hyperopic and amblyopic (i.e. wicked frigin' lazy) but, more importantly, even at my ripe old age, I just found out there may be some therapy to slightly improve it!

I made the picture small for
your intestinal convenience.

After the series (2) of right eye bleeds – subconjuctival hemorrhages – I needed to get a complete eye exam to check out what exactly the hell was going on in there! Turns out, nothing. All is well deep in there. The hemorrhages, although in the same spot and five weeks apart, were oddities. The doctor did note that I was a weightlifter, which is good because I wasn't certain I had stressed heavy weights, a sometimes cause of subconjunctival hemorrhages, as opposed to 5 lb. dumbbells during my previous emergency visit. So when I tried to explain the load, the silly doctor thought I could snatch 185 lbs.! In my further explanation I got a chance to demonstrate, without weights, the difference between a deadlift, a power clean, and a snatch. Well, for some reason, I didn’t call it a snatch, but an overhead press. Go figure. But when’s the last time you did that in a doctor’s office?

Anyway . . .

The very exciting news is that my new eye doctor, now one of my favorite doctors ever, asked me if I’ve ever considered trying to retrain my damn lazy eye to focus better! What? Years ago, my then eye doctor had given me the same prescription in both lenses so my eyes would “look” the same from the outside! He gave up my left eye for dead! Bastard! (Actually he’s the one who probably saved any of my left eye vision when I was three and a half, so I really did appreciate his efforts. He was simply wrong in recommending this course of events as I was wrong in accepting them, unquestioningly.)

Since I respected his opinion, I accepted his call. Who wants one huge and one tiny eye? But I have a wonky eye whether or not I choose to highlight it! If I can make it work better I’m all for it!

My new doctor said that it was once thought such therapy was good only for children but that some adults are finding slight improvements with regular periodic efforts in focusing the lazy eye with the correct corrective lens by blocking out the other eye completely! Woo hoo!

Or should I say, Arrrr!, because the only way to completely block the good eye is with a patch. That’s right! I’m going to look totally badass in the next two months prepping for Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Avast, ye landlubbers, I’ll be lettin’ ye know if this be the plan of a scurvy dog or hearty matey.

A Tale of Two Realities: Worthless Alternatives

2011-07-13T06:35:00.007-04:00

Two articles in today’s Boston Globe:

Evergreen Solar Inc., the once promising alternative energy company that received millions in state subsidies, warned late Monday that its shares will likely be worth little or nothing even if it is able to strike a deal with creditors to restructure its debt.

___

Three years ago, Evergreen opened a gleaming 450,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Devens, a former military base in central Massachusetts, promising to create hundreds of new jobs. Governor Deval Patrick’s administration awarded the company $58 million in tax breaks and other aid, one of the largest state incentive packages in recent years, to help persuade Evergreen to expand here and jump-start the state’s alternative energy sector.

Worthless

A study released by Governor Deval Patrick’s administration this week said the prospects for job growth, lower energy bills, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions justify state-mandated investment by utilities - a projected $5.37 billion through 2015 - in alternative energy, including energy efficiency. Utilities that operate in the state are required to purchase at least 6 percent of their supply from renewable sources such as wind and solar.

Alternatives

Even when the slap from reality still stings, politicians continue to do what they do best: spend other people’s money.

I Need a Vacation

2011-07-12T16:06:00.002-04:00

After ten days away, we arrived home Sunday afternoon. By we, I mean me, my husband, and our two daughters – one soon to be 18, and one just turned 13. I mention their ages because it’s important to note that these girls aren't small children requiring constant supervision, but more or less independent people, each able to make fairly sophisticated decisions about her own well-being on a small scale. Or so I thought.

Now I grant you, the vacation we took was not a typical family vacation in that Stephen and I went to participate in the classes and general sessions offered by the annual Objectivist Conference. This meant we were engaged for much of the day apart from one another, but still, we were staying at the Marriot Harbor Beach Resort & Spa, a beautiful resort on the Atlantic, not Ed’s roadside motel. We were on the beach, with a huge pool complex, complete with canopy bed-like loungers, lounge chairs, umbrellas, two chair cabanas, a Starbucks and wireless internet in the lobby, chairs, couches, and a comfy station at which to plug in and work. There was the opportunity to snorkel, ride banana boats, play tennis, and go para-sailing. Our room was nicely appointed with a balcony overlooking the pool and ocean, but mostly, it was one small room with two large beds for four people – one of whom talks in her sleep.

When the weather was nice, the girls went to the pool. My oldest is a very strong swimmer, but more interested in getting some “base color” than in eyeballing my youngest who complained bitterly about how much pool water she swallowed on day one. When the day was rainy, as it was on two occasions, they stayed in the room. One day, on returning to the room in order to make lunch plans, I thought I had walked into a mushroom growing operation! I found them in the dark, huddled in one bed re-watching episodes of Dr. Who on the computer. They told me they had been there all morning, and planned to be there all afternoon. They seemed quite content with this plan that they could easily reenact at home.

I can’t blame the oldest for not being more excited to venture out with her little sister; I did not contract her babysitting services before we left. But the truth is that I did expect her to behave in a manner more in keeping with my idea of an older sister – bearing in mind, of course, that I don’t have one, nor was I ever one. This was my mistake: while I did my best to explain how much of the day they would spend without us, I should have been more explicit in my “take charge” expectations of her prior to her decision to come with us.

Initially, we had decided not to go to OCON this year because it meant leaving the youngest behind, or taking the youngest without some supervision. The oldest finally decided that she did want to go, and so we made our plans based on mistaken assumptions. Getting the most of the conference classes and sessions require some concentration and heavy thinking. While I attended all of my classes and most of the general sessions, I was unable to integrate the information presented in a timely manner because I was completely distracted by and concerned with my daughters’ experiences, or lack thereof which I equate with wasted opportunities. As of yet, I have gained no new knowledge about the ideas presented at the conference.

As I reflect on the experience from a distance of two days, I have grown older and wiser about my family and myself, and here is what I learned: if it can be avoided at all, don’t travel with children. Okay, I know that's not the proper way to look at it. We have had some excellent family vacations – usually centered around some historical or cultural place or event – but this was different. A resort does not a vacation make. It’s more the time spent doing things that are exciting or delightful or interesting, but that you normally can't do that makes a vacation. Some serious work needs to go into making certain you get the most out of your vacation plans. I assumed my oldest would step seamlessly into my role as Julie, your cruise director so that I could pursue other values outside of the family. She didn’t, and so I found myself straddling the line between two of my values – one, a happily engaged family, and the other, a better philosophical understanding of Objectivism – and practically speaking, I gained neither.

Finally, don’t get me wrong. At various times, this vacation was a win for me. Running on the beach, getting to hang out with some people I adore but rarely see, meeting some fabulous new folks and other friends for the first time in person, attending rousing lectures given by passionate speakers, being near the ocean, introducing the girls to Luc Travers and his Touching the Art method, were some of the high points! What I did not succeed at is preparing myself and my family for what could and should have been a more productive vacation for us all.

This is a huge bummer because that’s what I do! That’s what I'm normally good at. As family support staff, I arrange things so we each can get the most value out of our experiences! This has always been one of my biggest virtues and mostly what I neglected to act on this time. And although doing something you don't normally do is implied in my definition of a vacation, vacating my virtues was not exactly what I had in mind. It’s exhausting to fail so miserably and this failure of mine is why I need a another vacation. Immediately.

This time, I’m pretty sure that concentrating on and celebrating only one of my values—one of my highest values—in a hedonistic, resort environment, albeit temporarily, will help recharge all of my virtues. And by temporarily, I think an uninterrupted twenty-four hours—instead of twenty minutes—ought to do it.

Independence Day: Not Just the 4th of July.

2011-07-04T08:50:00.000-04:00

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Brave men with a radical plan. What has become of their vision?