Applause

Television has woefully been missing a good clapping themesong. Ever since Friends has left primetime, there haven't been any good clapping opening songs. Clapping along with a song is just friggin' fun. Tell me it's not. I admit that I struggled to get that timing just right. Those four fast claps only come once during the song. Miss them and you'll have to wait a whole week before you can try it again. Yeah, this was in the dark ages. The time before Tivo.



Imagine how my heart warmed to hear the promos for the new series Life on Mars. A new clapping song!!! But much more complicated than just 4 staccato claps. So I played the show off the website. I was so excited for a new clapping song. The opening scene didn't disappoint. There it was : When it all falls down... *clap, clap, clap*. Engaging syncopated rhythm. But then, there it went. I don't think it is the theme song for the series.

Oh, how sad for me. I guess I'll just have to wait for Friends reruns.

Silly Pit Bull

Lipstick's for people.

What is politics as usual?

Would it be having "tests of loyalty" because blind obedience is better than thinking employees?

Would it be using your office to settle personal vendettas or perhaps allowing non-staff like, oh, I don't know, your spouse to use government offices to settle personal vendettas?

Or would it be more of a change to use the position to be respectful of your opponent as opposed to seeing them as your enemy?

I still like John McCain. Not terribly fond of the company he keeps.

Birds and windows

The other day, Princess and I were talking about how sometimes birds will fly into our windows. There have been a few bird fatalities around our house because of wayward birds. Princess and I talked about ways we could prevent the birds from flying into our windows.

"Mommy, why do they fly into our windows in the first place? Did they want to come into the house?"

"No, I think they can see the reflection of the trees and sky in our windows so they don't think that they're going to hit anything but then they do." She chewed on that for a little bit.

"Oh, I know. We could put black paper up on all our windows because then they would only see black and then they wouldn't fly in our windows."

"Yeah, but I kind of like having light come in through our windows. Can you imagine just being able to see black all the time? It would be night all the time in our house."

"Well, maybe we could put signs up that said, 'don't fly here,' or 'danger: window."

"Good point. I don't know how well the birds would be able to see that though. I have heard of people putting stickers up on their windows. That can stop them."

So we made plans to get some decals to stick on our windows and save some bird lives.

"Hey Mommy, do you remember that time that a bird flew into our window. We thought it was dead but it turned out to be alive? You brought it in the house because you thought it was dead and then it jumped up and you let it outside."

"You're forgetting that he jumped up and pooped on my leg before I let it outside."

"I remember. But Mommy, poop is better than dead."

Poop is better than dead. Good point.

War

I heard a program the other day about that Nigerian prince who needs your help to get $8million out of the bank and all you have to do is send $2000 for transfer fees. A group of people decided to punk one of the guys who perpetrate this type of crime by promising the scammer that they had money and they lead him all over the place into dangerous territory. The host asked why the scammer didn't suspect that this was wrong. That they were lying to him and that the payoff wasn't going to happen. He had spent over 6 months in war torn countries waiting for his payoff. He said something that really resonated with me. It was, "At some point in a scam, you have gotten in so deep, you have to believe. You've come so far, you must believe that you'll get your payoff." I believe we're there. We've thrown resources, but more importantly lives of our soldiers at this scam on the American people. And nobody wants to give up there because we've been suckered. We are the poor granny who has sunk her life savings into the belief that the Nigerian prince will be by with her $8 million. Just a little more money, Granny. It will all turn out right. Does the death of more of our soldiers make the sacrifice of those who have died already more profound? No. There is no winnning. Just like there is no $8 million in Nigeria waiting for you.

Turning Point