Recently in News Category

I got home from a very long day at work today and was thrilled to see the news that Hillary decided to concede the primary. By the time I could log on and blog about my excitement the story had been corrected.

Shame on you, Associated Press! This is not the first time election results have been prematurely (and inaccurately) announced - remember 2000?

The good news is Obama's candidacy is only delayed, he's not going to lose. By the end of this week my beloved Barack will be able to focus on beating McCain in November.

Come on, Hillary, this is embarrassing (for you) and has gone on long enough! I mean I like you as a candidate and all, it was a tough choice for me - but step aside.

Please pardon my rant, I am extra sad about this because I won't be able to watch Jon Stewart address the whole mishap on The Daily Show. And that's just not right.

I voted in my first US presidential primary election today! I headed to the polls early and found something very different from what I had expected. I had pictured a bustling, busy place full of citizens eager to cast their vote. I found a couple of booths set up in someone's garage. I had envisioned a volunteer stopping me on my way out to conduct an exit poll. They didn't even give me an "I Voted" sticker. Despite those deviations from the experience I had pictured, I am very excited about my day.

I am proud of myself for having made an informed decision. I've been watching the debates - both Democratic and Republican - and doing research online. After the California debates I decided to vote for Barack Obama. I am very impressed and feel that he is the right person to represent our country to the rest of the world. I feel that America has a long way to go go rebuild the reputation our current President has destroyed, and Barack is the one to do that. He has a commanding presence that one can't help but respect, and he has a long-term vision.

I also liked Ron Paul, if I had felt that he was a good strategic choice I might have had a more difficult time deciding. No second thoughts though, I'm all for Barack!

In case you aren't familiar with Critical Mass, it is a protest held in San Francisco (and various other cities around the globe) where hundreds of bicyclists get together to block the streets to motor traffic. I've been caught in it twice, and was incredibly disappointed by my fellow San Franciscans. They are screaming obscenities, banging on car windows, and just about anything else you can think of that is annoying.

During the March ride, one threw a bicycle through the rear window of a mini-van driven by a suburban Mom taking her kids to a birthday party. The sad news is, the person will likely not even get prosecuted. But our philandering mayor Gavin Newsom vows to take "a good look" at the problem. There are more details in this SF Chronicle article - but it just irritates me to read it. Seriously, I'm getting a headache from rolling my eyes.

To be honest, I'm not even sure the point of Critical Mass. Is it to make a statement against the pollution caused by cars, or against so-called "inconsiderate" drivers? I guess it doesn't really matter because it doesn't effectively do either. Forcing cars to sit and idle while waiting for the parade of obnoxious whiners rides by isn't any better for the air than just letting drivers go on their way. I've never met anyone who decided not to commute for a day because they were so moved by this ridiculous demonstration. News flash: San Francisco is a city of commuters. Hundreds of thousands of people do it every day and you congregating and acting like jack-asses once a month won't change that. Get real, and get a life.

The cyclists bitch about being ignored by drivers. The day I see a cyclist actually obey traffic laws, I'll be so shocked I won't be able to ignore it. They don't stop for red lights, don't use bike lanes when they're provided, and fail to yield when turning. They make traffic problems worse, and cause accidents all the time. So my answer to their complaints about unsafe drivers is this: get off the road.

When these people moved to the city (or chose to stay here), what were they imagining the commute to be like? Rolling hills, quiet nature sounds, watching the sunrise/sunset, and enjoying the crisp air? They have that very close by, you know...in the places we are all commuting to/from.

Taxi drivers in this city are some of the craziest people and most dangerous drivers I've ever seen (no offense). They break traffic laws, speed through crowded streets, and just aren't courteous on the road. But you learn to deal with it, and drive defensively. If you're heading down a street at 30mph and see a taxi that looks like it might want to turn (they don't use blinkers so you have to develop a special taxi esp to tell what they're going to do), you have to prepare to slam on the brakes and deal with it. They don't care, it's not their car. Once I was in a taxi that made a noticeable dent in a parked car and drove on as if he didn't notice. I asked him if he noticed, and his reply was "it's ok."

But this rant is not about taxi drivers, it's about bicyclists. Just like I have had to learn to drive amongst the crazy taxis, drunk pedestrians/homeless people wandering into crowded intersections, last-minute double parkers, illegal lane changers and u-turners; they need to learn to ride among drivers whose main priority isn't yielding to annoying cyclists.

I hate driving in this city, I'll admit. But I know that before I even get to my car that I park 4 blocks away from my house because I can't find a closer spot. I'm not going to waste my energy trying to piss people off and make a spectacle of myself. I'm not going to take out my frustration on a family in a mini-van. I'm not going to perpetuate the stereotypes and bad attitudes that already exist about people like me (in my case, female drivers :). I'll just take the bus, thank you very much.

And on the bus, I get the pleasure of trying to balance in my high heels while holding my laptop bag, purse, and whatever tiny sliver of handrail I can manage to squeeze in between the grimy hands of fellow passengers. I get to take in the glorious smells of body odor, urine, old lady perfume to the 10th power, and morning breath. Once my stop finally arrives I'll get to revel in the joy of pushing past all the other jerks who hate their morning bus ride too, so that I can stumble out the back door just in time to be cut off by a damn bicyclist. But guess what: there's no use complaining because if I didn't like it, I could just always ride a bike.

I apologize for offending any of my friends who participate in Critical Mass with this post. If so, please contact me so that we can re-evaluate our friendship.

According to this AP article, a high school wrestling coach has been reprimanded by the State of Oregon for biting a student. Yes, biting. He left "distinctive teethmarks" according to the article. Why would a coach/teacher bite a student, you ask? Well, it seems the wrestling team was attempting to give him a wedgie. Yes, a wedgie. In case you have been hiding under a rock for the past century, please see the following description as described on Wikipedia.



The Wedgie is a joke maneuver or prank performed to humiliate someone. It is inflicted when an individual, or group of individuals, grab the underwear of the victim from behind and pull up, causing the underwear to wedge between the buttocks. A wedgie is also what happens when a person's undergarments get bunched up and "ride up" between the buttocks, causing discomfort and annoyance. This can be caused by bad posture, awkward sitting or tight underpants. (On the other hand, thongs are, essentially, designed to be wedged between the buttock. However, a wedgie while wearing a thong is extremely difficult to rectify, due to the garment's slender nature)

What is the appropriate defensive tactic when being attacked by a mob of high school kids intent on giving you a wedgie, anyway? I can't say I blame the guy, but also understand the State can't really condone the behavior.

Those of us who remember the show "Salute Your Shorts" on Nickelodeon know that a wedgie is not nearly as bad as a "Melvin."

Nope...it's not a joke, or a bad horror movie. Carnivorous frogs are seriously invading San Francisco!

Somehow, African Clawed Frogs found their way into Lily Pond in golden gate park. They have upset the ecosystem and killed most of the animals the species normally preys on...and now they're eating each other. Cannibal frogs. I can hardly keep a straight face. One of the ideas in the San Francisco Chronicle article was to introduce a natural predator. Unfortunately, the only one they could come up with was the crocodile.

Personally, I think the solution involves Samuel L. Jackson. They could film the whole event and call it "Frogs on a Bridge." Maybe the frogs take over the Golden Gate Bridge and prey on tourists, and the only one who can save the City is the guy who was on the bridge getting ready to jump (played by Mr. Jackson, of course). His name is Jeremy Fisher (ironically, also the name of the title character in Beatrix Potter's children's story about a frog who doesn't die when he should have), and he is upset because he was dumped by his girlfriend Jane (played by Halle Berry). But when he sees the tourists fleeing for their lives, he forgets his personal troubles and realizes that he is their only hope. As they attack, he starts killing the frogs - one at a time at first, then several with one swoop of his Samurai sword. It's a Hitori Hanzo - he had it with him just in case he survived the jump and there were sharks in the Bay below.