Wednesday, October 31, 2007

All Hallow's Eve

In San Francisco, it's hard to tell who is in costume and who is not.


On any given day, it is not unusual to see people with piercings, tattoos, and multicolored hair, wearing their entire wardrobes at one time. Some are homeless, but others have adopted a nouveau 60's lifestyle to turn on, tune in, and drop out.

The Castro, San Francisco's famous gay district and the most colorful part of the city, has always had a gigantic parade and party on Halloween. This year, the city, in a most cruel and misguided move, canceled the entire celebration and even stopped running public transportation to the area at 8:00 p.m.

Most of the trick or treaters in my neighborhood were dressed as little angels and bunny-wunnies, which is not exactly my idea of scary Halloween costumes, but most offensive was the person dressed as a Native American dancer.

Fancy Dancing, as it is called, is both cultural and spiritual. There are competitions at pow wows, but in typical Native American fashion, nobody really loses as all are praised and admired for their unique style which expresses their own relationship with the Creator.

Such trivializing of a great and rich culture by turning it into a Halloween costume is nothing new, but remains as tasteless as ever.

There seemed to be an abundance of baby hookers and pimps on the candy trail, which led to the obvious conclusion that all their parents had gone brain dead on the same day.

Flip wanted to don his pig head and go out. He reminded me that I still have my wolf mask, tail and red cape from a party we attended a few years ago, but I declined. I just wasn't feeling the love.

Maybe it's the Shingles. Or maybe I have simply outgrown Halloween.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

S.O.S.


My friends, we have another animal rescue issue before us. My daughter in New York, who is involved in cat rescue, informs me that the Port Authority of NY and NJ began trapping feral cats at JFK Airport this past weekend with the plan of exterminating them. Rescuers were barred from feeding or attempting to rescue the cats and were threatened with arrest by federal wildlife officials from USDA.

In addition, a Port Authority spokesman admitted to the NY Post that his agency had lied when telling the public last Friday that the cats would all be adopted into good homes. The Post confirmed that the cats would instead be put down immediately.

The Port Authority claims that the cats pose a risk to aviation because their food supposedly attracts seagulls. The truth is that JFK Airport is located near the ocean and has mountains of trash strewn all over the grounds, which attracts seagulls. An insignificant amount of cat food is not a factor, and in fact, cats are usually blamed for killing birds, not attracting them.

The only appropriate solution to the problem is trapping by experienced feral cat workers, neutering, and returning to their chosen home where they will continue to be monitored. Only through sterilization and long-term monitoring by caretakers (Trap-Neuter-Return or "TNR") can the cat populations be reduced.

WHAT WE CAN DO NOW:

Phone, fax or email the people listed below and demand that the Port Authority suspend the trapping immediately and meet with representatives of the NYC Feral Cat Initiative and the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals to come up with a humane, effective feral cat management plan.



WHO TO CONTACT:

Anthony Shorris
Executive Director
Port Authority of NY and NJ
(212) 435-7271
ashorris @panynj.gov

Shawn Larenti, Director
Government and Community Relations Dept.
Port Authority of NY and NJ
(212) 435-6903
slarenti @panynj.gov

Charles E. Meara
NYC Community Relations Dept.
Port Authority of NY and NJ
(917) 596-0492
cmeara @panynj.gov

Port Authority Corporate Headquarters
(212) 435-7000 (get a live person on the line and
demand to speak to someone about the JFK situation)

Susan Baer (let's try reasoning with her again, this time not accepting Port Authority lies)
General Manager, JFK Airport
718-244-3501
sbaer @panynj.gov

TALKING POINTS: PORT AUTHORITY KILLS CATS AND THE TRUTH


LIE #1: "The cats will all be adopted into good homes."

THE TRUTH: Feral cats are unadoptable and are usually put down immediately when brought to shelters, as Port Authority plans to do. Port Authority ADMITTED LYING to the public about this in the NY Post article, "Frequent Liars", published Saturday, October 27, 2007.

LIE #2: "Feeding the cats attracts seagulls and the birds are an aviation threat."

THE TRUTH: Seagulls are at the airport because JFK is NEAR THE OCEAN!! and because there are tons of trash strewn about the airport's grounds. There is not enough cat food to attract large numbers of birds and there is no food left anyway when the cats finish eating. Cats hunt birds, they don't attract them. There is ZERO evidence proving a link between the presence of cats at an airport and an aviation risk. DON'T BE GULL-IBLE!!!

LIE #3: "We can achieve a cat-free airport."

THE TRUTH: You can't wipe out the presence of feral cats in a 5000 acre area in which new, unneutered cats are constantly being abandoned or lost and then reproducing, and where there are plentiful food sources.

Only Trap-Neuter-Return can, over time, reduce the numbers. The Port Authority's extermination effort is futile and will only result in new furry faces, not fewer. The killing is senseless and cruel.

For more on the NYC Feral Cat Initiative:
http://www.nycferalcat.org

For more on the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals:
http://www.animalalliancenyc.org

For more on Neighborhood Cats:
http://www.neighborhoodcats.org

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Mysteries I Would Like Cleared Up


1. Why Michelangelo sculpted Moses with horns.

It has been theorized that the artist, who of course was an uber-genius, was demonstrating the common belief that Jews had horns. It's hard to imagine how that one took hold as I have never, personally, seen anyone with horns.

Flip thinks that the two bumps on Moses' head were supposed to represent rays from God. If so, then why are there only two? Surely God could come up with at least five or six of them.

2. Why we can't have Daylight Saving Time all year.

It's just plain stupid to do the time-change dance twice a year when the reasons for it are obsolete: There are so few farmers left in America that their hours should not dictate what the rest of us do.

As for children not waiting at school bus stops in the dark, they end up coming home in the dark instead, so where is the logic in that?

3. Why one cup of coffee produces four gallons of pee.

This would seem to contradict every known law of physics, yet I can absolutely attest to its veracity.

4. Why beings of supposedly high intellect and thumbs willingly, even gleefully, choose lives of servitude to creatures with four legs and a tail who do not even speak English.

Anyone who has a dog or cat knows that no explanation is needed here.


5. Who is Murphy, and why does his Law govern my life when I don't even know him?

Murphy's law states that things will go wrong in any given situation if you give them a chance.

A little-known addendum to Murphy's Law is Flanagan's Precept, which categorically states that Murphy was an optimist.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Bingo!


My good friend, the CEO at The Morning Meeting, has given me the Blogging that Hits the Mark Award. Thank you so much, Monty. All I can say is it takes one to know one.

I would like to pass it on to the ever-lovely and succinct Liz at Los Angelista's Guide to the Pursuit of Happiness.

To the beautiful inside-and-out as well as funny Claudia at On a Limb with Claudia,

To the most delightful and charming Velvet at Velvet's Room,

To the clear-eyed and straight-shooting I Am Not Star Jones at The Unemployment Cafe,

And to the incredibly talented, witty Jocelyn at O Mighty Crisis.

These ladies are totally different from one another, but each of them hits the mark every time, and I love them all.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Case Study on the Dysfunctional Duck Family

With Recommendations:


This memo from Children's Protective Services of the Department of Social Work concerns the Donald F. Duck family, which has come to our attention on numerous occasions because of certain mysteries which remain unclear despite several investigations into the workings of this Social Unit.

The State has sent three different Social Workers to the domicile to monitor a situation which involves the care of three minor male ducklings, known only as Huey, Dewey and Louis whose relationship to the Head of the Household, known as Donald, is ambiguous at best. They refer to the aforementioned Donald as "Unca Donald," but there is no evidence that Donald ever had a sibling who could have parented these three minor male ducklings.

Also of concern is the apparent inability of said minor male ducklings to form an independent thought. They have been observed by all three Social Workers dividing every utterance among them three ways, which leads to the obvious conclusion that they share a single brain of which each of the three minor male ducklings owns one-third.

It is not known if they attend school, or if their alleged "uncle" home-schools them.

To all appearances, Donald has a good heart and good intentions. Yet, the police have been called to the Duck residence too many times to count because he also has a very bad temper. It has been suggested that his middle name is Fauntleroy, which could possibly account for a goodly share of his generalized anger, but that is just speculation.

Donald F. Duck has, in the vernacular, a "short fuse" which is often triggered by mounting evidence that his friends Mickey Mouse and Goofy, who seems to be a canine, often get what they want without having to fight for it. We believe that Donald suffers from extreme angst over being forced to hoe a tougher row, but it should also be noted that he has developed a most tenacious temperament.

Even when he is up to his beak in trouble, Donald does not give up, although he is overly inclined to say "Aw, phooey!" which is cited here as further evidence of his hot-headedness.

There is also the matter of Donald Duck's wardrobe. He wears a sailor suit, which, while unquestionably adorable, is the official uniform of mama's boys everywhere. It would be remiss of we, the Petitioners, to overlook this further evidence of his patent unsuitability to be a sartorial role model to impressionable young ducklings.

He has demonstrated considerable ability to manipulate his environment, which is of concern to the Department of Social Work even as it elicits our reluctant admiration since to our knowledge, the Disney extended family is generally at the mercy of its surrounding landscape.

The competing Warner Brothers family, on the other hand, traditionally employs great expertise in working with guns, dynamite, Acme brand anvils and rifles with barrels that can be tied in a bow. There are witnesses who will swear under oath that one of them painted a tunnel road onto the side of a rock outcropping to facilitate his escape from the law.

We mention this because we believe that it calls into question Donald's loyalty and willingness to behave in a manner befitting a prime representative of the Disney family; therefore, how can we then expect him to satisfactorily discharge his responsibilities as "pater familias" to the minor male triplets, Huey, Dewey and Louie?

It is the Opinion of this Office that Donald is constitutionally incapable of providing a wholesome environment for the said three minor male ducklings, Huey, Dewey and Louie.

There is more: A female duck known only as "Daisy" seems to be a part of the Duck family entourage, but her relationship to Donald is cloudy. She maintains her own home but is often on hand, lending her feminine energy to the all-male Duck family.

While we would like to believe that her influence is benign, her association with Donald and his so-called "nephews" who are of impressionable age and might be particularly vulnerable due to their lack of a mother should be investigated further. It must also be noted that Daisy Duck, like that Britney Chick, does not wear covering on her lower body.

There is also an elderly millionaire named Scrooge Duck who seems to be a relative of Donald's, but this is never explained to our satisfaction either. He appears to be of sound mind, as nearly as we have been able to determine, but again, the issue of the minor male triplets rears its ugly head(s.)

It does not seem that Scrooge contributes to the wellbeing of Donald's household and in fact, consistently exerts pressure on Donald to accompany him in his many travels around the world. Who is tending the aforementioned Huey, Dewey and Louie in the absence of "Unca Donald?"

Despite the indisputable fact that the minor male ducklings Huey, Dewey and Louie evince distinct affection for the aforementioned Donald F. Duck, we hereby and with great reluctance Petition the Court to remove them from this home for placement in the Foster Duck System pending reliable evidence that Unca Donald provides a safe, decent and stable home for the care and nurture of the duckling triplets.

Signed in Triplicate,

Social Worker # 1
Social Worker #2
Social Worker #3

Friday, October 19, 2007

Under Construction


I dragged my Blogging awards into Photoshop to make them smaller, and somehow managed to lose my entire blog. All of it. So I dumped it into a new template and in so doing, lost all my changes -- like links to your blogs.

Sigh.

I am going to have to rebuild all of it. I stupidly did not make a list of the many blogs I read and enjoy. It will be a long and hard process.

I.Am.Not.Happy.

The word of the day: BACK IT UP.

Saturday. I changed it over from "template" to "layout" and things got even worse. Please send a guru or the deity of your choice.

Community of Friends

Rachel, the radiant spirit at Lessons Learned has given me the Community Blogger Award. This one clearly belongs to all of us because there is no such thing as a community of one.

Rachel is a wonderful writer and artist, and if you don't know her yet, you are in for a great treat.

Thank you, Rachel! I'm so glad we found each other.

As soon as I formed the thought that I would have to pass it on to someone else, one name came to me.

Chani.

Chani at Thailand Gal embodies community. Everything she posts is designed to exchange ideas with her readers on how we can all be better, more conscious citizens of the world. And she manages to do it without preachiness, but with humor, warmth and elegance.


I know that awards go against the grain with Chani, who eschews anything that smacks of competitiveness, but I think these blogger awards are simply a means to acknowledge each other, virtual wing-dipping or proffering bouquets of beautiful flowers.

In honoring those we admire, we grow more like them.

So man up and deal with it, Chani.

Peace.