Fa La La La George

It's been a long political season:


Deck The Halls - For more funny movies, click here


Deck the halls, indeed.

Festival of Lights

I hope you enjoy this video:


Songs In The Key of Hanukkah - Dreidel - Funny bloopers are a click away


Happy Hanukkah.

Christmas Down on the Farm

Feel free to sing along:


Haaappy Holidays! - Free videos are just a click away

Four Hari Krishnas

The more observant may have observed lately that I've been posting less often than before. My only excuse is that I simply don't feel like it. I have no better reason than that but it's my reality and I'm sticking to it.

But I don't want to be too Grinch-y at this time of year so instead of thinking of something to write when I don't feel like it, I'm just going to post holiday videos that I find and I hope you enjoy them.

This one brings an Indian slant to our multi-cultural holiday.


12 Days of Christmas - Funny blooper videos are here


Merry Christmas to all and to all a Good Night!

#2 - Top 5 Totally Uncool Things About My Neighborhood

LITTER!

I’ll not likely confess it to their faces but my parents managed to teach me at least two things – 1) be kind to animals and 2) don’t litter.

Other than quick and easy access to Slurpees® the other upside to living just around the corner from a 7-11 is that as late as 7:35 I can run out for a Lotto ticket in time for the 7:45 draw.

The downside is the constant collection of debris from any fool who happens to finish his Slurpee® or chili dog or push-up pop in the time it takes to reach our house. The wrappings are left on our retaining wall

and on the sidewalk or gutter.

The worst is when they think they can hide their offense by tucking their trash into my plantings.

Who raised these pigs? (no offence to our swine friends is intended.)

Never in my life have I left a piece of trash where it didn’t belong. How much effort is there in either spotting a waste bin or simply carrying it to your final destination?

Let’s not do the math but I remember Lady Bird Johnson’s "Keep America Beautiful" campaign. You know, I think it did some good. It taught me that it wasn’t just my parents who held anti-litter beliefs. The campaign created a cultural awareness that a) America is beautiful and b) each of us is responsible for keeping it that way.

If I wear my bleeding heart liberal cap then I can look into the likely causes of littering – feelings of disenfranchisement and inattentive upbringing. If the first, I’m pretty sure the litterbugs are not homeowners. They feel no sense of investment and are not particularly concerned with the fact that while they are wandering the streets, enjoying their repast from 7-11, I am spending a huge chunk of my day either at work or commuting to/from work and I have little free time to clean up after them.

And so, they blight their own neighborhoods, making the upwardly mobile less likely to buy in, thwarting gentrification.

Not everyone is pro-gentrification and many are actively anti-. But everyone who owns a home is pro-increasing the resale value of his or her home. I don’t plan on selling my house any time soon but there are a few For Sale signs up in my neighborhood. I don’t want those houses on the market indefinitely and I certainly don’t want potential good neighbors discouraged because they see a bunch of food wrappers tucked into hedges. I want new neighbors who will make the effort to take care of their new homes. I want the kind of neighbors who don’t want to live in a neighborhood littered with trash.

I’m not saying I’m pro-gentrification but I don’t want this neighborhood to revert to the gang-y ghetto it was a few years ago.

But if the litterbugs are not invested in the community, then there is no incentive for them to keep the neighborhood moving upward. In fact, there is the disincentive of rising rents. But I don’t believe that the litterbugs are thinking it out this far. I do believe that they don’t think they owe me anything. They don’t believe they have a responsibility to me or to their own neighborhood. I’m sure they don’t even realize the power they have – that they themselves contribute to urban blight. They don’t realize that they have the power to live in a better neighborhood simply by not making it a worse neighborhood.

And there is the conundrum. They, the litterbugs, are not truly disenfranchised; not at all without power. They have power. The have as much power as any of us and they wield it all the time. They just don’t know it.

Lady Bird, where are you? Teach us your lessons again.

Home Value Dropping? That Could Be the Least of Your Worries

Upside down on your mortgage? Can't get that home equity line of credit to finish the rumpus room? Adult kiddies forced to move back in with you? Apparently, the housing crisis isn't the homeowner's only nightmare. According to FOX News, we now have to worry about the possibility of vampires "living right here, among us."

If you haven't the time or inclination to watch the five minute video, allow me to summarize. This Hannity guy gives a little background on vampire lore followed by interviews with a couple of characters who claim to be vampires. They claim their kind come from all walks of life and live in every environment. Some of them even live in (gasp!) suburbs! And some of them dress just like you and me. Since I wear black almost exclusively, it's not big news that they dress like me. What really surprises me is that they dress like you.

Oh, and they don't always feed on blood. One of the interviewees just "feeds on energy." Must be like a vampire Atkins thing.

I discovered this story on Yahoo just before leaving work this evening. A colleague came in to say goodnight. I mentioned the story to him.

"Oh, I know a vampire," he says matter-of-factly.

"Really?"

"Yes. He had his teeth filed into fangs."

"Must be tough at job interviews."

"He's on a reality show now."

Then who am I to judge? He's on a show. I'm not. I spend a lot of time thinking about shows. I think about shows I want to be on. I think about shows I would want to watch. The problem must be my unnaturally natural teeth.

But I digress into self-absorption. Here's the real problem. How is this news? Let us not ponder too long how anything on FOX News is news. But let us just wonder for a moment that considering all the world faces, be it worldwide terrorism, waves of unemployment or the collapse of capitalism as we know it, FOX chooses to report on vampire poseurs.

And while we're at it, what kind of society are we when we have a vampire subculture? Can't we just leave it at armies of Trekkies holding conventions? Haven't we been sufficiently damaged by theatre geeks in bodices and puffy shirts spouting bad Shakespeare at Renaissance Pleasure Faires year after year after year? Aren't midnight showings of Rocky Horror Picture Show enough?

But maybe it speaks well of us. Maybe a country that has the luxury of middle-class subcultures of decadence can't be totally sunken in despair.

But just in case we're not talking about a group of adults fixated on an adolescent fantasy, keep the garlic close at hand and maybe a good, sharp stake at the ready.

You never know. Maybe FOX finally reported some news.

Finally! A Useful Invention

A package came in the mail today. It was from my sister, J. In celebration of our new wood floors, she sent me a gift I can actually use - Slipper Genie™! They're slippers with microfiber chenille soles. At last, I can clean my floors as I walk through the house. No trip to the fridge will be wasted (only waisted). No need to feel guilty that my evenings are not spent housecleaning.

The packaging says they fit sizes 6 to 9. That's quite a range.

The microfiber chenille on these babies is soft, soft, soft! Too bad it doesn't line both sides of the sole.

The package comes with a list of warnings. They include "Do not slide or run." Ok. "Do not use on carpet." Got it. And "Do not use if your balance is not stable." Not a problem. I believe I previously mentioned my excellent sense of balance. I'm surprised they didn't also list "Do not use while intoxicated." They do mention that the slippers "are not a toy." I guess that means I won't be engaging them in any home puppet theatre action. That's an unfortunate loss.

I'm now going to walk around the house for a while. Out of the way, dust bunnies!

Thanks, J!