Danger - Danger

Attention cooks -- a recipe for rolls in the current issue of Southern Living magazine could be hazardous.

The magazine, published by Time Warner Inc.'s Southern Progress Corp. subsidiary, said it is alerting readers about potential dangers from a recipe for icebox rolls in its April issue. The magazine said it has requested the removal of all copies of the April issue from newsstands.

"It has been determined that heating the water and shortening, as described in the recipe, is potentially dangerous and may pose a fire and safety hazard," the Birmingham, Alabama-based magazine said in a statement.

Southern Living said 12 of its roughly 2.4 million subscribers had contacted the company with concerns about the recipe. A corrected recipe is available on the southernliving.com Web site.

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Sounds like that magazine needs a new food editor.

China Aims for "Immortality" with Lunar Probe Plan

Wow, do they really mean immortality or did something get lost in translation? Read the news story here.

Strange weather

They say that the planet is getting warmer and that weather extremes are the result. No one in Brazil, however, seemed to be willing to admit that they were hit by the first ever "Atlantic hurricane" See Reuters News.

Two weeks to Easter. So what will you be doing? Hanging around?

Almost forgot

One of my favorite blogspots is Swimfins. Check it out sometime.

Good move?

I hope this is not too little too late.

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CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia will ban fishing and shipping from one-third of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from July 1 under laws approved by parliament Thursday for protecting the world's largest living structure.
The coral reef, one of Australia's main tourist attractions with its magnificent array of tropical fish, is under threat from record high temperatures, over-fishing and pollution.

Environment Minister David Kemp said the new zoning would increase protection to 33.3 percent from 4.5 percent of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park which covers 134,400 square miles -- an area only slightly smaller than Germany or Japan.

"It's going to mean healthier corals, it's going to mean bigger fish for tourists to come and see," Kemp told reporters.

Tourism activity on the Great Barrier Reef, situated off Queensland state in Australia's northeast, injects an estimated A$4.5 billion ($3.3 billion) into the economy each year.

From July, companies caught breaching green zone rules face fines of up to A$1.1 million and individuals A$220,000.

Routine week

I guess I am getting settled in a routine now three months into my retirement. At first I did not know what my schedule would be like but now I have developed a pattern to things which usually start with coffee at the computer at 7 AM as I check for e-mail and read the news on-line. After that I will either go to the grocery store or read some more in one of the books I am reading (currently The Messianic Legacy by the same guys who wrote Holy Blood, Holy Grail). At lunch time I will either eat at home or go out to eat which I sometimes try to coordinate with picking up my mail at the Gateway Station of the US Post Office (EC #1). In the afternoon I will either do some more scanning of slides or do work on my website plus some more reading later in the afternoon. If I am feeling tired as I was today I will take a thirty or forty minute nap in the late afternoon. It cannot be longer than that as it tends to be disorienting if it goes longer than that. I eat an early dinner now so I can watch the 6 PM news. The evening is a mixed bag of some TV shows, some reading, or listening to some music on the stereo. Real exciting week eh?

After I return from Thailand in May I will finally contact the SF SPCA about doing some volunteer work. This was one of my goals for retirement but I have been putting it off in order to let the dust settle on my routine and now I need to wait until I return to the U.S. I don't want to volunteer for something end then have to tell them I won't be available for an assignment right away.

Tomorrow's Met broadcast is Salome with Karita Mattila in the title role. I do plan to listen to that and will do so on the Internet through KING-FM in Seattle. Siegfried Jerusalem sings the role of Herod. I have not heard him in a long time so I do not know what condition his voice is in now but as I recall, that role is not that big. Jochanaan (John the Baptist) is an important role but I know nothing about baritone Albert Dohmen so we will see.

Peace

Not so sure

I am a confirmed chocoholic but I am not sure I could go for this. It just might be overkill but read on:

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LONDON (Reuters) - Chocoholics seeking to indulge their passion this Easter will appreciate a British hotel chain's diet-busting chocolate sandwich, which boasts the added attraction of being dipped in batter and deep-fried.


Ramada Jarvis introduced the delicacy last month and said on Wednesday the calorie-heavy dish had become the fastest selling dessert on its menu. "We were surprised it has become so popular, although it is very tasty," said the chain's director of food and beverages Debbie Walter. The sandwich is particularly popular in Scotland, traditional birthplace of the mother of all deep-fried desserts, the battered Mars bar.


Mindful that Britain, along with other Western countries, faces an increasing problem of obesity the hotel chain also offers less fattening desserts. "The chocolate sandwich is not something if you are on a serious calorie-controlled diet, but we do offer alternatives," said Walter.


Ramada Jarvis has 65 hotels in Britain, but only 36 currently offer the waist-expanding dessert.

Strange discovery

Did you know that Dasani has been located on Mars? If not, be sure to read the latest edition of The Onion.

Letter to the Editor

Editor -- What? Additional BART service to accommodate anti-war protesters? No, no, no. We need less service.

Let them stay home and protest in their own cities. We do not need more protesters, or riots, in San Francisco.

If the bay spans were drawbridges, they should be raised to stop traffic. The city is chaotic enough.

IRVING WALDORF

Well, that is my latest letter to the editor which appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle of this date. I am sure I will hear from some anti-war protestors who will claim I am trying to prevent their free speech (which I'm not).

Anti-war protesters

Today will be a good day to stay out of downtown San Francisco as thousands of anti-war protesters take to the streets. BART is increasing service to accommodate them but I saw NO-NO-NO. BART should shut down its transbay service for the day as should A.C. Transit and if the bridges were draw bridges they should be raised for the day. Let the people from other cities who want to protest the war do so in their own cities. They don't need to come here and disrupt things here. This city is already chaotic enough without them. Also, there is an element who come to this city with only one thing in mind and that is to commit acts of vandalism. We don't need them. They should stay at home.

Why does everyone feel the need to protest on the streets of San Francisco. Wouldn't it be more effective if all communities held protests but no, the only thing those back east see is a big protest in downtown San Francisco. Oh well, you know, those liberals in San Francisco are at it again. It does not matter to people back east that many of those people are from other cities.

I agree with the sentiments of the protesters but I want nothing to do with these marches which will accomplish absolutely nothing. NADA...ZILCH! You name it. The White House already looks down at us and this will only reinforce their view of this bastion of liberalism.

The Fools

Why are politicians such fools? Latest example is government party officials in China who have shut down two blogspots in China and are blocking access to one or more American sites. Do they REALLY think that will help their cause? Such fools! The more you suppress or repress the greater the anger. Won't they ever learn?

Another hot one


They say you should be careful what you wish for so I wonder who wished for nine days of fog free weather here in San Francisco. Since this began it has been in the seventies and eighties everyday. Today it was 82 in SF and tomorrow is supposed to be a repeat of that. This would be unusual even in September and October, our warmest months. Heat waves like this do not normally last this long.

On another matter, the big question is: Will a Madrid style terrorist bombing in the U.S. help or hurt George Bush in November? Opinions seem to be divided on this issue at the moment. What thing that is certain is that it has reinvigorated the anti-war movement so we will see new marches in many cities.

27 days until opening day at SBC Park when the Giants meet the Brewers

Correction

Since posting that lovely letter on the 10th of March I have learned that it was not written by Bette Midler but I still do not know who wrote those lovely thoughts but I would like to thank him or her for them.

On the other end of the spectrum we have the horrible violence in Madrid which killed 200 and injured over 1000 people. Basque separatists were initially believed to be behind the murders but it didn't really fit their M.O. especially since they have denid it. Some evidence now seems to point towards Muslim extremists and whether or not al Queda is the source is to be determined but it opens a whole new chapter in the continuing demise of the human race as being a viable life form for this planet. I doubt that man will be around long enough to worry whether or not this planet goes the way of Mars and becomes a desert without enough water to sustain anything. No, we will all be dead long before that happens.

You cannot even disagree with people anymore without having them give you the middle fingered salute or worse. One or more letter writers to the editors of local newspapers recently have complained about reactions to their anti-Bush bumper stickers, etc. So they are not for Bush. So what! Is there any logical reason why a person can't let another have a difference of opion without shouting at them, calling them names, making rude gestures, or worse?

The world is mad. I am really glad that I am not twenty something as I think that those people who will be around for the next fifty or sixty years are going to have an extremely rough life and all because of man's inhumanity to man. The main problem in this battle is too many people feel that "I am right and you are wrong". Fundamentalism, whether it be religious or political, is extremely dangerous and is tearing this world apart. Unfortunately some people either don't see that or worse yet, don't care. And frankly, I don't see any end to this without outside intervention.

Letter from a friend


I love this letter that a friend forwarded to me from one of my favorite people.

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"Dear President Bush,

Today you called upon Congress to move quickly to amend the US
Constitution, and set in Federal stone a legal definition of marriage. I
would like to know why.

In your speech, you stated that this Amendment would serve to protect
marriage in America, which I must confess confuses me. Like you, I believe
in the importance of marriage and I feel that we as a society take the
institution far too lightly. In my circle of family, friends and
acquaintances, the vast majority have married and divorced - some more
than once. Still, I believe in marriage. I believe that there is something
fundamental about finding another person on this planet with whom you want
to build a life and family, and make a positive contribution to society. I
believe that we need more positive role models for successful marriage in
this country - something to counteract the images we get bombarded with in
popular culture. When we are assaulted with images of celebrities of
varying genres, be it actors, sports figures, socialites, or even
politicians who shrug marriage on and off like the latest fashion, it is
vitally important to the face of our nation, for our children and our
future, that we have a balance of commitment and fidelity with which to
stave off the negativity. I search for these examples to show my own
daughter, so that she can see that marriage is more than a disposable
whim, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

As a father, I'm sure you have faced these same concerns and
difficulties in raising your own daughters. Therefore I can also imagine that you must
understand how thrilled I have been over the past few weeks to come home
and turn on the news with my family. To finally have concrete examples of
true commitment, honest love, and steadfast fidelity was such a relief and
a joy. Instead of speaking in the hypothetical, I was finally able to
point to these men and women, standing together for hours in the pouring
rain, and tell my child that this is what its all about. Forget Britney.
Forget Kobe. Forget Strom. Forget about all the people that we know who
have taken so frivolously the pure and simple beauty of love and tarnished
it so consistently. Look instead at the joy in the beautiful faces of Del
Martin and Phyllis Lyon - 51 years together! I mean, honestly Mr.
President - how many couples do you know who are together for 51 years?
I'm sure you agree that this love story provides a wonderful opportunity
to teach our children about the true meaning and value of marriage. On the
steps of San Francisco City Hall, rose petals and champagne, suits and
veils, horns honking and elation in the streets; a celebration of love the
likes of which this society has never seen.

This morning, however, my joy turned to sadness, my relief transformed
into outrage, and my peace became anger. This morning, I watched you stand
before this nation and belittle these women, the thousands who stood with
them, and the countless millions who wish to follow them. How could you do
that, Mr. President? How could you take something so beautiful - a clear
and defining example of the true nature of commitment - and declare it to
be anything less? What is it that validates your marriage which somehow
doesn't apply to Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon? By what power, what
authority are you so divinely imbued that you can stand before me and this
nation and hold their love to a higher standard?

Don't speak to me about homosexuality, Mr. President. Don't tell me
that the difference lies in the bedroom. I would never presume to ask you or
your wife how it is you choose to physically express your love for one
another, and I defy you to stand before Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon and
ask them to do the same. It is none of my business, as it is none of
yours, and it has nothing to do with the "sanctity of marriage". I'm sure
you would agree that marriage is far more than sexual expression, and its
high time we all started focusing on all the other aspects of a
relationship which hold it together over the course of a lifetime.
Therefore, with the mechanics of sex set aside, I ask you again - what
makes a marriage? I firmly believe that whatever definition you derive,
there are thousands upon thousands of shining examples for you to embrace.

You want to protect marriage. I admire and support that, Mr. President.
Together, as a nation, let us find and celebrate examples of what a
marriage should be. Together, let us take couples who embody the
principles of commitment, fidelity, sacrifice and love, and hold them up
before our children as role models for their own futures. Together, let us
reinforce the concept that love is about far more than sex, despite what
popular culture would like them to believe.

Please, for the sake of our children, for the sake of our society,
for the sake of our future, do not take us down this road. Under the guise of
protection, do not support divisiveness. Under the guise of unity, do not
endorse discrimination. Under the guise of sanctity, do not devalue
commitment. Under the guise of democracy, do not encourage this amendment.

Bette Midler

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Well said, well said but I doubt that he can read. He sure doesn't understand.

Let's be truthful


A lot has been said and written about the out-sourcing of jobs from the U.S. to other countries recently, especially to India and Pakistan, but the reality check below from the "blameindiawatch" blogspot is worth considering so we don't get too pushed out of shape on this matter.

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"Some U.S. corporations are sending jobs -- including high-tech information technology (search) jobs -- overseas, but at least one economist says the effort to remain competitive in a tough global marketplace has resulted in plenty of jobs coming from abroad to the United States.

"If we want to stop all the outsourcing (search) of jobs, where foreign workers are employed by U.S. companies, than we should make sure that all the Honda workers in Ohio get fired, that all the BMW workers in South Carolina get fired, all the Sony workers, you know where I'm going," said Heritage Foundation economist Tim Kane."

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I somehow think that this is rapidly becoming a political football and that there is much polarization of opinion on this matter. Unfortunately it is an election year in which a very inarticulate and less-than-honest president will do just about anything to retain his position so hang on folks, there's a bumpy road ahead.

By the way, one of my favorite websites is Move On. Check it out.

Recommendation


If you have not already been there, check out The Onion where they have an article about Jesus Demanding Creative Control over the Next Movie. For those of you who have never looked at this site, it is the electronic version of The National Inquirer but more interesting.

Item...item...whosegottaitem?


I need something desperately as each day seems to be the same as the previous one. I am waiting for baseball season to open (the regular season) so I don't have to hear so much about Bush on the news. I really think we should adopt the rule of limiting campaigns to six weeks as the British do. Eight months of BS is seven months and 30 some days too much! Argh...

At least the weather has finally cooperated and produced a few beautiful days. I wonder how long this will last. Yesterday the high in San Francisco was in the mid-seventies and I think it is the same today. It is 70 in the shade on my deck anyway.

Went shopping today to look for some new items to take to Thailand in May but did not find what I wanted so I bought a new cell phone instead. What?? Well, I did want something other than the old clunky Kyocera that I have had for several years but now I have to notify everyone of a change in cell phone numbers. Also, my business cards are once again in need of revision. Yuck! Another expense.

Why do we have to go through this every year?


Most industrialized countries have rail systems that are far better than ours and even at that, there are those in congress who don't care if it gets worse of disappears entirely. Every year Amtrak must go hat-in-hand begging for adequate subsidies to keep operating and improve the system. They have improved the system over the years but it almost takes a superhuman effort to do so.

Now the fiscal 2005 appropriations fight has begun, with Amtrak and the Administration repearing their fiscal 2004 requests--$1.8 bllion and $900 million, respectively. What is new is the early intensity of Chairman Istook's attempt to shut down Amtrak. (Mr. Istook is the chairman of the House Appropriations Subcomittee on Transportion.)

I will never understand the attitude of some people in congress in regards to Amtrak. Some say it is no good and should be scrapped, or at least replaced by something else. What pray tell! If these same politicians would go to France or Germany or Italy, or Spain, or Japan, they would see what a well funded rail system can do. But no, we limp along with an underfunded system, with a relatively slow system (except for the Northeast Corridor) and with equipment that is too heavy and cumbersome to operate efficiently and on railbeds shared with even heavier freight trains which take their toll on the infrastructure and interfere with passenger service scheduling.

For more information about high speed rail including plans for the State of California click here.

TGIF


In retirement that has no meaning as everyday is Friday or Monday, or Saturday, or whatever. In fact, if it weren't for the myriad clocks and calendars that I have in strategic places in the apartment, I might forget what day of the week it is and miss an important, or not so important, engagement or event. Ah, the pitfalls of a life of leisure...Ha!!

Well, the Civil Rights movement of the 21st Century has been thrust upon us by the State Supreme Court of Massachusetts and same-sex marriage is popping up in a lot of places. The one place that really surprised me is the county in Oregon (can't think of its name or how to spell it) where the city of Portland is located. Oregon has been infamous for being the home of Lou Mabon and his ultra-conservative religious wackos known at the Oregon Citizens Alliance, or OCA. Lou must be having a conniption-fit about now. I wonder if Lou and his group realize that there has not been a Gay Apocalypse as a result of all these marriages.

Two things of note in all this. There has been no rush by Congress to start proceedings for a constitutional amendment to bar same sex marriages and some high profile Republicans have come out against that also.
I think Bush will go down in flames on this one.

Boresville

Oh please, won't somebody bring back Whoopi Golberg, or Johnny Carson, or David Letterman as MC for the Academy Awards. Billy Crystal, never my favorite, was the worst he has ever been last night. Even the film clips from the Bob Hope days were funnier than Billy Crystal and they did not really show him telling jokes which made Crystal's efforts even more pathetic. Also, having Lord of the Rings win so many Oscars did not help either. Tonight's Amiercan Idol special with all of the losers in the initial auditions should be funny.