No Spice....
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Oh the travesty, what will we do now? The Spice Girls have been bumped from the Live 8 concert due to their non serious/political message. Only real musicians need apply. Now I understand and agree with this, it still sucks for the girls who need a royality kick start and this would help big time. Oh well, it was a fun few days thinking of a reunion and seeing posh spice up on stage again. Instead we have Dave Matthews who sings about eating too much, drinking too much, Robbie Williams who rips his skin off in a rollerskating rink and Eminem who sings about killing, well everyone. Oasis on the other hand are in discussions to play the Who's "My Generation", Sting "Every Breath You Take" and Paul McCartney to sing, what a suprise a Beatles song.
Getting back to the "Serious" musicians, I just scanned the article and saw a few more names that fit this label. We have Outkast, Destiny's Child and Linkin Park which I find funny seeing that Destiny's Child are pretty much in the same vein as the Spice Girls. I tell ya, no love for Posh, this is what its all about, she is getting the shaft for some unknown reason. I plan on getting to the bottom of this, its not fair that Posh doesn't get her chance back in the spotlight.
Posted by mardenhill 5/31/2005 08:56:00 AM 1 comments
Why I Love My iPod
Saturday, May 28, 2005
This morning I was doing some yardwork and scrolled thru my ipod for something different to listen to. I came across Lush-Spooky and started listening. This took me back to the mid 90s during the reign of Brit Rock. The best part of the cd is that its part shoegazer and part rock. It has all the droning guitars, wall of sound and "lush" vocals that made them so good but they also interjected in a bit of rock to keep the cd from boring you out. Once you hear Miki's vocals, you will be in love again, she had the perfect voice for this, whispering enough but not too thin and weak like the Cocteau Twins and others from that era. Don't get me wrong, the Cocteau Twins are good but they are a different animal all together. Everyone loves Slowdive and for good reason but Miki's vocals blow away that chicks anyday.
So I decided to make a posting raving about Lush for all of you to read, I even put on Spooky while I was typing. Going back to Split, the song Hyprocrite will make you a fan if you have never heard of Lush, its rockin enough to get you interested and both Emma's and Miki's vocals will keep you listening. The whole cd bounces back and forth between wall of sound and melodies with perfection. On Spooky its traditional shoegazer style, depending on your mood may not get you to the best track "For Love" which is number 6. This song represents the best of the shoegazer style, good bass line with the jangling guitars and whispering vocals followed up with the wall of sound keyboards. A bit of pop to keep your head bobbing but a big enough sound to engulf you in a swirling haze.
Well gotta run, but if you get a chance pull out some Lush and take yourself back a decade to one of the best eras of music.
Posted by mardenhill 5/28/2005 10:50:00 AM 2 comments
Sign the Petition against Bush
Friday, May 27, 2005
Please go to the website below and sign the petition for Congressman John Conyers regardinf the Downing Steet Memo. This is just the beginning to get Bush impeached over Iraq. You will receive an email after you fill this out that you have to reply to so don't forget that.
http://www.johnconyers.campaignoffice.com/index.asp?Type=SUPERFORMS&SEC={0F1B03E0-080B-4100-B143-36A5985EF1E3}
Letter to Pres Bush Concerning "Downing Street Memo"
The Honorable George W. BushPresident of the United States of America1600 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W.Washington, D.C. 20005
Dear Mr. President:
We the undersigned write to you because of our concern regarding recent disclosures of a “Downing Street Memo” in the London Times, comprising the minutes of a meeting of Prime Minister Tony Blair and his top advisers. These minutes indicate that the United States and Great Britain agreed to by the summer of 2002 to attack Iraq, well before the invasion and before you even sought Congressional authority to engage in military action, and that U.S. officials were deliberately manipulating intelligence to justify the war.
Among other things, the British government document quotes a high-ranking British official as stating that by July, 2002, “Bush had made up his mind to take military action.” Yet, a month later, the you stated you were still willing to “look at all options” and that there was “no timetable” for war. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, flatly stated that “[t]he president has made no such determination that we should go to war with Iraq.”
In addition, the origins of the false contention that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction remains a serious and lingering question about the lead up to the war. There is an ongoing debate about whether this was the result of a “massive intelligence failure,” in other words a mistake, or the result of intentional and deliberate manipulation of intelligence to justify the case for war. The memo appears to resolve that debate as well, quoting the head of British intelligence as indicating that in the United States “the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy.”
As a result of these concerns, we would ask that you respond to the following questions: 1) Do you or anyone in your administration dispute the accuracy of the leaked document? 2) Were arrangements being made, including the recruitment of allies, before you sought Congressional authorization to go to war? Did you or anyone in your Administration obtain Britain’’s commitment to invade prior to this time?3) Was there an effort to create an ultimatum about weapons inspectors in order to help with the justification for the war as the minutes indicate?4)
At what point in time did you and Prime Minister Blair first agree it was necessary to invade Iraq?5) Was there a coordinated effort with the U.S. intelligence community and/or British officials to “fix” the intelligence and facts around the policy as the leaked document states?
These are the same questions 89 Members of Congress, led by Rep. John Conyers, Jr., submitted to you on May 5, 2005. As citizens and taxpayers, we believe it is imperative that our people be able to trust our government and our commander in chief when you make representations and statements regarding our nation engaging in war. As a result, we would ask that you publicly respond to these questions as promptly as possible.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Posted by mardenhill 5/27/2005 09:49:00 PM 2 comments
Spice It Up.....
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Say It Aint So. This could be the biggest news this year so far, the Spire Girls reunion!! Just think Posh, Scary, Baby, Sporty and Ginger all togher on the same stage. The biggest girl and ever and some of the sexiest. Well OK, Posh was the only good looking one and their music sucked but hey seeing Posh perform again is worth it. Back in my college days when my friend Aaron and I had our Brit Rock radio show, we used to debate and talk about the Spice Girls well before they hit the states. Thanks to NME, Q and MoJo we learned plenty about what was soon to hit the US shores in a few months time. I would like to thank Rick for sending me this link, he was another fan of the band and is just as excited as I am.
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- The Spice Girls are being courted to perform together for the first time since singer Geri Halliwell walked out in 1998, charity concert organizers said on Thursday.
Charity Band Aid said it hoped the chart-topping quintet would appear at a new Live Aid concert, aiming to repeat the success of the 1985 event which raised over $100 million for African famine relief.
"We are in discussions with the Spice Girls to perform at Live Aid II if it happens," a Band Aid spokesman said.
Other headlining groups the charity hopes will appear include Britpop band Oasis and Irish stadium rockers U2.
"We are talking to every act that ever picked up a guitar or sang into a microphone," the spokesman said.
Details of the concert are due to be announced on Tuesday.
Media reports have said the concert could be held in London's Hyde Park to coincide with a July summit in Scotland of the Group of Eight leading industrial nations as a way of pressuring world leaders to act on global poverty.
The first Live Aid concert was held at Wembley Stadium in London with a line-up including U2, Queen, Paul McCartney and David Bowie.
The event was organized by former Boomtown Rats singer Bob Geldof, who has become a leading advocate for global poverty relief and is behind the plans for a second concert.
Since the Spice Girls finally split in 2001 its members -- Halliwell, Victoria Beckham, Mel Chisholm, Mel Brown and Emma Bunton -- have embarked on solo careers with varying degrees of success.
None has managed to recreate the stardom they enjoyed during the late 1990s when the Spice Girls scored nine number one hits in the UK including "Wannabe," "Say You'll Be There" and "Spice Up Your Life."
A spokesman for Victoria Beckham declined to comment on the possible reunion.
But he added that all five band members were in contact with their former manager Simon Fuller, the creator of the popular television talent shows "Pop Idol" and "American Idol."
Posted by mardenhill 5/26/2005 08:29:00 PM 2 comments
iGuy
http://www.speckproducts.com/IGUY/
Just what everyone needs, a poseable, bendy ipod case. But there are uses for it, a place to hang your headphones or keys and a toy during those boring conference calls.
Posted by mardenhill 5/26/2005 02:53:00 PM 2 comments
Michigan Wine Update
Courtesy of www.fermentations.typepad.com . This isn't perfect but its a start. There seems to be a lot of hurdles for small boutique vineyards that may keep them from shipping to Michigan. I am just glad there is a plan put forth to compete with the wine distributers and their total monoply over the product. June 16th is the sweet date we need to remember, this is 30 days after the Supreme Court ruling and when states have to decide what they plan on doing. Hopefully we will be celebrating come this date.
"Draft Law" Allowing Mich. Wine Shipping in Works
Crain's Detroit Business Journal reports that a Draft Bill has been prepared by WineMichigan, a new association of Michigan wineries that has formed quite recently. The bill seems quite reasonable on its face and is described as follows:
"WineMichigan proposes legislation that would allow out-of-state and in-state wineries to direct ship, with limits. Under a draft bill, non-Michigan wineries would have to apply for a state permit, similar to the license that in-state wineries hold. Out-of-state wineries would have to agree to abide by all Michigan laws and regulations, including collecting applicable taxes and remitting them to the state and keeping their records on file and available for state audit at any time, (Donald) Coe said.
"The bill would limit the amount of wine an in-state or out-of-state winery could sell to an individual, and would also restrict the total amount one winery could ship in the state. As proposed, a winery could sell two cases of 12, 750-milliliter bottles a month to a consumer, and could sell no more than 50,000 gallons in all of Michigan. "
It's looking more and more like the Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers and their advocate-in-office Nida Samona are facing stiff competition in their quest to kill Michigan wineries by banning all direct shipping."
Posted by mardenhill 5/26/2005 11:50:00 AM 2 comments
Stem Cell Veto
Its interesting to see the Whitehouse threatening the stem cell bill with a Veto if it makes it to their desk, they are just proving the point that they are controlled by the american taliban and refuse to listen to the american public. Lets disect this stem cell bill, the leftover embryos will be destroyed anyways, does this equate murder? In some people's eyes it does. What do we do then? Farm them out to willing families for adoption? I think we have enough children in fostercare that need adoption, not this embryo shopping people like to speak of. How about the potential of job creation, I thought Bush likes jobs, but I guess not unless they are low paying Walmart jobs that pad his numbers. The other day on CNN an emailer had the best idea, let anyone who does not support stem cell research sign a wavier exempting them from any treatments that could come from this research.
Senator Arlen Specter, the Pennsylvania Republican and chief sponsor of a bill to expand federal financing for human embryonic stem cell research, issued a stark challenge to President Bush on Wednesday, saying he had enough votes in the Senate to override a presidential veto of the measure.
"I don't like veto threats, and I don't like statements about overriding veto threats," Mr. Specter said, speaking at a news conference where the House backers of the measure presented him the legislation, which passed the House on Tuesday, topped with a red bow."But if a veto threat is going to come from the White House, then the response from the Congress is to override the veto, if we can," Mr. Specter added.
"Last year we had a letter signed by some 58 senators, and we had about 20 more in the wings. I think if it really comes down to a showdown, we will have enough in the United States Senate to override a veto."'http://tinyurl.com/9r785
Posted by mardenhill 5/26/2005 09:51:00 AM 2 comments
Thomas vs McClellan
For those of you who do not know who Helen Thomas is, she is the reporter that Ann Coulter likes to refer as "the old arab". Helen has been around since the beginning of time and is a very liberal whitehouse reporter who this administration does not like to give face time to. As you can see below, this is why.
Helen Thomas-Gets Scotty
Q The other day -- in fact, this week, you said that we, the United States, is in Afghanistan and Iraq by invitation. Would you like to correct that incredible distortion of American history --
MR. McCLELLAN: No, we are -- that's where we currently --
Q -- in view of your credibility is already mired? How can you say that?
MR. McCLELLAN: Helen, I think everyone in this room knows that you're taking that comment out of context. There are two democratically-elected governments in Iraq and --
Q We're we invited into Iraq?
MR. McCLELLAN: There are two democratically-elected governments now in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments, and we are there today --
Q You mean if they had asked us out, that we would have left?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, Helen, I'm talking about today. We are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments --
Q I'm talking about today, too.
MR. McCLELLAN: -- and we are doing all we can to train and equip their security forces so that they can provide for their own security as they move forward on a free and democratic future.
Q Did we invade those countries?
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead, Steve.
Posted by mardenhill 5/26/2005 09:25:00 AM 2 comments
A DEAL HAS BEEN MADE!!!!!!!!
Monday, May 23, 2005
FRIST HAS BEEN BEATEN!!!!! DEMOCRACY HAS FINALLY SEEN THE LIGHT OF DAY. The Dems has 49 votes earlier today and who's to say they didn't have the 51 to overcome the nuclear option. I like to think we did but we will probably never know. The good news tho, Frist will not be running come 08 or at least have the religious right/american taliban support. This is a giant blow to Dobson and co who pushed this admin into the Shavio and Judicial fiasco. Dobson loses big time here, he wanted this and now he lost. He will try to spin this but even on his own website he called for no compromise. I am not sure what is better to see Frist or Dobson beat on this one. I have to say 2005 has been a good year for the dems, the repubs have shot themselves in the foot over and over and I think people are starting to see the overreach here and abuse of power. Next stop, Tom Delay.
Under the terms, Democrats would agree to oppose any attempt to filibuster - and thus block final votes - on the confirmation of Priscilla Owen, Janice Rogers Brown and William Pryor. There is "no commitment to vote for or against" the filibuster against two other conservative nominees, Henry Saad and William Myers.
As for future nominees, the agreement said they should "only be filibustered under extraordinary circumstances," with each Democrat senator holding the discretion to decide when those conditions had been met.
"In light of the spirit and continuing commitments made in this agreement," Republicans said they would oppose any attempt to make changes in the application of filibuster rules.
Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada welcomed the agreement - although he hastened to say he remains opposed to some of the nominees who will now likely take seats on the appeals court.
"We have sent President George Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and the radical right of the Republican party an undeniable message....the abuse of power will not be tolerated."
Posted by mardenhill 5/23/2005 08:52:00 PM 1 comments
AFDB
What Is An AFDB?
An Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanie (AFDB) is a type of headwear that can shield your brain from most electromagnetic psychotronic mind control carriers. AFDBs are inexpensive (even free if you don't mind scrounging for thrown-out aluminium foil) and can be constructed by anyone with at least the dexterity of a chimp (maybe bonobo). This cheap and unobtrusive form of mind control protection offers real security to the masses. Not only do they protect against incoming signals, but they also block most forms of brain scanning and mind reading, keeping the secrets in your head truly secret. AFDBs are safe and operate automatically. All you do is make it and wear it and you're good to go! Plus, AFDBs are stylish and comfortable.
What are you waiting for? Make one today!
http://zapatopi.net/afdb.html
Posted by mardenhill 5/23/2005 03:11:00 PM 2 comments
War Of The Worlds
While searching Drudge this morning, I came across this story. Now I am a big conspiracy buff but these people are way overboard. I bet they wore their aluminium caps while watching Star Wars opening night.......
South Natomas Home Covered With Sheet Metal Residents Claim Neighbors Bombarding Them With Radiation
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A home in Sacramento's south Natomas neighborhood is surrounded by sheet metal, and neighbors are calling it an eyesore. The D'Souza family lives in the home on Timberwood Court, and claims the aluminium pieces are necessary to protect them from unknown neighbors who have been bombarding them with radio waves and making them sick.
"(It's) a shield to protect against radiation, because microwave radiation is reflected off of aluminium, so it's a protective measure," resident Sarah D'Souza said. The D'Souzas said the bombardment began after the first anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and that the radio waves have caused them health problems ranging from headaches to lupus. Sacramento Code Enforcement officials have gotten involved and ordered the family to remove the metal by Monday or face a misdemeanor citation.
"Eleven years in Sacramento and few other years in Southern California and this is the first time I've ever seen (anything like this). The inside of the house is also covered with foil and the beds are covered with a foil-like material as well," Sacramento Code Enforcement spokesman Josh Pino said. The D'Souzas said they will comply with the order and remove the sheet metal, but they also plan to gather evidence to show city officials what they believe is a problem with radiation.
Posted by mardenhill 5/23/2005 03:07:00 PM 3 comments
Old GM
Sunday, May 22, 2005
Old GM Headquarters here, its right across from the Fischer bldg over in the New Center. This was a hard bldg to take a pic of, its so large and as you can tell I couldn't get the last tower in all the way. The Fischer was hard also, I was standing a block away in the street trying to get a shot. The sad thing tho, I was standing in the street and only 1 car came down the whole time.
Posted by mardenhill 5/22/2005 10:19:00 PM 0 comments
Compuware & Campus Martius
I headed downtown today to take some more pics of Detroit buildings to hang on the livingroom wall and got the 2 that you see. This one is Compuware and Campus Martius, you can see the fountain and behind that is where the ice rink is. The ice rink is gone tho and replaced with grass and a stage for summer concerts. Inside Compuware is one of the coolest water features I have ever seen. They have water falling from the ceiling, its hard to explain you just need to check it out. I also took pics of the old GM headquarters, Fisher Bldg, and some cityscapes. I will print them out in Sepia and hang the good ones on the livingroom wall with the rest of them. There are still more pics I want, I drove by Eastern Market but it was starting to rain so I skipped that one. I did find out that next to Compuware, Visteon is building their headquarters. Don't know when that will be completed, not even sure if they have started, its all fenced in and you can't see anything.
Posted by mardenhill 5/22/2005 10:19:00 PM 1 comments
The American Taliban Please Stand Up
Friday, May 20, 2005
It doesn't get any better than this, the new Jim Jones calling his people to war. James Dobson the leader of Focus On The Family is pulling the strings on this whole Judicial Filibuster fiasco. Frist climbed into bed with this guy and now is handcuffed to him. Frist cannot back down from this fight or Dobson will pull support for his 08 presidental bid. Dobson will stop at nothing to get a conservative bench to overturn Roe vs Wade and turn this country into a religious wasteland. I really hope Dobson blows his wad over this one and exposes to the world his true colors and fades away. Frist will be upstaged by the compromise, and lose all support for his 08 nomination. The american taliban will go balistic and start calling for people's heads The media will finally pick up on this and show the world what almost happened and who is controlling the party of Lincoln now. NO COMPROMISE!!!!!!!!!
Urgent Alert by Focus on the Family
Call Right Now to Prevent Backroom Deal on Judicial Filibusters
Word out of Washington, D.C., in the last hour is that a "compromise" deal is close to being finalized that would allow Democrats to continue hijacking the Constitution by filibustering any judicial nominee whose views they oppose. One of the chief architects of the deal is Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. -- and he needs to hear from thousands of Americans RIGHT NOW that all attempts to broker such a deal must be stopped.
The GOP leadership has come up with a sensible plan to restore Senate tradition by returning to 51 the number of votes needed to confirm a judicial nominee -- and that's the plan Graham and his colleagues should support.Please take a moment -- no matter what state you live in -- to call as many of Sen. Graham's office numbers below as you can and relay this message: "No backroom deals with the liberals that would allow more judicial filibusters in the future. Support the constitutional option to end the Democrats' unprecedented filibuster of President Bush's nominees to the federal bench. It's the right thing to do."
The Focus on the Family Group needs your help!
Posted by mardenhill 5/20/2005 02:19:00 PM 1 comments
Faux News....
Thursday, May 19, 2005
You can attribute this to post election but to see Faux numbers continue to fall is such a beautiful thing. All cable channels report drops but CNN has leveled off. I would like to think that people are finally seeing thru all the lies and manipulation but one would never know. Lets say its true, people flee Faux and head back to normal cable news, tune out Rush and co and pick up on Air America. If this trend continues then 06 could be a very good year. Bush has already had a rocky 5 months, if we keep the pressure on, he could be negative for the year. Start the comapigning and bring up the Delay scandal, Social Security debacle and the religious right's takeover of the republican party.....
Fox News in Ratings Free Fall
Here's something you won't hear on Fox News -- ratings for the cable news channel have been plummeting since before the November election.
According to TV Newser, the number of people watching Fox during prime time in the 25 to 54 age bracket dropped in April for the sixth straight month.
TV Newser cited a CNN press release which gave these totals for Fox's primetime audience in the 25 to 54 age bracket: Oct. 04: 1,074,000; Nov. 04: 891,000; Dec. 04: 568,000; Jan. 05: 564,000; Feb. 05: 520,000; March 05: 498,000; April 05: 445,000. That amounts to a decline of 58 percent, with no sign of leveling off.
Other cable stations' ratings were also down since the election, but CNN's, for example, appeared to have stabilized last month while Fox's continued to drop.
What the press release didn't say is that we can add 629,000 people to those who don't watch Fox. That works out to just over 89,857 people for each of the seven News Hounds who are watching Fox so those people don't have to.
Now that we've added another Hound, we should be able to take care of the remaining 445,000 in even less than six months.
Fox's plunging ratings should be a warning to those cable stations trying to copy the news channel's conservative Republican slant. People are tired of it. Try something different, like a progressive television show, for a change.
Posted by mardenhill 5/19/2005 08:17:00 PM 1 comments
Fun iPod Cases
Can you say Star Trek. Or for those of you with a perverted, dirty little mind, well I won't go there, draw your own conclusions. Also there is a cow case for those of you who happen to love cows. Check out the link below for more fun cases. Are these practical, hell no, you can't get to the controls you need to remove the ipod. But for those of you who want fashion before function, here are a few cases to choose from.
http://www.burninglove.biz/index.php?cPath=1
Posted by mardenhill 5/19/2005 01:30:00 PM 1 comments
Cow case
Posted by mardenhill 5/19/2005 01:26:00 PM 3 comments
Michigan Wine Ruling
With the Supreme Court finally ruling on the side of consumers, there is one option that Michigan can take to prevent all of us from ordering over the internet. Michigan can ban all instate shipments over the net and direct mail all together. This could destroy or seriously hurt the 45 plus wineries that already send over the net. Whenever I go to a store, there are only a handful of these wineries representated, where am I to get the others? Do I have to visit every winery and buy them there?
I am not going to post the whole article but you can find out more info on this wine blog I found the other day. I have also added it to a link down under Wine Links.
http://fermentations.typepad.com/
I did learn from the article that Michigan has 30 days to decide on the ruling, i.e. to allow shipments or ban it all together. Mark you calendars for June 16th, if something doesn't come out before then, this is the date that will decide our fate.
Posted by mardenhill 5/19/2005 09:40:00 AM 1 comments
Downing Street Memo
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Well if you didn't believe Bush and co went into Iraq under false pretense then you need to take a look at the Downing Stret Memo. These are minutes from a meeting that occured 8 months prior to the invasion but has yet to see the light over here in the states. The UK and the rest of the world are aware of this, the minutes contain conversations between British officials and the prospect for war. They talk about the WMD argument and how else they could legally sell this war based on the thin evidence that they possessed. All the UK publications ran this story and everyone is aware but as usual no bites over here. CNN mentioned it but no expose like this Newsweek story.
http://www.downingstreetmemo.com/index.html
Take a minute to educate yourself on this administration's lies and deceit.
Posted by mardenhill 5/17/2005 11:16:00 AM 0 comments
Supreme Court
Monday, May 16, 2005
Well its about time, the Supreme Court ruled in the common folks for a change and struck down the practice of state barring out of state wine shipments bought over the internet. There are 24 states that bar shipments, Michigan and New York were 2 states that were part of this hearing. Both states have a number of vineyards in state and those are allowed to sell over the internet. This may change if the states get their way, they may rule that instate wineries cannot sell over the internet and this levels the playing field. This screws everyone and just puts more money into the Distribution Lobby which are the ones fighting this. I am not holding my breath to buy quite yet, it may take a couple months but if so, I will be a happy camper.
http://www.freep.com/news/latestnews/pm4206_20050516.htm
Posted by mardenhill 5/16/2005 02:58:00 PM 0 comments
The Fly Trap
Sunday, May 15, 2005
http://www.theflytrapferndale.com/
One of my favorite things to eat are gourmet breakfasts and I have been dying for some for a while now. While living out in Oregon, I was surrounded by restaurants full of dirty hippies in the kitchen but the food was excellent. Instead of hashbrowns, there were cubed style potatoes bursting with flavor. French toast covered in a berry compote and eggs benedict over poached salmon. Yes there were the veggie staples, tofu, tempeh, soy based products but don't let these scare you. Made with hippie love, these were very tasty. I am always complaining to Erika about how its all coney islands here, boring eggs, french toast and those dreaded hash browns. If you are going to serve potatoes, cut them up and add some seasonings, don't serve half cooked, greasy potato sticks. Finally the internet saved us, the other day Erika found on the freep.com an article talking about the upscale restaurants around town that feature gourmet breakfasts. This morning, we headed out to try one and see if they can compete with Oregon.
Erika and I went to the Fly Trap down in Ferndale for breakfast this morning and it was excellent, I highly recommend it. I had the gingerbread waffles with sauted apples and cinnamon syrup and a side of garlic potatoes. Erika had an egg scramble with basil, tomato, and black olives. Our wait was about 20 minutes, there are only 40 seats but worth it. Toast down the street had too long of a wait, that one we need to get up a bit earlier for. Price wise, its not bad at all $17.50 plus tip. Other than these 2, there is a one in Clawson on Main St., Recipes in Troy on Crooks and The Original Pancake House in Birmingham which is good but pricy and cash only.
I didn't take the pic just found it on the net from some review.
Posted by mardenhill 5/15/2005 04:50:00 PM 1 comments
Sen Frist In A Bit Of Trouble....
Friday, May 13, 2005
Courtesy of http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/4202.html
This is a funny story, Frist went to Allen-Edmonds to pick up 2 pairs of shoes which by the way totalled $530 and found himself in the middle of a protest. What Frist didn't realize was the shoe store was in the same building as Americans United To Protect Social Security. So as Frist was leaving he was confronted by protesters with cameras ready to go. To top it off, Frist was parked illegally and received a parking ticket.
Posted by mardenhill 5/13/2005 09:06:00 PM 3 comments
Kids In North Korea
What Kids in North Korea think of President Bush
I had tried to post this earlier today but eblogger had scheduled maintainance and I was unable to. Since then, I cannot find the story that goes along with it but the pic was saved in Hello and so I said what the hell and just posted it anyways. Now we can play the a picture is worth a thousand words game and come up with our own story. I guess North Korea doesn't believe in the No Child Left Behind legislation because if they did, Bush would be held up as a saint for saving public education.
Posted by mardenhill 5/13/2005 09:02:00 PM 1 comments
Phone Monkey
Well its a fun day here for me at work, the helpdesk are all on an outing and the TSA group are covering the phones. Its pretty funny seeing that none of us can figure out how to open the calls and answer the phones correctly. Oh well, just another 3 hrs left of this hell. At least when the phone isn't ringing I can update my blog with useless posts such as this one.
Posted by mardenhill 5/13/2005 02:52:00 PM 1 comments
Political Pet Toys
For those of you who have dogs here is a chance to get them a treat, political dog toys. There is Hillary, Bill, Dubya, Blair, Michael Moore etc to keep your best friend busy for hours. Prices are $12.95 a piece and you can pay via PayPal. We bought one similar to this for Mr. Kitty, from Petco and it was in the form of the Governator. Check out the 2nd link for toys for your cat. Its a nice way to keep the whole family politically active.....
http://www.politicalpettoys.com/html_pages/home.html
http://store.yahoo.com/fatcatinc/poancattoypa.html
Posted by mardenhill 5/13/2005 09:07:00 AM 2 comments
Who Woulda Thunk....
Thursday, May 12, 2005
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050511/ap_on_go_co/clinton_gingrich_1
Yes you are reading the article correctly, Hillary Clinton and Newt Gingrich working together on Health Care!!!!!
If this isn't a sign, then I don't what what is. Actually its pretty cool, Hill has been a smart cookie the last couple years, partnering with some high profile republicans showing her ability to work across the aisle. Yeah she worked with McCain who some don't even consider a republican, but to pull in Newt, thats like asking Posh Spice out for a date and her saying yes. This is good for Hill, there is a trial going on that may reach her regarding campaign finance and if she weathers that one, she has a good shot come 08. I'm glad the lawsuit is going on now so it can be ancient history come 08. It may cause problems next year but her numbers are very strong so I don't see that happening.
The health care in question is regarding paper records and making records electronic throughout the country. Hopefully they succeed, for both the health care side of things and for sticking it to the republicans and those who hate Hillary.
Posted by mardenhill 5/12/2005 09:36:00 AM 3 comments
Vinotecca
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Erika and I went to Cafe Habana last nite for dinner and had Cuban breakfast which was very good and not that expensive. I had french toast made with Challah bread and a berry compote featuring mango, raspberries and something else. Afterwards we stopped into Vinotecca the new Royal Oak wine bar hooked to Bastone. The atmosphere is great, the seating is very comfortable the place was clean. I did have some problems with their selection tho, compared to their whole wine list there are only a handful of wines available by the glass. They have the list sectioned off by style and there are only usually a few wines by the glass and the rest you have to buy the bottle. The ones available by the glass tend to be ones you can find in the store which doesn't help me much. I would like to go in and try something I cannot find or is a bit out of my price range rather than ordering a Montes Alpha Cab that I can pick up from Costco for $14 a bottle.
I had a glass of Frei Brothers pinot noir from California, it was $9 a bit over priced but like I said the atmosphere was good. Erika had a Blackstar late harvest which she enjoyed and their cheese menu was pretty impressive. Overall, the bar is good, but I think they need to serve more by the glass. If someone who wants to learn more about wines and wants to try different styles, they will be a bit hard pressed to have a large choice. Say I want a Burgundy, well I'm out of luck seeing that there was only 1 French wine by the glass. This all may sound a bit pretentious but there are people out there who would like to experiment and the easiest way is to drink by the glass not by purchasing the whole bottle. One other complaint, they only had 1 port available, why not have a selection of different ports like some from California for people to enjoy. Buy a bottle of Trentalude Chocolate Amore port and sell that by the glass for $8, people would go crazy for that.
I give the bar a "B" rating, take some of my advice and it could become a 4 star A+ venue.
Posted by mardenhill 5/11/2005 12:32:00 PM 1 comments
Yahoo Has Entered The Game
http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=785
Last year Yahoo bought Musicmatch but since then, they have operated as 2 different companies. Yahoo just announced it will enter the digital music world with a subscription service for all mp3 players except the ipod. This will be the same as Napster To Go but the difference is the price, $6.99 a month instead of the $14.99 Napster charges. Yahoo has about a million songs in its catalog, most likely from the purchase of Musicmatch. There are no details regarding the downloading software, whether or not it will be from Yahoo.com or a separate app. I am not sure if they will keep the Musicmatch pay service or not but its just another company trying to take away marketshare from Apple.
The price is good, its rumored that it could be about $60 a year for the service if paid in full, thats not a bad price to rent music which is essentially what you are doing. They in turn will drop the per song charge down to .79c which could trigger a price war with Apple. This leaves Apple as the only other major player not offering a subscription service. Do I think they should have one? Yes, it would be good for some people, I would never use it but seeing that there are over 10 million ipods out there, some will. Should it be priced as low as Yahoo, yes but I don't see that happening. Steve Jobs has denied any type service for iTunes but that could change in a second if Yahoo takes off. Who knows, Steve probably has the service already lined up and ready to go, he is just waiting for the right moment to pull the trigger.
What does this mean to all of us, it means that the free lunch of music we have been living on for the last few years is finally coming to a close. There will still be ways to get it on the net, that will never change but the major P2P will become more and more unattractive. I enjoyed the ride, found lots of new bands, replaced old tapes and saved lots of money. Its probably time we grow up and faced the fact, but until Apple throws their hat into the ring, I say run wild. Apple will perfect this distribution and just sit back til that moment happens.
Posted by mardenhill 5/11/2005 09:14:00 AM 0 comments
New iTunes Software
Monday, May 09, 2005
For all you iTunes users, there is a new version 4.8 available for download, go to www.itunes.com for it. The new version uses iTunes to sync the ipod calendar/contacts instead of isync and there is a new feature that allows quicktime movies to play in iTunes. Now there will be a ton of speculation as to why you can view movies within iTunes, does this mean that an upcoming ipod will feature video playback? Or is it just another way to bundle all media into 1 program.
I think the next round of ipods will feature the 1 gig shuffle down to $99 and possibly a color screen for the $299 model and maybe an increase in hard drive. It would be nice if they offer the 30 gig ipod photo as the $299 benchmark and then drop the 60 gig down to $399 and come out with an 80 gig. Am I dreaming, probably but most of the ipod rumor sites talk about something coming down this june/july.
For those of you with a bit of a disposible income, there is a new adapter on the market, bluetooth headphones. On ipodlounge you can see them, there is an adapter for the ipod and then the headphones. This is pretty cool except for the price, $169, maybe if it was $40 or $50 max then I would consider.
http://www.ipodlounge.com/index.php/reviews/comments/macally-bluewave-bluetooth-stereo-and-streaming-headset-ipod/
I also found some pretty crazy ipod cases, they glow in the dark, have screen protectors and look like those lifesavers cream candies.
http://www.iskinprotect.com/wildsides.html
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 09:02:00 PM 2 comments
Separated at Birth....
Notice a resemblence? Both are from Michigan, both republicans and one is our current Secretary of State and the other was the previous one. I think the bad hair and teeth showing is a must for this job. If you decide that the Secretary of State is a postion for ya, start practicing your award winning smile and get the feather look down pat. I could add our current senators Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin but that will be for another day. There are even more things to make fun of regarding them. Its scary that we elect such bad looking people, maybe that should be part of the election process, if you are trapped in the 80s then u cannot run. If your smile sends shivers up the state's spine then u need to step aside. This is sooo wrong on many levels....
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 05:18:00 PM 1 comments
Fast Food Tax
Well our buddy Kwame has a great idea, add a 2 percent tax to fast food to help close Detroit's budget gap. Kwame thinks the tax just adds pennies to every order and would help his financial woes. How bout not leasing SUVs for 1 year at top dollar? How bout not charging alcohol or paying for your whole entourage everytime u go out?
"Kilpatrick wants to ask Detroit voters to approve a 2 percent fast-food tax — on top of the 6 percent state sales tax on restaurant meals. The mayor says consumers will barely notice the extra cents at the cash register, but critics say the tax would unfairly burden the poor and hamper economic development."
"Although the tax would not come close to fixing Detroit's financial problems — officials predict it would bring in $17 million in the next fiscal year — every dollar counts in a city already bracing for mass layoffs and service cuts."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050508/ap_on_bi_ge/big_mac_tax&printer=1
This story was on Yahoo, a link from www.rawstory.com , the www.freep.com didn't even have the story. Wonder when it will break locally.
*******
Update: Ok I just looked at the date of the article and it was yesterday but I don't remember seeing it on the Freep when I checked the site and its not there today. I guess we will wait and see if it peeks its head out this week.
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 04:26:00 PM 2 comments
Worst Pitchfork Ratings
I just clicked on Pitchfork and there was a scathing review of the new Weezer album - Make Believe and it received a 0.4 rating. I am not a big fan of the new single, its pretty lame and havn't heard anything else but man that is rough.
My favorite review ever was Liz Phair's -Liz Phair cd, it was given a 0.0, I don't think that has ever happened in the life of Pitchfork. As I said before, I am not always on the same page as theses guys but the Liz review is dead on, check it out below for a few laughs.....
Weezer
Make Believe[Interscope; 2005]
Rating: 0.4
http://pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/w/weezer/make-believe.shtml
Liz Phair
Liz Phair[Capitol; 2003]
Rating: 0.0
http://pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/p/phair_liz/liz-phair.shtml
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 12:36:00 PM 1 comments
Is Delay Finally Radioactive?
Its about time people wakeup to the abuse this country has been under, keep swinging and this bloated baffoon will finally fall......
Courtesy of www.politicalwire.com
Is DeLay Finally Radioactive?Despite his recent bravado, the Washington Post notes scandal is started to wear down House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.
"Suddenly, the old Texas brio that carried him through years of smaller controversies is on the wane. The leader recognizes -- belatedly, some GOP colleagues say -- that the latest questions about his relationships with lobbyists are a problem threatening his career and the GOP majority he helped to build and sustain since coming to the House 20 years ago. Everywhere there are signs of a politician in retreat."DeLay's prowess in fundraising, for instance, was always a pillar of his power in the House. Lining up a corporate aircraft to ferry him to an event was usually arranged with a single phone call. These days, Republican officials report that they are having trouble finding available aircraft -- as businesses fret that DeLay may be
radioactive."
Meanwhile, a New York Times piece says an "empire of favors" is the source of DeLay's power. The reason he has survived so far "is that over the years, brick by brick, Mr. DeLay has built a wall of political support. His small acts of kindness have become lore. Pizza during late night votes. Travel arrangements for low-level lawmakers. Birthday wishes, get-well cards, condolences for House members in emotional need."
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 12:30:00 PM 3 comments
Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Arianna Huffington's long awaited blog has finally started today, it features over 350 different celebrities, professionals, musicians, politicans etc. Its an online community where people are able to post what they want, any topic and its all unfiltered. CNN had Arianna on this morning which was cool to promote the site. Obviously this will not replace the Drudge Report, there are breaking news links but there are also stories and commentary from everyone and anyone. I have a feeling that this thing is going to be huge, its slated to be 24/7 and with all the possible people picked to write, there will never be a dull moment.
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 09:23:00 AM 1 comments
Yardwork Vol II
Ok, I spent another 4 hrs yesterday outside working on the yard, this yard is going to kill me. After spending countless hrs digging up dandilions, I woke up Sunday to more scattered thru the yard. I am going to become that crazy old man that yells at kids to stay off the lawn and becomes obsessed with his yard. I pulled out the weed whacker and cleaned up the place and now the next step is to start ripping up along the fence for the garden.
I still have a 10 ft spot in front next to the street that consumers energy tore up and I am just waiting for them to return to fix it. They tried to offer me $70 to fix it but no way, it would cost more than that and I they were the ones that ripped it up. My neighbor cuts his grass 3x a week but he is also retired and its his way of avoiding housework. He figures if he is outside his wife cannot make him work. I'm not that bad but its probably just a matter of time.
Posted by mardenhill 5/09/2005 09:15:00 AM 2 comments
Ferns, Hostas & Grass
Saturday, May 07, 2005
We went to English Gardens to pick up some fresh basil and $78 later walked out with 6 hostas, 3 long grass, 3 ferns and 6 other herbs. Gotta love English Gardens and their sales. We planted everything but the herbs in the back under the tree where we just roto tilled the other week. This has become my mission, to create a controlled jungle in the back. Next weekend is the flower show at Eastern Market and I think we are going to head down to see what is available. We still need more greens for the back, the space is pretty big and there are lots of bare spots.
I also spent 2 hrs pulling weeds and dandilions all over the yard, grass still looks bad compared to the neighbors but at least its weed free. Tomorrow will be cutting the grass, running the edger and possibly trimming the hedges. Once things start to grow, I will post some pics.
Posted by mardenhill 5/07/2005 09:25:00 PM 3 comments
Now Thats Low
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Low Cancel Upcoming Tour
James Gregory reports:Beloved Midwesterners Low have recently cancelled plans for an upcoming North American tour in support of their 2005 release The Great Destroyer. The band was to play a month-long series of shows across the U.S and Canada this June. The band's label, Sub Pop, tells us: "Low unfortunately had to cancel their existing tour dates due to medical reasons, but they're excited about getting back on the road as soon as possible."
However, June 28 will see the DVD release of Low in Europe, a recent documentary film covering Low's 2002/2003 European tour.
I didn't have tickets but I was thinking of going. It would have been one of those pay at the door shows and now its cancelled. This is very upsetting seeing that I got their cd from iTunes with free pepsi bottle caps and have it in my car. Oh well, maybe next year.
Posted by mardenhill 5/05/2005 04:41:00 PM 3 comments
Adams vs Pitchfork
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/a/adams_ryan/cold-roses.shtml
Well it looks like Ryan Adams and Pitchforkmedia have kissed and made up since Ryan's last release. He has received a 7.3 review on Cold Roses and thats pretty good for Pitchfork. In my last posting I made a mistake regarding the next 2 albums, they are entitled Jackson City Nights slated for summer release and 29 for the fall. I have been listening to a lot of Cold Roses and I have to say if you havn't heard yet you will not be disappointed.
This is a more mellow, alt country cd that is very reminicent of Whiskeytown. I am a fan of all of Ryan's personas and styles but this is what he does best.
Posted by mardenhill 5/04/2005 03:12:00 PM 2 comments
Kwame Round 2
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
After the SUV fiasco and now this, I really don't think Kwame will be re-elected for another term. In the article it talks about Dennis Archer and his expenses which were nowhere close to this. When I travel for work, I am allowed $55 a day for food and if I go over, I have to pay for it out of my pocket. They have even made it more strict where you have a certain amount for breakfast, lunch and then dinner so gone are the days of eating a bagel in the morning and blowing your whole wad on a dinner. Why isn't Kwame held to the same standard, Jennifer Granholm doesn't even get as much as I do.
http://www.freep.com/news/locway/kilp3e_20050503.htm
Kilpatrick lives it up while city struggles
Mayor puts over $210,000 on his Detroit-issued credit card
May 3, 2005
BY M.L. ELRICK and JIM SCHAEFERFREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
Moet & Chandon Nectar Imperial champagne in Atlanta. Lobster tail in Chicago. Limos in Washington, D.C.
As Detroit eliminated thousands of jobs, struggled with exploding pension and health care costs and became a city on the brink of receivership, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick charged more than $210,000 to his city-issued credit card in less than three years on the job, city records show.
Posted by mardenhill 5/03/2005 05:43:00 PM 3 comments
Hillary 2008?
White House odds
Is Hillary Rodham Clinton headed to the White House? The smart money says so.
Sportsbook.com has prepared a list of odds for likely presidential candidates, and Democratic senator Hillary Clinton is a 6-1 favorite, running ahead of Republican Rudy Giuliani, who comes in at 10-1. What’s more, Condoleeza Rice is not far behind, with 15-1 odds, tying the chances given Senator John Edwards and beating Senator Barack Obama (30-1). Jeb Bush is ranked twelfth on the list, with 35-1 odds.
In fact, of the top several candidates, two are female and two are African-American. “This means that there is a very good chance the next presidential election could feature a female or visible minority presidential candidate,” notes a spokesman for sportsbook.com
Posted by mardenhill 5/03/2005 02:37:00 PM 3 comments
Evangelicals
Monday, May 02, 2005
When Pat opens his mouth he sticks his whole leg in. This piece of trash compares judges to Al Qaeda and that judges are worse. I guess he likes terrorism and thinks its ok, but doesn't like civil rights, environmental/labor protection, women's rights, consumer protection etc. I guess Pat and Bush have a lot in common, both don't seem to think al Qaeda and Bin Laden are much of a threat, heck they are a good scapegoat for going after countries that have resources that we want.
Pat Robertson: Judges Worse Than al Qaeda
Pat Robertson was on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" yesterday. He said that federal judges are a bigger threat than al Qaeda.
"Over 100 years, I think the gradual erosion of the consensus that's held our country together is probably more serious than a few bearded terrorists who fly into buildings," Robertson said on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos." "I think we have controlled Al Qaeda," the 700 Club host said, but warned of "erosion at home" and said judges were creating a "tyranny of oligarchy."
"I think they are destroying the fabric that holds our nation together."
Posted by mardenhill 5/02/2005 02:47:00 PM 3 comments
Cold Roses
Well Ryan Adam's latest release is almost here, tomorrow to be exact. Its called Cold Roses and is a double cd, or if you want an 18 song single cd. Its very good, you can hear it on
www.ryan-adams.com if you can't wait. The style is very close to that of Whiskeytown so all you old school fans will be happy. Its total alt country, not too rockin and some female vocals mixed in. And if you cannot get enough of Ryan he has 2 more cds coming out this year "September" slated for summer and "29" for the fall. Not sure what the styles will be but I would expect one of them to be a moody acoustic style, kinda like Love is Hell but who knows.
Ryan is touring but of course no Detroit dates right now, hopefully he comes thru this fall, it would be nice to see him again. And some Adams dirt, he has broken up with Parker Posey.
Posted by mardenhill 5/02/2005 10:43:00 AM 1 comments
Dashboard
Sunday, May 01, 2005
Dashboard, one of the new features of OS X 10.4, Tiger. This is a great new tool, tons of widgets can be downloaded and deployed on your computer. These widgets range from weather, stock tickers, clocks, translations, traffic reports, gas prices, cpu processes, rss feeds, sticky notes etc. You can download as many as you want and there are new ones being developed everyday. I grabbed a few that gives me traffic reports in my area, cheapest gas prices and cpu monitoring. There are tons of others that I have tried but deleted because they sucked but thats the beauty of it, download for free, dont like delete. Another cool feature is spotlight which gives you access on your desktop to the most powerful search ever. You can type the name of any file and is shows you where its it. Loading Tiger was easy, stick the dvd in and 45 minutes later you are done. Its a pretty big update, about 2 gigs in size but its well worth it. There are a ton of other features but those are the 2 that I have played with the most. For you pc users, you can also have widgets, there is a company that makes them and they are pretty cool.
http://www.widgetgallery.com
It contains both pc and mac widgets and these are a bit different than the dashboard, they sit on top of your desktop rather than hide like the dashboard. Both have their pros and cons and I am still trying to figure out which ones I like the best.
Posted by mardenhill 5/01/2005 10:29:00 AM 3 comments
