“It’s A Dry Heat!” yeah, not so much today

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6:30 am   The sky above Casa Jimbo at sunrise.  Already 73 degrees on it’s way to a predicted 104, the clouds portend a muggy, humid day. ( Well, muggy and humid…  for us.)  Our usual refrain may not stand up to the tropical moisture that is zooming up from Mexico.  I think I’ll go to bed now…  toodles!

Argentina Legalises Gay Marriage (via Queer Visalia)

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Argentina Legalises Gay Marriage Argentina has become the first Latin American nation to legalize same-sex marriage.  In a 15 hour debate that lasted until 4am, the Parliament voted 33-27  to approve the legislation. Other nations that have legalized same-sex marriage include  the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal and Iceland. ABC News has an article, here. The Advocate.com has an article, here. It shouldn't be too long before some fundi … Read More

via Queer Visalia

I’m a ‘communist elitist envy class warfare monger’

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Yeah, a communist elitist envy class warfare monger.  I don’t know what it means, either.  Nazi was probably left out by simple oversight.  It’s funny, the person who writes this stuff probably thinks of themselves as a good person, and a Christian.  But, get him riled up in the newspaper’s online forums, and the name calling erupts like BP’s infamous Gulf of Mexico oil well.

“LibertyAlive” is this dim bulb’s moniker, and he misses no chance to call people names when he disagrees with them.  He’s not even very original when he engages in that name calling, however.  The term ‘wingnut’ has come to be used when referring to the radical/TEA Bagger/right wing conservative, and I’ve used it from time to time when talking about things posted online.  In clever and carefully considered response, he’s come up with ‘dingnut’, to refer to people he thinks must be Democrats, and other left leaning individuals.  How original, huh?

He has a real problem understanding what issue is being discussed, and has, in classic wingnut style, redefined words to mean things 180 degrees from what they really are, or simply assigns meanings to words regardless of what the rest of the world accepts.   That of course makes it difficult to have a rational discussion with him, and if not for the fun of ‘yanking his chain’, I’d have stopped interacting with him a long time ago.  It’s too much fun, though.

When several people take similar positions, or agree with each other, he’ll accuse them of being the same person posting under different names.  I suppose he finds it impossible to believe there is more than one liberal in Visalia.  This screen name is at least his second since he started posting, the first was his actual name.  It may have become apparent to him that his views could negatively affect his business, so he changed the moniker.  Probably a good idea, since he’d probably lose business if customers knew how incoherent his ramblings are, and how much of a wingnut he is.  After all, would you want to do business with someone who thinks I’m a ‘communist elitist envy class warfare monger’?  I didn’t think so.

I will give him credit for one thing, though.  He has yet to play the ‘gay card’ with me.  No slurs or derogatory comments.  Yet.  We’ll see if that continues.  In the meantime, the conversation has gone in circles a few too many times, so I may have to ‘yank’ some other chains for a while.  But sometimes it’s just too tempting…

Space Station Geek Moment of the Summer

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It came out of the northwest, a brilliantly glowing white “star”, moving faster than any airplane.  It climbed higher and higher in the night sky, progressively brighter as it approached.  Slowly at first, then appearing to gain speed as it drew near, it passed almost directly overhead.  I was standing in my driveway, trying to squint past the brilliant floodlights of the church parking lot across the street, and focus the sight in my binoculars (that I purchased at Johnson Space Center, Houston, at a “garage sale” they had in the commissary the day of my visit!) .   Not powerful enough to resolve the station from a bright point of light into the actual structure, I put them down to enjoy the site through the best oculars available to me tonight, my own eyes.

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Another Night In Paradise – more or less

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At work, July 8, 2010.

In the basement dispatch center, telling them where to go.  What’s YOUR emergency?

Federal Court Strikes Down DOMA (via Queer Visalia)

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The bigots are losing. They were fighting equality and love, and didn’t understand that they didn’t have a chance. Now it’s a mopping up operation, as we get things settled out, and sweep the remaining haters to the sidelines of history.

Federal Court Strikes Down DOMA From The Bay Windows: In an enormous victory for same-sex marriage, a federal judge in Boston today (Thursday, July 8, 2010) ruled, in two separate cases, that a critical part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional. In one challenge brought by the state of Massachusetts, Judge Joseph Tauro ruled that Congress violated the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution when it passed DOMA and took from the states decisions concer … Read More

via Queer Visalia

How I Spent My Monday

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Monday, July 5, 2010. My 16th anniversary with the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department as a 9-1-1 dispatcher. I’m just wrapping up a vacation, so I didn’t have to spend it at work! I ended up spending most of it on the top of a hot, dusty hilltop in Kings County, assisting Ted install a wireless link.

I’m in full Okie mode here – funky sun hat, khaki green Tshirt from the Sheriff’s Department, and peeling paint on my old Ford pickup truck.  All I need now is a can of beer!  Pepsi had to do, however, since I don’t drink.  And I’m not really an Okie, but it’s my family heritage.   Gotta keep up the traditions as best I can, you know.

Here are some more pictures of the day.

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Mad Mullahs Mandate Mannequin Mastectomies (via Tulare County Atheists)

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It’s a mad, mad, mad world, Islam…

Mad Mullahs Mandate Mannequin Mastectomies Mad Mullahs Mandate Mannequin Mastectomies. The inmates run the asylum over there. Those poor Muslim men are apparently so turned on by wo-mannequin breasts that they have to be protected from seeing them. This way they won't be led astray, you know. Notice the expression on every one of those "ladies". I think it says loads about the Mullahs. … Read More

via Tulare County Atheists

Simmering Hot Dog War Erupts at Coney Island (via Queer Visalia)

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I doubt it’s the heat, but I suppose it could be the humidity…

Simmering Hot Dog War Erupts at Coney Island 54 hot dogs in 10 minutes. It's been going on since 1916, when four (then) recently arrived immigrants decided to have a contest to see who was the most patriotic.  It's a serious competition…  at least to those involved! Joey Chestnut won this year's contest held today (July 4, 2010) at historic Coney Island, by downing 54 of Nathan's Fam … Read More

via Queer Visalia

The Boys Made A Pitch, Just The Wrong One!

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Not them, but close

I’ve been hoping to meet a couple of cute missionary boys for a while,  when I would be both awake and have the time to talk with them for a bit.  Usually they wake me up, or catch me as I’m heading out the door, and I can’t chat with them.  Tonight the stars were aligned just right!

I was tinkering around with my iPhone, playing with the GPS/mapping software, and was standing at the curb at the corner of my property.  The map program that comes with the iPhone was showing me standing right at the edge of my property line, exactly where I was actually standing!  I had always assumed there would be a noticeable error when zoomed down to street level, but danged if it didn’t have me exactly where I was!  I walked back to the back of the property, and the same thing occurred.  The map’s little blue dot was smack on the property line.  I’m impressed.  I  walked back out to the street to check against the satellite map, and was tinkering with it when two white-shirted Mormon boys rode up on their bikes.

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