Watch our World Cup champions today in Manhattan's ticker tape parade - A Class Act

VANCOUVER — Carli Lloyd knew what to do when Abby Wambach stepped onto the field for her last World Cup game ever.

It was the 79th minute and the United States had all but won it with a secure 5-2 lead as Wambach came on for Tobin Heath. That’s when Lloyd, who had scored three goals in the first 16 minutes, took off her captain’s armband and gave it to Wambach.

Lloyd had never officially been named the U.S. captain, but with Wambach and Christie Rampone not playing as much this tournament, she happily embraced the role.

Wambach has often spoke about this year being her last World Cup and in her final match, Lloyd felt strongly she should finish as captain.

“It’s been an honor for me to take on that leadership, to wear the armband. I have no regrets ever when I put that thing on, put on the jersey,” Lloyd said. “When Abby has come on in a few of the games it’s just a little crazy to switch the armband, but I wanted to make sure she put the armband on because she deserves it. She has been legendary to this team. She’s been unbelievable. I’m so thankful I can call her my friend, my teammate, and I’m just so proud her last World Cup she could go out strong.”

 (from USA Today)
And just in case you missed it, here's the icing on the World Cup cake: Carli Lloyd's midfield goal. (It's the Spanish, gooooaaaallll!!! version!)

Some music history fades away...

RIP Mike Porcaro.
The music never dies.

Google -- Are they the best of us?

Images of leaves reminiscent of Anna Atkins' photography

In the real world, despite a life well lived as a botanist/photographer, 19th century Anna Atkins was destined for the anonymity so many of us share -- until Google 'googled' her, dredged up her story, and memorialized her with a Google doodle on her 216th birthday.
Thanks, Google. And hello Anna. It's nice to meet you.

Privacy, the Last Hurrah

Ever hear of DARPA? If you're worried about your privacy, if you think Eric Snowden has opened up a can of worms, or Pandora's Box, or the CIA's treasure trove of information... MAN! Are you behind the curve! These DARPA guys (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) have their fingers in pies you didn't know could even be baked! Want to see something truly scary, something that will allow the government to track YOUR FOOTSTEPS? Just click here -- but be warned; if you do, you're gonna sleep less!

(previously published 2/2014)

Dave's still got it... and other news

In his monolog last night, after discussing the 'Blurred Lines' ruling for the Marvin Gaye family,   David Letterman said that the heirs of Dan Blocker were going to court to get a piece of Pharrell!  Now THAT'S funny!

And as long as we're discussing the crazy stuff lawyers do for a living, consider the photographs below. Was the modern photographer  'inspired' by the 80-year-old Jaguar ad? Did he consciously copy its 'essence', and if so, should he be required to pay some kind of royalty? Heavy. 

(Hey, pass that around, don't be a toke hog!)

Good teachers hammered this stuff home! Thanks, Dr. McSharry and Mr. Friedman

"Cesar-sa mort" by Vincenzo Camuccini (1798)

March 15, 44 B.C. --   Caesar approaches the Senate. In the crowd, he sees the soothsayer who warned him about the Ides Of March.
'The Ides of March are come,' Caesar confidently declares.
'Ay, Caesar,' replies the soothsayer, 'but not gone.'
The conspirators gather around Caesar; he sees his trusted friend Brutus among them. They pull out their swords and stab Caesar. With his dying breath Caesar addresses Brutus, 

"Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar!"

 Caesar pitches forward, lifeless upon the pedestal of Pompey's statue. Cinna rejoices, crying, "Liberty, Freedom! Tyranny is dead!" Witnesses to the assassination flee the Senate and Trebonius reports to Brutus and Cassius that Antony has fled to his house in shock and that people are running through the streets  "As it were doomsday" .

Once in a lifetime game show finishes - on the same night!

First, there was Jeopardy, with only one contestant for the finale; then there was, on the very same night, A Wheel of Fortune game, with only one player with any money. Two consecutive shutouts.
It has to be Obama's fault!  

Don't mess with Cas!

Richmond, VA woman, 75, strangles rabid raccoon at local botanical garden

Cas Overton

...........

Posted: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 11:47 am

By TAMMIE SMITH
Richmond Times-Dispatch, lightly edited by Jack Krug

Cas Overton knew she would not be able to get away from the violent raccoon that attacked her on the leg Saturday afternoon as she walked in Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden watching for birds.

So she did what she had to do.

“I tried to shake it off and realized how violent it was,” said Overton, 75, of Henrico County. “As I moved backward away from it, I grabbed its neck and I knew that I couldn’t get away from it. If I ran, it would be faster than I would and would just tear me to pieces.

“So I threw it to the ground and I strangled it — with both hands. I am a terrific animal lover. It’s the last thing in the world I would have ever wanted to do, but you know self-preservation kicks in, and I guess a primitive part of my brain just went into operation and that was it,” she said Tuesday, recalling the incident.

State laboratory test results reported Tuesday confirmed that the raccoon had rabies.

Overton on Saturday was taken by ambulance to Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital for treatment. She was started on a series of shots to prevent rabies infection. She had the second shot of the series Tuesday.

Health officials are asking anyone who may have been exposed to the raccoon or had their animals exposed to notify the Henrico County Health Department at (804) 501-4529 or the Henrico Animal Control Office at (804) 501-5000. Police said that number also can be used to report any abnormal wildlife behavior.

Henrico officials reminded residents to keep pet vaccinations current.

“We know that these types of incidents do occur in our communities and that we’re prepared to respond,” said Dr. Parham Jaberi, Chesterfield Health District director, who was fielding calls about the Henrico case. “Really, it’s an opportunity to share the basic prevention messages to all of our community members and residents every time we have an incident like this.

“If there is a question, seek immediate health care. ... The sooner that you receive post-exposure prophylaxis the less the likelihood of developing illness,” Jaberi said, explaining that the treatment is a series of four shots over two weeks.

At Lewis Ginter, officials have posted signs alerting visitors to be alert to any unusual animal behavior. Beth Monroe, spokeswoman for Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, said the area where Overton was walking is a more naturalist, wooded area with trails, closer to Lakeside Avenue.

“Visitor safety is our first priority. We have posted signs at our front desk. … We encourage people to stay on the main garden path and be alert to suspicious behavior of wildlife,” Monroe said.

She said the path where Overton was walking is closed temporarily.

“We are double checking that pathway,” Monroe said.

Overton said she likes that area of the garden, which is off the beaten path. She thinks the raccoon ran out of a thicket of bamboo.

She said the raccoon got her pants leg and left a tear. She said she was yelling for help.

“When the animal was finally still, I was able to get over to the Bloemendaal House on the back of the property. It wasn’t far,” she said.

“There was a man at the house who very graciously contacted the main number in the lobby of the reception area of the garden. Within five minutes there was an ambulance there and animal control. They were remarkable,” she said.

Overton, who taught tai chi for 40 years and who is a Feldenkrais practitioner — a method for working with people who have physical concerns — said she believes it was that physical and mental training that enabled her to respond as she did.

“I think that the presence of mind and the focusing on the moment was just with me to manage to do this,” said Overton, who volunteers at the garden. She was there Sunday to thank the people who helped her.

She said the only residual effects are tiredness, which could be from the rabies prevention shots or from the experience of coming down off such an adrenaline rush.

I'm a BIG Hans Zimmer fan

Hans Florian Zimmer

This guy's had an incredible career. I hope the link to my Zimmer Pandora station works.

Play Pandora

Why so few comments?

When I gave up Facebook for Lent I re-activated my blog, with the intent of keeping open an avenue of communication with my hundreds of Facebook friends.
I worked hard at making my blog interesting, informative, and easy to comment about, but as we move into Lent's 3rd week, I've had exactly TWO comments from FB-ers.
Somebody's looking at it -- I've had hundreds of page views -- but no commentary. Then it hit me. I didn't get a whole lot of commentary on Facebook, either, but I did get 'likes,' and they were fun; they showed who liked what, and they initiated many funny, informative threads -- which I miss.
I'm standing fast to my Lenten pledge, but I am sucking around for blog comments to make me feel still 'involved.' To that end, I've attached 'like' and 'dislike' icons to this article. Now you don't have to actively say anything -- just cut and paste one of these icons in an article's comment section to let me know we're still friends!

 

What's wrong with this headline?

Harrison Ford Could Be Barred From Flying After Plane Crash, Experts Say

Well, right out of the gate, it's sensationalist, misleading. and misinformative. There's no 'news' here, only speculation from a publicity writer.

The headline infers that Ford is a lousy pilot who did something wrong, and that 'experts' will take away his license to fly. If one reads the article, however, one discovers that the 'experts' are in the insurance business - not aviation -  and the 'barring' they're talking about is Ford's insurability for piloting while under a movie contract.

Worse, even; in the body of the article, there's a sidebar, from another expert, who defends Harrison's actions as expert and instinctual. This 'expert' is a media mogul who happens to have a helicopter license.
No news here, just twaddle, just PR flacks trying to suck Tweets and page views from an ignorant public that loves jumping to conclusions.
Journalism 101 states that every news article should answer the questions - who, what, when, where and why. So far, the Harrison Ford plane crash is missing that final 'w'.


 

One step closer to interstellar contact?

Gliese 581

Gliese 581 is a red dwarf star in the Constellation Libra, about 20 light years away from Earth. It's about a third the size of our sun, but similarly stable. In 2009 scientists discovered a possible planet in Gliese 581's 'Goldilocks' zone (close enough for warmth, far enough to keep you from frying), GJ581d. It's much bigger than Earth, and well within range of SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) probes.


Astronomers are right now battling over the existence of GJ581d; some think it's merely stellar 'noise' masquerading as a planet. My question is -- How come Hillary Clinton's f-ing e-mails get press priority over THIS?  

An internet treasure -- Baseball's 30 ball parks, ranked!

Citi Field is illustrated here just because I'm a homey, but USA Today gives it short shrift, and rightfully so.This article is a many-faceted beauty, not just for spectacular pictures and cogent, intelligent copy, but also for efficient layout and effortless navigation. The viewer goes from stadium to stadium quick as a wink, and scrolls effortlessly through an honest and interesting description of each. One could quibble with some of the rankings, but only just a little.
Take the tour -- I guarantee you'll love it!

I'm rooting hard for this kid

He's got all the tools. He's a natural athlete -- He runs, throws, fields and hits, and he has a flair for the dramatic, making the diving catch or the great throw or the key hit. He's been up-again-down-again for a couple of seasons, mainly because of a hitch in his swing that major league pitchers have been able to exploit.
He's worked hard on shortening his swing, and his 4-for-4 opening game this year is very promising, but he's out of options; if he doesn't make the team now, he can be put on waivers, and somebody for damn sure will claim him.

More importantly, we share some karma. Kirk and I were both born on August 7! And -- are your ready for this? -- we're both 6'3' and 225 lbs!!! We're a Twilight Zone episode!
(N.B. - in proper newspaper layout, the 'action' of a photo should bleed into the article and not the gutter. Thus, Kirk's pic is on the right, not left, where the reader's eye, following the action, would end up either looking at blank space or another article.)   

Here's the Deal...

...We know what's wrong with the world, and we don't need a rocket scientist to tell us.

Wait. I guess maybe we do. So here he is. 
------------------
Easy-peasy, right? Stop beating the crap out of each other. do nice things, and look to the stars for our next home. (I'm glad that's settled!)

Are we really, really this silly?

The healthcare of millions of citizens is in jeopardy over the legal interpretation of four words in the Affordable Care Act.
----------------------------------------------------

Q: What’s the difference between a lawyer and a herd of buffalo? A: The lawyer charges more. 
 Q: What's the difference between a good lawyer and a bad lawyer? A: A bad lawyer can let a case drag out for several years. A good lawyer can make it last even longer. 
 Q: If you are stranded on a desert island with Adolph Hitler, Atilla the Hun, and a lawyer, and you have a gun with only two bullets, what do you do? A: Shoot the lawyer twice.
Q: What do you call 5000 dead lawyers at the bottom of the ocean? A: A good start! 
 Q: Why are there so many lawyers in the U.S.? A: Because St. Patrick chased the snakes out of Ireland. 
 Q: What do you get when you cross a librarian with a lawyer? A: All the information you need, but you can’t understand a word of it. 
 Q: Why does California have the most attorneys, and New Jersey the most toxic waste dumps? A: New Jersey got first pick. 

Dawn spacecraft nears Ceres

The Dawn spacecraft is just days away from entering an orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. The pictures are becoming better and more detailed raising anticipation for what we might learn. For starters, what makes the mystery bright spots bright and how was that “pancake” feature / crater formed? You can see the latter on the right hand image on the lower horizon, or view of it here (taken on 19 February 2015).  This image was taken on 25 February 2015 from a distance of 40,000 km / 25,000 miles.

Dawn website

N.B. Ceres is the largest object in the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It is composed of rock and ice, is 950 km (590 mi) in diameter, and contains approximately one third of the mass of the asteroid belt. It is the only dwarf planet in the inner Solar System and the only object in the asteroid belt known to be unambiguously rounded by its own gravity.

Image(s) Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA

We have met the enemy...

(originally posted Dec. 17, 2008)
...and as Pogo the Possum famously said, "They is us!" Citing costs and the economy, General Motors has bowed out of its advertising sponsorship in the new Yankee Stadium, and the pinstripers, bless their capitalistic hearts, have replaced GM with Audi and Toyota! 

When are we ever going to learn that we're all in this together? OK, we can't all trade in our German and Japanese iron tomorrow and buy American; for 30 years GM has delivered an inferior product, and we need to see evidence of some sort of turnaround before we go all patriotic, but cutting off an advertising (and communications)stream is rubbing salt in a grievous wound; replacing it with foreign competition is, well, just cruel.


The Yanks couldn't have sucked it up and given GM a cut rate? They would've made all kinds of good PR, and fans, guaranteed, would've cheered a Chevy Corvette coming in from the bullpen.

They just spent $200+ million for TWO pitchers! A cheapie ROI from GM isn't going to break them.

The apples don't fall far from the tree!

Grace, Louisa and Mamie.  Scroll down for the parent:




















Meryl Streep

Nova Scotia -- The Family Vacation of a Lifetime

If the 528-foot MV Nova Star were two feet
 longer it wouldn't fit in Yarmouth harbor!

For me, the 11-hour voyage from Portland would be worth it just to see the Bay of Fundy, but for the rest of you, well, Nova Scotia is spectacularly scenic, the natives are friendly, and you'll eat sea food that rivals Key West.
A round-trip private stateroom for four costs $700, and that includes your car! Plus there's an onboard casino where you can win back your fare and then some! (Diana actually did it!)
What are you waiting for? 

30 days and counting... an annual post

 Spring

To what purpose, April, do you return again?
Beauty is not enough.You can no longer quiet me with the redness
Of little leaves opening stickily.
I know what I know.
The sun is hot on my neck as I observe
The spikes of the crocus.
The smell of the earth is good.
It is apparent that there is no death.
But what does that signify?
Not only under ground are the brains of men
Eaten by maggots,
Life in itself
Is nothing,
An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs.
It is not enough that yearly, down this hill,
April
Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers.

Dame Edna

Cabin Fever is closing in...

Artist: Sting
Album: If On a Winter's Night...
Composer: Henry Purcell
The Cold Genius aria "What Power Art Thou" from opera King Arthur
Label: © Deutsche Grammophon © 2009

(Stolen from Ermonia, Georgia, Tbilisi)

8 Ways You Can See Einstein's Theory of Relativity in Real Life

All you have to do is commit one of these beauties to memory, then wait for the opportunity to use it in conversation. Wild! I think the best one is 'Why gold is yellow.'

8 Ways You Can See Einstein's Theory of Relativity in Real Life

Kee-rist it's COLD!

This is Niagara Falls last week.
Snow, as I've stumbled down my septuagenarian stairs, has still held a certain charm; I do enjoy driving in it, and I admit to revelling in my skill at same. (Look! that old fart's making it up the hill, why can't YOU?)
But cold is another thing. I'm okay with temps in the 20s, but teens and single digits kill me!  It's depressing, enervating, and damned uncomfortable. My bones ache and creak, a shower turns arduous, and my tank of jokes and laughs is running on empty.
The Mets home opener is April 13; that seems a long way away, right now.

Shopping for car insurance? Here's a tip

Visit a couple of local body shops and ask them which company they prefer.
Who's easy to work with, who hassles them, who nickels and dimes the job. It's a real eye-opener.
(Hint: that cute little gecko doesn't fare so well.)

Top of the Food Chain

As befitting Madison's elite suburban status, the local car wash caters to some pretty exotic automotive customers. Jaguars, Beemers and Cadillacs are ho-hum fare, as are Maseratis and even Bentleys. But the beauty pictured below can still turn heads. Getting squeaky clean today -- one of at least seven local Teslas. It's electric!! 

On the hunt for page views

There really can be no argument here. When this NYC fitness fanatic surfaced on the blogosphere early in 2014, the quest was over, the perfect female posterior had been found and duly cataloged. If you've just emerged from a year-long sabbatical in the Himalayas, here's your chance to get up to speed.
Forthwith, Miss Jen Selter. (You're welcome!)

Sean Penn a racist? C'MON!!!

When announcing the winner of the best director Oscar, Sean Penn peeked at the opened envelope,  did a classic, comic double take, then said, "Who gave this S.O.B. a green card?" And the Twitter crowd went crazy. The Huffington Post ran with the madness, saying that Penn had 'ruined' the entire telecast. Racist insensitivity, pure and simple.

The flap over Penn's remark only emphasizes the collective stupidity of the internet comment crowd.
First, and only and most importantly, it was a light-hearted joke between obvious friends. (Penn and Iñárritu are very close; Iñárritu directed Penn in '21 Grams'.)

In what universe could that comment have been anything other than a joke? In the devastating aftermath of the Haiti earthquake, Penn was there physically and financially, and not just for a photo op -- he was there for months! Racist? Jesus!

Watch the video; the two men embrace warmly at the end.
We've got to stop thinking that a Twitter feed is something other than a million-odd assholes looking for their Warhol moment.

Attention: 'Comments' are now easy to do

... Just click on the comments section and you're good to go. May the Force be with you. (This message will self-destruct when I think everybody's has a chance to read it.)

Mets pitchers get some work in

Thor and the Dark Knight throw hard in Port St. Lucie. (Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey, to non-Mets fans) At 6'6" and 240 lbs, Syndergaard is aptly nicknamed.

Is it me?

Or has the news reporting on the Yahoo front page taken a distinct right turn? It's not quite Fox News caliber, but there seems to be more material gleaned from the pages of the NY Post and the Wall Street Journal than the NY Times... plus the occasional clip from those way-out-there blogs like CNS.
I hate to say this, but are blonde women, you know, trending REPUBLICAN?

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer

The Sunday New York Times magazine section is all new, starting TODAY!

Extra, extra, read all about it, the Times magazine is bigger, bolder and brasher! That's the crummy old logo on top, with the new, 'more graciously spaced' logo below.
Read the entire article here.
Whether or not your a Times magazine fan, you owe it to your family to buy this one, wrap it in plastic and squirrel it away someplace where your great grandchildren will discover it... might be worth a buck, if we're still using money!
(If you're old as dirt, you'll remember how the cited  'Extra, extra'  radio show intro ended... Read about here, if you're interested.)

 Christie: We hardly knew ye

BY GEORGE STAFFORD

   The writer, a resident of Wharton, a former Democratic state Assembly candidate, is the Outreach Director of the Highlands Coalition. He can be reached at thestafford@optonline.net. His column appears in The Bernardsville News the first and third weeks of the month, alternating with columnist Leanna Brown, a Republican.
(Jaxon: We actually know George - helluva guy. He has called himself a sometime bureaucrat, which immeasurably raises the esteem of that profession. A true Jersey guy.)

Our future former Governor, like Elvis,
has left the building.

Oh sure, he’ll stop by occasionally to veto
some anti-corruption bill or to divide up
 some Port Authority spoils with his pal
 from across the Hudson, Andy “The Kid” Cuomo, but in reality Chris Christie is
 gone from New Jersey for good.

He has gone to that great luxury owner’s
 box in the sky. He’s hunting billionaire’s
money and red-neck votes. You see,
 Christie always has his eye on his
political future and he has no such future
 in New Jersey.

Yes, Chris Christie is gone for good. The problem is he’s isn’t taking any of the problems he’s caused with him. He has left us with what some might call a legacy.
(Read this article in its entirety by clicking here.)

What's Going On Here?

The Affordable Care Act is providing millions of Americans with access to reliable, high quality medical care, while advancing programs to hold costs in check.  Benefits of the law include: insurance subsidies for consumers; transparent Exchanges to shop for insurance; new rules protecting consumers from insurance abuses; increased Medicare payments for physicians; and more.

• Children and Young Adults Win with the Affordable Care Act
• Seniors Win with the Affordable Care Act
• Women Win with the Affordable Care Act
• Small Business Wins with the Affordable Care Act

The successes of the ACA are routinely ignored in the media, but every glitch, every misstep gets major coverage in the press, on TV and in the blogosphere. Why is the 'liberal' media acting like wing nuts?
The ACA is a far-reaching, all encompassing program of enormous complexity. Like Social Security and Medicare, it will take years to get it running smoothly. During that time, could our vaunted fourth estate dig around for some good news? We certainly deserve it!

Understanding the Affordable Care Act

... a great place, even before you find out that Ron Darling eats here!

Not much bad to say about Paul's Da Burger Joint. Stroll down St. Mark's, buy stuff, cut a right on 2nd Ave and you're there. All kinds of illegal, immoral and fattening food, in out-of-control portions, cheap as a Tompkins Square doobie. You'll get a grease spot on your t-shirt, guaranteed!

The Sandwich Revealed

The article cited below attempts to steer the consumer toward 'healthy' cold cuts. The writer extols the virtues of turkey -- which can be rigged to taste like anything, including your sofa cushion -- and throws mortadella (Sophia Loren's cold cut of choice) under the bus.
C'mon! Cold cuts are never gonna be health food, and a good sub or sloppy Joe is never gonna make a Weight Watchers menu.
You have to hand it to the writer,  Esther Crain, a self-employed free lancer who found a hot button and made herself a few bucks.
Look at her! Trust me, she knows her way around a capicola loaf!

Cold cuts ranked, best to worst

Pitchers and Catchers!!! YES!!!

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Mets camp is officially open for business.

Pitchers and catchers are required to report to Port St. Lucie by the end of today, though many of them have already been in town working out for weeks. Those who haven't must confirm their presence by the end of the day, in advance of physical examinations Friday and the first workout Saturday.

For the Mets, it's merely a formality; most pitchers expected to make the Opening Day roster have already reported, including starters Matt Harvey and Jon Niese, and relievers Jenrry Mejia, Jeurys Familia, Bobby Parnell and Josh Edgin. Starting catcher Travis d'Arnaud is also already in camp.

deGrom on goals for the spring

Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom looks back on winning the 2014 NL Rookie of the Year Award and looks ahead to his goals for Spring Training

The remainder of the roster is not required to report until Tuesday, though many prominent position players -- David Wright and Lucas Duda chief among them -- arrived at the complex weeks ago. Full-squad workouts will begin on Feb. 26, with the Mets' first Grapefruit League game scheduled for March 4 in Orlando and Opening Day set for April 6 in Washington.

Along the way, the Mets will play 31 spring games, plus another two exhibitions in Arlington, Texas.

Though their roster is relatively static heading into Spring Training, several jobs do remain up for grabs. Most prominently, the Mets have six starting pitchers vying for five spots, with Dillon Gee the leading candidate to head to the bullpen. That competition should have an effect on the bullpen, which appears to have two open spots.

Anthony DiComo is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter@AnthonyDicomo. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.