Zeffiro's

There are some very good Italian style eateries back east. Pasquale's in Candia NH comes to mind---wonderful food. Best pasta Faggioli I ever had, and the minestrone is excellent also. And Flatbread Pizza in Portland ME---good wood fired oven crust pizzas.

But we just had lunch in a place that will give either a run for their money. Las Cruces is where one might fantasize over Mexican cuisine but Zeffiro's Pizza Napoletana will make one believe they found a little Italy. The minestrone was excellent and the pizza------we had the "Capricciosa" with fresh mushrooms, kalamata olives, prosciutto..............as good as any I've ever had. And the pirate dogs who had been confined in the Nargle absolutely scarfed the crust we brought them.

So even though there's snow on the ground (got a couple inches overnight) it's very warm in the tummy right now...........

Holiday Travel 2009

Watching MSNBC this morning---news about the terrorist they caught in Detroit. And the flooding at Reagan International in Washington DC. I guess I really should keep watching. After all, there's got to be a connection. You know what Dick Cheney and all the Republicans will come up with---

"Late in the night (or early Sunday morning) the Saturday after Christmas, twenty-four towel headed ayrabs separated themselves from the surveillance cameras and crammed into the men's rooms in the U S Airways terminal. Quickly and stealthily they stripped off their headgear, shouted Allahu Ackbar', crammed the towels into the toilet, and flushed like mad and all in unison. Needless to say, this disrupted the plumbing system, causing massive backups in the toilets and urinals. One of the older pipes, targeted for replacement in the new transportation infrastructure federal over-spending project (commonly knows as a bail-out bill, just what was needed in this case) burst. It seems the money was held up by Republicans on the oversight committee. Water cascaded from the ceiling and shorted out computers, causing flight delays and cancellations. Poor affluent Amerikans couldn't make their flights to the Caribbean to extend their holidays. All kinds of flight delays, mucking up travel as bad as the weather last weekend. And all this in sympathy for their Al-Qaeda compatriot in Detroit. Beware Amerika!!! Once again the Arab hordes are at the gates............Raise the alert level and be prepared for even more abuse at the hands of the TSA."

Thanks, Dick and Georgie W. Now for the latest about Kate Gosselin and Tiger Woods, could it be???, our Hollywood reporter Sleazeellen Hemroid..............

Unreformed

This morning the Senate passed the health care reform bill. 60-39. Who was missing?? Was this 40 Dems and 20 Repubs in favor?? As Aerosmith says, DREAM ON.

Now that the bills are through the nonsense of quorum calls and cloture resolutions and all the other b.s. that our representatives use to avoid governing and making hard choices, what did we get?? A political deal where any Dem senator who wanted could get some pork or special consideration for his/her state!! Abortion reform? Insurance pools? Less responsibility for the state and more for the Fed on Medicaid?

What about all the millions of baby boomers who would like to retire but can't get reasonable cost health insurance? What is so bad about a Medicare buy-in at 55? That's what all federal employees basically get for their health insurance. If it's good enough for Senators Liebermann, McCain, and Nelson it should be good for the rest of us!!!!

Now there will be a conference committee to blend the House and Senate versions into a bill that can become law after Barack Obama signs it. So to Nancy Pelosi, John McCain, John Boehner, Joe Liebermann, Barry Obama----before you go any further, please, over the Christmas recess, read Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy and learn how a LEADER acts.

The American people want HEALTH CARE REFORM not political hash. Early buy-in to Medicare, a public option for health insurance, reform in how medical professionals are compensated (pay for results, not number of procedures). This is not too much to ask and we, the people, deserve better than what we've gotten to this point!!!!

Merry Christmas

Dad's cousin sent him this, he shared it with us, and we thought we'd share it with all of you!!!! Please click on these words:

"Merry Christmas"

We love you all!!!!

from the Pirate Dogs

Anton Chico

Any self-respecting gathering of more than one chihuahua should have an Anton Chico. We don't---but hopefully the humans will add one soon!!!!

The story of Anton Chico is one that brings tears of pride to those of our proud canine race. It isn't enough that chihuahuas defeated Aztec slavers and those who sacrificed dogs to Quetzalcoatl. These valiant dogs moved north into New Mexico and secured the area near the Manzano mountains for the humans who followed them. Part of that was enabling the fortress of Don Salvador Tapia to colonize the area he named after the chihuahua who led him there---yes, Anton Chico was that dog. He led the people who repelled the Texans seeking to claim the land as part of their state which they believed should encompass the entire watershed of the Rio Grande. Were it not for this brave chihuahua, Albuquerque might be in Texas :-( Then what?????

So long live Anton Chico, noblest of the small dogs!!!! And this is the reason all families with multiple chihuahuas must get one named Anton (or Antonia--we are not misogynists) Chico!!!!

A true testament, written as inspired by the verbal history of chihuahuas by Bertequila, midshipman and chronicler of the Pirate Dogs.

Reality?????

My brother sent me this link to a story about "Student Day" in Iran. Remember when those days were a celebration of learning, a time of joy?? Now I guess we can add Opening Day of Hunting Season.......

Then there's the ever politically correctly minded Harry Reid comparing the Republicans to slave owners. Please don't take this wrong, but I see his point. He was comparing the obstructionists of today to the same class of politicos in the mid-1800's. Reid is just ham-fisted like his House counterpart Nancy Pelosi. If we get the programs we need to reform health care, fight global warming, get the economy back under control, it will be in spite of these two "leaders" not because of them.

We won't comment about Tiger except to remind readers that absolute anything corrupts absolutely.

Yesterday it snowed and we had a little ice storm on the high plains. Today the winds hit 60 mph. Please tell me again about NM weather---how warm and cozy we have it.........

Leny has developed a stubborn disobedient streak that manifests itself on Sunday when I leave LC for the work week in Clovis. She sits by the truck, refusing to come indoors. If we get insistent, she rolls over on her back, paws up like she wanta her sharpradorial belly rubbed. She hates my leaving as much as I do............

So enjoy whatever reality you are inhabiting. Got your Christmas shopping done yet??????

Update from the Mud Shack

What ever possesses people to do some things is totally incomprehensible to me. A standard washer/dryer pair takes up just over 58 inches---each is 29 inches wide, you need a couple inches clearance. So why make a laundry room 55-1/2 inches wall to wall??? Glad those new front loaders can be stacked; sorry to not be able to use our less than 2-years-old conventional top loaders.........

Gotta do a commercial for Lowe's---got the units on sale and they delivered Sat. a.m. at 7:30!! So nice to not waste a day hanging out waiting for delivery/service people!!!!! I've always had better service from them than their competitor.

Since the gas heater in the front of the house needs work, we have been heating with wood. The kiva fireplaces are wonderful. They are easy to light and once the massive masonry structure gets warm it retains the heat and keeps the area warm all day and most of the night.

We found a place that offers a variety of firewood for pretty reasonable prices and spent Friday stacking a 1/2 cord of pecan for our heat source.

Now Comcast is another story. The customer service people were a pleasure to deal with, the contractor was a jerk. We wanted at least two live connections. He provided one and groused that it wasn't on the orders to do two. Of course he still had his ladder against the roof and it would have taken him about 5 minutes to reconnect the splitter he had just disconnected.....It took me 10 minutes but that's because I had to wait for CZ to find me a pair of pliers to undo the connection.

There's some other small repairs that need doing, like the line to the swamp cooler that decided to spring a leak Thursday night......but no big deals considering the house is a fifty year old adobe!!!!! And I can sit in just about any room and marvel at the views, or curl up on the couch in front of the kiva fireplace with a good book or magazine.......

Can I figure out how to retire NOW???????

T-Day '09

Dad drove past a sign on a church in Alamogordo that said "This Thanksgiving, try counting your blessings, not your calories." So---

mud house

lots of running room

'Roid, Weetz, Bertequila

cousin dogs

Klingon Kats

warm kiva fireplaces

a great place to live

my people all together here for the holiday

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!!!!!!

Leny

First Mate of the Pirate Dogs

Elegy

So our 97 year old aunt died last Wed. in her sleep. The way one should check out---sleeping and with no pain. Nice service, too---very quick, no wake, viewing for two and a half hours before the funeral mass.

Lately I've been re-discovering Teilhard de Chardin and thinking and reading about religion. Aunt Mary watched "the mass" every Sunday at 10:00am. I knew better than to do my weekly Sunday call at that time. I guess I lost my faith one August day in 1966 and never really got it back.

So as the quote that serves as a header for this blog states, "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience." So should we view Mary's life. And be happy for her that her suffering is past and she rests in the bosom of the creator along with the litany of family that preceded her--parents Alessandra and Vincenzo, siblings Rose, Frances, Philipina, Delia, Philip, Gennaro, and Amalio. Requiescat in pace, Aunt Mary, for no-one deserves that peace more than you.

Gone and Done It

So after sitting on the market since mid-June with lots of showings and no offers, we signed a contract to sell our house Thursday at around 8:30PM. Needing a place to live, we had searched the internet and then on Saturday drove to Las Cruces and made an offer -----Today it was accepted!!!!! YeeHah and here we go again.

The house is an adobe, 3br/2ba on about 1/4 acre fully fenced and bordered by a pecan orchard on three sides. There are 2 kiva fireplaces and three outdoor living areas. The property is north of the Las Cruces city limits but only about 10 minutes to all the amenities of the city.

Here's a few pix:

This is the back of the house with 2 patios and french doors.

This is the family/living room with kiva fireplace.

This is the view out the back door of the back yard and the pecan orchard that borders the property.

More can be seen at Clair's Picasa site.

Dumb and Stupid-er????

I give up. It's getting cold even here and the pirate dogs and me are getting to feel like it's time to hibernate. Maybe when we come out of that state things will be somewhat normal?????

This morning I posted a link to an Onion satirical article on Facebook. The gist of it was "moron" picketing in WA state thinking they were in Wa DC. The last sentence was that to combat the ignorance, the gov was gonna spend $3-trillion on education. Would that were true......

Throughout the day I check Google News to see where the Dow is (affects my retirement) and just to stay in touch with the "real" world (outside the office). And the Onion is prescient---we have been taken over by morons!!!!

Take Fox News---please, preferably off the airwaves. These idiots, led by Greta van Susteren, are trying to paint the administration as having an Enemies List and Fox News is #1 on that hit parade. Shades of Nixon and the Plumbers, whom I'm sure they would have supported!!! Problem with Fox News---all ego no grey matter. All bluster and no brainwork.

The premise that stupidity is rampant in our fair nation is the subject of a column in the Berkeley Daily Planet on the dumbing down of America. Basically the author's take is that oversimplification due to constant noise has led to a degradation in the thought processes of the American public.

Now what I've thus far presented are opinions. I could scrape up more of them, I'm sure. But let's end this discussion with a fact that conclusively makes the case for this premise that we are stupid as a people. The governor of CA, Arnold Schwarzneggar, today signed a bill supporting the building of a 75,000 seat football stadium in the LA area. This phenomenal WASTE of money in a state that can't educate its children, can't balance its budget, has made drastic cuts in services, and needs to free prisoners to cut the prison population or be in contempt of court!!! LA needs a football stadium as much as the rest of us need to contract AIDS and Swine Flu at the same time!!!!!

Dumb, dumber, stupid, and stupider. Time to hibernate. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

El Beisbol

I guess baseball season is over.

Tuesday night we settled in to watch the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (who dreams up these monikers???) even up their American League Championship Series with those NastY Yankees. Being true Red Sox fans, of course we favor the Angels. Long story short---didn't happen. The Yankees won 10-1 taking a 3-1 lead in a best 4 of 7 series. If their opponent were the Red Sox, there might be hope. But the Angels?? Let's give them some applause for finally ending the dominance of the Red Sox over their West Coast patsies---the Sox have owned the Angels in the post season going back to 1987.

Back to Tuesday---I understand if Jerry Remy and Don Orsillo of NESN, the Red Sox flagship t v station, shill for the team and are not at all objective in assessing the skills of the Beantown Boyz. I even suffer thru the Fox Sports Southwest fools who laud the Texas Rangers when I watch that station to see my beloved Sox. It's only natural for t v announcers to favor the home market team. But is it too much to ask for some objectivity from national announcers like Joe Buck and Tim (the terrible) McCarver on Fox's national coverage of the playoffs??? The first Yankee run came on a play with Alex Rodriguez scoring from third base. There was a grounder to second, the Angel defender was a little too deep and the throw home was high.

Well to hear Tim McCarver's analysis, A-roid (A-rod after steroids---ever look at his earlobes---hi-def is sometimes too much information) is the greatest thing since sliced bread, Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, and Reggie Jackson all embodied in him. Honestly, I think I could have scored on that grounder, replacement right knee and arthritic left knee and all. Now A-roid is number 8 on the all-time homer list. Of course, given the steroid and drug era, so what?? He's up there with Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire---the Jacked-up Three. The 'Roid got the bulk of his homers with such play-off denizens as the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers. When he finally got to play post-season, he was basically 0-for-October until this year. And McCarver makes him sound like Jeter, for god's sake!!!! Sorry, A-roid doesn't belong in the same sentence as the Yankee captain. I hate the Yankees and love the Red Sox, but I can respect Derek Jeter as a class act. He's the only one of the Skankees I'd like to see move north to Fenway.

So no more ALCS, unless the Angels have a Red Sox miracle up their sleeves. And we'll take solace in the fact that even if the Yankees win the World Series, Los Soquitos Rojos will still have won twice as many world championships this century.

Nothing's Easy

After all the flap about the peace prize, we really need to get serious about blaming the current administration for things. Onion has a piece about Obama negotiating with a forest fire--guess he CAN do anything!!! Today the news broke that American kids are even worse at math than last year after we elected what we thought was a REAL education supportive president. There's tsunamis in the Pacific and Dylan was right about SoCal---"a hard rain's gonna fall" and all those multi-million dollar homes the elite built on those recently denuded-by-fire hills may come tumbling down like Jericho's walls. Barack, blow that trumpet!!!!!!!!

But the ultimate insult, worse than H1N1 swine flu, is H3N8!!!! Obviously this plague has been visited upon us by Yahweh as punishment for our electing Obama. What, you didn't hear about this?? The ultimate apocalyptic event, worse than a Vince Vaughn movie or a Mayan prophecy?

H3N8 is a virus that infects horses. Apparently it can be transmitted to dogs, causing pneumonia in man's last and only best friend. Vets are recommending vaccinations for the K-9 population to protect them. Holy spiraling health care costs, and right on top of the swine flu vaccine issues!!!!! Barack, Barack, why hast thou forsaken us???? After nine months in office, all there is for you is blame---- blame for the wars you didn't start and the deficit you didn't create. Bet you even support Limbaugh's buying the St Louis Rams!!!! Don't worry, someone is sure to paint you with that brush,too......

Book Comment

I recently read Myths, Illusions, & Peace by Dennis Ross and David Makovsky. It's a fascinating study of the relationship between the US and the Middle East, especially Israel and Iran. Some parts seem to be self-serving, almost as if Mr. Ross is polishing his resume. He was a negotiator for Palestinian-Israeli peace talks under H W Bush and Clinton and while an adviser to Obama, might he wish for a more active role? Anyway, the book is illuminating and well worth the read if one is interested in the Middle East. One of the final paragraphs pretty well sums up the pathetic incompetence of the last eight years:

"Truth be told, credibility is a function of many facets of our behavior. Are we effective? Do we tend to preserve the moral high ground? Do we frame issues or objectives in a way that others internationally or regionally accept? Do we shape policies in which our objectives and our means are in sync, or is there always a wide gap between them? Do others believe that we will do what we say we will do, or are we likely to put those who join with us in an exposed position? Do we avoid surprises that raise questions about our purposes or judgment, or both? Ultimately, credibility boils down to reliability and effectiveness. After the ineffective policies of the Bush Administration, its successor must recognize the importance of being able to produce on the objectives it proclaims. "

~Dennis Ross, David Makovsky: Myths, Illusion, & Peace, p. 319

So if there is a lesson to be drawn from this book and the experiences of the past few years it is in our national interest to regain our credibility in the world and re-establish our claim to the higher moral ground we have ceded by our actions in the "war" on terror. The actions recommended by Messrs. Ross & Makovsky might not be out of place in our domestic discussions on health care, Afghanistan, and firearms as well.

Making of a Birthday Card 2009

Our daughter's birthday is in September. This year, the Pirate Dogs decided to send their sister a card. O M G!!!!! The task would try the patience of the saints.

First, you assemble the crew:

Come here, 'Roid!!!

Then get them in position:

Please stay, guys!?!?!

Can't do a card without a message, right? Try that with a chewy chihuahua...

Bertequila, please.....

Now, Bertie, leave it alone.

Now, a few takes----------

Bertie's leaving and what's with Leny's expression??

Nice sitting but could you look any weirder???

Looks like Bertequila's leaving again

Gee, guys, would you sort of look like you're having fun??

Finally, they get down to business............

Happy Birthday to our sister Dee!!!!

Course they only do it for the rewards.......NOT!!!!!!

Good job, guys!!!

Chihuahuas love to get on their hind legs--makes 'em feel tall like big dogs..

And all that was done so we could be late with this:

The Pirate Dogs love you and we're sorry this was so late!!!!!!!

LOL

(Notice the absence of any felines---the Klingon Kats know to make themselves scarce when this crew is being made to perform....)

Short Week

Last week marked the traditional end of summer--Labor Day. This week usually seems very packed with events for such a short-work week. It's the traditional back-to-school week; the time to prepare for the harvest and start the process of stocking up for winter; car sales; and that last summer week-end of irresponsibility.

This year the week seemed even more densely populated with events.

Tuesday had the presidential brainwashing of America's youth with socialist clap-trap. Horror must abide at the very thought of encouraging these impressionable minds to endeavor to fulfill their potential. Far better for our democracy that the next generation be dull and easily swayed by the demagoguery coming from the speakers of their radios and televisions. Just imagine what, say, Rush Limbaugh's or Fox News channel's ratings would be if their listeners or viewers were capable of critical thinking or schooled in the intricacies of logical debate. No wonder the hue and cry to prevent the president from addressing the nation's students about their opportunities if they stay in school, eschew gangs and drugs, and learn to think and evaluate issues and arguments.

This week, the Economist had two articles of note. First is the Lexington column that basically called health care reform a non-starter because American are afraid of rational public discussions about death. Second was an article titled "The nanny state" that addresses the issue of public spending on child well-being and how it misses the mark more often than not. The US is pretty much in the bottom half of OECD countries when it comes to effective use of public spending on childhood well being. It's tragic that we rank 24th of 30 countries in the health and safety of our children.

Wednesday brought the much awaited address to Congress on health care reform. Except that wasn't the topic. Health insurance reform was and it really looks like that's all we'll get. And I feel betrayed. I have very good health insurance through my employer. But if I retire before Medicare kicks in, which I hope to do, I need to feel anxious about the cost of any coverage. Basic health insurance will cost me about 5X what I presently pay per month!!! And like many retirees, my income will be less than it is at present. Doesn't take a genius to see this is not a good outcome. So while I appreciate the efforts of congress and the administration to attempt insurance reform, that's sort of like the cart before the horse. What is needed is health CARE reform. Health care providers should be paid for results, not number of tests prescribed. Certain screenings like HPV, mammograms, colonoscopies, cholesterol screening, prostate screens, should be, if not free, than at least at a minimal cost. Prevention and wellness are the keys to cutting medical costs and there is little beyond platitudes coming from congress to address these issues.

Last time I looked, the candidate who got the majority in the electoral college becomes president. Of all of the United States. So whether one might consider him a liar, a socialist, a reactionary, etc, he is still the president. Nixon was---lots of truth there, right?? LBJ was, another paragon of virtue. Bill Clinton---what can I say, Monica?? "W"--as in "Weapons of mass destruction"---even more truth telling. So I guess my comment to all those who say the current person residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is "not my president" is to go where your type president lives---maybe Russia, with Medvedev and Putin; or France with Sarkozy; or Zimbabwe with Mugabe?? I was prepared to go to Canada rather than serve under Johnson in Viet-Nam. I guess I'd say to you the same thing I heard back then---America, love it or leave it.

Lastly, Bertequila spent Tuesday night thru Thursday morning at the vet. Time to get him neutered. But even though he now has no balls, he's still got more cojones than the screamers and bloviators.

Of sock monkeys and snips

Bertequila's time has come. His maleness was getting to the point that it had to be dealt with. So off he went to the animal hospital for a 2-1/2 day stay to be neutered. This should affect his propensity for leg-lifting all over the place.....or so we hope.

Meanwhile, Auntie Bucksnort and Mom re-arranged the master bedroom. They put the last new sock monkey on a chair in another bedroom. Being lonely for my little buddy, the sweatered chihuahua Bert, I found the monkey and promptly christened her Sadie. Why not, that's the girl's name in the song off the White Album right after "Everybody's Got Something to Hide 'Cept for Me and my Monkey."

LOL,

Leny

'Tude

Leny spends a fair bit of time blogging and inspiring posts. The Captain and the Midshipman also get their share. Which leaves Crow's-Nest Weetzie with a fair amount of "Weets-itude."

Weets gets under the covers in the bed and growls ferociously at any creature that contacts her. The snarling and gnashing are reminiscent of scenes from Dante's Inferno. When she takes up her position on the back of a sofa (highest point--hence her nick-name Crow's-Nest) it takes a braver soul than her dad or mom to remove her.

But Weets is the glue banding the Pirate Dogs together. She warns of danger and the need to take action---roaring into the backyard, barking and growling and nipping Leny's jowls to spur the First Mate to action against some perceived invasion, like the woman who walks by every evening with her Airedale. Or those dastardly neighbors with the well-groomed and ribbon-bedecked Pomeranian.

Yes, though she's one of the chihuahuas 2 in the crew, it's Weets-itude that drives the adventures of the Pirate Dogs.

Bo 'Bama

I guess I need to take take a previous post, a letter to President Obama, and put it in hard copy and stamp it----Seems Bo Obama is currently cool. And my mom has something in common with Bo's dad Barack---she does the pooper-scoopin' here!!! Even if he isn't a Sharprador, I still really gotta get one of these baseball cards!!!!!!!!

Leny

A "Sharper" P.o.V.

Things have been frantically slow this summer. It seemed that for a while several times a day we Pirate Dogs were bundled into the car and shuttled off to Bucksnort and the cousins because some stranger wanted to see our house. (Very unusual odors awaited and excited us whenever we returned home.) It was so frequent that our beloved CSS Nargle was moved over there!! That made it very difficult to improve our phaser marksmanship on the Klingon Kats....

But there have been no offers on the house despite the showing activity. Our mom is frustrated and gets exceedingly grumpy with each episode of frantic picking-up and hauling us off to Auntie's. I was listening to our parents talking the other night about some guy who's supposed to be a fighter pilot that loves the house and wants us moved in three weeks---but the bozo hasn't made an offer and needs his daddy to see it first!!!! If he'd made an offer when he first saw it, we'd be moving out by now. Of course Mom got all excited and now there's boxes in the dining room full of stuff we don't use much---- They said he looked again Friday with his daddy and now the Realtors won't call and tell us what's up!!! Seem the real estate market here only operates Monday thru Friday. What a way to do business......

Then there's the midshipman----Seems Bertequila has sensitive underarms. He got some rash on his left arm and kept licking and niggling to make it worse. When Mom tried to assuage his suffering with aloe the dweeb licked it off. So Mom raided the stuffed animal collection and (would you believe???) found a sweater on a stuffed penguin that fit the midshipman!!!! With his garment on, Bert can't lick the area and the meds stay on the sore spot. So now Bert's arm is healing. That sweater is getting a little tacky though. Hope Mom knits him a new one soon. That chihuahua isn't olfactorially pleasant at the best of times........

But I got my dad all weekend so life's good and the bone turks are flowing.

Leny the Sharprador

First Mate of the CSS Nargle

AAAAAHHH!!!!

Today is one of the best days in Clovis. Even though we were marooned at Bucksnort's with our cousins Seymour and Esmerelda, the olfactory pleasures we experienced when our parents picked us up were so wonderful. That delectable smell when we bundled into the car--like something roasted but not burned; something spicy and maybe wonderfully hot....And when we entered the house, it was all but overpowering, in a deliciously sensual way-----They had been to the Farmer's Market and gotten our supply of green chiles!!!!!!!!! If you've never smelt the delightful aroma of fresh roasted green chiles, we can only pity you. You haven't even made it up to a dog's life.......

The Pirate Dogs---'Roid, Leny, Weetz, and Bertequila

Circles

"The wheel in the sky keeps on turning...." Journey was certainly right about how strange the patterns in life can be. This blog has, on occasion, commented on recurring themes over the years. And now, here we go again...............

It's 2006. She's had it with the attitudes in junior high. He works for a national company. They've just celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary with a family reunion in Yellowstone Park. Now the family's dispersed back to their own lives and the couple wends their way down I-25 through Colorado and into northern New Mexico. Wouldn't it be great if she could retire and he transfer?? They would be closer to the grand-kids but far enough away to avoid the politics of extended families and in-laws. And perhaps they could settle in a "destination," a place that might be alluring enough to entice other friends and family to visit them. With these dreams occupying their mental processes, they visited places like Trinidad CO, Pecos NM, Santa Fe.

Then they found a town named Cochiti Lake. About 40 minutes from Albuquerque and 25 from Santa Fe. A giant dam across the Rio Grande forms a picturesque no-wake lake. The town of some 400+ people nestles into ridges across the two lane state highway from the lake and its recreation area. The people they met were very welcoming and friendly. Ahhh, she could retire, he could transfer to Albuquerque, life would be good---the pueblo and territorial style houses they had fallen in love with, the hiking and biking possibilities, the lake access....Paradise after the years in New Hampshire and enduring those winters.

Returning to New England, they set the wheels turning. She put in for retirement. He began the transfer process. They had a realtor set up a portal for them to track prices and house availability. Alas, the prices were steadily rising. And the number of houses on the market decreasing. Would there be anything both desirable and affordable by the summer of 2007 when she retired?? Would they be able to sell their cape in the already slowing NH real estate market?? Why was his transfer taking so long??

Then in June 2007, the house sold, she retired, and he was offered a better position----but in Clovis, not Albuquerque. So they packed up their family of multi-legged "children" and moved. It wasn't the style they wanted but at least it was New Mexico!! (In truth, it was more west Texas.)

Through the economic downturn of 2008 into 2009, the agricultural businesses near Clovis expanded and did well. The nearby Air Force base underwent a change of mission and flourished, with the expectation of as many as 5,000 new families coming to the area. Meanwhile, the real estate sorrows that afflicted the rest of the country had descended on northern New Mexico with a vengeance. Prices were plummeting. Properties were spending hundreds of days on real estate agencies' listing services.

So our intrepid couple decided to plunge again. They found a wonderful property in Pecos but hadn't sold their place in Clovis. They contacted a realtor and listed. The action was hot and furious but no contract yet. The Pecos owner reduced his price. Oh horrors---it's now under contract!! What to do, what to do.....

A few other abortive attempts to find a suitable place...Then, as Bokonon would say, "as it was meant to happen", they recalled Cochiti Lake. Que un milagro!!! The prices had DROPPED. Imagine a territorial style house on a ridge where the worst view is the faint glow of Albuquerque some 50 miles to the southeast?? A ravine below your backyard where there are coyote dens?? Looking west, there's no towns for about 100 miles.

There's a realtor who will be pushed hard the next few days. Really want this place!!!!!! And the wheel continues to turn...................

Of Cheeseburgers and Properties

Oh, my, another weekend, another 600 miles. We need to get moved............

Our house has been on the market about 40 days with over 30 showings. I wish some of these people would open up the checkbook already!!!!! It's nice to get a lot of positive feed-back but I'd really rather have a signed contract.

Yesterday we went to Estancia, this time we met a realtor, to check out the 2 houses on 20 acres. Now the property is on the side of a hill, which makes for some great views:

There are wonderful outbuildings---a marvelous barn and a separate tack room/horse stall that would make an ideal kennel as well. Problem is that the houses are too close to the property line and the outbuildings are in better shape than the houses. One is definitely cognizant of being in a 15 year old or so double wide. I've seen manufactured houses and mobiles that are very nice. We considered one in NH before we found the Podunk place. These two are very spacious (one has 4 bedrooms, two and a half baths, formal dining room, a breakfast nook and 2 fireplaces!!!) but all in all, you're in an older trailer. Afraid I just can't do that. So hopefully we get an offer this week and can go buy the Pecos place next weekend.

Now about them burgers----as you can tell from my new profile photo on this blog, as well as the photo on Facebook, I love green chile cheese burgers. I study them. I'd drive miles for one. I'm always willing to try out a new source of one of these culinary fiestas. So when I saw that a place in Santa Fe called Bobcat Bite had won awards for its green chile cheeseburger, I had to go there. Now I'll say this---it's the largest of the good samples I've tasted. But I'm afraid I can't rate it higher than number 3, behind The Owl and The Buckhorn in San Antonio, NM. The Owl is the gold standard---home-made patties, dare I say poignant green chile, and a wonderful atmosphere. The Bite has a friendly staff, an old adobe building, and seats only 26 so there's frequently a line at the door. But the burger just doesn't stand with The Owl. But after we move to Pecos, I'm sure I'll frequent Bobcat Bite when the craving for one of my favorite foods assaults me if for no other reason than The Owl is 100 miles away.

Frustrated

Well, I almost managed to blow a long weekend. Finally got to The Owl on Tuesday for a couple green chile cheeseburgers. Also got hold of a realtor in central NM where we have been looking on our own to set up a tour of some properties.

I have followed the political doings in our capitol over the past couple of weeks. The elected representatives in Congress have basically tabled environmental legislation. Cap and trade only works if there's some payment and the special interests have convinced our representatives to represent them, not the people. So a lot of the caps are not traded but given away. Maybe, hoping against hope, the Congress will realize over recess that this idea stinks worse than a coal fired power plant and change the bill to allow and enforce a carbon tax with the proceeds going to provide affordable renewable clean energy.

Next is the Sonia Sotomayor hearings in which a bunch of old white men proved that a "wise Latina" is, in fact, smarter and wiser than them. Of course, some senators absolutely have to play politics so they will oppose the nomination not because of anything the nominee said or did during the hearings; nor are they in total disagreement with her record as a jurist. They even admit she'll be confirmed. So why are Cornyn and Hatch voting no if not for purely partisan reasons??

Finally there's health care. What the hell is Barack Obama thinking leaving the shepherding of this most important of all reforms in the hands of Pelosi and Reid!!!! At best these two are political hacks. At worst they are absolute proof that absolute power corrupts absolutely. They go out of their way to antagonize the minority---I would hope after their years of being out of power they might realize that allowing the opposition to inject a few ideas might make the bipartisanship that Obama seeks possible. But, oh no, these two dunderheads just keep ramming through their agendas and the poor citizens,as well as the G O P, be damned. I guess I'll be spending a lot of time watching "West Wing" dvds---at least when Jeb, Toby, Leo, CJ, Sam, and Josh screw up I don't pay for it.

Some Music Thoughts

I'll be right up front about this---The Pirate Dogs love the version of "Jingle Bells" done by those barking, howling dogs. And it is a bone of contention in our house that I refuse to download a copy of it. Of course, we don't have "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" either.

Now the wife is a librarian and decided to improve the storage and cataloguing of the cd collection. She decided to eliminate all those plastic jewel cases and get everything in order by artist. So the Pirate Dogs and I went sifting thru them to find material for the Ipod.

One song we definitely agreed on was John Lennon's "Hey Bulldog" from Yellow Submarine "Sheepdog/Standing in the rain/Bullfrog/Doing it again/Some kind of happiness is measured out in miles/What makes you think you're something special when you smile.."

But there was much discussion over female singer songwriters. After much listening to songs and debate, with Weetz growling a lot at Bertequila, here's something of a consensus:

Tori Amos--We love the EP Crucify. There's a great cover of Led Zeppelin's "Thank You"but the perros really love "I feel stupid /and contagious/here we are now/entertain us/So mulatto/an albino/a mosquito/malabito/or denial..." the Cobain classic "Smells Like Teen Spirit." And the Strange Little Girls cd is nothing if not that.....especially the intro to "Happiness is a Warm Gun."

Laura Nyro--Now the Pirate Dogs don't recognize her but they sure know the hits: "And When I Die" made famous by Blood Sweat & Tears; "Wedding Bell Blues"--The Fifth Dimension smash chart topper; "Eli's Coming" from 3 Dog Night. Maybe I'm very partial because my name's Bill???

Lucinda Williams----name a better album than Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. I love her voice, her emotion, her riffs, and her lyrics---"you can't depend on anything really/there's no promises there's no point/ there's no good there's no bad in this dirty little joint/no dope smoking no beer sold after 12 o'clock/ Rosedale Mississippi magic city juke joint/ Mr Johnson sings in a corner by the bar/ sold his soul to the devil so he could play guitar/ 2 kool 2 be 4-gotten hey hey.."

But since you asked, or rather we asked, the best album by a female songwriter is Carole King's Tapestry. She's backed by James Taylor and his band. Already an established hit maker as part of the Goffin-King team that wrote hits for the girl groups of the '50's and early '60's, this was her debut as a solo act. And it's a must have for anyone who appreciates the music of the era post-Beatles. "My life has been a tapestry/ of rich and royal hues/ an everlasting vision of an ever changing view/... / Now my tapestry's unraveling/He's come to take me back." Written for an entire generation................

Feeling Like Lord Voldemort

Horcruxes----splitting the soul and storing the pieces in special places. Now according to Dumbledore and wizarding lore, this occurs with each killing by the creator of the horcrux---very dark magic. But is that the only way???????? Can't the soul be split by natural forces, like loving and longing??

Dad feels his spiritual place is Pecos, specifically the ruins of the ancient (did you know people settled there as early as 800AD???) pueblo, in the kiva-- Horcrux #1.

I've been with him on a pilgrimage to The Owl Bar and Cafe, home of the BEST Green Chile Cheeseburger in the world (and the green chile cheese fries too!!!)---#2.

Of course there's the Sacramento Valley where the kids and grand-kids reside----#3.

I know we Pirate Dogs are #4:

Now according to the books, the most powerful magic would be to have 7 horcruxes. We'll see what Dad does for the other 3.

Leny

"Quo Vadis?"

On my "Igoogle" page this morning there was a quote attributed to Muhammed Ali to the effect that if you are 50 and view life the same way as when you were 20, you have wasted 30 years.

When I was 20, big issues were ending the Vietnam war, considered by many as unnecessary and unjust; protecting the environment and reducing waste; and making politics more representative and less about special interests.

Now, 40 years later, 10 more than in Ali's nugget of wisdom, the big issues are ending a war that is both unnecessary and unjust; protecting the planet from global warming; making politics more transparent and representative; and we can add, restoring America's moral leadership in the world.

So is what we have a generation that has learned nothing and wasted 30 or 40 years????

Harvest

I was planning a light post on a discussion about music with the Pirate Dogs. That will have to wait until later.

I've been off on vacation last Friday and over the weekend. So when I saw the news Sunday night about the US soldier captured by the Taliban, it was news, by the classic definition of that word. Hadn't kept up with things over the long weekend. (I'm still on vacation Monday and Tuesday,too.)

What isn't news or surprising is the reaction of some people about the Taliban's parading the prisoner in front of video cameras and other acts one does not usually associate with prisoners of war. Why, these dastards are violating the Geneva Conventions!!!! And we citizens of the USA are surprised and outraged????? Seems our previous administration said these conventions did NOT apply to the war on terror. Jihadists were enemy combatants, not soldiers. Now the horses have returned to the burning barn and the chickens have come home to roost. One of our boys is a prisoner and being treated very much like the Islamist extremists in our capture. We have ceded the high moral ground, thank you Messrs. Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, et al. So while we hope and pray that this soldier is either rescued very quickly or the Taliban realizes the tremendous advantage they could gain by one-upping the "Great Satan" in humanitarian treatment, let's not add to our hypocrisy with demonstrations of outrage that we are being done to as we have done.

HP VI HBP: The Movie

Ok, the Pirate Dogs are not exactly enamored of their parents. They had to spend over 3 hours in the Nargle while we and Bucksnort went to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Since their crate is named after one of Luna's creatures, they felt justifiably indignant at not being allowed to go with us. I'm sure they'll get over it by the time we get the Blu-Ray.

As for HBP itself, I was disappointed. Oh, it's got fine effects and I'd certainly seen the online reviews and knew not to expect a faithful retelling of the book. Just too many subplots and details. But seriously, burning down the Burrow????????? That was pathetic. In fact the entire sequence with Harry and Ginny in the swamp dueling Bella and Fenrir had NOTHING to do with the story!!! What about Marvolo Gaunt and Merope!! What about a real explanation of what horcruxes are. These are central to understanding both HBP and The Deathly Hallows.

Sorry, but in my humble opinion, given the extra time before W-B released this (remember--it was supposed to hit last Thanksgiving????), the producer and director could have given us more meat. The snogging is all well and good, as is portraying the humanity of the Malfoys. But crucial information was left out. I really hope they do a complete job on the last book, since they are splitting it into 2 films. Maybe they should have done that to this attempt.

An Appreciation of Eric Andersen

As part of my job, I travel from Clovis to Roswell and Artesia, NM almost every Thursday. It's about 120 miles each way, 160 when I go to Artesia. So it's a good road trip for one day.

Now US Route 70 is 4 lanes with a 70MPH speed limit. It bisects a number of ranches and oil fields. If I pass a half dozen cars, that's a lot. It's pretty empty space--high plains, cattle, deer, oil wells. It parallels railroad tracks and honestly there's more trains than cars.

So I usually have my Ipod loaded and ready. Now there's the usual "road songs"--"Born to Run" by Bruce is one of my favorites, along with some good old honk from Lynyrd Skynrd.

But for evoking the loneliness of the road, Eric Andersen has no equal. I guess his most well-known song is "Thirsty Boots"--"So take off your thirsty boots and stay for awhile/Your feet are hot and weary from a dusty mile/And maybe I can make you laugh/Maybe I can try/I'm just looking for the evening/The morning in your eyes." For me, however, it's his first album, "Today is the Highway", which really made an impression on me. I first saw a poster in a coffee-house in Bryn Mawr, PA for an appearance by this artist back in 1966 when I was in college in that area. I don't recall if we made the show but I must have heard some of his music because I went out and bought this record. (I now have the cd and all of it is on my computer as well.)

I wonder what Eric would have written if he saw the trains as they are presently constituted. One of my favorites on this album is "Dusty Boxcar Wall"--"I'm going away my darling/I'm gonna leave you pretty girl/ A train pass you by while you lay sleepin'/I'll write you a letter on a dusty boxcar wall." Now most of the freight trains around here, and there's a ton since Clovis was founded as a freight depot and major terminal on the southern branch of the old Santa Fe railroad, are container cars. I guess the proper term is "inter modal transport." Just seems pretty hard to hitch a ride on one of them---those containers are sealed, unlike the old box cars.

But the title song really expresses the weariness of the traveler heading home:

"Do you see my face in the rain that's fallin' freely?/Do you hear my voice in the whisperin' in the trees?/ Do you taste my love in a glass of wine?/Do you touch your heart and feel the beat of mine?/Along this darkened roadway your love will always shine/For today is the highway and tomorrow is the time."

I loved this song on the train going from Philly to NYC to see my girlfriend back home when I was in college and first heard it and I think I appreciate it even more traveling US 70 East towards home now.

Channel 2

It's funny how the Pirate Dogs channel people and events. A previous entry on this blog detailed how Weetzie channels my late mother-in-law. Now we are at July 7 2009. It's Ringo's 69th birthday. All day coverage of Michael Jackson's memorial. The day after the death of Robert S. McNamara, Secretary of Defense during the VietNam war under JFK and LBJ. Farrah's demise has sort of been lost in the shuffle.

But the Pirate Dogs are reacting.

Ringo always had a sort of hang-dog look about him:

But that's nothing compared to Leny in a pensive mood:

Then there's Emma. This is the Captain but you'd never find a dog with a sweeter disposition. She can just be nice, like I've heard Farrah was. And she even had big hair from the groomer:

Now Weetzie already channels my mother-in-law, and she is certainly strange---as in Robert Strange McNamara---leave it to Weets to do the double play:

But the prize for channeling goes to Bertequila----this dog doesn't have a good bone in his body--HE IS BAD, like MJ's album

of the same name:

And I apologize for none of this. It's unfortunate some of these people have gone on to their reward. R.I.P.

And as for Ringo, Happy 69th!!!!!!!!!!!