How to tell I was raised a produce broker's daughter?  When someone starts talking about kooks and pinks, I think they're talking about cucumbers and tomatoes (not Democrats).

(Of course, that would actually be kukes and pinks, but it sounds the same.) 

From CNN News (Lake Jackson)

Tammy Jean Warner has been indicted by the Lake Jackson DA for criminally negligent homicide for giving her husband, Michael Warner, two large bottles of sherry via an enema.  Mr. Warner, who had an alcohol problem, could not drink the sherry in a normal manner due to a throat condition.

The sherry raised his blood alcohol to 0.47, nearly six times the Texas legal limit.  Mrs. Warner has also been indicted for burning her husband's will about one month prior to his death from alcohol poisoning.

From The Facts (story about Alvin)

Brazoria County residents along Highway 6 from Galveston County to Manvel are very worried about a 36" natural gas pipeline that will run along Highway 6, and only be buried 3 feet down.  This 40 mile long pipeline will carry natural gas at pressures of 800 to 900 pounds along it's length.  Residents are naturally worried, since pipeline accidents are bound to happen with such a large pipe being so close to the surface.

Some residents are worried because the government is going to allow BP to use eminent domain to buy properties along the route of the pipeline.

Per the Houston Chronicle, a special red-neck edition of the Gamera** movie Gamera: Attack of the Legion* is being re-released with additional footage as "Lake Texarkana Gamera" (apparently working title, as the poster below shows, the final title appears to be "Gamera: Attack of Legion, The Red Neck Version".)

Gamera, the day after a visit to Taco Bell (from Stomp Toyoko)

Gamera: Attack of Legion (red-neck verison) to be released 2/3/05 at Rice Media Center

Houston based ADV Films, famous for it's anime subbing and dubbing, is releasing this update at the Rice Media Center.  Kyle Jones, the dubbing director for ADV Films, directed the "short" which was on the DVD, but not inserted into the film on the DVD version.

Originally a 12-minute version appeared on the DVDs, for fear of offending Japanese or serious kaiju (monster movie) fans. But the Japanese liked the idea and asked for more. For the latest release, Jones and cast took their time and did the entire movie Texas-style, with commercials for redneck stores, banjo music for the march of the insect army, TV newsmen with names like Booger and plenty of scatological humor.

Yeah, right folks.  Kaiju fans can't take it?  Let's get real here folks, kaiju fans completely understand campiness.  That comes with the territory. 

The "Texans" all looked like they just walked out of a sushi bar in Osaka, as expected.  

* Both Stomp Toyoko and Shrine of Gamera list this movie as "Gamera: Advent of the Legion".  This is probably a translation difference, or it may be that the original title was not 'catchy' enough so it was changed for the re-release.

** All kaiju movie posts show up under Godzilla Sightings because if I had to do a seperate category for each kaiju, it would take over this blog....

From the News-Statesman Journal, a story about cackling Canadian geese literally falling out of the sky and dying.  In one instance, 150 geese were found dead at a small private lake.

I spent an hour this morning writing a post that included why I think PETA has gone off course (and where I admire them, though that is sort of just tucked in).  Now comes a story via Yahoo about a PETA person in England who is auctioning off a lizard tattoo on eBay--and her skin, which is underneath it.  Ingrid Newkirk says:

 "Euphemisms like 'leather' and 'meat' help mask the cruelty that goes into stealing and slaughtering for clothing, trinkets and taste ... It may be uncomfortable to contemplate, but we're all flesh and blood."

Well no duh.  That's why when we go to the grocery store, I ask the kids if they want dead cow, dead pig, or dead chickens.  They definitely prefer dead cow.  (My oldest really hates dead sheep and dead goats.  Too musky, I guess.)  As my kids have said, better to eat dead cows than to gnaw on living ones.

Of course, Ms. Newkirk is making it sound like people are mindless blood sucking wolverine monsters, ripping the guts out of poor defenseless little cows.  I would love to see this idiot in a corral with Cordelia's mom.  That old mom cow would take her apart.  The cows on my parents' place are anything but defenseless dumb animals.

After the dumb little statement about "stealing and slaughtering", Yahoo reports that whoever wins the lizard tattoo will have to wait until after Ms. Newkirk dies to get the skin. 

Well heavens, where's the fun in that?  I thought humans were automatic butchery machines, with only blood and guts on the mind.  Oh wait a minute...under normal processing procedures, livestock aren't skinned until they are dead....hmmm...if she dies a long time from now, I guess when they process her, she might be good for stew meat....but that skin, well, from an old cow like her, it would probably be weak and fragile--like her mind.

Ron and I are on vacation in Austin.  We drove up here after dark in his little Z-car, through cold, thunderstorms, strong winds, and rain.  We hydroplaned twice, and the wind was so strong it was pushing the little car all over the road.  The electrical system in his little car is messed up, so the only heat is from the defroster, and it barely blows.  I sure was happy to have that heavy leather motorcycle jacket Ron bought at the DAV Thrift Shop for $6 (the one that has a zip out liner of black dyed New Zealand opossum fur--this coat was made for serious riding).  I found out there is a small leak above the windshield; I found out by cold water dropping into my lap....

We had to wait until much later in the day than we wanted because even though Ron is on vacation, he still had to go in and do the order and the schedule.  On the way up here, he talked about his job and if he is leaving it.  He is still in decision mode; does he stay or does he go?  One minute he wants to stay and fight it out, the next he says f*ck'em.  The next few days will decide for him what he wants to do.

He was so tired from having to work and then drive up here, that we get to the suite, and he falls asleep.  The first time in over a year that we have had off together, and he falls asleep.  Oh well.  I am used to him being exhausted.  He'll feel better in the morning.

By the way, I am not in the least ashamed of having a New Zealand opossum fur lined coat.  Opossums were introduced into the wild in New Zealand, and are doing damage to the environment and out competing native species like the kiwi.  Since 1947, the government of New Zealand has listed them as a "pest" species.  Until PETA started it's anti-fur campaign, the price of the pelts helped keep some populations under control.  Then the price of all pelts of all species of every fur bearer crashed in the late 1980's due to PETA's campaign.  Now New Zealand is having problems controlling the pests because the only people who want the opossums are a few hunters.  Way to go PETA!  Save a pest and destroy the environment!  What a bunch of losers.  (The same problem is happening in the US with beavers, opossums, deer, bear, etc.  No market for pelts, people protesting needed management hunts, and homes and property being damaged due to wildlife.)

Most people who know me, know I love animals.  In fact, my subtitle for this blog was supposed to be "Of course some of my best friends have fleas."  However, I thought that might be a bit insulting to my human friends.

 It is very, very obvious that people who campaign for things like eating less beef or don't wear fur or whatever destroy the economic value of the animals in question.  When that happens, people quit breeding the animals.  Many breeds of cattle and horses have been lost because people can't provide a living to animals who don't provide a living back.  This does not serve the animals in the least.  (Many fur bearers were actually ranch and farm raised.)

The immediate effect is the destruction of breeding age animals.  The long term effect is to destroy entire agricultural industries, most often family farms and ranchs, who depend upon their livestock for a good portion of their income.  These animals receive no benefit from organizations like PETA.  PETA's actions result in the animals being dead, without the opportunity of passing on their genes.

PETA was originally an organization formed to protest vivisection.  This is an admirable project; personally, if I caught someone cutting up a dog or cat in a non-surgical procedure without painkillers, I would have to fight the urge to try vivisection on that person just to see how they like it.  (The c-section I had for Alyssa was done without painkillers.  I know what it is like to be eviserated.  It is not something that I can describe.)  PETA has done good work showing abuses in packing plants (the chicken stomping episode was horribly disgusting to me).  However, I cannot believe that if proper, safe, sane, humane, and quick methods are used, that animals should not be processed.

Sorry this is such a long post.  I can't sleep.  Silly me, I forgot my fan.

Having never been the victim of DoS attack before, I have had a real education today.  First item up; IP's of obnoxious people are blocked if they can't handle a reponse to their obnoxious comments.  Secondly, no more anonymous comments.  "Logging In" is logging in to Blogware, similar to logging in to Blogger, etc. 

I had to delete an entire post and it's comments due to the nasty behavior of someone who apparently didn't like my response (I promise--I didn't cuss at them, I swear!) to their nasty comment.  Five minutes after my response, my little website crashed and I couldn't pull it back up.  I had to call the network admin, who was wonderful. First, I asked him if I had violated the TOS.  He laughed and said no, my site is very mild compared to most. He looked at the site, and said that one page in particular was using all of my available bandwidth (the page of the aforementioned post).  He first suggested pulling that page (which I did, reluctantly), and then he walked me through comment banning the IP of the offending person (who is from Conyers, Georgia, IP 209.214.228.51 hint, hint, clue, clue).

My oldest, Jessica, who also posts here, is very angry because the person came through her website to get to mine.  She feels guilty about it, but it isn't her fault.  She was very upset when I showed her the traffic report, where the IP came from.  She is off blocking someone from her website, defriending them (whatever that is, I don't do livejournal), and whoever you are in Conyers, Georgia---be very happy.  I think she would be delinking you about now....from your outlying appendages.... 

When I said this is my family website, it is exactly that--my family, warts and all.  We are not a PG rated family (in fact, I don't know any PG rated families, not really).  My youngest is 17, my oldest is 23, and my kids are old enough and strong enough to handle anything I might say. (My husband, on the other hand, might not be...) Please feel free to visit my site, leave comments, laugh at the funny pictures, feel superior, or just what ever floats your boat. Just don't expect me to lie to make you feel comfortable; sorry folks, life just isn't comfortable.

Per AOL News, a circus worker was trampled to death on Monday in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Three workers had loaded the elephant into a trailer, two left and the last one was supposed to lock the trailer.  Instead, he was trampled. 

Captive elephants from 1990 to 2003 killed 65 people and injured 130, according to Circuses.com.

 

In Germany, women who are unemployed can be forced to become prostitutes or lose their unemployment benefits.  Forced sex is rape.  Germany is now a country of rapists; I hope their better ethical sense prevails and removes this rape law immediately.