20thStDad

She's done a whole lot better than I thought she would. They are coming at it from totally different angles though. It seems like Biden is doing all the attacking and Palin is just answering. I think she is doing well though, they both are. But I guess I'm more impressed with her because my expectations were so low. She has definitely been prepped and been studying a lot. ...but I want to stab myself in the eye every time I hear her say "nuke-u-lar". Please, someone tell her. How do smart people do that? I've known some incredibly smart, successful people who say it that way, and I just don't get it.

Dreaming is awesome, I always have adventurous dreams. The best sleep is dream sleep, I wake up feeling great afterward.

HA! That's all I can think about when I hear her. Reminds me of all my damn trips to Wyoming too. I can't take four years of speeches ringing "You bet!!" in place of every "Yes" answer.

Definitely the traffic lights, but also all of the trucks carrying debris out. Going anywhere on Shepherd in the afternoon has been brutal, but that was bad before.

There is a staging area for all of the tree debris on 288 just south of 610, I need to take a picture and post it. It is huge. I would imagine they are going to use this for some sort of coastal reclamation? I hope so. LA needs it after the past 5 years of storms taking all the damn marshlands. I haven't seen any branches picked up around my house yet. It might all decay by the time that happens, or I might get a chiminea and a bow saw and have a field day.

The constipation thing is no lie. Some sets come with peanut butter and crackers, and they tell you to definitely eat that because the PB is guaranteed to stop your business. I always like pork with rice in bbq sauce.

Last month they took an entire dead tree down in our alley that was near the lines. 311.

Nothing in the constitution says you have to vote to complain. Hell, you don't even have to pay taxes. We are born with the right to whine about anything we want to. Voting for a candidate who won't carry your state's electoral votes no matter what you do isn't worth a half day's work to some people. Not saying that's me, but I don't think you need to vote to complain. Doesn't do any good though.

I think it varies from person to person, not by age. I know people who get by on 4 a night and others who need 10. I think it has to do with diet and activity level as well.

Poor, lazy, and stupid is a bad combination. Yeah, yeah, not all of poor people blah blah blah. But it is poor uneducated people who are committing most of those crimes.

I was pretty sure I was a republican, then one day a coworker pointed me to the town hall website. Waaaayyy too much kool-aid being served there. Throw in a couple of uber-republican radio hacks and that sealed the deal. Not saying I'm a democrat at all though. Very much independent, and prefer to put some thought into every choice instead of having my party tell me what I think about things. So far my plan is to hack into the voting machine and vote for McCain-Biden. If only it were that easy.

What type of world has this become where a $10 burger is ok? I can make a way better burger myself even with fancy ingredients for less than half of that. no $10 burgers, unless I can expense it.

Just don't volunteer that info to Comcast and I think you'll be fine. In theory you were without service anyway since you weren't able to partake in their offering.

I blame the window unit stuck in the middle of the wall, if that's what that is. People buy ugly all the time, but when they spend that much they don't want it to feel cheap.

That's what I thought, but then my mom said my uncle has 6 hickories at his place in Baton Rouge (same climate), and that they were all over that area of town. And I read up on it, pecan is a hickory. Didn't know that. Pecan smoke is a little too pungent for my taste though. I hear some oaks are good but just haven't experimented. I'm sure if I could figure that out I'd have wood for a lifetime.

Does his office have a shower? I would be soaked 8 months out of the year if I biked to work. If you have a West U budget I think that's a great option, so is Montrose. I did the Heights to uptown commute for a while and it was easy, only getting easier as they finish messing with I-10 construction.

If anyone has hickory wood in their debris pile please let me know where! I use hickory for smoking things and was hoping to score free fuel while contributing ever so little to lessening someone's pile. I thought I was pretty good with identifying tree types, but apparently that's only for ones still standings. I've scoured the piles around the neighborhood, and once the leaves go brown I have no idea. I'm just not good enough at identifying bark. In the piles I can basically tell the difference between pine, sycamore, bamboo, and after that most of it seems like it's all the same. EDIT: we live in the Heights, that's why I posted it here. Not thinking about driving to the Woodlands or anything.

So...exciting debates so far. might as well just put a donkey and an elephant up there, they are taking their flash cards well so far. Eh, a little personal-ity coming through. I think they both sound like leaders at least. Vice presidential debates will probably not deliver that much.

16 waters it down, I am for an 8 team playoff. It would not even make the season longer for some teams if they go back to an 11 game regular season. Only the top would play 3 extra games, the other 2 in the top 4 play 2 extra. Not a big deal. That also leaves a lot of teams leftover for traditional bowls, most of which will be just as interesting and relevant as they are now.

It just proves that Pete Carroll is not that great of a coach. He recruits great, but can't get his team to focus and execute. Ask anyone and they'll say USC was the dominant team of the decade - but they've only had the 1 championship because every year they lose a stinker (or two) to a far less talented team. That year they won it all there was good leadership on the team, and coaches/coordinators who probably kept things in line but have since moved on. It's the new Miami, and Miami was also known for being crazy talented but not so sharp. They have stepped up for big games and bowl games, but I think that is a function of having quality players who don't need motivation for things like a national championship or Rose Bowl. Coaches are the ones who have to do that for the crap games like this one.

Not caring what other people think is fun. It usually bothers those people you are referring to. Just know who you are and what matters to you, others who feel the same way won't be bothered at all by that.

The sausage was ok, nothing spectacular. Welcome to Michael Vick part 2. Did y'all seriously not see it coming? This guy isn't going to be able to learn a system well enough to have great success. He'll run around and make some great plays now and again, but consistency is what makes a successful QB in the NFL.

I say call and delicate flower even now to customer service. I've gotten out of most installation/fix charges for security, cable, all that junk. It's actually harder now that all of it is run out of India. My crazy ranting isn't on the script in front of them, they don't understand real customer service, and they don't usually have the power to do anything anyway.

My run today took me around Shady Acres, I heard that most of it still didn't have power and had lots of trees down. There were crews everywhere, which is a good sign for those folks. Not much (visible) damage to the Dry Creek site or Jazzie Cafe, but at 6pm neither were open (one never has been, the other has such odd hours it could have nothing to do with the storm). Pretty cool moment, as I was heading south down Beall around 14 1/2 St, I saw a lone utility worker hoisting a long pole, and once he got his grip he snapped closed what looked like a clip or safety pin. No sparks or noises, but a few seconds later I could heard the cheers down 14 1/2, it was pretty cool.

Lots of extra time with baby girl, and good quality experiences with neighbors have brought us even closer.