FamGuyToday by Aunty Fox

from seeing the movie 'Limitless'. What a concept. Using 100% of your brain, instead of the 10-20% that most people do. Could do a snarky political comment, but won't cuz it's too easy. Good movie with some amazing visuals, that we esp liked cuz it took place in NYC, in a lot of our favorite areas.

CU lost to Alabama, last night, 62-61, in the semi-finals of the NIT, at Madison Square Garden. Cory Higgins played his last game as a Buff, and ended up one point shy of the all-time CU scoring record. Tough loss to take, as Alec Burkes had the last shot of the game, and his 16 footer caught a little too much rim. Oh well, was fun while it lasted.

and cute. I can't understand all she says, but she is sure starting to talk, as those female genes are kicking in. Such a smart little thing, too. Sure is fun being a grampa.

but this view of the tsunami really shows HOW bad.  (Takes a while to load.) http://freevideocoding.com/flvplayer.swf?file=http://flash.vx.roo.com/streamingVX/63056/1458/20110311_japan_wave_successions_sky_1000k.mp4&autostart=true

with their weekend stories that screamed, "Biden Staff Kidnaps Reporter, Locks Him in Closet'. 'Tis really amazing, as always, to read the FOX account of what happened, then read the real story, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/52043.html , as the reporter tells the truth. As always, there's the FOXNews account, (which has mostly been pulled from the wire) and then there's the truth. Wow, I'm just shocked.

Dave Hardy gave me a book he thought I'd like, SO, when I got a little bored with the mega-series I was into last night, I remembered I had, 'Sh*t My Dad Says', and started on it. As I continually laughed out loud, Carol kept asking. 'What are you doing?' I couldn't put it down and read the whole thing after I started it at 8:00 last night. I gotta get my kids to read it so they realize that I could have been a whole lot worse. This was turned into a TV series and now they're making a movie out of it. I don't think I've ever laughed out loud so much while reading. Thanks, Dave. C'mon, Nate and Kari, you gotta read this...

we had our monthly old farts breakfast group, where we get together for a long, drawn out brunch, and just talk, laugh and have a good time. One of the good side effects is that I usually end up sitting beside someone I have 'sorta' known for a long time, but don't really know much about. This has turned out to be the highlight of the get-together for me. Last month it was Dave Hardy, who I found I have a lot in common with, and Mike ONeil. This month I was again with Mike and a new guy named Ted. Not sure how we got on the subject, but in the course of conversation we found out we had all camped out at Lower Island Lake, numerous times. This wouldn't be so unusual, if LIL wasn't so isolated. First you take the interestate about 3 hours, then you take back roads another hour, then it's a grueling 4 hour, 4-wheel drive trail, that many vehicles don't survive, THEN you're ready to backpack, over the Continental Divide, above timberline, for approx 3 hours,...

who is shocked and amazed that there can be an organization like FOXNews, and there are people who actually believe their distorted view of reality.  http://mediamatters.org/   is a site dedicated to exposing the lies and propaganda that Fox continually throws out there, mixed in amongst the real stories. Pretty good database of some of the most outrageous crap that the hypocrites at Fox pass off as 'news'.

tonight, and they show the former AZ coach, Lute Olson, I think of the times I shared an elevator with him, and AZ players, during the 1994 NCAA playoffs in LA. After the Northridge earthquake, my ins company (SafeCo) shared the downtown Hilton with Arizona, as well as JAL (Japanese Airlines), and it was interesting in the elevators, as I was mid-range, at 6'4", compared to the Japanese and the AZ players.   I introduced myself, (Olson to Lute Olson) and we kinda grinned at the 4-5 ft pilots and stewardesses around us. Was part of a strange but interesting part of my life, in LA, in 1994.

developed at FOXNews, yesterday, as Muslims in Sri Lanka were protesting and defacing pics of Obama. Muslims and Obama. Whose side they gonna take? Also, seems Michele Bachmann has a birth certificate she's real proud of, BUT no one can find a high school diploma.

to launch a new sports network, called FOCKSports, based on FOXNews. I will choose my favorite teams, and only report on the times they win, and my 'non-favored' teams will only get coverage when they lose, or screw up. I will NEVER have anything bad about my team or EVER have anything good about the other team. To make things interesting, I will occasionally make up scores and bloopers so my fans can feel good all the time. Should be a great model for fake sports fans, as it certainly worked for the fake news network. Looking at the success of FOXNews, I have no doubt FOCKSports can be a HUGE success, among those who don't care about REAL scores, but like to feel like a winner. If anyone objects, I'll just claim to be 'Fair and Balanced', and hope no one looks too closely at the REAL scores.

but this is so typical of FOX and the Repubs, as Newt totally changes his mind about Libya, after Obama makes a stand. It's all about, whatever Obama does, it's wrong, acoording to them. http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/03/22/newt-gingrich%E2%80%99s-changing-tune-on-libya/ Earlier this month, Newton “Newt” Gingrich told Greta Van Susteren on Fox News that if he was in charge of the country the first thing he would do about Libya would be to “exercise a no-fly zone this evening.” Then President Obama made exactly that decision. Newt must have been thrilled! “I would not have intervened,” he told Matt Lauer on the “Today Show".

got fired today, 23 months after being videoed beating the crap of 2 young men, for no good reason. This only came to public attention  because one of the victims happened to be the son of a police officer, and someone had a camera. Other than that, it would have been swept under the rug.  Most people have never seen this side of law enforcement, but I have. I had long hair for a few years, and was harrassed, unrelentingly, by 'officers of the law', for no other reason than, being different, except when I worked with them, at concerts. They lied, and made up crap, and people believed them, cuz they were cops. Like every other occupation, cops have 'bad apples' amongst them. People who like to drive fast cars and beat people up, and get paid for it. I just hope these bullies don't get their jobs back. They are there to 'Serve and Protect', not harass the citizens. Been there, seen that, and hope these jerks pay the price, with their jobs.

about all the air traffic controllers who are retiring, 30 years after Reagan fired a bunch of them for striking. The good part of the story? The new controllers are training on flight simulators, which save a lot of time and money, and that is what Jen, Jess and Nate are developing and building. Check it out at http://www.rjsim.com/testimonials.html ,   There is some good news in the economy, when some smart, motivated young people see a need and fill it.

Michael Connelly's books, and he's one of my favorite authors, with his characters Mickey Haller, the lawyer, and Harry Bosch, the detective, working the underbelly of LA. Excellent writing, that finally got adapted to the big screen, with, 'The Lincoln Lawyer'. I would bet big money that this will become a long running series of movies, cuz they did a great job with the first one, and there's a whole lot more to work with. The Lincoln Lawyer, with an all-star cast, doesn't have a dull moment, as we follow Matthew McConaughy, as an LA lawyer, who works out of his car (a Lincoln), and is based on a real character. Can't wait for the next movie, cuz I'm sure there will be more, with this cast, who's really fun to watch.

what I was reading, but I recently got wrapped up (thanks a bunch, Laura) in a totally different genre, and it just happens to be a HUGE (thousands of pages) series that I can't put down. SO, no book reviews for awhile until I finish this monumental tome. Even then, I may not admit to reading it all.

the Univ of Maryland published a report that FOXNews listeners were the most misinformed of all major networks. The FOX spokesman, when informed of this, said, 'Considering this comes from the #1 party school in the country, we're not taking it seriously." BUT, U of M recently placed  #25 in the nat'l list of 'party schools'. That's it FOX, just 'make it up', as you go along and the sheep will believe it. Great way to fight the 'misinformed' label, with some misinformation.

for the Dems, who are really rotten, but better than the Repubs. Sarah Palin probably won't be running for prez, cuz her numbers have dropped to approx 12% support, and that's from Repubs. The good news? Michele Bachmann looks like she's gonna take up the mantle. If Obama can't beat that idiot, then he couldn't beat anyone. What a joy she is ( and will be?) to watch, mixing ignorance, stupidity and religion into a toxic brew. Bring it on, Michele.

last night had Bret Baier, FOXNews propagandist, as a guest. He and John Stewart were just getting into it as the show ended, BUT, you can go online and see the rest. http://www.thedailyshow.com/ . How these people can pretend that they are 'Fair and Balanced' is so ridiculous and funny (esp when John Stewart gets ahold of them) that's it's hard to imagine they can keep a straight face. At least there is entertainment value, as the TV audience laughed out loud at some of Bret's assertions about FOX. Bret kept saying, 'but we're so popular'. John says that doesn't mean true or legitimate. Crack is popular and powerful, but not good. I gotta quit now. Can't get that upset so early in the day. Just unbelievable to me that people watch and believe the one-sided crap that FOX puts out there....

through this crazy news cycle, I just wonder how anyone, with even moderate intelligence, can totally give up balanced news coverage, and decide to get their 'news' from FOX? What the heck happened in your background, that you would totally give up on real news, provided by 90% of the news outlets in the world, and decide to rely on the propaganda of  one political party? Did you get dropped on your head, at an early age? C'mon, what happened, that you can totally disregard real news, in favor of FOX? Gotta be something REALLY traumatic happened in your background.

so that means it was old fart golf at Coal Creek, where it was a mixed blessing. Bottom line, I got the exercise of walking 18 holes. Not too proud of the 93 I shot.. Then it was 'Survivor' at our house, cuz Carol lost last week. Great mushroom soup, elk meatballs and drinks and giggles. The bad news? It's Thurs and I hurt in couple of different ways. Not complaining, cuz I love Weds, but Thurs you sorta gotta pay for it. Am watching the NCAA tourney now. Go UCONN.

right now on local TV, where a good sized fire is burning near Parker, (over 8500 evacuated) and a grass fire is burning toward a house, with a horse in the corral and goats in a pen, as we watch from a news helicopter. RIght when the fire gets to the property. blown by a 40 mph wind, a fire truck roars up. The fireman pulls out a hose and starts spraying the area, while the fire is within 10-20 feet of the animals. As they almost disappear in a cloud of smoke, you see a perfect water drop from a helicopter drench the area. A PERFECT hit, in live time. One minute I was sure the house and outbuilding were gonna burn, and the next minute the animals were saved by a fireman and a helicopter. AMAZING live TV. Nice to see some good news for a change. Still a large fire, though.

CU play Kent St, in the NIT,( cuz they got screwed outta the NCAA), and the Kent St coach is saying, 'Don't pay any attention to the altitude, it's a Colorado myth'. Sorta like FOX makes up stuff. Wait til the 4th quarter and we'll see if it's a myth. Kinda hard to breath w/way less oxygen than you're used to.

Cory Higgins is set to set the all-time CU basketball scoring record (108 years) tonight, in the NIT tourney, BUT he is not the leading scorer on the team. That would be Alec Burks, who will be going  pro after his soph year, BUT they aren't playing in the NCAA tourney, cuz they were ROBBED, after they beat a bunch of teams that made the tourney. Such BS....

Great story here, how the FOX reporter stayed in the hotel, and made up a story of 'human shields' in Libya. http://www.politico.com/blogs/onmedia/0311/CNN_reporter_slams_FOX_News_report_that_Qaddafi_used_reporters_as_human_shields.html?showall . The CNN reporter says 'You can expect lies from the Libyan press, but the lies of the FOXNews reporter are "outrageous". Duh. What's the deal? You never watch FOX? They just make it up, to suit their agenda, which is pro-Repub/anti-Dem propaganda. Nothing new here, same ol' shit from FOX. And this story is from Politico, a right-wing site.

Although the high mountains have record snow this year, here in the foothills it has been very dry. Normally we have had nearly 60 inches of snow by this time, but this year there's been only 18. SO, today there's so much smoke in the air I can't even see the mountains, 8 miles away, as 3 different forest fires are burning on the front range, with one near Evergreen and another close to Golden, where the kids live. AND, the wind is really kicking up. Could be interesting, and scary.

The best way to keep track of how our dollar is sinking, is to compare it to silver, which is traded on the world market. Aprrox a month ago I posted that I was kinda shocked (but pleasantly surprised) that a silver dollar was worth $32.70. Today that same dollar is worth over $36. Check back next month....

I like this one. Seems one of our missles got away from us, while taking out the air defenses of Libya, and 'accidentally' hit the building with this statue, and took 'em both out. To bad the 'colonel' wasn't there when it happened.

at FOX, this morning, said, "Keep up the attacks on Obama. Half of you say he shouldn't have gotten involved in Libya, and the other half say he's not doing enough, oh yeah, and keep hammering home the point that he's on "vacation", while the world is burning.'  The sheep eat it up.

from any of the media, the week after 'Curveball' was interviewed on 60 Minutes last week. A low level worker in a seed factory, he admitted lying about the WMD, and anyone who was serious about the truth could have seen it, UNLESS, you were looking for excuses to start a war. Then, you would smear anyone who came forward with the truth, such as Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson. I just can't believe no one is being prosecuted for the lies, told by the criminals, that cost us over a trillion dollars and thousands of lives. Oh yeah, I forgot. Lots of people made lots of money. Makes sense, now.

there is the story of a Catholic priest, who is charismatic and likeable, until he opens his mouth about Catholicism, and how the priests are required to be celibate, and denies how many are attracted to young men. What's real is real, and hard to deny. How can you support the Catholic chucrh, with all it's baggage? It is SO unreal, and just part of the church's diminishing role in today's society. The literal Bible vs proven science? Not even close. Once 'your immortal soul' is mentioned, does your brain just cease to exist?

cuz I have been laughing a lot at 'The Blue Collar Comedy Tour'. Sad, but true. I esp like Ron White.

Craig Ferguson had a good line, about how Shakespeare just made up quotes from famous persons, and people actually believed them to be true. As Craig said, 'Sort of like FOXNews.' So true...

my Sunday morning by watching 'CBS Sunday Morning', which I record then watch without commercials. Lots of good, interesting subjects covered. This morning there was a short piece by Ben Stein, who I like, most of the time. He was eulogizing a famous philosopher who just passed and said his favorite quote from him was, 'Never waste time that could be spent sleeping'. Wow. Words to live by.

I've seen a lot of basketball games in my life, but NEVER one like the Butler/Pitt game today. With 2.2 secs, Butler went up by one. Then with 1.4 left Butler makes a total bonehead foul 45 ft from the basket to give Pitt a chance to tie or win. The guy makes 1 free throw, then with .8 left on the clock Pitt fouls on a shot 92 ft from the basket. Butler makes the free throw. Game over. Worst foul ever, followed by a worse one, all in the last seconds. Both good calls by the officials. Amazing...

on Sat morning, SO, as I was waking up I surfed the channels and, OMG, there was FOXNews lambasting Obama, believe it or not. Seems he is 'on vacation', in Brazil, while there's trouble in Libya and Japan. First of all, he's not on vacation. The #1 problem facing the US is unemployment, and he's working on that in Latin America, and there's nothing he can personally do in Japan. Second, he put together a coalition to deal w/Lybia instaed of just jumping into a 3rd war front, like W woulda done. No matter, I can just hear the FOX execs at their morning meeting. 'What can we say today to attack Obama so we can get back in power? Remember, it doesn't have to be true....'

competitive cooking shows, like 'Top Chef' or 'Iron Chef'. Something about the unfairness and subjectiveness of the judging process. BUT, I really like the cooking show of Guy Fieri, called 'Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. He really makes it interesting as he samples some of the best tasting and most interesting food around. Always makes me hungry and I wanna write down the recipes. Good stuff...

are beating the drums hoping for major military conflict in Libya. Calling Obama, a 'follower, not a leader', cuz he is patiently putting together a true international coalition, unlike the 'coalition of the willing' (to be bribed), as the US basically went to war, alone, against weapons that weren't there,  in Iraq, BUT, there were some real nice profits for those involved, and they're getting an itchy trigger finger again. SO, Obama will be villified for not unleashing 'shock and awe' and committing us to another war. Sure different when the Repubs aren't in charge.

of why the right wing Repub, big oil boys were such supporters of the war in Iraq, (based on lies from the Big Oil boys, Bush and Cheney), it was revealed that in just one contract of $2.7 BILLION, (in a no bid contract), the pentagon overpaid by approx $200 million.  From today's article: Multi-billionaire oilman, Harry Sargeant III, a prominent Republican donor, was overpaid, "$160 [millions] to $204 million more for fuel than could be supported by price or cost analysis." You wonder why the 'big oil boys' support the Repubs and the military/industrial complex that loves to take the US to war, whether it's justified, or not? As always, just follow the money. And this is just ONE no-bid contract, to supply part of the military with oil/fuel, that is all 'off the books'. It's what happens when Texas oil guys are in charge of the gov't purse strings.

the Broomfield girls had a 'first' in state history when they won their 5th consecutive state title. This week, the other school in town, Holy Family, who plays 3A b-ball, brought home their 4th consecutive state title. Must be something in the water around here, cuz these girls are GOOD.

yesterday, and saw a HUGE hawk screaming toward our deck, about 3 feet off the ground, with it's claws extended. I freaked out, cuz I thought Bailey was outside, and I ran out the door and scared the hawk who was heading toward 2 doves at our bird feeder. I'm sure I shocked them all, and Bailey, who'd been asleep indoors came running out the door to see what was going on. The hawk, a redtail w/about a 4 ft wingspan, was big enufff to have her for a snack. NOW, I check all the trees before I let her outside. Have a different view toward hawks these days, since I helped rehab them at Birds of Prey.

about a (supposed) CIA agent in Pakistan who killed 2 men, in (supposed) self defense, and the gov't paid several million dollars in blood money to free him. I have 2 questions. If he was innocent why did we pay the money? AND, if he was guity, why did we pay the money? Typical gov't BS and waste of money.

Rush Limbaugh never fails to sink lower. On his show today, he mocked Diann Sawyer and the victims in a shelter because they were still recycling. The gist of his remark goes like this. 'Here you have the people that gave us the Prius and lead the world in recycling, and God wipes them out (chuckle, chuckle) kinda makes you wonder what thinks of them huh? (chuckle, chuckle)."  Just when you think he can't sink any lower, he never disappoints.

is tossed around a lot these days, as in everyday soldiers and policemen, but in Japan right now, there are some true heroes. The atomic reactor workers, many who have lost their home and loved ones, are facing certain (painful) death, are going into the 'danger zone' voluntarily. To me, these are true heroes, and just watching the story, touched me deeply.

of whining about CU getting snubbed by the NCAA. Kansas, who is the #1 choice to win it all at the big dance, beat the Buffs by only 7 points in the Big 12 tourney after CU blew a good lead. Earlier in the year, the Buffs fell by 4 points, in a close game, to Kansas, the #1 seed. Two teams chosen to play in March Madness beat ZERO of the tourney teams, while CU had 5 wins over tourney bound teams. What the hell happened with the 10 NCAA officials who were involved in this robbery? This is criminal behavior, as well as unexplainable, since it involves millions of dollars in revenue.

on many sports pages, on the web and elsewhere, this morning, (but the best is a rant by Dick Vitale, Mr. Basketball) is how Colo got screwed by the NCAA. They beat #5 seed K-State 3 times, #4 seed Texas, as well as other teams included, and nearly beat the overall #1 seed Kansas, but got snubbed. Unbelievable, unless you understand the vindictiveness of the committee, because of the only reason that makes any sense, from what I've seen. Colorado left the Big 12 for the Pac-10, and it pissed off some people, SO, they took it out on these kids. It's the only thing that makes any sense. They weren't even a bubble team, as everyone who knew anything about the process assumed they were in. Pretty sickening to see a once in a lifetime experience stolen from these kids over petty politics. Good life lesson, though.

 the 8th anniversary of 'shock and awe', they interviewed 'Curve Ball', the #1 witness for the Bush admin to start the war in Iraq.  IF, you believe W's story, the Bush boys got fooled, as they based a war on one persons' lies. Ha ha. Even they aren't that stupid. It was all a scam. They also interviewed CB's supervisor, who was offered $50,000 to go along with the lie, but he refused. It was W's lies, not curve ball's, who carried the day. When some questioned CB's credentials at the 'war meeting' they were shouted down by the Bushies. Colin Powell was lied to, and he passed on the lie. W wanted a war to pump up the price of oil, and he got it. The truth is finally coming out, even  for those that are too dense to see what happened. C'mon, even the sheep gotta see this obvious crap. This guy was the basis for their lies. Bottom line, there were NO WMD, but W got his war, and we got the consequences. Thanks George, yo...

that CU didn't make it to the Big Dance. After the last team was announced, for the NCAA B-ball tourney, the first thing the announcer said, "I can't believe Colorado didn't make it", The two sites I checked didn't even have them on 'the bubble' after they beat K-State for the 3rd time this year, and K-State made it. UNbelievable. Colo played Kansas, the #1 seed, really close, TWICE. Would be really interesting to find out what happened, when you see some of the teams who made it. The first question asked of the head of the committee, on live TV, was "What happened with Colorado?", and the guy had no real answer, other than, 'We look at a lot of things, including their style of play". What the hell! I just wonder what the real story is. Something REALLY stinks.

until I read in the paper this morning, that the ERA, (Equal Rights Amendment), that guarantees equal rights for women, hasn't been ratified. Passed in 1972, it requires approval from 38 states to become law, and only 35 have voted to support it. Guess what? The same band of states, known as the Bible Belt, or Stroke Belt, or center of the Repub Party (MS, AR, LA, AL, etc) haven't ratified it. Shouldn't surprise me I guess, that this uneducated, low income bastion of conservatism is WAY behind the rest of the country, but it kinda does. I just assumed the ERA had become the law of the land. Who'd a thunk...

Latest pic of my pretty granddaughter.

became the first in Colo sports history to win FIVE consecutive state titles, with an overtime victory against Longmont last night. Broomfield boys, the #1 seed, got upset earlier in the week as their tough inside defense forced the opponent to shoot 3-pointers, and they couldn't miss, setting a school record as the Eagles went down. Who'd a thunk? Was reading about it on the deck as there was a Colo HS Girl's golf tourney going on this beautiful spring morning. Kinda early, and was surprised, but there was a shotgun start this morning.

but there's a reason Kansas is #2 in the nation. CU played well, but not good enuff. Looks like they're gonna lose to a great team. At least they got the NCAA to play in. Go Buffs.

the other day, but on Survivor, Weds eve, Russell, the Texas oil jerk, got sent home, forever, and started crying. Never have I disliked a TV character like this SOB. Just seeing and listening to him made my stomach crawl, sorta like Rush Limbaugh. Anyway, he's gone. Good riddance. Now it's Phil's turn. I know it's just a TV show, but it's my 'guilty pleasure', and a reason to get together and eat/drink/giggle. Would love to have a chance at that show, someday.

of an experience, that I may or may not have blogged about before. The first night I spent in Northridge, as a disaster ins adjuster after the 1994 quake, I was just about asleep, in my 2nd floor motel room, when the whole place started to shake. Found out later it was the largest aftershock after the original tremor. At first I thought it was kinda neat, then it got worse and I saw cracks open up in the drywall of my room and I decided I needed to jump out of the window. I wobbled to the window, kicked out the screen and looked for a place to land. Wrong! There were some landscape rocks below me, so I didn't jump and just rode it out. The next morning I went out and moved all the rocks so I'd have a landing zone, that fortunately I never needed, though I did go through several aftershocks, the worst while I was in the crawlspace checking out the foundation of a big old house on a hillside. Thought I was gonna be buried there. That was 17 years ago and it's hard to believe ...

for all the sheep out there. In case you didn't know, Ronald Reagan is a god-like, mythic figure for the right-wing. This same crew has been high-fiving since the Wisconsin gov busted the union and it's collective bargaining power. This clip  from Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show", which concludes each program with 'your Zen Moment' shows, typically a FOXNews 'news' person, or some other conservative windbag, saying one thing, THEN, saying just the opposite when it fits their agenda. I think it is the best part of the show, as it points out how these buffoons just make it up as they go. Yesterday's zen moment, as the Repubs are celebrating union busting in Wisconsin, shows Roanld telling how important unions are, to freedom.  SOOO funny...(very short clip),   http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-march-10-2011/moment-of-zen---ronald-reagan-supports-unions

on the nat'l news tonight. We had an asshole named Mike Schmidt, with a low double digit IQ, who liked to pick on kids who were smaller than him (most everyone). I remember the day I stood up to him, and he laughed and walked away, and he never bothered me again. Feel sorry for all the kids who didn't have my size and attitude and had to put up with it. A problem that has been around forever and is very real.

the Broomfield HS Women's team is playing in the state tourney, and if they win, will be first team in Colo history to win 5 straight state titles. Unbelievable, if it happens. Go Lady Eagles.

The Buffs went on a 13-5 run at the end of the game, to win by 2 points! Crazy game, but Colorado pulled it out at the end. Good enough for an NCAA tourney berth, it looks like.

and Okla St just beat Nebr by 1 point. Exciting finish as I turned it on to see the Buffs play in the first round, against Iowa St. Colorado has been kind of a Jeckyll/Hyde team this year, beating some highly ranked teams and could move on to the 'Big Dance' with a good showing in their conference tournament. Go Buffs!

if, after 9-11, you had a patriotic stirring, and enlisted to defend your country, only to find out, as you sat in a tent in Iraq, that you'd been 'lied to' by the Bush crowd who had pulled a 'shell game' and you were merely a pawn in their oil game? Because of gov't lies, supported by FOXNews, over half the country thought Saddam was behind 9-11. By the time the enlistees found out they'd been duped and realized that Iraq had NOTHING w/9-11, it was too late. They were fighting Iraqis who were defending their country against foreign ivaders, just as they would have done if their homeland had been invaded. GOTCHA! But now it's too late, and they're in the milirary for a few more years, sweating their ass off in a desert as the locals try to kill them. BUT, if they pop some pills, it'll help w/the mental pain. That's part of the reason our military is the most medicated in the history of warfare. Don't believe it? Check it o...

and gotta say, I really liked it. Not sure how much was true, but I'm sure that it was based on fact. Not a dull moment, as we eavesdrop on the creation of an idea that changed life in our culture. As for myself, I'm officially a member, but never got into it, by accepting 'friends' (cuz I think I'd just get in trouble, and I get into enuff trouble w/my blog), but I can see how most people would really use/enjoy it. Bottom line, great movie that deserved it's many Oscar nominations. Zuckerberg is a genius that hit upon the right idea at the right time. Did he steal it? Well, sort of, maybe...

My last post made fun of Repubs (imagine that), BUT, am not claiming the Dems are much better. They have their share of lying jerks who do nothing more than to try and perpetuate their own careers at the expense of the people they are supposed to serve. BUT, compared to the Repubs who fought and clawed so the Bush tax cut for millionaires wouldn't be reinstated (from 36 to 39% on income over $250K), then they complain about the greedy elitist teachers who are overpaid. I do understand why they are against teachers, though. Less education = MUCH higher chance you will be a Repub.. It's no coincidence that the top ten education/income states are ALL blue and the bottom ten are ALL red. The new Repub strategy? Demonize teachers, minimize education and 'voila', MORE Republicans! Kind of a cynical way to grow the party, but from what I've seen, it's sure not gonna stop 'em from trying. (Sorry to stay on my soapbox, but it just pisses me off ot see them vili...

make fun of the 'Diabetes Belt (on today's AOL News)', which is the new name for the 'Stroke Belt', (formerly the "Bible Belt'), because it is a strip of states known for unhealthy habits, lack of education and ALSO the bastion of Republicanism. BUT, I remembered that some people are born w/diabetes and have no choice, so I'm backing off. Not so w/being born a Repub. Just cuz you're born into it doesn't mean you can't grow up, get an education and open your eyes. Geez, it doesn't have to be a life sentence.....

Sarah Palin was scheduled to speak in Colorado, BUT, even after discounting the tix by 50%, sales were barely moving, SO, with her FOXNews spin background, the event was cancelled, due to 'security' reasons. Fast forward a couple months and, 'voila', the security is OK, and Sarah is going to grace us with a visit and speech, now that her event is actually selling tickets, at 1/10th of the original price. Colorado has it's share of 'crazies', but not enough to pay Sarah's regular price. Still, she's gonna grace us with a visit. We are not worthy...We are not worthy...

while reading how the Glenn Beck Show has lost a large number of of it's listeners. Glenn has made a fortune by, 'riling up the rubes', and the rubes can only stay riled up for so long, before they go back to their trailer and fry up some fixin's. Lotta truth there. The lower level of society, that is his audience, just doesn't have much of an attention span. Sure, some of the rubes are still riled, but a lot of them are getting tired of him and going back to their roots, and hoping they can hook up with their hot cousin at the Klan meeting.

from Texas, (pictured here, http://pics.schwippy.com/forums/images/head_up_ass.jpg ), who keeps commenting on my blog w/the same old, tired crap. 'How long are you going to blame Bush'? Well, how long are we gonna blame Hitler for WWII? How long are we gonna blame the captain of the Titanic for hitting an icebeg?  (Hint, he was the captain when the ship went down. Sound familiar?) Forever, cuz it's truth and part of history. Like a driver who wrecks a classic car, then can only bitch to the auto repair shop cuz it's taking too long, and becoming too expensive to repair. You should have thought of that BEFORE you wrecked it. Don't blame the repair crew.  Our country is in deep shit, and will be for a LONG time, cuz of the cowboy conman from Texas. Denial isn't an option. Deal with it.

according to this group of true believers, traveling the country to get the word out. http://www.cnn.com/2011/LIVING/03/06/judgment.day.caravan/index.html?hpt=Sbin  This bunch of Biblical believers, who like most cults don't like to be called a cult, (although they fit all the definitions), claim to have deciphered God's word and the 21st of May will be the 'rapture'. My question is, 'What are they gonna do on the 22nd when the sun comes up and they are still here? How are they gonna react when they find out they been following a 'phony' for years? It happens. There's a good book, 'When Prophecy Fails', that takes on this issue. Like all cultmembers, some will stick around and get sucked into the 'next' end of the world prophecy, and some will move on. Some will try to rationalize their actions and others will begin looking for another 'leader', to explain the mysteries of life to them. Some things in this world just never change.

I got to see and play with Nate's new program he wrote for the flight simulator. What started out to be an aid for the intructor, while he has a student in the flight seat, turned out to be a marketing help while they visit and try to sell, at flight school conventions. Nate's project allows an iPad to synch with the simulator so the instructor can not only change weather conditions (wind, rain, temperature) but also introduce potentially disastrous 'failures' into the system (loss of hydraulics, flaps, electrical, etc) to see how the student handles it. The program allows an iPad to control the simulator, so merely by holding, tilting and moving the iPad, you can fly the simulator. I'm not explaining it well, or completely, but was fun to hold the iPad and fly the airplane, something that will get a lot of play and attention at the next convention they attend. I'm willing to help out if they encounter any problems....

for my kids. Nate and Laura, (as well as Ted and Kari, and Jen and Jess), went to the Children's Hospital Fundraiser and made an overnighter of it, SO, we had to do grandparent duty. We were forced to spend the night in a beautiful house on the top of a ridge in the Rocky Mountains, eat Laura's pasta dinner and pancake breakfast she made, check out the hot tub and five varieties of beer on tap, and play with Piper, when not watching the big screen HD. Wow, the sacrifices I make to be a good Grampa.

'Obama Not Serious About Debt'. Every poll, Dem and Repub, says that the issue most Americans are concerned about is jobs and employment, BY FAR. But, the Repubs, after totally trashing our economy, want to ram through cost-cutting measures, right at the time the people need help to recover from the last time they were in charge. Screw the economy/people, and maybe if it's bad enough they'll be stupid enough to put the Repubs back in charge. Wouldn't be the first time they took advantage of the sheep who get their news from FOX.

how Mitt Romney, who seems to be the most qualified Repub prez candidate wiggles and squirms around his state's health insurance program,which is very good, BUT, is nearly identical to the one that the Repubs renounced and chopped apart, leaving us with the mess that finally got passed, and labeled Obamacare. Should be REAL interesting to see how these hypocrites dance around the obvious. I'm guessing lies and exagerations, with large amounts of fact-fudging, championed by FOXNews. Just a guess...

so we celebrated w/the kids last night (again!) at Fogo de Chao, the Brazilian steakhouse in downtown Denver where they have the never-ending meat parade, AND an amazing salad bar. As long as the flag is up, on your table, one or more of the wandering waiters, with skewers of fresh hot meat will be at your table to slice off as much as you want. Not sure what my favorite was, but was either rib eye, filet mignon or most probably, the leg of lamb that was sizzly crisp on the outside and pinkish red on the inside. Also, the smoked salmon was fantastic, not to mention the sirloin and the pork tenderloin. Was a little disappointed they didn't have any of the beef ribs.Tonight, the kids and spouses play in the big Children's Hospital charity poker tournament which is always a pretty big deal, where they get all dressed up and have quite an elaborate event. Good luck kids and happy birthday Carol. Oh yeah, the kids got Carol a Kindle 3, all loaded up w/her favorite books. I'm gon...

the unemployment stats from the gov't didn't look too bad as the jobless numbers got slightly better, BUT, when you read further and see why, it's kinda scary. The only reason it looked better was the large number of people who just gave up, or were dropped from the rolls after their unemp insurance ran out. Also, factor in the huge numbers of workers who had a good paying job with benefits and now work part time or at minimum wage. The REAL unemployment rate, after Bush killed our economy is near 20%. Absolutely unsustainable. Throw in the fact that  most people's MAIN investment, their house, is still headed down with no end in sight, AND, the gov't which depends on taxes to fund itself, finds the tax base headed down as demand goes up. And the cherry on top? Oil companies are raising prices to suck up whatever discretionary income there is out there. When you look at the country in 2000, and the one handed off in 2008, how can anyone dispute the obv...

Food prices are at an all time high, and many will starve worldwide, because, approx 41% of the US corn production goes to ethanol, and a lot of land formerly used to grow food crops has gone to where the money is, instead of growing FOOD, because the gov't subsidizes ethanol, even though it takes more energy (oil based) to grow than it produces. It's a fact. Not even close. Look it up (Google), and see why the Bush admin was so eager to get it passed. Keep the Repub states in line, as they get gov't money for wasting valuable land, AND, buy more oil. DOUBLE WIN! Only problem? Bunch of people starve, cuz the farmers are growing corn for ethanol rather than food, not to mention all the wasted water which is kinda scarce in the west. Anyone else see the problem here?

and I had kind of a hard time with it. You know how when your brain keeps saying, 'aw come on, that's really not realistic', and if it happens too many times, it's really distracting. That's how 'Book of Eli' was for me. Kinda interesting in places, and I like Denzell Washington, but this movie was just too stupid, in too many places, for me to enjoy it.

Don't read if you recorded/care about 'Survivor'. But, our dinner/beer/ laugh group, who gets together (for lack of a better excuse) to watch (and have a $ pool) the antics of the 'survivors'. Finally, the biggest jerk of all time, Russell, got voted off. His team purposely lost a challenge, and the rewards that go with it, to get rid of his cancerous presence. Just looking at him, or hearing him, makes my stomach crawl, sorta like Rush Limbaugh. Not totally gone, cuz of 'Redemption Island', but a real good start, for the oil guy from Texas. See the troll here, http://theclicker.today.com/_news/2011/03/02/6174526-ding-dong-the-survivor-troll-is-gone

had an interesting author/guest yesterday. "One Nation Under Contract', tells how the Bush admin 'contracted' out over half our military's jobs, to private contractors, and paid them tens of billions of dollars, under the table. This is on top of the pallets of hundred dollar bills, shrinkwrapped to the size of (and called) footballs, that were shipped overseas. In just one part of it, there is over $8.2 BILLION in cash that can't be accounted for. And this is on top of the billions of dollars, that went to the 'coalition of the willing'(to be bribed), to nations that would publicly support W's war. Now, as people get all upset about our 'overpaid' teachers let's re-visit where the really BIG money went, in the form of hundreds of billions of 'off the books' payoff money so the Bush/Cheney/Rummy crew could foist another war on us. BTW, without these well paid 'contractors' we may well have had to have a draft, and the peo...

we're ALL as stupid as his right wing sheep? When Mike Huckabee was busted for saying Obama hates Brits because he was raised in Kenya during the Mau Mau Rebellion against Britain, he retracted part of his statement saying he meant to say Indonesia instead of Kenya, and why were people getting so upset over one misspoken word? Well, replace Kenya w/Indonesia and see how much sense it makes, about the Mau Mau's and all. That BS works w/the FOX crowd, but most of us, unlike the sheep, actually use our brains.

from a couple days in the mountains. Nate and Laura gave us the condo and I took Carol skiing for her birthday. Wow, if there's anything better than schussing down the slope, with PERFECT weather and snow, synching your turns with I-pod tunes, I'd like to know it. It was magic. Then we topped it off with a glass of wine (or two) in the hot tub, and a great dinner. Can't wait to get back. This is our time of year on the slopes, mid-week without the crowds and traffic. Thanks kids, it was a blast. (Lotta good tunes to ski to, but Peter Tosh's version of 'Johnny B. Goode' and Skynards version of 'Call Me the Breeze', are petty hard to beat.)