What’s on your mind?
About The Author

BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
What’s on your mind?
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
I’m leaning towards Philadelphia being the location for Yearly Carnacki this year. Thoughts?
Needs to move out to LA so I can attend.
I was thinkin’ Seattle.
I try to keep it some place I can afford to get to on my budget, which is about a tank of gas. 😉
Jet packs.
I’m just putting it out there and I’m sure the Carnackilings would love.
I’ll vote for LA without even knowing what Yearly Carnacki is!
Carnacki, correct me if I’m wrong, but assorted Kossacks, BooTribbers and StreetProphets assault some poor east coast city every May. The first one was in 2005. Personally, I think Carnacki is a regionalist to only have them on the east coast.
I’m thinking I should start a Yearly Fabooj as a west coast counterpoint.
GO FOR IT! I’ll join you!
Just visited Philly to see a hockey and lacrosse games. My son and I went to the Franklin Institute saw an IMAX about ancient sea monsters. Way cool the kids will love it. They also have 3D movies now. We were too late for the showings and only had time for one movie. The IMAX also had a space station and dinosaur movie. There is a Natural History museum a block away closes at 4:30pm. We got there 4:35. :-
Philly is way cool. I’m sure Booman and CG would agree.
I saw a 3-D Imax with the kids a few years ago. It was about dinosaurs, and featured animations of dinosaurs fighting each other. My grandson was especially wowed by a fossil they showed that was two dinosaurs locked in mortal combat, presumably as a mud floe swept over them in mid-battle and enveloped them in their deadly embrace.
OK I’m getting all purple but I wish I could find a picture of that fossil on the tubes. It was pretty great. If you can find that particular film (I think it’s called Dinosaurs 3-D! or something) go see it.
Maybe the same movie. I think one was just called Dinosaurs. The one we saw was based on fossil records of sea life and them putting a story to it.
Philly is cool — just pick a place where there’s parking! We probably want to pick one or two specific places to visit — I’ve never seen anything in Philly other than the historical spots (Independence Hall, etc.).
But Philadelphia is certainly do-able. 🙂
The parking garage we found was $25 if you stayed over 90 minutes. We were there on a Friday and squeezed into a compact car spot which as far as I could tell it was the only spot left. Pure luck.
I totally vote for Philly…we’re near Valley Forge, everything people have mentioned above is cool, and didn’t cosmic debris threaten to join us if we went to the Eastern State Penitentiary this year?
Church services all over central Ohio were cancelled due to snow today. Some of the cancellations are rather amusing (probably because I’m a little stir-crazy and thus easily impressed at the moment). Here’s one:
Appointed Time Ministries: Morning Worship Moved to 6PM
This picture was taken before Demetrius shoveled the deck and driveway.
I’m glad he did that yesterday, so I was able to get out to the store and pick up a few things. The drive was fine, but pushing the full shopping cart across the snow back to my car was exhausting.
No word yet on whether the kids will have school tomorrow.
Anyway, our shorthand “Observe the snow” is appropriate for just such occasions.
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_297.html
Wow — what did the dog think of it all?
A friend of mine in the Cleveland area just posted pictures of his two dogs (Labs) romping in show up to their chests — they thought it was great!)
This was a first for the dogs. We have a fenced back yard, but the snow was so deep they didn’t want to venture into it. But, obviously, I wanted them to do their business outside rather than in, so I took them each out on a leash to make sure they “produced”.
Winnie (the dog seen above), was a lot happier about the snow today, and was romping around in the back yard. Brady, the collie (in the second picture here) is still not too enthusiastic about such deep snow.
Seeing the big piles of snow left over from shoveling and plowing made me flash back to growing up in the Chicago area. We had a bullmastiff named Peggy (a short haired breed compared to the dogs I have now) who loved playing in the snow, especially on those “snow mountains”.
School has been cancelled for tomorrow. For the kids, I mean. Hopefully the college classes I teach will still be meeting, as it’s the last week of the quarter.
Here is my favorite blog post from the Cleveland Plain Dealer regarding the March snowstorm:
Aargh! Now I remember what is was like to live in ne Ohio. Not that we don’t have plenty of snow here, but we also have lots of sunshine.
My baby broke our turntable (little shit pulled the needle out!) and most of CDs are still packed, so I have Music Choice going on my TV. I’m listening to the retroactive channel and they’ve just played a full hour of awesome songs, World Party’s Ship of Fools, XTCs Dear God, The GoGos, Gang of Four…heaven. Now, I’m itching to switch it to what my husband calls “The Old Black Lady” channel (Class R&B).
I’m trying to think of how Obama can possibly get within 5% in PA. I’m a bit worried that the campaign won’t have him camping out in the state for 6-7 weeks – which is exactly what he needs to do.
Well, I have an idea if he has the resources to do it and I want to put a diary about it together. Basically, it involves blackening the sky over Pennsylvania with organizers.
I agree. Pennsylvania has enormous psychological importance, because an upset victory would reverse the narrative that Clinton beats Obama in the large swing states. But it won’t happen without a huge push by Obama and the ground troops.
My two cents about what I want to see right away. I want to see Obama relaxed, confident, and making powerful points about why he should be elected, on every talk show (Oprah, Larry King, etc etc.), cable comedy show (SNL, John Stewart, Colbert, if he dares), political interview show (MTP, Face the Nation, 60 minutes, NPR’s “All Things Considered,” etc., etc.). Heck if he can go on a cooking show, a dancing with the stars show, he should. (Yes, I exaggerate for effect, but it’s to convey a point.)
The Clinton team is exuding confidence, and they are succeeding in making their spin the official media narrative. They are calling all the shots at this point, and in politics, dictating what the tv “journalists” are saying is real power. Right now, goes the (Clinton-fabricated) narrative, Clinton is tough, “experienced,” and poised to win. Obama (according to the Clinton narrative), is winded and on the ropes. The media narrative is incredibly important, and if the Clinton campaign continues to get its spin repeated as fact on the 24/7 news shows, they will turn this thing around somehow.
Obama needs to show he has not succumbed to the mind-games the Clinton Team is playing, trying to get him confused, self-doubting, nervous. He (and Michelle?) need to go out there and just ooze confidence and self-assurance. He needs to believe, not only in himself, but in the American people’s ability to see through the bullshit and come out for the candidate that would be the best President, disregarding all the slime.
Obama also needs a stronger message about the economy. “I know it’s rough,” doesn’t cut it. He needs to come on strong and sure, communicating directly that he understands voters’ anxieties and has real solutions.
Sorry for the long-winded comment, if anyone is still reading. I just needed to get this out!
Today I read a bit about a new book “The Commisssion: The uncensored history if the 9/11 investigation” by NYT reporter Philip Shenon. Sounded so good that I had to go out and buy it. Good book so far. It’s a nice distraction from the Obama/Clinton soap opera anyway.
Having spent half my weekend painting walls, I’m wondering what exactly was so terribly wrong with paneling.
It’s the beginning of the last week of the quarter at school. I have a paper due Tuesday, that I haven’t started. I have a take home final due Tuesday that I have not started. I have a group presentation On Tuesday that is only about 25% done. My program portfolio is due Thursday and I haven’t even started to think about that.
And I’m busy posting things on the intarwebs.
I’ve been refinishing an antique secretary my mother left behind when she retired to Florida. And I’m mostly thinking that when it’s done, if I never see steel wool, denatured alcohol, or shellac again, it will be too soon.
When we bought out house, I was on the mission to get the paint off the tiles surrounding our fireplace and scrollwork tiles on our fireplace. My painter suggested I use oven cleaner and it worked. A bit. Still I had to use bottle brushes, toothpicks and all kinds of sharp things to get to the point where I could steel wool it. I still have one of those scrollwork tiles on each side of the fireplace that I haven’t done and it’s been a year now. My hand cramps up just thinking about it.
Wow! Certainly looks like it was worth the effort. I love it.
Ooooh. That looks so cool. It’s definitely worth the work! I like the bold colors too.
I’m pretty proud of it.
Janet: My house if full of color. Some people wonder why we didn’t stay with one color throughout the entire house. I love my colorful home.
Yep – after nosily going through some of your pics, I agree! 🙂
Me too. I especially like the yellow/white combo.
There’s not a spot of white paint in my house. Except for the closets which I didn’t paint. You’re seeing YELLOW/yellow. HAHAHA
I love the colors, but your wood floors look fabulous too. 🙂
I mean, I have over 5K photos in that account and 99% of them are public. Keep on looking, I don’t mind.
Wow – you’ve put a lot of work into that house! I see what you mean about cleaning those tiles, too!
Definitely, if you’re going to use bold colors, variety is the way to go. The contrast between bold yellows and blues accent the contours of arches and define space. And it works beautifully with the southwestern architectural style of the house.
And your kids are adorable, too! 🙂
Very nice job! I’ve been cramping all weekend on my knees painting trimwork and walls.
I hope you get a nice massage for your efforts. I thought that I’d be able to paint this whole place by myself. I hired a painter to do 3 of the rooms, and I did 3 and we both tackled the kitchen. Even with that, I was still tired and she did all the trim in the entire house, while I drank beer outside.
Aluminum fabrication. You asked.
Was getting threatened with the bum’s rush by Jeralyn because I was calling the MI and FL primaries “faux primaries” and pointing out that Clinton agreed to not count them before she won.
Went for a walk with girlfriend down by the pier in downtown Pacifica. She’s making a nice lamb roast for dinner.
Sunny day.
Bob,
A friend and I went hiking in San Pedro Valley Park last Sunday to see if any water was in your waterfall (barely a trickle), but there were some pretty wildflowers, especially the trilliums!, which we photographed instead.
However, there were bushes with these hanging pannicles of dainty pink bell-flowers that I didn’t recognize. Imagine a cluster of grapes with flowers rather than fruits. It isn’t creambush or manzanita, and it doesn’t quite look like snowberry or twinberry. I don’t know how to embed a photo in a comment, but perhaps you know what they are or where to look. I’m pretty good with alpine and subalpine plants, but not this coastal stuff, despite living here! Whatever they were, they were quite happy.
Thanks,
Carolly
just saw tucker was cancelled. note was over at bravenewfilms-cliff schecter
It’s about time! Just noticed it over at TV Newser myself.
Yippee! Now is Rachel Maddow getting her own show?
They haven’t said yet. This is all a leak from an insider. Expect the official announcement of the upcoming changes at MSNBC tomorrow.
I hope so. She’s great.
I’m just scared that they’d put someone dumb like Campbell Brown or Norah O’Donnell in the slot.
From the article, it sounds like they’re bringing in some NEW TALENT to fill out their political coverage. They really are lacking now. Hopefully they’ll also get rid of the re-run of Hardball 1 hour apart from the first-run of Hardball. And haven’t we all seen a bit too much of “To catch a predator” or “Lockup” or “Born in the wrong body” and the like when we’re searching for our political news fix?
That’s almost better than Obama’s 11 state sweep.
I even threw up a post on it.
That made my day too!!!!!
Couldn’t have happened to a more deserving a-hole.
How is a mail -in revote going to shake out?