Monday but a short week

After a wonderful weekend it is very difficult to return to work. Although it cooled off here in the city, it was nevertheless a great day for the Gay Pride celebration. Had it been 98 degrees as it was three days earlier, it would have been intolerable.

There are one or two excellent letters to the editor of the Chronicle this morning about the madman in the White House. Also one of the Chronicle's columnists lists several good web pages for people who are fed up with Bush and his antics. They are Vote to Impeach, Move On, and something called 2020 Democrats.

I have some other good protest sites in mind but I must check their respective URLs before I post them here. I am determined to do my part in making a change in the White House. I do not have a favorite Democrat at this point but Howard Dean would be on my short list if I had one.

Pride Weekend

The city may host about 500,000 people in the downtown area this Sunday once again as the huge gay/lesbian/transgenered (etc.) parade moves up Market Street to the Civic Center Plaza for the annual celebration there.

Getting people into the city from the East Bay will be complicated this year by the fact that the Oakland A's are playing the SF Giants at Pacific Bell Park so the two crowds will mix it up on BART. Also, with the new extension to the airport now perating I am sure that some tourists will get caught up in the scene as well.

The fog has started moving back into the city. Thursday it was 98, Friday it was 86 and today it was in the seventies. By tomorrow we should have normal high temperatures in the sixties. How do you spell relief? F-O-G

Oh, this is funny.
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HANOI (Reuters) - A Vietnamese man who used cow fat and paint to pass off a lump of iron as valuable black bronze found buyers -- but was paid $64,000 in counterfeit bills.
A justice official said 12 people involved in both frauds were arrested and were undergoing trial in southern An Giang province.

Eight were accomplices of the accused metal fraudster, while three were involved in the alleged counterfeiting, the prosecutor said.

State-run Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reported that Huynh Van Gat confessed he had painted a one kg iron lump with cow fat and black paint and tried to pass it off as black bronze and sought to sell it for one billion dong ($64,683). Black bronze is used in making jewelry and ornamental objects like statues.

A group of three business people from Ho Chi Minh City who were negotiating to buy the black bronze, which is valued on the market at around $1 million, bought a printer to produce 900 million Vietnamese dong ($58,214) to pay for the deal.

Gat and his accomplices were arrested a few days later when local shops tipped off the police about the fake dong.

The men told the police they didn't know the money was counterfeit and revealed where it came from -- leading to the arrest of the others.

The justice official said the trial would last several days.

Counterfeiting money carries a penalty ranging from three years in prison to death by firing squad in communist Vietnam.
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Well, the last part is not funny but I found it amusing nevertheless. What some people will do to get something for nothing. hahaha

And with that I am out of here. Enjoy your weekend.

Got cool air?

It will be nice for Gay Pride celebrations this weekend but the hot air has overwhelmed my apartment the past two nights and I can't sleep with a fan running all the time. Why do we seem to go from one extreme to another? Can't we just have a bunch of days in the seventies and not the nineties. Yesterday was hotter in San Francisco than it was in my original hometown of Boston. Well, at least we don't have the high humidity which is so common on the East Coast. I guess I should buy a small fan for the area around my bed however. The big one in the living room would be overkill.

The Giants open a three game series against the Oakland A's tonight at Pacific Bell Park. We need to win at least two of these to keep up with or ahead of the Dodgers. It should be interesting on Sunday when baseball fans take BART into the city just when people are coming into the city for the Gay Pride celebrations. That could present some interesting scenes on the trains.

Hey, what happened. I just got kicked out of this edit page before I was finished.

Anyway, I remember one year when someone from the East Bay brought friends from Iowa or some such place, into the city on BART and it was Gay Pride weekend and they were so offended by what they saw that they wrote a letter to the Chronicle complaining about not being told what was going on. Well, duh, didn't those people ever read a newspaper or watch TV or listen to the radio. If so, they would have know what was going on. It was rather hilarious anyway despite their stupidity.

Have fun this weekend folks.

Item...item...whosegotanitem

or

Almost Friday

Either way, there is probably little to write about today. Obviously I have had little to say since Sunday, the 22nd. Today, however, is atypical in San Francisco with the temperature in the nineties (about 34C) and even hotter inland. I went out to lunch today and now I am glad to be back inside this air conditioned building. My apartment is air conditioned too but unfortunately by hot air. I wonder what it is like in City Hall? Do they have a problem with too much hot air there or other gases?? Herb Caen used to refer to it as Silly Hall but that was probably all he could print and get away with.

The opera season (for me) has officially ended as well as the symphony season for 2002/2003 and none too soon in-so-far as the opera goes. It sure did not seem like a world class opera company this month. The dreadful casting of "Damnation of Faust" will not be repeated by Los Angeles Opera where they have an outstanding cast lined up for that opera this September with Paul Groves, Samuel Ramey, and Denyce Graves. Oh how I would love to hear those three in the same opera, ANY OPERA!

Must toddle off now and put in my final four hours for this work day.

Stay cool everyone (in the Bay Area).

A few days off?

I wish. No I have been here however I haven't felt inspired to sit down and write something no matter how bad. Now that the weekend is about over and I have seen one more opera and have ridden BART to the airport, I have a few things to put into this blog.

First, the opera. After reading the review in the Chronicle I did not expect much. Perhaps this was a good thing. Perhaps things improved since opening night. Whatever the case, I enjoyed most everything about the music. Yes, mezzo-soprano Dolora Zajick as Azucena, was the best in the cast. Ever since her moving "O Don Fatale" in the Merola Grand Finale concert in the eighties, I have enjoyed her and her voice seems to be just a good today. She is a fully committed singer who can be counted on to do her best. The voice of Marina Mescheriakova (Leonora), while not as agile and flexible as say, a Joan Sutherland, was nevertheless a big voice and capable of some very tender singing when required. The Count di Luna was Carlos Alvarez making his SFO debut in a somewhat fuzzy performance at times but he turned in a moving "Il balen del suo sorriso" marred only by the incessant ringing of a cell phone. Richard Margison's Manrico, while not the most beautiful, was successful if labored at times. The only vocal problems I noted were some thick high notes. Fortunately for him, his final high C's at the end of "Di quella pira" were covered by the chorus so his vocal problems did not stick out like a sore thumb at that point. Based upon the ovations at the final curtain, Zajick and Alvarez were the two crowd favorites with Mescheriakova garnering considerable applause also. The orchestra under Marco Armiliato played very well. In fact, I think it was one of the best performances for this group in the month of June.

The production, however, was weird, weird, weird! For one thing, what was the location? What was the time period?What were those statues or portions thereof (a human head and horse head being the most prominent). The critic for the Chronicle desribed it as looking like a coal cellar. Well, I guess that is as good as any expalantion but why those statues, why a grand piano, why five read chairs under intense spotlights and why no anvils in the "Anvil Chorus". The chorus stood there pointing at the ground and raising and lowering their arms. It looked so silly that I could hardly supress a laugh. All things considered, the best opera in June was at the symphony with their semi-staged performance of "The Flying Dutchman" of which I have spoken in an earlier blog.

Now, about BART to the airport. After a delay of two years and some cost overruns due to change orders and squashed snakes, the nearly nine mile extension to the airport and to Millbrae officially started service today. From the platform level as seen from inside the train, the South San Francisco and San Bruno Stations seemed similar in design to the Balboa Park and Glen Park Stations. (I did not go to the Millbrae Station today.) The airport station is light and airy and functional and connects with the already open Air Train upstairs which connects the various terminals and garage with the car rental agencies towards the north end of the airport. There seemed to be a lot of activity today and apparently everything went smoothly which is good but I am still wondering how some of these people with large suitcases are going to mesh with commuters during rush hours.

So I have had a full day and feel tired and sluggish now. I kept falling asleep while trying to watch the news and 60 Minutes on TV so perhaps I will turn in early tonight.

I hope everyone has a good week.

Oops

Wonderful educational TV in Germany...

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BERLIN (Reuters) - German viewers of a TV documentary on the human body got more detail than they bargained for when the program was interrupted by scenes of hardcore sex, a cable channel said on Thursday.
Scores of outraged science fans called XXP TV to complain after an episode from the BBC's "Superhuman" series examining respiratory disorders was replaced by images of group sex from the Spice Platinum channel involving one man and several women.

Monika Weitkamp of the Berlin-based documentary channel said the cable carriers had mixed up the feeds. The voiceover for the documentary, dubbed into German, continued during the pornographic interlude.

"A lot of people watching it with their kids called up in a rage to complain. They'd probably never seen anything like it in their lives," she said.

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Ah well, tomorrow is Friday. That is always good. After a frustrating night last night trying to get my upgraded firewall to work, everything is in working order tonight. I eventually learned that I would have to delete my internet logs and sure enough, that worked. Somethine about True Vector Internet Monitor not working correctly.

Bush is rattling his sabre once again and this time it is Iran. He says the world (his) cannot tolerate them having nuclear weapons. Well, George, get over it and live with it. We live with others who have them and unless you do something overt to offend them, you have little to fear.

I wonder how Tony Blair is doing these days?

Hump Day

What can I say on this cool gray morning here in the City by the Bay? Our natural aircon is working full time and is turned on high this morning. I don't mind this during the work week but it should be turned down to low or off on weekends.

Every wonder how much you could stuff into a fridge? Well, read on.

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NEW YORK - Ever wonder how many hot dogs the Fridge can hold? Well you'll find out this summer as William "The Refrigerator" Perry, the 400-pound-plus ex-NFL star, participates in the annual July 4th hot dog eating contest in Coney Island.

Over the weekend, Perry earned a berth in the competition, sponsored by Nathan's Famous, by winning a qualifying contest despite an unimpressive total of just 12 franks in 12 minutes.

Contest spokesman Richard Shea says Perry now has the chance to follow in the footsteps of other two-sport stars like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.

Perry has his work cut out for him. The two-time defending champ, Takeru Kobayashi, won last year's competition with a record 50-and-a-half hot dogs in 12 minutes, establishing a new world record.

Kobayashi weighs in at 130 pounds.

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Where in the world does Takeru Kobayashi put them. I weigh 145 and would have a difficult time with 25 of them, or even ten for that matter.

It is nice that the clock at the Ferry Building is working once again. The sound of the chimes has been greatly missed however I guess the local chapter of the AGO is sticking with their hair-brained scheme of installing the old pipe organ from the Civic Auditorium in a new bandshell planned for a very small park across the street. Even in the quieter Baboa Park in San Diego, their outdoor organ in the music concourse is problematical at best. In this noisy environment here on the waterfront, it would be impossible. A far better space would be on the second floor of the Ferry Building Concourse. There is or was space at either end for the installation of the pipes and the highly reverberant space would turn it into another cathedral like atmosphere. I guess it is too late for that so the old organ will just fade away into nothingness in the high humidity and damp conditions of the outdoor setting where little can be heard over the sounds of buses, cars, trucks, trolleys, ferry horns, etc., etc. What a shame!

???

This is one tough duck.

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VIRGINIA, Minn. - A duck living on a lake here isn't letting a dart in its head stop it from eating, swimming, socializing or paddling away from rescue attempts.

Authorities don't know who shot the duck at Silver Lake with a metal blowgun dart. The bird has been unable to remove the shaft from its left cheek behind its bill, though it has been seen scratching at the dart with its feet.

Department of Natural Resources personnel tried without success Monday to capture the mallard, said a spokeswoman at the DNR office near Eveleth.

"It's fairly active and seems to know we're out to catch him," she said. The wound caused by the dart isn't infected, she said.

The Mesabi Humane Society has received several calls about the duck, said Mary Peliska, executive director, and animal control officers also have been checking on the duck.

"You just want to pull it out," she said of the dart. "You have to catch the duck first. They go fast."

Nobody has been able to get near the duck yet, Peliska said Tuesday.

"It's an impossible task. You can just try your best," said Peliska.

On the positive side, she said, the duck appears to be eating and drinking normally and spending time with a mate.

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I wonder if that duck has a headache or if ducks even get headaches. Is that strictly a human condition?

Here is San Francisco the Ferry Building clock tower was restarted at 12 Noon today after several years of inoperation due to the total remodeling of the building. It was nice to hear those bells once again. Da Mayor, his williness Brown, push da button. The building is really looking great as tenants move in. There will be a little something for everyone's taste in the food court once everything is open. Today I bought some bread from the Acme Bread Co. There is a chocolate store there that I want to try too. I am hungry now and if I had a sharp knife and some butter, I would be slicing the loaf here at the office.

Hope everyone has had a good day.

Bye y'all...

Feeling depresssed?

Wanna feel more depressed? In that case try reading Police State. This will get you worried if nothing else.

A concerned citizen.

Sunday, Sunday, where are you going?

As we head into the most depressing evening of the week, it is getting windy again. It has been sunny all weekend and the temperatures actually climbed above 61F. It was pleasant until the past hour or so when the sea breezes kicked in again.

Weird situation this morning as I went on an errand to a nearby store. I felt faint after the four block walk. I went to Staples where I was beginning to feel some unsteadiness and then I went to Walgreens where it became even worse. I left without buying anything but then had to sit down at the nearby bus stop for a few minutes. I made it home OK while stopping at Cala Foods but even at that point my feet seemed to be tingling a bit. I wonder what hit me.

Well, last night's production of Berlioz' Damnation of Faust turned out to be the most boring time I have spent in the opera house in years. The music was not particularly interesting and the cast and sets were terrible. The weak nasal sounding tenor, David Kuebler, should not have been retained after the opening night but he was and since he is the main character, Faust, it made for a long evening. No one in the cast really stood out and made me want to hear them again. Maybe the SF Symphony should try more opera after their superb Flying Dutchman.

Did my monthly bank statement balancing act today and once again I could not get things right. This was even after zeroing account the account balance a few days ago due to previous errors. Fortunately I had seen that coming and had activated overdraft protection but even with that I had to use considerable ten key tape before I got my computations to the point where I understood what my register balance should be. So I adjusted it and hopefully I will not make anymore errors during the coming four weeks and that the July statement and my register agree. If I am off $15.99 or some such silly amount again, I think I will pull my hair out or go mad, or both. hahaha

I hope everyone has a pleasant and productive week.

Bye for now...

Where am I?

I am still floating several feet off the ground after last night's opera production at Davies Symphony Hall.

Although I am a fan of Wagner’s music, "Flying Dutchman" has never made that much of an impression on me over the years. Yes, I have enjoyed it but only certain sections, namely, the overture, the sailor’s chorus, and the spinning chorus remain in memory. Last night however, that all changed with a very powerful performance in Davies Symphony Hall.

The superb cast was headed by Mark Delavan as the Dutchman. His first monologue, “Die Frist ist um” became a show stopper as rare applause during a performance of a Wagner opera erupted. This was very incisive and forceful singing by this baritone who was sounding more like a bass at times. (A future Wotan perhaps??) His singing was chilling in its emotional power and tonal clarity and his presence continued to dominate the performance according to Joshua Kosman, Chronicle critic. I agree.

The surprise for me was how beautifully Jane Eaglen (Senta) sang. I have seen her in Turandot at SFO as well as in the Ring operas and as Norma at the Paris Opera (Bastille) but nothing prepared me for how beautifully she can sing and still unleash those white hot high notes with such precision. Kosman was impressed with how vital and strong her voice was, bringing a gleaming tone to the Ballad and a tender vigor to her duet with the Dutchman.

The rest of the superb cast featured Stephen Milling as Daland (he will be at SFO this fall as King Philippe II in Don Carlos), Eric Cutler as the Steersman, Jill Grove as Mary, and Mark Baker as Erik.

This was not exactly a concert. It was staged by making use of the terrace surrounding the stage as well as building a couple of crows nests on either side, the bigger of the two in Box A, was the Dutchman’s and the small one on the right for the Steersman. There were stylized sails (one doubling as the rear projection screen for supertitles for the folks on the main floor) and there were some very good lighting effects that enhanced the drama’s key moments. (The main supertitle screen was hung high in the hall which was viewable from the 1st and 2nd tier seats.) A small stage at the rear of the stage was built for Act II which is set in Daland’s house. The semi-permanent risers had been removed so the orchestra sat on a flat stage once again which became the orchestra pit with all action taking place above them.

The closing had a lighting effect which reminded me of disco lights from a mirrored ball at first but then as they rotated and moved upward and away from us towards the organ pipes behind the stage, I suddenly felt like that the spaceship Dutchman had taken off (snicker-snicker). Actually, though, it was effective with the mood and the action as his ship receded into the fog to wander the seas for another seven years.

At that point I was nearly in tears. This was a powerful performance and one I shall not forget. I know it is probably hoping for too much but I wonder if the symphony recorded that for CD release in the future.

Tonight I will be seeing Berlioz' "Damnation of Faust" at the opera house. It received a good opening night review but I wonder if anything could be as powerful and moving as last night's Dutchman.

I will let you know later.

I could say TGIF, but I won't.

I am not really sure where I am going with this blog. Should I flog it? Should I drink some eggnog? Maybe I should go outdoors to jog? Maybe I need a better job. Perhaps I should assay this day. I don't like to be blase but how do I convey my array of gourmet parfait? (Hmm...putaway that rhyming dictionary Irving.)

Better days lay ahead, I hope

Now that I have some part time assistance during Ruby's absence, things are looking up. I just hope that the four hours per week (two on Tuesday and two on Thursday) will be enough to keep my house of cards from collapsing.

Had an interesting card from the San Francisco Opera this week. It states: La damnation de Faust is the story about Mephistopheles' evil nature and Faust's human weakness. The production presents good and bad; purity and corruption; sanity and insanity. Because Le damnation de Faust includes violence, sexual content and partial nudity, we believe the production is suitable for mature audiences. If you would like to exchange your tickets for one of our more traditional operas...blah, blah, blah. Well, I always did feel that G rated operas were boring. hahaha

This should be an interesting weekend however as Friday night I will be at the symphony where a concert version of Wagner's Flying Dutchman is being performed. Then on Saturday the opera is performing the Berlioz music which was not written with staging as an opera in mind. So the tables are turned on both pieces of music this weekend. I have no idea what to expect from the opera as about the only piece of his music that I am familiar with is the Symphonie Fantastique and the overture to Herold in Italy.

Well, I see in the news this morning that the White House is trying to pressure Sharon not to target Hamas leaders. Isn't this being a bit hyprocritical since we targeted Hussein? Now Bush is trying to buy votes in 2004 by doing something that should have been done years ago and that is add prescription drugs to Medicare coverage. That is good if he does not take away anything in the process but it won't buy my vote no matter what.

What a crazy world we live in.

Bye for now.

Break time...

Well, after two grueling days in the office by myself, I finally got a little help today. Ironically, this was the slowest of recent days. Oh well, c'est la vie. Anyway, it is nice to have some help even if only on a part time basis.

If it weren't so tragic, the shenanigans in Washington D.C. would be hilarious as the Bush regime tries once again, to cover itself with yet more lies. It is ironic that he wants more time to locate the WMDs when he would not give the U.N. more time to find them. Oh well, I said that yesterday didn't I. Politics stinks to put it mildly.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not but I went to see Matrix - Reloaded on Sunday. If you haven't seen it yet, I won't be the one to recommend it. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a 5 at best. At least I didn't walk out of this one like I did Anger Management.

I noticed that the clock on the Ferry Building now reads about 11:57 but it still has not been started. Is this in preparation for the actual start-up in a few weeks when the city and the port commission decide on the "right time" to start the clock again.

And now it is time to bring this to a close. I have been drained physically, mentally, and emtionally by all the work during the past week or so. Thoughts do not flow freely now and/or come out distorted. I need a vacation.

Later...

I should have known...

Chronicle classical music critic can always find something wrong with a performance or production. The opening night "La Cenerentola" was no exception. Why do I even bother reading reviews anyway. I guess I now know why some performers do not like to read reviews. There is some validity to his review in today's newspaper but then he is listening with a different set of ears and from a different seat in the theater so his perception of something can be quite difference from someone elses.

As for the clowns in Washington, they continue to lash out at critics who say that the government distorted intelligence reports as a justification for invading Iraq. Bush says, in time, we will find the WMDs. Strange that he said "in time" yet he did not want to give the U.N. inspectors more time to find them. "Shoot first and ask questions later" is apparently the motto for George W. Bush.

Now he wants to move seniors out of medicare into private insurance plans. Has this man no conscious???????????? Please, someone, get me a Democrat who can beat Bush in November 2004!!!!!!!!

See ya...

I'm not sure.

This is Sunday...right? Oh, that is the most depressing day of the week, at least the evening hours. Having to anticipate another week of work is not something I look forward to these days. At least the beginning of the end of the 2002/2003 opera season got off to a good start last night, sort of. I have written my report on the evening and it follows.

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La Cenerentola (Rossini)

Too bad the originally scheduled mezzo, Sonia Gannasi, didn’t sing last nights opening performance of the Rossini opera. As a result, this was a night for the men. Mika Shigematsu, sharing the title role with Theodora Hanslowe who steps in on June 19th) was barely able at times to get all the words and notes out. At times her mid-range reminded me a lot of Marilyn Horne. In fact, my friend agreed and added, including Marilyn’s pitch problems. Enough said there.

The men were gorgeous in all ways. We start here with tenor Juan Diego Florez making his SFO debut as Don Ramiro. From the moment he stepped on stage we could see how handsome this native of Lima, Peru, was from the rear of the balcony without binoculars, and then when he opened his mouth, what glorious sounds came forth! His Act 2 aria, “Sì. ritrovarla io guiro” became the show stopper of the night. Poor Alidoro (Aike Wilm Schulte) could only stand there from what must have seemed like an eternity before the applause and bravos died down. Florez' voice is pure and flows so effortlessly that we hope he does not sing roles unsuited for him thereby ruining this gem. Our find of the evening. Aike Wilm Schulte, was also making his SFO debut and his voice and vocal technique were outstanding. Interestingly his repertoire includes a wide range of roles from Beckmesser, Amfortas, Klingsor, and Kurwenal, to Germont, Faninal, and Rigoletto. He and Florez must be brought back to SFO post haste.

Daniel Belcher sang and acted well as Dandini and confused some in the audience by his switch in costumes. As the act drew to a close he and Florez had switched colors so when each came out for the final curtain calls, some people seemed to think they were seeing Florez and gave him a much louder ovation than what might have been expected. The ovation for Florez however, was loud and sustained.

Kevin Glavin (also in a SFO debut) sang Don Magnifico and while his voice lacked something in the bottom register the top was solid and secure.

Saundra DeAthos and Catherine Cook were the sisters, Clorinda and Tisbe.

The orchestra played very well except for one very unfortunate trumpet blooper. Patrick Summers conducted.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Next Saturday it is Berlioz' Damnation of Faust, not exactly an opera, more of an oratorio, so everyone is wondering how they are going to stage this.

Earlier today I decided to go see Matrix - Reloaded. I wish I hadn't. I guess I got it confused with another action movie of last year, one that starred Tom Cruise, not Keannu Reeves. That one had something to do with preventing crimes before they happened. I enjoyed that but not this mess. And to think I spent $15.01 for this plus popcorn and a soda and did not enjoy any of it. This almost makes me sick.

Well, tomorrow is another day.

Must we continue like this?

The Pentagon is sure trying to put a new spin on the question of weapons of mass destruction in Irag. Here is part of the news story reported today.
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A senior Bush administration official said Friday that a Defense Intelligence Agency report from September 2002, which stated "there is no reliable information on whether Iraq is producing and stockpiling chemical weapons," did not conflict with the U.S. case that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.

DIA Director Vice Admiral Lowell Jacoby said that the report showed that his agency "could not specifically pin down individual facilities operating as part of the weapons of mass destruction programs."
-x-x-x-x-x-
Well, no, of course not! Since this government had given Saddam several months advance notice that he would suffer the consequences if he did not step aside, he had plenty of opportunity to move whatever could have been there, if anything, to another country. Hussein may have been evil but he wasn't that stupid. Faced with an overwhelming military force, he was left with few choices. If he actually had WMDs, why didn't he use them? He could have fought to the bitter end but as it was, the war sputtered out almost before it began.

There is something mighty peculiar going on here. Where is Saddam anyway, alive or dead? The questions could go on and on about who did what to whom and why. There are never any easy answers.

Oh well, the weekend is almost upon us so I will enjoy what I can of it even though I must go into the office for a few hours on Saturday morning. In the evening I will be at the opera where I will see Rossini's "La Cenerentola". The tenor in this cast is Juan Diego Florez who has been getting rave reviews most everywhere these days. It is too bad that this is a relatively small role. They will be performing "Barber of Seville" next season I believe but he is not scheduled for that cast. That is most unfortunate.

Well, on to other matters for awhile.

Cheers.

Why try?!

Our politicians lie through their teeth and then when caught, make up other stories or lie once again. It is good to see that Washington and London are now taking heat for the WMD fiasco that was our stated objective with the invasion of Iraq. Now it appears that Dick Cheney was out to pressure some people in this regard.
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WASHINGTON - "Multiple" visits to the CIA by Vice President Cheney and a top aide over the past year created an environment in which some analysts felt they were being pressured to make assessments of Iraq data fit the administration's policy objectives, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.

The report cited an unnamed senior CIA official as saying that the visits by Cheney and his chief of staff to question the analysts "sent signals, intended or otherwise that a certain output was desired from here." The disclosure comes amid growing concern that the administration exaggerated -- either deliberately or due to faulty intelligence -- the threat posed by Iraq's weapons.

The assertion by the Bush administration that Iraq possessed stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons and had a program to develop nuclear weapons was a prime justification for the war but no such weapon has been found since President Saddam Hussein was toppled.

The Washington Post said it could not learn the exact number of visits by Cheney to the CIA but it reported that one agency official described them as "multiple."
The report cited intelligence officials as saying that visits to CIA headquarters by a vice president are unusual.

The newspaper reported that former and current intelligence officials said they felt a continual drumbeat not only from Cheney but also from Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz and, to a lesser extent, CIA Director George Tenet, to find information or write reports in a way that would help the administration make the case that invading Iraq was urgent.

The Post said a spokeswoman for Cheney declined to discuss the matter on Wednesday. The newspaper quoted senior administration sources as saying that the visits allowed Cheney and his chief of staff, Lewis Libby, to have direct exchanges with analysts rather than ask questions of their daily briefers.

The paper quoted sources, which it described as sympathetic to the vice president's approach, as saying that their goal was to have a free flow of information and not to intimidate the analysts. The sources said that some analysts may well have misinterpreted questions as directives.
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We so desparately need to get these clowns out of Washington and I also wish Tony Blair an early retirement also.

Good morning everyone

Hump day and everything is looking fine. As I head into the weekend and in fact, to this month, it will be filled with events much to my liking. The main one is the San Francisco Opera which concludes its 2002/2003 season with three operas. They are Rossini's "La Cenerentola", Berlioz' "Damnation of Faust", and Verdi's "Il Trovatore". Then there is the concert version (in costume apparently) across the street as the SF Symphony performs Wagner's "Flying Dutchman". Then there is the Gay Pride parade and celebrations on the last weekend of the month. Sunday the 27th will really be chaotic as 40,000 or so baseball fans come into the city to see the game at Pacific Bell Park between the Giants and the A's. Add that input to the 500,000 or so people downtown for the parade, and it will be one crowded city for sure. I wonder how heightened security measures will factor into all of this.

The fog is back but it did not seem that chilly this morning. I guess if the wind is not present it makes a big difference. It was actually very pleasant walking to the office this morning.

Big meeting and training session today during lunch concerning some new hardware and software for scanning documents which is supposed to be implemented on July 1st. They installed the equipment in January and I missed the all day training then as I was in Thailand. No one has been using it however and now today's session is just one hour long.

After winning five in a row,the Giants have now lost two in a row. They lost game four of their series with the Colorado Rockies and now the first game with the Minnesota Twins. It is their first appearance at PBP and this weekend the Detroit Tigers make their first appearance there in this session of inter-league play.

Guess I better wrap this up for now.

Cheers...

Not sure

I guess Tuesday is OK. Certainly better than Monday. Not as good as hump day and certainly not as good as Thursday or Friday but it will do.

The fog rolled back in last night after a one day heat wave. Our natural air conditioning here in SF is working albeit sometimes too efficiently. I shouldn't complain as I could be living somewhere in the midwest or south where it is hot and humid and the only relief is just a thunderstorm and/or tornado away.

Some positive (depending upon your outlook) headlines in the morning news today include "Greenspan sees modest U.S. pickup", "Hotels see stronger than expected summer travel", "Lufthansa CEO Weber says worst over", "Feds seeks to indict Martha Stewart", and "Dollar sustains recovery aided by GB". Perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel but then it is always difficult to know just how long that tunnel is. I am confident that things will change. They always do. It is part of the life cycle.

And my cycle is on "go to work" cycle now so I am outa here for now.

Another fine morning - for not being at work

This should be a glorious day for those who either do not have to work or for those on vacation or retired. For me, it is 8:30 to 5:30 as usual.

Don't argue with the woman. That is after having sex or this might be your fate.

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BERLIN (Reuters) - A German woman partially severed her husband's penis when she quarreled with him after sex, police in the southern town of Konstanz said on Monday.

In an incident recalling the maiming of former U.S. marine John Wayne Bobbitt, who temporarily lost his penis in a similar attack, the woman, 43, sliced her 34-year-old husband's member with a carpet knife, police said.

"They'd just had their bit of hanky-panky and she went for him with the knife," a police spokesman said. The bleeding man drove himself to hospital for emergency surgery. The outcome was not yet known. The woman fled to a restaurant where police arrested her. She was later released. Police said the motive for the attack was unclear.

In 1993, surgeons managed to sew Bobbitt's penis back on after his wife cut it off with a carving knife while he slept and threw it out the window. He later turned porn actor.
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Ouch!
As I begin this new week, my goal will be to have less stress. What can I do about it? I can't control things related to my job but I can deal with what goes on in my own mind and body so something needs correcting here.

Well, I can't believe this. President Bush getting together with French President Chirac and seeking his advise on some matters related to the Middle East. I guess small miracles are possible. Of course, he is in Europe and not safely at home where he can act the big bully but then perhaps some people have gotten through to him. One can only hope.

Have a great day folks.

End of the weekend

Ah, where did it all go. Such a beautiful one full of sunshine and mild temperatures. Tomorrow and Tuesday are supposed to be even better except for one thing - work. Oh well, can't win 'em all.

Saturday found me spending a short time in the office cleaning up some paperwork from Friday. I felt much better at that point and of course it always good to be able to things without constant interruptions. Then last night I decided to go out and party. I am paying for that today in that I still feel very tired so I will turn in early tonight. As much as I might enjoy a night out at times, this body can't take it like it used to. The heart and mind are willing but the body protests.

This afternoon Richard came over as we continued our discussions about an upcoming vacation trip to Italy. Today's discussion was more about cameras than travel itinerary. He has been dong a lot of research and is torn between a 35mm film camera and going digital. The main hangup for film is the potential damage to film by airport scanners whereas the main hangup for him for digital is an operating computer at home. I think that more full service photo stores, however, are providing a means for downloading the photos from smart media cards or flashcards or whatever and then printing the photos while at the same time, providing a CD-ROM of all the photos. If so, he can get by without a computer at this time. This is one area of inquiry that should be pursued more.

As for me, I like my Canon 35mm film camera but wish I could afford the new digital bodies. Since I already have three lenses, that would be the best of both worlds. The instant gratification of digital has resulted in my using that camera most of the time but it is a very small camera with limited capabilities. Oh well, someday I might be able to buy one of the digital versions of my EOS-Elan. (sigh)

Time to turn in and catch up on my sleep now.

Bonne nuit.