Congrats Joel & Julia
Friday, April 29, 2005
http://www.littlebunsblog.blogspot.com/
I would like to say congratulations to Joel & Julia on the birth of Amelia Hanalei Gargano, check out their blog above for a picture.
Posted by mardenhill 4/29/2005 06:45:00 PM 3 comments
Dems 2 Repubs 0
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Well, well, well it looks like the repubs have 2 strikes against them right now, 1st one was when Sen Reid out manuvered Sen Frist on the judicial filibuster. Reid offered Frist a compromise but Frist being the proud man that he is said no. Frist has backed himself into a corner and looks weak if he caves on this. The american taliban want him to hold his position even when polls are not in his favor. So Frist is standing his ground pandering to the Dobson's and Perkins and just waiting to pull the nuclear lever. This was a risky move on Reid's part but he pulled it off beautifully, he looks like a moderate willing to compromise and Frist looks just plain bad.
Strike 2, Speaker of the House, Dennis Hassert had to come out on TV and announce that they are repealing the rules put in place to protect Delay from ethics violations. Delay has backed the repubs against the wall and they are not playing dodge ball with him anymore and are starting to turn. The rules that were changed allowed for the ethics committee to dismiss any ethics charge if they were deadlocked between the 5 dems and 5 repubs on the committee. Now there will be an investigation brought up on Delay, the only thing we need to worry about is the repubs trying to sweep it under the rug. Hassert doesn't want to go down with Delay so he came to his senses and put things back to normal.
Hmm what will strike 3 be, hopefully its just a matter of time when something even bigger breaks and the repubs end up with egg on their face yet again.
Posted by mardenhill 4/27/2005 05:14:00 PM 3 comments
Tile Grout
Well I took the day off to grout the bathroom floor, I cleaned up the tile and just finished mixing the grout. I tell ya, hand stirring cement is pretty hard. I have a few more minutes to let it sit before I apply it. As you may see I changed my blog template, I was bored of the other one and went out searching this morning for a new one. I just typed in blog templates in google and found some free ones. I recommend if you plan on doing this, open up your current one and copy/paste your html into a word doc and save it. Then copy/paste the new code into your blog and add your links back. I had no problems and just tweaked the font size and justification on parts. Overall, I am happy with the look and will run with this one til I get bored again.
Posted by mardenhill 4/27/2005 11:36:00 AM 1 comments
House of Scandal
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Who would have thought that our favorite scandal ridden House of Rep, Tom Delay would have a lobbyist pay for a trip with his own credit card? Well, it has happened and the sad thing is, I'm not suprised.
A plane trip to London and Scotland in 2000 by then-House Majority Whip Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) was charged to an American Express card issued to Jack Abramoff, a Washington lobbyist at the center of a federal criminal and tax probe, according to two sources who know Abramoff's credit card account number and to a copy of a travel invoice displaying that number.
DeLay's expenses during the same trip for food, phone calls, and other items at a golf course hotel in Scotland were billed to a different credit card also used on the trip by a second registered Washington lobbyist, Edwin A. Buckham, according to receipts documenting that portion of the trip.
House ethics rules bar lawmakers from accepting travel and related expenses from registered lobbyists. DeLay, who is now House Majority Leader, has said that his expenses on this trip were paid by a nonprofit organization, and that the financial arrangements for it were proper. He has also said he had no way of knowing that any lobbyist might have financially supported the trip, either directly or through reimbursements to the nonprofit organization.
Posted by mardenhill 4/26/2005 12:36:00 PM 1 comments
Margaritaville
Monday, April 25, 2005
Wasting away again in Margaritaville
Searching for my lost shaker of salt
Some people say that a woman's to blame
But I know, its my own damn fault
Yes I am a parrothead, kinda of retired one tho, I decided a couple years ago that show was my last. I have trecked across the country and checked out shows and even made it down to Key West not once but twice for a parrothead convention. Yeah you can laugh but i tell ya, parrotheads know how to party and the parking lot at Pine Knob have been some of the best blowouts I have ever seen. Thousands of drunk people running around sharing food and drinks, you can't beat that. I have some friends that like to bring up that I went to some buffett shows and make fun of me, thats ok, they just don't know what they are missing. Buffett is like taking a trip to the Caribbean without paying for the airfare. Its a tropical paradise in the middle of southeast Michigan for a day. If Buffett were to do another Pine Knob show, I might be rethink my retirement but it doesn't look like it will happen this summer.
It's those changes in latitudes,
changes in attitudes nothing remains quite the same.
With all of our running and all of our cunning,
If we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane.
Do I listen to Buffett on a daily basis, no, I own 1 cd his greatest hits and thats all you need. I just listen when I see him and sing along there, thats all the Buffett you need. My friends are just jealous that they havn't been able to score tix to a show so they take it out by mocking me. Thats fine, they will just live their life unfullfilled by not seeing Buffett live. Will I point out their questionable shows, no I am above that, I respect their choices and don't hold it against them.
Come Monday It'll be all right,
Come Monday I'll be holding you tight.
I spent four lonely days in a brown L.A. haze
and I just want you back by my side.
And while we're at it, lets singalong to one more song, one of my favorites....
Can't you feel 'em circlin' honey?
Can't you feel 'em swimmin' around?
You got fins to the left, fins to the right,
and you're the only bait in town.
You got fins to the left, fins to the right,
and you're the only girl in town.
Well gotta run, WWE Raw is on, cant miss that.....
Posted by mardenhill 4/25/2005 09:17:00 PM 3 comments
Polls, Polls, Polls
courtesy of daily kos
From a telephone survey between Washington Post and ABC, April 21-24 2005 1,007 randomly selected adults nationwide.
A new WaPo Poll shows Bush's approval is in fast descent:
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bush is handling:
Approve Disapprove
A. Social Security 31 64
B. Iraq 42 56
C. Economy 40 57
D. Terrorism 56 41
E. Energy Policy 35 54
A lot of other stuff, but this one is my favorite:
Which party better represents your personal values?
Dems - 47%
GOP - 38%
The Democratic Party, the Party of Values. Can I get an Amen for that?
And from the same poll,
Would you support or oppose changing the Senate rules to make it easier for the Republicans to confirm Bush's judicial nominees?
Support - 26%
Oppose - 66%
How low do the polls need to go before these idiots realize their radical agenda is not what the country needs or wants....
Posted by mardenhill 4/25/2005 07:50:00 PM 2 comments
Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Set to debut on May 8th, it will be a blog spot for over 250 writers featuring topics such as entertainment, politics, religion, sports, etc. You may remember Arianna Huffington, she ran for Governer of California against Arnold and also started the anti-suv campaign about a year or so ago. Arianna is a pretty cool lady, she has writen for Salon.com, a number of books and is a former republican. Bookmark this site, I think it will be a good news source moving forward in this "Liberal Media" world of ours.
Posted by mardenhill 4/25/2005 09:58:00 AM 1 comments
Quote Of The Day
Saturday, April 23, 2005
"The time has come that the American people know exactly what their Representatives are doing here in Washington. Are they feeding at the public trough, taking lobbyist-paid vacations, getting wined and dined by special interest groups? Or are they working hard to represent their constituents? The people, the American people, have a right to know... I say the best disinfectant is full disclosure, not isolation."
This is a great quote, whomever said this was dead on and seems to respect the law and to uphold the strictest ethical standards. This is the model representative that every state should have, just image if we did, there would be no problems in politics.
Well no need to keep you guessing this was no other than our favorite Texas rep Mr. Tom Delay. Yes Mr. Pest Control said this back in '95 after the Contract for America that swept thru in '94. Tom rode the exisiting reps regarding ethics violations and acted like the white knight coming in to save the day, but what are we looking at 10 years later, a ton of scandals swirling around this same issue. Tom thinks he can weasel out of the one but the press has taken hold and hopefully won't let go. This is too good to pass on, Tom needs to be taken down along with his cronies of corruption. Now that the Dems finally have the balls to do something, they need to be backed by the rest of us and come '06 vote these bastards out of office.
Posted by mardenhill 4/23/2005 10:03:00 AM 3 comments
JSBX
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
There are some out there who think Jon is a hack, hell there are some that even read my blog but they are wrong and full of indie rock hate. They don't understand Jon's music and what he's all about. Jon mixes blues with rock n roll and throws in a bit of swagger from the king himself. JSBX is about booze and gritty sex, its nasty rock n roll for those who aren't afraid to get a little dirty. JBSX rocks you to the core and forces you to accept the seedy underbelly of what music is all about. There is a bit of JBSX in all of us and if you continue to keep it bottled up, one day u will burst and that won't be pretty.
Well I'm a sweet n sour, kinda somethin, livin it up yeah
Well I'm a hot n cold, I'm gonna getcha baby, Owe, want your rock n roll
Posted by mardenhill 4/21/2005 05:03:00 PM 4 comments
Courtesy of www.amazon.com, The Adventures of Pete and Pete Season 1 $18.99. This was one of the best TV shows ever, 2 brothers both named pete, a mother with a steal plate in her head, a superhero best friend by the name of Artie, Michael Stipe an ice cream man, Juliana Hatfield a lunch lady and even Iggy Pop as a father figure. The stories were out of this world, and the humor would make u laugh for days. Its about time the show has come out on DVD, and it will be just a matter of time for the other seasons to come out. Get ready because May 17th is the release date for this classic.
Posted by mardenhill 4/21/2005 03:26:00 PM 2 comments
eMusic.com Rocks The House!!!
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Just got the new Heavy Trash and John Doe (X fame) cds from eMusic. The Heavy Trash is a side project for Jon Spencer and its chalkful of Country, Rockabilly and dirty Blues, but is a different style than his Blues Explosion which is nice. The other member of Heavy Trash is Matt Verta Ray who came up with the idea so its just not Jon's ego running wild on the record. I also got John Doe's latest "Forever Hasn't Happened Yet" which he works with Grant Lee Phillips, Kristen Hersh, Neko Case, Dave Alvin and Cindy Lee Berryhill. Havn't given it a listen yet but saw him live with Grant Lee last year and he was very good.
The Heavy Trash came out yesterday and eMusic didn't have it which bummed me out since the label its on eMusic has everything else. So this morning I logged on just to check and there it was. While I was there I saw the John Doe and decided to grab that one. I am now listening to it and its very good, more alt country than anything but lots of good duets. I only have 3 downloads left for the month so I need to figure out if there is another cd I want to start downloading and finish up next month.
Posted by mardenhill 4/20/2005 09:46:00 AM 3 comments
Blue Orchid
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Well the White Stripes single is already out, so much for that late May release. The song is "Blue Orchid" and the new cd will be tiltled, "Get behind me Satan" which I originally thought was the single and the other the cd. Oh well, I was wrong and I admit it.
I downloaded the song via iTunes, I had one more pop cap to spend and felt that this was a good purchase. The song is really good, a lot harder than their previous songs and Jack sings a lot of falsetto on it. Not sure if this will be what the whole cd will sound like but knowing them, (not really just thru the media) I see the cd more eclectic. Lots of screaming guitars and heavy riffs, makes me think of the Eagles of Death Metal when I listen to the song.
If you have heard the song yet, feel free to post comments...
Posted by mardenhill 4/19/2005 05:29:00 PM 1 comments
Come on, Come on
Monday, April 18, 2005
Not too much going on here, just listening to Woxy and the Von Bondies came on and and I was singing along and decided to make a post. I just got the new Sights cd this weekend, bought it off of iTunes and transferred it to my ipod. I listened to it while working outside in the yard and have to tell ya, its a great cd. Its more streamlined than the last one, more consistent with their sound. The singles "Circus" and "Just Got Robbed" are excellent and they have also included "Last Chance" from their previous cd. I am not sure if it has been re-recorded or given a complete overhaul, I only had one listen to it so I need to go back to figure it out. I'm tellin ya, the Sights will be breaking this summer and good for them. If you are going to buy any local music, pick this one up. While you're at it, grab the Brendan Benson if u havn't already, its another excellent choice.
I also got the National's - Alligator yesterday from emusic.com its very good and I will try to give it a quick review tomorrow after I give it another listen. Heavy Trash (Jon Spencer's new side project) comes out tomorrow on Yep Rock Records and I am hoping emusic will have it since they have a ton of other stuff from the label. I am saving my downloads just for that cd and I better not get screwed.
If you havn't given Moby's - Hotel a listen, try it out, I have decided that I really like it. I had it on last nite while reading before bed and there are some great songs on it. I could do without the "Beautiful" song, that one gets annoying but "Raining Again", "Lift Me Up" and "Slipping Away" are classic Moby. "Slipping Away" could easily have been a R.E.M. song, thats probably why I like so much.
oh and its a raining again
out on your car like bullets on tin
oh and its a raining again
open the door and you're pulling me in
oh and its a raining again, raining again...
Just singing along feel free to join in. This is the best song on the cd so check it out......
Posted by mardenhill 4/18/2005 02:29:00 PM 1 comments
Doctors Against Frist
Sunday, April 17, 2005
From www.rawstory.com
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/index.php?p=255
Classmates from Frist's med school have come out against Frist's 4 minute video diagnosis of Terri Shavio and how he has tried to use his doctor status as a politican. They are calling it like it is, pandering and blantent abuse of the hippocratic oath. Frist is now a politician, he is not a practicing doctor and should not be diagnosing people like he did.
We are going to see McCain vs Frist for the nomination and direction of the party and it will be starting now rather than in 07. Will Frist win, probably, he will envoke religion and fear to get his message across and we all know how people believe in blind faith. Can this help the Dems, yes it can expose the Repubs for what they have become just by a few select individuals within the party. The only way the religious right is pushed back is if we successfully bring Delay down and beat Santorum in 06. I think we have a good chance but you never know.
Posted by mardenhill 4/17/2005 06:04:00 PM 1 comments
This is what's going on next sunday, the televangelists and churches will be holding what they call Justice Sunday to counteract the Dems filibuster. Right now there are about 10 judges left that havn't been confirmed for good reasons and the Repubs are dead set on getting them thru. So you now have Senator Frist participating in this event to demonize the Dems saying that they hate religion and the baby Jesus and anything related to Chistianity. Talk about abuse of power, he thinks that pandering to the religious right he will be able to enact the nuclear option and overrule the filibuster. Senator McCain has already came out against the nuclear option and Frist's people have come out stating that McCain will have no chance in '08 if he doesn't change his position. McCain is smart, he knows that power shifts from one party to another and that he will be in the minority one day and does not want to give up the filibuster. Frist will will portray the Dems as holding up judges that hold conservative christian values that are not shared by the whole US population. Will this work, I am not sure, I do hope this gets some TV time and exposes Frist and co for the sleazeballs that they truely are. I would have thought that after the Shavio fiasco that they would back off but I guess not. This must be what Bush meant when he had political capital to spend.
Posted by mardenhill 4/17/2005 06:02:00 PM 1 comments
Beautiful, just Beautiful
Friday, April 15, 2005
Well the Dems have upstaged the Republicans on the web with a bit of redirection of their website. Try going to www.dccc.org and u get sent to http://houseofscandal.org/ which chronicles Delay's ethics violations and web of deceit. The MSM picked up on this for about a day or so but have moved on, I guess Michael's trial is more important.
Posted by mardenhill 4/15/2005 12:46:00 PM 2 comments
The Sights CD Release Party
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Well the Sights are having their cd release party tonight at the Stick, bad news is that I am on call this week and also working late tonight. So no show for me, will have to wait until they hit it bigtime and charge $20 a ticket. They have a new website and I just found out that the cd came out on tuesday, the 12th. I had thought it was next week so I never bothered looking it up. iTunes has it available so I might download it from there or might have a friend pick it up for me tonight.
http://www.wearethesights.com/
iTunes had the single "Circus" which i downloaded a couple weeks ago. I am glad to see them making it, they are probably the best local band around and deserve the spotlight.
http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=7560
Here is an article from the metro times where they made the cover, a lot of fluff in it tho just skim thru and u get the jist.
Posted by mardenhill 4/14/2005 03:43:00 PM 3 comments
Favorite of the Week
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
My new fav cd of the week is "The Alternative To Love" Brendan Benson's latest. I just got it on friday from itunes, I collected enough bottle caps to get it free. The best part, I never drank 1 pepsi to get them, we have enough people here who drink multiple bottles a day. This cd is very consistent, lots of power pop songs, sing alongs and head bobbing beats. Lyric wise, lots of songs about love, lost love and self loathing sung over infectious pop sounds. I am very curious to see what Brendan and Jack have in store for us later this year, they have a cd planned together. The White Stripes new cd comes out the beginning of June entitled "Blue Orchid" and a handful of dates around the world. I don't expect to see them until this fall, I wonder if they will do the 2 date show at the Masonic again or move on to a larger venue. The Sights have a new one coming out next week I believe on New Line Records, and so far the singles I have heard are very good. This thursday they are playing the Stick but I am on call and don't think I will be able to make the show. Gotta love Detroit, 3 great bands releasing stuff and getting lots of exposure.
Posted by mardenhill 4/12/2005 10:07:00 AM 0 comments
17 Days and Counting
17 more days until Tiger is released, for those of you who do not know that this is, Tiger is the latest Operating System from Apple. The number is 10.4 and is referred to as Tiger. Previous versions were Panther, Jaguar, and as a gimick they package things in that animal's print. Yeah its cheezy, but the OS itself rocks. The search feature has been improved, there is a new feature called Dashboard which sits on your desk and has links to whatever you want, stocks, weather, flights etc. I think this replaces Sherlock from the previous versions and gives it to you in a nice GUI. RSS feeds have been added to Safari, RSS is the ability to pull in all the updates to web pages within one window, pretty much like email. This works well for blogs and news sites. Below is a link that lists all 200 improvements to the OS, lots of stuff you will never care about but lots that are cool.
http://www.apple.com/macosx/newfeatures/newfeatures.html
Before you start making fun of me, wait for this to come out and check it out at your local Apple store.
Posted by mardenhill 4/12/2005 09:35:00 AM 1 comments
New Web Browser
Well its not really new, its been around for years but the latest version rocks the house. The only drawback is that I am not able to post to my blog from it, IE is the only browser that gives me all the tools I need. When I post from my mac, I cannot add pictures or hyperlinks. Anyways, check out Opera, it is very stable and has few popups. The best feature of it is the ability to open multiple sites and have them cascaded within one major window. When you are done for the day, just shut down the main window and leave all your sites open. When you launch again, they are all there and all you need is to hit refresh on each page. If you are like me and like to read a number of sites, this keeps them all in one window and open at all times.
http://www.opera.com/
I was on the firefox kick for a while but that is so 2004 now, Opera is the future, better get on board before you are swept away.
Posted by mardenhill 4/12/2005 09:05:00 AM 2 comments
