Lori/Female/36-40.
This is my blogchalk:
United States, Texas, San Antonio, English, , Lori, Female, 36-40, Photography, History.

Saturday, July 31, 2004

Tauch Family Secrets

Texas photographer William Tauch, Texas sculptors Pompeo Coppini and Waldine Tauch.

How Texas women get their husbands' attention.

posted by Lori @ 6:30 PM 1 comments

High School Days

Whew! For some reason, I made a comittment earlier this month to go to lunch with two old high school buds, Todd and Susan. We sat over bad food at MaMa's Cafe, reminiscing about the old days. Yuch. When I graduated high school, I pretty much divorced myself from all that had gone on there. It sucked. Those definantly were not the best years of MY life. But it seemed like they were for these two. Todd kept saying "none of us has changed, we're all the same people." I don't even have the same name anymore. I'm definitely not the same person, and neither are they. Susan's lost like a gazillion pounds, and Todd, well, has lost his innocence in a most cross-gendered way.

I don't know why I agreed to lunch earlier this month. It brought back all those feelings of adolescence, and yet, I guess it was good as I saw living proof of change. For some reason, I've been able to sleep better at night knowing that I did change. I like it that I'm a lot different then I was then. And I mean a lot. Twenty years of water under the bridge and you can never go back. Thank God.

posted by Lori @ 9:53 AM 0 comments

Thursday, July 29, 2004

PUNK

Drudge's preview of Ron's Esquire interview

Ron Reagan is an insult to his family. Sorry. If I were Nancy, let alone Ronny, I'd ground the little shit. His discussion of stem cell research at the Democratic Convention was not only boring, it was froth with junk science.

This smarmy little puke makes me almost as sick as Michael Moore. Keep in mind, I'm not a Republican. Nope-Nope-Nope. I just believe in truth and common decency. Ron is as gay as he can be, and stem cell research is the next fascist thing to come down the pike. He probably would have preferred it if his own father was snuffed. I say this because that's the next thing: euthenasia. Why not? Ron Sr. didn't know where he was or who he was for many years before he died. Wouldn't it be right then to stop wasting the family's cash and just kill the old veggie? Same thing as putting the fetus in the blender with the false promise of research. I can see the pitch now: Help science and have an abortion.

See, I just really don't like this guy and anything he stands for.

posted by Lori @ 6:13 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, July 28, 2004

Rash of Weird Animal Sightings

SouthIn the last 48 hours, weird dog-looking animals have been sighted and/or killed for inspection. Could the Democratic Convention be bringing out all these strange animals?

No joke....

  • SAN ANTONIO, Tx. -- A rancher in Elmendorf, southeast of San Antonio, found a strange creature attacking his livestock, and local animal experts say identifying it is a tough call. (more)
  • GLYNDON, Md. -- A mystery animal is on the loose in Baltimore County and not even the experts can pin down what it is. (more)
  • JOPPA, Md. -- "I couldn't figure out what it was," Mathis said. "I though it was a dog and then I looked closer and then I got the camera and pulled it in closer just so I could show the rest of the family." (more)

Strange, Huh?

Another thing for you to note: in Texas, if it's weird, we shoot it to get a closer look. In Maryland, they just take pictures. Heh.

posted by Lori @ 8:48 AM 0 comments

Monday, July 26, 2004

OK, so I'm going down to buy lottery tickets tommorow

Man wins Hoosier Lotto jackpot

posted by Lori @ 2:32 AM 0 comments

Sunday, July 25, 2004

Memorial Obituaries Lee, Dr. Amy

Memorial Obituaries Lee, Dr. Amy

Lost another one -- Dr. Amy Freeman Lee, Oct. 3, 1914 - Jul. 20, 2004.

posted by Lori @ 2:07 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, July 20, 2004

Ceramics Today - Harding Black

Harding Black - RIP May 5, 2004

Just watched a PBS special (twice) about this local potter. He's really something.

posted by Lori @ 1:13 AM 0 comments

Sunday, July 18, 2004

Snow Job

Over 15 years ago, a favorite college professor, whose specialty was literature in translation, remarked that Eskimos had a great number of words for snow. I, being in awe of his command of linguistics, never actually followed up on that reference. Not that I would have taken the time -- it was a passing remark in an introductory class used to illustrate the value of a multi-linguistic education. Why, someone who had mastered many languages could probably even have higher qualiy, more specific thoughts than a provincial mono-linguist. A hard point to disagree with, given this anecdotal example -- it's only logical. But more than a decade later, I remember the discussion, and still feel inadequate as one who has only one language stored in my brain with which to feebly converse and presumably cogitate.

The fine folks at Memepool remember the concept as well -- although I had no idea there was such controversy over this anecdotal way (that seems self-evident at first blush) of telling us that you could express more complex ideas if you were familiar with more words.

Nobody, especially linguists, seem able to agree on just how many words the Eskimos have for snow:

Is it 52? 31? 100? Does it really matter? And does "Ontology truly beget philology?" Or can you think about things you don't have words for? Perhaps a more important question: how could anyone tell? If you can't express it to others, it surely must not exist. But you know, the French have no general word for "berries," yet somehow they conceived of a way to combine them all and create a delicious compote.

posted by Lori @ 12:10 PM 0 comments

Coming to a Town Near You

World's Largest Collection of World's Smallest Versions of the World's Largest Things Traveling Roadside Attraction and Museum

Now I know where to will my collection of miniature colossal heads... and I thought I was the only one in the World who thought that was funny.

And don't miss the report on the most significant celebration this decade -- World's Largest Ball of Twine Turns 50!

posted by Lori @ 11:09 AM 0 comments

Saturday, July 17, 2004

Tonya Harding shot John F. Kennedy

Strike a nerve, any nerve.
"Lee Harvey Oswald saved millions of American lives by assassinating John F. Kennedy. He is the Gre at American Hero and his spirit lives on in the body of Tonya Harding. It is too late to reward Oswald but we can still do something for Tonya. I shall become President of the United States and make Tonya Harding my First Lady. She who slew Lincoln and Kennedy shall dwell in the White House."


Robert Urbanek doesn't really share our reality. In addition to his theory that Tonya Harding shot JFK, he also believes that he created al-Qaeda in December of 1985 when he hung a Nagel in his apartment that subconsciously inspired the creation of al-Qaeda in March of 1988.

Relax - he doesn't believe that an alien crash anded in Roswell in 1947, but he does think that nuclear bombs kill not just the body, but the soul because they're really, really hot. Also, fusion is a lesbian type of energy, and the Grand Canyon is a metaphor for the struggle of good and evil, not to mention that chance meetings are the work of the Devil. There's so much whack in so few pages -- Urbanek is a world-class nut.

posted by Lori @ 2:03 PM 0 comments

Be Glad You're NOT Jenna Bush

Creepy

This is probably one of the creepiest pages I've ever seen.

posted by Lori @ 12:40 PM 0 comments

Questionable Quotes

Armey of One

Remember Texas Rep. Dick Armey? Flashback from Snopes.com:

As the Los Angeles Times described the scene:

. . . the jam-packed room burst into raucous laughter as one reporter prefaced a question about the Lewinsky scandal by saying, "If you were in the president's position . . . " Armey didn't miss a beat. "If I were, I would be looking up from a pool of blood and hearing my wife say : 'How do I reload this thing?'"

posted by Lori @ 1:14 AM 0 comments

Thursday, July 15, 2004

Stupid, I know...

HASH(0x8b20950)
Ki-lin

A mythical being of Chinese mythology, comparable
with the western unicorn. Ki-lin personifies
all that is good, pure, and peaceful. It lives
in paradise and only visits the world at the
birth of a wise philosopher. The Ki-Lin is
said to walk on earth and on water. It never
drinks or eats dirty food or water. The Chinese
unicorn never treads on smaller animals below
its feet nor does it ever harm another living
creature. The Ki-Lin is the emblem for
exquisite goodness, longevity, grandeur,
endless compassion and great wisdom. According
to Chinese mythology, at the birth of Confucius
a Ki-Lin appeared and Confucius died soon after
a Ki-Lin was killed, he believed that his
writings would not proceed from the omen of the
death of the Unicorn.


Which Chinese Mythological Being Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

posted by Lori @ 2:08 AM 0 comments

Defensive Driving Course

Wrecked Exotics

Self-guided online defensive driving course. Don't think you can get insurance credit for spending time here, though. Amazing pics of wrecks from all over the world. Will make you think when you get behind the wheel. 130mph on a rainy day is NOT advised, btw.

posted by Lori @ 1:42 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, July 14, 2004

HoustonChronicle.com - I write badly, therefore I am a would-be terrorist

HoustonChronicle.com - I write badly, therefore I am a would-be terrorist
Terror alert! TSA "interviews" their suspects with all the kindness and grace of, well, a terrorist. Maybe you should see this as your opportunity to get on Homeland Security's list now!

posted by Lori @ 7:53 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, July 13, 2004

LoriStufff

LoriStufff

Trying out a new Blog engine. The user face is pretty cool. It's in beta.

posted by Lori @ 8:17 AM 0 comments

Monday, July 12, 2004

New Stamp

50th Anniversary of the Bucky Ball

In 1927, at the age of 32, Buckminster Fuller stood on the shores of Lake Michigan, prepared to throw himself into the freezing waters. His first child had died. He was bankrupt, discredited and jobless, and he had a wife and new-born daughter. On the verge of suicide, it suddenly struck him that his life belonged, not to himself, but to the universe. He chose at that moment to embark on what he called “an experiment to discover what the little, penniless, unknown individual might be able to do effectively on behalf of all humanity.” Over the next fifty-four years, he proved, time and again, that his most controversial ideas were practical and workable. (see The Buckminster Fuller Insitute)

As a tool of the universe, Bucky realized his potential.

The USPS has decided that Buckminster Fuller and the 50th anniversary of his geodesic dome (a structure designed to cover maximum space without internal supports) is worthy of a new stamp. You can order it from them using the link above.

posted by Lori @ 7:47 PM 0 comments

Sunday, July 11, 2004

The Political Compass

Where are you?

I'm a little to the right of Ghandi and a little more authoritarian than the Dalai Lama -- if you can believe tests like this with loaded questions!

Lori:
Economic Left/Right: -3.12
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -1.64

Joe:
Economic Left/Right: -.025
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -3.54

At least we're both not fascists!

posted by Lori @ 10:54 PM 0 comments

Found! Online Photos

Foundphotos

Guess you should be careful using filesharing programs and check out what is really in your shared (My Photos) directories.

"These were found by doing a search using p2p programs. People share their own personal digital photos in their shared folders, i guess they put them there for friends or family to download or just select their whole my documents folder as shared," says the site owner, who scours through thousands just to find the most interesting and share them with us.

Comment from one of the viewers: "I reckon the fact that the photos are all out of context makes looking at them all the more powerful. Its perverted i guess, but i'm addicted, i just love this site."

And another: "Holy cow, this is the most compelling thing I've seen in a long time! I feel like I'm seeing the world through God's eyes -- all the incredible shit and weirdness and beauty and sweetness and wonder. This really is art."

Oh, the humanity! It's fascinating.

posted by Lori @ 9:20 PM 0 comments

I Live In My Car

My goal is to visit every Starbucks in the world - muuhahahahah!


Meet Winter. Although I think it's quite impossible and pointless, Winter has the goal of visiting every Starbuck's in the world. And yes, he's been to the Starbuck's down the corner from me. (For some reason, this kinda creeps me out.) Somebody please give him a job that will keep him in one place!

He's harmless, but apparently considered a social menace. Starbucks Corporate, of course, doesn't want anything to do with him. There're so up-tight. But if he disturbs some, he probably *really* scares them. All jacked up on java, he cruises our interstates and moves from Scrabble contests to T-Mobile hotspots, sleeping in his car (that he bought on eBay) at our revered Wal-Marts, and looking for cheap gas. A read of his journal is worth it if you've got absolutely nothing else to do. And I mean nothing else.

Everybody's got to have a hobby, I guess, but this guy's quest "simply to be different" is ironic - to be different he chose to visit thousands of the *same* place (he swears that they're not all the same). He actually cried because we were saying mean things about him on the Internet. Maybe, after 7 years of this kind of life, this Starbucks Stalker has finally found the fame he has sought and will settle down in Springfield, IL with his #1 fan, Schmoopie. You know, maybe make some little Schmoopie Winters? If she's willing to pay for it, I'm sure he's game. As long as there's Scrabble. Ah, a chance for a happy ending at last.

posted by Lori @ 2:10 AM 0 comments

Saturday, July 10, 2004

The Media's War on Vietnam Vets

The Beat Goes On...

History repeats itself. The media "covered" the Vietnam war the same way they're "handling" Iraq.

posted by Lori @ 5:17 AM 0 comments

Friday, July 09, 2004

What a fine day yesterday WUZ

My mom protested her Bexar County Tax Appraisal today, and I went in as color guard. She got some bucks off, but not enough by my standard. The place is rigged. Taxes suck.

Did a run to the UPS store to drop of an eBay package, then to Ace Hardware, to pick up some weed-whacker twine, then to HEB for pet food, and finally to Dairy Queen, to pick up dinner. Yah-hoo.

Carl W. came by and spent a few hours with us, talking about web and such. Then Joe and I did a ton of research for the upcomming SA Calendar by the Esparanza Society. Texas is a unique place, and I was born here.

  • Day San Antonio River "discovered", Feast Day of San Antonio de Padua, June 13th 1691
  • Day 55 Canary Islanders arrive to establish a civilian settlement, San Fernando de Bexar, March 7, 1731
  • Day Texas Declaration of Independence adopted, March 2, 1836
  • Day Battle of Alamo ends, March 6, 1836
  • Day 300 Texans "executed" by Santa Anna at Goliad, March 17, 1836
  • Day Mexican government passes law stopping illegal immigration to Texas, April 6, 1836
  • Day Santa Anna surrenders at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836
  • Day of First Battle of Flowers Parade, April 24, 1891
  • Day San Antonio Independent School District was Formed, May 2, 1899
  • Day Spindletop gushes, January 10, 1901
  • Day San Antonio Conservation Society Formed, March 22, 1924
  • Day Cavaliers founded Neocolonial Totalitarian Patronization Society, ca. 1926
  • Day Texan Admiral Chester Nimitz accepts Japanese surrender in WWII, December 2, 1945
  • Day Jefferson High School, nations first $1,000,000 high school, opened, ca. 1945
  • Day Concrete Mafia accepted the surrender of the citizens of San Antonio, ca early 1960's
  • Day JFK performs last official act as President by dedicating four buildings at Brooks AFB, November 21, 1963
  • Day Jefferson Airplane was accosted at SA International airport and told "not get off their plane around here", ca. 1967-68
  • Day demolition of Jewish, Italian, and French historic neighborhoods began to make way for Hemisphere '68
  • Day Dr. Urrutia's house was torn down on Broadway, ca. 1972-76
  • Day Mic Jagger was arrested for pulling out his willie at the start of show, ca Spring 76
  • Day Legs Diamond first played Lady at the Sunken Gardens, ca. Spring 1976
  • Day Playland Park Closed, ca. late 1970's
  • Day Ira Adaburry crapped a perfectly good Battle of Flowers Parade and SAPD took it out on his Winnebago, ca. Spring 1978
  • Day San Antonio Gardens opened, May 3, 1980
    Night Bernardo Eureste, city councilman, got busted en flagrante delicto in Brackenridge Park ca. 1980's
  • Day Hertzburg Museum closed, ca. late 1980's
  • Day Chicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation opened at SAMA, May 29, 1993
  • Day Marshall Herff Applewhite took his Heaven's Gate followers on their journey to Comet Kahutec, March 26, 1997
  • Day Ozzy donated $10,000 to DRT and apologized for pissing on Alamo, culminating in an official amnesty of his persona nongrada status, ca. late 1990's
  • Day Truckers General Store closed, ca late 1990's
  • Day Conductor of SA Symphony, on his way to lunch with a judge, was busted for bringing cannabis and a pipe into the Bexar County Courthouse, ca. late 1990's
  • Day known pistol pack'n, LULAC aficionado and ardent Police critic, Ruben Sandoval, was found "suicided" by rifle followed by the shortest SAPD investigation in history, ca late 1990's
  • Day Nelson Rockefeller Center for Latin American Art opened, ca late 1990's
  • Day Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge opened at SAMA, ca. Fall 2001
  • Night Bernardo Diaz, Director of Arts and Cultural Affairs, was tossed out of Chicano Visions opening festivities for disruptive public drunkenness, see above (no shit, ask Flaco)
  • Day C. A. Stubbs finally lost his 40 year battle against fluoridation, ca. 2002
  • Day SAWS connected the sewer line to the drinking water line of the residents of the River Road District, ca 2003
  • Birthday Manuel Lorenzo Justiniano De Zavalla, Texas Patriot, October 3, 1789
  • Birthday Mrs. De Zavalla, savior of the Alamo
  • Birthday Dr. Urrutia, legendary physician, community leader and brujo
  • Birthday Allan Dale, legendary WOAI radio talk show host
  • Birthday Joe Anthony, legendary KISS DJ
  • Birthday O'neil Ford, architect, December 3, 1905
  • Birthday Henry B. Gonzalez, Congressman, May 3, 1916
  • Birthday, Maury Maverick, Congressman, October 23, 1895
  • Birthday Mary Rowena Maverick Green, savior of SA historic Missions, February 10, 1874
  • Birthday Heloise Reese, Hints From Heloise, May14, 1919
  • Birthday Rev. Alexander Carver Sutton, Community Leader and names sake of Carver Center, February 6, 1919
  • Birthday George "the Ice Man: Gervin, SA Spur and local personality
  • Birthday David "the Admiral" Robinson, SA Spur and local philanthropist
  • Birthday Augie Meyers, Tejano/Country musician
  • Birthday of Willie Nelson, Texas musician and National treasure
  • Birthday, Bob Keesham, Captain Kangaroo and SA native
  • Day Pompeo Coppinni, renound cenotaph sculptor died, September 26, 1957
  • Day Warren Hunter, renound local watercolorist drowned in flood on Broadway, ca. late 1990's

Enuf is enuf. Maybe we should make our own calendar...

posted by Lori @ 5:13 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, July 07, 2004

Opensecrets.org -- Money in politics data

Opensecrets.org -- Money in politics data
And here's the federal version of a similar "follow the money" database that I previously linked.

This one's sponsored by the Center for Responsive Politics - "a non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C. that tracks money in politics, and its effect on elections and public policy. The Center conducts computer-based research on campaign finance issues for the news media, academics, activists, and the public at large. The Center’s work is aimed at creating a more educated voter, an involved citizenry, and a more responsive government."

Some of the databases weren't working when I tried to "get local." You go for it.

posted by Lori @ 1:46 AM 0 comments

Follow The Money: The Institute on Money in State Politics

Follow The Money: The Institute on Money in State Politics
Back in 2000, I posted the link to the FEC - Federal Exchange Commission's database on political contributions. That link is dead now, but this is a new one. Use it to follow contributions and figure out who's getting what from whom. Like I said, I hate politics.

posted by Lori @ 1:43 AM 0 comments




"Edwards speaks with an accent they can all understand down there," quoth a pundit on the Charlie Rose Show tonight. What the hell does that mean? These two look like they're speaking with a lisp that the West Coast (or maybe Boston) might be able to understand *better* than Southerners. I know, I know, that's not that nice.

Still, the assumption that Southerners need someone who speaks in a particular dialect in order to get a vote is silly and offensive. If that's all it took, I'd be a rabid Bush advocate. After all, he's got that Texas vernacular-thang going on. I don't speak like Walter Cronkite either. But by that token, I hate to say I'm more in line with Cheney - "Go Fuck Yourself." I hate politics. It's froth with lies and misrepresentations. (Don't even get me *started* on poor little naive Michael Moore and his half truths!)



posted by Lori @ 12:30 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, July 06, 2004

?no circles no?
.
Whacked Flash game. I defeated it, now you figure it out. It's sort of a mind cleanser.

posted by Lori @ 8:55 PM 0 comments

The Hole

Ever just want to dig a hole and crawl inside? Well, this guy did -- for no apparent reason. Maybe it was his fat, pregnant wife - who knows? He also kills a snake that crawled into his hole and he dresses, cooks, and eats it. Not only that, he's got a deformed rib cage and mostly squats. And this guy reproduced.

posted by Lori @ 5:35 AM 0 comments

Winnebago Man

I know making industrial videos must be hard, but the Winnebego Man has issues. Just buy the *ucking thing already! (Warning: strong language and major frustration ahead.)

posted by Lori @ 2:35 AM 0 comments

Monday, July 05, 2004

The Wife Did It, I Hope.

A judge in Hollister, Missouri got more than he bargained for in his bottle of Miller Light. I always thought those plastic big-mouth bottles were a bad idea. My theory of the crime is that the wife put the "object" in the beer and sealed the carton back up. That's my theory, and I'm sticking to it. The beer was bottled in Ft. Worth, by the way. ICK!

"I was so revulsed. That moment just gels in your mind. I have no adjectives to describe how bad it was. I wanted to reach inside my body and pull my guts out and hose them off. I couldn't sleep for two nights, and then I got sick, which I attribute in part to lack of sleep."

posted by Lori @ 10:39 PM 0 comments

Friday, July 02, 2004

Ghosts in the Machines
A story from the Baltimore City Paper about what happens to people's digital assets when they die. Now that's something I never considered... cleaning up someone's digital junk after there're gone. How about a virtual garage sale... not necessary, I guess. Unless you've got eBay or PayPal accounts, etc. How do your relatives find out about that stuff? What will you bloggers' moms find out about you that they never knew? Should you have a digital will? Who would execute it? So many unanswered questions for these relatively new tools and virtual assets. After helping clean out so many closets and garages this unfortunate year, I have to ask.

posted by Lori @ 2:08 AM 0 comments