This is for the CA readers out there....

Is it me, or when you see that anti prop-76 ad that says "Prop 76 alters the CA constitution and blah blah blah and gives the governor..."

Do you also hear in your head "harrumph!"

As in: "Give the Governor Harrumph!"

Brownie points to whoever gets the reference....

Posted by: caltechgirl at 02:50 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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As many of you who are bloggers know, one of the most useful things you add to your page is a tracker that logs hits from search engines.....

Tonight I watched someone actually answer their question:"what's the f-bomb?"
(why am I NOT surprised that I am #1 for this string?)

the next search string I got hit for was: "fuckhead fuckwad fuckface"

Heh.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 09:13 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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According to Brendan, CNN is now reporting that all people being rescued are being taken to the Superdome, and since the water continues to rise, people are going to be evacuated from the Superdome soon.

Airlift of 30,000 refugees is about to commence.

The water is still rising all over NO. The cop on WWL right now sounds scared.

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Where the Hell is Hollywood?

It took maybe 5 minutes after 9/11 for all of these bleeding heart @sswipes to get on TV and try to help. They'll raise money for starving african children but not one damn dime for our own poor kids so far. It's been 24 hours. I know they're showing the NOLA devastation out here in LaLa Land on the news, so what's up, folks?

Even stars that are linked with New Orleans, the Gulfcoast, or Louisiana, are still mum on the subject. A quick perusal of their websites (these are examples) shows that no one has yet even put up a link to relief efforts.

We're watching you, Hollywood hypocrites!

If you have any examples of Hollywood folks responding to this crisis, leave the link below.....

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The story from New Orleans continues to get worse. Levees along Lake Ponchartrain are breaking and worsening the flooding in areas of the city (like the French Quarter) that were dry are filling up.....

Live coverage from WWL is back online either here or at cbsnews.com (click on the Live video link)

WWL is liveblogging the updates, the best news is here.

Brendan Loy is back up after some bandwidth issues, check out his updates (which continue to be the best on the web at The Irish Trojan or his backup site.

Thanks, Brendan for keeping us all up to date!

Of course now is the time to start helping out all of the people who lost their homes and loved ones. Go here for a list of charities mobilizing for the relief effort already. Thanks, Lee Ann.

More lists of charities are out there. Here's another comprehensive list

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Well, ok this isn't strictly a review, but here goes.

Eldest, the second book in Paolini's Inheritance trilogy just came out and I picked it up yesterday. It took me all day to finish it because the thing was Harry-Potter sized. Almost 700 pages (the book is across the room, or I'd give you the exact number.... but I distinctly remember seeing page 666...).

It's very similar in style and tone to Eragon, it's predecessor. One difference is that since much of the plot of Eldest revolves around Eragon's time in the company of elves MANY MANY new words in the ancient dialect are presented, and although there is a glossary in the back, it's kind of a pain in the ass to have to flip back and forth to figure out what's being said in some cases.

Like Eragon, Eldest is also clearly a product of a modern writer. The influence of Tolkien and Lucas remains strong. In the case of Tolkien, his influence is clear in the races of elves and dwarves, their language and culture, their interaction. Although I must say that it's kind of unnerving to read words in "elvish" that should be "dwarvish" (if you're used to Tolkien). As for the influence of George Lucas, let's just say the kid really SHOULD get out more. More on this below the fold (SPOILERS, mostly from Eragon, but key ones from Eldest, too) more...

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It's not PMS or wacky hormones. It's full on demon posession!
(h/t Michele and her demon possessor, Leonard)

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I am #2 on Yahoo! search for this.

Can't you just see some pathetic, socially challenged 12 year old looking this one up on the sly?

BTW, little man, the answer is having sex with her.......

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Why in the hell is milk so much more expensive in CA (a state known for its dairy products) than in NC (a state that makes smokes and pork)???

I mean WTF???

It is nice however that the beautiful, cheap produce MORE than makes up for it....

Posted by: caltechgirl at 11:46 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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1 It comes down to the fact that in California, all milk is controlled by the state. "Got Milk" is a catchy phrase, and created by the state. I am not sure on the specifics, but "Real California Cheese" is another one their slogans. Check out Real California Cheese. Basically, if you sell dairy products in the state, you have to pay them a fee for joint advertising costs. You can't advertise on your own. Have you ever seen an ad for Rockview farms or Adhor farms, or any other brand of milk in California? But remember, it's for the children, to make sure everyone drinks milk for healthy bones! [Notes: 1)Rockview farms is from South Gate, where I live. 2) My family does business with them by selling them hay in Nevada. ]

Posted by: Bill at August 21, 2005 07:35 AM (asZ5R)

2 I had no idea CA was a big dairy state! I only think of northern and central/eastern states as such. Go figure.

Posted by: Jay at August 21, 2005 09:01 AM (l4+Wd)

3 well, I have seen many, many Producers Dairy commercials in Fresno, even recently, but certainly fewer now than before. What a freaking racket.

Posted by: caltechgirl at August 21, 2005 11:07 AM (H5rmO)

4 Remember, "Happy cows come from California". Most CA dairies are big, industrial sized operations, on the order of several thousand head per dairy. Yet, they are mostly privately owned (so far as I know). So you have less of the population running the dairy, per cow, than we do back east. Also, we tend to keep them out in the boonies of the Central Valley, or in places like Chino (though that is almost completely nondairy now). The dairymen's real money doesn't come from selling dairy product, it comes from selling the land the dairy was on, when homes are going to be built on it. Then they move further out, and repeat. The limiting factor in this is the distance and time to transport raw milk to the processing facilities (usually where the dairy started 50 years ago or whenever). In Rockview's case, the dairy is in southern Nevada ( 3 milking barns, each 2500 milking head or so), just under 300 miles from their processing plant in South Gate. They send 2 milk trucks every 12 hours from NV to CA. Their milk trucks are not refrigerated, they rely on the thermal insulation of the container to keep the milk cold. I think it goes into the truck at 38 degrees, and when the trip is finished, it's up to 42. Of course, in summer this means they have to time their trips just right. But even though their cows are in NV, they still get to pay the CA "Happy Cow" tax.

Posted by: Bill at August 21, 2005 11:28 AM (asZ5R)

5 I believe we're the largest producer of 'fluid milk' in the nation. At least according to what I read we are. We're very much an ag state, as much as some of my east coast friends refuse to believe it's not one big Los Angeles/San Francisco I have such a tour planned for them! Here's a few 'Ca Milk Cartel" links one two three

Posted by: Ith at August 21, 2005 12:47 PM (IxRYn)

6 How much is milk in CA? I think it's $1.50/gallon on sale here in NY.

Posted by: Marie at August 22, 2005 07:51 AM (410kz)

7 Until recently, milk prices were regulated based on the distance from Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The grocery stores also gauge on milk. Most stores charge less to buy two gallons of milk. You can also find cheaper milk at non-grocery stores if it is worth your time. The little corner market used to charge less for a single gallon than the big grocery stores. And the "happy cows" is bull. The best tasting cheese and milk comes from Wisconsin.

Posted by: TDM at August 22, 2005 05:14 PM (NrFjI)

8 A couple of things: 1.) Gas probably factors into the cost of milk in CA. As does the increased costs from CA's unique rules and regulations. 2.) Yes, I suspect most cows come from super-industrial sized operations. Anyone who has driven on Interstate 5 past Coalinga know how nasty those can be. But there are a bunch of "Happy Cow" like farms sprinkled through the Central and North coasts. Marin and Sonoma Counties in particular have a bunch of these, especially the organic farms. When I drive up to volunteer at Bodega Marine lab, I drive through the Petaluma dairy country, where a cow's life doesn't seem so bad. I'll have to take some pics the next time I go.

Posted by: Ben at August 22, 2005 08:25 PM (NIpoo)

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I reset the timestamp for the blog to Pacific time.....

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Wanna be killed by Zombies in a new Stephen King novel (or appear in a novel by one of 15 other major authors)? Then check this out. (h/t the lovely Margi)

The 1st anniversary Carnival of the Recipes is at the home of SWWBO, the creator of CotR. Unless I hear otherwise, I believe the Carnival moves here next week, so get those recipes in early!

If you're in the mood for some cheesy fun this weekend, Acidman has a list of some great B movies you should check out (I particularly like Evil Dead II and Rocky Horror om that list)

That's it for now.

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Never let it be said that the Barenaked Ladies are anything other than lyrical geniuses. Also, perhaps Canada's best export after Hockey.

Their song, Never is Enough fits me to a tee these days. Especially the end of verse 4:

You get your ph.d.
How happy you will be
When you get a job at WendyÂ’s
And are honored with employee of the month

Anybody know anyone who wants to hire a freshly minted PhD with some actual skills?

Posted by: caltechgirl at 03:54 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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but Communism is no picnic.

This:

"Cuba is not a bad place. You Right Wing "Christians" think that everyone should have a "Father Knows Best" lifestyle and live the "American Dream". Communism when governed properly helps keep people from doing what Enron did. Without Capitalism, Bush would not be killing innocent people in Iraq. There would have been no slavery in America. There would be no sweatshops. There would be no more street gangs. The Mafia would not exist. Capitalism results in greedy people killing and enslaving people and polluting the environment."

was posted here earlier today. Anyone else want to explain exactly what is so great about cagastro's Cuba that people are willing to risk their lives every day to literally swim 90 miles to come to the US?

Not to mention that this is a circular argument. Communism by definition doesn't need to be governed. If everyone is equal, no one is more equal than anyone else, right?

Ok, so I am Right Wing. And I am a Christian. So what? Does that make me any better or worse than you? I don't think so. But don't pigeonhole me. As for what I think about lifestyles see here.

As for Iraq, when did Bush take a gun over there and kill people? Maybe that fake turkey gave some people food poisoning, but let's call a spade a spade shall we? The majority of innocent people dying in Iraq right now are young American men and women who are trying to rebuild what 30+ years of despotism has ruined. The majority of deaths that have occurred in the months that we've been in Iraq have been caused by non-Iraqi terrorists, people who are trying to disrupt the peace that the Coalition is trying to provide for the people of Iraq.

Now, as to your misguided theories on Capitalism. First of all, the Mafia existed long before Adam Smith, and it has nothing to do with money and everything to do with Power. Street Gangs aren't about money, they're about protection and power. Iraq isn't about money. If it was, gas prices would be at an all time low.

See, your problem really isn't with President Bush, or Enron, or the Mafia. It's with what you view as the inequitable distribution of power in the world, and I hate to say it, but money and power go together see, they're a matched set. And frankly as long as money and power exist, they will be distributed inequitably simply because there will always be someone who is dissatisfied with their share. That's sometimes called greed, but it's also called ambition.

Which brings me to the American Dream. The American Dream is simply an ambition to enjoy the better things that more education and more money can give you. I don't have a problem with that. Either you do, or you have a serious lack of ambition.

Finally, you're right you know. Cuba isn't a bad place. It's a beautiful place with extraordinarily loving and giving people with a rich heritage and ambition for themselves and their children. Cuba is great, castro and his regime are bad.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 12:11 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Stolen from fellow MuNu and BFL'er Mad Mikey:

If you consider that there have been an average of 160,000 troops in the Iraq theater of operations during the last 22 months, and a total of about 2,000 deaths, that gives a firearm death rate of 60 per 100,000.

The rate in Washington D.C. is 80.6 per 100,000.

That means that you are about 25% more likely to be shot and killed in our Nation's Capitol, which has some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation, than you are in Iraq.

Conclusion: We should immediately pull out of Washington D.C.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 04:11 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Ok, so I in fact finished the book at 5pm on Saturday (I read pretty fast).

Short non-spoiler version: It's good. A cliffhanger, but better than #5.

Spoiler version below the fold more...

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As if I needed another reason to be off the computer.... Light posting until the mystery of the Half-Blood Prince is revealed.....

Oh, yeah and tonight is my 10 year HS reunion.... maybe I'll post some pictures.

Finally, DH needs all your good wishes and thoughts as he sits for his CSET exam so he can actually get a teaching job here in CA......

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I'm ok. GMT is ok. Princess is ok. We're just recuperating from the trip and suffering a massive case of the blahs. Not to mention that things are a little disjointed since this is not our house and the majority of our stuff is somewhere in NC waiting to go on the truck...

Trying to help my friend get her wedding together (it's on the 30th) and find a house to live in. The one we wanted looks like it isn't going to work out, although it would be perfect for us....

Once life gets a little more back to normal (aka moved in to our own place) blogging will resume in earnest. Really. I swear.

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Let it never be said that I mince words:

Chicago Sucks!

It took us 2 and a half hours to get from the toll road entrance in Gary, IN to Elgin, IL.

Arrgh. I suppose there was some consolation. The weather was in the mid-70's, sunny, and breezy, so when we were stopped in traffic we had the windows rolled down and had such a nice breeze. Also, western WI is just beautiful, except that whole tourist-trap-waterparks-and-casinos part in the Wisconsin Dells.

The Princess is doing well, and today she even seemed comfortable in the car, but how much of that is actual comfort and how much of that is the sedatives is not clear...

For those of you keeping track, today was OH, IN, IL, and WI. We're 2 miles from MN, which will be first thing tomorrow.

Oh yeah, and I had ACTUAL White Castle sliders for the first time (as in not pre-frozen) last night for dinner.

Tonight was chicken tenders salad and ice cream at Perkin's courtesy of this gentleman. Thanks, Paul!

Today's funny:
I don't think I would patronize this particular establishment.... Not sure exactly what goes on there.....

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:07 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I don't know how many of you this affects, but it pissed me off ROYAL, so I thought I'd share.

A certain large, national pet chain (one that thinks you're sMart if you shop there) will shortly cease to carry Iams and Eukanuba products for dogs and cats. According to the regional operations manager, who we actually spoke with yesterday in the store, they are switching to Science Diet products exclusively.

While this is fine for their business, and Science Diet is a fine product, the makers of Science Diet DO NOT make a large variety of prescription dog foods. Until last week, the sMart store was the ONLY place I could pick up Eukanuba K/O Kangaroo and Oat allergy formula dog food. Now, they no longer stock it. Arrgh. How the bloody f*ck am I supposed to feed my dog without her getting sick, huh?

Oh well, here's hoping the food will be available SOMEWHERE in LA without having to buy it from a vet....

Anyway, I realize that I may be the only reader of this blog who feeds her dog a prescription food, but nonetheless, some of you may purchase regular Iams/Eukanuba products there, so I wanted to pass along the heads up.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 09:14 AM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
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1 According to Froogle, there are a few places that may carry it. Some of those are *sMart* (shop smart! shop Smart), but there are enough that are not, that you should be able to find something. edit: your blog won't let me link to google! " Your comment submission failed for the following reasons: Your comment could not be submitted due to questionable content: google. com Please correct the error in the form below, then press Post to post your comment." Even editing the link slightly, removing the http, adding spaces between local. and google. didn't work.... so just try local.google, type in the dog food of your choice, and the city where you'll be living....

Posted by: Bill at June 28, 2005 09:25 AM (y2i9F)

2 The Eukanuba site allows you to search your zip code for places to buy their products (in the Products menu, see 'where to buy'). You might have to call to see if they have that specific formula in the location you want but hopefully that will keep you from running all over looking for it. Could see if a vet recommends a different allergy formula from a more available company too...

Posted by: Princess Cat at June 28, 2005 01:40 PM (qha9N)

3 I'll check with my Sis. She buys her dog food from some place on-line. Her dogs also require special foods. I'll get back with you in a day or two.

Posted by: vw bug at June 28, 2005 02:17 PM (/8HxP)

4 Petco.

Posted by: Margi at June 28, 2005 03:01 PM (nwEQH)

5 No one here carries the food I feed my cat, so I have it shipped from Epetpals.com. They're reputable, and I've been a customer for years. They're great at trying to get specific products for you. They had a real store here, but it went out of business. So they ship from their Aptos store. Even with the shipping, it's cheaper for me to buy the litter I use from them, than to pay the rip off prices of our local chain store.

Posted by: Ith at June 28, 2005 03:22 PM (/Kiii)

6 If you run out of options, let me know. Iams sponsors my cat club's show every year. I can go through our contacts there if all else fails.

Posted by: Omnibus Driver at June 28, 2005 03:35 PM (6VG2d)

7 I hope this helps you out a bit. http://www.petrx.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=1

Posted by: Cliff at June 28, 2005 10:00 PM (aCv//)

8 I've fixed the problem with linking to Google. It was in our Blacklist, probably because a spammer included a link to Google just to be annoying.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at June 29, 2005 05:53 AM (+S1Ft)

9 My parents used to feed their dog prescription dog food before it died. They ended up having to get theirs from a vet.

Posted by: Contagion at June 29, 2005 08:54 AM (Q5WxB)

10 My son's canine is allergic to corn and soy; corn is a primary ingredient in most dry dogfoods. There are a few brands out there which don't make her itch and all are of course expensive. Fortunately we live on the poor side of town, where groceries sell chicken necks and such so a sack of dry food lasts a long time.

Posted by: triticale at June 30, 2005 07:04 AM (xfgdj)

11 Working in the pet supply business I might be able to offer some advice. Yeah, a lot of dog foods are full of corn. Corn is junk for dogs. They can't process corn. It does nothing for them and just ends up in your back yard. And...becuase it goes right through them they're hungry twice as fast so you go through more food. (Their intent probably) Eukanuba is one of the worst for being full of corn. Recommended foods for dogs with allergies...Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance -Duck and Potato. #1 allergy food we sell. Nutro also makes an allergy food. Science Diet prescription stuff is OK but their "regular" food is also full of corn. Nature's Recipe is another food with no corn and no "chicken by-product" which translates into beaks, feet and left over bits they couldn't use for anything else. Good luck.

Posted by: Koolaid at July 01, 2005 02:25 PM (nwEQH)

12 Not true. Petsmart will continue carrying Iams, Eukanuba and a host of other brands. Can you imagine one of those big stores filled with nothing but one brand? Not likely.

Posted by: PetVet at July 02, 2005 11:11 AM (/GhEH)

13 My dogs eat normal food. The cats? Not so much. Two of them suffer from urinary tract problems, which usually necessitates prescription food. I did discover that one type of IAMS cat food works just as well. Bummer that PetsTUPID has made this decision. I have no problem with Science Diet, but I'm not willing to switch from a food that I know works. Fortunately, I have options when it comes to places to purchase pet food.

Posted by: physics geek at July 06, 2005 04:38 PM (Xvrs7)

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It's no secret we're moving. Here's the schedule:

Today: go to my office, clean out my desk, remove my toys and posters (picture to follow so you understand), print out what I hope is the final version of my thesis so I can take it in to the Grad school tomorrow to get it measured (DON'T ASK). Feed my friend's cat. Keep packing. Call in Dog's prescription

Monday: take dissertation to be measured. Make any changes, clarify requirements for printing (# copies, etc.). print on fancy paper. Turn in dissertation and all the paperwork to the grad school. Photocopy grades for Jennie, campus mail them to her. Keep Packing. Get rental application for new house from FAX machine (yay!), fill out application, return to sender, otherwise call her and figure out another way to get it... Keep Packing. Take bookcases, desk, garden/patio stuff to friend's house. Feed friend's cat. Go to costco, ask about transferring prescriptions to CA. Pick up dog's pills. Put in MY prescriptions. Keep packing. DH needs to call JSC and Moving company. Call to get cable/phone/power/water off or switched. Put change of address cards in mail.

Tuesday: dog to groomer. Keep Packing. Go to work. Finish up there. Say goodbye. Come home. Keep packing. Movers come tomorrow. Keep packing. Keep dumping. Pick up my pills. Feed Cat.

Wednesday: Movers take my furniture. Mom and Dad to Hotel. Load Car. Get rid of extra crap. Clean house. We go to friend's house. maybe sleep. Feed Cat.

Thursday: Mom and Dad to airport. Friend returns. Meet with current landlord to return keys and pick up a check.

Friday: Hitting the road with dog for parts unknown. Blogging will be light to non-existent.

Back on the 7th. For those of you I emailed, I will be checking, just not blogging

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