trinacriabob

Yes, Dodgefan, everybody has been preoccupied with the general craziness going on around us. I hope it gets better for you...and for all of us in general.

ZL, exactly what my relatives in Europe thought...Exactly that. That she was a joke! Now, Sarah and her "lixo branco" husband won't have to move to Washington.

You bet, S.H., for minorities, it was THE reason. Look how many people in the media and sports "waltz" into office and then learn "on the job." Look, how, in mundane jobs, people don't get hired because they "dont' have experience." This year, California's capital city elected a black ex-NBA basketball player as mayor over an incumbent with a much lengthier and supposedly competent political career. And, then, these ex-jocks and ex-movie stars learn "on the job". All it says is how stupid the people voting can be...it appears to be only marginally better than voting for class president in high school based on popularity. You can bet that I was quite pissed when I was walking into church a couple of Sundays ago and heard some Hispanics in front of me yacking in Spanish and for which the words "Obama and amnestia" came on the heels of each other. Color and gender are one thing. Experience and a track record of equitable and intelligent public policy are another. Somehow, I think voting rights should be based on some combo of IQ, psychological testing, and a current events quiz.

Dicyclomine (or bentyl)

IBS irritable bowel syndrome

I've seen other examples of it in my work life, but I get the drift.

Biz, I already speak it fluently. I took it in college (univ. in Canadian talk). I took it for an easy "A" and so I could use it on vacation in Spain and Argentina, not to have a discussion over a fender-bender with an illegal alien or order a BK Veggie without onions....this one squatty Mexican chick kept screwing up my order so I finally raised my voice and said "Sin cibolla, entiende?" She got it...ON HER TERMS.

Like wanting to reach for a razor blade and rolling up your sleeves?

Yes, it's contrary to our collective deeply ingrained work ethic and concept of "meritocracy."

Nothing is wrong with Rockland County! You want me on your team for the geography category for Trivial Pursuit. When I was in Catholic grammar school, people tried to cheat off of me in geography! It was one of my favorite subjects. Rockland County....you go through it across the Tappan Zee Bridge from White Plains en route to Highland Falls NY to see West Point, right?

As I may have posted before, I was happy with neither party's candidate. Unbelievable that this is the best our country could offer. I thought the speech had too much focus on the "look where we've come" factor. Instead, he could have neutralized it by talking about opportunity for and contributions by ALL. Since this is a touchy issue, it should have been downplayed. His plate ought to be full with the economy, international conditons and environmental concerns. Race issues take a back seat, BIG TIME, to all of the above. The outcome was a non-event in my mind. It was to be expected. I was actually expecting a 54% or 53% popular vote, but it was closer than that. That surprised me.

The O.C. composes a new song: "I left my heart...in Orange County."

Texas

Tu eres muy comico, tipo peludo.

C'mon, Satty, I'm surprised you find it ironic. For me, languages are the ultimate hobby. As a kid, I was shuttled back and forth between the US and Europe and went to K-3 overseas in another language, so I would look at the encyclopedia and see how much of the globe we traveled from LA to the Mediterranean... and everything in between. I am a native of this country and very proud of being American, but have an awareness of my European roots...nothing more. The post was based on the fact that a Greek, an Italian, an Arab, a Czech or a Norwegian immigrant 30, 40 or 50 years didn't get this "luxury." I'm sure the people who are not well represented resent this. This morning, as I voted, I thought about this. Yeah, it's tough. But at least the alphabet's characters are the same as that of Spanish, whereas, for some languages, they are not.

I went to vote at about 7:40 this AM. Had to wait about 20 minutes. There was an obvious lesbian couple in front of me (in the conservative suburbs, no less) but we have Prop 8 on our ballot in CA. Guess what? They were NICE to me, believe it or not, and we conversed a little bit, but mostly about the economy and because one of them worked for a homebuilder....and I was dressed in a very conservative coat and tie, so what's that offputting vibe I give off? They hand me my ballot and HALF of it was in Espanol. Thus, there were equal portions of English and Spanish. I'm sorry, but part of being a U.S. citizen implies that you speak the language to some rudimentary degree. When my Mom votes, she gets no special ballot, so she studies it ahead of time and seeks the translation. So, considering none of the immigrants from a past era or those who are not represented in large numbers DO NOT get a ballot in their language, yet ARE citizens, then I don't think there should be a bilingual ballot at all. Most people who have pride DO NOT want to be spoon fed, anyway. If there is a country I like to travel to for VACATIONS, for God's sake, I make it a point to learn their language. These people getting a bilingual ballot LIVE HERE ... day in and day out.

chain

I am very much starting to appreciate the beauty of the G8. It's a head-turner. I have sat in it, though, and it is kind of generic. Not only that, its new car smell is un-American. It smells like a foreign car. We've all sat in enough new Chevys, Pontiacs, and Buicks to know what I refer to. I bet it handles like a dream. And, don't be getting on my case, but I'd like it even more with a RWD 3800 and 4-speed automatic. Don't like expensive and complicated repairs, when that time comes.

How catty, Rockland County! :rotflmao: Funny what we notice: I saw the "arch top" on the door behind him. Either a newer home or a remodel.

finger (you know, to make "tiramisu")

I couldn't believe this. I got a voice mail today from a proponent of a Democrat in my district. I'm thinking "WTF?" My phone is not listed. Unless I have a short memory (and I don't), how did they get my home phone number?

Amen. Can't wait to get some shut-eye tonight. And, out in Cali, there's a bunch of controversial items as propositions....both fiscally and socially. Yikes.

Jewish mother

chimichanga

subway (what they have to be careful for when tunneling for subways in L.A. ZL, a linha do metro para Santa Apolonia e completa?)