Gold medal-worthy coverups

I was visiting my dentist yesterday when he and his assistant began discussing the allegedly-underage Chinese gymnasts. The assistant had noticed a new tooth in one of the gymnast’s mouths.

“If they’re sixteen, they’ve got all of em,” my dentist remarked as he went on with his work.

“Aha!” I thought as I remembered the crucial role dental records play in police investigations. Teeth don’t lie. They’re often used in investigations to determine the age of a victim.

Earlier this week a “hacker” fluent in Chinese discovered official spreadsheets showing that gymnasts He Kexin and Jiang Yuyuan are actually 14. The New York Times has also found similar evidence. Yet, the IOC today says “no proof exists” and stands by the Chinese. Unbelievable.

I’d like to believe in the pureness of Olympic sport but there’s far too much money involved for it to be pure. I wouldn’t put it past China to pull a fast one, nor for the IOC to look the other way. Both aren’t exactly known to be trustworthy.

Feds claim fire melted WTC7. Yeah, right

The N&O editor cheerfully set science aside with today’s headline Feds debunk 9/11 conspiracy theories. The story is about NIST’s report claiming the 47-story WTC7 building’s structural failure was due to fire.

Like hell it was. At least the Associated Press’s headline (“Feds: Fire took down building next to twin towers”)was not so judgmental against those who can plainly see NIST’s theory is bullshit.

In light of the Bush administration’s blatant politicization of science at every possible turn, wouldn’t you think that announcements like these deserve a more critical eye? Wouldn’t a healthy grain of salt be prudent? At the very least, perhaps not be so dismissive of those skeptical to the “official” story?
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‘Maters

The mess of tomato plants my dad gave me are about ready to provide their first fruit. There are over a hundred tomatoes on the vines: mostly cherry and grape tomatoes but a handful of the larger, Cherokee purple kind.

One of the privileges of growing up in the South is enjoying home-grown tomatoes. Its been a while since I’ve grown them myself so I’m especially anxious to give these a try. Next year I might turn the lawn in my whole backyard into a huge garden, planting corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, and much more.

For y’all who are local, you might find me delivering a bag or two of gift tomatoes to you. If you’re lucky!

Bats!

I walked out at dusk tonight to put out the recycling. Looking up I was pleased to see at least three bats merrily plucking mosquitoes out of the air.

Snack away, my furry flier friends. Just don’t make our gable vent your home anymore, KTHXBYE.

Sixteen years

This month marks 16 years since I first came to Raleigh. And my jury summons asked how many years I’ve lived in North Carolina which made me realize I’ve been in North Carolina a total of 20 years. That’s over half my life. Wow. Not exactly a native, but still impressive.

Secret Separation

Secret Separation
The Fixx

We are passengers in time
Lost in motion, locked together
Day and night, by trick of light
But I must take another journey
We must meet with other names

You touched my heart so deeply
You rescued me now free me
Don’t watch me cry just see me go
I’ll take away the strongest feelings
You will ever know

There will be no more isolation
In our secret separation
You touched my heart so deeply, you rescued me
Now free me
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House moves this Saturday

LNR Properties will be moving two historic Raleigh homes Saturday morning beginning at 7AM (weather-permitting). The Watson and Merrimon Wynne homes will be shifted to new lots as part of the Blount Street Commons project, with the Watson home moving first.

If you’ve ever wanted to see a home being trucked from one place to another you’ve got two chances Saturday!

Here’s what Doug Redford of LNR Properties sent to a neighborhood mailing list:
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Please choose Lieberman

Oh please, please, please, make Joe Lieberman your running mate, John McCain. Imagine what a team they would make!

If there’s one small bright spot in George W. Bush’s presidency – with its skyrocketing spending, endless wars, rampant lawbreaking, trashing the economy, shredding of the Constitution, and torching of America’s political capital in the world – its that Joe Lieberman wasn’t elected vice president.

He so deserves another chance.
/snark

Rain

We got some surprise rain yesterday evening which was simply captivating to enjoy. Kelly and I stood on our screened porch and just grinned. I was happy to note my rain tank refilled as well, with 30 gallons added from this rain.

We didn’t always smile when it rained – our enthusiasm was always tempered by the streams of water running out of our clogged gutters. Since I put the gutter guards on the house this hasn’t been a problem. I can’t overstate how impressed I am how this $50 solution has worked. It is teh awesome.

I’ve been summoned

I opened the mailbox this afternoon to find a letter which says “United States District Court.” That’s right, I’ve been summoned for jury duty.

The District Court has been after me for a while, actually. The last summons I received had me reporting for duty the day Travis was born! I was excused that time, for obvious reasons, but I told them I’d welcome service at another time. They do a fine job of keeping track of folks, because one of the very first pieces of mail I received at our new address in April was a jury duty questionnaire.

The only other time I’ve been summoned was in 1996. That was for a local case and it happened the day my company got its new phone system. Nothing was working right and as the IT manager responsible for cleaning up the mess, I got excused. So I suppose I’m due. In fact, maybe long overdue.

My summons says I’m in for a three-week term starting September 8th. Apparently it won’t actually last that long, as most trials are done in 3 to 5 days. My guess is it will probably be some boring case dealing with corporate law, but who knows.

Of course, the odds that I will be able to blog during my service are slim to none, which will be a challenge for me but it beats being in contempt of court (heh). I hope to write about the experience afterward, however. Since I enjoy learning about the law this should be at least a little fun.