Ramblin' with Roger

The top 10 blogs by links according to technorati.com
Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things
PostSecret
Engadget
Daily Kos: Political analysis and other daily rants on the state of the nation
The Huffington Post
Gizmodo: The Gadget Blog
Instapundit
Michelle Malkin
Dooce
Crooks and Liars

And speaking of crooks and liars, the Prsident’s outrage at the leaks of the secret NSA activity would be more palatable if the administration had shown one-tenth of the outrage when a CIA agent was outed.

A bill allowing Tanith Belben to become an American citizen was passed Wednesday and signed Friday. Saturday, Tanith became an American citizen and can compete in the Olympics.

Under the category “I need to know”: What kind of bird was the predator in the movie “The March of the Penguins”? An albatross? A petral?

Now, the lyrics to one of my favorite songs, especially the dance mix. Somehow appropriate to celebrate eight elephantine months of blogging. Played at FantaCo in the days that Fred Hembeck used to hang out there.

King Crimson
Discipline
Originally released: 1981

Elephant Talk

Talk, it’s only talk
Arguments, agreements, advice, answers,
Articulate announcements
It’s only talk

Talk, it’s only talk
Babble, burble, banter, bicker bicker bicker
Brouhaha, balderdash, ballyhoo
It’s only talk
Back talk

Talk talk talk, it’s only talk
Comments, cliches, commentary, controversy
Chatter, chit-chat, chit-chat, chit-chat,
Conversation, contradiction, criticism
It’s only talk
Cheap talk

Talk, talk, it’s only talk
Debates, discussions
These are words with a D this time
Dialog, duologue, diatribe,
Dissention, declamation
Double talk, double talk

Talk, talk, it’s all talk
Too much talk
Small talk
Talk that trash
Expressions, editorials, explanations, exclamations, exaggerations
It’s all talk
Elephant talk, elephant talk, elephant talk

From the Census Bureau: Counter Clicks Every 14 Seconds

Nation’s Population Approaches 298 Million on New Year’s Day

The U.S. Census Bureau today projected the Jan. 1, 2006, population will be 297,821,175  up 2,713,518 or 0.9 percent from New Year’s Day 2005.
In January, the United States is expected to register one birth every eight seconds and one death every 12 seconds.
Meanwhile, net international migration is expected to add one person every 31 seconds. The result is an increase in the total population of one person every 14 seconds.

For 2006, it appears that the New food labeling requirements will be significant. The new postage rates take effect on January 8 (just after after Three Kings Day – how kind), with the first ounce going from 37 to 39 cents; the next ounce is going from 23 to 24 cents, as the price of a postcard.

But the fact that the oldest “baby boomers” are turning sixty is news? Yeah, the current President and his immediate predecessor are in the group, but it’s an arithmetic function that the folks born in 1946 would be 60 years older this year Oh, it’s the “boomers”, a group so large that the eldest of the group could be the parents of the youngest. Yawn.

Maybe we need some Happy News. And there is a website dedicated to just that.

Of course, what makes you happy may vary. *I* was quite happy to hear this underreported story of religious leaders arrested in front of the Cannon House Office Building while kneeling in prayer to protest the immoral budget and tax agenda which slashes spending on the poor to finance tax breaks for the rich.

The Torino/Turin Olympic Games are in February, which matter in my house because of my wife’s affection for the figure skating competition.

This is the 250th birthday of Mozart; expect a lot of Amadeus concerts. It’s also the 100th anniversary of the San Francisco earthquake in April; the 50th anniversary of the Interstate highway system in June; and also the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian uprising against the Soviet Union. Most of these will be covered as “news”. Now the 53rd birthday of Fred Hembeck later this month, not to mention the third anniversary of his website today – or yesterday: now THAT’S news.

What was great about 2005:

1. Lydia seems to be thriving in her new daycare. And they don’t seem so fussy to find out that Carol and I are both off from work (as we will be on Monday) and that we’re still dropping her off, so we can do things in the house and maybe see a movie.

2. I got reconnected through friend Rocco to Fred Hembeck, which led me to blogging, which led me to get to know a number of interesting people, electronically only some of which are linked within this post.

3. Singing in church choir. I need to do this.

On the other hand:

1. I need to find more time to exercise. Dropping off Lydia at day care has cut into racquetball time.

2. I need to get back to updating a web page I was working on.

Next year, I plan to:

1. Take off at least one day per month from work on a day that Carol is at work and Lydia is in day care to reclaim some Roger time.

2. Catch up on my periodicals or toss ’em.

3. Finally, probably in the summer, get to work on thast project that somebody asked me to work on months ago.

Feel free to make your observations in the appropriate location, if you feel so inclined.

Last week, on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, I was greeting a person at church after service, and she replied. “Oh, I don’t celebrate Christmas.” I hope I can wish all of you a happy and safe New Year’s Eve without fear of offending someone’s sensibilities. (Yes, I know it’s only New Year’s Eve on some calendars…)

To that end, the person I want the Democrats to pick is, in fact, the person I wanted John Kerry to pick instead of John Edwards. Since no one really runs for Vice-President (except maybe Dick Cheney), I don’t even know if he wants the job.

I want Bill Richardson of New Mexico.

One of the things I feared that Bush/Cheney would do in 2004, and they did, was to point to John Edwards’ lack of experience in international dealings. (That and the John/John remarks.) Bill Richardson has been U.S. Ambassador to the UN and Energy Secretary, as sell as New Mexico governor.

It would be disingenuous to ignore the fact that he is Hispanic. Regardless of that, he is well-qualified for the job, and would be an asset to the ticket.

Now, I don’t know if Russ Feingold even likes Bill Richardson. Moreover, I’ve learned that Richardson has Presidential aspirations himself.

Four jobs you’ve had in your life: janitor (twice), bank teller, ticket seller, customer service rep for an insurance company.

Four movies you could watch over and over: Annie Hall, Groundhog Day, West Side Story, Being There.

Four places you’ve lived: Charlotte, NC; Kingston, NY; Jamaica, Queens. NY; Schenectady, NY. Always in NYS, except for the four months in Charlotte in 1977.

Four TV shows you love to watch: Gilmore Girls, Everybody Hates Chris, My Name Is Earl, Boston Legal. (All Tuesday or Thursday shows; Earl moves from Tuesday to Thursday next week, when Scrubs returns!)

Four TV reruns I’ll always watch: The Twilight Zone; The Dick van Dyke Show; Barney Miller; Law & Order (the original, with Jerry Orbach)

Four places you’ve been on vacation: Barbados (honeymoon on the JEOPARDY dime); Concord, NH; San Diego, CA; San Francisco.

Four websites you visit daily: Fred Sez, who attributes to Stan Lee devilish powers ; News from Me, who nearly killed Stan Lee; Gordon, who I probably stole this idea from; and Kelly Brown, who’s most likely to steal it from me. (Yeah, Lefty, I look at yours, too, but she’s been posting more often recently.)

Four albums you can’t live without: Revolver-Beatles (UK); Spike-Elvis Costello; Pet Sounds-Beach Boys; Still Crazy After All These Years-Paul Simon. (Ask me again in four minutes and I’ll give you four more.)

Four of your favorite foods: lasagna with spinach, carrot cake, Brooks’ fried chicken, cottage cheese and apple.

Four passings I should have mentioned in this blog: great character actor Vincent Schiavelli on December 26, Roy Stuart from “Gomer Pyle” on Christmas Day, Obie Benson of the Four Tops way back on July 1, and Jaime Cardinal Sin of the Philipines, whose passing back in June I missed until the inevitable end of year obits.

Four comic-book stories you’ll remember for the rest of your life: the EC story of the man who didn’t salute the flag at a parade and ended up getting beaten to death (he was blinded in the war) – citation, someone? The Death of Gwen Stacy (ASM 121-122); Superman vs. Muhammad Ali; Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1.