It's almost Friday. Feb. 29. We get an extra day this year for Leap Year. I'm thinking I should do something special to make use of this bonus day.
Do people do anything special for Leap Year? Do people schedule parties for Leap Year? To make it a tad more special, the bonus day is on a Friday.
I'm open to suggestions for what to do with the extra day. Maybe a special dinner or a movie or something.
Maybe I need some sort of Leap Year tradition.
The biggest tradition associated with Leap Year is that on February 29 women can ask for a man's hand in marriage. I'm pretty sure I won't be a participant in that tradition. Does the modern woman need the permission of that tradition to propose to a man if he is the one she wants to spend the rest of her life with? If a woman does want to proposed to a man though, the website chiff.com offers links to help a girl out.
OK, maybe women don't do the get-down-on-one-knee, ask-for-the-hand-in-marriage thing. But women do make their intentions/desires known in their own way. And they certainly don't wait for one day every four years.
So, I don't expect a proposal to come my way Feb. 29. But I am free for dinner.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Making a splash in the Oregon desert
Is this a sign of another Eastern Oregon Internet celebrity?
Hey, towns like Hermiston, Ore., don't warrant much of a mention from the likes of the Oregonian, unless it relates to the chemical weapons being incinerated near there. But who cares about the Oregonian, this puppy's (or Bulldog) has apparently been feature on ESPN baby! Come to think of it, Dick Vitale would fit right in in Hermiston.
I actually learned about the video from watching KATU Channel 2, which had an angle on the basketball video that differs from the YouTube video that's garnered tens of thousands of views. I'm not sure where that video came from, but the one on YouTube is the "original" one getting popular via the Web.
How come my Hermiston-related video hasn't gone viral yet? I guess I shouldn't have edited out the slam dunk of a watermelon.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Voters strip mayor of gavel for posing in panties
The mayor of the tiny town of Arlington, Ore., got dooced this week by her constituents. See the full story from the East Oregonian.
Some people just have no sense of humor. Come on, just how many mayors would anyone want to see in their underwear on a fire truck?
There are mayors embroiled in even bigger scandals than this one. Like the mayor of Detroit, Mich. And remember Marion Barry?
Well, I guess there are two lessons to learn from now-ousted Mayor Carmen Kontur-Gronquist's scandal.
One lesson related to the Detroit mayoral scandal too and that is that political (sexual or skin) scandal has now ventured into cyberspace and the wireless world.
The other thing of note in this age of voter apathy is that sometimes your vote really does count, as Kontur-Gronquist was recalled by the slimmest of margins, 142-139. And she got her constituents involved, as nearly every single registered voter in the town cast a ballot. How many mayors can boast that sort of turnout or interest?
Some people just have no sense of humor. Come on, just how many mayors would anyone want to see in their underwear on a fire truck?
There are mayors embroiled in even bigger scandals than this one. Like the mayor of Detroit, Mich. And remember Marion Barry?
Well, I guess there are two lessons to learn from now-ousted Mayor Carmen Kontur-Gronquist's scandal.
One lesson related to the Detroit mayoral scandal too and that is that political (sexual or skin) scandal has now ventured into cyberspace and the wireless world.
The other thing of note in this age of voter apathy is that sometimes your vote really does count, as Kontur-Gronquist was recalled by the slimmest of margins, 142-139. And she got her constituents involved, as nearly every single registered voter in the town cast a ballot. How many mayors can boast that sort of turnout or interest?
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
My friend, the artist
I added a new blog to my list of links. It's called Black and Khaki. The blog belongs to a friend, Mark Crummett, from the ol' college days.
Mark and I worked together at the college newspaper at Oregon State, the Daily Barometer. That was back in the days when my journalistic pursuits involved cameras and lenses. I was fortunate to be a staff photographer when Mark was the photo editor there. But it got a little weird when I succeeded Mark as photo editor and he worked for me for a while.
In a very real way, I have to give Mark credit for my interest in electronic media. Mark was a veteran Internet user, probably even before there was such a thing as the Internet, or we knew it by that name. Mark had a computer at home and a modem that he could do all sorts of cool things with, like using e-mail, communicating with people on a service called CompuServe and using things like listserves. Back then (in the Dark Age days of the late 1980s), I didn't even have my own computer.
So perhaps it is appropriate that we are linked again via electronic means. Unfortunately, I haven't seen Mark in many years, but he has managed to stay in touch. I always look forward to seeing in my mailbox the creative Christmas cards he and Lisa come up. And now, his creativity will be on display in an art show by the Raleigh (N.C.) Fine Arts Society.
Congratulations Mark! I wish you great success with the exhibit!
Mark and I worked together at the college newspaper at Oregon State, the Daily Barometer. That was back in the days when my journalistic pursuits involved cameras and lenses. I was fortunate to be a staff photographer when Mark was the photo editor there. But it got a little weird when I succeeded Mark as photo editor and he worked for me for a while.
In a very real way, I have to give Mark credit for my interest in electronic media. Mark was a veteran Internet user, probably even before there was such a thing as the Internet, or we knew it by that name. Mark had a computer at home and a modem that he could do all sorts of cool things with, like using e-mail, communicating with people on a service called CompuServe and using things like listserves. Back then (in the Dark Age days of the late 1980s), I didn't even have my own computer.
So perhaps it is appropriate that we are linked again via electronic means. Unfortunately, I haven't seen Mark in many years, but he has managed to stay in touch. I always look forward to seeing in my mailbox the creative Christmas cards he and Lisa come up. And now, his creativity will be on display in an art show by the Raleigh (N.C.) Fine Arts Society.
Congratulations Mark! I wish you great success with the exhibit!
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Wanted: Cooking coach to help me heat things up
I stopped at the grocery store after work. There was more grocery shopping. I think I've bought groceries more this year than I have in the last several years combined. And I've certainly fixed more of my own meals that I have since, well, ever.
I'm got quite a little string going. But I've come to a a realization. Two actually.
The first is that I need more cookware. My one skillet and two pans aren't cutting it anymore when I'm making meals at home.
The second realization is that I need to learn how to cook. I need cooking lessons.
I finally figured out that the things I've been cooking in my skillet I've been preparing at too high a temperature. Perhaps my first clue should have been that the edges of my plastic spatulas were melting.
It's a little odd to realize that here I am, a single man in my early 40s, and I've lived alone pretty much all of my adult life, yet never really learned to cook. I even have a George Foreman grill and no idea how to use it.
Today at the grocery store I explored some parts of the store I tend not to venture into. If I can't use it to make a sandwich, boil it, microwave it, or eat it raw, it's not on my shopping list. Today I saw several thing that I was tempted to get, prepackaged items intended to be easy to prepare but realized I wasn't even brave enough -- yet -- to try new things. For example, I found this stir fry mix with seafood and veggies that looked great. But it looked like it was a family serving size and not something I could down in one meal. So I was stuck with a dilema. Do I only prepare part of it? And if I do, can I re-freeze it? Or do I prepare it all and then refrigerate the leftovers?
Simple questions. Basic questions. I just have no confidence at trying things in the kitchen.
My boldest adventure of late in the kitchen was making scrambled eggs. That's part of how I confirmed to myself that I've been cooking with the skillet too hot. My first batch was, well it was edible, but it looked like crap and made a mess. So, I actually looked up how to cook scrambled eggs. The proof was right there. Heat the pan on medium, cook on medium low.
Medium low? You can cook on medium low? I thought anything below high was just to keep the food warm until you were ready for seconds.
Who knew?
Obviously I need a cooking coach. No, I don't want to take a class. I want private lessons. Preferably with a hot, female cooking coach wearing not much more than an apron.
Oh, and you'll have to provide your own apron, I don't have one of those.
I'm got quite a little string going. But I've come to a a realization. Two actually.
The first is that I need more cookware. My one skillet and two pans aren't cutting it anymore when I'm making meals at home.
The second realization is that I need to learn how to cook. I need cooking lessons.
I finally figured out that the things I've been cooking in my skillet I've been preparing at too high a temperature. Perhaps my first clue should have been that the edges of my plastic spatulas were melting.
It's a little odd to realize that here I am, a single man in my early 40s, and I've lived alone pretty much all of my adult life, yet never really learned to cook. I even have a George Foreman grill and no idea how to use it.
Today at the grocery store I explored some parts of the store I tend not to venture into. If I can't use it to make a sandwich, boil it, microwave it, or eat it raw, it's not on my shopping list. Today I saw several thing that I was tempted to get, prepackaged items intended to be easy to prepare but realized I wasn't even brave enough -- yet -- to try new things. For example, I found this stir fry mix with seafood and veggies that looked great. But it looked like it was a family serving size and not something I could down in one meal. So I was stuck with a dilema. Do I only prepare part of it? And if I do, can I re-freeze it? Or do I prepare it all and then refrigerate the leftovers?
Simple questions. Basic questions. I just have no confidence at trying things in the kitchen.
My boldest adventure of late in the kitchen was making scrambled eggs. That's part of how I confirmed to myself that I've been cooking with the skillet too hot. My first batch was, well it was edible, but it looked like crap and made a mess. So, I actually looked up how to cook scrambled eggs. The proof was right there. Heat the pan on medium, cook on medium low.
Medium low? You can cook on medium low? I thought anything below high was just to keep the food warm until you were ready for seconds.
Who knew?
Obviously I need a cooking coach. No, I don't want to take a class. I want private lessons. Preferably with a hot, female cooking coach wearing not much more than an apron.
Oh, and you'll have to provide your own apron, I don't have one of those.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Big Fat Super Tuesday
Check out my beads!
I hope you are all enjoying this Fat Tuesday, aka, Mardi Gras day. And this Super Tuesday election day.
May your candidate win, or may the liquor hold out long enough that you just don't care anymore!
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